I don't care if he is 5 yards deep in the endzone...he should be running everything back. He is ELECTRIC! In my 30 year of watching Cougar football I can't remember a "plant and go" type of player with his acceleration. Not to mention he is very strong and extremely elusive. We need to get him more touches on offense. Wildcat, fly sweeps, jail brake screens, etc. He is a difference maker.
Travell Harris
- Thread starter TrumpCoug
- Start date
We need to get him involved more. Id love to see a wrinkle of max and travel in as the two backs instead of max and 16. Harris in the flat with a linebacker no way in he'll is he getting tackled.
I'd say that both Jerome Harrison and Bernard Jackson came pretty close in terms of jump on it acceleration. Rueben Mayes was close. Pretty good company!
And just a few weeks ago Bianca Biggs was complaining about how terrible Harris is and how the ST coach should be summarily fired.
And now for my next dead horse to beat....
How the fu8king fu8k isnt this kid being fed the ball???
He is a pro. As in, he will play pro football. Yet he disappears on offense. If he has 8-12 catches per game what happens???
How the fu8king fu8k isnt this kid being fed the ball???
He is a pro. As in, he will play pro football. Yet he disappears on offense. If he has 8-12 catches per game what happens???
Bianca? You need to go to the yaki school of names.
And while the return is nice two blocked extra points ? And we didn’t have to punt so we don’t know how good our coverage is. The ST coach is young and there have been times he has been out coached . But to say to fire the guy???
Easy answer. Gordon’s not looking for him. He’s on the left side too much, and Gordon rarely looks that way.
Plus, Arconado and Winston are Gordon’s targets. If they’re not open, he dumps to Borghi. If he can’t do that, he starts to panic, and he flushes. To his right.
Still want to see the distribution chart for Gordon’s throws this season. Saw one for a game a few weeks ago and it strongly supported my season-long assertion that Gordon only plays on half the field.
Good lord, what's with the animosity towards Gordon following a game in which he thew for 500+ yards and 5 TDs? Oh, and we won the game by 27 points. Wasn't dumping on him last week (and justifiably so) enough? Is Leach just being stupid when he calls him one of the best QBs in the country? Look, he's not Minshew and it hasn't been the season we all wanted. But if WSU can get this kind of production out of its QB every season, we'll be just fine provided we have at least an average defense.
I can only hope next year's QB for the Cougars can set a season record for most TDs thrown and lead the nation in several categories.
Glad Cougar
So this is what I see:
no run game to stop, WSU stops it for you by never running the ball.
no QB run.
no option.
no multiple formations using TEs or extra OL to force more DL.
no play action pass.
no shifts.
no reverse.
no pass deep.
no pass left.
no best player doing what he does best, MB.
no future NFL athlete getting offensive reps, TH.
no creativity in the redzone, 10 zone (10 yards out) or goal line.
no Air Raid Guru calling plays.
no way to make in game adjustments if the QB is having a bad game.
What’s that leave????? Swing passes and crossing routes. And people wonder why Lake laughs at Leach. Leach stops his offense for him by limiting it. It’s the easiest game prep Lake has all year. Fortunately, only 1 other coach has it figured out ~ Wilcox. ASU and Utah are close. UCLA was lucky.
Im happy to have won. It just bothers me that running the ball didn't happen sooner. It really does loosen things up and create opportunities.
GC, I mostly agree with you. Where we part ways is with individual accomplishments over team wins. I dont care about indy records. I care about this team and this school maximizing it’s potential. Which IMO, has been a total bust this season. What we saw tonight should have been happening all season, winning.
I dont think Leach is being stupid when he calls him the best QB. I think he is being a homer. Which is fine. You buying it hook line sinker, really?
I think there is so much more potential for this offense. I think the amount of meat left on the bone is huge.
I have made the comparison between WSU QBs and MLB pitchers before. If all you throw are fastballs, dont be surprised when the other team catches on and starts ripping them out of the park. Be able to mix things up and keep batters guessing. You’ll go farther.
Last year I think we saw what the offense can do with a pitcher that has a fastball, curve, change up and slider. This season, right back to fastballs every pitch. Is it too much to ask or expect more diversity in pitches/play calls???
We get it, you think you could better run the conferences top offense. Of course, you'd turn the offense into a train wreck of overcomplicated schemes and poor execution.
Ok, I’ll pick on someone else for a while.
Anyone else notice Tay Martin jogging his routes today? I saw several times where he didn’t even begin to make an effort. Not sure if it’s just he knew the play wasn’t coming to his side so why bother, or if he knew he’s on Gordon’s left...so why bother.
And, a common refrain from the last few weeks. How good would this team be if we had a defense that was even average? Seriously...we just gave up 500 yards in the air to Stanford’s backup QB and we’re talking about the defense looking better. How far, and how quickly, we have fallen. If our D was even good enough to call them mediocre, we’d be 8-2 at worst.
All I saw today was a really good offense. We always match up very favorably with Stanford. We played really well. Gordon, Borghi, the wrs and the OL all executed really well.
I'd change 2 things. 1) bring back the heavy 7 OL set we threw at teams when Harrell was here. Hell I'd open my first possession of the AC with it just to make Lake adjust to it. Only have to have like 3 plays out of it. 2). Ditch that stupid Statue of Liberty style draw play that takes too long to develop and just snap the ball straight to Borghi, as a checkdown call. Attack the WHOLE field, meaning from guard to guard. So that's one extra package and like 5 extra plays. I understand the clutter argument, this is something fairly simple that could make linebackers and safeties hesitate on their reads long enough to make running and passing easier. On that, I think Biggs and I agree. Retire the Big Gulp, if you like.
Bring back 7 OL, wings, stack I, something, anything to show the defense things they haven't seen or prepared for in the redzone or short yardage. Play your OL/DL bodies wherever they fit. Have a 6’4” 220lbs. WR? Give him reps at TE.
Don't just let the defense off the hook. Actually throw the ball deep and make their kids run.
Don't just let them off easy not having to tackle a ball carrier between the tackles. Actually make their kids buckle their chin straps and do it.
Don’t just let them not worry about a QB tucking a ball and running 5 or 6 times. Make them prepare for it.
Throw the ball left. Holy tap dancing Moses being a right handed team at the BCS level. Really? That is some lazy Juco Mickey Mouse crap.
AG threw the ball 60 times. Bloody hell WSU could have the nastiest draw run package in the nation. Draw, lead draw, QB draw are all plays that would work. How many times are they called????
Leach is 75% of the way there. It’s the next 25% that Saban, Meyer, Spurrier, Stoops, Bowden, etc have that put them over the top. Leach could do it. He just won’t. And I think that sucks.
He has a 5-5 team that could very well be a 1 loss team in the top 10. Look at the list of BCS teams that have 2 measly league wins and tell me which of them could say that?
Fair enough. I wouldn't mind seeing a direct snap to Borghi as often as we see big gulp.
The hand wringing is because a AG or LF will never get us over the hump against an elite D.
That being said, we need to live in the moment and appreciate what we have.
The more I read your ramblings, the more I respect Leach. He knows what he has, he knows what works, he knows why it works, and he ignores the noise.
Leach knows he has less talent on offense than most teams have on defense. He has some talented players (Borghi, Lucas, Patmon) but he's not looking at a roster stacked with NFL talent.
Leach knows teams only have a limited time to prepare for his offense and his offense is also limited in prep time so he keeps it simple. He sees crisp execution as the key to making up for the talent gap. Does everyone see the massive play sheets opposing coaches have each week against us? Leach has found away to have a better offense than all of those offenses.
When was the last time this offense out thought itself? Have some plays that you know you can execute regardless of down and distance and get to work. By every statistical measure the offense is great, and Leach never succumbs to the temptation to change something that works well.
Leach knows he has less talent on offense than most teams have on defense. He has some talented players (Borghi, Lucas, Patmon) but he's not looking at a roster stacked with NFL talent.
Leach knows teams only have a limited time to prepare for his offense and his offense is also limited in prep time so he keeps it simple. He sees crisp execution as the key to making up for the talent gap. Does everyone see the massive play sheets opposing coaches have each week against us? Leach has found away to have a better offense than all of those offenses.
When was the last time this offense out thought itself? Have some plays that you know you can execute regardless of down and distance and get to work. By every statistical measure the offense is great, and Leach never succumbs to the temptation to change something that works well.
You and sponge should hang out more often and talk about how Leach won’t get it done here.
You’re literally asking for a return of Wulff’s offense here.
Last edited:
Oh, I agree with you more than you think. I've been literally yelling at the TV/Radio for more running plays with a guy like Borghi being such a good weapon. I also think Travell Harris is our best receiver and one of our best players overall. Would love to see him get more throws. My original comment is more directed to yesterday's game.....we scored nearly every time we had the ball on offense (no punts, just the one turnover in the red zone). It was an excellent game by the offense and, IMO, it was well directed by Gordon. Yet he never seems to get any credit on this board, just criticism. How much better could we have been vs. Stanford if Harris catches those passes instead of Arconado or Winston? Yes, Gordon's statistics shouldn't be as important as the team record, and they aren't. But I'm continually amazed at how much criticism the offense gets this season when we all know that even a middling defense, combined with what our offense has done this year, would probably give us an 8-2 record at this point.
Glad Cougar
We have a 5-5 team...
I’m in the middle, this offense is good but at one point last night we had 400 yards and 19 points. Gordon isn’t without criticism and Leach certainly isn’t. To Biggs point UW does the same shit every year and Leach and our QBs continue to bang their heads against the wall and not make changes to adapt (granted I think we’d have put 35+ on them last year without the weather). Cal does the same thing and we saw how that turned out too.
We had some very long drives yesterday, which largely explains the 400 yards and only 3 TDs at that point in the game. The pick thrown by Gordon was not good, but that was another drive that should've resulted in more points.
Glad Cougar
There was a 96 yard drive, a 97 yard drive and a pick at the one yard yard. The two blown XPs contributed too.
That’s what Biggs wanted. Fire the ST coach. Miss Bianca didn’t even know that Harris was second in the PAC-12 at the time.
And of course you come in with an imponderable. Rather than complimenting the offense for zero punts, you use that to question the punt coverage.
Right. That’s 193 yards and 13 points.
That risky of a pass in the red zone when you have 3 points guaranteed is the kind of mental lapse that can’t happen against a UW. I think most people are looking through the lens of “If we are up against our toughest test then...”.
To me, the defense has played well enough to win. The offense has turned the ball over sooo many times. UCLA, ASU, UO. Awful games for turnovers. Or the offense never got going. 1 touchdown against Utah. Crap performance against Cal.
You can only hold the defense accountable so much. They didnt fumble the ball or give up a pick 6 or give the other team great field position or limit the offensive plays.
As poor as they have been, the offense has left them jammed up beyond belief. If the offense did this to the Posse there would have been a fist fight on the sideline.
Biggs, I've respected you for years and I don't pretend to know as much about football as you do. But that one lead sentence in your post is something I could never agree with.
Glad Cougar
You’re wrong. You’ve surpassed Ed by a huge margin as the dumbest poster on this board.
If this offense had the Posse, this team would be undefeated.
When I write that, my intent is 42-41. Not shut outs.
I dont know how anyone could look at the 6 turnovers and 2 special teams touchdowns against UCLA and blame the defense. Did they give up points? Yes. Did they give UCLA 6 more drives? No. Did they give up 2 returns for 14? No.
Did the defense fumble the game away against ASU? Did the defense give ASU a short field? No.
Was it the defense that is supposed to be high flying and score a lot of points? No. 1 touchdown against Utah.
Was it the defense that gave up a pick 8 against Cal? Was it the defense that has such a bland scheme that Cal shuts it down? No and no.
Was it the defense that fumbled late against Oregon? Was it the defense that kicked the ball to the 3 instead of in the endzone? Was it the defense that gave up a 36 yard return? Was it the defense that gave Oregon starting position at the 39?
Im not going to pretend that the defense hasnt played poorly.
Im not going to pretend that the offense hasnt played poorly either and left them swinging in the wind.
People get upset about how the defense has to be better. They do. But how much better do they have to be to overcome the steaming pile the offense leaves them with???
It’s one thing to overcome your own issues. It’s another to have to deal with the offense’s issues too. In a year when you know your defense is down, the offense playing so poorly and leaving them jammed up is mindblowing.
AR qbs are going to throw picks. Just way too many attempts for them not to. As long as they arent pick 6, Im mostly ok with it.
Gesser threw 13 each if his last two years. Leaf threw 11 and 12. (Just for comparison, and obviously NOT AR qbs).
Anyway, my point is that as long as hes not losing games by throwing picks, I dont think its fair to criticize him for it. Theres enough other stuff that you can be critical of him about.
People need to look past the surface. Yes, this offense gets yards and points. But look closer:
Their numbers are skewed much higher at home. They don’t perform near as well in the road.
Between the O and special teams, they give the opponent great field position an astonishing percentage of the time. Even a good D is going to give up points when you give the opponent a 30-50 yard field, and we don’t have a good D.
Offensive numbers are really good on 1st & 2nd down. We suck on 3rd. For the season we convert on 3rd down less than 40% of the time. That’s bad. It leads into some of the short fields mentioned above.
We’re one dimensional because we refuse to run, and then that dimension is limited because we only throw to the right. It’s really surprising how successful we are when you consider that.
As bad as this D is, they need to have 80yards behind them as much as possible, and they can’t affect that. Instead they’re repeatedly left with short fields to defend...and a unit that gives up an average of 20 yards per completion to Stanford’s backup QB isn’t going to defend a short field.
Their numbers are skewed much higher at home. They don’t perform near as well in the road.
Between the O and special teams, they give the opponent great field position an astonishing percentage of the time. Even a good D is going to give up points when you give the opponent a 30-50 yard field, and we don’t have a good D.
Offensive numbers are really good on 1st & 2nd down. We suck on 3rd. For the season we convert on 3rd down less than 40% of the time. That’s bad. It leads into some of the short fields mentioned above.
We’re one dimensional because we refuse to run, and then that dimension is limited because we only throw to the right. It’s really surprising how successful we are when you consider that.
As bad as this D is, they need to have 80yards behind them as much as possible, and they can’t affect that. Instead they’re repeatedly left with short fields to defend...and a unit that gives up an average of 20 yards per completion to Stanford’s backup QB isn’t going to defend a short field.
The problem I have with AGs picks is that so many of them are dumb. Throws into triple coverage (like yesterday), throws with tunnel vision where he’s so locked in to his receiver that he doesn’t see the LB underneath (like last week), etc. I don’t blame him for the one Arconado (?) batted to the DB, or for most of the tipped balls, or when a DB makes a good play. But those are the minority.
EDIT: All that being said, his INT numbers aren’t bad considering how many times he throws. He’s not Halliday, or even close. And, I admit he’s probably suffering by comparison because he has the misfortune to follow Minshew, who sets the bar on most of the things I’m knocking AG for. But seriously...he threw the TD to Winston into triple coverage. When that worked, he was going to do it again...and he did. Without bothering to see if the window was actually open. It wasn’t.
Last edited: