[SuperJon]

Coastal was a dump their last couple of years under Bennett. They were barely a .500 team his last five years. We beat them by almost 40 his last year. Moglia comes in and makes the playoffs, and wins a game, in his first season ever as a head coach while we crumble any time a game means something.

[SuperJon]

...if we go 9-3 or 8-4 and don't make the playoffs this year, it is what it is. We have a probable top 3 team in our conference this year. This isn't the year to flip out if we don't make it. Now, at some point we have to see results though.

Yippee. We're becoming okay with accepting mediocrity.

I know that's not what you're saying, Duke, but that's the vibe I get from everyone else.

If we had Coastal's success, we'd be in the Sun Belt last week. Instead, we're content with winning an above average amount of games and posting #winorlose prayer pictures on Instagram.

[BJWilliams]

I think CSU is right there, but not quite ready to pass either Liberty or Coastal. they were in a similar place about 8 years abo when we came off the end of the Karcher years, but they couldnt quite get over the top in 07 or 08 and actually regressed. That said, Coach Chadwell did an excellent work down there and he could be just what the doctor ordered, but im not putting them as to catching or passing us or the Chants quite yet

[bluejacket]

...if we go 9-3 or 8-4 and don't make the playoffs this year, it is what it is. We have a probable top 3 team in our conference this year. This isn't the year to flip out if we don't make it. Now, at some point we have to see results though.

Yippee. We're becoming okay with accepting mediocrity.

I know that's not what you're saying, Duke, but that's the vibe I get from everyone else.

If we had Coastal's success, we'd be in the Sun Belt last week. Instead, we're content with winning an above average amount of games and posting #winorlose prayer pictures on Instagram.

YES

[bluejacket]

I think CSU is right there, but not quite ready to pass either Liberty or Coastal. they were in a similar place about 8 years abo when we came off the end of the Karcher years, but they couldnt quite get over the top in 07 or 08 and actually regressed. That said, Coach Chadwell did an excellent work down there and he could be just what the doctor ordered, but im not putting them as to catching or passing us or the Chants quite yet

Did anyone say that they passed us? No. But they can actually beat non-conference teams on the road....

[BJWilliams]

I think last week was an interesting response. Coach Gill was clearly frustrated in his postgame comments, and I have a feeling that the guys know they missed a chance to make a real statement. now, word is DP will be ready to go this Saturday, so hopefully he doesn't have another case of the yips, especially if he is matched up with Marrow.

Now I know no one said they passed us but you did say they are better, which I agree with. That said, they still are that third wheel as far as the conference goes, and until they can get past the two "alpha dogs", they will still be just that..third

[Purple Haize]

The foundation of which you speak was non existent. Did Gill have more talent than Rocco did his first year? Yep, but not by much. Karcher had some solid players here and there for all of his faults. Neither were presented with a roster on the verge of an FCS championship, let alone a play off birth.
Sometimes it's good to have patience

Completely inaccurate statement. Neither had a team ready to win an FCS championship, but Gill definitely had a team ready to make the playoffs when he got here.

Talk about completely inaccurate statements. I think everyone was surprised how well Gill did with what was left. I would wager Gill did a better job with that group than Rocco would have done.
Coastal WAS fading under Bennet, but they had a lot of success before that and were able to.....wait for it.....RE Build. We must first BUILD something. We haven't, they have.

[SuperJon]

You're letting your feelings for Rocco get in the way of the facts. Rocco built a reputation complete with improved facilities, wins, and higher expectations. He had no plan to build past that foundation, but to say he didn't pour the concrete in which Gill could, and should, expand upon is asinine.

[PAmedic]

Yeah I love Danny. still have a ton a respect for what he did.

good that he moved on but you just can't dismiss what he built here.

[bluejacket]

Rocco gave him a team talented enough to beat #6/8 Stony Brook the very next season. The cupboard was definitely not bare, especially on defense. The starters and backups were nearly all DR's players. Our best offensive players were all Rocco players, not freshman that Gill brought in. The offense lost a lot after 2011, but that defense was arguably the best that we've ever had. Then the next year they got wasted by an offense that didn't improve.

This program still has Rocco's fingerprints all over it. I hate that he left us, but give him the credit he deserves.

[Purple Haize]

You're letting your feelings for Rocco get in the way of the facts. Rocco built a reputation complete with improved facilities, wins, and higher expectations. He had no plan to build past that foundation, but to say he didn't pour the concrete in which Gill could, and should, expand upon is asinine.

I have no feelings for Rocco one way or the other. But he is not the Messiah. He had absolutely 0 to do with facility upgrades. So if that's the foundation you think he laid, perhaps it is your feelings towards Rocco that are getting in the way of facts. He shepherded us past the Karcher era, but let's be honest, not a lot of people COULDNT do that. Rocco was all about winning now and like you said had no plan past that. Especially, when we never made the play offs. We certainly have not taken a step back since he left.

[Purple Haize]

Rocco gave him a team talented enough to beat #6/8 Stony Brook the very next season. The cupboard was definitely not bare, especially on defense. The starters and backups were nearly all DR's players. Our best offensive players were all Rocco players, not freshman that Gill brought in. The offense lost a lot after 2011, but that defense was arguably the best that we've ever had. Then the next year they got wasted by an offense that didn't improve.

This program still has Rocco's fingerprints all over it. I hate that he left us, but give him the credit he deserves.

great insight. A first year FB coach with a team full of players from the last coach!? Why that's never happened in the history of Football. Ever. Plus, I'm fairly certain Gill recruited a couple of players here and there before his first season.
This team has very few of Rocco's finger prints left on it.

[bluejacket]

Gill brought some talented players, but only a couple of them made any contributions to the team that season. Most of the class was Rocco recruits, with a couple of notable exceptions, that the staff (plus Charlie Skalaski) finished up with and reinforced commitments from. Gill brought very little talent to Liberty in his first season.

This team, coaching, and support staff has tons of Rocco people in it. Just look down the list of names and check their biographies. Clearly, you have something personal against Danny Rocco and won't give him any credit. Was he perfect? Absolutely not and in many cases far from it. Did he do a lot for the program? Yes.

[jimflamesfan]

I have no dog in this fight, but I actually think Rocco inherited about as much raw talent as Gill. Karcher recruited fairly well. At one point, our third string running back was NFL material. The thing about Karcher was he didn't make use of the talent (three great rbs and running a one back set...even near the goaline).

LU also had some crazy schedules during the Karcher era (how was away at Bowling Green then away at JMU then away at Toledo sound for the first three games).

Rocco came in and changed the attitude of the program, and one way he did this was by softening the schedule to give the guys some confidence.

I think the idea was to gradually increase the difficulty of the schedule...which did happen. At that point, the fan base was somewhat overconfident, and we'd lose the tough games that mattered bc we were used to pulling through based on the talent gap alone.

We still struggle in this area.

But, Rocco had taken us from a laughing stock to a solid, but not quite playoff worthy team. There was progress.

Gill has taken over...and at this point I think we are at about the same level.

This is why the Norfolk State game is SO important. LU hasn't been able to win the in state games (apart from vmi) on the road.

This game could start the turning of the tide...or it could be same old same old.

That's why it will be fun to watch! I am feeling somewhat optimistic! I think we finally win a close one on the road.

[Purple Haize]

Gill brought some talented players, but only a couple of them made any contributions to the team that season. Most of the class was Rocco recruits, with a couple of notable exceptions, that the staff (plus Charlie Skalaski) finished up with and reinforced commitments from. Gill brought very little talent to Liberty in his first season.

This team, coaching, and support staff has tons of Rocco people in it. Just look down the list of names and check their biographies. Clearly, you have something personal against Danny Rocco and won't give him any credit. Was he perfect? Absolutely not and in many cases far from it. Did he do a lot for the program? Yes.

So I guess the line 'I don't have feelings for Rocco one way or the other' escaped your reading prowess.
I give him credit, but a lot of things he had no control over. The Stadium, Weight Room, FB Ops, the only thing he contributed to that was people to work there. The schedule was LIGHT years easier than it had ever been. (Jim beat me to that point). But talent wise he left Gill with just a little more than he was left with. Instead of taking a step back, TG has stayed steady and brought some stability to the program.

[bluejacket]

You clearly have some feelings about Danny Rocco 'one way or the other', otherwise you wouldn't be talking about this.

He did not have influence with the stadium expansion, change weight room staff, and kept several of Karcher's coaches. But he had far more influence and deserves more credit than you are giving him. No one is saying that he was an all powerful force that always got what he wanted. No one is saying that he deserves all the credit; there were/are a lot of people who contributed to our success. He played an enormous role in every aspect of Liberty football. Did he build the FOC or renovate Williams Stadium himself? No. But to give one instance of facility changes that he directly initiated, he wanted a grass practice field in addition to the game field and he got it. The hotels, food, and travel were tailored to his liking. When he wanted something, it was heard by the administration and often done. When he did not like something, it was heard and often changed things.

The schedule was done to his liking and several of the best opponents that we have played (with a couple of notable exceptions) were scheduled because he wanted them. He can also be blamed for the poor scheduling in the past. I don't deny it.

All that said, Gill has more influence than Rocco did.

[R i]

Unreal. We have played ONE game. A Guarantee game. Anyone that is making judgments saying Gill's teams arent getting any better, or he isnt building on what Rocco did, find something else to talk about for at least a few more weeks. Its crazy.

[Purple Haize]

You clearly have some feelings about Danny Rocco 'one way or the other', otherwise you wouldn't be talking about this.

He did not have influence with the stadium expansion, change weight room staff, and kept several of Karcher's coaches. But he had far more influence and deserves more credit than you are giving him. No one is saying that he was an all powerful force that always got what he wanted. No one is saying that he deserves all the credit; there were/are a lot of people who contributed to our success. He played an enormous role in every aspect of Liberty football. Did he build the FOC or renovate Williams Stadium himself? No. But to give one instance of facility changes that he directly initiated, he wanted a grass practice field in addition to the game field and he got it. The hotels, food, and travel were tailored to his liking. When he wanted something, it was heard by the administration and often done. When he did not like something, it was heard and often changed things.

The schedule was done to his liking and several of the best opponents that we have played (with a couple of notable exceptions) were scheduled because he wanted them. He can also be blamed for the poor scheduling in the past. I don't deny it.

All that said, Gill has more influence than Rocco did.

So you are saying that his contributions to the foundation of the football program are : Grass Practice Field, and Food and Lodging. Wow, I stand in awe of that type of program building. I would give him more credit than that,but I guess they never would have asked any other FB coach their thoughts. Did he raise the money for any of that? Rocco was fortunate, and rightly took full advantage of, that he came on board right when LU had an 'Open Checkbook' policy for the football team. He didn't screw it up, which is not always the case.
The only reason I'm talking about it is because it was brought up.

[Purple Haize]

Unreal. We have played ONE game. A Guarantee game. Anyone that is making judgments saying Gill's teams arent getting any better, or he isnt building on what Rocco did, find something else to talk about for at least a few more weeks. Its crazy.

How can you call yourself a true FlameFan? We should NEVER lose a game. I mean look at the money we spend. How we can keep a coach who looses a game is beyond me. You mediocrity lover

[sigmo7]

Does anybody know if there is a thread set up for discussion on the Norfolk State game anywhere?

[R i]

Does anybody know if there is a thread set up for discussion on the Norfolk State game anywhere?

Nick making that start this week. With the talk about Trail , and how good their Defense is, Ill take Big Stack and the Flames D. That secondary looked great last weekend. And our Dline didnt get pushed around much against UNC.

[jcmanson]

Yes. It is here, so let's get back on track. Anyone go to Trail's website yet? :I chortle audibly.:

Bro....http://www.lyndentrail.com/

[BJWilliams]

I think this was supposed to be one but it has gone hilariously off track...largely thanks to SJ, bluejacket and PH (medic I think tried to get things back on track)

As far as the topic at hand, this really is where I am hopeful the off campus scrimmages bear fruit. if we can avoid the yips that I think were in part due to first game jitters/issues/whatever you want to call it, this game is ours for the taking, and solidly so

[PAmedic]

Yes. It is here, so let's get back on track. Anyone go to Trail's website yet? :I chortle audibly.:

Bro....http://www.lyndentrail.com/

nice.

guess I gotta get one for me now.

I've every bit as impressive as that kid

[Purple Haize]

I think this is one of those cases where both ends of the spectrum probably need to step back and take a deep breath.

Otherwise, Danny Rocco...Randy Dunton...DR...RD!

I would not put those 2 in the same category.