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Post by yotefbfan on Nov 19, 2018 12:36:05 GMT -6
Thanks OBC you always do a great job! I thought that I would take a crack at some of what I see moving forward as well.
First and foremost we need to address the lack of leadership and discipline that we observed this year. With the graduation of the Senior class, there remains only 7 players left not recruited or brought in by Coach Nielson and his staff, and only 4 of those saw significant playing time. Simply put, we can now start evaluating Coach Nielson based on the players he has brought to the table. My assumption is there might be some new or additional captains next year that are his players. I would also assume the off-season conditioning and spring practices will be amped up to help increase the competition and help find these new leaders. I also assume the staff will take care of the lack of discipline in the off-season as well. Only time will tell, but looking and coach's past he knows what needs to be done to fix these issues.
As far as the coaching staff, Nielson will need to review the success or failure of each coach and make decisions on their future with us sooner rather than later as recruiting moves into full swing after the Thanksgiving Holidays. There is always a chance a coach may move on themselves, but based on the season we had, I am not sure those doors of opportunity are as wide open this year. The two areas I feel need to be addressed from a coaching stand point are the O-line and special teams.
Recruiting and transfers should be the next priority for the staff. Last year our success may have helped us but this year we can't entice players with that, so we must rely on our new facilities and the prospect of immediately playing if you can win the spot to entice players to come to USD. Transfers can make a huge difference (see Indiana St as the example) and I think we need to take a flyer on a few transfers to help infuse some instant talent and experience we need. I would love to see us go get a LB or two and some CB depth on defense. On offence, we should go get the two best tackles we can find and maybe one can help us immediately. I would also go get an RB and a QB if for no other reason than to create competition. As far as recruiting for the class of 2019, we can never have enough O and D lineman and always more LB's and DB's.
As far as a review of the past year, on offense everything starts and ends with the O-line. While we had a lot of passing yards, better blocking would have made us even more effective. A healthy Cody Case is a game changer next year and what happened to Crawford?? I thought after last Spring he was due to break out, but instead he disappeared. Overall, I am very excited with what we have at both the WR and TE positions going into next year. How do you evaluate our RBs when they have no space to work, we showed flashes at times but no consistency. I would assume we may have seen the last of Thull, and that is too bad. All of the others needed more carries and better blocking. To me Cannan Brooks losing his redshirt was a waste as he look overwhelmed at times. Henry had some decent games but lacks discipline and that is concerning. Klett also showed flashes and is a big back that needs to show more consistency and maybe more carries in short yardage. Is there ever any thought to using him as a fullback? This might help our running game as he can open some holes with lead blocking. Simmons continues to show a strong arm and some questionable decision making. No clue on the back ups as they saw practically no action. Any competition we can get here can only make us better as a team.
Honestly, I am excited to see our defense next year. With Schultz returning and more experience and competition on the line, we can only be better. It is a shame to see Cline gone, but Kramer was consistent and effective, he just needs a blow every once in a while to keep him fresh and hopefully Webb fills that bill. Greeny coming back for one more year only makes us that much better. Clearly we need to find some LBs, I really feel one spot should be filled by a transfer and the other will need to come from our roster. This is a TBD till spring. Cochrane had a good year and he can anchor the middle for a few years. With all the experience our DBs got this year this is the other area where I feel confident. Powell, Reed and Johnson anchor the safety positions, while Collins Jr. and Tisdale anchor the CB slots. Incoming players via transfer recruiting or redshirts should provide depth.
On special teams we have an outstanding long snapper and punter and a solid kicker. We need to find someone who can find the end zone consistently with kickoffs. Our coverage teams were a mess all year! We need to do a better job of getting hungry young guys in there to fly around and make plays.
I am confident we turn this back around next year! Go Yotes!
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Post by yotefbfan on Nov 17, 2018 19:33:39 GMT -6
To SDSU: I apologize and embarrassed by that head shot on your player by our #2. And I’m even more embarrassed by his and his teammates actions on the sideline after the call was confirmed, with a senior in #9 raising his arm in the air as if he just won a boxing match and woofing at fans. It is inexcusable of our players and our coaching staff has some serious work to do to get control of this undisciplined team. If you wanted answers as to why we have struggled all year, this is why. I am embarrassed that a senior who I would assume players look up to behaves the way he did. Totally classless and it is a shame that is the way he ended his career. Some of the Seniors have been very good players, but they failed to take a leadership role and this lack of leadership contributed to a disappointing season. Coach needs to evaluate not only a few of his assistant coaches but also a few players who although they contribute, we might be better off without their attitudes and lack of self-control.
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Post by yotefbfan on Oct 22, 2018 14:00:36 GMT -6
Ok, I noticed a few fans have totally jumped off the train and have determined that we are now on a path to destruction, where the only possibility of improving is to fire the entire staff and start over? I don't think anyone has suggested dumping the staff. Something on the staff isn't working, but that doesn't mean raze the whole thing and start over. What we have seen is completely unacceptable though. Year 3 in a job that wasn't a rebuild. We shouldn't have to wait for a complete roster turnover when the staff inherited a rising program. Simply no excuse for having an offense that is so inept, so often at this point. Sorry, did not mean to suggest that anyone had actually said fire the entire staff, just being a little dramatic with some of the comments shared earlier. As far as the rebuild, although Coach Glenn retired, his last 4 years would not suggest a rising program (2012 - 1-10, 2013 - 4-8, 2014 - 2-10, & 2015 - 5-6). Anytime a new coaching staff comes in there will always be some significant rebuilding (See Nebraska as evidence) especially since coaching staffs often change philosophies and want the players they recruit playing as soon as possible. I agree our offense should be much better than it is and this staff will need to address that the rest of this season and in the off season.
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Post by yotefbfan on Oct 22, 2018 9:36:02 GMT -6
Ok, I noticed a few fans have totally jumped off the train and have determined that we are now on a path to destruction, where the only possibility of improving is to fire the entire staff and start over? Not sure this is really the case. First, no doubt, this season has been a disappointment to date. We would need a win or at least have a solid showing vs NDSU and then 3 wins to close out the season to consider a trip to the post season a possibility. The reality is, with the changes this coaching staff is making to get us to a consistent playoff qualifier, is that we are not there yet. The obvious fact is that the recruitment of Strevelor put us ahead of schedule and now we are all disappointed with the reality that he was just that good and made the rest of the team better and that we are not a consistent playoff team yet. Let's look at some facts before we bury this team and the coaching staff.
We currently have 13 Seniors with only 1 (Jennings) being recruited by this staff. So in terms of Senior leadership, we cannot expect much although I would give huge props to the Gray Brothers, Alex Cocker and Nick Jensen they are doing great and the others are all contributors to this team. But it is still hard for kids not recruited by this staff to develop into the leaders we need. They are playing their hearts out, but in the end they are not Coach Nielson's recruits.
We have 12 juniors of which 4 are from Coach Nielson's first recruiting class (2016), Baker, Ducker, Allen, and Cline along with one transfer in Johnson. What does all this mean? This helps explain why we are not where we want to be as we are a very young team and lacks the experience, which is why we have yet to show the resolve to win some close games and overcome some bad starts.
So where does this leave us? The current 30 sophomores are made up of 2 transfers, 20 boys from the recruiting '16 class and 8 from the '17 recruiting class. The Redshirt Freshman (Recruiting class of '17) are 23 strong with 8 or so already seeing significant action. The true Freshman are 28 strong with 7 who have already seen action.
In simple terms Coaches recruits are just now seeing game time and learning to succeed. I agree some of them now need to step up and display leadership. If you are looking to judge Coach Nielson, I would recommend waiting till after next year. We should begin to see what his staff has recruited and how they have developed next year and if we are still a perennial bottom half of the MVFC team, then feel free to hammer this coaching staff. Until then, we need to ride out our growing pains, who knows the playoffs are still not out of the question and at the very least we can end with a winning record.
Saturday's game was a train wreck. On the offensive side of the ball the O-line needs to improve and get consistent. We need to find a running game. The 3 headed monster we have at RB is fine, but we need to play the hot hand and stop the predetermined rotation system. We also need to see a running game from Simmons. My other concern is that we have yet to see the #2 QB get anytime, while the opportunities have been few, I am nervous that we are not getting, I assume Tsagalis, some snaps so that in the event of an injury we can have some confidence in his ability. In my mind Simmons is still clearly the starter, but he has his faults and I would like some piece of mind that the backup is ready to compete.
On the defensive side of the ball, injuries continue to mount up which is not helping us, but in the end they are more than serviceable if we can just get some solid offence.
As far as the future, I hope this coaching staff is looking hard at transfers who can come in and give us instant depth and competition at some key positions. While this has not been the season we had wanted, I am still firmly on the train, hoping to finish strong and build for the much greater success in the next few years.
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Post by yotefbfan on Oct 15, 2018 7:40:55 GMT -6
I have not chimed in for a few weeks, but I thought I would after Saturday nights game. First, please no more home night games!! The whole day felt off for the tailgaters, so I can only imagine the change for the players. It is our home field, let's keep the advantage by keeping the routine the same. When we are on the road, players are used to a different schedule, but at home it is nice to have the same routine.
As far as the game goes, we flat got beat. Turnovers will happen, but when all 3 are on our half of the field and they convert them all to points, the likelihood of a win is minimal. Additionally, we got beat up on both the offensive and defensive lines. Lose the turnover battle, fail to win the LOS, and you can expect to lose the game. With all of that being said, we still had out chances, we just need to finish our drives. I said to some friends before the game that we needed to jump to an early lead on this team and force them to play from behind. UNI is built to hold leads not come from behind, when we failed to convert TDs in our first two drives, we let them stay in the game.
Offensively, Our running game disappeared? Part of that is on our line, but give credit to their Defense in keeping our runs very short early in the game. My only concern is how quickly we abandoned our commitment to run. In the second half, we stopped attacking the middle? Never ran Klett the second half, I know we were behind, but I would like to think running Klett and Thull up the middle would eventually wear them out, open up some better runs and keep their pass rush at bay? Simmons statistically had a good game. He continues to be a top tier QB in the MVFC. He still occasionally struggles with accuracy on some of his deep balls and I would love to see him do a better job of checking to his 2nd or 3rd reads as he often seems to lock into his first reads to often. Despite all of that, he may be the best I have seen at throwing the outs and digs. He is not Chris Streveler and he needs support from the running game and receivers to succeed, but I would also like to see him run a little more as he can put pressure on a defense with his feet. I did like the use of our Tight Ends in the passing game this week, I would love to see more of this.
Defensively, Our D-line had their worst game of the season, I would like to give all the credit to the UNI O-Line, but I also think we are better than we played Saturday night. Pressure on the opposing QB is important, when we have only 1 sack and 1 QB hurry you can expect to be picked apart. Our Linebacker play was very good and we did a nice job of limiting their running attack. If anyone has not noticed, Jack Cochrane is becoming a force at MLB. He is always attacking downhill and covers from sideline to sideline. I would not be surprised to see his name on some all conference lists at the end of the year. Our DBs played well considering their QB had plenty of time in the pocket. Gray, Reed and Johnson continue to play well at safety, but the potential loss of Powell for the year will hurt. It was nice to see Fredrick get in the game and overall he played well, but still lacks experience at CB and it showed at times. Collins is our shutdown corner and is playing very well. I am confident this side of the ball will be ready for next week.
The game cannot be replayed, so we need to have a short memory, figure out what we need to do to improve and move forward. We need some dominate wins versus YSU, Indiana St., and WIU. We also need to find a way to step up and get a win versus an XDSU team to assure a spot in the postseason. I still have confidence we will play an extra game or two this season, but also remember we are a young team and our best years will still be ahead of us.
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Post by yotefbfan on Sept 17, 2018 9:25:55 GMT -6
My take on the offense is that the O-coordinator needs to take some pressure off the O-line by calling more running plays. Simply put, we don't run the ball enough. It makes us one dimensional and allows the defense to pin their ears back, pass rush, and dial up blitzes. We're just in love with the pass and throwing the ball too dang much. You could argue that the run game isn't working, I would counter by saying you need to give it time to work. Rushes that go for 1 or 2 yard gains in the first quarter become 5-6 yard gains in the 4th when you keep going to body with a pounding run game. It also keeps the defense honest, they still need to respect the run because you're calling run plays. The O needs more balance, simple as that. Running the ball will help the O-line out a ton. You know who else this helps out, the defense. Running the ball increases our TOP and keeps the D off the field and prevents them from getting worn out. I was screaming at the TV Saturday night that we needed to RUN THE DAMN BALL! I agree totally, As part of the RPO offense the R stands for Run and is listed first for a reason. If we establish the run it will slow the pass rush, holds the linebackers and open more passing lanes. Obviously, we need the line to open the holes and when we have ran run specific plays they have been fairly successful, but with the straight RPO, they struggle and seem more on their heels in Pass Pro rather than being aggressive to establish running lanes first. This comes down to our mindset of being a run first team or a pass first team? As far as the RBs are concerned, coaches felt confident enough during spring and summer ball to move Fredrick to the D and stick with Henry, Klett, and Brooks. So far we have seen a lot of Henry and just a little of Klett and Brooks. I would like to see more of them as Henry has struggled so far as the starter. The pressure to perform as the main back might be tough on a true Sophomore plus his pass blocking has been average at best. After 3 games and 2 weeks to prep for SIU I would like to see if someone else could get the job done as the #1 and get our mindset correct on being Run first.
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Post by yotefbfan on Sept 15, 2018 21:19:03 GMT -6
Thank goodness we have two weeks to fix that hot mess of an offense, that was terrible. Expect to see changes!
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Post by yotefbfan on Sept 12, 2018 5:47:35 GMT -6
For those of us outside of the Greater Vermillion Area, does anyone know if there are any restrictions or costs to watch the game this weekend on the BigSky Conference network ( PLUTO TV)?
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Post by yotefbfan on Sept 9, 2018 17:38:10 GMT -6
Just got a chance to watch some of the game again and write some reflections. Overall, let's face it there is nothing better than a win! At times we looked fantastic at other times we almost looked uninterested. In the end, we won, but like Coach Nielson says, this is a young team that will grow with each game. If that is true and we continue to get better each week, look out to the poor saps we face at the end of the season (bunnies??).
On the offensive side, any questions regarding Simmons should have been answered. UNC played a lot of press coverage, especially in the second half, in an attempt to limit our outside screen game. Simmons made them pay with nice passes in the seams upfield. I wanted to see better timing and touch after the K-State game and He delivered. Once again, nice job by the receivers, our depth is tremendous and Case should return soon, only making us better. The running game still needs to come around. It was great to have Simmons add to that part of the game and I liked how he wisely slide or stepped out of bounds before taking an extra hit (Loved Streveler, but I was nervous every time he lowered that shoulder). Henry had a tough game, and we saw some nice runs from Klett and Brooks. Did anyone else see on the 4th quarter drive where we turned the ball over on downs that Klett made the first down twice and Brooks also gained a first, but the official's spots seemed awful short? Either way, we need to convert those first downs. Overall, the O-line looked good.
On Defence, more of the same. The D-line totaled 4 sacks and helped hold their rushing attack to limited gains. With the number of players we have rotating in on the line with no drop in production, this unit is becoming a real strength. The linebackers played well at times, but they need to do a better job of filling the running lanes. Make me nervous to see our two safeties leading the team in tackles, when we should see a LB lead that stat. As far as the defensive backs, there were a few breaks in coverage and some missed tackles, but in all fairness, Knipp is one of the better FCS Quarterbacks and Wesley was one of the better WR we will see all year. We seemed to not have the same energy coming out of the half and that hurt us, but in the end, the D played well.
Hopefully, Godfrey is back soon because the snaps for the freshman Morrison were average at best and this is hurting our already marginal kicking game. It will be good to get Fredrick back next week to provide depth at CB and hopefully we get Armstead back as well during the season. The thin air, long travel, and a good Weber St team will make next week a challenge, but a win there will set up a solid MVFC schedule.
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Post by yotefbfan on Sept 3, 2018 11:08:45 GMT -6
After a lot of driving and finally getting a chance to watch the game again here are my takeaways. First and foremost there are no moral victories, we had a chance to steal a win from a very solid Big XII team. They made mistakes and we capitalized, that is what good teams do. They made adjustments to our team and the 2nd half was very different than the first, but in the end, we had a chance right up to the last play. It will be interesting to watch KSU this year to help gauge this performance.
On Defence, I thought we were much better than I expected. The D-line was outstanding all game including any question we had regarding the interior lineman. Players kept leverage, limited any running lanes, and did a very nice job of collapsing the pocket and getting solid pressure. For me, the best part was the depth we saw as the staff rotated in players to stay fresh and we never saw a drop in performance. In the past, I have been critical of the LB unit in the past, but they had a very nice game led by Alex Gray. Hopefully, Coker is not out for long, but Joanis looked very good in his place. Cochrane had a very solid game at the MLB. We all know we are solid at safety, and even with Johnson out for this game, we looked great. Powell is a turnover machine! We also know our depth at corner is a concern going into the game, and with Fredrick out until game 3 and the loss of Armstead there was a greater concern, but clearly, Collins Jr. is the real deal and Tisdale and Jackson looked solid. Still a thin position and with all that youth there will be mistakes throughout the year, but we should only get better with experience.
On Offense, it all starts with the QB. I am surprised by any criticism of Simmons performance. Yes, there is room for improvement, but did anyone expect him to be Streveler 2.0 in his first game as the No. 1 QB? Anyone remember Streveler's first season and the occasional poor decisions and poor throws on his out routes which led to opposing interceptions? Simmons' arm was on display all night on one of the harder throws in the game, the out route. He was strong and on target. His throws downfield were off target and clearly, he needs to improve his timing and touch on these passes, but let's not forget this was a solid KSU defense he was up against. I know the running game was not want we wanted to see, but since we are an RPO offense I can only assume whatever Simmons was reading presnap or after the snap guided him to the pass more often than the run. Expect that to change and we will see much more from Henry and Klett in the future. Both looked strong, just limited chances. I still love our depth at WR, can't say enough about the performance of Falck. Don't be surprised if every week we see a different receiver have a breakout game, we are a nightmare for opposing D coordinators. For me, the offensive performance of the night was the overall play of the O-line. With Johnson out with a practice week injury, Bradon Schneider stepped in was was a beast for his first collegiate game. This unit played strong all night, did a terrific job of picking up blitzes and kept a solid pocket for Simmons. This unit will only improve and look for them to create solid holes for the running game as well.
On special teams, we need to improve. I felt our kick coverage was average all game and eventually led to a big return. Our returns looked good, and I will not be surprised to see us get our own TDs from this unit during the year. The kicking game has some holes, Schutt had had good distance all night just needs consistency with hang time. We need to convert field goals, no answers how to fix that? The loss of long snapper Godfrey was tough, looked liked he hurt an arm on an attempted tackle. Kudos to the staff to have a freshman backup ready to go. Not sure who the backup is if Godfrey is out for a while?
Finally, I can't say enough about the coaching staff. They had this team ready to play and they were not intimidated, but instead came in expecting to win. Our improved depth and talent are clear as we were able to absorb any injuries and the next man up stepped in an played with no drop in performance. It was also clear the work in the strength room is showing as we held our own all night. In the end, it was still a loss but my optimism for the rest of the season is very high.
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Post by yotefbfan on Aug 23, 2018 11:08:08 GMT -6
The answer to that old Wendy's commercial "Where's the Beef", can safely be found on the USD Football Team! Big weight gains all across the board. As a comparison I looked at the past 4 years: 2018 2017 2016 2015Players 300+ 8 5 2 5Players 290-300 6 9 3 1
Safe to say we are a much bigger team both offensively and defensively. Hopefully this translates into wins! Looking at KSU roster we are much more comparable now.
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Post by yotefbfan on Aug 20, 2018 10:10:16 GMT -6
Looks like just the pictures were updated. Not a big fan of the polos on the guys, but let's face it no one ever won a game based on a picture!
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Post by yotefbfan on Aug 9, 2018 19:25:54 GMT -6
It was interesting to hear Coach Nielson speak at media day on the subject of the new NCAA Red Shirt rule and how coaches might utilize the 4 games of eligibility every true freshman now has before they lose their Red Shirt. I am interested to hear how everyone feels these games should be used? I could see where a coach might want to get some young kids in some early non-conference games that might not be as competitive to see what they might have, but I also understand why a coach might want to hold those games in their pocket to protect against any injuries. This might be one of the biggest changes to the game in years and it will be fun to see how different coaches across the NCAA take advantage of these free games including how the Yotes use these games.
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Post by yotefbfan on Aug 8, 2018 19:55:49 GMT -6
Beat them and some will change but it won’t matter at that point. It is a good place to go to a game. We had a decent hotel, super 8, and had a great time exploring the town. It was 100+ F at the kickoff for evening game. Well said. Does anyone know how K-State is supposed to be this year? I saw one preseason poll that had them at 7th in the Big XII (not that that means much). I found this Tweet from Fox Sports, looks like they could be real good
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Post by yotefbfan on Aug 5, 2018 10:35:12 GMT -6
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