Signs our program is getting stronger

[RUQB17]

After reading the past few weeks, it seems that the consensus is we are getting worse as a program. Wins and losses don't always tell the whole story. Sure the perennial powerhouse teams (which we are not, regardless of what you have convinced yourself of) can reload/ rebuild easier. I think a sign we are getting better is that there doesn't seem to be a huge drop in talent when guys go out during the game. Sure the guys coming in are greener, but all these kids seem to able to make plays. It's not like years past, when there would be a big drop from #1 to #2 and forget about #3. If you take into account our losses in training camp, I believe we had to dip into the 3 deep at DB on Saturday. I don't follow the depth chart like I use to, so I may be wrong. We found a way to shut out a team in the 4th qtr, that we couldn't stop all day. Yes they gave up a ton of yards and pts, but with the game on the line, they produced the stops we needed to comeback. A bowl game may not be in the cards this year, but I think the team has showed some real fight and some serious talent for the future.

 

[Scarlet16E]

I don't think there is consensus on anything. I see us getting better.

 

[Knight Shift]

There is never a consensus on Scarlet Nation. You are either blue sky or dark sky. You are either Republican or Democrat. You are either pork roll or Taylor ham. You are either london broil or flank steak. . . . .

I would like to see how the rest of the season plays out. I see it this way. One more blowout, and we hang with the three other big boys, I think we are making progress. Three or more blowouts, and we have work to do on coaching, recruiting and/or player development.

 

[rucoe89]

Great point RUQB17. We are already at 3 deep on the interior DL and DBs and we are still able to compete relatively effectively. Next three weekends will give good insight on the quality of that depth at this stage. However, even if we get steamrolled, we do have to keep in mind that we are playing a lot of players on D, particularly DB, that probably would have benefited from sitting one more year and/or gradually be introduced into play. We are still dangerously thin at LB. On the offense, depth is showing at WR and RB. TE is steady, but I think longer term Flanigan and Scarf may have a chance to emerge. Nelson and Miller are holding up fine on the interior. Denman could be better suited for Guard, but we probably are thin at the OL T position.

 

[RU-ROCS]

RUQB17 -

Great post. I agree with your assessment.

 

[Knight Ed]

I think it's a tough year to judge anything because of all of the arrests. if we hang tough with Ohio State, Michigan, and Wisconsin that will be huge.

 

[RUich]

Unfortunately, two of our best chances to win (Nebraska and Maryland) are at the end of the schedule. We have some tough games directly in front of us and the injuries are mounting. May be a bumpy ride.

 

[RUSK97]

Alright Mike, what's your assessment of CL six games into his career as a starter?

 

[Blitz8RUCrazy]

I agree. We are improving. Also CL has definitely improved from game 1 to now. It is nice to see that we are progressing upward.

 

[masice520]

My honest assessment is we're in a bit of a pergatory state right now. I'm not sure where we're trending. I thought the recruiting was heading in the right direction after exploding in Schiano's last season, the team had entered the B1G, and we were fresh off another bowl appearance. Then the removal of players and suspensions came in. Then a loss or two. Then a decommittment.

I still have hope, but I'm more concerned now then I was 3 seasons ago...and that was in the paltry AAC. I feel like the next couple of seasons will really set the tone for the future of this team (and yeah, I realize you can probably say that for 90% of schools in 1A). I just am in a state of flux right now.

 

[RU4Real]

OP = best backup QB ever. :)

 

[AreYouNUTS]

I'm going to wait out the season to see if there is any improvement, let alone signs the program is "stronger," to be honest. Can't judge the O when it's beating up on some of the worst D's, or worst secondaries, in the nation. ST's are all over the place, right now, and the D is just, well, bad (the run D has played well, statistically speaking, but how will those #'s look following OSU, Nebraska, Wisconsin (w/CC back), Michigan, and Army??).

 

[kennyschiano]

the win was against indiana!! indiana is terrible

 

[kupuna133]

RUQB17 very nicely said. Not a considerable fall off in talent from 1-2-3. Nice to have depth. Now it is all about coaching up the talent that is strapping it up on Saturday.

 

[csphi]

I'm going to wait out the season to see if there is any improvement, let alone signs the program is "stronger," to be honest. Can't judge the O when it's beating up on some of the worst D's, or worst secondaries, in the nation. ST's are all over the place, right now, and the D is just, well, bad (the run D has played well, statistically speaking, but how will those #'s look following OSU, Nebraska, Wisconsin (w/CC back), Michigan, and Army??).

Does Michigan St have a bad defense?

 

[RU#1fan]

I don't think there is consensus on anything. I see us getting better.

Can see the gradual progress . Fantastic game vs. Michigan St., great comeback against Indiana... Very strong in the 2nd and 4th Qtrs. Just need to continue on this climb this Safurday vs. OSU.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

Does Michigan St have a bad defense?

36th overall right now, but 72nd PED, which we took major advantage of no doubt!

 

[RU#1fan]

the win was against indiana!! indiana is terrible

Kenny Indiana does not stink.
They took Ohio St. to the wire even after losing QB Sudfeld during the game.

 

[BiggyRU]

The major reason we are improving is our Olines run blocking and our running back rotation.
If you can run the ball consistently you have a chance vs anyone.

 

[NotInRHouse]

Was thinking about this today and I think the only time in Flood's tenure when we really put anyone with a pulse away was against UNC in the bowl.

We need to beat ONE...I will take ONE win against tOSU, Michigan, Neb or Wisky and to beat Maryland and Army convincingly (not by a FG) to say this team has been a good one.

At the end of the season there needs to be a positive answer to the question "Are we any closer to winning the division than this time last year" to not have heads roll.

 

[RUQB17]

Alright Mike, what's your assessment of CL six games into his career as a starter?

I think CL is doing fine in his first season. Every play is a learning experience for him. He has been fairly good protecting the football. He is definitely more comfortable with LC in the game, but I was really happy with his 4th QTR performance. He has a chance to be a solid player. As for the WIN against IU. I read many posts pregame talking about Sudfeld. If he plays we probably lose etc.. They were a 6.5 pt favorite, why are people now talking like we should have beaten them like Colgate in the early 90's?? Are they a great team? no, but they aren't terrible either. In the face of a lot of distraction, the team is 3-3 and playing very hard. I am not sure we could have sustained the same type of suspensions, injuries and distractions in the past (even 06')

 

[Blitz8RUCrazy]

I think CL is doing fine in his first season. Every play is a learning experience for him. He has been fairly good protecting the football. He is definitely more comfortable with LC in the game, but I was really happy with his 4th QTR performance. He has a chance to be a solid player. As for the WIN against IU. I read many posts pregame talking about Sudfeld. If he plays we probably lose etc.. They were a 6.5 pt favorite, why are people now talking like we should have beaten them like Colgate in the early 90's?? Are they a great team? no, but they aren't terrible either. In the face of a lot of distraction, the team is 3-3 and playing very hard. I am not sure we could have sustained the same type of suspensions, injuries and distractions in the past (even 06')

After much reflection, I must agree with this.

 

[RU-ROCS]

the win was against indiana!! indiana is terrible

FWIW, That terrible IU team lost to Ohio State by a TD only after their starting QB was knocked out of the game.

 

[Rutgers Man 22]

Unfortunately, two of our best chances to win (Nebraska and Maryland) are at the end of the schedule. We have some tough games directly in front of us and the injuries are mounting. May be a bumpy ride.

Conversely, these young and green guys will all be more experienced and comfortable by then. I much rather play winnable games at the end of the year

 

[AreYouNUTS]

FWIW, That terrible IU team lost to Ohio State by a TD only after their starting QB was knocked out of the game.

OSU rolled up over 500 yards offense, "holding" The Hoosiers - who were down to their 3rd string QB by game's end - to tad over 400. The big problem was a -3 TO margin, for OSU, and 110 yards worth of penalties. Don't take anything away from IU, at all, as they didn't commit a single TO despite all their injury issues that day.

 

[BillyC80]

To me the improvement in Rutgers as a competitive football team has been attitudinal.

Early in the MSU game I turned to my son and said, "our guys are not intimidated." And with that I knew we had a chance to pull off the upset.

 

[RUfan121]

Ridiculous

 

[patk89]

I think CL is doing fine in his first season. Every play is a learning experience for him. He has been fairly good protecting the football. He is definitely more comfortable with LC in the game, but I was really happy with his 4th QTR performance. He has a chance to be a solid player. As for the WIN against IU. I read many posts pregame talking about Sudfeld. If he plays we probably lose etc.. They were a 6.5 pt favorite, why are people now talking like we should have beaten them like Colgate in the early 90's?? Are they a great team? no, but they aren't terrible either. In the face of a lot of distraction, the team is 3-3 and playing very hard. I am not sure we could have sustained the same type of suspensions, injuries and distractions in the past (even 06')

I have been pleasantly surprised by how well Laviano has played so early in his career. He will be a very good one for us, a B1G quality QB as long as we can keep him healthy. I am concerned about our depth on defense and how that will impact us the rest of this season. There were long periods of time during the Indy game where receivers were running free and there were gaping holes in the run defense. Longa is playing at an All-B1G level but getting little help. The Feb 2014 recruiting class has already been decimated by departures, the guys who played as true freshman (Martin/Hicks) will be juniors in 2016. That creates a hole in our depth chart, especially on defense.

 

[derleider]

After reading the past few weeks, it seems that the consensus is we are getting worse as a program. Wins and losses don't always tell the whole story. Sure the perennial powerhouse teams (which we are not, regardless of what you have convinced yourself of) can reload/ rebuild easier. I think a sign we are getting better is that there doesn't seem to be a huge drop in talent when guys go out during the game. Sure the guys coming in are greener, but all these kids seem to able to make plays. It's not like years past, when there would be a big drop from #1 to #2 and forget about #3. If you take into account our losses in training camp, I believe we had to dip into the 3 deep at DB on Saturday. I don't follow the depth chart like I use to, so I may be wrong. We found a way to shut out a team in the 4th qtr, that we couldn't stop all day. Yes they gave up a ton of yards and pts, but with the game on the line, they produced the stops we needed to comeback. A bowl game may not be in the cards this year, but I think the team has showed some real fight and some serious talent for the future.

If you only look at games against FBS teams, we are in the bottom ten in yards and passing yards allowed per game. Bottom five in sacks per game. Even including FCS schools, we are in the bottom five in passing yards per game (and adjusting for the level of the passing efficiency of the opposing teams actually makes it worse) Im not sure how anyone would see progress there. Taking 20 minutes of game and ignoring the first 40 minutes of that game and the rest of the season is a pretty shoddy way of looking at things.

 

[jakeknight]

I think we are getting pretty good result from the available talent, without the arrest debacle we probably beat WSU. My major concern is the recruiting, I think we are getting "good kids" but to make a move up in the pecking order we need to consistently be getting a fair share 4's. There is clearly a talent gap to get into the next level in the BIG. The only way to be competitive at that level is to begin to close the talent gap with stronger recruiting. Geographically we are in a good place but so far all we have done is expose our base to better teams in the BIG.

 

[RUInsanity]

If you only look at games against FBS teams, we are in the bottom ten in yards and passing yards allowed per game. Bottom five in sacks per game. Even including FCS schools, we are in the bottom five in passing yards per game (and adjusting for the level of the passing efficiency of the opposing teams actually makes it worse) Im not sure how anyone would see progress there. Taking 20 minutes of game and ignoring the first 40 minutes of that game and the rest of the season is a pretty shoddy way of looking at things.

Disagree. No doubt that stats are important. However the point QB17 was making was that 2nd and 3rd stringers were able to adjust and figure it out with the game in the balance. It's about growth as players and a team....not about looking at stats in a vacuum.

 

[DHajekRC84]

Does Michigan St have a bad defense?

Points Allowed.
Indy........... 246
Mary..........208
Nebby........168
MSU..........151
PSU...........121
OSU..........114
Wisky.........76
Mich..........65

Well I guess we're gonna find out as we still have games against the top 3.
In some ways we look better, in some ways we don't . And that makes us around a 500 team...sometimes slightly better, this year possible slightly worse. Sounds familiar.

But I do like the in season improvement and I do liked the attitude and I do like what I am seeing from the greener than green DBacks.

 

[urbanecane]

Tough to tell at this point. If we pull off 6-6, or even 5-7 considering the turns this season, with no blowout losses, than yes I would say that we are moving in the right direction. It's hard to say were trending up with recruiting being iffy. The Leonte Carroo's of the world don't typically come from low 3 star guys.

 

[derleider]

Tough to tell at this point. If we pull off 6-6, or even 5-7 considering the turns this season, with no blowout losses, than yes I would say that we are moving in the right direction. It's hard to say were trending up with recruiting being iffy. The Leonte Carroo's of the world don't typically come from low 3 star guys.

We already have a blowout loss.

 

[beaced]

To me the improvement in Rutgers as a competitive football team has been attitudinal.

Early in the MSU game I turned to my son and said, "our guys are not intimidated." And with that I knew we had a chance to pull off the upset.

Hey,just because your Son agreed with you don't think of yourself as a Guru. The kid had to do it or there goes his Pretzel,hot dog and soda.:stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

 

[BillyC80]

Lol, the kid is 29 and buys his own snacks.

 

[WhiteBus]

I don't think the first 6 games tell us anything about where this program is heading. But the next 4 certainly will.

 

[RU-05]

If you only look at games against FBS teams, we are in the bottom ten in yards and passing yards allowed per game. Bottom five in sacks per game. Even including FCS schools, we are in the bottom five in passing yards per game (and adjusting for the level of the passing efficiency of the opposing teams actually makes it worse) Im not sure how anyone would see progress there. Taking 20 minutes of game and ignoring the first 40 minutes of that game and the rest of the season is a pretty shoddy way of looking at things.

Actually we led in that game after 30 minutes. And it's not ignoring the 3rd qtr, it's weighing that against what transpired after, and scoreboard says it tilted in our favor.

But Indy game was a must win in terms of keeping this season out of total disaster territory, at least for now.

 

[Kbee3]

We already have a blowout loss.

I hardly think 28-3 qualifies as a "blowout".

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

We should be better on defense next year.. baptism of fire and all. Plus we get our best defensive player back.