WIU at University of Illinois (9/12/2015)

[Neckfansince71]

Letsgonecks, some good observations and sound suggestions. Kept an eye on the sideline the second half while sitting on the westside and I gotta tell you, the defensive staff and team were positive, active, and playing hard. In fact even though the offensive line looked a little beat up, the offensive coaching staff never quit coaching and remained positive to the end. I had alot of respect for Coach Ward but I really think the D has not skipped a beat even though they are very young. I think Coach Nielsen is a class individual who will play a very personal role this week with the offense. The offensive line is just going to get better with experience. Remember that we are missing two seniors who probably would have started on the O line had they not been booted from the team. The one thing I remember about Matt Barr was that he was a "gunslinger" his senior year. He could pass, run, create, and his attitude gave the team a real advantage which paid off at Purdue and also for the rest of the season. No matter whether Norvell or McGuire are at QB, they need to be "gunslingers!"

I have suffered through these types of games as a high school basketball coach, and after figuring out what went wrong on the bus ride home, you are definitely ready and impatient for the next practice to arrive. I am hoping that as the police escorted the 3 buses out of Champaign, the Necks let the loss at Illinois go and turned their attention to CCU, the number 1 rated FCS team in the nation. jc

[sealhall74]

I don't miss Ward that much. We got torched in secondary last year. Those holes seem to be patched a bit this year even with the youngsters on the field. On offense, my gut is telling me we lack some sort of "identity", that thing coach Mo always talked about. It is that intangible thing that is your go-to when it is 3rd and 3 inside the red zone. It is that thing that everyone in the stands knows is your "bread and butter". The defense even knows what is coming but can't stop it. My gut also tells me that Coach N DESIRES to have a team which runs the ball TWICE for every time it passes the ball. His successes at Duluth seemed to be along those lines. Not a bad strategy to have. Just ask the Bison how well that formula works. He was also blessed up north with a QB who was a threat (gunslinger ?) to run the ball. Here and now, I think he is faced with personnel issues that prevent him from doing what he really wants to do with the ball. Not sure if it is fixable this year. Seems that a "do the best you can with what you got" strategy is the best we can hope for at the moment. That usually also means simplified play book. There is definitely work to do to get everyone one that page.

[Western_101]

In year number three if there are "Personnel" issues how much of that is Coach Nielson responsible for?

[Neckfansince71]

Seal, the last "gunslinger" Coach N. had is standing on the WIU sidelines as quarterback coach. I think he was a four year starter, 3 year captain, and is in the NCAA D2 record book in a number of stats. Unfortunately he has run out of eligibility. I will let others comment on your question RedNeck but there seems to be alot of youth at the quarterback position! Hey, do you like the avatar I chose? I finally did something about the lack of one after your good natured chiding!!!! jc

[sealhall74]

In year number three if there are "Personnel" issues how much of that is Coach Nielson responsible for?

Good question. I would say most of it. This would be a good question for Scott K to ask tomorrow night - not sure he will have the gonads to ask it. I.E, "thus far in your recruiting efforts, how much has been to fill a specific need (or desire) vs. just going after the best athletes left in the mix and trying to get them to adjust". Probably starts out being the former but ends up being a lot of the latter when you are lower on the mid-major recruiting totem pole. Didn't USD Coach Joe Glenn say something to the effect that his (Glenn's) recruiting starts after the Bison and a few other select teams are done. His words really stuck in my mind: "You are not going to out-recruit them" and that is coming from a man who also has a D2 championship as well as an FCS championship under his belt prior to getting to USD. I assume we fall into the same territory with him although things seem to be a little improved for next year with several early commits. Still, IMO, we must plain out-develop and out-coach the opposition to be successful at this level.

[Western_101]

NFS71 your Avatar is outstanding. I mean it's no stained glass window but I like that you are representing the look of the Dominant early/mid 70's teams.

[meganeck]

Very disgusted at the offensive game plan. Middle of the field is wide open and no routes of any kind to middle of the field. Seems like every pass was to the perimeter. Many times Illinois defenders were waiting for the ball to be thrown to the guy they were guarding and sure enough it was!! Tight Ends are not even a consideration in the passing game. This staff is trying so hard to promote Lance Lenoir that they have forgotten that other players actually play. Pretty sure most teams are going to try and take him away. Illinois sure did.

How about some play action? How about some ingenuity? Watching Illinois run motion, play action and their use of TE and fullbacks in the passing game is actually refreshing to watch. It is shocking how bad Norvell looks. He looks straight at a receiver, never looks off. I am told that there are no secondary options on any plays. That is hard to believe but watching him it must be true. Watching Illinois dump balls off to backs for a few yards and watching Western lock on either #1 or #7 every play, wow! If this is the best the coaching staff has to offer we won't win again this season. Good coaches have to adapt to players skills and to defenses, as of the first two games that is not happening. Will be interesting to see how players and staff react to this regression.

I thought the defense played well. Created turnovers and despite being on the field for an eternity they held it together. The kicking game continues to be a joke. The blocked punt, Illinois was in the punter's face so quickly it is surprising they didn't just grab the snap and score. Wow,

pretty much nailed it

[sealhall74]

Very disgusted at the offensive game plan. Middle of the field is wide open and no routes of any kind to middle of the field. Seems like every pass was to the perimeter. Many times Illinois defenders were waiting for the ball to be thrown to the guy they were guarding and sure enough it was!! Tight Ends are not even a consideration in the passing game. This staff is trying so hard to promote Lance Lenoir that they have forgotten that other players actually play. Pretty sure most teams are going to try and take him away. Illinois sure did.

How about some play action? How about some ingenuity? Watching Illinois run motion, play action and their use of TE and fullbacks in the passing game is actually refreshing to watch. It is shocking how bad Norvell looks. He looks straight at a receiver, never looks off. I am told that there are no secondary options on any plays. That is hard to believe but watching him it must be true. Watching Illinois dump balls off to backs for a few yards and watching Western lock on either #1 or #7 every play, wow! If this is the best the coaching staff has to offer we won't win again this season. Good coaches have to adapt to players skills and to defenses, as of the first two games that is not happening. Will be interesting to see how players and staff react to this regression.

I thought the defense played well. Created turnovers and despite being on the field for an eternity they held it together. The kicking game continues to be a joke. The blocked punt, Illinois was in the punter's face so quickly it is surprising they didn't just grab the snap and score. Wow,

pretty much nailed it

So who is our play caller(s)? Seems strange I even have to ask the question. Simplified run and pass schemes have been the norm for the last two years. I heard Coach N mention in some recent interview that we did a lot more "installation" this year than in the past. I assume that means added some things to the playbook. I guess we can cross our fingers and hope that Coach N is playing his cards close to the vest and does not want to tip the conference opposition by exposing the good stuff during non-conference play, especially in a game you have little chance to win. Last year was interesting in that we played both NDSU and ISUr surprisingly tough. If we go back and look at film, did we pull out some things during those games that took them by suprise? Possible. Coach N talks continuously about "staying on schedule". Quickest way to get off schedule is to throw longer passes, especially side line routes, which is what we see a lot of right now. Best way to stay on schedule is to mix run and pass (short 4-5 yard routes, to all eligibles and that includes TEs and RBs) as you said. Running formations have also been primarily of the "single back" variety. Unless you have a David Johnson caliber guy back there, that is always easy pickins for a defense to shut down.

[WIU0812]

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[rocki]

How sadly, pathetically, embarrassingly true this is..............