Why I'm thrilled we are 9-2 but I'm not going to stop complaining about the offense...

[earldacoug]

I don't want TH replacing Falk. He gets his shot next year. Falk is the guy and a great QB. I just think we need to be better on 1 and 2 down . I also think we can be too. I think we need more runs, I like the WR shifts, more 2 back set,go up tempo. All these things would help production on 1 and 2 downs imo.

For the record I think Leach and staff are recruiting very well. If this class continues and closes well I think it will take us to win the PAC 12 championship.

 

[chipdouglas]

Three things I'd like to clear up as I read this mess:

1. Nobody is complaining about the team.

Anybody who says that is knowingly using a straw man, because they know the truth - that some fans are unhappy with the offensive performance - is not sufficiently outrageous. So they change it from a disagreement over the offense, to a roll call between "good fans" like them and "bad fans" like us - and that is outrageous... just not for the reasons they would have you believe. Let's not resurrect this deliberately misleading libel again.

2. Even our modest offensive performance is propped up by our defense.

I keep reading about our "Top 4" and "Top 6" offensive rankings. In our conference. Wow. So the unstoppable Air Raid offense - which hung 40+ points on conference opponents 7 times in the past 2 years, but will do so just once this year - has maneuvered its way to the middle of the conference in scoring. Not exactly eye-popping numbers... and I don't hear anyone confronting the apparent dropoff vs prior years. We've all seen Luke and the offense raise hell, so it's not like we don't have anything to compare it to.

But even the introduction of offensive rankings is designed to give the impression of us driving the length of the field and lighting up the scoreboard, which is just not true. Thanks to our defense, we're starting in great field position, scoring points on defense, buying extra drives through TOs, and getting our offense back on the field effortlessly. As evidence, some more impressive rankings:

• #2 nationally in 3rd down defense; #1 in conference
• #3 nationally in fumbles recovered; #1 in conference
• #5 nationally in TFLs; #1 in conference
  
• #9 nationally in sacks; #2 in conference
  
• #11 nationally in INTs; #2 in conference
• #12 nationally in passing yards allowed; #2 in conference
• #3 in conference in rushing defense (despite AZ!)
• #3 in conference in scoring defense

Consider that this is all despite our defense seemingly starting every series at midfield thanks to the ST! Imagine what it would look like pinned against opponents' goal lines.

Our defense is creating chaos, literally putting up its own points (credited to the offense), gifting the offense extra drives every game, harassing the QB, taking away the run, getting us off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, and keeping our offense from having to change its gameplan. The offense's figures - already modest - are artificially propped up by the defense. Let's not wield this like it's the game-set-match for this discussion.

3. Hating critics doesn't make you a good fan - it just makes you a critic hater.

Mike Leach wouldn't piss on you if you were on fire. James Williams will not pick you up from the airport, even if you pay him. They don't know you exist, they're not interested in meeting you, and you will never be friends. If you think your team friendships or fandom are riding on your commentary about the team... they're not.

Some people in this debate think that, because they refuse to entertain the idea that offensive improvement is needed, they're "above" this debate. They're not.

This battle of whether it's OK to be openly critical of players / units / teams rages on every single sports board. Every board is divided between those who think criticism is OK, and those who in practice think it's needlessly negative, and therefore unacceptable. If you think you're different, or a better fan because you're in the latter camp, you're not. You are in one of the same two camps that exist on every board. You were preceded by people just like you and will be replaced by people just like you, all of them neatly fitting into one of two sides.

All boards are the same. The only difference is censorship; i.e., which side do moderators take? Which side is allowed to express their full range of opinions, and which side is suppressed? The SBNation sites for the Cougars and the Seahawks implicitly or explicitly enforce what I would consider the "whistle past the graveyard" sentiment, and discourage or outright ban criticism. I love this board because it allows the full range of sentiment. It seems that this degree of freedom to express oneself makes some posters uncomfortable.

 

[chipdouglas]

The thing that's tough about woulda, coulda, shoulda's is that you don't know how the other pieces react if one of them changes.

Your point makes sense when we're talking about 1 or 2 score games.

But I don't exactly buy the idea of the butterfly effect in cases (4x) where we won by a score or less on the back of an outstanding defensive performance. "Sure, we beat BSU at home in triple overtime, but if the defense didn't get those 4 takeaways, the gang probably would have driven down the field and dropped a 70-burger on 'em."

That's a silly example, but the figures seem to make this 'what if' scenario fairly uncontroversial.

 

[CougInSpain]

Three things I'd like to clear up as I read this mess:

1. Nobody is complaining about the team.

Anybody who says that is knowingly using a straw man, because they know the truth - that some fans are unhappy with the offensive performance - is not sufficiently outrageous. So they change it from a disagreement over the offense, to a roll call between "good fans" like them and "bad fans" like us - and that is outrageous... just not for the reasons they would have you believe. Let's not resurrect this deliberately misleading libel again.

2. Even our modest offensive performance is propped up by our defense.

I keep reading about our "Top 4" and "Top 6" offensive rankings. In our conference. Wow. So the unstoppable Air Raid offense - which hung 40+ points on conference opponents 7 times in the past 2 years, but will do so just once this year - has maneuvered its way to the middle of the conference in scoring. Not exactly eye-popping numbers... and I don't hear anyone confronting the apparent dropoff vs prior years. We've all seen Luke and the offense raise hell, so it's not like we don't have anything to compare it to.

But even the introduction of offensive rankings is designed to give the impression of us driving the length of the field and lighting up the scoreboard, which is just not true. Thanks to our defense, we're starting in great field position, scoring points on defense, buying extra drives through TOs, and getting our offense back on the field effortlessly. As evidence, some more impressive rankings:

• #2 nationally in 3rd down defense; #1 in conference
• #3 nationally in fumbles recovered; #1 in conference
• #5 nationally in TFLs; #1 in conference
  
• #9 nationally in sacks; #2 in conference
  
• #11 nationally in INTs; #2 in conference
• #12 nationally in passing yards allowed; #2 in conference
• #3 in conference in rushing defense (despite AZ!)
• #3 in conference in scoring defense

Consider that this is all despite our defense seemingly starting every series at midfield thanks to the ST! Imagine what it would look like pinned against opponents' goal lines.

Our defense is creating chaos, literally putting up its own points (credited to the offense), gifting the offense extra drives every game, harassing the QB, taking away the run, getting us off the field on 3rd and 4th downs, and keeping our offense from having to change its gameplan. The offense's figures - already modest - are artificially propped up by the defense. Let's not wield this like it's the game-set-match for this discussion.

3. Hating critics doesn't make you a good fan - it just makes you a critic hater.

Mike Leach wouldn't piss on you if you were on fire. James Williams will not pick you up from the airport, even if you pay him. They don't know you exist, they're not interested in meeting you, and you will never be friends. If you think your team friendships or fandom are riding on your commentary about the team... they're not.

Some people in this debate think that, because they refuse to entertain the idea that offensive improvement is needed, they're "above" this debate. They're not.

This battle of whether it's OK to be openly critical of players / units / teams rages on every single sports board. Every board is divided between those who think criticism is OK, and those who in practice think it's needlessly negative, and therefore unacceptable. If you think you're different, or a better fan because you're in the latter camp, you're not. You are in one of the same two camps that exist on every board. You were preceded by people just like you and will be replaced by people just like you, all of them neatly fitting into one of two sides.

All boards are the same. The only difference is censorship; i.e., which side do moderators take? Which side is allowed to express their full range of opinions, and which side is suppressed? The SBNation sites for the Cougars and the Seahawks implicitly or explicitly enforce what I would consider the "whistle past the graveyard" sentiment, and discourage or outright ban criticism. I love this board because it allows the full range of sentiment. It seems that this degree of freedom to express oneself makes some posters uncomfortable.

I would make a distinction of the TYPE of criticism levied on player and/or team. Cursing up a storm, stomping your feet and breathing heavily with a red face while posting on these boards is hardly beneficial to anyone reading that drivel. Laying out well though arguments explaining your position seems to be what most are doing when they make their case for the criticism that is being posted.

 

[roses04]

Just win in Seattle, then win in Santa Clara, then in Phoenix, and everyone will stop talking about the offense, but it will take a great defense to get there too. It's called a team game for a reason. The offense has carried this team for years, the defense has won several games this year. Going to need both working well for these last 3 games.