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Pope can not return another punt

If Miami has truly changed, then the rule is next man up. If he can't get the job done, next man up. So that tells me they don't have anyone else or there to scared to put a freshman back there. I mean **** give the young guys a chance to fly.
 
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Coach Macho said:
I don't think he's mentally weak or anything, he's just awkward.
Like somebody already said in here, returning kicks (especially punts) is about comfort. The kid just looked uncomfortable and indecisive. He barely has a clue where he's going when he does return it.

I even have friends (who don't know our players) texting me in the middle of games..."Who's this Pope kid? He's awkward!"

Restrepo is way more savvy and has much more natural confidence as a football player. And he's chomping at the bit to make some plays. That's why he picked up that punt on the hop Saturday night.
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Lol 100000%. He just doesn’t have a good feel for being a Return man. Nothing wrong with that. Not everyone is meant to be a Returner. My wife ( who watches casually) said out of the blue “ 6 makes me nervous” Just let him concentrate being a WR
 
PresaCane said:
Pope is too light out there but I do believe he will take one to the house before seasons end. He has the skill set but unable to stay on his feet after contact. Restrepo may be a good option but he seems to be very risky but high reward.
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Wait Restrepo seems very risky but high reward? What the ****? Pope is the risky one.
 
Not Pope's fault.

We are what we are with the body God has given us.

Right now he is about 15 to 20 lbs away from looking like a D1 football player.

The roster has him listed at 172 and you can just see that he and Harley are usually the smallest guys on the field, either team.

I think if he gains the wt he will be ok and at least be more confident.
 
The criticism of Pope's football IQ is 100% valid. In addition to his punt return fumble, he also had a false start, and a miscommunication error with King in the 1st quarter. Smh

The bottom line is he routinely has lapses in concentration & focus throughout the game. It's more or less inevitable that it's going to happen. So it's not a question of if but when. The whole notion that he needs more practice at punt returning is ridiculous because throughout his high school career he was returning punts. Also how can someone like Restrepo who's a FR already be better than him at returning punts?

Not only would I take KJ Osborn over him every day of the wk, and twice on Sat, but for MIA to win against Clemson, the younger players like Payton, Redding, & Smith have to continue to take Pope's snaps. Playing Pope in crucial moments throughout the game is a recipe for disaster.
 
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Meast21 said:
I think they realize Pope is mentally weak so they are trying to build up his confidence. If they bench him completely, he'll crack.

That said, 2 PR fumbles in 3 games, time to sit. Let Pope play WR and focus there. Let Restrepo have a crack at PR full time now
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Restrepo looked just as bad vs Clemson.

What idiot picks up the ball when Clemson has 3 players around him.
 
Restrepo raised my stress level trying to pick up a rolling ball on the 1 yard line.that clearly was going to be a touch back. On top of that although accidently his foot hit the ball sending it out of the back of the endzone. That could have been called a safety I think is the way the rule goes about kicking it out of end zone
 
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MizCane said:
That is all!
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Yeah, I saw great improvement last night from the new guy....we’re better off not sending anyone back and just letting the ball bounce dead. Instead, we can just use the extra guy to try to block it. We might be better off.
 
MizCane said:
It’s unfair to throw Restrepo back against Clemson in his first meaningful playing time especially as critical as PR is.
After game 1 when Pope muffed one and throw in his drops he just doesn’t have it. He’s a decent possession receiver but I do not trust his hands one bit. We are playing with Fire with him back there in a close game.
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You’re right. Thank goodness he didn’t....oh, wait.
 
All these mental errors....lack of focus and concentration....what gives?

I was going to ask if our guys get high before games, but then I thought, “wait a second, that’s an inappropriate question....”
 
miamifan007 said:
Restrepo looked just as bad vs Clemson.

What idiot picks up the ball when Clemson has 3 players around him.
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If you knew the rule you would know that once the ball hits someone on the kicking team it is illegal touching. Thus the receiving team player should ALWAYS try to return the ball. The worst thing that can happen is they get the ball where the punting team touched the ball. It was a veteran move to pick it up. Pope would have never done that. Resteppo is the man.
 
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