Step Away from the Ledge

[Grandpa Zorro]

There are a lot of topics here that I want to reply to and rather than hit a lot of them randomly I decided to start one of my own.  Everyone should take a deep breath and step away from the ledge.  We don't need a knee jerk reaction to what is going on...firing the staff, blaming the refs, etc.

Here is my mantra:  It's a process.

1. It is my firm belief that every new college coach should get at least 3 years and preferably 4.  That let's them get their personnel in place and it assures that it is "his" team on the field.  In the case of Charlie Strong, he has had to change the culture of this program and the level of talent on the field.  You would be lying if you said you haven't seen some positive changes.  Let's give him a chance.
2. It is my firm belief that in High School and College athletics, there is an extremely valuable commodity.  That commodity is EXPERIENCE.  In any sport this holds true.  Juniors playing in their 3rd year of competition and Seniors playing in their 4th year of competition provide you with a decided advantage over other teams who do not possess that commodity.  If we are patient, I believe this Longhorn football team will be very, very good because of the experience being gained right now by a core group of young players.
3. While 1-3 is not acceptable, it is not the end of the world.  We have seen some exciting games and we have seen massive improvement.  I don't think we can question the effort our players have given and we have seen some very exciting games.  For me, watching this Longhorn team that has been an emotional roller coaster has been so much more fun that those of the past 3-5 years.  I firmly believe that we need to strap in, support our guys, and be patient.
4. On other threads I have compared this Longhorn team to the Houston Astros.  They had three 100 loss seasons in a row.  They were as bad as bad can be.  But it has been a process.  Now for the first time since 2005 we are playing meaningful games in September with a realistic shot at playing deep into October...and this a year earlier that most expected.  And these kids are really fun to watch!  I see a lot of similarities.

It's a process.

We need to be patient.  We need our young kids to gain experience.  We need to let our Coach have a reasonable chance to do his thing.

If we start 1-3  two years from now, then I will be one of the ones calling for a change...but for now, take a deep breath and let the process happen.

And finally, do you know why Texas hasn't fallen into the Gulf of Mexico??  Because OU sucks.

 

[UTfish]

I agree, GZ. And we could be only a couple of bad kicks away from being 3 and 1 against one maybe not bad team and 3 ranked teams and not having these conversations.

How can some not see the progress this young team has made?

Yes, a lot of mistakes were made, as was expected, and we came very close to being 3 and 1 anyway. To me, that is encouraging.

http://collegesuperfan.com/activation/code/f7790cff1cd1bb118cf312d1289e4f84/id/32787

 

[GBT]

2 years from now ???? After this 4-8 or 3-9 season, he better have 8 or 9 wins next year with the losses very close and competitive, or he shouldn't be here two years from now.

I'd be a lot more optimistic if the lots of mistakes made were mostly the young players, and not the Jrs and Srs and COACHES making them.

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

My only complaints with Coach Strong is on offense and recruiting.

1. Why didn't he recognize that Swoopes and Watson's complicated "west coast offense" isn't the way to go at UT? While the defense has struggled, too, I have more confidence that he and the staff know how to game plan on that side of the ball.
2. I'm probably in the minority with this opinion, but wasting scholarships on high-risk FL kids won't pay dividends soon. What are we gonna get out of Cherry, Gilbert, and Clarington this season? Nada. Were they worth the gamble or are there TX kids who love UT that may have qualified academically?

 

[UTfish]

2 years from now ???? After this 4-8 or 3-9 season, he better have 8 or 9 wins next year with the losses very close and competitive, or he shouldn't be here two years from now.

I'd be a lot more optimistic if the lots of mistakes made were mostly the young players, and not the Jrs and Srs and COACHES making them.

Like I said, GBT, take away a couple of mistakes, we would be 3 and 1 and I would bet that your attitude would be totally different...or maybe not.

To your point of juniors and seniors mistakes, they will be gone and replaced by more competent younger players. I believe that will be a good thing IMHO.

The coaches are working with the hand they were dealt. They'll be fine.

 

[dillohorn]

The 2 kicks were some of the least of the problems.

 

[North Texas Golfer]

After a slight overreaction on my part over the weekend, which someone of you picked up on , I have stepped away from the ledge. 

No question that you give a new coach a minimum of 3 years. 

But in all of this there are two things for me.

1. At some point, you have to start being competitive against the better teams. Being competitive with California and OSU is one thing. But being competitive with ND, TCU, Oklahoma, and Baylor is another. 

2. At some point, you have to stop making excuses and stop rationalizing. Progress will come when you eliminate those 2 crutches. 

You will know that we have turned the corner when we start being competitive against the better teams and when we stop making excuses and stop rationalizing.

 

[MBHORNSFAN]

Nothing wrong with the ledge as long as you have plenty of beer to go with it.  B)

 

[North Texas Golfer]

Nothing wrong with the ledge as long as you have plenty of beer to go with it.  B)

Well, as I said in a post I made in another thread, there may or may not have been more vodka than usual involved as I watched the game last weekend 

Kind of reminds me of when David Feherty said watching Phil Mickelson play golf is like watching a drunk chasing a kite along the edge of a cliff.

 

[UTfish]

The 2 kicks were some of the least of the problems.[/quote

]

Agree completely. My point was meant to be that we came really close in spite of all the mistakes. I would expect real progress each week in this area, but it will take time to get where we need to be here.

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

Kind of reminds me of when David Feherty said watching Phil Mickelson play golf is like watching a drunk chasing a kite along the edge of a cliff.

:lol:

My other favorite Feherty line is, "Furyk's swing looks like an octopus falling out of a tree."  *thread derailed*

 

[BudreauReye]

There are a lot of topics here that I want to reply to and rather than hit a lot of them randomly I decided to start one of my own.  Everyone should take a deep breath and step away from the ledge.  We don't need a knee jerk reaction to what is going on...firing the staff, blaming the refs, etc.

Here is my mantra:  It's a process.

1. It is my firm belief that every new college coach should get at least 3 years and preferably 4.  That let's them get their personnel in place and it assures that it is "his" team on the field.  In the case of Charlie Strong, he has had to change the culture of this program and the level of talent on the field.  You would be lying if you said you haven't seen some positive changes.  Let's give him a chance.
2. It is my firm belief that in High School and College athletics, there is an extremely valuable commodity.  That commodity is EXPERIENCE.  In any sport this holds true.  Juniors playing in their 3rd year of competition and Seniors playing in their 4th year of competition provide you with a decided advantage over other teams who do not possess that commodity.  If we are patient, I believe this Longhorn football team will be very, very good because of the experience being gained right now by a core group of young players.
3. While 1-3 is not acceptable, it is not the end of the world.  We have seen some exciting games and we have seen massive improvement.  I don't think we can question the effort our players have given and we have seen some very exciting games.  For me, watching this Longhorn team that has been an emotional roller coaster has been so much more fun that those of the past 3-5 years.  I firmly believe that we need to strap in, support our guys, and be patient.
4. On other threads I have compared this Longhorn team to the Houston Astros.  They had three 100 loss seasons in a row.  They were as bad as bad can be.  But it has been a process.  Now for the first time since 2005 we are playing meaningful games in September with a realistic shot at playing deep into October...and this a year earlier that most expected.  And these kids are really fun to watch!  I see a lot of similarities.

It's a process.

We need to be patient.  We need our young kids to gain experience.  We need to let our Coach have a reasonable chance to do his thing.

If we start 1-3  two years from now, then I will be one of the ones calling for a change...but for now, take a deep breath and let the process happen.

And finally, do you know why Texas hasn't fallen into the Gulf of Mexico??  Because OU sucks.

You know, I coulda said that if I had thunk long enough! 

 

[BudreauReye]

You know, I coulda said that if I had thunk long enough! 

However, double posting it will not git me to thunking long enough! 
 

 

[LinuxHorn]

I agree with GZ. I know people want us to be competitive and win games, but the reality is simple. If a team is better than you in key positions (such as OL/DL), its going to be awfully hard to overcome that. I agree that CS could have made some better decisions at times. I also think a lot of our fans still have a sense of entitlement and the "We are Texas" attitude. Right now we need to be "Humbled Texas" because we aren't who we once were. This was ALWAYS a 2-3 year rebuilding project to me. To much had to change within the program before the guys even took a step on the field. There was A LOT of turmoil and instability within the AD. Here is how I saw the upcoming years when the new coach was hired, no matter who it was:

Year 1: Clean up the football program and eliminate waste

Year 2: At least be competitive in games and get the young guys experience ASAP

Year 3: Challenge for the conference title

Year 4: Compete for a natty 

If you have kids and they fail at something despite giving it their all, do you turn your back on them and simply tell them "be better" or do you applaud their effort and help them find a way to conquer the challenge next time? As fans, the least we could do is support our team and University when they need it most through thick and thin. These young guys are out there busting tail despite upperclassmen failures (dear Lord, help Hutchins). We can't fire somebody or put somebody on the hot seat every single moment a coach doesn't live up to your expectations fast enough despite showing progress. Nobody will want to coach here. You can't create that environment. We wanted to win and we wanted to win the right way. We also wanted to toughen up the Texas culture, remove the sense of entitlement, and employ leadership amongst the players. I think we are going down the right road, even if it is in a Nissan Versa vs a Tesla Model S. 

 

[BudreauReye]

     ... I agree that CS could have made some better decisions at times. I also think a lot of our fans still have a sense of entitlement and the "We are Texas" attitude. Right now we need to be "Humbled Texas" because we aren't who we once were.  ...

Ahem ... you are making WAY too much sense here, linuxHorn! 

 

[LinuxHorn]

Ahem ... you are making WAY too much sense here, linuxHorn! 

Haha! I'm just saying, we weren't always winning 10 games every year. Neither was Bama or OSU or any of the other schools. There are cycles in CFB and unfortunately we just seem to be at the bottom of it right now.

 

[streettopeschel]

The remainder of the season will largely determine people's perception. Finish 7-5, even 6-6 and win a bowl...we have momentum and we're off suicide watch. Finish 4-8 and 'It's a process' is a lot tougher to swallow.

Regardless, Charlie gets at least a 3rd year and he should. Now if in year 3 we're still scuffling to be bowl eligible, we've got a problem.

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

Haha! I'm just saying, we weren't always winning 10 games every year. Neither was Bama or OSU or any of the other schools. There are cycles in CFB and unfortunately we just seem to be at the bottom of it right now.

Agree, Bama fans forget that they were mediocre to bad under Shula, Franchione, and Dubose, among others.

We're in our down cycle now after enjoying a decade of 10-win seasons. Gotta be patient to get this BIG BOAT turned around. 

 

[MBHORNSFAN]

Agree, Bama fans forget that they were mediocre to bad under Shula, Franchione, and Dubose, among others.

We're in our down cycle now after enjoying a decade of 10-win seasons. Gotta be patient to get this BIG BOAT turned around. 

The concern for many is Strong our Shula, Fran or Dubose?