A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?

(10-01-2017 11:40 AM)jmu007 Wrote:  A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?

Your list is a good and fair one. We don't need wholesale changes, just some time to heal and refocus.

Let's hope Miller and Kloo also recover during this break and are back in the lineup. Miller is our best return man, and Kloo is our best TE, not only as a receiver, but as a run blocker. Without those two guys the team loses a bit of the flash/bang that makes the JMU offense so dynamic.

Saturday, Oct. 7:

1. Rake leaves, cut grass
2. Watch some other college FB games
3. Give the wife some rare Saturday-in-Autumn attention

Wait. You meant a checklist for the team, didn't you? Woops. Nevermind.

The team needs to heal up with some days off. Practically every guy at this point has bruises, tired legs at minimum, etc. Lots of film study as well.

(10-01-2017 11:40 AM)jmu007 Wrote:  A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?

1. I didn't think the OL, esp the right side, would gel untill the mid point of the season. Hopefully thats the case. Will be interesting to see if Edwards remains the starter at RG- guess some of that will depend on Butler's injury.

2. Agree Sharp looks like #1 for now. Sharp I think got in the doghouse with his goal line fumble vs Maine. Didn't see too much of him after that. Then Marshall was in the doghouse with his fumble vs UD and didn't see too much of him after that.. If Sharp fumbles again will probably go back to Marshall for most of the rest of that game..Point is to remain the #1 back, don't fumble.

3. Didn't Alls have only 1 drop? After sitting out the last 6 games he should get a mulligan or 2.. He made a TON of great catches last year.
Hyman has had at least 2 should have been caught TD passes- vs NSU and yesterday. He still lokks like one of the better WR. I imagine Miller will be back. Etheridge, Archie & Stapleton have all proven themselves. There's going to be an occasional should have caught that or drop here or there. WR is one area don't need to worry about.

Obviously missed Kloosterman. Will have to make do until his return. With the bye week hopefully he misses no more than 3 games..

Kloo is a big part of this offense - especially in the red zone. We need him back 100% and sort of that security blanket for Schor. Of course, we didn't have a lot of trips inside the RZ yesterday anyway.

Agree Sharp is our best option at this point - however why isn’t Taylor woods getting more carries from a traditional RB position? Marshall seems very tentative and goes down on first contact way too often. Trai runs much more physically than Marcus which is a confidence thing I would think.

(10-01-2017 11:40 AM)jmu007 Wrote:  A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?

1. agreed

2. agreed. MM is still a work in progress. His running at GT was mostly outside, get to the sideline and turn it up. Might not be ready to be a #1 until next year.

3. I'm more worried about receivers getting separation here. There were several times where Schor was scrambling but keeping his eyes downfield(which was great) for the bigger play and it just never came. It looks like there is still some time needed for the WR unit to get healthy and get its chemistry back. If kloo has mono, may be awhile before we see him, but Miller is still unknown I guess.

4. Special teams is getting there. New punt strategy came into play, so that was cool to see. Again, I think Miller could help rejuvenate returns, but backups just need more time.

(10-01-2017 02:09 PM)JMU08 Wrote:  2. agreed. MM is still a work in progress. His running at GT was mostly outside, get to the sideline and turn it up. Might not be ready to be a #1 until next year.

Actually, very little of MM's running at GT was outside. It was almost all inside the tackles. And, firing right thru from GT's B-Back position. Occasionally, he would be the option pitch man to the outside, but that was less than 10% of his attempts.

As Coach Houston has referenced in his pressers, MM has to learn to be more patient and wait for holes to open. To his defense, not many holes are opening. It is a different approach for sure than what he did at GT, but then again other than the military academies, most everything is different than what is done at GT.

(10-01-2017 02:09 PM)JMU08 Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 11:40 AM)jmu007 Wrote:  A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?

1. agreed

2. agreed. MM is still a work in progress. His running at GT was mostly outside, get to the sideline and turn it up. Might not be ready to be a #1 until next year.

3. I'm more worried about receivers getting separation here. There were several times where Schor was scrambling but keeping his eyes downfield(which was great) for the bigger play and it just never came. It looks like there is still some time needed for the WR unit to get healthy and get its chemistry back. If kloo has mono, may be awhile before we see him, but Miller is still unknown I guess.

4. Special teams is getting there. New punt strategy came into play, so that was cool to see. Again, I think Miller could help rejuvenate returns, but backups just need more time.

Miller looked fine on the sideline and was moving around. Do we know what his injury is/was?

His foot, his Dad seemed optimistic about being him being ready for the next game.

Hope both Miller and Kloo make it back soon. Both are important parts of the offense and special teams for Miller.

I tell you what Kloo is having a ragged senior year isn't he?

Good health to all the Dukes. Bye week comes at an opportune time.

Brian

(10-01-2017 06:27 PM)ParentofJMUMRDs Wrote:  Hope both Miller and Kloo make it back soon. Both are important parts of the offense and special teams for Miller.

I tell you what Kloo is having a ragged senior year isn't he?

Good health to all the Dukes. Bye week comes at an opportune time.

Brian

I thought someone said Kloo would be out 4 weeks. Which does make some since with Mono. To make it worse, you are to refrain from physical activity otherwise it delays your body from healing itself. Once he returns, he will need time to get his wind back. This could be a case where it might be November before seeing the field again.

Courtesy of the Newport News Daily Press, Here is something to read about the team during the bye week.

http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-spt-...story.html

(10-01-2017 11:40 AM)jmu007 Wrote:  A few items I think the team will address during the bye:

1. Right side of offensive line: some solid self-eval needs to happen here and try to come up with a more consistent starting combo.

2: RB1 - Like others on here, I agree Trai Sharp is our top guy right now. Hopefully the staff can keep working to bring MM up to speed on the zone system.

3: WR - After 5 games it appears to me that we are most effective with out larger unit in the game of Stapleton and Archie on the field. 4: Continue to tighten up the special teams, specifically our coverage units and punt return guys. We try to return some balls that make me cringe vs just calling for a fair catch.

What are everyone else's thoughts here for the bye week?Very curious to see how the staff handle playing time for this group moving forward... especially if Hymen and Alls continue to drop touchdown passes. (yesterday is 31-10 without 2 huge drops)

One of the many things that we did better than average last year was catching the catchable balls. If Davis, Ravenel, Taylor and Miller were open and Schor laid it in there, those guys were pretty reliable. Not seeing that this year and I guess it should be expected. Getting John Miller back will help.

This is a fantastic article by Greg Madia on our Aussie punter, Harry O'Kelly... https://jamesmadison.rivals.com/news/jmu...g-his-mark

Interesting young man. Dual-citizenship in Ireland and Australia. Having visited both countries many times, I found common ground with them in that they too call the game we know as "soccer" just that..."soccer". The word "football" - meaning "soccer" throughout the vast majority of the world - means Australian Rules Football (or Aussie Rules Football) in Australia and in Ireland it is Gaelic (or Irish) Football.

Aussie Rules and Gaelic Football are similar. Annually the Irish and Australians used to play an exhibition with modified rules in front of sold out stadiums. Not sure if they still do it, but I was fascinated watching the entire game when in Ireland about 10 years ago from Dublin's national stadium. The Aussies were these mammoth professionals while the Irish team featured working blokes (read: non professionals) who were much smaller.

It's going to be fun watching O'Kelly in purple over the next 3+ seasons. He is a weapon like we've perhaps never seen from that position.

Great article by Madia. One of his best ever.