Offensive Line Thread

BobbyMac

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zelezo vlk

zelezo vlk

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NDCrusader said:
Too long for a hot take.

Try to bash aTm all you want but it's an AAU member institution. aTm is a good education. Ohio State's Tractor Tech too but I was at the Fiesta Bowl with those farmers, Cal is an aggie school too, just a couple of spots behind ND on USN&WR's list.

And you can't be more wrong about EVERYBODY growing up a UT fan. aTm is a HUGE school and it has a monstrous alumni network. I worked at Rice for 4 summers when they were all still in the SWC and folks in Houston were much more likely to be Aggie fans than Horns fans.
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The Aggies are thick like cockroaches here in Texas
 
GowerND11

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NDCrusader said:
Too long for a hot take.

Try to bash aTm all you want but it's an AAU member institution. aTm is a good education. Ohio State's Tractor Tech too but I was at the Fiesta Bowl with those farmers, Cal is an aggie school too, just a couple of spots behind ND on USN&WR's list.

And you can't be more wrong about EVERYBODY growing up a UT fan. aTm is a HUGE school and it has a monstrous alumni network. I worked at Rice for 4 summers when they were all still in the SWC and folks in Houston were much more likely to be Aggie fans than Horns fans.
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They don't have a 100,000 seat stadium for nothing...
 
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NDCrusader said:
I hope I didn't mess up your knife with my back.
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No, the knife if fine but thanks for asking.

I was really hoping the staff would've jumped on this kid for a variety of reasons. Name, home state, where he lives in the state, strength and overall road grading style. He's got a good shot at being a good one.
 
ACamp1900

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According to my many travels throughout Texas... A&M has a fanbase that is very large throughout the state... maybe not comparable to UT but they are still everywhere and very noticeable.
 
stlnd01

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Regardless of fan bases and whatever limitations ND might have, we have as many ten-win seasons in the last three years as they do this whole century so far.

A&M’s not elite. They’re something between Texas/Oklahoma and Texas Tech/Okie State (except Okie State wins more games). They’re second fiddle to UT in their state and third fiddle to Bama and LSU in their division. The only reason we’re having this conversation is because they’re throwing a pile of money at coaches, but that guarantees nothing as far as winning football games go.
On that, we’ll see how it goes. But they threw money at Sumlin, too. So yeah I think we’re more likely to win a title before they are, even with our old DC.
 
NDRock

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stlnd01 said:
Regardless of fan bases and whatever limitations ND might have, we have as many ten-win seasons in the last three years as they do this whole century so far.

A&M’s not elite. They’re something between Texas/Oklahoma and Texas Tech/Okie State (except Okie State wins more games). They’re second fiddle to UT in their state and third fiddle to Bama and LSU in their division. The only reason we’re having this conversation is because they’re throwing a pile of money at coaches, but that guarantees nothing as far as winning football games go.
On that, we’ll see how it goes. But they threw money at Sumlin, too. So yeah I think we’re more likely to win a title before they are, even with our old DC.
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What is more important than having great coaches, great facilities, and an Administration that is 100% committed to winning? I'm not sure that having a great past really matters. I could see A&M do what FSU and Miami did in the 80's, go from a school with a lesser history and become an elite program. They have everything working for them, including a fertile recruiting ground.
 
stlnd01

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NDRock said:
What is more important than having great coaches, great facilities, and an Administration that is 100% committed to winning? I'm not sure that having a great past really matters. I could see A&M do what FSU and Miami did in the 80's, go from a school with a lesser history and become an elite program. They have everything working for them, including a fertile recruiting ground.
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They had all the same advantages four years ago when they gave Sumlin an extension at $5M a year, and when they hired Chavis for more than we offered Elko. “Commitment to winning” does not necessarily equate to actual winning.
 
NDdomer2

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Whiskeyjack said:
Texas is fertile ground for recruiting, but TAMU has a lot of competition for it. At Oregon Chip was able to recruit to entire west coast pretty easily, and he seemed to have no trouble finding loads of speedy offensive skill players to put up video game numbers in his system.

So I'm not sure "easier" is the right word. Opportunity is there for TAMU, but the competition is much stiffer. What I'm trying to get at with the comparison to Oregon is that money ain't enough to get you there.
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im not necessarily disagreeing either whiskey.

but theres with all things, different ways to look at this.

I'm a senior staff auditor at a top 10 national accounting firm.

If i switched to a local smaller accounting firm for the same position but 25% pay increase and maybe a more direct path to promotion did i make a lateral move?
 
Whiskeyjack

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stlnd01 said:
They had all the same advantages four years ago when they gave Sumlin an extension at $5M a year, and when they hired Chavis for more than we offered Elko. “Commitment to winning” does not necessarily equate to actual winning.
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That was really the point I had hoped to make (was not dumping on TAMU specifically). It's really hard to break through in this sport just by throwing more money at people if you aren't already a blue blood program.

NDdomer2 said:
If i switched to a local smaller accounting firm for the same position but 25% pay increase and maybe a more direct path to promotion did i make a lateral move?
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That's the rub, right? Alford supposedly left for OSU using that logic, and how'd that work out for him? Similarly, I think Elko's prospects for getting a good HC position would have been much better after staying at ND for 2-3 years rather than ghosting on us after a single season for TAMU.

Crusader disagrees with me. Time will tell.
 
NDRock

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stlnd01 said:
They had all the same advantages four years ago when they gave Sumlin an extension at $5M a year, and when they hired Chavis for more than we offered Elko. “Commitment to winning” does not necessarily equate to actual winning.
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Yep, Sumlin has never won anything. Jimbo has. Which is why I added hiring great coaches into the equation (and you left out). Sumlin proved he wasn’t a great coach.
 
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Jimbo wont have the recruiting success at A&M he had at FSU though. And a good part of that was FL and Miami being down as well as having a heisman level do it all at QB. That was why A&M made what little strides they made when they did make it was Texas being way down and Manziel getting such attention. The Manziel buzz wore off and A&M is back to being the 7-6 team they are known to be.

The only way that changes is if he finds another Manziel and Texas' new coach chokes.
 
stlnd01

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NDRock said:
Yep, Sumlin has never won anything. Jimbo has. Which is why I added hiring great coaches into the equation (and you left out). Sumlin proved he wasn’t a great coach.
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Yep. Jimbo is certainly a more proven commodity than Sumlin was. Will be interesting to watch how his success at FSU translates to A&M. It’s a tougher place to win than FSU, IMO.
 
Irish YJ

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Whiskeyjack said:
I don't think anyone familiar with my posting here could credibly accuse me illogical optimism. As I explained to wiz above, I'm painfully aware of our unique disadvantages. But as ND fans, we tend to obsess over those disadvantages, which can blind us to the unique advantages we have. And when we see a program like TAMU spending in a way that ND isn't willing to, it's tempting to overemphasize the advantage they're receiving. After all, if ND was willing to blow the top off the budget, we'd be unstoppable... so why not the Aggies?

That analogy doesn't work because the Aggies don't have our advantages. They don't have the prestige, the tradition, the ability to recruit nationwide, etc. How are Oregon and Okie State looking these days? How many titles have the checkbooks of Phil Knight and T. Boone Pickens purchased?

Don't overestimate the Aggies just because they're spending like nouveau riche. Building a contender takes a lot more than money.
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Not accusing you of illogical optimism about ND, but maybe illogical pessimism when it comes to A&M in the current football climate (as it compares to ND and future NCs).

Recruiting wise, Texas is one of the most fertile states. Not counting 2018, TAMU has recruited the state as good, or better than Texas in the last 5 years. The new coaching staff will undoubtedly do better than their predecessors. They have also had decent luck in Florida, and I'm sure Jimbo and Elko will expand nationally. If not nationally, they will become decent players at minimum in the SEC and ACC states.

Coaching wise, they are assembling a great staff. Their facilities are top 5 nationally. College Station is often ranked in the top college towns polls. They are in the SEC West which can sold as the best conference/division in college football. The weather is good. A lot to like if you're a kid.

So yes, they don't have the history of ND. Not many do. Clemson doesn't, but we've seen what a good coach can do. The SEC West is the biggest challenge Jimbo has going. Bama will always be Bama, but Auburn and LSU are up and down, and the Miss schools don't scare many. We saw this year that Bama, while a NC, is not always the SEC W Champ.

Not a fan of TAMU or Jimbo at all, but I'd wager they win the SEC West in 2021.
 
NDdomer2

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My wish for the next OL coach is a history of putting guys in NFL. I understand those guys are probably locked up.

J.B. Grimes from Cincy maybe?

Guess he is at UConn now.
 
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NDRock said:
Yep, Sumlin has never won anything. Jimbo has. Which is why I added hiring great coaches into the equation (and you left out). Sumlin proved he wasn’t a great coach.
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I think FSU fans would disagree that Jimbo is a great coach. And outside of having Jamies Winston, he hasn't won anything worth while.

Now I think he is an average coach that has won with a lot of talent but I'm not sure he can get the same talent. I think Jimbo will range 8-10 wins every season.
 
stlnd01

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Irish YJ said:
So yes, they don't have the history of ND. Not many do. Clemson doesn't, but we've seen what a good coach can do. The SEC West is the biggest challenge Jimbo has going. Bama will always be Bama, but Auburn and LSU are up and down, and the Miss schools don't scare many. We saw this year that Bama, while a NC, is not always the SEC W Champ.

Not a fan of TAMU or Jimbo at all, but I'd wager they win the SEC West in 2021.
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Clemson is a good comp for A&M. A longtime contender/wannabe-elite that struck gold with the right coach. There are, of course, a lot of programs in that position who didn't hire the right coach and just kept drifting along at 8-4.

Is Jimbo that right coach to get A&M to the next level? Or did he peak at FSU a few years back? We'll see. But with that contract and expectations, I'd wager it's just as likely Jimbo's walking the plank in 2021 as it is he's winning the SEC.
 
BobbyMac

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connor_in said:
Article is "Boston College assistant Justin Frye linked to Notre Dame opening"

I saw this on twitter yesterday and just assumed it was already on here by now
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It is. Justin Frye has been touched upon. He makes sense. Too bad he can't bring Finn Dirstine with him as a parting gift.
 
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