Stitt's Ego/Inflexibility

[jodcon]

So you're saying that Stitt set up the perfect scheme for UND and then went to bad schemes for the next two games and that is why their production dropped off?.

The game metrics (# plays, time of play) changed materially in the subsequent games. The biggest delta change in those metrics between games for the entire season. There can be no doubt that the strategy changed. I am sure everyone will have differing opinions on how those changes affected the games, leading to the usual name-calling by the people that can't explain it, or refuse to even acknowledge it, and so the games will have to speak for themselves.

In what way? What should Stitt have done differently? Does the quality of the defenses play into it at all?

 

[UMGriz75]

Regardless of who our coach is, I'd love o see the GRIZ have the consistent offense that EWU has every year. They do it regardless of who their WR's or QB are. Baldwin knows how to utilize his offensive personnel to the fullest of any BSC coach. Too bad, their defense is such a problem for them.

The one thing Stitt doesn't have to worry about. The observation is spot on.

 

[UMGriz75]

Does the quality of the defenses play into it at all?

As in "ISU?"

When we were back to the fully speeded up plays, and reaching again Stitt's desired 90 play threshhold? The 4th Q strategy that wore out such defenses on good teams ensuring that we could still win over better teams in the 4th Q? Stitt has explicitly said that is the point of his "base strategy." And he put it back into place with a vengeance at ISU. By God, Makena or no Makena, Jones and Henderson or no Jones and Henderson, it was going to work!

I'm probably not the one to argue that the quality of ISU's defense stymied the return to the "base strategy."

I am sure several regular posters have it all worked out and will explain it in their usual eloquent fashions.

 

[jodcon]

Does the quality of the defenses play into it at all?

As in "ISU?"

When we were back to the fully speeded up plays, and reaching again Stitt's desired 90 play threshhold?

I'm probably not the one to argue that the quality of ISU's defense stymied the return to the "base strategy."

Any defense, I mean you can't expect the results of the UND game every week against teams that can actually pressure the QB and defend the pass...right?

 

[UMGriz75]

Any defense, I mean you can't expect the results of the UND game every week against teams that can actually pressure the QB and defend the pass...right?

I thought you were talking about ISU, where Henderson and Jones' combined performance fell, again, to just 10.2 yards per carry, 102 yds total.

 

[jodcon]

Any defense, I mean you can't expect the results of the UND game every week against teams that can actually pressure the QB and defend the pass...right?

I thought you were talking about ISU, where Henderson and Jones' combined performance fell, again, to just 10.2 yards per carry, 102 yds total.

Yeah, not the greatest but ISU does have a good pass defense so not terribly surprising their numbers weren't huge...my question is why do you think they weren't better? Stitts offense, Simis play, or a combination of the two?

 

[UMGriz75]

Yeah, not the greatest but ISU does have a good pass defense so not terribly surprising their numbers weren't huge...my question is why do you think they weren't better? Stitts offense, Simis play, or a combination of the two?

Well, I modified my comment above, with the likely effect to just cause more controversy.

If you are going to exploit the real talents of Jones and Henderson, you have to use the QB who can do that. Only one of our QB's can. This isn't just about Makena, this is about effectively utilizing among the two best WR's in the conference and we haven't done that. However, it worked very well in a 69 play game, 23 seconds per play, getting everybody in place and ready to go without trying to aim at the "4th Q Strategy," and it worked extremely well against a team substantially better in recent weeks defensively than ISU.

When Stitt returned to his "4th Q Strategy," designed specifically to defeat very good defenses such as ISU did not have, Makena did not perform well, Henderson and Jones practically disappeared, talent was not utilized, and we lost the actual game play part, winning instead by Force Majeure.

 

[grizindabox]

But they recruit QB's that fit into the system that EWU is running...

And what kind of QB is that? I'll bet, looking at him in high school, somebody used the words "fast, smart and mobile."

Are you going to offer Your usual answer?

He probably looked for someone that can identify a secondary receiver...

 

[grizindabox]

So you're saying that Stitt set up the perfect scheme for UND and then went to bad schemes for the next two games and that is why their production dropped off?.

The game metrics (# plays, time of play) changed materially in the subsequent games. The biggest delta change in those metrics between games for the entire season. There can be no doubt that the strategy changed, and it was from what made that game successful, back to the kind of offense Stitt says he prefers to run.

I am sure everyone will have differing opinions on how those changes affected the games, leading to the usual name-calling by the people that can't explain it, or refuse to even acknowledge it, and so the games will have to speak for themselves.

Indeed, in those subsequent games, Henderson and Jones were marginalized to just 11.8 yds average per carry, and only 73 yds per game.

I am sure the change in defensive opponents probably had an impact...probably more so than anything that UM did...

 

[UMGriz75]

I am sure the change in defensive opponents probably had an impact...probably more so than anything that UM did...

Then the change back to Stitt's "4th Q strategy" -- a small change not deserving of any notion of significance even though that was why he was hired -- was also the perfect adaptation to ISU, such a defensive threat that it is last in the Big Sky Conference, having won a single conference game on the back of its vaunted defense, a defense which fiercely kept UND to 31 points, seven points more than UND's game scoring average of 24.3 for this season.

Right?

Hey, he's adaptable!

 

[jodcon]

Yeah, not the greatest but ISU does have a good pass defense so not terribly surprising their numbers weren't huge...my question is why do you think they weren't better? Stitts offense, Simis play, or a combination of the two?

Well, I modified my comment above, with the likely effect to just cause more controversy.

If you are going to exploit the real talents of Jones and Henderson, you have to use the QB who can do that. Only one of our QB's can. It worked very well in a 69 play game, 23 seconds per play, getting everybody in place and ready to go without trying to aim at the "4th Q Strategy," against a team substantially better defensively than ISU.

When Stitt returned to his "4th Q Strategy," designed specifically to defeat very good defenses such as ISU did not have, Makena did not perform well, Henderson and Jones practically disappeared, talent was not utilized, and we lost the actual game play part, winning instead by Force Majeure.

Jones and Henderson had decent numbers the first two weeks and I think Naccarato put up a lot of yards in one of the games too, that was running the fast-paced offense and Brady had about 800 yards in 2 games...it seemed to be working fine with him.

Maybe Simis functions better in a slower-paced setting? That's a possibility.

 

[Grizzoola]

What Stitt needs is an engineering major at QB (& maybe a few other positions). :mrgreen:

 

[mtgrizrule]

What Stitt needs is an engineering major at QB (& maybe a few other positions). :mrgreen:

Then he'd be at MSU. I'd rather have Stitt than Ash.

 

[UMGriz75]

Maybe Simis functions better in a slower-paced setting? That's a possibility.

It worked for Dave Dickenson.

But, of course, Dave was not the kind of QB that Stitt would recruit even though not a single poster claiming that Stitt will recruit different QBs seems to be able to identify any characteristics whatsoever about what Stitt's QB's would be like, so that whole pretentious exercise is kind of like playing air hockey without air.

 

[grizindabox]

I am sure the change in defensive opponents probably had an impact...probably more so than anything that UM did...

Then the change back to Stitt's "4th Q strategy" -- a small change not deserving of any notion of significance even though that was why he was hired -- was also the perfect adaptation to ISU, such a defensive threat that it is last in the Big Sky Conference, having won a single conference game on the back of its vaunted defense, a defense which fiercely kept UND to 31 points, seven points more than UND's game scoring average of 24.3 for this season.

Right?

Hey, he's adaptable!

But still limited by what his QB can execute....

 

[UMGriz75]

But still limited by what his QB can execute....

I know, you actually believe that many, perhaps most, coaches are not limited by what their QB's can execute, and that Poor Stitt bears a singular burden.

 

[UMGriz75]

What Stitt needs is an engineering major at QB (& maybe a few other positions). :mrgreen:

Ironically, the closest that any MT quarterback comes to the current CSM QB, Dvorak, an authentic Stitt recruit -- in passing percentage, third down conversions, and ability to throw long balls is ... well, guess.

Also ironically, CSM has had to play its 2nd and 3rd QBs -- all Stitt QB recruits -- with Dvorak's injury, and has lost all of those games, the last 3, by scores of 49-21, 31-17, 45-42, whereas UM has been able to win 2 of it's last 3 with it's 3rd string QB, a non-Stitt recruit.

Ironies abound, as do the rationalizations.

 

[UMGriz75]

Jones and Henderson had decent numbers the first two weeks and I think Naccarato put up a lot of yards in one of the games too, that was running the fast-paced offense and Brady had about 800 yards in 2 games...it seemed to be working fine with him.

Like everything else under the "base strategy," everything was falling off quite quickly those first three games. Jones and Henderson only averaged 16 yds per carry in the first game, less than half of the spectacular 36 yds per carry average when Makena became the QB, and that dropped again almost in half, to 9.5 yards, by the third game.

Brady had great passing yardage numbers, but they converted to actual points at about 60% of the rate achieved by Makena/Henderson/Jones (and others) and further, Brady's 55% pass completion compared unfavorably to Makena's 70%, just as Brady's consistent 3rd down conversion rate of 34% in three games -- because he can read options, you know -- compared to Makena's 45% conversion record in three games -- because he can't read options, you know.

But, Stitt was pushing the "Base Strategy," he has twittered, for those first three games, and apparently believes it was a successful strategy with the 1-2 record, because a 1-2 record using the base strategy trumps a 2-1 record with a different QB who doesn't do well with Stitt's "base strategy" and who by the way did his, and the team's, absolute best scoring, winning, effort without anything resembling the "base strategy."

And I don't know what you do with those stats. Some argue, "therefore Brady." OK. "Therefore Brady!"

I think it is one of the most interesting seasons I have seen because the stats, the strategy, and the claims made are so divergent.

 

[grizindabox]

But still limited by what his QB can execute....

I know, you actually believe that many, perhaps most, coaches are not limited by what their QB's can execute, and that Poor Stitt bears a singular burden.

NO, but Stitt is limited by QB's he did not recruit...if you recruit a QB that limits what you can run then you screwed up... :roll:

 

[UMGriz75]

But still limited by what his QB can execute....

I know, you actually believe that many, perhaps most, coaches are not limited by what their QB's can execute, and that Poor Stitt bears a singular burden.

NO, but Stitt is limited by QB's he did not recruit...if you recruit a QB that limits what you can run then you screwed up... :roll:

Of course, coaches know that they must recruit QB's that don't limit them.

And of course, they find them everywhere .... :lol:

You know, like your description of what you admit you know Stitt is actually looking for: