Nice to see an off week on the schedule. I don't know how the injury situation is, but I'm sure everyone on the team could use an off week after last night's game and long trip.

I'm getting more and more confident about our chances the rest of the season. Outside of UNT and LSU on the road, I'm not sure there is another game that we can look at right now and chalk up an immediate loss. Perhaps Wake Forest, but they don't seem to be in the class of the other two teams at this point.

Two weeks in a row the Owls have outperformed the expectations of their own fans, and of the world.

I think the defense as a whole has performed better than expected. We knew before the season started that the secondary was a weak spot.

Good to see the offense going for it on fourth down. Sure would like to see more success at it.

Is run-pass option no longer in the playbook? I always want to see this on fourth and one from the one.

Sure would like to see more of Tyner. You know, the guy that will be back next year. Maybe Stank is better now, and maybe the Hawaii game was too close to risk the change of QB, but as the year goes on I want to see some grooming of him to be ready to compete next year.

Moral victories are nice consolation prizes, but all the outside world cares about are real wins. We are 1-2.

I do think my original prediction of 4 wins may be surpassed, and almost certainly will be met. Ten games left. take out the unlikely ones - LSU, Wake, and UNT - and that leaves us 7 in which we should be competitive. I had worried that a rough September with a lot of blowouts might leave the squad with a defeated attitude. Not so worried about that any more.

I’m really impressed with our defense and the ability of the coaches to make half-time and in-game adjustments.
I think our defense played well enough that we had a real chance to win last night.
The offense seems like more of a true work in progress. Our passing game shows flashes of real effectiveness. And every time I’m about to pull my hair out at another 2 yard gain into a stacked box... we break a 20 yard run.
I’d like to see some more offensive consistency. And a little more willingness to adjust out of the run to the pass early on.

Been surprised all 3 weeks as I would have expected for these games to have been over by the mid 1q, but PVAMU seems to be much better than expected (quite the battle vs Sam and I bet that big WR will be playing on Sundays). The games vs CH and UH appear to be clear indications that this staff will maximize results from the available talent. Not sure this is 2006 as I don't see a chase or Jarrett on this roster but the RB may be as good and don't forget the senior group in 2008 were all sophomores. Feels more like 1989 that the ship has turned and better years on the way....

Looking at the participation stats from last night. We had 6-7 true freshman make significant contributions.

This is like 2006 all over again. Cephus looks to be a stand-in for Jarett Dillard. We don’t have a Chase Clement, but he was hurt for a good chunk of 2006.

I still want to see more of Tyner. He gets in on those goal line plays.

The bad news: Rice is 1-2 and ranked 127 in Massey.

The good news: Save for WF and LSU our schedule is awful.

Southern Miss : 114
UTSA : 118
UAB : 122
FIU : 108
UNT : 98
UTEP : 130 (LAST)
LaTech : 86
ODU : 128

Any of these games are in play. ODU,UTEP, UAB, USM and UTSA are ranked right around us. FIU, UNT, LaTech are slightly ahead. UNT is an unknown.. they are 2-0 but played some pretty terrible teams thus far.

(09-09-2018 08:53 AM)greyowl72 Wrote:  I’m really impressed with our defense and the ability of the coaches to make half-time and in-game adjustments.
I think our defense played well enough that we had a real chance to win last night.
The offense seems like more of a true work in progress. Our passing game shows flashes of real effectiveness. And every time I’m about to pull my hair out at another 2 yard gain into a stacked box... we break a 20 yard run.
I’d like to see some more offensive consistency. And a little more willingness to adjust out of the run to the pass early on.

Folks, like it or not, this is the Stanford offense....and if you think we're frustrated at the constant and futile running into a stacked box, you should sit through a game with Stanford fans....and they have a far superior OL and a Heisman-caliber RB. Virtually every first and second down are run plays, and most are basic runs up the middle or off-tackle, with (last night) USC having 9 men in the box as if it was a goal line stand or 4th and inches. Love broke two runs for 60 yards and 39 yards, and was something like 20 carries for 39 yards the rest of the game, with at least 5 - 6 runs for losses.

I think Bloom has taken Shaw's Stanford base offensive approach, but added a little more creativity and aggressiveness. Shaw is MUCH more conservative than Coach Bloom's insticts appear to be.

(09-09-2018 10:27 AM)Antarius Wrote:  The bad news: Rice is 1-2 and ranked 127 in Massey.

The good news: Save for WF and LSU our schedule is awful.

Southern Miss : 114
UTSA : 118
UAB : 122
FIU : 108
UNT : 98
UTEP : 130 (LAST)
LaTech : 86
ODU : 128

Any of these games are in play. ODU,UTEP, UAB, USM and UTSA are ranked right around us. FIU, UNT, LaTech are slightly ahead. UNT is an unknown.. they are 2-0 but played some pretty terrible teams thus far.

No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

(09-09-2018 10:43 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

So far, Massey has Wake at 22, UH(ouston) at 54 and UH(awai'i) at 83. Its a limited data set, but 127 seems reasonable for a team that barely beat an FCS team and lost to a 54 and 83. Couple that with us entering the season at 128, we haven't done a whole lot statistically to move up. We gave up 40+ against 2 FBS teams too which kills us on the defensive statistic component.

This is the stat test. From the eye test, we definitely look better than 127.. or atleast show inclinations that we can be better than that.

Simply put, IMO, we need to beat those teams ranked between 108 and 130. If we do, it tells us we are better than 127. If we don't, then 127 is where we should be. (and I use 127 as a macro term. There isn't a sizeable difference between 117 and 127, for example).

I am encouraged, but we still need to prove it to the world.

I feel good about my 5 win prediction. Seems like equal risk of a 4 or 6 win season at this point. It will be interesting to see what happens when we have a parity matchup as we played terrible with the lead against PV. Our battles to stay in these games has been impressive.

If I'm JK, I'm already looking at how I am going to hold on to this coaching staff, because they are legit.

SPECIAL TEAMS
- return game (wow, Austin Walter is heck of an athlete, how could he have been so invisible under DB?)
- all aspects of kicking game fantastic

RUNNING GAME
- Esukpa and Walter are studs

PASSING GAME
- Stank is improving each game and is growing to be serviceable, but the ceiling is rather low
- Cephus is a real weapon that we're incapable of utilizng properly at the moment

OL
- opened a few good holes in the run game, but pretty mediocre showing overall

DEFENSE
- looks like our best bet at disguising poor athleticism in secondary is to blitz (or at least threaten to) every play. Certainly helped in the 2nd half, and I think will continue to improve as guys learn to blitz better

Although the track record is short, we are consistently the better coached/organized/motivated team on the field, and are turning games that should be absolute blow-outs, from a talent perspective, into legitimate contests. That's not easy to do, see: Bailiff, David, 2007-2018.

I'm extremely excited for the future

I’ve been trying to figure out who is calling the plays on offense during the game... Bloomgren is on the sideline and Mack is up in box. Picazo and Billerman appear to do a lot of the signal calling.

(09-09-2018 10:53 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:43 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

So far, Massey has Wake at 22, UH(ouston) at 54 and UH(awai'i) at 83. Its a limited data set, but 127 seems reasonable for a team that barely beat an FCS team and lost to a 54 and 83. Couple that with us entering the season at 128, we haven't done a whole lot statistically to move up. We gave up 40+ against 2 FBS teams too which kills us on the defensive statistic component.

This is the stat test. From the eye test, we definitely look better than 127.. or atleast show inclinations that we can be better than that.

Simply put, IMO, we need to beat those teams ranked between 108 and 130. If we do, it tells us we are better than 127. If we don't, then 127 is where we should be. (and I use 127 as a macro term. There isn't a sizeable difference between 117 and 127, for example).

I am encouraged, but we still need to prove it to the world.

From a stat test perspective, this year's offense is light years ahead of last year's version. Three consecutive games of 28+ points, and two of those against quality defenses. And special teams play is now a legitimate threat as opposed to be a negative the past umpteen years under Bailiff. Yes, the defense has work to do, and it will take another 1 or 2 recruiting classes to get the talent required on the roster, but let's not forget that we've played 3 high-powered offenses so far.

(09-09-2018 10:53 AM)flash3200 Wrote:  I feel good about my 5 win prediction. Seems like equal risk of a 4 or 6 win season at this point. It will be interesting to see what happens when we have a parity matchup as we played terrible with the lead against PV. Our battles to stay in these games has been impressive.

My 5 win plus/minus one prediction looks awfully good at this point.

(09-09-2018 11:05 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:53 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:43 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

So far, Massey has Wake at 22, UH(ouston) at 54 and UH(awai'i) at 83. Its a limited data set, but 127 seems reasonable for a team that barely beat an FCS team and lost to a 54 and 83. Couple that with us entering the season at 128, we haven't done a whole lot statistically to move up. We gave up 40+ against 2 FBS teams too which kills us on the defensive statistic component.

This is the stat test. From the eye test, we definitely look better than 127.. or atleast show inclinations that we can be better than that.

Simply put, IMO, we need to beat those teams ranked between 108 and 130. If we do, it tells us we are better than 127. If we don't, then 127 is where we should be. (and I use 127 as a macro term. There isn't a sizeable difference between 117 and 127, for example).

I am encouraged, but we still need to prove it to the world.

From a stat test perspective, this year's offense is light years ahead of last year's version. Three consecutive games of 28+ points, and two of those against quality defenses. And special teams play is now a legitimate threat as opposed to be a negative the past umpteen years under Bailiff. Yes, the defense has work to do, and it will take another 1 or 2 recruiting classes to get the talent required on the roster, but let's not forget that we've played 3 high-powered offenses so far.

I hope you don’t consider Hawaii a quality defense..

(09-09-2018 10:59 AM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  I’ve been trying to figure out who is calling the plays on offense during the game... Bloomgren is on the sideline and Mack is up in box. Picazo and Billerman appear to do a lot of the signal calling.

Lots of discussion with Lembo last night before big calls too.

So did we improve more from game 1 to 2 or 2 to 3? I go with 2 to 3.

(09-09-2018 11:10 AM)cr11owl Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 11:05 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:53 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:43 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

So far, Massey has Wake at 22, UH(ouston) at 54 and UH(awai'i) at 83. Its a limited data set, but 127 seems reasonable for a team that barely beat an FCS team and lost to a 54 and 83. Couple that with us entering the season at 128, we haven't done a whole lot statistically to move up. We gave up 40+ against 2 FBS teams too which kills us on the defensive statistic component.

This is the stat test. From the eye test, we definitely look better than 127.. or atleast show inclinations that we can be better than that.

Simply put, IMO, we need to beat those teams ranked between 108 and 130. If we do, it tells us we are better than 127. If we don't, then 127 is where we should be. (and I use 127 as a macro term. There isn't a sizeable difference between 117 and 127, for example).

I am encouraged, but we still need to prove it to the world.

From a stat test perspective, this year's offense is light years ahead of last year's version. Three consecutive games of 28+ points, and two of those against quality defenses. And special teams play is now a legitimate threat as opposed to be a negative the past umpteen years under Bailiff. Yes, the defense has work to do, and it will take another 1 or 2 recruiting classes to get the talent required on the roster, but let's not forget that we've played 3 high-powered offenses so far.

I hope you don’t consider Hawaii a quality defense..

I never said that, but our offense last year couldn't put points up on the board against the even worse defenses in CUSA.

(09-09-2018 11:12 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 11:10 AM)cr11owl Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 11:05 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:53 AM)Antarius Wrote:  

(09-09-2018 10:43 AM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  No way we're a 127 ranked team with the way we've played the last two weeks against quality opponents (arguably both Top 50 caliber). Is Wake really better than UH or Hawaii? I doubt it, and they don't play as wide open a passing game, which plays into our favor.

So far, Massey has Wake at 22, UH(ouston) at 54 and UH(awai'i) at 83. Its a limited data set, but 127 seems reasonable for a team that barely beat an FCS team and lost to a 54 and 83. Couple that with us entering the season at 128, we haven't done a whole lot statistically to move up. We gave up 40+ against 2 FBS teams too which kills us on the defensive statistic component.

This is the stat test. From the eye test, we definitely look better than 127.. or atleast show inclinations that we can be better than that.

Simply put, IMO, we need to beat those teams ranked between 108 and 130. If we do, it tells us we are better than 127. If we don't, then 127 is where we should be. (and I use 127 as a macro term. There isn't a sizeable difference between 117 and 127, for example).

I am encouraged, but we still need to prove it to the world.

From a stat test perspective, this year's offense is light years ahead of last year's version. Three consecutive games of 28+ points, and two of those against quality defenses. And special teams play is now a legitimate threat as opposed to be a negative the past umpteen years under Bailiff. Yes, the defense has work to do, and it will take another 1 or 2 recruiting classes to get the talent required on the roster, but let's not forget that we've played 3 high-powered offenses so far.

I hope you don’t consider Hawaii a quality defense..

I never said that, but our offense last year couldn't put points up on the board against the even worse defenses in CUSA.

You said 2 quality defenses. Houston is the best defense we’ve faced (WF and LSU might be better) ... Hawaii and PV don’t have quality defenses.