My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

I suppose it's naive to think Rice could be an independent? Maybe schedule the service academies and then add a few SEC/Big 12 games, a Stanford or Notre Dame here and there? Games that might generate more interest than the typical Conference USA game.

(09-01-2016 11:03 PM)Bailiff_Lingo_Bingo Wrote:  

(09-01-2016 10:57 PM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  44.6 yds/punt for Fox with 5 put inside the 20.

Thought Mayden played decently toward the end.

Those are my two positives

Stehling was alright. Two interceptions but neither was particularly egregious. Ran the ball better than expected.

Thought the O-line played "meh." Tyler generally had plenty of time. I can only recall one or two sacks. Sucks about Patterson.

Those are my two neutrals

The secondary continues to suck. In addition to huge plays, we cannot force a turnover for our life.

The linebackers aren't playing up to their potential. They need to play great in order for the defense to play OK. They are playing OK and the defense is playing horribly.

Those are my two awfuls.

We have SOME talent, but not too many game-changers:
Mayden looked good, except he dropped a TD.
Ditto German, except he stepped out of bounds and tipped a ball into an INT.
Maybe Petersen is the bright spot there.
But on the whole, we got some guys with some talent, but no one with the speed and sure hands we saw from WKY
Robby Wells looked good, except he couldn't block out (or the screen-recipient ran into him?) a DB half his size
Stehling threw decently, but not sharply enough to compensate for WRs limitations

Agree with all of this. We have below average talent at wide receiver, and average at best talent at QB. On the other hand, we have a large O line (good at run blocking) and some good backs. We need to run the ball effectively. If we don't (and we couldn't tonight), we will lose. Simple as that.

(09-01-2016 11:18 PM)LonghornOwl Wrote:  I suppose it's naive to think Rice could be an independent? Maybe schedule the service academies and then add a few SEC/Big 12 games, a Stanford or Notre Dame here and there? Games that might generate more interest than the typical Conference USA game.

As discussed before where do the rest of our teams play? BYU found out going indy in football and having the other programs in the WCC wasn't a good situation which is why they suddenly want back into the B12 discussion.

Here you go:

(09-01-2016 07:05 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  Bailiff on game pre-game show:

"I think we've made great strides. We've got to play well. (WKU) Coach Brohm has been an absolute model of consistency since he's taken over."

"(Stehling) has made great decisions with the football all camp."

"We didn't play well last year. A lot of that is that those freshmen last year are now sophomores. We've come to where you expect bowl games and come to where you expect to compete for conference titles."

"(Bickham) we still have JT Blasingame, and Ellis, a true freshman has stepped up."

"(Running backs) They've checked their egos at the doors and put on their hard hats."

"It doesn't matter (who you open with.) You'd rather have a game where you know, last year we opened up against Wagner and we really didn't learn much with that game. We rather have a game where you could maybe see whether there's a freshman who could step up."

(09-01-2016 11:18 PM)RiceFootball2K5 Wrote:  Agree with all of this. We have below average talent at wide receiver, and average at best talent at QB. On the other hand, we have a large O line (good at run blocking) and some good backs. We need to run the ball effectively. If we don't (and we couldn't tonight), we will lose. Simple as that.

- and below average talent at RB too, IMHO.
- TEs are inexplicably a non-factor, as waltgreenberg keeps pointing out
- probably LBs is the one unit that stacks up OK

- of course the position with the least talent is Head Coach. the defensive schemes and conservatism are absolutely inexcusable

(09-01-2016 11:40 PM)Bailiff_Lingo_Bingo Wrote:  

(09-01-2016 11:18 PM)RiceFootball2K5 Wrote:  Agree with all of this. We have below average talent at wide receiver, and average at best talent at QB. On the other hand, we have a large O line (good at run blocking) and some good backs. We need to run the ball effectively. If we don't (and we couldn't tonight), we will lose. Simple as that.

- and below average talent at RB too, IMHO.
- TEs are inexplicably a non-factor, as waltgreenberg keeps pointing out
- probably LBs is the one unit that stacks up OK

- of course the position with the least talent is Head Coach. the defensive schemes and conservatism are absolutely inexcusable

RBs are debatable. They didn't look good tonight, but each of Dillard, Davis, the Walters, and especially Stewart, have shown that they are capable of making some plays. I certainly trust them running the ball more than I trust any of our receivers to get open consistently and for Stehling to get them the ball.

Edit: my bottom line point is that if we are going to be a passing team, then we are going to be a bad team. Our only hope of winning some games is if we can run the ball.

(09-01-2016 10:45 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  Bailiff post-game sideline interview:

"We gotta improve. It starts with me."

"We gotta lot of work to do."

"Personnel."

"We're gonna go to work and we're gonna get better."

Were you guessing as to these quotes or were they actually what said? Frankly can't tell at this point.

Also, our team just got humiliated on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt

What did SVP say?

I thought Stehling did OK. He seemed to have time, but the receiving corp let him down a couple of times.

The up tempo offense was there. Good to see. anybody else notice that WKU was meercatting on some plays?

O-line seemd to pass black Ok, not so much on run bla=ocking.

Biggest lack: pass rush. That made the secondary look worse than it is. Seemed to pick up against the second stringer.

True freshman Ellis got playing time, looked good.

(09-01-2016 11:14 PM)Middle Ages Wrote:  My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

That's been my position for the last couple of years, except it is not limited to GoodOwl.

We need to find the best coach we can, find out how much he wants, and double it so he will be twice as good and to show the world we mean business.

Then we can all be impressed when he says gems like "We need to get better. That's on me". That's why they call it a honeymoon.

(09-01-2016 11:14 PM)Middle Ages Wrote:  My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

What would you have me say? With all the good news about the EZF and the Big XII, which I have been posting I am very excited about, we needed at least a respectable showing tonight.

Good, Lord, what does it take for you to recognize the obvious? It's like Bagdad Bob "Everything's fine, Saddam's great, nothing to see here, we're winning."

These kids deserve better leadership. They're going to be really confused by the end of the year if this is what's in store. They're working hard, but I don't think it looks like what they're being asked to do is effective to win many games.

When a coach comes out of a very first game of the season, after talking about how failure last year was good to help improve him and his coaching, and starts back into the "We've gotta work harder and get better," and the same old schtik--why the heck wasn't he "working harder to get better" in the months of the offseason? It's eerily like last season was last week. Nothing seems to have changed. I was honestly shocked to see the stats after the game--the running game especially, which was supposed to be a strength.

And he's gonna all of a sudden turn it around now in-season? You really believe that? Okay, you're entitled. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Bailiff is gonna turn it around and become Frank Beamer. Get that ticker tape ready. Coach Thurmond said army is a different type of team. My Army Buds are already emailing me if I'm still coming over to watch next week's game with them. they can't wait, no matter how they do in their opener, they're smelling blood in the water against Rice next week, but we'll see. Maybe we'll be 1-1 going into Baylor.

Yikes, miserable start to the season. Didn't watch the game in my usual detail (was at a bar with an enthusiastic Tulane crowd cheering on their team, while a couple poor Rice saps tried to cover our eyes for most of the Rice game).

I did like the move away from meercat. Didn't really notice the punting when watching from the bar, but sounds like a good day for Fox. Stehling looks surprisingly good running the ball.

List of negatives incredibly long. Penalties killing any early offensive momentum. Safeties (and CB's) getting thrashed deep. Tackling that started out good the first few series deteriorated as the night wore on. WR's dropping passes and tipping the ball into WKU hands. RB's and O-Line not really doing much of anything. RB/Returners seem to lack burst. Davis has slowed down since his freshman year. Stewart looks slower. Didn't pay enough attention to say the same about Walters. Seems like they have decided to make the entire team big and strong instead of fast. I noticed this trend with the previous S&C coach, hopefully this is just after-effect from him and the new guy is working on more quickness and speed.

I wasn't that optimistic heading into the season. Now I'm even less so. Hopefully its a 1-game bad performance, but realistically, these are a lot of the same weaknesses that Rice has had for a decade (or more, in some instances). At least Charlotte looked even worse than Rice! And Rice scored more than Tulane! Didn't even drink good beer, folks I was with kept ordering buckets of cheap piss-water.

(09-02-2016 12:33 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(09-01-2016 11:14 PM)Middle Ages Wrote:  My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

What would you have me say? With all the good news about the EZF and the Big XII, which I have been posting I am very excited about, we needed at least a respectable showing tonight.

Good, Lord, what does it take for you to recognize the obvious? It's like Bagdad Bob "Everything's fine, Saddam's great, nothing to see here, we're winning."

These kids deserve better leadership. They're going to be really confused by the end of the year if this is what's in store. They're working hard, but I don't think it looks like what they're being asked to do is effective to win many games.

When a coach comes out of a very first game of the season, after talking about how failure last year was good to help improve him and his coaching, and starts back into the "We've gotta work harder and get better," and the same old schtik--why the heck wasn't he "working harder to get better" in the months of the offseason? It's eerily like last season was last week. Nothing seems to have changed. I was honestly shocked to see the stats after the game--the running game especially, which was supposed to be a strength.

And he's gonna all of a sudden turn it around now in-season? You really believe that? Okay, you're entitled. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Bailiff is gonna turn it around and become Frank Beamer. Get that ticker tape ready. Coach Thurmond said army is a different type of team. My Army Buds are already emailing me if I'm still coming over to watch next week's game with them. they can't wait, no matter how they do in their opener, they're smelling blood in the water against Rice next week, but we'll see. Maybe we'll be 1-1 going into Baylor.

Relax, GO. Everybody knows that Bailiff is a lame duck. We don't need all the campaign rhetoric. Especially since we aren't the decision makers.

(09-02-2016 12:33 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(09-01-2016 11:14 PM)Middle Ages Wrote:  My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

What would you have me say? With all the good news about the EZF and the Big XII, which I have been posting I am very excited about, we needed at least a respectable showing tonight.

Good, Lord, what does it take for you to recognize the obvious? It's like Bagdad Bob "Everything's fine, Saddam's great, nothing to see here, we're winning."

These kids deserve better leadership. They're going to be really confused by the end of the year if this is what's in store. They're working hard, but I don't think it looks like what they're being asked to do is effective to win many games.

When a coach comes out of a very first game of the season, after talking about how failure last year was good to help improve him and his coaching, and starts back into the "We've gotta work harder and get better," and the same old schtik--why the heck wasn't he "working harder to get better" in the months of the offseason? It's eerily like last season was last week. Nothing seems to have changed. I was honestly shocked to see the stats after the game--the running game especially, which was supposed to be a strength.

And he's gonna all of a sudden turn it around now in-season? You really believe that? Okay, you're entitled. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Bailiff is gonna turn it around and become Frank Beamer. Get that ticker tape ready. Coach Thurmond said army is a different type of team. My Army Buds are already emailing me if I'm still coming over to watch next week's game with them. they can't wait, no matter how they do in their opener, they're smelling blood in the water against Rice next week, but we'll see. Maybe we'll be 1-1 going into Baylor.

Regarding your last paragraph: he's not going to turn it around. But the schedule does lighten up, so we will win some games. Bailiff and co are what they are. Extremely limited coaches. When we face better athletes who are better coached, we get results like tonight. Where we are totally outclassed in all phases of our operation and are blown out.
When we play teams with better athletes who are poorly coached, we have a chance. And when we play teams with worse athletes, we usually win. Luckily for Bailiff, we have quite a few of those last 2 on our schedule. And have since he "miraculously" turned it around in 2012...around the time our conference started going in the toilet, and then soon after the reputable teams started leaving and here we are all these years later.

As for the game-

-Stehling looked pretty good- and as Owl#'s said looked like a guy that needed some reps last year. I think his ceiling might be higher than DJ's was.
-Receivers dropped too many passes, plus one of them had a fumble.
-Penalties and stupid mistakes simply killed us early and gave them momentum
-Run blocking was poor. Pass Pro was actually pretty good. Wish we would have taken advantage of that an attacked downfield more instead of the succession of bubble screens.
-Uptempo is great if you are making first downs. Not so much if you're going 3 and out
-Thought the front seven played okay- not good, but okay. We did get some pressure early but we never quite able to get there. And then they got us on our heels after the first few series and we looked passive after that.
-Special teams get an F. Snap for a safety and horrendous KO coverage and return game.
-Hated the passive approach DB took to 4th downs, end of half, and 3rd quarter
-Saving the best for last.... What the hell are we trying to do with our defensive backs? I've seen worse teams than us- but I don't think I've ever seen a team give up as many deep passes as we do consistently. It's maddening. And the more I watch of it the more I am convinced it's scheme. Our athletes back there are not that bad- but they are clearly not able to accomplish whatever the heck we are asking them to do. How about a free safety 15-18 yards deep at the snap and back pedaling? He may be slow on the run, but for goodness sake that's not our biggest issue. It's become a dark joke in our house- 'hey look it's another receiver wide open and 5 yards behind any Rice defender'. Nothing we do on offense will matter much if we can't fix this issue.

I think we should be able to beat Army if we can cut out the mistakes and protect Stehling. But anyone on our schedule that can throw the ball at all is going to be a tough out for us without changes in the pass defense

(09-02-2016 12:33 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(09-01-2016 11:14 PM)Middle Ages Wrote:  My goodness. I want us to get a new coach- right now- simply because Good Owl's schtick right now is freaking unbearable and the board needs the honeymoon period of a new coach

What would you have me say? With all the good news about the EZF and the Big XII, which I have been posting I am very excited about, we needed at least a respectable showing tonight.

Good, Lord, what does it take for you to recognize the obvious? It's like Bagdad Bob "Everything's fine, Saddam's great, nothing to see here, we're winning."

These kids deserve better leadership. They're going to be really confused by the end of the year if this is what's in store. They're working hard, but I don't think it looks like what they're being asked to do is effective to win many games.

When a coach comes out of a very first game of the season, after talking about how failure last year was good to help improve him and his coaching, and starts back into the "We've gotta work harder and get better," and the same old schtik--why the heck wasn't he "working harder to get better" in the months of the offseason? It's eerily like last season was last week. Nothing seems to have changed. I was honestly shocked to see the stats after the game--the running game especially, which was supposed to be a strength.

And he's gonna all of a sudden turn it around now in-season? You really believe that? Okay, you're entitled. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Bailiff is gonna turn it around and become Frank Beamer. Get that ticker tape ready. Coach Thurmond said army is a different type of team. My Army Buds are already emailing me if I'm still coming over to watch next week's game with them. they can't wait, no matter how they do in their opener, they're smelling blood in the water against Rice next week, but we'll see. Maybe we'll be 1-1 going into Baylor.

I'm not saying you are all wrong, or that 'everything is fine'- I'm just saying lighten up. We get it.

Over the last 12 games, Rice has surrendered 460 points (38.33 ppg), and that included the 7 scored in last year's finale by a pathetic Charlotte team. Throw that out, and it's 453 in 11 games (41.18 ppg). A team needs a GREAT offense in order to overcome those kinds of results.

(09-02-2016 12:38 AM)mrbig Wrote:  Seems like they have decided to make the entire team big and strong instead of fast. I noticed this trend with the previous S&C coach, hopefully this is just after-effect from him and the new guy is working on more quickness and speed.

This is something that I don't think gets enough attention. Is it just me, or does almost every one of our players seem to get slower the longer he is here? That comes from one place--the head coach. The S&C coach emphasizes whatever the head coach tells him to emphasize--or he doesn't keep his job.

If I were to come in as head coach at Rice, one of the first things I would do is to tell my S&C coach that I want to emphasize quickness, agility, and endurance, and de-emphasize bulk, without losing strength. If everybody loses 10-20 pounds doing that, I'm perfectly happy with it.

Paul Bryant used to say, "Football is moving and hitting people. If you hit but you can't move, we can teach you to move. If you won't hit, there is nothing we can do." We need to teach our players how to move.

(09-02-2016 12:47 AM)Middle Ages Wrote:  -Hated the passive approach DB took to 4th downs, end of half, and 3rd quarter

Agree with this as well. Normal for Bailiff, of course. But down big with ~50 seconds left in the half and 2 timeouts and Rice doesn't even try. Just don't get it.

And while I think there is an argument to leave Stehling in all game to get reps, I would have preferred to see the #2 get some snaps. That's what WKU was doing in the 4th quarter. Otherwise, we just head into 2017 with another starting QB with limited game action.