I am the poster from earlier who said I am a neither a Reno fan nor booster but thought he needed a signature win. He got it today. Very impressive - especially since he wound up with his fourth quarterback on the field. He deserves a lot of credit.
Let's not get carried away here. Brown played terrible today. After all the hoopla in whipping poor Columbia, the Bulldog offense just came down to earth with a thud. Not an impressive performance at all. Thank god for the defense. They have played way beyond expectation this year.
An irony: the Reno bashers keep complimenting the defense for outperforming expectations - which they are - while criticizing him for preferring younger players. Look at that defense. It is Beau Palin, Dylan Drake, and a bunch of "Reno guys." The "underachieving" offense on the other hand features a line of what I believe are all pre-Reno recruits (maybe one exception?) a senior QB (when he's healthy, a senior tight end, and a senior receiver (Sandquist). Maybe more freshmen should be playing there too. I agree with the prior poster about the promising future.
12:01pm You are wrong about defense. Vaughan, Schmitgens, White, and Cook are not "Reno guys" either and have been significant contributors to the Yale Defense. The biggest issue Yale has on defense are "Reno guys" including Foye, Rymiszewski, and Harris. They are all good players but not ready for the more mature receivers they are up against.
The discussion is insane because of people like you (5:35pm) that disrespect players. It doesn't matter who recruited them. Your comment is an embarrassment to the Yale community.
The bashers, just don't get it. The current players, on the team are all RENOS guys. They are RENOS guys,because they have stayed the course. They respond to him, and are performing the job that is needed to win. You can be trolls,thats ok but you are trolls. JON HARRIS
For the record Dylan Drake is in his 5th year so he is NOT a Reno recruit, neither is Palin. Yale did some positive things to take advantage of mistakes made by Brown. They deserve credit for doing so. But do not get carries away. Brown gave the game away as much as Yale took it.
Here is what I see as the problem. Reno is both bias to his recruits, but he also is not stupid. If you look at the depth chart for the last two seasons and there is a pattern. The season starts with his recruits elevated above known comedies based on 4 weeks of practice and scrimmages which are not game speed. That is how you get a game one roster which has Ries starting over Okano and Larkin who missed the entire 2012 season starting at LB with Leffler (Remember the Penn Game)backing up Vaughn.
When the favored players fail, given that Reno is bias but not stupid, most get replaced. The problem is games are lost while this process runs it course.
7:40 you need to take a deep breath. Realize that they are his guys. Spew your garbage some where else. BTW, good teams do what YALE did. Take advantage of mistakes. You and alot of jerks, have been doing a great in justice to this team. with your so called opinions. GO haunt a house.!!!
TOTALLY Agree with 4:08 If all the people leaving comments have actually seen the games then you saw the so called "young" secondary give up points and a lot of yardage in every game. Yale might have won a few more games if not for them and probably had more points on the board in other games including the Brown game they have talent but not ready yet. The frustrating thing is there are guys on the sideline that SHOULD be given the opportunity to make it happen not one or two sets but a whole game! Okano and Latesta to name two. I for one just dont get it. Every game same young DB'S and sure enough they give up way to many points. Time to change?
6:10pm: When is the head coach mot responsible for the performance of his staff. This comment has been made several times. You have a head coach with NO coaching experience above special teams coordinator who brought in coaches who most in general are in their current roles for the first time.
Combine that with not being able to figure out who can play until midway into the season and you have what you have.
8:05pm: Do some research! Go to the Yale schedule online for the last two seasons. For each game click on Preview, then open the PDF. Look at the depth chart for each game. Look at how much it changes from week 1 to let's say week 5 or 6. Look at who moves down and who moves up. I did my research.
Hey 11:33 How about telling all just what your sleuth like research found? Did the guys from the depth chart of week one of the last two seasons get replaced? Quit the team? OR are they still starting? OR are they not starting in their original position and been moved to another position replacing the guy that held it before and starting there and still not getting the job done while other guys don't get an opportunity? PLEASE tell us all what you have found. I have not done the research just seen EVERY game of the last 2 seasons and there is a very clear pattern of whats going on like it or not. So leave your opinions like everyone else but when you start spouting about your "research" be prepared to List it with your post or ZIP IT!
Listen crazy people, there are two problems. One, we do not have quality players at every position so it does not matter if a freshman or a senior or your sister plays there. Inferior means inferior! Two,we have a head coach with very little experience and zero experience on the offensive side of the ball. Since he is not the offensive expert, he trusts that the OC knows what he is doing. That may be naive on his part.
To make assumptions that the head coach is playing "his players" over "other players" is just plain stupid. If the coach had amazing proven players sitting on the sidelines and "his players" were out there making him look bad, do you honestly think he would keep doing the same thing? Do you honestly think that he would be willing to lose, look bad and risk his job so he can"play his players"? If you believe this than you must also believe in the Easter Bunny!
The reality is this team is overachieving, plain and simple. They were picked to finish 7th by the league head coaches (who you all say are MUCH better HC's then Reno). NOONE thought they could beat Colgate. EVERYONE thought Cornell would throw the ball all over the field and beat them. NOONE thought they could go to Cali and win that game. BUT then they did beat all three teams and the expectations went through the roof. They got a little too cocky and lost to Dartmouth. Lost again to Fordham who NOONE has beaten, not even other scholarship teams. Then lost to Penn without Furman who we all know is the team MVP this year. Bounce back with an easy one over Columbia then win a game NOONE thought they honestly could against a more talented overall Brown team with mostly SR's playing. All that said, give credit where credit is due. This coaching staff has this team prepared to play, playing hard and WINNING football games! A championship is on the horizon for Yale.
12:33 It Has nothing to do with Freshman or Seniors or even my Sister that I might add can cover a receiver good enough to play in the secondary. It has to do with who's getting the job done. In some cases, and I will agree with prior post like 7:52 the secondary (corners,safety's) just don't get it done at least half of the time, that's too much! and yes 12:33 there are other guys that play those positions that should get a chance and guess what.. THEY ARE NOT RENO'S SO CALLED "GUYS" You or any one else can't tell me that the secondary that is currently starting is a tight ship! Oh they are a young bunch.. not an acceptable excuse Maybe there might be a freshman one of Reno's guys that he can try, It doesn't really Matter what does matter is the secondary has been failing in every game win or lose and yes it makes the Coaches look bad for not trying in some way to fix it. So looking bad doesn't seem to bother the Coaches, Reno doesn't seem to be worried about his job and I will need to buy some Rabbit food For the Easter Bunny when he shows up this Easter!
1:30: Are you referring to the secondary with Ivy Defensive Player (and Freshman of the Week) Foyesade Oluokun? The same one who talked about how much he learned against Fordham by having to play guys he couldn't keep up with? I thought the whole defense played magnificently on Saturday while the Furman-less offense tried to get its act together, though they were no doubt helped a lot by the fact that Donnelly missed a bunch of open receivers. But that's why you play the games.
12:18: You missed the point. In the previous 7:40pm text, I cited two examples from this season. I could give a week by week breakdown, but why do so when it would not make a difference to you anyway.
The information is there for anyone willing to take an objective look.
I said he had a preference BUT he also was not stupid. So he is willing to risk losing games to find out if they are ready but once he sees they are not he does in general make the needed changes.
It is very hard to determine in 4 weeks in camp (August/September) if a Freshman is ready to start even in the IVY league. I will take game film of a player over practice film any day of the week. Therefore, given the quality of athletes brought in to ANY program, having so many Freshman on a 2 deep seems curious. Check any FBS or FCS roster. Do you see 10-15 Freshmen on the 2 deep? There is a reason why you do not and given the academic requirements at Yale which the Freshmen really do not face until the season starts, even more reason not to do so.
I am trying to bring logic and facts to the discussion, but many of you on both sides are not interested in the facts.
They are NOT Reno's guys because he treats them as such, not because anyone on this blog says so or not.
You can be my son, but if I do not treat you as such, effectively you are not. They same goes for young men wearing Yale football jerseys. Simply wearing one does not make any of them Reno's guys. How he treats them does so.
The honest truth is that the guys sitting on the bench are just not good enough so we are forced to play some freshmen. Is that so hard to take. Like I said before, 30% of all recruits will never see the field in their years at Yale. Are these the guys that you think should get a chance? They wouldn't get a chance under any circumstances so I don't know why now would be any different.
2:37 tell me the difference between Freshman that are playing and aren't ready or good enough and the guys on the bench I.E. Leffler from 2:44 comment that you seem to think aren't good enough. There are some that are good enough sitting!
People on here are singling out a few players that maybe should get some play time. Let me rephrase that, the vast majority of the ones sitting are there for a reason, most are just plain not good enough, either mentally or physically. It's ok, if everyone was the same ability there would be no point in recruiting and evaluating. The ones sitting may be better at other things, who knows, everyone has their star quality in something and that's ok too. This is not Little Johnny football where everyone gets to participate.
Anybody who has watched the games over the last two years can see Leffler is way to slow and at best is a second string linebacker.The harvard quarterbck easily ran around him for a 38 yard scoring run last year even when he had a great angle to make the tackle. The best players are starting on defense regardless of class. The real question is who is playing quarterback this weekend. I think Scott deserves the nod. Wiiliams and Roberts have had ample opportunity and have not produced.
The Brown game, although less than stellar offensively, was the first game where we saw some offensive diversity. Actually an attempt at correcting some of the shortcomings.We actually witnessed such things as screen passes (one for a TD), less bubble screens, passes to the RB in the flats, passes to the left side of the field and a number of passes in to the middle of the field. All these were extremely rare in previous games and make the offense less predictable. I think the OC is reading this blog? Now if we could only correct the run game. A good start would be to introduce a full back or an H-back, quick pitches to the edge and two back options. Am I asking too much?
Your 2nd RB should provide a change of pace from the first one. So although Rich is a good back, he is the same type of back as Varga. So, it would make more since to have Keys backing up Varga because he can do things neither Varga or Rich can do. And BTW how did Rich show up and jump in front of Keys in the first place.
That one is easy. In the spring/ early summer, the coaches script ever practice up until the first game, and the first game. They decide who will get how many reps at each position - the more reps, the better you are supposed to get - right. In order to do this, the coaches must select who will get the reps and will not. And once you are put on the first or second depth chart for reps, you stay there until you're hurt or really screw up. This is particularly true at the QB position when one qb got half of all reps this summer and the other 4 or 5 split reps. So, when they say the coach did not have plan going into the season and fully evaluated everyone, name one coach who waits until August to do that and put together a depth chart and script practices? And how might a coach know based upon high school tapes where to slot a kid? Perhaps, coming out of the Spring practices and game the coaches decided that unproven high school talent is better than the upper classmen who had been playing and learning how to balance football and academics. The upper classmen who have been sticking it out this year despite not playing at all or a little, love playing football, are not quitters, and believe in themselves that they have the talent to play at this level. I have a hard believing that the coaching staff could not find rotation that works for everyone as the team had done for years. As for the young guys playing, they are all great kids who play really hard and give everything to win. And they understand as much as anyone how fragile and vulnerable they are to being in the same spot as the upper classman next year or the year after. So, lets win the next two games and celebrate a team of kids who collectively and despite their all wanting to be on the field, a great and memorable season.
Rich is absolutely not a Varga type back. He is a scooter not a banger. Varga is a big powerful back that almost never gets stopped for negative yardage. He will run over you just as easily as run around you. Keys is a mix of the two. With more reps he will be much better. Still, without Varga in there defenses just don't respect our run game.
Although both are good, Rich has out performed Keys this season as Varga's backup. Keys is great for short yardage situations and we all enjoyed the 94 yard run. However, Rich offers a different element (as we've seen with several TDs), more speed and the team executes better when he's on the field. I can understand why the coaches would go with Rich. I agree with 10:38pm, that with this many good backs, we need multi-back options. As for the D, I feel the young secondary has performed well outside of the Fordham game. We all know how poorly the secondary played last year. Excited to see what lies ahead!
Although Rich is a good young back, Keys is bigger, stronger, faster, a better blocker and runs with more conviction. The difference between Rich and Keys this season is reps and time on the field. Keys has approximately 25 carries for 215 yards over 8 games. There were a couple of games where he did not touch the ball. Compare the average yards per carry with Rich this season. Imagine if Keys had as many carries or touches as Rich. Could that have made a difference in any of the losses? Keys is a threat to gain the tuff short yards, and break the long touchdown. Although more similar to Varga(power back with speed)Keys does bring a different dimension. I think Keys has a lot more to offer if given the opportunity. The fact is Yale has the luxury of having three good running backs on the team. Not sure what happened to the "three headed monster" that was touted in the pre-season. Rather than pit one player against the other, let's hope the coaches can determine how to get the best out of all three. Let's also Hope Varga can make it back strong and healthy for the last two games.
The big difference between Rich and Keys/Varga is physical maturity. Rich will get knocked down for a loss pretty easily while the other two always get positive yardage. He will get better as he gets bigger and stronger. The zone read offense is dependent on getting positive yardage on early downs. The backs need to be one cut and downhill take what is available. There is not much opportunity for long runs as most of the running is in high traffic. Backs that dance in the hole are not suited for this type of offense.
Keys only has 24 carries for about 120 yards if you take away the one long run against a bad Columbia team, that had pretty much given up by that point in the game. I think the kid is a solid power back who is great for short yardage situations, but I just don't really see much else there that has warranted more PT. Even looking at the Brown game every scoring drive came with Rich on the field. Either way, without Furman this team really needs to be run first and utilize both these guys. Would like to see 15-20 carries for both.
Well, since Yale won, all the anonymous posters, will they say luck, or Brown really wasn't that good.
ReplyDeleteYale is young but talented. Brown is good.
ReplyDeleteThought Scott and Keys.came through this week. Would like to see ascot as starter next week.
ReplyDeleteI am the poster from earlier who said I am a neither a Reno fan nor booster but thought he needed a signature win. He got it today. Very impressive - especially since he wound up with his fourth quarterback on the field. He deserves a lot of credit.
ReplyDeleteI agree with "aunt betty." Who needs those anonymous posters? Signed, Uncle Fred
ReplyDeleteLet's not get carried away here. Brown played terrible today. After all the hoopla in whipping poor Columbia, the Bulldog offense just came down to earth with a thud. Not an impressive performance at all. Thank god for the defense. They have played way beyond expectation this year.
ReplyDelete9:49
ReplyDeleteThanks for not disappointing.
Yale defense has played way beyond anyone's prediction. Yale has a promising future and the players should be very proud.
ReplyDeleteAn irony: the Reno bashers keep complimenting the defense for outperforming expectations - which they are - while criticizing him for preferring younger players. Look at that defense. It is Beau Palin, Dylan Drake, and a bunch of "Reno guys." The "underachieving" offense on the other hand features a line of what I believe are all pre-Reno recruits (maybe one exception?) a senior QB (when he's healthy, a senior tight end, and a senior receiver (Sandquist). Maybe more freshmen should be playing there too. I agree with the prior poster about the promising future.
ReplyDelete12:01pm You are wrong about defense. Vaughan, Schmitgens, White, and Cook are not "Reno guys" either and have been significant contributors to the Yale Defense. The biggest issue Yale has on defense are "Reno guys" including Foye, Rymiszewski, and Harris. They are all good players but not ready for the more mature receivers they are up against.
ReplyDeleteThis inane discussion is obviously not going to end until every Williams recruit is on Social Security.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are blind. Morris is the problem, not Reno. The offense is not very good and its not because we don't have good players.
ReplyDeleteThe discussion is insane because of people like you (5:35pm) that disrespect players. It doesn't matter who recruited them. Your comment is an embarrassment to the Yale community.
ReplyDeleteThe bashers, just don't get it. The current players, on the team are all RENOS guys. They are RENOS guys,because they have stayed the course. They respond to him,
ReplyDeleteand are performing the job that is needed to win.
You can be trolls,thats ok but you are trolls.
JON HARRIS
For the record Dylan Drake is in his 5th year so he is NOT a Reno recruit, neither is Palin. Yale did some positive things to take advantage of mistakes made by Brown. They deserve credit for doing so. But do not get carries away. Brown gave the game away as much as Yale took it.
ReplyDeleteHere is what I see as the problem. Reno is both bias to his recruits, but he also is not stupid. If you look at the depth chart for the last two seasons and there is a pattern. The season starts with his recruits elevated above known comedies based on 4 weeks of practice and scrimmages which are not game speed. That is how you get a game one roster which has Ries starting over Okano and Larkin who missed the entire 2012 season starting at LB with Leffler (Remember the Penn Game)backing up Vaughn.
When the favored players fail, given that Reno is bias but not stupid, most get replaced. The problem is games are lost while this process runs it course.
7:40 you need to take a deep breath. Realize that they are his guys. Spew your garbage some where else.
ReplyDeleteBTW, good teams do what YALE did. Take advantage of mistakes.
You and alot of jerks, have been doing a great in justice to this team. with your so called opinions. GO haunt a house.!!!
%:35 here, 6:38
ReplyDeleteUmmm... I respect all the players and all the coaches. Commenters, not so much.
TOTALLY Agree with 4:08 If all the people leaving comments have actually seen the games then you saw the so called "young" secondary give up points and a lot of yardage in every game. Yale might have won a few more games if not for them and probably had more points on the board in other games including the Brown game they have talent but not ready yet. The frustrating thing is there are guys on the sideline that SHOULD be given the opportunity to make it happen not one or two sets but a whole game! Okano and Latesta to name two. I for one just dont get it. Every game same young DB'S and sure enough they give up way to many points. Time to change?
ReplyDelete6:10pm: When is the head coach mot responsible for the performance of his staff. This comment has been made several times. You have a head coach with NO coaching experience above special teams coordinator who brought in coaches who most in general are in their current roles for the first time.
ReplyDeleteCombine that with not being able to figure out who can play until midway into the season and you have what you have.
8:05pm: Do some research! Go to the Yale schedule online for the last two seasons. For each game click on Preview, then open the PDF. Look at the depth chart for each game. Look at how much it changes from week 1 to let's say week 5 or 6. Look at who moves down and who moves up. I did my research.
ReplyDeleteYou on the other hand just want to wave pom poms.
Do the research or shutup!
Hey 11:33 How about telling all just what your sleuth like research found?
ReplyDeleteDid the guys from the depth chart of week one of the last two seasons get replaced? Quit the team? OR are they still starting? OR are they not starting in their original position and been moved to another position replacing the guy that held it before and starting there and still not getting the job done while other guys don't get an opportunity? PLEASE tell us all what you have found. I have not done the research just seen EVERY game of the last 2 seasons and there is a very clear pattern of whats going on like it or not. So leave your opinions like everyone else but when you start spouting about your "research" be prepared to List it with your post
or ZIP IT!
Agree with 12:18 looks like 11:33 might have done more "research" on the players than the Coaches did!
ReplyDeleteListen crazy people, there are two problems. One, we do not have quality players at every position so it does not matter if a freshman or a senior or your sister plays there. Inferior means inferior! Two,we have a head coach with very little experience and zero experience on the offensive side of the ball. Since he is not the offensive expert, he trusts that the OC knows what he is doing. That may be naive on his part.
ReplyDeleteTo make assumptions that the head coach is playing "his players" over "other players" is just plain stupid. If the coach had amazing proven players sitting on the sidelines and "his players" were out there making him look bad, do you honestly think he would keep doing the same thing? Do you honestly think that he would be willing to lose, look bad and risk his job so he can"play his players"? If you believe this than you must also believe in the Easter Bunny!
The reality is this team is overachieving, plain and simple. They were picked to finish 7th by the league head coaches (who you all say are MUCH better HC's then Reno). NOONE thought they could beat Colgate. EVERYONE thought Cornell would throw the ball all over the field and beat them. NOONE thought they could go to Cali and win that game. BUT then they did beat all three teams and the expectations went through the roof. They got a little too cocky and lost to Dartmouth. Lost again to Fordham who NOONE has beaten, not even other scholarship teams. Then lost to Penn without Furman who we all know is the team MVP this year. Bounce back with an easy one over Columbia then win a game NOONE thought they honestly could against a more talented overall Brown team with mostly SR's playing. All that said, give credit where credit is due. This coaching staff has this team prepared to play, playing hard and WINNING football games! A championship is on the horizon for Yale.
ReplyDelete12:33 It Has nothing to do with Freshman or Seniors or even my Sister that I might add can cover a receiver good enough to play in the secondary. It has to do with who's getting the job done. In some cases, and I will agree with prior post like 7:52 the secondary (corners,safety's) just don't get it done at least half of the time, that's too much! and yes 12:33 there are other guys that play those positions that should get a chance and guess what.. THEY ARE NOT RENO'S SO CALLED "GUYS" You or any one else can't tell me that the secondary that is currently starting is a tight ship! Oh they are a young bunch.. not an acceptable excuse Maybe there might be a freshman one of Reno's guys that he can try, It doesn't really Matter what does matter is the secondary has been failing in every game win or lose and yes it makes the Coaches look bad for not trying in some way to fix it. So looking bad doesn't seem to bother the Coaches, Reno doesn't seem to be worried about his job and I will need to buy some Rabbit food For the Easter Bunny when he shows up this Easter!
ReplyDelete1:30: Are you referring to the secondary with Ivy Defensive Player (and Freshman of the Week) Foyesade Oluokun? The same one who talked about how much he learned against Fordham by having to play guys he couldn't keep up with? I thought the whole defense played magnificently on Saturday while the Furman-less offense tried to get its act together, though they were no doubt helped a lot by the fact that Donnelly missed a bunch of open receivers. But that's why you play the games.
ReplyDelete12:18: You missed the point. In the previous 7:40pm text, I cited two examples from this season. I could give a week by week breakdown, but why do so when it would not make a difference to you anyway.
ReplyDeleteThe information is there for anyone willing to take an objective look.
I said he had a preference BUT he also was not stupid. So he is willing to risk losing games to find out if they are ready but once he sees they are not he does in general make the needed changes.
It is very hard to determine in 4 weeks in camp (August/September) if a Freshman is ready to start even in the IVY league. I will take game film of a player over practice film any day of the week. Therefore, given the quality of athletes brought in to ANY program, having so many Freshman on a 2 deep seems curious. Check any FBS or FCS roster. Do you see 10-15 Freshmen on the 2 deep? There is a reason why you do not and given the academic requirements at Yale which the Freshmen really do not face until the season starts, even more reason not to do so.
I am trying to bring logic and facts to the discussion, but many of you on both sides are not interested in the facts.
SCORING DEFENSE G TD FG XPT 2XP DXP Saf Points Avg/G
ReplyDelete1. Dartmouth 8 18 9 14 1 0 0 151 18.9
2. Brown 8 24 3 21 0 0 0 174 21.8
3. Yale 8 25 4 20 1 0 0 184 23.0
4. Harvard 8 25 6 20 1 0 0 190 23.8
5. Princeton 8 25 8 19 0 0 1 195 24.4
6. Penn 8 27 5 22 2 0 0 203 25.4
7. Cornell 8 39 11 34 1 0 0 303 37.9
8. Columbia 8 43 10 40 1 0 0 330 41.2
It's not how many yards you give up, it's how many POINTS! I'll take the #3 defense every time.
They are NOT Reno's guys because he treats them as such, not because anyone on this blog says so or not.
ReplyDeleteYou can be my son, but if I do not treat you as such, effectively you are not. They same goes for young men wearing Yale football jerseys. Simply wearing one does not make any of them Reno's guys. How he treats them does so.
2:07 take your prozac,try to form a proper sentence.bye bye
ReplyDeleteThe honest truth is that the guys sitting on the bench are just not good enough so we are forced to play some freshmen. Is that so hard to take. Like I said before, 30% of all recruits will never see the field in their years at Yale. Are these the guys that you think should get a chance? They wouldn't get a chance under any circumstances so I don't know why now would be any different.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the intelligent mature response 2:31pm. It's always easier to attack the messenger than deal with the content of the message.
ReplyDelete2:37pm: If you think Brian Leffler is not good enough to be playing you did not see any games last year.
2:37 tell me the difference between Freshman that are playing and aren't ready or good enough and the guys on the bench I.E. Leffler from 2:44 comment that you seem to think aren't good enough. There are some that are good enough sitting!
ReplyDeletePeople on here are singling out a few players that maybe should get some play time. Let me rephrase that, the vast majority of the ones sitting are there for a reason, most are just plain not good enough, either mentally or physically. It's ok, if everyone was the same ability there would be no point in recruiting and evaluating. The ones sitting may be better at other things, who knows, everyone has their star quality in something and that's ok too. This is not Little Johnny football where everyone gets to participate.
ReplyDelete4:20 you didn't answer the question 3:51 asked...
ReplyDeleteAnybody who has watched the games over the last two years can see Leffler is way to slow and at best is a second string linebacker.The harvard quarterbck easily ran around him for a 38 yard scoring run last year even when he had a great angle to make the tackle. The best players are starting on defense regardless of class. The real question is who is playing quarterback this weekend. I think Scott deserves the nod. Wiiliams and Roberts have had ample opportunity and have not produced.
ReplyDeleteAgree with 9:28
ReplyDeleteThe Brown game, although less than stellar offensively, was the first game where we saw some offensive diversity. Actually an attempt at correcting some of the shortcomings.We actually witnessed such things as screen passes (one for a TD), less bubble screens, passes to the RB in the flats, passes to the left side of the field and a number of passes in to the middle of the field. All these were extremely rare in previous games and make the offense less predictable. I think the OC is reading this blog? Now if we could only correct the run game. A good start would be to introduce a full back or an H-back, quick pitches to the edge and two back options. Am I asking too much?
ReplyDelete10:38 ... right you are.
ReplyDelete9:28 - If you were familiar at all with the Harvard QB he made a lot of people miss last year, many who appeared to have him in their sights.
ReplyDeleteYour 2nd RB should provide a change of pace from the first one. So although Rich is a good back, he is the same type of back as Varga. So, it would make more since to have Keys backing up Varga because he can do things neither Varga or Rich can do. And BTW how did Rich show up and jump in front of Keys in the first place.
ReplyDeleteThat one is easy. In the spring/ early summer, the coaches script ever practice up until the first game, and the first game. They decide who will get how many reps at each position - the more reps, the better you are supposed to get - right. In order to do this, the coaches must select who will get the reps and will not. And once you are put on the first or second depth chart for reps, you stay there until you're hurt or really screw up. This is particularly true at the QB position when one qb got half of all reps this summer and the other 4 or 5 split reps. So, when they say the coach did not have plan going into the season and fully evaluated everyone, name one coach who waits until August to do that and put together a depth chart and script practices? And how might a coach know based upon high school tapes where to slot a kid? Perhaps, coming out of the Spring practices and game the coaches decided that unproven high school talent is better than the upper classmen who had been playing and learning how to balance football and academics. The upper classmen who have been sticking it out this year despite not playing at all or a little, love playing football, are not quitters, and believe in themselves that they have the talent to play at this level. I have a hard believing that the coaching staff could not find rotation that works for everyone as the team had done for years. As for the young guys playing, they are all great kids who play really hard and give everything to win. And they understand as much as anyone how fragile and vulnerable they are to being in the same spot as the upper classman next year or the year after. So, lets win the next two games and celebrate a team of kids who collectively and despite their all wanting to be on the field, a great and memorable season.
ReplyDeleteRich is absolutely not a Varga type back. He is a scooter not a banger. Varga is a big powerful back that almost never gets stopped for negative yardage. He will run over you just as easily as run around you. Keys is a mix of the two. With more reps he will be much better. Still, without Varga in there defenses just don't respect our run game.
ReplyDeleteAlthough both are good, Rich has out performed Keys this season as Varga's backup. Keys is great for short yardage situations and we all enjoyed the 94 yard run. However, Rich offers a different element (as we've seen with several TDs), more speed and the team executes better when he's on the field. I can understand why the coaches would go with Rich. I agree with 10:38pm, that with this many good backs, we need multi-back options. As for the D, I feel the young secondary has performed well outside of the Fordham game. We all know how poorly the secondary played last year. Excited to see what lies ahead!
ReplyDeleteAlthough Rich is a good young back, Keys is bigger, stronger, faster, a better blocker and runs with more conviction. The difference between Rich and Keys this season is reps and time on the field. Keys has approximately 25 carries for 215 yards over 8 games. There were a couple of games where he did not touch the ball. Compare the average yards per carry with Rich this season. Imagine if Keys had as many carries or touches as Rich. Could that have made a difference in any of the losses? Keys is a threat to gain the tuff short yards, and break the long touchdown. Although more similar to Varga(power back with speed)Keys does bring a different dimension. I think Keys has a lot more to offer if given the opportunity. The fact is Yale has the luxury of having three good running backs on the team. Not sure what happened to the "three headed monster" that was touted in the pre-season. Rather than pit one player against the other, let's hope the coaches can determine how to get the best out of all three. Let's also Hope Varga can make it back strong and healthy for the last two games.
ReplyDeleteThe big difference between Rich and Keys/Varga is physical maturity. Rich will get knocked down for a loss pretty easily while the other two always get positive yardage. He will get better as he gets bigger and stronger. The zone read offense is dependent on getting positive yardage on early downs. The backs need to be one cut and downhill take what is available. There is not much opportunity for long runs as most of the running is in high traffic. Backs that dance in the hole are not suited for this type of offense.
ReplyDeleteKeys only has 24 carries for about 120 yards if you take away the one long run against a bad Columbia team, that had pretty much given up by that point in the game. I think the kid is a solid power back who is great for short yardage situations, but I just don't really see much else there that has warranted more PT. Even looking at the Brown game every scoring drive came with Rich on the field. Either way, without Furman this team really needs to be run first and utilize both these guys. Would like to see 15-20 carries for both.
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