Last 3 games will define this regime vrs old.

[Bigtip]

I am cautiously optimistic that we will win the last 3 games. UVA will be tough at home and with how bad we've been at the end of the year for the past seems like forever I need to see it before I believe it

 

[bathtubgin]

This concept gets trotted out again and again. Hasn't the way this team keeps fighting through the fourth quarter - notwithstanding glaring depth and talent issues - all season long more than enough to "define this regime vs. the old"? Or the way golden recruits as compared to the Shannon era? Or the conditioning? Unfortunately, we can lose to anybody on any given day, but it will not alter the fact that golden has this ship on the right trajectory, particularly when compared to the woeful leadership of the prior regime.

So we're not counting the epic quit jobs at K-State and Notre Dame? Those games didn't happen?

I disagree that the players quit. It was boys v. men, and we are not even close to competing at the level of K St and ND, particularly on the road. This team is ridiculously young. We have zero upperclassmen talent. It's a miracle they have done as well as they have. While everyone appears thrilled about our record, all of our victories (save Bethune) involved some combination of winning the turnover battle, lucky bombs, penalties from the opposing team etc... against poor football teams. Va Tech is terrible this year, and they were still in the game, despite turnovers, awful special teams play, penalties, and Logan Thomas missing wide open receivers. While their mistakes were especially glaring, our other victories involved similar breaks falling our way.

That said, i don't fault the coaches or the players, given their youth and lack of depth. What i wanted to see this year was the team playing hard all 4 quarters, and i believe they have in all the games, including our losses.

When ND brought Rudy off the bench and proceeded to feed him the ball play after play, running it down our throats until he scored, it was pretty clear the team had given up.

 

[Chocolate City Cane]

There is a diffrence in having the ship on the right trajectory and finishing strong. Obviously the program is in better hands. What we have not done in a long time is not fizzle at the end of the season, Golden years included. Let's hope our young kids don't hit the perverbial wall.

The key to finishing strong 1) getting our guys healthy again and 2)RUNNING THE BALL. Our O-line needs to step up and start playing physical. They need to take some pressure off of Morris and keep us out of the third and long type situations which Morris gets exposed in.

These things aren't mutually exclusive. Having the ship on the right trajectory is about more than this year, and that ship will remain on the right trajectory regardless of whether we finish 3-0 or 1-2. With that said, I agree with you about the importance of finishing strong, which we're finally capable of doing.