VSU at West Ga.

[crashandannie]

Wow! That is huge since Gaskin was a captain. It speaks volumes if he did quit the state of our program!

“Quit” might not be entirely accurate.

[crashandannie]

I keep seeing on the board comments about “if you can’t win with this team”. Please remember, we returned only 1 regular starter on defense, and offense had 4 or 5 (Ivory, Jamar, Seth, Jeremiah, and I think one other). Coach Goff was gifted an amazing team by Coach Bell, didn’t have to do much recruiting before he left, and it shows. We also got hurt by the transfer portal. VSU had 55 new players on the roster!

New coaching staff, mostly new players, new system for the returning players to learn… this was not the Blazer team of the past couple of years, despite the returning backfield.

Coach Jack isn’t going anywhere unless he chooses to leave at this time. We need to look forward, hope we can pull out a couple of wins in these last 3 games, and watch for next season. I think Coach is more fully aware now of why the GSC is referred to as the SEC of D2, and will use the off season to put in the work to get the job done.

I think we will see key improvements next year, and by year 3 we will be back in the hunt. If not, then things might change. Until then, we need to be supportive. VSU has never been a back to back championship team, but we sure win them every few years!

Your mileage may vary.

[vsukerosene]

I keep seeing on the board comments about “if you can’t win with this team”. Please remember, we returned only 1 regular starter on defense, and offense had 4 or 5 (Ivory, Jamar, Seth, Jeremiah, and I think one other). Coach Goff was gifted an amazing team by Coach Bell, didn’t have to do much recruiting before he left, and it shows. We also got hurt by the transfer portal. VSU had 55 new players on the roster!

Crash,

When people talk D2 vs. D1 I think one of the biggest differences is lack of information at D2. So you don't know who left, academic casualties, or who was invited to leave. Just one day you think what happened to ________ fill in the blank. So my thoughts on defense coming in to the season wasn't a big deal as you felt like we had some experience as we seemed to continually rotate some players in and we may have lost some good players they weren't all americans. So other than the two who went to McNeese who else did we lose on d? I hope this transfer stuff slows down when coaches decide some of these players are going to jump back on the merry go round at the end of the season.

[vsuman]

I keep seeing on the board comments about “if you can’t win with this team”. Please remember, we returned only 1 regular starter on defense, and offense had 4 or 5 (Ivory, Jamar, Seth, Jeremiah, and I think one other). Coach Goff was gifted an amazing team by Coach Bell, didn’t have to do much recruiting before he left, and it shows. We also got hurt by the transfer portal. VSU had 55 new players on the roster!

Crash,

When people talk D2 vs. D1 I think one of the biggest differences is lack of information at D2. So you don't know who left, academic casualties, or who was invited to leave. Just one day you think what happened to ________ fill in the blank. So my thoughts on defense coming in to the season wasn't a big deal as you felt like we had some experience as we seemed to continually rotate some players in and we may have lost some good players they weren't all americans. So other than the two who went to McNeese who else did we lose on d? I hope this transfer stuff slows down when coaches decide some of these players are going to jump back on the merry go round at the end of the season.

I keep asking this same question and can't get a straight answer. How many players did we lose to graduation? How many were told to seek playing time somewhere else?

I will be curious to see how many we lose to the transfer portal at the end of the season.

[vsuman]

“Quit” might not be entirely accurate.

Then what is accurate?

[Turbonium]

Coach Jackson rocks !!!!

Thought this was terrible hire from day 1, a lot of talk and not a lot of action while at Mesa. No idea how a program like VSU made that decision.

[VSUFOOTBALLFAN]

I think if Jackson had told the fans we were rebuilding from the start, fans could have understood what was going on. He had me feeling all was good until we started losing, then started saying we were rebuilding. Maybe, he should have leveled with the fans from the start.

[VSUFOOTBALLFAN]

Thought this was terrible hire from day 1, a lot of talk and not a lot of action while at Mesa. No idea how a program like VSU made that decision.

How did he do so well there?

[Turbonium]

How did he do so well there?

I don't know that I would consider what he did there as all that impressive, he was only even there for one full season. He took over a solid program with good talent in a weak conference and finished with an 8-2 record. They went 2-1 in the covid spring season and talked a lot about where they ranked in certain categories in the nation which was pretty embarrassing considering the majority of programs in the country didn't even play.

[Rational Observer]

I think if Jackson had told the fans we were rebuilding from the start, fans could have understood what was going on. He had me feeling all was good until we started losing, then started saying we were rebuilding. Maybe, he should have leveled with the fans from the start.

Yes and no. Enough returned off of the #2 team in the nation that the expectation to be competitive is justifiably present. The defense clearly needed an overhaul, and the offense lost some people, but there should not be this much fall off.

[vsuman]

Thought this was terrible hire from day 1, a lot of talk and not a lot of action while at Mesa. No idea how a program like VSU made that decision.

Well get used to this as he will be here for a while. Then they will wonder why the few fans they have aren't showing up.

[UWARTime]

Yes and no. Enough returned off of the #2 team in the nation that the expectation to be competitive is justifiably present. The defense clearly needed an overhaul, and the offense lost some people, but there should not be this much fall off.

I just compared your top 15 tacklers from 2021 to your 2022 roster. Only 3 came back, Gaskin(who is now no longer on roster as of today), Bull, and Javiontae Martin. Along with a new DC I’m assuming, can’t expect much on D. Just my opinion.

[VSUFOOTBALLFAN]

I just compared your top 15 tacklers from 2021 to your 2022 roster. Only 3 came back, Gaskin(who is now no longer on the roster as of today), Bull, and Javiontae Martin. Along with a new DC, I’m assuming, can’t expect much on D. Just my opinion.

I understand that they are new, but they have played several games now and appear to be as inept as game one. Shouldn't there be some improvement?

[BlazerDoc]

I can live with a “rebuilding” year. My concern is that there hasn’t been any significant improvement on defense through the year. Next year we lose our QB and our current running backs. I don’t want to see this to turn into a “rebuilding” decade.

[UNALions]

I can live with a “rebuilding” year. My concern is that there hasn’t been any significant improvement on defense through the year. Next year we lose our QB and our current running backs. I don’t want to see this to turn into a “rebuilding” decade.

Amen!!

I've been watching a similar movie play out for six years now. If there are red flags at the beginning of a hire, believe them!!

UNA went to the D2 title game in 2016 and Coach Wallace retired after. They walked down the hall and handed the keys to his assistant without much of real applicant search.

He went 5-5 in D2 our last season and we (myself included) gave him excuses like "rebuilding" and literally having to play a WR at QB by the end of the year due to injuries.

Then, there was the 7-3 hybrid schedule the first season of the FCS transition and folks felt pretty good. Then, was the COVID excuse that we played 3 FBS and 1 FCS and kept that game close with Jax State in 2020. Then, there was last season when they (not me) gave a whole laundry list of excuses including how the transition and COVID and this and that.

Now, he sits at 1-6 so far this season and we literally still have folks on our message board trying to provide excuses for him. "But, we led with 10 seconds to go last week at EKU and only lost by 3!" "But, we took (a very mediocre) Kennesaw State to OT!" But, but, but.....

NO! Y'all already see the red flags and they are waving bigger than a fourth of July parade!

How can a Defensive specialist come to town and have such a terrible defense? With VSU recruits/players. Y'all, no, this ain't right and most of y'all see it already.

Don't make the mistake UNA has made. Thank goodness we have a new AD this year!!

Give this man some grace, y'all, but do not let up on your passion and expectations. You will regret it in a few years if you do.