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Post by roaringsince96 on Sept 29, 2018 19:55:15 GMT -6
Sometimes the players actually have to execute what they are being coached? The oline has shown against FCS defensive lines we are definitely not there yet on being able to pass protect. Our run blocking is not the worst, actually that is where I am disappointed in play calling. Cox seems to be making the right cuts and finding yards that do not always seem to be there. Why do we have to pass 70% of the time? I know we have talented receivers and an average qb. The problem with 2 incompletions on 1st and 2nd down is there a good chance of another one on 3rd and long. Any team that knows to blitz us on 3rd down will get to our qb or force a scramble. Line is just not strong enough to protect. I am so happy Cox got into the endzone, he is our most consistent player...hope somebody on the staff recognizes that soon.
I have no idea why we came out with 3 down lineman on defense tonight? Terrible design, execution, and results. We do best when we clog the middle with 73 and 90 and let Burton and Robinson rush off the ends. Our secondary dropped at least two easy interceptions tonight....we are just that bad in the secondary. Where did Chris Johnson disappear too? He was a difference maker last year for the good....not so much this year.
Campbell was clearly better tonight. I don't mind admitting they were the better team. I struggle with our high school mistakes at this level. Snapping the ball into the endzone? Snapping the ball into the qb's foot? The oline blowing an assignment from the one pushing us back to the six? Were was Swann? He is not afraid to catch it over the middle? Peavey made a big play over the middle, Byrd catches everything. Little isn't scared. Boykin will wrestle for it. We have too many weapons to come away with just one score. Campbell is good, not that far ahead of us. The quarterback play from them was impressive, he made two bad decisions and we let him get away with both. Lopez ran into some sacks and made a couple of bad decisions in passing game.
We need to rebound with a victory next week in a bad way. We can still go 7-3 if the team,(players and coaches), go to work this week. I look forward to going and cheering our Lions onto victory the next two weekends in Florence. Our guys are trying, maybe a little overmatched at times, but no doubt they are learning and trying.
Roar Lions
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Post by 1949lions on Sept 29, 2018 20:10:28 GMT -6
Might be good to get punched in the jaw by our only Big South opponent this year.
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Campbell
Sept 29, 2018 21:15:20 GMT -6
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Post by rmfl1988 on Sept 29, 2018 21:15:20 GMT -6
I think Aplin would be better if we didn't have a terrible O-line. I would 100% choose Aplin over Steadman anyday. It can't get any worse than last year... I cant say who's better, but I can say that after all the injuries, i couldn't hold much against Stedman. But our O-line is bad. And i think they could be good, but they are lazy... they let go of blocks early, then they just stand around and watch. My beef with Aplin is the trick plays and predictability, after the first half of the A&M game, I could almost tell you what we would do play for play up to tonight. Willis is not off the hook either, let's take punt in the 1st and give them a short feild. I agree on the fake punt, that pretty much sealed the deal, especially on 4th and long. As far as Aplin goes, I’m not the biggest fan of this style but if you look at who we played for and coached under (Gus Malzahn) they use a sort of hybrid lineman, ones that are a little slimmer and in better shape, but he is also young and this his first go around at calling plays.
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Post by unafied on Sept 30, 2018 5:57:57 GMT -6
UNA Notebook: Lions don’t blame same-day travel
They can say what they want, and there’s no doubt to me Campbell is a better team (or at least better-coached), but I think this did cause an issue. Why did we come out flat in what, to me, should’ve been our second biggest game of the year after NDSU? And there’s an argument to be made it was our biggest since Campbell will be in our conference. I get it’s been a LONG month. But this game should’ve been circled on the schedule from the beginning of fall camp. I fully understand that we will have a few more of these type games as we transition. It’s just frustrating to me that after the first quarter, we played them 7-7. And yeah, they may have let up after building a 23-0 lead. But still. It’s easy to blame Willis, and I have argued in the past that it was a short-sighted, lazy hire to make. That doesn’t mean I hope he fails though. The entire staff has to learn from games like this how to get better. If the coaching staff made the decision to fly same-day, let’s hope they decide not to do that again. If it was someone in the administration choosing to do it to save money, well... To me, the #1 focus right now should be recruiting D1 linemen. Maybe it should be #2-#5, as well.
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Campbell
Sept 30, 2018 6:49:28 GMT -6
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Post by brandon on Sept 30, 2018 6:49:28 GMT -6
We all have to realize, and I have to include myself in this, we have not recruited the caliber of player we need, especially on the Line(both side of the ball) yet, most recruits are looking to make the playoffs, that's the guys we want. We have to do the best we can with what we have. That's part of the transition. We will have and do have some great players, but we will not have the depth for another couple of years. But that had nothing to do with this game. We shouldn't have lost this game. Giving up 23 points in the 1st killed us, it was the secondary who dropped the ball(no pun intended) they give the receivers too much and when it counts, the receivers are most always behind our secondary. As far as offence, our O-Line is just plain lazy. Most of the time, other teams get pressure on our Quarterback because people are just going right to him. If I was coach, I would have the scout team o-line play the next game. Win or not, I will find players who will not stand around. I dont give a rat's ass if they are 5'5 200lbs.
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Campbell
Sept 30, 2018 7:37:07 GMT -6
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Post by northalaspectator on Sept 30, 2018 7:37:07 GMT -6
I don’t think flying on game day had anything to do with it, but leaving latter than schedule had everything to do with it.
Leaving a little earlier and waiting a little is better than being in a rush.
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Campbell
Sept 30, 2018 8:10:49 GMT -6
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Post by unafied on Sept 30, 2018 8:10:49 GMT -6
I don’t think flying on game day had anything to do with it, but leaving latter than schedule had everything to do with it. Leaving a little earlier and waiting a little is better than being in a rush. While the delay didn’t help of course, if you leave on Friday there’s no chance that happens. It’s all a moot point, really. The players seemed to have walked in there thinking they could just show up and win (some of Willis’ comments hint at that, at least). I just feel the coaching staff or AD or whoever could have handled this better.
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Post by roaringsince96 on Sept 30, 2018 12:01:57 GMT -6
The amateur plays are the ones you cannot afford to make against upper level competition. The two snaps cost us 9 points...or 16 since after the safety they picked up where they left off once we punted it back after the safety. I was kind in shock after the first quarter? What team did we bring up there? Why was our coach wearing a tshirt? Did he spill something on his other shirt prior to the game? Why did the camera person suck soooo bad? Heck we never knew if the pass was completed or what happened until the announcers said something? Was the camera person actually a Camel and not a person at all? So many questions after this game...moving back to D2 game this week.
West Florida came back and won a game against a poor team in Delta State this year. West Florida has already been waxed by over 20 points in one game and survived...much like our Lions in a couple of others. Do we continue the sloppy mistakes or do we finally resemble the team that is FCS level?
See ya'll on Saturday! Roar Lions!
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Post by RoaringlikeaLion on Sept 30, 2018 12:22:19 GMT -6
We can say what you want about the program, coaching staff, players and etc.. but in my honest opinion, Coach Willis was a good hire. Y’all have to understand that many things last year was out of his control and he inherited a good bit of things. We have played 5 games against some good teams and then some great teams. Considering the fact that 4/5 of those games were on the road and we pulled out a win, you have to give him his props. The wins may have been to close for comfort but at the end of the day, a win is a win. We all know we need to recruit better linemen but it’s also easier said than done. Fans can be your biggest supporters when you’re winning all these games, but soon as they lose, they’ll always be a teams biggest critic. This weekend the team finally plays a home game and the weather seems to make for a good clear game. Us fans need to come out and support the players and help provide that spark of energy that they are so used to.
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Post by unafied on Sept 30, 2018 13:23:08 GMT -6
The amateur plays are the ones you cannot afford to make against upper level competition. The two snaps cost us 9 points...or 16 since after the safety they picked up where they left off once we punted it back after the safety. I was kind in shock after the first quarter? What team did we bring up there? Why was our coach wearing a tshirt? Did he spill something on his other shirt prior to the game? Why did the camera person suck soooo bad? Heck we never knew if the pass was completed or what happened until the announcers said something? Was the camera person actually a Camel and not a person at all? So many questions after this game...moving back to D2 game this week. West Florida came back and won a game against a poor team in Delta State this year. West Florida has already been waxed by over 20 points in one game and survived...much like our Lions in a couple of others. Do we continue the sloppy mistakes or do we finally resemble the team that is not FCS level? See ya'll on Saturday! Roar Lions! I pointed out Willis’ shirt to my wife. Maybe it’s a small thing to some, but he is the face of our sports program to a lot of people. You have to represent yourself and the team better than that, coach. And mrbigshot - I agree, a lot of times fans unfairly criticize the coaches. And probably give them praise sometimes when they don’t deserve it. I think the jury is still out on Willis. I do understand it is a VERY difficult situation to be in, trying to guide a program through this. I know he and the rest of the staff will strike out on some players that might otherwise come to UNA. Perhaps he has to recruit guys that some other programs have passed on due to attitude, grades, etc. It’s tough, and we as fans will blame him 99% of the time for each loss despite all the issues. I DO think, though, we have all seen some things that he and the rest of the staff could do better. We have not had to watch a guy grow on the job in over 15 years. And heck, Hudspeth went undefeated, I believe, in his second regular season. We are spoiled, but to quote a pretty good coach to the south of us, “it is what it is”. UWF will be a tremendous challenge I’m afraid. I hope our guys come out with a chip on their shoulder ready to prove last night was a fluke.
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Campbell
Sept 30, 2018 15:13:55 GMT -6
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Post by brandon on Sept 30, 2018 15:13:55 GMT -6
The amateur plays are the ones you cannot afford to make against upper level competition. The two snaps cost us 9 points...or 16 since after the safety they picked up where they left off once we punted it back after the safety. I was kind in shock after the first quarter? What team did we bring up there? Why was our coach wearing a tshirt? Did he spill something on his other shirt prior to the game? Why did the camera person suck soooo bad? Heck we never knew if the pass was completed or what happened until the announcers said something? Was the camera person actually a Camel and not a person at all? So many questions after this game...moving back to D2 game this week. West Florida came back and won a game against a poor team in Delta State this year. West Florida has already been waxed by over 20 points in one game and survived...much like our Lions in a couple of others. Do we continue the sloppy mistakes or do we finally resemble the team that is not FCS level? See ya'll on Saturday! Roar Lions! I pointed out Willis’ shirt to my wife. Maybe it’s a small thing to some, but he is the face of our sports program to a lot of people. You have to represent yourself and the team better than that, coach. And mrbigshot - I agree, a lot of times fans unfairly criticize the coaches. And probably give them praise sometimes when they don’t deserve it. I think the jury is still out on Willis. I do understand it is a VERY difficult situation to be in, trying to guide a program through this. I know he and the rest of the staff will strike out on some players that might otherwise come to UNA. Perhaps he has to recruit guys that some other programs have passed on due to attitude, grades, etc. It’s tough, and we as fans will blame him 99% of the time for each loss despite all the issues. I DO think, though, we have all seen some things that he and the rest of the staff could do better. We have not had to watch a guy grow on the job in over 15 years. And heck, Hudspeth went undefeated, I believe, in his second regular season. We are spoiled, but to quote a pretty good coach to the south of us, “it is what it is”. UWF will be a tremendous challenge I’m afraid. I hope our guys come out with a chip on their shoulder ready to prove last night was a fluke. Fluke? I believe someone said last week was an anomaly, and this week is a fluke? In my opinion, 2 weeks in a row is on the line of consistent. I dont care what kind of shirt the coach wears, and I'm a supporter of Willis. But I think the rest of the staff is in question. Maybe we dont have the talent we thought? All I know is, I have seen better secondary play in JV ball and the O-line is the worst I have ever seen at the college level. We will be lucky to be in the game next week after the half. But, I will be there, supporting the Lions, like I have since I was 5 years old.
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Post by unafied on Sept 30, 2018 15:45:02 GMT -6
Fluke? I believe someone said last week was an anomaly, and this week is a fluke? In my opinion, 2 weeks in a row is on the line of consistent. I dont care what kind of shirt the coach wears, and I'm a supporter of Willis. But I think the rest of the staff is in question. Maybe we dont have the talent we thought? All I know is, I have seen better secondary play in JV ball and the O-line is the worst I have ever seen at the college level. We will be lucky to be in the game next week after the half. But, I will be there, supporting the Lions, like I have since I was 5 years old. On the O-line, wasn’t that the biggest worry for most of us coming into the season? Other than QB. They are short on talent, depth, and experience. The guys we have starting are D2 quality, and well, that shows. And as for yesterday being a fluke - maybe it wasn’t. But take out the awful first quarter (which was a terrible display of football), and the game was 7-7. I’m not at all into moral victories, but I don’t think we’re quite as bad as the final score suggests. I said earlier in the thread that Campbell is the better team. Maybe they mentally checked out after the first quarter which kept the final score from being worse. But I don’t want our guys thinking that. Whether it was a fluke or not, they do need to come out against UWF intending to prove it was.
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