At this point, is progress more important than wins?

[oxrageous]

This is (another) lost season, so I personally am not that worried about wins and losses. I'm thinking about next year, the next five years, the next ten years. I think progress and underclassman experience is more important. We need to get every youngster out there on the field to see if they've got anything.

The only exception is the games against UGA and FSU. Those are rivalry games that are important to win no matter what the circumstances.

Am I alone in this thinking? What should be the mindset the remainder of the season?

 

[gatormandan]

What progress? It appears we are regressing.

 

[stephenPE]

I still think wins are real important for these guys but you are absolutely right about the rest. We beat either of those teams and finish with 7(8 was the lost game) wins...........im pumped about the class coming in but give me a new off coordinator..........

 

[gator1946]

Progress? With this staff? The longer they coach these guys the worse it's gonna get.

I don't know what to think about the faux incoming class. If Mac keeps them together, I'll thank him for his one and only miracle as he's shown the door.

For the one recruit who might be reading this forum. This is a great school with great fans and better support. Come here. Play here. We'll can this guy and get a good one next time. By the time you're ready to play you can be part of a great new era.

Sorry it's the best I could do.

 

[oxrageous]

In Mac's defense, he has to treat every single game like the Super Bowl if he wants to keep his job. He had his chances at a rebuilding year excuse in his first or second seasons, but not his third. He's painted himself into a corner and he can't think about next year at all because he doesn't even know if he'll be here.

 

[Gator Fever]

I am just glad we have some new playmakers in Davis and Toney for the next OC.

 

[chferg]

I'd agree if there was progress.

Can we name any player who has shown progression under this staff?

This is also the same staff that features players like Ancrum over talented freshman....

The longer this staff is here the worse it's going to get. I won't root against us but if we lost the rest of the games this season I wouldn't shed a tear as it would put Mac on the chomping block next year

 

[gator1946]

In Mac's defense, he has to treat every single game like the Super Bowl if he wants to keep his job. He had his chances at a rebuilding year excuse in his first or second seasons, but not his third. He's painted himself into a corner and he can't think about next year at all because he doesn't even know if he'll be here.

Then WTF happened yesterday?

 

[oxrageous]

Then WTF happened yesterday?

He played his usual conservative crapfest in hopes that we would eke out a win at the end. He genuinely thinks that is his safest style to win games these days.

 

[Swamp Donkey]

He played his usual conservative crapfest in hopes that we would eke out a win at the end. He genuinely thinks that is his safest style to win games these days.

Exactly. This is coaching not players.

Although lack of talent is clearly an issues also. However, again, this is lack of recruiting.

This is the least talented Gator team since the 70s.

 

[gingerlover]

yes, but we haven't seen progress except for the first 6 games he was here and Kentucky last year. At this time though we are still in "contention" for the east so he will stay the stinking course rather than play others to see what they can do.

 

[MertzJay26]

I'd agree if there was progress.

Can we name any player who has shown progression under this staff?

This is also the same staff that features players like Ancrum over talented freshman....

The longer this staff is here the worse it's going to get. I won't root against us but if we lost the rest of the games this season I wouldn't shed a tear as it would put Mac on the chomping block next year

It’s baffling how little Slaton plays, especially when is see Ancrum out there

 

[Swamp Donkey]

It’s baffling how little Slaton plays, especially when is see Ancrum out there

And CeCe. 240 pound CeCe was back at DT last game and not just on 3rd and long.

 

[RocketCityGator]

I don't think any coach can outwardly de-emphasis winning. All kinds of bad karma comes with that. But I get Ox's point. We are certainly in a "rebuilding year". Player development should be an emphasis. But then again, shouldn't it always be?

 

[Ancient Reptile]

In Mac's defense, he has to treat every single game like the Super Bowl if he wants to keep his job. He had his chances at a rebuilding year excuse in his first or second seasons, but not his third. He's painted himself into a corner and he can't think about next year at all because he doesn't even know if he'll be here.

Unless he loses the team, he will be here. I am of the "win every game you can mentality", but if Franks actually developed, it would be huge.

 

[oxrageous]

I don't think any coach can outwardly de-emphasis winning. All kinds of bad karma comes with that. But I get Ox's point. We are certainly in a "rebuilding year". Player development should be an emphasis. But then again, shouldn't it always be?

In saner times with Spurrier/Meyer, we used to blow teams out in the first half and then let our young guys get some playing time in the second half. That doesn't happen anymore. Every game is close, no matter how sorry the opponent.

 

[NavetG8r]

I gave up looking for progress. I mean at first it seemed like a good idea, because obviously we don't have the talent at several positions that we're used to seeing, but progress at least seemed achievable. Now I'm afraid this coaching staff only makes players worse... We aren't improving, and haven't improved since day 1 of Mac's hiring. I saw enough when he complained about Davis scoring at the end of the Vandy game, & after taking a knee at the end of the half in pretty much every game to date. He has no killer instinct. He takes chances sometimes going for it on 4th down, but when he concedes the half with 25 secs left on the clock, and we're losing, that just shows me he doesn't understand the importance of momentum nor how to manage it. And I'm sick of seeing our football players looking like they don't even understand the basic fundamentals of football. DEs don't know how to contain the edge. Always over-pursuing. LBs that are too slow to cover a RB in space on screens and sweeps. Safeties that can't tackle or are afraid to. Can't develop a QB. TEs can't block and are rarely used in the passing game. At some point you just have to come to the conclusion it's coaching, and recruiting that's failing UF. It's not the kids. The kids are playing their tails off out there. They just aren't being put in a position to win.

 

[revgator]

I see where you are coming from Ox. But as long as Mac is the coach players will continue to regress and become very comfortable with losing.
I get letting them have experience but experience for what, the same coach? So he can teach them how not to score and mold them into LDR.
It's over, man. Lol

 

[Concrete Helmet]

This is (another) lost season, so I personally am not that worried about wins and losses. I'm thinking about next year, the next five years, the next ten years. I think progress and underclassman experience is more important. We need to get every youngster out there on the field to see if they've got anything.

The only exception is the games against UGA and FSU. Those are rivalry games that are important to win no matter what the circumstances.

Am I alone in this thinking? What should be the mindset the remainder of the season?

Disagree totally....The winningest coaches and teams find the winningest players regardless of their tenure.....It creates a mindset of winning within a program. It teaches players that to get on the field in the first place they must be ready to win by that time....Doesn't matter if they're freshmen or 5th year seniors.....It's mindset and perception that makes programs great because that is what sells the best recruits.

Here's proof in UF's case. The reason FSU passed us and has remained ahead is simple....They beat us every year(except 2012) and THAT is the reason they out recruit us since 2011 as well as out developed us also....They have less developing to do because their kids have a mindset just by signing with them.....Now Clemson has done the same to them since 2014 by beating them on the field ....Bama did this to us in 2009 also....Kids that go to Bama and Clemson don't worry about "getting developed" on the field while their team is losing games....They get a winning mindset when recruited to those teams and do their developing year round and on the practice field....when they get in the game they just perform.....

 

[Fishon]

He played his usual conservative crapfest in hopes that we would eke out a win at the end. He genuinely thinks that is his safest style to win games these days.

Sadly, this is the truth. With spurrier or meyer a missed extra point was something you shrugged off because you knew the points would be made up somewhere. With yesterday's missed xp you felt the air go out of the stadium and you have to wonder if the team felt the same way. this is not a great way to live, so to speak. when you play with razor thin margins every mistake is magnified and more pressure is put on not making mistakes.