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First of all Congratulations to Ouachita on winning the Conference outright. In this crazy year they did just enough to come out on top. I'm convinced that at the end of the year Harding was the best team but their 0-3 start doomed them.
As far as my team I said before the season anything less than 6-5 or 7-4 would be very disappointing. As the season progressed and it became apparent that the league wasn't nearly as tough as in the past anything less than 7-4 became the threshold to me. We finished 5-6 and were totally thrashed and physically pushed around too often, lost to Monticello for the first time in years, and lost to SNU for the first time in history. Even Kevin Turco didn't produce a season where we lost to both Monticello and SNU. Beating Henderson proved not to be as big of a deal as some want it to be. They were 1 loss from a losing season and a far cry from the Henderson team we were used to seeing. We got a huge break in the schedule when our first game was against Ouachita. They are a much better team at the end of the season than they started out to be that first game. Credit to their Coaches who brought them along as the season progressed. That is the mark of good Coaching. We on the other hand went the other direction. As the season progressed we went flat or lost ground.
The biggest positive out of the season has to be the play of Maurice (Waterboy) Wright leading the Conference in tackles and wreaking havoc all over the field even though he missed multiple games. He wasn't a big surprise as he was a stout holdover developed from the previous Defense. He'd be wise to transfer to a higher level of play where he belongs. Defensively it's hard to gauge where we stack up because the league was not nearly as strong on the Offensive side of the ball as in recent years. Our improved running game helped out the Defense more than anything. Our Defensive Line was atrocious, easily the weakest link for the team and probably the worst in the Conference. We still get gashed for far too many yards. The depth has improved so the drop off wasn't nearly as evident when starters went out. Coaches had a lot more to work with this year but with similar results. If you weren't a one or two in this Defense and still didn't get significant playing time you probably never will because it's just not very good. I'd say the Defense didn't improve much if at all, the leagues Offenses just weren't as good as in recent years.
Offensively QB Isaiah Weed started the season hot before teams adjusted to a different Offense from the toss it up and pray look of recent years. The running game was stronger with so many options. The passing game a little above average. Horatio Smith had a nice year returning kickoffs but his production as a receiver was very disappointing for someone with so much talent. I wonder how many fewer passes were attempted his way compared to last year. It's a waste of his talent but a QB with a run first mentality limits his chances. If Cole Sears were his QB he might be pushing All-American status. Offensively I'd say we went backwards some, explosively a lot.
I give us a 4 out of 10 for the season. There is no way a losing record in a Conference that was so balanced is acceptable if you are a program moving forward. We had more talent overall this year but the Coaches couldn't get it to produce. Time for change?
As far as my team I said before the season anything less than 6-5 or 7-4 would be very disappointing. As the season progressed and it became apparent that the league wasn't nearly as tough as in the past anything less than 7-4 became the threshold to me. We finished 5-6 and were totally thrashed and physically pushed around too often, lost to Monticello for the first time in years, and lost to SNU for the first time in history. Even Kevin Turco didn't produce a season where we lost to both Monticello and SNU. Beating Henderson proved not to be as big of a deal as some want it to be. They were 1 loss from a losing season and a far cry from the Henderson team we were used to seeing. We got a huge break in the schedule when our first game was against Ouachita. They are a much better team at the end of the season than they started out to be that first game. Credit to their Coaches who brought them along as the season progressed. That is the mark of good Coaching. We on the other hand went the other direction. As the season progressed we went flat or lost ground.
The biggest positive out of the season has to be the play of Maurice (Waterboy) Wright leading the Conference in tackles and wreaking havoc all over the field even though he missed multiple games. He wasn't a big surprise as he was a stout holdover developed from the previous Defense. He'd be wise to transfer to a higher level of play where he belongs. Defensively it's hard to gauge where we stack up because the league was not nearly as strong on the Offensive side of the ball as in recent years. Our improved running game helped out the Defense more than anything. Our Defensive Line was atrocious, easily the weakest link for the team and probably the worst in the Conference. We still get gashed for far too many yards. The depth has improved so the drop off wasn't nearly as evident when starters went out. Coaches had a lot more to work with this year but with similar results. If you weren't a one or two in this Defense and still didn't get significant playing time you probably never will because it's just not very good. I'd say the Defense didn't improve much if at all, the leagues Offenses just weren't as good as in recent years.
Offensively QB Isaiah Weed started the season hot before teams adjusted to a different Offense from the toss it up and pray look of recent years. The running game was stronger with so many options. The passing game a little above average. Horatio Smith had a nice year returning kickoffs but his production as a receiver was very disappointing for someone with so much talent. I wonder how many fewer passes were attempted his way compared to last year. It's a waste of his talent but a QB with a run first mentality limits his chances. If Cole Sears were his QB he might be pushing All-American status. Offensively I'd say we went backwards some, explosively a lot.
I give us a 4 out of 10 for the season. There is no way a losing record in a Conference that was so balanced is acceptable if you are a program moving forward. We had more talent overall this year but the Coaches couldn't get it to produce. Time for change?
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