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We can’t discuss averaging 18 points vs G5 noncon teams w winning records, nor our 1-4 record in those games.

It’s all the defense’s fault. We had 3 dropped balls that were deep shots, so the offense is excused.

Meanwhile the defense kept Liberty to 3 points for a half while being extremely short handed regarding starters in the back 7.

(10-04-2021 03:33 PM)kdblazer Wrote:  

(10-04-2021 03:21 PM)The Answer UAB Wrote:  

(10-04-2021 02:15 PM)DuelingDragon Wrote:  We focus too much on attendance and we allow it to be a focus. We are doing well for a G5, and for where we are. We are neither where we want to be or a finished product. But at some point, it’s on us to deliver as the necessary infrastructure comes into reality.

I think it would have been a hard sellout without covid, but all in all I am not disappointed. It was what I expected

You were very outspoken in saying that this would be the best UAB team ever. I'm not trying to troll you, but I'd like to know - how disappointed are you with the shellacking we got on Saturday? I'm pretty bummed with the actual football results. The stadium and the atmosphere around the game were spectacular, but I feel like the team has become very stale, predictable, and monotonous. When are we going to make the necessary changes to really take the next step? Why does it seem like we keep seeing the same thing over and over again and no one is held accountable? Why does everyone seem to be cool with beating cupcakes, racking up penalties, and not doing much else? I feel like we should be aspiring for more at this point. You can say that we are, but what tangible evidence do you have that we are making the changes necessary to keep moving forward as a program?

Sorry for the semi-rant, but you were very outspoken in how good you thought this team would be. We haven't lived up to that. I wanted to get your view on things where they stand now after getting our butt kicked at home by what most people would've said would be a peer school on the field..

We've played 5 games and lost 2 of them. So the attendance wasn't what some hope for but we have 4 more shots at it this season...how about that?

The attendance was far from awful, but it fell well short of what I expected.

It’s still going to be the best UAB team ever. It got smashed by the best Georgia team since 1980 just like every other Georgia opponent, and it got smoked in a half by the most dynamic QB UAB has faced since 1996. Even with that, the plays were there to be in it in the fourth quarter.

The only thing I am disappointed with is the OL hasn’t played to its capability all the time. Wells being out was felt against Liberty.

Oh, and the penalties. That is always disappointing. Even though I think some were terrible calls, we get away with dumb stuff to balance it out.

(10-04-2021 03:42 PM)BlazinBham Wrote:  We can’t discuss averaging 18 points vs G5 noncon teams w winning records, nor our 1-4 record in those games.

It’s all the defense’s fault. We had 3 dropped balls that were deep shots, so the offense is excused.

Meanwhile the defense kept Liberty to 3 points for a half while being extremely short handed regarding starters in the back 7.

The defense, even being injured, was not the issue Saturday. If that game is 17-3, the defense would have likely kept it going. There was a point in the game where it got to be our defense basically needed to score to keep us in it. That’s not fair to anybody on that side of the ball.

It is not mutually exclusive for this team to be both the best UAB team in history when it’s all said and done and to still not be where we’d like to be and see areas to improve.

I have watched the rise of several peer programs very closely over the last 20 years. Very closely. Schools like Louisville, UCF, Houston and Cincinnati didn’t just start steamrolling people. It was a process. All four of those also built a total program with depth and strong lines, not just riding one or two special players. But special players helped them go next level. UAB is building a total program, building it for the long haul. We are now in position to maybe recruit that special player or two without it being dumb luck.

I will agree with one thing: I would like to see us recruit some higher level skill people who have actual offers from good programs. We have done a great job of finding uncut diamonds in Phase 1 of the The Return (2015-2020). But you can only do that so long and we no longer have facilities as a drawback. We need to be winning recruiting battles with the type of teams we want to compete against and beat.

(10-04-2021 04:01 PM)blazers9911 Wrote:  

(10-04-2021 03:42 PM)BlazinBham Wrote:  We can’t discuss averaging 18 points vs G5 noncon teams w winning records, nor our 1-4 record in those games.

It’s all the defense’s fault. We had 3 dropped balls that were deep shots, so the offense is excused.

Meanwhile the defense kept Liberty to 3 points for a half while being extremely short handed regarding starters in the back 7.

The defense, even being injured, was not the issue Saturday. If that game is 17-3, the defense would have likely kept it going. There was a point in the game where it got to be our defense basically needed to score to keep us in it. That’s not fair to anybody on that side of the ball.

The defense held up well in the first half. They were also usually in position to make a tackle on Willis, but they couldn't finish the job.

(10-04-2021 04:01 PM)blazers9911 Wrote:  

(10-04-2021 03:42 PM)BlazinBham Wrote:  We can’t discuss averaging 18 points vs G5 noncon teams w winning records, nor our 1-4 record in those games.

It’s all the defense’s fault. We had 3 dropped balls that were deep shots, so the offense is excused.

Meanwhile the defense kept Liberty to 3 points for a half while being extremely short handed regarding starters in the back 7.

The defense, even being injured, was not the issue Saturday. If that game is 17-3, the defense would have likely kept it going. There was a point in the game where it got to be our defense basically needed to score to keep us in it. That’s not fair to anybody on that side of the ball.

I hope folks sense my sarcasm regarding the defense in the previous post.

Perfection is expected of the defense, which isn’t fair. Once it begins to go wrong, it gets really bad and they all begin pointing fingers within the unit. They shouldn’t have to feel like our offense is a burden, and that’s exactly what it is.

We either come out motivated this week and squeak out a win or we get smoked by FAUs skill players which we don’t have on “the best UAB team ever”.

Maybe players need to start making plays? Just sayin' I counted 31 points left on the board. Throw in the missing OL plus defensive players. Beat FAU.

(10-04-2021 04:12 PM)DuelingDragon Wrote:  It is not mutually exclusive for this team to be both the best UAB team in history to this point and to still not be where we’d like to be and see areas to improve.

I have watched the rise of several peer programs very closely over the last 20 years. Very closely. Schools like Louisville, UCF, Houston and Cincinnati didn’t just start steamrolling people. It was a process. All four of those also built a total program with depth and strong lines, not just riding one or two special players. But special players helped them go next level. UAB is building a total program, building it for the long haul. We are now in position to maybe recruit that special player or two without it being dumb luck.

I will agree with one thing: I would like to see us recruit some higher level skill people who have actual offers from good programs. We have done a great job of finding uncut diamonds in Phase 1 of the The Return (2015-2020). But you can only do that so long and we no longer have facilities as a drawback. We need to be winning recruiting battles with the type of teams we want to compete against and beat.

We literally have Ryan Davis and Samario Rudolph who came in as walkons, starting at WR. If Davis ain’t one, then his addition should’ve been treated as a big deal by our nonexistent beat writer.

Our current best back was on the verge of going prep or Juco before we offered him a week or two before signing day.

I was told not to be concerned about wide receiver, but here we are where nobody but Shrop and Prince can get open.

TJ Jones, Fred Farrier, Jordan Palmer, Lee Witherspoon are all riding the pine. Why?

And when we got as late as we did in the second half without getting a first down, why not give Lucero an opportunity?

This is high school trash we’ve got going on regarding management on the offensive side of the ball.

I said time and time again, that adding filler offensive linemen from Jucos, was lazy af and wasn’t going to cut it vs the better teams. Here we are. And outside of Richey, who was a respectable HS OLine prospect?

We are recruiting at a McGee type level from HS standpoint on OL. He recruited better skill players.
Recruiting at a Callaway type level regarding skill players and Juco Olinemen.

Clark needs to let go of the Jax State and South Alabama staff. Reeves, Tatum, Shrader are the only ones worthy of retaining on the entire staff.

I tell you what we might not have beat Liberty Saturday but we sure have been beating dead horses since the end of the game. Just a lot of glue around here.. a lot.

(10-04-2021 04:28 PM)kdblazer Wrote:  I tell you what we might not have beat Liberty Saturday but we sure have been beating dead horses since the end of the game. Just a lot of glue around here.. a lot.

There’s also a lot of letting crap slide, when we’ve put a crap ton of money into this or that, and season tickets.

Like others have mentioned, there were tons of people on the concourse at all times. It's a double edged sword - you want to make the game a fun social experience to draw people through the gates, but that social atmosphere around the concourse and plaza areas also keeps people from their seats. But those people count towards our attendance figures and generate revenue.

The social aspect is a tool that will help us draw in the casual person just looking for something to do (particularly younger people). Those people probably couldn't name a single player on the team and only watch a handful of plays as their main priority is just hanging out at a fun event. It somewhat reminded me of a Thirsty Thursday Barons game - seats are sold, but they look empty because everyone is hanging out in the outfield. How many people at a Barons game know anything about the team? My guess is not many, but people go just because it's something fun to do.

Over time, the goal would be to convert some of those casual attendees just looking for a social experience into more dedicated fans. Protective Stadium gives us a good chance to expand our base. Draw people in with the amenities and social aspects and over time get them more interested in the product on the field.

It also looked like the Club Room was open the whole game with people hanging out in there. I understand people pay a lot of money for those tickets, but keeping the room open incentivizes staying in there vs the actual seats. In contrast, the Green and Gold room at Bartow is closed during the game. But having all game access to the Club Room helps sell those tickets so it's a tough one to balance.

(10-04-2021 04:33 PM)hooverblazer Wrote:  Like others have mentioned, there were tons of people on the concourse at all times. It's a double edged sword - you want to make the game a fun social experience to draw people through the gates, but that social atmosphere around the concourse and plaza areas also keeps people from their seats. But those people count towards our attendance figures and generate revenue.

The social aspect is a tool that will help us draw in the casual person just looking for something to do (particularly younger people). Those people probably couldn't name a single player on the team and only watch a handful of plays as their main priority is just hanging out at a fun event. It somewhat reminded me of a Thirsty Thursday Barons game - seats are sold, but they look empty because everyone is hanging out in the outfield. How many people at a Barons game know anything about the team? My guess is not many, but people go just because it's something fun to do.

Over time, the goal would be to convert some of those casual attendees just looking for a social experience into more dedicated fans. Protective Stadium gives us a good chance to expand our base. Draw people in with the amenities and social aspects and over time get them more interested in the product on the field.

Amen. It’s like some of us diehards forget that most of us were once casual fans too. Protective is such a better opportunity to turn the single-game attendee into a multiple game attendee, and to turn the multiple gamer into a season ticket holder, and that season ticket holder into a club-level booster. We had a hard time doing that at Legion.

(10-04-2021 04:36 PM)hooverblazer Wrote:  It also looked like the Club Room was open the whole game with people hanging out in there. I understand people pay a lot of money for those tickets, but keeping the room open incentivizes staying in there vs the actual seats. In contrast, the Green and Gold room at Bartow is closed during the game. But having all game access to the Club Room helps sell those tickets so it's a tough one to balance.

Great point. Unlike at Bartow, you could comfortably watch the game standing in the club while still having access to the food and beverage.

(10-04-2021 04:36 PM)hooverblazer Wrote:  It also looked like the Club Room was open the whole game with people hanging out in there. I understand people pay a lot of money for those tickets, but keeping the room open incentivizes staying in there vs the actual seats. In contrast, the Green and Gold room at Bartow is closed during the game. But having all game access to the Club Room helps sell those tickets so it's a tough one to balance.

Club room was packed every time I went up there.
Not just a handful of people…packed

(10-04-2021 04:19 PM)ATTALLABLAZE Wrote:  Maybe players need to start making plays? Just sayin' I counted 31 points left on the board. Throw in the missing OL plus defensive players. Beat FAU.

I can agree with that because if players from App St, Louisiana, Ga State, UTSA, North Texas, Troy, Ga Southern, James Madison, and Liberty just to name a few can make plays they why not UAB? I mean is being in the AAC going fix this when those teams I just mention have been doing it without being in the AAC?

(10-04-2021 05:17 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  

(10-04-2021 04:19 PM)ATTALLABLAZE Wrote:  Maybe players need to start making plays? Just sayin' I counted 31 points left on the board. Throw in the missing OL plus defensive players. Beat FAU.

I can agree with that because if players from App St, Louisiana, Ga State, UTSA, North Texas, Troy, Ga Southern, James Madison, and Liberty just to name a few can make plays they why not UAB? I mean is being in the AAC going fix this when those teams I just mention have been doing it without being in the AAC?

All things considered, that game was chalk full of miscues for us but we're still 3-2 and 1-0 in the conference...so lets Blaze ahead.

(10-04-2021 04:28 PM)kdblazer Wrote:  I tell you what we might not have beat Liberty Saturday but we sure have been beating dead horses since the end of the game. Just a lot of glue around here.. a lot.

Yep.

(10-04-2021 01:50 PM)The Answer UAB Wrote:  It poured rain for about 10 minutes around 30-45 minutes before the game started.

Right about when casuals were trying to figure out parking and/or starting to get close to Uptown...perfectly timed for them to stay in their cars and say "welp...too bad" and head home. Not saying that's what happened...but you are downplaying the rain, IMO. I agree that some people are overstating it though.

It did have an effect. But I think the stadium design and concession speed were bigger factors.