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What is one game that you guys can see as a trap-game?

Had this discussion with one of our fellow members recently about this and it is the reason why, as much as I hope we do 12-0, realistically 11-1 is the most likely optimal scenario and we better not do anything less than 10-2.

Every top tier team every year has 1-2 crappy games. For whatever the reason, it’s just a dogfight type game, and they struggle. Every team, heck even our glorious 2001 team and all our championship teams and title game losing teams had them. We will go with the 2001 team, for the sake of all the newbies. BC and Va Tech, nail biter games down to the last second, we barely hung on to win, everything was just off in those two games. Now the difference was in those games, offensively we had playmakers that can change the outcome on one play, but also defensively, from DL to LB to DB we had an equal stud that could do that too.
This team, which is legit very good and playoff caliber team, I just don’t see it across the board like our glorious teams of yesteryear.

Not yet, we can see that we are building towards that. On offense we have that at QB, which is HUUUUGE, we have a really good WR and RB room, but is there a superstar individual? I don’t think so, but in college football, a superstar QB with a very good WR and RB room with a great O line is enough to make up for that. On the defensive side of the ball, the DL does have, I believe, 2 playmakers that could impact and win a game in Baron and Bain. LB and DB is where I don’t see that this year. I see at LB two really good LB’s in Wes and Kiko, maybe Wes develops into that LB that can change a game, but right now I can’t say that he is. They are both very very good but I wouldn’t label them as game changers. DB room is solid, Harris at safety has been great, Meesh has been a steadying force, and we all know at CB, right now doesn’t have that kind of a player.

It is because of that, and knowing that history has shown this to be true, we just don’t have the horses to overcome the inevitable “struggle games” that all good teams have and it will likely cost us at least 1 game this year. Cal, Louisville, Cuse would be my guess where it happens.

The only way this does not happen is if we were to miraculously perform in every game like we did against the OOF GAYTURDS. The discipline and execution were on point.

I will note, that of the latest recruiting classes, at DB we may have that special player in OJ at CB and Zaquan at Safety, both look the part. At LB Pruitt and at WR JoJo and at RB Lyle for sure. DL Scott, Blount look the part.
 
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scrantoncane said:
Cal winning at auburn was good for us imo. Tough to sleep on them when they are going on the road and beating SEC teams. Mario should be able to use that to keep our guys motivated.
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It sucks going West to win games. They are always tough. Glad we have some key transfers from the PAC and the Nevada guys. Hopefully can help steady them.
 
I've always thought USF was the biggest trap on the schedule. I can see where Cal can be that also. The good news is the games they had against Bams & Auburn put our guys on notice. I've always thought Syracuse was going to be a battle in their dome. Brown is a good coach
 
Fzac75 said:
Had this discussion with one of our fellow members recently about this and it is the reason why, as much as I hope we do 12-0, realistically 11-1 is the most likely optimal scenario and we better not do anything less than 10-2.

Every top tier team every year has 1-2 crappy games. For whatever the reason, it’s just a dogfight type game, and they struggle. Every team, heck even our glorious 2001 team and all our championship teams and title game losing teams had them. We will go with the 2001 team, for the sake of all the newbies. BC and Va Tech, nail biter games down to the last second, we barely hung on to win, everything was just off in those two games. Now the difference was in those games, offensively we had playmakers that can change the outcome on one play, but also defensively, from DL to LB to DB we had an equal stud that could do that too.
This team, which is legit very good and playoff caliber team, I just don’t see it across the board like our glorious teams of yesteryear.

Not yet, we can see that we are building towards that. On offense we have that at QB, which is HUUUUGE, we have a really good WR and RB room, but is there a superstar individual? I don’t think so, but in college football, a superstar QB with a very good WR and RB room with a great O line is enough to make up for that. On the defensive side of the ball, the DL does have, I believe, 2 playmakers that could impact and win a game in Baron and Bain. LB and DB is where I don’t see that this year. I see at LB two really good LB’s in Wes and Kiko, maybe Wes develops into that LB that can change a game, but right now I can’t say that he is. They are both very very good but I wouldn’t label them as game changers. DB room is solid, Harris at safety has been great, Meesh has been a steadying force, and we all know at CB, right now doesn’t have that kind of a player.

It is because of that, and knowing that history has shown this to be true, we just don’t have the horses to overcome the inevitable “struggle games” that all good teams have and it will likely cost us at least 1 game this year. Cal, Louisville, Cuse would be my guess where it happens.

The only way this does not happen is if we were to miraculously perform in every game like we did against the OOF GAYTURDS. The discipline and execution were on point.

I will note, that of the latest recruiting classes, at DB we may have that special player in OJ at CB and Zaquan at Safety, both look the part. At LB Pruitt and at WR JoJo and at RB Lyle for sure. DL Scott, Blount look the part.
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Yeah I mean you can play like **** and not get “trapped”

You can lose a game and it’s not a “trap”

Maybe it’s semantics but when I think trap game I think one where we act like we won by showing up because our eyes are on another game

I just don’t see one on the schedule at this point especially when Cal beat Auburn

Doesn’t mean we go undefeated or don’t have some nail biters. Its college football that goes with the territory

With guys like Cam Ward and X as the leaders of this team, the mentality is just different
 
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Louisville isn’t a trap game. That’s a game where we absolutely could easily lose to a team as good as us when you factor in the coaching. They’re good. Last years Louisville team is the only game we lost just flat out cause our defense couldn’t get stops. Yes some weird stuff happened like two dbs running into each other etc.

But they had our number. In guidrys defense that’s the only time I can say that. Unc that was on the offense imo
 
Watching this team and looking at the schedule, it does feel like an 11-1 type team, maybe 10-2 worst case. That said, we don't know how bad gata is and we're eating cupcakes at this point in the season. So USF makes sense as a trap game if our team expects to easily roll over the rest of the competition on the schedule after this weekend. USF is desperate for a win and put up a solid effort against Alabama.

USF scares me more than VT at this point. But we're basically the team to beat in the ACC right now so we're going to get everyone's best shot from here on in.

Cal only major advantage is the travel distance, and that'll be the first long trip we'll had to make of the year. If UL is still ranked when we play them then I don't see us losing that game.

FSU is a rivalry, but they look like ***. Duke looks like ***. Georgia Tech came out flat and had some poor coaching decisions against Cuse. They scare me more than any other team in the 2nd half of the season because if their OLine turns up they'll chew clock and limit possessions. WF is WF. Cuse looks like they have a legit QB and can play physical ball, could make for an interesting game.
 
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