Forum › Forum › Lehigh Sports › Lehigh Football › Question for the Experts
This topic contains 30 replies, has 11 voices, and was last updated by toddcudd 8 years, 5 months ago.
-
AuthorPosts
-
September 5, 2016 at 4:05 pm #27844
I think the biggest problem with LU of recent times is the inability to throw downfield with even a modicum of accuracy or with frequency. The O is built around a QB who is a decent scrambler but not adept at longer passing. Game after game we see the opponents pack the box and shut down the run game because they are aware they only have to defend a shortened field. They put a defender on the quarterback and stop up the running game in general. It seemed to me that our offense only improved last year when Mayes was brought in and we forced the defenders to spread out. This even helped half’s ability to execute.
Having six good receivers and a few all league WR’s is worthless if they are passed to rarely and by someone who cannot pass well over 10 yards. 49 yards in first half offense is an embarrassment and results from the other team’s coaches knowing the above and acting accordingly.
What am I missing?September 5, 2016 at 4:48 pm #27845Wellvbased on season so far an OL. We faced the same stack Ds last year without much difficulty. Limited arm a given Shaf isstill an excellent QB. No matter who is there an O cannot move without an OL. Nick spent most of the 1st half running for his life. OL returned we scored 3 TDs in the last quarter and a half.Effective max pressure limits a QB to his 1st read. MU relied on that and did not care about deep threat not because of Shaf’s arm but because pressure worked.
September 5, 2016 at 5:54 pm #27846I’ll repeat the statistic. In the last 24 quarters (6 games), Lehigh has only punted 10 times. Three of those punts were in the 1st half of the 1st game of the season. The offense has done quite well scoring. I’m of the mindset that if they pack the box, throw underneath the coverage. Monmouth really didn’t stop our offense at all in the 2nd half. The interception was on a ball that went through the TEs hands.
September 5, 2016 at 7:04 pm #27852A little off topic but did anyone else notice that TK put on 20 pounds in the offseason (from 225 to 245).
September 5, 2016 at 7:14 pm #27853Nope
Up to his Dad’s NBA weight.
September 5, 2016 at 7:21 pm #27854Gee took a look. Sedore up to 230. Saw team had intense S & C sessions on campus this summer. A new team mix for Doc.
September 5, 2016 at 7:25 pm #27855I would say that Nick is a good QB. I am not sure that I would say that he is an excellent QB, if you consider Reiker, Stambaugh, Lum, Borda, and Hall as excellent QBs. Nick isn’t even one of the top two or three QBs in the P.L.
I can’t recall that he has led the team to a season defining or career defining win to date. He had an opportunity last year at Colgate but came up 5 yards short. I know the defense was awful, but the game was still in Nick’s hands at the end. He also had an opportunity in the Bronx, but did not play particularly well. He still has 10 games left to do so.
Based on his performance last year, Mayes doesn’t seem to be an unknown. The staff should not be reluctant to go to him if the offense is ineffective or even as a change up. He certainly has the ability to stretch the field better.
However, Nick is not the question mark on the team at this point. He just needs to be efficient and take care of the ball. With Bragalone and core of receivers, this team should routinely score 30 points a game.
I agree that the O-line was less than dominant, disappointing considering that is has three returning starters. Monmouth just seemed to out quick them.
This season is still going to come down to the defense performing and getting the offense the ball. It is unreasonable to expect that the offense is going to score every time it touches the ball. The offense also can’t be expected to play from behind or to just stay even as it did much of the past two years. It puts too much pressure on them and whoever is playing QB
-
This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by
hawkineer.
September 5, 2016 at 7:27 pm #27856Can TK play tight end?
September 5, 2016 at 7:30 pm #27857Well said :). Hell with TK wouldn’t need to throw long just high
September 5, 2016 at 10:31 pm #27861Well put hawkineer.
September 6, 2016 at 2:54 am #27862Stop this foolishness
Our QB with “the inability to throw downfield with even a modicum of accuracy or with frequency.” racked up 49 on Lafayette last year.
Our “inaccurate” thrower went 21 for 27 for 283 yards and 4 TDs also added a 100+ yard rushing performance.
Oh yeah he was also MVP of the game.
Oh yeah the week before that he put up 42 on Colgate, went 23 for 36 with 271 yards passing and 2 TDs.
Number of interceptions in the last three games: A grand total of 2.
No really I can’t utterly believe how idiotic Hawkineer’s post was
September 6, 2016 at 12:19 pm #27867didnt think his post was idiotic at all. what was said that was foolishness??? he didnt say ANY of the things you just responded to in his last post about nick.
September 6, 2016 at 2:02 pm #27868“The O is built around a QB who is a decent scrambler but not adept at longer passing. Game after game we see the opponents pack the box and shut down the run game because they are aware they only have to defend a shortened field.”
“Game after Game” apparently doesn’t include 151 or the Colgate game. In fact in 151 Shaf ran for 100 yards on his own. Some shutdown of the run game.
September 6, 2016 at 2:37 pm #27869[quote quote=27862]Stop this foolishness
Our QB with “the inability to throw downfield with even a modicum of accuracy or with frequency.” racked up 49 on Lafayette last year.
Our “inaccurate” thrower went 21 for 27 for 283 yards and 4 TDs also added a 100+ yard rushing performance.
Oh yeah he was also MVP of the game.
Oh yeah the week before that he put up 42 on Colgate, went 23 for 36 with 271 yards passing and 2 TDs.
Number of interceptions in the last three games: A grand total of 2.
No really I can’t utterly believe how idiotic Hawkineer’s post was
[/quote]
You didn’t address any of his points and your main retort is to quote the performance against 1-10 Lafayette last year. Had you mentioned Colgate instead, you would have had a bit more leg to stand on.
In response to the initial post, I’ve noted this same lack of a deep ball game for some time now.
No one, including me, is stating anything insulting, derogatory or personally hurtful against Nick. He’s first class. That does not mean, however, that we, as fans and followers, may not critically analyze the various facets of Lehigh’s offense or its QB and the coaches’ selection and use of its QBs.
It is the opinion – and only the opinion – of several posters here that Lehigh might be better off with a QB who has greater range. You don’t have to agree, but I have yet to see anyone here make the case that Lehigh has a BETTER offense because we have a run-oriented QB who can work the short and mid-range game. I’m sure someone will now.
Likewise, I’ve been agitating for a change at the top and no one has said, “no LUHawker, you’ve got it all wrong. AC is a terrific HC. He’s shown remarkable success and consistency and has demonstrated tremendous ability to select great coordinators over his 11 years.”
Somehow, whenever this is brought up, the discussion devolves into a Cecchini debate. Maybe AC will surprise me and we’ll suddenly turn into a perennial playoff program, but after 10 years of closely following AC and his program, I think those odds are low.
Also, I’m sorry (NOT!) for bringing this up early this year, but the reality is that this is not something new and has been an issue for several years. We Lehigh supporters got charmed in 2010 and 2011 into thinking that we had a real gem after the first bunch of mediocre Coen years. I, for one, am no longer charmed.
September 6, 2016 at 2:42 pm #27870Let’s ask a simple question. Brad starts vs. Monmouth. Does Lehigh win? I say no. Instead of only getting sacked twice, Brad gets sacked five times and intercepted three times, throwing under enormous pressure.
It’s not a knock against Brad, whom I think is an exciting QB in his own right, but I fail to see how Nick’s passing ability had anything to do with anything last Saturday. If he were making a load of mistakes that would be one thing, but he was running for his life half the time. I don’t feel that’s on Shaf.
-
This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by
lfnadmin.
-
This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by
-
AuthorPosts
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.