Illini Football 2018

Status
Not open for further replies.
#151      

Deleted member 654622

D
Guest
I see a lot of quick passes and screens, with hard running sprinkled in.
 
#154      

dgcrow

Kelso, WA
If this team isn't 2-0 to start the season, well, I just don't know....:noidea:

If they don't have 2 wins after their first 2 games, there's a fair chance they will get no more than 2 wins for the year. :eek:
 
#157      

Deleted member 533939

D
Guest
Please don't go read the article because it's bad clickbait, but a new CBS Sports story says Lovie is on the hot seat and his job is on the line this year. :doh:
 
#158      

mhuml32

Cincinnati, OH
My hope for the Kent State game is that the d-line will overwhelm their o-line and negate the need for blitzing. A big step forward from the Illinois' defensive line would alleviate some of the concerns in the LB unit.
 
#159      
Please don't go read the article because it's bad clickbait, but a new CBS Sports story says Lovie is on the hot seat and his job is on the line this year. :doh:

Anyone who writes such an article this year is not doing their homework. Lovie will be back. We're just beginning to see the benefits of hiring him. No way we give those up. No way
 
#160      

UofI08

Chicago
Please don't go read the article because it's bad clickbait, but a new CBS Sports story says Lovie is on the hot seat and his job is on the line this year. :doh:

In defense, it's not really an article, but a list with a "rating" and a couple sentences about each coach. The ranking scale goes 1-5, with 5 being "win or be fired." They ranked Lovie a 4: start improving now. Granted these scales and descriptions are super vague, but I'd agree that Lovie needs to show substantial improvement this year to feel comfortable about the future.

That being said, Lovie is safe at least through the '19 season, and if we were to have another abysmal year this year, no doubt he'll be on the top of all the hot seat lists next year.
 
#161      
In defense, it's not really an article, but a list with a "rating" and a couple sentences about each coach. The ranking scale goes 1-5, with 5 being "win or be fired." They ranked Lovie a 4: start improving now. Granted these scales and descriptions are super vague, but I'd agree that Lovie needs to show substantial improvement this year to feel comfortable about the future.

That being said, Lovie is safe at least through the '19 season, and if we were to have another abysmal year this year, no doubt he'll be on the top of all the hot seat lists next year.

They ranked him a 5 - Win or Be Fired.

And if you watch the related video - two talking heads quickly say "yeah, no" to Lovie's ranking and move on to talk about guys actually with hot seats.
 
#162      

Illiniaaron

Geneseo, IL
Anyone who writes such an article this year is not doing their homework. Lovie will be back. We're just beginning to see the benefits of hiring him. No way we give those up. No way
Any national media that think Lovie is on the hot seat is just "out of town" stupid. Kind of like those already ripping the White Sox in year two of their rebuild.
 
#163      
Any national media that think Lovie is on the hot seat is just "out of town" stupid. Kind of like those already ripping the White Sox in year two of their rebuild.

I am probably one of Lovies biggest cheerleaders, but I can tell you, from experience, that donors are rumbling. I’ve had several conversations with donors about not being shortsighted, but they weren’t fans of lovie in Chicago and don’t think he can win here. They also believe year 3 should be the year the program turns around. I’ve had all of the conversations, but I can tell you they don’t follow closely enough to get it and have already put pressure on JW. I don’t think JW will budge, but just wanted to refute the idea that Lovie doesn’t have anything to worry about. I think he is safe, but a significant group is rumbling. But we wouldn’t fire lovie before the top recruits in Illinois recent history arrives on campus
 
#164      
I am probably one of Lovies biggest cheerleaders, but I can tell you, from experience, that donors are rumbling. I’ve had several conversations with donors about not being shortsighted, but they weren’t fans of lovie in Chicago and don’t think he can win here. They also believe year 3 should be the year the program turns around. I’ve had all of the conversations, but I can tell you they don’t follow closely enough to get it and have already put pressure on JW. I don’t think JW will budge, but just wanted to refute the idea that Lovie doesn’t have anything to worry about. I think he is safe, but a significant group is rumbling. But we wouldn’t fire lovie before the top recruits in Illinois recent history arrives on campus

Year three, that's the third year with his recruits, is the year he should win in. This isn't that year. Donors that rumble are donors that aren't very bright. You can't piss them off, but you can try and bring them into the fold. They're either part of the rebuild or they're part of the reason we've been so screwed for the last forever number of years. Our classes are solid, we're getting the right type of players, and I'm super excited to see what our offense can do this fall. I hope I don't go to open practices and figure out that we don't have a QB like last year. That was disappointing. If we have one or two kids that can run our offense this year... optimism. I think we'll know if we get three or four wins after a week of open practice. I can't wait!!!
 
#165      

Joel Goodson

respect my decision™
Year three, that's the third year with his recruits, is the year he should win in. This isn't that year. Donors that rumble are donors that aren't very bright. You can't piss them off, but you can try and bring them into the fold. They're either part of the rebuild or they're part of the reason we've been so screwed for the last forever number of years. Our classes are solid, we're getting the right type of players, and I'm super excited to see what our offense can do this fall. I hope I don't go to open practices and figure out that we don't have a QB like last year. That was disappointing. If we have one or two kids that can run our offense this year... optimism. I think we'll know if we get three or four wins after a week of open practice. I can't wait!!!

+1

Very good post.
 
#166      
Year three, that's the third year with his recruits, is the year he should win in. This isn't that year. Donors that rumble are donors that aren't very bright. You can't piss them off, but you can try and bring them into the fold. They're either part of the rebuild or they're part of the reason we've been so screwed for the last forever number of years. Our classes are solid, we're getting the right type of players, and I'm super excited to see what our offense can do this fall. I hope I don't go to open practices and figure out that we don't have a QB like last year. That was disappointing. If we have one or two kids that can run our offense this year... optimism. I think we'll know if we get three or four wins after a week of open practice. I can't wait!!!

I don’t disagree, but I also spend considerable amounts of time in these conversations. The one bonus is that a prominent young donor who is in the ear of many Illini journalists and alumni is all in on Lovie and has been hosting him at a handful of events. Lovie is not the best front facing coach, but as long as he wins battles for top 100 players, it will be easy to stick up for him with “the players like him” But seeing him lose battles like bargy , Brock, etc. feeds into the negative perception that he doesn’t have what it takes to recruit
 
#167      

Deleted member 654622

D
Guest
So our average recruit ranking is the highest it's been in years and your 'donor friends' are grumbling..... Yeah, well.... I'm thinking JW would be eye-rolling (in private) anyone making those sort of statements at this point in time. Are these $1-10k donators or what? The actual donators who have any pull whatsoever with the AD are likely going to be in the top 5% and even then I think JW is intelligent enough to maneuver his way through that morass.... You've made this same statement the past 2 years now. Not dissing on you necessarily, but i do think that you give your donor friends too much credit for the amount of pull that they think they have within the program.

tenor.gif
 
#168      

Dren1

Glenview, IL
I don’t disagree, but I also spend considerable amounts of time in these conversations. The one bonus is that a prominent young donor who is in the ear of many Illini journalists and alumni is all in on Lovie and has been hosting him at a handful of events. Lovie is not the best front facing coach, but as long as he wins battles for top 100 players, it will be easy to stick up for him with “the players like him” But seeing him lose battles like bargy , Brock, etc. feeds into the negative perception that he doesn’t have what it takes to recruit
And not to pile on, but I don't see the staff having lost a battle for Brock. It did not seem like we were ever really in the picture with him and if a kid has little interest, I am not sure what more you can do. Bargy was a big miss IMO, but hopefully landing Randolph, Hawthorne or Miamen would take some of the sting away.
 
#169      
I am probably one of Lovies biggest cheerleaders, but I can tell you, from experience, that donors are rumbling. I’ve had several conversations with donors about not being shortsighted, but they weren’t fans of lovie in Chicago and don’t think he can win here. They also believe year 3 should be the year the program turns around. I’ve had all of the conversations, but I can tell you they don’t follow closely enough to get it and have already put pressure on JW. I don’t think JW will budge, but just wanted to refute the idea that Lovie doesn’t have anything to worry about. I think he is safe, but a significant group is rumbling. But we wouldn’t fire lovie before the top recruits in Illinois recent history arrives on campus

Good! There should be rumbling. Donors should be upset. Thank god someone still cares. We really should expect to be better this year, and we shouldn't just lay down and accept a wasteland 2-10 again.

Having said that, it remains a fact that Lovie ain't getting fired under any circumstances.
 
#170      

Illiini

In the land of the Nittany Lion
My hope for the Kent State game is that the d-line will overwhelm their o-line and negate the need for blitzing. A big step forward from the Illinois' defensive line would alleviate some of the concerns in the LB unit.

Lovie says the battle will be won in the trenches and I'm one of those who share his sentiment. A good O-line will give an average QB time to work some kind of passing game and open holes for a run game that I could even play (at least until the first tackle when they come out with a big spatula to get me off the field--or a shovel to do a Jimmy Hoffa). And a good D-line will shut down a run game and and any long passing.

Yeah, I know that's Captain Obvious speaking, but the inverse, well, if I had to chose, I'd go with the unsung trench warfare as the rock to build my game on.
 
#171      

mhuml32

Cincinnati, OH
Good! There should be rumbling. Donors should be upset. Thank god someone still cares. We really should expect to be better this year, and we shouldn't just lay down and accept a wasteland 2-10 again.

Having said that, it remains a fact that Lovie ain't getting fired under any circumstances.


Being a Lovie supporter isn't mutually exclusive from expecting a better season than last year. So far, Lovie has done more things right than wrong, and has put Illinois in a position to have their best teams (2019-20) in about a decade. That said, I will have serious doubts if Illinois repeats with a 2-10 season. Absolutely must beat Kent State and WIU. After that, they need to find a way to pick up as many wins as possible in the second tier of opponents: USF (Chicago), @ Rutgers, Purdue, and Minny. Win one of those games to achieve the minimum, two of those games would show the rebuild is progressing like many are expecting. Three wins in that group would bring a little hype for the 2019 season. Four wins in that group would likely give Lovie an extension in the offseason and a serious boost to recruiting.
 
#172      

Illwinsagain

Cary, IL
Being a Lovie supporter isn't mutually exclusive from expecting a better season than last year. So far, Lovie has done more things right than wrong, and has put Illinois in a position to have their best teams (2019-20) in about a decade. That said, I will have serious doubts if Illinois repeats with a 2-10 season. Absolutely must beat Kent State and WIU. After that, they need to find a way to pick up as many wins as possible in the second tier of opponents: USF (Chicago), @ Rutgers, Purdue, and Minny. Win one of those games to achieve the minimum, two of those games would show the rebuild is progressing like many are expecting. Three wins in that group would bring a little hype for the 2019 season. Four wins in that group would likely give Lovie an extension in the offseason and a serious boost to recruiting.

I vote for 4! Can we swap one of the above for the kitties?
 
#173      
If we get to 6-6 this year, Lovie would receive B1G Coach of the Year votes. Not the award by any means, but he'd steal some votes.
 
#174      

Deleted member 11196

D
Guest
In defense, it's not really an article, but a list with a "rating" and a couple sentences about each coach. The ranking scale goes 1-5, with 5 being "win or be fired." They ranked Lovie a 4: start improving now. Granted these scales and descriptions are super vague, but I'd agree that Lovie needs to show substantial improvement this year to feel comfortable about the future.

That being said, Lovie is safe at least through the '19 season, and if we were to have another abysmal year this year, no doubt he'll be on the top of all the hot seat lists next year.

I believe it's also a re-do from the same CBS 'list' done several months ago.... It's summer, and it's time for all the re-runs.... this is just another one...
 
#175      

breadman

Herndon, VA
JW's first group of hand-picked head coaches are going to be around for a long, long time.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.