Official Signing Day Thread.......

[Metcalf #2]

What the hell are you talking about? When did I ever say I forgot about Mack's suckage?

For all of Mack's issues, he had a few skins on the wall, and none of them had anything to do with recruiting. With that said, he used up all of them by 2013. I was calling for his head long before the ax fell. No one was happier when we finally pushed him out.

Well, for those few skins on the wall, Mack was allowed to stay too long and sink the ship. It's gonna take time to come back from that. Take your meds and calm down. It will get better. Strong is doing a hell of a job building the new foundation. Give it time. Rome wasn't built in a day.

 

[Son of Wasatch]

Saban also had much more talent to work with from the beginning. Yet still managed to lose to ULM. If Wasatch were a Bama fan, he would've been screaming for Saban's head. Obviously he would've felt like an idiot later, just like he will in a couple years.

You never heard a peep out of me in year 1, but last year was proof enough we were in pretty bad shape on offense and Strong had no answer for the offensive side.

It's year two of the biggest rebuilding job we've ever seen. He's rebuilding the talent even in the toughest of times. The players obviously believe in him, and that's a big part of the battle. It was gonna get worse before it could get better. Give the man time to do his job.

Biggest rebuilding Job??? Hyperbole much.

You obviously weren't around in 84. People complain about not getting guys from the national top 100 list, back then we couldn't pull guys from the Texas top 100 list. Texas was known as a racist school.

 

[Metcalf #2]

What answer would you have on offense? Throw a true freshman QB into the fire? Kidnap Dan Neil and force him into a top secret cloning program? Get a grip. There was no answer because we didn't have the players, period.

 

[salado_horn]

We live in a time of instant gratification. We want it in everything. Building a program takes time. It will take time to get good players and I believe we are on our way. Next year will be better but be reasonable, you don't go 5-7 and then win 10 games the next. We will be better but there could be set backs. Everyone stay away from the cliff!

 

[RoboCocks21]

We live in a time of instant gratification. We want it in everything. Building a program takes time. It will take time to get good players and I believe we are on our way. Next year will be better but be reasonable, you don't go 5-7 and then win 10 games the next. We will be better but there could be set backs. Everyone stay away from the cliff!

Didn't tcu go 4-8 then went 12-1 the next season?

 

[misterTeasyEmalcomXf'inAkicksome]

Ah, and the triumph of the signing day thread has devolved into the sunshine pumpers vs the pessimistic doom-and-gloom types. And suddenly it's way less interesting.

I'm in between. I think that we're progressing a bit slower than my more optimistic side thought, but I also realize that even good teams end up having a bad loss here or there so making "he better not ever lose to [team x] again!!" type proclamations are a little ridiculous.

I'm at a point where I feel there has to be clear improvement in the 2016 team, but that it's going to take a few different metrics to decide whether that happened, and that I'm hopeful and reasonably optimistic that the changes that have been made in the coaching staff, the maturation of younger players and the new recruits should lead to improvement. To be clear, that's both optimism AND expectation on my part. And, I mean, if those expectations aren't met, there will be plenty of time at that point to say "ok, yeah, this isn't working".

Until then, Coach Strong has done things to help improve the team. I'm going to look at it as a possibility that some of those things work. It's a lot more fun than wallowing in the pessimism of it not working. If it ends up being a decent season, I'd love for Coach Strong to have the chance to lead the team with last year's freshmen as juniors and this recruiting class as sophomores. That's what I'm hoping for. But if it ends up being a bad season... the internet will still be here for me to voice my disappointment when it actually happens.

 

[jsto60]

Agreed. Its time to show on the field. No more blowouts to weak competition. No showing up to beat a top 10 team one week and disappearing the next. Only to play a great half the next and then not show up in the following week.

Gotta compete week in and out. No youth excuses. No blaming Mack. We have more talent than the ISUs of the world. No getting shut out by teams like them. No missing bowls. No blowouts in a bowl. No losing seasons. No regressing.

 

[swVAHorn]

I believe we can think Texas should have played better than it has over the last 2 years with Strong and still think Strong can get it done. I don't think anybody is saying we should have been undefeated. Like jsto says a post up.. no more playing your butt off against ou and not showing up the next game out......no more blaming Mack, The year before Mack arrived those same players that everyone is patting on the back got crushed week after week......I still have nightmares about ucla and route 66.....the next year a different coach turned that team around and got the talent out of them that they did not show the PREVIOUS YEAR...

when a team is not ready to play shows up they will look worse than they are

Strong hired Watson......not Mack
Strong kept Watson.......not Mack
Strong hired Koenig...not Mack
Strong hired Chambers...not mack
Strong hired Wickline who I think is terribly overrated..not Mack

Strong said when he first arrived (I have already proven this once) he would have a fast-paced wide open offense that would spread it out. Not what we got. NOW he has FINALLY went to a Big 12 offense that can work if run properly.

I am holding Strong accountable just like he holds himself and his players accountable.

Strong is on the right track now both in recruiting and in offensive philosophy. I don't think it is too late for Strong to knock it out of the park. I don't know anybody that wants him to fail that is a Longhorn fan. I will NEVER go against my Longhorns.

The people going by Strongs recruiting rankings are the same ones saying Macks high recruiting rankings (from the same damn sites) were wrong and there is no talent at Texas...which is it? Can we go by recruiting rankings or not?

 

[Longyac]

Didn't tcu go 4-8 then went 12-1 the next season?

They had a bunch starters out the 4-8 year, either suspended or injured, that returned the following year.

 

[swVAHorn]

They had a bunch starters out the 4-8 year, either suspended or injured, that returned the following year.

it had nothing to do with bringing in a new Offense and Offensive Coordinator? Playing to the players strengths? It was just....some players returned?

I disagree. I think they got the right coaches and they got the MOST out of their players.

 

[Longyac]

it had nothing to do with bringing in a new Offense and Offensive Coordinator? Playing to the players strengths? It was just....some players returned?

I disagree. I think they got the right coaches and they got the MOST out of their players.

It wasn't just the OC change. They also got experienced players back.

 

[Longyac]

Strong hired Chambers...not mack
Strong hired Wickline who I think is terribly overrated..not Mack

Mack hire Chambers and Strong kept him on. Strong figured out Chambers was deadweight in year one. Chambers was on Mack's staff for 16 years.

Wickline is pretty widely considered one of the top 5 college OL coaches in the nation but he's prickly SOB. Patterson's BS made that an unfixable relationship with The University. We had 2 freshmen American OL last year and a hell of a run game for a team with zero passing threat.

The people going by Strongs recruiting rankings are the same ones saying Macks high recruiting rankings (from the same damn sites) were wrong and there is no talent at Texas...which is it? Can we go by recruiting rankings or not?

Strong's classes addressed most of the areas of need and they did not get the Mack/Texas bump from being committed to Texas. Mack's highly ranked classes included no DTs one year. Project QBs. Maxed out suburban football factory kids. etc. And most of that without elevating their Senior season. Look at Sumlin's class this year. No DTs, no immediate impact OLs which is a desperate need, 1 LB that didn't even have an offer from in state Tenn. No big back to take on SEC MLBs. It is a top 20 ranked class but failed at addressing their actual needs.

I'd ready like to see a component of the class recruiting ranking that relates to if the team's needs were addressed.

 

[swVAHorn]

Mack hire Chambers and Strong kept him on. Strong figured out Chambers was deadweight in year one. Chambers was on Mack's staff for 16 years.

Wickline is pretty widely considered one of the top 5 college OL coaches in the nation but he's prickly SOB. Patterson's BS made that an unfixable relationship with The University. We had 2 freshmen American OL last year and a hell of a run game for a team with zero passing threat.



Strong's classes addressed most of the areas of need and they did not get the Mack/Texas bump from being committed to Texas. Mack's highly ranked classes included no DTs one year. Project QBs. Maxed out suburban football factory kids. etc. And most of that without elevating their Senior season. Look at Sumlin's class this year. No DTs, no immediate impact OLs which is a desperate need, 1 LB that didn't even have an offer from in state Tenn. No big back to take on SEC MLBs. It is a top 20 ranked class but failed at addressing their actual needs.

I'd ready like to see a component of the class recruiting ranking that relates to if the team's needs were addressed.

So in breaking it all down. Strong has not made a single error.

Wickline is WIDELY described as one of the top 5 OL coaches? I would say that is highly questionable. Afterall the OL coach is responsible for teaching AND recruiting. If Wickline were top 5 he would not be at West Virginia somebody would have snatched him up in a heartbeat.

You are blaming Mack for Strong HIRING Chambers? Really? I think you have your mind dead set that Strong does no wrong and all problems go back to Mack.

So Mack's classes were over-rated because he got a bump from the sites? Why would the sites give Mack a bump and no one else? There is no question Mack left a team without a lot of talent.......but it was more talent than some of you make it out to be. Those players were OFFERED BY EVERYONE FOR A REASON.

Texas has more talent than Iowa st. And even if it is close on that front.......Texas was NOT READY TO PLAY. Was Iowa St. 24-0 better than Texas? Texas outplayed ou and they SHOWED UP and played HARD...that is the Texas team that needs to show up every week. I could have stomached the loss to Iowa St. (not easily) if Texas at least showed up and gave effort......watch the game...Texas thought they were going to ride in there and blow Iowa St. off the field with no problem.....their minds were not right.....it was not about talent.

Playing hard will make up for talent in a lot of ways. I watched MOJO beat teams they had no business being on the field with because they played smart and they played hard.

Coach Strong is a good coach and a good man. I truly hope he gets Texas going......I think he can. But he has made some mistakes. He admits them all the time but some of his supporters think he has been perfect.

Here is the bottom line......Has Coach Strong gotten the MOST out of this team the 2 years he has been here? Every game? I mean no other coach could have gotten more? If you say he has then that is cool but I disagree big time.

 

[oldhorn2]

Didn't tcu go 4-8 then went 12-1 the next season?

Yes...Tcu got new coaches which made a big difference, but the main reason they went 4-8 the year before was they were decimated by injuries....injured players who returned the next year.....Their improvement was NOT just new schemes and coaches.I DO expect better results from our new offensive schemes, not miracles, but better results.I expect better results from more experience in our young players.

I am probably the only guy that does not think Ridgeway will a huge loss like Brown was the year before. My reasoning is that he was hurt for much of the year and was not at 100% anyway. I wish we had him, but next man up!.....I expect us to win 8 games and while I hope for 9 I dream of 10.....dreams dont usually come true, but I have hope I have not had for 6 years...(for you young guys, 6 years is a long time)

 

[oldhorn2]

Those players were OFFERED BY EVERYONE FOR A REASON.

swVA...you have pointed out the fatal flaw in Mack....The players that he got that were very highly recruited WERE good players. They just never developed the way they should have. Jeffcoat and Hicks were very high 5 star guys and not one ounce over rated.They should have been pushing for AA honors, but languished as second string on all conference teams. ...yeah, yeah, they were both injured a lot.I think that can go back to improper conditioning. James was a 5* OL....never amounted to crap. I agree that Strong made bad hires, but I think you over estimate the talent level that Strong inherited....oh yeah....I left out that too many starters were druggies and academic cripples.

 

[swVAHorn]

Yes...Tcu got new coaches which made a big difference, but the main reason they went 4-8 the year before was they were decimated by injuries....injured players who returned the next year.....Their improvement was NOT just new schemes and coaches.I DO expect better results from our new offensive schemes, not miracles, but better results.I expect better results from more experience in our young players.

I am probably the only guy that does not think Ridgeway will a huge loss like Brown was the year before. My reasoning is that he was hurt for much of the year and was not at 100% anyway. I wish we had him, but next man up!.....I expect us to win 8 games and while I hope for 9 I dream of 10.....dreams dont usually come true, but I have hope I have not had for 6 years...(for you young guys, 6 years is a long time)

I want this Texas team to play like their hair is on fire. I want the offense to resemble a FBS offense. I want this team to show up every week and not just ou and baylor. I want the excuses as to why they can't win or can't compete to stop. This team will not be a playoff team and we all know that.......just show up and play as hard as you can. No one can ask for more than that.

One more thing.....get better week to week, improve as the season goes along and not stay the same or get worse.

 

[swVAHorn]

swVA...you have pointed out the fatal flaw in Mack....The players that he got that were very highly recruited WERE good players. They just never developed the way they should have. Jeffcoat and Hicks were very high 5 star guys and not one ounce over rated.They should have been pushing for AA honors, but languished as second string on all conference teams. ...yeah, yeah, they were both injured a lot.I think that can go back to improper conditioning. James was a 5* OL....never amounted to crap. I agree that Strong made bad hires, but I think you over estimate the talent level that Strong inherited....oh yeah....I left out that too many starters were druggies and academic cripples.

Don't get me wrong Oldhorn......I know the talent level was down. but that talent level showed up against ou......why couldn't it show up at Iowa St.? That is my point. It isn't JUST talent. It goes to my other point. Did Strong get the MOST out of his Texas teams for the 2 years he has been here? Could not have had them play any better? could not have had a better offensive philosophy? game management?

And by better I don't mean necessarily a better record........No one on here as ever seen me post we should have been undefeated.

 

[swVAHorn]

It wasn't just the OC change. They also got experienced players back.

I never said it was JUST the OC change. I said do you think that may have helped? I think it did. Do you think if TCU kept the exact same everything on the team that went 4-7 that they would have went 12-1 the next year ONLY because hurt players were back? I don't.

 

[Metcalf #2]

Lol. I take it I'm not missing anything from not seeing SwVA's posts. Ignore is great.

 

[Longyac]

So in breaking it all down. Strong has not made a single error.

I have said all along bringing Watson back for '15 was a mistake.

is WIDELY described as one of the top 5 OL coaches? I would say that is highly questionable. Afterall the OL coach is responsible for teaching AND recruiting. If Wickline were top 5 he would not be at West Virginia somebody would have snatched him up in a heartbeat.

I'm going just by coaching and no other part of the job.

are blaming Mack for Strong HIRING Chambers? Really? I think you have your mind dead set that Strong does no wrong and all problems go back to Mack.

Just pointing out Mack had the guy for 16 years and people are bitching about 1 year with Strong. Again this one goes in the how the transition to a new staff was handled IMO.

Mack's classes were over-rated because he got a bump from the sites? Why would the sites give Mack a bump and no one else? There is no question Mack left a team without a lot of talent.......but it was more talent than some of you make it out to be.

Rival's writers now openly call it the Bama bump. Bobby Burton was taken to task over KendallJones ranking when he got destroyed in the All Star game. Burton's defense? He's going to Bama and Saban knows how to use guys like him. If these services were that good at elevating talent they'd be on a staff. They are mostly going by what teams are interested in the kid.

Those players were OFFERED BY EVERYONE FOR A REASON.

Then you should be a fan of rankings by offers.
http://www.rankbyoffers.com/2016fbteams/

Texas has more talent than Iowa st. And even if it is close on that front.......Texas was NOT READY TO PLAY. Was Iowa St. 24-0 better than Texas? Texas outplayed ou and they SHOWED UP and played HARD...that is the Texas team that needs to show up every week. I could have stomached the loss to Iowa St. (not easily) if Texas at least showed up and gave effort......watch the game...Texas thought they were going to ride in there and blow Iowa St. off the field with no problem.....their minds were not right.....it was not about talent.

Playing hard will make up for talent in a lot of ways. I watched MOJO beat teams they had no business being on the field with because they played smart and they played hard.

Coach Strong is a good coach and a good man. I truly hope he gets Texas going......I think he can. But he has made some mistakes. He admits them all the time but some of his supporters think he has been perfect.

Here is the bottom line......Has Coach Strong gotten the MOST out of this team the 2 years he has been here? Every game? I mean no other coach could have gotten more? If you say he has then that is cool but I disagree big time.

Strong is definitely learning on the job and needs an OC that takes care of that side of the ball for him. But there is still a lot of things that are the Mack and the administrations fault that people are trying to put on Strong.

 

[swVAHorn]

Lol. I take it I'm not missing anything from not seeing SwVA's posts. Ignore is great.

For someone who is ignoring me this asshat sure worries about what I am saying. People like metcalf can't understand how anyone could possibly think different than they do.....amazing level of stupidity.

Even when I disagree with someone I am still open to what they are saying and I don't think they are idiots and run off screaming like a girl.
People can respect other peoples opinions even when they disagree. Metcalf is like a spoiled child who if you dare question him he will Oh my God "put you on ignore"......I have not slept worrying about metcalf ignoring my posts.....can't eat.....all joy has been lost from my life...

not talking to metcalf is the single best thing that has ever happened to me on this site. Since he doesn't care what I say he can go straight to hell.....kiss my ass......there is no doubt he already knows everything anyway, why would he deal with people on an OPINION message board anyway? There is not 1 subject that he isn't the greatest of all time in.

 

[swVAHorn]

I have said all along bringing Watson back for '15 was a mistake.




I'm going just by coaching and no other part of the job.


Just pointing out Mack had the guy for 16 years and people are bitching about 1 year with Strong. Again this one goes in the how the transition to a new staff was handled IMO.


Rival's writers now openly call it the Bama bump. Bobby Burton was taken to task over KendallJones ranking when he got destroyed in the All Star game. Burton's defense? He's going to Bama and Saban knows how to use guys like him. If these services were that good at elevating talent they'd be on a staff. They are mostly going by what teams are interested in the kid.



Then you should be a fan of rankings by offers.
http://www.rankbyoffers.com/2016fbteams/



Strong is definitely learning on the job and needs an OC that takes care of that side of the ball for him. But there is still a lot of things that are the Mack and the administrations fault that people are trying to put on Strong.

Good post. I am a fan of who offers the prospect actually. I was very high on Williams (you can check) because even though he was a 3 star his offer list was 5 star. Coaching is just part of the job though. You got to get talent (the blame for most of Texas' troubles) to the school so you can coach them.

 

[Longyac]

swVAHorn,

I think the real difference is I consider 2015 the first year to judge Strong on and give him a pass for 2014 due to how the powers that be at Texas handled the coaching transition. Strong had no real opportunity to remake the 2014 roster to fit him. I will be judging 2016 as Strong's 2nd year.

But let's looking at coaching changes for '15;

Watson = bad decision
Traylor > Chambers
Norvell > Koenning I can't remember the last time we had WRs that blocked like the 2015 guys
Haley > Rumph equal as coaches better going by recruiting

 

[swVAHorn]

swVAHorn,

I think the real difference is I consider 2015 the first year to judge Strong on and give him a pass for 2014 due to how the powers that be at Texas handled the coaching transition. Strong had no real opportunity to remake the 2014 roster to fit him. I will be judging 2016 as Strong's 2nd year.

Fair enough. I agree with many of your points...don't want you to think I don't. I just think Strong has made some mistakes (which you said you thought he did as well) and some people are kind of acting like it was Mack, it was Patterson, it was anyone except Strong. He does get some responsibility for what has occurred....certainly not all of it....but some.

 

[oldhorn2]

I want this Texas team to play like their hair is on fire. I want the offense to resemble a FBS offense. I want this team to show up every week and not just ou and baylor. I want the excuses as to why they can't win or can't compete to stop. This team will not be a playoff team and we all know that.......just show up and play as hard as you can. No one can ask for more than that.

One more thing.....get better week to week, improve as the season goes along and not stay the same or get worse.

this is one of the better posts in this thread. Good job. I am not sure how much credit/ Blame Strong should get on his coaching hires as long as Patterson was here because I don't know how much decision ability Strong was allowed when he got here. If he had carte blanc then he did not hire wisely. if he was hamstrung, then maybe he did the best he could with what he had.

I do expect maximum effort from our team. I EXPECT that. I do think Strongs weakest point is game management, but I expect that to be much better this year. Last year our offense was in chaos. Not just from crappy schemes, but completely dysfunctional. how many timeouts did we call coming off of a timeout? how many times were we not able to get a play in in time?

I expect the new OC to correct all of this. Not just because he is supposed to be a bright guy but because he brought his guy with him that is on the same page as he is. We haven't had that. I expect the defense to be salty as hell........ But even St Darrell had games where the team came out flat.

And Last in this rant.....swVA.... I wish you and Metcalf could get along. y'all are two of my favorite posters.

 

[swVAHorn]

this is one of the better posts in this thread. Good job. I am not sure how much credit/ Blame Strong should get on his coaching hires as long as Patterson was here because I don't know how much decision ability Strong was allowed when he got here. If he had carte blanc then he did not hire wisely. if he was hamstrung, then maybe he did the best he could with what he had.

I do expect maximum effort from our team. I EXPECT that. I do think Strongs weakest point is game management, but I expect that to be much better this year. Last year our offense was in chaos. Not just from crappy schemes, but completely dysfunctional. how many timeouts did we call coming off of a timeout? how many times were we not able to get a play in in time?

I expect the new OC to correct all of this. Not just because he is supposed to be a bright guy but because he brought his guy with him that is on the same page as he is. We haven't had that. I expect the defense to be salty as hell........ But even St Darrell had games where the team came out flat.

And Last in this rant.....swVA.... I wish you and Metcalf could get along. y'all are two of my favorite posters.

oldhorn to be honest I don't even know what I did to piss him off other than not agree with 100% of what he posts. He made it personal and I never bring him up. He always has some smart alec thing to say about me for whatever reason. I try to be a good guy in life and I try to be a good guy on here...I understand all of us are not going to agree on everything. I don't take it personally when you disagree with me. I even like to hear the other side of an argument. I wont put up with someone cussing me out or calling me names because I do not agree with them on an opionion based board. I agree with metcalf a lot but he has a problem with me and I don't give a darn really.

When me and you disagree oldhorn I dont call you an ignorant so and so and on and on. That is not my personality. If he wants to bury the hatchet I would more than do it. I think the first time I saw something a little different he would go to the calling names and I am from West Texas and am older now but I still won't be talked to in that way.

Oldhorn You have seen me post on here for a long time. I have given grief to aggys and sooners but I am respectful of Longhorn posters.

Longyac, BBR, jsto, sholz,you and many others....we don't all agree but it seems we at least listen to the other guys point and try to understand where they are coming from.

I mean unless you are the biggest ass hat on the planet why would you make sure to tell everyone "I'm glad I got him on ignore" it is idiotic and childish. If you ignore someone then ignore them...why make sure everyone knows you are ignoring them? It is stupid.

 

[Son of Wasatch]

What answer would you have on offense? Throw a true freshman QB into the fire? Kidnap Dan Neil and force him into a top secret cloning program? Get a grip. There was no answer because we didn't have the players, period.

Are you saying we had good enough players to beat OKLAHOMA but we didn't have players to beat ISU, TECH, and WVU?

You need to quit because we were good enough to beat all those schools and didn't. You have no argument for this because we we beat a playoff team and proved we could when when we were motivated.

 

[Son of Wasatch]

Well, for those few skins on the wall, Mack was allowed to stay too long and sink the ship. It's gonna take time to come back from that. Take your meds and calm down. It will get better. Strong is doing a hell of a job building the new foundation. Give it time. Rome wasn't built in a day.

Straw man - we both agree on this, so why are you talking about it?

We live in a time of instant gratification. We want it in everything. Building a program takes time. It will take time to get good players and I believe we are on our way. Next year will be better but be reasonable, you don't go 5-7 and then win 10 games the next. We will be better but there could be set backs. Everyone stay away from the cliff!

Deal with it, this is reality, there are better coaches out there. Charlie Strong is not Nick Saban. If he doesn't perform he should be replaced by someone that will. If I don't perform at my job I'll be unemployed. That is the world we live in.

Lol. I take it I'm not missing anything from not seeing SwVA's posts. Ignore is great.

Feel free to add me, I'm going to add you to mine.

 

[misterTeasyEmalcomXf'inAkicksome]

I think a big part of why I'm going in with a cautiously optimistic view (but also prepared with expectations of what the team needs to live up to) is that Coach Strong didn't just bring in a recruiting class. He knows there were problems with the offense. He brought in new staff to try to change that.

Were his original hires who you would have picked? Maybe not, but some of them had worked reasonably well for him at Louisville so I can understand why he tried... and Wickline was looked at, even among what I'd say was the majority of the posters on here, as the home run hire on the offensive staff. That didn't end up working how you (or, I'm pretty sure, like HE) had hoped and he made a change. Did he do it as fast as you would have? No. And fine, you can blame him for that, but I'd imagine there are plenty of examples where that happens, especially when you're dealing with people you've known for a while. And I mean, for every situation someone says should have happened faster, I'm sure there was someone saying "you need to give them time" to install their offense.

But the changes have been made. And the recruiting went very well. And the athletic department's changes (not the least of which included getting rid of Patterson) suggest that the teams are getting more support, whatever that entails, and that the coaches all seem a bit happier at the moment. And while I know we're all frustrated with how a couple of the final few games went, the team definitely seemed to come back together at a point when it looked like they were splintering and it would have been easy to lose them. I look at how Swoopes was back to being energetic and encouraging the rest of his team when they found a role for him in the 18-wheeler package (which worked well, actually). And I look at the energy and excitement between the current players and the recruiting class that we've seen in various media (like twitter) and I don't see a dejected or splintered group, I see a hungry group with a vision of where they want to go.

Maybe the changes won't work. Maybe the energy will fade. Maybe eventually Coach Strong WILL lose the team. And when that happens, I'll agree that something isn't working. But right now? I'm looking at the changes and saying... yeah, that could work. I want it to work. Go make it work, Coach Strong! And that's the perspective I'm going to take because it's a lot more fun and there will plenty of time for the other stuff if it doesn't happen.

 

[oldhorn2]

Wickline.....the man is a good coach and respected in the community. The problem with Wickline was not of Strongs doing. Patterson ****ed that completely up ans caused it to spread and strain the whole staff. Patterson backstabbed the whole staff and Wickline in particular. I ask you.....would you have recruited with enthusiasm for the school that was going to cause you to pay out of your own pocket what amounted to a years salary? I am surprised they could get him to come in to work everyday. I dont blame Strong for hiring him.

 

[swVAHorn]

Wickline.....the man is a good coach and respected in the community. The problem with Wickline was not of Strongs doing. Patterson ****ed that completely up ans caused it to spread and strain the whole staff. Patterson backstabbed the whole staff and Wickline in particular. I ask you.....would you have recruited with enthusiasm for the school that was going to cause you to pay out of your own pocket what amounted to a years salary? I am surprised they could get him to come in to work everyday. I dont blame Strong for hiring him.

I agree with what you are saying.....however Wickline did sign the contract at OK St. and it was known before he was hired. The only problem I would have with it is if Patterson did say he would take care of it and then didn't....then Wickline has a beef for sure....if there was no promise of paying it then that is on Wickline and no one else. I don't know, was Wickline told Texas would pay the money for not calling the plays?

 

[salado_horn]

Straw man - we both agree on this, so why are you talking about it?



Deal with it, this is reality, there are better coaches out there. Charlie Strong is not Nick Saban. If he doesn't perform he should be replaced by someone that will. If I don't perform at my job I'll be unemployed. That is the world we live in.



Feel free to add me, I'm going to add you to mine.

Your like a spoiled brat! You can't have Nick Saban, get over it! When you get close to that edge call me so I can help you go over.

 

[horn01]

This conversation should probably not be on the signing day thread. We got a great class all things considered, which I don't think anyone is arguing with.

 

[Metcalf #2]

this is one of the better posts in this thread. Good job. I am not sure how much credit/ Blame Strong should get on his coaching hires as long as Patterson was here because I don't know how much decision ability Strong was allowed when he got here. If he had carte blanc then he did not hire wisely. if he was hamstrung, then maybe he did the best he could with what he had.

I do expect maximum effort from our team. I EXPECT that. I do think Strongs weakest point is game management, but I expect that to be much better this year. Last year our offense was in chaos. Not just from crappy schemes, but completely dysfunctional. how many timeouts did we call coming off of a timeout? how many times were we not able to get a play in in time?

I expect the new OC to correct all of this. Not just because he is supposed to be a bright guy but because he brought his guy with him that is on the same page as he is. We haven't had that. I expect the defense to be salty as hell........ But even St Darrell had games where the team came out flat.

And Last in this rant.....swVA.... I wish you and Metcalf could get along. y'all are two of my favorite posters.

Sorry oldhorn, ain't happening.

 

[RoboCocks21]

A bunch of menopause in here....good grief....