(11-26-2017 08:52 PM)cmett003 Wrote: This is a look at each seasons opponents, their record at the time we played them, score, and that teams final record along with some notes. This is to give a measure of how we are performing against good and bad teams. I have also noted the blowouts (losses by 21+ pts) and close wins (outcome decided by 1 score) that we have suffered since 2014.
2014:
Hampton (0-0) - W 41-28 Finished (3-9) Note: Game was closer than 4 of their FCS losses
NC State (1-0) - L 46-34 Finished (8-5) Note: IMO best game against P5, but still a double digit loss
Eastern Michigan (1-1) - W 17-3 Finished (2-10) Note: Rain and closer than it should have been
Rice (0-2) - W 45-42 Finished (8-5) Note: Good win but not a great win.
MTSU (2-2) - L 41-28 Finished (6-6) Note: Game was 24-7 in the 2nd, to big of a hole.
Marshall (4-0) - L 56-14 Finished (13-1) Note: BLOWOUT #1
UTEP (2-3) - L 42-35 Finished (7-6) Note: Lost against a C-USA team with losing record at the time
WKU (4-3) - L 61-55 Finished (8-5) Note: No defense shootout. Loss
Vanderbilt (2-6) - L 42-28 Finished (3-9) Note: Double digit loss to bottom P5 team
FIU (3-7) - W 38-35 Finished (4-8) Note: Close home win to a team that lost to an FCS team
La Tech (7-3) - W 30-27 Finished (9-5) Note: Close win to a good team that beat P5 in bowl game
FAU (3-8) - W 31-28 Finished (3-9) Note: Close win to a bad FAU team on road
Finished the year 6-6 with 1 double digit FBS wins, 4 close wins, 1 blowout loss and 2 double digit losses to P5 teams.
2015:
Eastern Michigan (0-0) - W 38-34 Finished (1-11) Note: Close win against a bad team.
Norfolk St (0-1) - W 24-10 Finished (4-7) Note: Underwhelming win against a bad NSU team
NC State (2-0) - L 38-14 Finished (7-6) Note: BLOWOUT #1 at home to an average ACC team
App St (1-1) - L 49-0 Finished (11-2) Note: BLOWOUT #2 at home to a good App St team
Marshall (3-1) - L 27-7 Finished (10-3) Note: Almost a blowout
Charlotte (2-3) - W 37-34 Finished (2-10) Note: Comeback win at home against a bad Charlotte team
FIU (3-4) - L 41-12 Finished (5-7) Note: BLOWOUT #3 to FIU who finished with losing record
WKU (4-3) - L 55-30 Finished (12-2) Note: BLOWOUT #4 to a good WKU team
UTSA (1-7) - W 36-31 Finished (3-9) Note: Close road win against a bad UTSA team
UTEP (4-5) - W 31-21 Finished (5-7) Note: 10 pt home win to a below avg UTEP team
Southern Miss (7-3) - L 56-31 Finished (9-5) Note: BLOWOUT #5 to a good USM team
FAU (2-9) - L 31-28 Finished (3-9) Note: Close home loss to a bad FAU team
Finished the year 5-7 with 5 blowout losses and only 1 double digit win against an FBS team. 3 close wins
2016:
Hampton (0-0) - W 54-21 Finished (5-6) Note: Win over bad FCS Hampton team
App St (0-1) - L 31-7 Finished (10-3) Note: BLOWOUT #1 to a good App St team
NC State (1-1) - L 49-22 Finished (7-6) Note: BLOWOUT #2 at home to an average ACC team
UTSA (1-2) - W 33-19 Finished (6-7) Note: Double digit FBS win against avg UTSA team
Charlotte (1-3) - W 52-17 Finished (4-8) Note: Double digit FBS win against bad Charlotte team
UMass (1-4) - W 36-16 Finished (2-10) Note: Double digit FBS win against bad UMAss team
WKU (4-3) - L 59-24 Finished (11-3) Note: BLOWOUT #3 to a good WKU team
UTEP (2-5) - W 31-21 Finished (4-8) Note: Double digit win against a bad UTEP team
Marshall (2-6) - W 38-14 Finished (3-9) Note: Double digit win against a bad Marshall team
Southern Miss (5-4) - W 51-35 Finished (7-6) Note: Double digit win against a avg USM team
FAU (3-8) - W 42-24 Finished (3-9) Note: Double digit win against a bad FAU team
FIU (4-7) - W 42-28 Finished (4-8) Note: Double digit win against a bad FIU team
Eastern Michigan (7-5) - W 24-20 Finished (7-6) Note: Close win against a avg EMU team.
Finished the year 10-3 with 8 double digit wins against avg or bad FBS teams, 3 blowout losses and 1 close win in the bowl game against Eastern Michigan.
2017:
Albany (0-0) - W 31-17 Finished (4-7) Note: Win over bad FCS Albany team
UMass (0-2) - W 17-7 Currently (4-7) Note: Double digit FBS win against bad/avg UMAss team
UNC (0-2) - L 53-23 Finished (3-9) Note: BLOWOUT #1 at home to a bad ACC team
VT (3-0) - L 38-0 Currently (9-3) Note: BLOWOUT #2 to a good ACC team
FAU (2-3) - L 58-28 Currently (9-3) Note: BLOWOUT #3 to a good FAU team
Marshall (4-1) - L 35-3 Currently (7-5) Note: BLOWOUT #4 to a avg FAU team
WKU (4-2) - L 35-31 Currently (6-6) Note: Blown 4th qtr lead to an avg WKU team
NT (4-3) - L 45-38 Currently (9-3) Note: Blown 4th qtr lead to a good NT team
Charlotte (1-6) - W 6-0 Finished (1-11) Note: Close FBS win against bad Charlotte team
FIU (6-2) - W 37-30 Currently (7-4) Note: Close FBS win against avg FIU team
Rice (1-9) - W 45-42 Finished (1-11) Note: Close FBS win against bad Rice team
MTSU (5-6) - L 41-10 Finished (6-6) Note: BLOWOUT #5 to a avg MTSU team
Finished the year 5-7 with 5 blowout losses and only 1 double digit win against an FBS team. 3 close wins.
Summary 2014-2017 (not counting FCS wins)
14 Blowout losses
11 double digit FBS wins (8 coming in 2016 to mostly avg or bad teams)
10 close wins
3-14 against all teams that finished with winning records
1 double digit win against a team that finished with a winning record (USM, 2016)
Take this info as you will, but when you really look at the numbers. Bobby wilder and co are not getting it done.
TRIGGER WARNING FOR AVALANCHE OF WORDS
What, in your mind, is "it"? Where should ODU be right now, relative to the rest of the conference? I suspect that your expectations aren't particularly realistic just looking at how you rate ODU's inaugural CUSA season in 2014.
First, you dismiss the win at Rice as "good but not great" even though a) Rice won eight games and a bowl that season, b) it was Rice's only home defeat and c) it was ODU's FIRST CUSA GAME EVER. All things considered, I'd say that was a damn fine win. Then you categorize a one-possession loss to UTEP as simply "lost against a C-USA team with a losing record at the time" and conveniently omit that a) they won seven games and went to a bowl and b) the game was 2,000 miles from home, which I dunno, maybe that's an added challenge for a program in, again, its first season at this level.
It's a recurring theme with you: With the exception of the La. Tech win from 2014, all wins are defined down or explained away as being against unworthy competition or are otherwise unimpressive. The losses, of course, are much more telling of the impending doom about to descend on the program like a polar vortex of inescapable mediocrity.
But hell's bells, wins still count as wins. Nobody liked watching ODU slog through a 6-0 win against Charlotte this season, or struggle to put away Hampton or Norfolk State in years past. But the Mayor of College Football doesn't come down from his royal tailgate to deduct victories for not meeting some standard of goodness. You'd think this was Bill Cosby's Temple team, losing to Hofstra 900-0 (in their street clothes).
You're not going to want to hear this, but what the hell: Of the 12 teams to play every season in CUSA since ODU joined in 2014, only four have had at least five wins each time — Western Kentucky, Middle Tennessee, Louisiana Tech and ODU. Everyone else has had at least one (in some cases, more than one) season that was worse (in some cases, much worse). ODU, for whatever you might think of their winning, has never lost one they had no business losing. They often get their asses handed to them
in those losses, but that's something to work on.
The only seasons in which the Monarchs weren't playing for something at the end of the schedule were the first two years and the FBS transition years — and that was because they weren't eligible for the playoffs or bowls.
Then look at ODU's contemporaries in terms of program age: In UTSA's four CUSA seasons, this is their
best one at 6-5, pending a bowl game. They were 6-7 last season and won 3 and 4 games the other two seasons. If they lose that bowl game, they'll have gone the last four seasons without a winning record in any of them. And even factoring in the two years they spent in FBS before ODU moved up, their best season was 8-4 — with two wins against D2 schools and two against FCS schools. Or Charlotte: Their best FBS record is 4-8. Their best record
period is 5-6.
These are the schools, not Marshall, not Louisiana Tech, not Western Kentucky or ****ing Middle Tenne-****ing-see, that ODU should be compared to given their stage of development. Seems that by those standards, they're doing good.
But of course, none of those successes (well, except for the La. Tech win and maaaaaaaybe the Rice one even though it wasn't THAT good) mean squat because in your eyes, the new FBS program should already be the conference flagship. If that's your stance, you will never ever be satisfied and you'll run the risk of being as out of touch as those Tennessee fans scaring off coaches while waiting for Jon Gruden to come down from the clouds to **** out the next Peyton Manning.
Look: I hate blowing sunshine up anuses as much as anyone else. My screen name's Cyniclone, no FluffyKittensAndCottonCandyTempest. I worked in a profession where the credo is "if you mother says she loves you, get a second source." I don't think it's wrong to step back after a disappointing season and wonder where to go from here. I don't think it untoward to think about changes in the coaching staff (I think talk of getting rid of Wilder is short-sighted and foolish, but I understand the frustration).
But even acknowledging that, it's important to remember that as a whole the program is doing better than anyone in its age group — better than UTSA, Charlotte, South Alabama or Georgia State. Hell, UMass won a national title once and they have an 0-3 record against ODU. The only recent moveup that is definitely doing better is Appalachian State, and they had a pretty sizable head start on their program.
So I ask: What is "it"? Where should a program that didn't field a team 10 years ago be? Should 8-4 be the floor? Should they be the undisputed belle of the CUSA ball? Should they be Boise State By-The-Sea? What would satisfy you, and how long would it satisfy you? And don't cop out with "well, whatever it is, this isn't it" — give me some sense of obtainable, measurable goals. Potter Stewart only takes you but so far.
I dunno. I wish things were better now, but I'll say this: It's cloudy at the surface but from the 50,000-foot view, it's a lot nicer.