McKewon's Takes

[zoogs]

Sam McKewon won't let a 140 character limit get in the way. Here are some of his takes post Illinois, spread over a dozen or so tweets:

Accompanying article: http://t.co/zBitnOpBjm

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 37m37 minutes ago

Having to meld old system & new, work with a dual-threat QB & replace one of the best players in school history - Langsdorf has measured up.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 35m35 minutes ago

There have been calls that didn't work, and calls that weren't right for the situation. Frankly, every OC - every single one - has those.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 35m35 minutes ago

Nebraska has to find better plays for third-and-short and third-and-medium. That's a sticking point. The Illinois game was a miss. But...

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 33m33 minutes ago

Given the difference between systems, what Langsdorf /Riley have done in a short period of time is solid. Not vs. Illinois. Overall, yes.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 32m32 minutes ago

What's more, when Langsdorf has erred, it's usually on the side of being more, not less, aggressive.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 27m27 minutes ago

Now, the defense? Even with injuries, the defense, over the course of a season, hasn't been as good as I thought it could be.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 26m26 minutes ago

And the appalling, long pass play on Illinois' last drive didn't get enough of a stringent eye - because it's already been too common.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 25m25 minutes ago

In a sense, that play was no better than the 2009 play vs. VT, but it was so out of character in 2009, it stuck out. 2015 NU D? Not as much.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 15m15 minutes ago

Here's the funny thing: I thought Nebraska should have *passed* on 3rd-and-3 at the end vs. BYU. Ran clock instead with jet sweep.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 14m14 minutes ago

So there isn't any way Nebraska intended that pass vs. Illinois. Of course not. It was the kind of mistake that you just don't see often.

The Illinois game was definitely a huge miss in an otherwise promising (for the offense) body of work to start. He makes a good point about how little that long pass on the final drive stuck out. You just knew it was going to happen, despite a better showing from the defense up to that point. Team now faces a big test in resolve, in trying to build off what's done so far while dealing with the mounting heat. It can break them, or it can make them stronger. Which one is up to them.

Will add one more thought, not necessarily coming from Sam:

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH 23h23 hours ago

Kudos to Gangwish, Jano, Weber, Drew Brown, Maurice, Ozigbo and Foltz for talking Nebraska media after loss.

There's an omission there and it's a little troubling. We love you, Tommy!

 

[Savage Husker]

Will add one more thought, not necessarily coming from Sam:

https://twitter.com/swmckewonOWH/status/650527230536253440

There's an omission there and it's a little troubling. We love you, Tommy!

An unnecessary jab, IMO.

 

[zoogs]

Eek, is there a limit to the amount of twitter embeds per post? Probably for the best...I'll fix that by copy/pasting.

There's some more McKewon twitter commentary that I'll just link and copy/paste. It starts with

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

After calling 8 straight runs, a bizarre play occurs that they didn't plan. Their demeanor in describing that play was opposite of pointed.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

The alternative would have been for them, I suppose, to say they called a bad play. But lying solves what? Not much.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

Riley and Langsdorf even said the formation was screwed up. But you can't explain a pass you didn't call.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

You COULD say: Hey, it's a bad running playcall. I see no point in saying: Yeah, we called pass we didn't actually call.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

Trying to create some narrative of the coaches doing Armstrong wrong...I think you'd have to have more of a track record than those answers.

Samuel McKewon ‏@swmckewonOWH Oct 3

Just listen to RIley's answers on the play. Everything is soft-pedaled. There's empathy. It's not "boy, he really blew that play."

Completely agree, especially that last one. Fans are angry - understandably - and seeing the worst in coaches right now, but that'd be so antithetical to everything we've seen from Riley thus far. Empathy describes it much better. But let's see the track record as it continues.

 

[Kernal]

This was a good quote. He's right about this being a dive bar past midnight. Well past midnight.

Mike Riley is who Nebraska has. Smart guy. Thoughtful guy. Honest guy. You don’t ditch what he’s doing anytime soon. Who are we kidding? Don’t let the Internet — message boards and social media — govern a giant operation. I’m in that world plenty enough, and it’s chaos looking to embrace chaos. A dive bar, past midnight.

 

[zoogs]

An unnecessary jab, IMO.

Not a jab -- saw a few mentions of TA declining the media after the game. I don't think Sam was going after him on this one and I'm not, either. But would've liked to see Tommy not duck it, especially the team leader that he is. Would've been a great example to step up to the plate and show everyone how Nebraska handles a bump in the road.

 

[Savage Husker]

I agree that he should have taken the time to talk to the media.

I guess the way I read it was that he thanked those guys with the intent to dog Tommy. If I'm wrong then, my bad on that.

 

[Nebhawk]

His paycheck is signed according to and how he covers the program. When you know that the coach is here to stay for a few years, you won't bash him because your lively hood and paycheck rest on his willingness to meet for interviews. That was Eichorst talking right there. In some ways this program is right back to where Steve Pederson and Callahan had it. Any negative comments look out, you won't be on the coaches call list for questions.

Maybe Armstrong should be benched for a game or so and see what else is there at Qb. Hell, KSU had a wide receiver come in yesterday and almost win on the road at Okie St. Never know whats there until we see it on the field.

 

[Kernal]

An unnecessary jab, IMO.

Not a jab -- saw a few mentions of TA declining the media after the game. I don't think Sam was going after him on this one and I'm not, either. But would've liked to see Tommy not duck it, especially the team leader that he is. Would've been a great example to step up to the plate and show everyone how Nebraska handles a bump in the road.

I don't fault him for not speaking with the media. I'm sure he's more disappointed with that loss than almost anyone. If any player should have spoke with the media it's Alex Lewis- he seemed to have something to say after the game.

 

[Kernal]

His paycheck is signed according to and how he covers the program. When you know that the coach is here to stay for a few years, you won't bash him because your lively hood and paycheck rest on his willingness to meet for interviews. That was Eichorst talking right there. In some ways this program is right back to where Steve Pederson and Callahan had it. Any negative comments look out, you won't be on the coaches call list for questions.

Maybe Armstrong should be benched for a game or so and see what else is there at Qb. Hell, KSU had a wide receiver come in yesterday and almost win on the road at Okie St. Never know whats there until we see it on the field.

This. Anybody who actually believes these guys (Sam, dirk, etc.) needs to get a clue. The only reason they have a job is because the coaches talk to them. Are they going to badmouth the hand that feeds them? Of course not.

So they pandered to Pelini?

 

[DrunkOffPunch]

Maybe Armstrong should be benched for a game or so and see what else is there at Qb.

Why on earth would you bench TA after he had 4 1/2 games of being outstanding just because he has one bad game?

 

[Saunders]

I think we're getting so wrapped up in the details of "was it a pass" that we're missing the point. It was at best, a risky call. The chances of converting were extremely slim, and Illinois had done NOTHING. Run the ball, have Super Sam punt it with less than 15 seconds left, and you're virtually guaranteed a win.

Instead, you give them 1 minute, and the Mark Banker Pass Defense™ to go against, and it lost us the game... again.

 

[commando]

His paycheck is signed according to and how he covers the program. When you know that the coach is here to stay for a few years, you won't bash him because your lively hood and paycheck rest on his willingness to meet for interviews. That was Eichorst talking right there. In some ways this program is right back to where Steve Pederson and Callahan had it. Any negative comments look out, you won't be on the coaches call list for questions.

Maybe Armstrong should be benched for a game or so and see what else is there at Qb. Hell, KSU had a wide receiver come in yesterday and almost win on the road at Okie St. Never know whats there until we see it on the field.

This. Anybody who actually believes these guys (Sam, dirk, etc.) needs to get a clue. The only reason they have a job is because the coaches talk to them. Are they going to badmouth the hand that feeds them? Of course not.

apparently nebhawk and unlfan didn't see this http://www.omaha.com/huskers/chatelain-pin-this-loss-squarely-on-mike-riley-and-danny/article_899171ee-6a2e-11e5-8f5e-b770878cd57d.html