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Leaving something on the table: position changes and unrealized upside

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cowboycane said:
Ironically, Golden messed around with this a couple of times to almost universal mockery. Trying NJoku at linebacker for a couple of days comes to mind.
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Golden was coaching out of a textbook and from inspirational quote generators, but he did some things here better than the subsequent two have done. Of course, he did some things historically bad and allowed an absurd defensive philosophy to drag down an entire program. It would be like if Diaz rode with Enos for a couple years.
 
Indio Cane said:
Players also have to want to switch positions.
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Right. But, players I've spoken to mainly have the same goal. "Get to the L and make $." If they respect a coach enough, they're ore open to what will best help the maximize their chances at the goal. Of course, if we recruit a ton of players who aren't coachable, or they don't believe/respect their coach, we're all stuck. I tend to put the onus on coaches and professionals being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, but I realize it's a two-way street. Select better players.
 
LuCane said:
Golden was coaching out of a textbook and from inspirational quote generators, but he did some things here better than the subsequent two have done. Of course, he did some things historically bad and allowed an absurd defensive philosophy to drag down an entire program. It would be like if Diaz rode with Enos for a couple years.
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Trust me, I ******* HATE Golden. Just pointing out that time is a flat circle is all. I think we are plagued by having ADs that lack vision and hire coaches that lack vision.
 
Funny; I was watching Chazz Surratt earlier thinking something similar. He was player of the year in North Carolina as a dual-threat QB with over 4,881 total yards and 66 total TD's his senior season of high school. Started 7 games at QB as a RS Fr. Wrist injury sidelines him for the year as a sophomore. Starts practicing with the LB's in the spring and looks out of place the first couple of games as a Jr, but looks like a playmaker by the year's end. Now he's one of the top returning players in CFB and could possibly hear his name called on Day 1 or 2 of the draft if he keeps it up.
 
Ray Ray Armstrong was a perfect example. Kid was a victim of Sean Taylor's legacy. Everyone saw his frame and wanted to jam him into a position he was never suited for. Should have been a LB from day 1 and many of us said it from his high school days.

Someone mentioned it in this thread already but I think Carter should have been moved to LB a while ago. He's not as clear a cut case as Ray Ray was....but his skill set is better suited for being closer to the line of scrimmage. For those defensive tweeners it's all about recognizing which athletes can compete in wide open space via God given change of direction abilities and quick feet....and who can't and belong closer to the line of scrimmage.

I think the OL coaching has been a **** show for a LONG time but that almost deserves its own thread. Guys who should have been at tackle playing guard, guys that should be at guard playing tackle, and guys playing that shouldn't be playing.

It's ALL about coaching at the college level, which pretty much sums up this programs last two decades. Incompetent administration picking incompetent coaches who pick incompetent assistants. That leads to less wins and hurts recruiting. It's a wheel that needs to be broken before this program can take a step forward.
 
LuCane said:
I think we leave a ton of competitive advantage on the table. Wasted.

Let's put this simply: no matter how the NCAA rules change, we are unlikely to ever compete with the "bags" other programs provide. Even if we did, we'd very likely get hammered sooner and more harshly than what we've seen happen in the SEC, for example.

So how do we make up some of the competitive advantage? We need to evaluate and envision players earlier and maximize their athletic potential. This isn't new. In another era, Butch Davis made a name for himself off of a few of these "gambles." Nick Saban was famous for wanting to switch athletes to DB.

Our inherent advantage is geography. Geography should dictate relationships and our proximity should allow HS student-athletes and local coaches to visit us and vice versa more often. We should also get a closer look at athletes sooner than when they begin to "blow up" at national camps. Assuming we hire the correct skill, this should allow us to project players better.

A good example is Greg Rousseau, who some argued might be an OLB or even a TE here. While many did project him to DE, we can go back on the board and see the discussions around what his final position would be if/once he grew into his frame. He'll be closer to Calais Campbell than a 3-4 EDGE guy.

One of the most notorious positions where missed opportunities happen is at DB. You see late position switches in college and even, on occasion, into the NFL. Another OL, where kids switch from DL late and without prior experience, but have all the attributes. Let's acknowlege we need good position coaches to do this. Look at what Auburn did with Noah Igbinoghene's move from WR to CB.

For some time, I've felt we miss out on a lot of guys who "specialize" in HS, who later switch from DL to OL, who don't have a clear position in HS because they're still growing, or most of all get stuck at WR/RB when they could be elite DBs. I guess the first answer is "make sure we have better talent evaluators with foresight on staff." But, the latter part of that statement is critical. We need more calculated foresight. We need to project guys earlier and better. We need to be open to late bloomers.

We all know we need to begin to win to attract better recruits. This is one way to bridge the difference between us and the big $ schools.
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I agree only problem is our position coaches cant even get guys to be able to switch from RT to LT. i remember when damien berry switched from safety to running back. Didnt dallas crawford switch as well. We need athletes on the field.
 
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skyman said:
If UM cant throw bags at players then they need to throw bags at coaches to draw the players. They want to play cheap so you get the results. If miami was on cutting edge coaching wise a decade ago they would have been better off. Being cheap and hiring corches off failed staffs with a learning curve for positions they never had doesnt sound like recipe for immediate success. The odds are obviously lower, I dont even think we look at odds only check book of what stays in pocket and not realize how the sport has evolved and exploded and the benefits of investing in success.

Also if you cant drop bags, find ways to invest in community. U ask 20 top kids who they know in their circle who went to UM and you will get blank stares, if miami was in the community where these players were and invested in some way that could go a long way to build real community ties. You can get creative and legitimately invest in some way. Even doing their own turkey give aways or job fairs or something would be some good will and maybe help down the. If it doesnt still you have helped the community. Just little things. There is no connection but UM doesnt invest in program or these communities but feel obligated to the top crop to attend with sells pitch of we wont invest in program or top coaching but you shoul dcome here to play in front on mom..
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This man gets it, and many have said that here. If we can't play the bag game for players, play the bag game for coaches. I can't imagine how much money we've lost by trying to be cheap. Invest the right way to overcome the bag game. We might not get all the 5 star kids, but hire the right coach and we'll keep a lot of the 4 star kids home, and have great evals on the 3star and UR kids across the country.

Another problem is our lack of continuity, and with no continuity, you have no identity. With no identity, you can't evaluate properly b/c last years' class is no longer applicable to a scheme you're now trying to run.
 
Switches to consider on this team:
Tate to WR
A Carter to Will

Not many other obvious ones right now. Need to keep an eye on K Smith. Not sure I see Blissett as a DE either. Some of the incoming freshmen could fit at more than one position.
 
I've been pounding the table for some of our WRs to get legit CB looks. I'll even take some flack for it, but idc. WR to CB transitions, especially WRs that are 20...almost 21 years old and haven't done much at the position...can be money makers. The ball skills and mirroring get the accelerated through the learning curve.

Gimme a run stuffing iDL that isn't getting very far because he's pretty limited and I'm giving him a shot at interior OL Drive block, motherfvcker. Got some feet, now we got something.
 
CanesFan93 said:
Funny; I was watching Chazz Surratt earlier thinking something similar. He was player of the year in North Carolina as a dual-threat QB with over 4,881 total yards and 66 total TD's his senior season of high school. Started 7 games at QB as a RS Fr. Wrist injury sidelines him for the year as a sophomore. Starts practicing with the LB's in the spring and looks out of place the first couple of games as a Jr, but looks like a playmaker by the year's end. Now he's one of the top returning players in CFB and could possibly hear his name called on Day 1 or 2 of the draft if he keeps it up.
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The weakest unit of the past 3 years has been the offensive line. And, when you read what OL coaches now look for, it’s good feet and athleticism - no more fat boys, basically. And, the success at Iowa and Wisconsin in the trenches has born out this theory as they take TE’s and QB’s and convert them to drafted tackles/guards. Feet!

- Maybe he turns into a great TE at CSU, but given that Polendey was never going to play at Miami he should’ve been “Badgered/Hawkeyed“ (or just “Caned” … like how Warren Sapp found out he would be playing defense). Great OT measurables, listed as a blocking TE …

- also at CSU … Scott Patchan. Enough has been written about Scott.
 
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