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Alright I’m going to say it. I have some concerns.

Miami04

Miami04

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Have we gotten better across the board this off season or just at a couple of spots? I know Dmoney compared year. 1 vs today but just looking at last year to today.

QB - much much better
RB - if fletcher is out for the year this is a push but we will say slightly better (heavily relying on unproven players)
WR - experience and the transfer should make us better here
TE - push
OL - small step back. I doubt we would have still been sniffing around another portal C and IOL if this wasn’t the case

DE - much much better
DT - if we lose Barrow we are worse than last year and with him it’s a push
LB - better and have some depth
CB - worse
S - way worse. Depending on where Powell plays maybe the worst group of S in the ACC


Maybe it’s the 20 years of sucking and the refusing to fall for the hype again but I’m just not sure this team has the horses. Cam should make a huge difference but if we need talent to overcome Mario’s deficiencies I don’t see it yet. Granted there are a lot of true Soph that can step up but that’s nothing we can count on.

The schedule should help but we’re going to have to out coach some teams and that hasn’t happened yet. I think 10 win may be this teams ceiling. I hope I’m wrong. My #1 concern is we lose a game because of coaching or a crucial game and the mercenaries quit on the team and fracture the locker room. But that’s something 90% of the country has to worry about.
 
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Miami04 said:
Have we gotten better across the board this off season or just at a couple of spots? I know Dmoney compared year. 1 vs today but just looking at last year to today.

QB - much much better
RB - if fletcher is out for the year this is a push but we will say slightly better (heavily relying on unproven players)
WR - experience and the transfer should make us better here
TE - push
OL - small step back. I doubt we would have still been sniffing around another portal C and IOL if this wasn’t the case

DE - much much better
DT - if we lose Barrow we are worse than last year and with him it’s a push
LB - better and have some depth
CB - worse
S - way worse. Depending on where Powell plays maybe the worst group of S in the ACC


Maybe it’s the 20 years of sucking and the refusing to fall for the hype again but I’m just not sure this team has the horses. Cam should make a huge difference but if we need talent to overcome Mario’s deficiencies I don’t see it yet. Granted there are a lot of true Soph that can step up but that’s nothing we can count on.

The schedule should help but we’re going to have to out coach some teams and that hasn’t happened yet. I think 10 win may be this teams ceiling. I hope I’m wrong. My #1 concern is we lose a game because of coaching or a crucial game and the mercenaries quit on the team and fracture the locker room. But that’s something 90% of the country has to worry about.
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Fair assessment on if the glass is half full or half empty.
.. especially since hopes have been crushed enough over the years to warrant caution and skepticism to some extent
 
Miami04 said:
CB - worse
S - way worse. Depending on where Powell plays maybe the worst group of S in the ACC
Click to expand...
How are we worse on CBs, it's the same personnel?

And the S part is a stretch, one guy was a box safety who refused to play LB and the other was a gambler busting coverages reading the ball... The worst group in the ACC, some in here need to touch grass.
 
We added a top 5-10 running back in the nation and we’re slightly better? I would trade twelve Chaneys or Parrish’s for a single Martinez.

We got zero tight end production last year. If Arroyo catches 20 passes this year it would be an enormous improvement. Plus whatever Lofton and Riley Williams can add.

We will miss Matt Lee’s leadership and athleticism but we are replacing him with a bigger, stronger guy. I prefer my IOL that way. There might be a dip in some areas but we’ll improve in others. LG is a question mark but both tackles and RG (who were all very good last year) should be even better. I’d be shocked if we aren’t a finalist for the Joe Moore award.

The only position group that was probably better last year was safety. Even though CIS hated Williams and Kinchens, they were both solid and I’m not sold on anyone we have now besides Powell.

Also people keep underrating the importance of quarterback. Even when healthy, TVD had shortcomings in his game that Ward doesn’t have. Having a top 5 quarterback is huge.
 
For all the talk of mopes and slurpers, the truth is almost always somewhere in between.

We are never as good as the Koolaide crowd thinks

We are never as bad as the Prozac crowd thinks

I expect us to be better in some significant ways but still have some frustrating flaws that hold us back from being a top tier team.

I expect us to be in the lower -middle part of the top 25. Call it 12-16 range. Which in a normal year would be an improvement but uninspiring. However, that puts us on the bubble to be in the playoffs. That bubble most likely hinges on the difference between a 9 or 10 win season. Based on last years rankings, 10 wins is likely in while 9 is likely in the lower half of the top 20 but missing the playoffs.

I am going to ignore the noise from both camps and enjoy the ride. I am hoping we can sneak into the playoffs. Not because I think we can contend but it would just feel like a huge step. Not to mention, playing a bowl game with a chance for advancement will be way more fun than any traditional bowl game.
 
Al Davis Nfl GIF by Las Vegas Raiders
 
Alot of it is too much too type, alot of context is needed for alot of stuff but imo it all comes down to can this staff fully maximize this team?

If they can i think we can win 10 games. Probably wont be a dominant 10, most likely alot of close games but there are absolutely 10 wins on our schedule
 
Miami04 said:
Have we gotten better across the board this off season or just at a couple of spots? I know Dmoney compared year. 1 vs today but just looking at last year to today.

QB - much much better
RB - if fletcher is out for the year this is a push but we will say slightly better (heavily relying on unproven players)
WR - experience and the transfer should make us better here
TE - push
OL - small step back. I doubt we would have still been sniffing around another portal C and IOL if this wasn’t the case

DE - much much better
DT - if we lose Barrow we are worse than last year and with him it’s a push
LB - better and have some depth
CB - worse
S - way worse. Depending on where Powell plays maybe the worst group of S in the ACC


Maybe it’s the 20 years of sucking and the refusing to fall for the hype again but I’m just not sure this team has the horses. Cam should make a huge difference but if we need talent to overcome Mario’s deficiencies I don’t see it yet. Granted there are a lot of true Soph that can step up but that’s nothing we can count on.

The schedule should help but we’re going to have to out coach some teams and that hasn’t happened yet. I think 10 win may be this teams ceiling. I hope I’m wrong. My #1 concern is we lose a game because of coaching or a crucial game and the mercenaries quit on the team and fracture the locker room. But that’s something 90% of the country has to worry about.
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QB being much, much better is all you really need to concern yourself with.
 
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genxcane said:
For all the talk of mopes and slurpers, the truth is almost always somewhere in between.

We are never as good as the Koolaide crowd thinks

We are never as bad as the Prozac crowd thinks

I expect us to be better in some significant ways but still have some frustrating flaws that hold us back from being a top tier team.

I expect us to be in the lower -middle part of the top 25. Call it 12-16 range. Which in a normal year would be an improvement but uninspiring. However, that puts us on the bubble to be in the playoffs. That bubble most likely hinges on the difference between a 9 or 10 win season. Based on last years rankings, 10 wins is likely in while 9 is likely in the lower half of the top 20 but missing the playoffs.

I am going to ignore the noise from both camps and enjoy the ride. I am hoping we can sneak into the playoffs. Not because I think we can contend but it would just feel like a huge step. Not to mention, playing a bowl game with a chance for advancement will be way more fun than any traditional bowl game.
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The ACC champ gets a spot.
If we go 9-3 with wins in 2 of the 3 vs FSU, UL and VT we'll probably go to the ACCCG.
We win and get to 10-3, they'll seed us 4th of the P4 champs.

I agree, us or any other ACC team @ 9 total wins is not getting in without a conference ring.

Someone did a nice breakdown of the playoff spots:
SEC- 4
BIG- 3
ACC- 1 or 2
Big 12- 1 or 2
ND-1
G5-1

The way I look at it, there's only 7 spots available to us when you take away the other 3 P4 champs, ND and a G5 school.
We better be sitting at 11-2 (ACCCG loss) if we want a spot without being ACC champs.
 
genxcane said:
For all the talk of mopes and slurpers, the truth is almost always somewhere in between.

We are never as good as the Koolaide crowd thinks

We are never as bad as the Prozac crowd thinks

I expect us to be better in some significant ways but still have some frustrating flaws that hold us back from being a top tier team.

I expect us to be in the lower -middle part of the top 25. Call it 12-16 range. Which in a normal year would be an improvement but uninspiring. However, that puts us on the bubble to be in the playoffs. That bubble most likely hinges on the difference between a 9 or 10 win season. Based on last years rankings, 10 wins is likely in while 9 is likely in the lower half of the top 20 but missing the playoffs.

I am going to ignore the noise from both camps and enjoy the ride. I am hoping we can sneak into the playoffs. Not because I think we can contend but it would just feel like a huge step. Not to mention, playing a bowl game with a chance for advancement will be way more fun than any traditional bowl game.
Click to expand...
I agree with everything you said. Only thing I question is the bowl game topic. It’s my understanding that after the 12 game regular season - you qualify for the playoffs OR a bowl game. Not where your Bowl game serves as an extra game to see if your ranking can improve to make the top 12. I could be wrong but thought I’d highlight that and see if anyone had clarity on how the process works
 
Disagree on CB and safety. CB is an upgrade. Brown is more experienced and he’s on the verge and hill is better than Davis. I like our first 4. Safety - KK and JWill had their worst years last year. JWill has been more hype than anything and his play has reflected that.

On offense, two areas of concern - RB and OL. It’s great we have Martinez but I would be surprised if he remains healthy all year long as Mario’s feather grind out back. If we don’t get Fletcher back, that position is concerning.

OL - losing Lee is big and carpenter has been average. LG will be a down grade and last year’s OL played almost all the snaps (except for FM who was a bit banged up). You can’t expect 2 years in a row of that kind of health at OL. Would love to see 1-2 of Samson, Bruno, McCoy, bell step up to be fill that 5-7 man rotation.

As for WR, I can’t underscore enough how big the brown pickup was. We desperately needed a guy like that.
 
Miami04 said:
Have we gotten better across the board this off season or just at a couple of spots? I know Dmoney compared year. 1 vs today but just looking at last year to today.

QB - much much better
RB - if fletcher is out for the year this is a push but we will say slightly better (heavily relying on unproven players)
WR - experience and the transfer should make us better here
TE - push
OL - small step back. I doubt we would have still been sniffing around another portal C and IOL if this wasn’t the case

DE - much much better
DT - if we lose Barrow we are worse than last year and with him it’s a push
LB - better and have some depth
CB - worse
S - way worse. Depending on where Powell plays maybe the worst group of S in the ACC


Maybe it’s the 20 years of sucking and the refusing to fall for the hype again but I’m just not sure this team has the horses. Cam should make a huge difference but if we need talent to overcome Mario’s deficiencies I don’t see it yet. Granted there are a lot of true Soph that can step up but that’s nothing we can count on.

The schedule should help but we’re going to have to out coach some teams and that hasn’t happened yet. I think 10 win may be this teams ceiling. I hope I’m wrong. My #1 concern is we lose a game because of coaching or a crucial game and the mercenaries quit on the team and fracture the locker room. But that’s something 90% of the country has to worry about.
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Mostly agree. Exceptions are…

TE: We are better
CB: Push
S: Worse (not way worse)

More importantly, we are better overall.
 
What no one ever talks about is....our opponents. Are they better or worse than last year? And I get it , few of us have the time to dig that deep.
FSU is absolutely not better but still a force and VT by all accounts is a better team as a result of all the returning starters.

Another factor is "The best Team does not always win" You run into a super hot QB, you get 1 or 2 bad calls and a fluke turnover and you lose 27-24 to a team you beat 9 outta 10 times.

Football seasons rarely go as forecasted but having the talent edge gives your team the ability to overcome the "luck' factors that determine a game.
 
If we stay healthy, we're gonna be fine if the staff and players dedicate themselves to getting better every day.
 
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AUcane said:
Disagree on CB and safety. CB is an upgrade. Brown is more experienced and he’s on the verge and hill is better than Davis. I like our first 4. Safety - KK and JWill had their worst years last year. JWill has been more hype than anything and his play has reflected that.

On offense, two areas of concern - RB and OL. It’s great we have Martinez but I would be surprised if he remains healthy all year long as Mario’s feather grind out back. If we don’t get Fletcher back, that position is concerning.

OL - losing Lee is big and carpenter has been average. LG will be a down grade and last year’s OL played almost all the snaps (except for FM who was a bit banged up). You can’t expect 2 years in a row of that kind of health at OL. Would love to see 1-2 of Samson, Bruno, McCoy, bell step up to be fill that 5-7 man rotation.

As for WR, I can’t underscore enough how big the brown pickup was. We desperately needed a guy like that.
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Where did you get that Carpenter was average? Dmoney and everyone close to the program has said otherwise lo. lHe’s bigger and stronger than Lee. He still made all big-10 hm playing next to two terible guards at Indiana. Worst case is that he’ll be the same level as Lee. Whoever ends up playing LG will have a higher ceiling than Cohen. It also helps that we bring back our three best offensive lineman
 
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