HurricaneAce07
Class of 2007
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2015
- Messages
- 786
As a Miami alum and fan, I've been watching Canes games since the mid-90s and attending games since 2002. I've been a part of some tough losses and bared witness to some horrible losses, especially over the last 15 years. Like many of you, I have my own opinions and those opinions can change week to week depending on what I've seen on the field. Sure I was ****ed after GT, but we followed that up with big wins over Pitt-FSU-UL and the team appeared to heading in a new direction. However the loss to FIU is different - in a really bad way.
Before I explain the difference, I wanted to hit on this "TNM" culture thing. If what I saw on Saturday is "TNM" we are serious Jeopardy of becoming the Vanderbilt of the ACC - and we may already be there. Coach Diaz looked like a corpse out there - no emotion, no aggression, no sense of urgency. Here are a few examples of what I'm talking about:
1. The FIU offensive line was blatantly holding on nearly every play. You know what Diaz did? Nothing - just let his Dline get abused for four quarters. even Richt had a limit and was saw that limit breached against Wisconsin (see image below). Diaz should have gotten himself flagged in the 2nd quarter to send a message to the refs AND to his players that he actually gave a sh*t. Same could be said of the fake injuries - be a jerk about it and call it out; don't let it slide!
2. The team came out flat footed again - poor QB play/execution, bad tackling and just flat out lazy. What did Diaz do? Nothing. He let the kids act like this was an exhibition game, dance on the sidelines and assume no one would care since we were playing a mediocre team on a baseball field. Get in someones face, let them know this is not OK, set an example and get your team leaders to follow it.
3. Down three scores in the second half, the offense (Enos) had no sense of urgency, stuck with the huddle and just ate up clock until we eventually ran out of time. What did Diaz do? Nothing. Why not get on Enos to hurry it up in the late 3rd or early 4th quarter? And if he ignores you, jump on his a** like Saban would any one of his coordinators? If they don't respect you, neither will the players.
The above are just a few examples of what bothered me more than he final score - I think Diaz is a good man and a really good Defensive Coordinator, but right now he's learning on the job and trying too hard to look composed. F*CK COMPOSURE - your job is on the line and this team is falling apart. If you care, act like you care!
Back to why this loss bothered me so much. The tradition of south Florida football and the Miami fanbase is not swagger - it's PRIDE. Pride is what causes us to take the "us vs the world" mentality. Pride is what causes many of us to renew our season tickets every year. Pride is what keeps locals kids committed to Miami even after bad seasons. Pride is what makes some of our players stay an extra year before entering the draft. A loss to FIU is more than a loss - it can have lasting effects on our pride as a fanbase, as a recruit and as a player. If wearing the U on a shirt becomes a lasting joke of what "once was", then we can kiss our legacy goodbye and just accept being a mid-tier program in a mid-tier conference.
So what do we do?
1. I'm now openly for Blake James removal - this isn't just about the football program. He was out negotiated by bunch of other ADs to allow silly "home-and-home" games against a bunch of bad teams - App State, Toledo, FAU, FIU, etc. Playing at Marlins Park should have never been on the table but Blake let FIU get what they wanted. What he let the NCAA/FBI do to our basketball program is criminal - we were on the verge of being an ACC destination. Blake rolled over for the NCAA and our basketball program is in freefall. That alone is fireable. Add in the football issues and the university really needs to step in and move on.
2. Enos should be fired before the bowl game - I don't care who calls plays, but start the search ASAP and give our current players a chance to play fast once before next season or before they move on to the draft (looking at you JT4).
3. Demote Baker and take over the defense - our defense isn't horrible, but we are not nearly as good as we should be. I'm seeing some "bend don't break" scheming out there and I never want to see that again.
4. Show some **** emotion Diaz or move on - I like you Diaz, but you need to show some passion out there. Your players are a reflection of you. If you look like you don't care, neither will they. If you don't look like you want to win, maybe you don't and maybe you should move on.
Signed - a normally very rationale even-keeled alum, fan and season ticket holder
Before I explain the difference, I wanted to hit on this "TNM" culture thing. If what I saw on Saturday is "TNM" we are serious Jeopardy of becoming the Vanderbilt of the ACC - and we may already be there. Coach Diaz looked like a corpse out there - no emotion, no aggression, no sense of urgency. Here are a few examples of what I'm talking about:
1. The FIU offensive line was blatantly holding on nearly every play. You know what Diaz did? Nothing - just let his Dline get abused for four quarters. even Richt had a limit and was saw that limit breached against Wisconsin (see image below). Diaz should have gotten himself flagged in the 2nd quarter to send a message to the refs AND to his players that he actually gave a sh*t. Same could be said of the fake injuries - be a jerk about it and call it out; don't let it slide!
2. The team came out flat footed again - poor QB play/execution, bad tackling and just flat out lazy. What did Diaz do? Nothing. He let the kids act like this was an exhibition game, dance on the sidelines and assume no one would care since we were playing a mediocre team on a baseball field. Get in someones face, let them know this is not OK, set an example and get your team leaders to follow it.
3. Down three scores in the second half, the offense (Enos) had no sense of urgency, stuck with the huddle and just ate up clock until we eventually ran out of time. What did Diaz do? Nothing. Why not get on Enos to hurry it up in the late 3rd or early 4th quarter? And if he ignores you, jump on his a** like Saban would any one of his coordinators? If they don't respect you, neither will the players.
The above are just a few examples of what bothered me more than he final score - I think Diaz is a good man and a really good Defensive Coordinator, but right now he's learning on the job and trying too hard to look composed. F*CK COMPOSURE - your job is on the line and this team is falling apart. If you care, act like you care!
Back to why this loss bothered me so much. The tradition of south Florida football and the Miami fanbase is not swagger - it's PRIDE. Pride is what causes us to take the "us vs the world" mentality. Pride is what causes many of us to renew our season tickets every year. Pride is what keeps locals kids committed to Miami even after bad seasons. Pride is what makes some of our players stay an extra year before entering the draft. A loss to FIU is more than a loss - it can have lasting effects on our pride as a fanbase, as a recruit and as a player. If wearing the U on a shirt becomes a lasting joke of what "once was", then we can kiss our legacy goodbye and just accept being a mid-tier program in a mid-tier conference.
So what do we do?
1. I'm now openly for Blake James removal - this isn't just about the football program. He was out negotiated by bunch of other ADs to allow silly "home-and-home" games against a bunch of bad teams - App State, Toledo, FAU, FIU, etc. Playing at Marlins Park should have never been on the table but Blake let FIU get what they wanted. What he let the NCAA/FBI do to our basketball program is criminal - we were on the verge of being an ACC destination. Blake rolled over for the NCAA and our basketball program is in freefall. That alone is fireable. Add in the football issues and the university really needs to step in and move on.
2. Enos should be fired before the bowl game - I don't care who calls plays, but start the search ASAP and give our current players a chance to play fast once before next season or before they move on to the draft (looking at you JT4).
3. Demote Baker and take over the defense - our defense isn't horrible, but we are not nearly as good as we should be. I'm seeing some "bend don't break" scheming out there and I never want to see that again.
4. Show some **** emotion Diaz or move on - I like you Diaz, but you need to show some passion out there. Your players are a reflection of you. If you look like you don't care, neither will they. If you don't look like you want to win, maybe you don't and maybe you should move on.
Signed - a normally very rationale even-keeled alum, fan and season ticket holder
