We choked

[GregPercussion]

We choked.

We failed in all 3 phases of playing the game from players and coaches.
We failed in all 3 phases of being at the game (from BPG guys: The tailgate, the stands, the scoreboard)

Weather didn't help, but when you fail at all of that, we lose.

[WataugaMan]

To be honest we were flat during the South Alabama game and it continued through last night. Since the ULM game it seems we are just going through the motions thinking that by just showing up we're guaranteed a win. Week in and week out we keep hearing the "we are 1-0" theme. This week coming up "we're 0-1" and it will be interesting to see how we react, we'll see. What are we prepared to do?

[Mrsp]

Here are my observations after a miserable drive back down the mountain........

1. Drink got out coached. He underestimated this rivalry and how hard this team will come at us. Our guys came out flat and had no intensity. Drinks gameplan was awful and we all knew what the weather was going to be, so he should have prepared.

2. Jordan Fehr was hurt. He should’ve been pulled early in the game. He could barely run to tackle and he cost us early.

3. Dez Franklin needs to be benched. He has been a liability all year and his play tonight from the safety position was the last straw. He took bad angles, he read the wrong cues, he filled the wrong gaps continuously. Loved him last year, but we cannot count on him this year.

4. Zac has played two back to back terrible games. Do not get caught up in the stats, he has been bad. He played intimidated and he lacked the fundamentals needed to succeed. He stared down receivers all night, mainly Hennigan, and made regrettable throws. Why he continues to struggle to go through his progressions is a huge issue and he has regressed this year. Yes, we were undefeated to date, but game after game he misses wide open receivers because he does not go through his reads. He is a good QB with a good arm, and that bails him out often, but sometimes you have to make the easy reads.

5. Corey Sutton is the best offensive weapon on this team. He continues to make play after play when given the opportunity, but his opportunities aren’t enough. Because Zac can’t get his eyes off Henni, he continues to miss Corey open after Corey torches his defenders. If you are going to force the ball to someone, force it to the receiver who can make plays after the catch or win 1v1s. Henni is a great possession receiver, but should be a compliment to a #1 like Corey. I get the sense that a Corey will transfer out after he graduates this year and we would have wasted having a talent like his on our team.

6. Our defensive line and offensive line got abused. Evans had no where to run and we kept stretching and playing into GAS scheme of sliding the D-line. Bad playcalling, bad O line scheme. Our defensive line got manhandled.

Our season is not technically over, but it kind of is. We lost a divisional conference game and now we aren’t in control of our destiny, we will drop out of the top 25 and be lucky if we fall back in after Bowl season, we continue to miss the opportunity to prove we belong. This game hurt, bad, worst than my calves after walking up stadium drive tonight carrying my daughter. I’m still going to the USC game, the Georgia State game, and Texas State game, but this GAS game is going to burn for a looonnnngggg time.

This is a stacked team. Players are passionate. They have embraced a practically entire new staff. Schemes have been changed. They are trying to adapt. But these players were recruited for a different set of schemes with much different roles. The play calling is entirely inappropriate to the talent on this team. Zach did great last year while this year he is being coached completely different. Another example is the TE position. There are 5 or 6 TEs. Drink barely utilizes the position. Same goes for receivers. Your point of losing Corey is valid. It would be a devastating loss. Other players may be thinking that too. Yeah, the team seemed flat. But that falls on the coaching. I have not seen these coaches fire up this team once on the sideline. It is what made Satts crew so awesome for the past 5 years. Energy. It has to start at the top.

[PhillyApp1]

We did choke ..... and i am concerned we are losing players mentally.... i hope i am wrong because if i am right, some more changes are a comin

[App74]

Couple of gripes I had that I don't feel warrant a new thread but I think really affected the energy level:

1) The intro video before the team came out was played at about a 0.01 db level. The crowd was super flat when the team came out because we were all struggling to hear.
2) It was truly a miserable day of weather. I know these guys are elite athletes, but it's hard to catch and throw a ball with that temperature and wind, and unfortunately our run game was terrible for the most part.
3) This is not the reason we lost; I repeat, this is not the reason we lost, but every time we had a decent play there was some sort of penalty and every time we had a play that could have-should have been, there was a no call.
4) In the 4th quarter, the piped in music when the crowd was SUPER hype due to the comeback ranged from what I feel amped up the crowd even more to something that served as a distraction because it was a slower, sing along type song. I swear we need to spend the money on a professional DJ just so they can read the crowd better. Don't play Back in Black on a second down when the crowd is jumping around screaming. Too slow, and literally an energy sucker in that situation.
5) Luckily this was a non-factor, but don't ring the freaking 3rd down bell until the team is ready to run on the field.

The piped in music continues to be a drain on my personal involvement into the game such that I now sit down and shut up when it begins to blast. I can't compete with it and I am tired of trying.

My wife called me during one of the music barrages to check the score because we had lost power at home. I had to text the score to her because we could not verbally communicate.

[MountainMan2020]

We did choke ..... and i am concerned we are losing players mentally.... i hope i am wrong because if i am right, some more changes are a comin

Based on one game? Wow. Seems like things were rolling pretty good about a week ago. I am sure there will be those that drop in here with their nonsense “inside” info about pre-existing undercurrents and how wins were masking some kind of pervasive discontent, but a certain level of drama exists on every team during the course of a long season. We sucked in all phases and were totally unprepared, but it was one game. Yeah, it was a huge game and everyones disappointed, but I’m calling BS on this one.

[ah59396]

We did choke ..... and i am concerned we are losing players mentally.... i hope i am wrong because if i am right, some more changes are a comin

Based on one game? Wow. Seems like things were rolling pretty good about a week ago. I am sure there will be those that drop in here with their nonsense “inside” info about pre-existing undercurrents and how wins were masking some kind of pervasive discontent, but a certain level of drama exists on every team during the course of a long season. We sucked in all phases and were totally unprepared, but it was one game. Yeah, it was a huge game and everyones disappointed, but I’m calling BS on this one.

Yeah this is quite a stretch for me. I think we choked, but the idea behind a choke is that it’s an anomaly. We played poorly when we needed to play well. Hopefully just this once.

The idea that there’s some theme to this loss or mental shift in the team? I don’t buy it. The team and coaches have shown me nothing to suggest fractures. In fact they seem very well aligned. Drink has done an excellent job building a mantra for them. “1-0”

[PhillyApp1]

We did choke ..... and i am concerned we are losing players mentally.... i hope i am wrong because if i am right, some more changes are a comin

Based on one game? Wow. Seems like things were rolling pretty good about a week ago. I am sure there will be those that drop in here with their nonsense “inside” info about pre-existing undercurrents and how wins were masking some kind of pervasive discontent, but a certain level of drama exists on every team during the course of a long season. We sucked in all phases and were totally unprepared, but it was one game. Yeah, it was a huge game and everyones disappointed, but I’m calling BS on this one.

I agree with you. But my fear is the length of the change process and players energy and demeanor on the field which shows to many of us who have watched for decades the attitude of App football.
Not just one game to form my fear. We have struggled with inferior teams. Anyone can see the growing pains with a group of very talented athletes on our team. We are winning because of talent, not because of a team totally adjusted to the new coaches.
As i wrote, I hope i am wrong and I still think we can beat USC. We have the talent.

[Appftw]

I get the sense that a Corey will transfer out after he graduates this year and we would have wasted having a talent like his on our team.

Corey is a junior. He’s not going anywhere, considering Satt underutilized him as well IMO.

[yosef69]

Here are my observations after a miserable drive back down the mountain........

1. Drink got out coached. He underestimated this rivalry and how hard this team will come at us. Our guys came out flat and had no intensity. Drinks gameplan was awful and we all knew what the weather was going to be, so he should have prepared.

2. Jordan Fehr was hurt. He should’ve been pulled early in the game. He could barely run to tackle and he cost us early.

3. Dez Franklin needs to be benched. He has been a liability all year and his play tonight from the safety position was the last straw. He took bad angles, he read the wrong cues, he filled the wrong gaps continuously. Loved him last year, but we cannot count on him this year.

4. Zac has played two back to back terrible games. Do not get caught up in the stats, he has been bad. He played intimidated and he lacked the fundamentals needed to succeed. He stared down receivers all night, mainly Hennigan, and made regrettable throws. Why he continues to struggle to go through his progressions is a huge issue and he has regressed this year. Yes, we were undefeated to date, but game after game he misses wide open receivers because he does not go through his reads. He is a good QB with a good arm, and that bails him out often, but sometimes you have to make the easy reads.

5. Corey Sutton is the best offensive weapon on this team. He continues to make play after play when given the opportunity, but his opportunities aren’t enough. Because Zac can’t get his eyes off Henni, he continues to miss Corey open after Corey torches his defenders. If you are going to force the ball to someone, force it to the receiver who can make plays after the catch or win 1v1s. Henni is a great possession receiver, but should be a compliment to a #1 like Corey. I get the sense that a Corey will transfer out after he graduates this year and we would have wasted having a talent like his on our team.

6. Our defensive line and offensive line got abused. Evans had no where to run and we kept stretching and playing into GAS scheme of sliding the D-line. Bad playcalling, bad O line scheme. Our defensive line got manhandled.

Our season is not technically over, but it kind of is. We lost a divisional conference game and now we aren’t in control of our destiny, we will drop out of the top 25 and be lucky if we fall back in after Bowl season, we continue to miss the opportunity to prove we belong. This game hurt, bad, worst than my calves after walking up stadium drive tonight carrying my daughter. I’m still going to the USC game, the Georgia State game, and Texas State game, but this GAS game is going to burn for a looonnnngggg time.

This is a stacked team. Players are passionate. They have embraced a practically entire new staff. Schemes have been changed. They are trying to adapt. But these players were recruited for a different set of schemes with much different roles. The play calling is entirely inappropriate to the talent on this team. Zach did great last year while this year he is being coached completely different. Another example is the TE position. There are 5 or 6 TEs. Drink barely utilizes the position. Same goes for receivers. Your point of losing Corey is valid. It would be a devastating loss. Other players may be thinking that too. Yeah, the team seemed flat. But that falls on the coaching. I have not seen these coaches fire up this team once on the sideline. It is what made Satts crew so awesome for the past 5 years. Energy. It has to start at the top.

Your poi t about energy is spot on. There was 0 energy on the sideline this game.

[MrCraig]

We did choke ..... and i am concerned we are losing players mentally.... i hope i am wrong because if i am right, some more changes are a comin

Based on one game? Wow. Seems like things were rolling pretty good about a week ago. I am sure there will be those that drop in here with their nonsense “inside” info about pre-existing undercurrents and how wins were masking some kind of pervasive discontent, but a certain level of drama exists on every team during the course of a long season. We sucked in all phases and were totally unprepared, but it was one game. Yeah, it was a huge game and everyones disappointed, but I’m calling BS on this one.

I agree with you. But my fear is the length of the change process and players energy and demeanor on the field which shows to many of us who have watched for decades the attitude of App football.
Not just one game to form my fear. We have struggled with inferior teams. Anyone can see the growing pains with a group of very talented athletes on our team. We are winning because of talent, not because of a team totally adjusted to the new coaches.
As i wrote, I hope i am wrong and I still think we can beat USC. We have the talent.

We’ve struggled? Maybe I missed something, but looking back on the results so far I don’t see much struggling. Remember folks, we lost to Southern last year, and then didn’t lose another game until this one.

[appbio91]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.charlo ... 65628.html

Painful read but lots of truth here

[appstatealum]

I get the sense that a Corey will transfer out after he graduates this year and we would have wasted having a talent like his on our team.

Corey is a junior. He’s not going anywhere, considering Satt underutilized him as well IMO.

Red shirt junior. He graduates this year. So he can go wherever he wants for his final year of eligibility.

[ebapps1]

Here are my observations after a miserable drive back down the mountain........
Excellent points!
1. Drink got out coached. He underestimated this rivalry and how hard this team will come at us. Our guys came out flat and had no intensity. Drinks gameplan was awful and we all knew what the weather was going to be, so he should have prepared.

2. Jordan Fehr was hurt. He should’ve been pulled early in the game. He could barely run to tackle and he cost us early.

3. Dez Franklin needs to be benched. He has been a liability all year and his play tonight from the safety position was the last straw. He took bad angles, he read the wrong cues, he filled the wrong gaps continuously. Loved him last year, but we cannot count on him this year.

4. Zac has played two back to back terrible games. Do not get caught up in the stats, he has been bad. He played intimidated and he lacked the fundamentals needed to succeed. He stared down receivers all night, mainly Hennigan, and made regrettable throws. Why he continues to struggle to go through his progressions is a huge issue and he has regressed this year. Yes, we were undefeated to date, but game after game he misses wide open receivers because he does not go through his reads. He is a good QB with a good arm, and that bails him out often, but sometimes you have to make the easy reads.

5. Corey Sutton is the best offensive weapon on this team. He continues to make play after play when given the opportunity, but his opportunities aren’t enough. Because Zac can’t get his eyes off Henni, he continues to miss Corey open after Corey torches his defenders. If you are going to force the ball to someone, force it to the receiver who can make plays after the catch or win 1v1s. Henni is a great possession receiver, but should be a compliment to a #1 like Corey. I get the sense that a Corey will transfer out after he graduates this year and we would have wasted having a talent like his on our team.

6. Our defensive line and offensive line got abused. Evans had no where to run and we kept stretching and playing into GAS scheme of sliding the D-line. Bad playcalling, bad O line scheme. Our defensive line got manhandled.

Our season is not technically over, but it kind of is. We lost a divisional conference game and now we aren’t in control of our destiny, we will drop out of the top 25 and be lucky if we fall back in after Bowl season, we continue to miss the opportunity to prove we belong. This game hurt, bad, worst than my calves after walking up stadium drive tonight carrying my daughter. I’m still going to the USC game, the Georgia State game, and Texas State game, but this GAS game is going to burn for a looonnnngggg time.

[ebapps1]

Excellent points!

[NoLongerLurking]

"We" only choke when not donating enough to yc or leaving before the end of the game.

[Rekdiver]

We are 7-1. We had a bad day. Most teams have bad days. I don’t think UGA UF Wake..... and others are losing players because of a loss or 2. We really need to move on. We will be blaming Ukraine at the rate we are going.

[AppStateMtneer]

We are 7-1. We had a bad day. Most teams have bad days. I don’t think UGA UF Wake..... and others are losing players because of a loss or 2. We really need to move on. We will be blaming Ukraine at the rate we are going.

Russia*

[ah59396]

"We" only choke when not donating enough to yc or leaving before the end of the game.

Aha! Touché my friend.

[appstatealum]

We are 7-1. We had a bad day. Most teams have bad days. I don’t think UGA UF Wake..... and others are losing players because of a loss or 2. We really need to move on. We will be blaming Ukraine at the rate we are going.

Losing Sutton wouldn't have anything to do with record. Its with usage. He is a sure fire NFL talent and Zac barely looks his way. I watch him a lot on the sidelines and you can tell it frustrates him.