YOUTH MOVEMENT: Heading into the 2014 season, the Huskies rank as one of the youngest teams in the nation. As camp broke in early August, 73 of the 105 players on the roster were either freshmen or sophomores - a whopping 69.5 percent of the entire team. That number puts NIU fifth nationally and first in the Mid-American Conference for the country's youngest roster. Among the other most youthful rosters: Pittsburgh (78.6 percent), Penn State (72.4 percent), North Carolina State (70.5 percent), Wake Forest (70.5 percent) and Purdue (69.3 percent).
Thanks for this stat. I thought it was apparent that Marshall's SR QB & WR Their talent and experience was really easy to see & was the separation point of the two teams.. That we did as well as we did with the 5th youngest team in the country is impressive and a reason for optimism.
So how is it that we're the 5th youngest in FBS and youngest in the MAC? I can't decide how I feel about that. How did we get here? Certainly it has something to do with the coaching change, it's no secret to those inside that the Doroen recruits preferred the old staff which shouldn't be a surprised since they were the ones that recruited them. But how are we younger than WMU and other rebuilds with recent coaching changes?
Maybe it's just cyclical with our recent Kill classes that graduated being larger and in a few years we'll be on the opposite end and one of the most senior teams, but to be in the top 3% seems to suggest there's more to it.
(This post was last modified: 12-29-2014 02:48 PM by Big Redd.)
(12-29-2014 02:44 PM)Big Redd Wrote: So how is it that we're the 5th youngest in FBS and youngest in the MAC? I can't decide how I feel about that. How did we get here? Certainly it has something to do with the coaching change, it's no secret to those inside that the Doroen recruits preferred the old staff which shouldn't be a surprised since they were the ones that recruited them. But how are we younger than WMU and other rebuilds with recent coaching changes?
Maybe it's just cyclical with our recent Kill classes that graduated being larger and in a few years we'll be on the opposite end and one of the most senior teams, but to be in the top 3% seems to suggest there's more to it.
A lot of guys who were recruited as part of the 2010 and 2011 classes, and 2012 to an extent, left the team at some point and never finished their careers at NIU.
According to rivals, 10 out of 22 from the 2011 class weren't on the team this year. For 2012, 13 out of 30 weren't, and that's not including JC transfers like Ken Bishop and Jhony Faustin.
(12-29-2014 02:44 PM)Big Redd Wrote: So how is it that we're the 5th youngest in FBS and youngest in the MAC? I can't decide how I feel about that. How did we get here? Certainly it has something to do with the coaching change, it's no secret to those inside that the Doroen recruits preferred the old staff which shouldn't be a surprised since they were the ones that recruited them. But how are we younger than WMU and other rebuilds with recent coaching changes?
Maybe it's just cyclical with our recent Kill classes that graduated being larger and in a few years we'll be on the opposite end and one of the most senior teams, but to be in the top 3% seems to suggest there's more to it.
A lot of guys who were recruited as part of the 2010 and 2011 classes, and 2012 to an extent, left the team at some point and never finished their careers at NIU.
According to rivals, 10 out of 22 from the 2011 class weren't on the team this year. For 2012, 13 out of 30 weren't, and that's not including JC transfers like Ken Bishop and Jhony Faustin.
Right, certainly we lost a lot of DD recruited players but I don't recall losing a lot of talent. So maybe DD did not have as good of recruiting classes as we (especially me) thought and the last few from Carey have helped hold our success while they mature into better players. I love blaming Carey when things go bad but perhaps this is yet another reason to let up a bit.
(12-29-2014 03:12 PM)Big Redd Wrote: Right, certainly we lost a lot of DD recruited players but I don't recall losing a lot of talent.
Let's hope you're right, because the alternative thinking would be we do not realize the amount of talent that left, i.e., how much better could we have been? And the logical follow-up question, IF those players were good, why did the leave?
(12-29-2014 02:44 PM)Big Redd Wrote: So how is it that we're the 5th youngest in FBS and youngest in the MAC? I can't decide how I feel about that. How did we get here? Certainly it has something to do with the coaching change, it's no secret to those inside that the Doroen recruits preferred the old staff which shouldn't be a surprised since they were the ones that recruited them. But how are we younger than WMU and other rebuilds with recent coaching changes?
Maybe it's just cyclical with our recent Kill classes that graduated being larger and in a few years we'll be on the opposite end and one of the most senior teams, but to be in the top 3% seems to suggest there's more to it.
A lot of guys who were recruited as part of the 2010 and 2011 classes, and 2012 to an extent, left the team at some point and never finished their careers at NIU.
According to rivals, 10 out of 22 from the 2011 class weren't on the team this year. For 2012, 13 out of 30 weren't, and that's not including JC transfers like Ken Bishop and Jhony Faustin.
Right, certainly we lost a lot of DD recruited players but I don't recall losing a lot of talent. So maybe DD did not have as good of recruiting classes as we (especially me) thought and the last few from Carey have helped hold our success while they mature into better players. I love blaming Carey when things go bad but perhaps this is yet another reason to let up a bit.
It could very well turn out that Carey ends up being a better recruiter than Doeren.
(12-29-2014 02:44 PM)Big Redd Wrote: So how is it that we're the 5th youngest in FBS and youngest in the MAC? I can't decide how I feel about that. How did we get here? Certainly it has something to do with the coaching change, it's no secret to those inside that the Doroen recruits preferred the old staff which shouldn't be a surprised since they were the ones that recruited them. But how are we younger than WMU and other rebuilds with recent coaching changes?
Maybe it's just cyclical with our recent Kill classes that graduated being larger and in a few years we'll be on the opposite end and one of the most senior teams, but to be in the top 3% seems to suggest there's more to it.
A lot of guys who were recruited as part of the 2010 and 2011 classes, and 2012 to an extent, left the team at some point and never finished their careers at NIU.
According to rivals, 10 out of 22 from the 2011 class weren't on the team this year. For 2012, 13 out of 30 weren't, and that's not including JC transfers like Ken Bishop and Jhony Faustin.
Right, certainly we lost a lot of DD recruited players but I don't recall losing a lot of talent. So maybe DD did not have as good of recruiting classes as we (especially me) thought and the last few from Carey have helped hold our success while they mature into better players. I love blaming Carey when things go bad but perhaps this is yet another reason to let up a bit.
Quote:It could very well turn out that Carey ends up being a better recruiter than Doeren.
Possibly. Lets hope that's the case. Love to see speed and athleticism - particularly on defense. I hope my opinion that Carey is a bad coach is proved incorrect next season - and a great recruiting class would be a nice start to that. Go Huskies in 2015! Access bowl or bust!
(12-29-2014 01:34 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: Even younger than the WMU youth movement!
actually that's not entirely accurate
I haven't looked at the two deeps which is probably important, but from the rosters listed on each schoool's website, it shows NIU with 72 fr/so out of 107 players, and WMU with 72 fr/so out of 104 players. Furthermore, WMU showed 50 freshman this year while NIU showed 46. NIU also listed 20 seniors to WMU's 12. It's very close, but WMU overall is slightly younger assuming the school websites are correct.
Again I didn't look at the two deep so it might just be WMU has younger walkons but either way they are both very young teams.
(This post was last modified: 12-30-2014 03:01 AM by Ubish.)
(12-29-2014 01:34 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: Even younger than the WMU youth movement!
actually that's not entirely accurate
I haven't looked at the two deeps which is probably important, but from the rosters listed on each schoool's website, it shows NIU with 72 fr/so out of 107 players, and WMU with 72 fr/so out of 104 players. Furthermore, WMU showed 50 freshman this year while NIU showed 46. NIU also listed 20 seniors to WMU's 12. It's very close, but WMU overall is slightly younger assuming the school websites are correct.
Again I didn't look at the two deep so it might just be WMU has younger walkons but either way they are both very young teams.
Ubish, you can rest easy that WMU is in good shape with Fleck at the helm. NIU fans like to mock P.J., but their impertinence is misguided. Fleck has a way about him that is polarizing, but what NIU fans don't understand is, he is genuine. His shtick is not an act. Parents will buy into P.J.'s message. He will draw players to Kalamazoo.
The biggest threat to the NIU dominance in the MAC is our own guy that got away.
(12-29-2014 01:34 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: Even younger than the WMU youth movement!
actually that's not entirely accurate
I haven't looked at the two deeps which is probably important, but from the rosters listed on each schoool's website, it shows NIU with 72 fr/so out of 107 players, and WMU with 72 fr/so out of 104 players. Furthermore, WMU showed 50 freshman this year while NIU showed 46. NIU also listed 20 seniors to WMU's 12. It's very close, but WMU overall is slightly younger assuming the school websites are correct.
Again I didn't look at the two deep so it might just be WMU has younger walkons but either way they are both very young teams.
Ubish, you can rest easy that WMU is in good shape with Fleck at the helm. NIU fans like to mock P.J., but their impertinence is misguided. Fleck has a way about him that is polarizing, but what NIU fans don't understand is, he is genuine. His shtick is not an act. Parents will buy into P.J.'s message. He will draw players to Kalamazoo.
The biggest threat to the NIU dominance in the MAC is our own guy that got away.
1. He didn't get hired originally because he wasn't ready. If you thought he would have done better than Doeren did you're crazy.
2. The second time he didn't get the job, it was because of his actions. That's not letting him get away.
PJ can certainly recruit and motivate. He certainly looks like he will be successful as well, but he's not NIUs demise. He's 0-2 vs NIU, hasn't finished better than 3rd in his division and lost to teams NIU fans would be appalled at for losses. Even though Carey may not have been as ready to coach, he was more ready than PJ. He had coordinator experience and had coached the guys coming back.
Although Carey isn't always the best game manager and makes some odd decisions, he's 23-5 and that's thr most important number. I don't believe PJ would have had NIU in Fiesta bowl talks last year. People complaining about 12-2 then 11-3 with a conference title and a chance at a New Years bowl are entitled babies.
(12-31-2014 05:22 PM)HuskieJWN Wrote: NIU did not let their guy get away.
1. He didn't get hired originally because he wasn't ready. If you thought he would have done better than Doeren did you're crazy.
2. The second time he didn't get the job, it was because of his actions. That's not letting him get away.
PJ can certainly recruit and motivate. He certainly looks like he will be successful as well, but he's not NIUs demise. He's 0-2 vs NIU, hasn't finished better than 3rd in his division and lost to teams NIU fans would be appalled at for losses. Even though Carey may not have been as ready to coach, he was more ready than PJ. He had coordinator experience and had coached the guys coming back.
Although Carey isn't always the best game manager and makes some odd decisions, he's 23-5 and that's thr most important number. I don't believe PJ would have had NIU in Fiesta bowl talks last year. People complaining about 12-2 then 11-3 with a conference title and a chance at a New Years bowl are entitled babies.
(12-31-2014 05:22 PM)HuskieJWN Wrote: NIU did not let their guy get away.
1. He didn't get hired originally because he wasn't ready. If you thought he would have done better than Doeren did you're crazy.
2. The second time he didn't get the job, it was because of his actions. That's not letting him get away.
PJ can certainly recruit and motivate. He certainly looks like he will be successful as well, but he's not NIUs demise. He's 0-2 vs NIU, hasn't finished better than 3rd in his division and lost to teams NIU fans would be appalled at for losses. Even though Carey may not have been as ready to coach, he was more ready than PJ. He had coordinator experience and had coached the guys coming back.
Although Carey isn't always the best game manager and makes some odd decisions, he's 23-5 and that's thr most important number. I don't believe PJ would have had NIU in Fiesta bowl talks last year. People complaining about 12-2 then 11-3 with a conference title and a chance at a New Years bowl are entitled babies.
(12-29-2014 01:34 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: Even younger than the WMU youth movement!
actually that's not entirely accurate
I haven't looked at the two deeps which is probably important, but from the rosters listed on each schoool's website, it shows NIU with 72 fr/so out of 107 players, and WMU with 72 fr/so out of 104 players. Furthermore, WMU showed 50 freshman this year while NIU showed 46. NIU also listed 20 seniors to WMU's 12. It's very close, but WMU overall is slightly younger assuming the school websites are correct.
Again I didn't look at the two deep so it might just be WMU has younger walkons but either way they are both very young teams.
Ubish, you can rest easy that WMU is in good shape with Fleck at the helm. NIU fans like to mock P.J., but their impertinence is misguided. Fleck has a way about him that is polarizing, but what NIU fans don't understand is, he is genuine. His shtick is not an act. Parents will buy into P.J.'s message. He will draw players to Kalamazoo.
The biggest threat to the NIU dominance in the MAC is our own guy that got away.
(12-31-2014 05:22 PM)HuskieJWN Wrote: NIU did not let their guy get away.
1. He didn't get hired originally because he wasn't ready. If you thought he would have done better than Doeren did you're crazy.
2. The second time he didn't get the job, it was because of his actions. That's not letting him get away.
PJ can certainly recruit and motivate. He certainly looks like he will be successful as well, but he's not NIUs demise. He's 0-2 vs NIU, hasn't finished better than 3rd in his division and lost to teams NIU fans would be appalled at for losses. Even though Carey may not have been as ready to coach, he was more ready than PJ. He had coordinator experience and had coached the guys coming back.
Although Carey isn't always the best game manager and makes some odd decisions, he's 23-5 and that's thr most important number. I don't believe PJ would have had NIU in Fiesta bowl talks last year. People complaining about 12-2 then 11-3 with a conference title and a chance at a New Years bowl are entitled babies.
(12-29-2014 01:34 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: Even younger than the WMU youth movement!
actually that's not entirely accurate
I haven't looked at the two deeps which is probably important, but from the rosters listed on each schoool's website, it shows NIU with 72 fr/so out of 107 players, and WMU with 72 fr/so out of 104 players. Furthermore, WMU showed 50 freshman this year while NIU showed 46. NIU also listed 20 seniors to WMU's 12. It's very close, but WMU overall is slightly younger assuming the school websites are correct.
Again I didn't look at the two deep so it might just be WMU has younger walkons but either way they are both very young teams.
Ubish, you can rest easy that WMU is in good shape with Fleck at the helm. NIU fans like to mock P.J., but their impertinence is misguided. Fleck has a way about him that is polarizing, but what NIU fans don't understand is, he is genuine. His shtick is not an act. Parents will buy into P.J.'s message. He will draw players to Kalamazoo.
The biggest threat to the NIU dominance in the MAC is our own guy that got away.
2nd time I have seen this picture, and again, it is perfect timing.
![[Image: no1.jpg]](https://contactzilla.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/no1.jpg)
