what's your satisfaction threshold for 2018?

[Deeringfish]

NorthNJCatsfan posted this in a different thread:

"We will need to beat Purdue and Duke for a variety of reasons. In spite of the challenges ( schedule, CT health, DB turnover, etc. ), it’s time for the program to get off the roll a coaster and put together back-to-back excellent seasons."
I didn't want to derail the other thread but I thought this was a good quote to have some fun speculation about what is the minimum for an excellent season this year. The schedule is challenging. What has to happen to maintain the current narrative that NU football is stepping up overall as a program.

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

NorthNJCatsfan posted this in a different thread:

"We will need to beat Purdue and Duke for a variety of reasons. In spite of the challenges ( schedule, CT health, DB turnover, etc. ), it’s time for the program to get off the roll a coaster and put together back-to-back excellent seasons."
I didn't want to derail the other thread but I thought this was a good quote to have some fun speculation about what is the minimum for an excellent season this year. The schedule is challenging. What has to happen to maintain the current narrative that NU football is stepping up overall as a program.

“Excellent” would be 9 regular season wins and a bowl win.

“Acceptable” for me remains at 6.5 regular season wins with a bowl win. Same as it ever was.

 

[Deeringfish]

There are a lot of heavy hitters on the schedule but NU could win 8 plus a bowl and not beat anyone of great significance. A nine win season wouldn't be a huge set back and would solidify the reputation as being a winning program. Three bowl wins in a row is a nice storyline but after last seasons 10 wins against everyone except the cream of the crop I'd like to see NU beat one or two of the "Name" teams on the schedule. I'd actually take 7 wins and a bowl win if a couple of the wins were against ND, Michigan, or Wisconsin. These are the three biggest names on the schedule IMO and NU has to be able to beat those kinds of teams to go from being a consistent competitor to an elite program. I wouldn't be disappointed with a 9 win season but I'd like to make some headlines with a couple of big wins.

 

[Deeringfish]

“Excellent” would be 9 regular season wins and a bowl win.

“Acceptable” for me remains at 6.5 regular season wins with a bowl win. Same as it ever was.

I didn't realize you had such a low bar for "Acceptable". I feel a similar way about "Acceptable" and maybe should have included that in the discussion.

Lest anyone think my bar is too low, I used to think that if the team was going into the last game of the season with the hope of a bowl, that was "Acceptable". So I've come up a little.

 

[phatcat_rivals223240]

Win minimum 7 but beat ND and Michigag

 

[BosCat]

How I look at the season doesn't really answer your question. As is often the mindset of a fan, I have that attitude "I really want us to beat ____" or "I really don't want NU to lose to ___" The games of course being mostly the difficult ones: Mich, MSU, ND, Wisky. Then there are the two I'm attending, UNL and Rutg (can't lose in NJ). I always want to stick it to Io_a and we certainly owe Duke. Of course you want to end beating Min and Illnoise. I guess that means 10-2, losing to Pur and Akr - wait, can't lose to them and so 12-0 it is!

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

I didn't realize you had such a low bar for "Acceptable". I feel a similar way about "Acceptable" and maybe should have included that in the discussion.

Lest anyone think my bar is too low, I used to think that if the team was going into the last game of the season with the hope of a bowl, that was "Acceptable". So I've come up a little.

I don’t think I would ever really be disappointed with 7 regular season wins and a bowl win.

 

[Deeringfish]

I don’t think I would ever really be disappointed with 7 regular season wins and a bowl win.

You would make a lousy Nebraska fan I think.

 

[SciCat_rivals]

Based on what I've read Around Here recently, it's win a Big Ten championship and fire Cushing!

 

[NorthNJCatsfan]

I don’t think I would ever really be disappointed with 7 regular season wins and a bowl win.

Well, I guess there are a number of areas where we are of disparate nature :
1. You know a lot about college football. I know little. 2. Now that NU ( a preeminent University with a beautiful lakeside campus, adjacent to one of America’s great cities and with national exposure via BTN among others ) has competitive coaching salaries, an adequate recruiting budget, a top notch practice facility and a coach with > a decade of B1G HC experience, I believe NU will ( and will be very disappointed if NU does not ) take the next step and become a program with sustained on field excellence. With Nebby’s imminent improvement, the B1G West should soon have 3 teams that can compete with the big boys in the East.

 

[Deeringfish]

Well, I guess there are a number of areas where we are of disparate nature :
1. You know a lot about college football. I know little. 2. Now that NU ( a preeminent University with a beautiful lakeside campus, adjacent to one of America’s great cities and with national exposure via BTN among others ) has competitive coaching salaries, an adequate recruiting budget, a top notch practice facility and a coach with > a decade of B1G HC experience, I believe NU will ( and will be very disappointed if NU does not ) take the next step and become a program with sustained on field excellence. With Nebby’s imminent improvement, the B1G West should soon have 3 teams that can compete with the big boys in the East.

Which is why every so often a 7 win season is going to come around but if that is a "bad" year then the overall picture is good.

 

[FloridAlum]

How I look at the season doesn't really answer your question. As is often the mindset of a fan, I have that attitude "I really want us to beat ____" or "I really don't want NU to lose to ___" The games of course being mostly the difficult ones: Mich, MSU, ND, Wisky. Then there are the two I'm attending, UNL and Rutg (can't lose in NJ). I always want to stick it to Io_a and we certainly owe Duke. Of course you want to end beating Min and Illnoise. I guess that means 10-2, losing to Pur and Akr - wait, can't lose to them and so 12-0 it is!

Hey, BosCat, Sorry to interrupt this thread.GlideCat Is unable to access this board or post until about the middle of August. He will be at the Nebraska game, most likely hanging around Uber’s place.

 

[BleedingPurple15]

I'll put it this way - I wouldn't complain if we ended up with an 8-4 record. Anything less, and I'd be "dissatisfied" and anything more, I'd feel pretty darn good about, given this schedule.

 

[DaCat]

B1G West championship. Anything less is unacceptable.

MOAR !!!

 

[Chuckster1973]

We are playing so many highly ranked teams, albeit many of them at home, I think even 7-5 and a bowl game win would be an okay result.

 

[DaCat]

We are playing so many highly ranked teams, albeit many of them at home, I think even 7-5 and a bowl game win would be an okay result.

So you would be satisfied if we lost to N* D* or Michagain or Wiskey yet managed to get to 7 wins? Knowing this board, it would get ugly.

 

[zeek55]

A season with a bowl win is still always a good season in my opinion.

Maybe that baseline will change at some point (after 8-10 bowl wins), but not yet.

I still treasure bowl wins (no matter which bowl).

 

[willycat]

Based on what I've read Around Here recently, it's win a Big Ten championship and fire Cushing!

Thinking you got at least half of it right.

 

[zeek55]

So you would be satisfied if we lost to N* D* or Michagain or Wiskey yet managed to get to 7 wins? Knowing this board, it would get ugly.

2016 was basically that. Close losses to ranked Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Nebraska, but we beat Illinois to get to 6-6 and the Pinstripe Bowl and beat a good Pittsburgh team which is still the most impressive of Fitz's 3 bowl wins.

Yeah it got ugly around here, but in hindsight it was a good season.

I know others won't agree, but I still think seasons with bowl wins are good for the program even at 7-6.

They don't lose any momentum for recruiting and leave the team/fans with a great ending to the campaign.

At some point that benchmark will change, but not yet.

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

Thinking you got at least half of it right.

Just keep saying it, man. We were unclear as to your position on the matter.

 

[Fitz51]

“Excellent” would be 9 regular season wins and a bowl win.

“Acceptable” for me remains at 6.5 regular season wins with a bowl win. Same as it ever was.

That's about right.

 

[Barn#13]

12-0 is, and should be the goal. There is no one on the schedule that we cannot play with. Now 12-0 is being a little unrealistic, but each game is a season of its own. One at a time folks. My heart says 12-0 but reality tells me somewhere right around 8-4. Beating Purdue would be a huge momentum builder out of the gates on ESPN with a lot of people/recruits watching on a Thursday night.
Go Cats!!!!

 

[EvanstonCat]

Based on what I've read Around Here recently, it's win a Big Ten championship and fire Cushing!

No, no, as mentioned before, the fatwa on Cushing has been cancelled and he's been given a reprieve with the addition of the QC guy. As long as he listens and learns, and doesn't get in the way, then we're ok for Fitz's brah to stay on.

 

[BretEpic]

With the injury to CT I have the bar lower this year, around what @gocatsgo2003 said, but a 5 or 6 win season wouldn't surprise me. The West is improving.

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

With the injury to CT I have the bar lower this year, around what @gocatsgo2003 said, but a 5 or 6 win season wouldn't surprise me. The West is improving.

I’ve heard enough positive noise around Thorson’s recovery to remain cautiously optimistic.

 

[freewillie07]

I’m with GCG that 6.5 wins plus a bowl win would be satisfying enough. Ordinarily after a 10-win season I’d expect more, but the unknown status of Clayton plus the more difficult schedule changes that.

Some more nuanced things that would make me satisfied/unsatisfied:

• Does NU show up against Purdue and Duke, or do the early-season struggles continue? Obviously Clayton’s health will play a role here but the coaches should be ready either way. I’d be deeply unsatisfied if this glaring problem wasn’t resolved. It would also be an early signal that this season probably won’t be special, and just getting bowl eligible will be a victory.
• Related: Offensive Line. It’s a very experienced bunch and there’s really no excuse for them to not come out of the gates at the same level they finished last year, if not better. If people want to stop hearing griping about Cushing (including posters here and probably Fitz himself) then they need to step up.
• Beat Notre Dame.
• How competitive are the Cats against Wisconsin and Michigan? There’s no such thing as a moral victory, but it would say something about the progression of the program if it was a tight battle against Harbaugh rather than 2015’s debacle.
• Win a bowl. People will argue that no one tunes into the Foster Farms Bowl or whatever NU would get at 7-5, but I will. And I like to see NU win. And the program has a small bowl win streak going and it would be fun to extend that. And it keeps the buzz around the program high into the offseason — perfect example is 2015’s L in the Outback vs 2016’s W in the Pinstripe.

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

I’m with GCG that 6.5 wins plus a bowl win would be satisfying enough. Ordinarily after a 10-win season I’d expect more, but the unknown status of Clayton plus the more difficult schedule changes that.

Some more nuanced things that would make me satisfied/unsatisfied:

• Does NU show up against Purdue and Duke, or do the early-season struggles continue? Obviously Clayton’s health will play a role here but the coaches should be ready either way. I’d be deeply unsatisfied if this glaring problem wasn’t resolved. It would also be an early signal that this season probably won’t be special, and just getting bowl eligible will be a victory.
• Related: Offensive Line. It’s a very experienced bunch and there’s really no excuse for them to not come out of the gates at the same level they finished last year, if not better. If people want to stop hearing griping about Cushing (including posters here and probably Fitz himself) then they need to step up.
• Beat Notre Dame.
• How competitive are the Cats against Wisconsin and Michigan? There’s no such thing as a moral victory, but it would say something about the progression of the program if it was a tight battle against Harbaugh rather than 2015’s debacle.
• Win a bowl. People will argue that no one tunes into the Foster Farms Bowl or whatever NU would get at 7-5, but I will. And I like to see NU win. And the program has a small bowl win streak going and it would be fun to extend that. And it keeps the buzz around the program high into the offseason — perfect example is 2015’s L in the Outback vs 2016’s W in the Pinstripe.

Just to be clear, 6.5 regular season wins and a bowl win is my universal baseline for “acceptable.” We’re reached the point as a program where that should be the expectation. A couple more years achieving that goal and the bar would probably raise to 7.5 wins and a bowl win.

 

[BretEpic]

I’ve heard enough positive noise around Thorson’s recovery to remain cautiously optimistic.

that's good. I have heard positive things from some folks around Wheaton/Wheaton Academy (his brother's school), however they are really positive folks in general lol. I was assuming the worst of his knee.

If he's healthy I still am accepting of a mere bowl birth, but another big year wouldn't surprise me. I think Larkin has a better year statistically than JJ ever had, given some semblance of QB play (which we get if CT is healthy), and the receiving corps will be far better with another year of growth.

The defense is going to be spectacular.

 

[NJCat]

Just to be clear, 6.5 regular season wins and a bowl win is my universal baseline for “acceptable.” We’re reached the point as a program where that should be the expectation. A couple more years achieving that goal and the bar would probably raise to 7.5 wins and a bowl win.

Given the schedule, even with a healthy Clayton, I am looking for a 6-6 season. 7 regular season wins would be a very nice outcome.

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

Given the schedule, even with a healthy Clayton, I am looking for a 6-6 season. 7 regular season wins would be a very nice outcome.

Why is the schedule so scary? We've shown that we can play with anyone and the "athletic deficiency" between us and the rest of the conference is closing steadily.

 

[NJCat]

Why is the schedule so scary? We've shown that we can play with anyone and the "athletic deficiency" between us and the rest of the conference is closing steadily.

Because many of the games (Purdue, Duke, Nebraska, Rutgers, Minny, Iowa) are pretty much 50-50 games, and NU won more than their "fair share" of such games last season.

 

[NU 71 72 74]

7 or 6 wins and a bowl game.

.02 and, Go Cats !!

 

[Gocatsgo2003]

Because many of the games (Purdue, Duke, Nebraska, Rutgers, Minny, Iowa) are pretty much 50-50 games, and NU won more than their "fair share" of such games last season.

And we seem to pretty consistently win more than our "fair share" of those games, 2013/2014 notwithstanding.

I also don't think Rutgers or Minnesota are really "50/50" games.

 

[ricko6543211]

“Excellent” would be 9 regular season wins and a bowl win.

“Acceptable” for me remains at 6.5 regular season wins with a bowl win. Same as it ever was.

Yea, I think a 7-5 regular season with this schedule would be decent. 8-4 or better would be a success. 9-3 or better would be very good. I'd like to think we can compete for a Big Ten West title, but it won't be easy, 7-2 in conference would be the minimum and probably 8-1 we would need to win the division. There will be a lot of 50/50 games...

 

[SmellyCat]

I think Larkin has a better year statistically than JJ ever had, given some semblance of QB play (which we get if CT is healthy), and the receiving corps will be far better with another year of growth.

I'm bullish on Larkin too, but that's quite a limb. I hope you're right!

 

[Deeringfish]

I'm bullish on Larkin too, but that's quite a limb. I hope you're right!

I feel like Larkin will make more big yardage plays than JJ but I don't think he will get back the line of Scrimmage as consistently and very few backs are as durable.

 

[StreamCat]

I'll be satisfied if there is perfect weather for every home game. My wants are few.

 

[stpaulcat]

Nobody talks about the earth being flat, and beating Michigan.

 

[JJTBC]

“Excellent” would be 9 regular season wins and a bowl win.

“Acceptable” for me remains at 6.5 regular season wins with a bowl win. Same as it ever was.

"Acceptable" is 6.5? Do you even think when you post? 6 doesn't hit your "acceptable" number, but 7 does. Therefore "acceptable," is 7 unless the NCAA decided that they were going to get rid of overtime and have ties again. I can't believe anyone reads your crap.

 

[WildcatWillie_rivals223246]

"Acceptable" is 6.5? Do you even think when you post? 6 doesn't hit your "acceptable" number, but 7 does. Therefore "acceptable," is 7 unless the NCAA decided that they were going to get rid of overtime and have ties again. I can't believe anyone reads your crap.

GCG can and will doubtless explain himself but I took "6.5" to mean either 6 or 7 wins to be acceptable, as either would presumably qualify the Cats for one bowl or another in which they would be victorious. Calling that view "crap" is harsh in my opinion.