Illini Football 2018

Status
Not open for further replies.
#256      

breadman

Herndon, VA
Considering all the turn over the football and basketball teams have gone through, at a minimum, maybe someone should start a Player Carousel thread and keep it local to the Illini teams.
 
#259      

ILL in IA

Iowa City
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...s-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018

Thoughts on what was said anonymously about us? It's hard to disagree with most of it.
Here is the first comment;

"I don’t care who you are, the Lovie Smith hire was a strange one. He certainly has the resume for it, but everything about that hire screamed strange. He’s an NFL guy. The last thing anyone would say about Lovie is he’s a great college fit. So what do you do? You throw him into this league, and set him up to fail with a program that botched the last hire and is now in need of a complete engine overhaul."

I am confused by the second part of the comment. Lovie and Whiteman are the complete engine overhaul. And maybe the strange part of the hire, is that Lovie was ok in doing the legwork of the overhaul. He didn't wait for someone to do the housecleaning and pickup when the program was ready to take a jump.
 
#261      

KrushCow31

Former Krush Cow
Chicago, IL
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...s-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018

Thoughts on what was said anonymously about us? It's hard to disagree with most of it.

Literally every team had something positive said about them except us. The closest we got was a compliment on Epstein, but even that was backhanded with the end comment about needing 20 more of him. We need to show them some momentum this year.

"They don’t have a quarterback, they are terrible on defense and they are one of the worst teams we’ve played in the last six or seven years. At one point last year, I remember watching film on them and thinking this team looks completely disinterested."

Woof.
 
#262      

BananaShampoo

Captain 'Paign
Phoenix, AZ
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...s-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018

Thoughts on what was said anonymously about us? It's hard to disagree with most of it.
To me it's pretty clear that nobody really understands the process of what's going on here unless you're on IL or a die-hard fan who really pays close attention. To an outside observer coach, they have no concept of patience in a rebuild and starting completely from scratch. We'll still be bad this year, but I think you'll start to see the improvement on the field, and from the sounds of it it's going to catch some of these other coaches off guard.
 
#263      

sbillini

st petersburg, fl
To me it's pretty clear that nobody really understands the process of what's going on here unless you're on IL or a die-hard fan who really pays close attention. To an outside observer coach, they have no concept of patience in a rebuild and starting completely from scratch. We'll still be bad this year, but I think you'll start to see the improvement on the field, and from the sounds of it it's going to catch some of these other coaches off guard.

If you're looking for a combination of 1) as close to objective as possible and 2) well informed and truly know what they're talking about, I don't know how you get any better than coaches that can speak anonymously (especially regarding the bolded part above). If anything, I would think coaches have some level of camaraderie where they would give each other the benefit of the doubt. The fact that that isn't happening much here speak volumes.

Nonetheless, it's us against the world and our time to prove them wrong. I hope/think we can, and I hope i'm right!
 
#264      

Deleted member 654622

D
Guest
https://athlonsports.com/college-fo...s-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018

Thoughts on what was said anonymously about us? It's hard to disagree with most of it.

I like it. I hope someone paints this in the locker room really freeking big! I like guys who play with a chips on both shoulders. I believe they are starting to bring guys in that fit that mold. This is only helping the process.

BTW it just says coaches in the B1G. It does not specify head coaches. I really do doubt they got any head coaches to say this stuff. Except maybe Fleck, since he is a Dbag. But maybe I am wrong
 
#265      

Deleted member 2050

D
Guest
As a fan, I see this as unduly harsh. Outside, looking in, hard to fault their thinking 🙄
 
#266      

TownieMatt

CU Expat
Chicago
#268      
I've seen many teams at multiple levels that demonstrate that a roster full of very experienced upperclassmen makes a very dangerous, very good team.
 
#270      
Harsh comments that ring true. I do hope we beat the team of the coach who will be surprised if we win more than 3 games. Hopefully, that is win number 4.
 
#273      

Deleted member 631370

D
Guest
Hard to disgree with any of it really. I do think our fanbase is putting too much into the fact they we played so many young players. Just because a kid is playing while he's a freshman doesn't mean he's going to turn out to be a good player.

Exactly.

I'm not one to place all eggs in the recruiting rankings basket, but I am one who believes that recruiting success is probably your best general predictor of future success -- all else being equal. Young kids who aren't particularly talented will get older.....and better. But they're still not particularly talented compared to the rest of the conference.
 
#274      

Deleted member 631370

D
Guest
Here is the first comment;

"I don’t care who you are, the Lovie Smith hire was a strange one. He certainly has the resume for it, but everything about that hire screamed strange. He’s an NFL guy. The last thing anyone would say about Lovie is he’s a great college fit. So what do you do? You throw him into this league, and set him up to fail with a program that botched the last hire and is now in need of a complete engine overhaul."

I am confused by the second part of the comment. Lovie and Whiteman are the complete engine overhaul. And maybe the strange part of the hire, is that Lovie was ok in doing the legwork of the overhaul. He didn't wait for someone to do the housecleaning and pickup when the program was ready to take a jump.


I hope I'm wrong, but I thought the very same thing about the Lovie hire. To me, it seemed like a hire designed to generate headlines and some positive vibes around the university rather than a hire designed to institute stability in the football program. Sorta like what a Monty Williams hire would have been. A coach built for the pros with no real obvious connection to the university or even college sports writ large.
 
#275      

Deleted member 649710

D
Guest
Its not like Lovie had no college experience -- IIRC he had a dozen years as a college assistant, in both the SEC and Big Ten. That said, it was his other qualities that likely were more attractive to Whitman: pro experience, great reputation with former players, big name, prominent African-American coach, ties to Chicago and Texas, etc. It absolutely was a positive headline generating hire for a program that arguably was in the worst shape of any P5 program at the time.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.