Quick Thought

For the scholarship reductions are the reason for losses crowd, a question: Does depth cause poor clock management and play calling?

19 thoughts on “Quick Thought

  1. To answer the question Yes to some extent the coaching suffers because there are fewer bodies to toss at the other team. But the play calling is still a coach’s problem. I don’t remember a pair of coaches (Sark and Kiffin ) who thought it was their job to micromanage the entire game. The best coaches know their strength and their weakness and make use of the resources they have. Sark needs to let go or be let go.

  2. 150 or so comments and I counted maybe three that had a thread of positiveness attached to them. No wonder the world is going to ‘Heck’ in a hand basket.

    Sark is going nowhere, he will be the coach for at least 3-years so please stop arguing this dead end issue…was I the only SC guy who enjoyed this drama-filled game?…I had no problem with Sark trying to end the game at 3rd and 2 and then 4th and 2. Isn’t that the ‘play to win’ attitude that most of the bloggers accuse him of not having?.

    ..Kessler had a very good game, and although I agree that there were too many runs called, one reason for the runs may have been to keep the Utah Wolves off of Kessler. Recall that the Utes had 10 sacks against SUCLA and none against SC, except for the final meaningless play…it was a very good comeback by Troy, and especially Kessler in avoiding a sure sack, to take the lead at 21-17

    SC continues to lose leads late in the game. You think fatigue is a factor? You think a few more bodies to spell the big boys would help? Will SC have more bodies and talent in 2015, 2016 and beyond?

    I now feel much more confident about the SUCLA and Neuter Dame games. Troy will give them all they want.

    And, finally, has anybody checked in on Washington. They looked pathetic against ASU yesterday. No wonder Sark could not win with those athletes. And speaking of Sark, he is a young coach who I for one will give the benefit of the doubt to, and who I am sure will get better over time.

    • Jersey, I know a guy selling the Brooklyn Bridge. You could make a fortune in the scrap metal market. My friend is ready to deal – he’s offering a 15% cash discount.

      I believe K was sacked two or three times, but the main thing is Utah won and SUCC choked – again.

    • John, I find your analysis unconvincing. I won’t even get into it. The only correct statement you made is that Sark won’t get fired in the near future.

      Scott’s statement may have been hurriedly written and should have been re-read before publishing, but he was 100% correct.

      You keep working the lipstick onto the pig, OK?

      • Hey, Ben, what parts did you not agree with?– That you were not entertained with a dramatic game? That Sark should not have tried to win the game at 3rd and 4th and 2? That Kessler had a good game? That the Utes got 10 sacks on SUCLA but no meaningful ones against SC? That SC could use more bodies, especially on defense?

        • Jersey (Amusing tag…the only time that Owns has spouted anything but meaningless hate & drivel), even though ‘Max’ finds your analysis unconvincing…and won’t get into it (for obvious reasons), technically only a Philadelphia lawyer would find the ‘sacked’ statement to be incorrect. The
          operant statement here is ‘meaningful’. The end of game sack was analogous to
          the basketball player who chucks up a prayer from beyond half court as the
          clock runs out. Technically it is recorded as a missed FG attempt. A ‘team’ sack
          (assuming such existed) would make more sense. The only other sack was with 5”-6” remaining in the 3rd Q. Interesting how the statistician recorded it as both a sack AS WELL as a team fumble. One or the other, but not both. The team fumble part was due to the horrendous snap from center. Kess never had a chance. When he finally came up for air it was too late…the wolves were descending upon him, above and beyond Banner falling down at the LOS. The snap had to be
          short-hopped by Kess just to avert a TO.

          Your statement of ‘meaningful’ could not have been more accurate. I would totally agree with all of your other observations minus the Sark will get better over time…for me, the jury is still out on that one. Not sure how ***You keep working the lipstick onto the pig, OK?*** has any relevance here, but any port in a storm. With fellow fans like this, who needs trolls?

        • John, he needed two yard on two plays. He chose plays that aren’t practiced much. He stopped the clock for Utah on 3rd down. Sure, either play might have worked in theory, although in big moments, I personally would use much-practiced plays (and I wouldn’t target Pinner, who never catches passes). And why run Agholor from the TB spot, when Sark could just as easily have put Allen and Davis in the those spots? And why pass on 3rd down, and run on 4th, instead of the reverse, so as not to stop the clock if the 3rd down play didn’t get the 1st down?

          But Sark doesn’t think things through.

          What happened to the offense in Q2 and Q3? Things were going so well with the pass early on. What changed? Why does that happen to Sark so often?

          Big game on the road in noisy stadium? I know, let’s start with a long lateral pass.

          No, Kessler didn’t have a good game. You can read about that in the grades he received on sites that give grades.

          I sympathize with his never knowing where the snap will arrive. Maybe Sark ought to dig into THAT problem, since it’s not a new problem. But he has no time–he’s working on his game plan.

          Of course the short roster is a big problem, and is related to fatigue. But based on the actual games, which ones should have been lost? And was coaching a significant explanation, or not? Don’t give me generalities and abstract notions. Was USC coached to play to capacity, or not?

          For Scott and me, the answer is obvious. And for Lev…and for Weber…and for Abraham. Even Paskwietz sounds skeptical at this point, and he’s NEVER critical.

          Sark is not the only problem. But he’s not the solution, that’s for sure. We’re stuck with him? Then Haden needs lean on Sark to give up the OC chores, and be the best HC he can be. Haden then needs recognize that he hasn’t done so well, and to replace himself with a strong, seasoned AD, and go back to Trustee duties and money raising.

  3. Does depth give Kessler a sweaty palm and Nelson a big left foot? Reasons for the loss. Nothing more.

  4. I must say that I frequently hear the television commentators say that SC has the best players and they expect them to win the PAC-12 South but they don’t comment on the coaching.

  5. The Scholarship reduction excuse is never mentioned when the Trojans win, so Pat Haden can buy that nonsense from Steve Sarkisian all he wants. But the reality of it all is, Sarkisan is not, and never will be the type of head coach to take USC to a national championship. Egotistical “know it all” type of coaches never get it done, Coaches that hire great coordinators on both sides of the ball, and actually let them do their Jobs are the ones that win it all!!

  6. Depth can reak havoc on the play calling. If an experienced player goes down or isnt effective. Then a thin roster limits the sub that one can replace him with. Not to mention normally that kid may be a a freshman, sophamore, or even a walk-on.

  7. When the fans start booing, Sark will get fired. That’s how Haden works. God forbid he intervene a little.

  8. Took me three times to figure out what you were trying to say, Wolf. It’s amazing what some quote marks will do: For the “sanctions are the reason for losses” crowd… etc.

Comments are closed.