Harrahs Sports Sound off.....

[HSKRNOKC]

Like normal, you are wrong again. While JD wasnt great last year, he didnt call 55 pass plays (against CU) when the run was working really well the week before (OU). Also, JD didnt call for the D to drop 8, rush 3, and hardly ever blitz against Tech. There were also questionable coaching decisions against So Miss and ISU that led to bad losses.

-Former Fan

 

Yeah, and Jammal Lord didnt call about twenty quarterback draws a game. Whats your point. I was at every game last year and on almost every play, there was a guy WIDE open. Not kind of open, not threading it in there open, but WIDE open. JD is almost solely responsible for the lack of offensive performance, and as a leader of the team, is partially responsible for the team quitting on the season. All that being said, I wish him the best of luck at North Carolina, and I feel bad about bringing him into a situation he was obviously not ready to handle.

THANK YOU so much for pointing that out. I thought that I was the only one that saw receivers that were so open they were probobly lonely. JD did the best he could for the situation he was in. I would be screaming at my TV, theres a guy open over and over. Hardly ever was the correct decision made by him. If we would have had a qb with ANY knowledge and decision making ability we would have had a vastly different record IMO. FF some points you make are valid. But you are very narrow minded about what the BIG picture is.

[huskerstag]

I didn't get to see many of the games on TV, so i had to listen to the radio. That being said, the broadcast guys probably said three or four times a game that JD had the man open downfield and over/under threw him for either the incompletion or almost as often, the INT. If ZT or Beck can hit those guys we're getting another 3 or 4 first downs and keeping drives going instead of running off the field.

 

Add in a place kicker that can make something from the 30-45 yd. range and at least the offensive game plans begin to look a whole lot better. Defense is still a big concern for me. I heard awhile ago that Cos did a lot of studying the pro-style zone defenses that are more popular these days. If he'll implement them, and if they'll be successful is a concern of mine.

 

but at the least, with the turnover in coaching, changing systems, lack of leadership, and split loyalties among players and fans, pointing at game planning and play calling and saying that's the reason last year was a struggle is a huge oversimplification.

 

this season we'll probably learn a lot more about the new staff's skills as game planners and game day coaches

[hoyamannn]

Funny how things change from year to year. After the 7-7 finish I remember hardly any optimism going into the next season. Heading into 03 was kind of scary since Lord was the best QB we had coming in, we had a new defensive coordinator, etc...

 

This year is looking much better. Last year we were excited to see the new offense, but we came to realize midway thru the year that the personnel was not in place. Now we have WEAPONS arriving that are gonna scare the opposition!

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm still skeptical of the staff, mostly on defense. But I agree with Tommy Frazier, who said 'the players make the coaches.' Not 100%, but I believe this year better players will make a world of difference.

 

CAN THE FREAKING SEASON PLEASE START ALREADY!!!!!! Or at least get me my NCAA 2006 so I have something to do in the meantime.

[Pedro Guerrero]

FF some points you make are valid.

Don't say stuff like this it will just add to his ever growing ego.

[DaveH]

CAN THE FREAKING SEASON PLEASE START ALREADY!!!!!!

A-FRIGGIN-MEN.

[formerfan]

Like normal, you are wrong again. While JD wasnt great last year, he didnt call 55 pass plays (against CU) when the run was working really well the week before (OU). Also, JD didnt call for the D to drop 8, rush 3, and hardly ever blitz against Tech. There were also questionable coaching decisions against So Miss and ISU that led to bad losses.

-Former Fan

 

Yeah, and Jammal Lord didnt call about twenty quarterback draws a game. Whats your point. I was at every game last year and on almost every play, there was a guy WIDE open. Not kind of open, not threading it in there open, but WIDE open. JD is almost solely responsible for the lack of offensive performance, and as a leader of the team, is partially responsible for the team quitting on the season. All that being said, I wish him the best of luck at North Carolina, and I feel bad about bringing him into a situation he was obviously not ready to handle.

Guys being wide open and being missed happens to almost every team, pretty much every game. Its part of the game. If JD was inept at this offense, then it was the OFFENSIVE COORDINATORS job to figure out what plays he was good at, and call those in the game. He didnt. The problem is that this staff is more worried about their precious little systems and whether or not they are successful, as opposed to winning games, and making sure that the team is successful.

 

Look for more of it in the future.

[formerfan]

FF some points you make are valid. But you are very narrow minded about what the BIG picture is.

Possibly.

 

IMO, the BIG picture is winning games, going to bowls, winning championships, and a return to domiance.

 

Not going 5-6, trying to make your systems work, and having a top 5 recruiting class.

[formerfan]

FF some points you make are valid.

Don't say stuff like this it will just add to his ever growing ego.

Im not sure that it can get any larger than it currently is.

 

[DaveH]

ho hum...

[johnny_husker]

Guys being wide open and being missed happens to almost every team, pretty much every game. Its part of the game. If JD was inept at this offense, then it was the OFFENSIVE COORDINATORS job to figure out what plays he was good at, and call those in the game. He didnt. The problem is that this staff is more worried about their precious little systems and whether or not they are successful, as opposed to winning games, and making sure that the team is successful.

 

Look for more of it in the future.

I think the coaches DID figure out the plays he was good at, there just weren't very many of them. And it was too late in the game (i.e. all the 4th quarter comebacks that fell short at the end). JD just didn't have enough experience reading pass coverage and that was his undoing. Zack and Beck can run this offense the way it is suppose to be run.

 

[HSKRNOKC]

Guys being wide open and being missed happens to almost every team, pretty much every game. Its part of the game. If JD was inept at this offense, then it was the OFFENSIVE COORDINATORS job to figure out what plays he was good at, and call those in the game. He didnt. The problem is that this staff is more worried about their precious little systems and whether or not they are successful, as opposed to winning games, and making sure that the team is successful.

 

Look for more of it in the future.

I think the coaches DID figure out the plays he was good at, there just weren't very many of them. And it was too late in the game (i.e. all the 4th quarter comebacks that fell short at the end). JD just didn't have enough experience reading pass coverage and that was his undoing. Zack and Beck can run this offense they it is suppose to be run.

 

True that.

[HSKRNOKC]

FF some points you make are valid. But you are very narrow minded about what the BIG picture is.

Possibly.

 

IMO, the BIG picture is winning games, going to bowls, winning championships, and a return to domiance.

 

Not going 5-6, trying to make your systems work, and having a top 5 recruiting class.

If you could just accept what is happening and be PATIENT. This will work. We may go through an assistant or two, but IMO Callahan is going to be here a while.Your big picture and mine are the same. We WILL be there again soon enough. And yes they could have ran the ball way more to try to improve last years imediate record. Think about it. If you twist the offense back towards where it was all the players that are trying to learn the new system are sacrificing 1 year off experience in an offense that will be permanent. Try to see all sides off this before you pass judgement so fast.

[indianahusker]

FF some points you make are valid. But you are very narrow minded about what the BIG picture is.

Possibly.

 

IMO, the BIG picture is winning games, going to bowls, winning championships, and a return to domiance.

 

Not going 5-6, trying to make your systems work, and having a top 5 recruiting class.

If you could just accept what is happening and be PATIENT. This will work. We may go through an assistant or two, but IMO Callahan is going to be here a while.Your big picture and mine are the same. We WILL be there again soon enough. And yes they could have ran the ball way more to try to improve last years imediate record. Think about it. If you twist the offense back towards where it was all the players that are trying to learn the new system are sacrificing 1 year off experience in an offense that will be permanent. Try to see all sides off this before you pass judgement so fast.

Again, as my ol' pappy says, "Change is a process, not an event".

 

This year should be much better. New attitude, players not feeling sorry for themselves b/c Fearless got fired, etc. I look for 8-9 wins, and a good bowl win. And don't count out the defense yet...I think they will be solid...not great, but solid...top 25 solid this year.

I would like to quote a very smart person on here, who said something like..."Can the season start already?"

 

By the way, not to ruffle any feathers, but why is it that when Touchdown Tommie makes a positive statement about the coaching staff, he is the smartest man in the world, but when Rob Z. makes a negative statement, he is just flat out wrong? Is Tommie smarter? What does he know that RZ doesn't? I have never listened to the show, so I don't know if you guys are referring to the commentator, or RZ, or both. I just think that if RZ makes a negative comment, that doesn't make him wrong.

 

The crux of the whole thing is that they are nothing but predictions...what matters is what happens on the field, and I personally believe it is going to be a solid year.

[HuskerFaithful]

FormerFan, I don't know how long you've been a fan but I can remember after the 1987 game against Oklahoma that quite a number of Husker fans were calling for Osborne to be fired or for him to step down. He "couldn't win the big one", etc. Remember those days? From 1973-1997 he never won fewer than 9 games and yet fans wanted him out of there because he couldn't beat Oklahoma. The 1987 loss was the fourth year in a row he lost to them.

 

I think Osborne understood that getting the right players would keep the program at a high level and one day (hopefully "sooner" rather than later) lead to a national title. He kept the program at a high level upon taking over for Devaney, which is something that Frank didn't do. Frank's first couple of years were good because he had the benefit of TO's recruits. Solich's first recruiting class were seniors in the 2002 season, which was the memorable 7-7 campaign.

 

Callahan is getting the program back on track by implementing a modern offense which makes it easier to get the country's top talent. College football is becoming more and more like college basketball, which is to say that it is basically a springboard to the next level. High school studs will want to play for Callahan because of his pro experience and WCO. Have faith people. It will all come together.

[HuskerFaithful]

As for the show this thread is referring to, Travis Justice is trying too hard to stir the pot (as a previous poster said). For some reason, in today's society all news and talk programs have become "in your face" and "you're completely wrong because" types of shows. It's the Fox News/Bill O'Reilly model. Of course, he pulls it off much better than Justice. And Zatechka isn't exactly poignant. A step above Tommie Frazier maybe. I caught about 5 minutes of the show once, and that was enough for me. I'm glad that everyone has an opinion, but sometimes people want the facts instead.