My thoughts

[Duff Man]

First of all, scoring three meaningful points against that defense is really bad. No excuse for that performance. We really were not competitive in the second half and that's disappointing.

But going forward, there need to be some fundamental changes:

1. The running back rotation sucks. Powell gets too many carries and I'm not even sure why Tony Jones still gets carries period. The Michael Adkins era needs to start today.

2. The special teams make big mistakes every week. Not even sure how you fix it, but a good start is replacing Severson on KO returns. Just nothing there.

3. If Connor Wood is to be "the guy" going forward, then zone read needs to be a bigger part of the game plans. Half-assed attempts don't really count.

 

[MtnBuff]

Can't dissagree with any of it.

1. Adkins is the only guy we have that looks like a BCS level RB. I like ToJo but he simply doesn't find and hit the holes, doesn't make anyone miss, and goes down to easy. Powell isn't the same guy we saw last year. Move him back to FB, I did see him make some blitz pick ups and he could be effective in short yardage with some blocking but he doesn't have the explosiveness to be a threat at RB and seems not to have the durability to carry the rock multiple times in a game.

2. We didn't give up a TD return today, we did give up points by turning the ball over. No excuse for the kind of mistakes we are making. Neinas needs to go.
Spruce doesn't give us much yardage as a returner but at least he makes good decisions. Severson isn't getting it done on KO returns, move him to the short return position and put DD back there.

3. I'm not overly excited about zone read but some might force defenses to worry enough to open other things up. Passing game needs to be diversified. We suck at TE, I get it. That said Fernandez was open a few times in the middle today for easy completions and instead on a day when the weather was a factor we threw deep and outside for incompletes. A few first downs on middle completions could have given Connor some confidence, kept the D off the field, and opened up some of the outside stuff.

Again on the inside I didn't see us even try to go to Tyler until late in the game. This is the kind of game and weather where his size and an willingness to catch the ball over the middle could have made a difference.

Connor was bad today but the play calling didn't help him much.

Beyond this this game makes it clear that this season isn't going to be the year we break out and win. It's time to find out what we have in some of the younger guys and give them some time. I know we are thin but we have some seniors who aren't exactly tearing it up. Handler is getting dominated and continues to make stupid mistakes. Webb at LB just flat out missed some tacles today and all season and has been a liability in coverage. Don't know if they have pulled Olugbode's RS but Severson might as well get some time even undersized.

 

[buffsyko]

Good summary, adkins needs to get most of the carries and the zone read should get 10 plays a game. Special teams? Defense played better than what the score indicated. You can't have multiple 3 and outs in this league on offense and expect your defense to shut the other team down. Gilliam is a beast, still need more pressure, crawley had a bad game and the speed issue remains. Connor wood struggled all day. We sure could use te hobbs right about now. OL , nembot doesn't have the feet and they are so inconsistent. Adkins would get 5-6 yds then a 3yd loss each time. Back to the drawing board. BTW, cooks is special.

 

[Duff Man]

You two touched on something else. There may need to be more OL rotations. I realize it hampers an up-tempo offense, but whatever we are doing there right now is not working.

 

[boydbuff]

You two touched on something else. There may need to be more OL rotations. I realize it hampers an up-tempo offense, but whatever we are doing there right now is not working.

Our OL play especially on passing downs was awful. Wood was on the run most of the game. Weird, better run blocking and worse pass blocking. Or maybe Adkins is just better at finding holes and making things happen when the OL doesn't do enough.

 

[buffsyko]

Our OL play especially on passing downs was awful. Wood was on the run most of the game. Weird, better run blocking and worse pass blocking. Or maybe Adkins is just better at finding holes and making things happen when the OL doesn't do enough.

Powell doesn't have the acceleration and jones seems to miss the holes.

 

[SuperBuff]

Powell doesn't have the acceleration and jones seems to miss the holes.

Almost seemed like they had Powell in when they should have had Jones in and opposite on some plays.

 

[buffaholic]

Can't dissagree with any of it.

1. Adkins is the only guy we have that looks like a BCS level RB. I like ToJo but he simply doesn't find and hit the holes, doesn't make anyone miss, and goes down to easy. Powell isn't the same guy we saw last year. Move him back to FB, I did see him make some blitz pick ups and he could be effective in short yardage with some blocking but he doesn't have the explosiveness to be a threat at RB and seems not to have the durability to carry the rock multiple times in a game.

2. We didn't give up a TD return today, we did give up points by turning the ball over. No excuse for the kind of mistakes we are making. Neinas needs to go.
Spruce doesn't give us much yardage as a returner but at least he makes good decisions. Severson isn't getting it done on KO returns, move him to the short return position and put DD back there.

3. I'm not overly excited about zone read but some might force defenses to worry enough to open other things up. Passing game needs to be diversified. We suck at TE, I get it. That said Fernandez was open a few times in the middle today for easy completions and instead on a day when the weather was a factor we threw deep and outside for incompletes. A few first downs on middle completions could have given Connor some confidence, kept the D off the field, and opened up some of the outside stuff.

Again on the inside I didn't see us even try to go to Tyler until late in the game. This is the kind of game and weather where his size and an willingness to catch the ball over the middle could have made a difference.

Connor was bad today but the play calling didn't help him much.

Beyond this this game makes it clear that this season isn't going to be the year we break out and win. It's time to find out what we have in some of the younger guys and give them some time. I know we are thin but we have some seniors who aren't exactly tearing it up. Handler is getting dominated and continues to make stupid mistakes. Webb at LB just flat out missed some tacles today and all season and has been a liability in coverage. Don't know if they have pulled Olugbode's RS but Severson might as well get some time even undersized.

What is it that you like about ToJo? His personality? I think you summed up his abilities pretty well. I don't like him. I liked Adkins. Let's see him most of the time. Powell has lost a step it seems.

Zone read worked at time. Not much else worked. Wood was under pressure, but he was not stepping up into the pocket, he was throwing off his back foot in a defensive position. Deja Vu.

Crawley has gotten way too much credit on these boards. He's improved but he's actually our weakest DB imo. Has gotten away with a few grabs and got beat today when the game was still on the line and got called with a hand to the face. He's about where he should be as a talented 2nd year guy, but some on here talk like he's more than that. He's not (yet).

Pass rush remains awful.

Whatever OSU was doing to PRich - expect more of it.

 

[mattrob]

What is it that you like about ToJo? His personality? I think you summed up his abilities pretty well. I don't like him. I liked Adkins. Let's see him most of the time. Powell has lost a step it seems.l.

I was wondering the same thing reading that post. “I like him, BUT he's small, slow and can't find the holes. Other than that..."

 

[DBT]

When does basketball start? Kidding. Sort of.

Listening to a game on the radio makes it virtually impossible to evaluate a game.

 

[MtnBuff]

To clarify I think he works hard and has a good attitude. He isn't slow if he gets into open field, he unfortunately doesn't get into open field because he lacks those skills that make a BCS back.

If it were a lack of effort on his part or if he were one of those guys who brings others down I would be down on him as well.

I have posted before that we need to be playing somebody other than ToJo. Based on today it looks obvious that Adkins looks like that guy.

 

[Buffarino]

Whatever OSU was doing to PRich - expect more of it.

Seemed to me their defense (and the weather) did a number on Wood, not necessarily PRich. I could be wrong, but that's what I saw.

 

[MtnBuff]

Seemed to me their defense (and the weather) did a number on Wood, not necessarily PRich. I could be wrong, but that's what I saw.

This ^^^^

PRich was open a few times and Wood wasn't even close with the ball. He'll be okay.

 

[Buffs@5345']

This ^^^^

PRich was open a few times and Wood wasn't even close with the ball. He'll be okay.

I think a lot of that came from the O-line ineffectiveness. The pass protection that had been pretty good in the first few games was exposed by their size. Hopefully that is something they can adjust to.

Side note on kick coverage - our guys need to be more willing to take the touchback in my opinion. At least early in the game. We haven't seen signs of a return weapon, so play smart and avoid the starts from the 15 if we can avoid them - that and of course hanging onto the ball when we do field a kick or punt.

 

[MtnBuff]

Wood was under pressure but he also threw some flat out bad balls.

I don't know how much of it was pressure, how much was the weather which I am reasonably sure was unlike anything he had ever played in before, how much was rust, and how much was just a suck game. Whatever it was he was not good today, even when he did have protection which wasn't real often.

 

[Eggon]

Agree with DBT per radio. Gonna have to watch the replay even if painful.

From Austria @ 5 am: crap... listening to the game made me too frustrated to stay asleep. Well, sounds like there was a couple of bright spots. I will have to watch the replay and look for the future "playmakers" be they ever so few. Any good honeymoon receives challenges soon after, so guess we got that out of the way..... :lol:

 

[SBG]

Why was Crawley on Cook? Crawley does show promise, but is he our "lockdown" corner? He may get there, but he's not there yet. I don't want him on Marquise Lee come November unless he has help over the top.

 

[seattlebuff]

This ^^^^

PRich was open a few times and Wood wasn't even close with the ball. He'll be okay.

Cooks put on a WR clinic today. Doubled consistently, yet still got into the space to make the catch. That's what makes a great WR: running a crisp route and if that doesn't work, finding space. That's something I don't see PRich do. Love the guy, his speed, heart, athleticism, but I don't think he gets himself open instinctively. We saw it two years ago when he disappeared after the Cal explosion. Hope we don;t see that again.

 

[leftybuff]

ToJo has the vision of Stevie Wonder. The OL is probably the worst I have seen in 23 years of watching CU FB. Wood has a nice arm but if he gets rattled he is as fragile as a china doll and makes horrific throws. The front four couldn't get a push on a swingset. The ST finally learned to cover a KO, but forgot you should field a KO when it comes to you. Seriously, we have an ST coach? I would say the ST coach sucks ass, but that would be a compliment given how truly bad the Buffs are on ST. I really did not expect more than 3-4 W's this year, but Oregon St. totally red asses you? Really? Pathetic. Not even competitive today.

 

[ahoelsken]

I have several random things from today, and I can't think of a better place to put them than this thread-

As far as a take on OSU, I see 6-7 bowl possibilities in the Pac 12 (Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, ASU, UA, UW, OSU, possibly USC). That's probably an 8-4 team we played.

I have to be critical of the offensive coaches for the gameplan there and how the game was called. Lindgren called a game that was simply too dependent on the run. It didn't work, and we should have gotten away from it long before we were down 38-3. Play at the same tempo that we saw against CSU, UCA, and in garbage time today. We don't have the talent to compete with the top half of the conference doing what we did today. PRich wasn't anywhere near as involved in the gameplan as he should be.

I see a defense that continues to get better. The defense played to win the football game today, and in my mind spent too much time on the field for us to be able to stay in the game.

Special teams----Where to start? To have an assistant devoted strictly to this and still make the number of mistakes we've made the last three games (long returns, returns for touchdowns, turnovers) is unacceptable. This is going to continue, and Neinas needs to go at the end of the year. If MacIntyre wants to continue with having a full time special teams coach, great, but let's go replace Neinas with an NFL guy who could find himself on the unemployment line come January. Mike Priefer from the Vikings comes to mind as a possibility.

Overall---Tough to say this after today, but I still see a ton of progress. Let's focus on the improvement we see through early November, and go win our last three.

 

[b3buffs]

Wood was making god awful throws even when there was no pressure. I also noticed he was throwing off the back of his foot and not squaring up a few times without pressure as well. Another note, he seems to have more passes batted down or tipped than any QB I've seen through 3 games. Yes, even more than Hawkins.

Crawley looks to be giving about 60% effort out there, he got owned no matter who he was matched up against. Uzo-Diribe looked like he was going to have a monster game at the start.

The defense kept us in the game as well as they could in that first half, and the window for us to take control of the game early was just lingering and waiting. Offense just could not deliver. With the exception of maybe Utah no PAC12 teams are going to give us that chance.

I did not see any smash mouth, hard hitting attitude from this team whatsoever. They just looked docile, lost, and weak.

 

[NW Buff]

Wood was under pressure but he also threw some flat out bad balls.

I don't know how much of it was pressure, how much was the weather which I am reasonably sure was unlike anything he had ever played in before, how much was rust, and how much was just a suck game. Whatever it was he was not good today, even when he did have protection which wasn't real often.

If it was the weather then we are in a lot of trouble. Sitting through the game, it simply wasn't that bad. I was somewhat protected by a wall at the top of the stands but the wind in the stadium wasn't horrible. There was almost no rain during the game. A light drizzle but nothing disruptive and not cold.

I'm with the people who simply didn't get the play calling and I'm still waiting for those wrinkles on defense to put pressure on Mannion.

 

[azbuff]

I'm not even sure the three "meaningful" points we scored were actually meaningful. We gained possession deep in OSU territory because a OSU receiver displayed his brick hands, luckily tipping the ball right in to Hendo's arms. I actually thought the defense played relatively well in the first half, but you could see they were fatigued the last drive of the half. Wood looked like a scared puppy out there, pissing down his leg. It's so frustrating.

[video=youtube;0uuFVPR2Y-U]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uuFVPR2Y-U[/video]

 

[MiamiBuffs]

Well, now we know who among us have tasted the Koolaid.

 

[FlatironsBuff]

I think a lot of that came from the O-line ineffectiveness. The pass protection that had been pretty good in the first few games was exposed by their size. Hopefully that is something they can adjust to.

Side note on kick coverage - our guys need to be more willing to take the touchback in my opinion. At least early in the game. We haven't seen signs of a return weapon, so play smart and avoid the starts from the 15 if we can avoid them - that and of course hanging onto the ball when we do field a kick or punt.

I think MM has to be telling the kids "We will HAVE to outwork, out hustle the other teams. We have to be in a rhythm, we have to be fast, and give them no time to react or make substitutions."

 

[krom]

I have several random things from today, and I can't think of a better place to put them than this thread-

As far as a take on OSU, I see 6-7 bowl possibilities in the Pac 12 (Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, ASU, UA, UW, OSU, possibly USC). That's probably an 8-4 team we played.

I have to be critical of the offensive coaches for the gameplan there and how the game was called. Lindgren called a game that was simply too dependent on the run. It didn't work, and we should have gotten away from it long before we were down 38-3. Play at the same tempo that we saw against CSU, UCA, and in garbage time today. We don't have the talent to compete with the top half of the conference doing what we did today. PRich wasn't anywhere near as involved in the gameplan as he should be.

I see a defense that continues to get better. The defense played to win the football game today, and in my mind spent too much time on the field for us to be able to stay in the game.

Special teams----Where to start? To have an assistant devoted strictly to this and still make the number of mistakes we've made the last three games (long returns, returns for touchdowns, turnovers) is unacceptable. This is going to continue, and Neinas needs to go at the end of the year. If MacIntyre wants to continue with having a full time special teams coach, great, but let's go replace Neinas with an NFL guy who could find himself on the unemployment line come January. Mike Priefer from the Vikings comes to mind as a possibility.

Overall---Tough to say this after today, but I still see a ton of progress. Let's focus on the improvement we see through early November, and go win our last three.

So we should have relied more on the passing game when Wood was like 4-25 for 22 yards? Most accounts I have read about Prich sound like he was running lazy routes and not finding ways to get open. Similar disappearing act after his monster Cal game 2 years ago. The run seemed like the only way we were getting yards. Penalties were back breakers too and I am happy HCMM is benching players for being reckless (Munyer). What is frustrating is that I have no point of reference since DTV sucks ass so I will have to take your word for it. I guess the bright side is that my eyes were shielded from yesterday's debacle.

 

[Quattro]

ToJo has the vision of Stevie Wonder. The OL is probably the worst I have seen in 23 years of watching CU FB. Wood has a nice arm but if he gets rattled he is as fragile as a china doll and makes horrific throws. The front four couldn't get a push on a swingset. The ST finally learned to cover a KO, but forgot you should field a KO when it comes to you. Seriously, we have an ST coach? I would say the ST coach sucks ass, but that would be a compliment given how truly bad the Buffs are on ST. I really did not expect more than 3-4 W's this year, but Oregon St. totally red asses you? Really? Pathetic. Not even competitive today.

OSU is not a bad team. They'll win 8 this year and they were ranked to start the year. Let's not make OSU into a CSU type team.

 

[Quattro]

Well, now we know who among us have tasted the Koolaid.

Well you're about as fast at figuring out who the optimistic people are on the site as you are with entrance requirements for athletes vs. non-athletes.

 

[Duff Man]

OSU is not a bad team, but that offensive performance was pathetic. It's okay to call like it is every once in awhile. The kool-aid drinkers love to predict victories and then shout down anyone pissed off about a blowout loss after the game. Like clockwork.

 

[Deleted member 807]

OSU is not a bad team, but that offensive performance was pathetic. It's okay to call like it is every once in awhile. The kool-aid drinkers love to predict victories and then shout down anyone pissed off about a blowout loss after the game. Like clockwork.

Ain't that the truth.

It hasn't soaked in yet that MacIntyre's Buffs in Corvallis looked every bit as inept as any seen in the last eight years.

CU firmly established P12 cupcake status in Corvallis.