When LTH left UH for UT he went to a place that had far superior players according to their HS star ratings, yet he went 7-6 overall and only 5-4 in conference.
When he was at UH with the best team and players we had in decades, in 2015 he went and lost to UConn. I don’t care who played QB, we should not have lost that game. Then in 2016 he lost 3 games we should have won.
This year, CDH took over a team that is only a shadow of the two LTH Coog teams, yet people expect the same results from the get go. If it took LTH a year to get things straight at UT with the talent he already had on hand – plus the best recruits he took from UH – why are people so butt hurt that UH is sputtering a bit under a new coach with new systems on offense and defense, really depleted defensive backfield and LB corps, and dealing with injuries and depth problems on offense (and defense for that matter).
I believe we will hit our stride sometime in the next few games and still have a shot at winning the division and maybe the conference title. Just keep the faith and chill. We are going to be OK.
We are a top 40 program where the fans feel like they are a top 10 program. Yeah we have top 20 teams from time to time but we aren’t a top 10 program.
I think we can be Miami of the 80’s or UCLA of various periods but we aren’t there yet.
I see this season and next similar to Sampson’s first couple of seasons in bball. CDH has said he’s trying to build a program and I believe that. If we aren’t significantly different year 3 than yeah we have a huge problem but for now I’ll put my rose colored glasses on and give patience to a good coach who wants to be here.
It’s within reason to think a coach making 4 million a year, 4 million salary pool for assistants, who had all of his offensive weapons return, win at least 8 games his first season. I don’t see rebuilding, because every year there are holes. Heck look at next year when everybody on offense will be gone. When is enough time? Beat the teams in the west and you have a shot at the AAC championship. This is the last year that option is available. There should be a real sense of urgency within these next few weeks. No excuses; use what you have. Everyone else does, including Applewhite.
Do you remember the first year under the R&S with Jack Pardee? The same players that started 1-6, with the only win being 38-34 over Sam Houston finally got it against a good UT team in game 8 and beat them 60-40 while going 3-0-1 in the last 4 games.
King had only run the same system since he has been at UH under CMA as OC and then HC. Now he is in a learning curve and instead of just depending on the athletic ability of the QB as LTH and CMA had both done, Dana is installing an offense that will be succesful even when we don’t have QB’s that can run like a cheetah, which is good since those guys are in short supply. That we got King to succeed Ward was a stoke of luck we may not get again for a while.
Oh yes sir I believe the ball will get rolling sooner rather than later. I have wins penciled in (and will back them up with reason if need be):
-Tulane
-North Texas
-SMU
-Uconn
-Tulsa
-Navy
The kicker will be Memphis at home during homecoming. ALL games in the west are important but win that one and we’ll get a rematch vs Cincy or UCF. Now’s the time because next year it’s out of the two best teams!
Edit: that’s 7 with the conference championship win and bowl victory pending. With the offensive weapons, the former is doable.
Exactly. The one thing that will change is strength of schedule. I hope to see significant improvements throughout the season. Wazzu should be the first real step towards cohesion. If we come out sputtering on offense and getting eaten alive on defense while some of our best defensive players still ride the bench, then I think we have a problem.
No matter what, Holgorsen is going to get four years whether he earns it or not.
Time to step away from the ledge. You youngsters weren’t around when they hung Bill Yeoman in effigy and then his teams proceeded to become giant killers. I’m as anxious as anyone to see our Coogs to return to greatness. Hell, I’m close to stopping buying green bananas for crying out loud. But patience grasshopper… patience.
Agreed. And that is the problem. I have no problem with being patient, but it won’t get any easier for him. Imagine the extreme that the team is divided and everyone on the roster hasn’t bought in (or at least enough to win games), and CDH’s first recruiting class become seniors in 4 years and it still isn’t enough due to some random excuse/obstacle about a position group being a weak point. Now what? More time is allotted? I don’t think so. He’s gotta make it work, and he’s gotta get bowl eligible this year. Applewhite was year 1 with no OC, and Briles came in the next year and got guys on the same page without a playbook!!! That brings me to my next point.
“Installing” an offense isn’t an excuse either. If terminology is an issue, and you have to change your play name to “BB’s Cafe” to get everyone on the same page, you change the play name to BB’s cafe. Greg Ward Jr. was handed the Ohio State offense as a Jr. (not a senior), picked it up, and ended with a ridiculous passer rating of 148.6. Keep in mind that Ohio State (particularly Hermie) is one of the most multiple offenses in the history of college football.
Some will point to the defense as the reason for sputtering, but I’ve seen the defense make a huge leap in week 2, and the offense remained the same. The offense probably has twice the amount of talent as the defense. Offense is CDH’s specialty. I understand not going undefeated but it won’t be for lack of talent, it’ll be lack of getting the job done. Time to get the 4 million dollar job done.
So to fix the situation and get balance on offense / defense with the right mix of talent and redshirts, does Dana hold off on early signing period [or limited] and see what the transfer portal / JUCO pipeline brings in the Spring?
And do some of those that don’t buy in free up more scholarships for the next couple of seasons?
I think that CDH has said that everyone and everything is constantly being evaluated and re-evaluated…I take that to mean that nothing and nobody is sacred…
Perform or you will be gone. That is my reading of the not subtle tea leaves.
And I am really, really good with that.
I understand that it takes time for a program to gel when there’s a coaching turnover. I’m very used to it here. I think more than anything I’m just really sad for D’Eriq King. He came here as a QB and had to wait his turn behind Ward. Then he dealt with injuries and an inept HC in Applewhite. When his time finally arrived, he showed out and was on pace to break some seemingly unbreakable records last year before yet another injury. We all knew he was going to be back good as new this year with nearly all of his offensive weapons back in a Holgorsen air raid system that would allow him to possibly be in the Heisman conversation. And through 2 games, we’ve seen a guy who barely resembles the King we saw last year. He seems uncomfortable and overthinking things. I’m sure in the long run CDH’s system will be what’s best for this program, but this year’s team, including King, are the lab rats for installing a system they will maybe never benefit from. This is why I hate constant coaching changes.
I have been with my Coogs for 40 years and I will wait. I might not like what I am seeing but I am with them. That being said the people who expect perfection or a nationally ranked team need a dose of reality. Good teams are developed and we have not had consistent leadership. I will remind the old coogs who lived through multiple university presidents what a difference Renu has made. Consistency is the key. Go Coogs
King will be just fine. He is an elite athlete. I think CDH will turn him loose when we need him to be turned loose.
Then look out.
I would not be surprised to see the governor taken off the race car this Friday night…
Go Coogs !!!
My take - Dana Holgerson is an above average coach and I think the team will be above average while he is here. We’ll have some good teams and some average teams. Maybe we can take a conference championship if the cards fall correctly.
I think we’ll score heavily on below average teams, but struggle with good defensive teams. This seems to be a product of the air raid system that isn’t new and teams have already adjusted. We won’t see Sumlin level of success (unexpectedly beating ranked P5 opponents) just running the air raid. We’ll need more than that. We’ll need a defense before we can do that (or compete for a conference championship).
If you look at the Holgerson record as a Head Coach you see 61-41 at WVU. One of those years was a 10-3 season in the last season WVU played in the Big East. It had been somewhat depleted as a football conference at that point. He went 33-30 in the Big 12 over 6 seasons. He was just about as average a Head Coach in a P5 conference as you could find. Finished tied for 4th or 5th four times in 7 years in a 10 team league. Texas was down almost the entire time, but the criminal enterprise in Waco was cooking for most of the down years in Austin so I’ll call that a wash. To be fair you have to point out that recruiting at WVU when they are in the Big 12 is not easy. It’s similar to what has happened to UConn basketball (in addition to the reduction in cheating that took place under Calhoun).
I don’t see anything on the CDH resume that indicates success (perpetual 9 win seasons and finishing 1-3 in the AAC) for him at UH is a slam dunk. There isn’t anything that says it’s out of the question either. The financial commitment appears to be out of whack with the resume on the surface. That’s the part of this that’s puzzling to me. We will have to wait and see if the bet was a good one or not.