Maybe he was talking about inner strength. Just for the record every school has a strength coach and if they are respected by the student/players they coach that is probably good enough. Any one who has ever worked out knows that you have to be personally motivated and not all kids hit the weight room as much as others in highschool I would venture to say that Percy was destined to succeed no matter who his strength coach was. You can't coach speed, you can't coach size, and you can't heart. Those were probably bigger factors than Mickey was.
Maybe he was talking about inner strength. Just for the record every school has a strength coach and if they are respected by the student/players they coach that is probably good enough. Any one who has ever worked out knows that you have to be personally motivated and not all kids hit the weight room as much as others in highschool I would venture to say that Percy was destined to succeed no matter who his strength coach was. You can't coach speed, you can't coach size, and you can't heart. Those were probably bigger factors than Mickey was.
Just got back from the O.U. scrimmage. Hard to tell much since so many players saw either limited action (Bradford) or were held out , Ryan Reynolds, Jermaine Gresham, DeMarco Murray, Chris Brown, Auston English that I know of. Offense struggled against an apparently pretty solid defense especially against the run. The OL still needs work but I think the WR position graded well. I have not seen any statistics yet but the one thing that definitely needs work is the kicking game. Punting was inconsistant and Kickoffs were shorter than expected. Maybe some tired legs who knows.
What I found enlightening was the $3.00 program I purchased. In a section called "At A Glance" it broke down what returns by percentage.
Rushing Yards 99.6%, Passing Yards, 96.5%, Receiving Yards 51.5%, Put Return Yards 100%, Interceptions 68.4%, Scoring 81.6%, Total Yards 97.6%, All-Purpose Yards 68.7%, Field Goals 100%, Punting Yards 0%, Tackles 79%, Tackles for Loss 89.6%, Sacks 88%, and Fumble Recoveries 73.3%. Bradford returns on offense along with 7 other starters - 8 total.
Now here is what is interesting. They break down returning starters by the number of games they started. On offense 3 return that started all 14 games, 1 who started 13, 1 who started 8, 1 who started 5, and 2 who started 2. On offense they lost 3 who started 14, 2 who started 13, 1 who started 12, 1 who started 2, and 1 who started 1. So when you read sites and magazines who list returning starters it deserves a closer look. In this case you have 8 returning and 8 leaving and 11 positions to account for. I am really going to have to rethink the way I am breaking teams down and references like the one I saw today are accurate where others may not be. On Defense there are 13 returning starters and 2 who are not returning (both safeties). 7 return who started all 14 games not including LB Ryan Reynolds who opened the season and was injured. Frank Alexander was a true force at todays scrimmage and he started only 5 games LY.
If you read this post and you have similar information about your team and got your info and stats from somelthing reliable like the official program I got my info on, please post it on here. All of the national publications are not going to be as accurate and tell the whole story. I am sure Go Sooners will have a complete breakdown of the scrimmage on his thread. I just merely wanted to impart some info that I thought was unique and not easily accessible. I would appreciate similar imput from other posters if possible as I think info like this tells you more than just numbers can.
What I found enlightening was the $3.00 program I purchased. In a section called "At A Glance" it broke down what returns by percentage.
Rushing Yards 99.6%, Passing Yards, 96.5%, Receiving Yards 51.5%, Put Return Yards 100%, Interceptions 68.4%, Scoring 81.6%, Total Yards 97.6%, All-Purpose Yards 68.7%, Field Goals 100%, Punting Yards 0%, Tackles 79%, Tackles for Loss 89.6%, Sacks 88%, and Fumble Recoveries 73.3%. Bradford returns on offense along with 7 other starters - 8 total.
Now here is what is interesting. They break down returning starters by the number of games they started. On offense 3 return that started all 14 games, 1 who started 13, 1 who started 8, 1 who started 5, and 2 who started 2. On offense they lost 3 who started 14, 2 who started 13, 1 who started 12, 1 who started 2, and 1 who started 1. So when you read sites and magazines who list returning starters it deserves a closer look. In this case you have 8 returning and 8 leaving and 11 positions to account for. I am really going to have to rethink the way I am breaking teams down and references like the one I saw today are accurate where others may not be. On Defense there are 13 returning starters and 2 who are not returning (both safeties). 7 return who started all 14 games not including LB Ryan Reynolds who opened the season and was injured. Frank Alexander was a true force at todays scrimmage and he started only 5 games LY.
If you read this post and you have similar information about your team and got your info and stats from somelthing reliable like the official program I got my info on, please post it on here. All of the national publications are not going to be as accurate and tell the whole story. I am sure Go Sooners will have a complete breakdown of the scrimmage on his thread. I just merely wanted to impart some info that I thought was unique and not easily accessible. I would appreciate similar imput from other posters if possible as I think info like this tells you more than just numbers can.
28 down, 92 to go. I am referring to Spring games. If you want a quick fix go to one. If you want to know more than you knew before you went, don't go to one. Well maybe you would learn a few things. But I sat among 29,000 people yesterday watching the OU spring game on what was a great day weather wise. It was more of a happening than anything else, a sort of a mutual acknowledgement that football was still alive and well and that we as fans miss it and that the players and coaches seemed to miss the attention too. The kids got to strut their stuff and I enjoyed watching them warm up as much as I did watch them scrimmaging.
If you stop and think about it what do you want to see when you go to a spring game. If the offense dominates then it means your defense probably sucks. If the defense dominates it means.....well that is not so easily determined. When you stop to consider that the defenses know the offense and practice against it every practice you would expect the defense to have a slight edge. If the coaches decide to limit playing time for key offensive players or hold certain key players out entirely then the offense is going to suffer. If the coaches decide to limit the plays to pretty much plain vanilla plays then the offense is at a disadvantage. So how do you evaluate a spring game. The way they keep score in these affairs is different to say the least and after a while you forget that they are even keeping score. I think the key to evaluating a scrimmage is what doesn't get done. You can get a clue on the kicking games, at least the punting and the kickoffs. You can tell if players are on the same page and whether or not they are executing properly. But if you have a solid defense the offense is not going to dominate under those circumstances.
You can tell by the hitting what the level of intensity is. But in the end it is just a good time had by all. If all goes well no one gets injured and the commitment is made that eveyone will get together again early in the fall.
For me personally, I had fun watching the new players, the ones who graduated early from highschool as they made the quantum leap to a higher level. It amazed me that these kids did not seem to let it get to them. That scrimmage probably had more fans than any highschool game they played in. Everyone that I watched played with intensity and what they lacked in experience they made up for with pure hustle. Had I not known they were really glorified highschoolers I would not have been able to pick them out of the crowd. To me that is impressive for kids like that to show that kind of maturity at that age and under those circumstances.
The other thing that is impressive is how organized the whole affair is. The attention to detail in pregame warm ups. The kids know what to do, where to be, and the coaches are in control yet it all happens routinely and smoothly. It adds a sense of professionalism and in that sense the coaches become the Maestro and the players become the orchestra. Oh yes, last but not least, the OU band was present and accounted for. Oklahoma City had been hit hard by wild fires earlier in the week and the event proved to be a welcomed relief to the sense of futility everyone there had been feeling. As I drove home I could still smell traces of smoke in the air as I drove down I-35 and I began to realize that some things are not to be taken for granted and some things should not be scrutinized too closely. College football is many things to many people.
If you stop and think about it what do you want to see when you go to a spring game. If the offense dominates then it means your defense probably sucks. If the defense dominates it means.....well that is not so easily determined. When you stop to consider that the defenses know the offense and practice against it every practice you would expect the defense to have a slight edge. If the coaches decide to limit playing time for key offensive players or hold certain key players out entirely then the offense is going to suffer. If the coaches decide to limit the plays to pretty much plain vanilla plays then the offense is at a disadvantage. So how do you evaluate a spring game. The way they keep score in these affairs is different to say the least and after a while you forget that they are even keeping score. I think the key to evaluating a scrimmage is what doesn't get done. You can get a clue on the kicking games, at least the punting and the kickoffs. You can tell if players are on the same page and whether or not they are executing properly. But if you have a solid defense the offense is not going to dominate under those circumstances.
You can tell by the hitting what the level of intensity is. But in the end it is just a good time had by all. If all goes well no one gets injured and the commitment is made that eveyone will get together again early in the fall.
For me personally, I had fun watching the new players, the ones who graduated early from highschool as they made the quantum leap to a higher level. It amazed me that these kids did not seem to let it get to them. That scrimmage probably had more fans than any highschool game they played in. Everyone that I watched played with intensity and what they lacked in experience they made up for with pure hustle. Had I not known they were really glorified highschoolers I would not have been able to pick them out of the crowd. To me that is impressive for kids like that to show that kind of maturity at that age and under those circumstances.
The other thing that is impressive is how organized the whole affair is. The attention to detail in pregame warm ups. The kids know what to do, where to be, and the coaches are in control yet it all happens routinely and smoothly. It adds a sense of professionalism and in that sense the coaches become the Maestro and the players become the orchestra. Oh yes, last but not least, the OU band was present and accounted for. Oklahoma City had been hit hard by wild fires earlier in the week and the event proved to be a welcomed relief to the sense of futility everyone there had been feeling. As I drove home I could still smell traces of smoke in the air as I drove down I-35 and I began to realize that some things are not to be taken for granted and some things should not be scrutinized too closely. College football is many things to many people.
I just wanted to take a minute to reinforce the quality and accuracy of info when you are researching for next season. There are sources that will tell you there are x amount of returners on offense and defense. That really is not as important as the type of info I got in that OU program saturday. Any info that will tell you how many starters are back and also tell you how many games they started is more helpful and accurate. In addition, if you have a source that will tell you more that is even better.For instance OU really returns 13 starters on defense (people who have started more than one game) but it has vacancies at the 2 safety positions. So 13 return and two holes to fill. Steele shows OU to have 9 coming back on defense which is true but that does not attest to the depth at the other defensive positions. So the more details you can get the better. Now Steele may cover all of this in his Magazine and/or site later on before the season starts. But I think the whole idea is to do your own research and maybe compare it to his and others at that point. That program told me something and in more depth than I had known up to that point and that I feel is important to correrctly do my research. I repeat if anyone out there has access to that kind of info point me in the right direction and I will share it on here. I may make statements on here that do not please everyone and I can't stop being a homer at heart, but my total focus is on winning wagers and I am more than happy to share things I find and I encourge you to do that same. Ideally I could see 120 threads going with each one focusing on one team. What a tool that would be. You would hear the good, the bad, and the ugly but with the constant of accumulating accurate data. How any one individual chooses to interpret that data is up to him/her. We all have opinions and we are all closer to some football programs than others but we all have some positive contributions we can make. I know I am preaching to the choir but this forum gives us a great tool. It is up to us to use it properly. Guys like Conan, Ducks, Coach, and GoSooners get it. I know it is still early but if you read this posting two months from now that is not too late to join in.
rivals.com has writeups for the following spring games last week:
Michigan, Georgia, Clemson, S. Carolina, O.U., Pitt.
I have not read them all yet but apparently Forcier continues to look solid and is gaining maturity and confidence. Michigan is a team that could improve immensely this year.......if they have a QB. So far, so good.
Michigan, Georgia, Clemson, S. Carolina, O.U., Pitt.
I have not read them all yet but apparently Forcier continues to look solid and is gaining maturity and confidence. Michigan is a team that could improve immensely this year.......if they have a QB. So far, so good.
I knew when Rodriguez left WVA for UM it would only be a matter of time before he tipped the balance of power in the B-11 back towards Michigan. I think they will improve considerably but I also think he's a year away. If Pryor hangs around another year, it will be one mutha of a head to head match between the Buckeyes and Wolverines with an experienced Forcier at the helm. That should level the playing field in that conference. Personally I give a slight edge to RR over JT because of his unique offensive expertise.
Thing with Michigan that I noticed in watching them last year was they gave away so many games. The number of turnovers was insane and when it came to special teams, it was the worst I have seen in a longtime.
They would be first and goal and throw a pick six. They would start to get back in a game and muff a punt. The defense had breakdown after breakdown and gave up so many big plays. I remember Wisconsin's QB, who wasn't even quick, took a run to the house for like 80 yards.
I think a lot of these issues had a lot to do with the coaching transition and if the players are adjusted now, they will limit the bone head plays.
If public perception stays low from the rediculous performances last year, I'm with you in terms of value. Good call...
Just few tidbits on Illinois from the spring game and pre-season in case you were interested or didn't know:
They have a new receiver this year opposite Regis Benn that could become a factor in their offense. His name is Jared Fayson and he was a 5 star recruit that transfered from Florida. He lead all receivers in yards at the spring scrimage and looks every bit as good as Benn early on. He should be returning punts as well.
With a senior QB, 2 good TE's, a very deep receiving core, and better RB's this year the Illini will put up some points. O-line should be average to above average but it's kind of a question mark since the Illini have a new OC (Mike Shultz from TCU).
On the other side of the ball, the Illini defense could be even worse than last year if that is possible. They have nobody at line backer that is proven and the secondary is pretty inexperienced and young. D-line should be the strength but that was the concensus last year and they were pretty average. They lost the leader in the middle, Brit Miller and Vontea Davis to the NFL. Not to mention 3 year starter at DE, Derek Walker and sack leader Will Davis. With good recruiting the last couple years I can't be 100% sure they will struggle but all signs point that way.
The total could go over a lot for this sqaud...
TOOTIGHT:Thanks for the breakdown. One way to look at the offense even though they have a new OC TCU managed to score 53 TD's LY whereas Illinois only scored 39. I am sure Juice is a better QB and the skilled players are probably better than what he had at TCU. TCU's defense probably set up some easy TD's but I watched TCU play several games LY and a more talented QB would have scored more than 53 TD's.
To put the TD's into perspective Utah also scored 53 TD's LY, and Ohio St. scored 38, N Dame scored 37 as did Georgia Tech. Obviously the TCU defense was far superior to Illinois in 2008 and I am sure will be in 2009. Illinois returns players who scored 37 of LY's 39 TD's and it sounds like they should improve in that department. Mathematically if they improve their margin by 5 points a game they can play even with most teams. That is by numbers but the point is that a superior defensive team will probably beat them whereas they will fare well against equal or lesser defenses. Juice is worth the price of admission though and with two receivers like you described and a little bit of run support they could eat a lot of clock and give their defense a little needed rest.
To put the TD's into perspective Utah also scored 53 TD's LY, and Ohio St. scored 38, N Dame scored 37 as did Georgia Tech. Obviously the TCU defense was far superior to Illinois in 2008 and I am sure will be in 2009. Illinois returns players who scored 37 of LY's 39 TD's and it sounds like they should improve in that department. Mathematically if they improve their margin by 5 points a game they can play even with most teams. That is by numbers but the point is that a superior defensive team will probably beat them whereas they will fare well against equal or lesser defenses. Juice is worth the price of admission though and with two receivers like you described and a little bit of run support they could eat a lot of clock and give their defense a little needed rest.
Last year Juice Williams threw 16 Interception and 22 TD's. I am thinking the new OC from TCU will cut down the number of interceptions Juice throws this year. LY Dalton, the TCU QB threw only 5 Int and only 11 TD's. So Williams should benefit from the new coaching and cutting down the int's could increase the TD's and help cut down that 5 point margin improvement they need to make to turn it around this year. With an AA receiver on one side and if Fayson steps up on the other side things could open up especially for a QB who can run it too. The year they had a good runner and Williams threw less they went to the Rose Bowl. So if they do step up in the running dept Illinois will have an offense to cope with. They open against Missouri and they owe them one. Might be showtime.
Seems like I am high centered on tidbit information until all of the spring games are done. Here is one I found interesting. Three teams have eight home games this season: Auburn, Michigan, North Carolina. We have thrown around the fact that Michigan could make some big improvements but when you consider this home team adavantage it may make it easier than I first thought. That is an ideal situation for a coach trying to make the turn around under pressure. And what better confidence builder than to have the crowd support, that often, for a team that needs all the help they can get to shake last years hangover.
In the case of Tech, it falls under the Bill Snyder "Axioms for building a program"...play as many bums as possible and pump up the record. Interesty, since strength of schedule was removed from the BCS formula there is even less need to schedule hard teams. And now those "bums" are starting to realize the power they hold being an easy win for the big program, so they are starting to charge big numbers to play these one or two-game series on the road. What's better for rankings? "Paying" for an easy victory, or actually "playing" a decent team risking a couple of season on a home-away with a mid-level team? More reason to scrap the BSC and move to a playoff all based of conference record.
If you really look at how weak some of the OOC games are it is almost funny. Idaho State was 1-11 LY, has 5 winning seasons in the last two decades, and in 9 games against FBS opponents have lost by an average of 27 points according to rivals.com. This year they play at Arizona St and at O.U. At least O.U. has OOC games against BYU, Tulsa, and Maimi Fl but still probably no justification. Florida plays Charleston Southern at home. CS was 7-5 LY and has played 3 FBS schools losing by an avg. of 37 pts a game. Probably the worst case of bully-itus is N.C. State who on back to back week ends in Sept. host Murray St and Gardner-Webb.
Shame, shame, shame.
Shame, shame, shame.
I was browsing over an article that was explaining the BCS and how it works. Under the new BCS arrangment Notre Dame will be guaranteed one of the at-large slots in a BCS bowl if it is ranked No.8 or better in the final BCS standing. In those seasons (after 2011) that ND plays in a BCS game it will recieve $4.5 million. In those seasons in which ND does not play in a BCS game it is projected to be paid $1.3 million just for its participation in the BCS arrangement.
Must be nice to get rewarded for not joining a conference. Penn St finally joins the Big 10 why not Notre Dame. That would set the conference at 12 they could have two divisions and a conference championship and maybe even increase their standing in the football chain.
If a conference gets a team into the BCS the conference will get about $18.5 million and if they get a second team in they get $4.5 million (same as N.D.)
This will give you some idea of how much money is involved in this whole BCS fiasco and why the presidents of these univesities do not want to rock the boat. It really surprises me that Notre Dame gets something for nothing and it is almost a reward for not joining a conference. This pork bill would have had to have been attached to something substantial just to get through Congress. I have always wondered why Notre Dame never joined a conference but with their lucrative TV deals and this little treat from the BCS I guess they operate on a level of their own, and I might add the quality of their play has not been worthy of such special rewards. I would suggest a caveat that if N.D. does not qualify for a bowl period (6 or more wins) that the BCS should not have to pay them jack squat.
Oh well, that's just me I guess.
Must be nice to get rewarded for not joining a conference. Penn St finally joins the Big 10 why not Notre Dame. That would set the conference at 12 they could have two divisions and a conference championship and maybe even increase their standing in the football chain.
If a conference gets a team into the BCS the conference will get about $18.5 million and if they get a second team in they get $4.5 million (same as N.D.)
This will give you some idea of how much money is involved in this whole BCS fiasco and why the presidents of these univesities do not want to rock the boat. It really surprises me that Notre Dame gets something for nothing and it is almost a reward for not joining a conference. This pork bill would have had to have been attached to something substantial just to get through Congress. I have always wondered why Notre Dame never joined a conference but with their lucrative TV deals and this little treat from the BCS I guess they operate on a level of their own, and I might add the quality of their play has not been worthy of such special rewards. I would suggest a caveat that if N.D. does not qualify for a bowl period (6 or more wins) that the BCS should not have to pay them jack squat.
Oh well, that's just me I guess.
philsteele.com has a chart out that evaluates the toughest schedules. They use the NFL method which uses last years records for this years opponents for each team. It is worth taking a look at.
Florida State had the toughtest schedule as this opponents went 97-46 LY and 11 teams that they play this year had winning records LY. What really caught my attention was four teams in particular.
Utah rated #44 - this yrs opponents went 75-61 LY and 5 had winning records
TCU rated #64 - this yrs opponents went 72-65 LY and 6 had winning records
Boise St rated #80 - this yrs opponents went 76-75 and 5 had winning records
Notre Dame rated #81 - this yrs opponents went 70-70 and 7 had winning records
Now my point is that if this teams tip toed in with one or two losses they could theoretically make the top 10 even with schedules this weak. God forbid if one of them went undefeated.
Texas rated #35 and having to play O.U., O.S.U., and Texas Tech make that look better than it really is.
Florida rated #18 which means their SEC games help offset their opening game cream puff.
There should be another rating just for the OOC teams on each teams schedule which could be done rather easily by someone with some time on their hands.
Florida State had the toughtest schedule as this opponents went 97-46 LY and 11 teams that they play this year had winning records LY. What really caught my attention was four teams in particular.
Utah rated #44 - this yrs opponents went 75-61 LY and 5 had winning records
TCU rated #64 - this yrs opponents went 72-65 LY and 6 had winning records
Boise St rated #80 - this yrs opponents went 76-75 and 5 had winning records
Notre Dame rated #81 - this yrs opponents went 70-70 and 7 had winning records
Now my point is that if this teams tip toed in with one or two losses they could theoretically make the top 10 even with schedules this weak. God forbid if one of them went undefeated.
Texas rated #35 and having to play O.U., O.S.U., and Texas Tech make that look better than it really is.
Florida rated #18 which means their SEC games help offset their opening game cream puff.
There should be another rating just for the OOC teams on each teams schedule which could be done rather easily by someone with some time on their hands.
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So the end result is that UF STILL plays a tougher schedule no matter who the hell they play. Can you make a post without referencing UF? I guess if you can't beat em obsess over em. Hell, Ou hasn't ever seen a defense like that so it must be truly a spectacle for you. I can understand that...
