The WR skillset and training discussion

[filmcane]

I've never been a WR at a D1 school, so I personally haven't had that experience, but having said that, I feel like there's something missing that I'm not picking up in regard to the difficulty of the position.

It seems to me that if you're a scholarship WR and even receiving any measure of of NIL, you only have a few things that you need to focus on and then you can at least become useful if not good or better: learn the playbook, practice executing crisp routes, get used to contact so you don't fumble the ball (call it ball skills) and practice over and over again catching the ball.

My amateur mind can't seem to understand why even the current WR's we have on the roster can't just focus on these basic things and become a solid-to-very good unit with the athletes we currently have...?

Am I over simplifying this process? Why can't our current WR's dedicate themselves to excellence and become, at minimum, serviceable, reliable CFB receivers? Why wouldn't they want to? We had a receiver here during the Golden era who got with Duper (can't remember who...?) and he did this very thing one offseason and it transformed him from a JAG to landing on an NFL roster.

I see receivers from less glitzier schools than ours, display these fundamentals and out-perform our WR's.

Thanks, I'll hang up and listen...

 

[AewNeckBeardBoogerEater]

I wish I had one wr with any skill set. My best wr this year went to a juco I can’t even pronounce.

 

[pacusmc]

I've never been a WR at a D1 school, so I personally haven't had that experience, but having said that, I feel like there's something missing that I'm not picking up in regard to the difficulty of the position.

It seems to me that if you're a scholarship WR and even receiving any measure of of NIL, you only have a few things that you need to focus on and then you can at least become useful if not good or better: learn the playbook, practice executing crisp routes, get used to contact so you don't fumble the ball (call it ball skills) and practice over and over again catching the ball.

My amateur mind can't seem to understand why even the current WR's we have on the roster can't just focus on these basic things and become a solid-to-very good unit with the athletes we currently have...?

Am I over simplifying this process? Why can't our current WR's dedicate themselves to excellence and become, at minimum, serviceable, reliable CFB receivers? Why wouldn't they want to? We had a receiver here during the Golden era who got with Duper (can't remember who...?) and he did this very thing one offseason and it transformed him from a JAG to landing on an NFL roster.

I see receivers from less glitzier schools than ours, display these fundamentals and out-perform our WR's.

Thanks, I'll hang up and listen...

It’s mental.
The biggest challenges always are.
These kids have been told that they’re great. They have handlers telling them they’re great.
Recruiting sites telling them they’re great.
They think that their dream is so close and then reality sets in that their talent is likely common.
They get to practice and can’t separate or they can’t get open as easy as they used to in high school.
That talent that got them by in high school isn’t enough. And it fcks with a lot player’s heads and they don’t know how to handle it.

Let Goggins explain it

 

[77cane]

It’s mental.
The biggest challenges always are.
These kids have been told that they’re great. They have handlers telling them they’re great.
Recruiting sites telling them they’re great.
They think that their dream is so close and then reality sets in that their talent is likely common.
They get to practice and can’t separate or they can’t get open as easy as they used to in high school.
That talent that got them by in high school isn’t enough. And it fcks with a lot player’s heads and they don’t know how to handle it.

Let Goggins explain it

Read " Can"t hurt me." Goggins makes some excellent points on the mental aspects of reaching your maximum potential, staying there ,and not backing down or given in. I definitely would recommend this book to those coming into tne program . It takes a lot of extra effort to separate yourself from everyone else, and reach the next level.

 

[pacusmc]

Read " Can"t hurt me." Goggins makes some excellent points on the mental aspects of reaching your maximum potential, staying there ,and not backing down or given in. I definitely would recommend this book to those coming into tne program . It takes a lot of extra effort to separate yourself from everyone else, and reach the next level.

I’ve been hoping they get this dude as a speaker since cmr got hired.

You want to know what school actually got him to come speak to the team?

 

[Highline17]

I've never been a WR at a D1 school, so I personally haven't had that experience, but having said that, I feel like there's something missing that I'm not picking up in regard to the difficulty of the position.

It seems to me that if you're a scholarship WR and even receiving any measure of of NIL, you only have a few things that you need to focus on and then you can at least become useful if not good or better: learn the playbook, practice executing crisp routes, get used to contact so you don't fumble the ball (call it ball skills) and practice over and over again catching the ball.

My amateur mind can't seem to understand why even the current WR's we have on the roster can't just focus on these basic things and become a solid-to-very good unit with the athletes we currently have...?

Am I over simplifying this process? Why can't our current WR's dedicate themselves to excellence and become, at minimum, serviceable, reliable CFB receivers? Why wouldn't they want to? We had a receiver here during the Golden era who got with Duper (can't remember who...?) and he did this very thing one offseason and it transformed him from a JAG to landing on an NFL roster.

I see receivers from less glitzier schools than ours, display these fundamentals and out-perform our WR's.

Thanks, I'll hang up and listen...

Our WRs aren’t the talent that will simply out athlete other team’s CBs. They require good coaching and the will the get better. Our WRs either aren’t putting in, or aren’t receiving the coaching that can make them better, or a mix of both.

 

[77cane]

I’ve been hoping they get this dude as a speaker since cmr got hired.

You want to know what school actually got him to come speak to the team?

I hope the staff is not requiring the speakers to be G-Rated.

 

[pacusmc]

I hope the staff is not requiring the speakers to be G-Rated.

He definitely swears like a sailor.

 

[filmcane]

Our WRs aren’t the talent that will simply out athlete other team’s CBs. They require good coaching and the will the get better. Our WRs either aren’t putting in, or aren’t receiving the coaching that can make them better, or a mix of both.

But, we've had 2 star WR's smoking our 4 star CB's in the past. We have a solid pattern of poorly trained wide receivers and with the exception of kicker, might be the easiest spot on the roster with which to make a difference. At the LB spot, you really can point to a lack of high ratings guys, but not at WR and yet, we've constantly underperformed there.

 

[WanderFranco]

Just look back at Devin Hester. Despite being the fastest man on the planet, he couldn't figure out the wide receiver position. In his best NFL season he was barely a top 50 receiver.

People on Grassy claimed that Hester was misused at Miami, but the coaches tried. When a guy can't even line up correctly, though, it's hard to get him involved in the offense.

 

[WanderFranco]

But, we've had 2 star WR's smoking our 4 star CB's in the past. We have a solid pattern of poorly trained wide receivers and with the exception of kicker, might be the easiest spot on the roster with which to make a difference. At the LB spot, you really can point to a lack of high ratings guys, but not at WR and yet, we've constantly underperformed there.

The "poorly trained" part happened before they got to Miami. Running wide open while playing street ball doesn't prepare you for D1 football.

 

[NE Canes]

A serious lack of development.

We have had WRs in their 3rd year who won't catch with their hands. WRs that jog their routes. Don't know how to find space in a zone. Can't block. Etc., etc.

Remember, the coaches brought them here. If they were not good enough to be here, then they shouldn't have recruited them. Otherwise, develop them and make them work.

We need to get past this notion that if a player is not playing well enough we just give up and say we need to recruit better ones. It's just and endless game of catch up.

 

[WanderFranco]

We need to get past this notion that if a player is not playing well enough we just give up and say we need to recruit better ones. It's just and endless game of catch up.

But this is what all of the current top programs had to do. Smart didn't coach up the guys he inherited. He lost games with them. Then he recruited better guys.

 

[filmcane]

A serious lack of development.

We have had WRs in their 3rd year who won't catch with their hands. WRs that jog their routes. Don't know how to find space in a zone. Can't block. Etc., etc.

Remember, the coaches brought them here. If they were not good enough to be here, then they shouldn't have recruited them. Otherwise, develop them and make them work.

We need to get past this notion that if a player is not playing well enough we just give up and say we need to recruit better ones. It's just and endless game of catch up.

You said a mouth full there, brother and I couldn't agree more!!

This is not rocket science. It's not even junior high remedial science class. It does, however, require effort and intentionality. Rambo came in and decided he wanted to make some money, so he dedicated himself and now we sing his praises even though, he wouldn't even crack our top 10 WR's of the last 30 years.

We either need to hold these kids accountable to do the work when the coaches aren't screaming at them, or hire coaches who can instill skills and a work ethic into them. If our WR's had the work ethic and discipline of say the Boise State WR's from the early 2000's, it would have actually altered the trajectory of our program. I'm just sick of the apparent shrug of the shoulders and blame that we need to get higher rated athletes.

We have plenty of athletes in that WR room, what we need is a lazer like focus and dedication from these kids to run crisp routes and catch the **** ball!

 

[WanderFranco]

I'm just sick of the apparent shrug of the shoulders and blame that we need to get higher rated athletes.

Oh, I'm not saying this at all. In fact, it's the opposite. Just like I say on the baseball board all the time, forget the Perfect Game rankings. Get out there and find baseball players. Same thing here. Don't just take a south Florida kid who has measurables. Find the football players. That's who TCU was winning with.

 

[NE Canes]

But this is what all of the current top programs had to do. Smart didn't coach up the guys he inherited. He lost games with them. Then he recruited better guys.

I get your point but that's a little simplistic. He was not losing like Miami because of his WRs.

There is always room for improvement but we seem to be the only team I know that just throws up their arms and gives up because they don't have 5* or NFL players.

The top 15 are all bringing in similar players and has decent coaching. The coaches have got to get the most out of their recruits because if we are waiting for UGA talent to start winning....good luck with that.

20 plus teams felt the need to upgrade their offense with new OCs this off season. None of them said lets just wait around with the same OC and just get better players.

 

[filmcane]

I get your point but that's a little simplistic. He was not losing like Miami because of his WRs.

There is always room for improvement but we seem to be the only team I know that just throws up their arms and gives up because they don't have 5* or NFL players.

The top 15 are all bringing in similar players and has decent coaching. The coaches have got to get the most out of their recruits because if we are waiting for UGA talent to start winning....good luck with that.

20 plus teams felt the need to upgrade their offense with new OCs this off season. None of them said lets just wait around with the same OC and just get better players.

 

[WanderFranco]

I get your point but that's a little simplistic. He was not losing like Miami because of his WRs.

There is always room for improvement but we seem to be the only team I know that just throws up their arms and gives up because they don't have 5* or NFL players.

The top 15 are all bringing in similar players and has decent coaching. The coaches have got to get the most out of their recruits because if we are waiting for UGA talent to start winning....good luck with that.

20 plus teams felt the need to upgrade their offense with new OCs this off season. None of them said lets just wait around with the same OC and just get better players.

In the end, it's always about the players. OCs and DCs come and go. We're not a top 15 team that just needed the right coordinators. That roster was horrendous.

 

[Insanecane]

In the end, it's always about the players. OCs and DCs come and go. We're not a top 15 team that just needed the right coordinators. That roster was horrendous.

I don’t agree with this take. Plenty of teams out there with lower rated, less athletic receivers who are producing.

 

[305to954]

I've never been a WR at a D1 school, so I personally haven't had that experience, but having said that, I feel like there's something missing that I'm not picking up in regard to the difficulty of the position.

It seems to me that if you're a scholarship WR and even receiving any measure of of NIL, you only have a few things that you need to focus on and then you can at least become useful if not good or better: learn the playbook, practice executing crisp routes, get used to contact so you don't fumble the ball (call it ball skills) and practice over and over again catching the ball.

My amateur mind can't seem to understand why even the current WR's we have on the roster can't just focus on these basic things and become a solid-to-very good unit with the athletes we currently have...?

Am I over simplifying this process? Why can't our current WR's dedicate themselves to excellence and become, at minimum, serviceable, reliable CFB receivers? Why wouldn't they want to? We had a receiver here during the Golden era who got with Duper (can't remember who...?) and he did this very thing one offseason and it transformed him from a JAG to landing on an NFL roster.

I see receivers from less glitzier schools than ours, display these fundamentals and out-perform our WR's.

Thanks, I'll hang up and listen...

We had a kid come from buffalo a become WR 1 over 4stars and 5 stars..we have 3 examples of dade county and broward WRs, 2 at SEC powerhouse schools who came out of HS with the same body type and measurables as a 4 star we signed..our kid is in the portal..and in a year and a half looks the same physically..the 2 at UGA and Bama don’t..they look like they put in the work.

Talent isn’t the issue, development is. And that is a 2 way street. Coaches can’t hold your hand