1st half D was great
o-line can’t block a bed sheet
weis let us back in
seriously, 7 points off of 3 turnovers and 3 punts was terrible
we were only in this game because weis called off the dogs. “those people” who think RD is the cure-all are seriously retarded and need to go back and watch the game focusing on nothing but o-line blocking
we were only in this game because weis called off the dogs. “those people” who think RD is the cure-all are seriously retarded and need to go back and watch the game focusing on nothing but o-line blocking
I’m not going to say that I would’ve felt bad if we won, because obviously I wouldn’t. But part of me would’ve felt a little uneasy knowing that Weis was just trying to show some sportsmanship.
Looks like another 40 years
We run to damn much
Against better teams – we lose.
Haiku or not-throw the ball when you are IN the game not when its over.
RD comes into games and we score when higher QB on depth chart couldn’t do anything for the three prior quarters. How many games has this happened now? 4? Maybe the addition of a pass threat outweighs RD’s trouble of reading the TO. Tired of hearing how JB’s lack of moving the offense is negated by his superior ability to make reads. Soon, we have to look to results. No offense Mike, but you may have analysis paralysis. Elegant losing is worse than ugly wins.
Our offense was terrible. Blocking was abysmal, but our idea of misdirection is take Kettani out and hand it off to Campbell. I don’t have the answer, but offensively this year we are as bad as we’ve been since 2002. This game was close only because ND called off the dogs in the 4th quarter and almost got bit.
Dobbs may not be the answer – when no one blocks it doesn’t matter who plays QB. But really – JBs throws look like wounded ducks. And ND was sending the kitchen sink every play. Most of our running plays had no chance.
At least Dobbs seems to give BOTH the Offense and Defense a spark – if you look at the ends of the SMU, Temple and Notre Dame games – its so obvious – he deserves a chance and if he doesnt start at N. Illinois there will be trouble on the Severn River. We gave away a chance today which we don’t often get …
For this season I think Dobbs is the answer – Kaipo still gives us the best chance to win IF he is healthy but since he isn’t and probably won’t be until at least Army – lets let the younster be ready for the bowl, the Spring practice and The HORSESHOE! Since they say he doesnt practice well – he certainly seems OK in the games – let him “practice” on the field … please
One last one – Hey Navy86 – who would you play at QB? Zingler or one of the plebes? Just checking – Dobbs gives us the best chance to win – PERIOD – results are what counts -reads to the wrong side – whatever the kid makes things happen …
No way Weis called off the dogs early…let’s not give him too much credit. He’s an abysmal coach and his team shows nowhere near the heart they should. I am so happy to be a Navy fan even after the loss today witnessing what I did in the last 4 minutes. The look of anguish on the faces of ND fans in the stadium after the win were priceless…they’re stuck with a shell of a team, a shell of a coach and they know it.
Also, kudos to the Brigade for when the rains came and ND was driving up 27-7, they turned it into a raucous scene down in their endzone. I’m glad I was there to see that spirit even in the face of certain defeat. Just wish the monsoon came at the start of the 3rd quarter.
Great D in 1st half. Very proud. Seems obvious, JB loaths the third option. Does it once in 1st half and TD. At least twice more it was there but took second option. Cant pass. O line weaknesses can sometimes be overcome with good execution of all three options. Does anyone want to run hard on kickoffs? Is RD not in because coach N thinks he is a bad practice player?! This is not practice. Great effort by all today.
there were a lot of things that went wrong in the game. the offensive line couldn’t block 3rd graders, the coaches didnt make play calling adjustments until the touchdown drive in the 2nd quarter(then went back to the same playcalling until late in the game), NEITHER quarterback made the right reads(jb and rd missed pitch reads that would’ve resulted in runs of at least 30 yards), we dont pass until it’s obvious we’re passing(listen to me saying we’re…guess i’m becoming a bigger navy fan by the week), and, did i mention, the line didnt block a soul. it was enough to make me, as a former olineman and oline coach sick to my stomach. they were slow off the ball. they didnt know what notre dame was doing. they were timid. they wouldnt have run for 300 against air blocking that way. the coaches need to put a lot of this on them. there’s very little creative play-calling this year. but, i have confidence coach jasper will get better with experience. the positives were the 2 onside kicks, the defense played very well(they couldnt be expected to hold up they way they did), and the way the team fought til the end(even though weis had a lot to do with that), and winning the turnover battle is good(would’ve been great if we won). i’m expected better play in these last 3 games, including the bowl game.
I have been reading your blog all season. You are so good in your analysis I worry that you must be the first place opposing defensive coordinators go on Saturday afternoons after they finish one game and start getting ready for Navy! Seriously, I think you may be giving out a little too much information. I think the world of Jarod and he has come in and provided a spark when we needed it but it was clear after the first series of the 3d Quarter that the Offense was not going anywhere. Ricky has proved he can provide that spark, so waiting to go to him was not good. When you are down 27-7 and your defense is getting run all over the field you need to make a change. So what if Ricky fizzles (which he didn’t for the 4th game in a row), he is the future. Give him so game time and who knows!
Semper Fi
the thing is this, it was a game that provided everyone with the team a learning experience. they now see how much work they need. i think overall this has been a very successful year considering what the team has gone through. it’s just frustrating to see so many missed chances. the players and coaches can’t allow so many chances to get by. another problem were the penalties. when you start the game at 1st and 15 you could be in trouble. but it’s so easy to judge and say that on here. it’s easy for me to say what the problems are when im a fan(fan’s are never wrong anyway ha ha)
At this point in te season I’d have to say this team doesn’t need ‘learning experiences’, not that they learned much from this game they didn’t already know.
they always need learning experiences. how else is ricky dobbs going to learn how to play in a game? everytime you play a game you can take something out of it. yes, you can take learning experiences out of any game no matter the time of the season. i think we as fans may have put too high of expectations on them. they’re obviously very weak in a lot of areas. and maybe everyone, including myself, should’ve seen that from the start. buyt again, you can always use learning experiences. not just the players, but the coaches as well. 1st year head coach. 1st year offensive coordinator. you think they’re not receiving on the job training(borrowing a debate expression)? they seem to be playing it very safe, very conservative. they’ll learn to take more chances.
I don’t get it Mike. They were trying to score to make it 34-7 with under 10:00 minutes. The next time they went for it on fourth and four to put the nail in our coffin, not because they felt sorry for us. There was no calling off the dogs. You are wrong on this one.
We have always struggled to move the ball against Notre Dame. Our best team, the 10-2 team, couldn’t get a first down against them at the Meadowlands. This team has played a much much tougher schedule.
I took your statement to mean something different than you intended then.
However, if every game provides a team with a learning experience, then isn’t the statement that a particular game provided them with a ‘learning experience’ a tad vacuous?
I thought your intent was to soften the loss with the old ‘good effort, we learned something’ talk. This is the 10th game this team has played, I seriously doubt they learned any more about how much work they need from this game than they didn’t know going in. It certainly isn’t a surprise to them that they have issues blocking on the offensive line.
Navy is what it is. A group of hard working kids who play teams with more physical talent than they have almost every week. The only way they win is if they play mistake free football. They didn’t today, they paid the price for it. I’m not big on ‘feel good’ talk after a loss.
My first CO had a sign over his desk that read “Don’t tell me how hard you tried. tell me what you got done.”
They were cycling in the second team, and were playing the second team defense when we made it 27-14. When you’re putting in the backups, you’re calling off the dogs. I don’t think it matters that much either way.
Putting in the second team isn’t calling off the dogs. The second team played a lot for both teams all day (it is called depth). ND didn’t call off the dogs. 150Punts hit the nail on the head.
Agreed, but I don’t put that down to any magnanimous gesture on Weiss’ part. I think he was more interested in getting his younger kids some experience. It almost bit him.
I get a kick out of people who talk about the fact that ‘Navy never quit’, like it is something unusual. It isn’t. It’s expected. No Naval Officer should understand the meaning of the word quit, in fact, it that should be added to Plebe ‘rates’ as the 2nd question they are allowed to respond with “I don’t know, Sir” — that being “What does quit mean?”
The one thing I was curious about was running so many QB draws before we had completed any passes. Seems to me you have to establish the pass threat a little more before QB draws will work.
Mike, help me here — I watched nearly all of the game but missed the Navy scoring drive at the end of the 2nd Q. (Had to go watch my kid’s b-ball game.) Followed that scoring drive on the Blackberry.
Can you tell me what adjustments were made for that drive? Up to this point, it seemed that plays were falling apart quickly and that the O line was having some trouble executing the correct blocks. (May have been missed reads; I don’t know.) But it seemed that something had been done to correct the situation for this drive.
I a little surprised at the condesending attitude by some towards people who think with Kaipo out Ricky should be our QB. Ricky makes mistakes and misses reads but he also makes plays. His leg drive and arm often allows him to make something out of nothing. Its obvious the team responds to him.
IMHO I believe we would have won this game with him starting. JB plays hard and has done an OK job managing the games he played but doesn’t have the ability of RD. RD has moved and inspired the team. I’m not looking for us to turn RD into Gabriel @ Hawaii
and throw twenty five TDS like GG did With PJ as his OC. RD deserves to start because he’s outplayed JB KN played it safe and went back to his senior captain.
Now he admits that RD deserves to start. That’s the way it should be since RD has earned it.
i hate moral victory speaches. i hate when people tell me they tried hard but the end result was a loss. i agree, if they are to win they have to play mistake free football. i should also say that as a team they need to start applying the things they should be learning. sometimes, it’s just not that simple. i’ve coached. i know that sometimes it takes a year for a player to develop into the kind of player that the team needs. that doesnt mean i want to hear any excuses from him. by the 10th game of the year, the players should be coming together a little better than they are. but they will get it. i refuse to believe anything else. i’ve also learned from playing and coaching, the ONLY thing that can soften the blow after a loss like this is to get back to work and win the next game.
you cant just run a draw on passing situations when the defense knows it’s only going to be a draw. the number of draws called was odd. not sure i understood that. i would’ve liked to have seen more playaction passes and maybe some belly dives off of the sweep. that might have given those fast flowing linebackers from notre dame some problems. the scoring drive in the 2nd quarter was the result of good reads, good blocking(washington’s block on safety on td run), and good play calling. they sent the fullback on a midline type play where he was designed to cutback to take advantage of the fast flowing defense. the problem is, when the line(in particular the center and both guards) blocks as poorly as they did then it doesnt matter what you call, you’re in trouble.
Hey Navy86 – I”m glad you find my comments funny and surmise that I needed help to write my comments but you didn’t even have the courage to answer my question … who would you play at QB? We already know who Coach Ken played but I asked for your esteemed opinion. I’m also so glad that you have never questioned a coaches decision … glad that no one would question Golden’s decision not to kick the field goal in OT last week and put pressure on a young QB? Or not taking a knee and punting us deep with that same aforementioned young QB more with less than 10 seconds to go more than 80 yards …. such blind faith teaching that you seem to have acquired at USNA thankfully must have been removed from the curriculum for us youthful (and obviously illiterate) graduates from 1990. Go Navy – Beat N. Illinois
PS – Before anyone over-reacts my note is to be taken in the spirit which it wad written – in jest!
Let’s face it, if Ricky Dobbs had been in the ENTIRE game, Navy would have WON this game. Navy’s blocking can certainly be better, but we are too one-dimensional without a TO QB that can properly read and execute. ND flooded the line and we could and there is no way any o-line can overcome that unless you can put the ball in the air with some play-action. Dobbs, would have been able to accomplish this and we could have then properly establish the running game. Think about what really won the game for us last year. It was Kaipo’s ability to pass at the rignt time and surprise the ND defense and back them off at least to the point where we could employ our ground game. PUT DOBBS IN NOW as he gives us the most versatility and gives us a chance to WIN these games. Let’s get the Dobbs era going now. We would have WON this game if he started or at least came in in the second quarter……
Notre Dame, by the way, had defenders in the secondary keyed on the Navy slotbacks, QB and fullbacks all day. You could see when we passed how we clearly broke away and beat the secondary every time. All we needed were some strong passes early on to back ND off the running game, and then we could have established our fullback. Dobbs should start for one reason alone, he is the only QB who can pass effectivel, and we need the passing at this point as we do not have a Kaipo-type quarterback who can effectively run the TO. Without that we are completely predictable. I only saw one or two TO reads that were truly effective yesterday. Everything else was predictable.
I think it’s a stretch to make that claim. No one knows what defenses ND would have employed against Dobbs nor what plays Navy would have gone with.
While I agree that if Kaipo can’t go (and most likely he can’t), then Dobbs should get the start against NI, I can’t go along with the ‘if Dobbs was in we would have beaten ND’.
My thinking for Dobbs is a hard one. I think we have an equal chance to win with Dobbs or JB, and, since JB is a Senior, we won’t have him next year, so it’s time to get Dobbs the game exp with the option he needs. With Ohio State as our first game instead of Towson, I’d hate to see Dobbs trying to work the option in that first game.
I think JB is a great kid and will make a fine Naval/Marine Officer and, if he was clearly better than Dobbs then he would get my vote to start, but, in my opinion at least, he is not clearly better than Dobbs, so you go with your future.
Mike,
What’s your thought on the defense in the 2nd half? They looked gassed to me and I’m guessing that is a direct result of the offense’s inability to move the ball and keep the ND offense off the field in the first half. ND unfortunately beat us at our own game – power running and ball/clock control in the 2nd half. QB controversy not withstanding – our ability to execute was not there with the exception of our scoring drive. I saw the same frustration in the slotbacks – one play in particular sticks out in my head where JB turned up the field on a TO play and got crushed by 3 ND defenders and Shun White was hopping up and down. He was wide open for a pitch and had a clear running lane.
All our QBs miss reads……but sometimes it is the reads you miss that matter most. We had the SB open for big yards at least twice and JB turned up for 3 yds. Those were 20+ yard plays at worst. And yes the open frustration level of the SB was pretty obvious. My ND buddy I was sitting with who hadn’t seen Navy play all year noted it several times.
All I can say is that if ever a bunch of good kids deserved one of those moments that we all see and dream of -the “Hail Mary Miracle” game ending winning pass where insanity on the field ensues?
Yeah I know but………..oh well Mike knows me as the ultimate dreamer and unrealist and guilty as charged.
From reality RD does look like we will be in good hands for the next few years at QB and I feel better about that.
Yet I will not let 2 minutes of incredible stuff cloud me too much however doesnt it look like we may be able to work some passing into our game plan next year?
Lets face it in some games we are going to have to try better and set up running success by passing the ball on earlier downs.
I was told by someone that on one particular play JB was trying to twist and turn a nothing run while a player was almost asking for him to pitch it to him and there was about 30 yards clear if he had.
Last year JB got away with turning it up. Other teams have figured that out and bunch it up inside the hashes just as ND did yesterday. It’s hard to block all of them in there. It wasn’t pretty but I am happy to see the never quit attitude. Move JB to the slot where they were planning on having him at the start of the year.
@Greg: Hey Navy86 – you didn’t even have the courage to answer my question … who would you play at QB?
I see reading comprehension was definitely dropped from the curriculum (or expectations) at USNA after I left, since I posted this in response to your question: I’d play who the coaches think gives them the best chance to win because THAT’S THEIR JOB.
It’s not my place to second guess coaches because I don’t have the level of information to make that decision that they do. Unless you’re at practice every day, then I don’t think you do either.
such blind faith teaching that you seem to have acquired at USNA thankfully must have been removed from the curriculum for us youthful (and obviously illiterate) graduates from 1990
Well, at least you got the illiterate part right….
Sure it’s blind faith – I have faith that people do the jobs that they’re expected to do. Must be hell on you to constantly have to do everyone else’s job to your satisfaction. How DO you ever find the time to sleep?
Navy86 – You have zero sense of humor, and are obviously in the tank for coaches everywhere – I guess that is admirable but it must be so hard for you in life to be so confident in everyone doing their jobs. Lets change the discussion to see if you think referees always make the right decisions and hopefully that will show you how silly you actually sound. I know that “silly” is a small word but since I have small children and you seem so immature in this forum, I thought it would be appropriate – SMILE
Just got home from the home opener in Hoops – nice win for the mids! Seems like we’ve been practicing foul shots and Navy86 you’ll be happy to know that I agreed with EVERYTHING that Billy did.
PS – I think coach Ken is a FANTASTIC coach and terrific for USNA. I just think its time for Ricky Dobbs to start and I’ll bet you lunch that he agrees with ME at Northern Illinois!
Changing the subject and looking ahead….
I believe the last three teams in the ACC are now Clemson (3-4 & 5-5), NC State (2-4, 4-6), and Duke (1-5, 4-6). I think that each will have to win their last two games to become bowl eligable. (Clemson has victories over Citadel and South Carolina State and I think they can only use one of those to meet the six wins for a bowl game.) Clemson’s schedule is VA and SC. NC State is NC and Miami. Duke is Va Tech and NC. There’s a very good chance that all three will NOT become bowl eligable. There are four teams with a 3-3 ACC record – BC (with a 7-3 overall – Wake & MD to play), NC (also 7-3 – NC St & Duke to play), Va Tech (6-4 – Duke and VA to play) and VA (5-5 – Clemson and Va Tech to play). We will know more after next week but it looks like we have a good shot at either VA of Va Tech in the EagleBank Bowl.
my guess is the opponent will be virginia. i dont think va tech will be there, but i could be wrong. i think there are 6 teams that could still wind up winning the acc. i may be wrong, but not by much. whoever it is could have an advantage that most teams dont have having played against the offense against georgia tech. but my guess is virginia.
Wait, now you’re saying referees = coaches? And I’m the one being silly?
EVERYONE knows referees get nothing right. Jeez, are you sure you graduated from (let alone got into) USNA?
(how’s THAT for a sense of humor!)
(BTW, I have a great, sarcastic sense of humor, but it’s beat down by all the morons currently inhabiting GoMids. And sarcasm, which I’ve sprayed liberally upon you in this thread, fails to come through much in the written word.)
Rob a – I agree with your “guess” and Virginia would be a good opponent (except for the fact that they have played and beaten Georgia Tech). We still face the possibility that VA will lose to both Clemson and Va Tech and thus not be bowl eligable and that Clemson will beat Va but lose to South Carolina and not be bowl eligable. If Duke and NC State fail to win BOTH of their remaining two games, the ACC would only have 8 eligable teams. Since EagleBank has the 9th selection, we would be looking at the MAC. Then we are looking at Buffalo, Bowling Green, Akron, or even N. Illinois. We need to hope that VA wins at least one more game or Clemson wins two. At least I think that’s what could happen.
i dont want to see a mac team. i know there are good mac teams but i would like a chance to play and beat a team from the acc(even if the conference has no real good teams). i’ll be honest, i dont really care who the opponent is. i just want the team to win the game.
Navy86 – Come on now – I must have finally gotten to you a little bit – LOL – I was hoping to provide you with one more sarcastic comment … to try to get you to at least tell me (in your opinion) who you’d start at QB next week …
We had 5 basic responses: Yes sir, No sir, No excuse sir, I’ll find out sir, No excuse sir.
I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!”
Now thats funny right there – sad with the accent of Larry the Cable guy.
Navy86 – Come on now – I must have finally gotten to you a little bit – LOL – I was hoping to provide you with one more sarcastic comment … to try to get you to at least tell me (in your opinion) who you’d start at QB next week …
We had 5 basic responses: Yes sir, No sir, No excuse sir, I’ll find out sir, No excuse sir.
I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!”
Now thats funny right there – sad with the accent of Larry the Cable guy.
IMPORTANT NOTE TO ALL – We need to collectively get moving buying and encouraging others to buy tickets for the bowl
Your post really wasn’t funny enough to post twice. However, your comment – I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!” – would have merit if you weren’t so junior to me.
(and it would be “additional” not “addition”) – LOL
Fair enough – jelly in the keyboard and I got busssssted for my typos and stuck keys – LOL – I’m taking your response that you agree with me and think Ricky deserves the start. Yes I do agree that you are MUCH older and “senior” to me too!
I did go read some of the stuff on gomids per your comments and agree that its a bit out there but I’ve been at EVERY Navy football game for 5+ years – yes flown to Stanford, ND, UConn (boy that was a fun one), AF etc – and as a loyal fan who hates to see this offense struggle so mightliy I think we need a change – I was on the JB bandwagon 2 years ago in the Spring game (in the rain) but now I’m ready for the future.
Too bad Dobbs wasn’t in the whole game … I’ll take a winner with heart over showing loyalty to someone who continues to not do their job, which is all you expect someone to do, correct?
What is wrong with being in the Dobbs brigade? If it weren’t for so many injuries to Kaipo we wouldn’t be the “Dobbs brigade” anyway. But come on everyone, the end of the last three games don’t lie to us. As I’ve said before – I’ve been to EVERY game and see the offense getting more and more stagnant and predictible. We dont move the ball as well as we used to – we are playing better opponents but it seems as if we can’t even get a first down much of the time. If it weren’t for special teams at AF, defense (and Kaipo in the first half) at Wake and poor coaching by Golden (and Ricky too of course) we would be sitting here at 3-7 and have already lost the CIC. I hope all of you went to the coaches luncheon this week and heard coaches comments about the QB’s – he did say that RD doesnt make good decisions in practice and is slower and not as strong in practice but we’ve all seen what he does with the game on the line – all of you who think its terrible that there are contrary opinions out there should look in the mirror – None of us are calling for the coaches job or anything foolish like that but we are making what little noise we can to highlight that we enjoy and appreciate Ricky’s energy. Do all of you remember that Ricky threw and INT right when he came in and won the Temple game? Did any of us question whether we should have pitched the ball to Reggie Campbell a couple years ago with so little time left in the bowl game? Heck in this era of political correctness, isn’t this what we are supposed to be doing? I’m with you Willy – I think if Dobbs plays the entire game we win by double digits – wait before you all jump on me – think about it – we get 3 turnovers against ND and ZERO points and still go in at half down by 3 … CRAZY (yes we wouldn’t have been punting if I had to predict either thus ND’s confidence would have been even more hurt than it already was). They also wouldn’t have been able to sit back and use that HUGE line to run against us because they would be down by too much to run ….
Ricky Dobbs = The Intangible. Is he guaranteed to never go three and out? No. Is he guaranteed to make the all the right reads? Nope. So why, pray tell, do I feel just a little better when he has the helm? I love what JB has done for us, but I just have this dirty, ugly feeling that we’re “settling” for him at QB.
This season is by no means over, but let’s face it, we are starting to think about 2009 more and more (admit it.). I think we stand a great chance of going 3-0 for the rest of the year with Ricky (regardless of the bowl game opponent).
There is one huge difference between last year and this year – the offense was humming when Kaipo was running it, so JB coming in and doing well was icing on the cake and no reason to put Kaipo on the bench.
This year the offense has been very inconsistent with JB starting….some games “inconsistent” is being very kind. So when Dobbs comes in and we start scoring TDs, there is a big difference.
For you guys that think JB should still start – he is ten games into his senior year……what has he shown this year that indicates anything but wishful thinking that he is going to bust out?
The question is “is this it? Or can it get any better?” JB has had enough opportunities to show whether it will get any better on his watch. Dobbs has showed enough that he has, in my opinion, earned a start.
This recognizes that the O line is not as good as last year, and the play calling is more vanilla….for whatever reason. The O line guys rotate in and out, getting a chance to earn their spot in game situations. Dobbs has earned his spot, too.
For me this has nothing to do with 2009. JB has just not performed
Mike I wasn’t watching gomids or this forum back then so I can only say I believe you. But I still think this year is dfferent than last year. It was a good thing with Kaipo #1 and JB coming in relief when necessary. Clearly last year the offense “hummed” with unprecedented success, no matter what was said at the time. Not so this year. I realize the reason goes deeper than QB, but I think we are past the “OMG Dobbs isn’t ready” stage. He’s ready enough. He’ll make mistakes and screw up, but he’ll make some plays, too. JB hasn’t made many plays this year.
And my previous post got cut off – should have added “JB has just not performed as well as anyone hoped, himelf included I bet.”
I still think he is a great athlete and credit to USNA and the program. It is just time to give Dobbs a shot.
Provided I am new to the site, but I do not know a single person who thought Bryant should have been starting over Kaipo.
I do not think the RD movement is not an indictment of JB as much as it is a sign of frustration with the overall offense. We (the fans) have been spoiled by years of “well oiled machines” and we didn’t expect to see 8 punts in a season let alone a game. If JB was playing with Meek and Harper in front and Zerb and Reggie in back, we might not be having this conversation.
It’s not about who is the better QB, but who gives the offense a better chance to succeed. I think the answer is RD, but we have a rookie coach with o-line issues and a leaky yet opportunistic defense. I can understand how, for the past two games, JB was the “safe” pick. However, with a bowl bid secured and 2 games coming up against less than stellar opponents, it’s probably time to give the kid a chance.
Afraid your math is off. I’m in the Dobbs brigade and I was NEVER interested in seeing JB start over Kaipo.
As I said before, I think (and it isn’t apparently what the coaches think) that the difference between Dobbs and JB is not great. JB is a Senior with 3 games left. How can you possibly start JB over Dobbs (assuming you buy the near equality). If there is a big difference between JB and Dobbs then oc course you start the guy that gives you the best chance to win, but if they are even/close, then you have to start the younger guy.
Mike is right, many people on gomids wanted to bench Kaipo and start Bryant. Next year at this time it will be bench Dobbs and start (insert freshman name here).
Mike be honest there were one or two guys who felt JB was better than Kaipo on gomids. They were crazy. The Big Stick averaged 39.3 points per game in 2007. JB’s not the same player this year with lesser talent around him. R Dobbs has passed him and more importantly seems to spark the team. He had 3 passes dropped (that one that went to replay was a catch). If Shun didn’t stumble and have that pass skim off his fingers at the 10 we might have won this game against all odds. Ricky deserves to start
73Goat is exactly right –> “The grass is always greener on the bench” … especially when the #1 QB falters any, … or when the #2 guy gets some PT & makes some big plays.
There were a few fans who were calling for JB to be Navy’s QB ever since he came to USNA with the pedigree of being “Mister Alabama Football” from prestigious Hoover H.S. –> The vast majority were not. That being said, … comparing last season’s Offensive success, & the performance “delta” between Kaipo & JB is not even close to the situation we have witnessed thusfar on the gridiron. To judge that those fans calling for RD to be taking the helm behind center as “complainers” is short-sighted/irresponsible. Just my opinion.
Comparing Kaipo/Bryant last year to Bryant/Dobbs this year is madness. Kaipo is the best quarterback that we’ve seen to run this offense (at navy). Sure, Bryant may have come in in relief every now and then. So naturally, there were Kaipo detractors. But by and large, the offense was rolling with Kaipo – Pitt, ND, AF, ect….(did Kaipo actually get benched last year or did Bryant come in b/c Kaipo was hurt) This year, Bryant has been completely ineffective running the offense.
He’s not great at reading the option, he is an ineffective passer and he generally doesn’t make plays. Even if Dobbs makes mistakes, I’d argue that he makes no more mistakes than Bryant, yet he is a play maker with whom the coaches can open things up a little bit. Make no mistake about it…we can’t beat the elite teams without passing the ball and opening up the offense. With Bryant, an entire aspect of the offense is down the tube.
from two sport letter winner in 60’s re. senior vs underclassman. I know another era…but both my coaches told us every practice that if we could not clearly beat out a 3rd or 2nd classman(no freshman allowed due to NCAA), we were riding the pines. Did I think it was “fair” ? no! Did I think it was subtle motivation? maybe? Did I think the coaches cared about my, fans or press feelings? absolutely not! Did Admiral care? no only about record of team. Go with RD.
Yikes…all the negativity is killing me. Navy is still 6-4 though with just a minute left I thought they could get a second onside kick not because of anything I saw (I’m not that good) but faith that Navy could pull it out…one pass spells the difference and with mis-reads, mis-blocks, mis-assignments, Dobbs lights a friggin bonfire under the backsides and the team and FANS respond…nuff said…hope he starts and gains some much, much needed game speed experience before OSU. Fo that reason, he should be starting the next game.
I wish Kaipo was healthy but he’s not. JB may have all the skills but the fire doesn’t seem to be there. Trying Dobbs won’t make it any worse and at least JB is man enough to come in to back up if needed.
The Birddog 
Charlie’s not going to call off the dogs next year…
Almost but not quite
Back to the same old story
Against Notre Dame
Here they come again
Start Dobbs! It’s only practice!
Why does my head hurt?
First half defense nice
JB, RD, nice; Harmon’s
Kicks not enough though.
(This following proper form sucks) ;)
The rain came a quarter too late and so did RD…not sure earlier rain would have made much of a difference…but am sure Ricky Dobbs could have.
Notre Dame’s O-Line
Established the running game.
Navy D was crushed.
1st half D was great
o-line can’t block a bed sheet
weis let us back in
seriously, 7 points off of 3 turnovers and 3 punts was terrible
we were only in this game because weis called off the dogs. “those people” who think RD is the cure-all are seriously retarded and need to go back and watch the game focusing on nothing but o-line blocking
we were only in this game because weis called off the dogs. “those people” who think RD is the cure-all are seriously retarded and need to go back and watch the game focusing on nothing but o-line blocking
I think I’ve read that somewhere before. :-)
I’m not going to say that I would’ve felt bad if we won, because obviously I wouldn’t. But part of me would’ve felt a little uneasy knowing that Weis was just trying to show some sportsmanship.
Looks like another 40 years
We run to damn much
Against better teams – we lose.
Haiku or not-throw the ball when you are IN the game not when its over.
YES! “PASS MORE” MAKES ITS WAY TO THE BIRDDOG! THE CIRCLE IS COMPLETE!
Go one for thirteen
on third down, expect to ride
aboard the FAILROAD
RD comes into games and we score when higher QB on depth chart couldn’t do anything for the three prior quarters. How many games has this happened now? 4? Maybe the addition of a pass threat outweighs RD’s trouble of reading the TO. Tired of hearing how JB’s lack of moving the offense is negated by his superior ability to make reads. Soon, we have to look to results. No offense Mike, but you may have analysis paralysis. Elegant losing is worse than ugly wins.
i tried 86…i tried to come back to the board and enjoy the game thread
the good news is that i’m more angry at the OMFG RD WINNAR! fans than I am bummed about the loss
so at least I have that going for me
oh, and I’m a friend of the birddog on facebook now, so I feel loved
oh, and I’m a friend of the birddog on facebook now, so I feel loved
Welcome to the club. What took you so long?
Calling for RD? Who beat Wake? Wake is a significantly better team then ND.
Mike,
Would Kaipo have made a difference or was our line just getting beat too bad?
The first half was great
Last two minutes amazing
Forget all the rest
No blockee = no winnee.
Our offense was terrible. Blocking was abysmal, but our idea of misdirection is take Kettani out and hand it off to Campbell. I don’t have the answer, but offensively this year we are as bad as we’ve been since 2002. This game was close only because ND called off the dogs in the 4th quarter and almost got bit.
Dobbs may not be the answer – when no one blocks it doesn’t matter who plays QB. But really – JBs throws look like wounded ducks. And ND was sending the kitchen sink every play. Most of our running plays had no chance.
At least Dobbs seems to give BOTH the Offense and Defense a spark – if you look at the ends of the SMU, Temple and Notre Dame games – its so obvious – he deserves a chance and if he doesnt start at N. Illinois there will be trouble on the Severn River. We gave away a chance today which we don’t often get …
PS – The onsides kicks were AMAZING
For this season I think Dobbs is the answer – Kaipo still gives us the best chance to win IF he is healthy but since he isn’t and probably won’t be until at least Army – lets let the younster be ready for the bowl, the Spring practice and The HORSESHOE! Since they say he doesnt practice well – he certainly seems OK in the games – let him “practice” on the field … please
One last one – Hey Navy86 – who would you play at QB? Zingler or one of the plebes? Just checking – Dobbs gives us the best chance to win – PERIOD – results are what counts -reads to the wrong side – whatever the kid makes things happen …
One last one – Hey Navy86 – who would you play at QB? Zingler or one of the plebes?
A-HAHAHA good one. Did you write that yourself or did you have help?
I’d play who the coaches think gives them the best chance to win because THAT’S THEIR JOB.
No way Weis called off the dogs early…let’s not give him too much credit. He’s an abysmal coach and his team shows nowhere near the heart they should. I am so happy to be a Navy fan even after the loss today witnessing what I did in the last 4 minutes. The look of anguish on the faces of ND fans in the stadium after the win were priceless…they’re stuck with a shell of a team, a shell of a coach and they know it.
Also, kudos to the Brigade for when the rains came and ND was driving up 27-7, they turned it into a raucous scene down in their endzone. I’m glad I was there to see that spirit even in the face of certain defeat. Just wish the monsoon came at the start of the 3rd quarter.
Oh, and put in Dobbs.
Great D in 1st half. Very proud. Seems obvious, JB loaths the third option. Does it once in 1st half and TD. At least twice more it was there but took second option. Cant pass. O line weaknesses can sometimes be overcome with good execution of all three options. Does anyone want to run hard on kickoffs? Is RD not in because coach N thinks he is a bad practice player?! This is not practice. Great effort by all today.
there were a lot of things that went wrong in the game. the offensive line couldn’t block 3rd graders, the coaches didnt make play calling adjustments until the touchdown drive in the 2nd quarter(then went back to the same playcalling until late in the game), NEITHER quarterback made the right reads(jb and rd missed pitch reads that would’ve resulted in runs of at least 30 yards), we dont pass until it’s obvious we’re passing(listen to me saying we’re…guess i’m becoming a bigger navy fan by the week), and, did i mention, the line didnt block a soul. it was enough to make me, as a former olineman and oline coach sick to my stomach. they were slow off the ball. they didnt know what notre dame was doing. they were timid. they wouldnt have run for 300 against air blocking that way. the coaches need to put a lot of this on them. there’s very little creative play-calling this year. but, i have confidence coach jasper will get better with experience. the positives were the 2 onside kicks, the defense played very well(they couldnt be expected to hold up they way they did), and the way the team fought til the end(even though weis had a lot to do with that), and winning the turnover battle is good(would’ve been great if we won). i’m expected better play in these last 3 games, including the bowl game.
I have been reading your blog all season. You are so good in your analysis I worry that you must be the first place opposing defensive coordinators go on Saturday afternoons after they finish one game and start getting ready for Navy! Seriously, I think you may be giving out a little too much information. I think the world of Jarod and he has come in and provided a spark when we needed it but it was clear after the first series of the 3d Quarter that the Offense was not going anywhere. Ricky has proved he can provide that spark, so waiting to go to him was not good. When you are down 27-7 and your defense is getting run all over the field you need to make a change. So what if Ricky fizzles (which he didn’t for the 4th game in a row), he is the future. Give him so game time and who knows!
Semper Fi
the thing is this, it was a game that provided everyone with the team a learning experience. they now see how much work they need. i think overall this has been a very successful year considering what the team has gone through. it’s just frustrating to see so many missed chances. the players and coaches can’t allow so many chances to get by. another problem were the penalties. when you start the game at 1st and 15 you could be in trouble. but it’s so easy to judge and say that on here. it’s easy for me to say what the problems are when im a fan(fan’s are never wrong anyway ha ha)
blocking………hello, blocking?
rob,
At this point in te season I’d have to say this team doesn’t need ‘learning experiences’, not that they learned much from this game they didn’t already know.
they always need learning experiences. how else is ricky dobbs going to learn how to play in a game? everytime you play a game you can take something out of it. yes, you can take learning experiences out of any game no matter the time of the season. i think we as fans may have put too high of expectations on them. they’re obviously very weak in a lot of areas. and maybe everyone, including myself, should’ve seen that from the start. buyt again, you can always use learning experiences. not just the players, but the coaches as well. 1st year head coach. 1st year offensive coordinator. you think they’re not receiving on the job training(borrowing a debate expression)? they seem to be playing it very safe, very conservative. they’ll learn to take more chances.
not trying to sound negative. there are 3 more games left and i expect the team to overcome, make the right adjustments, and take care of business.
I don’t get it Mike. They were trying to score to make it 34-7 with under 10:00 minutes. The next time they went for it on fourth and four to put the nail in our coffin, not because they felt sorry for us. There was no calling off the dogs. You are wrong on this one.
150Punts-You are spot on.
We have always struggled to move the ball against Notre Dame. Our best team, the 10-2 team, couldn’t get a first down against them at the Meadowlands. This team has played a much much tougher schedule.
Rob,
I took your statement to mean something different than you intended then.
However, if every game provides a team with a learning experience, then isn’t the statement that a particular game provided them with a ‘learning experience’ a tad vacuous?
I thought your intent was to soften the loss with the old ‘good effort, we learned something’ talk. This is the 10th game this team has played, I seriously doubt they learned any more about how much work they need from this game than they didn’t know going in. It certainly isn’t a surprise to them that they have issues blocking on the offensive line.
Navy is what it is. A group of hard working kids who play teams with more physical talent than they have almost every week. The only way they win is if they play mistake free football. They didn’t today, they paid the price for it. I’m not big on ‘feel good’ talk after a loss.
My first CO had a sign over his desk that read “Don’t tell me how hard you tried. tell me what you got done.”
They didn’t get the job done. End of story.
They were cycling in the second team, and were playing the second team defense when we made it 27-14. When you’re putting in the backups, you’re calling off the dogs. I don’t think it matters that much either way.
Putting in the second team isn’t calling off the dogs. The second team played a lot for both teams all day (it is called depth). ND didn’t call off the dogs. 150Punts hit the nail on the head.
Mike,
Agreed, but I don’t put that down to any magnanimous gesture on Weiss’ part. I think he was more interested in getting his younger kids some experience. It almost bit him.
I get a kick out of people who talk about the fact that ‘Navy never quit’, like it is something unusual. It isn’t. It’s expected. No Naval Officer should understand the meaning of the word quit, in fact, it that should be added to Plebe ‘rates’ as the 2nd question they are allowed to respond with “I don’t know, Sir” — that being “What does quit mean?”
Rotating guys in for a few plays isn’t the same as putting in your second string quarterback and defensive unit.
The one thing I was curious about was running so many QB draws before we had completed any passes. Seems to me you have to establish the pass threat a little more before QB draws will work.
No, you just have to be in a passing situation.
Mike, help me here — I watched nearly all of the game but missed the Navy scoring drive at the end of the 2nd Q. (Had to go watch my kid’s b-ball game.) Followed that scoring drive on the Blackberry.
Can you tell me what adjustments were made for that drive? Up to this point, it seemed that plays were falling apart quickly and that the O line was having some trouble executing the correct blocks. (May have been missed reads; I don’t know.) But it seemed that something had been done to correct the situation for this drive.
I a little surprised at the condesending attitude by some towards people who think with Kaipo out Ricky should be our QB. Ricky makes mistakes and misses reads but he also makes plays. His leg drive and arm often allows him to make something out of nothing. Its obvious the team responds to him.
IMHO I believe we would have won this game with him starting. JB plays hard and has done an OK job managing the games he played but doesn’t have the ability of RD. RD has moved and inspired the team. I’m not looking for us to turn RD into Gabriel @ Hawaii
and throw twenty five TDS like GG did With PJ as his OC. RD deserves to start because he’s outplayed JB KN played it safe and went back to his senior captain.
Now he admits that RD deserves to start. That’s the way it should be since RD has earned it.
blocking…..period.
73goat,
i hate moral victory speaches. i hate when people tell me they tried hard but the end result was a loss. i agree, if they are to win they have to play mistake free football. i should also say that as a team they need to start applying the things they should be learning. sometimes, it’s just not that simple. i’ve coached. i know that sometimes it takes a year for a player to develop into the kind of player that the team needs. that doesnt mean i want to hear any excuses from him. by the 10th game of the year, the players should be coming together a little better than they are. but they will get it. i refuse to believe anything else. i’ve also learned from playing and coaching, the ONLY thing that can soften the blow after a loss like this is to get back to work and win the next game.
you cant just run a draw on passing situations when the defense knows it’s only going to be a draw. the number of draws called was odd. not sure i understood that. i would’ve liked to have seen more playaction passes and maybe some belly dives off of the sweep. that might have given those fast flowing linebackers from notre dame some problems. the scoring drive in the 2nd quarter was the result of good reads, good blocking(washington’s block on safety on td run), and good play calling. they sent the fullback on a midline type play where he was designed to cutback to take advantage of the fast flowing defense. the problem is, when the line(in particular the center and both guards) blocks as poorly as they did then it doesnt matter what you call, you’re in trouble.
Hey Navy86 – I”m glad you find my comments funny and surmise that I needed help to write my comments but you didn’t even have the courage to answer my question … who would you play at QB? We already know who Coach Ken played but I asked for your esteemed opinion. I’m also so glad that you have never questioned a coaches decision … glad that no one would question Golden’s decision not to kick the field goal in OT last week and put pressure on a young QB? Or not taking a knee and punting us deep with that same aforementioned young QB more with less than 10 seconds to go more than 80 yards …. such blind faith teaching that you seem to have acquired at USNA thankfully must have been removed from the curriculum for us youthful (and obviously illiterate) graduates from 1990. Go Navy – Beat N. Illinois
PS – Before anyone over-reacts my note is to be taken in the spirit which it wad written – in jest!
Did anyone notice the open frustration exhibited by some of the slots when JB failed to pitch and ducked in behind Kettani for the upteenth time?
Let’s face it, if Ricky Dobbs had been in the ENTIRE game, Navy would have WON this game. Navy’s blocking can certainly be better, but we are too one-dimensional without a TO QB that can properly read and execute. ND flooded the line and we could and there is no way any o-line can overcome that unless you can put the ball in the air with some play-action. Dobbs, would have been able to accomplish this and we could have then properly establish the running game. Think about what really won the game for us last year. It was Kaipo’s ability to pass at the rignt time and surprise the ND defense and back them off at least to the point where we could employ our ground game. PUT DOBBS IN NOW as he gives us the most versatility and gives us a chance to WIN these games. Let’s get the Dobbs era going now. We would have WON this game if he started or at least came in in the second quarter……
LM,
You mean when one screamed the f word and jerked his helmet straps off on a third down play? Yeah, I noticed. :)
Notre Dame, by the way, had defenders in the secondary keyed on the Navy slotbacks, QB and fullbacks all day. You could see when we passed how we clearly broke away and beat the secondary every time. All we needed were some strong passes early on to back ND off the running game, and then we could have established our fullback. Dobbs should start for one reason alone, he is the only QB who can pass effectivel, and we need the passing at this point as we do not have a Kaipo-type quarterback who can effectively run the TO. Without that we are completely predictable. I only saw one or two TO reads that were truly effective yesterday. Everything else was predictable.
Xavier,
I think it’s a stretch to make that claim. No one knows what defenses ND would have employed against Dobbs nor what plays Navy would have gone with.
While I agree that if Kaipo can’t go (and most likely he can’t), then Dobbs should get the start against NI, I can’t go along with the ‘if Dobbs was in we would have beaten ND’.
My thinking for Dobbs is a hard one. I think we have an equal chance to win with Dobbs or JB, and, since JB is a Senior, we won’t have him next year, so it’s time to get Dobbs the game exp with the option he needs. With Ohio State as our first game instead of Towson, I’d hate to see Dobbs trying to work the option in that first game.
I think JB is a great kid and will make a fine Naval/Marine Officer and, if he was clearly better than Dobbs then he would get my vote to start, but, in my opinion at least, he is not clearly better than Dobbs, so you go with your future.
Mike,
What’s your thought on the defense in the 2nd half? They looked gassed to me and I’m guessing that is a direct result of the offense’s inability to move the ball and keep the ND offense off the field in the first half. ND unfortunately beat us at our own game – power running and ball/clock control in the 2nd half. QB controversy not withstanding – our ability to execute was not there with the exception of our scoring drive. I saw the same frustration in the slotbacks – one play in particular sticks out in my head where JB turned up the field on a TO play and got crushed by 3 ND defenders and Shun White was hopping up and down. He was wide open for a pitch and had a clear running lane.
All our QBs miss reads……but sometimes it is the reads you miss that matter most. We had the SB open for big yards at least twice and JB turned up for 3 yds. Those were 20+ yard plays at worst. And yes the open frustration level of the SB was pretty obvious. My ND buddy I was sitting with who hadn’t seen Navy play all year noted it several times.
All I can say is that if ever a bunch of good kids deserved one of those moments that we all see and dream of -the “Hail Mary Miracle” game ending winning pass where insanity on the field ensues?
Well this was THAT game and that perfect moment.
AMEN!!
I agree but it tough to get back to back miracle wins. The Temple game was also unbelievable.
Yeah I know but………..oh well Mike knows me as the ultimate dreamer and unrealist and guilty as charged.
From reality RD does look like we will be in good hands for the next few years at QB and I feel better about that.
Yet I will not let 2 minutes of incredible stuff cloud me too much however doesnt it look like we may be able to work some passing into our game plan next year?
Lets face it in some games we are going to have to try better and set up running success by passing the ball on earlier downs.
I was told by someone that on one particular play JB was trying to twist and turn a nothing run while a player was almost asking for him to pitch it to him and there was about 30 yards clear if he had.
Last year JB got away with turning it up. Other teams have figured that out and bunch it up inside the hashes just as ND did yesterday. It’s hard to block all of them in there. It wasn’t pretty but I am happy to see the never quit attitude. Move JB to the slot where they were planning on having him at the start of the year.
@Greg:
Hey Navy86 – you didn’t even have the courage to answer my question … who would you play at QB?
I see reading comprehension was definitely dropped from the curriculum (or expectations) at USNA after I left, since I posted this in response to your question: I’d play who the coaches think gives them the best chance to win because THAT’S THEIR JOB.
It’s not my place to second guess coaches because I don’t have the level of information to make that decision that they do. Unless you’re at practice every day, then I don’t think you do either.
such blind faith teaching that you seem to have acquired at USNA thankfully must have been removed from the curriculum for us youthful (and obviously illiterate) graduates from 1990
Well, at least you got the illiterate part right….
Sure it’s blind faith – I have faith that people do the jobs that they’re expected to do. Must be hell on you to constantly have to do everyone else’s job to your satisfaction. How DO you ever find the time to sleep?
Navy86 – You have zero sense of humor, and are obviously in the tank for coaches everywhere – I guess that is admirable but it must be so hard for you in life to be so confident in everyone doing their jobs. Lets change the discussion to see if you think referees always make the right decisions and hopefully that will show you how silly you actually sound. I know that “silly” is a small word but since I have small children and you seem so immature in this forum, I thought it would be appropriate – SMILE
Just got home from the home opener in Hoops – nice win for the mids! Seems like we’ve been practicing foul shots and Navy86 you’ll be happy to know that I agreed with EVERYTHING that Billy did.
PS – I think coach Ken is a FANTASTIC coach and terrific for USNA. I just think its time for Ricky Dobbs to start and I’ll bet you lunch that he agrees with ME at Northern Illinois!
Changing the subject and looking ahead….
I believe the last three teams in the ACC are now Clemson (3-4 & 5-5), NC State (2-4, 4-6), and Duke (1-5, 4-6). I think that each will have to win their last two games to become bowl eligable. (Clemson has victories over Citadel and South Carolina State and I think they can only use one of those to meet the six wins for a bowl game.) Clemson’s schedule is VA and SC. NC State is NC and Miami. Duke is Va Tech and NC. There’s a very good chance that all three will NOT become bowl eligable. There are four teams with a 3-3 ACC record – BC (with a 7-3 overall – Wake & MD to play), NC (also 7-3 – NC St & Duke to play), Va Tech (6-4 – Duke and VA to play) and VA (5-5 – Clemson and Va Tech to play). We will know more after next week but it looks like we have a good shot at either VA of Va Tech in the EagleBank Bowl.
my guess is the opponent will be virginia. i dont think va tech will be there, but i could be wrong. i think there are 6 teams that could still wind up winning the acc. i may be wrong, but not by much. whoever it is could have an advantage that most teams dont have having played against the offense against georgia tech. but my guess is virginia.
@Greg:
Wait, now you’re saying referees = coaches? And I’m the one being silly?
EVERYONE knows referees get nothing right. Jeez, are you sure you graduated from (let alone got into) USNA?
(how’s THAT for a sense of humor!)
(BTW, I have a great, sarcastic sense of humor, but it’s beat down by all the morons currently inhabiting GoMids. And sarcasm, which I’ve sprayed liberally upon you in this thread, fails to come through much in the written word.)
Rob a – I agree with your “guess” and Virginia would be a good opponent (except for the fact that they have played and beaten Georgia Tech). We still face the possibility that VA will lose to both Clemson and Va Tech and thus not be bowl eligable and that Clemson will beat Va but lose to South Carolina and not be bowl eligable. If Duke and NC State fail to win BOTH of their remaining two games, the ACC would only have 8 eligable teams. Since EagleBank has the 9th selection, we would be looking at the MAC. Then we are looking at Buffalo, Bowling Green, Akron, or even N. Illinois. We need to hope that VA wins at least one more game or Clemson wins two. At least I think that’s what could happen.
i dont want to see a mac team. i know there are good mac teams but i would like a chance to play and beat a team from the acc(even if the conference has no real good teams). i’ll be honest, i dont really care who the opponent is. i just want the team to win the game.
Navy86 – Come on now – I must have finally gotten to you a little bit – LOL – I was hoping to provide you with one more sarcastic comment … to try to get you to at least tell me (in your opinion) who you’d start at QB next week …
We had 5 basic responses: Yes sir, No sir, No excuse sir, I’ll find out sir, No excuse sir.
I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!”
Now thats funny right there – sad with the accent of Larry the Cable guy.
Navy86 – Come on now – I must have finally gotten to you a little bit – LOL – I was hoping to provide you with one more sarcastic comment … to try to get you to at least tell me (in your opinion) who you’d start at QB next week …
We had 5 basic responses: Yes sir, No sir, No excuse sir, I’ll find out sir, No excuse sir.
I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!”
Now thats funny right there – sad with the accent of Larry the Cable guy.
IMPORTANT NOTE TO ALL – We need to collectively get moving buying and encouraging others to buy tickets for the bowl
@Greg:
Your post really wasn’t funny enough to post twice. However, your comment – I didnt realize that in 1986 they had an addition basic response … “No opinion sir!” – would have merit if you weren’t so junior to me.
(and it would be “additional” not “addition”) – LOL
Fair enough – jelly in the keyboard and I got busssssted for my typos and stuck keys – LOL – I’m taking your response that you agree with me and think Ricky deserves the start. Yes I do agree that you are MUCH older and “senior” to me too!
I did go read some of the stuff on gomids per your comments and agree that its a bit out there but I’ve been at EVERY Navy football game for 5+ years – yes flown to Stanford, ND, UConn (boy that was a fun one), AF etc – and as a loyal fan who hates to see this offense struggle so mightliy I think we need a change – I was on the JB bandwagon 2 years ago in the Spring game (in the rain) but now I’m ready for the future.
I’ll try to only post this once :-)
@Navy86 (very original Handle BTW):
Rushing No Gain Loss Net TD Lg Avg
Bryant, Jarod 10 41 0 41 0 9 4.1
Dobbs, Ricky 13 31 4 27 1 7 2.1
Passing Att-Cmp-Int Yds TD Long Sack
Bryant, Jarod 5-1-0 10 0 10 0
Dobbs, Ricky 8-2-0 54 0 40 1
Too bad Dobbs wasn’t in the whole game … I’ll take a winner with heart over showing loyalty to someone who continues to not do their job, which is all you expect someone to do, correct?
100% chance the Dobbs brigade is the same bunch that thought Bryant should start over Kaipo last year. God I wish we had some new material.
No truer words…
Losers
How about some haiku’s
What is wrong with being in the Dobbs brigade? If it weren’t for so many injuries to Kaipo we wouldn’t be the “Dobbs brigade” anyway. But come on everyone, the end of the last three games don’t lie to us. As I’ve said before – I’ve been to EVERY game and see the offense getting more and more stagnant and predictible. We dont move the ball as well as we used to – we are playing better opponents but it seems as if we can’t even get a first down much of the time. If it weren’t for special teams at AF, defense (and Kaipo in the first half) at Wake and poor coaching by Golden (and Ricky too of course) we would be sitting here at 3-7 and have already lost the CIC. I hope all of you went to the coaches luncheon this week and heard coaches comments about the QB’s – he did say that RD doesnt make good decisions in practice and is slower and not as strong in practice but we’ve all seen what he does with the game on the line – all of you who think its terrible that there are contrary opinions out there should look in the mirror – None of us are calling for the coaches job or anything foolish like that but we are making what little noise we can to highlight that we enjoy and appreciate Ricky’s energy. Do all of you remember that Ricky threw and INT right when he came in and won the Temple game? Did any of us question whether we should have pitched the ball to Reggie Campbell a couple years ago with so little time left in the bowl game? Heck in this era of political correctness, isn’t this what we are supposed to be doing? I’m with you Willy – I think if Dobbs plays the entire game we win by double digits – wait before you all jump on me – think about it – we get 3 turnovers against ND and ZERO points and still go in at half down by 3 … CRAZY (yes we wouldn’t have been punting if I had to predict either thus ND’s confidence would have been even more hurt than it already was). They also wouldn’t have been able to sit back and use that HUGE line to run against us because they would be down by too much to run ….
Ricky Dobbs = The Intangible. Is he guaranteed to never go three and out? No. Is he guaranteed to make the all the right reads? Nope. So why, pray tell, do I feel just a little better when he has the helm? I love what JB has done for us, but I just have this dirty, ugly feeling that we’re “settling” for him at QB.
This season is by no means over, but let’s face it, we are starting to think about 2009 more and more (admit it.). I think we stand a great chance of going 3-0 for the rest of the year with Ricky (regardless of the bowl game opponent).
There is one huge difference between last year and this year – the offense was humming when Kaipo was running it, so JB coming in and doing well was icing on the cake and no reason to put Kaipo on the bench.
This year the offense has been very inconsistent with JB starting….some games “inconsistent” is being very kind. So when Dobbs comes in and we start scoring TDs, there is a big difference.
For you guys that think JB should still start – he is ten games into his senior year……what has he shown this year that indicates anything but wishful thinking that he is going to bust out?
The question is “is this it? Or can it get any better?” JB has had enough opportunities to show whether it will get any better on his watch. Dobbs has showed enough that he has, in my opinion, earned a start.
This recognizes that the O line is not as good as last year, and the play calling is more vanilla….for whatever reason. The O line guys rotate in and out, getting a chance to earn their spot in game situations. Dobbs has earned his spot, too.
For me this has nothing to do with 2009. JB has just not performed
People certainly weren’t saying that the offense was humming with Kaipo. People WANTED Kaipo on the bench.
Mike I wasn’t watching gomids or this forum back then so I can only say I believe you. But I still think this year is dfferent than last year. It was a good thing with Kaipo #1 and JB coming in relief when necessary. Clearly last year the offense “hummed” with unprecedented success, no matter what was said at the time. Not so this year. I realize the reason goes deeper than QB, but I think we are past the “OMG Dobbs isn’t ready” stage. He’s ready enough. He’ll make mistakes and screw up, but he’ll make some plays, too. JB hasn’t made many plays this year.
And my previous post got cut off – should have added “JB has just not performed as well as anyone hoped, himelf included I bet.”
I still think he is a great athlete and credit to USNA and the program. It is just time to give Dobbs a shot.
Mike,
What people wanted Kaipo on the bench? Not anyone in full control of their senses I presume?
Provided I am new to the site, but I do not know a single person who thought Bryant should have been starting over Kaipo.
I do not think the RD movement is not an indictment of JB as much as it is a sign of frustration with the overall offense. We (the fans) have been spoiled by years of “well oiled machines” and we didn’t expect to see 8 punts in a season let alone a game. If JB was playing with Meek and Harper in front and Zerb and Reggie in back, we might not be having this conversation.
It’s not about who is the better QB, but who gives the offense a better chance to succeed. I think the answer is RD, but we have a rookie coach with o-line issues and a leaky yet opportunistic defense. I can understand how, for the past two games, JB was the “safe” pick. However, with a bowl bid secured and 2 games coming up against less than stellar opponents, it’s probably time to give the kid a chance.
Mike,
Afraid your math is off. I’m in the Dobbs brigade and I was NEVER interested in seeing JB start over Kaipo.
As I said before, I think (and it isn’t apparently what the coaches think) that the difference between Dobbs and JB is not great. JB is a Senior with 3 games left. How can you possibly start JB over Dobbs (assuming you buy the near equality). If there is a big difference between JB and Dobbs then oc course you start the guy that gives you the best chance to win, but if they are even/close, then you have to start the younger guy.
Man, I wish I had a time machine back to the Duke game last year…
I would have thought the AF game last year would have put that stuff to rest…..not to mention the Pitt game. Jeez. Kaipo was awesome.
So what is the opinion of the Birddog?
I am writing my opinion as we speak. Lunchtime FTW.
Mike is right, many people on gomids wanted to bench Kaipo and start Bryant. Next year at this time it will be bench Dobbs and start (insert freshman name here).
I guess that will be satisfactory……
Mike be honest there were one or two guys who felt JB was better than Kaipo on gomids. They were crazy. The Big Stick averaged 39.3 points per game in 2007. JB’s not the same player this year with lesser talent around him. R Dobbs has passed him and more importantly seems to spark the team. He had 3 passes dropped (that one that went to replay was a catch). If Shun didn’t stumble and have that pass skim off his fingers at the 10 we might have won this game against all odds. Ricky deserves to start
NavyFan,
It’s a well known rule among football fans that the #2 QB is ALWAYS the prettiest girl at the dance. :)
73Goat is exactly right –> “The grass is always greener on the bench” … especially when the #1 QB falters any, … or when the #2 guy gets some PT & makes some big plays.
There were a few fans who were calling for JB to be Navy’s QB ever since he came to USNA with the pedigree of being “Mister Alabama Football” from prestigious Hoover H.S. –> The vast majority were not. That being said, … comparing last season’s Offensive success, & the performance “delta” between Kaipo & JB is not even close to the situation we have witnessed thusfar on the gridiron. To judge that those fans calling for RD to be taking the helm behind center as “complainers” is short-sighted/irresponsible. Just my opinion.
GO NAVY!!!
Comparing Kaipo/Bryant last year to Bryant/Dobbs this year is madness. Kaipo is the best quarterback that we’ve seen to run this offense (at navy). Sure, Bryant may have come in in relief every now and then. So naturally, there were Kaipo detractors. But by and large, the offense was rolling with Kaipo – Pitt, ND, AF, ect….(did Kaipo actually get benched last year or did Bryant come in b/c Kaipo was hurt) This year, Bryant has been completely ineffective running the offense.
He’s not great at reading the option, he is an ineffective passer and he generally doesn’t make plays. Even if Dobbs makes mistakes, I’d argue that he makes no more mistakes than Bryant, yet he is a play maker with whom the coaches can open things up a little bit. Make no mistake about it…we can’t beat the elite teams without passing the ball and opening up the offense. With Bryant, an entire aspect of the offense is down the tube.
Did that last post come from big #11 and former member of the great class of 97?
It’s the O-Line.
from two sport letter winner in 60’s re. senior vs underclassman. I know another era…but both my coaches told us every practice that if we could not clearly beat out a 3rd or 2nd classman(no freshman allowed due to NCAA), we were riding the pines. Did I think it was “fair” ? no! Did I think it was subtle motivation? maybe? Did I think the coaches cared about my, fans or press feelings? absolutely not! Did Admiral care? no only about record of team. Go with RD.
Yikes…all the negativity is killing me. Navy is still 6-4 though with just a minute left I thought they could get a second onside kick not because of anything I saw (I’m not that good) but faith that Navy could pull it out…one pass spells the difference and with mis-reads, mis-blocks, mis-assignments, Dobbs lights a friggin bonfire under the backsides and the team and FANS respond…nuff said…hope he starts and gains some much, much needed game speed experience before OSU. Fo that reason, he should be starting the next game.
I wish Kaipo was healthy but he’s not. JB may have all the skills but the fire doesn’t seem to be there. Trying Dobbs won’t make it any worse and at least JB is man enough to come in to back up if needed.
‘Okole maluna