Status of Furman Football on 3/20/21

[apaladin]

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that the snaps float back to Sisson and are often high, partly accounting for why defenders are breathing down his neck before he has time to react? Timing is thrown off from the get-go making it hard to run any option or play action as the backs are often well ahead of the QB.

Switching Jumper and Neely in and out at tge center position prolly contributes to the inconsistent snaps.

[youwouldno]

The status of Furman football is #36 in FCS per Massey, a mediocre team in a mediocre-at-best conference, with no realistic hope for national FCS relevance at any point in the future. That's just the reality of the situation. I don't think it's really a coaching issue. A really talented head coach could probably make some playoff noise, but finding one is difficult, and it would be a very short period of success, since making Furman relevant would be seen as a huge accomplishment at this point.

[Furmanoid]

The status of Furman football is #36 in FCS per Massey, a mediocre team in a mediocre-at-best conference, with no realistic hope for national FCS relevance at any point in the future. That's just the reality of the situation. I don't think it's really a coaching issue. A really talented head coach could probably make some playoff noise, but finding one is difficult, and it would be a very short period of success, since making Furman relevant would be seen as a huge accomplishment at this point.

I think I pretty much agree with you. If it isn’t coaching, what do you think is the mysterious force that keeps us plateaued right about where we are no matter who is coaching? My theory (and it’s just a theory) is that the admissions office is holding us back.

I think it was you who posted earlier wondering if the demographics of HS football are changing. They are where I am. The Furman kind of kid doesn’t play (at least not in large numbers). They either play travel baseball, travel soccer or, in the vast majority of cases, nothing at all. The smart kid football star is living in a seller’s market. It’s hard to get enough legit ones to fill a roster. But how does WC do it? They’ve adjusted their requirements. That’s how.

[gofurman]

Some people may not like this but I agree and wish we would lower our standards a little bit. Doesn’t winning football provide a fun experience

. It has certainly added to my enjoyment after matriculation for me. And their just aren’t enough 1400 SAT kids playing D1 football. I’ve heard that we raised the bar in the 90s and then again about 2000 and now again. If we have to wait for an Ivy to offer to get the go ahead we are behind the 8 ball before the kickoff. I’m honestly amazed we are as competitive as we are. And for all those who say “we have more to sell” w better academics the proof is right there that it goes the other way..

How well do Vandy and Duke do in football? Yep. Cellar dwellers. You can get a few kids w the value of the diploma but the rule outweighs the exception. Otherwise Duke and Vandy would kill! Their diplomas are - even more than ours w national reputations - def worth more than Bama or Clemson but they aren’t even close.

I am really asking. Can someone convince me the academics aren’t holding us back? I know there are some who disagree. Asking for honest back and forth. Maybe I am wrong. Maybe someone who played has a different take? Love to find I am wrong as that would give me more hope !

[MidlandsPaladin]

Either the recruiting gurus are dead wrong or we are holding our own with recruiting. Haven't we been in the top five for several years running? If this is true, it can't be argued that we aren't getting the kids we want and need to have a successful program. So what happens after they get here?

[Roundball]

What good does it do to a young man or young woman if Furman lowers its standards for a certain sport, only to have them struggle in classes?

[Furmanoid]

Either the recruiting gurus are dead wrong or we are holding our own with recruiting. Haven't we been in the top five for several years running? If this is true, it can't be argued that we aren't getting the kids we want and need to have a successful program. So what happens after they get here?

Either the recruiting gurus are dead wrong or our coaches are terrible. I think the gurus are wrong.

[Furmanoid]

What good does it do to a young man or young woman if Furman lowers its standards for a certain sport, only to have them struggle in classes?

I think most kids would agree that getting accepted to Clemson is harder than getting accepted to Furman. So Clemson is a “harder school”. But Clemson’s roster isn’t filled with guys from St. so and so’s Episcopal Day Academy. And those guys they get from Bamburg or Vance or Central pretty much all graduate. You can get guys through school if you want to. And transfers are really a safe bet if they stayed eligible wherever they came from.

But if the recruiting guys say we have awesome classes, maybe the players aren’t the problem. And we know the Coach isn’t the problem. The last couple weeks eliminated the cheating refs theory. We have been unscathed by Covid or injuries. Maybe it’s points shaving.

[Thorny]

What good does it do to a young man or young woman if Furman lowers its standards for a certain sport, only to have them struggle in classes?

I think most kids would agree that getting accepted to Clemson is harder than getting accepted to Furman. So Clemson is a “harder school”. But Clemson’s roster isn’t filled with guys from St. so and so’s Episcopal Day Academy. And those guys they get from Bamburg or Vance or Central pretty much all graduate. You can get guys through school if you want to. And transfers are really a safe bet if they stayed eligible wherever they came from.

But if the recruiting guys say we have awesome classes, maybe the players aren’t the problem. And we know the Coach isn’t the problem. The last couple weeks eliminated the cheating refs theory. We have been unscathed by Covid or injuries. Maybe it’s points shaving.

This is a new one to me. I've heard Professors call Furman self selecting/I've never heard Clemson was harder to get into or a harder school. From what I have seen and others have noticed this as well is that most students who can't hack it at Furman but transfer to Clemson end up being fine at Clemson and no one is coming to Furman when they can't hack it at Clemson.

I know that things kind of fell off with Smolla but I would definitely argue that when I met Clemson students, on average, they seemed a lot more average than Furman students.

[The Jackal]

I think this play drives at some of the stuff I'm referencing.

The play ends up as a touchdown, which is great, but I can't exactly figure out what the plan is here.

Ball is snapped. Sisson immediately turns to throw a little flare pass to Thomas. Cool.

What confuses me is that both the LT and LG pull away from the play. The C is blocking his man towards the ball. We end up with all five offensive linemen blocking three guys away from the play.

The offensive line is blocking like this is a run play to the right, not a pass play to the left.

When Sisson releases the ball, there are 5 UTC defenders in pursuit and only 3 Furman blockers to handle them.

Now, the result is good, but how did we get here? Why are the offensive linemen running away from the ball? Deception? No body looked deceived. Did we change the play at the line? If so, why isn't the blocking changed?

Why did we not block the most dangerous defender (the defensive end)? Even if we were going to run to the right, why didn't we block the defensive end?

Maybe someone with more brainpower than I have can sort that one out for me. I can't see any really good reason to send your offensive linemen in a different direction than your ball carrier.

[The Jackal]

On the other hand, this play here is encouraging.

Sisson hits a nearly 20 yard out in the face of some pressure. Ball is out of his hands before Deluca comes out of his break. Puts it right where it needs to be.

[Furmanoid]

What good does it do to a young man or young woman if Furman lowers its standards for a certain sport, only to have them struggle in classes?

I think most kids would agree that getting accepted to Clemson is harder than getting accepted to Furman. So Clemson is a “harder school”. But Clemson’s roster isn’t filled with guys from St. so and so’s Episcopal Day Academy. And those guys they get from Bamburg or Vance or Central pretty much all graduate. You can get guys through school if you want to. And transfers are really a safe bet if they stayed eligible wherever they came from.

But if the recruiting guys say we have awesome classes, maybe the players aren’t the problem. And we know the Coach isn’t the problem. The last couple weeks eliminated the cheating refs theory. We have been unscathed by Covid or injuries. Maybe it’s points shaving.

This is a new one to me. I've heard Professors call Furman self selecting/I've never heard Clemson was harder to get into or a harder school. From what I have seen and others have noticed this as well is that most students who can't hack it at Furman but transfer to Clemson end up being fine at Clemson and no one is coming to Furman when they can't hack it at Clemson.

I know that things kind of fell off with Smolla but I would definitely argue that when I met Clemson students, on average, they seemed a lot more average than Furman students.

While FU and CU report very similar SAT scores for accepted freshmen, the difference is that neither SAT’s or ACT’s are required at FU. They haven’t been for years. They are required at CU. So kids all over the state really sweat the SAT to get into Clemson. But if you have good grades and aren’t a delinquent, you get into FU no matter how bad you bomb the SAT. I used to interview for admissions so I know this is true.

[Thorny]

I stand by my statement, I've never seen a struggling Clemson student come to Furman but I have seen the opposite on a few occasions.

[fupaladin01]

Clemson is harder to get into because they are selective- not because they are “harder” academically, but because they can be. Their product is in higher demand and one of the main reasons is the success and national notoriety of Clemson football.
Furman academics don’t become more difficult because we admit a few dozen more academically gifted students each year.

Conversely, Clemson probably isn’t getting much more demanding in the classroom either. But if CU admissions has a choice between a highly motivated kid with great extra curriculars and talent with a 3.8GPA /1200 SAT and a similar kid with a 4.4/1440, you take the “smarter” kid. The end result is employers and grad schools begin to value the kind of student they turn out as much as the kind we traditionally turn out.

Increasingly, colleges that offer majors that lead directly to a good paying career in this economy are more in-demand, and a high price tag that leads to years of debt is a deterrent.

Essentially, Furman is pricing itself out of the market for the type of student we are used to seeing in the past-the students I suspect many of us were. FU is no longer a good value for the money.

Cutting admission standards for football would be a smart move, but it only goes so far if the price tag doesn’t change.

[Furmanoid]

Anyway my point was that if Dabo can get guys through Clemson there is no reason we can’t get them through Furman.

But maybe admissions aren’t the problem. I’m just trying to think of something that would keep us stuck where we are (not bad, but not too good) after a couple of coaching changes.