Post by Bornthrilla on Jan 28, 2007 20:56:34 GMT -5
We're Back, Bigger And Better Than Ever
By Craig R. Turner
Bluedeathvalley.com
Date: Jan. 12, 2007
It’s good to be back on track and in full force at bluedeathvalley.com, especially after a long and disappointing football season in 2006 and the holiday break.
I, along with our entire staff, hope that you will enjoy our newly revamped format and experince a more in-depth look inside Aggie Football as we head into the national signing day on February 7th, spring practice, and the progression of summer off-season.
A Look Back at 2006
There’s not much you can say about going 0-11 your first year out, and probably coach Lee Fobbs would whole-heartedly agree with that statement.
He would also probably agree with the fact that even though he personally didn’t make a big deal out of it, the youth of his ball club in a totally new environment, the lack of any strength on both the offensive and defensive lines, a shortage of overall team speed, and the nearly always downside of having two freshmen quarterbacks under fire without the benefit of game experience was too much to overcome.
The f act of the matter is that the Aggies were overmatched in half of their games, and just killed themselves with turnovers and failed to execute in the rest. Whatever reasons you may point to in an effort to explain a winless season, effort would not be a factor. There was effort, but when you are a deer in the headlights, pound shy and a step slow, even the best coaches will tell you the odds don’t and won’t favor you until those factors are rectified.
A Look Ahead Into 2007
The good thing that can be taken away from last year is that such a young ball club should have 60 to 70 lettermen and nearly all of its starters returning this fall.
Now the eternal pessimist will ask – is that a good thing to have everyone back from a 0-11 team?
Most likely, the answer should be a qualified yes in this case.
Despite the adversity they encountered, there were signs that the team got better from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.
They didn’t win any games but the individual development of such a large number of freshmen and red-shirt sophomore players who received a ton of playing time they ordinarily would not have received if A&T had been a veteran team, should pay some dividends going into spring practice.
They now know the system they will be playing in and should be better equipped to deal with the speed of the college game.
However, it is incumbent upon the players and the coaching staff to make sure these young players stay on a very stringent and demanding strength and conditioning regiment.
Even to the novice eye, it is apparent that the offensive and defensive lines are in dire need of far more strength training and conditioning than they exhibited in 2006.
Recruiting Needs
This is the time of year when the truly rabid fans really get their juices flowing.
Just three weeks shy of the national signing day, high school seniors and transfers from all over country begin making their choices to continue their football careers on the college level.
As in the case of most of Division1-AA - or as it referred to now by the NCAA, the 1-A Championship Division, most of the signings for schools like A&T take place on the days and sometimes weeks after most of the major football factories have swept through the state.
However, recent trends have most of the true D-1 schools solidifying their classes well before the first Wednesday in February, so there still remains a fair amount of unsigned talent available to their D-1C smaller cousins.
It makes the practice of having to refine the tools of talent assessment even more critical for Fobbs and his staff, given the limited number of scholarships available to him with such a large number of players returning. Every one of his choices have to be pretty much on target and ready to contribute out the chute, be it a high school recruit or a transfer from another program.
There is no question the Aggies are in need of depth in a lot of areas, but none so much as its offensive and defensive lines, inside linebacker, and more speed in the secondary. Those four areas will have to improve in 2007 if the Aggies are to break the longest losing streak in the school’s history and climb out of cellar of the MEAC.
What lies ahead for 2007?
Fobbs must use the winter months to integrate his players into his system and his mindset, and he certainly has as golden opportunity to really improve his young team when March rolls around.
It appears to me that the Aggie Football program may want to take note of the process that Aggie Basketball has taken these past two years.
Both Coach Jerry Eaves and Coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs weathered the storm last year despite being short on talent and depth but remained patient, added the pieces one at a time, and changed the mentality from just showing up to not only believing that their teams could compete, but could actually finish and win.
Both squads have now surpassed the win totals from last season and appear on track to be in the upper part of the conference standings by season’s end, barring some unforeseen fluke of circumstances or disaster.
But in fairness, the Aggie fan base is going to have to show equal patience.
Going 0-11 is was hard to sallow and is not acceptable, but A&T fans have got to realize where the program is in relationship to where they want it to go.
Patience was given to the basketball program and A&T is now beginning to reap the benefits of that patience. Both teams are now on a sound foundation for the future.
The same axiom has to be applied to the football program as well. Whining and finger pointing every time a season goes awry isn’t good policy and just plain dumb. A&T’s football program has to be re-built from the ground up, both in terms of dollars and philosophy.
In time, the end result that everyone is now clamoring for can be achieved. We just have to be smart enough to understand that quick fix wins can be had with slight-of-hand and wholesale transfers and shortcuts, but they don't last long.
A real program takes time. You can’t pick a watermelon before it’s ready. When it gets ripe, then you can cut it.
By Craig R. Turner
Bluedeathvalley.com
Date: Jan. 12, 2007
It’s good to be back on track and in full force at bluedeathvalley.com, especially after a long and disappointing football season in 2006 and the holiday break.
I, along with our entire staff, hope that you will enjoy our newly revamped format and experince a more in-depth look inside Aggie Football as we head into the national signing day on February 7th, spring practice, and the progression of summer off-season.
A Look Back at 2006
There’s not much you can say about going 0-11 your first year out, and probably coach Lee Fobbs would whole-heartedly agree with that statement.
He would also probably agree with the fact that even though he personally didn’t make a big deal out of it, the youth of his ball club in a totally new environment, the lack of any strength on both the offensive and defensive lines, a shortage of overall team speed, and the nearly always downside of having two freshmen quarterbacks under fire without the benefit of game experience was too much to overcome.
The f act of the matter is that the Aggies were overmatched in half of their games, and just killed themselves with turnovers and failed to execute in the rest. Whatever reasons you may point to in an effort to explain a winless season, effort would not be a factor. There was effort, but when you are a deer in the headlights, pound shy and a step slow, even the best coaches will tell you the odds don’t and won’t favor you until those factors are rectified.
A Look Ahead Into 2007
The good thing that can be taken away from last year is that such a young ball club should have 60 to 70 lettermen and nearly all of its starters returning this fall.
Now the eternal pessimist will ask – is that a good thing to have everyone back from a 0-11 team?
Most likely, the answer should be a qualified yes in this case.
Despite the adversity they encountered, there were signs that the team got better from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.
They didn’t win any games but the individual development of such a large number of freshmen and red-shirt sophomore players who received a ton of playing time they ordinarily would not have received if A&T had been a veteran team, should pay some dividends going into spring practice.
They now know the system they will be playing in and should be better equipped to deal with the speed of the college game.
However, it is incumbent upon the players and the coaching staff to make sure these young players stay on a very stringent and demanding strength and conditioning regiment.
Even to the novice eye, it is apparent that the offensive and defensive lines are in dire need of far more strength training and conditioning than they exhibited in 2006.
Recruiting Needs
This is the time of year when the truly rabid fans really get their juices flowing.
Just three weeks shy of the national signing day, high school seniors and transfers from all over country begin making their choices to continue their football careers on the college level.
As in the case of most of Division1-AA - or as it referred to now by the NCAA, the 1-A Championship Division, most of the signings for schools like A&T take place on the days and sometimes weeks after most of the major football factories have swept through the state.
However, recent trends have most of the true D-1 schools solidifying their classes well before the first Wednesday in February, so there still remains a fair amount of unsigned talent available to their D-1C smaller cousins.
It makes the practice of having to refine the tools of talent assessment even more critical for Fobbs and his staff, given the limited number of scholarships available to him with such a large number of players returning. Every one of his choices have to be pretty much on target and ready to contribute out the chute, be it a high school recruit or a transfer from another program.
There is no question the Aggies are in need of depth in a lot of areas, but none so much as its offensive and defensive lines, inside linebacker, and more speed in the secondary. Those four areas will have to improve in 2007 if the Aggies are to break the longest losing streak in the school’s history and climb out of cellar of the MEAC.
What lies ahead for 2007?
Fobbs must use the winter months to integrate his players into his system and his mindset, and he certainly has as golden opportunity to really improve his young team when March rolls around.
It appears to me that the Aggie Football program may want to take note of the process that Aggie Basketball has taken these past two years.
Both Coach Jerry Eaves and Coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs weathered the storm last year despite being short on talent and depth but remained patient, added the pieces one at a time, and changed the mentality from just showing up to not only believing that their teams could compete, but could actually finish and win.
Both squads have now surpassed the win totals from last season and appear on track to be in the upper part of the conference standings by season’s end, barring some unforeseen fluke of circumstances or disaster.
But in fairness, the Aggie fan base is going to have to show equal patience.
Going 0-11 is was hard to sallow and is not acceptable, but A&T fans have got to realize where the program is in relationship to where they want it to go.
Patience was given to the basketball program and A&T is now beginning to reap the benefits of that patience. Both teams are now on a sound foundation for the future.
The same axiom has to be applied to the football program as well. Whining and finger pointing every time a season goes awry isn’t good policy and just plain dumb. A&T’s football program has to be re-built from the ground up, both in terms of dollars and philosophy.
In time, the end result that everyone is now clamoring for can be achieved. We just have to be smart enough to understand that quick fix wins can be had with slight-of-hand and wholesale transfers and shortcuts, but they don't last long.
A real program takes time. You can’t pick a watermelon before it’s ready. When it gets ripe, then you can cut it.
Don't you know white ice is colder. The fan base can get excited feb 7...sheeet Bibbs just lost 6-5 girl after she committed...everyone in her world put pressure on her and the family not to attend A&T. I know one coach that tried to hide his players from A&T when they visited the school...check out Wardlow( # 5 player in NC LAST YEAR) black writer among others wrote columns about why he SHould not go to NCCU. He eventually left But hey, if we need the information more than you need players go for it...however, I do not see App ST Wofford or any other schools listing who visits . Newspapers may find that out , but it is not something any school sends out. In fact , the school can not comment . 