THE IUP Football Thread

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Unrelated to IUPatties, the article mentions eight DUI arrests and sadly that’s about the average per weekend. Anyone else feel this is an epidemic that isn’t being talked about much? It’s astonishing how many DUI’s are reported in the paper each week. These are hardly ever kids or young people. They skew middle-aged and it’s not uncommon at all to see people in their 60’s. So sad and dangerous.

I don't think it's an Indiana thing, per se. Most towns of similar size could arrest a lot of DUIs each weekend. I'd say it's more a tribute to the police efforts here.

To your point, you'd think people would start getting the hint that the po-po isn't messing around.

That said they could sit on each end of Philly Street on Thursday-Saturday and probably triple the 8 average to 24.

Indiana does have an incredibly high number of bars and clubs for a town this small.

[EyeoftheHawk]

Most of them won’t have a car. So that makes sense. What is the Uber situation like in Indiana?

You can usually get an Uber in just a few minutes. I saw a lot of kids taking Ubers on Friday night as I happened to be uptown.

[EyeoftheHawk]

I'm catching IUP for the first time, third game of the weekend at Seton Hill. Your best starter, Jake Black, is getting knocked around pretty good and doesn't have good command. They're down 6-0 in the fourth, don't have a hit yet, and just gave up an SF-6.

IUP's decline this year is a mystery to me.

They lost all four to Seton Hill and are now 3-17. This free fall after what they did last year is hard to comprehend. There’s something deeper than baseball going on.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

They lost all four to Seton Hill and are now 3-17. This free fall after what they did last year is hard to comprehend. There’s something deeper than baseball going on.

And Bingo was his name.

[IUPNation]

Speaking of falling, the Homer City power plant was imploded yesterday. That's a huge part of the skyline driving along 422.

I just read the tallest stack was 1217 feet tall making it almost the tallest structure of any kind in PA. The American TV Tower in Philadelphia is 1250 feet and can be seen for miles. I’m not sure if there is anything else taller.

The Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia is the tallest building in PA at 1121 feet.

[Fightingscot82]

I just read the tallest stack was 1217 feet tall making it almost the tallest structure of any kind in PA. The American TV Tower in Philadelphia is 1250 feet and can be seen for miles. I’m not sure if there is anything else taller.

The Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia is the tallest building in PA at 1121 feet.

I read somewhere that it was the tallest chimney in the USA and third-tallest worldwide.

[Ram040506]

Well, we cared when they were winning.

A good athletics program will have good coverage and not just for the "big" sports.

IUP has fallen out of that category. The coverage across the board stinks. All of the other schools have their Spring football rosters up on their website. IUP does not. That's just one example. I really don't want to hear about how the Sports Information department is short-handed and there is an interim director. They need to get it together and have more and better output like the SID used to and like the local media used to.

If it makes you feel better, Shepherd's spring football roster is missing about every newcomer/transfer that is there. I was at spring practice last week and there were a few guys that popped but nobody knew who they were.

[iupgroundhog]

If it makes you feel better, Shepherd's spring football roster is missing about every newcomer/transfer that is there. I was at spring practice last week and there were a few guys that popped but nobody knew who they were.

Thanks for the consolation. But in our case the Spring roster is just part of a pattern of a lack of communication with the public and that is their only job. I see on their website the IUP athletics department has a Director of Communication and Ideation. Have I got an Ideation for her.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Thanks for the consolation. But in our case the Spring roster is just part of a pattern of a lack of communication with the public and that is their only job. I see on their website the IUP athletics department has a Director of Communication and Ideation. Have I got an Ideation for her.

That's the new title for the SID. Thank some over-thinker in HR without much to do.

They've had a young lady with the 'interim' tag for some time now.

As said above, they are out of excuses at this point.

[iupgroundhog]

That's the new title for the SID. Thank some over-thinker in HR without much to do.

They've had a young lady with the 'interim' tag for some time now.

As said above, they are out of excuses at this point.

As far as updating the website, I'm pretty sure that's just a matter of getting the content and putting it in. A student worker could do that. No ideation required.

[EyeoftheHawk]

As far as updating the website, I'm pretty sure that's just a matter of getting the content and putting it in. A student worker could do that. No ideation required.

If it took 30 minutes I’d be surprised.

[GregD]

If it took 30 minutes I’d be surprised.

I have done something much more intense that this.
About ten minutes tops.

[EyeoftheHawk]

I have done something much more intense that this.
About ten minutes tops.

I was being polite, LOL. Yes, it’s sad and ridiculous.

I’m still waiting on a call back from over a year ago about financial support for a particular program. It’s so bad they can’t even bother themselves to accept help. I don’t think donors should have to chase down poor performers to give them money.

[EyeoftheHawk]

Matt’s first article about spring practice is in today’s Gazette. Key takeaway for me:

• It’s a thin RB room with only J.D. Younger returning with significant experience. Typically IUP starts out with too many RB’s and ends up with one healthy one so maybe they can flip the script.
• O-line is also thin with a few guys learning new positions.
• A spring scrimmage with Fairmont State was called off due to too many offseason injuries for IUP. Over the last 18 months, this must be the most injured IUP team in program history. There is tentatively a spring game scheduled for April 25 at 6 PM.
• Cignetti, Jr’s offense is significantly different than what they were doing and players are learning a completely new terminology. Quote: “It’s drastically different,” Tortorella said of the new offense. “I want to see a ball thrown downfield. I want to see a change in formations, some motion. Nothing against whoever we had out there, we didn’t put stress on the defense the last two seasons like we did before.”
• Transfer QB Matthew Rueve is on campus and practicing with the team.

I’m guessing they will be looking for a few more bodies in the portal after spring practice, particularly at RB and maybe O-line.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Matt’s first article about spring practice is in today’s Gazette. Key takeaway for me:

• It’s a thin RB room with only J.D. Younger returning with significant experience. Typically IUP starts out with too many RB’s and ends up with one healthy one so maybe they can flip the script.
• O-line is also thin with a few guys learning new positions.
• A spring scrimmage with Fairmont State was called off due to too many offseason injuries for IUP. Over the last 18 months, this must be the most injured IUP team in program history. There is tentatively a spring game scheduled for April 25 at 6 PM.
• Cignetti, Jr’s offense is significantly different than what they were doing and players are learning a completely new terminology. Quote: “It’s drastically different,” Tortorella said of the new offense. “I want to see a ball thrown downfield. I want to see a change in formations, some motion. Nothing against whoever we had out there, we didn’t put stress on the defense the last two seasons like we did before.”
• Transfer QB Matthew Rueve is on campus and practicing with the team.

I’m guessing they will be looking for a few more bodies in the portal after spring practice, particularly at RB and maybe O-line.

Without question. And, that's probably by design. The market gets flooded (again) after Spring camps break. IUP has done very well over the years in this 'third' recruiting window of the year.

Regarding injuries, two things:

1) The turf at Miller is horrendous (and a huge liability)

2) IUP needs a complete overhaul of the Strength & Conditioning program. They treat this position like it's a volunteer role.


Regarding the comments on the previous two years' offense:

Absolutely correct. We could call the plays with 95% accuracy from the bleachers. To call it 'vanilla' is actually being too kind. Larry Wilson is a good coach ... but I'm not sure he's an OC.

That said, I think the same could be said about the defense.