Blame Rodriguez for Special Team Play

If you don't like the post - and the title pretty much summed up what it would be about - then you don't have to read it. 

There are many posts that I skip because the topic doesn't interest me.

EDIT:  In reading my own post, I realized that it might come off as dick-ish.  Not intended that way at all.  Just saying that not all posts are for everyone.

with being cornerbacks coach. Since they're both areas of major need in terms of teaching and developing youngsters in limited time, handling both may require spreading himself too thin.  If an additional coach can't be added, maybe some re-shuffling of coaching responsibilities would help.

You're right--meaning that if you were serious with that statement, you'd be right. Instead you were sarcastic and wrong. Rodriguez himself has said on the record that they have no kicking coach and technique coach. Our kickers pretty much handle their own technique work, Therefore Hagerup turned himself around. 

It is indisputable by any reasonable person that special teams success or failure is on the coaching, especially given young players. As others have said before--players of mediocre talent and little experience CAN be taught to be sound fundamentally and at least be be mediocre on the field. We are not mediocre on special team, we are bad.

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Hagerup is a freshman too. So what does your last point prove?

It is only coaching when it is bad.

Can we get over the fact that the coaches don't read this blog?  I mean, at least attack the guy's post for its merits. Everyone knows the coaches don't care what anyone on this blog thinks. That doesn't mean its a good response to anything you don't agree with.

But I generally don't think we've turned the ball over on any kick/punt returns.  This has been a major issue in the past, but seems to have been cleared up.  Thats good improvement, b/c those plays are killers.

Maybe it's just me, but the "it's never happened in practice before" line seems to get dropped a lot.  Just an observation.

With regards to running into your own blockers on returns, it is difficult to read what your blockers will be doing.  Returns aren't like an offensive play where the runner knows where each blocker is supposed to be and where the holes are supposed to develop.  The kick returner could be running for a gap, but the blocker may decide to push his defender into that gap.  Perhaps the returner assumes there will be a gap developing, but the blocker just holds his guy there.  Because there is no actual play called (to be read as blocking scheme on a set defense), being able to read what is developing is much, much more difficult.  Additionally, on kick offs, the tacklers aren't coming from a centralized and compact area like would be the case for a RB against a 4-3 set.  The kickoff team is supposed to maintain their lanes and converge when the returner has picked his route.  So while getting 2 or 3 key blocks on a 4-3 defense would open up a 95 yard touchdown run, getting a successful kickoff return means that the returner effectively eluded all 11 players coming downhill and "collapsing" upon the returner.

In sum, I don't see kickoff/punt returns as a major problem.  I am more concerned with the lack of blocking ability and "push" the line has had on field goals, and the kicker's low trajectory on kicks outside of 20 yards.

EDIT: All that said, I haven't exactly been pleased with the field vision of our returners.  I'm just giving them some credit in that returning kicks is a lot more difficult than it seems.