Football grandma

The operating word here is "creative." It's the plays I've been waiting to see.

Um, uh, um, um, um ... Drove me crazy!

First, I wasn't just saying more walk-ons should play. There are other players we have seen little of or not at all. Someone put them on the team so why not play them? Also, there were several walk-ons that tried out for the team. A few made the cut. The coaches weren't obligated in any way to place them on the team, but they did. Obviously, they must have shown some talent or were they chosen to make the line on the sidelines look longer? Is this a numbers game; let's take enough players to look like we have a thriving program and lots of guys want to play for us? Transfers; perhaps they came to be a bigger fish in a smaller pond. Leaving a better team with more talented players with the idea of getting more playing time at Akron? The big question in the end is, "Why can't Akron attract better players?" Crappy scouting and recruiting? Fewer and smaller scholarships available? Less attractive U degrees offered? Coaching staff that doesn't impress perspective recruits? There won't be just one answer to the original question! The U needs to find the answers because the really good players aren't going to be tripping over each other to come to Akron next season either. Coaches don't always see the trees for the forest! Game day is different football from practice. Read Oklahoma's Caleb Williams press. Bench to in the running for the H 🏆???? But, hey, I'm just an old grandma...

Well, choosing those players hasn't worked out well so far. I don't think we really know the team's depth. The players are rated early in the year as to how good they are in practices. Game days are different. So, I go to the driving range and I'm hitting balls like Tiger. The next day I play in a golf tournament and look like I first picked up a club that morning. The reverse can happen, also. I think some players get "labeled" early and aren't looked at much afterwards. The head coach then takes his first pick O & D players and spends the majority of his time with them. Penalties are results of many things: mental fatigue, frustration, retaliation, physical pain, pressure... Something was going on between those teams today of which we don't know. Dirty play, cheap shots, officials missing holding calls? The number of personal fouls tells me that. Yes, the players lacked discipline if they were retaliating, something the coaches should have investigated and demanded it stop. Curious...who started the "we have little talent, no depth" BS? The coaches? The players? The media? Has it become a self-fulfilled prophesy? Statistics don't tell the whole story when it comes to human behavior. Perhaps the earlier "coach Russian roulette" took a toll on some positions or players? But, hey. I'm just an old grandma...

You need to look closer. For example: #49 Shaffer is in his third year on the team as a walk on, I believe. He was a QB, LB, TE in HS and has hands from what I saw in clips. Putting a player on the field, without giving him a chance to make a play, is using him as a placeholder. The defense is not fooled. It knows whom of the 2 is likely to make the play and keys on him. All the TEs should be rotated and mix up the plays so the defense realizes they are all threats, even if they only get a few yards. Same with the WRs and RBs. The defense spreads and holes open. Keep the defense off balance! So what if they only get short yardage! The goal of 10 in 3 should be drilled into young players because in their minds it's doable.The reason there are injuries is because the same players are used in plays over and over, the law of averages. Same as the horses I train, overwork them and they suffer injuries no matter how good they are. Sure these guys are young and inexperienced, but I don't see the creative thinking from the coaches that helps to overcome those deficits and develop a well-rounded team. Don't get me started on the problems of the defense!

Thanks, Zipped Up! That's quite a compliment. 😄

You need to look closer. So you agree with all but that one statement?

After thoughts: if you're lacking in talent, your plays need to be more creative; if your players are young, they need some game experience where they learn, not decorating the sidelines; coaches are going to play their recruits (good or bad) because not doing so bruises their egos; once a poor coach picks his darlings, he becomes blind to the depth chart until injuries force him to look at those players he passed over; exhausted players make mistakes, rotate often so the defense isn't sure who will get the call; instill the "10 yards in 3 downs" mindset; and finally, most coaches and men don't think grandmas know anything about developing a young team! Players will strive to become the players you make them believe they can become. It's the psychology of human nature.

The team has good tight ends, but they stand on the sidelines too much! I think all the TEs are on scholarships but #49, the other walk on.

Yes, she did! The the player I thought should have been benched was on it! I saw some flashes of good coaching: rotating in fresh players to give the coach's darlings a rest, giving the defense pause when a new number showed up; mixing things up so the defense wondered if the "new shirt" was there for a trick play. Just a few flashes, though. Why in hades were they still running #18 with a 15 point lead in the last 2 minutes!!! When the game was in hand, the coaches should have been mining for another diamond in the rough. Get your starters out of there so no injuries occur.

Watch the films! Do you really want a grandma to point him out to you?

I'm sure that's what the coaches explained to the disheartened team at the end of an embarrassing game. Lol "You took the hits for prime time exposure for university. You gained notoriety from millions of viewers as a team that gets its butt kicked by a losing D1 team. But hey, think of it this way. You saved the school the cost of a Superbowl ad and the school earned a fat check on your backs. Way to go team! Rah, rah!"

I haven't seen D1 level play or coaching. Perhaps the program isn't D level after all.

No! He was upset because he isn't getting the playing time he wants. He tried to go back on the field and the coach pulled him.

All 3 of you have me pegged wrong and have assumed I have a grandson on the team. Yes, I'm a grandma and have bleacher butt from all the football games I watched. I'm new here because I just recently found this chat. Things aren't always as they seem.

I don't get it! The Zips are playing teams that beat the snot out of them for the money the program gets? What about losing their fan base, chasing away top recruits that won't want to play for a losing program, demoralizing players and disillusioning ones that never get into a game not matter how badly the team is losing, risking injuries in these lopsided games... ? Please explain the logic to me.

Do the coaches even review the game films? One offensive lineman was responsible for many of Temple's big plays! If these "first stringers" can't get the job done, drop down into your depth chart. Those players have put in the work and time, too. Let's see what they've got.

I'm watching a particular OL. He stops or delays his man about once in 4-5 downs. Most of Temple's big defensive plays were made by players that got past him. Last week was the same. How can the coaches not see this? He needs replaced. Also, why doesn't the coach put in his 2/3 depth players when the game is a blow out? Last week...several players didn't get to play a down. Would have been a good learning experience for those players. It's not like they would lose the game by playing. Same thing now. 45-24 with minutes to play! Let's see some other players!