Positives vs the Negatives (Babers Era)

[CU44SE]

I would say the Offensive Line has been a failure, but I also think we missed on the QB and somehow have not gotten any other QB to come into the program and challenge Devito. I do not think the O-line is a strength, but I also do not see it as the biggest problem. We knew this year was going to be a tough year, especially when the new schedule came out. As we do every year, we tried to talk ourselves into a better record then was possible. UNC has a ton of talent and will be an excellent team this year. Pitt only beat us by 11 and it was because our offense was so inept. I would also argue Pitt is not an excellent team, but is an above average team, we have always struggled to beat them. The next few games will be really telling, and I agree with above, that we should see how this year plays out. I think there is a lot to learn this year, hell, Babers might go out shopping for a transfer QB this year which could pay dividends next year.

 

[orlandoorange]

I find it quite interesting that a coach with absolutely no track record of sustained success at the HC position is viewed here as some end all be all for the football program. He only had 4 years as a head coach prior to arriving at Syracuse. At Eastern Illinois he rode the coat tails of a future star NFL quarterback, and after he graduated, immediately left for Bowling Green. There, he simply maintained that status quo for two years of what Dave Claussen built. He has been a head coach at Syracuse at this stage longer than his totality of prior head coaching experience...at nearly 60 years of age. So again, absolutely zero track record of sustained success/building a program.

His overall record here is under .500 and it appears he is well on his way in YEAR 5 to further enhance that mark. So, for me, his "belief without evidence" has long worn off, as his record here speaks for itself, in that to date, he/his team has been consistently poor vs. "consistently good and occasionally great."

Agreed, he doesn't have a strong track record yet. At this point we've had belief with little positive evidence. This is his QB running his preferred offense.

You gotta have a stop in at some point, I'm not sure where, in my mind it's at the end of next season, sooner if we only win one this year.

 

[ImperialOrange]

I would say the Offensive Line has been a failure, but I also think we missed on the QB and somehow have not gotten any other QB to come into the program and challenge Devito. I do not think the O-line is a strength, but I also do not see it as the biggest problem. We knew this year was going to be a tough year, especially when the new schedule came out. As we do every year, we tried to talk ourselves into a better record then was possible. UNC has a ton of talent and will be an excellent team this year. Pitt only beat us by 11 and it was because our offense was so inept. I would also argue Pitt is not an excellent team, but is an above average team, we have always struggled to beat them. The next few games will be really telling, and I agree with above, that we should see how this year plays out. I think there is a lot to learn this year, hell, Babers might go out shopping for a transfer QB this year which could pay dividends next year.

I don't thy the online is as bad this year as they were last season. Yes they get blown up occasionally but fair amount of sacks are on plays where the ball should be out or the RB whiffs or gets chucked on a block. Equally there seems to be running lanes when our RBs see them some of the time which is up from none of the time last year. We can't run 3 step drops and not get the ball out nor can we run 5/7 step drops with the RB in to block and miss. May as well have them release into the flat at that point.

Flip side is all the first and second year players on defense playing exceptionally well along side some very high talent level upper class men. You can see the talent level rising on that side of the ball and believe the WR group would show similar if we didn't break our QBs. I like our RBs (sans blocking) as well but coaches need to stop square pegging them vs change play calls to highlight their strengths.

If Tommy gets his MOJO back or one of the other QBs steps up this gets better quickly. Think Tommy is terrified of throwing INTs after a few bad ones the other year. If he gets that gunslinger mentality back this can work.

 

[721Comstock]

And formerly respected programs fall into oblivion.

We haven’t been “formerly respected” since about 2002.

 

[CU44SE]

I don't thy the online is as bad this year as they were last season. Yes they get blown up occasionally but fair amount of sacks are on plays where the ball should be out or the RB whiffs or gets chucked on a block. Equally there seems to be running lanes when our RBs see them some of the time which is up from none of the time last year. We can't run 3 step drops and not get the ball out nor can we run 5/7 step drops with the RB in to block and miss. May as well have them release into the flat at that point.

Flip side is all the first and second year players on defense playing exceptionally well along side some very high talent level upper class men. You can see the talent level rising on that side of the ball and believe the WR group would show similar if we didn't break our QBs. I like our RBs (sans blocking) as well but coaches need to stop square pegging them vs change play calls to highlight their strengths.

If Tommy gets his MOJO back or one of the other QBs steps up this gets better quickly. Think Tommy is terrified of throwing INTs after a few bad ones the other year. If he gets that gunslinger mentality back this can work.

To your point, the defense seems to have a lot of talent scattered all over the field. The offense could very well have this same type of talent that we are just not able to see yet.

Coaches miss on recruits all the time, and currently it looks like devito was a big miss. The worst part of it, he wasn’t able to bring anyone else in the past 3 years because of Devito and that is were we have a massive hole. I agree on the O-Line, last year at the beginning they were a disaster. They do not look nearly as lost or as much of a disaster but we are having the same issues and lack of offense. That is why I believe it is QB related. Time will tell, and even though it hasn’t been pretty I think we are close. QB just happens to be the most important position in all of sports. And if you don’t have a QB, you don’t really have an offense or a competitive football team.

 

[ImperialOrange]

To your point, the defense seems to have a lot of talent scattered all over the field. The offense could very well have this same type of talent that we are just not able to see yet.

Coaches miss on recruits all the time, and currently it looks like devito was a big miss. The worst part of it, he wasn’t able to bring anyone else in the past 3 years because of Devito and that is were we have a massive hole. I agree on the O-Line, last year at the beginning they were a disaster. They do not look nearly as lost or as much of a disaster but we are having the same issues and lack of offense. That is why I believe it is QB related. Time will tell, and even though it hasn’t been pretty I think we are close. QB just happens to be the most important position in all of sports. And if you don’t have a QB, you don’t really have an offense or a competitive football team.

I wouldn't say he's a big miss but we might have ruined him. He CAN make every throw on the route tree and he CAN lead this team if he finds confidence. He second guesses his own reads due to some bad picks, freezes then pulls it down. Granted he's taken an absolute beating but some of that is now self imposed. He is not a running qb but has the mentality of one currently. He needs to just throw the ball away half the time and regroup... Thinking about it know I wonder if playing behind Dungey hindered him as he tries to mimic him but is not physically capable of it.

Tommy needs to get back to being the Tommy that came in and beat FSU and UNC out of the bullpen. Simple as that albeit maybe that qb is no longer there.

Beyond that we have Rex who has great vision but lacks mechanics and arm strength, and 2 Frosh and a Soph that we know nothing about.

We have brought others in that may well have been physically talented but couldn't stick. Chance Amie and that Bama kid were running QBs no longer here, and Lamson next year will be again. Maybe we can find a grad transfer in that same mold next season as stop gap if need be. Seems we NEED that element for our offense to run.

 

[cuse10]

To your point, the defense seems to have a lot of talent scattered all over the field. The offense could very well have this same type of talent that we are just not able to see yet.

Coaches miss on recruits all the time, and currently it looks like devito was a big miss. The worst part of it, he wasn’t able to bring anyone else in the past 3 years because of Devito and that is were we have a massive hole. I agree on the O-Line, last year at the beginning they were a disaster. They do not look nearly as lost or as much of a disaster but we are having the same issues and lack of offense. That is why I believe it is QB related. Time will tell, and even though it hasn’t been pretty I think we are close. QB just happens to be the most important position in all of sports. And if you don’t have a QB, you don’t really have an offense or a competitive football team.

If you have double digit sacks through two games, they are a disaster. There is no way to ignore that.

 

[rocklloyd]

Winning will fix everything.

 

[CU44SE]

If you have double digit sacks through two games, they are a disaster. There is no way to ignore that.

Because every sack is on the O-Line? That’s not even remotely close to true.

 

[Maxsumm]

Its a bit ironic that the perfect QB for Dino's offense is mobile, tough, able to make quick decisions (Dungey) and he was here before Dino got here. His inability to recruit a QB that can truly run the up tempo offense has been headscratching. I would have thought the success Dungey had in the 10 win season would bring excitement and new recruits, haven't seen that yet.