GMoney

I've got one thing to say, "Let the games begin". I'm ready for something that counts!

I've only seen one practice this year and it was before full paids. I have to trust Dodge and Coach Lefty who are working with these guys everyday. My only worry is that on the college level you get big DL's, with good technique, and a mean streak. With few exceptions (and this may be one of them), you just don't win week in and week out with undersize linemen who have good technique. It will catchup with you when you go against big linemen with good technique. My guess is the bigger issue here is one of chemistry. The OL missed much of Spring to play together due to nagging injuries. Now they have missed much of Fall camp to play together due to injuries. Its now a matter of plugging guys into the best positions and get reps to prepare for a season. Somewhere the coaches have to cross that line of practicing and reps trumps potential talent sitting on the sideline. They have to get ready for the season with the healthy bodies they have. The article did mention the "if the season started today" scenario.

There are extra practice notes at the bottom of the article. http://www.statesman.com/sports/content/sp...14texnotes.html

There is a man that is not afraid to speak his mind!

The good thing is, if most of us diehards didn't make the connection then neither will anyone else. BTW, just wondering if he was part of the group involved with "Logangate" (diehards will remember the Utah St. fiasco)! Maybe that's where he perfected his craft .

Yes, it is.

I haven't seen a high top fade like that in a long time .

This statement says a lot.

That's good news. It's been nice to see the continued progress of our T&F program. Being in Texas, I think it is essential to have a quality T&F program with all the surrounding talent (I feel th same about baseball, but that's another discussion).

in the softball world series. Congrats! BTW, ULaLa's pitcher, Ashley Brignac, threw 194 pitches!!! Sorry, big mistake in title - they beat #1 Florida not UCLA.

Nice hire if he can keep his players under control. He's a great coach with a reputation for not having disciplined teams off the court. He also had a recruiting scandal (alleged payments by an assistant coach).

If you believe in them, then get on them early before the big boys and hope they'll honor your effort for being the first one. Doesn't always work, but there are still some who respect the first to believe and first to give a chance.

I'm not sure I follow you, but I think you are making my point for me. That is, there's no tie to them. They haven't done anything for us (not that I expect them to or want them to) and they don't decide who we are and what we should think about ourselves. In the big scheme of what we want to achieve from athletics - their opinion means nothing. To give value to someone's opinion you have to respect them at least a little.

The only thing wrong with this entire thread is, "Who really cares what SMU thinks about us?" Other than the time it takes from me to type this post, they are irrelevant. They haven't done any favors for us and never will. Actually, they have been the exact opposite over the years. Therefore, what they think and what they say means nothing.

The coaches can make sure players go to class and they can check on grades, but they can't make them pass. Of the players that TD and crew recruited, the only one that I can think of immediately that will hurt is Kevin Eealy (sp?). As for the guys those players which were here before the new staff, they, the previous staff and the academic advisors must take the blame. If you bring in a questionnable guy - that's on the coaching staff and academic advisors. If he has grades in HS and then fails in college that's on player and academic advisors. If coaches aren't following up with players attendance in class - that's on the previous and to some extent the new staff (I happen to know the current staff is doing this). As for comments on running players off - for the most part this just isn't true. Every new coach has his way of doing things. As a player you adjust to the new way and show that you want to be a part of what they're doing. There just aren't very many situations where a kid does all that is asked of him and a coach simply takes away their scholarship. It is generally a culmination of many issues that add up to a reason why someone is left go - not just a coach running someone off.

This reaffirms what my initial fear was/is. Once you start going down this slope, it takes some time to recover.

Their travel has gotta be a part of this equation with only Houston and Tulsa being close. But hey, lets lead the charge to keep NT out of CUSA - that must have helped.

You bring up the point that I don't really understand, "How are the number of scholarships you lose determined." Is there a sliding scale based upon your overall score? This would seem to be arbitrary if each school is looked at differently with all the various elements that go into determining the score. How do you decide upon 5 when others with lower overall scores got less of a penalty?

Very underrated post!

I would love to see the correlation between a faltering program that gets a new head coach and the enforcement of these rules. If I remember correctly, did MTSU get hit with this last year? An old coach begins to finish off a season with knowing he will not be back. Less dedicated student-athletes begin to slack off knowing the coach isn't returning. Then, new coach comes in and begins to run off that element and your numbers get skewed. I'm not saying this exactly what happened, but I went through a Coaching change and saw 98% of my incoming class never finish their eligibility and over half dropped out due to bad grades.

It seems like a good hire to me as well and I think I follow the strategy. Get an assistant with experience and another with recruiting ties to a rich laden area like Houston. As always, time will tell but it looks good.

Dare I say this, but if this falls into place could it be JJ best recruiting class?

The most amazing thing to me was the mile run! That's sick - WOW!

Any coach that ever walks onto a field, court, track or whatever for NT will have my support. They (the coach) must DO SOMETHING wrong for me to ever critize them or not back them 100%. I've enjoyed WBB over the past few years and will continue to enjoy and support them. Good luck Coach Stephens and turn this program around.

I believe the name you are looking for is Corbin Epps.