Worst I’ve ever seen

[Pikapp79]

What it comes down to is this is a terrible defense. Blame it on coaches or players or both. You aren’t winning when you can’t stop decent competition. Ultimately it falls on the coaches. If guys keep screwing up make them accountable and if they still can’t perform put their tail on the bench. Clark has had more than enough time to build his team. If he hasn’t accomplished it so far why would anyone think he could going forward? This isn’t year 2 or 3. We know exactly what type of team Clark puts on the field. Mediocre and trending down.

[Saint3333]

Every “seat” in that stadium and on that field is replaceable.

The program is bigger than any individual.

Eight games remain in the season. I’ll be there Saturday pulling for the name on the first of the jersey.

Beat Liberty.

NASCAR thought this.

NASCAR is the sport all together...not and individual team NASCAR changed its overall go to market strategy...not sure if your reply is referring to NIL and comparing it to nil.
If not, NASCAR is not equivalent to an individual team like App.

My comparison is to those who think there’s always someone else, in their case, washed masses, to fill newly empty seats. But I may have missed Saint’s point.

No one employee or fan is bigger than the program.

There are three outcomes from here:

- a huge turnaround in the level of play and we compete for an SBC title
- we win 6-8 games and limp into a contract year depending on the view of about a dozen people
- miss bowl season and the rebuild begins


Option A is preferred on so many levels.

[Stonewall]

Every “seat” in that stadium and on that field is replaceable.

The program is bigger than any individual.

Eight games remain in the season. I’ll be there Saturday pulling for the name on the first of the jersey.

Beat Liberty.

NASCAR thought this.

NASCAR is the sport all together...not and individual team NASCAR changed its overall go to market strategy...not sure if your reply is referring to NIL and comparing it to nil.
If not, NASCAR is not equivalent to an individual team like App.

My comparison is to those who think there’s always someone else, in their case, washed masses, to fill newly empty seats. But I may have missed Saint’s point.

No one employee or fan is bigger than the program.

There are three outcomes from here:

- a huge turnaround in the level of play and we compete for an SBC title
- we win 6-8 games and limp into a contract year depending on the view of about a dozen people
- miss bowl season and the rebuild begins


Option A is preferred on so many levels.

That sums it up pretty well.

[AppinVA]

Every “seat” in that stadium and on that field is replaceable.

The program is bigger than any individual.

Eight games remain in the season. I’ll be there Saturday pulling for the name on the first of the jersey.

Beat Liberty.

NASCAR thought this.

NASCAR is the sport all together...not and individual team NASCAR changed its overall go to market strategy...not sure if your reply is referring to NIL and comparing it to nil.
If not, NASCAR is not equivalent to an individual team like App.

My comparison is to those who think there’s always someone else, in their case, washed masses, to fill newly empty seats. But I may have missed Saint’s point.

No one employee or fan is bigger than the program.

There are three outcomes from here:

- a huge turnaround in the level of play and we compete for an SBC title
- we win 6-8 games and limp into a contract year depending on the view of about a dozen people
- miss bowl season and the rebuild begins


Option A is preferred on so many levels.

Agreed.

[AppSt94]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

I am 100% sure Clark wants to get it right more than anybody. That is a fact. I love him as a representative of app and for his love for us.

But can he do it? With each passing season it becomes less likely. A leopard doesn’t change its spots.

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

[AppSt94]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

Are you not getting enough affirmation from the current pile on? Trying to dunk on a poster who is pretty straight up in his observations is a clown post kid

It’s been a long time coming for a few.

I don’t really understand what that means. You are obviously fit to be tied and are really on one and that’s your right. But people calling out posters because they don’t trash Clark enough says more about them than the folks they are gloating to. And I haven’t seen this dude post anything of substance but he’s gonna come out of the woodwork and call out 94 as if he is on the coaching staff or playing. It’s just lame.

I’m not sure who 1992 is, maybe you know more than I do. I think people are just tired of a certain few posters that have been belittling and demeaning people for years for having opinions that differ from theirs. It got so bad last year that said accounts took hiatus or faked death threats to make it look like they were the victim. Said accounts do provide good insights from time to time, and we are appreciative of that, but they’ve been putting people down much more than 1992’s one call out they made just now. No one is mad at those posters for not trashing Clark at all, it’s just the way they go about telling others their opinion is wrong and what not. All of it’s lame when we go after each other, myself included, but just thought I’d clear the comment up. It’s difficult seeing the rest of the SunBelt succeed while we kinda down spiral. :/

I can’t speak to who these “few posters” are that you can’t call out, but as you seem to want to lump me in to that group I will address my thoughts.

I find it hilarious to say that you and others were belittled and demeaned by others and then call them out for dropping off the board for periods of time because they want to claim to be victims of the same. Your gaslighting game is strong. For the record, I’ve never told anyone that they were wrong in their opinion. I’ve disagreed and I’ve provided a point of view that countered or challenged but I’ve never said that you or anyone was wrong except in the instance of factual mistakes.Trying to be positive and find the good through analysis isn’t appreciated by those wallowing in their own despair over the outcome of a game played by young men and honestly, it gets tiresome getting piled on by those that just want to be allowed to be mad. And to add saying things that I’m sure none of you would say to the players and coaches in person.

[Saint3333]

Revisionist history right here.

I’ve been told go “get your shine box” and “no one likes you” upon disagreeing while providing an objective point of view.

I do agree no one should call others out when they choose not to post for a couple of days. I was fine with that.

[yosef69]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

I am 100% sure Clark wants to get it right more than anybody. That is a fact. I love him as a representative of app and for his love for us.

But can he do it? With each passing season it becomes less likely. A leopard doesn’t change its spots.

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

6-6 with 2 FCS wins is as close to a losing season as you can get.

He can’t get this program to its former level of glory. That’s what I’m saying.

[appst1992]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

Excellent post sir. A couple of points...true, Seattleapp has no clue who I am or anything about me. As far as my post about you, I admit it may have been somewhat out of bounds, and for that I apologize. For the past two seasons, any time I've made a comment about our O-line play, you always have a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that we have been completely ineffective running the ball, when I questioned why we always kick it short on kickoffs vs kicking it out of the end zone, you always had a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that more often than not, opponents would return it way past the 25 yd line. So, my post, although sharp, was tongue-in-cheek asking about your positive slant on Thursday night. While I don't always agree, I do appreciate your insight on most things, so thank you. As far as Seattleapp, no respect.

[appstatealum]

Can we also set the table on a few things?

1. If this program isn't in decline, it is certainly stuck in the mud of mediocrity. We are going no where while other teams at our level our accelerating. Being proud of 6-6 seasons with FCS wins is the definition of mediocrity.

2. The days of referring to players as "student athletes" "just young men" and ever suggesting they shouldnt be booed or criticized are over. These may be young men, but they have demanded money for their services and if they fail at said services, there should be consequences.

[BambooRdApp]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

Excellent post sir. A couple of points...true, Seattleapp has no clue who I am or anything about me. As far as my post about you, I admit it may have been somewhat out of bounds, and for that I apologize. For the past two seasons, any time I've made a comment about our O-line play, you always have a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that we have been completely ineffective running the ball, when I questioned why we always kick it short on kickoffs vs kicking it out of the end zone, you always had a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that more often than not, opponents would return it way past the 25 yd line. So, my post, although sharp, was tongue-in-cheek asking about your positive slant on Thursday night. While I don't always agree, I do appreciate your insight on most things, so thank you. As far as Seattleapp, no respect.

I do not know Seattleapp or most people on this board, how can you have no respect for someone you do not know (unless you do know them ).... seems weird to me.
Are there some on this board that I may be more of a smarta$$ as I know they will respond...I made a comment about hiring Chip Lindsay being next head coach only after seeing 3 offensive series. It was in jest ....i knew like 1 of 5 or 6 from the board would respond...and bingo .they did ..but the idea of no respect. never enters my mind...I may like them outside the commentary on YC . everyone has their jam I guess

[appstate5]

Clark is one of us, Clark cares and is invested, I get it but at some point you just have to accept maybe he isn't the coach to take us to the next level. I believe it all started in 2022 with the 6-6 season with the 2 FCS wins.
Then, 2023 App was 3-4 and the natives were rest less but the team turned things around to win 5 in a row to finish the season. HOWEVER, the only real quality win of those 5 was the JMU gameday game.
ODU beat us but then lost three in a row after that.
Yes, we beat Ga State but they lost their last 5 regular season games
Yes, we beat Marshall but they ended the season losing 7 of 9.
Ga Southern, lost their last 5.
Southern Miss was 1-7 after App beat them.
Some will say a win is a win and to a point that is true. But the point I'm trying to make is we beat teams who were on a downward spiral. When we did play a good team again, Troy, they had their way with us.
I pulled for Clark and his "Bombs over Baghdad" mentality. Unfortunately as we saw in Clemson and again last Thursday it now appears the bombs are falling on us.

[BambooRdApp]

Didn't we beat Miami of Ohio..who was 11-2 coming into the bowl game..

[appstate5]

Ha, I tried watching that but was hard to see in the monsoon.
But yes we did in what was an "unusual" game that didn't really show the talent from either team due to the conditions.

[hapapp]

Can we also set the table on a few things?

1. If this program isn't in decline, it is certainly stuck in the mud of mediocrity. We are going no where while other teams at our level our accelerating. Being proud of 6-6 seasons with FCS wins is the definition of mediocrity.

2. The days of referring to players as "student athletes" "just young men" and ever suggesting they shouldnt be booed or criticized are over. These may be young men, but they have demanded money for their services and if they fail at said services, there should be consequences.

We've had one season of 6-6, the others have been in the 9-10 range. I wouldn't define the last 4+ years as mediocre. I would say that we have ceded our position as the top dog in the Sun Belt, though no one team has emerged as THE team, though JMU is trending in that direction. Time will tell.

[AppStateDieHard]

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

To be fair, Boise State fired Andy Avalos after going 7-5 in his first year as HC, 10-4 in his second year (including 8-0 in the MWC, but lost the MWC championship game) and starting last year at 5-5. That is a peer institution who takes football and their tradition seriously. Avalos played at Boise State. They made the change and it immediately paid dividends.

At the time they fired Avalos, I didn't quite understand it. After all, he did not have a losing season up to that point, had just been to their conference championship the year prior, and many of their losses were close, one-score games.

After firing Avalos, Boise State went on to win the MWC. Now, they're ranked in the Top 25, and they are in the driver's seat for the G5 playoff bid.

[AppSt94]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

Excellent post sir. A couple of points...true, Seattleapp has no clue who I am or anything about me. As far as my post about you, I admit it may have been somewhat out of bounds, and for that I apologize. For the past two seasons, any time I've made a comment about our O-line play, you always have a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that we have been completely ineffective running the ball, when I questioned why we always kick it short on kickoffs vs kicking it out of the end zone, you always had a positive-slant even though it was clear to me that more often than not, opponents would return it way past the 25 yd line. So, my post, although sharp, was tongue-in-cheek asking about your positive slant on Thursday night. While I don't always agree, I do appreciate your insight on most things, so thank you. As far as Seattleapp, no respect.

Appreciate the compliment and the dialogue. I am positive because being positive is better than being negative (problem/opportunity). I’ll give some examples but first I feel like I need to explain how I operate and how my personality affects how I respond to posts on here. I don’t watch the game like a fan. I don’t scream, cheer and yell and get upset or excited watching a play. I’m dissecting the formation looking for opportunities and issues. I don’t look at the result of the play bit more at why the result occurred. Doesn’t make me better, smarter, or worse than anyone. It just makes me, me. For me, focusing on a problem takes away from the bandwidth of energy to understand why it is happening. That mentality is the likely cause of contentiousness on this board.

I’ll use the OL and kickoffs to explain the genesis of where I’m coming from. The OL: We run a very complex zone blocking scheme. Brett Hickman is an Assistant coach at GW and is a well respected high school coach from the east coast. Rick Nueheisel is a well respected coach at the college and NFL coach. Both know the game much better than I. They have both said the same thing. Nueheisel said this in reference to App specifically, that if run correctly, the zone blocking scheme is indefensible. But it is extremely complicated to run and requires all five guys to work as one. So when it isn’t working, it isn’t as simple as one guy hitting the guy in front of them. So when the running game isn’t working, I’m looking at who isn’t stepping the proper way or using the proper pad level.

For the kickoffs, I get the comment. The analytics tell you that kicking it short to elicit a return creates better results on average for the defense than kicking it out of the back of the endzone. Kicking it short on average creates a starting position inside the 25. It creates an opportunity for a turnover or a penalty that moves the offense deeper into their own territory. So as it relates to last year, Michael Hughes was hurt and working through an injury that affected his kickoffs. That wasn’t public knowledge and nor should it be. I knew it but I can’t put that out there because it was shared with me by someone that isn’t with the program but would definitely know.

Again, I admit that my “voice of reason” can be a bit tone deaf when emotions are high and sometimes I respond to quickly when time should be taken to try and phrase my comment better. But that is who I am. I don’t see myself as being better than anyone else here. I just have my own perspective with some “local” knowledge that I get from folks that are close to, but not in the program.

[BallantyneApp]

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

To be fair, Boise State fired Andy Avalos after going 7-5 in his first year as HC, 10-4 in his second year (including 8-0 in the MWC, but lost the MWC championship game) and starting last year at 5-5. That is a peer institution who takes football and their tradition seriously. Avalos played at Boise State. They made the change and it immediately paid dividends.

tradition and expectations? WDDITWAA. We're just happy to be here and as long as we know our coach won't go anywhere then we'd rather finish 8-5 or 9-4.

I mean seriously the only defense people have and its the only thing mentioned in 94s post is that "if we bring in an "outsider", they might leave for another school if they win big". Who cares?

Is anyone here trading Drinkwitz season for 2023 or 2021?

2022 was a losing season. We played 2 FCS teams. We've gotten blown out in the SBC championship games. We just lost to a bottom feeder by 5 TDs at home. I agree if we stay with clark we're likely to go 6-9 wins a year in the sunbelt. We WERE on a better track.

[Saint3333]

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

To be fair, Boise State fired Andy Avalos after going 7-5 in his first year as HC, 10-4 in his second year (including 8-0 in the MWC, but lost the MWC championship game) and starting last year at 5-5. That is a peer institution who takes football and their tradition seriously. Avalos played at Boise State. They made the change and it immediately paid dividends.

tradition and expectations? WDDITWAA. We're just happy to be here and as long as we know our coach won't go anywhere then we'd rather finish 8-5 or 9-4.

I mean seriously the only defense people have and its the only thing mentioned in 94s post is that "if we bring in an "outsider", they might leave for another school if they win big". Who cares?

Is anyone here trading Drinkwitz season for 2023 or 2021?

2022 was a losing season. We played 2 FCS teams. We've gotten blown out in the SBC championship games. We just lost to a bottom feeder by 5 TDs at home. I agree if we stay with clark we're likely to go 6-9 wins a year in the sunbelt. We WERE on a better track.

This what an actual voice of reason and objectivity looks like.

[fjblair]

Where is Appst94? I want to hear his rainbows and unicorns version of Thursday night.

I have stayed out of this fray to allow you guys to work through your feelings. Someone sent this to me today so I will use it to respond to everything that I have not read. Apologies 92 as this isn’t meant explicitly for you.

There is no way to dress up what happened Thursday night. The punches didn’t land and the counter punches were equally ineffective. It was disappointing, frustrating and aggravating to watch. But under no circumstances has it warranted the type of vitriol towards coaches and players. No one on this or any other message board had skin in the plan, the execution or lack there of. So while I understand the above, no one feels worse than the staff and players so why kick them when they are down? College football is a frustrating game. Vandy beats Virginia Tech, loses to Ga State and then takes a top 10 Missouri to OT on the road. JMU struggles offensively and scored 13 to beat a FCS Gardner Webb then goes to Carolina and puts 70 on the board and oh by the way, gave up 616 yards on defense. It’s a wild ride week in and week out. Point is, Thursday night does not set the future of this team in stone.

I have also stayed away because the ‘fire Clark’ talk is juvenile. I realize that this post isn’t going to change anyone’s mind on how they feel about Clark. I’ll get the “but, buts” from the same ones and I’ll get upvotes from the same ones who always agree with me. Clark has three 9 win, a 10 win and a 6 win season in his current tenure. Who can point to a comparable program (G5) that fired a coach with similar success because he wasn’t winning enough? Firing someone for not meeting a higher standard is not the flex that some of you think that it is. I’m sure that I can go back and dig up some old threads of “fire Satt” and “fire Roof” and it is likely the same folks leading those charges.

The part that baffles me about all of this fire Clark talk is that you guys want to displace a guy that wants to be here and wants to get things right. He is invested more so than you and anyone that you “think” will come here won’t. And if they do, they will see it as a job and will be gone the first chance they get. Any Coach worth a darn is going to look at the record of an alum and see that if they would do that to one of their own, what chance would I get and why would I move my family there for that?

Was I frustrated Thursday? Absolutely. Was I upset and feel bad? I did. But not for me. I felt bad for the coaches and players as I’m sure they weren’t expecting that outcome. If you felt like the team let YOU down on Thursday, cool. If you feel like firing Clark, Ponce, or Sloan (who deserve as much blame as anyone) will make you feel better, I am sad for you. If you feel that if changes aren’t made then you will not renew tickets and cut your YC donations then by all means DO IT! No one will give a flying f$ck if you remove yourself from game days at the Rock because there is someone that will gladly scoop up your seats and slide into your parking spot. And in all honesty, if you feel compelled to take to a message board and kick a team that you supposedly love when they are down and engage in a digital circle jerk with like minded folk, you do you. But I do question if you actually care about the program because you don’t do that to those you care about. When I lay my head on my pillow at night, I count my blessings and pray for the opportunity to wake up the next morning. Not once have I asked my Lord and Savior to let App win so I can feel better about myself.

I am 100% sure Clark wants to get it right more than anybody. That is a fact. I love him as a representative of app and for his love for us.

But can he do it? With each passing season it becomes less likely. A leopard doesn’t change its spots.

With all due respect what are you saying that can’t do? He hasn’t had a losing season. In fact he has had a rather envious level of success for most of the programs. If you are referring to him not winning a conference championship as the hump for you to get on board with supporting him then there really is no point for you to bother showing up each week if all you care about is going 1-0 in week 13 and if we aren’t in that game or winning it then the season was a failure.

Not winning the conference championship is now and always has been a failure from my perspective. It is the primary objective.