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Post by tapsgator on Feb 10, 2023 12:34:55 GMT -5
Please please please please do this. Make him co-coordinator if you want to put pressure on Toney to suck less. Put him in charge of recruiting the front 7, whatever, this is a golden opportunity to stop getting crushed on the top kids in Florida which is the key to turning around recruiting, the only other factor that even approaches the slowing down the state line (at this point closing the border is impossible) is NIL. This is a chance to capitalize on 30 years of relationships with high school coaches in Florida and bring in a guy who has had success in big time college football. Make the money work because this is a no-brainer.
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Post by Mojave Gator on Feb 10, 2023 16:11:52 GMT -5
This needs to happen. I thought that Strong should have been the head coach when Urban Meyer left.
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Post by tapsgator on Feb 13, 2023 13:57:42 GMT -5
Me too, I've always thought some of Foley's most damaging decisions were:
1) Giving Mullen more consideration than Strong when Meyer left. Strong had the strongest Gator ties of anybody in the country, had worked for Spurrier, actually had Florida recruiting ties, and had gone 7-6 (to Mullen's 5-7) as a head coach.
2) Giving the job to Muschamp and talking about him going to middle school in Gainesville when Strong had a longer resume, more head and general coaching experience, and actual ties to the State of Florida and Gator program after he hit puberty.
#2 is still the damndest thing I've ever seen and both could be seen as racially motivated. For the record, I don't think that's the case, but if Napier doesn't succeed and our next coach is white I think some questions will start getting raised.
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Post by SoTxCaiman on Feb 13, 2023 14:26:53 GMT -5
Hate to say this out loud, but I think as sad as this sounds in todays world, there was as much or more dis-like of the interracial side of Charlie's family than just the fact he is black. I agree if we stay the course in football, basketball, baseball, and really everything but track and tennis the subject needs to be brought up.
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Post by Rock Gator on Feb 18, 2023 16:20:44 GMT -5
Hate to say this out loud, but I think as sad as this sounds in todays world, there was as much or more dis-like of the interracial side of Charlie's family than just the fact he is black. I agree if we stay the course in football, basketball, baseball, and really everything but track and tennis the subject needs to be brought up. Oh come on! You really think that's true? If so, it's disgusting. This is the 21st century for chrissakes. I just can't believe there is that kind of racism in people these days. I sure as hell hope not. RG |
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Post by tapsgator on Feb 21, 2023 9:18:48 GMT -5
Hate to say this out loud, but I think as sad as this sounds in todays world, there was as much or more dis-like of the interracial side of Charlie's family than just the fact he is black. I agree if we stay the course in football, basketball, baseball, and really everything but track and tennis the subject needs to be brought up. Oh come on! You really think that's true? If so, it's disgusting. This is the 21st century for chrissakes. I just can't believe there is that kind of racism in people these days. I sure as hell hope not. RG Agree it's ludicrous and I don't think there's been any specific racial bias in hires, but what I do believe is that we have two power hungry, ego maniacal, Napoleonic, narcissists who have been in charge of personnel decisions over the last 30 years. Foley is from the Northeast and an alum of Hobart (NY) and Ohio U. I have always gotten the sense that he has an outdated opinion of the fanbase and wants to placate the most important ones (ie. richest) first and foremost, perhaps exclusively. So, I could see him making hires that in his mind were based on job security/not wanting to stick his neck out. I don't have any reason to believe he's racist himself, but I could see him thinking that if he hired a black head coach and it didn't go well it may affect his self anointed legacy as the greatest AD in the history of sport. Scott Stricklin is born and raised in Mississippi. I'm assuming he's not racist because I think you'd have trouble working yourself into this position if you were, but again I think he's a puppet who just wants to keep his job and has been constantly dancing to try to do so. What I do know is that neither Foley nor Stricklin have ever hired a minority to coach any major sport. I can't really remember anybody getting major buzz. At some point your track record is what it is. I couldn't find anything where Stricklin had hired anyone but white males before back to back scandals in female sports. It's pretty absurd that the guy still has this job to be honest. If you look at head coaches across the program in the sports that garner national attention and are on ESPN we have white males with the exception of women's basketball and that was because of a scandal. Same with women's soccer. In sports like swimming, tennis, and track we have minority head coaches. That screams hitting quotas which I can totally see Foley doing. So, I think it's the chicken or the egg, UF has a problem with the racial composition of the head coaches in major sports. You've got 2 ADs who think a significant portion of the fanbase is racist and want to preserve their ego and job status respectively above all else, so they're hiring from that posture. The results are kind of embarrassing. |
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Post by tapsgator on Feb 22, 2023 12:48:44 GMT -5
I couldn't be more disappointed that Strong wasn't even considered when we got a stroke of luck in losing Toney. Raymond deserved a look as well, and I wouldn't blame him if he moved on.
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Post by Rock Gator on Feb 22, 2023 14:28:50 GMT -5
I couldn't be more disappointed that Strong wasn't even considered when we got a stroke of luck in losing Toney. Raymond deserved a look as well, and I wouldn't blame him if he moved on. I'll second that. Such a huge opportunity wasted. Wasted for the Gators, wasted for Charlie Strong, wasted for Billy Napier. I supported the hire, I supported Billy Napier, and still do, but how many coffin nails does it take before you can't open the coffin any more? He's adding them up, one after the other. RG |
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Post by tapsgator on Feb 23, 2023 11:41:02 GMT -5
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Post by g8rfan on Feb 23, 2023 13:29:10 GMT -5
"After WKU QB Austin Reed, who led the nation in passing yards in 2022 and had 40 TD passes, entered the portal and wanted to play for Florida — but wasn’t offered and stayed at WKU." I missed this. WTF is Napier doing?? |
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Post by gatordoll on Feb 23, 2023 14:31:01 GMT -5
Matt Hayes, did you have to remind me of the final AR pass to Odom? Just ruined my afternoon. |
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Post by Mojave Gator on Feb 23, 2023 16:34:02 GMT -5
"After WKU QB Austin Reed, who led the nation in passing yards in 2022 and had 40 TD passes, entered the portal and wanted to play for Florida — but wasn’t offered and stayed at WKU." I missed this. WTF is Napier doing?? We also whiffed on Sam Hartman from Wake Forest, who went to Notre Dame after we signed Mertz. |
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Post by g8rfan on Feb 23, 2023 18:40:30 GMT -5
"After WKU QB Austin Reed, who led the nation in passing yards in 2022 and had 40 TD passes, entered the portal and wanted to play for Florida — but wasn’t offered and stayed at WKU." I missed this. WTF is Napier doing?? We also whiffed on Sam Hartman from Wake Forest, who went to Notre Dame after we signed Mertz. Yikes I missed that too. The only one I was aware of was the kid from Coastal Carolina that didn’t pan out. All of those guys are better on paper than Mertz. I’m over here trying to be optimistic. |
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Post by tapsgator on Feb 24, 2023 10:50:55 GMT -5
Graham Mertz is like Anthony Richardson only with better mechanics. Oh yeah and he's also smaller, way slower, doesn't have nearly as good an arm, not as accurate deep. As crazy as it sounds he may be a worse decision maker, although AR is such an unfinished product in that regard it's hard to say because they had him scared to run for fear of getting injured and slowed his processing down plus stressed throwing the ball away.
Mertz has more experience but is known for bad decision making but his mechanics on short throws will be better and hopefully lead to more accuracy. I don't know how Napier intends to keep people from stacking the box and/or who besides Pearsall will show any ability to separate, but there you have it. Just for reference their passing stats weren't that dissimilar, obviously Richardson did it against faster, better defenses, but Mertz was 19/10 TD and 7.5 average per attempt while Richardson was 19/9 with 7.8. Mertz had a higher completion percentage (see above) but it wasn't great at 57 to 54. Separation and why AR's QBR was 71.2 (30 in nation) to 52.9 (80) is that Richardson ran for 650 yards and 9 TDs and averaged 6.3 a carry while Graham clocked in at -40 and 2 at -.8 ypc.
Mertz likely is what he is. It's concerning that his completion % has dropped as he's gotten more experience, and I'm concerned that the running game will suffer without the threat of a runaway freight train coming downhill keeping an extra guy or two on the weak side of plays, but I guess that's why they play the games, and we should see improved short passing. A lot of things needed to improve had Richardson come back most notably his mechanics, coaching, and play calling with a healthy need for WRs who can get open on the side. The mechanics shouldn't be an issue, but the other factors will need to increase considerably more with a game manager type QB which both Mertz and Miller are.
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Post by Rock Gator on Feb 25, 2023 8:31:23 GMT -5
Pretty sure I'm gonna be pissed all season that we missed on, no, never even tried for Charlie Strong. This was a weak move by CBN, and it smells like fear. Fear that if Strong did well, and he couldn't possibly do worse, that he'd be the next HBC at the University of Florida. But instead we have another buddy on staff who appears on paper to be in over his head. Time will tell, and it won't take much time.
RG
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