Jim French Stepstool

I may have done a poor job conveying this but I was referring to the defensive side of the ball. IMO both he & Winter were equally lousy defending the two-man game between their bigs & both deserve criticism. On the offensive side, yes, Crowl deserves more barbs than Winter. He's made it clear he's more comfortable facing more conventional bigs. Well, he faced one yesterday & scored two points. Someone with his resume--a senior who averaged 11-12ppg the last two years--I agree needs to produce more. Klesmit is frustrating right now. I'm sure he's getting a lot of shots up in practice, and needs to keep putting them up provided it's a good shot for him. Watching their offense, they're heavily involved in getting to the rim or shooting threes with not a whole lot in between. The getting to the rim part, we'll see much more of that from Blackwell, Tonje & McGee than Klesmit just based on skill set. I questioned a couple of his shots last night, but for the most part the main problem is he just needs to start MAKING them. The good news is, we're talking about two seniors who have gotten it done in the past. Wanting to see them be more productive isn't some kind of pipe dream. But yeah, we're on the same page regarding how those two played last night. I never felt they were 'in control' of the game though. Had a chance to win, definitely. But way too much trouble stopping their bigs for me to feel we were in control.

I remember as a kid, I was so naive that I thought the NFL set their schedule I remember as a kid, I was so naive that I thought the NFL set their schedule randomly, that they simply decided for whatever reason to put such-and-such a game on Monday night, and so that was the game that was on ABC that evening, and the network had no say in it. Sometimes I wish that were the case today, in college FB (I couldn't care less what the NFL does). I'm going to patiently wait for that day, while I search the skies for the UFO that'll bring Elvis back.

Amazing how well those two bigs coordinated their game in the halfcourt. Either they hadn't emphasized that all year, or were better at it than they've been all season because they more than doubled their combined PPG. Just never had an answer for the big-to-big screen action. You needed Crowl to be better tonight, but he'll get the majority of the criticism somewhat unfairly because he only scored two points on the other end. I'm not saying he played well, he didn't. But defensively Winter wasn't much better. And not many other options. Gilmore gives up 5-6 inches, Amos was getting sand kicked in his face when he was out there, and the one big-four small lineup just isn't going to work in this game unless you outscore them on the other end, and we were 6 for 27 from three. I seriously doubt you'll ever see a Greg Gard coached team play a zone, but if there ever was a game to have it in the holster this might've been it (and they don't have it in the holster). Even with the severe disadvantage around the rim, if they hit just 1/3 of their 3pt shots they probably win.

Big challenge tonight in the B10 opener vs Michigan. Looks like they made a good choice in Dusty May as their new coach. Haven't seen very much of them this season but he has them guarding people (under 40% from the floor; under 30% from deep). Experienced backcourt and their transfer from Yale, 7'0" Danny Wolf has been very effective in the post at almost 10RPG. Probably their best game of the season last time out, blowing out Xavier. I want to see us drive the ball.

It SHOULD be a word of warning, but good luck with that. When you're at that age & good enough to be on a collegiate roster in the first place, you think the only way that you aren't a standout is that you aren't being given the opportunity. There are 2nd & 3rd teamers, sure; but I'M not one of them. Throw in the ease of transferring w/o having to sit out & suddenly staying where you are and working to get better becomes pretty unattractive. As much as I hate all this, 45% sounds incredibly high given the size of FB rosters & all the FCS teams out there.

Not a standout---it's hard to be when you're a NT---but I thought he performed pretty reliably, especially when compared to the D line group as a whole. Not good news.

I don't disagree that JL could be scrutinized for any dip defensively in his last year or two, But I think the main reason for the current lack of depth is portal defections & insufficient replacements. IMO Rodas Johnson, Gio Paez & Gabe Kirschke all could've helped immensely with the depth on the DL, as well as Jordan Turner & Kaden Johnson at LB. And as so-so as the OL was, we were fortunate that they stayed as healthy as they did because we lost a few there that would've definitely been in the 2-deep. A couple injuries to that group in '24 & it could've gotten quite ugly.

Yep. When people talk about wanting to 'get back' to being able to run the football, some over-react & think folks are advocating that we look like something where Ron Dayne carries the ball 36 times, the backup carries it 5 times, the FB maybe 2 or 3 times & then Mike Samuel drops back ten times & winds up scrambling for yardage on half of those. They don't need to go back to that. They DO need to force people to honor the run game, and not have the OL crumble like a century-old newspaper because there's an extra man in the box. It might be a good idea to re-introduce Wisconsin football to the concept of the large TE that can block, and at least in some formations, the fullback. It's hard to say what would've happened to the defense had JL stayed. The way it unfolded he & Fickell on the same staff wasn't happening, and had JL gotten the HC job he might've done quite a bit of overseeing of the defense, but still most likely would've hired a DC. Then how much input do you have? And would the new DC view the input as interference? I was kind of on the fence re Tressel, but now that the season is over.........You had a lot of people out of position over the course of the season, and much of that was due to over-aggression. So when you're over-aggressive you'll get gashed, you'll give up way too many big plays, but on the flip side that SHOULD lead to at least some correct guesses, some TOs, some TFLs, some sacks. They sacked the QB 17 times, in twelve games. They forced four fumbles. They intercepted four passes. That's some pretty paltry stuff. Can't overemphasize how important this off-season is regarding hiring decisions.

The off-season before the one in which they acquired Hank Aaron, the Brewers picked up Alou hoping he may provide at least a partial answer to this newfangled DH thing, then in its' second year. We were in the stands on Opening Day in '74. The same game in which Robin Yount made his debut, Alou entered as a PH---for Yount---and struck out.

The problem is, they've often looked like a MAC-level team WITH the 4-stars sprinkled in. You'd like to have both, but if it's one or the other give me the 3-stars with coaches that know how to develop. That's why Fickells' choice(s) for his staff going forward are critical. You need to find people who make kids better, whether it be 3 stars, 4, 5, or walkons. What scheme you run, what system you install is of course important, but a waste of time if you can't develop. Had he been given the job, I think given his inexperience Leonhard would've relied heavily on the staff he put together. Looking at the last two years w/Bicknell getting canned, Longo not working out & the Jack Del Rio fiasco, could JL have put together something with more continuity given the connections a lengthy pro career might've fostered? We'll never know.

Agree. I understand why Chryst was let go. He wasn't a glad-hander. He didn't immerse himself in recruiting, personal appearances or fundraising, just wanted to attend practices & gameday & otherwise be left alone. And that wasn't going to fly. But he was definitely above an 'average at best' moniker. All things considered, he's the type of guy that would've been best served remaining as an OC.

Interesting. Of course, with their network of nationwide alums & NBC connection ND can withstand a bad choice or three & come up swingin' before too much time goes by.

Just a little bit of sobering math for anyone hoping Fickell gets canned. If he was fired tomorrow, the way I understand it the buyout would be around 34 million. That's about 5.07 billion in Japanese yen if we also insisted he leave the country. It decreases all the way down to about 26 million if he coaches one more year.

Not for the money he's already getting here, so there's no reason for him to leave. He needs to repair the reputation--deserved or not--he built in Cincy. That starts with making staff hires that actually work out. Funny thing, if you believe the # of stars after the names, he's actually recruited pretty well. For anyone defending him, that's what you can hang your hat on--the idea that he hasn't had the chance to stack a few classes together yet. But it still comes back to the same thing: developing them & having the people on the staff that can accomplish that.

When you consider the money involved, McIntosh would be a less costly contract to eat even though he has 4.5 years left. But it would be hard to imagine hiring a new AD & telling him/her they can't fire Fickell, which is what I think they would be told. This isn't the SEC, where you can line up a host of good ol' boy, football crazed boosters, many worth seven figures, to buy out a contract because to them life isn't worth living because their team went 6-6. IMO Mac is in no danger at this point, and Fickell has next year & probably at least one more to prove whatever it is that the Luke Fickells of the world are here to prove.

He had that situation thrust on him in '11. It was as much of a 'mess' as you could have at a place with the advantages OSU enjoys. But they say you're as good as your assistants, and that's truer for Fickell than most. THAT'S where I feel his ultimate pass/fail will come from. And since he's been here, that part of his report card has been ugly. I once read a comment from a long-ago NY sportswriter, covering the Giants training camp. The head coach was Jim Lee Howell. His offensive & defensive coaches were Vince Lombardi & Tom Landry. He said he'd walk down the dorm hall, look into Lombardis' room & see him hard at work with diagrams & notes, go by Landrys' room & see the same thing; then walk by Howells' room & see him reading the newspaper. Not to suggest Fickell sits around reading the funnies, but he seems more of a team CEO than a coach. That being the case, he has to stop making disastrous choices. Saying this is an important offseason is a huge understatement.

To varying degrees it's all three IMO. The receivers have had trouble getting separation most of the year, even when the run game has been pedestrian to OK. On a day when they rush for 36 yards for an entire game & you're almost never in a good down & YTG situation, allowing pass rushers to pin their ears back, forget it. I won't fault the 'system' too much for what happened today since you could argue that since Longo was dumped there really hasn't been one. It's devolved into a total surrender of the line of scrimmage, a mostly immobile QB constantly in 2nd & 3rd and long, and a return to the mistakes up front we saw through most of '23. Nowakowski being split wide on 3rd down is sort of the cherry on the **** sundae. Agree with the last sentence.

Yes. Losing to those three, in the manner in which they lost.

If they don't play with toughness & discipline, it makes no difference. If he stays, I suspect he'll be beaten out by someone. In that case I have no problem if he decides to stay as he's definitely not a pariah. But I suspect he leaves.

Yes it is. And it works because they CAN'T RUN THE BALL WITH ANY CONSISTENCY. They've had plenty of games, plenty of opponents over the years that played to stop the run but still could not do it. It's one thing to try to take something away from an opponent. Six yards for a half, thirty-six for the entire game, that's a new level of ineptitude. Once again, this isn't about defending Locke. He's a backup, and not a runner. It's about recognizing what you need to do to maximize whatever you can get out of him. Mediocre QBs can succeed with a strong run game, good field position & favorable down & distance. He had none of those things for most of the season & he isn't good enough to overcome that. If there's an inclination to point out individual performances today that cost them dearly, I'd be just as apt to point to Rico Hallman, as well as some LBs that go back-and-forth with the over-pursuit

I figured that in a game where they have something like six yards rushing in a half of football, I'd read yet another comment about Locke. He had a poor half. The inability of UW to run the ball today exasperates that, and is a much bigger problem. Much bigger. And if the backup is not ready to compete at this level, which by their reluctance to use him seems pretty obvious, he isn't going to be used. By Fickell, or by anyone else coaching college FB. If Mettauer can't read or make decisions, believe it or not, he could be much worse. If/when he gets thrown out there I hope he performs well. The evidence so far shows that it would be an act of desperation, which is seldom a good idea.

Mejia became a FA earlier this month so he's no longer in the organization. From what I heard, his defense has slipped quite a bit the last couple seasons.

It's the day before Thanksgiving. To those folks who still have a political yard sign up, you can take it down any time now. Just to clarify, folks on both sides are guilty of this.

Oh, absolutely. It's sort of the same as many MLB players having pitched in HS, or if they're RH played SS (or both). In Edwards' case, I think the more pertinent point (@LouisEly can correct me if I'm wrong) is that he was made into a LB, and a good one, by the staff at UW after not having played there--I think he was a safety as well as a QB as a prep. Baun, yeah. At Brown Deer he would take the snap, look for a seam, and take off running (at least in the one prep game I saw him play). He had edge-rush LB written all over him.

Looks like he's been relegated to 2B after playing a bit of SS earlier in his career. I don't see us downgrading the INF defense and with the injuries apparently taking a toll on his glovework he doesn't seem like a fit except maybe as a bench guy. And we want our bench guys to be versatile, right? So probably not.