Both Lines were beaten

[Ru-baby]

That was as much as a surprise as anything. No push to run, sptty pass protection. So so much talk about the new OL coach and all the yelling and what it would produce. Raymond we know to be a good back and had no room.

DL was pushed off the ball. No one seemed over aggressive to try to get to the qb or ballcarrier until the 4th. Allison seems like a slightly bigger Heinsplitter, who didnt have the size for the B10. Walker engaging WITH blockers still, a la LB Beckford, and opening holes and taking himself oput of the play.

And the lower level guys seemed smaller or less althetic than needed. Munn beaten and very small phsyically. Are there too many guys trying to step up--not everyone makes it at the higher level or else they would started there.

The D appeared no different from the first games through oregon of last year. No one seemed eager to hit. All seemed to be taking a step back and trying to defend rather than attacking. Umass seemed to want to play. This team didnt seem fired up for an opener-a one of twelve. Really passive outing.

 

[RW90]

Not to be outdone, their QB played lightyears better as well.

 

[ScarletDave]

That was as much as a surprise as anything. No push to run, sptty pass protection. So so much talk about the new OL coach and all the yelling and what it would produce. Raymond we know to be a good back and had no room.

DL was pushed off the ball. No one seemed over aggressive to try to get to the qb or ballcarrier until the 4th. Allison seems like a slightly bigger Heinsplitter, who didnt have the size for the B10. Walker engaging WITH blockers still, a la LB Beckford, and opening holes and taking himself oput of the play.

And the lower level guys seemed smaller or less althetic than needed. Munn beaten and very small phsyically. Are there too many guys trying to step up--not everyone makes it at the higher level or else they would started there.

The D appeared no different from the first games through oregon of last year. No one seemed eager to hit. All seemed to be taking a step back and trying to defend rather than attacking. Umass seemed to want to play. This team didnt seem fired up for an opener-a one of twelve. Really passive outing.

Agree our D players seemed puny. Really small. Where do we find these guys? No amount of strength and conditioning can help this.

 

[matei]

Sadly, you were probably too kind in your assessment.
But the lack of compete urgency seems unfathomable to me. From the staff, from the guys on the field.

 

[newell138]

Maybe they were holding back all our good plays as to not Tip our hands for BC

 

[runrutgersrun]

Maybe they were holding back all our good plays as to not Tip our hands for BC

I like this angle! Trying to make BC feel overconfident! Indeed, if they spend enough time watching the RU-UMASS game tape, they (BC) may still be giggling when the BC-RU game starts!

 

[Ru-baby]

Need flats.//////////

Certain podcasters have disrespected him going all in on the new screaming regimen.

 

[RU#1fan]

Maybe they were holding back all our good plays as to not Tip our hands for BC

No actually holding our plays until Indiana comes to town. All upcoming opponents will have their way.

 

[Bueller]

“I apologize to everybody who followed me on the Rutgers pick. I’m not gonna point the finger at Greg Schiano or Rutgers for the most pathetic effort Ive ever seen. The buck stops with me. I will work to earn your trust back #rutgerssucks,” Portnoy wrote as it became clear Rutgers wasn’t going to get anywhere near a 40-point win.

His rant on X continued well into the night.

“Not only do I think Rutgers football should be kicked out of the Big 10 I think the football program should be disbanded,” he later wrote on the platform.

Dave Portnoy apologizes for his ‘strongest play’ Rutgers bet with ugly loss to UMass

Dave Portnoy’s first college football bet of the season could hardly have gone worse.

nypost.com

 

[RU Jeep]

No one seemed over aggressive to try to get to the qb or ballcarrier until the 4th.

No one seemed eager to hit.

All seemed to be taking a step back and trying to defend rather than attacking.

This team didnt seem fired up for an opener-a one of twelve. Really passive outing.

Spot on and totally baffling

 

[Knight Shift]

Spot on and totally baffling

@LotusAggressor_rivals and I have an ongoing dialogue about the "violence" narrative that started in the Rutgers Fall camp.

The only violence I saw last night was from the team wearing white jerseys. Talk is cheap. Action is more difficult for some teams and people. Never believe your own hype. Stay humble and stay hungry. This will either be a season crushing loss, or a kick in their collective butts to play better and with some heart and urgency.

 

[rutgersguy2]

@LotusAggressor_rivals and I have an ongoing dialogue about the "violence" narrative that started in the Rutgers Fall camp.

The only violence I saw last night was from the team wearing white jerseys. Talk is cheap. Action is more difficult for some teams and people. Never believe your own hype. Stay humble and stay hungry. This will either be a season crushing loss, or a kick in their collective butts to play better and some heart.

There was a UMass post game locker room video with Joe H celebrating with the team and saying "tonight was an *** kicking" and you're like OMG how low can we go.

 

[RU206]

#16 is too slow to cover slot receivers

 

[phlop87]

Not to be outdone, their QB played lightyears better as well.

not a fair comparison ... He was playing against our D

 

[LotusAggressor_rivals]

@LotusAggressor_rivals and I have an ongoing dialogue about the "violence" narrative that started in the Rutgers Fall camp.

The only violence I saw last night was from the team wearing white jerseys. Talk is cheap. Action is more difficult for some teams and people. Never believe your own hype. Stay humble and stay hungry. This will either be a season crushing loss, or a kick in their collective butts to play better and some heart.

Exactly. Don't talk about violence and get bulldozed in the trenches on both sides of the ball. This game makes me wonder what exactly was being practiced for all this time. I guess it was putting the word "violence" in every quote. Maybe paying more for parking or contributing to a fieldhouse would have bought enough violence to beat what was the worst team in college football for the last several seasons. Perhaps the magical violence generating powers of the UMass fieldhouse were too much for RU to overcome.

 

[RUGuitarMan1]

The key is not to listen to what players say and what coaches say. They are always going to use whatever the current cliches are. The performance on the field indicates what the reality is.

 

[Bueller]

I watched the 21 minute highlights on Youtube and seeing the plays in rapid succession was an eye-opener. This is a bad team - slow, weak, unsure of reads, QB prayer-chucks into coverage like Nova.

OL zone blocking was really bad. Zone = no specific gap and the OLs move en masse laterally to allow RB to pick a slot. However UMass kept shooting gaps and RBs were lost. It was like watching Pacheco stuck behind his lines. If anyone saw how bad Rice and Pierce were in last full season with Ravens that was due to an OL that couldn't zone block. Zone is more freelancing and it can breakdown if OL isn't athletic and coordinated among themselves. This could get better as season goes on but it looked bad. Teams like Saban's Bama teams used mix of zone and gap (a specific gap is targeted and has specific blocking)

Defenders couldn't get off blocks and couldn't get to the ball. Pass defense was slow and defenders looked lost. Tackling was weak. Sometimes when a team looks this bad its because they got shocked by opponents speed/power. They expected a weak team and had a tiger by the tail. They realize quickly they are in the wrong game.

Duff had his circus catches and the 70s yd TD pass showed Duff causing defender to tangle and fall (17:21), He's so good at getting away with his little taps on DBs

 

[Caliknight]

Spot on and totally baffling

Not really. It’s the most boring, uninteresting, vanilla program there could be. Schiano didn’t even seem like he wanted be there. Why would the players? As soon as I saw the DC box I knew they would suck. You can just tell sometimes by how people look what will happen.

 

[Knight Shift]

I watched the 21 minute highlights on Youtube and seeing the plays in rapid succession was an eye-opener. This is a bad team - slow, weak, unsure of reads, QB prayer-chucks into coverage like Nova.

OL zone blocking was really bad. Zone = no specific gap and the OLs move en masse laterally to allow RB to pick a slot. However UMass kept shooting gaps and RBs were lost. It was like watching Pacheco stuck behind his lines. If anyone saw how bad Rice and Pierce were in last full season with Ravens that was due to an OL that couldn't zone block. Zone is more freelancing and it can breakdown if OL isn't athletic and coordinated among themselves. This could get better as season goes on but it looked bad. Teams like Saban's Bama teams used mix of zone and gap (a specific gap is targeted and has specific blocking)

Defenders couldn't get off blocks and couldn't get to the ball. Pass defense was slow and defenders looked lost. Tackling was weak. Sometimes when a team looks this bad its because they got shocked by opponents speed/power. They expected a weak team and had a tiger by the tail. They realize quickly they are in the wrong game.

Duff had his circus catches and the 70s yd TD pass showed Duff causing defender to tangle and fall (17:21), He's so good at getting away with his little taps on DBs

 

[njknightj]

the ole you win and lose in the trenches, this one was ugly.

run blocking - D - absolutely demolished at the line, no push, can't identify who to block, the defense was sending LBs into gaps to disguise and these kids were absolutely lost, this is more on the coaching staff than the players.

pass blocking C - i give this one a neutral, there was enough time to make plays. Lonergan has no zip on the ball it's painful to watch.

D-line F - absolutely slow, can't disengage, like watching them run in mud it was atrocious

 

[Wagram97]

That early UMass 3rd-6 or 3rd-5 where the team captain #41, the defensive LB transfer from Drake, whiffed on the tackle allowing the 4th-1 that they went for and made. That was the moment we should have all realized this season was going to be bad. Then #41 would follow up with several more misses. That's bad.

 

[Ru-baby]

In considering more of the line play, yes there were what seemed like Robb Smith era leave your area D (inexplicable both tackles stunting leaving middle wide open see td run) that made things worse, but the difference in physicality is still shocking. It would appear they had more stout lines on both sides.

Further re coaching, with all the pre season platitudes and last two years of improving OL performance, this is shocking. Coaching certainly didn''t help.

But seeing Needham consistently beat and out athleticism'd (new word?) as well as Asamoah...and the rest-wow. That the OL was manhandled was a shock. Were they just thinking too much with new schemes or are they really athletically inferior to Umass?

And speaking of the eye test, appears all of the lower level players were not at least for game one able to make the jump. LBs seemed small, slow and passive. Secondary was small and beat off the ball.

When Umass had the 4th quarter pick it was an athletic play and what hit me was I don't see anyone in the RU secondary who could make such a play. Umass has a more athletic secondary--was there a total miss on talent evaluation? Hopefully not but you can't determine the opposite from game one.

 

[ScarletKid2008]

That early UMass 3rd-6 or 3rd-5 where the team captain #41, the defensive LB transfer from Drake, whiffed on the tackle allowing the 4th-1 that they went for and made. That was the moment we should have all realized this season was going to be bad. Then #41 would follow up with several more misses. That's bad.

That player stood out to me several times as being a major major issue. Slow, missing tackles , completely out of position

 

[RU05]

Agree our D players seemed puny. Really small. Where do we find these guys? No amount of strength and conditioning can help this.

Early in the game I'm seeing UMass's QB transferred from Va Tech, and I thought, that's kind of dangerous.

Then I see one of our starting middle LB's transferred in from an FCS school or something and I thought, that is a stark contrast.

And of course the latter bit on the QB rollout only to see the former lob it over his head for a TD pretty early in the game.

 

[RU05]

Maybe they were holding back all our good plays as to not Tip our hands for BC

Given how good a coach Schiano is, that is the only reasonable explanation.

 

[Kbe4]

I wondered what the hell was going on when I saw the same two DTs out there that I saw last season getting pushed around like they were on roller skates.
Angoy and Griffin. Also, if our LBs are so weak, how bad are McClary and Archie ?

 

[Bueller]

Watching the game I was reminded of Rutgers vs Washington in 2016 (Ash's first game). It was season opener and in Washington's stadium. RU was thrashed from the start and final would be 48-13. NFL first round DT Vita Vea was a bad man among RU's OL boys. Husky WRs were running ahead of Anthony Cioffi who was lost.. I've seen good RU teams play bad and bad teams play bad and 2016 team was bad (1st year of Ash maybe). 2016 RU team would go 2-10 (beat Howard and New Mexico). My guess is this year will be along those lines. Duff and Raymond might make a difference (Janarion Grant the only TD vs Huskies) but ya know.

​

 

[Anon1751565407]

UMass will qualify for a bowl. A simple 60 second search of their roster would’ve shown how much beef they brought in this year. And their new QB is a playmaker. People who think UMass simply lined up last year’s 0-12 roster again are mistaken (Dave Portnoy et al).

 

[Bueller]

UMass will qualify for a bowl. A simple 60 second search of their roster would’ve shown how much beef they brought in this year. And their new QB is a playmaker. People who think UMass simply lined up last year’s 0-12 roster again are mistaken (Dave Portnoy et al).

The QB is so overrated its hysterical. A THREE year player with 551 total yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs coming into RU game. He's not Teddy Bridgewater 2.0. Greg was hyping him up and it was sad.

RU has some of the best skill players in the nation on offense and only Duff could get anything done

 

[RUDivision]

UMass will qualify for a bowl. A simple 60 second search of their roster would’ve shown how much beef they brought in this year. And their new QB is a playmaker. People who think UMass simply lined up last year’s 0-12 roster again are mistaken (Dave Portnoy et al).

Awesome and it’s still the most embarrassing loss in RU history

 

[Anon1751565407]

The QB is so overrated its hysterical. A THREE year player with 551 total yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs coming into RU game. He's not Teddy Bridgewater 2.0. Greg was hyping him up and it was sad.

RU has some of the best skill players in the nation on offense and only Duff could get anything done

Deep analytics show that Raymond had a good game. Is it too late to bring back the old Giants OL coach who worked miracles that past couple of seasons? He must be in retirement at this very moment.

 

[rosenst2]

Yeah, looks like the Jim Turner train was all hype!

I always thought the whole 'he's a big upgrade over flats' was suspicious. People fall for that hoo rah stuff too often.

It's one game so we'll see.

 

[Bueller]

Deep analytics show that Raymond had a good game. Is it too late to bring back the old Giants OL coach who worked miracles that past couple of seasons? He must be in retirement at this very moment.

If Schiano really edged Flats out of the program he wouldn't be the type to bring him back. Flats probably had "suggestions" for GS and he didn't like it. Greg is the typical DC meathead when it comes to offense and its hard to change them.

 

[Bueller]

Deep analytics show that Raymond had a good game. Is it too late to bring back the old Giants OL coach who worked miracles that past couple of seasons? He must be in retirement at this very moment.

On the webcast the fellas said Raymond had good "yards after contact" stats but unfortunately the contact was often behind the LOS

 

[Anon1751565407]

On the webcast the fellas said Raymond had good "yards after contact" stats but unfortunately the contact was often behind the LOS

Yes…more YAC than yards from scrimmage.

 

[Bueller]

RU coach on zone blocking. RU's OL looked out of synch and that can happen with zone. Coach Flats also used used zone and he used to say guys had to have a lot of repetitions

"Most coaches will agree that zone blocking schemes can require a bit more mental aptitude than traditional man blocking assignments. This is largely due to the change from “block the big guy in front of you,” mentality to an assignment that can call for man blocking, double teams, peeling, and next-threat identification. Decisions must be made before the snap in terms of where any double teams will take place and then after the snap to determine which half of the double team will peel off to seek the next defensive threats.


Here’s just a small list of growing pains associated with changing to a zone blocking scheme:

• Unnecessary double teams
• Defenders running unblocked to the ball carrier when both blockers mistakenly peel
• Confusion on where to target second tier defenders
• A ball carrier learning to develop his instinct to identify holes or when to cut back"

The Rookie Scouting Portfolio (RSP)Zone Blocking: The Anti-McFadden

By Nathan Miller Another season, another less than electric year for Darren McFadden. But this time it isn’t due to a lingering injury suffered on the field, in practice, or doing it Gangnam style …

mattwaldmanrsp.com

RUs Coach Turner explains intricacies of zone

 

[RUTGERS95]

Exactly. Don't talk about violence and get bulldozed in the trenches on both sides of the ball. This game makes me wonder what exactly was being practiced for all this time. I guess it was putting the word "violence" in every quote. Maybe paying more for parking or contributing to a fieldhouse would have bought enough violence to beat what was the worst team in college football for the last several seasons. Perhaps the magical violence generating powers of the UMass fieldhouse were too much for RU to overcome.

was so dumb to keep emphasizing 'violence'. utterly ridiculous

 

[Caliknight]

Wait who was talking about this team being violent lol? Powder puff team

 

[LetsGoRUWrestling2]

Agree our D players seemed puny. Really small. Where do we find these guys? No amount of strength and conditioning can help this.

Our only chance is to hire

 

[LetsGoRUWrestling2]

That player stood out to me several times as being a major major issue. Slow, missing tackles , completely out of position

Bringing in guys from a Bakery probably won't work out