My, have they come out of the woodwork

[PSUForever]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

 

[Midnighter]

I think this is well said and better timed now that we've had a couple of days to digest/accept reality. I will say I do not like the play calling on third down and there was one glaring game management issue so far this season, but bottom line is we don't have the players and the roster needs time to rebuild. I am not really following recruiting very closely but hoping Campbell is targeting elite players and not hoping to find diamonds in the three star rough....

White Out will be fun to watch. So will the Song Girls.

 

[psu83]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

 

[BCS PSU]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

The money to buy players (it's amazing that I'm saying that) is now the most important thing. Somehow, someway, the AD, who is said to be good at fundraising, needs to make this his top priority. Without this, it simply doesn't matter who the coach is.

As we've seen, if you have money to spend, players will go to places like Lubbock, TX to play; very few of them now care about anything else.

 

[Erial_Lion]

I proudly wore a PSU sweatshirt on Saturday, just as I would have if we had won on Friday night. I'm amazed how quickly many jump off the bandwagon these days.

 

[Thorndike2021]

Yeah, it's sad coming here, so I've been staying away mostly.

There are various axes being ground here (and elsewhere):

1. The 'I hate Kraft' people are enjoying the past two weeks.
2. The 'I really miss my boyfriend, BGJ' group was giddy until sPitt beat Vo Tech.
3. The 'I'm always negative about everything because my entire life is a total turd fest' group are just being their usual selves.

I was rebuked before the Wisconsin game for saying that from what I had seen so far this PSU team would not do well in BIG play. Well, here we are.

Anyway, I will continue to watch my school try to compete on the football field just like I did in 2003, 2004, and 2020 when we had losing seasons. I want to be competitive or dominate as much as the next guy, but that isn't in the cards for this season. Relax and enjoy the ride, or go outside during the games and get some fresh air.

 

[PSUForever]

Yeah, it's sad coming here, so I've been staying away mostly.

There are various axes being ground here (and elsewhere):

1. The 'I hate Kraft' people are enjoying the past two weeks.
2. The 'I really miss my boyfriend, BGJ' group was giddy until sPitt beat Vo Tech.
3. The 'I'm always negative about everything because my entire life is a total turd fest' group are just being their usual selves.

I was rebuked before the Wisconsin game for saying that from what I had seen so far this PSU team would not do well in BIG play. Well, here we are.

Anyway, I will continue to watch my school try to compete on the football field just like I did in 2003, 2004, and 2020 when we had losing seasons. I want to be competitive or dominate as much as the next guy, but that isn't in the cards for this season. Relax and enjoy the ride, or go outside during the games and get some fresh air.

That's a good synopsis of the segmentation of supposed "fans". The BGJ group is amazing to me. The boyfriend who cheats on you constantly (losing every big game) yet now you want him back. Unbelievable.

 

[PSUForever]

The money to buy players (it's amazing that I'm saying that) is now the most important thing. Somehow, someway, the AD, who is said to be good at fundraising, needs to make this his top priority. Without this, it simply doesn't matter who the coach is.

As we've seen, if you have money to spend, players will go to places like Lubbock, TX to play; very few of them now care about anything else.

Money is a huge part of it. The good news is if you have enough you can go from doormat to Natty contender in one year.

 

[LaJollaCreek]

It will be a couple years to see if this was a good hire or not. Good news for me is I won’t shuffle around plans to watch that product on the field. The talent disparity isn’t hard to see currently so I’m not too bothered by it. Life goes on. Just like those that thought this program was one HC hiring away. Delusional at best with the current setup.

 

[Bwifan]

I think this is well said and better timed now that we've had a couple of days to digest/accept reality. I will say I do not like the play calling on third down and there was one glaring game management issue so far this season, but bottom line is we don't have the players and the roster needs time to rebuild. I am not really following recruiting very closely but hoping Campbell is targeting elite players and not hoping to find diamonds in the three star rough....

White Out will be fun to watch. So will the Song Girls.

Exactly... it took a couple of days but even Sunday I started to realize this team is just short on talent. Gimme Jimmy took some others left on their own to seek fortunes and Campbell was put in place after the transfer period. It's going to take 2-3 years of solid recruiting and using the portal wisely. This team is just short on top level talent playing against other big 10 teams. We are seeing it first hand. Campbell can coach. As I said sunday a wise football coach once said every scheme can work when you have the talent. It's the Jimmy and Joe's not X's and O's.

 

[Chumboshifko1]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

I posted 2 days ago the board was filled with trolls, contrarians and aholes.

 

[Ram20]

My only hope is that Campbell can attract young talent, because we really need an infusion of it through the portal and traditional recruiting. I really like him personally, I don't think he runs from accountability and he seems so genuine. I want him to succeed. He is kind of a "throwback" in his mannerisms, which appeals to a lot of us. I do have concerns about him being able to get high level kids. Let's face it, with the $ involved, I just wonder if Campbell is going to see any of these 4 and 5 star players as a cultural fit and vice versa.

 

[MtNittany]

How's the team GPA looking going into mid-terms I wonder?

"We're hoping that our midterm grades will really help our average."

 

[Psumatt85]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

Although a reasonable post, you're giving Kraft 4 more years? That is illogical and will make it even harder on HCMC

 

[psu0408]

I'm going to take a glass half full approach here. If PSU goes 9-3 or 8-4 this year with no playoff appearance, where does that get Campbell in the long-run? It leads him to believe that ISU level guys are capable of competing in the Big Ten. No need for the talent evaluators to change anything. Just continue recruiting "his guys" and hope to grab a portal guy or two to supplement, and that's enough to compete in the Big Ten.

The band aid has been ripped off for Campbell, Kraft and the donor class here at PSU. The ISU guys and Pac 12 mercenaries aren't cutting it, and Campbell is learning a hard lesson that he needs to improve on the recruiting trail and in the portal. He has some hard decisions to make as far as future roster retention.

Campbell's seat is ice cold, but Kraft's is heating up. He needs to find a way to get PSU into the top 10-15 in NIL resources if he wants to start landing true impact transfers. If they continue to spend at Wisconsin levels, Campbell will be gone after Year 3.

 

[rigi19041]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

Doesn't that describe you after every Franklin loss? FireFranklin.



Has the team.improved?

 

[Chumboshifko1]

Before, recruiting didn't matter, and now it does.

Which way is it?

 

[Erial_Lion]

Exactly... it took a couple of days but even Sunday I started to realize this team is just short on talent.

That was my concern heading into the season, and why I assumed we'd be looking at a 9-3 type season (against a less than impressive schedule). Using Phil Steele, here is everyone from PSU that appeared on his 4-deep Preseason All-Conference team...
1st team: Brahmer
2nd team: Sokach-Minnick (Long Snapper)
3rd team: Donkoh, Cooper
4th team: Rojas

He lists 12 offense, 12 defense, and 5 special teams, so that's 5 PSU players (one of them being a long snapper) out of 116 spots available.

 

[Chumboshifko1]

Doesn't that describe you after every Franklin loss? FireFranklin.



Has the team.improved?

Yes, Fraudlin and his pal Management style are gone.

 

[Psumatt85]

Yeah, it's sad coming here, so I've been staying away mostly.

There are various axes being ground here (and elsewhere):

1. The 'I hate Kraft' people are enjoying the past two weeks.
2. The 'I really miss my boyfriend, BGJ' group was giddy until sPitt beat Vo Tech.
3. The 'I'm always negative about everything because my entire life is a total turd fest' group are just being their usual selves.

I was rebuked before the Wisconsin game for saying that from what I had seen so far this PSU team would not do well in BIG play. Well, here we are.

Anyway, I will continue to watch my school try to compete on the football field just like I did in 2003, 2004, and 2020 when we had losing seasons. I want to be competitive or dominate as much as the next guy, but that isn't in the cards for this season. Relax and enjoy the ride, or go outside during the games and get some fresh air.

Not enjoying the last two weeks, but I think Kraft is an arrogant bully, with no skills for being an athletic director at a big ten school. The other difference for me vs the dark years( I was very positive about the team back then) is we now have paid mercenaries. So either we are overpaying or can’t evaluate talent. This is rooting for student athletes who have pieces of a common experience. Rocco Becht is getting $1- $2M to take one online class and play football. For a fifth year senior to have such little ability to connect on a 15 yard route, or be unable to lead a receiver 30+ yards downfield is a total miss for the whole program

 

[olelion]

Since they're coming out of the woodwork it reminds me of a study done several years ago by Princeton university about social sites. They likened it to a plague that spreads far and wide and then exhausts itself and begins to recede but with occasional flare ups. This is a flare up

 

[PSUFTG]

All that aside:

Kraft should have been fired 4 years and 6 months ago (the day he was hired)
Obviously that has nothing to do with how well or poorly the football team has played this year.

 

[Erial_Lion]

Not enjoying the last two weeks, but I think Kraft is an arrogant bully, with no skills for being an athletic director at a big ten school. The other difference for me vs the dark years( I was very positive about the team back then) is we now have paid mercenaries. So either we are overpaying or can’t evaluate talent. This is rooting for student athletes who have pieces of a common experience. Rocco Becht is getting $1- $2M to take one online class and play football. For a fifth year senior to have such little ability to connect on a 15 yard route, or be unable to lead a receiver 30+ yards downfield is a total miss for the whole program

Everyone that's trying to stop us is also getting paid. Regardless of the $ involved, it's still a zero-sum game.

 

[m.knox]

I proudly wore a PSU sweatshirt on Saturday, just as I would have if we had won on Friday night. I'm amazed how quickly many jump off the bandwagon these days.

I have one on now here in Ann f'ing Arbor, MI. Nice bright white one. Perfect for a white out, but it's aging. Got any pointers to brighten the white?

I'd like to believe the old Joe Pa saying. "You're never as bad as you think you when you lose, and you're never as good as you think you are when you win."

I said I'd like to believe it... lol...

 

[Marshall2323]

I posted 2 days ago the board was filled with trolls, contrarians and aholes.

You are too hard on yourself.

 

[m.knox]

Yeah, it's sad coming here, so I've been staying away mostly.

There are various axes being ground here (and elsewhere):

1. The 'I hate Kraft' people are enjoying the past two weeks.
2. The 'I really miss my boyfriend, BGJ' group was giddy until sPitt beat Vo Tech.
3. The 'I'm always negative about everything because my entire life is a total turd fest' group are just being their usual selves.

I was rebuked before the Wisconsin game for saying that from what I had seen so far this PSU team would not do well in BIG play. Well, here we are.

Anyway, I will continue to watch my school try to compete on the football field just like I did in 2003, 2004, and 2020 when we had losing seasons. I want to be competitive or dominate as much as the next guy, but that isn't in the cards for this season. Relax and enjoy the ride, or go outside during the games and get some fresh air.

LOL... excellent description of the axes'.

 

[Marshall2323]

Yes, Fraudlin and his pal Management style are gone.

Can't you see the difference?

 

[Marshall2323]

All that aside:

Kraft should have been fired 4 years and 6 months ago (the day he was hired)
Obviously that has nothing to do with how well or poorly the football team has played this year.

This is 100% Kraft's handiwork.

 

[Electric Lion]

This is 100% Kraft's handiwork.

Let's recall that Iowa St. and MC beat a big ten team, Iowa, two years in a row, something we did not do last season with PSU level talent. We brought over the best players from that Iowa St. team. It was reasonable to assume, therefore, that we would have the talent and coaching ability to win big ten games, mixing that Iowa St. veteran talent with holdovers like Rojas, Rappleyea, Dixson, Cousins, Granville, Howard, etc. That has not been the case. But it was not an unreasonable assumption. Seems like ineffective QB play and some key injuries are the chief reasons, but schematically we couldn't handle NW's runs. That's the troubling part.

The problem will be money. As someone else posted, with the right amount of money you can entice people to go to football backwaters like Indiana and actual backwaters like Lubbock. But already this year we are not selling enough tickets, and with the prices rising to the stratosphere next year for what looks like a mediocre team, will they come? Not looking good. So we'll have to fund the stadium bill AND up the NIL payroll at the same time. The AD will have some sleepless nights for sure.

 

[Nitt1300]

That people didn't see this coming is mind boggling. How you may feel about Franklin, Campbell or Kraft means nothing.

You can't replace half of your team with players from a middling team in a weaker conference (not Campbell's fault- he had no time) and expect great results- but many here did. Because?

This is going to be a total rebuild, and it's not going to be fast or fun. And if you don't have tOSU or Oregon money, you aren't gonna be their equal.

Reality- like it, don't like it- it is what it is.

 

[JoePaMajorCFBrecord409Ws]

This board is now infested with all the people declaring the end and funeral for Penn State football. What's worse is in their ignorant mind BGJ has turned into Bill Walsh or Don Shula or Nick Saban or Bear Bryant. I won't say JoePa because these same entitled people probably don't like him because he took us through the Dark Years. What's even worse is the petulant glee that people have.....Naaa, naaa, naaa, I told you so! We are worse than with BGJ and Campbell and Kraft need to be fired.

Calm down people and get rational or just shut up for the love of God.

Am I disappointed in the way we have started? Of course. Does the team look soft, unathletic and uninspiring? Yes. Should Campbell be fired? No. Should Campbell be fired if he loses every B10 game this season? No. Should Kraft be fired? No. Do we need to show improvement this season? Yes.

No, I am not making excuses for Campbell. This start is horrible and I don't think anyone including him had in their wildest nightmare bingo cards that we would lose to Wisky in that fashion at home then get drubbed by NW.

Here is some perspective and thoughts and you can ignore it or not.

-We don't have the talent we thought we did. Why did most people including me predict 9-3 and maybe 10-2? We thought the ISU guys would translate over and some others like the UCLA DTs would also. Did Campbell know this? I don't know but I think he is surprised as many of us are especially the poor play of Becht. I know there were doubters so congratulations on being right so far. Try not to be so smug.

-Is Campbell now a bad coach? No. How could he be a good coach 3 weeks ago and a bad coach now?

-We did lose Howard and Granville. Two of
our best players on a talent challenged roster. We are not OSU with NFL talent everywhere. Not an excuse just a fact and we need to play better even without them.

-Is Campbell in way over his head? No. He is a proven winner at this level. Yes it was ISU and he lost games there. He has his challenges on the big stage now that is Penn State but it is not like he is a bad coach. We have to see if he can elevate the program to the playoffs and deep runs in the playoff. We just don't know after 2 B10 games and won't know even at the end of this season.

-We had to go all in on ISU guys. No choice. I doubt Grunk was staying no matter what but that could be debated and you can blame Campbell if you choose to. What is wrong with Becht? I don't know but I don't see that as a huge Campbell coaching failure, yet. Maybe others do. If Becht continues this sad sack season then yes Campbell has to share in the blame.

-We will win some games and surprise many of you. We won't finish 9-3 and doubtful 8-4 but there is a shot at that but we won't be 4-8 or even 5-7 either. If we don't finish at least 7-5? Certainly reason for concern but we need to have some patience (see the long game below).

-We need to show improvement no doubt. My biggest priority is the team plays with more physical toughness. Even if we lose but the team shows physical toughness then that is a good thing and a positive.

-Even though this year is kind of a lost year at this point we do need to win games for the momentum of the program and most importantly for the attractiveness of the program for portal guys and HS recruits.

For the long game as in starting with our 2028 class there are two things that have to happen:

1) Our NIL budget has to move into the top 15 and ideally top 12. Kraft needs to make this happen. This is his responsibility. Campbell needs to lobby hard for this as well but Kraft is accountable.

2) Campbell needs to recruit at least at the Franklin level in the top 15 and ideally get a top 10 class every 4th year. This point is directly related to point #1.

Beyond this we need to see:

-A physically tough and mentally tough team and program. Have not seen this yet but Campbell talks about it a lot. He needs to walk the talk.

-Strong player development, guys outkicking their coverage from their HS rankings or portal rankings. Guys showing good improvement from when they started to their last year.

-Good game strategy/planning and strong in-game coaching. We can't be looking back at losses and saying many of them were due to being outcoached or boneheaded calls or playing scared or playing not
to lose.

-Actually pulling a few upsets here and there.

As for results. We need to make the playoff by year 3 or 4 at the latest. If not in year 3 then steady improvement is shown and we are a top 20 or top 15 team but just missing out.

And if we do make the playoffs then we need to be consistently making it (3 out of 4) with a deep run to the semis, finals thrown in there. I would say every 4th year, we should be making a strong run at the natty.

If we don't do these things as in a playoff appearance by year 4 at the latest and we stay as a mid tier to bottom tier B10 team then we should fire Campbell and Kraft. Kraft's success is tied to Campbell.

Have no problem with Campbell not being fired, but you're off your rocker and haven't been paying attention if you think the empty-suit, hack Clownboy Kraft doesn't deserve to be fired.... how he still has a job is a joke and the current administration has some nerve asking Alumns for more $$$ and financial support while this joker still has a job. Complete nonsense that Kraft doesn't deserve to be fired.

 

[Marshall2323]

That people didn't see this coming is mind boggling. How you may feel about Franklin, Campbell or Kraft means nothing.

You can't replace half of your team with players from a middling team in a weaker conference (not Campbell's fault- he had no time) and expect great results- but many here did. Because?

This is going to be a total rebuild, and it's not going to be fast or fun. And if you don't have tOSU or Oregon money, you aren't gonna be their equal.

Reality- like it, don't like it- it is what it is.

But this staff makes brilliant in game decisions, identifies talent like no one else and then coaches them up.

 

[Nitt1300]

But this staff makes brilliant in game decisions, identifies talent like no one else and then coaches them up.

Vince Lombardi wouldn't have wanted this job even if his assistants were named Bryant, Landry, and Paterno

 

[Erial_Lion]

Have no problem with Campbell not being fired, but you're off your rocker and haven't been paying attention if you think the empty-suit, hack Clownboy Kraft doesn't deserve to be fired.... how he still has a job is a joke and the current administration has some nerve asking Alumns for more $$$ and financial support while this joker still has a job.

I'll give you 16 million reasons why he has a job. But in fantasy world, we should have already fired him because the football team lost 2 games, and the new AD will have no problem coming up with an easy $16,000,000 on top of all the other money they'll easily raise.

 

[MM1994]

That's a good synopsis of the segmentation of supposed "fans". The BGJ group is amazing to me. The boyfriend who cheats on you constantly (losing every big game) yet now you want him back. Unbelievable.

Now we lose the little games too.

 

[leinbacker]

Before, recruiting didn't matter, and now it does.

Which way is it?

It does matter, as does the transfer portal. When you sign a new coach after the early signing period where PSU signed two, count them, two players. He came here during that transfer/free-agent signing period with no ability to recruit transfers, to build any relationships. His only chance was to draw from those players he knew from ISU. On top of this, many of the existing players were poached away. Easy picking as nobody knew who was going to be the coach and what their standing ith him was going to be.

 

[JoePaMajorCFBrecord409Ws]

I'll give you 16 million reasons why he has a job. But in fantasy world, we should have already fired him because the football team lost 2 games, and the new AD will have no problem coming up with an easy $16,000,000 on top of all the other money they'll easily raise.

You clearly know squat about the fatal flaw of making decisions based on "sunk costs"..... Claiming that an investment will pay off because you have "sunk costs" is moronic in a business setting - and guess what genius, when you're running a Professional Football Team (and this is a Professional Football Franchise in a Professional Football League). LMAO that Kraft is now making incredible decisions because we've sunk a lot of money into empty-suit Krafty The Clownboy??? According to your theories, our Free Agents were great investments and use of precious, finite resources because we paid them a lot of $$$???? You clearly don't know squat about making financial decision-making or the concept that SUNK COSTS SHOULD NEVER BE CONSIDERED as a rationale for future investment. This post is so ridiculously laughable, it is beyond sad - Krafty The Clownboy is going to save us because we paid him $16 million??? You must be a PSU bureaucrat with this stupid nonsense argument.

 

[Nittering Nabob]

What's perplexing to me is that obvious troll threads from regional trolls (Pitt, WVU, VoTech) are allowed to remain on this board.

On the old Tom Board, these would have been purged in their infancy. Something's different.

 

[G3624]

That's what happens if one misspeaks on the pittle board.

 

[PSUForever]

I have one on now here in Ann f'ing Arbor, MI. Nice bright white one. Perfect for a white out, but it's aging. Got any pointers to brighten the white?

I'd like to believe the old Joe Pa saying. "You're never as bad as you think you when you lose, and you're never as good as you think you are when you win."

I said I'd like to believe it... lol...

Man do you live in that place? Brutal.