Tom Cable Will Fit In Perfectly With The Raiders

by Nestor on Sep 30, 2008 6:34 PM PDT

Tom Cable, Karl Dorrell's former OC (and OL coach) just got hired by Al Davis to be the Raiders HC, following the firing of Lane Kiffin, Pete Carroll's former OC (who perhaps was pushed out of the way at Southern Cal when he turned out to be an ineffective OC).

In case folks here needed a referesher on Cable:

Tom Cable is one of the key reasons why CRN, Chow and Palic found our OL in such a dire situation.

His offense was also kind of a joke which repeatedly found itself falling behind in games and having to get bailed out by the heroics of MJD.

Cable left UCLA under curious circumstances.

Cable's game planning and play calling at UCLA was a total joke.

The offensive stats compiled under Cable at UCLA were inflated thanks to the talents to MJD.

Oh and he also got canned from University of Idaho after compiling a record of 11-35 and running that program into the ground.

He will fit in perfectly with the Raiders.

GO BRUINS.

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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But...

I’m sure MJD is happy for the guy, he was the play caller that inflated his numbers…

by beeru on Sep 30, 2008 8:30 PM PDT 0 recs

Ah not really

MJD left UCLA early for a reason.

by Nestor on Oct 1, 2008 4:33 AM PDT up 0 recs

oh

he left because his stock was hot and didnt want to make the same mistake spencer havner made a year prior.

i understand your anger towards cable. i mean, im upset the guy left us with svoboda at the realm. talk about deteriorating our football team…

by beeru on Oct 1, 2008 7:33 AM PDT up 0 recs

Agreed...

MJD had to go pro…

1) he was coming off a fantastic season
2) the future looked a little less than certain at UCLA with key senior players leaving….

by impaulv on Oct 1, 2008 7:36 AM PDT up 0 recs

Incorrect

MJD was the 60th pick in the NFL draft. His stock was not all that high.

Nestor is not off. I remember the discussion from the message board around that time. He was not happy with Dorrell and Cable’s “WCO.”

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 8:56 AM PDT up 0 recs

Not all that high?

We’re not talking about the NBA, where the 60th pick rarely makes the team. In the NFL, the 60th pick is definitely a sign that his stock was hot, especially considering that it was a fairly deep RB draft that year.

by cabz on Oct 1, 2008 10:49 AM PDT up 0 recs

If UCLA had real offensive coaches

MJD would have stuck around and work to improve his draft stock.

We will have to disagree on whether going 60th is a “hot” spot in the NBA draft. We have different standards.

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 11:05 AM PDT up 0 recs

I can agree with this assesment :-)

by impaulv on Oct 2, 2008 9:59 PM PDT up 0 recs

Depending on MJD

The Sun Bowl that year was pretty exciting. Our 2nd and 3rd string backs ran for over 300 yards, while MJD was sidelined. Not to mention our ‘blue chip’ quarterback had 2 pick sixes in the first quarter.

by beeru on Oct 1, 2008 10:56 AM PDT up 0 recs

Yes

Wins over Northwestern in Sun Bowl in a HC’s third year (after getting destroyed by SC) is really exciting. Just as exciting as all those Lavin’s Sweet-16s.

Are you now going to give Dorrell credit for that magical 10 win season?

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 11:06 AM PDT up 0 recs

thats news to me

see i remember this.

by beeru on Oct 1, 2008 10:47 AM PDT up 0 recs

Just because it is on MSM

It must be true!!!

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 11:03 AM PDT up 0 recs

it must be

well, i trust that over something “you remember on a message board around that time.” im not dogging you, show me the threads so i can check it out and get my facts straight.

and where do you get that I’m giving dorrell credit? because i liked cable, im now a dorrellista? come on. besides i give full credit for that 10 win season to larry kerr, end of story.

by beeru on Oct 3, 2008 2:51 PM PDT up 0 recs

I don't have to link message boards

I will just point to the links Nestor provided in the post above. It is laughable for you to cite to some AP article as some kind authority about Cable after all the times bloggers here have shredded stale articles like that on MSM.

I am sure many Lavinistas can find glowing articles in AP and USA Today about how Lavo did a great job taking those teams to Sweet-16s. The article you linked is a typical AP fluff piece that is written based on official releases and statements from the school. It doesn’t give you any kind of analysis or insider information on why MJD left.

MJD left UCLA early even though he was not going to be a first round pick. He took a gamble. If he had a good coaching staff to depend, it is likely he would have come back for his senior season, and look to become a star. He didn’t.

You can keep revising history all you want but I will stay with the argument that if MJC had a real head coach and offensive coordinator, he would have stuck around for his senior season and work to emerge as a first round pick.

by bluestreet on Oct 3, 2008 3:07 PM PDT up 0 recs

Citing a boilerplate article ... lol

beeru and others praising Tom Cable’s greatness as a Bruin OC. Enough of revisionist history. Find a Raiders blog to make their fans feel better.

by Nestor on Oct 3, 2008 4:05 PM PDT up 0 recs

ok last post on the subject matter...

N I agree theres a better place for those who want to praise Cable than here and this is my last post on the thread. I wanted to point out, though, that link i posted had absolutely nothing to do with Cable, it was an AP article about MJD leaving for the draft.

by beeru on Oct 3, 2008 6:09 PM PDT up 0 recs

I see that

But that AP article doesn’t rebut the argument that MJD left UCLA early to escape the horrific coaching of Dorrell (and Cable).

by Nestor on Oct 4, 2008 6:26 AM PDT up 0 recs

I don't know about that...

As long as Al Davis is alive, I don’t know if I would wish the Raiders job on anybody.

by bruinhoo on Sep 30, 2008 8:49 PM PDT 0 recs

I would

on someone who had a key hand in the deterioration of our football program.

by Nestor on Oct 1, 2008 4:40 AM PDT up 0 recs

Whatever one's feelings re. Cable

You do have to be able to sit back and enjoy the trainwreck occurring in West Oakland.

Anyone that can make the York family look to be competent NFL owners in comparison gets my praise. Thanks Al!

by bruinhoo on Oct 1, 2008 9:43 AM PDT up 0 recs

Especially if

You’re a Broncos fan!

by SuperBruinMan on Oct 3, 2008 6:51 PM PDT up 0 recs

True that!!

Speaking of…
As tired as I am of Mike Shanahan’s routine here lately, Kiifin might find comfort in that Shanny was canned by the Crypt Keeper 4 games into his first season, did not get paid all he was owed, has since won 21 of 26 over the hated raiduhs, and is building a $25 million house in town. It may yet work out ok for Kiffin.

greg in denver

by gbruin on Oct 3, 2008 8:45 PM PDT up 0 recs

what i remember of tom cable

is one of the most exciting offensive seasons in recent memory, a mediocre QB throwing for something like 27 TDs and 3 INTs, and awful first-halves followed by unbelievable, explosive comebacks. i hate the raiders, but cable i’m a fan of.

by jjreicher on Sep 30, 2008 9:01 PM PDT 0 recs

One of the most exciting offense

If you call desperate offenses which depends on athleticism of MJD for its comebacks for sure.

And Drew Olson was not a mediocre QB. He was a blue chip recruit at UCLA and rated one of the best 3 QBs in his recruiting class along with Trent Edwards and Matt Moore.

by Nestor on Oct 1, 2008 4:35 AM PDT up 0 recs

This is where it gets weird...

Because while he might have been a blue chip recruit, he definitely didn’t play like it until his senior year.

What does “blue chip” really mean? Let’s take a quick look at Ben Olson. Forgetting coaching, 2 years away from the game, etc… are his mechanics and skills really “5-star”?

Now it’s all well and good to blame it on whatever coaching staff may have been around DO, but I too remember those 2nd half heroics. :-) A lot of it was MJD and DO gutting it out and making things happen, but did Cable or Dorrell deserve any of the credit? I think a little, yes…

by impaulv on Oct 1, 2008 7:33 AM PDT up 0 recs

Nope, not one bit

And the proof is in the pudding my friend: it never happened again. We never had any other comebacks like the ones we had that year in the following two seasons.

And yes, he was a blue chip recruited by Toledo, and it shows once again how awful CTS and his gang of Uncoaches were and how they sapped the talent out of anyone they could.

by tasser10 on Oct 1, 2008 8:36 AM PDT up 0 recs

Seems like you’re suggesting that the coaches sat haplessly on the sidelines while DO & MJD ran the show in those 2nd halves? I wasn’t there, but the little I know about coaching tells me that coaches usually try to make adjustments and run their offenses and usually aren’t too big on losing coaching control.

Not claiming Dorrell or any of his staff where coaching gurus, but had they lost those games they would have deserved more than their fair-share of the blame… Surely we can grant them a bit of the credit for some breathtaking wins?

by impaulv on Oct 1, 2008 8:55 AM PDT up 0 recs

I was there

Coaches did sit around haplessly.

Cable is a clown.

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 8:57 AM PDT up 0 recs

No my friend

Because their decisions were what put us in those holes in the first place. I’m sorry, but how does a coach “call” a punt return for a TD? How does a coach “call” for DO to scramble for his life only to throw a bomb for a jump ball? Those games were won because the players made amazing plays. There was nothing methodical in all those comebacks. Oh, and if those calls by the coaches worked so well, why not use them at the beginning of the game to avoid falling behind by 3 TDs?

Amazing, I guess the hard feelings are getting replaced by pity and revisionist history is well on its way.

Like I said, if they were so good, why didn’t they replicate their success? Answer: because those players weren’t around anymore.

by tasser10 on Oct 1, 2008 9:03 AM PDT up 0 recs

Cable's numbers

If I am remembering correctly lot of people thought he had “Improved” our offense after KD threw Steve Axman under the bus. The rushing numbers from his first year was blown up because MJD went off for 350 rushing against UDub.

In his second year he took advantage of MJD and Drew Olson combination that were blowing up in fourth quarters after the coaches chucked Cable’s run-run-pass bullshit. It was a desperate offense. There was no method to it. There was no scheme like we see in Chow’s offense right now.

It is amazing to see how people are trying to revise history on Cable.

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 9:12 AM PDT up 0 recs

Good points

All in all, I did chuckle quite a bit when I read about Cable’s hiring…

Whats the over/under till he gets fired?

by impaulv on Oct 1, 2008 9:45 AM PDT up 0 recs

I'll give him the rest of the season

As long as Cable keeps his mouth shut, Davis will let him be. The interesting part will be the offseason coaching search; considering the toxic nature of the Raiders job, Cable might just get stuck with the job.

From Deadspin’s comments on the coaching change:

Tom Cable as Raiders head coach?
Might as well be Larry the Cable Guy. The players would probably listen to him more anyways.

by bruinhoo on Oct 1, 2008 10:01 AM PDT up 0 recs

Comedy!

Raider fans on Silver and Black:

He sounded good at the press conference and having the bye week will definitely help in getting things adjusted.

Perfect for them!

My only question Steve Lavin wasn’t available as the “interim” coach?

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 10:09 AM PDT up 0 recs

I agree

You really think Drew Olson, who was TERRIBLE his first three years, just magically learned how to be a good quarterback and it just “came to him” that he could throw for nearly 3,200 yards completing 64% of his passes for 34 TDs and only 6 INTs? You think a supremely underutilized Marcedes Lewis just decided one day to have the ball thrown his way more on his way to winning the Mackey Award. You really think it was just the coaches sitting back and saying go score almost 40 points a game? No, I’m sure the coaches had NOTHING to do with that. Of course Maurice Drew was great and there were a lot of comebacks but that was only because we had literally the worst defense in college football that was the epitome of “bend but don’t break” that put us in deep holes. We had a ton of talent on offense besides Maurice Drew. Anyone remember Junior Taylor before he blew out his knee? A young Kahlil Bell and Brandon Breazell whose talents were actually being properly utilized. The fact is that was the only year during the Dorrell area that we had a respectable offense and it just also happened to be the only year Tom Cable was our OC so I don’t think that is a coincidence. As everyone knows, the real problem is we have never replaced all that talent we lost on offense (Toledo’s recruits) thanks to Dorrell’s super awesome recruiting.

by turs12 on Oct 2, 2008 9:44 PM PDT up 0 recs

It was not an awesome offense

And we will not go round and round to have this discussion again. If you want to talk up Tom Cable, you will have do it somewhere else. He is one of the primary reason our OL has been in shambles. So defend him somewhere else or perhaps start rooting for the Raiders.

by Nestor on Oct 3, 2008 4:37 AM PDT up 0 recs

aw come on...

what better play to rehash UCLA sports than a UCLA blog. Healthy discussion and disagreement is never a bad thing, right?

by impaulv on Oct 3, 2008 6:23 AM PDT up 0 recs

No revisionist analysis

That is how we got stuck with the likes of CTS and Lavinoma. People can never forget the reasons why those coaches failed, because otherwise we are bound to repeat the same mistake. Oh, and turs12, I understand your point, but you see, coaches who can only do well with good talent around them are simply not very good coaches.

Anyone who says that we shouldn’t be “finger-pointing” or “dwelling on the past” (I’m looking at you Sarah) is trying to sweep their own failure and lack of understanding under the rug. We should never forget the things that get us into trouble, that is how we learn and improve.

by tasser10 on Oct 3, 2008 7:35 AM PDT up 0 recs

History is Prologue?

sjh

by Class of 66 on Oct 3, 2008 11:20 AM PDT up 0 recs

;-) ;-) ;-)

by bluestreet on Oct 3, 2008 11:51 AM PDT up 0 recs

Just another brilliant Raider hire

The Karl Dorrell coaching tree is very impressive.

by Ajax on Oct 1, 2008 9:43 AM PDT 0 recs

The Karl Dorrell coaching tree

ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

by bluestreet on Oct 1, 2008 9:52 AM PDT up 0 recs

Found the tree

by Tydides on Oct 1, 2008 11:59 AM PDT up 1 recs

KD Tree

Hilarious!!

Too bad there is no Linus’s blanket to prop up the Raiders.

We Bronco fans absolutely love the train wreck that Al Davis has become.

greg in denver

by gbruin on Oct 1, 2008 3:50 PM PDT up 0 recs

At least

he replaced a lame Trojan and beat out another ’SC loser in Paul Hackett.

by turs12 on Oct 2, 2008 9:46 PM PDT up 0 recs

I was kind of hoping that the Loon would hire Hackett

That would have guaranteed a continuance of the tradition that Crazy Al has installed in Oakland.

by Fox 71 on Oct 3, 2008 4:55 AM PDT up 0 recs

Is Hackett still alive????

by impaulv on Oct 3, 2008 6:30 AM PDT up 0 recs

What difference would that make to Davis?

by Fox 71 on Oct 3, 2008 10:00 AM PDT up 0 recs

right

birds of a feather…

greg in denver

by gbruin on Oct 3, 2008 8:48 PM PDT up 0 recs

Tom Cable

I’m a little surprised there are so many negative feelings towards Tom Cable. For instance I really don’t see a reason to call the guy an “ass-clown”.

IMO, Tom Cable is an excellent offensive line coach. No more, no less. He sucked as a head coach, and he was below average as an OC – bailed out many times by DO, MJD, and Lewis. Sure, Cable should never have been our OC, but that’s just one more Dorrellian mistake our program has suffered. I don’t blame, nor have any hard feeling for, Tom Cable.

by bornagainbruin on Oct 3, 2008 9:00 AM PDT 0 recs

Cable might have been an above average OL coach

But for the reasons linked and discussed in this thread he was kind of a joke as an OC. He was not that great of a recruiter and he bailed on his recruits in the way he left UCLA. The negatives vibes towards him from Bruin fans are more than warranted. He is a pretty good marker for all the things that went wrong during previous regime.

by Nestor on Oct 4, 2008 10:21 AM PDT up 0 recs

When did all you Winstons start with the Newspeak?

You’re Bruins. You should get the reference.

Seriously, I cannot believe any true Bruin would back hapless ASS-CLOWN Tom Cable.

Wow! He was the offensive coordinator of a team that went 10-2 but got straight-up bent over and pounded by U$C! Let’s consider that DO had a healthy preseason without injury, was finally given real competition for his job (by a then-healthy and not-fucked-up-in-the-head-yet-by-KD BO). I chalk a lot of his improvement to the fact he remained healthy, was driven to improve or lose his job, and the simple fact that sometimes it takes time for players to “click” and “get it” (or does no else remember even Joe Montana struggled at first with a 49ers team lacking talent).

Same applies for Marcedes Lewis. You make a big deal of the fact he finally played well. Wow. A 5-star blue chip TE (who would go on to be drafted and start in the NFL) finally had a decent college season. Well, that must mean Cable is the man!

Same for MJD. Suffice to say I’m sure Cable had a lot to do with all those MJD punt returns for TDs. Or all those runs up the middle, where MJD by sheer force of his own will found a way to shake off a couple of tacklers, pop out of the pile, and run for a TD.

How about when we fell behind against bottom-feeding Stanford by 21 points? Anyone else remember that? 4th and under a yard and genius Cable dials up a bootleg pass. How’d that turn out? Oh, yeah DO scrambled like a chicken with his head cut off then threw a prayer that got caught (by a young Joe Cowan I believe). Boy, Cable did a great job making sure the Big Man answered that prayer! Whew!

Cable sucked as an OC. He sucked as an OL coach. He will suck as the Raiders’ head coach. Don’t want to believe that? Dude is a loser everywhere he goes.

At Idaho, as head coach, he piled up an impressive record of 11-35 (.239). Then he went to work for Duh-rell. Then he upgraded, going to the NFL, where his offensive line was real impressive for the Atlanta “We’re So Screwed Without Michael Vick’s Ability to Scramble Since Our Line Sucks Huge Balls” Falcons.

Then Crazy Al brought him in as the Raiders’ OL coach. Umm, I know most of you guys are in SoCal and I’m in the Bay Area, but seriously, you guys have to be aware of how absolutely pathetic the Raiders line had been. Robert Gallery? #2 taken in the draft? Yeah, there’s a big ass bust. Or did anyone else just pretend Daunte Culpepper, Josh McCown, or whatever corpse they threw back at QB wasn’t spending a lot of time flat on their back?

The guy is a terrible coach. At least NFL losers like Erickson and Carrol are able to win at the college level (never mind they do it in, well, less than legal ways). Cable flat out sucks everywhere he goes.

So Winston Smith, are we going to keep on going with the Cable Newspeak?

by norcald503 on Oct 4, 2008 9:04 AM PDT 0 recs