Based off our opponents records so far, we might be a better team than we’re giving credit for. Lets take a look;
Win 37-35 vs. UTSA (3-2 with losses to us and #21UT)
Loss 33-30 vs TTech (3-2 with losses to #16NCSt & #25 Kstate)
Definitive Loss 48-30 to Kansas (5-0 on an absolute tear)
Win 34-27 vs. Rice (3-2 with losses to us and a legit #14 USC)
Loss 27-24 vs. Tulane (4-1 with a fluke loss to USM)
Win 33-32 vs. Memphis (4-2 with losses to us and 4-1 Miss.St.)
On paper 3-3 looks mediocre, but when you consider that every single opponent we’ve faced so far has a winning record, and not only that, their losses are usually to ranked opponents, we might actually be a lot stronger than our 3-3 record suggests.
Interesting… the combined record of teams we have faced is 19-5 w/o us factored in and 22-8 overall. That is a marked improvement over last year at this point.
I would feel better about this if we were 5-1 or 4-2…
Football is a game of momentum. If we could clean up some or most of the penalties, that feels like it would place us on a better path the rest of the season.
There are offensive and defensive deficiencies as well, but the penalty correction feels like the low hanging fruit.
Agree… we been playing against our selves in addition to the opponent all season long… we have to clean up the penalties and open up the offense to get to our potential.
Let’s update this post with the latest records, because the point is only getting stronger;
utsa - 4-2 both losses are to ranked teams in the top 25
ttu - 3-3 all losses to ranked teams in the top 25
kansas - 5-1 only loss to ranked team in the top 25
rice - 3-2 1 loss to top25 team, one to UH
tulane - 4-1 loss to usm
memphis - 4-2 1 loss to miss st., one to UH
combined record: 23-11
combined record minus losses to ranked teams and UH: 23-2
^^ this metric probably explains why so many people are upset we’re 3-3. At the start of the season, it looked like we had a really weak schedule(favored in every game but TTech), but we’re seeing that just about every team we’ve played are having a dream season. Sure, 3-3 is disappointing, but we shouldnt be surprised we’re where we are right now.
I feel the worst for Dell. He’d be getting draft hype right now if his multiple punt return TD’s weren’t called back for holding(we might be 5-1 if so).
It just shows we weren’t NY6 ready. This team has really struggled against good opponents. Let’s hope we go on a run. A resurgent Navy in Annapolis will not be easy.
