A reason you can't fully blame Rod Smith...

[Triple B]

Like the show on ESPN Classic, I will provide a single anecdote that might - might - make you think again about calling for Rod Smith's head...

NOTE: I will not use names to protect people's identity - since I have not asked them for permission to disclose this story publicly.

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A Tampa Bay area high school head coach is a relative of an employee at USF, and is good friends with Rod Smith.  That employee related a conversation between the coach and Smith:

The coach called Smith after the Connecticut game and let him have it.  "What kind of **** plays are you calling, Rod?? You're a better coach than that. The plays are so predictible."  [basically the kind of conversation any one of us would have, except we would use the words moron, imbecile, and possibly doofus - among others.]

Rod responded, "Coach, you think I don't know that? Do you think I want to run the ball up the middle every other play?  Do you think I want to call gimmick plays at critical  moments?  It's not me.  Coach Leavitt is overruling my calls and calling his own.  Don't blame me for all of the play calling, Leavitt over rules me almost half the time."

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Now, this would not be admissible in court and I will not divulge the source.  However, I believe the person who passed the story on to me would not embellish or lie on this topic.

Rod Smith as QB Coach may have real problems -- PJ was better in 2005 than 2004, but just barely.  

But maybe, just maybe, we can't place the play calling problem squarely on his shoulders alone.

This is very disturbing ......

[NormalBull]

forum right in the middle of recruiting season.  CFU classics like guru couldn't do better than a post with unsubstantiated information > like this.  I hope you guys are proud of yourselves.

Yikes.

Normal

[WoolyBully]

Jim opted to not disclose the name of only one of the individuals involved. Even if they did sign off on using his name, there's nothing USF or the coaches involved would do. They're certainly not going to confirm the story. And to deny it...well...you see where that would go.

This thread is no more damaging than the plethora of posts calling for Smith's head on a platter.  Any recruit that reads this can certainly read the disclaimer as well.

[fbdo79]

In my years playing for USF, Coach Leavitt would reccomend plays during special situations, but for someone to say that he is blantantly calling runs up the middle every play is a lie, either from Coach Smith or from who he spoke with.  Leavitt tends to be conservative, but he is also a fierce competitor that wants to win and he more than anyone knows how horrible our offense was this year.  The only question is whether or not Coach Smith can talk Leavitt into giving him another year to prove himself?  I hope not, but it could be very likely.

P.S.  Coach Smith didn't teach Marquel how to play QB, that was entirely from Coach Canales, who happens to be running an awesome offense in Arizona.

[Guest Sprtsfn627]

Now....if I recall...one of the newspaper articles that came out after the game quoted Leavitt as saying (paraphrasing here):

"I had the chance to overrule Rod's call, and I decided not to"

Now, either this guy is wrong, or the newspaper is wrong when referring to that "gimmick play" at UConn.

[___ Eats It]

Rod calls a spotty game and can't develop a QB into a D-1 caliber performer.  What more do we need to see before he's ****canned?

[Guest]

forum right in the middle of recruiting season.  CFU classics like guru couldn't do better than a post with unsubstantiated information > like this.  I hope you guys are proud of yourselves.

Yikes.

Normal

I don't understand what all the hubbub is about.

My posting of a discussion that was related to me will have some kind of negative effect on recruiting??

Please tell me you don't think that we really have that kind of power over recruits.  Yes, people read them... even people at the university... but come on - high school players who are cosidering USF only use bulletin boards to guage the level of support for a team.

I was only trying to point out that Rod Smith may not be the entire problem with our offense... that some of the playcalling rests with Leavitt.  So, if you say Rod Smith should go because he can't call plays -- then maybe we need to pause and reflect on that before saying it again.

Now, if you say he should go because he can't seem to coach QBs - then I would say there is ample evidence to support you.

That was all I was trying to get at.

[BULLheaded]

I was only trying to point out that Rod Smith may not be the entire problem with our offense... that some of the playcalling rests with Leavitt.  So, if you say Rod Smith should go because he can't call plays -- then maybe we need to pause and reflect on that before saying it again.

Your right Rod is not the only problem with our offense. Aside from Franks I really have a hard time figuring out what isn't wrong with our offense. However, Rod and much of the offensive staff obviously is ONE of the problems and IMO a very severe problem. So the thing that just frustrates the hell out of me is why aren't we fixing that problem? We are certainly doing our best to recruit better players but we just close our eyes on the coaching issues and act like they will somehow miraculously disappear.

There is a saying...if it aint broke then don't fix it. Well I would say that implies the reverse that if it IS broke then FIX IT.....AND THIS IS BROKE!!

[E.T.]

In my years playing for USF, Coach Leavitt would reccomend plays during special situations, but for someone to say that he is blantantly calling runs up the middle every play is a lie, either from Coach Smith or from who he spoke with.  

...

Thank you ... also, watching many USF games most can see that Leavitt isn't in on the most of the play calling on Offfense.

Frustration ... tends to make the mind think of thinks that are not true.

Go BULLS !!!

P.S. Love the offseason.  :    :-/  :-[

[Zonald]

Objection, Hearsay....

Maybe an exception would apply, or we could make it nonhearsay....

Excited utterance  -- "WTF were you thinking coach?"

Statement against interest - Rod Smith's

Party Admission - once again by Smith

Sorry, I'll go back to studying evidence now....**** bar exam.....please save me.    :'(

BTW, this would now be hearsay on hearsay.