Offensive Coaching Changes

[Virginia Redbird]

I miss Demarco Corbin. I read he was dismissed from the team. It's a shame, but you have to trust the coaches on that. He could really run with power though...fun to watch.

I agree...I have no idea what the reason for his departure was but i really enjoyed watching Corbin run, except for the two fumbles at USD, I thought he was fun hard runner to watch.

I'm pretty sure he had a broken hand at that time, so it was hard to hold onto the ball. He seemed to break a decent amount of runs over 30 yards, which was incredible because of his size. It's sad to see a young guy with so much promise screw up. I never seen anything in the papers, like him being charged with a crime or anything. But he must've done something wrong.

I don't recall the broken hand. I do remember the fumbles because they were both so critical in that game. I don't recall any fumbles the rest of the year though. He was a big strong back with decent speed and for a big guy he could break some runs. I was looking forward to seeing him back this season and then I heard he was not with the team any longer. I hope it works out well for him. The Birds still have some pretty impressive talent in the backfield. Lots of changes on the offensive side of the ball and it will be interesting how this impacts recruiting and the offensive philosophy next season.

 

[Virginia Redbird]

I guess I'm in the minority, but I guess I'm a little confused as to why people think there is some kind of behind-the-scenes conspiracy theory about all the coaching changes. If you look at each situation independently, they all kind of make sense.

Yes, losing 5 coaches in a single off season is a lot, but when you look at each situation in and of itself.... I could be wrong. It wouldn't be the first time. I just think maybe there's not that much more to the story... Rant over.

I have absolutely no inside information but I think this does make sense. Not all assistant coaches aspire to be head coaches but I would suggest a high majority of them do want the chance to run their own program. If you have been at a program for 9 years as an assistant that is not unheard of but coaching is a very mobile profession. Most assistant's make several moves particularly if it is for an upgrade of job or program. You want a shot at a Head Coach position you have to build a resume and make contacts in the coaching community. If Spence is interested in being a Head Coach he probably needed to move on to the next challenge.
The same faces and outlook can also cause a program/team to become stale. The firings on the offensive side of the ball I don't think were anything but performance based. The offensive guys were not getting it done. Maybe some of the long time assistants did not like the staff changes. A coaching staff gets tight when they are together a long time. I don't know the inner working of the coaching staff but I am excited for the infusion of some new blood into the coaching staff next season. Beathard is a great start and I am waiting to see who the rest of the coaching hires will be.
One last thing, I don't think Clark was doing such a great job with the O line. The 2016 season an all senior line with tons of experience and it took several games to get them going. This past season much less experience. It was a slow start again as expected and there were some injuries but the line play seemed to be erratic from week to week. I thought Dicken had to go and I was not surprised to hear Clark was gone too.

 

[JHBird]

I agree...I have no idea what the reason for his departure was but i really enjoyed watching Corbin run, except for the two fumbles at USD, I thought he was fun hard runner to watch.

I'm pretty sure he had a broken hand at that time, so it was hard to hold onto the ball. He seemed to break a decent amount of runs over 30 yards, which was incredible because of his size. It's sad to see a young guy with so much promise screw up. I never seen anything in the papers, like him being charged with a crime or anything. But he must've done something wrong.

I don't recall the broken hand. I do remember the fumbles because they were both so critical in that game. I don't recall any fumbles the rest of the year though. He was a big strong back with decent speed and for a big guy he could break some runs. I was looking forward to seeing him back this season and then I heard he was not with the team any longer. I hope it works out well for him. The Birds still have some pretty impressive talent in the backfield. Lots of changes on the offensive side of the ball and it will be interesting how this impacts recruiting and the offensive philosophy next season.

Looks like Corbin is now playing at Pima Community College. Maybe he'll get a shot somewhere next year.

 

[cpacmel]

Corbin is headed to Tennessee State next season.

 

[isuquinndog]

Anyone hear where Conrad has landed? I know his kids are leaving school at Christmas break so figured he ended up somewhere.

 

[DannyCooksey]

Corbin is headed to Tennessee State next season.

He will dominate there.

 

[MadBird]

Interesting turn of events. Guess it does us no good now . . . .

From footballscoop.com:

Northern Arizona (FCS): Per source, offensive coordinator Brian Sheppard and special teams coordinator Gary Hyman have been relieved of their duties and will not return after one season with the program

Sheppard is the guy that had been at InSU for a few years.

 

[fourthandshort]

Interesting turn of events. Guess it does us no good now . . . .

From footballscoop.com:

Northern Arizona (FCS): Per source, offensive coordinator Brian Sheppard and special teams coordinator Gary Hyman have been relieved of their duties and will not return after one season with the program

Sheppard is the guy that had been at InSU for a few years.

NAU offense was similar to ISU .. maddeningly inconsistent .. and they probably had less "good excuses" than us if you ask me. We had perfect storm of excuses .. starting with our OC, but plenty of others.

p.s. still looking for help at WR !!!!!!!!

 

[ISUBU]

p.s. still looking for help at WR !!!!!!!!

I hope we are able to find or develop more physical receivers. Sometimes our guys were basically guided out of bounds or moved off their routes by defenders who were strong enough to push them out of position. I'd look at other receivers who while well covered could still come away with the ball. We just didn't seem that strong the past couple of seasons.

Will Brian Adams from Springfield be playing RB for the Birds? Just due to size he reminds me of Jamal Towns. Towns didn't have much success or opportunities running the ball his first three years before having a really solid senior season. I recall he was tried at receiver, but he only had 19 catches over four seasons. Quotes in the Pantagraph sound more like we plan to use Adams as a returner/receiver. I'd like to see him on jet sweeps, end arounds, or even fakes of these. If he's as fast as advertised, he'll demand attention.

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/co...cle_bdc590af-9cdc-5a63-8f18-e7de407cc79a.html

 

[Redbird28]

New O Line Coach.

http://www.goredbirds.com/news/2018/1/2/etheridge-joins-redbird-football-staff-as-offensive-line-coach.aspx

 

[MadBird]

Not to start off another "how far has NIU advanced" discussion, but this is in this morning's footballscoop.com:

Northern Illinois: Per source, former Illinois State (FCS) running backs coach Lamar Conard will be the new running backs coach at NIU. Conard also served as the recruiting coordinator for Illinois State.

Guess it's a step up, yes?

Edit - he's replacing ex-NIU QB Jordan Lynch, who was recently hired to replace Mount Carmel HS HC Frank Lenti, which looked kinda messy.

 

[redbirddad10]

Good to see Coach Conard land well. I think of all the Coaching changes his departure surprised me the most. Recruiting has been very strong at ISU during his tenure and I believe he was instrumental in the pipeline from Indiana, yes? On top of that our Running backs have performed pretty well I'd say also. Felt it was time for a shake up and it often is necessary to make changes that aren't necessarily for cause. Good guy, can't see this as anything other than step up. Good for him.

 

[JHBird]

Good for Conrad. Best wishes to him on his new job.