The writing's on the wall...
After the recent debacle in Norman, OK one thing is certain. They say any team with two quarterbacks doesn't really have one. Randy Shannon has oft said that the Canes have two gunslingers worthy of the starting gig. News flash - he doesn't. Miami has one quarterback, a back up and a highly-touted, injured freshman.After seeing what I saw against #4 Oklahoma this past weekend, Kyle Wright is Miami's lone option behind center. I don't question the heart of Kirby Freeman - I question his God-given skills-set. As bad as Wright has looked in the past, he's never looked as out of place as Freeman against the Sooners.
Which brings us to the main point of this rant - burn the redshirt of Robert Marve. Once the super frosh gets healthy, get him in the game and get him some reps. Freeman isn't the guy now and certainly isn't the guy for 2008 when Wright is gonzo. This needs to be Marve's squad come next fall, so let the kid cut his teeth here in 2007 and really compete for the starting gig next year.
There are no more Oklahoma-caliber teams on Miami's schedule. Texas A&M needed 3OT to beat Fresno State. Florida State is 1-1 and struggling. Virginia Tech was exposed by LSU, though they'll still be tough at home late November with the ACC crown on the line. Georgia Tech is the toughest 'team' left on the docket.
Wright is the Canes best option from here on out. I don't care how good Freeman supposedly looked in practice. I saw how he looked on game day against Marshall and Oklahoma and simply put, the kid doesn't have 'it' to be a starter at The U. Many will say Wright underachieved and didn't live up to the hype, but he's still eons better that Freeman. Wright at least looked the part of an underachieving five-star recruit on Saturday. Freeman looked like a 'deer in headlights' back up quarterback.
Start Wright. Get Marve ready. Assign Freeman to back up duty and the occasional wrinkle in the playbook where his mobility will help pick up yardage or confuse a defensive coordinator. Marve needs to be used like Tim Tebow was in Florida last season. Get his feet wet so that 2008 isn't a baptism by fire. This also sends a message to incoming recruits that freshman do play at Miami and that all jobs are open to the best player willing to fill them.
Anything other than that and we're looking at a very long season, my friends.
In other news, I read the best summary of the game online last night. It was a post from Steve Kim (K9Cane) and his thoughts after returning home from Norman.
Any message board lurkers have seen his comments over the years. Solid insight and knowledge of the game. Logic bests emotion. Calls it like he sees it. He definitely hit the nail on the head again this time around. Allow me to summarize:
Called Freeman "a square peg in a round hole" and pointed out that there's no real power running game with his ability to not play under center or jibe with the system. From a 'fan in the stands' perspective K9 said you could see the team and fans dejected upon his return in the third quarter. I couldn't agree more.He wisely called out our fan base who is trashing Patrick Nix this early in the process. Again, I agree. Nix is working with what we have. Time to give this offense an identity. He asks if we're a power running team or "Scrambleball/Spread"?Building on what Kim said here, I think we bring back Wright, instill the power running game and focus on our two most talented offensive players - Javarris James and Graig Cooper. This line can run-block and those RBs can make plays. Establish a strong ground game and take the pressure off of your quarterback.
Defensively we're down. Kim points out that outside the offensive issues, when Vegas Franklin is getting a lot of snaps, we're light up front. He's right. Miami had good defensive line rotation against Marshall, but against an Oklahoma-caliber offensive line, this defensive line was manhandled. The Canes need to make sure Marcus Fortson is a lock for 2008 and expect him to immediately have an impact on the defensive line.Shannon inherited a team with a lot of holes. We all can agree on this point. All this talk about a strong secondary was off-base. Willie Cooper and Lovon Ponder aren't getting it done. Anthony Reddick is sorely missed. At corner, Randy Phillips is struggling big time and needs to move to safety. Glenn Sharpe needs to get healthy and help a depleted secondary. DeMarcus Van Dyke can be a good one, but a true freshman won't cut the mustard at OU.
Kim pointed out the kicking game woes and like the rest of us, is baffled at the fact Daren Daly couldn't reach the end zone with his leg. Oklahoma had stellar field position all day. How can Miami not recruit stronger-legged kickers to get the job done? This has to be a priority moving forward.And as for Richard Gordon on special teams, safe to say that gimmick needs to be retired. Not once did Gordon impress against an opponent with a strong special teams. Ryan Hill needs another returner back there. A second threat who can actually do something other than block. Throw Coop or another burner back there already.
Kim called Miami the third best team in the ACC and called Saturday a wake up call for Shannon. Again, I agree. I've oft stated that all this undefeated talk was off-base. Kim says the Canes are three years away. I think we're good to go in 2009 if Marve and some other recruits pan out.Either way, it's time to re-prioritize. This season is not lost, but two games into 2007 these Canes already need an overhaul of sorts. The ACC is hardly a top conference this year and can work in Miami's favor. Last year's Canes didn't take advantage of a soft schedule. This time around, the program needs to capitalize on the weaknesses of others and find a way to win some ball games. Again, there are no more Oklahomas on this schedule.
Right the ship and set the sights on the ACC crown this year. Cut the dead weight who isn't producing and get the freshman some reps. Without naming names, some upperclassmen seem too far gone to save. Get in the heads of the youngsters. The future of this program is in the youth and the few Larry Coker leftovers who 'get it' and see the light.
Start building for tomorrow today.
.:Canes305:.
posted by allCanes at
9:39 AM
7 Comments:
Yeah, Chris, it's evident that Shannon and nix have to continue to hit the recruiting trail hard, keep the guys we have verballed and go after some more playmakers on offense especially. Florida has been hosting some of the guys who have verballed to us and we have to protect our turf. As far as redshirting, I thinkn it's pretty much a waste in today's football unless there's an injury. USC has shown the way, and we should get with today's game- you play the best players no matter what. As Chris said, get Marve in the rotation when you can so he has experience for next year and he's ahead of the game when he's ready to take over full time. Make due with who we have now which hopefully can get us some good wins and get back into the top 25 at some point, and then hit the recruiting trail as hard and as often as you can. I hope we can raid other teams' verbals just as they are trying to raid ours as well. Until the ink is dry, all is fair.
-Columbus Cane
Chris,
Let me warn you guys about Marve. Didn't you say the same things about Kyle Wright 4 years ago.
The reality is, Marve didn't beat those guys out over the summer(If the Coaches would have seen anything to give Marve the keys to the offense, don't you think they would have given him the keys?).
Marve is a talented High School Quarterback, but the question is whether the staff can develop QB's.
Let me warn you guys about Marve. Didn't you say the same things about Kyle Wright 4 years ago.
True, but that's the case for all Div. I starting star quarterbacks. Many received the hype and lived up to it. Kyle Wright didn't. That doesn't mean that every big time recruit will be a bust from here on out. On paper, Marve looks solid. As did Tim Tebow, who is panning out. As did Matt Leinart, who panned out. As did Brian Brohm, etc. You get the point.
Wright was underdeveloped and is on his fourth offensive coordinator since joining the program in 2003.
The reality is, Marve didn't beat those guys out over the summer(If the Coaches would have seen anything to give Marve the keys to the offense, don't you think they would have given him the keys?).
1) Marve got into a wreck halfway through summer. He looked good when he did see the field and many have said he has that 'it' quality.
2) No way you'd start a true freshman going into a game at Oklahoma no matter how good he looked.
3) We need Marve to get his feet wet as soon as he's healthy and good to go. Time to build for 2008 so he's not a sitting duck next season when we need to count on him.
Marve is a talented High School Quarterback, but the question is whether the staff can develop QB's.
That's the question with any big time QB recruit in the nation. The Coker Era failed many a player. It's a new regime and all we can do is hope to not see more of the same.
Ripping the OC is nothing new for this fan base...I remember ripping Coker in 97/98/99 etc when it appeared he couldn't do anything..turns out, he didn't have the horses....amazing how the little things, like talent, turn you into a much better OC...I'm waiting it out for Nix, although the sooner he realizes our QB's are not named Reggie Ball (stop with the shotgun) the better we will be!!!
Before Marve was hurt, there was not talk of him beating out Kirby or Kyle. I remember a quote from a linemen alluding to Marve not being ready.
Chris we all need "hope", but the reality is very few true freshmen start. Besides, based on the track record of the Canes, I need to see him on the field first.
Is that what you are saying, you want to evaluate Marve? If so that makes sense. But, if he doesn't make it, then what?
If you are talking about this year, Kyle has some tools that an Offensive Coordinator can work with. The downside is that he can't handle pressure from a Blitz. So the recipe is simple, Run the ball for 40-45 plays, and Kyle throws less than 25 times. 66% of the pass plays are play action and roll outs.
They could win more games this year with Kyle, maybe Randy wanted to develop Kirby for next year. Who knows? Clearly Kyle is more ready to give the Canes a passing threat than Kirby.
-DoubtingThomas(Marve)
I'm having a hard time being optomistic today fellas. That was absolutely ridiculous Saturday. I had to do a double take to make sure that Larry Coker wasn't roaming the sidelines giving fist pumps and calling lame duck plays.
This is a perplexing state for me right now. I usually agree with you Chris but I have some doubts this time. The last paragraph is how I feel mostly. Lets see if I can explain it without you guys scratching your heads.
It read like this:
Right the ship and set the sights on the ACC crown this year. Cut the dead weight who isn't producing and get the freshman some reps. Without naming names, some upperclassmen seem too far gone to save. Get in the heads of the youngsters. The future of this program is in the youth and the few Larry Coker leftovers who 'get it' and see the light.
Lets break it down.
Right the ship and set the sights on the ACC crown this year.
Totally agree here, I thought that should have been the focus and like you I thought undefeated was a bit of a stretch and in week two it was justified.
Cut the dead weight who isn't producing and get the freshman some reps.
Bingo! If we are going to take the hits anyway, might as well give the freshman some game experience.
Without naming names, some upperclassmen seem too far gone to save.
Here is where we differ a bit and I hope that I’m wrong. I’ll be more than happy to eat some crow, if I’m wrong. Kyle in my opinion is too far-gone. You said it earlier, 3 OC in 4 years. His circuits must be so messed up by now. I feel bad for him because I am a KW supporter and wished he had gone somewhere else. I stated on Canestime this morning that he would probably be a favorite in New York this year. I want him to have a great combine so I can see him in the NFL, on paper he’s a stud. I think all the bad coaching has cost him his college career. That is why I think KF should be the guy; if he takes all his hits this year he could be ready for a great season next year with Marve waiting in the winds. I just don’t see much upside in the long run if we can’t prep next years QB this year. Marve might not be able to return this year. That’s up to doctors and his body, banking on him to play this year is like knowing next weeks winning lotto numbers.
Get in the heads of the youngsters. The future of this program is in the youth and the few Larry Coker leftovers who 'get it' and see the light.
I’m back to agreeing with this statement. This team needs graduation and a good brainwashing. I just think most of this teams “leaders” are far too Cokerized. Shannon will need a few years to establish the new identity. What this team need this year is our support. We need to be out there in the OB and local sports bars in force. This fan base needs to get behind this team instead of spending hours everyday on the sites throwing them under the bus. Cane fans are starting to remind me of all the Dolphin fans still gloating about 1972; tapping into the 1980’s every time we lose or have a slip in talent. I don’t think we ever had a slip in talent. I don’t think OU had more talent than us. I think the talent we have never had the opportunity to grow and be developed. For the last couple of years this team has never known anything but defeat and a hard-core fan base that just doesn’t take to underachievers very well. For 3 years they have been told from the fans to the media that they suck and it’s a shame.
Rant Off…
Post a Comment
<< Home