Looking Back at the Flood Era...Different Perspective

[TrueRU]

I wholeheartedly agree that we needed to make a change with Coach Flood after this past season, and I am excited at how things are shaping up so far with Coach Ash. However, while everyone likes to bash Flood, I will say this...

2012 (his first year with Schiano's players) & 2014 (1st B1G season) were two of the most fun seasons I have had as a fan in recent memory. Does it compare to 2006, no, but they were fun in their own ways. Were there ultimate let downs in each of those? Absolutely. But there were some fun times as well.

2012:
-I didn't have a huge expectation going into this season, though I thought we had talent. I loved our defensive intensity the whole year. I still remember being at Cincy for the 10-3 win there and then heading back after the game and hearing the B1G rumors. A great day, one of the best as an RU fan.

2014:
-Our 1st year in the B1G had some awesome moments. The atmosphere vs. PSU was incredible. The win vs. Michigan and the comeback at Maryland were awesome. It was fun to be a part of big time football at the highest level, and it was fun to compete with that group.

2013 & 2015 were ultimately not great, but hey at least we got something. I do think we could have gotten more out of those teams potentially with a different coaching staff, but at least we had some highs with Coach Flood at the helm.

 

[Knight Shift]

 

[rutgersal]

If Flood didn't feel the need to go undercover, and giro bat for a player that didn't deserve it, he'd still be coaching. I think overall, Flood maintained and that's about the best you could expect of him. Large numbers of players redshirted the last few years, so we should see the benefits of that in successive seasons.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

don't try to re-write history please. Take a real step back, take a deep breath and you will be able to see the full picture... it is not pretty and it NEVER was.

But we have a new HC and I rather focus on that. If someone else wants to give a full timeline of all the missteps and setbacks from the moment he got hired until he was fired, have at it.

I will be looking forward to the Spring Game:)

 

[jmc11201]

I agree that 2012 and 2014 were fun seasons and there were times I thought he was a pretty good and sensible CEO type. In 2012, the offense was generally conservative, but that made sense with the defense we had. In 2014, it seemed like we were prepared for all the games we played...getting blown out when we didn't have the same talent, but otherwise, were competitive in every other game.

Where he lost me is that as we saw and heard more about the internal rot going on inside the program (lack of discipline, arrests, Barnwell email-gate, etc.), I came to the conclusion that the longer he stuck around, the deeper in the hole we would get. I don't think he was leading us to a better place despite the fact that the ship stayed afloat in 2012 and 2014 and seemed like it was heading in the right direction.

 

[superfan01]

He was all smoke and mirrors. Recruits saw that which is why they shunned him.

Good guy but He set program back.

 

[srru86]

I am not an "Off with their heads!" sort of guy when it comes to coaches. But once the investigation established any inappropriate behavior he should have been relieved. Anywhere else the outcome would have been "Nothing to see here" or he's out. Suspension was a slow death, for him and us.

 

[Crimedog2]

I didn't find 2012 that fun . That team , especially the defense ,was good enough to be a top 15 team . Flood played that whole season not to lose and it caught up to him down the stretch when he lost the last 3 games . Flood held that team back. That team was in a dogfight with a bad army and bad temple that year because of flood's game plan .
2013 and 2015 were disasters .
2014 - Michigan was a fun moment and so was the win over North Carolina . Flood can hang his hat on those moments . Overall , he was a guy that never should have been hired and another year or two the program would be a perennial 3 win team with flood sinking the ship.

 

[Rokodesh]

His handling of the QB situation this year is enough to no longer be the coach. Even if Rettig turned out to be terrible, you have to give him a try when the starter is as ineffective as Laviano was.

 

[WhiteBus]

The Floodies live on.[eyeroll]

 

[willisneverrana43]

Perfect. This thread has no chance of a good ending.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Perfect. This thread has no chance of a good ending.

Yep.

 

[RedSpartan]

Here is the only perspective that matters:

 

[RU848789]

Thought you were going to go with this...

 

[MADHAT1]

I was a Flood supporter until his last year when he went off the deep end on off field issues and lost my support.
So was a "Floodie" as the Kylecriers like to call those who supported Kyle Flood.
Hopefully Chris Ash will do well enough that this board won't be overwhelmed with AshOOs posts like this board was infected with during Flood's time as HC with Kylecrier messages.
But will admit Flood wasn't a good P-5 program HC , just had some years that made it look like he could be.

His 2012 season looked good on paper , until you realized how bad the team was at the end of season
2013's team wasn't as good as the record made it look and that ended up being a losing record.
2014 was a good season, but the blowout losses took away from RU FB looking like it had a successful season to the Kylecriers. But it did slow the Food no good messages during the off-season.
In 2015 Flood proved his critics right , but it was his off field antics that embarrassed the RU Administration and caused his downfall, taking an unpopular ( to many) AD with him out the door.

The truth of it Rutgers has a better chance to succeed in the B1G without Flood and just about every RU FB fan is behind Chris Ash, which was far from the case when it was Kyle Flood AS the RU HC.

So looking back at the Flood years, there was limited success , but a divided fanbase consisting of Floodies and Kylecriers all 4 of Floods seasons as HC and the way Flood embarrassed Rutgers University causing him to be suspended during the season and fired after it was over.

 

[B0ski]

I needed a good laugh today thanks. The guy was so overmatched to lead a D1 football program it was scary.

 

[TrueRU]

I am not trying to defend Flood by any means. If any of you actually read my initial post, you would see that I agreed he had to go. I don't disagree with any of the points you made either about how bad some of the things that happened were. Overall yes, it did not go well and that is obvious.

My point was simply that there were some fun times during his tenure despite all of that. Just trying to make the point that it wasn't all doom and gloom during his time here. That is all.

 

[MozRU]

Thank God this guy, in today's day and age with cameras and cell phone, tried to go undercover.

I appreciate it.

 

[RU from Jersey]

Again, all you needed to see was RU down by 30+ points, late in the 4th quarter, and the coach called for a field goal. This happened twice. Nuff said!

 

[rutgersdave]

2012, I started to stop watching Rutgers football. Flood didn't want to try to score an offensive TD and wanted Schiano defense to do all the work. By the end of the season, the offense didn't ever try to score and when we needed them, they never had the practice throwing the ball.

 

[Ridge 22]

Just so completely glad that he is gone. I thought he was a collasal mistake from day 1 and he never managed to prove me wrong. He was in well over his head from the get go.

 

[Dpgru]

RU paid the price of making a big mistake. That mistake was that the powers that be at the time decided that saving the recruiting class was more important than getting the hire right. Flood was in over his head from day one. I am glad we learned from it and this time they went after the coach and if it cost us some decommits so be it. I am sure Flood did the best he could, he just wasn't up to it. Glad the Flood era is over. I wish him well. I am sure he wanted it to go well here and he wanted this job. It didn't work. I will not kick dirt on the grave but I am glad we are on a new path.

 

[WhiteBus]

He was all smoke and mirrors. Recruits saw that which is why they shunned him.

Good guy but He set program back.

Here is my issue with the Floodies. He was not a good man. There is a reason he never had an offensive coordinator last more than a year and go read the Rutgers report. He was a jerk to the people that worked for him and those on the Academic staff

 

[JQRU91]

Schiano and Flood have both moved on and so should we. No need to keep rehashing things from those eras.

 

[Caliknight]

Not rehashing those eras, but people need to get it right. Rutgers football has been pretty good, save a year or two, over the last decade. People speaking as if it is Shea era levels are just wrong. Way wrong.

 

[ru75]

last year was not fun except for having slyker defend the estblishment

 

[GSGS]

Call FEMA, Flood was a disaster!

 

[herdof3]

By the end of year 1 it was clear what we had.

 

[JoeRU0304]

I agree that 2012 and 2014 were fun seasons and there were times I thought he was a pretty good and sensible CEO type. In 2012, the offense was generally conservative, but that made sense with the defense we had. In 2014, it seemed like we were prepared for all the games we played...getting blown out when we didn't have the same talent, but otherwise, were competitive in every other game.

Where he lost me is that as we saw and heard more about the internal rot going on inside the program (lack of discipline, arrests, Barnwell email-gate, etc.), I came to the conclusion that the longer he stuck around, the deeper in the hole we would get. I don't think he was leading us to a better place despite the fact that the ship stayed afloat in 2012 and 2014 and seemed like it was heading in the right direction.

Outstanding post and you really said it all. We've certainly had some good, if not great moments over the last 4 seasons, but overall it never felt like it was building to anything in the long-term and once August and September hit, I lost all confidence in his regime. The whole Emailgate thing was so mind-numbingly stupid that it's still hard to believe that it actually happened. Add that in to the other gigantic red flags and it was evident that change was needed.


Joe P.

 

[yesrutgers01]

Outstanding post and you really said it all. We've certainly had some good, if not great moments over the last 4 seasons, but overall it never felt like it was building to anything in the long-term and once August and September hit, I lost all confidence in his regime. The whole Emailgate thing was so mind-numbingly stupid that it's still hard to believe that it actually happened. Add that in to the other gigantic red flags and it was evident that change was needed.


Joe P.

One of the most reasonable posts I have seen. And we all know that Joe is a negatiid, asshat, unreasonable poster...

 

[daveo13]

Surprised Loyal hasn't jumped in and give his 4 paragraph statement yet. I think he has a "Flood" search on this board.

 

[CERU00]

I wholeheartedly agree that we needed to make a change with Coach Flood after this past season, and I am excited at how things are shaping up so far with Coach Ash. However, while everyone likes to bash Flood, I will say this...

2012 (his first year with Schiano's players) & 2014 (1st B1G season) were two of the most fun seasons I have had as a fan in recent memory. Does it compare to 2006, no, but they were fun in their own ways. Were there ultimate let downs in each of those? Absolutely. But there were some fun times as well.

2012:
-I didn't have a huge expectation going into this season, though I thought we had talent. I loved our defensive intensity the whole year. I still remember being at Cincy for the 10-3 win there and then heading back after the game and hearing the B1G rumors. A great day, one of the best as an RU fan.

2014:
-Our 1st year in the B1G had some awesome moments. The atmosphere vs. PSU was incredible. The win vs. Michigan and the comeback at Maryland were awesome. It was fun to be a part of big time football at the highest level, and it was fun to compete with that group.

2013 & 2015 were ultimately not great, but hey at least we got something. I do think we could have gotten more out of those teams potentially with a different coaching staff, but at least we had some highs with Coach Flood at the helm.

You used the word fun five times. I could use the word sad or angry to describe my feeling >50 times during that span. Your statement "it was fun to compete with that group" sounds like something Flood would say. He was just happy to be along for the ride.

 

[ruready4somefootball]

I wonder where Flood ends up after sitting on his money for a year and just relaxing. Who offers, and at what capacity,will say a lot about his coaching ability and the perception of that ability. Does he start from the bottom, get hired as a OL coach at a D1 school, or just fade into the sunset?

 

[redlight123]

Most were supporters early on. His style was praised as blue collar no nonsense. That fell apart quickly. Historically the coach lasts about 5 years or less. This instability is evident in the overall team results.

 

[babbs09]

I wonder where Flood ends up after sitting on his money for a year and just relaxing. Who offers, and at what capacity,will say a lot about his coaching ability and the perception of that ability. Does he start from the bottom, get hired as a OL coach at a D1 school, or just fade into the sunset?

I feel like option 1 and 3 are the most likely.

 

[yesrutgers01]

I wonder where Flood ends up after sitting on his money for a year and just relaxing. Who offers, and at what capacity,will say a lot about his coaching ability and the perception of that ability. Does he start from the bottom, get hired as a OL coach at a D1 school, or just fade into the sunset?

He will at least get some solid looks as an OL coach. He always wanted to stay in the area though, so that could be a deciding factor of where he ends up.

 

[rulaw87]

I get what the OP is saying. The 8-0 start in 2012 and the 2014 Michigan and Maryland games were alot of fun. The atmosphere for the PSU game was awesome. However, each of those experiences to me were incomplete. It never felt like we were really growing or fully competent as a team or program. It always felt like the collapse was coming which eventually and inevitably happened. Let's look forward to better times ahead, not back.

 

[JoeRU0304]

I get what the OP is saying. The 8-0 start in 2012 and the 2014 Michigan and Maryland games were alot of fun. The atmosphere for the PSU game was awesome. However, each of those experiences to me were incomplete. It never felt like we were really growing or fully competent as a team or program. It always felt like the collapse was coming which eventually and inevitably happened. Let's look forward to better times ahead, not back.

'Incomplete' is a good way to describe it. On paper we did some good things (share of a conference title, Lambert trophy, big comeback wins, handful of wins against 'name' opponents, some solid recruits) but we never seemed to have solid direction and it seemed like we were just waiting for the bottom to inevitably fall out. The biggest lingering/ nagging issue IMO was Flood's lack of success with NJ recruiting; it was like the HS staffs and families knew something was amiss...I think Flood ends up at Delaware with Brock or at one of the NJ/LI 1AA's in the next few years.


Joe P.

 

[willisneverrana43]

It's not complicated. He inherited one of the most talented squads we have had. With it, he was able to beat underwhelming teams during the first 2/3 of year 1. Then he ran into smartly coached or talented teams. He started to lose, including a horrific bowl game. With each of his subpar recruiting classes, the team became more his and less talented. RU lost more and more and, for the most part, got crushed by good teams. Problems built upon themselves, Flood panicked to keep his better recruits eligible. The mess became public as the mask provided by the talent accumulated by the previous regime fell away. Flood was not qualified in the first place, never good at it, the signs were there early, and eventually there was nothing to hide behind.

But, yeah, there were some fun times early on. But for those of us who thought it would inevitably get real bad, it wasn't as fun.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Kent State was the 1st sign that the wrong person was hired. That was October of 2012.

Recap: http://espn.go.com/college-football/recap?gameId=323010164