SWC75
Bored Historian
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The coach’s show is on TK99, (FM 99.5) in the Syracuse area and can also be heard through Orange All-Access on the SU Athletic website. It’s 8PM Thursdays- or two days before each game, when they are not on Saturday. They have a link to their “Radio Mailbox” for submitting E-Mail questions on the SU Athletic website. You also can call in questions at 1-888-740-2873 or locally at 315-424-8599.
In past years it took sometimes weeks for a podcast to turn up on the SU athletics website, so I tried to do a virtual transcript of the show. This year I missed the first show and the pod cast was available the next day at this site:
http://www.suathletics.com/podcasts.aspx
This year I’ll start out by just summarizing the main points and referring people to the pod cast to listen to the whole thing. If the podcast starts appearing later- such as after the next game, I’ll go back to doing more of a transcript.
My Questions/Comments
“Coach in the 13 season since Donovan McNabb left, our average offensive ranking has been 89th in yards gained and 81st in points scored. We look at the games on national TV and we see offenses moving up and down the field and scoring tons of points. It’s like we are driving a horse and buggy in the Indy 500.
I know I’m just a fan but I’d really like to see two things next year that could get us going: We need a back-up quarterback that you are willing to play so that Ryan Nassib can be allowed to use his running ability more, both on planned runs and scrambles. It would give our offense an extra dimension.
I also want to make my annual pitch for a two-back backfield- not just a running back and a blocker. I grew up with Nance. Csonka and Floyd Little and saw Franco Harris and Lydell Mitchell at Penn State. All the great pro teams had great fullback-halfback combinations. Our 1987-88 teams had Daryl Johnston running for 600 yards while Drummond and Owens got 1300 yards between then in part because the defense had to defend against the Moose. Next year we’ll have two pile movers in Smith and Moore and a guy who needs to be in space in Gulley. They would make an ideal inside-outside combination. And Gulley could still be a receiver. Defenses would not be used to facing a two back attack and it could give us a real edge.
So what is the likelihood of our having a reliable back-up quarterback, a running starting quarterback and two-back backfield next year?”
HCDM
They did a taped show in which they took no phone calls as the Coach is out on the recruiting trail just now. They did, however, get to my E-Mail, (see below).
On the Pitt game: “Down 0-10 before you know it. I give the kids credit for battling back. It was about what it’s been out all season: penalties and field position, (plus turnovers). A lot of times we were able to do things well but not when it would have made a difference.” Matt said that “it could been 3-50” but the team didn’t let that happen. Coach: “There is effort. The next thing is fundamentals. That’s what got us all year. The teams we are playing have more talent than we do so we have to play on a very high level to defeat them.”
They discussed the pedantic nature of our offense. “Every 15 play drive has a big play in it, 3rd and 8 or something. We didn’t do that enough. We were in the bottom half of the country in big plays. We’re not putting the players in a position to get big plays. There’s some good stats but we still don’t have that break-away run. In the off-season, we will look at spreading the field or using the short pass the way Pitt did. We really haven‘t been explosive since Donovan McNabb. I‘ve looked at some films from that era and he was able to extend some plays better than we have.”
Matt talked about getting some playmakers. HCDM: “It’s also about what the defense is giving you.” Doug said that he and the staff graded the Pitt game early Sunday morning. He put the results on his I-Pad. “There’s a lot of down-time on the road and with the I-Pad I can look at anything while I’m on the road. I keep a sort of diary and self-critique. Then we’ll review the overall program when I get home.”
Matt said the season could be bluntly summarized by two sets of numbers: 8-5, 5-7. Doug agreed. “People want to hear the truth, not a defense of the team with some stats. I feel badly about where we are right now. I feel we let down our seniors. We had a lot of leadership a couple of years ago and will have next year. We have to see a marked improvement, not just a daily grind of getting better.”
“We have to find a way to create big plays. It matters when and where the yardage is coming. Are we getting a big play when it’s too late to impact the outcome? In New Orleans we took a lot of shots, (downfield). We have to find a way to get more pressure on the defense. That’s what some teams have done to us- we don’t have enough helmets in the picture. We can’t stay where we are in the, (offensive), rankings. But we don’t’ need to just improve statistically. We need to improve enough to win games.”
Matt asked what “What’s up for discussion?” Doug: “To change passing plays, the run game, use more misdirection, running the quarterback and the fullback, etc., making people defend more of the field. We’re studying what other teams are doing. I’ll be studying film of 2-3 teams.”
Matt noted that “Jerome Smith can really move the pile.” Doug: the tough part with younger kids is that if they’ve had success, they think they’ve arrived. He’s worked extremely hard. It will be interesting to see how he develops.
Matt brought up my question about a two back backfield and pointed out it had been kind of a tradition at Syracuse. Doug: “I’d like to get to the point where we have someone back there who can score. We need balance- the ability to move the pile and operate in space. Different runners- so the defense can’t get in tune to one type of runner.” He didn‘t precisely say that we’d have both capabilities at once.
Later in the broadcast they touched on the other part of my question: about developing a back-up quarterback to release Nassib to use his running ability more than he has. He said that that is exactly what they want to do. Matt suggested that different types of runners will give the defense more to prepare for. HCDM: “We don’t just want to give them more to prepare for. We want to make them defend more of the field.”
Hey turned their attention to the defense. Matt described last year’s defense as “stifling” but noted we’d lost two top-flight line backs and this year had a “young athletic group”. Doug: “At times we gave up big plays. We had changes at corner, at linebacker. Did we give them enough help? How do you get more people to the ball?”
Matt noted that Chandler Jones had “missed a chunk of time and that had a ripple effect on the team”. Coach said “We need more players like him. We need to play man-to-man outside and pressure the quarterback. When we’ve done that, we’ve played well.”
Matt noted that they were “Back to the drawing board on punting.” Doug again said they were looking at using the “spread” formation on punts, (the “shield”). He repeated something he said on an earlier show- that in the NFL you can’t go downfield until the ball is kicked. I now think he’s referring to an NFL rule that doesn’t apply in college. He said that 38 plays per game, on average are “special teams” plays, (meaning they involve kicks). “We have to run down field and converge. When we don’t we get blocked and that’s where the problems begin.” Matt noted that the people who make plays on kicks tend to be the “speed guys” like Dorian Graham and Kyle Foster.
They discussed the “foolish penalties”. Doug attributed them to a “lack of discipline or understanding of what we are trying to do“. Matt asked about the Nadamukong Suh situation, noting that Detroit Coach Jim Schwartz is in a hard position because the league ahs punished Suh: how does he discipline his own player to make his point? Doug declined to comment on the situation.
They talked about recruiting. Coach said that we’re “in great shape” for this class. “A little longer, faster players. I’d like to look at the top 50 and say that we got 25 of them. But we want the right kind of character kids- who can be leaders in the classroom and then on the field.” Matt asked if he still believes in his program or if he’s re-evaluating the standards he’s applied to the team. HCDM: “Some things are more important than winning by all means, such as preparing the players for their future and being true to the future of the program and the school.” Matt suggested that enforcing the rules causes “those who’ve minded their P’s and Q’s to buy into the program all the more.” Doug said that that was true.
Doug added that not being in a bowl didn’t seem to discourage any of his recruits but that the move to the ACC has them all excited. Matt suggested that “the footprint of the ACC” is more fertile recruiting ground than the Big East and Doug agreed with that, too. (The footprint of the Big East, of course, is now the entire country but I suspect it’s a very shallow footprint.) Doug pointed out that Cameron Lynch was the “Georgia Player of the Year”. He added “I’ve never seen a slow playmaker. We have to put them in the right spots when they get here.”
Doug said that the staff was “already on top of 2013. The process starts so much earlier that you can make more mistakes. You don’t get to see their senior year, (before you make your offer). You have to be a very good talent evaluator. There’s no such thing as pick-up football and no AAU circuit where you can watch them during the summer.”
On the move to the ACC: “We have a long way to go and have to catch up quickly. My focus is to make us the best team we can be. I have no control over when we make the move.”
They discussed the fact that we will play in the Meadowlands next year vs. USC. Doug said that he hoped that Matt Barkley goes to the pros. Matt asked him to compare Barkley to Andrew Luck but Doug declined. “If I were in the pros I could make such comparisons because I would have seen some games and interviewed them: Are they making people around them better or are the people around them making them better?” Matt noted that Drew Brees was not highly recruited, probably due to his height. “That type of quarterback develops. It takes time.”
In past years it took sometimes weeks for a podcast to turn up on the SU athletics website, so I tried to do a virtual transcript of the show. This year I missed the first show and the pod cast was available the next day at this site:
http://www.suathletics.com/podcasts.aspx
This year I’ll start out by just summarizing the main points and referring people to the pod cast to listen to the whole thing. If the podcast starts appearing later- such as after the next game, I’ll go back to doing more of a transcript.
My Questions/Comments
“Coach in the 13 season since Donovan McNabb left, our average offensive ranking has been 89th in yards gained and 81st in points scored. We look at the games on national TV and we see offenses moving up and down the field and scoring tons of points. It’s like we are driving a horse and buggy in the Indy 500.
I know I’m just a fan but I’d really like to see two things next year that could get us going: We need a back-up quarterback that you are willing to play so that Ryan Nassib can be allowed to use his running ability more, both on planned runs and scrambles. It would give our offense an extra dimension.
I also want to make my annual pitch for a two-back backfield- not just a running back and a blocker. I grew up with Nance. Csonka and Floyd Little and saw Franco Harris and Lydell Mitchell at Penn State. All the great pro teams had great fullback-halfback combinations. Our 1987-88 teams had Daryl Johnston running for 600 yards while Drummond and Owens got 1300 yards between then in part because the defense had to defend against the Moose. Next year we’ll have two pile movers in Smith and Moore and a guy who needs to be in space in Gulley. They would make an ideal inside-outside combination. And Gulley could still be a receiver. Defenses would not be used to facing a two back attack and it could give us a real edge.
So what is the likelihood of our having a reliable back-up quarterback, a running starting quarterback and two-back backfield next year?”
HCDM
They did a taped show in which they took no phone calls as the Coach is out on the recruiting trail just now. They did, however, get to my E-Mail, (see below).
On the Pitt game: “Down 0-10 before you know it. I give the kids credit for battling back. It was about what it’s been out all season: penalties and field position, (plus turnovers). A lot of times we were able to do things well but not when it would have made a difference.” Matt said that “it could been 3-50” but the team didn’t let that happen. Coach: “There is effort. The next thing is fundamentals. That’s what got us all year. The teams we are playing have more talent than we do so we have to play on a very high level to defeat them.”
They discussed the pedantic nature of our offense. “Every 15 play drive has a big play in it, 3rd and 8 or something. We didn’t do that enough. We were in the bottom half of the country in big plays. We’re not putting the players in a position to get big plays. There’s some good stats but we still don’t have that break-away run. In the off-season, we will look at spreading the field or using the short pass the way Pitt did. We really haven‘t been explosive since Donovan McNabb. I‘ve looked at some films from that era and he was able to extend some plays better than we have.”
Matt talked about getting some playmakers. HCDM: “It’s also about what the defense is giving you.” Doug said that he and the staff graded the Pitt game early Sunday morning. He put the results on his I-Pad. “There’s a lot of down-time on the road and with the I-Pad I can look at anything while I’m on the road. I keep a sort of diary and self-critique. Then we’ll review the overall program when I get home.”
Matt said the season could be bluntly summarized by two sets of numbers: 8-5, 5-7. Doug agreed. “People want to hear the truth, not a defense of the team with some stats. I feel badly about where we are right now. I feel we let down our seniors. We had a lot of leadership a couple of years ago and will have next year. We have to see a marked improvement, not just a daily grind of getting better.”
“We have to find a way to create big plays. It matters when and where the yardage is coming. Are we getting a big play when it’s too late to impact the outcome? In New Orleans we took a lot of shots, (downfield). We have to find a way to get more pressure on the defense. That’s what some teams have done to us- we don’t have enough helmets in the picture. We can’t stay where we are in the, (offensive), rankings. But we don’t’ need to just improve statistically. We need to improve enough to win games.”
Matt asked what “What’s up for discussion?” Doug: “To change passing plays, the run game, use more misdirection, running the quarterback and the fullback, etc., making people defend more of the field. We’re studying what other teams are doing. I’ll be studying film of 2-3 teams.”
Matt noted that “Jerome Smith can really move the pile.” Doug: the tough part with younger kids is that if they’ve had success, they think they’ve arrived. He’s worked extremely hard. It will be interesting to see how he develops.
Matt brought up my question about a two back backfield and pointed out it had been kind of a tradition at Syracuse. Doug: “I’d like to get to the point where we have someone back there who can score. We need balance- the ability to move the pile and operate in space. Different runners- so the defense can’t get in tune to one type of runner.” He didn‘t precisely say that we’d have both capabilities at once.
Later in the broadcast they touched on the other part of my question: about developing a back-up quarterback to release Nassib to use his running ability more than he has. He said that that is exactly what they want to do. Matt suggested that different types of runners will give the defense more to prepare for. HCDM: “We don’t just want to give them more to prepare for. We want to make them defend more of the field.”
Hey turned their attention to the defense. Matt described last year’s defense as “stifling” but noted we’d lost two top-flight line backs and this year had a “young athletic group”. Doug: “At times we gave up big plays. We had changes at corner, at linebacker. Did we give them enough help? How do you get more people to the ball?”
Matt noted that Chandler Jones had “missed a chunk of time and that had a ripple effect on the team”. Coach said “We need more players like him. We need to play man-to-man outside and pressure the quarterback. When we’ve done that, we’ve played well.”
Matt noted that they were “Back to the drawing board on punting.” Doug again said they were looking at using the “spread” formation on punts, (the “shield”). He repeated something he said on an earlier show- that in the NFL you can’t go downfield until the ball is kicked. I now think he’s referring to an NFL rule that doesn’t apply in college. He said that 38 plays per game, on average are “special teams” plays, (meaning they involve kicks). “We have to run down field and converge. When we don’t we get blocked and that’s where the problems begin.” Matt noted that the people who make plays on kicks tend to be the “speed guys” like Dorian Graham and Kyle Foster.
They discussed the “foolish penalties”. Doug attributed them to a “lack of discipline or understanding of what we are trying to do“. Matt asked about the Nadamukong Suh situation, noting that Detroit Coach Jim Schwartz is in a hard position because the league ahs punished Suh: how does he discipline his own player to make his point? Doug declined to comment on the situation.
They talked about recruiting. Coach said that we’re “in great shape” for this class. “A little longer, faster players. I’d like to look at the top 50 and say that we got 25 of them. But we want the right kind of character kids- who can be leaders in the classroom and then on the field.” Matt asked if he still believes in his program or if he’s re-evaluating the standards he’s applied to the team. HCDM: “Some things are more important than winning by all means, such as preparing the players for their future and being true to the future of the program and the school.” Matt suggested that enforcing the rules causes “those who’ve minded their P’s and Q’s to buy into the program all the more.” Doug said that that was true.
Doug added that not being in a bowl didn’t seem to discourage any of his recruits but that the move to the ACC has them all excited. Matt suggested that “the footprint of the ACC” is more fertile recruiting ground than the Big East and Doug agreed with that, too. (The footprint of the Big East, of course, is now the entire country but I suspect it’s a very shallow footprint.) Doug pointed out that Cameron Lynch was the “Georgia Player of the Year”. He added “I’ve never seen a slow playmaker. We have to put them in the right spots when they get here.”
Doug said that the staff was “already on top of 2013. The process starts so much earlier that you can make more mistakes. You don’t get to see their senior year, (before you make your offer). You have to be a very good talent evaluator. There’s no such thing as pick-up football and no AAU circuit where you can watch them during the summer.”
On the move to the ACC: “We have a long way to go and have to catch up quickly. My focus is to make us the best team we can be. I have no control over when we make the move.”
They discussed the fact that we will play in the Meadowlands next year vs. USC. Doug said that he hoped that Matt Barkley goes to the pros. Matt asked him to compare Barkley to Andrew Luck but Doug declined. “If I were in the pros I could make such comparisons because I would have seen some games and interviewed them: Are they making people around them better or are the people around them making them better?” Matt noted that Drew Brees was not highly recruited, probably due to his height. “That type of quarterback develops. It takes time.”
