Are we improving?

[ColoradoDawg]

I always kind of figured this year to be a wash. Having said that, I feel like our offense looks way more competent this year than last. The fact that we are making small improvements each game gives me hope.

Watching our offense this year has been frustrating at times, but last year watching our offense was painful.

 

[o_dawgnabit]

We are definitely better than last year. But I don’t think we’ve improved much from the LA tech game. We are still seeing the same issues where we are just making stupid mistakes and the offense still can’t score until late in games

 

[bully12]

I always kind of figured this year to be a wash. Having said that, I feel like our offense looks way more competent this year than last. The fact that we are making small improvements each game gives me hope.

Watching our offense this year has been frustrating at times, but last year watching our offense was painful.

How is it less painful this year? Picks, fumbles, dink & dunk until we get to the 20 yard line and then the opponent's defense compresses the field and we don't get jack. Can it get any more painful than that?

 

[karlchilders.sixpack]

One thing you better get used to, is the dink, dunks that's part of the program, and our running game.

 

[TheDawgSaint]

We are better than last year, but that is because we have better talent at WR. Now, should that better talent mean we should be farther along that we are now? I think that is the biggest question.

 

[randystewart]

Bottom line is we are not a well coached team. Our stupid mistakes continue to haunt us and our offensive system is complete **** until the score is nearly out of reach. We are better than last year but we're also a gnats dick from being 1-3 with losses to Memphis AND LA Tech. That is unacceptable for any SEC team not named Vandy

 

[Bill Shankly]

We have regressed. What y'all need to realize is we haven't really played anybody yet. It's about to get really bad. 4-8 tops.

 

[Bill Shankly]

Bottom line is we are not a well coached team. Our stupid mistakes continue to haunt us and our offensive system is complete **** until the score is nearly out of reach. We are better than last year but we're also a gnats dick from being 1-3 with losses to Memphis AND LA Tech. That is unacceptable for any SEC team not named Vandy

The sheer volume of stupid crap should be your first clue. This is a very badly coached team. Teams that are well coached may not be that great, but they don't do stupid crap that frequently. I've been observing coaches in HS from close range for a long time now. It's kind of over looked but the attention to detail in the simple things seems to me to be the real difference between well coached teams and poorly coached teams.

 

[She Mate Me]

We have regressed. What y'all need to realize is we haven't really played anybody yet. It's about to get really bad. 4-8 tops.

NC State just beat Clemson, which means they're a Top 20 caliber team, so, we have played and beat somebody.

 

[BigDawg0074]

I would say yes, they have improved. The O line was pretty good today and they ran the ball well. The team still looks like they are a bit lost at times though. I think Leach wants a player led team but that takes a lot of maturity and experience. Rogers isn’t bad but he’s timid. I have confidence that this program will look better by the end of the season but they probably will not go to a bowl.

 

[WutheringDawg]

I mean you can say that if you want but you’re wrong. After week one we didn’t put up four touchdowns in a game until the last regular season game of the year against Missouri. Rogers is averaging 361 yards a game to 296 per last year including 230 something vs. Vanderbilt.

The last two weeks have sucked but we did not execute on some plays and lost. Last year most games were over as soon the first whistle blew.

 

[IBleedMaroonDawg]

Some. Too early to see if it continues BUT I am impressed we can be down and not quit. That has happened way too often since I started wearing Maroon.

Good

We did not have the plethora of penalties today especially on the OL.
We ran the ball more
We threw up the field

Bad

Turnovers killed us
15 yard punt jumping penalty killed us
VERY short missed FG kept us out of OT

But we started cleaning things up.

 

[ZombieKissinger]

We’re better than last year. I’m ready to see our QB play next year and the year after. We fired Moorhead after two years then hired a proven coach, so if we fire him before year 4, we look like Tennessee fans. If we suck the next few years, at least we have baseball. I think it’s worth a shot. The stupid **** every week is annoying, but the line has improved dramatically, and it feels like we’re close. Should have beaten Memphis and should have won today. Should be 4-0 going into A&M. We’re not and that sucks but it feels close

 

[kired]

How is it less painful this year? Picks, fumbles, dink & dunk until we get to the 20 yard line and then the opponent's defense compresses the field and we don't get jack. Can it get any more painful than that?

2 picks in 4 games is painful? We had 12 after 4 games last year.

 

[Cooterpoot]

Depends on what you're comparing to. I don't see improvement over this season. I do see it over last season in spots. But it's marginal. The fact is, we haven't t been good since Leach got here. Lots of coaching issues too.
We suck balls in the red zone.

 

[ZombieKissinger]

We were really bad from Arkansas to Vanderbilt last year. That’s the point of the season we’re at now, and we’re better than that. Not much different from the end of last season though.

 

[Dawgtini]

Yes. Better every game. IT is coming

 

[NWADog]

Definitely better this year. Last year we did dumb **** and couldn’t move the ball. This year we are moving the ball relatively easily but seem to have a penalty or turnover or dropped pass or crucial missed blocks at the most unfortunate time. We just haven’t had a single break go our way. Our mistakes are BIG ugly game changing mistakes. I think a lot of it is still youth. It does feel like we our so close. We have dominated every game statistically. That wasn’t the case last year. I still think we go 6-6 this season with a chance to take a good step next year and push for 8 wins with a tough schedule in ‘22.

 

[MSUDC11]

I do think we are a little bit better, but it has historically been a slow burn with Leach teams and taking a noticeable step up. I am hopeful that this is just part of that slow burn toward us eventually becoming a good program again, and not the new normal. He’s going to be here for at least 20 more games either way, so we will all find out together over the next 14 months.

 

[The Peeper]

Memphis lost to UT San Antonio yesterday at home, how does that translate in your Top 20 logic?

 

[SKYHAWKdawg]

The only game this season where we won the TO battle was NCSTATE. So there you go. We can't continue to play dumber than our opposition. The other teams are protecting the ball better or as good. Stupid stuff like jumping over the shield on punt receiving doesn't go into the TO stat, but was essentially a TO. It seems like whenever we're not covering punts in safe mode we're telling our players "Hey, go out and do something really stupid here". Sure, a team that throws the ball as much as state does is going to throw some picks. But, how in the hell does Heath cough up the ball on a 1 v 1 open field tackle?

I always kind of figured this year to be a wash. Having said that, I feel like our offense looks way more competent this year than last. The fact that we are making small improvements each game gives me hope.

Watching our offense this year has been frustrating at times, but last year watching our offense was painful.

 

[Dawgg]

We narrowly lost to an SEC team this week.

That’s an improvement over narrowly losing to an AAC team.

 

[messageboardsuperhero]

Statistically yeah we have improved from a yardage standpoint. Not really much from a points perspective, thanks primarily to our own self-destruction.

We finished 12th in the SEC in total offense last year and are currently sitting at 9th through four games.

And before the “we haven’t played anyone” crowd jumps in, we have actually played one of the toughest schedules in the SEC to this point.

 

[messageboardsuperhero]

Put it this way- I haven’t left any game this year feeling we were overmatched by a better team. We have lost two games because we have made several more critical mistakes than Memphis and LSU.

Which is what makes the last two weeks highly frustrating.

 

[DoggieDaddy13]

We have yet to be overmatched in any of our games. We won't be this week. We will be about three times this year. Maybe.

We have a good team. The scheme is good enough and we could easily be 4-0 if only....

These players lack the discipline and focus in order to execute on each and every down. And while you can put a lot of this on our coaches, it really boils down to an individual's will to win. Not sure if Leach and company can get this group of players to care enough to do the little things on each play in order to be successful. We'll see.

 

[messageboardsuperhero]

We have regressed. What y'all need to realize is we haven't really played anybody yet. It's about to get really bad. 4-8 tops.

NC State is not a bad team by any stretch of the imagination. They aren’t world beaters, but they’d be middle of the pack in the SEC.

Through three weeks, we had played either the second or third hardest schedule in the SEC to that point per Sagarin. So yeah we haven’t played a bunch of great teams, but neither has anyone else. In fact, we have played tougher teams than most.

 

[8dog]

Didnt we beat a better LSU team last year away from home with 625 yds passing?

 

[8dog]

There is no question we will win a bunch of games if we only allow 10 points and get a ST TD.

 

[was21]

At first thought an STD came to mind....not good

 

[messageboardsuperhero]

Didnt we beat a better LSU team last year away from home with 625 yds passing?

Same team. Far worse DC.

If LSU had stuck with the Pelini plan again this year, it would have been a similar result.

 

[paindonthurt_]

Somebody said in a post and a friend said in a text “will Rodgers could have hardly been worse yesterday”.

Well if 75% for 371 yards, 3 TDs and 1 interception is the worst we can do, by god we are improving.

 

[8dog]

Thats exactly my point.

Costello was awesome that game and the fact we had no spring practice had no impact. Then everyone started running the right defense. Its a watered down system. No reason to expect it to succeed in 2021 or beyond in the best conference in football. We took all the best parts of modern offense out

 

[57stratdawg]

We are unquestionably better on offense this year. Plenty of room to improve too, but we’ve got to try to win games in the 21-24 point range. I think we can be in the 31 - 35 point range next year.

 

[Cooterpoot]

I'll tell you what was improved, concessions. Bringing in the OM workers helped.

 

[dannyripms]

I'll tell you what was improved, concessions. Bringing in the OM workers helped.

The food absolutely sucks this year.