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  • Ship69
    replied
    Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View Post

    Well, I think that's a P.R. spin on his behalf to the local yocals who don't really follow the team real closely.


    Exact quote:

    "Before the season, I thought we were a year away with all the new guys on offense, and I was right."




    Good Lord. No wonder they are 3-3.


    That is an incredible comment for him to make. Shippensburg, starting true freshman on its o-line, starting a freshman at QB, featuring a tailback that was fourth on the depth chart in spring ball, and trying to recover from the loss of two of its best three offensive players from last year to transfer (Khalid Dorsey and Ian Sheehan), is a "year away" (maybe two for that matter) on offense. IUP — not so much.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Originally posted by Ram040506 View Post

    That's crazy to say. The amount experience coming back, had everyone thinking they were the #1 contender for the region. EVERYONE thought that. I'm not even a Hawks guy, and that pisses me off for a HC to say that.
    Well, I think that's a P.R. spin on his behalf to the local yocals who don't really follow the team real closely.


    Exact quote:

    "Before the season, I thought we were a year away with all the new guys on offense, and I was right."




    Good Lord. No wonder they are 3-3.



    Leave a comment:


  • Ram040506
    replied
    Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View Post
    Tort said in the IG today he thought before the season his offense was a year away.

    This is the same team in August that had (3) stud WRs, (3) experienced RBs, a monster TE, the coveted junior QB transfer and several highly-touted OL transfers (in addition to Djouha staying and Comedy), right?
    That's crazy to say. The amount experience coming back, had everyone thinking they were the #1 contender for the region. EVERYONE thought that. I'm not even a Hawks guy, and that pisses me off for a HC to say that.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Tort said in the IG today he thought before the season his offense was a year away.

    This is the same team in August that had (3) stud WRs, (3) experienced RBs, a monster TE, the coveted junior QB transfer and several highly-touted OL transfers (in addition to Djouha staying and Comedy), right?

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Originally posted by EyeoftheHawk View Post

    Bingo! It’s really this simple. They’re just not that good. Now the question becomes are they third in the division good or 6-5 good? That’s the current state of IUP football. Is the program closer to being on top or an “also ran” like several other middle of the pack teams? I’m seeing signs it may be the latter if there’s not some type of major shakeup.
    I caught Jake Nulph's show this week.

    He has a bright future and his enthusiasm is contagious. With his situation (triad, no money), it's hard to judge simply in wins/losses.

    Point is it was abundantly clear watching his show they are extremely excited to come here this weekend -- and are coming here to win.

    Biggest question in town this week (by the few still paying attention) is what mentality will IUP have this Saturday? Previously eliminated Tort teams have thrown in the towel ('18 was blown out by Ship and '21 lost to Edinboro).

    This isn't a 'show up and win game' ... IUP isn't that good right now.

    Tort's job isn't in jeopardy (in my opinion), but if they tank these last 5 games it will cause some serious discussions.

    If IUP has its typical slow start, it will only make things worse. We saw it last time Edinboro came here. This is a big game for the Scots. Is IUP going to mope and complain about the weather or is it going to show up and play for pride?

    The 'bookie' number in town is IUP -3.5 (yes, you can actually bet on the games). Amazingly, I think that spread is pretty accurate based on all the circumstances.

    IUP has a slew of players out (on offense), etc. The defense, if engaged, should carry the day. But, this team is in a fragile state. We know they'll be 'prepared' and all. So we've heard, anyway.

    Leave a comment:


  • EyeoftheHawk
    replied
    Originally posted by Fightingscot82 View Post
    Statistically, which only tells part of the story but I think is important in this case, IUP is an average PSAC team.
    Bingo! It’s really this simple. They’re just not that good. Now the question becomes are they third in the division good or 6-5 good? That’s the current state of IUP football. Is the program closer to being on top or an “also ran” like several other middle of the pack teams? I’m seeing signs it may be the latter if there’s not some type of major shakeup.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUP24
    replied
    This IUP season reminds me a lot of the 2014 team. There were problems everywhere on both sides of the ball. That team was terrible. This is the closest the program has been to that Chase Haslett led team.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Originally posted by IUP24 View Post

    I've not watched every game. But I just don't think this team is very good. I think it's just average.
    As they say, you are what your record says. In this case, .500 and 0-3 vs teams with winning records.

    It shouldn't have been average, which is my whole point of this discussion.

    Underperforming, underachieving, poorly coached ... who knows. All I know is there is way too much talent to be 3-3.

    I said it the other day but if you track their past 7 games, they are 3-4 and have been hammered in three of those losses. I sure hope this is a long funk and not a developing trend.



    Leave a comment:


  • IUP24
    replied
    Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View Post

    Have you watched all the games this year?

    Trust me, this isn't the same team today as it was in late August. In particular, on the defensive side of the ball.

    The offense, I'll agree, if anything has been consistently inconsistent all year. The OL has been a mess since camp scrimmages, and, combined with suspect QB play, really hampered the entire offensive approach.

    The defense, however, does not lack talent. It has a lot of it, actually, with a lot of guys who have played and won a whole lot of games at IUP.

    I fully acknowledge SRU and Cal have very strong offenses this year. But, I don't buy that the talent gap is so drastic that they are marching up and down the field against IUP's defense. SRU did whatever it wanted. Cal easily could have had 30+ at halftime. I get the final scores look somewhat close from a distance. In person, neither game was remotely close.

    Having been along for this (mostly) painful ride this season, I do agree with IronmanIUP's post yesterday -- that this whole season did change after the Timeout debacle. The air came out of the balloon.

    Point of this original post was to see if Tort throwing the players under the bus for the second straight week was actually legit or if they were actually as under-prepared as they looked in the first half of the past two games. Remember, Cal was a do-or-die game. I was shocked to see IUP getting shredded the way they were in such a big moment.

    These are the fun discussions that come with a season being over after (6) games. But, something did change with this team. I have no doubt about that. And, when blame is being fired in all directions by the HC, well, it does spark such conversations.
    I've not watched every game. But I just don't think this team is very good. I think it's just average.

    To add... I'll agree. The timeout situation was likely a turning point in their season, despite it being week 2. It'll be interesting to see how Miami comes out this week after the non-kneel down debacle last Saturday. You can't predict that. Teams can lose focus and belief if they don't have the belief in their head coach. I get that.

    You can cut this up a million ways. At the end of the day... Their OL has been bad all year. Their QB play has been subpar. They don't appear to be a great offensive team as a unit. They aren't generating turnovers defensively. They are missing assignments everywhere in the secondary. That's their team.

    I understand the 10,000 ft view question of "what happened?" That said, I'm not sure they get boat raced 28-0 in the first quarter by SRU because their feelings were still hurt from the ESU timeout situation. That's excuse making or trying to pinpoint something. At this stage of the year, and with the sample size we have, it's okay to say that they just aren't that good. They were hyped up. They brought in highly-recruited transfers. It just hasn't worked out. And when teams perform like IUP has this year, it's never just one thing.
    Last edited by IUP24; 10-12-2023, 09:41 AM.

    Leave a comment:


  • jrshooter
    replied
    A team can be prepared to the max, and if it's getting outplayed in the trenches, bad things are going to happen.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Originally posted by IUP24 View Post

    You beat me to this. We keep referencing Ashland. I get who they are as a program. I understand who is on their schedule and that they were competitive against Ferris State. But maybe they just aren't that good and we are incorrectly using that as a barometer. That was also week one, so it's hard to gauge anything, even in hindsight, from that game in my opinion. Perhaps they and IUP are about equal, which is, a team with enough talent to look good in flashes and also beat bad teams, but not enough talent or consistency to beat the good ones. I think that's closer to reality than something having happened to IUP in this stretch.
    Have you watched all the games this year?

    Trust me, this isn't the same team today as it was in late August. In particular, on the defensive side of the ball.

    The offense, I'll agree, if anything has been consistently inconsistent all year. The OL has been a mess since camp scrimmages, and, combined with suspect QB play, really hampered the entire offensive approach.

    The defense, however, does not lack talent. It has a lot of it, actually, with a lot of guys who have played and won a whole lot of games at IUP.

    I fully acknowledge SRU and Cal have very strong offenses this year. But, I don't buy that the talent gap is so drastic that they are marching up and down the field against IUP's defense. SRU did whatever it wanted. Cal easily could have had 30+ at halftime. I get the final scores look somewhat close from a distance. In person, neither game was remotely close.

    Having been along for this (mostly) painful ride this season, I do agree with IronmanIUP's post yesterday -- that this whole season did change after the Timeout debacle. The air came out of the balloon.

    Point of this original post was to see if Tort throwing the players under the bus for the second straight week was actually legit or if they were actually as under-prepared as they looked in the first half of the past two games. Remember, Cal was a do-or-die game. I was shocked to see IUP getting shredded the way they were in such a big moment.

    These are the fun discussions that come with a season being over after (6) games. But, something did change with this team. I have no doubt about that. And, when blame is being fired in all directions by the HC, well, it does spark such conversations.

    Leave a comment:


  • Fightingscot82
    replied
    Statistically, which only tells part of the story but I think is important in this case, IUP is an average PSAC team. In nearly every statistical category, IUP is middle of the pack. There are some outliers that I think are worth highlighting:

    IUP is the least penalized team in the west and second-least in the conference. When was the last time IUP could say that?!

    IUP's red zone offense is middle of the pack. Red zone defense is much better - 4th best.

    Even though the IUP defense is rather average on yards and points allowed, they are near the best for least first downs and least allowed 3rd and 4th down conversions. But...

    IUP has just 2 interceptions on the season. Only Mercyhurst has less.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUP24
    replied
    Originally posted by Ram040506 View Post

    Ashland might not have that good of an offense. Could have been just the hype of the game propping up the perception. They mustered 21 against Walsh last weekend. I remember watching the Ashland/IUP game and thinking that their offense looked very basic and the QB was a giant statue, and not a very accurate passer. He's only completing 57% of his passes on the year, which is very average at best.
    You beat me to this. We keep referencing Ashland. I get who they are as a program. I understand who is on their schedule and that they were competitive against Ferris State. But maybe they just aren't that good and we are incorrectly using that as a barometer. That was also week one, so it's hard to gauge anything, even in hindsight, from that game in my opinion. Perhaps they and IUP are about equal, which is, a team with enough talent to look good in flashes and also beat bad teams, but not enough talent or consistency to beat the good ones. I think that's closer to reality than something having happened to IUP in this stretch.

    Leave a comment:


  • Ram040506
    replied
    Originally posted by IUPbigINDIANS View Post

    We've been told two weeks in a row how well-prepared the team was and that they were aware of everything SRU and Cal would do.

    Re-watch the first half of each game and see if you agree the defense was well-prepared.

    SRU did whatever it wanted en route to a quick 28-0 lead. Cal hit about 6 or 7 big plays in the first half and marched up and down.

    So:

    A) They haven't been properly prepared and game prep is drastically lacking

    B) They are just playing bad (as Tort says)

    C) They are over-matched and out-manned

    D) IUP's defense has become very stale and good teams can pick it apart

    E) Combination / All of the above


    I actually did re-watch the first half of each game.

    For allegedly knowing everything SRU was going to do, IUP looked totally lost.

    Aside from the opening TD, the defense did hold Cal to two FGs and also got a pick in the end zone in the first half. They just gave up numerous massive chuck plays along the way.

    The punt block Cal got ... the defender ran in completely untouched. IUP's punter had zero chance -- and got completely walloped (and knocked out of the game). Tort said Laney's backup on protection was to blame.

    Keep in mind this is the same unit that destroyed Ashland and held ESU to 13 points.

    Question is: what changed during the past 6 weeks? Unlike the offense, the defense has been nearly 100 percent healthy all year. However, it's very clear they are not the same unit from the first several games.
    Ashland might not have that good of an offense. Could have been just the hype of the game propping up the perception. They mustered 21 against Walsh last weekend. I remember watching the Ashland/IUP game and thinking that their offense looked very basic and the QB was a giant statue, and not a very accurate passer. He's only completing 57% of his passes on the year, which is very average at best.

    Leave a comment:


  • IUPbigINDIANS
    replied
    Originally posted by ShoNuff View Post

    My pet peeve for adults...to not take responsibility for their actions, but to play the Blame Game. This is what bothers me about this coaching staff. I will just leave it at that instead of going on a rant.
    We've been told two weeks in a row how well-prepared the team was and that they were aware of everything SRU and Cal would do.

    Re-watch the first half of each game and see if you agree the defense was well-prepared.

    SRU did whatever it wanted en route to a quick 28-0 lead. Cal hit about 6 or 7 big plays in the first half and marched up and down.

    So:

    A) They haven't been properly prepared and game prep is drastically lacking

    B) They are just playing bad (as Tort says)

    C) They are over-matched and out-manned

    D) IUP's defense has become very stale and good teams can pick it apart

    E) Combination / All of the above


    I actually did re-watch the first half of each game.

    For allegedly knowing everything SRU was going to do, IUP looked totally lost.

    Aside from the opening TD, the defense did hold Cal to two FGs and also got a pick in the end zone in the first half. They just gave up numerous massive chuck plays along the way.

    The punt block Cal got ... the defender ran in completely untouched. IUP's punter had zero chance -- and got completely walloped (and knocked out of the game). Tort said Laney's backup on protection was to blame.

    Keep in mind this is the same unit that destroyed Ashland and held ESU to 13 points.

    Question is: what changed during the past 6 weeks? Unlike the offense, the defense has been nearly 100 percent healthy all year. However, it's very clear they are not the same unit from the first several games.

    Leave a comment:

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