Stoops confirms there will be changes to the staff
- Thread starter andreIGUODOLLAsigns4UK
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Losing Blue, Robinson and Heard (even though he wasn't 100%) hurt more than I think most realize. From a leadership standpoint. From a competition stand point. From a maturity standpoint. From an experience stand point. From a talent stand point.
IMHO... This years O was young & it was not nearly as talented as many thought or think. The only positions that were fairly dependable were RB and FB/TE. Even so, Boom missed too many meaningful snaps due to injury and discipline. The QB's were both inconsistent, the receivers had way too many drops & the OL was inconsistent and often not nearly as talented as the competition. Not many OC's could've done much better with this years O, IMHO.
My biggest critique would be.... not running Towels more often, not rolling him out more often, not using more misdirection, not going under center more (not just sneaks), and not using the Wildcat a little more (although several of those things did improve as the season went on). But, those are things that Dawson is not known for. However, that does not mean that he won't adjust during the offseason. Also, he will have an older, more experienced group next year. Adding a few of the RS FR and even some true FR should only help,
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We returned most of our offense from last season. True story. I know we lost some players. But who doesn't?
A bunch of underclassmen, is his point.
Also, to respond to your DJ Elliot defense, you seriously can't see why he would be bashed? Did you miss the part where opposing QB's ran a huge chunk of the yards that were put up on the ground against UK, and how DJ Elliot never adjusted? He just blitzed. Always. Even at the most inopportune times, he blitzes. It's dumb, it's ridiculous.
i think he did a much better job on that side of the ball than Dawson did on his side. He does deserve ridicule. I agree the defending of the read option had been pathetic. I just think he was kinda decent and made out to be a lot worse than he is considering how often the defense stayed on the field. I understand the ridicule. But I really don't understand how he gets anywhere near as much ridicule as Dawson. Makes no sense to me. Dawson is as predictable as it gets he's the worst.
Certainly don't want to start an argument but simply for the sake of football discussion...
(1) Yes, the O-line play was bad. Between UK and UofL I saw A LOT of bad O-line play this year. [laughing] And I have opined on both boards that it is virtually impossible to have a semblance of offensive continuity with bad O-line play. Towles was very mobile, especially for his size; Barker, not so much. (I was very surprised at his lack of mobility against UofL.) Yes, you can roll or bootleg some but you really can't make a consistent passing game out of it. It simply cuts the field in half and makes it that much easier for the defense to scheme it. As for pass pro, there are really just a couple of basic "blocking schemes" that are used by everybody. There may be reasons for a lack of execution (experience, talent, etc.) but it really comes down to you can either do it or you can't do it.
(2) The "problems" in the passing game (OLs, QBs and WRs) have been discussed multiple times. Bottom line, very pedestrian passing game. I totally agree that Boom needed more carries. He was clearly UK's best RB and could play for anyone. Horton and Kemp were, IMO, "solid but not special". By that I mean, just about every P5 team has RBs of similar "quality". UK ran 70 PPG and was almost exactly 50/50 run/pass (i.e., ~35 attempts each way). If the Cats ran it 10 more times per game they would have theoretically picked up another 50 YPG as they averaged a very good 5.0 YPC. That would be 64/36 run/pass offense and only 12 teams in the country ran it 64% or more of the time. It would also mean 10 less pass attempts where they averaged only 6.1 YPA but that would still be a net loss of 11 YPG while making the offense decidedly one dimensional.
I don't think the answer was more rushing attempts but rather more rushing attempts for Boom.
(3) That's always the case. [winking]
Yes, I agree about the offensive similarity between what Brown was doing and what Dawson does. As noted in other posts I think that had a lot to do with Dawson being selected to replace Brown. Obviously, Dawson did not want to run the QB as much but other than that I would say fairly similar offenses. And yes, short yardage situations (especially on the goal line) can be a problem for direct snap offenses. I don't know whether the play calling was predictable or not but, over the years, I have noticed that fans are quick to blame "play calling" as the reason for stagnant offenses.
Peace
Some defensers ran off instead of staying in punt safe...that's why Stoops was pissed at Eliot. And they didn't want a penalty of too many men so they didn't scramble to add anyone.
Again, this was a failure...but it had nothing to do with a ST coach or without one. Was on the head coach and the DC.
I think Dawson deserves another year. But based on that interview, I dont think he'll get it. I dont know it will even have anything to do with Dawson's performance as OC. I just think Stoops is finally seeing the light in that Air Raid just wont work in the SEC with the leagues current talent level.
DJ is going to have to be reassigned...he and Stoops are pretty close so I don't know if CMS will fire him...
Either CMS takes full control of D...or he brings in somebody and gives them control...
Give DJ linebackers, and more recruiting responsibility...heck...maybe give him special teams if nobody can be found for that role...
I think they need to bring in a QB coach who can fully focus on developing and mentoring the QBs and not worry about the rest of the offense...
OL and DL need to be looked at...
Either CMS takes full control of D...or he brings in somebody and gives them control...
Give DJ linebackers, and more recruiting responsibility...heck...maybe give him special teams if nobody can be found for that role...
I think they need to bring in a QB coach who can fully focus on developing and mentoring the QBs and not worry about the rest of the offense...
OL and DL need to be looked at...
Nothing but putting a Band-Aid on Poor coaching ,Zero Motivation , Zero halftime ADJUSTMENTS from a Guy who is in over his Head ! And the Head Clown ( Barnhart ) thinks Stoops will actually get it done in the SEC ! Wait and see at the end of next season when there will only be 20,000 or less in the stands . This is on Barnhart terrible coaching hires !
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Ideal situation:
Pelini comes in and takes over DC and Eliot is gone or
Stoops takes over DC and Eliot moves to ST.
Summers or somebody else comes in to coach OL and Schlarman is gone.
Bring in a Receivers coach and Mainord is gone.
I don't think Stoops wants to lose Eliot but I also think Stoops is needs to focus on the team instead of spending time as a position coach. If he brings in a DC and keeps Eliot, he would have to lose either Ansley, Brumbaugh or Buh and I just think all of them are more important than Eliot.
Dawson may have been a mistake. We need a strong OC since our HC is defense oriented. Not sure this was the best situation for him. However, he has only been here a year and it would be a bad decision to let him go without giving him a chance to prove himself. Hopefully, he gets it figured out but Stoops has to trust him and quit micro-managing when that is not his expertise.
Somebody has to be accountable for ST. We had way too many screw ups and somebody needs to answer for those and see to it that they don't happen again. Classic example is when an Olineman comes out injured, you have to have a ST coach that says to himself "that guy is on my FG team and I need to find a replacement before its 4th down or else we will be a man short and will have to call a TO that we might desperately need at the end of a close game."
Pelini comes in and takes over DC and Eliot is gone or
Stoops takes over DC and Eliot moves to ST.
Summers or somebody else comes in to coach OL and Schlarman is gone.
Bring in a Receivers coach and Mainord is gone.
I don't think Stoops wants to lose Eliot but I also think Stoops is needs to focus on the team instead of spending time as a position coach. If he brings in a DC and keeps Eliot, he would have to lose either Ansley, Brumbaugh or Buh and I just think all of them are more important than Eliot.
Dawson may have been a mistake. We need a strong OC since our HC is defense oriented. Not sure this was the best situation for him. However, he has only been here a year and it would be a bad decision to let him go without giving him a chance to prove himself. Hopefully, he gets it figured out but Stoops has to trust him and quit micro-managing when that is not his expertise.
Somebody has to be accountable for ST. We had way too many screw ups and somebody needs to answer for those and see to it that they don't happen again. Classic example is when an Olineman comes out injured, you have to have a ST coach that says to himself "that guy is on my FG team and I need to find a replacement before its 4th down or else we will be a man short and will have to call a TO that we might desperately need at the end of a close game."
My wish list for an OC (assuming Dawson is gone but I think we should keep him and move him to a co-OC):
Someone who runs multiple sets and tempos. IE 10, 20, 11, 21, 12, 22 personnel and mixes it up, goes under center and in the pistol to establish more of a downhill run game and play action off that, ditch the zone blocking scheme and start running a power scheme with pulling guards and counter off of it as well as widen the splits out instead of closing them down, work the TE and slot in the middle of the field.
Anything that resembles UK 2007 with Andre Woodson and co. That offense was a perfect blend of run/pass, tempo and sets. Of people who are unemployed or are likely candidates: GA Mangus, James Coley, Tyson Helton (if his brother at USCw doesn't offer) are at the top of my list.
Someone who runs multiple sets and tempos. IE 10, 20, 11, 21, 12, 22 personnel and mixes it up, goes under center and in the pistol to establish more of a downhill run game and play action off that, ditch the zone blocking scheme and start running a power scheme with pulling guards and counter off of it as well as widen the splits out instead of closing them down, work the TE and slot in the middle of the field.
Anything that resembles UK 2007 with Andre Woodson and co. That offense was a perfect blend of run/pass, tempo and sets. Of people who are unemployed or are likely candidates: GA Mangus, James Coley, Tyson Helton (if his brother at USCw doesn't offer) are at the top of my list.
andre, I don't think you will get to renew your tickets. It would be a BIG mistake to get rid of Dawson after one year. What other OC would want to come here? I doubt if anyone would. The dropped passes, poor OL play, injuries, etc. were NOT Coach Dawson's fault. As were getting the better players some experience, the play calling will improve.
OLD STOLL FIELD GUY!
I can tell you some things he should not have done. Run the ball up the middle with the clock running out at end of half. with no timeouts, Line up 3 times in the shotgun formation on 1st and goal at the 1, Use the tight end more, give the ball to a 190# back on third and 2, Run a play over and over although it isn't working, manage the clock better, Punt on 4th down at midfield near the end of the half, so the other team doesn't score, 2 weeks in a row! Just to name a few
Well it's settled then. All our coaches are the best in the game and it was none of their fault the team looked horrid and poorly coached.
DJ Elliot is Stoops boy, can't see him going. Dawson just got here, can't see him going. John Schlarman has too many kids coming because of him. Derrick Ansley may jump, not get fired. Eric Korem has done a good job with soft tissue injuries. Jimmy Brumbaugh might be at risk. Never hear about is Chad Scott, even though his guys produce.
Not a bad move. But I still think the better move would be to fire Buh, hire a ST coach, let Stoops take over as DC, and move Elliott to LB coach, rather than just inside LB.
I'm guessing the addition of a special teams coach will be the only change in the coaching staff.
Let's hope not but it would be a good place to start/finish in getting a competent staff in place.