I "don't know anything about football," but...

[AuburnLegacy_1]

Looking back on the first few weeks of college football, I want to remind you all of what I told you in the offseason:



I told you all that the SPRING FOOTBALL NONSENSE about "stopping the run" was ridiculous. I even told @DaShuckster and others that UCF could jump "as high as a 100 spots" in run defense rankings.

FACT: UCF currently has a 15 rushing defense in the nation because the PAC-12 DOESN'T RUN THE FOOTBALL!




I told you all Gus needed to hire David Gibbs as a defensive analyst to hold Addison Williams' hand after Gibbs resigned as Associate Head Coach/Defensive Backs Coach at Illinois.

FACT: UCF ranks 102 in passing yards allowed in the nation; meanwhile, Arizona State, where Gibbs was employed as an analyst the day before the CFB season began, is 69th.

https://footballscoop.com/news/veteran-defensive-coordinator-david-gibbs-reportedly-joining-arizona-state-staff

I told you all that Ja'varrius Johnson would supplant Xavier Townsend at slot receiver.

FACT: Townsend quit.

UCF wide receiver Xavier Townsend uses redshirt eligibility, will enter transfer portal

UCF junior wide receiver Xavier Townsend will be using his redshirt year with plans to enter the transfer portal, he announced Thursday on Instagram.

www.nicholsonstudentmedia.com

I told you that Gus needed to hire someone (like Terry Bowden) as an analyst for clock management and game day coaching decisions.

FACT: Gus remains deficient in those areas.

Surely Gus could have lured Bowden away from Delhi Charter: https://www.knoe.com/2024/04/15/for...-terry-bowden-accepts-position-delhi-charter/




I told you that Gus needed to hire a football-specific team psychologist to help him with team/player motivation.

FACT: UCF has came out flat the last three straight weeks against BIG 12 and SEC opponents. (As a caveat, UCF should have needed no extra motivation to be ready to play Colorado and Florida.)



But again I "don't know anything about football." Those are just 'coincidences.'


FULL DISCLOSURE: I was wrong about UCF losing to TCU, but right about the Knights losing to Florida. I must admit I am surprised and perplexed about the Colorado loss.

 

[BlakNGoldAllDay]

PAC 12 doesn’t throw football? Only Colorado played PAC last year so far. Everyone else was not.

 

[mattropolis]

A lot of good points. I was excoriated by my fellow Knights I tailgate with because I was so pissed that during the first two games we weren't throwing the ball at least 35 times to self-assess. I started the season thinking we were an 8-9 win team. After the first two games I downgraded that to 7 wins because I didn't feel we worked on our biggest unknowns (QB and WRs), and my gut told me that was going to blow up in our face. It has.

 

[AuburnLegacy_1]

PAC 12 doesn’t throw football? Only Colorado played PAC last year so far. Everyone else was not.

In the preseason, I was looking at the entire schedule, including Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah.

Florida accounted for more than 3,000 passing yards (Graham Mertz, 2,903; Max Brown, 192) in 2023. Even New Hampshire and Sam Houston State were more proficient throwing the football than running it. It was obvious that UCF needed to focus on pass defense, not run defense.

 

[AuburnLegacy_1]

Also, @beelit47, I told you Ja'varrius Johnson would be an impact player for UCF and I still think he will.

I am making a bunch of assumption here.

Ja'varrius entered the portal Dec. 15. He committed to UCF on May 14. He did not go through spring football at Auburn. He was finishing up his college coursework to graduate. I *assume* he showed up to fall camp at UCF outside of peak condition. I *assume* that is why he played limited reps behind Xavier Townsend. I *assume* that is why UCF has Trent Whittmore 'fair catching' punts. I *assume* that Johnson is 'playing his way into game shape' and will eventually become the player I envisioned.