Offensive line star ratings

[Pennsyhusker]

If there is one position group where I think star rankings can be very misleading is on the offensive line. Many of us drank the Kool aid before last season and this one concerning improvements on the offensive line because our thinking was: "hey a lot of these guys were highly rated. Therefore, they must have real talent and the problem has just been injuries or coaching or both". So we all heard about the gains in the weight room this off season and reasoned that this line will now be good. But they are, once again, awful.

I think a lot of offensive lineman in high school get high rankings just because they are able to dominate at that level due to their size. A kid who is 285 in high school is going to be a dominating force even if he has average athleticism. But once he gets to college, and is going against guys of equal to greater weight, if they lack basic athleticism, they under perform. Even if they hit the weights and are strong they are easily beaten at the line because they are basically big, lumbering dudes who have slow feet and lack agility.

Look at Wisconsin and Nebraska of old. They recruit/recruited kids to the line who might be only 240-250, but are good athletes. They then they get them in the weight room and they gain weight. I see signs of hope that Frost understands this dynamic as well. A lot of people on here were highly critical when we recruited 250 pound Matt Anderson. People asked why we are recruiting this lowly rated, low weight kid. But here is my prediction: I bet he tears it up as a lineman in the future.

Those are the kinds of kids we need to focus on. Of course, a lot of 4 star rated guys are also quite good. But I do wonder if Riley's staff just recruited stars and weight rather than looking at a kid's native athletic ability as well. Farmer and Foster are both big, big guys who are strong. But they have poor feet and agility and cannot move laterally well enough to pick up stunts and blitzes. Troy did not outmuscle us with their defensive tackles. They out-quicked us with blitzes and stunts it seems to me. That is what blew up so many short yardage plays and also allowed for so much pressure on Bunch.

These ramblings are probably totally wrong and subjective and anecdotal. But that is how I see it.

 

[Husker.Wed.]

I know this is Austin's line now and we need to move on, but it is hard to estimate the mental and technical damage caused by Cavanaugh. He may have been the poorest coach we have had since Elmassian.

 

[AFTray]

If there is one position group where I think star rankings can be very misleading is on the offensive line. Many of us drank the Kool aid before last season and this one concerning improvements on the offensive line because our thinking was: "hey a lot of these guys were highly rated. Therefore, they must have real talent and the problem has just been injuries or coaching or both". So we all heard about the gains in the weight room this off season and reasoned that this line will now be good. But they are, once again, awful.

I think a lot of offensive lineman in high school get high rankings just because they are able to dominate at that level due to their size. A kid who is 285 in high school is going to be a dominating force even if he has average athleticism. But once he gets to college, and is going against guys of equal to greater weight, if they lack basic athleticism, they under perform. Even if they hit the weights and are strong they are easily beaten at the line because they are basically big, lumbering dudes who have slow feet and lack agility.

Look at Wisconsin and Nebraska of old. They recruit/recruited kids to the line who might be only 240-250, but are good athletes. They then they get them in the weight room and they gain weight. I see signs of hope that Frost understands this dynamic as well. A lot of people on here were highly critical when we recruited 250 pound Matt Anderson. People asked why we are recruiting this lowly rated, low weight kid. But here is my prediction: I bet he tears it up as a lineman in the future.

Those are the kinds of kids we need to focus on. Of course, a lot of 4 star rated guys are also quite good. But I do wonder if Riley's staff just recruited stars and weight rather than looking at a kid's native athletic ability as well. Farmer and Foster are both big, big guys who are strong. But they have poor feet and agility and cannot move laterally well enough to pick up stunts and blitzes. Troy did not outmuscle us with their defensive tackles. They out-quicked us with blitzes and stunts it seems to me. That is what blew up so many short yardage plays and also allowed for so much pressure on Bunch.

These ramblings are probably totally wrong and subjective and anecdotal. But that is how I see it.

Riley's staff never recruited Farmer or Foster.

 

[TheBeav815]

It's been proven time and again that a bad coach can coach 'em down. Nobody tries to say stars don't matter when they watch Bama run the ball.

As long as we're being anecdotal, look at the career-long struggles for Conrad and how much more productive the OL seems to be when they go Foster, Farmer, Wilson at G-C-G

 

[inWV]

May be time to end the Conrad experiment and let Bo Wilson get better by playing.

 

[Pennsyhusker]

It's been proven time and again that a bad coach can coach 'em down. Nobody tries to say stars don't matter when they watch Bama run the ball.

As long as we're being anecdotal, look at the career-long struggles for Conrad and how much more productive the OL seems to be when they go Foster, Farmer, Wilson at G-C-G

I agree. Stars matter. All I am saying is, whatever their star ranking, we need athletic offensive lineman with good agility as well as strength. But it seems we have just recruited big bodies without any care for athleticism. Obviously, the higher rated guys often have the whole package. But often they don't. I am hoping Frost and staff are looking at athleticism first, with a potential to bulk up based on body frame, rather than just highly rated big dudes.

But as I said... I am probably wrong

 

[Harry Caray]

I hope you're wright, but call me skeptical why no other schools besides Louisiana Tech and Monroe think that Matthew Anderson will tear it up at this level after he puts on weight.

Watching Michael Lynn on film, I see the same slow feet and lack of agility that you are talking about with our current linemen. I don't see a real difference maker with a nasty streak.

Desmond Bland looks good, but will only be here 2 years. Bottom line, we need to recruit and develop this position at a much higher level than we are currently. When you look at the offensive linemen drafted high in the NFL recently, the vast majority were 4 and 5 star guys.

 

[TheBeav815]

I agree. Stars matter. All I am saying is, whatever their star ranking, we need athletic offensive lineman with good agility as well as strength. But it seems we have just recruited big bodies without any care for athleticism. Obviously, the higher rated guys often have the whole package. But often they don't. I am hoping Frost and staff are looking at athleticism first, with a potential to bulk up based on body frame, rather than just highly rated big dudes.

But as I said... I am probably wrong

Can be a different prototype when you're running pro-style system like Riley was. Frost's offense seems to put more of a premium on OL getting out and being effective in space. More pullers, more screens, etc.

 

[Pennsyhusker]

I hope you're wright, but call me skeptical why no other schools besides Louisiana Tech and Monroe think that Matthew Anderson will tear it up at this level after he puts on weight.

Watching Michael Lynn on film, I see the same slow feet and lack of agility that you are talking about with our current linemen. I don't see a real difference maker with a nasty streak.

Desmond Bland looks good, but will only be here 2 years. Bottom line, we need to recruit and develop this position at a much higher level than we are currently. When you look at the offensive linemen drafted high in the NFL recently, the vast majority were 4 and 5 star guys.

Yep, stars matter. I guess I am just tired of years of blaming our offensive line woes on poor coaching. I am tired of believing in our four star lineman and their ability to finally play well. At what point do we just admit they may not be very good? And if the issue is talent, where is the talent deficit if they are indeed big and strong? Bad attitude? Lack of athleticism? Bad coaching??

 

[Pennsyhusker]

Can be a different prototype when you're running pro-style system like Riley was. Frost's offense seems to put more of a premium on OL getting out and being effective in space. More pullers, more screens, etc.

This is true I think. Also... I know back in the day when Frost played here we did a lot of cut blocking. I saw some of that in our first two games. I know all teams cut block from time to time. Did Riley's?

 

[headcard]

I think recruiting rankings mean the least on the OL. It is such a developmental position. Often, kids need to put on 30-50 lbs before they are ready to and you never know what that will do to their athleticism, etc. That is why it is important to get a few walk-on OL every year too, it really is a numbers and development game with OL.

 

[Pennsyhusker]

I think recruiting rankings mean the least on the OL. It is such a developmental position. Often, kids need to but on 30-50 lbs before they are ready to and you never know what that will do to their athleticism, etc. That is why it is important to get a few walk-on OL every year too, it really is a numbers and development game with OL.

My thoughts as well. Well said

 

[Baxter48]

I think recruiting rankings mean the least on the OL. It is such a developmental position. Often, kids need to but on 30-50 lbs before they are ready to and you never know what that will do to their athleticism, etc. That is why it is important to get a few walk-on OL every year too, it really is a numbers and development game with OL.[/QUOTE
My guess and it a big one is that the reason the oline isn't uniform is Conrad isn't making the correct line calls remember when Conrad started last year then decker took over big difference. IMO move farmer to center or go with the younger kid

 

[dand84]

I think everyone is simply underestimating what years of bad team culture have done to this team. I honestly don't mean anything sinister by that. By culture, I simply mean the philosophy of things like self-discipline, attention to detail and things like that. It isn't like coaching staffs come in and don't want those things. It becomes what gets the emphasis.

Things like keeping your locker room or dorm room clean, thinking and acting like a leader on AND off the field, self-discipline to eat right, etc. Maybe just a rumor, I am not sure, but it has been said that many players hadn't been in the weight room for 18 months. Those of us with kids that age know what a challenge it is.

Given all of that, it is going to take a lot longer than one spring camp and one fall camp to turn this team around. I really honestly believe the staff are doing the right things (yes they are making some mistakes) and I honestly believe that the players are giving their best and working their hardest (and yes, they are making mistakes).

I am going to give them a chance and not lambast them every time they make a mistake or lose a game 2 games in.

 

[TheBeav815]

This is true I think. Also... I know back in the day when Frost played here we did a lot of cut blocking. I saw some of that in our first two games. I know all teams cut block from time to time. Did Riley's?

Not much if they did. They sure look like it's their first year of cut blocking don't they?

We're not far removed from last year where we went, "Oh he's not really subbing OL because he doesn't have 7 of them who can play. In fact he may not have 5."

I continue to be baffled with the C position. How many times does a kid show you addition by subtraction when he has to leave the game but you keep letting him go back in and start when he's healthy enough?

 

[Baxter48]

Not much if they did. They sure look like it's their first year of cut blocking don't they?

We're not far removed from last year where we went, "Oh he's not really subbing OL because he doesn't have 7 of them who can play. In fact he may not have 5."

I continue to be baffled with the C position. How many times does a kid show you addition by subtraction when he has to leave the game but you keep letting him go back in and start when he's healthy enough?

Totally agree just confused, my only thinking is there trying to win some games and sadly there guys are his best option, no if we are 0-4 hopefully he goes with the youngsters

 

[TheBeav815]

Totally agree just confused, my only thinking is there trying to win some games and sadly there guys are his best option, no if we are 0-4 hopefully he goes with the youngsters

Most of the time if they had somebody better, they'd put him in. We've seen as injuries pile up late in seasons with this team that the backups we loved so much in October can't get it done in November.

 

[TruHusker]

If there is one position group where I think star rankings can be very misleading is on the offensive line. Many of us drank the Kool aid before last season and this one concerning improvements on the offensive line because our thinking was: "hey a lot of these guys were highly rated. Therefore, they must have real talent and the problem has just been injuries or coaching or both". So we all heard about the gains in the weight room this off season and reasoned that this line will now be good. But they are, once again, awful.

I think a lot of offensive lineman in high school get high rankings just because they are able to dominate at that level due to their size. A kid who is 285 in high school is going to be a dominating force even if he has average athleticism. But once he gets to college, and is going against guys of equal to greater weight, if they lack basic athleticism, they under perform. Even if they hit the weights and are strong they are easily beaten at the line because they are basically big, lumbering dudes who have slow feet and lack agility.

Look at Wisconsin and Nebraska of old. They recruit/recruited kids to the line who might be only 240-250, but are good athletes. They then they get them in the weight room and they gain weight. I see signs of hope that Frost understands this dynamic as well. A lot of people on here were highly critical when we recruited 250 pound Matt Anderson. People asked why we are recruiting this lowly rated, low weight kid. But here is my prediction: I bet he tears it up as a lineman in the future.

Those are the kinds of kids we need to focus on. Of course, a lot of 4 star rated guys are also quite good. But I do wonder if Riley's staff just recruited stars and weight rather than looking at a kid's native athletic ability as well. Farmer and Foster are both big, big guys who are strong. But they have poor feet and agility and cannot move laterally well enough to pick up stunts and blitzes. Troy did not outmuscle us with their defensive tackles. They out-quicked us with blitzes and stunts it seems to me. That is what blew up so many short yardage plays and also allowed for so much pressure on Bunch.

These ramblings are probably totally wrong and subjective and anecdotal. But that is how I see it.

This has been beat on over and over. Some questions:
Do the star rankings seem to work out for other schools? In other words, do Clemson, Bama, OSU go for the 4&5* kids or do they go for the ones that need time to develop? How do those highly rated kids work out?

If those kids seem to develop in their system but ours do not, I think you have your answer. People want to look at the results that TO had and yes, he recruited kids that others didn’t want because they were too short generally. Some were small but the reality is if everyone could develop talent then this what all schools would do, but they don’t. Somewhere along the way, no matter what the star value you have to coach technique.

I think your assessment of kids being bigger than their competition is overdone. You are looking at film through your eyes, not a coaches. Coaches can see foot work, leverage, hand placement, balance, and a ton of things that make a good lineman. Size is just a piece of that.

Let me ask you this, do you think Frost is doing the right thing by working on the walk-on program or should he concentrate on getting the current talent up to par? Or is it both which is hard to do.

 

[Pennsyhusker]

Not much if they did. They sure look like it's their first year of cut blocking don't they?

We're not far removed from last year where we went, "Oh he's not really subbing OL because he doesn't have 7 of them who can play. In fact he may not have 5."

I continue to be baffled with the C position. How many times does a kid show you addition by subtraction when he has to leave the game but you keep letting him go back in and start when he's healthy enough?

Good post. And yeah... Conrad is a mystery. How he keeps getting on the field is beyond me

 

[Pennsyhusker]

This has been beat on over and over. Some questions:
Do the star rankings seem to work out for other schools? In other words, do Clemson, Bama, OSU go for the 4&5* kids or do they go for the ones that need time to develop? How do those highly rated kids work out?

If those kids seem to develop in their system but ours do not, I think you have your answer. People want to look at the results that TO had and yes, he recruited kids that others didn’t want because they were too short generally. Some were small but the reality is if everyone could develop talent then this what all schools would do, but they don’t. Somewhere along the way, no matter what the star value you have to coach technique.

I think your assessment of kids being bigger than their competition is overdone. You are looking at film through your eyes, not a coaches. Coaches can see foot work, leverage, hand placement, balance, and a ton of things that make a good lineman. Size is just a piece of that.

Let me ask you this, do you think Frost is doing the right thing by working on the walk-on program or should he concentrate on getting the current talent up to par? Or is it both which is hard to do.

Obviously Frost should be trying to get the best players. Period. But adding "project" kids as walk ons is an added bonus. Spencer Long comes to mind. I am sure there have been many others.
Let me ask you a question. Are all four star recruits the same? Obviously not. Some are high four stars with tons of offers from all the elite schools. We tend not to get those kinds of four star kids. So I am asking a real question. Not trying to be argumentative. I really want to be educated here. Is there a huge difference between a low four star kid and a recruit that might be a project? How many low four star guys aren't also projects? I am just talking offensive line here. I am really just groping for an answer here. Is it really just coaching that is the difference?

 

[nu2u]

The point about weight vis-à-vis recruiting rankings has merit IMO. Kids mature at different rates. Wisconsin and Iowa are prime examples of recruiting HS kids with the OL skills they are looking for then, even though underweight, putting them through their respective strength and conditioning programs. Iowa has several OL alums who arrived on campus at 225-240 lbs. and are currently playing for NFL teams. Its a process. Skills first, a frame for adding weight, then strength and conditioning at the college level.

 

[barney44]

Give them some time. You don’t go from mauling Colorado to getting mauled by Troy because you have nothing to work with. These kids are inconsistent as hell. We have needs but the ones we do have need to get it together before anything changes..

 

[Pennsyhusker]

Th

Give them some time. You don’t go from mauling Colorado to getting mauled by Troy because you have nothing to work with. These kids are inconsistent as hell. We have needs but the ones we do have need to get it together before anything changes..

That is the hope. That the issue isn't talent but consistency.

 

[jeans15]

Conrad has no business on the field.

 

[barney44]

That is the hope. That the issue isn't talent but consistency.

We could always use an upgrade because I don’t think we’re the Outland U that we once were. That being said we’re not exactly talentless either. I can understand their position as well. Some of these guys are on their 3rd coach, I don’t think it’s fair to say that these guys are worthless when they haven't exactly been in the greatest situation.

Plenty of teams out there recruit well below what we are and their offensive lines are more trustworthy. I’m not overly impressed with Wisconsins recruiting but IMO they field some of the best offensive lines in the nation on a consistent basis. That to me is more impressive than what Alabama and Ohio State does on the line.

We have no stability at the moment and until things are stabilized we’re going to have some problems. If this is a thing 4 or 5 years down the road then I think we have something to worry about.

 

[barney44]

Conrad has no business on the field.

None, zip, nada......

 

[phoenix4nu]

Do college teams test for PEDs? I don’t remember ever reading that a college player was suspended for PED use. I wonder sometimes if PED use contributes to player development for some teams.

 

[HuskerLLM]

Good post. And yeah... Conrad is a mystery. How he keeps getting on the field is beyond me

Because...other than Will F that just signed, when was the last time Nebraska recruited a true center instead of just trying to make one out of a guard or a walk on?

 

[SLOHusker]

If there is one position group where I think star rankings can be very misleading is on the offensive line. Many of us drank the Kool aid before last season and this one concerning improvements on the offensive line because our thinking was: "hey a lot of these guys were highly rated. Therefore, they must have real talent and the problem has just been injuries or coaching or both". So we all heard about the gains in the weight room this off season and reasoned that this line will now be good. But they are, once again, awful.

I think a lot of offensive lineman in high school get high rankings just because they are able to dominate at that level due to their size. A kid who is 285 in high school is going to be a dominating force even if he has average athleticism. But once he gets to college, and is going against guys of equal to greater weight, if they lack basic athleticism, they under perform. Even if they hit the weights and are strong they are easily beaten at the line because they are basically big, lumbering dudes who have slow feet and lack agility.

Look at Wisconsin and Nebraska of old. They recruit/recruited kids to the line who might be only 240-250, but are good athletes. They then they get them in the weight room and they gain weight. I see signs of hope that Frost understands this dynamic as well. A lot of people on here were highly critical when we recruited 250 pound Matt Anderson. People asked why we are recruiting this lowly rated, low weight kid. But here is my prediction: I bet he tears it up as a lineman in the future.

Those are the kinds of kids we need to focus on. Of course, a lot of 4 star rated guys are also quite good. But I do wonder if Riley's staff just recruited stars and weight rather than looking at a kid's native athletic ability as well. Farmer and Foster are both big, big guys who are strong. But they have poor feet and agility and cannot move laterally well enough to pick up stunts and blitzes. Troy did not outmuscle us with their defensive tackles. They out-quicked us with blitzes and stunts it seems to me. That is what blew up so many short yardage plays and also allowed for so much pressure on Bunch.

These ramblings are probably totally wrong and subjective and anecdotal. But that is how I see it.

Correct 100%. Often the top OL in high school are as big as they will get. Kids with good frames and athletic ability redshirt and have a couple years to put on good weight that will make them top players by the end of their college career.

 

[AFTray]

Because...other than Will F that just signed, when was the last time Nebraska recruited a true center instead of just trying to make one out of a guard or a walk on?

Decker was a true center. Scout listed him as the nation's No. 7 center prospect.

 

[dinglefritz]

I hope you're wright, but call me skeptical why no other schools besides Louisiana Tech and Monroe think that Matthew Anderson will tear it up at this level after he puts on weight.

Watching Michael Lynn on film, I see the same slow feet and lack of agility that you are talking about with our current linemen. I don't see a real difference maker with a nasty streak.

Desmond Bland looks good, but will only be here 2 years. Bottom line, we need to recruit and develop this position at a much higher level than we are currently. When you look at the offensive linemen drafted high in the NFL recently, the vast majority were 4 and 5 star guys.

Penn State just offered Michael Lynn.....and Matthew Anderson is EXACTLY the kind of athletic former TE that we need to target to play OT. IF you want athletic OTs and you aren't Bama or OSU you are probably going to have to build them out of high school TEs.

 

[dinglefritz]

Because...other than Will F that just signed, when was the last time Nebraska recruited a true center instead of just trying to make one out of a guard or a walk on?

The NFL routinely makes centers out of college guards. Just because a high school coach puts a guy at tackle or guard doesn't mean he can't be a great college center.

 

[Harry Caray]

Penn State just offered Michael Lynn.....and Matthew Anderson is EXACTLY the kind of athletic former TE that we need to target to play OT. IF you want athletic OTs and you aren't Bama or OSU you are probably going to have to build them out of high school TEs.

That is very surprising to me that Penn State offered Lynn. I just don't see anything impressive about him on film. Looks slow and not a very high motor/effort. A kid his size that is a legit D-I prospect should be collecting pancakes on every play at the high school level - he's going against kids half his size. We're going to need better than this to upgrade the pipeline.

 

[HuskerWisdom]

Can be a different prototype when you're running pro-style system like Riley was. Frost's offense seems to put more of a premium on OL getting out and being effective in space. More pullers, more screens, etc.

Definitely true. We need guys who can pull and guys who get downfield, FAR downfield to create havoc with defenders.

I expect this to be a great way for our recruiting and walk-on program to help us. We aren't looking for the 6-7, 320 lbs guys who are tall posts for pass blocking (if we find a guy who is that size who will move, we'll take them), but we want guys who are athletic first and foremost without a need for exact heights, etc. Shorter, quicker, more athletic

 

[BeautifulDayintheNeighborhood]

That is very surprising to me that Penn State offered Lynn. I just don't see anything impressive about him on film. Looks slow and not a very high motor/effort. A kid his size that is a legit D-I prospect should be collecting pancakes on every play at the high school level - he's going against kids half his size. We're going to need better than this to upgrade the pipeline.

View embedded media

This is terrible film. This guy looks like a Mike Riley recroot

 

[jflores]

If there is one position group where I think star rankings can be very misleading is on the offensive line. Many of us drank the Kool aid before last season and this one concerning improvements on the offensive line because our thinking was: "hey a lot of these guys were highly rated. Therefore, they must have real talent and the problem has just been injuries or coaching or both". So we all heard about the gains in the weight room this off season and reasoned that this line will now be good. But they are, once again, awful.

Look at Wisconsin and Nebraska of old. They recruit/recruited kids to the line who might be only 240-250, but are good athletes. They then they get them in the weight room and they gain weight. I see signs of hope that Frost understands this dynamic as well. A lot of people on here were highly critical when we recruited 250 pound Matt Anderson. People asked why we are recruiting this lowly rated, low weight kid. But here is my prediction: I bet he tears it up as a lineman in the future.

Those are the kinds of kids we need to focus on.

So I edited out a chunk of your reply, but you have two concepts that are at odds with each other as the basis of your post. You want Frost to more or less focus on project kids with athleticism. Yet you seem to insist on results now, vis a vis charting the progress of the line only 9 months after Frost has gotten here.

We see that alot on this board. "I want to get back to the old days, when TO and Milt would stuff a kid from Cozad in a closet for 4 years and he'd come out and have an All American type of year before he left.

Well guess what, in order to do that, its a pre-requisite that you wait the 3-4 years, not 9 months. But people can't do that even though they say they want to do that. (I get that it was different back then. When you were waiting your 3 years or so, other OL would be leading you to Big 8 title kinda seasons, well we're starting over, so that first cycle is going to be hell until you can realistically hide these kids on the bench for three years and still put a damn good product on the field in the mean time).

 

[jflores]

But I do wonder if Riley's staff just recruited stars and weight rather than looking at a kid's native athletic ability as well.

Hate to kind of point out the obvious, but the bulk of kids with high star ratings get high star ratings because they display better than average football/general athletic ability. And they often have somewhat prototypical size instead of having to be molded over some period of time. And then there's a handful of high star kids whose daddies can pay for the right camp and so forth.

Not to point out the obvious but alot of folks throw out old Billy C as one of the best recruiters we've had. Billy C was basically the poster boy for basically offering the Rivals 250 and seeing who would jump in the boat rather than doing a super detailed investigation of a player to see if they would fit the system. At odds here, with what you seem to be going with Riley getting off the beaten path. General board sentiment would indicate that Riley would need to double down on what he was doing in order to get it right...not get away from it.

 

[BeautifulDayintheNeighborhood]

Colorado hs football is soft also

 

[jflores]

Desmond Bland looks good, but will only be here 2 years. Bottom line, we need to recruit and develop this position at a much higher level than we are currently. When you look at the offensive linemen drafted high in the NFL recently, the vast majority were 4 and 5 star guys.

I don't think Scott cares about NFL. NU in his day didn't care about NFL, we just cared that we owned NCAAFB even if our QB was going to move onto sell playground equipment right afterwards.

I don't have the most encylopedic knowledge of Oregon FB, but they fielded some pretty good football teams and I can't name an OL they had drafted as a mid to high round pick. This tells me that Scott probably isn't looking at NFL potential for his offensive system.

 

[Pennsyhusker]

So I edited out a chunk of your reply, but you have two concepts that are at odds with each other as the basis of your post. You want Frost to more or less focus on project kids with athleticism. Yet you seem to insist on results now, vis a vis charting the progress of the line only 9 months after Frost has gotten here.

We see that alot on this board. "I want to get back to the old days, when TO and Milt would stuff a kid from Cozad in a closet for 4 years and he'd come out and have an All American type of year before he left.

Well guess what, in order to do that, its a pre-requisite that you wait the 3-4 years, not 9 months. But people can't do that even though they say they want to do that. (I get that it was different back then. When you were waiting your 3 years or so, other OL would be leading you to Big 8 title kinda seasons, well we're starting over, so that first cycle is going to be hell until you can realistically hide these kids on the bench for three years and still put a damn good product on the field in the mean time).

Nope. I am not expecting immediate results. Where did I say that? You conclude that I infer that based on my criticisms of the current line? My thinking is that we have three seniors on that line who are not very good. They never developed into the kinds of players we thought they should based on their star rankings (other than Conrad who had no stars). Therefore, I am concluding that they were never that talented in the first place and their star rankings were exaggerated. I am not blaming the previous staff for their lack of development. I just don’t think they are that talented.