Really not too much for the presser, news or interest-wise.
He said film didn't give him any more perspective on Morgan than he had before. He said Morgan made some good throws and left some on the field. His ability to get out of the pocket is a key element that Jinks likes and he said you can expect to see BG call more plays that take advantage of his mobility in the future.
He noted that Morgan also has the ability to stretch the field with the deep ball. The Falcons have had their most offensive success running the ball, and the ability to over the top with play action will also be an important thing they expect Morgan to do.
The line has played really well (or the best of any unit), but they will be tested against OU, as apparently they are one of the top sacking teams in the country, and "James has to stay clean" or its going to be tough.
The defense? He was asked about the line. He said he still have confidence in their talent, but that they have to produce more. We aren't getting any pressure.
He did feel we played better against EMU. (And we did, though not sure if it gets graded on a curve due to the opponent, or not). He said the linebackers played well, Valdez got back into the game, and Trent Green is an outright team leader who is keeping everyone on board.
He said maybe we had given the defense too many complicated assignments. Specifically, he said we were going to stop the run by putting more guys in the box and stop the pass by putting two guys up top. Which is fine, except for teams that come to the line and call their plays based on how many men are in the box. But, given our youth in the secondary, he feels like that might work better for us.
Which, you know, is probably true. It isn't likely to work worse.
He continued to say the team is heading in the right direction. I will say this. Having Morgan in there does improve the outlook, if for no other reason than you know he could get better, and after 16 starts (or whatever it was), you didn't have that sense from Knapke.
Lastly, he said something kind of funny. He really wants us to get to 6 wins so we can get "those bowl practices," which I know is important but coaches usually just talk about wanting to make a bowl game, not necessarily getting the practices.
You listen to or read his comments and you get a sense that conversations have been had well before the start of the season and into these early games. Talks with people beyond his immediate coaching staff, assessing things, etc. He just seems inclined to be right on the edge of saying some blunt things and yet doesn't feel personally responsible for them.
ReplyDeleteThe early departures and notable transfer of last year's team almost seem to add depth to the sense that there was deep rot under the shiny surface of Falcon Fast, and not that one can pin on Clawson.
We've had some say it is an immutable truth that Jinks isn't at risk in his job. As the shock value of the crushing start to the year fades, or numbs us that feels right but I'm not sure it is for the reasons assumed. One starts to think the fix was in well before kickoff in Columbus. All of which I'm fine with but I'm left wondering what politically incorrect things haven't been said about the previous two years.
I think that's a perceptive post...and I wonder all those things too.
ReplyDeleteI credit my parents genes and my elite BGSU degree in History with a minor in Poly Sci. It has endowed me with extraordinary powers of insight and analysis.
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