Seniors

[hapapp]

I don't think the staff is just going to open it up for every senior to come back. The 85 scholarship rule is waved, so no incoming freshman will be turned away. The question becomes how many above the 85 can we afford?

[AppSt94]

I’m going to guess maybe 12-13 when it is all said and done.

[t4pizza]

I honestly feel that the seniors who actually got to be on the team in an active role this year should all move on. This has turned out to be a complete season and they got to experience it all. We have limited resources as a program and we need to keep things on a regular schedule. If we keep all the seniors that want an extra year then we keep our underclassmen from getting their opportunities that they have been working years to achieve. I fully support an extra year for kids that opted out or played on teams that had abbreviated seasons but not for the kids that got to play a full season of football, even if it is a messed up year.

[bigdaddyg]

I honestly feel that the seniors who actually got to be on the team in an active role this year should all move on. This has turned out to be a complete season and they got to experience it all. We have limited resources as a program and we need to keep things on a regular schedule. If we keep all the seniors that want an extra year then we keep our underclassmen from getting their opportunities that they have been working years to achieve. I fully support an extra year for kids that opted out or played on teams that had abbreviated seasons but not for the kids that got to play a full season of football, even if it is a messed up year.

I tend to agree with you. A few months ago the NCAA made a knee jerk reaction to an obviously crappy situation. The kids who decided not to compete should get their year but those who played what amounts to a full (or close to a full) season should just move on- if they are seniors. Everyone else should not really need a freebie. Most G5’s really won’t be able to afford the extra scholarships and I can’t see a ton of guys nationally returning for what could be a 6th year. Even the big boys aren’t looking to bring back 5th year guys who barely play. The really good players will go pro.

[MtnMan09]

I really can’t believe some of the bull crap some of you guys type. Are many of you completely oblivious to the insanity of this season? We went like 3 weeks with nothing going on. We had two games rescheduled and had to redo our non-conference schedule. Yeah I know everyone is in the same boat. Games are being cancelled left and right. Powerhouse teams are struggling this year. Ohio State barely beat Indiana today. It looks like the Big 12 won’t have anyone with one loss. It’s chaos.

We had our best back go pro- could have been on the roster. Our best receiver opted out- could have been on the roster. We have our third staff in 3 years. There is nothing normal on campus. It’s chaos.

We are damn lucky to have any semblance of football yet guys are bitching and wanting coaches fired. Do y’all really think there will be a bowl game? I was just as pissed as anyone today but it’s just a damn game. This expectation that we should never lose is crazy.

Bigdaddyg Im not singling you out, yours was just one of the first posts I saw today. There is a large contingent on here and on twitter that can't stand that fans are disappointed, worried, and calling out perceived issues. That makes zero sense to me. Yes, its been a crazy year and our third coaching staff in as many years but we have to do better. The issues I see appear to revolve around playcalling, discipline, and motivation which I attribute all to the coaching staff. To say things like "we cant expect the streak to go on forever" or "there was always going to be regression" and to stop complaining is maddening to me. You realize how precarious every would be G5 "power" is perched right? Do you think if GaSou could go back to the first year of the Tyson Summers experiment and stop it dead in its tracks they would? Or do you think they would be yelling at people and saying "we can expect him to be Coach Willie Fritz." This same crowd will say we can't compare ourselves to what happened to Southern because we have a "culture" and history of winning. To think that we are somehow above the ups and drastic downs of G5s because we have a "player led" culture or a history of winning is asinine. I'm not saying everyone has to go after this year. But I am saying we are right to question the status of the program and watch it like a hawk so we do not go past the point of no return and find ourselves a bastion of mediocrity like the Eagles. This year, in my opinion, has not been an exercise in getting beat by better teams. We have been a shell of our former team. No aggression, not attitude, no inspiration, penalties galore. These are traditionally trademarks of teams that are not well coached. I agree with t4Pizza that with either Satt's or Drink's staff in place we would not have lost to either Marshall or CCU (and certainly not almost to woeful Ga. State). Some changes, whether its personnel or coaching philosophy, need to be made for the "culture" we all so appreciate.

[hapapp]

Has this team really been penalized more than teams in the past?

The answer is no. This year we are averaging 6.6 penalties a game for an average of 61.8 yards per game, we are 7th in the SBC. Last year, we averaged 6.8 penalties a game for an average of 64.2 yards a game, putting us 9th. Our average penalty this year is 9.3 yards, last year it was 9.4.

Yes, I agree that we should and need to do better. They can be game changers and one could make the case that there were at least two penalties on Saturday that were critical in determining the outcome. So, I'm not defending our lack of discipline. I'm just pointing out that it is not unique this team.

For the record, we were 8th in the league in 2018 and 11th in 2017 in penalties. Frankly, it's a pretty typical year on that front. So, regardless of the head coach, penalties have been a headache.

[AppDub]

Has this team really been penalized more than teams in the past?

The answer is no. This year we are averaging 6.6 penalties a game for an average of 61.8 yards per game, we are 7th in the SBC. Last year, we averaged 6.8 penalties a game for an average of 64.2 yards a game, putting us 9th. Our average penalty this year is 9.3 yards, last year it was 9.4.

Yes, I agree that we should and need to do better. They can be game changers and one could make the case that there were at least two penalties on Saturday that were critical in determining the outcome. So, I'm not defending our lack of discipline. I'm just pointing out that it is not unique this team.

For the record, we were 8th in the league in 2018 and 11th in 2017 in penalties. Frankly, it's a pretty typical year on that front. So, regardless of the head coach, penalties have been a headache.

Good points and great reminder of penalties not being more than usual. The problem is that we haven't shown the offensive power to overcome these penalties as easily as we have in the past few years. Our margin for error seems to be much lass than in years gone by.

[NavyApp]

Bigdaddyg Im not singling you out, yours was just one of the first posts I saw today. There is a large contingent on here and on twitter that can't stand that fans are disappointed, worried, and calling out perceived issues. That makes zero sense to me. Yes, its been a crazy year and our third coaching staff in as many years but we have to do better. The issues I see appear to revolve around playcalling, discipline, and motivation which I attribute all to the coaching staff. To say things like "we cant expect the streak to go on forever" or "there was always going to be regression" and to stop complaining is maddening to me. You realize how precarious every would be G5 "power" is perched right? Do you think if GaSou could go back to the first year of the Tyson Summers experiment and stop it dead in its tracks they would? Or do you think they would be yelling at people and saying "we can expect him to be Coach Willie Fritz." This same crowd will say we can't compare ourselves to what happened to Southern because we have a "culture" and history of winning. To think that we are somehow above the ups and drastic downs of G5s because we have a "player led" culture or a history of winning is asinine. I'm not saying everyone has to go after this year. But I am saying we are right to question the status of the program and watch it like a hawk so we do not go past the point of no return and find ourselves a bastion of mediocrity like the Eagles. This year, in my opinion, has not been an exercise in getting beat by better teams. We have been a shell of our former team. No aggression, not attitude, no inspiration, penalties galore. These are traditionally trademarks of teams that are not well coached. I agree with t4Pizza that with either Satt's or Drink's staff in place we would not have lost to either Marshall or CCU (and certainly not almost to woeful Ga. State). Some changes, whether its personnel or coaching philosophy, need to be made for the "culture" we all so appreciate.

It's interesting that you bring up the aggression, attitude, inspiration, penalties. These are things that I saw as huge red flags LAST YEAR under a previous HC. For some reason no one is allowed to say that, but go back and watch any game outside of UNC and SC and look at how flat we look, look at the lack of emotion from the sidelines during the games. I said it multiple times last year, but there were many games were ZT looked like he didn't even want to be there. All things being equal I personally have seen us swing back more to what I'm accustomed to seeing. Much more emotion showed in the flow of the game, sidelines hopping around, much more engaged. As to penalties I don't understand why some on here want to put that at on Clark's doorstep. Look at the post above, this bug a boo pre dates Clark coming back on the Mountain, but it's his fault we are "undisciplined"? Not buying it. For this being his first year as HC...THIS YEAR, I think he has done a great job. We still can be a 10 win team, win a bowl game (if they happen) and continue our ascent in the realm of college football. My one hope is that he takes a strong look at the composition of the offensive staff and makes the best decisions for the future of App Football.

[rbarthle17]

I just hate to see the seniors go out this way. I’m not so much talking about the result of the season but rather things like playing in a basically empty KBS and not getting that shot at a couple of P5 programs. Just a bad situation.

In some ways, it's not unlike the two years of seniors that had nothing to play for during our transition. Sucks for them, but someone has to be the ones to take it.

[rbarthle17]

This year, good or bad, should not be treated as anything other than an anomaly. I'm just happy every week that goes by that I get to watch us play, win or lose. It's an impossible situation yet so many of our "fans" are showing their asses by trying to treat it as a normal year with normal year expectations. It was going to be a hard ask just with the third coaching staff in three years, then add COVID on it, and it's impossible. If we finish 10-2 or 6-6, I am giving every single person in this program a full pass on 2020.

[AppDub]

So if we were undefeated at this point, would fans be showing their rear ends for celebrating and looking with anticipation each week to see where our team is ranked? Other teams and their fan bases are trying to treat the year as normal as possible. It seems only natural to want the best outcome possible when the team takes the field. Not being argumentative. I just feel like if we we were on the other side of the lost games, we would look at it differently. I think its a little much to say wanting to win, and even to expect that, is showing your rear end as a fan.

[BambooRdApp]

Bigdaddyg Im not singling you out, yours was just one of the first posts I saw today. There is a large contingent on here and on twitter that can't stand that fans are disappointed, worried, and calling out perceived issues. That makes zero sense to me. Yes, its been a crazy year and our third coaching staff in as many years but we have to do better. The issues I see appear to revolve around playcalling, discipline, and motivation which I attribute all to the coaching staff. To say things like "we cant expect the streak to go on forever" or "there was always going to be regression" and to stop complaining is maddening to me. You realize how precarious every would be G5 "power" is perched right? Do you think if GaSou could go back to the first year of the Tyson Summers experiment and stop it dead in its tracks they would? Or do you think they would be yelling at people and saying "we can expect him to be Coach Willie Fritz." This same crowd will say we can't compare ourselves to what happened to Southern because we have a "culture" and history of winning. To think that we are somehow above the ups and drastic downs of G5s because we have a "player led" culture or a history of winning is asinine. I'm not saying everyone has to go after this year. But I am saying we are right to question the status of the program and watch it like a hawk so we do not go past the point of no return and find ourselves a bastion of mediocrity like the Eagles. This year, in my opinion, has not been an exercise in getting beat by better teams. We have been a shell of our former team. No aggression, not attitude, no inspiration, penalties galore. These are traditionally trademarks of teams that are not well coached. I agree with t4Pizza that with either Satt's or Drink's staff in place we would not have lost to either Marshall or CCU (and certainly not almost to woeful Ga. State). Some changes, whether its personnel or coaching philosophy, need to be made for the "culture" we all so appreciate.

It's interesting that you bring up the aggression, attitude, inspiration, penalties. These are things that I saw as huge red flags LAST YEAR under a previous HC. For some reason no one is allowed to say that, but go back and watch any game outside of UNC and SC and look at how flat we look, look at the lack of emotion from the sidelines during the games. I said it multiple times last year, but there were many games were ZT looked like he didn't even want to be there. All things being equal I personally have seen us swing back more to what I'm accustomed to seeing. Much more emotion showed in the flow of the game, sidelines hopping around, much more engaged. As to penalties I don't understand why some on here want to put that at on Clark's doorstep. Look at the post above, this bug a boo pre dates Clark coming back on the Mountain, but it's his fault we are "undisciplined"? Not buying it. For this being his first year as HC...THIS YEAR, I think he has done a great job. We still can be a 10 win team, win a bowl game (if they happen) and continue our ascent in the realm of college football. My one hope is that he takes a strong look at the composition of the offensive staff and makes the best decisions for the future of App Football.

I agree. Being able to finally watch a game live last Saturday, I saw much emotion on sideline. I definitely saw emotion after all scores and big plays on defense.

[Mjohn1988]

I just hate to see the seniors go out this way. I’m not so much talking about the result of the season but rather things like playing in a basically empty KBS and not getting that shot at a couple of P5 programs. Just a bad situation.

In some ways, it's not unlike the two years of seniors that had nothing to play for during our transition. Sucks for them, but someone has to be the ones to take it.

Why

[Mjohn1988]

Just took a quick look at our senior class. Strictly based on production I see about 14 guys that I would like to see back in 2021. Pretty sure 2 of those 14 aren’t coming back, one to law school and the other to med school. I see another that could have a shot at the NFL.

[AppSt94]

Just took a quick look at our senior class. Strictly based on production I see about 14 guys that I would like to see back in 2021. Pretty sure 2 of those 14 aren’t coming back, one to law school and the other to med school. I see another that could have a shot at the NFL.

If you are counting Garrison and Hannon, there is one more that has told the coaches that he isn’t coming back.

[AppDub]

If that is the case, the twos on the o-line definitely need to see some more time over the next few games.

[Mjohn1988]

Just took a quick look at our senior class. Strictly based on production I see about 14 guys that I would like to see back in 2021. Pretty sure 2 of those 14 aren’t coming back, one to law school and the other to med school. I see another that could have a shot at the NFL.

If you are counting Garrison and Hannon, there is one more that has told the coaches that he isn’t coming back.

So is that 3 of 5 on the O line for sure not coming back?

[AppSt94]

No. That’s not what I am saying. There has been two Seniors that have told the coaches that they are not coming back. Garrison is one for obvious reasons. All I can say is that the other one is not Hannon.

[AppState89]

No. That’s not what I am saying. There has been two Seniors that have told the coaches that they are not coming back. Garrison is one for obvious reasons. All I can say is that the other one is not Hannon.

You are correct and when it is all said and done, I think most of the seniors will move on.

[AppState89]

Another bowl has just been canceled. I have a feeling that most of the bowls will not be played this year.