Some frustrated snap reactions after taking an hour to cool down

[Libero2]

Must’ve been a blown assignment by Safety. I have to believe there’s no way the staff puts him on island considering all you rightly mentioned.

This is my assumption as well, but it didnt look like either safety had even the slightest thought “I should be deep right now” and of course that Stanford play last year was also a clear sign of hubris by our staff as well.

Either way, since it happened, it’s a learning moment for staff and players. With luck Samuels is bottling that feeling he had of allowing it, and is working hard this week to make sure it doesn’t happen again, at least to the extent it’s within his control.

 

[ECE '76]

On D…… is it a talent issue or a scheme and play calling issue…… I know we don’t have the talent we’d like but is that the main culprit? You saw what Tenn D does with stunts, blitzes, delayed blitzes. You don’t need huge talent to make things happen (Tenn does have talent). You do need play calling that has a plan and knows when to call certain plays at certain times. Good play callers make things look easy. The players typically get the credit. But look at every pressure and sack. A lot of creativity in how Tenn D attacked our line. Correct me if I’m wrong, I don’t see that in our playcalling.

I wonder who SU has for defensive "consultants"? It seems like the staff could use a former DC to fill in the strategic areas that ERob is weak in.

 

[Cusester]

Kevin Coyle - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

On the staff.

 

[Chip]

This was a money grab and we need the money. Hated that it was the same year we go to South Bend but oh well, they’re not offering this any year we want.

The rest of the schedule is just unfortunate based on the shuffling after adding the west coast teams.

In this era, I’m fine with scheduling attractive teams, as long as their home and homes. This one was a one off.

 

[FrancoPizza]

We don’t have one Darius, Ponds, Bulluck or Freeney - not one play maker anywhere - really weak at LB - I agree we have to come up with some creative sets - felt like every sack they had came off a blitz unblocked

If talent on D is still a problem in year 3 of Fran then you have to start questioning what the Fluck is going on. We should be seeing some signs of life in year 2.

 

[FrancoPizza]

Like I said in the game thread yesterday,

The biggest difference in this game was on the line of scrimmage. Their QB (who in my opinion was quite bad, and will be Tennessee’s downfall this year) had all day to throw, and for his WRs to find open holes in a zone defense. We had absolutely no pass rush, and it took guys more than 3 seconds to disengage from a block to try and slowly plod after the QB.

Just looking at the way their RBs went down is also tell-tale about the lack of talent (or at least strength) compared to ours. Even when we did clog the lanes and that back had no where to go, every time it seemed to take us 3-4 guys to wrestle their backs to the ground. Which then allowed them to fall forward for another 2-3-4 yards.

Their OL opened up lanes, climbed to the second level well and ours held their own against what I suspect will prove a dominant front in the SEC. Unfortunately we didnt excel, and we were terribly unprepared for their delayed blitzes and stunt game. Their creativity created some luck (the diving INT, and the lucky bounce leading to the scoop and score) and they took advantage. If that INT hits the turf and if that fumbles squirts all the way out of bounds, the game is a whole heck of a lot closer in the fourth quarter.

We aren’t a bad team. We had critical errors at key moments yesterday and couldn’t recover. When you go to play a team that’s highly talented and very experienced, you cannot do that and expect to win. You have to play an extremely clean game. We did not. Thus the result. The reality always was (even if we didnt know it yet) that we were overmatched in the trenches, particularly along the Dline. Only way to overcome just how big a competitive gap we displayed yesterday was to be flawless elsewhere. Clearly we were not.

Team is still going to be strong this year, but we need to be a lot cleaner in other ways, and certainly need to scheme up something against the run, quickly.

Side note: Demetres Samuels played well in my opinion. He got picked on early, but also made some damn good plays. That deep ball annoys me from a scheme perspective. Why are we leaving him on an island, like he is Darrelle Revis, in his first college game, against a burner, and a QB that we couldn’t even get close enough to breathe on? Is that just our coaches having too much faith in him before he’s proven it in games? Is that a safety screwing up his assignment so bad he’s not in the play?

Believe it or not, lots to be encouraged by yesterday. Even if we got taken behind the woodshed in the first quarter. Thought we pretty much controlled the second half aside from that damn interception and that final gotta have a stop drive.

The offense gives us some reason to be optimistic but the narrative that we controlled the 2nd half while chasing points is a little bit of a homer take. Tennessee didn’t have to play overly aggressive once they got up 17. They wanted to save some of their playbook for their tougher games.

 

[atlanticuse]

I wonder who SU has for defensive "consultants"? It seems like the staff could use a former DC to fill in the strategic areas that ERob is weak in.

Yet Ed Reed is the OFFENSIVE coordinator at a high school in Atlanta...

ABOUT ED REED | Chamblee Football

www.chambleebulldogs.com

 

[Orangefizz]

Of course it is the coaching. We have the talent, except at DE. Which is a big, glaring gap -- admittedly. But everywhere else, we have the horses.

I think that ERob might have had things easier at aTm, where they recruit nothing but blue chip guys. So you're bound to have quality d-linemen at a factory like that. Here, where coaching matters, and we have to build up quality depth, you get exposed if you can't coach.

Well... he struggled as a DC last year, and didn't inspire today. He seems like the weak link on an otherwise good staff. Just IMO.

Agree with what you’re saying; he’s no Tony White. We need a DC of this caliber

 

[cusefan88]

The new ACC calculations of TV eyeballs for money makes this a good year for Cuse. Not sure if they count non-conference networks (ND game)

 

[tbonezone]

If talent on D is still a problem in year 3 of Fran then you have to start questioning what the Fluck is going on. We should be seeing some signs of life in year 2.

looked to me like the Tennessee RBS were knocking our linemen backwards on contact.

 

[Crusty]

It all just looks so passive. We don't seem to try and take anything away. And we're fairly predictable.

The dichotomy in third down confidence between the coordinators is incredible. I feel at ease with whatever Nixon calls on 3rd down on offense, regardless of distance. But with ERob, 3rd and long is terrifying and the terror is too often rewarded because he's content to let the opponent run the play they want.

Maddening.

Exactly

 

[Libero2]

The offense gives us some reason to be optimistic but the narrative that we controlled the 2nd half while chasing points is a little bit of a homer take. Tennessee didn’t have to play overly aggressive once they got up 17. They wanted to save some of their playbook for their tougher games.

Oh they definitely took the foot off the gas on O. But we also played better assignment football. It’s hard to say how close things would have ended up if Tenn had gone all out all 60 minutes, but they gave us a chance at the end and we didnt take advantage of it.

 

[PhatOrange]

EROB has always been known as a top 10 type recruiter and very good DLine coach. His entire 14 year career was DL except one year he was Co-DC at A&M. He's getting his opportunity to be a DC and failing.

There's a belief he's running an SEC type defense where they get ALL Pro tackles that can create pressure by themselves. This is false. He's not running an SEC defense because they all blitz and run stunts. You saw it Saturday with Tennessee, you saw it with Texas and LSU. Watch SEC defenses...they aren't primarily rushing 3 or 4 and sitting back. They mix it up and try to create chaos to speed up the QBs and flood running lanes. Watch the Texas defense. stunting and blitzing, 5 man lines, 4/3 looks, 5/2 looks, zone, man, (OSU had 203 total yards for the game.). They play downhill. we seem to play backpedalling.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

EROB has always been known as a top 10 type recruiter and very good DLine coach. His entire 14 year career was DL except one year he was Co-DC at A&M. He's getting his opportunity to be a DC and failing.

There's a belief he's running an SEC type defense where they get ALL Pro tackles that can create pressure. This is false. He's not running an SEC defense because they all blitz and run stunts. You saw it Saturday with Tennessee, you saw it with Texas and LSU. Watch SEC defenses...they aren't primarily rushing 3 or 4 and sitting back. They mix it up and try to create chaos to speed up the QBs. Watch the Texas defense. stunting and blitzing, 5 man lines, 4/3 looks, 5/2 looks, zone, man, (OSU had 203 total yards for the game.). They play downhill. we seem to play backpedalling.

It all fails the look test regardless of scheme, it's simply a poor unit and he's the DC. It's a tough situation for everyone and there is time but you can't exit year 2 and still be playing the "talent card". It's simply not acceptable in today's landscape, there has to be a baseline of competence established which hasn't played out on the field.

Plenty of time but they need to get their act together. Big week for the defensive coaches and players. The defense has to at least be average versus the lesser and peer type programs. Walk before you run type stuff.

 

[Archbold44]

My take:

QB: Better than I expected, not as good as I irrationally hoped. But look at Texas and ND. We did not have a road game like them, but it was pretty close to it. And I do not think Angeli played any worse than Manning or Carr. If they get the benefit of the doubt for lack of experience, he does too. The turnovers were the killers.

RB: Better than expected.

OL: Better than expected within running game, some bad moments in pass protection though.

WR: Not as good as expected. I thought we would have more separation, even against a good Tennessee DB crew.

Offense in general--too much motion early in the game. It seemed to take us out of our rhythym. Like we we were not sure what to call because we cared too much about their defense. Tennessee seemed to just call plays quickly and execute. It was almost like we were conceding that we needed to confuse them or find the mismatch to move the ball. Later, when we settled down and just ran plays, it seemed like we did better.

I do not know what to say about defense. I thought there were some good tackles at times. If the goal is to bend but not break, it needs to be modified such that we do not break. Too many repeated big plays. Bending and not breaking should be like our last drive against Tennessee. We march down the field with short plays that have no chance of being touchdowns. And then defend the red zone. I do not like bend but don't break... but bend AND break is all the worse. Not sure whether players, scheme, or both. But we need to confuse offenses more than we do.

Again, credit to Tennessee for a great OL, but our DL did not get pressure, only had one tackle for a loss
that I remember. We were down to 3rd string guys late, with all the injuries. But they seemed to do just as well (or not well) as the first team. Is there a 4th string? If injuries are significant, this could be a weak spot getting weaker.

LB: Cannot tell, really. I thought the LBs generally made tackles in space. But there was minimal pushback when they got into the red zone. Seemed like a matter of when they would score--unless Aguilar overthrew players, etc.

DBs: Too many big plays allowed, too much cushion. Not sure whether players or scheme.

Special teams: I think improved. We'll see.

My over/under was 5.5. WIth the loss, we now need to run the table at home to get a bowl (or pull an upset in a road game). This is why I thought Tennessee game was key. If we cannot pull the upset at full strength, not sure how we will do it late in the season when we are all farther down the depth chart. So I never quite saw 8-4. At the same time, of those 5 road games we have left, only Miami looked better than expected. On to the 2nd most important game of the season... UConn. They only get a few chances to play P4 teams, so they will be gunning for us. We are their Super Bowl. We better be ready to play or the season could derail pretty quickly.

 

[richmondcuse03]

People are forgetting we have a co defensive coordinator too. He was a DC before at Buffalo too. And we have some experienced older folks on staff too. We should be able to mix things up. The biggest issue is a lack of talent at LB, which is of course on the coaches.

 

[Sdot]

People are forgetting we have a co defensive coordinator too. He was a DC before at Buffalo too. And we have some experienced older folks on staff too. We should be able to mix things up. The biggest issue is a lack of talent at LB, which is of course on the coaches.

I agree my only thing is, I think D-line might be a little more of a problem. If we get pushed back off the ball it’s a disadvantage for the whole defense. But yea our front 7 can’t be not good when we have young corners.

 

[cuseincincy]

I think its going to be very hard to assess this team's improvement over the course of the year based solely on record. There are too many opponents that can beat us even if we play well. Playing well has to be the focus. Next 2 games are no excuses to get worked out what you need to because playing well the last 9 games could mean a 5-4 record. I saw a lot of good out there but we were overmatched in a hostile environment.

 

[VA Citrus]

Playing Tennessee week one in Atlanta was a tall task. Dino would have lost 63-6. At times we made it a game and matched them. Maybe a few weeks later in the season we would have been more competitive. UNC, Texas, Alabama, and Clemson all looked bad in week one. With the transfer portal, the quality of football early in the season seems to be deteriorating as TV demands more of these big early season match ups.