Bear Down Wildcats

For what it's worth, Hansen seems to think he's staying:



http://tucson.com/sports/columnists/han ... b23c5.html



"Saturday began with a double sense of dread: 1, that the reeling Wildcats could lose to ASU in Saturday’s Territorial Cup and, 2, then lose their coach to some faraway dot on the football map, in Virginia or South Carolina or who knows where?

Starting over again is not what anyone had in mind when RichRod cleared debris from the Mike Stoops years, won 31 of his first 47 games and erected a Pac-12 South championship banner at the stadium.

Starting. Over. Again. Such has been the curse of UA football since Jim Young left for Purdue in 1977.

RichRod wouldn’t have to apologize if he left for some place close to his West Virginia home. That’s life. But over the last week or so, he has reaffirmed his willingness to stay at Arizona and see the Wildcats through this fractured season and beyond.

Who told me this? Who said that RichRod will not bail out?

Let’s just say two little angels.

Before kickoff Saturday night, Hall of Fame horse trainer Bob Baffert stood in the lobby of the House that RichRod Occupies and spoke fondly about “two little angels” riding with his Triple Crown winner, American Pharaoh.

Baffert was referring to his late parents, Bill and Ellie, whom he suspects added the final pieces of charm to Pharaoh’s Triple Crown.

The angels whispering in my ears do not ride a horse nor live in the great beyond. But ever since the football shows started to include RichRod-to-Virginia Tech in all the daily chatter, UA athletic director Greg Byrne has gotten in front of the issue.

The school wanted RichRod to confirm his willingness to stay in Tucson, and RichRod has done so. Don’t doubt the angels.

There are myriad reasons that a coach from West Virginia would consider relocating to the East, or South, but RichRod enjoys wearing shorts to work, he enjoys the climate in Tucson, covets watching a sunset from his Ventana Canyon patio, puffing on a cigar, looking all the way to Mexico.

As proved again Saturday, he isn’t bowed by the Pac-12 South competition. His style is to plow straight ahead.

Utah got chewed up by the coach and the team that wouldn’t quit.

If all things work out, RichRod will work at the Lowell-Stevens Football complex for another decade, until he’s 60-something, and do what Jim Young, Larry Smith and Dick Tomey were unable to do: walk into the sunset a Wildcat for life.

Before Saturday’s game, RichRod made his way through the Wildcat Walk, tapped the statue of Button Salmon for luck, and kept his game face stashed until kickoff. On Senior Night, the coach acted as a host/father, not a coach.

He embraced all 20 of his seniors as they left the north end zone tunnel, one after another, all trailed by visitors from all parts of the map. Senior linebacker Anthony Smothers was accompanied by 21 friends and family members. Tackle Lene Maiava had 17 people in his entourage.

RichRod greeted them all. The Utah game would have to wait.

Four hours later, RichRod led a chorus of “Bear Down, Arizona” in the locker room and hugged his seniors all over again.

If you are the football coach at Arizona, it was a very good day."

Didn't Hansen write a farewell article just two weeks ago?

It doesn't help a newspapers' fight for survival when a sports editor can't tell the difference between breaking news and a columnist spewing opinion from "angels" whispering in his ears.

If Hansen has an actual source that says that Coach Rod is staying or going he needs to give it a bit more weight than a whispering angel. Hard for me to give his angels any more credence than the opinion of pessimistic posters who think Coach always has one foot out the door because Tucson doesn't deserve nice things.

I think Coach Rod is staying because of his family situation, not wanting to reshape another program into his style at this stage of his career, and because there have been no credible reports that he is actually serious about leaving.

It has been a long time since Hansen has broken any actual news and even longer since he has been correct about his analysis of football or the Arizona football program.

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

splitsecond wrote:Lol, Todd Graham is not respected whatsoever. There's a reason why the other PAC coaches are constantly trolling him. He is an insufferable douchebag. Hence why he is perfect for ASU.

Who is trolling him? Mike Leach? Haha, come one man. You can do better than that. Do you consider Bill Belichick to be a respected coach?

"I love Coach Graham," Belichick said. "Coach Graham does a great job. He's a good friend of mine. I really respect the job he's done with this program. I've never been to a quarterback meeting with Coach Graham, but I imagine he's pretty demanding. If I know Coach, he's pretty demanding."

But wait, theres more...

"Even better, Belichick said he personally takes scouting trips to Tempe just to visit with Graham, often relegating his underlings elsewhere. They share a defensive background and the pursuit of excellence, and an ASU representative said they talk on the phone all the time."

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/n ... /22436601/

It's like a brotherhood of signal stealing. Amoral bromances are adorbs .....

When did RR confirm that? I must have missed those comments. Anybody read or hear them?

azcat49 wrote:When did RR confirm that? I must have missed those comments. Anybody read or hear them?

Only the "angels"

ramcat wrote:Sorry to intercept but posted a poll in Coach Rod thread, that indicated 77% would only want want him if he retained D coordinator Foster. Otherwise, decidedly against is hire.
A little over 5000 were involved from V Tech community. Still a lot of disdain toward RR, due to the way he departed WVU.

Certainly an understandable response. I like Rich Rod. But if I were at a school, that has had success and were looking for a coach, I would certainly have mixed feelings based on the defense he (I assume) would bring with him.

CatMG wrote:

ramcat wrote:Sorry to intercept but posted a poll in Coach Rod thread, that indicated 77% would only want want him if he retained D coordinator Foster. Otherwise, decidedly against is hire.
A little over 5000 were involved from V Tech community. Still a lot of disdain toward RR, due to the way he departed WVU.

Certainly an understandable response. I like Rich Rod. But if I were at a school, that has had success and were looking for a coach, I would certainly have mixed feelings based on the defense he (I assume) would bring with him.

Foster has had quite some success with his defense over the years.



Last 2 years UA has been in the bottom 20.

SCCats wrote:

dc4azcats wrote: You win with a very good offense and at worst a top 4 in the conference D.

I agree completely. Let's get that.

I make arguments against our current D and D Coordinator, but I'm not looking for a top ten defense. Heck, I'm probably not even looking for a top 25 defense.

But you can't be triple digits. That is untenable.

Make the necessary changes. Become the legit year in year out contender we are all dying for.

Top 25? Man if this team THIS year had even an average defense, they are certainly still competing for the South division.

UALoco wrote:Why does the saying, "Either you are 100% in or 100% out" apply to everyone except the head coach?

Because when coach says he is 100% staying, 75% won't believe him 100% of the time....or something.

If Bud Fosters defense faced 80 snaps/game they'd have given up 433 ypg and 33 points per game. Dropping the VA Tech defense from 25th to 90th in the country.

The point is with this offense, no coach or personnel upgrade is going to give Arizona a "top 25" defense.

Sage&Silver wrote:If Bud Fosters defense faced 80 snaps/game they'd have given up 433 ypg and 33 points per game. Dropping the VA Tech defense from 25th to 90th in the country.

The point is with this offense, no coach or personnel upgrade is going to give Arizona a "top 25" defense.

If your saying it cant be done if someone other than Casteel ran the defense and some how turn that defense from 110th to 25th. We seen with Brady Hoke took over RR worst defense unit from nothing to something. It can be done.

Imagine if Byrne dictated to RR who his assistants would be when he came on. "You have to keep this guy and this guy." RR would have never signed here under those conditions. He gets a free hand to run the program and the value of that cannot be understated.

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

splitsecond wrote:Lol, Todd Graham is not respected whatsoever. There's a reason why the other PAC coaches are constantly trolling him. He is an insufferable douchebag. Hence why he is perfect for ASU.

Who is trolling him? Mike Leach? Haha, come one man. You can do better than that. Do you consider Bill Belichick to be a respected coach?

"I love Coach Graham," Belichick said. "Coach Graham does a great job. He's a good friend of mine. I really respect the job he's done with this program. I've never been to a quarterback meeting with Coach Graham, but I imagine he's pretty demanding. If I know Coach, he's pretty demanding."

But wait, theres more...

"Even better, Belichick said he personally takes scouting trips to Tempe just to visit with Graham, often relegating his underlings elsewhere. They share a defensive background and the pursuit of excellence, and an ASU representative said they talk on the phone all the time."

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/n ... /22436601/

Wow. Just wow. I'm so not impressed. So Belichick is in town for the Super Bowl and gets asked about CTG and so he rides CTGs jock in front of the local media for a few brownie points. What did you expect the Hoodie to say? That's right, "they talk on the phone all the time" with CTG probably telling him how great his team is on a weekly basis. Sorry Scummy but I'm really not impressed by that at all.

Couple things. First, if we get to 7-5 this might be his best coaching job given the amount of injuries on defense and to key offensive people

Second, I wonder if the players family pressed GB on what is going on and that prompted him to get in front of this. Once he gets that info from RR he leaks it anonymously to Hansen which puts RR in the corner as he would really look bad if he left now

cordera89 wrote:

Sage&Silver wrote:If Bud Fosters defense faced 80 snaps/game they'd have given up 433 ypg and 33 points per game. Dropping the VA Tech defense from 25th to 90th in the country.

The point is with this offense, no coach or personnel upgrade is going to give Arizona a "top 25" defense.

If your saying it cant be done if someone other than Casteel ran the defense and some how turn that defense from 110th to 25th. We seen with Brady Hoke took over RR worst defense unit from nothing to something. It can be done.

Casteel wasn't at Michigan. RR hired Greg Robinson from 'Cuse and told him to learn the 3-3-5.

But you're missing the whole point. Hoke brought in a clock-management offense, limiting the opponent's number of plays. If Hoke's 2011 defense was out there for eighty snaps, they'd have given up 400 yards per game and dropped from 16th to 60th.

Obviously great defenses get off the field quickly, but terrible one get off the field pretty quick too. It has a lot to do with their teammates' offensive style, pace & 1st down efficiency.

Perfect example:
Oregon had a very good defense last year, but still faced 80 snaps per game. Had Oregon's D been paired with Hoke's type of offense (Seeing 64 plays per game) they'd have given up 13 points per game, ranking 1st in the nation instead of 29th.

2014 Oregon is proof that the most efficient scoring defense in the nation will rank outside the Top 25 of "per game stats" if they play alongside a RR style offense.

Players' families, I kinda doubt that. Recruits and their parents? More likely. Again, even if RR has decided he wants to retire here, he can't stop the media speculation. Any time a job opens reporters are going to throw his name out there. There's nothing he can say that would stop that.

Something else I'd throw out there about RR - if you look at the Wazzu, USC, and Utah games, his playcalling has been very aggressive. He knows that they can't play things safe and win games. The trick plays, the going for it on fourth downs, having Randall throw deep late in regulation, having him throw that dart to Phillips... things don't always work but I'm glad we've got a coach who is going to attack like that.

Everyone can keep demanding RR fire Casteel because the defense ranks poorly in whatever "per game" stat you want to pick, but it won't change with the next guy. RR offense with it's quick possessions, red-zone scoring ranked in the 80s and lots of three-and-outs will continue to keep the defense out there longer than just about any other defense in the country.

Per game stats are like W-L in baseball. A great pitcher won't get a W without run support, but a shit pitcher will if his teammates are going yard all night. It's a metric that means very little.

The past two years Arizona produced top 40 defensed in points yielded per play. That is impressive given team's talent and depth on defense. Hopefully with better recruiting and depth that ranking will rise to top 20. That would be a Rose Bowl caliber defense. But that would probably rank somewhere around 90th in terms of "points per game" or "yards per game" and this board would still the choked with threads about dumping Casteel.

I love that every fanbase and AD sees the guy as football-poison. He'll keep RR unhireable for a few more years until some AD looks beyond last century's box scores.

Umm. It could change with the next guy. In fact, it couldn't get any worse with the next guy. Odds are it would be better. Absolutely zero reason to not fire casteel and get a real defense.

And who gives a shit about points per play given up. Has to be the most meaningless stat ever. How many points the opponent has at the end of the game are what matter. And we give up too many. Fire casteel

Sage&Silver wrote:

cordera89 wrote:

Sage&Silver wrote:If Bud Fosters defense faced 80 snaps/game they'd have given up 433 ypg and 33 points per game. Dropping the VA Tech defense from 25th to 90th in the country.

The point is with this offense, no coach or personnel upgrade is going to give Arizona a "top 25" defense.

If your saying it cant be done if someone other than Casteel ran the defense and some how turn that defense from 110th to 25th. We seen with Brady Hoke took over RR worst defense unit from nothing to something. It can be done.

Casteel wasn't at Michigan. RR hired Greg Robinson from 'Cuse and told him to learn the 3-3-5.

But you're missing the whole point. Hoke brought in a clock-management offense, limiting the opponent's number of plays. If Hoke's 2011 defense was out there for eighty snaps, they'd have given up 400 yards per game and dropped from 16th to 60th.

Obviously great defenses get off the field quickly, but terrible one get off the field pretty quick too. It has a lot to do with their teammates' offensive style, pace & 1st down efficiency.

Perfect example:
Oregon had a very good defense last year, but still faced 80 snaps per game. Had Oregon's D been paired with Hoke's type of offense (Seeing 64 plays per game) they'd have given up 13 points per game, ranking 1st in the nation instead of 29th.

2014 Oregon is proof that the most efficient scoring defense in the nation will rank outside the Top 25 of "per game stats" if they play alongside a RR style offense.

Theoretically sound argument, but flawed in reality, S&S. Casteel's defense allows 5.8 yards per play, good for 92nd in the country. That's independent of the pace of our offense. That ain't going to cut it, no matter how good the offense is.

Moreover, last year we ranked 63rd in that statistic. The year before? 53rd. 2012? 96th. Casteel's defenses have varied between average and putrid. Something is not working.

Certainly get the comments on the defense and Casteel but would like to see how things go with some better and healthy players. Seems like there have been lots of misses and the injuries are ridiculous!! Liked what I was seeing of Fotu when he went out as well.

Anyone considered Frank Beamer's input on the next coach? He's gonna side with getting Bud Foster the gig before anyone else. For one, the Hokies are really stuck on the defensive identity they've had going for two decades. They give that right up if RR brings in Casteel. Would Foster coach as DC under RR? Still plenty of snags at this point.

SCCats wrote:

Spaceman Spiff wrote:Frankly, this poll hits on a big reason to stay. Arizona is in the midst of a disappointing season. Message boards are home to the most extreme, knee jerk reactions, and he still has overwhelming support. At most other schools, the buzz would be about him being on the hot seat.

This is exactly what I was going to point out from the poll that I mentioned above. After 14 votes, 7 were "Yes he's going to go and that makes me sad"; in other words, they want him to stay. 7 were for "No he isn't going to leave, and that makes me happy"; again, they want him to stay.

At that point there were no other votes, so out of 14 votes every single person wanted him to stay. Even now looking at the votes, you have 47 people who want him to stay and 3 that want him to go. That's overwhelming support when you're having good seasons; considering the season we've had it's even more amazing.

So as you say, the support is there and extremely strong.

The thing about Arizona Football is that fans will embrace a winner, even if it's of the 8-5 variety, especially if they can mix in a 10-3 or better season from time to time.

Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him . . . especially in hindsight when they saw what happened when we tried to "upgrade" our coaching to take us to the next level.

RichRod has almost total job security as long as we aren't losing consistently and players aren't getting in trouble. Another 10+ win season and we will likely name the damn stadium after him. Take us to a playoff and we'll build a statue of him doing the "Whip/Ne-Ne" and place it right behind the Button Salmon bust.

Chicat wrote:

SCCats wrote:

Spaceman Spiff wrote:Frankly, this poll hits on a big reason to stay. Arizona is in the midst of a disappointing season. Message boards are home to the most extreme, knee jerk reactions, and he still has overwhelming support. At most other schools, the buzz would be about him being on the hot seat.

This is exactly what I was going to point out from the poll that I mentioned above. After 14 votes, 7 were "Yes he's going to go and that makes me sad"; in other words, they want him to stay. 7 were for "No he isn't going to leave, and that makes me happy"; again, they want him to stay.

At that point there were no other votes, so out of 14 votes every single person wanted him to stay. Even now looking at the votes, you have 47 people who want him to stay and 3 that want him to go. That's overwhelming support when you're having good seasons; considering the season we've had it's even more amazing.

So as you say, the support is there and extremely strong.

The thing about Arizona Football is that fans will embrace a winner, even if it's of the 8-5 variety, especially if they can mix in a 10-3 or better season from time to time.

Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him . . . especially in hindsight when they saw what happened when we tried to "upgrade" our coaching to take us to the next level.

RichRod has almost total job security as long as we aren't losing consistently and players aren't getting in trouble. Another 10+ win season and we will likely name the damn stadium after him. Take us to a playoff and we'll build a statue of him doing the "Whip/Ne-Ne" and place it right behind the Button Salmon bust.

One thing that I feel Tomey and Rodriguez have going for them is off the field they are extremely likable.

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

splitsecond wrote:Lol, Todd Graham is not respected whatsoever. There's a reason why the other PAC coaches are constantly trolling him. He is an insufferable douchebag. Hence why he is perfect for ASU.

Who is trolling him? Mike Leach? Haha, come one man. You can do better than that. Do you consider Bill Belichick to be a respected coach?

"I love Coach Graham," Belichick said. "Coach Graham does a great job. He's a good friend of mine. I really respect the job he's done with this program. I've never been to a quarterback meeting with Coach Graham, but I imagine he's pretty demanding. If I know Coach, he's pretty demanding."

But wait, theres more...

"Even better, Belichick said he personally takes scouting trips to Tempe just to visit with Graham, often relegating his underlings elsewhere. They share a defensive background and the pursuit of excellence, and an ASU representative said they talk on the phone all the time."

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/n ... /22436601/

If UA hired Fraud instead of RR, I would have burned every piece of school gear I own and boycotted watching until he was fired. That's how much of a disgusting pile of shit you have as a coach. He's good as his job, but he's a pile of shit human being. If you have any sort of soul at all, it matters.

I saw UW brought the sheets to block their hand signals from being stolen. If that many coaches are making a point about Toad's program, it shows that coaches do not respect him.

Gilbertcat wrote:I saw UW brought the sheets to block their hand signals from being stolen. If that many coaches are making a point about Toad's program, it shows that coaches do not respect him.

So, sheets? Thats your reasoning? I get you guys don't like the guy, but someone said he is not respected in coaching circles and I posted evidence of arguably the best coach in all of football having a very high level of respect for Graham. So far the only evidence provided for the other side of the argument are sheets and the comments of a coach nick-named "the Pirate".

threenumberones wrote:

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

splitsecond wrote:Lol, Todd Graham is not respected whatsoever. There's a reason why the other PAC coaches are constantly trolling him. He is an insufferable douchebag. Hence why he is perfect for ASU.

Who is trolling him? Mike Leach? Haha, come one man. You can do better than that. Do you consider Bill Belichick to be a respected coach?

"I love Coach Graham," Belichick said. "Coach Graham does a great job. He's a good friend of mine. I really respect the job he's done with this program. I've never been to a quarterback meeting with Coach Graham, but I imagine he's pretty demanding. If I know Coach, he's pretty demanding."

But wait, theres more...

"Even better, Belichick said he personally takes scouting trips to Tempe just to visit with Graham, often relegating his underlings elsewhere. They share a defensive background and the pursuit of excellence, and an ASU representative said they talk on the phone all the time."

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/n ... /22436601/

If UA hired Fraud instead of RR, I would have burned every piece of school gear I own and boycotted watching until he was fired. That's how much of a disgusting pile of shit you have as a coach. He's good as his job, but he's a pile of shit human being. If you have any sort of soul at all, it matters.

No. You would not have.

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

Gilbertcat wrote:I saw UW brought the sheets to block their hand signals from being stolen. If that many coaches are making a point about Toad's program, it shows that coaches do not respect him.

So, sheets? Thats your reasoning? I get you guys don't like the guy, but someone said he is not respected in coaching circles and I posted evidence of arguably the best coach in all of football having a very high level of respect for Graham. So far the only evidence provided for the other side of the argument are sheets and the comments of a coach nick-named "the Pirate".

Awesome. The biggest "cheat" in the NFL backs your guy....

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

Gilbertcat wrote:I saw UW brought the sheets to block their hand signals from being stolen. If that many coaches are making a point about Toad's program, it shows that coaches do not respect him.

So, sheets? Thats your reasoning? I get you guys don't like the guy, but someone said he is not respected in coaching circles and I posted evidence of arguably the best coach in all of football having a very high level of respect for Graham. So far the only evidence provided for the other side of the argument are sheets and the comments of a coach nick-named "the Pirate".

Awesome. The biggest "cheat" in the NFL backs up your boy. The irony.....

Ill just leave this:

We know that Graham and Patriots coach Bill Belichick are good friends. Does the university really want its football program viewed with the kind of eyebrow-raising skepticism that shrouds the Patriots? Don’t you want to know what “intel” made Oregon so paranoid?

I do. Graham preaches about character and morals and family values. Quarterback Mike Bercovici talks about the sacrifice the Sun Devils make to be special, like taking off hats and earrings before entering the football facility. The program frequently leans on the mythological status of Pat Tillman, a real-life hero and an honest-to-God student-athlete. I don’t want the Sun Devils crossing the line of fair play just so they know what’s coming on the next play.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/h ... /75119810/" target="_blank

Chicat wrote:
Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him

Not really, outside of those non-mediocre seasons he infuriated the fans.

Gilbertcat wrote:Ill just leave this:

We know that Graham and Patriots coach Bill Belichick are good friends. Does the university really want its football program viewed with the kind of eyebrow-raising skepticism that shrouds the Patriots? Don’t you want to know what “intel” made Oregon so paranoid?

I do. Graham preaches about character and morals and family values. Quarterback Mike Bercovici talks about the sacrifice the Sun Devils make to be special, like taking off hats and earrings before entering the football facility. The program frequently leans on the mythological status of Pat Tillman, a real-life hero and an honest-to-God student-athlete. I don’t want the Sun Devils crossing the line of fair play just so they know what’s coming on the next play.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/h ... /75119810/" target="_blank

Haha, you are reaching for anything that fits your narrative. 6 SB appearances & 4 SB wins in 15 years- I am okay with TG being affiliated with the coach that built that kind of success. The cheating stuff is drama hyped up by dumb fans to grasp on to. Everyone hates the team on top, and this is coming from a Broncos fan. I would love to see the Patriots dynasty come to an end, but cheating stuff is just tabloid garbage.

Speaking of hype, Bickley has built a career on looking for drama where there is none. The very story you linked shows as much.

We need to get this clown (CTG) out of the Coach Rod thread. When CTG actually gets to a BCS level bowl, ring me up. Even when he won the south at ASSU he couldn't get into the top 8 to get a bid like RR did with us.

I don't care if he breaks wind with Belicheck, good for them. Dude needs to accomplish something first past taking 3 or 4 mediocre programs to nowhere bowls. CTG lives the quote, fake it until you make it

azcat49 wrote:We need to get this clown (CTG) out of the Coach Rod thread. When CTG actually gets to a BCS level bowl, ring me up. Even when he won the south at ASSU he couldn't get into the top 8 to get a bid like RR did with us.

I don't care if he breaks wind with Belicheck, good for them. Dude needs to accomplish something first past taking 3 or 4 mediocre programs to nowhere bowls. CTG lives the quote, fake it until you make it

Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!!!

jimson wrote:

Chicat wrote:
Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him

Not really, outside of those non-mediocre seasons he infuriated the fans.

He was very much respected by fans and was very personable and approachable off the field. He played on a city league baseball team with a bunch of guys who worked inside and outside McKale. Was just one of the guys and didn't ask nor did he expect to be treated any differently than anybody else out there. Once got hit by a pitch and his teammates wanted to rush the mound but DT told them to sit down and calmly went to first base like it was no big deal.

He use to have a weekly brown bag lunch with fans and would go over film from previous weeks game (until a guy on the AFO site posted some of the discussions on line) and it was open to anybody. Not to mention that he never complained about the sub par facilities and never let his coaches or players use it as an excuse.

When he was honored last year(?) his seats were with our group and he could not have been nicer. Took pictures with anybody and everybody and talked football with anybody and everybody. First class guy on and off the field.

ramcat wrote:Certainly get the comments on the defense and Casteel but would like to see how things go with some better and healthy players. Seems like there have been lots of misses and the injuries are ridiculous!! Liked what I was seeing of Fotu when he went out as well.

I just find it hard to see how Casteel can scheme his way past the injuries we've had this year. Having talented players makes any scheme look good. We've just been devastated from a talent perspective this year.

No matter how many #'s you put in each line, it doesn't work well when you're playing 3rd and 4th stringers.

Count me as a huge Tomey fan both on and off the field his entire time here. Sure I got frustrated with some of the offensive play calling some times, but I was still a fan of his.

Spaceman Spiff wrote:

ramcat wrote:Certainly get the comments on the defense and Casteel but would like to see how things go with some better and healthy players. Seems like there have been lots of misses and the injuries are ridiculous!! Liked what I was seeing of Fotu when he went out as well.

I just find it hard to see how Casteel can scheme his way past the injuries we've had this year. Having talented players makes any scheme look good. We've just been devastated from a talent perspective this year.

No matter how many #'s you put in each line, it doesn't work well when you're playing 3rd and 4th stringers.

Agree. Reminds me of the Arizona Cardinals last year. Eventually you run out of "Next man up" guys.

jimson wrote:

Chicat wrote:
Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him

Not really, outside of those non-mediocre seasons he infuriated the fans.

I for one was not sad to see him go. Very good man, and quite likable, just didn't create fan friendly football with his focus on defense. 3rd and long with Keith Smith was a pooch punt, with Ortege Jenkins it was a QB draw. Tomey really didn't have enough energy for recruiting either. Another thing that irked me too was that he was very emotionless on the sidelines. You didn't know if the Cats scored a TD or just lost the ball.

Then Livengood brought in Mackovic, who had a great offensive mind, and quite emotional, too much so. Then Stoops, a defensive coach, whose emotions were out of control.

I really like RichRod, fan friend offense, emotional but not too much so, and great personality.

Spaceman Spiff wrote: We've just been devastated from a talent perspective this year.

He just needs to revamp the defense. Injuries yes, but even last year the team was 110th in total defense.

Outside of 10-2 in 1993, 8-4 in 1994 and 12-1 in 1998, tomey was barely over a .500 coach.

jimson wrote:

Chicat wrote:
Tomey was totally mediocre outside of two ten-win seasons, and UA fans loved him

Not really, outside of those non-mediocre seasons he infuriated the fans.

Not this fan, or any of my classmates/friends. We definitely were not the biggest fans of his offense but other than that I really liked him as a coach and didn't like that he was let go. I just thought we needed to upgrade the facilities so we could recruit better and that he needed to let his OC get creative with play-calling.

Tomey once said that they wouldn't upgrade the facilities until they started losing. He was right.

azcat49 wrote:We need to get this clown (CTG) out of the Coach Rod thread. When CTG actually gets to a BCS level bowl, ring me up. Even when he won the south at ASSU he couldn't get into the top 8 to get a bid like RR did with us.

I don't care if he breaks wind with Belicheck, good for them. Dude needs to accomplish something first past taking 3 or 4 mediocre programs to nowhere bowls. CTG lives the quote, fake it until you make it

BCS level bowl? Is that what you are calling the bowl for the 2nd place PAC 12 team now? It was the Holiday bowl a couple years ago. Speaking of faking it, when was the last time RR beat an LA school? Let me help you: it was 2012. UA hasn't beat the two most talented teams in its own division in 3 years and you want to talk about faking it? Riiiiiiiight.

Merkin, I tend to fall in the camp that any defense will never be great statistically. RR's offense just does not cater to TOP and field position, plus it extends the game.

That said, our talent level is more the issue, IMO. We are 85th against the rush and 107th in pass efficiency. The 3-3-5 is weakest vs the run, but that's not our (biggest) issue.

I'm so glad Scum Dick stopped pretending to be an unbiased fan with no school allegiances. Although that shit was hilarious.

No kidding. It was kinda cute for a while. Now he is just a lamer less racist version of DW99.

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:

azcat49 wrote:We need to get this clown (CTG) out of the Coach Rod thread. When CTG actually gets to a BCS level bowl, ring me up. Even when he won the south at ASSU he couldn't get into the top 8 to get a bid like RR did with us.

I don't care if he breaks wind with Belicheck, good for them. Dude needs to accomplish something first past taking 3 or 4 mediocre programs to nowhere bowls. CTG lives the quote, fake it until you make it

BCS level bowl? Is that what you are calling the bowl for the 2nd place PAC 12 team now? It was the Holiday bowl a couple years ago. Speaking of faking it, when was the last time RR beat an LA school? Let me help you: it was 2012. UA hasn't beat the two most talented teams in its own division in 3 years and you want to talk about faking it? Riiiiiiiight.

RR did beat arguably the best team in the entire conference twice in the last 3 years, Oregon. Even the injured team last year with Mariota is significantly better than the turd team they've rolled out this year.

One could argue that the lack of talent on defense is due to the 3-3-5. Defensive line talent, at least.