Yet all the seniors and super seniors that missed the tackels and have been missing tackels for a while won't miss one minute of playing time.- Let's start with the obvious. I'm where everyone else is on Manny- it does no good to keep him. If anything, he's a distraction. I know many fans had mixed emotions even as we cheered on the Canes comeback. To quote my man @Alex Jones, stop the bleeding. Let the fanbase focus on supporting the kids on the field with no other worries. My guess is that NC State ends it next week. When the stinker happens, we'll know. I thought we would quit at 28-10, but credit the team for showing heart.
- I'm not surprised Manny failed, but I am surprised at how quickly the seniors and super seniors on this team collapsed. This was a ranked team last year with the same kids. Aside from a couple James Williams shoulderblocks, the older guys were responsible for most of the bad tackling we saw on Saturday. It's not just a talent issue with them. Most of them are blue-chip recruits with testing numbers. They just got worse.
- TVD is an incomplete grade right now, and I don't buy any definitive prediction on his future. On the positive side, he's huge, he has arm strength (really flashed on one of his throws out of bounds under pressure), he's an athlete and he cares. His natural athleticism wasn't showing in his early appearances but is starting to translate to the field. It should become even more of a factor as he gains confidence. The 2-point conversion was a Mahomes pass.
On the negative side, he can be robotic at times and did not display P5 level accuracy. A lot of it is purely mechanical. This is a guy who was a TE at times in high school and is not as polished as a guy like Garcia. When he's in rhythm, he throws strikes, but he can be too unbalanced and loose at other times. This also speaks to his upside. I've seen him in practice and he is not as inaccurate as what he's shown the last couple games. The one issue that concerns me is the release. Don't know if that can be overhauled at this stage.
- Cam Harris's injury is a downer. He was going to get an NFL shot and the injury complicates things. So many people focused on his negatives and ignored that he was our most productive runner (5.8 ypc) and our best pass blocker. Hoping for a speedy recovery there.
- The upside is we will see more of Rooster. He finally showed the explosion that we'd been waiting for. Cody Brown will get opportunities, but I hope Thad Franklin does what he needs to do to get on the field. He brings a different dimension talent-wise.
- James Williams was suplexing people like Kurt Angle. His mistakes are correctable and he will need a strong coach. The things you can't coach--size, twitch, instincts and fire--are there in abundance. Him and Avantae Williams are going to be the Bash Brothers next week, but it doesn't mean anything if you don't bring the ballcarrier to the ground. Jaquan Johnson was a tackler, not a hitter, and he is playing on Monday Night Football tonight without half of the Williams Brothers' talent.
- Aside from Hedley, Jared Harrison-Hunte is the best player on the team right now. Consistently disruptive with sneaky power. Him and Leonard Taylor can become forces for the next coach with a strong summer in the weight room.
- Chantz Williams still needs a lot of work handling blockers. He has natural length, anchor and strong hands, but too often gets stuck on blocks in the run and pass game. At least he's getting experience in a lost season.
- This is the worst group of LBs in my 30 years as a fan. Some of it is injuries, some is bad recruiting. Keontra Smith is the best by a mile and this board moved him to LB a full year before the coaches did. Transfers are needed.
See you at the Rock on Saturday.
They haven't up to now.
