Post game thoughts.

[apaladin]

Besides the obvious we looked very uninspired. No excitement, no energy. Why? It looked at times like we were trying to run the clock, no hurry up, taking a long time to get plays off. Even on the last drive after a first down, we took 25 seconds to get the next play off.

[fu77fan]

We played with no emotion.
It is one thing to lose, but frankly , our performance was embarrassing !!

[gofurman]

My two cents.

1. Wofford was picked to win the league, and looked like a favorite. They played physical and fast. We did not.

2. I think it is worth noting that this Wofford team is a veteran has played in a lot of big games. They've won some playoff games. They're used to playing in tough scraps. What I saw from Furman, a bit, looks like a team with a bunch of younger inexperienced players. I know we have high expectations this year, but we are still a really young football team and, at times, play like it.

3. Offensively, plays were there, we just didn't execute. Seemed like we waited until the 3rd Q to start getting back to basics. Giving up the score to begin the half, failing to convert on the goalline, and getting only one possession in the quarter was a killer.

4. Both of our losses have looked exactly the same. The coaches need to figure out how to combat that.

5. I concur with a lot of you. We got beat on both sides of the line. Even when we had Wofford behind the sticks, we couldn't keep them there.

Jackal,
#4. I thought the same thing. This looked like Citadel all over again. Lose LOS. Passing game flounders missing open recvrs.. it was deja vu all over again

#5. Dang. How about Woff with a 1st and 25 (penalty induced) ...and then they run 3 times for 25 yards? WTH were we doing on D??

[apaladin]

My two cents.

1. Wofford was picked to win the league, and looked like a favorite. They played physical and fast. We did not.

2. I think it is worth noting that this Wofford team is a veteran has played in a lot of big games. They've won some playoff games. They're used to playing in tough scraps. What I saw from Furman, a bit, looks like a team with a bunch of younger inexperienced players. I know we have high expectations this year, but we are still a really young football team and, at times, play like it.

3. Offensively, plays were there, we just didn't execute. Seemed like we waited until the 3rd Q to start getting back to basics. Giving up the score to begin the half, failing to convert on the goalline, and getting only one possession in the quarter was a killer.

4. Both of our losses have looked exactly the same. The coaches need to figure out how to combat that.

5. I concur with a lot of you. We got beat on both sides of the line. Even when we had Wofford behind the sticks, we couldn't keep them there.

Jackal,
#4. I thought the same thing. This looked like Citadel all over again. Lose LOS. Passing game flounders missing open recvrs.. it was deja vu all over again

#5. Dang. How about Woff with a 1st and 25 (penalty induced) ...and then they run 3 times for 25 yards? WTH were we doing on D??

We also had them 3rd and 15 and they run up the middle for 14 yds and then get the first down on 4th.

[gofurman]

My two cents.

1. Wofford was picked to win the league, and looked like a favorite. They played physical and fast. We did not.

2. I think it is worth noting that this Wofford team is a veteran has played in a lot of big games. They've won some playoff games. They're used to playing in tough scraps. What I saw from Furman, a bit, looks like a team with a bunch of younger inexperienced players. I know we have high expectations this year, but we are still a really young football team and, at times, play like it.

3. Offensively, plays were there, we just didn't execute. Seemed like we waited until the 3rd Q to start getting back to basics. Giving up the score to begin the half, failing to convert on the goalline, and getting only one possession in the quarter was a killer.

4. Both of our losses have looked exactly the same. The coaches need to figure out how to combat that.

5. I concur with a lot of you. We got beat on both sides of the line. Even when we had Wofford behind the sticks, we couldn't keep them there.

Jackal,
#4. I thought the same thing. This looked like Citadel all over again. Lose LOS. Passing game flounders missing open recvrs.. it was deja vu all over again

#5. Dang. How about Woff with a 1st and 25 (penalty induced) ...and then they run 3 times for 25 yards? WTH were we doing on D??

We also had them 3rd and 15 and they run up the middle for 14 yds and then get the first down on 4th.

Oh yeah. Our DL got pushed around. Former player I mentioned said we needed to play a more attitude at the very least. He felt our LOS didn’t get off the bus. That we need to learn about playing and winning the big games. Not just the CSU games. That’s the next step

[purplehorse]

An overall TEAM loss. I think both a 1st and 15 and a first and 25 and they got huge running plays and first downs. Their first pass attempt was a pretty long completion. Sisson had a bad day but seemed to be running for his life a lot. On defense it seemed like several times no one really took Newman on the option. Their running backs had a field day running straight up the gut.

Have we had a great punt or kickoff return this year?

A complete team loss. I think sometimes you have to credit the opponent for just beating us every way they could.I was hoping the Citadel game would help us and be a wake up call but I guess it was a wasted experience based on what happened today. It hurts me to congratulate Wofford but I congratulate them.

[gofurman]

An overall TEAM loss. I think both a 1st and 15 and a first and 25 and they got huge running plays and first downs. Their first pass attempt was a pretty long completion. Sisson had a bad day but seemed to be running for his life a lot. On defense it seemed like several times no one really took Newman on the option. Their running backs had a field day running straight up the gut.

Have we had a great punt or kickoff return this year?

A complete team loss. I think sometimes you have to credit the opponent for just beating us every way they could.I was hoping the Citadel game would help us and be a wake up call but I guess it was a wasted experience based on what happened today. It hurts me to congratulate Wofford but I congratulate them.

We actually had a great KO return by Bell today ! But alas we scored no points ... he brought it back to the 50 or better around midfield. Great return - he’s a weapon

[tim]

Wofford had their best game of the year. The game was everything to them. They will lay an egg from here on . Seen it before.

[Affirm]

Somebody said we play Wofford early next year? Anybody know the date? Is it our first conference game?

I think that is to our advantage because they always seem to get better over time and next year they will have a new QB.

CCH said "we open" with them so I assume it will be the first game of the year.

I hope that will inspire our off-season workout!

They were our first game 2 years ago. We lost.

[Jasper]

There is no question that Furman was badly outplayed and outcoached yesterday. I am very surprised at the first but not the second. This staff does lots of things very well. Their organization is terrific, they recruit very well and I think they do an excellent job with player development. However, the X and O aspect is not their forte since the loss of the OC and DC that CCH originally hired. The Wofford staff had FU very well scouted and their own team well prepared. We did not appear to do anything to upset that preparation. Teams are daring us to pass and those teams that have the personnel to back up that dare are very successful against us. It appeared to me that we played right into their scheme. I fully expected Wofford to score in the low 20's today. They are a good offensive team. I did not expect them to hold our offensive to one score .

That being said, I cannot buy the idea that this team is soft and cannot compete with the physical teams as many are saying. We were surely beaten on the line of scrimmage but I don't believe that was because the opposing players were bigger or stronger or much tougher at all. Just like with successful military tactics, Wofford won the LOS because they put more men at the point of attack then we did. That applied to both sides of the ball. They repeatedly sold out on the goal line against a run up the middle and it paid off for them when we obliged. We sold out in the same manner on our GL and their QB ran untouched around the end. Imagination. The Wofford players were not bigger or badder or able to lift more weights than ours. They were put in the right position to win. How can Furman be soft when we stood toe to toe with two FBS programs and held our own? Have you seen Va Tech play recently? In our own league, isn't Chattanooga a "tough" team with very physical players? Just a few weeks ago, we were all marveling at the toughness of Hamp Sisson when he refused to allow our RB to be stopped on an important 4th down try and instead picked him up bodily and carried him 5 yards.

[apaladin]

We scored 17 total points against WC and Citadel. That is not acceptable. The runs up the middle were just bad play calling. Good reference to being out coached when we sold out on the goal line they walk around the end untouched. We could have done the same thing but didn't. That is poor coaching.

[The Jackal]

Just a few other thoughts:

1. Every snap this year has been taken by a freshman QB.

2. Our center is a true freshman who, I feel quite certain, will continue to get bigger and stronger. He's already technically very good.

3. We rotate five running backs. Three are freshmen. One is a sophomore. The kid that housed a 63 yard TD run against one of the nation's statistically top run defenses is a true freshman.

4. Our front seven has 3 seniors total on the two deep. At times we had a defensive rotation where we were mostly freshmen and sophomores up front.

Perhaps this is excuse-making, but I think we are still digging out of a recruiting hole left by the prior administration. Some of the struggles we are seeing are not out-of-character for teams with a lot of youth who still need time to grow and develop.

I realize football is a "what have you done for me lately" game. Fans can hit extremes weekly with how they feel about the state of the program. I see a team that is still quite young with a ton of talent that has spent most of the season in the top 25. I'm still encouraged about where things are and what the future is going to look like.

[fufanatic]

Just a few other thoughts:

1. Every snap this year has been taken by a freshman QB.

2. Our center is a true freshman who, I feel quite certain, will continue to get bigger and stronger. He's already technically very good.

3. We rotate five running backs. Three are freshmen. One is a sophomore. The kid that housed a 63 yard TD run against one of the nation's statistically top run defenses is a true freshman.

4. Our front seven has 3 seniors total on the two deep. At times we had a defensive rotation where we were mostly freshmen and sophomores up front.

Perhaps this is excuse-making, but I think we are still digging out of a recruiting hole left by the prior administration. Some of the struggles we are seeing are not out-of-character for teams with a lot of youth who still need time to grow and develop.

I realize football is a "what have you done for me lately" game. Fans can hit extremes weekly with how they feel about the state of the program. I see a team that is still quite young with a ton of talent that has spent most of the season in the top 25. I'm still encouraged about where things are and what the future is going to look like.

I agree with this. I think a new staff overachieved in year one, lost a lot and still put together a competitive team that won a share of a conference title in year two, and was dominant at times in year three against bad to average teams with a young squad. We got our hopes up after close losses to FBS teams and dominate performances over teams we expected to be good in Mercer and Samford plus Wofford looking weak early. However, the future is still incredibly bright. Would anticipate us being near the top of the league for the foreseeable future. Just got to hope that our young guys continue to grow and improve.

[FUPlayer74]

I suppose what concerns me the most is the lack of improvement over the course of the year. We started the year playing well and the general thinking is that the play will improve from there. Maybe we can find something in the next two weeks.

[The Jackal]

One other thought on recruiting.

If you go back and look at the 2015 and 2016 classes - Bruce Fowler's last two years (this years' 4th and 5th year players), you can see some of the issue. In my opinion, there are a few positions where it is just more difficult to recruit and develop players than others. A few standout:

TE: Furman signed one TE in those two years, Riley Gessner, and he never played a snap.

DL: Furman signed one defensive lineman in 2015 (Alec Hanff) and 3 in 2016 (Jordan Harris, Jonah Tibbs, and Dillon Vann). Of those four players, Hanff has missed a lot of time to injury and has been a periodic rotational player. Vann has missed most of this season and spent time at TE last year due to depth concerns. Harris plays on the OL. So, in two seasons, Furman got one player that was a starting DL in 2019 (Tibbs).

QB: Furman signed 1 QB, Avery Armstrong, who was soon thereafter moved to WR. Clay Hendrix took a QB in his first class, JeMar Lincoln, who is no longer with the program.

To frame that, Furman went essentially three recruiting classes without getting a contributor at the most important position on the field. Before Sisson/Grainger, the last QB recruit to really contribute at the position was Harris Roberts (2015 class).

I should note, though, that Fowler's staff hit on most of their defensive backs during this time (Anoor, Willis, Okeh, Weems, etc.) and have gotten decent production out of many of the OL recruits. Where we just missed on a lot of guys is at the DL, QB, and TE. It has taken some time to start developing those positions back again.