What is Bar for 2020 Football Season?

[AtlAppMan]

You mean Where is the Bar for 2020?

English never was my strong suit. I am just a redneck country boy that did okay for himself despite my rais'n. I was a Physics guy. Facts are all that matter to me.

I was trying to be clever as “Bar” as in Pub....

Hey I was a little slow on that one. Good line!

[BambooRdApp]

Sell out entire home schedule and people actually show up.
Dominate the fan attendance in Winston and it be a sell ou
10,000 people travel to Madison
14-0 or 13-1 (undefeated in conference)

[AtlAppMan]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

[Mjohn1988]

Resetting the bar

We get to play

[citroknight]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Once you get the taste of the good life of going to a NY6 bowl and getting all the hype that comes with it, it becomes harder to appreciate anything less for some fans.

Last year UCF fell a little short of where we wanted to be but a 10 win season that ended with a bowl win and top 25 ranking with a freshman QB is solid. But our fans expect NY6 every year. A little unreasonable but I see where they're coming from.

I imagine it won't be too long before App breaks through and gets the first NY6 appearance for a SunBelt team.

[t4pizza]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Once you get the taste of the good life of going to a NY6 bowl and getting all the hype that comes with it, it becomes harder to appreciate anything less for some fans.

Last year UCF fell a little short of where we wanted to be but a 10 win season that ended with a bowl win and top 25 ranking with a freshman QB is solid. But our fans expect NY6 every year. A little unreasonable but I see where they're coming from.

I imagine it won't be too long before App breaks through and gets the first NY6 appearance for a SunBelt team.

This is so true. I live an hour from UCF and know a ton of kids that attend as well as alums. After the Pitt loss most were a little down but still optimistic about winning out but once the Cincy game happened there was no joy in mudville. It was as if the entire season was already over and there was nothing left to play for.

[AtlAppMan]

My dad went to Duke and I grew up following and pulling for Duke basketball. Over time they got to a level where their goal is winning the national championship game. The reality is that you are NOT going to win it every year for many reasons. Some years you don't have the horses due to reloading, some years injuries take their toll, some years you may do everything right and another team does it better, etc. My dad and many of their fans come to realize that. Therefore the goal is winning it all, however, year over year you want to be in the running and sometimes you reach it, sometimes you don't.

The POINT is, you have to set your goals high to reach them but that doesn't mean you failed if you don't always get there.

I think App State football is at a point where our goal should be reaching and winning the NY6. That doesn't mean I will be disappointed if we come close but it doesn't happen (i.e. 2019). I thought the NY6 was realistic for us in 2019 and I was right. If we had won the Halloween game I have no doubt we would have likely gotten the NY6 bid. That is how close we were last year. I think we have a realistic shot again in 2020. That is my personal opinion. If we are close I will feel good. If we end up with 9 wins or less I will probably (depending on circumstances) feel we didn't deliver to our potential.

[BeauFoster]

My dad went to Duke and I grew up following and pulling for Duke basketball. Over time they got to a level where their goal is winning the national championship game. The reality is that you are NOT going to win it every year for many reasons. Some years you don't have the horses due to reloading, some years injuries take their toll, some years you may do everything right and another team does it better, etc. My dad and many of their fans come to realize that. Therefore the goal is winning it all, however, year over year you want to be in the running and sometimes you reach it, sometimes you don't.

The POINT is, you have to set your goals high to reach them but that doesn't mean you failed if you don't always get there.

I think App State football is at a point where our goal should be reaching and winning the NY6. That doesn't mean I will be disappointed if we come close but it doesn't happen (i.e. 2019). I thought the NY6 was realistic for us in 2019 and I was right. If we had won the Halloween game I have no doubt we would have likely gotten the NY6 bid. That is how close we were last year. I think we have a realistic shot again in 2020. That is my personal opinion. If we are close I will feel good. If we end up with 9 wins or less I will probably (depending on circumstances) feel we didn't deliver to our potential.

I'm almost (like || this close) to agreeing with you about our goal year in and year out being NY6. I think though, our goal should be to get to the first one. I feel like it is setting expectations too high to expect it every season when we haven't been to one yet. But that should be the ultimate, long-term goal.

[Mjohn1988]

I’m all in on setting the bar at the NY6. But I’ve gotten to the point in the past were I simply wasn’t enjoying myself because just one loss would cost us everything. I’ve decided that if we make it I’m going to enjoy the ride but if we don’t I’m going to enjoy ever win and spending time with my friends at the games.

[TheAppalachianState]

I have the bar set pretty high, we have a nasty team right now, though we’ve lost some great ones after last season, we still have huge impact players.

I hope Clark releases our team offensively, Drinkwitz was so conservative in 2019 with a lot of play calls that we shouldn’t have been and the exact opposite on some (mainly throwing when we played GS in Boone w/ 50 mph winds, like wtf).

All I know is that I’m excited, the bar is high, and when you play at App St the people expect you to be the best.

11+ win minimum

[AppStFan1]

Since this is off-season and we need stuff to talk about I was thinking about what would be the bar for the 2020 Football season. We have a lot of returning offensive players, especially skill players. The Defense will have some challenges reloading in several places. We have a new coaching staff, again. However, we are App State and we expect to win championships and I would expect this new staff, especially with Shawn Clark at the helm to be satisfied with nothing less.

I am listing what I believe would be an expectation (My Bar) for this season. I realize several things have to happen to achieve each of these. Some are in our control and others may be dependent on outside factors (injuries, other team's performances, etc.). All of the following are within our reach at this point so I don't want to hear people talk about why any of these are beyond our reach.

Must achieve (basic)
1) Make bowl - no brainer, season would be a disaster if we don't make it to a bowl
2) Win Sun Belt East which gets us to SBC Championship Game

Should achieve - would be disappointed if we don't achieve
3) Win Sun Belt Championship game (this is an expectation at this point, I would be disappointed if we do not win SBC game)
3) Top 25 rating during season. Ideally ranked at end of season.

Could achieve - would mean season is exceptional (again)
4) Undefeated regular season
5) NY6 bowl (likely require #4 as pre-requisite)

Fantastic season - best ever but achievable
6) NY6 bowl win (result would mean highest ranking ever at end of season)

Pretty much agree completely. With the talent we have and our schedule I feel like 10 wins in regular season and win the SBC title game is bare minimum. Anything less than what you list as basic and heads should roll on the staff.

I know it is way too early and a big reason is QB but I would say that the bar of 7 wins is my expectation for 2021 until I see what we have at QB and how good some of these freshmen who sat are going to be.

[AppStFan1]

Minimum - 7 regular season wins

Ok Season that people won't accept - 8 wins with close losses to Wake and ULL, and a couple of losses due to injury or just poor showings

Good Season - 9 wins with a P5 win

Great Season - One P5 win and trip to SBC title game

Awesome Season - 12-2 or better, winning SBC title and bowl game

Anything above that is world class.

I assume you are only talking the 12 game regular season?

I think you set the bar too low. I feel like 7 or 8 wins should only be acceptable if we have major injuries. If we are healthy and win 7 or 8 games, including the bowl game, then I think the staff should be fired.

I would be very disappointed if we finished 10-4 or 9-5. That would mean we either had major injuries, not coached well, or our players read their own clippings and took some losses on the chin that they should not.

I expect to split the P5 games and I will be happy with 12-2 or better. That is what we need to finish ranked and our goal for this year should be to finish the season ranked.

If we go 13-1 or 14-0 then that would be a dream and I think we can certainly achieve them if we don't get some bad breaks.

[AppStFan1]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Agree here. Our goal should be to win the SBC, win a bowl game, and finish ranked with a legit shot at NY6. All of our games are winnable but any game could be a loss. I feel like if we stay healthy, are coached well, and our players just execute and play to the best of their ability that we could have a magical season. I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year.

[AppSt94]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Agree here. Our goal should be to win the SBC, win a bowl game, and finish ranked with a legit shot at NY6. All of our games are winnable but any game could be a loss. I feel like if we stay healthy, are coached well, and our players just execute and play to the best of their ability that we could have a magical season. I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year.

So in your last three posts on this topic, you have stated that anything less than 10 wins should result in and I quote:

"I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year."

"If we are healthy and win 7 or 8 games, including the bowl game, then I think the staff should be fired."

"With the talent we have and our schedule I feel like 10 wins in regular season and win the SBC title game is bare minimum. Anything less than what you list as basic and heads should roll on the staff."

Dude, you need to relax! It is a game to you and a livelihood to those in charge. Maybe you should march into DG's office and tell him how to do his job as well. Holy crap you are a piece of work.

[TheAppalachianState]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Agree here. Our goal should be to win the SBC, win a bowl game, and finish ranked with a legit shot at NY6. All of our games are winnable but any game could be a loss. I feel like if we stay healthy, are coached well, and our players just execute and play to the best of their ability that we could have a magical season. I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year.

So in your last three posts on this topic, you have stated that anything less than 10 wins should result in and I quote:

"I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year."

"If we are healthy and win 7 or 8 games, including the bowl game, then I think the staff should be fired."

"With the talent we have and our schedule I feel like 10 wins in regular season and win the SBC title game is bare minimum. Anything less than what you list as basic and heads should roll on the staff."

Dude, you need to relax! It is a game to you and a livelihood to those in charge. Maybe you should march into DG's office and tell him how to do his job as well. Holy crap you are a piece of work.

What’s wrong with having high expectations? If we don’t, we are like all the other G5 schools. And this is college football, if you don’t produce, find a less pressure job

[AppSt94]

if you want to have high expectations for something you have no control over, I guess that’s OK. You do you bro. ASF1 just gets a bit carried away when he goes all Stalin with his expectations. Trust me, none of you guys come close to the expectations that CSC has for his coaches and players.

[AppStFan1]

Should getting to and winning SBC Championship game be a reasonable expectation for our team? YES

Should getting to NY6 and winning it be a stated goal? I say YES

I would say Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, etc and a few more will certainly state their goal as winning the National Championship game. That does not mean anything less is a failed season. Why can’t we state the NY6 as our goal? That is a high bar but we should not be afraid to set the bar high.

All of the games on our schedule this year are winnable with this team. Do we have to play some great football and be consistent, yes, but it is within this team’s reach.

Agree here. Our goal should be to win the SBC, win a bowl game, and finish ranked with a legit shot at NY6. All of our games are winnable but any game could be a loss. I feel like if we stay healthy, are coached well, and our players just execute and play to the best of their ability that we could have a magical season. I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year.

So in your last three posts on this topic, you have stated that anything less than 10 wins should result in and I quote:

"I want a lot of folks gone if we only win 7-8 games and I would be very upset at just 9 wins this year."

"If we are healthy and win 7 or 8 games, including the bowl game, then I think the staff should be fired."

"With the talent we have and our schedule I feel like 10 wins in regular season and win the SBC title game is bare minimum. Anything less than what you list as basic and heads should roll on the staff."

Dude, you need to relax! It is a game to you and a livelihood to those in charge. Maybe you should march into DG's office and tell him how to do his job as well. Holy crap you are a piece of work.

I know that we can't win 11+ games every year but I have also said that 2019 and 2020 should be years we expect championships barring major injuries. I know things can happen but if we are completely healthy, and nothing locker room altering pops up, we have talent to win the SBC and should expect 10+ wins.

2 questions for you. Did you think we were deserving of being ranked in the top 25? Were we the best team in the SBC in 2019? Yes, right? Okay. Then with what we return should we not expect to win another SBC title? We are in a time where we have a lot of talent and really need to capitalize because they may not always be the case.

And my second question. App is constantly asking us for more money and to be honest they have done some of our veteran people wrong. There were once guarantees that if you buy your gold seat or a certain area and season ticket that your price would be fixed as well. It would not be taken from you. Our ticket folks have changed on some of those and priced some folks who had been going to games for 30+ years out. Is it not wrong for them to do that to some of our hardcore fans and price them out after making promises? If you can't fulfill then don't promise is my take.

If they are going to squeeze people then yes they have a reason to expect more when they are begged for more and more every year.

[AppSt94]

I see. You are just pissed because you feel that you have been devalued in some way. None of that was conveyed in your previous post. You want, ne’ expect, that if it is going to cost you more money, that you want double digit wins to be a given. How were you priced out? Did they make it impossible for you to go to the game, or did you just get forced out of your seat by someone who gave more?

Do I think we can win 9-10 regular season games? Sure. Do I think that it is going to be easy? No. Do I think that a 7-8 win season is going to call for a complete re-evaluation of the program? No. We are going to have them. There will be years that we under achieve and years that we over achieve. I just look forward to football Saturdays and enjoy the ride. And he if I run into any coaches and players, I will thank them for the effort. But that’s just me.

[TheAppalachianState]

I don’t think their is one of us that wouldn’t thank HCSC or his crew, he’s App State blood. But the expectations will always be there, we are a Championship school

[AppSt94]

I don’t think their is one of us that wouldn’t thank HCSC or his crew, he’s App State blood. But the expectations will always be there, we are a Championship school

I don’t take issue with expectations. I take issue with the comments made towards firing staff, or heads will roll if the team doesn’t perform to his expectations. It comes across as very self aggrandizing.