Is this the best team we've ever had?

[DELdaBull]

Why is a team coming off a 5-7 record getting so much hype.

We are who we are, until we are not.

[BiggTipp]

Why is a team coming off a 5-7 record getting so much hype.

We are who we are, until we are not.

Exactly

[The Sheriff]

I still think the 2002 team is the best team we've ever had. Only losses were to powerhouses OU and Arkansas on the road. Marquel was running the show.

Our coaching is too conservative under the new regime - similar to what happened in Skip's time at ECU. With the horses we have, there's no reason we shouldn't put teams away if we get a lead. Last year's debacle is on the coaches. Pulling Darrell Scott out after the third series of each game was insanity. Players that pound ball consistently wear down a defense over time. I for one don't think Lamar is the answer in the backfield. Personally, I don't want him touching the ball anywhere within three yards of a linebacker. Run him into routes that get him space so he's at full speed when BJ hits him. Bubble screens where a corner his size with similar speed is not the answer. Coming out of the backfield where a 300 LB lineman can take him down by getting an arm on his 180 LB body is not the answer. JBK is NOT a good punter. He had a season to prove he could kick and failed miserably. As much as I didn't care for Leavitt, we had walk-ons that never saw the field in the kicking position that were better than JBK. How Skip stuck with him all season is beyond me. End of rant.

[usfgrad84]

If the question is "will this be the best team we have ever had?"; then I think we have to wait until the end of the season. For me, that is determined by results. Is this the most talented team with depth we have ever had? Perhaps. Again, they still need to show what they can do on the field.

As we enter the season, based on the won/loss record of last year and with as many guys we have coming back you could argue it's one of the worst team we have ever had.

There is talent on the field, some experienced depth behind them, but until they prove something on the field consistently it means nothing. I am still not sold on this coaching staff. they have done nothing successful here yet so the jury is still out.

[BullFan98]

Funny when opinion threads on this board receive so many "its too early for these" responses in the offseason and "its too late for these...we blew it" during the season.

we need to find a middle ground lol.

Actually, I believe, last year at this time, many people on here were saying that 2012 would be THE best year for USF in football, rather than 2011.

Looking ahead then to 2013, because of losing Daniels and so many first and second team seniors, despite having more depth across the board, I don't expect we will be better than 2012,

So, IMO, THIS is our best chance to win the conference for at least two years.

I hope you are right

It's not just me who believes that.

Despite the fact that we went 5-7, Phil Steele saw what we have on paper and ran it through his computers and picked us to win the Big East and ranked us #20.

If we had gone to a bowl game last year and finished with a winning record, which we certainly should have done, I'm pretty sure that we would now be ranked, rather than just receiving votes. That's because on paper, we look better than the other teams in the Big East. It's just that our history of slumping doesn't allow people to believe in what they see, to make that leap completely.

Whose shoulders does this fall on?

[BullFan98]

I still think the 2002 team is the best team we've ever had. Only losses were to powerhouses OU and Arkansas on the road. Marquel was running the show.

Our coaching is too conservative under the new regime - similar to what happened in Skip's time at ECU. With the horses we have, there's no reason we shouldn't put teams away if we get a lead. Last year's debacle is on the coaches. Pulling Darrell Scott out after the third series of each game was insanity. Players that pound ball consistently wear down a defense over time. I for one don't think Lamar is the answer in the backfield. Personally, I don't want him touching the ball anywhere within three yards of a linebacker. Run him into routes that get him space so he's at full speed when BJ hits him. Bubble screens where a corner his size with similar speed is not the answer. Coming out of the backfield where a 300 LB lineman can take him down by getting an arm on his 180 LB body is not the answer. JBK is NOT a good punter. He had a season to prove he could kick and failed miserably. As much as I didn't care for Leavitt, we had walk-ons that never saw the field in the kicking position that were better than JBK. How Skip stuck with him all season is beyond me. End of rant.

This

[BullFan98]

If the question is "will this be the best team we have ever had?"; then I think we have to wait until the end of the season. For me, that is determined by results. Is this the most talented team with depth we have ever had? Perhaps. Again, they still need to show what they can do on the field.

As we enter the season, based on the won/loss record of last year and with as many guys we have coming back you could argue it's one of the worst team we have ever had.

There is talent on the field, some experienced depth behind them, but until they prove something on the field consistently it means nothing. I am still not sold on this coaching staff. they have done nothing successful here yet so the jury is still out.

If the talent is there and we don't execute it falls on the coaches shoulders; cannot blame the athletes. This is especially true when they execute exactly as directed.

[Bullshiznitz]

Why is a team coming off a 5-7 record getting so much hype.

We are who we are, until we are not.

I think for the same reasons UConn was getting decent hype coming off a 3-4 conference record in 2009. They had a lot of close losses that year and we're returning a lot of key players the following year (which they won the Big East).

I think people can see that the talent was there last year. What, 5 of our 7 losses were by 6 pts or less, so its not like last years team was overmatched. We return a lot of key starters this year, with the experience (as has been mentioned is driving quit a few members of this years team) to hopefully be on the winning end of most of those matchups this year.

[smazza]

And if it chokes, does Skip get the can?

we are stuck with him after he signed big fat extension

[smazza]

not on paPER

but we will see based on performance