Personality

September 11, 2008

I remember back early last winter writing on the Syracuse football forum my thoughts on the 2008 Bulldogs. Here is the crux of what I wrote….

- I knew we had a lot of returners, but I was concerned about 2 areas primarily, Quarterback and general physical play (but most specifically the O-line and inside linebackers). My thoughts were on the different scenarios of these two developing….

- if neither developed, things would obviously not be good, and we would finish near the bottom of the division (and this was before we knew about the 4 division alignment).

- if the passing game developed but not the physical game, we would look similar to last season or maybe 2002, where we might be able to challenge some pretty good teams, but we’d be around the 0.500 mark, finishing in the middle of the pack.

- if the physical game came along, but we couldn’t find a QB to make for a real threatening passing game, we would be fairly successful, finishing probably 2^nd or 3^rd in division, but having little opportunity of knocking off the construction vests down route 10.

- if both developed, we would have a pretty good team, potentially great. If the chemistry came along, and the injury bug didn’t bite, the sky could be the limit.

After seeing how things went in the scrimmage and in week 1, it’s tempting to be overly optimistic and think that the last scenario is definitely the applicable case. My déjà vu just has me worried however. Watching that game, I just kept thinking it looked familiar…..I finally figured out that it reminded me of last year’s Hancock and Cooperstown games……outstanding yards and first downs for the ‘Dogs, and outstanding defense, with very few yards and first downs for the opponent, and a 20-something point win. The trouble is, after looking good early like that, we had such physical troubles later on in the season (see our rushing stats from the Walton game on). I want to think that Liberty, being a team that had beat us last year, is on a higher level, but I am just cautious. We look good, but we still need to do more to earn a prime rating.

If we want the last scenario, I think there is a certain personality we need to work toward. I was thinking about some of the great teams I’ve seen, and I see two different kinds of personalities in the great teams out there. The first is the playmaker team. Sidney’s ’05 state champ is a great example of this kind of team. When you think of them, you think of things like Simonds going up over top of 2 Dobbs Ferry defenders to pull down a TD pass, or maybe Zurn’s 42 yard catch and run against us. It’s great players making great plays.

The second personality is the execution team. There are a few good examples out there of this….’99 Delhi, ’00 Walton, or any of the recent Chenango Forks teams. These teams are greater than the sum of their parts. They have excellent coaching, and they work together very well as a team. To the untrained eye they may be not as fun to watch, but if you’re like me (and if it is your team), it is a thing of sheer beauty. Now, disclaimer, let me say that playmaker teams may execute very well as a team, and execution teams may have some playmakers on them….but when you think of ’05 Sidney you get a different feel than you get when you think of ’00 Walton.

While we have some playmakers there, I think if we have a great deal of success it will be as an execution team. I don’t see many 60 point games like we’ve had in some seasons. I see a team that can churn out first downs and play solid defense. Now, in order to turn this kind of team into a big winner, you need a few things….

- consistency – if we’re not a threat to score quickly, we need to move the ball every play with regularity

- lack of turnovers – 20 first downs do not help you when you have 7 turnovers

- 3 and outs – the defense needs to give the offense some time of possession to work with

- focus – this ain’t adlibbing – the coach must be listened to like he is giving out the prom queen’s phone number

- leadership – we need seniors to help guide the team along, and inspire them, and keep them focused

It’s a tall order, lot’s of pieces need to come together. Let’s see whom we turn into this season….

For picks, I started out great at 10-2 Friday night, but then things went south from there. I went 9-6 the remainder of the weekend to end at 19-8 (0.704). 0.800 is a ways off, but I have to remember that week 1 is nearly impossible to pick. For this week I like…. UE, Oneonta, Waverly, Greene, Sherburne-Earlville, Trumansburg, Elmira Notre Dame, Harpursville, Seton Catholic, Bainbridge-Guilford, Lansing, Groton, Binghamton, Horseheads, Corning West, Chenango Forks, Chenango Valley, Windsor, Southern Springs, Walton (I think Unatego may slow them, but I don’t think they’ll move the ball at all), Newark Valley, Deposit, Hancock (I’ll try them again), Vestal, and Nottingham.