Chris Ash Post Practice Press Conference 4/14/16
- Thread starter Scarlet_Scourge
- Start date
No coach speak from Ash, tells it like it is. If you aren't up to the task, there is no sugar coating it. MLB's "are a mess":
We are in B1G trouble at LB. Combined with the inexperience/lack of depth at CB and Ash and Co have their work cut out for them on this side of the ball. I still expect some improvement, because last year's team stats #'s were absolutely disgraceful, but my expectations remain tempered for now.
CORRECTION- "Rettig has been more consistent." But they are all up and down. "We have a long way to go with all of them." "They ride the roller coaster from one day to the next and one week to the next."
Last edited:
I don't think there was a person not concerned about LB especially after Longa left early. 1 entire start coming in, a Safety moved to LB, and no real experience at MLB.
At least at CB there'll be 3 more coming in the summer including someone with a bit of experience and a JUCO.
Said it in the other thread you simply can't count on a JUCO to step in and be ready to play at this level, with impact, immediately. We've seen it before, it's very difficult, the game is played at another level of speed, et al, and typically takes them a good 1/2 season, or more, to feel comfortable. Gotta pray our 2 starters, and the kid from Michigan (whose name escapes me right now), don't go down with injury early in the season.
His comment about LBs was "it's a mess right now". His comment about the kicking game was similarly low. While I'm sure he'll moderate his honesty in the Fall as we near game week, and will employ more coach-speak, I think it's refreshing to see him be straightforward and honest about things.
Absolutely agree and love it also. He's brutally honest with no sugar coating. And he's right about not issuing spring awards. He doesn't know the players yet and is not willing to give out an unearned award for the mere sake of tradition. Welcome to Power 5 football ladies and Gentlemen. This is what it takes for Rutgers to get to the next level. Just listening to him , you know an 8-4 or 7-5 record would be looked at by Ash &co as a disappointment but something to build from. In the past don't you believe a Schiano to some extent and Flood to a great extent would say they were disappointed with such a winning record but silently be thrilled. Not Ash. Folks this is what it takes to achieve elite Big Ten status. This is why a Georgia can part with a Mark Richt or LSU can consider getting rid of a Les Miles despite their success. Excellence is demanded and feel good talk is a thing of the past.
I'm okay with this. It at least seems the competition is on the level.
Frankly, I think Ash will continue to push EACH player, and that can't be a bad thing.
We didn't have the type of year where anyone should be restingredients on their laurels; we had no laurels.
While you are completely right about LB, don't discount our DL. THREE 5th year players as starters, another as a reserve (Malachai Moore) and a 4th year junior (most likely) at the nose. That's a lot of grown ass men playing football from a pure physicality standpoint. Plus Hamilton and Pinnix-Odrick are also good players. Again, need to stay healthy even though guys like Wilkins, Hogan, Davis and Seymour have also shown flashes so I think we may have some depth as well. I also really like a senior Cioffi playing his natural position at free safety and Bless Austin IMO will be a stud corner. I know you really need 6-7 quality defensive backs and I only really feel good about 2 but again, I think we will be coached up on the D side of the ball. I think we will go 5-7.
Hopefully we will see a much improved team by late August. These guys will all have a lot of work to put in on their own from May till training camp opens.
Sounds to me Ash is basically saying most of our players are not good enough to play in the Big10.
I don't think he s saying that at all. He is not going to sugar coat anything but he is a typical "I am never happy or satisfied, we can always get better" type of coach. I think his we are not good enough attitude would be pretty much the same if he was at OSU. never satisfied and never happy. Everything he says is calculated to send a message to the players that they must get better and work harder. I love his approach.
Agree. Now is not the time to be blowing smoke up people's butts.
This was my sense after the first five minutes. He's instituting a culture of toughness, especially the mental part, and he's not going to let the players think they're better than they are. Fight like dogs. LT once said that ("crazed dogs"), and that's the attitude we want.
It's a bit easier to be brutally honest when you've just taken over a team instead of one that's had three recruiting classes.
Maybe he will always be this honest, maybe not. But let's not forget that brutal honesty at this point is simply blaming the previous staff
Maybe he will always be this honest, maybe not. But let's not forget that brutal honesty at this point is simply blaming the previous staff
He's doing both. But coach ash, you are showing your lack of coaching experience by taking shots at the previous staffs . Focus on your team!
I enjoy the candidness and honest assessments. Hopefully they remain when it's mostly kids he recruited in the program.
He wasn't taking shots he just wasn't sugar coating the fact that the the program was on a death spin. There is a reason why Rutgers cleaned house.
scarlet scourge, you may be right, but Ive been around this thing long enough to have seen young coaches do the same thing Ash is. He is a young guy with his own BCS program, the guy is on a power trip (which is a good thing if used properly), and wants any program success to be associated with him... not schiano.
I just hope he realizes sooner rather than later that he can have the same success without disrespecting the past.
Schiano changed everything too. He got rid of a lot of awards, most were WAY OLDER like decades older some dating back to the 1930's. Agree with it or not he had to blown things up to get us to the point were we could go bowling and have a season like we did in 2006. That is what you have to do to get things going in the right direction sometimes. Every single coach does the same thing, young and old.
You guys are acting like he removed the cannon or got rid of the mascot.
Absolutely agree with what he's doing and being brutally honest. He's not disrespecting the past and let's face it..........we need change. He's taking firm control of the ship and setting the right course of direction despite prevailing winds of previous traditions that are not right for the program now.
Im with you. I just think the Chop is such a small thing that it doesn't need to even be addressed. The fact that it was tells me a lot.
Basically, Keep Choppin! lol
Anyway, moving on..
But when the previous staff is affecting the perception of the program, you have to distance yourself and say things have changed.
Glad to see the Chop go. I was tired of it and it was a connection to a past that we want to leave behind.
Coach Ash is not here to get Beef O'Brady Bowl invites.
Coach Ash is not here to get Beef O'Brady Bowl invites.
Too many Flood fans on this board (ignorant people). Flood was never qualified to be a head coach at this level. He deserved--by his resume-- to be fired when he statistically had one of the bottom ten offensive lines in college football. Instead, he was promoted because Pernetti had a panic attack. Flood will never be a head coach again in major college football. He won't even get an offensive coordinator position at this level. When he was a co-coordinator here, his offense was terrible. He left the program sorely lacking talent (although he was praised as a hero for keeping 2 recruits here when Greg left). Two recruits don't make a program. Floodies: move on.
I hate to break the news to you, but no coach is going to be "candid" in his assessments during press conferences. Both Coach Ash and Coach Flood use coach-speak, but Coach Flood may well have been more clumsy in his attempts than Coach Ash is.
Every coach realizes that different players need different types of motivation. Some athletes take positive comments as motivation to work even harder. A much larger group is going to become complacent when you suggest they are doing well. Another group needs constant motivation and kicks in the butt to achieve their best.
So an "honest" assessment by any head coach is a recipe for disaster. Coach Ash has to be able to read his players and determine which group each one falls into.
In essence, the comments concerning players should never be taken at face value by fans, because the head coach has other motivations in mind.
IMO we will only learn during the first game where the real weaknesses and strengths lie. Everything else should be taken with a grain of salt at this point, as the comments are motivational, not educational for the fans.
You maybe right but at this point Ash seems different to me. I think you may be giving him too much credit for knowing what individual guys respond to what type of stimulus at this point. IMO he is just calling it as he sees. Easier to do when you did not recruit any of the guys on the team but time will tell if he changes down the road. I think he is in the broad strokes stage of establishing a culture and associated expectations at this point.
Similar threads
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
Olympic Sports Rutgers Softball Returns with Youth Movement This Season- Latest: rubaseball78
-