What has gone right:
Alignment: I was pretty juiced about the whole alignment philosophy and the the changes that came with it when Herman was hired. I know Herman had to work pretty hard to transform the mental aspect of everything-had to be done. We got some pretty awesome facility enhancements which are continuing as we speak. My understanding is also some changes with the lifers or non-committed dead weight working in the administrative athletic offices. I can't remember where I read something alluding to this or whether it was written out of context. Regardless, I like the idea of it whether it is true or not.
CDC: I really like him, but there hasn't been any decision he has made or failed to make that allows us to fully evaluate him. I think it was the right call to give Shaka this year. This is pretty much my "make or break" year in Shaka's tenure here. Same thing with Herman. Next year is the "make or break" year.
What has gone wrong:
I had thought Herman was an offensive guru when hired. Hasn't turned out that way.
I thought we were going to do a lot of RPO designs. We have a great QB for which to design those plays around. How many 3n1/4n1 could we not get? Why didn't we do an RPO instead of the failed run plays where our OL couldn't do their part. An RPO would have at least given us a chance with Sam dumping the pass or running it himself.
Texas is not a consistent downfield threat. Sam is inaccurate enough to where defenses play more aggressive in the box. This didn't help our 3n1/4n1 misses throughout the year.
We have an average QB coach at best. Sam is a good QB that has the attitude to try and get better. I just don't think it is being coached to him. Last night I watched Herbert from Oregon pump fake and stall a defensive back while the receiver made the double move up the field-no surprise it worked beautifully. Couldn't find a video of it. So no pump fake or looking off receivers for us. I guess our philosophy is to do it physically and not use everything at our disposal.
Failure to recruit elite defensive linemen. There must not be a commitment to it. I am positive Herman and Co try to recruit all quality players, but why do Clemson/Bama always have dominant DL? Is the difference commitment. Frustrating.
Most or all successful teams use the tight end as weapon. The tight end slant is a high percentage play in short yardage situations. Nope, not for us.
Going Forward:
1) Start with doing whatever it takes in getting the real horses on the DL
2) Get a real offensive coordinator
3) I don't care what order the other things are fixed (as long as #1 and #2 are dealt with).
Alignment: I was pretty juiced about the whole alignment philosophy and the the changes that came with it when Herman was hired. I know Herman had to work pretty hard to transform the mental aspect of everything-had to be done. We got some pretty awesome facility enhancements which are continuing as we speak. My understanding is also some changes with the lifers or non-committed dead weight working in the administrative athletic offices. I can't remember where I read something alluding to this or whether it was written out of context. Regardless, I like the idea of it whether it is true or not.
CDC: I really like him, but there hasn't been any decision he has made or failed to make that allows us to fully evaluate him. I think it was the right call to give Shaka this year. This is pretty much my "make or break" year in Shaka's tenure here. Same thing with Herman. Next year is the "make or break" year.
What has gone wrong:
I had thought Herman was an offensive guru when hired. Hasn't turned out that way.
I thought we were going to do a lot of RPO designs. We have a great QB for which to design those plays around. How many 3n1/4n1 could we not get? Why didn't we do an RPO instead of the failed run plays where our OL couldn't do their part. An RPO would have at least given us a chance with Sam dumping the pass or running it himself.
Texas is not a consistent downfield threat. Sam is inaccurate enough to where defenses play more aggressive in the box. This didn't help our 3n1/4n1 misses throughout the year.
We have an average QB coach at best. Sam is a good QB that has the attitude to try and get better. I just don't think it is being coached to him. Last night I watched Herbert from Oregon pump fake and stall a defensive back while the receiver made the double move up the field-no surprise it worked beautifully. Couldn't find a video of it. So no pump fake or looking off receivers for us. I guess our philosophy is to do it physically and not use everything at our disposal.
Failure to recruit elite defensive linemen. There must not be a commitment to it. I am positive Herman and Co try to recruit all quality players, but why do Clemson/Bama always have dominant DL? Is the difference commitment. Frustrating.
Most or all successful teams use the tight end as weapon. The tight end slant is a high percentage play in short yardage situations. Nope, not for us.
Going Forward:
1) Start with doing whatever it takes in getting the real horses on the DL
2) Get a real offensive coordinator
3) I don't care what order the other things are fixed (as long as #1 and #2 are dealt with).