WTF
- Thread starter dafarmer
- Start date
That's why I am sounding the alarm. I want this staff to succeed and stay here.
Last year's results concerned me. This year, so far, has me very worried.
Can anyone explain what exactly they did to address the problems we all saw last year? Or why we weren't more active in the transfer portal?
I have never seen where trying the same thing with lesser talent would provide better results. We're wasting the effort of a historical defensive unit.
Baylor gave the game away with turnovers and the blocked extra point converted for two points. Plus one of the turnovers was a score for WVU. Not many teams can overcome that let alone losing your QB1 during the game - not a mystery.
This is a really tough situation for a defender, but not even close to some of the worst targeting calls. At least the defender is unloading roughly at the same time as the start of the slide and he has his head down.
Many of the targeting calls defenders are asked to defy the laws of physics, or get kicked out making a perfect, textbook, heads up tackle because some receiver catches the ball then ducks down and draws "forcible contact to the head and neck area."
Targeting, roughing the passer, and pass interference penalties are defined and/or officiated horribly.
- If a defender hits an offensive player with their head up and in a position that if the offensive player was in a normal running position would not be head/neck contact, it should never ever be a penalty, and should never be considered a penalty. Anybody that thinks it should needs to make zero decisions about the game or safety.
- Every offensive player that ducks his head and leads with the crown upon contact should be flagged with a personal foul. Maybe ejected on the second one, or immediately ejected.
- If a defender is raising his hands to tip a pass and his hands come down and slap or graze a QBs helmet that absolutely should not be a penalty. There is zero danger there.
The sad thing is about targeting is that the old stone age "spearing" rules were actually far better than the current targeting rules, they just were NEVER enforced, especially on offensive players. The fact is the number of dangerous head down contact situations initiated by offensive players absolutely dwarfs those initiated by defensive players.
If the point is to actually make the game safer, then go back to old "spearing" rules and actually enforce them on both sides of the ball. If the intent is to make stupid fans that don't understand the game entertained because it's glorified 7 on 7 while maintaining a majority of the dangerous plays, then keep doing what they are doing.
This team will be out of bowl contention before the WVU game playing like they have been.
CycloneErik
Well-Known Member
That blocked extra point is one of my favorite plays of the year.
I'd include that Baylor's defense does them no favors.
We did that a ton with Breece. Even Brock had a long run against Baylor. Right now we're playing our 3rd and 4th string running backs. They aren't as good at reading blocks and running to the correct hole as Breece and Brock.
Northwestern went 3-9 in 2019, then won the Big Ten north the following year going 7-2 and ended ranked #10. They've also had multiple losing seasons followed by 10 win seasons.
That's the nature of the business for programs that get the level of talent that Northwestern and Iowa State get. We are still at the middle to the bottom of the Big 12 in talent. It's gotten better, but we're not talented enough to show up and win 7-8 game per year based on talent. This year I'd say we're more talented than Kansas, less talented than Texas, Oklahoma, OSU, Baylor, and pretty close with everyone else.
That means we have a lot of close games because we're playing a lot of games against teams with similar talent. So far this year we've lost all those close games. Hopefully that turns and we win a couple. In 2020 we won all the close games with the exception of @OSU and Oklahoma in the Big 12 Title game.
We basically have to accept that we are going to play several nip and tuck games every year. That’s just how our talent and playing style is going to be.
Sometimes they go your way (2020) and sometimes they do not (2021, 2022 so far).
Margins.
I totally agree with this. However, Northwestern has the privilege in playing in a very soft division.
This is total bs. He had every opportunity to stop and chose to stick a shoulder in there to pop him anyway.
Two 3-9's in the past three season in the Big Ten West...It's just hard to survive going under 0.500 every other year. Not new news to ISU fans.
