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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #41
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-24-2023 07:57 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:21 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:46 PM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:20 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  

While I adamantly agree with what you're saying as far as NIU's recruiting, the "diamonds" are usually a bit of luck. Many of the greatest NIU players looked like nothing in their recruit class. I'd argue most MAC teams are comprised of the same talent for roughly 80% of their starters. It's those 20% of remaining players that become diamonds that make the difference btw winning and losing. NIU's issue is that it has found zero diamonds on D. Zero. And it's crippling. Those star players elevate everyone. A great rush end from one side helps free up the rusher on the other side. A great cover corner can force a QB to look mostly in one direction. Etc.

That being said, is NIU's inability to find diamonds on D rooted in Hammocks recruiting philosophy? Is he going after the wrong type players in terms of high athletic upside vs established size? Maybe. Has he recruited a diamond but not found the right position or scheme? Maybe. At this point our best bet is Hammock just dumb lucks his way into finding a Sutton Smith or Shawn Lurry.

Good questions. Without diving into schemes, which could open another can of worms, I’m going to stick to just recruiting in our discussion. As far as MAC recruiting goes, Ive gone through and watched every MAC 2023 commit highlight film. I work for one of the recruiting companies and have done my best to make sure every MAC player has a rating. (Although that is an upside battle at times.) I always watch the film first and then look at offers and stars second. When I say explosive and dynamic, I mean some guys jump off the film (or in person) and it’s easy to tell they are FBS caliber players. There were a number of players in NIU’s 2023 class that I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually offered or if they were PWOs. Too many players in this class had offers only from NIU. Or NIU beat only FCS schools for their commitment. Will a few of those guys pan out? Absolutely. But while other schools are stacking explosive players in this year’s class, or class on class, it’s going to be hard for NIU to compete on the field.

I haven’t paid as close attention to what NIU has done in the portal until this past year so correct me if I’m wrong, but Hammock has not hit on a high percentage of game changers, nor has he done the best job of keeping all of his top talent. Every team will lose someone they don’t want to lose, but it needs to be minimized.


Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

Wait, I thought the roster was loaded with talent…? At least that is the narrative from some of the posters on this board. NIU pro day was a ghost town, a third of the roster is walk-ons, and a number of guys on the roster had zero offers besides NIU. When was the last time NIU brought in multiple DIII players as transfers? Recruit class ranks have consistently been north of 100 in recent years…

All signs point to a big drop off in recruiting by NIU standards.


Take this for what it’s worth. Below is the order I believe the 2023 recruiting classes (including portal players) should be ranked. To be honest, there is such little separation between the top 8 teams they could be ranked in a number of different ways.

1) Eastern Michigan
2) Buffalo
3) Toledo
4) Miami
5) Akron
6) Western Michigan
7) Ohio
8) Central Michigan
9) Ball State
10) Bowling Green
11) Kent State
12) Northern Illinois

All that being said, I think any team in the MAC would love to have Michael Jimmar and Thomas Paasch. I also think Mark Hensley, Phillip Baynes, and Mahki Rolle could develop into solid players over time, regardless of their offer list or rating.

And I don’t mean to make it sound like NIU is devoid of talent. If I’m not mistaken, 6 players return that made an All-MAC team at some point. I was mostly focusing on Hammock’s recruiting has not been up to par compared to MAC peers and will start reflecting on the field. Quality depth will soon be an issue.
(This post was last modified: 03-24-2023 08:31 PM by CoachPMac.)
03-24-2023 08:29 PM
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golf4501 Offline
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Post: #42
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
247 says much different on both NIUs and Akron's class:

https://247sports.com/Season/2023-Footba...erence=MAC
03-24-2023 08:46 PM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #43
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-24-2023 08:46 PM)golf4501 Wrote:  247 says much different on both NIUs and Akron's class:

https://247sports.com/Season/2023-Footba...erence=MAC

It would also help if 247 was correct on all the prospects. 247 does put forth an attempt to cover all the MAC teams but they are often wrong about offer lists and committed prospects. For instance:
1) Ahmad Rabah is a transfer, not an HS prospect, and doesn’t have a rating. He’s a 3 star on Rivals and 247 is far more generous with their ratings.
2) Transfer Terence Thomas is not listed.
3) Transfer Judah Tallandier is not listed.
4) Transfer Terray Jones, who is a 3 star on Rivals, is not listed.
5) Transfer Ben Frank is not listed.
6) Transfer Dakota Thomas is not listed.
7) Joshua Bowen and Maurice Long are no longer in this class.
8) David Jester is signed.
9) Paul Davis is a 3 star on Rivals and is not listed.
10) Delvin Morris is not listed.

In the end, the recruiting results will speak for themselves. I just offered up my unsolicited opinion.
(This post was last modified: 03-24-2023 09:35 PM by CoachPMac.)
03-24-2023 09:17 PM
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NIUSAE Offline
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Post: #44
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
If you look at the average player rating it essentially lines up with his rankings
03-24-2023 09:19 PM
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BigChilla Offline
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Post: #45
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
The comment about being the slowest defense lines up as well. That defense was terrible and slow. The good news is most of them are back…so…

Also correct was the comment about recruiting - not sure what is going on but that was supposed to be Hammock’s major skill. Seems like maybe his major skill was recruiting RBs…
03-25-2023 07:06 AM
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HawaiiToNIU Offline
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Post: #46
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-24-2023 09:17 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 08:46 PM)golf4501 Wrote:  247 says much different on both NIUs and Akron's class:

https://247sports.com/Season/2023-Footba...erence=MAC

It would also help if 247 was correct on all the prospects. 247 does put forth an attempt to cover all the MAC teams but they are often wrong about offer lists and committed prospects. For instance:
1) Ahmad Rabah is a transfer, not an HS prospect, and doesn’t have a rating. He’s a 3 star on Rivals and 247 is far more generous with their ratings.
2) Transfer Terence Thomas is not listed.
3) Transfer Judah Tallandier is not listed.
4) Transfer Terray Jones, who is a 3 star on Rivals, is not listed.
5) Transfer Ben Frank is not listed.
6) Transfer Dakota Thomas is not listed.
7) Joshua Bowen and Maurice Long are no longer in this class.
8) David Jester is signed.
9) Paul Davis is a 3 star on Rivals and is not listed.
10) Delvin Morris is not listed.

In the end, the recruiting results will speak for themselves. I just offered up my unsolicited opinion.

You guys have a beautiful stadium
03-25-2023 09:17 AM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #47
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:21 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:46 PM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:20 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 04:45 PM)chihuskie Wrote:  Interesting. Though, it must be said, there are a lot of other factors besides just recruiting physically talented players. Where is their head, how are they coached, how do they develop, what schemes do they play in, who are the opponents, how do injuries affect the team. Those are just a few other factors. Some are under the control or at least influence of the head coach, and others only s lightly or even not at all.

We could also add culture, NIL, facilities, academics, training staff, etc, etc, etc. In the end it’s simple. The more dynamic and explosive players that are recruited the better chance of success. From there the players need to be developed. Everything else is an excuse of why the team or program isn’t winning. Only so many “diamond in the rough” type players can be in each class before there’s mostly just “rough” left.

While I adamantly agree with what you're saying as far as NIU's recruiting, the "diamonds" are usually a bit of luck. Many of the greatest NIU players looked like nothing in their recruit class. I'd argue most MAC teams are comprised of the same talent for roughly 80% of their starters. It's those 20% of remaining players that become diamonds that make the difference btw winning and losing. NIU's issue is that it has found zero diamonds on D. Zero. And it's crippling. Those star players elevate everyone. A great rush end from one side helps free up the rusher on the other side. A great cover corner can force a QB to look mostly in one direction. Etc.

That being said, is NIU's inability to find diamonds on D rooted in Hammocks recruiting philosophy? Is he going after the wrong type players in terms of high athletic upside vs established size? Maybe. Has he recruited a diamond but not found the right position or scheme? Maybe. At this point our best bet is Hammock just dumb lucks his way into finding a Sutton Smith or Shawn Lurry.

Good questions. Without diving into schemes, which could open another can of worms, I’m going to stick to just recruiting in our discussion. As far as MAC recruiting goes, Ive gone through and watched every MAC 2023 commit highlight film. I work for one of the recruiting companies and have done my best to make sure every MAC player has a rating. (Although that is an upside battle at times.) I always watch the film first and then look at offers and stars second. When I say explosive and dynamic, I mean some guys jump off the film (or in person) and it’s easy to tell they are FBS caliber players. There were a number of players in NIU’s 2023 class that I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually offered or if they were PWOs. Too many players in this class had offers only from NIU. Or NIU beat only FCS schools for their commitment. Will a few of those guys pan out? Absolutely. But while other schools are stacking explosive players in this year’s class, or class on class, it’s going to be hard for NIU to compete on the field.

I haven’t paid as close attention to what NIU has done in the portal until this past year so correct me if I’m wrong, but Hammock has not hit on a high percentage of game changers, nor has he done the best job of keeping all of his top talent. Every team will lose someone they don’t want to lose, but it needs to be minimized.


Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.
03-25-2023 09:56 AM
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Rabid Squirrel Offline
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Post: #48
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 09:56 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:21 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:46 PM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:20 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  We could also add culture, NIL, facilities, academics, training staff, etc, etc, etc. In the end it’s simple. The more dynamic and explosive players that are recruited the better chance of success. From there the players need to be developed. Everything else is an excuse of why the team or program isn’t winning. Only so many “diamond in the rough” type players can be in each class before there’s mostly just “rough” left.

While I adamantly agree with what you're saying as far as NIU's recruiting, the "diamonds" are usually a bit of luck. Many of the greatest NIU players looked like nothing in their recruit class. I'd argue most MAC teams are comprised of the same talent for roughly 80% of their starters. It's those 20% of remaining players that become diamonds that make the difference btw winning and losing. NIU's issue is that it has found zero diamonds on D. Zero. And it's crippling. Those star players elevate everyone. A great rush end from one side helps free up the rusher on the other side. A great cover corner can force a QB to look mostly in one direction. Etc.

That being said, is NIU's inability to find diamonds on D rooted in Hammocks recruiting philosophy? Is he going after the wrong type players in terms of high athletic upside vs established size? Maybe. Has he recruited a diamond but not found the right position or scheme? Maybe. At this point our best bet is Hammock just dumb lucks his way into finding a Sutton Smith or Shawn Lurry.

Good questions. Without diving into schemes, which could open another can of worms, I’m going to stick to just recruiting in our discussion. As far as MAC recruiting goes, Ive gone through and watched every MAC 2023 commit highlight film. I work for one of the recruiting companies and have done my best to make sure every MAC player has a rating. (Although that is an upside battle at times.) I always watch the film first and then look at offers and stars second. When I say explosive and dynamic, I mean some guys jump off the film (or in person) and it’s easy to tell they are FBS caliber players. There were a number of players in NIU’s 2023 class that I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually offered or if they were PWOs. Too many players in this class had offers only from NIU. Or NIU beat only FCS schools for their commitment. Will a few of those guys pan out? Absolutely. But while other schools are stacking explosive players in this year’s class, or class on class, it’s going to be hard for NIU to compete on the field.

I haven’t paid as close attention to what NIU has done in the portal until this past year so correct me if I’m wrong, but Hammock has not hit on a high percentage of game changers, nor has he done the best job of keeping all of his top talent. Every team will lose someone they don’t want to lose, but it needs to be minimized.


Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.


This is where I disagree. The poor recruiting is mostly on defense. Defense has almost never won the MAC. NIU's offense will be among the best in the conference. The D can give up 29 ppg and Rocky can still end up 8-4.

Long term prognosis you are right, NIU is digging itself a hole. If the D recruiting doesn't improve Hammock will have to continually find a Lombardi level QB with all-mac RBs to stay above water.
03-25-2023 10:01 AM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #49
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 09:17 AM)HawaiiToNIU Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 09:17 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 08:46 PM)golf4501 Wrote:  247 says much different on both NIUs and Akron's class:

https://247sports.com/Season/2023-Footba...erence=MAC

It would also help if 247 was correct on all the prospects. 247 does put forth an attempt to cover all the MAC teams but they are often wrong about offer lists and committed prospects. For instance:
1) Ahmad Rabah is a transfer, not an HS prospect, and doesn’t have a rating. He’s a 3 star on Rivals and 247 is far more generous with their ratings.
2) Transfer Terence Thomas is not listed.
3) Transfer Judah Tallandier is not listed.
4) Transfer Terray Jones, who is a 3 star on Rivals, is not listed.
5) Transfer Ben Frank is not listed.
6) Transfer Dakota Thomas is not listed.
7) Joshua Bowen and Maurice Long are no longer in this class.
8) David Jester is signed.
9) Paul Davis is a 3 star on Rivals and is not listed.
10) Delvin Morris is not listed.

In the end, the recruiting results will speak for themselves. I just offered up my unsolicited opinion.

You guys have a beautiful stadium

I agree! Although I can’t take credit for that. I did not attend Akron, nor am I originally from the Midwest. However, when I moved to Ohio several years ago I was looking for a MAC team to support. I watched a number of games, but couldn’t get behind any particular team at first. I follow turnaround situations across college football and when Joe Moorhead took over, it piqued my interest. Once I saw the type of players he was bringing in and the staff he was putting together, I jumped on board and I’m all in now.

I feel the MAC and G5 schools in general do not get enough coverage. So the least I can do is make sure prospect profiles are up to date with all the correct information. It also allows me to keep a pulse on recruiting trends within the conference.
03-25-2023 10:06 AM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #50
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 10:01 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 09:56 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:21 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 05:46 PM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  While I adamantly agree with what you're saying as far as NIU's recruiting, the "diamonds" are usually a bit of luck. Many of the greatest NIU players looked like nothing in their recruit class. I'd argue most MAC teams are comprised of the same talent for roughly 80% of their starters. It's those 20% of remaining players that become diamonds that make the difference btw winning and losing. NIU's issue is that it has found zero diamonds on D. Zero. And it's crippling. Those star players elevate everyone. A great rush end from one side helps free up the rusher on the other side. A great cover corner can force a QB to look mostly in one direction. Etc.

That being said, is NIU's inability to find diamonds on D rooted in Hammocks recruiting philosophy? Is he going after the wrong type players in terms of high athletic upside vs established size? Maybe. Has he recruited a diamond but not found the right position or scheme? Maybe. At this point our best bet is Hammock just dumb lucks his way into finding a Sutton Smith or Shawn Lurry.

Good questions. Without diving into schemes, which could open another can of worms, I’m going to stick to just recruiting in our discussion. As far as MAC recruiting goes, Ive gone through and watched every MAC 2023 commit highlight film. I work for one of the recruiting companies and have done my best to make sure every MAC player has a rating. (Although that is an upside battle at times.) I always watch the film first and then look at offers and stars second. When I say explosive and dynamic, I mean some guys jump off the film (or in person) and it’s easy to tell they are FBS caliber players. There were a number of players in NIU’s 2023 class that I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually offered or if they were PWOs. Too many players in this class had offers only from NIU. Or NIU beat only FCS schools for their commitment. Will a few of those guys pan out? Absolutely. But while other schools are stacking explosive players in this year’s class, or class on class, it’s going to be hard for NIU to compete on the field.

I haven’t paid as close attention to what NIU has done in the portal until this past year so correct me if I’m wrong, but Hammock has not hit on a high percentage of game changers, nor has he done the best job of keeping all of his top talent. Every team will lose someone they don’t want to lose, but it needs to be minimized.


Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.


This is where I disagree. The poor recruiting is mostly on defense. Defense has almost never won the MAC. NIU's offense will be among the best in the conference. The D can give up 29 ppg and Rocky can still end up 8-4.

Long term prognosis you are right, NIU is digging itself a hole. If the D recruiting doesn't improve Hammock will have to continually find a Lombardi level QB with all-mac RBs to stay above water.

Would you feel the same way if Rocky is injured and/or misses time? If the answer is no, then again that points to depth and recruiting. I’m not saying many teams are going to have an all-conference QB waiting in the wings, but the backup must at least be serviceable to keep the team in contention to win games.
03-25-2023 10:19 AM
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Rabid Squirrel Offline
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Post: #51
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 10:19 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:01 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 09:56 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:21 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  Good questions. Without diving into schemes, which could open another can of worms, I’m going to stick to just recruiting in our discussion. As far as MAC recruiting goes, Ive gone through and watched every MAC 2023 commit highlight film. I work for one of the recruiting companies and have done my best to make sure every MAC player has a rating. (Although that is an upside battle at times.) I always watch the film first and then look at offers and stars second. When I say explosive and dynamic, I mean some guys jump off the film (or in person) and it’s easy to tell they are FBS caliber players. There were a number of players in NIU’s 2023 class that I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually offered or if they were PWOs. Too many players in this class had offers only from NIU. Or NIU beat only FCS schools for their commitment. Will a few of those guys pan out? Absolutely. But while other schools are stacking explosive players in this year’s class, or class on class, it’s going to be hard for NIU to compete on the field.

I haven’t paid as close attention to what NIU has done in the portal until this past year so correct me if I’m wrong, but Hammock has not hit on a high percentage of game changers, nor has he done the best job of keeping all of his top talent. Every team will lose someone they don’t want to lose, but it needs to be minimized.


Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.


This is where I disagree. The poor recruiting is mostly on defense. Defense has almost never won the MAC. NIU's offense will be among the best in the conference. The D can give up 29 ppg and Rocky can still end up 8-4.

Long term prognosis you are right, NIU is digging itself a hole. If the D recruiting doesn't improve Hammock will have to continually find a Lombardi level QB with all-mac RBs to stay above water.

Would you feel the same way if Rocky is injured and/or misses time? If the answer is no, then again that points to depth and recruiting. I’m not saying many teams are going to have an all-conference QB waiting in the wings, but the backup must at least be serviceable to keep the team in contention to win games.

Rarely does any team win a championship with a back up QB. Obviously want to avoid 3-9 seasons bc your back up QB is bad, but championships are the goal and that requires a good starter. The sport has become so QB dependant that if you get that position right it affords you plenty of error at other spots. Don't get me wrong, that's not a good strategy, but you hope you have that QB during the times when you're lacking other playmakers.

For this season Hammock is ok. Rocky, Brown & Rudolph is the best trio in the MAC and they have a good O-line in front of them. It's gonna be a lot of 35-31 wins but they're still wins. Hopefully Ham picks up his recruiting in terms of athletic players. The portal can help but he needs to improve his HS evaluating.
(This post was last modified: 03-25-2023 10:32 AM by Rabid Squirrel.)
03-25-2023 10:31 AM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #52
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 10:31 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:19 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:01 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 09:56 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-24-2023 06:44 PM)Dog Fan Wrote:  Yes, this sort of echoes what people on this board are saying. But, now we are hearing it from an outside professional source in the business. Thank you for your comments.

The bottom line is that our recruiting sucks. We saw prior year recruiting deficiencies last year when some of our key players went down and had to be replaced with less than mediocre talent. The talent we have is just not deep. And, IMO, no one really stands out in this year’s recruiting. So, again, all we have is hope, but that is wearing thin.

You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.


This is where I disagree. The poor recruiting is mostly on defense. Defense has almost never won the MAC. NIU's offense will be among the best in the conference. The D can give up 29 ppg and Rocky can still end up 8-4.

Long term prognosis you are right, NIU is digging itself a hole. If the D recruiting doesn't improve Hammock will have to continually find a Lombardi level QB with all-mac RBs to stay above water.

Would you feel the same way if Rocky is injured and/or misses time? If the answer is no, then again that points to depth and recruiting. I’m not saying many teams are going to have an all-conference QB waiting in the wings, but the backup must at least be serviceable to keep the team in contention to win games.

Rarely does any team win a championship with a back up QB. Obviously want to avoid 3-9 seasons bc your back up QB is bad, but championships are the goal and that requires a good starter. The sport has become so QB dependant that if you get that position right it affords you plenty of error at other spots. Don't get me wrong, that's not a good strategy, but you hope you have that QB during the times when you're lacking other playmakers.

For this season Hammock is ok. Rocky, Brown & Rudolph is the best trio in the MAC and they have a good O-line in front of them. It's gonna be a lot of 35-31 wins but they're still wins. Hopefully Ham picks up his recruiting in terms of athletic players. The portal can help but he needs to improve his HS evaluating.

Ohio’s trio at QB, RB, and WR can lay claim to the best trio in the MAC, but that’s splitting hairs. I agree that NIU’s trio can do some damage if healthy. If not healthy, depth becomes the concern. And of course the depth and overall speed on defense (like we’ve already mentioned) is a problem until proven otherwise.

Just curious how do you see the season playing out with the 8-4 record? Ill list the schedule below so you’re not having to flip back and forth.
At BC
Vs SIU
At Nebraska
Vs Tulsa
At Toledo
At Akron
Vs Ohio
Vs EMU
At CMU
Vs Ball St.
Vs WMU
At Kent St.

I haven’t paid much attention to BC.
Matt Rhule has really focused on adding team speed at Nebraska. Outside of that, I haven’t followed their recruiting except when there is some overlap with Illinois.
Tulsa has caught my eye with the recent offers from the new staff. They are targeting higher level prospects than the previous staff and I’m curious to see how the 2023 class finishes. Although, I’m not sure if this class will help them improve much on their 5-7 record.
03-25-2023 12:28 PM
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BigChilla Offline
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Post: #53
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
That’s what makes this year crazy important for Hammock. It’s a down year. Only a totally awful coach could take this team and not make them, in the very least, competitive in the MAC. They should be challenging for the West Crown if not more.

If Hammock fumbles this he should be fired, probably won’t be as that costs $$$, but we will know what we have in him as a coach.
03-25-2023 12:31 PM
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Rabid Squirrel Offline
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Post: #54
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 12:28 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:31 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:19 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 10:01 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 09:56 AM)CoachPMac Wrote:  You hit the nail on the head. Depth is where the lack of top end recruiting will show up. Last year is a good example and I think it will be magnified this year. In no way am I saying NIU is at Akron’s 2021 talent level, but if the staff can’t pick up some steam on the recruiting trail (and keep the best players out of the portal) winning games will soon become very difficult.


This is where I disagree. The poor recruiting is mostly on defense. Defense has almost never won the MAC. NIU's offense will be among the best in the conference. The D can give up 29 ppg and Rocky can still end up 8-4.

Long term prognosis you are right, NIU is digging itself a hole. If the D recruiting doesn't improve Hammock will have to continually find a Lombardi level QB with all-mac RBs to stay above water.

Would you feel the same way if Rocky is injured and/or misses time? If the answer is no, then again that points to depth and recruiting. I’m not saying many teams are going to have an all-conference QB waiting in the wings, but the backup must at least be serviceable to keep the team in contention to win games.

Rarely does any team win a championship with a back up QB. Obviously want to avoid 3-9 seasons bc your back up QB is bad, but championships are the goal and that requires a good starter. The sport has become so QB dependant that if you get that position right it affords you plenty of error at other spots. Don't get me wrong, that's not a good strategy, but you hope you have that QB during the times when you're lacking other playmakers.

For this season Hammock is ok. Rocky, Brown & Rudolph is the best trio in the MAC and they have a good O-line in front of them. It's gonna be a lot of 35-31 wins but they're still wins. Hopefully Ham picks up his recruiting in terms of athletic players. The portal can help but he needs to improve his HS evaluating.

Ohio’s trio at QB, RB, and WR can lay claim to the best trio in the MAC, but that’s splitting hairs. I agree that NIU’s trio can do some damage if healthy. If not healthy, depth becomes the concern. And of course the depth and overall speed on defense (like we’ve already mentioned) is a problem until proven otherwise.

Just curious how do you see the season playing out with the 8-4 record? Ill list the schedule below so you’re not having to flip back and forth.
At BC
Vs SIU
At Nebraska
Vs Tulsa
At Toledo
At Akron
Vs Ohio
Vs EMU
At CMU
Vs Ball St.
Vs WMU
At Kent St.

I haven’t paid much attention to BC.
Matt Rhule has really focused on adding team speed at Nebraska. Outside of that, I haven’t followed their recruiting except when there is some overlap with Illinois.
Tulsa has caught my eye with the recent offers from the new staff. They are targeting higher level prospects than the previous staff and I’m curious to see how the 2023 class finishes. Although, I’m not sure if this class will help them improve much on their 5-7 record.

The Ohio trio is great...but Bangor and Wiglusz are not the explosive players Brown and Rudolph are. You're talking 4.9 ypr & 12.0 ypc vs 6.3 ypr & 17.5 ypc. I have to cede Rourke over Lombardi.

OOC is always a guess. It's certainly possible it's 1-3. But between Tulsa, Neb and BC I believe they're 1-2. So 2-2 OOC. When NIU was relatively healthy yet still without Rudolph...they went down to the wire vs @Tulsa(easy 4th down dropped pass lost the game). Then with a first time starting QB NIU hung with Vandy(rocky was 7/7, 80 yds & td before exiting) and Kentucky. Neb & BC equal to or less than Vandy & Kent while NIU is much better with Rocky.

6-2 in conference with losses to Toledo and either EMU or OHIO. Both of whom they get at home. Recall last season NIU played Ohio to a 1 score game with a QB who can't throw 10 yards...Lynch. And the EMU game they brought Lombardi back while he was a shell of himself and they smoked EMU.

It's not that I love this NIU team, it's that the MAC is very weak right now. Lomabardi, Rudolph, Brown is too much for most Mac teams. NIU was in every game with Hampton. And he's a marginal back up. Then NIU went to Cremescoli, who was raw as sugar, and Lynch, who can't throw. That's when they struggled.
03-25-2023 01:04 PM
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HuskieDave Online
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Post: #55
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A
(This post was last modified: 03-25-2023 03:24 PM by HuskieDave.)
03-25-2023 02:41 PM
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CoachPMac Offline
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Post: #56
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 02:41 PM)HuskieDave Wrote:  Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A

03-lol

Well done Hammock.

Not saying Banner won’t develop into a contributor, but his recruiting falls into the theme of either NIU beating out FCS schools or NIU being the only offer. In this case it’s NIU beating out FCS schools.
03-25-2023 03:43 PM
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Big Red Offline
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Post: #57
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 03:43 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 02:41 PM)HuskieDave Wrote:  Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A

03-lol

Well done Hammock.

Not saying Banner won’t develop into a contributor, but his recruiting falls into the theme of either NIU beating out FCS schools or NIU being the only offer. In this case it’s NIU beating out FCS schools.

There are FCS schools that I'd be honored to beat out (recognizing that NDSU probably wasn't one of the school's we beat out in this case...)
03-25-2023 05:19 PM
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HawaiiToNIU Offline
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Post: #58
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 05:19 PM)Big Red Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 03:43 PM)CoachPMac Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 02:41 PM)HuskieDave Wrote:  Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A

03-lol

Well done Hammock.

Not saying Banner won’t develop into a contributor, but his recruiting falls into the theme of either NIU beating out FCS schools or NIU being the only offer. In this case it’s NIU beating out FCS schools.

There are FCS schools that I'd be honored to beat out (recognizing that NDSU probably wasn't one of the school's we beat out in this case...)

Wow. This kid doesn't look like a freshman. Great size and speed too.
03-25-2023 10:09 PM
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BigChilla Offline
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Post: #59
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-25-2023 02:41 PM)HuskieDave Wrote:  Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A

Hammock kind of rubs me the wrong way with that. Let someone get excited about a kid putting in work, especially a safety where we have had terrible play since last season. Let the vets see that too, let them know it’s time to work because their jobs are not safe.

That said, I don’t think hammock can evaluate defensive talent so he has no clue. He has been riding Ester/Thomas and talking about how great they are for 3 seasons. I would like to see them do something, coach.
03-26-2023 08:51 AM
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HawaiiToNIU Offline
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Post: #60
RE: Football coaching staff is complete
(03-26-2023 08:51 AM)BigChilla Wrote:  
(03-25-2023 02:41 PM)HuskieDave Wrote:  Hammock smacks a GA for getting out a little ahead of the pack……

https://twitter.com/niucoachhammock/stat...qsyn5erw5A

Hammock kind of rubs me the wrong way with that. Let someone get excited about a kid putting in work, especially a safety where we have had terrible play since last season. Let the vets see that too, let them know it’s time to work because their jobs are not safe.

That said, I don’t think hammock can evaluate defensive talent so he has no clue. He has been riding Ester/Thomas and talking about how great they are for 3 seasons. I would like to see them do something, coach.

All about tempering expectations. I like it. We were hyped up last year, and then...

But in all seriousness, we will be critical of Hammock and this staff until we start seeing some Ws and a Bowl Invite.
03-26-2023 10:13 AM
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