forums

Let’s talk wide receivers

San Amaro Dr said:
Don't think it has much to do with HS although coaching down here is putrid overall.


Just some basic differences between Lashlee and Gattis. A guy like K smith played exclusively on one side of the field (L/R air raid principle) vs Gattis who uses a more traditional approach of X/Y/Z all flipping sides of the field based on formation.
Click to expand...
More so curious if the kids have been exposed to the X Y Z concept or have just been in a number system their whole football careers.
 
Advertisement
Cribby said:
Whats overhype? I’d say majority of the board doesn’t think he’ll win a Heisman or be the top pick in the draft. Do you think 3000-3500 yds 30-32 Td and 10-12 Int is overhype ? That’s the area I see.
Click to expand...
I think the numbers you have are spot on. (He probably gets closer to 3700 tbh) BUT the other thing people are describing is something transcendent. The last QB we’ve seen do it was Trevor Lawrence as far as as dragging WR’s with him to where they needed to go. I think it’s too soon to say TVD has that ability. They can just as easily be his downfall.
 
skyman said:
I expect big things from TVD but he still has some growing to do and alot to prove. He needs to be able to elevate his play and play a FULL game, not half game turn it up after multiple turnovers.. He has to put team on his back in college station if he is the heisman caliber player people want him to be
Click to expand...
That’s the game. Because whatever A&M does to us, Clemson will do the same. It’s the same team except by the time we play Clemson they should be more dangerous with Cade starting
 
SouthParkCane said:
Y’all are getting dangerously close to overrating TVD. Y’all haven’t done it yet. But y’all are getting close. And remember before you attack, I was the first one on his hype train when the board thought Garcia was better
Click to expand...
I mean what else do you expect? The board has already given Gattis a HC job somewhere after this season, made Addae the DC after Steele retires, and Mario the bama job after he wins a natty in 2 years.
 
Advertisement
BostonCanes47 said:
More so curious if the kids have been exposed to the X Y Z concept or have just been in a number system their whole football careers.
Click to expand...
I'm sure they have but a college level playbook is just much more detailed. Some things we all overlook in the game are alignments of receivers based on hash/scheme/route. It can get pretty detailed at times. The good news is we are going into game week where the playbook will be tailored to an opponent and alot of stuff gets thrown out. Helps narrow down the playbook a bit.
 
Cribby said:
Well Cooney is now spending a lot of time with the wr’s too. Which is his specialty. That’s not micromanaging. Secondly some kids don’t react to nitpicking and constantly crap talking. Some need positive reinforcement. I think there’s a line and great coaches know how to walk it. What I do know is guys that wasn’t dropping balls last spring and fall are dropping them now. None of these guys had that rep coming in.
Click to expand...
Was just pointing out what u asked.. I will hold off until we actually see product on field before I say a coach is a big meanie, lol.. They dont want to see the change and coaching going on at a position like LB compared to last year. I just dont see why complain based on 1 minute viewing clip because WR room is only one closest to be video taped..

Games will be here soon enough, Gattis offense overall I can understand there being a wait and see but his track record with WR I would think would give him some leeway to atleast let a game be played lol.. Let the man cook until then
 
Advertisement
Cribby said:
First off I’m not saying TVD is better , BY just won the Heisman but let’s trade personnel / rosters. What happens ? Does BY throw for 300 3 Td six straight games ? Just saying.
Click to expand...
It's possible TVD could do the same thing at BAMA Mac Jones looked like God there. Bryce also did the same thing in high school so I think he has a little more impressive track record. Just comparing resumes and drawing a definite conclusion is irresponsible. I think we both know their is a difference in saying TVD could do the same thing at BAMA and TVD is better than Bryce.
 
@Cribby with more consistency, talent and surplus at the TE position, why doesn’t the Offensive staff run more formation with TEs lined up in the WR positions or more formations with 3-4 TEs in a play? Wouldn’t that be more difficult for defense to defend against?
 
We have 12 WRs listed on the roster. I want there to be NO leash. Drop a ball....NEXT. My SFL bias really wants Brinson or Brashard to step up and be that dude.
 
Advertisement
IMO... the ball will get spread around until 1-2 dudes step up in games and then get major confidence, as TVD trust and goes to them more often... X has TVD's trust right now... 1-2 others will emerge under the lights.
 
Cribby said:
I felt there was no better time than now to discuss the pink elephant in the room. Yes….I’m talking the wr’s. I had a big part in creating this narrative in early spring. At that time me and a certain poster had a disagreement about the wr group , the poster mentioned he had heard the wr’s were balling. I told him it’s more like the opposite , they’re struggling, we had quite the battle lol. So since I had a small hand in creating this narrative figured it’s only right I pull everyone back off the life boat…..FOR NOW!!

First let’s fact check….are some wr’s dropping balls ? Yes….too many and it’s unacceptable. Are guys having issues picking up the offense ? Yes. Is there concerns about this group going into the season? YES!! Is X far and away the most consistent performer since spring? Yes.

Now let’s get to the part that doesn’t add up, these same guys that are dropping passes now wasn’t doing it last year. At practice or in games. JG was returning punts as a true Fr and was the most consistent guy the entire year. You don’t put guys with suspect hands back for the most hectic , dangerous play in football. Theres literally eleven guys flying down hill and you only have a split second to make up your mind.

So the question I have his why did this suddenly become a major issue? Here’s some of my theories.

1. Guys are thinking more than playing. They went from a elementary style offense which is known for easy route concepts and even easier playbook to learn. The whole point of that O was to not think, just play and fast. This year it went to a college level playbook and it’s busting their asses. Instead of just running a route , putting your foot in the dirt breaking that thing off you’re unsure, maybe even looking at hashes so know where to round it off or just not confident in the assignment / play call.

2. They’re actually facing a really good defense every day, I’ve been told by too many people to count this is as legit of a defense we’ve had in a minute. Big , fast and very physical. Especially a secondary who’s finally allowed to rough up wr’s off the line , which is hurting clean get offs. That leads to no separation. That’s not a good equation for success when most of the wr’s are kinda light in the ***. The one guy giving the D issues is X who’s 5’10 200.

3. Young guys pressing. We forget majority of these guys are getting their first real serious burn and are being asked to be more than role players. JG, RB and BS was the core that was being expected to take this group into the future. It’s different when you aren’t the fourth , fifth or sixth option.

4. Maybe they just aren’t as good as their ranking or as good as we thought they were. The rankings and us as fans overvalued this group.

So now the question is can coaches do anything to take the pressure off or put them in better situations? @LuCane and myself both mentioned that maybe Gattis could implement a little bit of what Lashlee was doing towards the end of last season. Ease up the playbook ,possibly throw in some of the route concepts and wider splits, which gives them more space to work with. I’m willing to bet they’re pressing at this point and as I said it’s likely mental. Simplifying things has been known to work, I’ve seen it too many times to count.

I’m not ready to throw the season away just yet even though I know wr is a concern. Confidence is a weird thing after guys make some plays when bullets start flying. They won’t face a better defense during the season , so it’s all down hill week one.

All we need is this group to be consistent, thats it. Not Andre J, Santana or even Rambo. Consistent Everyone play their role.

Imo we won’t see any 18 % drop rates this year like a couple guys who are no longer here.
Click to expand...
this is good stuff, @Cribby ... thanks.

let me jump in with one observation:

in my entire QB career in college, i never played with a WR that was as physically talented as anyone in the group we're talking about here. at Yale, none of my teammates has the size or length of guys like ladson, or the speed of smith, or the athleticism of jacolby.

so, if they weren't as physically talented, how come they were so good at running routes and catching the football? most guys had the kind of glue hands we're praying for here. in my four years, i don't remember coach cozza obsessing over "too many drops." sure, guys messed up routes, dropped balls, and lost contested catches. But nothing ever close to the consistent failures we're talking about here. the reason was always clear to me: mental toughness. catching the ball is as much mental as physical and our issues are 98% between the ears. these kids have been catching dozens of balls a day since they were 8 years old. don't tell me the problem is lack of physical capability. it's not. it's mentality, mindeset, and method.

until we solve that problem, you'll see balls hitting the ground.
 
Advertisement
SouthParkCane said:
I think the numbers you have are spot on. (He probably gets closer to 3700 tbh) BUT the other thing people are describing is something transcendent. The last QB we’ve seen do it was Trevor Lawrence as far as as dragging WR’s with him to where they needed to go. I think it’s too soon to say TVD has that ability. They can just as easily be his downfall.
Click to expand...
That’s where I differ some and the reason I made this thread. I don’t think he has to “ drag” this wr core. I expect WM and Arroyo to the on the field a lot. Same with Rooster and Parrish. All of those guys will be favored in their matchups most times. Rb’s vs Lb’s and Te’s vs Lb’s or S’s. X in the slot will be a problem for most nickels. I keep mentioning “do it by committee and know your role“ for a reason. KS has proven he can run by people , he ran by a Clemson cb I believe his first play as a Fr. So you gotta respect that aspect. Redding could be the physical guy wr needed to win some occasional 1 v 1’s . Brinson and George the intermediate guys. No wr will be asked to be Rambo. Imo it’ll be an inside out type offense , not nearly as dependent on deep shots as last year. We’ll pick our spots
 
Last edited:
RedSquare said:
this is good stuff, @Cribby ... thanks.

let me jump in with one observation:

in my entire QB career in college, i never played with a WR that was as physically talented as anyone in the group we're talking about here. at Yale, none of my teammates has the size or length of guys like ladson, or the speed of smith, or the athleticism of jacolby.

so, if they weren't as physically talented, how come they were so good at running routes and catching the football? most guys had the kind of glue hands we're praying for here. in my four years, i don't remember coach cozza obsessing over "too many drops." sure, guys messed up routes, dropped balls, and lost contested catches. But nothing ever close to the consistent failures we're talking about here. the reason was always clear to me: mental toughness. catching the ball is as much mental as physical and our issues are 98% between the ears. these kids have been catching dozens of balls a day since they were 8 years old. don't tell me the problem is lack of physical capability. it's not. it's mentality, mindeset, and method.

until we solve that problem, you'll see balls hitting the ground.
Click to expand...
Great post. The one issue I keep coming back to is none of these cats were dropping balls last year. It was never an issue with them. Most of the drops at practice were older guys.
 
Last edited:
AlexCane said:
@Cribby aside from X, who would be your candidate to step up?
Click to expand...
I think KS , JG and RB can all be solid. I think that’s their floor. I’m not expecting anyone in that group to be Rambo but I’m not expecting a flop either. Solid to pretty good seasons.

Redding and Ladson are the guys we need one of them to actually “ step up”. One of them needs to be solid or pretty good in their roles as a physical guy winning some 1 v 1’s. Redding‘s name has been popping up more lately.
 
Gables Canes said:
Are drops the only problem, or are the WR's also struggling to get open and create separation? @Cribby
Click to expand...
Separation has been a bit of an issue. Like I said I’m not sure if they more to do with the cb play , the playbook or being more congested inside the hashes versus the room to work under RL. Rhett had them **** near on the sidelines lol.
 
Advertisement
Back
Top