'09 CA RB Cierre Wood

[ohara831]

Disappointed. But hopefully he learns from this and comes back determined to show his skills. Team has to come together and play inspired ball now.

 

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

It is what it is.

 

[BeatSC]

GAIII will break more runs over 30 yards against Navy than Ciere would given his superior speed bs Navy. Opponents know how good Ciere is now they will need to game plan for 2 more weapons. Good to get GAIII involved early on to build his comfort level.

 

[IrishBlood81]

Wow...this is a punch in the gut. We really need more negative media...awesome.

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

Purdue is going to be better then we all think, could have used him. Definitely hurts his draft stock.

 

[Old Man Mike]

My view of our running backs is [for what it's worth]:

1). losing Cierre doesn't bother me as far as "running" is concerned. Although they are different backs, I believe that Theo and GAIII [or Amir or Cam] can run the holes just fine in Kelly's "new" QB-is-a-threat offense. The O-Line plus Niklas will make some wide-open spaces and both those guys look like they can get there. Our ground yardage should be fine.

2). Cierre has turned into a genius at blitz pick-up. THAT's what bothers me. I thought that Theo looked very overmatched on that in the clips and Spring game. This, to me, might be a big deal.

3). Will George stop fumbling?? More carries are nice; more fumbles aren't.

4). Though unlikely, this small error [regardless of how mind-numbing stupid it was], could cost Cierre a WHOLE lot more than a couple of games. [I don't want this for Cierre, but...] What if Theo and GAIII really light it up?? I don't see anything impossible about this. What if Theo has dedicated himself to blitz pick-up and GAIII to ball security --- seems VERY possible too. What if Coach sees after two games that there is no good reason not to go with his "new" tandem vs MSU?? I would probably do it if they had "earned it" in the first two. What if, despite some people's opinions, Theo and GAIII turn out to be super-effective in the wider spaces being created by the slot demons, the Everett threat, the Eifert flanker, the Niklas/Koyack body sweepers... etc?? How does Cierre work back in??

Cierre's good. This probably won't play out this way. But Theo and GAIII and the new O-wrinkles make me think... whoa, just what might have happened here??

 

[tko]

Damn OMM, why are you so rational?

 

[Emcee77]

I agree with OMM's point 2. Our other backs will be just fine as ball-carriers. The loss of Cierre's experience picking up the blitz is the only thing that worries me at all.

 

[johnnykillz]

Definitely hurts his draft stock.

Definitely.

But there is Dallas now they know he'll fit in...

 

[BobD]

I guess it WAS a "paperwork" issue!

Seriously, this does suck, but I think we'll be OK. Hopefully he'll learn something about making better decisions.

 

[dublinirish]

More reps for GA3 which is no bad thing, Cierre and Theo will be gone after this season so no harm in looking to the future.

 

[kmoose]

If Kelly was smart he wouldn't suspend him for more than 2 games. In the long run what affects your program more; Winning away from home vs a top 10 team or Cierre Wood missing one more game.

What affects your program more is giving people the impression that, if you screw up, your value to the team will have anything to do with the severity of your punishment. That's how you create a sense of entitlement in top athletes.

 

[Buster Bluth]

Opponents know how good Ciere is now they will need to game plan for 2 more weapons. Good to get GAIII involved early on to build his comfort level.

When USC has eleven HS all-American RB's, the opinion is "not a big deal, only two can play at one time."

When ND has four very capable RB's, the opinion is "oh man more weapons for teams to gameplan against muahaha!!"

 

[IrishBlood81]

I mean, does anyone else think this is a sham? Everyone smokes weed, whether in the work place or in colleges..etc and its just common knowledge, yet, if you test positive BAM! you're cooked.
Just seems like bs to me.
Obviously it is the law and it can't be left unpunished, especially at ND but I'm just saying in general seems like BS.

 

[Pachuco]

Justin Utupo as well, huh? Hopefully, this inspires them to step up doubly.

IrishIllustrated.com - Wood gets two-game suspension

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Okay, thanks to the mods for keeping the thread open and trusting posters.

Thanks to (most of) the posters for not taking advantage of the situation.

Thanks to OMM and Johnny, LAX, and all you others for good contributions.

I personally have never seen more silver linings:

The entitlement is gone. Obviously bull shiit will not be tolerated. I like the feel in every way with BK being this firm and more personable. I like the fact that this thing was done and kept under wraps for the whole fall camp, (until game week). No bitching whining or moaning. More on that at the end, but this really is Brian Kelly's team.

Fresh legs. I know it is cutting it close for MSU, and you could argue we need him for PU, but this early season distribution and the third game introduction of CW will do nothing but help keep our legs fresher mid and late season.

The cash incentive is gone for CW to leave after this season, and coming back could be the best way for him to improve the payout the following year.

No crutch: I have faith in Golson. I think he will do fine, and now we will know more about his abilities, athletic and leadership, without CW in there.

I am thinking Kelly probably wouldn't lie. He doesn't think GAIII is going to fumble any more. I think if that is true we need to change his number to "S."

I am kind of happy for the chance this presents TR and AC. Both need to have some feature spotlite. This also gives more reps to the slot rec's en masse, which isn't a bad thing.

Just think that pesky paperwork issue, Cam McD doing time both ways, etc., etc. There was no derision, division or a leak of any kind. THAT IS SOLIDARITY. This think was accepted maturely, and everyone moved on to what was next. Gentlemen, (and Ladies) we have a team!

 

[Pachuco]

Just think that pesky paperwork issue, Cam McD doing time both ways, etc., etc. There was no derision, division or a leak of any kind. THAT IS SOLIDARITY. This think was accepted maturely, and everyone moved on to what was next. Gentlemen, (and Ladies) we have a team!

Excellent way to look at it. I recall Cierre practicing hard like everyone else in a couple of the Fall camp videos. A mistake made is often at the expense of a good opportunity. Fortunately, Cierre will have another chance to mature from this. He will bounce back. The team will bounce back. Game time is less than a week away. Time to buckle up, fam.

 

[Grahambo]

I mean, does anyone else think this is a sham? Everyone smokes weed, whether in the work place or in colleges..etc and its just common knowledge, yet, if you test positive BAM! you're cooked.
Just seems like bs to me.
Obviously it is the law and it can't be left unpunished, especially at ND but I'm just saying in general seems like BS.

Punishing someone for breaking the law, albeit as ridiculous as it may seem, is not BS.

 

[rtrn2glory]

this is by far the most stressful offseason personnel wise i can remember...season seriously can't start fast enough

 

[phgreek]

What affects your program more is giving people the impression that, if you screw up, your value to the team will have anything to do with the severity of your punishment. That's how you create a sense of entitlement in top athletes.

...I agree here.

If I knew more about what Wood actually did (not conjecture), I'd feel good about looking at how this weighs against Floyd, Rees, and Calabrese punishments...outside real data, I trust Kelly did what he thought best for the University, team and young man.

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

this is by far the most stressful offseason personnel wise i can remember...season seriously can't start fast enough

No kidding. I hope we can get to Saturday without any other issues.

 

[Grahambo]

this is by far the most stressful offseason personnel wise i can remember...season seriously can't start fast enough

In my eyes, the trash has been taken out whether by choice or by other unforeseen circumstances.

Injuries happen to every team, everywhere so as much as it sucks, it's not as bad as it could have been. This is exactly why DEPTH is so important to winning. Still looking around at the roster and it looks like a well balanced team. You may not find a big name player like Floyd but I think you will see production out of quite a few guys. I understand Eifert is a big name as he is constantly in the Top 2 discussion of TE but he won't produce as much as Floyd did.

I think the WRs have depth (as seen by Fergie and Brown not being in the two deep just yet), I think the OL has depth, RB has depth, QB position even has a bit of depth.

The defense is going to be Top 25 and special teams are going to be a friend, not an enemy. Neal, GAIII (on offense too), Tausch, Salvi, Badger, etc on ST.

It's been awhile since we have had this much of a balanced team, it's very exciting.

I am glad EG is getting game time reps against a team like Navy to start out and then Purdue (who will be .500ish this year) before he takes on Michigan. I also believe that with EG being the pianist that he is, (being able to play the way he plays the piano on his own) he truly has the mental makeup for QB. The way the brain operates when playing the piano as well as he does takes special skill, same with being a QB.

Here's to hoping he plays QB as well as he does the piano, and I really believe he will be something special.

 

[IrishBlood81]

Punishing someone for breaking the law, albeit as ridiculous as it may seem, is not BS.

Did you, um, even read what I said?

And I quote

Obviously it is the law and it can't be left unpunished, especially at ND but I'm just saying in general seems like BS.

What I was saying seems like BS is that everyone knows everyone is doing it and it is accept as a social norm, ie Managers know employees do it, coaches know players do it, yet its fine...until they get official caught and test positive.

 

[Grahambo]

Did you, um, even read what I said?

And I quote



What I was saying seems like BS is that everyone knows everyone is doing it and it is accept as a social norm, ie Managers know employees do it, coaches know players do it, yet its fine...until they get official caught and test positive.

I saw what you put, word for word. I was more or less agreeing with you and less arguing/debating.

 

[IrishBlood81]

I saw what you put, word for word. I was more or less agreeing with you and less arguing/debating.

Oh, sorry, it didn't come across like that. My bad.

 

[Grahambo]

Oh, sorry, it didn't come across like that. My bad.

Meh. No biggie. 50% of a conversation is lost online because of the lack of body language/tone, etc. Usually not what you say but how you say it.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Another "random" thought: people have been [understandably] nervously awaiting the start to the season and worrying about all the injuries, defections, legal issues. Just for a moment all of us should stop, get a little quiet, and think --- where in the He!l would we be now without what Coach has done to put this team together?


Let's remember our great Coach and roster-builder when we take our first loss [whenever it occurs]. Let's remember how lucky we are to STILL be fielding a formidable football monster even after all this has happened.

C'mon, Everett!!! Our pieces are still powerful. Get us rolling.

 

[IrishBlood81]

Meh. No biggie. 50% of a conversation is lost online because of the lack of body language/tone, etc. Usually not what you say but how you say it.

yeah tell me about it! Hence why I hate texting...so much is lost and you have to be oh so careful what you say and see it in different perspectives cause it can come across way different than you mean it.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

First of all, anyone need any cranberry juice?

To add to Mike's comment. K Russel's level of play is above J Browns is above L Woods. What I think L Woods needs to be commended about is that he brought his game up to last year's cornerbacks level. That is team building.

Taking care of C Wood and J Utupo quietly at the begining of camp with obviously no disention, (otherwise it would have been leaked earlier) is team building.

We have twice the guys that can play, now, over Kelly's first year.

That is what has come together.

Oh and don't underestimate Kelly's coaching changes. I think that was very hard for Kelly, and every move was a hit.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Bump for Rack Em