Merely a way to save money to pay whichever of rhules friends who becomes the DC extra
SIAP - Rivals reporting tonight Raiola being retained ...
- Thread starter RedCap
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I think some serious development could be had this off-season. All the ol really needs is to lose about 10-15 lbs each while ideally retaining as much strength and muscle as possible (or even increase while losing).I posted none of that first. I try to just throw my thoughts out there and let people read between the lines.
Unified admin and coaching staff is immeasurable. If they truly are or can be while the guys are training this off-season, the line should be able to at least be serviceable at the start of the season.
A OL coach’s job is to implement the blocking schemes of the OC. He takes what the OC says in meetings and teaches the players how to do it.
Like it or not, Raiola fits pretty well with the rest of the staff. Rhule obviously trusts in his ability to take young, hungry coaches and turn them into a great staff, at the very least, we are not getting dinosaurs to come in and do their retirement tour here and collect a fat check.
I think Raiola was in a tough spot last year and all things considered, contrary to some opinions, the OL played well, especially at the end of the year.
Rhule’s top priority as a coach is to dominate the lines of scrimmage. We only see the program through a key hole. Raiola obviously impressed Rhule behind the scenes and in the interviews. Let’s give the guy a chance before we grab the pitchforks.
Like it or not, Raiola fits pretty well with the rest of the staff. Rhule obviously trusts in his ability to take young, hungry coaches and turn them into a great staff, at the very least, we are not getting dinosaurs to come in and do their retirement tour here and collect a fat check.
I think Raiola was in a tough spot last year and all things considered, contrary to some opinions, the OL played well, especially at the end of the year.
Rhule’s top priority as a coach is to dominate the lines of scrimmage. We only see the program through a key hole. Raiola obviously impressed Rhule behind the scenes and in the interviews. Let’s give the guy a chance before we grab the pitchforks.
I’ve stated many times that I wanted Busch retained if possible. I’ve also stated that Ruud’s backers got better after Chin was fired. They were a mess before that. When you fire the head coach though the fans don’t get to pick his assistants. I would have been nice to see some of these guys like Fish, Ruud, and Beckton stick around but that’s the life of a coach. I have a friend who is a really good NAIA volleyball coach who turned down a D1 head coach job because he didn’t want to uproot his family and face the prospect of moving every few years like he did as a top D1 assistant. It sucks
Was Milt Tenopir an outstanding offensive line coach? Many on this site will overwhelmingly agree. However we had him as our head coach in high school. We never had a winning season. He didn't do so well in Colorado when he was coaching high school there either. I played center for him and we got steamrolled by most teams. He left high school and became only a grad assistant at NU. As we know, he flourished from there. Give Riola a chance guys. The Golden Rhule knows what he is doing and I fully trust him as our Commander in Chief!!!
No. Raiola has done nothing on the recruiting trail so far. Which makes the hire even more confusing.
To all the “the OL improved as the season went on” folks:
Will you please list our opponents and their records toward the end of the season?
Thanks. I’m sure this exercise will teach you all nothing, as usual.
Will you please list our opponents and their records toward the end of the season?
Thanks. I’m sure this exercise will teach you all nothing, as usual.
1. Our line was missing a starter at OT for most of the season and a starter at OG for all of the season. Other players were also injured.
2. There was marginal improvement in play during the season.
3. The HC and another coach have experience coaching lineman, and for sure have a take on how the Oline should play.
4. If there is a position that might benefit from continuity in coaching, it is the Oline.
2. There was marginal improvement in play during the season.
3. The HC and another coach have experience coaching lineman, and for sure have a take on how the Oline should play.
4. If there is a position that might benefit from continuity in coaching, it is the Oline.
Or Rhule simply wanted to get to know him and watch video of our linemen with him. I was posting almost immediately that I wasn’t going to be surprised if Raiola was retained. My suspicion is that Rhule given his background will be involved with coaching the O line.
Not there’s anything wrong with that😉. Can’t wait for the rumors that Rhule and his DC have gay sex
You know I will 😛Lot of hot takes on here for Charlie Marlow to necro a few years from now
As far as Raiola goes, there’s not enough data to say one way or the other after one CF of a season.
But I do have to roll my eyes at the ‘the OL got better as the season went’ narrative. Of course it did, that’s what OLs tend to do. Greg Austin’s lines also improved each of his first three seasons here. There’s nothing remarkable about that in of itself. Are there other OL coaches that could have done even better with that group? That’s the real question of course.
Accurate. I’ll repeat though,Rhule has coached O line at a high level. Raiola isn’t going to be on an island and I have zero doubt that Rhule wouldn’t replace him quickly if need be. Tom coached his QBs. Bo was really his own DC. As head coach Callahan was very involved with directing his O line coaches. Rhule will be too
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I think most everyone saw the OL as the weakest position on the team overall. So yeah, this news comes with some concern. But I'm giving Mat Rhule the benefit of the doubt that we have not had enough time to see Raiola's efforts come to fruition. Obviously not one player other than Jurgens ever developed on the OL in Frost's tenure and no position takes longer to develop than OL. 4 years of non-coaching and player development are almost impossible to overcome in one season.
Barring transfers, the mix of kids in line to play next year are Teddy P (rehabbing), Corcoran, Anthony (if he takes his Covid year), Nouili, Piper, Lutovsky and Benhart. Seven guys, all have started or played quite a bit. Actually a veteran line, not good enough to be great, but good enough to be good. Can they get these kids to where they can run block against Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa when it counts?
Given Foley's experience, I suspect they are already working on the problem. Conn and Banks were on the outside looking in and thus the transfer portal. Get the best couple of tackles possible in the portal in Lincoln for spring ball and quit making the Pipeline alums sad on Saturdays.
Given Foley's experience, I suspect they are already working on the problem. Conn and Banks were on the outside looking in and thus the transfer portal. Get the best couple of tackles possible in the portal in Lincoln for spring ball and quit making the Pipeline alums sad on Saturdays.
Maybe You should look to the running back room and ask what the f*** was going on there.
I fully expect Rhule to be directly involved with the O line given his experience coaching that position.
Much like other hires on the staff, I have no idea if it will or won't turn out well. Obviously, I hope it turns out well but time will tell the full story.
One thing I will say is that I have no idea how much, if any dysfunction there was in the offensive room this past season. Seemed pretty obvious that Frost was not happy about his play calling being taken away given his shots at Whipple prior to his firing. Were all the coaches aligned pre-firing? Were coaches instructed by one person to do things this way while the other says do it a different way? How aligned were they post-firing?
I can only speculate from afar but it wouldn't surprise me one bit if there was significant dysfunction leading to the proverbial "too many chefs in the kitchen" atmosphere.
One thing I will say is that I have no idea how much, if any dysfunction there was in the offensive room this past season. Seemed pretty obvious that Frost was not happy about his play calling being taken away given his shots at Whipple prior to his firing. Were all the coaches aligned pre-firing? Were coaches instructed by one person to do things this way while the other says do it a different way? How aligned were they post-firing?
I can only speculate from afar but it wouldn't surprise me one bit if there was significant dysfunction leading to the proverbial "too many chefs in the kitchen" atmosphere.
I have.
a lot.
yet to hear any answers. many (not me) were naming the RB coach as one who should be retained
His direct experience with the OL is a stint with the Giants, but I'm sure he is the one dictating what the approach will be. Foley has spent a good chunk of his career coaching OL, and has coached the TE/OT combo.
Yeah I think there are some Nebraska fans that thought Raiola had some magic wand and would turn our OL into the second coming of the nineties Nebraska offensive linemen. I watched the play of our offensive linemen and there was improvement it just may not have been the improvement that some had envisioned.
The biggest improvement came with pass pro and yes our run blocking needs to improve so we shall see what happens in that area. I expect we are going to add a few portal linemen and I expect with a new strength and conditioning coach we will see some transformation in body types.
What I think we will see across the board is quickness off the ball, something we haven't had for some time. Before some of you spew gloom and doom you may want to see how the portal signings ends up and how the team looks after some practices and spring game.
I felt Raiola was a big upgrade from Austin and I still feel Raiola is the right guy for the men on the line for our team, Rhule sees something he likes and I'll trust his judgement.
Frost was right about one thing. Whipple needed to be more creative with the run game. Our play action fakes were awful on top of that. We aren’t talented enough up front to just line up and hand the ball off. Zero deception or misdirection.
I think it basically comes down to the objective of a B1G OL is to move people. The objective of the Frost offense was to move around/run past people. Speed and agility are prized (think Jurgens). Whether or not this approach would have consistently worked in the B1G doesn't really matter, as NU did not have OL players that could be successful with the approach.
He did probably a RB coach’s toughest job pretty well….. He brought in Allen.
Look at the game tape. That's 90% of your interview right there. No idea what Rhule sees in Raiola.
But his running backs got worse as the season went on. Particularly in pass pro.
The fact that Allen is rehabbing a knee is an unfortunate blessing, as that kid would be ripe for portal poaching.
This is such a terrible take. It's not even close to 90%.
that was more because they wanted to keep an individual player from transferring. The old if we keep Applewhite than Ajay Allen wont leave. Similar to keeping The Strangler, it was just as much to hold a single recruiting class together as it was for his ability to coach WRs. Regardless, the reasons posters wanted to keep them both were short sighted.
The effort to spin this into a good decision is pretty impressive and cohesive. The performance on the field like this other guy said is all you need to know. I know its hard to believe - but it truly is that simple
being a Bears fan has given me an additional year of Raiola's OL coaching to behold
last year's Huskers looked about the same as every other OL he's coached
every coach has to start somewhere and we are a developmental program so why not here
last year's Huskers looked about the same as every other OL he's coached
every coach has to start somewhere and we are a developmental program so why not here
The fact that you believe that tells me all I need to know
I'm likely one of the few posters who feel a total change in nutrition, strength, and conditioning along with some flexibility and footwork drills can transform a slow, methodical bunch of linemen into functioning linemen.
No doubt, this is a group of linemen with few real athletes among them. Corcoran, Piper and that's about it, and frankly, both Corcoran and Piper have been allowed to balloon up in weight, much of it is not good weight. Teddy, Benhart, and Anthony are big guys with slow feet.
What happens if Benhart is a better LT than he is at RT? Or Teddy is a better RT than he is at LT? We haven't even seen what many of the other 15+ backup kids have to offer. I suspect not a lot, but I imagine Rhule and crew will find the spot where they fit the best.
I would expect a new and improved Nouili. In the photos I have seen, he, along with Piper looked soft as hell. I think that's where the nutrition change may have an effect, along with, very likely, a demanding S & C coach. If these returning OL are trained and developed like professional linemen, they will be in for a shock.
I know it's a helluva jump from high school to P5 football, but I think a kid like Sledge really fits the mold of the type of lineman that Rhule likes. Currently undersized, but with good feet and quickness. Depending upon if they settle on Piper or Corcoran at Center, I could see Sledge being a solid backup at either Guard position.
I do think the days of a big, slow-footed Lutovsky and another big, slow-footed Benhart/Anthony side by side are over. I can't imagine Rhule will not sign at least 2-3 kids from the JUCOs or portal to vie for some roles in the OL.
As mentioned, NU has had 25 OLmen on the roster, and at Baylor, Rhule had 19 all three years. So with Hixson, Williams, and Bando graduating and Banks, Weaver, and Conn entering the portal, there are going to be limited spots available to find a spot on the roster.
I think you’re right. Knee bone connected to the…,,,,,collarbone?🦴
If Duval and Ellis had been retained, we would likely see the same body type and conditioning level as we have the last 5 years. Nothing would have changed.
Now with a different nutrition schedule and likely a very demanding S & C coach, I believe, with 8 months before the season begins, we may see an Offensive Line more physically prepared to do some of the things a lineman is required to do.
I could see linemen like Corcoran, Piper, and Nouili making huge strides. Especially Corcoran and Piper because they are really good athletes. Even the really big guys like Teddy, Lutovsky, Benhart, and Anthony should show solid gains.
A great S & C coach is worth whatever the HC wants to pay him. Turn him loose with a proven training regime, give him 8 months to work with them, and then turn them over to an Offensive Line coach to see how he can put a solid line together.
He fails to recognize that there is a big difference between making excuses and giving rational reasons.
