[NU Sports] now what?

[Brad Wilson]

I completely concur with the analysis of Mr. Levinson
and Mr. Truog and Mr. Labbe on the Perdoo disaster, so
I won't be (too) repetitive, I hope.

I'm willing to give the coaching staff a few
mulligans, given the dreadful situation that brought
them to where they are, esp. on things such as
playcalling -- Mike Dunbar was a tested, grizzled
veteran, and what NU has now is nothing like that.
McGhee may be the real deal, but now he's almost as
green as the QBs, which, had Randy Walker still been
around, would have been OK, but with an even less
experienced coach than McGhee supervising, isn't the
ideal situation.

I can see how the coaches can think this team should
be able to run the ball, esp. vs. a defense like
Perdoo's. However, screens and draws only work as
changeups to power running plays and an effective
passing game. In baseball terms, if you don't have the
fastball, the changeup looks awfully hittable. Thus,
NU's problems. 

But what I am not willing to forgive a coaching staff
is things like the back-to-back delay of game
penalties that cost NU a scoring chance. That, to me,
is pure incompetence, and it just continues the
inattention to and incompetence of special teams play
that has characterized the Walker/Fitz era for all too
long. Hire a special-teams guru and turn him loose: a
team with so little margin for error as NU MUST be
highly competent at special teams. I am tired of all
the excuses and obfuscations as to why NU cannot excel
on special teams. Just do it. Now.

I thought Neil Hayes in the Sun-Times made an
excellent point Sunday: the NU defense is good enough
to win games with a high-scoring offense but not good
enough to win by itself. I was at Penn State, listened
to the whole UW game and saw the Perdoo game, and I
insist that the D's effort was, while by no means '85
Bears-ish, good enough to win all three. They create
turnovers and can make enough stops to win if the
offense had a pulse. Since it doesn't, the d gets worn
down and eventually conks out. That, I understand. 

That said, NU clearly has some defenders, such as
Reggie McPherson, who aren't Big Ten caliber. Let's
hope they get weeded out. Can we see more of McManis? 

I do think NU needs to attack more on defense and not
let QBs sit there and pick away. The blitzes and
aggressive defense seem to work when they are used,
much more so than the passive pick-us-apart schemes
that we can't cover adequately to make work.

But until the offense shows a pulse not much of this
matters. Yes, Sutton should unquestionably get the
ball more, but if there's no blocking, what good will
that do? Yes, Brewer seems to have a problem passing,
and the playcalling doesn't help, but when the QB has
.001 second to throw before six defenders are in the
backfield, does it matter who's the QB? Does anyone
else think Lane and Thompson are underutilized? What
about lining Jordan or Roberson or even McManis up at
a wideout spot? How about Peterman as an "H" back? 

So my query: now what? My answers:

1) tell Colby to sell out and do anything possible to
rush the passer. This may lead to big plays against NU
but may also lead to big plays FOR the Cats (picks,
fumbles, sacks), critical when the offense is
struggling so; short fields would be nice.

2) Dump the screens and draws and that kind of
gimmick, put in Abernethy and Cobb and use the
Illinois-game 2003 second-half game plan: power
running with Sutton, Jordan and Roberson. If nothing
else it will take some burden off the defense.

3) If Kafka's healthy, play him. He looked much more
secure (albeit against non-Big Ten foes) than Brewer
has. I am not a Bacher fan, based on what I have seen,
but he deserves a chance.

4) Don't worry about wins and losses. NU isn't
touching UM, OSU and Iowa and I doubt NU can stay with
Michigan State's offense. Illinois, maybe, but not if
NU tops out at 10 points. Just teach, instruct, and
hope for improvement and if the end result is 2-10
with a team ready to compete in 2007, well, not ideal,
but maybe the best we can expect.

5) And hire a special teams coach, now. Now!

Brad Wilson 





__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com