[ToTheLeft]

Just because you have chosen to make the '10 team better on PAPER than the '09 team doesn't necessarily mean they are. The individual talent level may indeed be better when all is said and done, but this team has a lot of maturing and learning to do. This is a very good team, just not yet quite as good as some of us had them on paper.

OK, so our talent and maturity level means we're worse than Robert Morris? Or is that a game we should have won and didn't, for the 3rd year in a row?

Just checking.

[ToTheLeft]

Rooster, you just have to realize where TTL stands (not sure about 14 as he seems to be joking all the time). TTL thinks that "because of these embarrassing losses DR is not the guy for the job. He's had his chances and now it's time for him to step aside. His Defense is a joke. We open the checkbook for him like Steinbrenner does for the Yankees and we should be top 10 by now. We're not so DR needs to be fired. Oh and Jeff Barber makes horrible coaching hires!!!"

At least I don't blindly follow Rocco because he has the flaming eagle on his windbreaker. He's "brought us a long way" but that doesn't last forever as a free pass to not have the team perform how it should! This is a very close parallel to the Bucs with Jon Gruden. Bring in a good coach, things turn around quick, then stay above average but not good enough. If you want above average but not good enough, fine. And I don't think Rocco needs to be fired, but THINGS NEED TO CHANGE. And they haven't.

And his defense is a joke. Put us up against a team like Stephen F. Austin with their QB and we'd get toasted. Unless changes are made, but I haven't seen them. This is the same D that gave up yards in bunches to Presby for their MOST RECENT WIN. DII teams can stop the Presby passing attack better than we did.

And my thoughts on Barber have nothing to do with this. But thanks for diluting the conversation since your point in this argument is the weaker one.

[ToTheLeft]

He walked into a much better situation than "1-10 trailing DII Concord in the 3rd Quarter" suggests.

As someone who was following the program well at the time I'd like to hear more of an explanation on this. That team was a disaster.

So when does Rocco become Karcher? What does he have to do to make you hate him as a football coach with a fiery passion?

I'm not defending the guy, but it seems to me you went through a bad breakup with Karcher and now you're being super clingy to your new football coach. So how many times is he going to have to not call you back before you get mad at him, too?

[ToTheLeft]

Despite our disagreements Sch14 would have my vote for poster of the year as well

No way. Beej you are THE flamefans poster of the year. Every year.

I once got ROTY before everyone hated me, haha.

So what about that CSU game boys?

You got it twice. It was quite the accomplishment.

If only "NoahGreenbaumIsGreat" would have finished 2nd, I could have finished 2nd two years in a row.

[BJWilliams]

I will say this when it comes to the defense...Danny Rocco has had the same DC all four previous years and does this year (Tom Clark...remember him?) so if ANYONE feels that someone should be thrown under the bus for the defense why not go after him?

[kuntryboimike]

So how bout that game tomorrow. Homecoming is gonna be exciting yeah?

[Schfourteenteen]

He walked into a much better situation than "1-10 trailing DII Concord in the 3rd Quarter" suggests.

As someone who was following the program well at the time I'd like to hear more of an explanation on this. That team was a disaster.

Also, what makes Mills the next Bill Bellachick?

Karcher was a good recruiter. Not much else. He brought in talent, he just did nothing with it. If you go back and look at Karcher's last recruiting class, you'll find players you recognize.

Dominic Bolden – 5-10, 170, WR/DB, University HS, Orlando, Fla.
Patrick Calvary – 5-9, 175, DB, Bayshore HS, Bradenton, Fla.
Mario Cosby – 6-2, 270, OL, E.C. Glass HS, Lynchburg, Va.
Colin Dugan – 6-1, 270, DL, Springdale HS, Springdale, Pa.
Mike Godsil – 6-2, 250, OL/DL, Madison Comprehensive HS, Mansfield, Ohio
Ryan Greiser – 6-1, 205, RB, Pennridge HS, Sellersville, Pa.
Bryan Mosier – 6-2, 275, DL/OL, Madison Comprehensive HS, Mansfield, Pa.
Stephen Sene – 6-6, 320, OL, Dodge City CC, Columbia, S.C.
Brock Smith – 6-3, 240, QB, Hershey HS, Hershey, Pa.
Zachary Terrell – 5-10, 185, QB/RB, Manassas Park HS, Manassas Park, Va.
Ben Beasley – 5-9, 175, P/K, Jones County JC, Laurel, Miss. UNFORTUNATELY
Ian Childress – 6-4, 220, DE, Liberty HS, Bedford, Va.
Jason Horn – 6-1, 255, DL, Glendale Community College, Phoenix, Ariz.

Rocco also came into a better $$$ situation than Karcher had - not necessarily right away, but soon. JB, the fundraising specialist, was right behind him. We had a Chancellor who highly valued athletics. There was the FOC - under construction already. Danny never coached a game on that asphulturf.

And with all the pieces falling into place - a good set of freshman, an expanding facility, an expanding budget, and a President who pushed for a good football program - Danny did not take over a true 1-10 team. What he's done since he's been here is remarkable, but he didn't take a bunch of chumps and turn them into winners. He just took the winners he had and got it done.

[ToTheLeft]

I will say this when it comes to the defense...Danny Rocco has had the same DC all four previous years and does this year (Tom Clark...remember him?) so if ANYONE feels that someone should be thrown under the bus for the defense why not go after him?

I have (and it's not throwing under the bus, it's calling accountable for a string of terrible performances). But I was under the impression Rocco was a defensive coach. As the head coach, it's your job to try and fix what's broken if one of your assistants doesn't.

And if our defense loses the game for us against CSU (and it might), then Clark should be fired immediately.

[Schfourteenteen]

And if our defense loses the game for us against CSU (and it might), then Clark should be fired immediately.

JMU scored 10 in his defense.

Also - it would make no sense to fire a Coordinator in the middle of the season. I know teams do it, but it never made sense to me why a team would decide one less mind is a good thing.

[Rooster Cogburn]

He walked into a much better situation than "1-10 trailing DII Concord in the 3rd Quarter" suggests.

As someone who was following the program well at the time I'd like to hear more of an explanation on this. That team was a disaster.

Also, what makes Mills the next Bill Bellachick?

Karcher was a good recruiter. Not much else. He brought in talent, he just did nothing with it. If you go back and look at Karcher's last recruiting class, you'll find players you recognize.

Dominic Bolden – 5-10, 170, WR/DB, University HS, Orlando, Fla.
Patrick Calvary – 5-9, 175, DB, Bayshore HS, Bradenton, Fla.
Mario Cosby – 6-2, 270, OL, E.C. Glass HS, Lynchburg, Va.
Colin Dugan – 6-1, 270, DL, Springdale HS, Springdale, Pa.
Mike Godsil – 6-2, 250, OL/DL, Madison Comprehensive HS, Mansfield, Ohio
Ryan Greiser – 6-1, 205, RB, Pennridge HS, Sellersville, Pa.
Bryan Mosier – 6-2, 275, DL/OL, Madison Comprehensive HS, Mansfield, Pa.
Stephen Sene – 6-6, 320, OL, Dodge City CC, Columbia, S.C.
Brock Smith – 6-3, 240, QB, Hershey HS, Hershey, Pa.
Zachary Terrell – 5-10, 185, QB/RB, Manassas Park HS, Manassas Park, Va.
Ben Beasley – 5-9, 175, P/K, Jones County JC, Laurel, Miss. UNFORTUNATELY
Ian Childress – 6-4, 220, DE, Liberty HS, Bedford, Va.
Jason Horn – 6-1, 255, DL, Glendale Community College, Phoenix, Ariz.

Rocco also came into a better $$$ situation than Karcher had - not necessarily right away, but soon. JB, the fundraising specialist, was right behind him. We had a Chancellor who highly valued athletics. There was the FOC - under construction already. Danny never coached a game on that asphulturf.

And with all the pieces falling into place - a good set of freshman, an expanding facility, an expanding budget, and a President who pushed for a good football program - Danny did not take over a true 1-10 team. What he's done since he's been here is remarkable, but he didn't take a bunch of chumps and turn them into winners. He just took the winners he had and got it done.

Well done, thank you. I still think the "team" needed a ton of work, but well said.

[Rooster Cogburn]

and if our defense loses the game for us against CSU (and it might), then Clark should be fired immediately.

Look, I've come a long way with these comments, but this one is soooooo ridiculous. This defense has issues against the big play, yes, but overall it is a very good defense with lots of speed that held JMU to 10. You yelled at me when I said JMU was not as good as their ranking and now you say our defense is bad. You can have it both ways.

This team is good and will be great and will win the conference and will make out first playoff appearance. Nuff said.

[Schfourteenteen]

I will say this when it comes to the defense...Danny Rocco has had the same DC all four previous years and does this year (Tom Clark...remember him?) so if ANYONE feels that someone should be thrown under the bus for the defense why not go after him?

I remember him!

The number that raised the most eyebrows on the stat sheet after Liberty beat Coastal Carolina 43-38 Saturday night was 534.

As in, the Chanticleers outgained the Flames 534-531. Liberty defensive coordinator Tom Clark said he can live with that, especially considering Liberty won the game to improve to 5-0.

[kuntryboimike]

He can live with that? Well the rest of the Liberty nation can't. That's a no-go.

[Schfourteenteen]

Good news

Football Staffers don't need to go far to find some motivational material.

You're welcome.

[ToTheLeft]

and if our defense loses the game for us against CSU (and it might), then Clark should be fired immediately.

Look, I've come a long way with these comments, but this one is soooooo ridiculous. This defense has issues against the big play, yes, but overall it is a very good defense with lots of speed that held JMU to 10. You yelled at me when I said JMU was not as good as their ranking and now you say our defense is bad. You can have it both ways.

This team is good and will be great and will win the conference and will make out first playoff appearance. Nuff said.

We can stop a run-only attack. We proved that against St. Francis and we proved it against JMU. No adjustment needed there. But it's balanced teams and pass happy teams that we struggle with. The defense doesn't just play the run or just play the pass.

[ToTheLeft]

He can live with that? Well the rest of the Liberty nation can't. That's a no-go.

That's Rocco's DC that's been here the whole time, that's basically been the cause of our most embarrassing losses.

See why I say something needs to change? Giving up 550 yards is okay, as long as we win. That's the wrong mindset for any team, especially one with no running game that can't control the clock.

[ToTheLeft]

and if our defense loses the game for us against CSU (and it might), then Clark should be fired immediately.

Look, I've come a long way with these comments, but this one is soooooo ridiculous. This defense has issues against the big play, yes, but overall it is a very good defense with lots of speed that held JMU to 10. You yelled at me when I said JMU was not as good as their ranking and now you say our defense is bad. You can have it both ways.

This team is good and will be great and will win the conference and will make out first playoff appearance. Nuff said.

Our pass defense is bad. JMU exploited it for the only score of the game. I can have it both ways. We have great linebackers and an incredible nose guard. We have a terrible pass defense, and I believe the scheme is what makes it so bad.

Rooster. You're wrong. I know you really want to prove me wrong, but once again, you really don't have a leg to stand on other than just liking Rocco, and not liking where the program was before he got here. And that's fine, just realize that you only can rely on hope for the future. And that's fine, too. I'm just not as optimistic.

Remember how JMU scored? Wide open WR with no one even close. Sound familiar? It happens alot. Even against a terrible team like Presby or SSU.

[kuntryboimike]

I've seen it happen a few teams just this season. Someone is WIDE open with no one even close to guarding them.

[Schfourteenteen]

Wrapping my head around this:

Virginia Tech gives up 21 points to JMU.
Delaware gives up 10 points to JMU.
Liberty gives up 10 points to JMU.
JMU exploited our terrible defense
Tom Clark should be fired.

Nope. Still not working.

[ToTheLeft]

Wrapping my head around this:

Virginia Tech gives up 21 points to JMU.
Delaware gives up 10 points to JMU.
Liberty gives up 10 points to JMU.
JMU exploited our terrible defense
Tom Clark should be fired.

Nope. Still not working.

So you believe that because a defense can stop a run dominated vanilla offense, that the coordinator is doing a good job and should get a free pass because of this?

And do you really believe JMU had to stop at 10? If we had scored to make it 10-10 do you believe they'd have never passed again and found a wide open target for another score?

Liberty allows 30 to RMU
Dayton (non-scholly) allows 14 to RMU
Wagner allows 30 to RMU
Wagner allows 24 to Assumption College (DII) in a loss.

If we're using this "take one opponent and extrapolate" thing, we're as bad defensively as a team that lost to a DII. It doesn't work dude, college football isn't played that way. Your team is called upon to do what it needs to do to win football games. Ours hasn't on a consistent basis against teams it should beat. And the defense has been the main culprit.

[Del Flame]

Hi All,

This is my first year in town and watching EVERY game, but I can tell you that we are exactly where Coach Rocco says we are. We are not quite to where the "big boys" in FCS are, and striving to get there. How do we know we aren't there? Because of the lack of "consistency" and "embarrassing" losses that we have suffered during the last three years. Why is this occurring? I hate to use circular reasoning, but it's because we aren't "there" yet.

We have quality players in some positions, but not all positions, and certainly we don't have the depth that some of the "big boys" have. You can't say that just because Mike Brown is on the Payton list and Chris Summers is being watched by scouts that we should never lose to "lesser" teams, because there are many more positions on the field than that.

I went to Delaware for my undergrad in the 70's and the reason why they were (then) and still are good is because they had/have an established program that consistently produced winning teams over the long-term. Not every year was good, but most were, and several (not one every now and then) players were drafted and went to the pros. The point is that they ARE established; it didn't happen overnight; it took years, and there were many losses and setbacks along the way.

I'm "all in" for LU and I think Coach Rocco represents the University extremely well. All I'm saying is that you don't go from 1-10 to the Top 10 without some struggles along the way. It's a tough ride because we all want it now. (It made me mad to lose to RMU and I hated JMU even before arriving in Lynchburg!) When we lose "bad" games, it is upsetting to us as die-hard fans, and, more importantly, it hurts our recruiting.

We have come a long way in a short period of time. It's hard to do, but you have to look back to gain a little perspective. Don't look too long, though, because we're all competitive and want to win now!

DF

PS - Beat CSU!

[Rooster Cogburn]

Well said. And ttl I'm Ok with whatever u say from here on out. But please know in advance that I disagree with most of what u will say. In this way you are the Colin Cowherd of this board. And now that I get that I respect you for it.

[From the class of 09]

We can stop a run-only attack. We proved that against St. Francis and we proved it against JMU. No adjustment needed there. But it's balanced teams and pass happy teams that we struggle with. The defense doesn't just play the run or just play the pass.

I believe the scheme is what makes it so bad.

I almost feel like I should be credited for these thoughts But seriously, you're on to something.

As far as D goes I'm still not convinced that a 3 man front is a effective defense in college mainly because there is not enough talent on most defenses to run it.

[Del Flame]

Remember how JMU scored? Wide open WR with no one even close. Sound familiar? It happens alot. Even against a terrible team like Presby or SSU.

Hi TTL,

I enjoy your posts - always thought provoking.

That WAS the touchdown play. It was against a DB who recently converted to the position. It wasn't a scheme issue; he clearly missed his assignment. (Why was a "new" guy playing DB?) By the way, the same kid played outstanding last week.

Also, let's not forget the play that set up the touchdown: Almost a coverage sack. Quarterback flushed from the pocket, scrambles for over 40 yards.

For the record, LU and DE each allowed JMU 283 in total offense. The difference was we scored 3; DE scored 17 (with DE's back-up QB playing virtually the entire game).

[Del Flame]

And do you really believe JMU had to stop at 10? If we had scored to make it 10-10 do you believe they'd have never passed again and found a wide open target for another score?

Here is where we do disagree.

First, do you think that Matthews was "managing" the score? I doubt it. If he could have scored more throughout the game, he would have. He wasn't happy ONLY beating us by 7. They didn't even kneel down when we were out of time-outs.

Second, they had 78 yards passing for the game (25 yards on the TD play). They didn't pass because they couldn't. On that evening, our D was tough. The problem is our D is not consistently tough.