Benson is huge loss. Bedford not as much.
Carter Smith and Carpenter could be. We have a lot of holes and December 20th is coming.
Carter Smith and Carpenter could be. We have a lot of holes and December 20th is coming.
Ready to panic about OL
- Thread starter Tegray1
- Start date
Don't forget that this all starts over again in April.
you trying to give him a heart attack?
Yes. But that is late. JMU OL in the portal. Wisky lineman visiting. But man. I don't need this anxiety.
We were 3-9 last year.
We have kids coming in for visits.
Outside of Smith, I'm not sure there's anyone that can't be replaced on the line fairly easily.
We have kids coming in for visits.
Outside of Smith, I'm not sure there's anyone that can't be replaced on the line fairly easily.
I don't understand the panic. While the OL did play much better after Bostad took over, we were still 3-9. Not saying it's their fault but they didn't help us win. The OL the last few years with all of these guys that are in the portal, has not been good. I'm fine with cleaning house and starting over. That's what we need, a new direction.
Then replace them. We haven't done that yet.
Trey Wedig. In Friday visitors thread.
There's been one visit week.
Kids are still entering the portal every day.
When's spring ball again? How many months? What's the rush?
It is just the usual anxiety for IUFB as many don't believe it can be better. I trust this coaching staff to improve IUFB even if it takes two years to get it done.
I mean, they've had one recruiting official weekend. We're still a week away from the first signing period.
Lets give the staff some time to fill out the roster before people bash them.
Barrett’s brother another would be my guess .Don’t forget the Dukes they may come out swinging after. Bowl game .
Carter Smith is key for us. Hope he comes back & is a leader for the team.
I have to trust the coaching staff until they prove otherwise. In reading the tea leaves of their likes and posts on Twitter I don’t think most of the guys in the portal are coming back and change is hard. Bostad is a good coach and by most perception I’ve been reading we have a good staff of coaches. So, as hard as it may be I’m trying to control my fears regarding roster turnover and remain faithful we can pull together a competitive roster. If not it’s going to be hard to generate enthusiasm from the fanbase. It is still early though. Bowl season isn’t over and new portal entries are getting added daily. I think we still have time to make a splash, but I admit it would be nice to at least see one huge commitment from the portal sooner than later.
Patience, take a deep breath
I would be more anxious if we had the same line next year that has won 3 Big Ten games the last 3 years. (And yes, I know not all of them have been here all of those 3 years.)
OL is the very LAST position you want to be in the portal for. Literally any position other than that, at least based on the first few years of the portal. And we have to replace the ENTIRE line from the portal? That's not going to be a good thing.
On the bright side, all players would be learning a new system regardless of portal or returning so this is probably the best year to have to deal with the portal in that respect.
Whether it is hs recruiting or portal shopping, success or failure largely depends on the coaching staff's ability to find talent (or the right fit). Allen's success or lack thereof in the portal doesn't really foreshadow what we will get with CCC at the helm.
True, it’s not ideal, however , remember we are replacing a line that couldn’t get us 1/2 yard on the goal line in winning time……. complete whiff by pretty much everyone.
I would bet a large amount of money that our offensive line won't consist of all portal players from this cycle.
On the positive side. One of my friends has a son who is on the IU roster. She said her son likes our new coach a great deal. Let this portal stuff play out.
With all the complaining about the o-line over the past 3 years, I don't get the concern about turnover in that group.
In fairness to the OL, they seemed to improve once the change in offensive coordinator occurred & a no.1 QB was named.
Benson and Carter Smith were very good. You could see the interest in them from other schools. Folks don't talk record, we could have easily won 6 this year. Coaching could have easily been the difference in the last 3 games. To say we only won thus many is kind of shallow. The difference in winning and losing is as minimal as attitude.
Look at it this way in baseball terms: We had several players who hit .210 last year. Just because they are a year older doesn't mean that avg. is going to get any better. You want those guys back or guys that hit .300 part time someplace else.
I understand the angst but like "V" before I believe in this new staff and Bostad to put together a pretty good roster including O-line. Bostad is already mining his Wisconsin connections and over the years which offensive line would you have preferred, ours or Wisconsin.
Our head coach was a quarterback and Sunseri was a quarterback who I am sure both want their quarterback to have protection and being able to open holes for the running game. Obviously, the more lineman that we can get in the program in January will be better development than the spring transfer period but this staff I believe can evaluate their needs and desires for culture and performance.
Cig really seems to understand what he likes, expects and can deliver. He is not afraid to challenge the big boys. If we can have even a 6-win season and a year under their belt will open a lot of doors in the future. I don't know if they can achieve in 2024 but having 8 home games will not hurt even against a tough conference schedule.
I am one of those that likes to sit back and evaluate things after each new phase and this phase is new staff getting established and mining their old high school pipelines and evaluating the free agent market. After spring practice, they will have a few months to see how the culture and team development goes and then mine the second free agent market to try and fill some specific holes that they see.
Our head coach was a quarterback and Sunseri was a quarterback who I am sure both want their quarterback to have protection and being able to open holes for the running game. Obviously, the more lineman that we can get in the program in January will be better development than the spring transfer period but this staff I believe can evaluate their needs and desires for culture and performance.
Cig really seems to understand what he likes, expects and can deliver. He is not afraid to challenge the big boys. If we can have even a 6-win season and a year under their belt will open a lot of doors in the future. I don't know if they can achieve in 2024 but having 8 home games will not hurt even against a tough conference schedule.
I am one of those that likes to sit back and evaluate things after each new phase and this phase is new staff getting established and mining their old high school pipelines and evaluating the free agent market. After spring practice, they will have a few months to see how the culture and team development goes and then mine the second free agent market to try and fill some specific holes that they see.
I definitely wanted Benson and Smith back yes.
That direction might be Down (as in 2 and 10) if we don't find adequate replacements for the OL... As some should be realizing about right now; it's not that easy to build a line from the Portal...; we've been trying for the last two years... The results should be instructive...
Those JMU guys are starting to look pretty good about now...
If our guys in the Portal now are so easily replaceable why didn't we do it this time last year when they looked a whole lot worse??????
I haven't given up on Cignetti and Bostad yet (in this regard) but things are starting to look a little grim... There's already been a run on top Guards and Centers and we didn't even get a visitor... Tackles and swing men (guys who can adequately fill in at multiple slots) are coming up next....
We need to bite the bullet and perhaps overpay a little for Smith (And Carpenter) just to have a cornerstone and an anchor to build this new line from... We need to get that done Yesterday...
We are right where I was afraid we might be at this point; fortunately we, theoretically, have a smarter guy playing the cards with this time around. Let's just hope he doesn't outsmart himself and blow it with the hand he's been dealt...
Cignetti seems to have a major league ego (not a bad thing as long as he can back it up) along with a stubborn streak... Lets hope he doesn't let that ego overwhelm his instincts to do the right thing and begin rebuilding this ghost line of ours...
I think he'll find a way to do it... I'm hoping he proves the he deserves that kind of benefit of the doubt...
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That’s a really poor analogy. You’re talking individual statistics versus a unit on a football team that doesn’t perform as individuals but rather as a unit. Familiarity with one another matter a great deal in developing. I’m not suggesting we were going to have a dominant offense of line next year, but they would be a lot further along, particularly with consistency at their position, coach level, then what we’re going to be once the dust settles.
The line is going to be the new coaching staff's biggest challenge. It requires the most coordination and familiarity between players to be successful. Even if you find suitable replacements, replacing five starters would be challenging even for the best coaches. Hopefully Smith at least stays. I don't get the line. They have one of the best line coaches in the country and he developed them well. He's clearly not the most likeable guy or the whole line would not have left. But he's making them better and hopefully they realize that.
Given where Smith is visiting, I'm banking on him being gonzo with the rest of them.
One man’s “ego” is another man’s confidence, and I , for one, am glad he is confident. Not sure why you think he has a “stubborn streak”, good grief he has only been here a couple weeks, and you‘ve already assessed his character flaws ?
He has 40 years of coaching under his belt, and has learned from the best, he’s been a HC at 3 different stops and been successful everywhere, including 0 losing seasons. Will that translate to immediate results on the Big Ten level ? Who knows, but I do know Coach Cignetti believes in his process, and we should let that unfold before we start judging. I’m willing to bet we will trot out an OL as least as good as last years. Patience
Might as well get used to it, it’s the new portal/NIL world, it will be very hard for programs (other than the big boys) to keep players from year to year. The days of “developing” an OL and keeping it together are, for the most part, gone. Guarantee you this , we weren’t keeping that group together coaching change or not.
That's probably more true than false all of the way around. I still doubt we're in a spot of having to replace all 5 again soon.
I like the guy and agree with you about ego and confidence and that it's a good thing as long as he can back it up on the field with This team...
What he's done in the past, while encouraging, doesn't mean a thing unless he can duplicate it in the Big Ten...
Blowing up the OL (it's pretty obvious that what he said to the team didn't resonate well with the OL) and not going the extra mile to rebuild it doesn't do anything to give me confidence that he isn't letting his ego get in the way of his common sense...
I like the guy and I love his confidence but a little Common Sense used judiciously could go a long way towards putting a winning team on the field next fall.
You're simply inputting your own narrative about why these guys are leaving with absolutely zero evidence that you've provided. Just message board logic.
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