I don't think he's immune from criticism. I agree he needs to recruit better. However, he had 2 key pieces from last year's team suddenly leave, and our 3rd best player tore his Achilles prior to the season. Hard to retool on the fly like that. Now, the class with Nate Johnson and Kobe Mitchell looks quite underwhelming at the moment. That's a gap, but as the team was constructed to finish last year, Johnson and Mitchell weren't expected to have as big of roles as they did this year - at least not by need.
I love this team. Heck, all of JG's teams are lovable. They're phenomenal to root for. They represent Akron as well as anyone ever has, if not better. They do need more talent, and I expect Groce and company to find that talent. I think your criticisms are fair, but there are also some uncontrollable circumstances that led to the open door for those criticisms.