Thin line between success and failure

[The Franchise]

I'm leery of viewing knocking over those four tomato cans to end the season as being really indicative of anything other than beating the teams you're supposed to beat after losing four games against teams to varying degrees that you should have beaten. "Al Golden's teams would have quit!" and Al Golden would have definitely lost the four games previous so I'm not sure that is any sort of ringing endorsement.

One thing that is confusing to me is that we're crediting Richt for scrapping the RPO after "only" four games when he discovered Kaaya has the all the mobility and agility of a telephone pole. Shouldn't that have been apparent watching tape from past seasons? Shouldn't that have been evident when he saw him with his own eyes in the spring? So he either had no idea Kaaya possessed zero mobility and the OL was trash, or was aware and decided to implement a system that didn't suit any of the players running it anyway.

You're right. We beat 4 average to poor teams to end the year. However, 2 of those teams were just as good or better than 3 of the teams we lost to.

Second, I'm giving Rick credit for being willing to change and not being married to a defective system because that's a huge improvement over what we've seen here. I also was careful to point out that the changes came too late and their effectiveness showed just what a mess the offense was while we were losing.

 

[DTP]

Also, we can stop referring to Pitt and NC State as bums. Pitt beat Clemson and is currently ranked in the top 25. NCSU just crushed the UNC team that won here.

 

[ajkreider]

Pitt is not average. They beat two top 7 teams that are playing in their respective conference championship games. They were top ten in ppg. And we beat them soundly - easily their worst loss.

It was a good win.

 

[jackedaround]

we were an average team and we are on the upside. anyone who thought this was an acc champ level team was wishing instead of thinking.

 

[streetja]

Also, we can stop referring to Pitt and NC State as bums. Pitt beat Clemson and is currently ranked in the top 25. NCSU just crushed the UNC team that won here.

Those were good wins, no doubt. If we get a quality opponent in the bowl game it'll be interesting see if Richt calls the game like he did those. He has a propensity to go real conservative in the big games. The spotlight will be as bright on the bowl game as it was against FSU if we draw Florida/Tenn/LSU. It'll be a great indication of what to expect next season if he shrinks in the spotlight and reverts back to his October ways.

 

[rok]

Ranking this season's wins:

@App State
Pitt
@GT
@NC State
@UVA
Duke
FAU
FAMU

 

[Cane Dynasty]

Ranking this season's wins:

@App State
Pitt
@GT
@NC State
@UVA
Duke
FAU
FAMU

I would put Pitt at #1 although I can see the argument for App Store.


Edit: I am in no way qualified to comment on this list so take my remark as merely editorial in context.

 

[The Franchise]

Also, we can stop referring to Pitt and NC State as bums. Pitt beat Clemson and is currently ranked in the top 25. NCSU just crushed the UNC team that won here.

Those were good wins, no doubt. If we get a quality opponent in the bowl game it'll be interesting see if Richt calls the game like he did those. He has a propensity to go real conservative in the big games. The spotlight will be as bright on the bowl game as it was against FSU if we draw Florida/Tenn/LSU. It'll be a great indication of what to expect next season if he shrinks in the spotlight and reverts back to his October ways.

A December bowl game isn't a "big game." There will be no bright spotlights.

 

[The Franchise]

Ranking this season's wins:

@App State
Pitt
@GT
@NC State
@UVA
Duke
FAU
FAMU

I would put Pitt at #1 although I can see the argument for App Store.

This master of lists takes the time to compile and provide another irrefutable list, and you question him? Please edit your post to reflect the proper deference.

 

[streetja]

Also, we can stop referring to Pitt and NC State as bums. Pitt beat Clemson and is currently ranked in the top 25. NCSU just crushed the UNC team that won here.

Those were good wins, no doubt. If we get a quality opponent in the bowl game it'll be interesting see if Richt calls the game like he did those. He has a propensity to go real conservative in the big games. The spotlight will be as bright on the bowl game as it was against FSU if we draw Florida/Tenn/LSU. It'll be a great indication of what to expect next season if he shrinks in the spotlight and reverts back to his October ways.

A December bowl game isn't a "big game." There will be no bright spotlights.

Eh, it's perspective really. If we were a team that's accustomed to BSC bowl games or semifinals then yes, I agree. But this is a young team and new coaching staff that will see it as a huge opportunity. Imagine the media circus around a UM v UF bowl game. It'll feel big time.

 

[DTP]

Also, we can stop referring to Pitt and NC State as bums. Pitt beat Clemson and is currently ranked in the top 25. NCSU just crushed the UNC team that won here.

Those were good wins, no doubt. If we get a quality opponent in the bowl game it'll be interesting see if Richt calls the game like he did those. He has a propensity to go real conservative in the big games. The spotlight will be as bright on the bowl game as it was against FSU if we draw Florida/Tenn/LSU. It'll be a great indication of what to expect next season if he shrinks in the spotlight and reverts back to his October ways.

A December bowl game isn't a "big game." There will be no bright spotlights.

Eh, it's perspective really. If we were a team that's accustomed to BSC bowl games or semifinals then yes, I agree. But this is a young team and new coaching staff that will see it as a huge opportunity. Imagine the media circus around a UM v UF bowl game. It'll feel big time.

Agreed. While it may not be a huge deal on the national level, a bowl game (even if it's a 2nd tier one) against UF or another big name SEC team will be a huge deal for the players and coaches. At this point, it's all about perspective. A bowl win against a "marquee name" opponent to cap off a season ending five game winning streak gives the program lots of momentum heading into the late stages of recruiting and the 2017 season. On paper, it would probably be meaningless (is there really that huge of a difference from 8 to 9 wins?) but the game can be substantial in terms of how well the program is trending.

 

[Republicane]

Second, I'm giving Rick credit for being willing to change and not being married to a defective system because that's a huge improvement over what we've seen here. I also was careful to point out that the changes came too late and their effectiveness showed just what a mess the offense was while we were losing.

The only thing I disagree with is putting Richt's decisions up against those of that fat idiot who preceded him instead of a standard of "Will this get Miami back to where we want it to be? Is this what successful programs do?" If UM has four years of ****** playcalling on offense it shouldn't be any more acceptable because, "Golden had five years of ****** playcalling on defense." A long rebuild gets even longer and more unlikely when instead of demanding something be done right the first time we just say, "Don't do X as badly as Golden did."

 

[Ibis Wingz]

we were an average team and we are on the upside. anyone who thought this was an acc champ level team was wishing instead of thinking.

QP teetered on the line between success and failure and fell into the abyss of failure. It is a pithy and perfect example of the point OP made in the OP.

 

[SFbayCane]

For the guys claiming it's a Folden season, the main difference I saw was that Rick managed to keep the team together and invested after 4 straight losses. Folden teams died down the stretch. This team played its best ball down the stretch.

I can agree with this. The most maddening part (well maybe) of Golden's tenure was the refusal to admit he was wrong and try something else. Then tell everyone how dumb they were for not seeing it the way he does.

Thats all gone. We talked many times about having faith that Richt could admit he was messing up and try and fix it and we saw that.

Im really interested to see how we prepare for the Bowl. Golden's teams were so outgunned in preparation it was pathetic. I feel better about our chances regardless the opponent.

Im actually on both sides of this debate.

The 4 game losing streak happened to come at the hands of the four best teams on our schedule. So that leads me to believe it was a golden-esque type year. That said, Ive seen too many positives throughout the season that lead me to believe that the future IS brighter. But again, 2016 will likely come to a close without UM beating a team that finishes the season ranked in the top 25. (golden's magic stat)

All of this said, it really does put pressure on our bowl game. Disappointment aside, rebuilding a program is primarily about momentum. Winning the last four games coupled with a bowl win should give our staff all the ammo they need to close the 2017 class strong.

 

[rt cane]

Ranking this season's wins:

@App State
Pitt
@GT
@NC State
@UVA
Duke
FAU
FAMU

Richt played the Knockout Game with a bunch of old drunk men.

 

[TemplarCane]

Well said 'Chise.

Darktober was a downer on the season but I see a number of improvements from the Golden Era.

Defensive Scheme: Diaz was an exponential improvement. The players are being allowed to play to their strength. If the next recruiting cycle provides an influx of talent in the secondary comparable to the freshman LBs and DE Joe Jackson the defense can return to elite.

In-Game Adjustments: El Jefe proved his detractors wrong. There are some bad moments but he was generally able to adjust in-game. The only bad full game by the defense was VT. Inexperience lead to some mistakes but the other team has players and coaches too.

No Collapse: The team did not collapse in the second half of the season, as was the pattern under Golden. Last year's team won 4 of its last 6, after Golden was canned. The 2015 team may not have won another game had the admin waited to fire Golden at the end of the season.

Coaching Staff: Richt was able to adjust the offense and help save the season from a complete disaster. Four games were too many for the fans but that is the way it went down. Golden was trying to implement the same garbage defense for five years. I think all of the assistant coaches performed well when you look at the season in it's entirety. Coach Seales has the most work to do, followed by Rumph and Banda.

Overall: The administration is pouring money into the program. Recruiting is improving and will only get better.

The program is ascending.

 

[DTP]

Considering this board was full of suicidal Debbie Downers in October crying about not being bowl eligible and banking on a 4-8 finish, some people should be a lot happier with 8-4.

 

[BadCompany]

When looking at this season you can't call it a success because of that dreadful 4 game stretch in October. The failure seems so profound because of that devastating stretch of losses to teams that weren't really better than us.

Not making any excuses or pumping sunshine. This 4 game win streak actually makes the failures that much more bitter. This 4 game winning streak shows what we were capable of during that losing streak had we abandoned the heavy reliance on that ****** RPO system and made subtle tweaks to the OL earlier like getting an injured and physically overmatched Linder out of the lineup quicker. We waited too **** long to make those two subtle moves, and that's likely what cost us the Coastal. That poor kid Linder got absolutely brutalized by that ND DT Jones, but that just shined a brighter light on what was happening to him all season.

That stretch and being out of the Coastal race so early left most of us with such a bad taste in our mouths that the season felt like a ****.

Before the season, I said Rick and the season would be a fail if we didn't win the Coastal and 10 games. As it has played out, we've got a shot to win 9 and lost the Coastal by 1 game. So had we won a single additional Coastal game the season would have been a success at least to me. That's a razor thin line. It's not like we won 5 games and totally sprayed ***** everywhere. We missed our legit goals by 1 game, and a couple of those games came down to a play or two.

Bright side is Rick showed the willingness to dump that RPO **** that Kaaya looked so uncomfortable running. Defense also looks like it can be at least an ACC Championship defense. I don't think we're as overwhelming defensively as a team like Clemson can be. But we have a chance to get there. We really need to add at least one plug and play JUCO CB and a solid grad transfer CB because it would be a mortal sin to waste that front 7 next year with a horse **** CB play.

FSU is better than Miami. The rest is a toss-up.

 

[rsa coral gables]

i think part of the reason october was difficult was because kaaya was injured. it could have been the first play of the fsu game or at any other time, but everything unraveled for him and the O starting then. i also think it took some time for the O to come together in a new scheme.

i expect the O to be a lot better next year and with the D holdings its own, we should see at least a 2 game improvement.

 

[teddywestside]

11 wins or a BCS bowl berth is the minimum next year. Every coach gets a first year mulligan. But the excuses have to run dry by year 2.