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Topic: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Topic: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

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bshot44
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Member Since: 2/12/2012
Post Count: 2,211

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Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 9:28:49 AM

What a Saturday in Athens ...

New Sook Center looked great ... really like the patio overlooking endzone. One suggestion, along the rail, add a small shelf to set your food/drink and encourage standing along the rail. Maybe a few more standing patio tables. Overall, it was a huge upgrade!

Jackie O's takes credit cards! This was a nice change ... much appreciated to not have to worry about carrying cash or finding an ATM in the stadium (HINT: They do NOT exist!)

But like the classics ... some things never change:

Still no row numbers painted on the steps so you have NO idea which row is yours ... not a lot of fun when you are trying to find row 38. I will happily buy a can of spray paint so they can add the numbers to the steps

And the product on the field ....

Wouldn't be Bobcat football without QB controversy! Yes ... Rourke was ineffective to say the least early on. But man ... even the most green kool-aid drinking Bobcat has to admit it's kind of disappointing and sad that OUr Maxwell Award, Unitas Award, MAC Player of the Year candidate QB that has his photo on the parking pass and tickets for the home opener gets benched in the 2Q vs HOWARD!!!

On the bright side, Maxwell looked sharp ... much improved from the little we saw last year of him. Sadly, this just means we're mired in another Vick/Sprague QB question going forward.

As much as Rourke looked rusty ... Tim Albin (as usual) didn't do much to help him. The play-calling again was suspect at best. Again ... some things never change!

Speaking of which .... Howard 12-21 on 3rd down. 4 unsportsmanlike/roughing-type penalties and even one on offense!

And ohhhh that secondary! Spinning the classics .... Jaylin Fox, in his fourth year, still has yet to learn how to turn his head. Guys getting toasted regularly by FCS WRs. 439 yards thru the air! To a team that only threw for more that 300 yards twice last year vs. Delaware St and NC Central! And none of it was during garbage time because there was no garbage time!

I know Ohio had some guys out to injury ... so I'm 100% sure that had an affect on things. But man ... this group appears to be a weak link AGAIN.

Papi looked really good ... and that was a positive for sure! But Meyer, Odom and some others had a few drops where Maxwell stuck it right on the number.

I'm hoping Ohio underestimated Howard and came out super-vanilla because they still had two weeks to get ready for UVa & UC. But this was underwhelming to say the least.

I think Frank's quote at the end of Arkley's postgame wrap was dead-on ... "We have to play better or it's going to be a tough year"

Food for thought:

Buffalo 48
Delaware St 10

EMU 51
Monmouth 17

Toledo 66
VMI 3

C'mon ... 38-32 over Howard with a defensive stand in your own territory to seal the game in the final minute!?!?

Auspicious start to say the least ...

Fire away!

71 BOBCAT
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Member Since: 12/20/2004
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 10:11:36 AM

BSHOT 44.......
One must agree with your assessment.
This game made me think about the Texas State Game, fortunately the outcome was in our favor this year.
Did our fall camp prep plan cause some of the issues? Less contact to lessen injuries? Was this why we seemed rusty in the 1st half.
We now need the week off to get prepared for Virginia, lot's to do.
I am sure we will learn more about Rourke this week. Was it just performance or something else that caused coach to make a change. It really doesn't matter to me who is the QB as long as we play up to our potential.
I definitely believe that our 4 forced turn overs, and none on us, helped us win this game. Turnover margin was a key point of fall camp. It paid off yesterday.
Howard was definitely pumped up to start this game, and rightfully so, as they were playing against the next level up in talent and they wanted to make a statement. They will have a great year in their league and could win it all.

GO BOBCATS

Last Edited: 9/2/2018 10:12:41 AM by 71 BOBCAT

Maddog13
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Location: Albuquerque, NM
Post Count: 725

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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 11:07:25 AM

Jackie O's takes credit cards?!?! What else can one possibly complain about now??

allen
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Member Since: 1/24/2006
Post Count: 4,635

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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 11:10:36 AM

Rourke was benched, Solich learned from TT that you cannot let a qb rest on his laurels, hence Rourke needs to bring it every week. Secondary woes continue, face guarding is our preferred method. The pass rush was pretty abysmal considering the opponent. We will need to work in more guys and see who can get the job done. Maxwell did not look nervous after the play where he tripped over is own feet on our 17 on third down. He has pretty good arm strength and accuracy when he is calm. Irons is back, he and AJ need to see more holes, the O-line was average. The safety Hampton looked like a player and nobody can check Papi.

Nobody despises to lose more than I do. That's got me into trouble over the years, but it also made a man of mediocre ability into a pretty good coach. Woody Hayes

L.C.
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Member Since: 8/31/2005
Location: United States
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 12:21:39 PM

71 BOBCAT wrote:

...
I am sure we will learn more about Rourke this week. Was it just performance or something else that caused coach to make a change.
...

My personal opinion was it was the shovel pass that could easily have been a pick six for 90+ yards that led to the switch, and the switch stayed that way because Maxwell played well.

�We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.� ― Epictetus

Deciduous Forest Cat
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Location: Ohio
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 12:31:28 PM

If the game were tied or we were somehow still winning early or the defense was getting any stops, I think we are more patient with Rourke there, but his throws were abysmal and we were in danger of getting blown out early. Whether Q takes a seat on the bench the rest of the season or starts every game, it was the right move yesterday. Rourke is better than that. we all know it. Hopefully this humbling opener is just what the doctor ordered for everyone. I'm sure the team feels better than UNLV felt after last season's opener. Howard was not a collection of FBS rejects and if Newton was a few inches taller, he's easily an FBS qb.

allen
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 6:54:30 PM

Here is the article explaining why he was benched. https://woub.org/2018/09/01/ohio-football-rourke-benched-... /

Nobody despises to lose more than I do. That's got me into trouble over the years, but it also made a man of mediocre ability into a pretty good coach. Woody Hayes

BillyTheCat
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Member Since: 10/6/2012
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 7:01:11 PM

L.C. wrote:

71 BOBCAT wrote:

...
I am sure we will learn more about Rourke this week. Was it just performance or something else that caused coach to make a change.
...

My personal opinion was it was the shovel pass that could easily have been a pick six for 90+ yards that led to the switch, and the switch stayed that way because Maxwell played well.

That was in no way a designed play. Ball security and maturity of when to eat the ball is the young mans greatest drawback. That decision could have been the difference in a W or L. Physical mistakes you can live with if effort is there, but mental judgement is another animal.

C Money
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Member Since: 8/28/2010
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 7:11:24 PM

I was worried we would see a sophomore slump from Rourke. I'm OK with the short leash, but I would have liked to have seen him get another shot in the 2nd half.

Sam bobcat
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Member Since: 7/14/2015
Post Count: 633

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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 9:03:54 PM

bshot44 wrote:

Fire away at what? You nailed it.

L.C.
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Member Since: 8/31/2005
Location: United States
Post Count: 10,470

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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 9:09:00 PM

BillyTheCat wrote:

L.C. wrote:

71 BOBCAT wrote:

...
I am sure we will learn more about Rourke this week. Was it just performance or something else that caused coach to make a change.
...

My personal opinion was it was the shovel pass that could easily have been a pick six for 90+ yards that led to the switch, and the switch stayed that way because Maxwell played well.

Exactly. T3 had the same kind of issues early in his career, but he outgrew them. I think Rourke will as well.

C Money wrote:

I was worried we would see a sophomore slump from Rourke. I'm OK with the short leash, but I would have liked to have seen him get another shot in the 2nd half.

I think Maxwell earned the right to keep playing. I'm sure Rourke will be seen at Virginia, but whether it is in the first or second quarter, I don't know.

�We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.� ― Epictetus

Speaker of Truth
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Member Since: 1/26/2011
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/2/2018 11:02:14 PM

TT is prob the most important football player in OU history. Certainly recent history. The TT fall off is almost certainly on coaching of Albin and possibly Solich as well. Solich always does this with QBs, and I can�t see why he thinks it works. I give him the benefit of the doubt on most things, but this blows my mind.

71 BOBCAT
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 7:55:39 AM

the 123 kid.....Didn't TT get hurt in either his junior or senior year and that may have caused his play to suffer?

GO BOBCATS

L.C.
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 3:57:58 PM

71 BOBCAT wrote:

the 123 kid.....Didn't TT get hurt in either his junior or senior year and that may have caused his play to suffer?
...

There are many theories as to why TT didn't continue to improve. 123 kid's is one I haven't seen before. Some of the theories:
1. After a hard hit at Marshall in 2012, which forced him to take off the next week, he never was the same. A similar hit did the same for Sprague a few years later.
2. Much of his supporting cast was wiped out by injury in 2012. With a makeshift offensive line and less receivers, he didn't look as good.
3. Fans treated him like a god until the Miami loss in 2012, after which they turned viciously on him, which might have affected his psychology.
4. TT didn't improve under the coaching of Gdowski, but that was common to most QBs under Gdowski.
5. TT was allowed to continue to play regardless of how he did or whether he executed the offense, so he never was forced to do his best.
6. TT was pulled from games when he didn't play well, damaging his psychology. (123kid's theory)

Obviously 5 and 6 can't both be true, but other than that, each of us has our own beliefs as to what, if anything, happened. I would guess that for most of us, it is some combination of the theories above. As far as deciding between 5 and 6, TT played nearly every down in 2011-2, except a few in garbage time when Snyder played in 2011, and Vick played in 2012, except the Norfolk State game in 2012 when TT was out. In the last few games of 2013, there were several times when TT was pulled in favor of Vick.

Last Edited: 9/3/2018 3:59:55 PM by L.C.

�We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.� ― Epictetus

Speaker of Truth
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 6:36:07 PM

My theory is closer to this.....Solich is not QB coach. His teams tend to struggle late in the year with perseverance. Is this fatigue? Injuries? Or is it the teams giving up and/or being fed up with Solich and staff? I would think Tim Albin is a big problem here, and Solich�s loyalty to him as well. My point is that most successful teams don�t do what Solich does with QBs, but frank does it every year.

With all that said, I�m a huge Solich fan. So in the end I probably didn�t accomplish much with this post.

L.C.
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 8:56:27 PM

the123kid wrote:

.... My point is that most successful teams don�t do what Solich does with QBs, but frank does it every year....

I'm very unclear as to what, exactly, you are saying that Solich and Albin do, and how that relates to the QB. I presume you are talking about play design, and how often QBs run the ball?

As far as quarterbacks, there is a very distinct difference between the way QBs were used by Gdowski, and how they have been used by Isphording. That may be related to the fact that Isporhding has more depth these days than Gdowski had.

First, let's look at the source of a lot of the problems, QB recruiting:
Freshmen QB recruits under Gdowski
2005 Brandon Jones, Josh Febus (plus transfer Bower)
2006 none
2007 Brian Sweeney (plus JUCO T3)
2008 none (plus JUCO Boo Jackson)
2009 Tyler Tettleton
2010 Kyle Snyder
2011 Ronnie Bell, Darrius Vick
2012 Greg Windham
2013 none

Freshmen QB recruits under Isphording
2014 Joey Duckworth
2015 Quinton Maxwell
2016 none
2017 Drew Keszei (plus JUCO Rourke)
2018 Joe Mischler

Worse, some of these had injury issues that limited their playing time (Jones, Sweeney, Duckworth). Another lost a year to an off-the-field incident (Windham). Still others transferred out (Snyder, Duckworth, Bell).

The result has been a need to rely on transfers (Bower) and JUCO quarterbacks (T3, Boo, and Rourke), plus a walkon (Sprague). Under Gdowski it was rare to have more than one able QB at a time. The two years that happened were 2008 (but then T3 got hurt) and 2009 (but then Boo got hurt). We can't say if it was the result of the lack of any depth, or as a matter of philosophy, but under Gdowski, there was never a QB controversy because there was never any depth. As a percentage of passes thrown, the starter each year threw:
Under Gdowski:
2005 Everson 84%
2006 Everson 77% (missed one game)
2007 Bower 68% (an odd year, split time with T3)
2008 Jackson 79%
2009 Scott 86%
2010 Jackson 91%
2011 Tettleton 97%
2012 Tettleton 92% (missed one game)
2013 Tettleton 87%

However, under Isphording, things suddenly changed. He has been much, much quicker to change QBs, with the result that the playing time gets split. Is it because he has better depth? Or, because of his philosophy?:
2014 Sprague 54%, Vick 43%
2015 Vick 62%, Sprague 29%
2016 Windham 65%, Maxwell 35%
2017 Rourke 91%
2018 To be determined....

There is one other distinct change that I see since Isphording has taken over. QBs improve in passing efficiency from year to year. Here are the pass efficiency ratings for various QBs:
Under Gdowski:
Everson: 108, 88, 102 (first year not under Gdowski)
Bower: 119, 92, 126 (first year not under Gdowski)
Scott: 125, 112, 129
Jackson: 138, 122, 136
Tettleton: 149, 141, 139

Under Isphording:
Vick: 101, 131, 134 (first year was under Gdowski)
Sprague: 100, 137
Windham: 98, 118
Maxwell: 132, 137, ???
Rourke: 133, ???

So, in summary, I see four distinct changes since Isphording arrived. First, QB recruiting seems to be much better. Second, only one QB has transferred out (Duckworth), while (Gdowski lost three, Petruziello, Snyder, and Bell). Third, QBs have tended to improve each year. Fourth, he is much quicker to change QBs.

Last Edited: 9/3/2018 9:05:21 PM by L.C.

�We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.� ― Epictetus

TWT
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 10:39:44 PM

71 BOBCAT wrote:

Howard was definitely pumped up to start this game, and rightfully so, as they were playing against the next level up in talent and they wanted to make a statement. They will have a great year in their league and could win it all.

They were pumped but I think that first series where Ohio had the long INT vs. a pass breakup ended up a stroke of luck. A score was prevented but the INT made for lousy field position which the Cats did nothing with which gave the ball back to Howard quickly for a short field and a 7. Had Howard been forced to punt on the first series, Ohio touchback then say a first down that would have settled things down more in Ohio's favor. That we had to settle for 3 on the next series was also a good break early for Howard. A couple of swings early and its a 48-22 type game.

Most Memorable Bobcat Events Attended
2010 97-83 win over Georgetown in NCAA 1st round
2012 45-13 victory over ULM in the Independence Bowl
2015 34-3 drubbing of Miami @ Peden front of 25,086

TWT
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RE: Bobcat Football is Back!!!

Posted: 9/3/2018 10:55:17 PM

the123kid wrote:

Offensive line despite their size doesn't impose their will on teams with any consistency. One would have thought it would be no problem against Howard. If I recall they didn't design many option plays for Rourke which could have sparked the offense. Instead they decide to just pull him out which fortunately worked alright.

Most Memorable Bobcat Events Attended
2010 97-83 win over Georgetown in NCAA 1st round
2012 45-13 victory over ULM in the Independence Bowl
2015 34-3 drubbing of Miami @ Peden front of 25,086

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