Nobody likes losing. Nobody likes that fact they we are 0 - 2 with ten games left where we won't be favored in any of them. But all along the general theme for this year wasn't about wins and losses (while it's fun to predict, I don't think anybody on here was truly too wrapped up in getting the prediction right because we knew it would be a long season) - it's about getting better as the season progresses and putting ourselves in a better position for next year. So with that being said, a couple of things that have been popping in my head...
Tinkering with the system is bad
This holds true more for offense than defense, but as fans don't get in this line of thinking that we need to change things up because the system we are running isn't working. The Air Raid is relatively easy to install, but not relatively easy to master quickly. It takes repetitions. Now if we can't run a certain play, then don't run it for the sake of running it. But remember we have to continually run this system in order to get better at it. While ideas like running a diamond formation or something similar may sound fun, if that isn't part of our core package then we shouldn't run it this year. It's all about developing an identity...
Tinkering with the lineup...is good...this year...early on
Something that drove me nuts the past couple of seasons was the musical chairs we saw at positions the past few years under Weis. My hope was that they would know which players were better right away and stick with them. Now for this year, going to be a little bit hypocritical, and say this is actually the way to go for the first half of the season. Find out which guys can play and which guys can't, then roll with them in the second half of the season to develop continuity. Now some positions this won't necessarily matter - at WR you want 8 guys to be interchangeable out there and it would be nice to have a legit 2 deep on defense to rotate in and out at will. So this really boils down to getting guys experience and hammering down who can play on the OL and at QB in the next few games...
Seniors are on notice
With the idea that we want to develop continuity and we are building for the future, the seniors have the next few games to prove that they should be playing. In particular, guys in the trenches. If seniors aren't stepping up and making plays over the next few games, then they should be replaced. I think about the DL with Goodman, Semke, Fletcher, and King on it and what we have seen so far, other than Goodman, I haven't really seen any of them stepping up and making plays. On the OL, I have been happy with how things are going so far, but don't think Keyon Haughton had a great game this last week (thought first week he did good) and Peters has been alright, but shaky at times. I also thought Larry Hughes was decent this past week in place of Mazyck. So if these guys continue to be shaky or not making plays, then we might as well play younger guys in their spots. The next few weeks will be big for these seniors and if they want to play, they better show improvement.
Could be quite a few newcomers playing early next year
Specifically, I think Kyle Mayberry will play right away and be a starter by the end of the year. I also think everyone of Marquis Smith, Ian Peterson, and Shola Ayinde (don't sleep on Ayinde) can play next year as true freshman and if we get a guy like DeMarkus Acy he could as well. Not necessarily as starters, but getting valuable experience in backup roles. If we can land Amani Bledsoe, he is another guy I feel confident can play next year and make an impact. The Snow JUCO trio should make an immediate impact as well. Also wouldn't be surprised if a true freshman RB plays next year as well. Point here is that when you are looking at this many newcomers making early impacts, it is a little bit scary and indicative of our current roster situation...but also a little bit exciting because it can lead to change earlier than later...
That being said, don't sleep on young guys returning next year
When I think about the problems up front, I immediately start thinking about who can we get in here that can help right away. Sure a JUCO DT could. Sure an Amani Bledsoe can help. But possibly the biggest impact we can have next year is young guys taking that next step forward. If Daniel Wise lives and dies in the weight room this upcoming offseason and adds some strength, he will be an impressive 6' 3" 295 lbs DT with added strength. Same could go for DJ Williams if he dedicated himself. I could see a guy like Jacob Bragg adding 10 lbs of muscle and being a strong 295 lbs OL. A guy like Kyron Watson could really benefit from a redshirt year of getting in shape and potentially being an improvement over the middle to what we currently have. Tyrone Miller will only get better with time. So as much as I am looking at the newcomers coming in and making an impact, I also think we have a couple of guys currently on the roster that are a year away from taking big steps forward.
And finally, improvement throughout the season will be noticeable
If we are looking for a moral victory, gray-lining message here with our defense, we are at rock bottom right now. We can only improve from where we are at. And if we do, it will be very noticeable. After the Memphis game, when they would run or throw out wide, you would see wide open spaces. When they would run play action, you would see our guys biting hard on the play action. These are things we will easily notice if we improve on as the season goes. On offense, if we see improvements on things like plays going even faster and hitting receivers more consistently, it will be noticeable. There of course will be some things that improve that won't be as easily noticeable, but because of our current state of operations...there will be no doubt if we see improvement
Tinkering with the system is bad
This holds true more for offense than defense, but as fans don't get in this line of thinking that we need to change things up because the system we are running isn't working. The Air Raid is relatively easy to install, but not relatively easy to master quickly. It takes repetitions. Now if we can't run a certain play, then don't run it for the sake of running it. But remember we have to continually run this system in order to get better at it. While ideas like running a diamond formation or something similar may sound fun, if that isn't part of our core package then we shouldn't run it this year. It's all about developing an identity...
Tinkering with the lineup...is good...this year...early on
Something that drove me nuts the past couple of seasons was the musical chairs we saw at positions the past few years under Weis. My hope was that they would know which players were better right away and stick with them. Now for this year, going to be a little bit hypocritical, and say this is actually the way to go for the first half of the season. Find out which guys can play and which guys can't, then roll with them in the second half of the season to develop continuity. Now some positions this won't necessarily matter - at WR you want 8 guys to be interchangeable out there and it would be nice to have a legit 2 deep on defense to rotate in and out at will. So this really boils down to getting guys experience and hammering down who can play on the OL and at QB in the next few games...
Seniors are on notice
With the idea that we want to develop continuity and we are building for the future, the seniors have the next few games to prove that they should be playing. In particular, guys in the trenches. If seniors aren't stepping up and making plays over the next few games, then they should be replaced. I think about the DL with Goodman, Semke, Fletcher, and King on it and what we have seen so far, other than Goodman, I haven't really seen any of them stepping up and making plays. On the OL, I have been happy with how things are going so far, but don't think Keyon Haughton had a great game this last week (thought first week he did good) and Peters has been alright, but shaky at times. I also thought Larry Hughes was decent this past week in place of Mazyck. So if these guys continue to be shaky or not making plays, then we might as well play younger guys in their spots. The next few weeks will be big for these seniors and if they want to play, they better show improvement.
Could be quite a few newcomers playing early next year
Specifically, I think Kyle Mayberry will play right away and be a starter by the end of the year. I also think everyone of Marquis Smith, Ian Peterson, and Shola Ayinde (don't sleep on Ayinde) can play next year as true freshman and if we get a guy like DeMarkus Acy he could as well. Not necessarily as starters, but getting valuable experience in backup roles. If we can land Amani Bledsoe, he is another guy I feel confident can play next year and make an impact. The Snow JUCO trio should make an immediate impact as well. Also wouldn't be surprised if a true freshman RB plays next year as well. Point here is that when you are looking at this many newcomers making early impacts, it is a little bit scary and indicative of our current roster situation...but also a little bit exciting because it can lead to change earlier than later...
That being said, don't sleep on young guys returning next year
When I think about the problems up front, I immediately start thinking about who can we get in here that can help right away. Sure a JUCO DT could. Sure an Amani Bledsoe can help. But possibly the biggest impact we can have next year is young guys taking that next step forward. If Daniel Wise lives and dies in the weight room this upcoming offseason and adds some strength, he will be an impressive 6' 3" 295 lbs DT with added strength. Same could go for DJ Williams if he dedicated himself. I could see a guy like Jacob Bragg adding 10 lbs of muscle and being a strong 295 lbs OL. A guy like Kyron Watson could really benefit from a redshirt year of getting in shape and potentially being an improvement over the middle to what we currently have. Tyrone Miller will only get better with time. So as much as I am looking at the newcomers coming in and making an impact, I also think we have a couple of guys currently on the roster that are a year away from taking big steps forward.
And finally, improvement throughout the season will be noticeable
If we are looking for a moral victory, gray-lining message here with our defense, we are at rock bottom right now. We can only improve from where we are at. And if we do, it will be very noticeable. After the Memphis game, when they would run or throw out wide, you would see wide open spaces. When they would run play action, you would see our guys biting hard on the play action. These are things we will easily notice if we improve on as the season goes. On offense, if we see improvements on things like plays going even faster and hitting receivers more consistently, it will be noticeable. There of course will be some things that improve that won't be as easily noticeable, but because of our current state of operations...there will be no doubt if we see improvement
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