Mini-Rant

by Moosen on Sep 16, 2007 10:03 PM PDT Comment 7 comments

Long time lurker, first time poster.

The only thing that gives me solace in any of this is that I can remember back to '98. There were some painful memories, yes (Melsby's knee, dammit), but also some that give me hope right now. Specifically, I remember some Trojan guy crying online about how Hackett was destroying the SUC football program while Bob Toledo was building a powerhouse at UCLA. Now, obviously, the tables are turned, but I'm hoping that we can turn it around as quickly as they did. They only thing holding us back, in my mind, is our coaching salaries. I'm hopeful that we've learned our lesson from this debacle and will pony up some cash the next time around.

So now some happy thoughts, because I can't take any more negativity right this second. Therefore, the question on my mind is this: Once the vaunted WCO is gone, what should replace it? In my mind, UCLA should be home to the spread. It's flashy, WR/QB-centric and it screams LA. People will call us soft, and our colors will seem to support that notion, but I've always said that if you get your ass kicked by a team wearing powder blue, then you really got your ass kicked.

Alternatively, I want to run the wishbone (talk about extremes, huh?). There's no way it could be worse than the WCO and it would be waaaayy more fun to watch. An added bonus is that you'd have Bell and Markey on the field at the same time or Bell/Ramirez/that kid from TX if we're talking next year.

I'll bet you Nestor and the gang have already analyzed the exact right offense to run next year based on the strengths and weakness of the projected starters for next year, but I also think it's fun to think about the type of personality we should have five years from now.

Oh, and rip Toledo all you want, but I loved watching UCLA football back then, even when we were on the slide. Yes, it hurt sometimes (okay most times), but there was always the thought that the next play could be some crazy-ass flea flicker that would put the dagger in the heart of the other team. When KD tried it, it felt forced and out of character. Okay, I went back to the bad thoughts for a minute, but I'm done now.

Thanks for listening.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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The Running backs for '08

Are Christian Ramirez, Milton Knox, Raymond Carter (torn ACL this year) and Aundre Dean.

Well, provided Aundre and Milton don't jump ship. They're going to be great Bruins should they stick to their commitments.

Duke and North Carolina called: They want Steve Lavin back. GO BRUINS!!

by Allofmybros on Sep 16, 2007 10:07 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Isn't Bell a Junior this year?

Would still be on the team in '08

by bruinhoo on Sep 16, 2007 10:37 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is he? Thanks

Well, at least we'll have a steller backfield in '08.

Duke and North Carolina called: They want Steve Lavin back. GO BRUINS!!

by Allofmybros on Sep 16, 2007 10:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Our talent is pretty diverse

Our offensive line has been terrible so it doesn't really matter what offense we're running if they keep playing like this. At the skill positions though, we have lots of diferrent types of players so I don't think there is any specific offense that will fit this team. The key is bringing in an effective offense, whatever it is, and having the coaching to install it and get players to execute it. The only offense I don't want to see is the WCO because I'm convinced it cannot work at the college level.

by Ryan Rosenblatt on Sep 16, 2007 10:09 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

The WCO doesn't work at ANY level

It's been caught and passed by defenses. Its success depends on superior (way superior) athletes at any position that touches the ball, and it depends on having linemen who will dictate exactly what will and what will not happen on the field. The 49-ers had that with Montana et al. No one else has had it since. Not a lot of people use the Single Wing (oh, how I pine for the serpentine out of the huddle!) or the Wing-T or the Wishbone, and there's a reason.

Question: What is the name of the offenses that the highly successful teams are using? Sure, the Colts and Patriots have the best QB's around, and they are fast recognizers of things and tremendously accurate passers. But if you watch those games, the receivers are always WIDE open, and on third and 7, they are WIDE open 8 yards upfield. Same questions as to LSU and Florida and the powerhouse college teams.

If we are going to install a system with movements that will turn corners, blah blah blah, how about installing a system that actually works.

by Fox 71 on Sep 17, 2007 9:39 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

The WCO can work at the pro level

Mike Holmgren won a Super Bowl with it in Green Bay and got to another with Seattle. In 2002, the Raiders and Bucs met in the Super Bowl, both running the WCO. The Eagles were in the Super Bowl a couple seasons ago with the WCO and Mike Shanahan has had a decades worth of success with it in Denver. The notion that it takes superior players for it to work...well obviously. Is anyone successful, especially at the pro level, without superior players? Especially in the NFL, it's about players over scheme and no team, no matter their scheme wins with bad players. The WCO has proven to be successful in the pro's though.

The reason it doesn't work in college is because of the NCAA mandated limits on practice time. Teams can't practice nearly enough now and the WCO is a complex offense. It takes a lot of time to learn and with the limits on practice time, there just isn't enough time for the players to learn and master such a complex offense.

by Ryan Rosenblatt on Sep 17, 2007 10:56 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't get me wrong...

I don't think the wishbone will work (at least not against the good teams). I just think it would be more fun to watch than the joke that is our WCO.

As a side note, one of the biggest problems I've seen with our coaching this year (and every KD year) is that we find something that works and then we immediately run away from it. If the downfield pass is working then we stick to the run (maybe to surprise the other team with the pass later? - which hasn't seemed to work). Or, if Bell is kicking ass then we make sure to run as much with Markey as possible.

We all freaked out against BYU because they found a weakness and they kept exploiting it. Luckily, we held on for dear life in that game but it showed that a good coach will throw out the game plan and go with what's working when necessary. It seems like all season last year KD was trying to prove that we could use the opposite of whatever was working so that our team wouldn't look one-dimensional. So dumb.

by Moosen on Sep 17, 2007 11:05 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs