Wishful thinking and hoping every yr. We August comes they will be trying to figure out our OL it will be new. One of those OL injuries was serious than we realize. Blakemore is lock in unless he becomes grad eligible transfer. We talk bring in TE and development of QB over the yrs. In respect to that where is the development of TE’s that are on the roster ? More so the respect and trusting the personnel was recruited by ISU ! That the Big ?
North Dakota - Quality Win
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MadBird
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Of course, as always fourthandshort, you say we've "historically fallen short" in the pass game but ignoring the record-setting seasons of Matt Brown, Tre Roberson, Jake Kolbe, even Brady Davis is Top 5 in some passing records, under Spack. But I didn't come here to beat that dead horse of ours again . . . .
What I don't get, or maybe its there and we never see it, is that Spack calls Joe Tiller his mentor, or one of his mentors, and Tiller was a pioneer in the spread offense and Purdue had a wide open offense when Spack was DC there. So you know, what's the deal? You would think Spack would be all in with a wide open offense and all of that.
fourthandshort
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I know we see history different, but ... blah blah blah ... so am I right or am I right ????????Of course, as always fourthandshort, you say we've "historically fallen short" in the pass game but ignoring the record-setting seasons of Matt Brown, Tre Roberson, Jake Kolbe, even Brady Davis is Top 5 in some passing records, under Spack. But I didn't come here to beat that dead horse of ours again . . . .
What I don't get, or maybe its there and we never see it, is that Spack calls Joe Tiller his mentor, or one of his mentors, and Tiller was a pioneer in the spread offense and Purdue had a wide open offense when Spack was DC there. So you know, what's the deal? You would think Spack would be all in with a wide open offense and all of that.
But my main critique of Spack is not whether he is willing to throw the ball - see this year. It's how he responds when things don't go well .. and not just in game when trying to protect a lead. It's also how he handles them in practice, in season and offseason. It's also how he handles his OCs as a reflection of himself ... the whole do NOT let the QB lose games for us. It is the whole negative mindset in this area IMO that hurts our QB development to the point Spack has never successfully recruited a HS QB that worked out.
But in addition to my argument that he has never successfully recruited a HS QB who worked out .. my newer observation/argument is one I just realized this season. No QB under Spack, aside from Matt Brown, has ever improved from their 1st to 2nd year as a starter .. until Annexstad. This would include HS recruits Winkler, Kolbe, Jefferson, and transfer Davis. Not going to list Roberson because he played with hand injury which killed his pass stats in 2015. Again, until this year with Annexstad ... which is another reason why I'm currently big fan of Peterson, along with TE production.
I was hoping this graphic woul tell the story of trust this year vs last .. both 6-5 seasons. I realize it's not this simple and other things contributed to this years offensive success. But one of those things that subtracted from our offense in 2023 was the inability of our defense to get off the field like they did in 2022. Our defense bailed our offense out a lot last year. Just the opposite for most of this year against the tougher teams .. until UND game where the defense shined like the Spack defenses of 2019 & prior.
And to those who think coaching let this team down, look at the Q3 and H2 scores in 2023 vs 2022.
2022 scoring by qtr: Q1 we win by 36, H1 we win by 4, H2 we lose by 45
2023 scoring by qtr: Q1 we win by 27, H1 we win by 38, H2 we win by 98 .. same 6-5 record, but we clearly didn't take the foot off the gas pedal. Granted weaker SOS due to first 4 games of season compared to 2022. But last year we faded 2nd half of many games. This year we stayed aggressive and played to win in 2nd half.
I guess this is what 6-5 looks like when you lose 4 games to top 25 teams by total of 8 pts.
At this point, the most important thing is keeping Peterson. If he bolts, our chances of enticing a big time QB or WR to come in decreases dramatically, let alone our ability to hold on to the guys we have. If he's gone, I think we are rebuilding regardless of if Spack is still the head coach.
MadBird
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I agree it is important to keep OC Peterson - but there are OC's already cut loose due to head coaching changes around them. If we can't keep Peterson, let's hope Spack AGGRESSIVELY pursues a comparable guy who's out there and has/might have connections to portal QB's. Like maybe from their former school. Indiana made a change, Syracuse just made a change. Northern Arizona is making a change, Utah Tech. Not sure I'd go with WIU's recently released guys, but you know what I mean.
TIMMY
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Of course, as always fourthandshort, you say we've "historically fallen short" in the pass game but ignoring the record-setting seasons of Matt Brown, Tre Roberson, Jake Kolbe, even Brady Davis is Top 5 in some passing records, under Spack. But I didn't come here to beat that dead horse of ours again . . . .
What I don't get, or maybe its there and we never see it, is that Spack calls Joe Tiller his mentor, or one of his mentors, and Tiller was a pioneer in the spread offense and Purdue had a wide open offense when Spack was DC there. So you know, what's the deal? You would think Spack would be all in with a wide open offense and all of that.
I can tell you from experience being a DC for a pass-happy coach ain't all it's cracked up to be. That was Spack under Tiller. And I swear I haven't looked but I would venture a bet Spack's record at ISU is better than Tiller's at Purdue.Of course, as always fourthandshort, you say we've "historically fallen short" in the pass game but ignoring the record-setting seasons of Matt Brown, Tre Roberson, Jake Kolbe, even Brady Davis is Top 5 in some passing records, under Spack. But I didn't come here to beat that dead horse of ours again . . . .
What I don't get, or maybe its there and we never see it, is that Spack calls Joe Tiller his mentor, or one of his mentors, and Tiller was a pioneer in the spread offense and Purdue had a wide open offense when Spack was DC there. So you know, what's the deal? You would think Spack would be all in with a wide open offense and all of that.
While I like Peterson for the most part there are times I would like to see a QB under center or a fullback throwing an ISO on some of the undersized LBs I saw this year. "Modern" offense is fine but Just going all of the time out of the gun makes it easier on an opposing DC. If things pan out we will have some kick-ass backs returning next year. A little pound them into submission football might be in order.
Cowboy Joe was 87-62 overall and 53-43 at Purdue.
Joe Tiller: 1942-2017 - Purdue Boilermakers
Sept. 30, 2017 Tiller Moments / Tiller Time / Tiller Photo Gallery / Tiller Video Joe Tiller, one of the most beloved and pop...
fourthandshort
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Just for clarity ... agreed mostly. I'm not advocating a pass happy approach. I love balanced offenses, who can take what the defense gives them. But is not afraid to throw it in close games. I also like mixing it up in no huddle and slowing it down at times. I like spreading the field and ground and pound, if you have the personnel.
In any case, if we end up having to find a new OC sooner than later ... first question is multiple choice.
1. What does the acronym TE stand for ? And which is an eligible receiver in football ?
a. Tackle Eligible
b. Teachers Edition
c. Tight End
d. Tax Exempt
e. None of the above
If he gets this right .. hire him !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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fourth, I know you think that throwing to the TE has revolved around the philosophy of the OC or the willingness of Coach Spack to loosen the reins but I'm going to repeat that for the most part it isn't either of those things. IT'S THE PERSONNEL.
We've all enjoyed the uptick in passing to the TE position the last two years. But it has also coincided with 2 years where were very strong at the TE position. Taula/Deming was a dynamic duo in '22. I thought we might see a drop off, but Grandy may have been even better. The NFL wanted a look at Taula, they may want to take an even longer look at Grandy and keep him.
If we want that trend to continue, we may need another transfer. Barring that, the throws and catches to the TE position will go down. I'm telling gently now so you don't go into convulsions next season. I'm not dissing Charles, Ziebarth, Spaulding or whoever gets on the field. We won't be weak at TE but I'm not seeing anyone at Grandy's level. I could be wrong; the younger players haven't really had their chance yet, but it's best to be prepared. TE catches will go down next year even with the same OC.
fourthandshort
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I know you know football x's and o's way better than me. But then how would you explain why have we never had any TEs getting anywhere near the same catch production we've had for 2 years under Peterson/Annexstad ? It's hard to believe we've not had the right TE personnel to throw to all these years.
And why did Oshaughnessy get just 2 catches in 2014-15 per game under Spack .. he had 2 very good QBs throwing in his 4/5 years. I don't think Brown threw much to TEs either, but would have to verify. It just seems like it has more to do with preference to use them as blockers until we got Peterson/Annexstad these last 2 years.
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Zack Annexstad committed to Illinois State when we didn't have an OC. I'm not suggesting that that is a good way to do it but it can be done.
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Ok maybe we can split this down the middle. Coaching philosophy does have something to do with willingness to throw to the TE. I just think personnel is the larger component. The TE's have been better the last 2 years, and they had a QB that could deliver the ball. You need both, we had both.
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Yes remains to be seen. This past season the defense was hurt by portal defections at all 3 levels. Okolo - DL, Wilhoit - LB and West, Price - DB.
The offense benefitted from the portal gains. Annexstad - QB, Grandy - TE and Blakemore - RB.
Not surprisingly we were stronger on offense than on defense, but there's no reason to fear the portal. It's simply another game to be won and not lost.
fourthandshort
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exactly on portal activity ... it is here and it must be won.
FYI ... My lean towards the negative is I think in addition to normal reasons kids these days will transfer, Spack does have a tendency to wear kids down with his ways more than the "average" and "modern" coaches. But ... that said, I think the promise of this young roster and even down to how we finished strong on the road against a tough UND team ... looms well for 2024 and therefore our portal activity ... in theory !!!!
