NIU has played the 9th most difficult schedule in the country according to Sagarin.

Let's calm down. We haven't even played our FCS opponent yet.

Meanwhile, the top G5 teams have the following strength of schedule:

Cincinnati - 114
San Diego St - 122
Liberty - 175
Coastal Carolina - 163
Memphis - 104
Houston - 172
SMU - 179

Kent State - 3; only has FCS win, somewhat competitive against A&M
NIU - 9; has half of conference's P5 wins but hasn't played FCS yet
WMU - 18; has other half of conference's P5 wins but has played FCS
Miami - 21; only has FCS win; competitive vs Minnesota
Ball State - 22; only has FCS win, uncompetitive in other games
CMU - 29; only has FCS win, competitive vs Missouri
Buffalo - 87; only has FCS win; competitive vs Coastal Carolina
Ohio - 111; lost to FCS and uncompetitive
Toledo - 119; only has FCS win, competitive vs Notre Dame but not vs winless Colorado St
Bowling Green - 139; only has FCS win, competitive vs South Alabama
Akron - 150; only has FCS win, uncompetitive in other games
EMU - 187; Very easy schedule, FCS win and also win vs #192 UMass

I figure this thread will be ignored though because it doesn't fit the fire everyone narrative and we lost to Michigan who has a $100 million budget and has crushed 3 opponents.

For the moment it makes things not look as bad. After another couple games we'll have a better idea.

The worst team in the country can play the hardest schedule in history. They’d still be the worst team in the country. I think everyone would have been fine losing say 38-13 or whatever. No one expected to NIU hold up. But NIU wasn’t even playing the same sport as UM yesterday. The team keeps getting more experience but isn’t getting better. I’m hoping this staff is just learning on the job too. That’s better than realizing they might just not be good.

(09-19-2021 09:12 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  The worst team in the country can play the hardest schedule in history. They’d still be the worst team in the country. I think everyone would have been fine losing say 38-13 or whatever. No one expected to NIU hold up. But NIU wasn’t even playing the same sport as UM yesterday. The team keeps getting more experience but isn’t getting better. I’m hoping this staff is just learning on the job too. That’s better than realizing they might just not be good.

We are 2 mins away from being 2-1 with the 9th most difficult schedule.

How did WMU and Washington fare vs. Michigan? Did they also give up over 300 yards rushing and lose by a lot?

(09-19-2021 09:21 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:12 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  The worst team in the country can play the hardest schedule in history. They’d still be the worst team in the country. I think everyone would have been fine losing say 38-13 or whatever. No one expected to NIU hold up. But NIU wasn’t even playing the same sport as UM yesterday. The team keeps getting more experience but isn’t getting better. I’m hoping this staff is just learning on the job too. That’s better than realizing they might just not be good.

We are 2 mins away from being 2-1 with the 9th most difficult schedule.

How did WMU and Washington fare vs. Michigan? Did they also give up over 300 yards rushing and lose by a lot?

Washington was dead even with UM in yards and first downs. I watched WMU. They lost that game physically. Still managed 17 first downs and 330 yards of offense. NIU got obliterated. 11 first downs and 200 yards of O. I would have been fine with a similar result as WMU. But a$$ whoopings like that make you second guess what the team is doing.

Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

(09-19-2021 09:31 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:21 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:12 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  The worst team in the country can play the hardest schedule in history. They’d still be the worst team in the country. I think everyone would have been fine losing say 38-13 or whatever. No one expected to NIU hold up. But NIU wasn’t even playing the same sport as UM yesterday. The team keeps getting more experience but isn’t getting better. I’m hoping this staff is just learning on the job too. That’s better than realizing they might just not be good.

We are 2 mins away from being 2-1 with the 9th most difficult schedule.

How did WMU and Washington fare vs. Michigan? Did they also give up over 300 yards rushing and lose by a lot?

Washington was dead even with UM in yards and first downs. I watched WMU. They lost that game physically. Still managed 17 first downs and 330 yards of offense. NIU got obliterated. 11 first downs and 200 yards of O. I would have been fine with a similar result as WMU. But a$$ whoopings like that make you second guess what the team is doing.

It was a bad game for us. But again we are 2 mins from being 2-1 with an all freshmen defense. Keep things in context.

WMU scored 4 more points than us with a far more veteran team not like they did all that better.

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

(09-19-2021 09:52 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

(09-19-2021 09:38 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:31 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:21 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:12 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  The worst team in the country can play the hardest schedule in history. They’d still be the worst team in the country. I think everyone would have been fine losing say 38-13 or whatever. No one expected to NIU hold up. But NIU wasn’t even playing the same sport as UM yesterday. The team keeps getting more experience but isn’t getting better. I’m hoping this staff is just learning on the job too. That’s better than realizing they might just not be good.

We are 2 mins away from being 2-1 with the 9th most difficult schedule.

How did WMU and Washington fare vs. Michigan? Did they also give up over 300 yards rushing and lose by a lot?

Washington was dead even with UM in yards and first downs. I watched WMU. They lost that game physically. Still managed 17 first downs and 330 yards of offense. NIU got obliterated. 11 first downs and 200 yards of O. I would have been fine with a similar result as WMU. But a$$ whoopings like that make you second guess what the team is doing.

It was a bad game for us. But again we are 2 mins from being 2-1 with an all freshmen defense. Keep things in context.

WMU scored 4 more points than us with a far more veteran team not like they did all that better.

There’s not a true freshman on the defense. Everyone of the starters played last year and several of them in 2019. We are also a reversed call on a very close 2 pt conversion away from being 0-3.

Things will get better in MAC play. That’s all that matters. But my fear is the real youth on this team is Hammock. It may take him 2 more years until he gets the experience and right coaches just to start to be really successful. Everyone is assuming this team will get better just because the D will get more experience. Like they’ll go from giving up 45pts a game down to 25pts a game because of 9 more games played. We have guys like Ester, Griffin, and Rattin we call a “freshman” and next year they will be seniors school wise.

(09-19-2021 10:03 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:52 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

Probably.

(09-19-2021 10:03 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:52 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

The difference is called progress. Had this happened in 2019 I would have been totally fine. This is year 3. Giving up 50 in back to back games can’t be viewed as getting better.

What team do you feel better about? The 2019 team that went to 12th ranked Utah and lost 35-17 or the 2021 team that played yesterday?

(09-19-2021 10:14 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 10:03 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:52 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:36 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  Didn't Washington lose to Montana?

Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

The difference is called progress. Had this happened in 2019 I would have been totally fine. This is year 3. Giving up 50 in back to back games can’t be viewed as getting better.

They were 0-6 last season with no offseason training. We are 2 mins from being 2-1. They have progressed. When did we win a game last season? When did we score more than 40 points last season?

Difference between last season and this season is we played an all MAC schedule schedule now we have played the 9th toughest schedule and yet we have shown more this year.

(09-19-2021 10:03 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

Not everyone, DC Derrick Jackson.

(09-19-2021 10:06 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  There’s not a true freshman on the defense. Everyone of the starters played last year and several of them in 2019. We are also a reversed call on a very close 2 pt conversion away from being 0-3.

Things will get better in MAC play. That’s all that matters. But my fear is the real youth on this team is Hammock. It may take him 2 more years until he gets the experience and (the) right coaches just to start to be really successful. Everyone is assuming this team will get better just because the D will get more experience. Like they’ll go from giving up 45pts a game down to 25pts a game because of 9 more games played. We have guys like Ester, Griffin, and Rattin we call a “freshman” and next year they will be seniors school wise.

I still believe in Hammock as a leader, recruiter, motivator, face-of-the-Program, and even as a “CEO type” Head Coach (which he’s been) who delegates the Offense to the OC and the Defense to the DC; however, it’s his choices in Assistant Coaches (thus far) and the inability, or unwillingness, to replace them when it’s apparent that they are not meeting minimal standards that is worrisome.

(09-19-2021 10:19 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 10:14 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 10:03 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:52 AM)NIU007 Wrote:  

(09-19-2021 09:40 AM)epasnoopy Wrote:  Still a P5 with a $100 million budget yet the only scored as many points as us.

Washington lost by 21 and we lost by 53 and really would have been more if Michigan had tried to. And we scored our only TD against Michigan's backups.

21 points or 53 points. They're both still losses by a lot. Difference is we have a $25 million budget (not $100 million), don't recruit 4-5 star players, have huge fancy facilities, or even good concession stands. If we lose by 33 points instead like WMU would all the fair weather fans step away from the ledge instead of calling our team awful and wanting everyone at NIU to be fired???

The difference is called progress. Had this happened in 2019 I would have been totally fine. This is year 3. Giving up 50 in back to back games can’t be viewed as getting better.

They were 0-6 last season with no offseason training. We are 2 mins from being 2-1. They have progressed. When did we win a game last season? When did we score more than 40 points last season?

Difference between last season and this season is we played an all MAC schedule schedule now we have played the 9th toughest schedule and yet we have shown more this year.

I hope you’re right. I think this defense is somewhere between the GT results and the Wyoming results. That’s still pretty bad. This years conference play will tell a lot. I still think hoping to play .500 in the Mac in year 3 is garbage. Generally 4 of the worst teams in the country come from the Mac. It’s frustrating that we went from “building a P5 type program” to hoping in year 4 we can win in conference more than lose. Presidents have shorter windows to improve things than Hammock’s gonna get.

I'm not happy giving up 63 points either. But I just try to look at things game by game and not get overly upset about one game. I see progress. We beat a team on the road and we almost beat a good MWC team (that just crushed our MAC champ). We are also the only MAC team yet to play a FCS (almost automatic wins for every FBS).