Jinks: "Horrible"

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I will give Coach Jinks credit.  He is brutally honest.  He isn't a Gregg-Brandon-we-were-two-plays-from-winning-the-game-type guy.  He used the word "horrible."  Says we got beat in every phase of the game.  Too many mistakes.  Refused to blame the officials.  Admitted the loss hurts worse because it was an FCS game at home.

"You're supposed to win these games."

Inability to handle the twist on the pass rush, turnovers on special teams, 15 penalties, poor hand position on pass defense, the list went on.  BG was awful in all regards.

15 penalties.  Jinks:  "absurd."

So, I give him credit for the honesty.

That's not what I want to give him credit for, though.  I want to give him credit for having a team that can execute a game plan.  I want to give him credit for beating the FCS team.  I want to give him credit for proving that you can take a guy pretty much out of high school coaching, pair him with a bunch of mostly untested assistants and win some football games.  I want to give him credit for having guys ready to handle a twist.  For having DBs with their hands in the right position.  For an offense that can score.  For a team that doesn't commit costly penalties.  For an offense that can put points on the board.  For a defense that can contain a mobile QB.

That's what I'd like to give him credit for.  If he's forced to be brutally honest too many more times he's going to be doing an exit interview.

This was a hugely costly loss.  For BG to go 6-6 and make a bowl game now--assuming losses to Northwestern and Middle Tennessee--will require BG to go 6-2 in the MAC. In other words, we would need to win the East (probably).  Or tie for it.

In other words, a 6-6 record and a bowl game now look like a difficult slog.  If they can make it, if this team does fix those things, he'll get credit for that.

Until then, the narrative has not changed since the day he arrived.  The basic question--is coaching high school successfully transferable to college ball--has not been answered in the affirmative.