I'll Start the Fire Watson Thread

[huskers1]

It's obviously not all the coaches fault. Taylor still fumbles a ton, players are still dropping passes and missing blocks. BUT it's the coaches job, whether it be Cotton, Gilmore, or Wats, to put players in position to get the job done. Too many times we just run the same play over and over again. Most of the time the plays aren't even in a different set. How many times have we seen the play where Taylor is in the gun, reverse pivots and hands to ball off to the back? At first this play was going for 50 yards, however after running it close to 50 times during the year it became ineffective. How many times have we run the play where cotton is line up as an H-Back behind the tackle then cuts across the line to down block? The offense is just so damn predictable. It really reminds me of Chase Daniels comments about our D in 07 about being a high school D except now it refers to the O.

[HuskerTrucker]

This game was just more evidence that Watson AND Cotton need to be replaced. The offensive line couldn't even stop a 3 man rush, that is freakin' sad.

[corncraze]

Rex fumbled, fire Beck

 

Those things are all on Taylor, and whoever started him. I told anyone who would listen before the season started that Taylor was not ready to be a QB at this level. All I got back was 'explosive running blah blah blah.' Doesn't overrule everything. Particularly when he can't do that well anymore either, due to injury or whatever it is.

 

 

Same here. I made it 100% clear when T-ragic was selected as the starter he was not the best QB on the team. At that time the sunshine pumpers said I was wrong and that the coaches know what they are doing. Clearly I wasn't at all wrong and neither were you zoogies.

 

Yeah right, like last year's Z. Lee led offense was any better? They both failed miserably.

 

The problem is "coaching", not the players.

 

Look what the 2007 blackshirts looked like. Bring in good coaching and "poof" they're kicking ass & taking names. We just desperately need competent coaching on that side of the ball.

I agree completely!

[NUance]

** necrobump **

 

 

Cards 33

Gators* 23

 

* No. 5 total defense in FBS. LINK

 

 

 

Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of that guy. /facepalm

[Count 'Bility]

** necrobump **

 

 

Cards 33

Gators* 23

 

* No. 5 total defense in FBS. LINK

 

 

 

Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of that guy. /facepalm

He didnt fit here. That is all. It was a mutual separation. I still think Beck is better for us based on what we want to do offensively in order to successfully recruit the types of players we want. I figured Watson would go somewhere and be successful. The guy's not an idiot. It was just a clash of philosophies with Bo.

[knapplc]

Against the #82 SOS in the country Shawn Watson's offense racked up these stats:

 

Rushing Offense - 98th

Pass Efficiency Offense - 14th

Scoring Offense - 49th

Total Offense - 47th

 

Against the #28 SOS, Tim Beck's offense racked up these stats:

 

Rushing Offense - 8th

Pass Efficiency Offense - 42nd

Scoring Offense - 27th

Total Offense - 25th

 

I'm pretty comfortable with our offense, and I don't miss Watson one bit.

[NUance]

** necrobump **

 

 

Cards 33

Gators* 23

 

* No. 5 total defense in FBS. LINK

 

 

 

Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of that guy. /facepalm

He didnt fit here. That is all. It was a mutual separation. I still think Beck is better for us based on what we want to do offensively in order to successfully recruit the types of players we want. I figured Watson would go somewhere and be successful. The guy's not an idiot. It was just a clash of philosophies with Bo.

That's a kind way to put it. iirc, not many here were so kindly in their words about Watson two years ago.

[NUance]

I'm pretty comfortable with our offense, and I don't miss Watson one bit.

I'm very comfortable with Beck. It's just that Watson isn't the bum he was made out to be towards the end of his time here at NU.

[junior4949]

He wasn't a bum before he got here either unless everyone's forgotten the 01' thrashing we took from his CU offense. I think a lot of people tend to forget some of the QB's Watson was handed while being here. Martinez is the closest thing to a weapon he was handed, and that's when Martinez was an extremely raw redshirt freshman.

[knapplc]

Watson's offenses under Bo:

 

2008 vs the #28 SOS:

 

Rushing Offense - 37

Pass Efficiency Offense - 15

Scoring Offense - 12

Total Offense - 17

 

2009 vs. the #52 SOS:

 

Rushing Offense - 62

Pass Efficiency Offense - 79

Scoring Offense - 75

Total Offense - 99

 

2010 vs the #39 SOS:

 

Rushing Offense - 9

Pass Efficiency Offense - 49

Scoring Offense - 39

Total Offense - 44

 

It was a bit of a roller coaster with Watson. He was invited to find another gig in 2009 but didn't/couldn't. Same offer was extended in 2010, and he got the Louisville job, and then the promotion to OC. He's doing well there. He may get another crack at a HC position somewhere down the line if he wants. But he was always just here (as was Gilmore) to be a bridge for the players from the Callahan Regime to the Pelini Regime, same as Turner Gill was from Solich to Callahan.

 

Watson was never going to be a permanent part of the Bo Pelini Era.

[kchusker_chris]

I'm pretty comfortable with our offense, and I don't miss Watson one bit.

I'm very comfortable with Beck. It's just that Watson isn't the bum he was made out to be towards the end of his time here at NU.

I'm not sure too many thought he was a bum. I think of Cosgrove when I think of bum. Watson just didn't fit. Or more importantly - Martinez and our QB's didn't fit Watson. I am 100% confident that Beck has done more with this offense than Watson would have ever been able to. It's not Watson's fault. Or Bo's. Bo's job is to lead the program and he was doing that when we let Watson move on, when we decided to go mobile under center.

 

Now, if you want to discuss mobile versus conventional under center...well, my opinion on that won't be very popular around here. I think the decision to go mobile was wrong. It was made from a defensive standpoint (Bo knows they are hard to defend) versus an offensive standpoint. When you form an offensive identity with a defensive mindset you get "multiple". "Lets look at everything that I have a tough time defending and do that" - We'll always be hit/miss in modern (don't throw Osborne into this convo) day college football with a mobile QB. We're going to lead the nation in turnovers each year. We're going to be hot/cold throughout a game. We're going to need a Cam Newton to win an NC. Just isn't going to happen at Nebraska.

 

However, you take a Joe Ganz...which are out there everyehwere....with our skill position players (best I've seen in 15 years) in 2013 and you've got a recipe for a very successful season. A far more successful defense just for the sole reason they aren't gassed after a string of 18 second 3 and outs. Pelini's defenses are dominant when a team is playing from behind. It's when they get up on us that we fall apart. We want teams passing on us. An efficient QB that keeps the score close is going to have a lot of success at Nebraska. I like Martinez well enough - he provides a hell of a lot of highlights...but I can't wait to see this team operate with a QB that can truly exploit a defense (consistently - not with a single 90 yard run), and can make the most out of the talent we have on that side of the ball. I'll take a QB that is 80% of Martinez, but utilizes the 5-7 other players around him at 100%...versus Martinez that can only use those 5-7 at 80%.

[knapplc]

As far as people thinking he was a bum, I distinctly remember some guy posting a gif of Dr. Cox from Scrubs running through the streets in joy in the "Shawn Watson Is Gone" thread. Some people, huh?

[The Dude]

** necrobump **

 

 

Cards 33

Gators* 23

 

* No. 5 total defense in FBS. LINK

 

 

 

Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of that guy. /facepalm

Are you saying Watson shouldn't have been let go?

[clyde40]

He's a smart guy no doubt about it but what he knows about offense and what Bo wanted was different in 2010 it was like the playbook had three plays. It would be like Chip Kelly running a pro ball control offense it isn't what he knows.

 

 

 

[NUance]

** necrobump **

 

 

Cards 33

Gators* 23

 

* No. 5 total defense in FBS. LINK

 

 

 

Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of that guy. /facepalm

Are you saying Watson shouldn't have been let go?

At the time, no. I'm probably more patient with coaches than 90% of the people on this board. (The last coach I can recall wanting to be fired was Cosgrove--now that guy was a bum.)

 

The whole coaching search thing is just so painful and disruptive for a program. Of course it's not such a big deal for position coaches as it is for a HC. Replacing a coordinator is probably someplace in between, painwise. With a DC or OC you're probably gonna install a new system and--depending upon the new guy--it may take a couple of years to gain traction. With Beck we hit a homerun. He'd been here, knew our system and our strengths, and he was able to tweak things to improve on what Wats had been doing. Sure, it's easy to look back now at the success. But at the time we ran Watson off there was a lot of uncertainty as to whether we'd be better or not.