This is not going to be a great year, however, it is going to set the stage for good football in 2020 and '21. Bowl game still feasible. We're going to beat Pitt a week from tonight. Likely by a touchdown. Don't let recency bias beat you down too much.
Thursday vs. NCSU (L10-16)
THE GOOD
THE BAD
THE UGLY
Thursday vs. NCSU (L10-16)
THE GOOD
- Kendall Coleman was literally everywhere. He was the best player on the field last night (both teams).
- Defense played physical, well, outside of strange difficulty tackling Hockman. Overall, they were damn near terrific.
- I really like Eric Coley out there.
- DeVito threw the ball remarkably well. When he threw it. I also thought he was tentative for portions of the game, but I respect his grit to play hurt.
- Trishton Jackson is a top 5 WR in the ACC.
- Evan Foster played better, but that dropped INT was unfortunately enormous.
- Hofrichter had the Pat McAfee erect with just about every punt. Funny stuff.
- I know he bonked the kick off the upright, but Szmyt looked healthy for the first time all year. I think he's been injured (personal opinion).
- I thought our RBs picked up blitzes better at NCSU than any other game this season. Not perfect, not great, but solid improvement there.
- We played poorly on the road against a talented program and yet, had a chance to win in the final minute.
- Among the freshman class, I like that we are holding on to so many redshirts. This is important for a program of our stature.
THE BAD
- The O-Line's play was sub-standard at best.
- Running game non-existent until last 10 minutes, when we need to pass almost exclusively. Oy vey.
- Bad bad timing for Hofrichter to pull that late kickoff out of bounds. That was a big play.
- The TEs were essentially non-existent in the passing game.
- DeVito, to me, appears to be suffering from PTSD (too many sacks/hits) and injured ribs. And his some of his throw aways were strange, 2-3 which led to intentional grounding calls.
- Need to play Tyrell Richards more. He is ridiculously physical, makes plays and it might save 1-2 penalties per game he gets or at least tempts on special teams. He plays with an edge that is going to cost us sooner rather than later. But I think he deserves more run, which would cut back on some of his post-play antics on specials.
- I'd like for Dino & Lynch to come up with a wrinkle or two. NCSU scored the decisive points via trickeration.
- I think we win that game with a healthy (non-rib injury) DeVito, as he'd have added a bit more to the run game. But I respect the kid for playing through substantial pain and discomfort. He deserves a lot of credit he is not getting from the vast majority on this board. He's learning how to play hurt. Not a simple exercise, especially with that injury at that position. - As an aside, this is not a criticism of Dino for playing #13 late into the Holy Cross game. Sometimes football happens.
THE UGLY
- As undisciplined a game as I can remember SU playing. Holding on opening kickoff was just the beginning.
- Need some guys, especially on offense, to play for "we," not "me." Too many kids not reacting properly to adversity (sulking, infighting, finger-pointing, acting out).
- False starts galore. Tough to play at NCSU, but not as tough as we made it look.
- Need to re-learn how to win away from the
CarrierDome. Competing for a full 60 minutes is a start. We've yet to do that, but the 4th quarter is something Dino will have to work with. - Cordy's days on the field should be over, outside of specials. Not only was that penalty unacceptable, but his play all season has been lacking. I get he's a sympathetic 6th-year player, but gimme Bradshaw, or better yet, Stritzinger over #8. I don’t quite get Dino’s deep loyalty here. We have better talent on the roster that deserves to develop.
- Team looked ill prepared. Dino and his staff did not have them in the proper mindset to win that game and it took 30-40 minutes for them to even compete in the proper fashion. I LOVE DINO BABERS, but that performance last night was wholly disappointing. I sense he knows it, but hasn’t figured out how to nip it just yet.