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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 9, 2024 8:08:04 GMT -6
This team has grown a lot from the beginning of the season. They're doing way better than I thought they would, considering we lost so many players from last season to graduation.
I wouldn't have expected a 9-6 (3-0) start to the season.
Glad we have Scott Cross and his staff. There is potential to have three winning seasons in a row... first time since 1999-2004.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 8, 2024 16:28:48 GMT -6
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 8, 2024 10:30:51 GMT -6
Troy got a commitment from Gardner-Webb LB Brendan Jackson.
He was named to the Big South All-Conference Second Team this season.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 8, 2024 10:24:59 GMT -6
Gerald Green, senior RB from East Carolina, has committed to Troy.
Has 1,557 rushing yards over his career.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 5, 2024 22:24:06 GMT -6
It's a bit unreasonable to expect a 10-win season in 2024. We're losing a lot of players that are NFL-worthy, and some others to the portal that are committing to P5's. Then there are the players who are simply graduating.
Not to say it can't be done. I believe it can be. Heck, I believe HCGP could lead Troy to a 13-1 season like App State had under first-year coach Eli Drinkwitz. Anything's possible.
For now, I'm going to be realistic and hope for a bowl... that's all I hoped for in Sumrall's first year, and he delivered way more.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 5, 2024 11:09:44 GMT -6
Just search "Troy offer" on X, and you'll see where HC Gerad Parker, Caleb Carbine, and our LB coach have been recruiting hard for high school, JUCO, and portal players. Lots of very talented players with great size and high ratings that Troy has been going after. Things are looking good. Any QBs? Do we need QB competition? Yes.
But I'm confident in Goose Crowder. He was competing for the starting spot at WVU.
The dude was rated as the #43 QB in the nation out of high school, and had offers from Kentucky, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Iowa State, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Memphis, Tulane, USF, and Boise State. I think we'll be fine.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 4, 2024 16:01:59 GMT -6
Seems like a great hire.
I feel the TMTDM will continue forward.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 4, 2024 12:28:12 GMT -6
I wonder if a lot of these players that enter the portal are just trying to position themselves for more money from the school there at.
It seems like the Ole Miss NIL would be more willing to find a way to pay more for their star player that has entered the portal, versus if he decided to stay and wasn't in danger of leaving.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 4, 2024 10:44:50 GMT -6
Just search "Troy offer" on X, and you'll see where HC Gerad Parker, Caleb Carbine, and our LB coach have been recruiting hard for high school, JUCO, and portal players.
Lots of very talented players with great size and high ratings that Troy has been going after.
Things are looking good.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 1, 2024 16:09:13 GMT -6
The only reason Liberty got the spot in the New Year's Six game is because they decision makers don't watch the games. They just saw that Liberty was undefeated and rubber stamped the deal. Never mind the Flames didn't play anybody all year and their reward was getting boat raced on national TV to Oregon. It will hurt Liberty and CUSA in the future next time they have an undefeated team.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Jan 1, 2024 15:05:09 GMT -6
Keeping an eye on this one.
No way he comes to Troy. Jabre Barber was our leading WR, and he's already getting offers from Texas A&M, FSU, Kansas State, and South Carolina. I'm sure Notre Dame's leading WR will get similar offers.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 30, 2023 19:18:42 GMT -6
Smooth is a Troy legend and I hope he winds up in the Troy Hall of Fame.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 29, 2023 10:55:02 GMT -6
A Troy player that's not in the portal revealed why our starters are going into the portal. He said simply, they're not getting paid.
It's not all because we lost Sumrall. Could be another reason Sumrall went to Tulane. They have a wealthy NIL collective that can "buy" top G5 players.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 28, 2023 13:15:53 GMT -6
This guy needs to be celebrated, taken out to the finest dinner Pike Co allows, lifted up on everyone's shoulders at parties, and to be sung to with "He's A Jolly Good Fellow" over the stadium loudspeakers at noon every day for a solid semester. Someone, take him to Sister's for the buffet. Let him go nuts.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 28, 2023 11:15:02 GMT -6
Troy just got a big time commitment from 3-star, 6'5" DE Derek Burns Jr.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 28, 2023 10:28:43 GMT -6
DE Raymond Cutts announced on X that he's staying in Troy.
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I love his post. A true Trojan.
He'll be a handful next season. Sumrall was very high on him. He played in 12 games this year with 19 tackles, 2.5 TFL's, and 1.5 sacks. He'll be a handful next year.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 27, 2023 14:36:15 GMT -6
His recruiting has certainly been good. Keeping the latest recruiting class intact... especially keeping most of the star recruits as well, was big. I'm sure that was no easy task.
Troy had the #1 recruiting class in the SBC in terms of average recruit ratings.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 27, 2023 14:20:24 GMT -6
I'll be surprised if Chris Lewis stays at this point. Unless he just really wants to stay close by so that his family can see him play.
And yes, we might as well go ahead and call 2024 a rebuilding year unless Gerad Parker pulls off a 10+ win miracle season. It's going to be difficult though.
This all looks very similar to what happened to Louisiana after their 13-1 season and lost their coach... they wound up losing most of their starters to the portal. They went 6-7 the next year.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 24, 2023 15:05:12 GMT -6
Thank God we've got some stellar RB's behind Kimani... especially Damien Taylor.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 24, 2023 14:45:41 GMT -6
Kimani Vidal is a legend now. Will undoubtedly be back in Troy again for his entry into the Troy Hall of Fame.
Thank you for everything Kimani!
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 22, 2023 0:53:37 GMT -6
I remember when a lot of App State fans weren't sure about Eli Drinkwitz when he became their HC after Scott Satterfield left App.
Drinkwitz never stayed anywhere very long, and his offenses were "good" at NCST, but certainly not anything great. App State also had an almost entirely new coaching staff.
Next thing you know, they go 13-1, ranked #18, beat UNC and South Carolina, and win the SBC title...
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 21, 2023 20:35:30 GMT -6
Horrible news. I wish Tulane could stop stealing from Troy for just 5 minutes. If there was a way the university could actually be better at getting our wealthiest alumni to donate, we'd probably be able stop wealthier schools like Tulane from taking our people.
There are a lot of wealthy Troy alumni out there that just don't have any sort of connection with the university anymore, and certainly not with athletics.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 20, 2023 18:53:54 GMT -6
Troy doesn't have $2 million a year to give a head coach. Nothing about Jack Hawkins can change that.
Troy's fundraising/donations/ticket sales have certainly increased... but our alumni giving amounts are still not significant compared to schools like Memphis and Tulane. We don't have any mega CEO's giving to Troy like they do.
Even App State, as much as they love their football and want to win everything... they can't even afford $2 million a year. And I'm sure if they had big money, they would've done everything to keep Satterfield and Drinkwitz.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 20, 2023 10:37:53 GMT -6
We just need to hear from Jywon Boyd now, and I think we can definitely say we've got a fantastic class. Everyone else that signs will be more icing on the cake too.
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Post by cardinalblacktrojan on Dec 20, 2023 10:08:55 GMT -6
Just hope we keep the kid from Montgomery Catholic...Ho hear is a still a solid commit, but until the papers are in, that other guy might steal some of our kids. And let's be honest, if he flipped to NELa, are we really that upset. 3* QB Caleb McCreary from Montgomery Catholic is official a Trojan. That's huge. Not let's get Jywon Boyd signed, and we're going to be in good shape.
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