TSU88

I think most of us agree we’re going to have to go 8-4, Cincy and NDSU notwithstanding. If we go 7-5, we’re begging the selection committee to snub us. And you’re right, the desultory W’s over a couple of MEAC teams would be the excuse the Committee would use to exclude us, in the event we finish 7-5

If 8-4 is what it’s going to take to make the playoffs (I guess 7-5 is a possibility, but I certainly wouldn’t want to put my eggs in that basket), we’ll have to go at least 2-1 over the next 3 games-Stony Brook, Monmouth and Richmond. Assuming we can beat SB at home this weekend (no given) the Monmouth game, on the road, looms large. Monmouth averages over 40ppg, but gives up over 30ppg. On paper, it would appear our only hope of winning that game will be in a shootout, as the chances their offense will truck our defense seem high. I’m not sure if we’re built for shootouts, but let’s see where we stand after Stony Brook. Win & we go into Monmouth with a winning record; lose and our playoff aspirations are likely on life support

We saw that movie 🎥 last season and it was pretty much a box office flop. It does beg an interesting question, which goes back to the last coaching regime also, which is when every other team seemingly has a RPO QB, why can’t we ever seem to get one? I guess the 1st Flacco year was the closest we had, but that’s about it

Well, a W is a W, but if you subscribe to the belief we have to finish 8-4 to make the playoffs…well, let me just say that after today I’ve been disabused of any hope that’s going to happen. I realize the next game I coach will be the first game I coach, but I’m baffled, to put it mildly, at some of our coaching decisions: 1st half we punt the ball down to around their 10 yard line, but wait, NSU was offsides. Not enough to give us a first down though. Instead of accepting the penalty, we decide to punt again, naturally resulting in a touchback. Sooo, the penalty is on them and WE lose yardage; end of 1st half and it’s 3rd & long, deep in their territory. It’s extraordinary unlikely we’re going to throw a TD pass, so just run the ball and set up a chip shot FG, right? Wrong. We call a pass which gets picked, and we turn 3 points into nada; the cherry on top-we’re up by 12 with a little over 4 minutes left in the game. We’re in their territory, but we don’t need to score, but instead run clock. Instead of running the ball, which either ices the game, or at least makes them burn their TO’s, we have our QB, who’s already been picked twice, throw a pass which, you guessed it, gets intercepted. The only way they can get back into the game is if we turn the ball over and that’s exactly what we do. It’s almost as if this staff has no feel for the game. Is Davis injured? If not, this week’s practice needs to be an open competition for the QB job, because I’m afraid Brown’s performance last week was fools gold. Our D made an unproven freshman QB look pretty damn good today. Not that our run D was anything to write home about either. Other than the above, everything’s peachy with the team 🙄

I agree. Subtle things like that can make the difference in a game. Fortunately, this time it didn’t. On to Norfolk State. Must win. Would get us to .500, and from there we’d likely have to 5-1 to get to 8-4 & make the playoffs, unless we could somehow eek in at 7-5, which I wouldn’t count on

Random thoughts: Greene was a beast-15 carries for over 130 yards. He needs to tote the rock 20-25 X’s a game; Sean Brown deserves to remain the starting QB; WAY TOO MANY PENALTIES. Some of them were dubious calls, but others weren’t; despite not being able to tackle W&M’s QB most of the time, the D did make some plays, notably the fumble return for a TD; if we hadn’t yakked the Nova game away, we’d be 3-2, nationally ranked & have 2 W’s over ranked teams

Well, considering the aggregate score of our last two games vs NDSU was 70-14, today was a step in the right direction, but the season, in terms of playoff aspirations, is on the brink. I remember the 75 Colts starting 1-4, and then ripping off 9 W’s in a row to make the playoffs. But that was a long time ago in a galaxy far far away

This is a rhetorical question, but why was Davis in the game with less than a minute left, trailing by 17? I’d also like to know why we abandoned the uptempo offense in the first half, after it worked so well on the first drive of the game.

This team is maddening. Some nice signs today-we were the better team for much of the 2nd half; the long TD run; the D generating a pass rush, but then it’s 1 step forward and two steps back-multiple PI penalties; a boneheaded tripping penalty, inability to tackle their return man…. Well, the playoffs aren’t completely out of reach, but our margin for error is paper thin. As I see it, we’ve got to go 7-1 in the remaining 8 games. Never say never, but my degree of optimism is quite low. It all starts with W&M at home, 2 weeks from today. Lose that game and we’ll have to run the table, 7-0, to make the playoffs

If Londono catches that TD pass, we’d be talking about whether Brown should keep the QB job over Davis. The thing that galls me about Saturday was how we squandered an opportunity to set ourselves up for a legit chance at the playoffs. We’d be 2-1, with an impressive W vs a top 5 FCS team, on the road. We would have “only” had to have gone 6-3 the rest of the way to finish 8-4, which almost certainly would have guaranteed a playoff berth. Now, we likely have to go 7-2 the rest of the season. Really, 7-1, as this coming Saturday is a guaranteed L on the road at NDSU. At 1-3, there will be very little margin for error.

Um, I think the Ravens flock has its own problems

Sorry, but the coaching staff has to bear some accountability. Players do as well. Calling a long pass on 3rd & 2; not being able to scheme up anything remotely resembling an adept goal line offense; having a guy returning KO’s who has no business doing so; calling a pass play where the ball is thrown directly into the path of the sun ☀️. These are a few of my favorite things 🥹. Let’s deal in reality here-the season is already on the brink. It’s not inconceivable that after the W&M game we can all start looking forward to year 3 of the Shinnick era, as year two will be sans playoffs

Sadly, you’re probably right. We lose next week to NDSU, and will come home 1-3 to play W&M. Lose that game and the season, in terms of playoffs aspirations, is basically over, as we’d have to run the table at that point (7-0) to finish 8-4. Let me see a show of hands of those who think we’ll go 7-0 You know as far as today, I’d rather get blown out than lose like this. I’m keeping in mind these are kids who are trying their best, but the combination of missed FG’s, soul crushing penalties and dropped passes was pitiful. Now as far as the coaching, I’m flummoxed at some of the play calling decisions on offense. I wasn’t a huge fan of this hire to begin with. The 1st year free pass is over & it’s time for tangible results. I don’t want to hear about moral victories, because today wasn’t one in any event.

Look, let’s be honest. If Davis is out for any appreciable period of time, or worse yet, the entire season, we’re F’d. He’s freaking Jalen Hurts compared to the dude behind him. Hell, even with Davis, we’re likely staring down 2 straight road losses (Nova & NDSU) before we come home to W&M, which is not going to be any walk in the park

Ever remember watching your team win a game, but it felt like a loss? Pepperidge Farm remembers A bumbling inept offensive performance, punctuated by multiple fumbles and boneheaded penalties. Kudos to the D, but I can’t help but having the nagging feeling that Morgan might turn out to be the worst offense we face all season. Hope I’m wrong, but we look like a team headed towards a 3-4 win season, give or take

When’s basketball start?

Wait, what? When did TU become an HBCU?

Yes, I neglected to mention this in my previous post. What if we hadn’t left those 11 points on the field that we did in the first half?🤔

Just a couple random thoughts: I think it’s safe to say our offense is much improved from last year, both at QB & skill players; despite “only” giving up 38 points (Cincy could have scored a TD at the end, but took a knee) the D was pretty much a sieve most of the game. I didn’t see any semblance of a pass rush & there was some suspect tackling. Was this a function of the talent level of Cincy or our own deficiencies. Probably a combo of the two; I could see us as a playoff team, but, with another automatic L looming in Fargo, the margin is thin. We’d probably have to go 8-2 in our remaining games, after we lose to NDSU; I hope we got out of yesterday without any season ending injuries

Well put. I suppose the curse of being a fan of any sports team is that the overwhelming majority of the time you’re going to be dissatisfied, to some extent, with the outcome of each season. Let’s try and accentuate the positives. After all, at the end of the day these are kids/young men who are doing their best to represent our alma mater. Doesn’t mean I don’t want to go dancing every season, and make the FCS playoffs. Look, it’s entirely possible we won’t make the dance in the remainder of my lifetime, but I’m going to hang in there. I’ll do my share of grousing along the way, but I’m going to try and enjoy the ride as well, instead of being perpetually miserable

It’s no wonder there’s like 10 people who post here. Aside from general apathy, it’s gets depressing reading the same negative comments ad nauseum. No question the results on the court and the gridiron have left much to be desired. I get it. But I’m growing weary of getting poked in the eye with these ceaseless depressing posts. You don’t have to be a cheerleader, and the board shouldn’t be a propaganda tool for struggling teams and coaches, but when it’s constant negativity I just assume you have some personal agenda/axe to grind

What does any of this have to do with whether or not we have a good recruiting class coming in 2025? I take a backseat to no one in being critical of Skerry, but can’t we at least wait until the season starts? Christ sakes, this gets old

C’mon man. There will be plenty of time for recriminations during & after the season, but why have a snark-a-thon now? No harm in people having some optimism. Every team is undefeated at the moment. And I’m not buying that your post was a genuine expression of your own optimism. I know better 😆

Per Verbal Commits, we beat out JMU, ODU, GW & George Mason, to get him

How far is this from S.F.?