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Post by buildtroyup on Sept 22, 2014 8:47:11 GMT -6
On the surface a 0-4 start is a signal to sound the alarm and point fingers at perceived causes of the losses. Fickle fans always want to blame what they see from a stadium seat or couch. Then their solution to the problem is to fire or bench, based on extemely limited information. If we had a few breaks go our way in the Duke game and if we escaped the Abilene Christian game, today's tune of choice would be full of praise. Our coaches can coach. Our players can play. Let's look at the evidence: 1. Obviously UAB is much better than everybody thought. Their close loss to Miss St proves the point. 2. Duke is undefeated. We played them close. 3. Abilene Christian is a very good football team. They have been competitive in both of their losses. 4. Georgia is Georgia. A money game for us. Not surprising we were blown out. On the heels of losing 3 straight, the players and coaches couldn't afford to mortgage the Sunbelt schedule by squandering guts and glory in a futile attempt to win between the hedges. Football is a game of inches and adjustments. Let our conference schedule be the judge of who the Trojans are. Support our guys. Let the season play out. At the end you may be surprised!
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Post by atlantatrojan on Sept 22, 2014 8:58:40 GMT -6
ACU is not that great. They arnt bad but arnt great... They went 6-5 last year. And are picked to finish 6th in the southland conference... So I guess Troy would finish near the bottom of the southland?
Duke was our best performance all year. But it's unacceptable to lose like we did to Uab and uga.... ACU should have been a 3 or 4 TD win
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Post by jerichojohnny on Sept 22, 2014 9:41:44 GMT -6
On the surface a 0-4 start is a signal to sound the alarm and point fingers at perceived causes of the losses. Fickle fans always want to blame what they see from a stadium seat or couch. Then their solution to the problem is to fire or bench, based on extemely limited information. If we had a few breaks go our way in the Duke game and if we escaped the Abilene Christian game, today's tune of choice would be full of praise. Our coaches can coach. Our players can play.Let's look at the evidence: 1. Obviously UAB is much better than everybody thought. Their close loss to Miss St proves the point. 2. Duke is undefeated. We played them close. 3. Abilene Christian is a very good football team. They have been competitive in both of their losses. 4. Georgia is Georgia. A money game for us. Not surprising we were blown out. On the heels of losing 3 straight, the players and coaches couldn't afford to mortgage the Sunbelt schedule by squandering guts and glory in a futile attempt to win between the hedges. Football is a game of inches and adjustments. Let our conference schedule be the judge of who the Trojans are. Support our guys. Let the season play out. At the end you may be surprised! CLB himself said the team isn't very good. That said, I hope you are right, and I am looking forward to the conference slate to see if TROY can make some magic happen. I hope Larry can actually take the fact that he can't remember beating ULM and that they have our number and actually turn it into a spark and get the snowball rolling down hill. UAB is a stronger team than we thought - Duke is getting votes for a ranking, and of course Goergia is a perennial contender. ACU is the win that obviously has us all rattled, but they played with a lot of heart and it was just not in the cards for TROY. We've yet to see if there was a wake-up call since that game. Sure, it would have been nice to put up some points against Georgia, but it would be a real statement at this point to go to Louisiana and beat the Warhawks. Now, I'm planning on coming up for Homecoming, and if we lose that game AND ULM, well, then things will really be getting dire.
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Post by trojanbrutha on Sept 22, 2014 9:47:57 GMT -6
There were 2 "gimme" games and we're 0-4...tough sleddin' for the Men of Troy and the Trojan Nation, going forward. Like Mark Wilson said, they can't afford to lose...My hopes are his teammates respond.
On a side note, he cracked several of uga's RBs pretty good...just wished it had been a little more often...
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Post by Trojan Thunder on Sept 22, 2014 10:06:18 GMT -6
If this was the first bad beginning of an otherwise successful string of winning seasons , I suppose we could chalk it up as an anomaly. However, the "evidence" you speak of is more like wishful thinking. While I admire your optimism, I'm afraid I don't share it.
If LB does magically get things turned around, I would be pleasantly surprised and extremely happy for him and the team. However, I still think it's tine for him to retire. Troy needs a fresh start .
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Post by troyalumni2003 on Sept 22, 2014 10:12:17 GMT -6
I think what you post is positive but crazy. Hope your right though. Also, please all you who predicted a great season from watching practice and scrimmage and was hearing such good things from Fall Camp, please apologize or correct or explain. You all had our hopes very high for the first time in a few years.
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Post by discophobia on Sept 22, 2014 10:41:19 GMT -6
Problem with your theory is we have sucked for 4 years......this is not a mere blip of a perceived problem this is hitting rock bottom.
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Post by cornhole on Sept 22, 2014 11:00:09 GMT -6
Problem with your theory is we have sucked for 4 years......this is not a mere blip of a perceived problem this is hitting rock bottom. Ditto this ^ ^ ^. Too much evidence both on and off the field to support the thread starter's conclusion. Wish we could "Say it ain't so!"
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Post by saintflorian on Sept 22, 2014 11:33:08 GMT -6
Miracles can happen.....
And I hope they do. But it looks we are of the mindset of we have to see it to believe it.
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Post by preacher on Sept 22, 2014 13:40:26 GMT -6
I think what you post is positive but crazy. Hope your right though. Also, please all you who predicted a great season from watching practice and scrimmage and was hearing such good things from Fall Camp, please apologize or correct or explain. You all had our hopes very high for the first time in a few years. Still trying to figure that out. Size, speed, and depth seemed to be there.
Conclusions upon my fall camp reflection:
1. Our defense is better than our offense. Doesn't say much for our offense. Could have been the blind leading the blind since they were our only reference points. 2. There seemed to be more unity in camp than now. Don't know what happened.? 3. Our players don't seem to be in the right position on either side of the ball to do well. It appears our coaches aren't getting it done.
We still have size and speed but if you are out of position just a little bit that's all the leverage the other team needs have a big play. It goes back to leadership and coaching. Whether its control of the locker room, recruiting, play calling, prep time, etc... A team performing at the level we have for the past 4 seasons can only be blamed on those paid to be in charge. Tired of excuses. The job is not getting done period. Not personal. Just calling apples - apples.
I am assuming our staff is complaining to someone about their pay for there to be so much talk about it. I know we are under paid across the board. I know we will have to pay more. But lets get a reality check here CLB makes 500,000 a year plus many other benefits I'm sure (maybe not this year). Does anyone else on here get paid 500, 000 to do something you love. If they are complainong about their pay they need a reality check, stop being selfish, and be thankful for the opportunity they do have.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 22, 2014 13:53:56 GMT -6
Staff is not complaining about pay. When people cry fire, they need to understand what we owe (buyouts) and what it would cost to get a good coach to come here. Coordinators in conferences other than the SEC make near a million. Doubt they want to slash their pay just to be a HC at Troy.
A lot of your post is assuming coaches are complaining about their pay. I see no evidence of this, but if you do please share.
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Post by Trojan Thunder on Sept 22, 2014 16:07:05 GMT -6
If we can't afford to fire or hire coaches, we need to leave the FBS.
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Post by Hemi Man on Sept 22, 2014 16:21:41 GMT -6
If we can't afford to fire or hire coaches, we need to leave the FBS. Even better than that fans could support the athletic department with their money and time to make Troy athletics the best it can possibly be today, tomorrow, and forever.
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Post by jerichojohnny on Sept 22, 2014 16:42:15 GMT -6
If we can't afford to fire or hire coaches, we need to leave the FBS. Even better than that fans could support the athletic department with their money and time to make Troy athletics the best it can possibly be today, tomorrow, and forever. The thing I haven't figured out yet is how we actually make this happen. It's almost a chicken and the egg scenario we are in now. You need money to improve the on-field product, and it's hard to get money when you've got a bad on-field product. It would be even better if fans donated money, but the 25-50 of us who post on this message board aren't going to make much of a dent. How do you engage the fans - how do actually start collecting that money short of a Trojan T. Boone Pickens? It may seem pessimistic, but due to the location of our school, the financial status of our alumni, the presence of two of the most powerful teams in the NCAA in the same state, and a relatively weak fan culture at TROY, I just don't know how we break through that glass ceiling. I hear a lot of people on here saying money doesn't really matter, and others saying that it's pretty much the missing ingredient, but for those of you in the latter camp, other than pushing those of us here to give, give, give, how do we get the vast majority of fans (i.e. the legions of TROY alumni who are disinterested or even embarrassed to be Trojans) to give and get engaged. Billboards and ad campaigns are a start. I've been meaning to do some study on this subject, as it's interesting to me. There are more changes coming to college football. Whether that includes increased compensation of some sort, or just that the top 5 conferences will continue to pull away from the mid-majors insofar as revenue and opportunities, it seems to be a tough road for schools like TROY. Sometimes I wonder if we didn't peak at the wrong time. Then again, as we often discussed during the conference realignment, a boondocks school like TROY doesn't possess the media clout to push into bigger conferences anyway, generally. I guess a positive outcome for TROY might be, if somehow things change enough that college football players in the big 5 are barely distinguishable from pro athletes insofar as compensation, then, if TROY determines it can't hang with the big dogs, and at that level I don't think we could, then the mid-major conferences could potentially be the top-flight competition for true student-athletes playing for scholarships, guts, and glory. That sounds pretty fanciful at the moment, but I am convinced some paradigm shifts are going to keep coming. The profit-potential at the big schools is just too tremendous for it not to.
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Post by Trojanfan2 on Sept 22, 2014 17:29:12 GMT -6
Quote from a local newspaper on the georgia game
The saying goes; “Some days you’re the bulldog, some days you’re the bone.” Troy was the bone last Saturday as the Bulldogs bit them hard in the first quarter and then chewed on them for the rest of the game. The game was never in question. Troy’s offense couldn’t move the ball and their defense couldn’t stop Georgia. However, Georgia’s offense seemingly passed and ran with ease while their defense flew to the ball. Troy (0-4) was overmatched and Georgia (2-1) had something to prove after losing badly to South Carolina the week before. Troy only gained 216 yards the whole game as opposed to Georgia’s 547. 347 yards came on ground with only 39 carries. Georgia’s Heisman candidate, Todd Gurley, only played the first quarter, but he was still impressive gaining 73 yards on just six carries, highlighted by a 48 yard scamper through the Trojan defense. Troy’s Montres Kitchens provided a defensive highlight by running down Gurley from behind and tackling him on the 10-yard line, but Georgia soon scored their first touchdown anyway. The Trojans got close enough to see the goal line twice but couldn’t score. On their opening drive, Troy had a couple of big passes from Dontreal Pruitt to Chandler Worthy (25 yards) and Kendrick Dent (19 yards) to get to the Bulldogs’ 10-yard line but missed the field goal attempt. Midway through the third quarter, Troy was again on the Georgia 10-yard line, but Pruitt’s pass was intercepted in the end zone. Meanwhile, Georgia was scoring on their first seven possessions of the game. Georgia wasn’t trying to run up the score. They began substituting freely in the second quarter, but the score was still 45-0 at the half. I first started following Trojan football in 1999. They were in the process of moving up a division from 1AA to 1A (the highest level in college football). They had already moved up from division II a few years earlier and were doing well. They played tough schedules. One year they played both Miami and Nebraska, who played for the national championship that year. Those Troy teams played hard. They lacked the depth to keep pace with the top teams in the nation, but they didn’t lack heart. They went out on the field and punched the big guys on the nose with a passion that said we’re here, and if you expect to beat us, you better play hard because that’s how we play. Occasionally they won, (Missouri, Oklahoma State, Mississippi State) but they were always in the game until the fourth quarter. I don’t see that attitude anymore, and that has to change if they want to win ball games.
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Post by Trojan By Birth on Sept 22, 2014 18:31:35 GMT -6
I'm still going to watch as much Troy football as possible and I am going to go in expecting a win.
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Post by Hemi Man on Sept 22, 2014 18:44:15 GMT -6
Even better than that fans could support the athletic department with their money and time to make Troy athletics the best it can possibly be today, tomorrow, and forever. The thing I haven't figured out yet is how we actually make this happen. It's almost a chicken and the egg scenario we are in now. You need money to improve the on-field product, and it's hard to get money when you've got a bad on-field product. It would be even better if fans donated money, but the 25-50 of us who post on this message board aren't going to make much of a dent. How do you engage the fans - how do actually start collecting that money short of a Trojan T. Boone Pickens? It may seem pessimistic, but due to the location of our school, the financial status of our alumni, the presence of two of the most powerful teams in the NCAA in the same state, and a relatively weak fan culture at TROY, I just don't know how we break through that glass ceiling. I hear a lot of people on here saying money doesn't really matter, and others saying that it's pretty much the missing ingredient, but for those of you in the latter camp, other than pushing those of us here to give, give, give, how do we get the vast majority of fans (i.e. the legions of TROY alumni who are disinterested or even embarrassed to be Trojans) to give and get engaged. Billboards and ad campaigns are a start. I've been meaning to do some study on this subject, as it's interesting to me. There are more changes coming to college football. Whether that includes increased compensation of some sort, or just that the top 5 conferences will continue to pull away from the mid-majors insofar as revenue and opportunities, it seems to be a tough road for schools like TROY. Sometimes I wonder if we didn't peak at the wrong time. Then again, as we often discussed during the conference realignment, a boondocks school like TROY doesn't possess the media clout to push into bigger conferences anyway, generally. I guess a positive outcome for TROY might be, if somehow things change enough that college football players in the big 5 are barely distinguishable from pro athletes insofar as compensation, then, if TROY determines it can't hang with the big dogs, and at that level I don't think we could, then the mid-major conferences could potentially be the top-flight competition for true student-athletes playing for scholarships, guts, and glory. That sounds pretty fanciful at the moment, but I am convinced some paradigm shifts are going to keep coming. The profit-potential at the big schools is just too tremendous for it not to. You make many valid points. Our previous AD missed on the opportunity to capitalize on our success. There's nothing we can do about that now. Right now, on a personal level, when I'm talking to someone about them considering cutting funds I tell them exactly how I look at the situation. First off by cutting funds you aren't getting the AD or anyone's else's attention by telling them exactly what they already know. The administration is well aware of our struggles and how the fans feel. If you give now and continue to give you have to realize you are giving to the athletic department and the sports they fund. Not an individual coach or anyone else. You say the 25-50 on here won't have much of an impact. I couldn't disagree more. Let's say you start out giving $100 a year and 5 years down the road you've increased that to $1200 a year. If 30 people on here did that along with encouraging 1 or 2 new donors to join per year you are making progress. If those people buy in and do the same thing you are building a pyramid of Trojan donors that will be building Troy from the ground up. We can't go back and correct the mistakes of the previous administration, all we can do is try to get the movement going now. Obviously my first goal, if I was in charge would be to engage all season ticket holders in the Warrior program. Certainly there are some that are new Warriors due to the breakdown of the TSL's. A perfect time to try and bring those people in, and possibly move them up a level of giving without a major contribution up front on their part.
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Post by preachertoo on Sept 22, 2014 21:46:15 GMT -6
Staff is not complaining about pay. When people cry fire, they need to understand what we owe (buyouts) and what it would cost to get a good coach to come here. Coordinators in conferences other than the SEC make near a million. Doubt they want to slash their pay just to be a HC at Troy. A lot of your post is assuming coaches are complaining about their pay. I see no evidence of this, but if you do please share. No evidence just see posts saying what can we expect with what we pay. I would hope they weren't unhappy with their pay because in the scope of the real world they are paid well. I also said I understand we will have to pay more to get a young proven coach. It was really just a thought at the end of my post about my reflections on fall camp. My honest thought was if i was a coach I couldn't take the amount of money we are paying our coaches and put the product they are putting on the field. I would have to say at the end of this season thank you for the good times and great life you have afforded me these past 24 years. Put the last year of my contract toward the new coaching staff. Job is not getting done. Not saying they are not working hard. Saying the job is not getting done. They are paid to get the job done not to bless us with their presence. No competitive team should equal no job.
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