SWC75
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(There still has not been an introductory article about this year’s Dino Babers Show, so I assume it will be like last week’s hour long “Zoom” show, not at a restaurant and with the opportunity for only one question. The phone numbers are the same.)
Coach Babers’s show this year show will be Thursday nights at 7PM except when the game is not on a Saturday.
I’ll be summarizing the comments directly related to the team and the next game (late) on the night of the broadcast and anything else interesting the next day, (if there is anything else that seems interesting). I’ll have a “first hour” and a “second hour” question.
They are doing the show on Zoom, not at any local restaurant.
You can also listen to the show live each week on the Syracuse IMG Sports Network and Cuse.com. Wednesday's show will be on 99.1 FM and 97.7 FM, as well. The show will regularly air on 99.5FM (Syracuse) 99.1 FM (Utica) and 1200 AM.”
You can also get it on: Home | Free Internet Radio | TuneIn
There hasn’t been any change in the phone numbers, which last year were 315-424-8599 (local) or 1-888-746-2873. You can call to ask questions or submit them via Twitter at: https://twitter.com/CuseIMG
#AskDino or through Cuse.com, (the SU Athletic website):
Submit a Question! - Syracuse University Athletics
You can (or could last year, anyway), listen to a podcast of the show, probably the next day, at: Search results for babers | Free Internet Radio | TuneIn
I’ve been asked to continue doing the summaries, even by people who listen to the podcasts. I may focus on the major points, rather than trying to record everything.
My Question(s) or Comments
“Coach, it seemed to me that that game was the victory of a team that ran outside and passed over the middle over a team that ran up the middle and passed to the outside. It seems to me that running a 172 pound back into a patchwork line or throwing down the sidelines to a receiver who has a narrow window through which to catch the ball are low percentage plays while running wide and throwing over the middle gives the player who gets the ball more room to maneuver. What can we do to get the ball to Jawhar Jordan ‘in space’ and when are we going to start throwing the ball to our excellent tight ends over the middle?”
The Show
(I sometimes re-arrange the comments so that statements made on the same subject are reported together, even if they came at different points of the show.)
Matt said that we now have three straight home games under the new roof. Dino said the whole team was excited for their first practice there today. “They were on the busses – we had three busses and two trolleys - at 5:45AM.” (Jim Boeheim won’t need two of the busses or the trollies) “The new lighting was great. The sun was not up yet so for a day game it should be even brighter. They don’t have to shut the doors any more to keep the roof up. The video board is unbelievable. The lights at the top were really impressive. It reminded me of –what was that movie? Oooh….Whoo…Woo…Woo..Woo?” (Got it yet?) “Encounters of the Third Kind?”
“Guys were taking pictures and videos. I had to remind them ‘This is practice.’” On the new turf: “I hope it feels like the old venue, only better. The previous surface was OK but this is first class- NFL level.”
I called in my question. DB: “To get the ball to Jahwar Jordan we need to give him the ball. As far as running up the middle, we have the opposite philosophy from Pitt’s. The run a tight formation and use a lot of tight ends. They condense their receivers to create space to the outside. We spread our offense to create inside room. There’s no doubt the tight ends could do us a lot of good in the middle. But it depends on the defensive alignment. A tight end can do two things to help us: catch passes and block. If they are being covered by a linebacker, we like that and will throw to them. If they are being covered by a safety who may be more athletic than they are but smaller, we want to take advent age of the size differential by having them block. “
Matt talked about the long plays Luke Benson had last year, including a 70 yarder against Holy Cross – and it was Holy Cross. Dino: “There will be things we can do as the season progresses. It’s about surprise and timing. We want to do the things we can do consistently well, not occasionally great. Our completion percentage isn’t where we want it to be. We want it in the high 80’s. Even the high 50’s isn’t enough. When you throw the football and miss you don’t get first downs. We prefer to play fast and continuously make calls to take advantage of the talent we have on the field and to stress the defensive play caller.” (So far the fans are feeling more stress than the defensive play caller.)
They talked about the late Gayle Sayers and the huge game Floyd Little had in his presence in Floyd’s first game for the orange, (159 yards rushing, 5TDs in a 38-6 win). Coach mentioned “My girls still call him ‘Uncle Floyd’ and dropped off some goodies when they visited his hospital room.” About Gayle: “You can go on You-Tube and look at his old NFL Films tapes. There’s a punt return on a muddy field where he makes a cut and should have fallen flat on his face but didn’t and 5 defenders did and he ran for the touchdown. I’ve never seen anybody do what he did. People who never got to see him in person have watched him and film and developed great respect for him.”
#4 Gale Sayers | NFL Films | Top 10 Rookie Seasons of All Time
A caller whose name I didn’t get said it was a dilemma to go with “max protection or quick plays” on offense.
He favors “swing passes that would get the ball out of the quarterback’s hands in less than 3 seconds. Use the aggressiveness of the defense against them”. He’d also like to see an improvement in our red zone offense. Dino recalled a red zone play up the middle against UNC that “would have been a touchdown- just hand it to the ref in the end zone – except our inexperienced back missed the hole and we had to settle for a field goal. The backs that opted out would have scored. Tommy’s only interception was on a screen that should have been a touchdown play. We had a young wide receiver who saw something he didn’t expect that should not have bene a serious problem and he froze up. The tailback ran into him with three blockers out there to cover one safety. It’s not about plays. Some plays are more surprising than others. But it’s about execution.” (So we could have had three touchdowns instead of just one in these two games where we gave up seven touchdowns.) On the Culpepper to Harris play, those are two guys who have been here for a long time. Rex looked off the safety and threw it a bit long but Taj, the 171 pounder, is really fast and he caught up with it, avoided a couple of guys and got into the end zone….I’m an offensive coach who happens to be in charge of the whole team and I know you have to give these players time to grow up.”
Matt: “Georgia Tech hasn’t played in New York State since the 1920’s. We don’t’ have to worry about the triple option anymore. Paul Johnson is gone, replaced by Jeff Collins.” Dino: “They have a youth movement going. Their quarterback, (Jeff Sims), has dynamic legs. He’s coming along with his passing and the mental game. They have two good running backs, (Jamious Griffin and Jamyir Gibbs), and two explosive receivers, (Jalen Camp and Malachi Carter). Their offensive line is in transition but their defensive line is one of the biggest we’ll face. And their starting D-backs are all 6-3 or 6-4.
Mike in Connecticut called in to say “Please let the tight ends in.” (We also want them to get the ball.) He then said he’d seen Dillon Markowicz’s high school highlights and he seems to be a dual threat quarterback who can throw on the run. In the past Dino’s teams have tended to have pocket passers, (until Eric Dungey). Has he had a change of philosophy? Dino: “When I was at Baylor, RG III was a dual threat quarterback but he was also an excellent pocket passer and he won the Heisman. When I went to Eastern Illinois we had Jimmy Garoppolo and I was told that he wouldn’t be my starting quarterback because he was a pocket passer. Taylor Duncan was the better runner. But our offense can adapt to new players. An office adapts to exceptional players. Jimmy won the Walter Payton award, which is the Heisman for FCS.”
They brought on Justin Lustig, who coaches our excellent special teams and the wide receivers. Dino: “He’s just so professional and truthful. He shoots it to me straight but does it in a way that doesn’t make me mad. He’s got some characters in his room, (the wide receivers).” After that introduction, Coach said that it’s been a long day and he’s going home and going to bed.
Coach Lustig talked about the new venue. With typical attention to detail he examined the locations where a place kick might take place, “looking for a seam or a pile of rubber.” (It still amazes me that these fields are full of rubber shavings from tires). He checked the lights to see if his receivers should use visors or not. He’s worried about glare. He doesn’t want his men to be distracted by the Jumbotron. Matt asked him if the scoreboard will ever get hit by a punt. Lustig said that Nolan Cooney, who has “a powerful leg- nearly as strong as Sterling’s”, tried to hit it but could not.”
“As a coach I always feel that we stink.” (Which is why we don’t.) “Cooney’s stepped up big time and he’s just going to get better and better. With the receivers it’s about making the right decisions and getting the timing right.”
Coach Babers’s show this year show will be Thursday nights at 7PM except when the game is not on a Saturday.
I’ll be summarizing the comments directly related to the team and the next game (late) on the night of the broadcast and anything else interesting the next day, (if there is anything else that seems interesting). I’ll have a “first hour” and a “second hour” question.
They are doing the show on Zoom, not at any local restaurant.
You can also listen to the show live each week on the Syracuse IMG Sports Network and Cuse.com. Wednesday's show will be on 99.1 FM and 97.7 FM, as well. The show will regularly air on 99.5FM (Syracuse) 99.1 FM (Utica) and 1200 AM.”
You can also get it on: Home | Free Internet Radio | TuneIn
There hasn’t been any change in the phone numbers, which last year were 315-424-8599 (local) or 1-888-746-2873. You can call to ask questions or submit them via Twitter at: https://twitter.com/CuseIMG
#AskDino or through Cuse.com, (the SU Athletic website):
Submit a Question! - Syracuse University Athletics
You can (or could last year, anyway), listen to a podcast of the show, probably the next day, at: Search results for babers | Free Internet Radio | TuneIn
I’ve been asked to continue doing the summaries, even by people who listen to the podcasts. I may focus on the major points, rather than trying to record everything.
My Question(s) or Comments
“Coach, it seemed to me that that game was the victory of a team that ran outside and passed over the middle over a team that ran up the middle and passed to the outside. It seems to me that running a 172 pound back into a patchwork line or throwing down the sidelines to a receiver who has a narrow window through which to catch the ball are low percentage plays while running wide and throwing over the middle gives the player who gets the ball more room to maneuver. What can we do to get the ball to Jawhar Jordan ‘in space’ and when are we going to start throwing the ball to our excellent tight ends over the middle?”
The Show
(I sometimes re-arrange the comments so that statements made on the same subject are reported together, even if they came at different points of the show.)
Matt said that we now have three straight home games under the new roof. Dino said the whole team was excited for their first practice there today. “They were on the busses – we had three busses and two trolleys - at 5:45AM.” (Jim Boeheim won’t need two of the busses or the trollies) “The new lighting was great. The sun was not up yet so for a day game it should be even brighter. They don’t have to shut the doors any more to keep the roof up. The video board is unbelievable. The lights at the top were really impressive. It reminded me of –what was that movie? Oooh….Whoo…Woo…Woo..Woo?” (Got it yet?) “Encounters of the Third Kind?”
“Guys were taking pictures and videos. I had to remind them ‘This is practice.’” On the new turf: “I hope it feels like the old venue, only better. The previous surface was OK but this is first class- NFL level.”
I called in my question. DB: “To get the ball to Jahwar Jordan we need to give him the ball. As far as running up the middle, we have the opposite philosophy from Pitt’s. The run a tight formation and use a lot of tight ends. They condense their receivers to create space to the outside. We spread our offense to create inside room. There’s no doubt the tight ends could do us a lot of good in the middle. But it depends on the defensive alignment. A tight end can do two things to help us: catch passes and block. If they are being covered by a linebacker, we like that and will throw to them. If they are being covered by a safety who may be more athletic than they are but smaller, we want to take advent age of the size differential by having them block. “
Matt talked about the long plays Luke Benson had last year, including a 70 yarder against Holy Cross – and it was Holy Cross. Dino: “There will be things we can do as the season progresses. It’s about surprise and timing. We want to do the things we can do consistently well, not occasionally great. Our completion percentage isn’t where we want it to be. We want it in the high 80’s. Even the high 50’s isn’t enough. When you throw the football and miss you don’t get first downs. We prefer to play fast and continuously make calls to take advantage of the talent we have on the field and to stress the defensive play caller.” (So far the fans are feeling more stress than the defensive play caller.)
They talked about the late Gayle Sayers and the huge game Floyd Little had in his presence in Floyd’s first game for the orange, (159 yards rushing, 5TDs in a 38-6 win). Coach mentioned “My girls still call him ‘Uncle Floyd’ and dropped off some goodies when they visited his hospital room.” About Gayle: “You can go on You-Tube and look at his old NFL Films tapes. There’s a punt return on a muddy field where he makes a cut and should have fallen flat on his face but didn’t and 5 defenders did and he ran for the touchdown. I’ve never seen anybody do what he did. People who never got to see him in person have watched him and film and developed great respect for him.”
#4 Gale Sayers | NFL Films | Top 10 Rookie Seasons of All Time
A caller whose name I didn’t get said it was a dilemma to go with “max protection or quick plays” on offense.
He favors “swing passes that would get the ball out of the quarterback’s hands in less than 3 seconds. Use the aggressiveness of the defense against them”. He’d also like to see an improvement in our red zone offense. Dino recalled a red zone play up the middle against UNC that “would have been a touchdown- just hand it to the ref in the end zone – except our inexperienced back missed the hole and we had to settle for a field goal. The backs that opted out would have scored. Tommy’s only interception was on a screen that should have been a touchdown play. We had a young wide receiver who saw something he didn’t expect that should not have bene a serious problem and he froze up. The tailback ran into him with three blockers out there to cover one safety. It’s not about plays. Some plays are more surprising than others. But it’s about execution.” (So we could have had three touchdowns instead of just one in these two games where we gave up seven touchdowns.) On the Culpepper to Harris play, those are two guys who have been here for a long time. Rex looked off the safety and threw it a bit long but Taj, the 171 pounder, is really fast and he caught up with it, avoided a couple of guys and got into the end zone….I’m an offensive coach who happens to be in charge of the whole team and I know you have to give these players time to grow up.”
Matt: “Georgia Tech hasn’t played in New York State since the 1920’s. We don’t’ have to worry about the triple option anymore. Paul Johnson is gone, replaced by Jeff Collins.” Dino: “They have a youth movement going. Their quarterback, (Jeff Sims), has dynamic legs. He’s coming along with his passing and the mental game. They have two good running backs, (Jamious Griffin and Jamyir Gibbs), and two explosive receivers, (Jalen Camp and Malachi Carter). Their offensive line is in transition but their defensive line is one of the biggest we’ll face. And their starting D-backs are all 6-3 or 6-4.
Mike in Connecticut called in to say “Please let the tight ends in.” (We also want them to get the ball.) He then said he’d seen Dillon Markowicz’s high school highlights and he seems to be a dual threat quarterback who can throw on the run. In the past Dino’s teams have tended to have pocket passers, (until Eric Dungey). Has he had a change of philosophy? Dino: “When I was at Baylor, RG III was a dual threat quarterback but he was also an excellent pocket passer and he won the Heisman. When I went to Eastern Illinois we had Jimmy Garoppolo and I was told that he wouldn’t be my starting quarterback because he was a pocket passer. Taylor Duncan was the better runner. But our offense can adapt to new players. An office adapts to exceptional players. Jimmy won the Walter Payton award, which is the Heisman for FCS.”
They brought on Justin Lustig, who coaches our excellent special teams and the wide receivers. Dino: “He’s just so professional and truthful. He shoots it to me straight but does it in a way that doesn’t make me mad. He’s got some characters in his room, (the wide receivers).” After that introduction, Coach said that it’s been a long day and he’s going home and going to bed.
Coach Lustig talked about the new venue. With typical attention to detail he examined the locations where a place kick might take place, “looking for a seam or a pile of rubber.” (It still amazes me that these fields are full of rubber shavings from tires). He checked the lights to see if his receivers should use visors or not. He’s worried about glare. He doesn’t want his men to be distracted by the Jumbotron. Matt asked him if the scoreboard will ever get hit by a punt. Lustig said that Nolan Cooney, who has “a powerful leg- nearly as strong as Sterling’s”, tried to hit it but could not.”
“As a coach I always feel that we stink.” (Which is why we don’t.) “Cooney’s stepped up big time and he’s just going to get better and better. With the receivers it’s about making the right decisions and getting the timing right.”