November 23rd, 2013 at 5:55 PM ^
Not for the fans, but for the players. They must believe in him. They must trust that he knows how to fix this.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:00 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 11:31 PM ^
I really hate to say this, but it sure seems like the coaches who are poor communicators in the press conferences and keep repeating the same old line don't seem to last long. It really reminds me of Marinelli. He was considered an exceptional coach for a specific position group, but that doesn't mean that you are going to be a good/great HC. As the head coach you can't keep repeating the same responses and expect to have people fall in line. It just doesn't instill confidence. Marinelli liked to talk about "pad level" and "pound the rock" all the time, but you just knew he had nothing more insightful to add.
Compare that to someone like Urban Meyer or even Nick Saban. When you hear them speak, you get the sense they are in total control and any issues WILL be corrected. Does anyone feel that way when Hoke walks up to the podium?
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:00 PM ^
He may very well be upset at something or perhaps even someone, but given the way the staff seems to interact with the media, the last place you'll get insight into their true feelings is one of these pressers. It has been discussed before here on the board, but overt discontent with specific things like coaching or playcalling are just not a thing in a Hoke press conference and that probably saves them a lot of potential grief even if fans find it frustrating that they are not seeing or hearing what they would like. Of course, the presser is for the press, not the fans.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:08 PM ^
But might hope for more.
I fully believe that he genuinely cares, that he's disappointed. To express that feeling would help people have faith that problems will be fixed and give him some benefit of the doubt.
And maybe he thinks it doesn't matter because behind closed doors he feels he's addressing things properly. But then he (and the AD) better be equally prepared to hear a lot of hot seat publicity next year (which will hurt in recruiting) and realize that they're burning away any public good will and benefit of the doubt they might hope for.
November 23rd, 2013 at 11:35 PM ^
His feelings about the matter don't really matter to me. I care about whether or not Hoke has the capacity to fix the issues with the team. In this case it is really about the offense. None of his comments have ever lead me to believe he has a grasp of the issues or how to correct them.
November 24th, 2013 at 6:47 AM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:19 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:53 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:07 PM ^
If hoke doesn't fire borges by the end of the season and hire someone that knows the hell he is doing on offense, then I would argue that Hoke is not michigan man and should not be the coach of the football program. He is not putting the program over everything. If he cant see that borges, is the main issue on offense then he isn't the right person for the job. How many more games can we just go halves without even threating to score. you haave 4 turnovers to zero in the fourth quarter and you are losing. I never seen this before. How can borges not be fired
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:13 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:07 PM ^
Going into our gift second quarter TD thanks to a turn over, Michigan had scored 1 offensive TD in 15 quarters. In that time frame Ohio State scored 28.
Ohio State: 28 TDs in those 15 Qs
Michigan: 1 TD
Coach Spectrum:
Bo--- Great----Good ------Average--------Bad-------GERG---------5thGrader-------Borges
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:42 PM ^
It's all I got.
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:56 PM ^
keep the season tickets but get as many people to not show up. Especially if it is a nationally televised game. Having the stadium half empty will look really bad. As if they can't sell tickets.
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:53 PM ^
Lost confidence in Hoke. No idea why but the no headset, no coat thing has started annoying the shit out of me. Like he's trying to be too old school or something. Put a damn headset on!
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:55 PM ^
Not that it matters to me or matters at all IMO.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:00 PM ^
Does it somehow give him knowledge? Does it give his coaching some kind of super boost?
He clearly doesn't know anything about offense...so he stays out of it. He doesn't need one for defense because he's standing right next to Mattison.
His problem is his OC. He needs to fire Borges and hire someone who is basically a head coach for the offense (and special teams).
Hoke is a defensive head coach, loyalist and team historian only.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:02 PM ^
Does it somehow give him knowledge? Yeah, you can listen into the offensive play calls and get notes from people watching the game from a bird's eye view.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:04 PM ^
I'm not one of those people who thinks the headset deal is a huge problem, but if it really is as ineffectual/unimportant as the defenders say it is, then why does every other head coach in America wear one just about all the time?
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:07 PM ^
Is it possible that his team has lost confidence in him, too?
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:09 PM ^
Hoke with his no-surprise manball, old school, no coat nonsense reminds me of a coach trying to beat the competition by selling door-to-door while other coaches are using emails and the internet.
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:18 PM ^
We lost because Brady Hoke wears no coat. Obviously.
November 23rd, 2013 at 11:49 PM ^
The caveman approach to football is a 1960's/70's approach. Brandon and Hoke are both stuck in the past. If you want to stand out as an old school coach, you better win games convincingly. Floundering only reinforces the negative image that is being developed by the headset, attire, and repetitive press conferences. Individually these things don't mean much, but coupled with poor play on the field the perception has become the reality.
The trajectory is heading in the wrong direction and there is not much time to right the ship. It needs to be all hands on deck or he will lose remaining support.
If the recruiting starts to falter then you are seeing the end of the road for this group of coaches.
November 24th, 2013 at 6:57 AM ^
November 24th, 2013 at 11:31 AM ^
accounted for 251 yards of offense between the tackles for LSU against T A&M yesterday. It can work... That said it is very difficult from where I/we sit to understand the full breadth of our offensive ineptitude. If you work in a logical fashion, every other team he has coached has performed better offensively than we are currently. It is hard not to lay blame on Borges et al,...
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:54 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:01 PM ^
must've had that in the 2nd half vs. Iowa.
In all seriousness, that's awful. Gotta feel bad for him.
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:54 PM ^
If only Brady Hoke would get upset in his press conferences. That would solve all of our problems.
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:57 PM ^
I swear, some of these people think if those 2 things happened, we'd be undefeated.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:03 PM ^
No definitely not saying we would be undefeated , but if he wore a headset he might actually be able to say something to Al about his terrible play calling instead of standing there with his arms crossed and clapping as our offense comes off the field with another 3 & out
November 24th, 2013 at 7:01 AM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:19 PM ^
But I get it. That folksy, regular guy bullshit works great if you're winning, but hoooooly hell does it makes you seem fucking dumb when you aren't.
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:40 PM ^
I've been saying that the "air of mystery" is gone, like it seemed like Brady understood some deeper things that he just wasn't letting folks outside the inner circle in on. Now it just seems like he doesn't know a whole heck of a lot.
But your explanation is better.
I just don't see what Brady Hoke is doing to make this team better. Of course the answer lies in between Saturdays, but when the results are this p***-poor and the team looks this bad, it's hard to see that as an effective contribution.
November 23rd, 2013 at 11:57 PM ^
The headset, the attire, the lack of any type of insightful dialogue and any sense that Hoke can fix this thing is the problem. He comes off as someone who is living in the past. If the fanbase gets restless it will impact your ability to do/keep your job.
The fans actually pay the bills, even though so many want to discount the fan opinions. Lose fans, lose donors, and lose revenue! You better believe that matters!
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:00 PM ^
I am wondering if this is his approach in the locker room as well.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:10 PM ^
His voice seemed raspier than usual. Maybe he smokes an old-timey pipe in the locker room.
November 23rd, 2013 at 7:16 PM ^
I made this comment during the gamecast and was then banned from further comments /s
November 24th, 2013 at 12:45 PM ^
At this point in this season, there's nothing to play for except pride. All the "that should be enough!" arguments aside, the wind really left the sails after the state game. I think that when the team really has brought the passion, and pathetic coaching neutralizes that, it is truly demoralizing.
I think you'll see some initial fire from the player's in The Game, but if the coaches bring the same play-calling, that leads to the same problems, that "passion" won't last past the first quarter.
If they bring the same basic game-plan, then they aren't trying. Do something - spread the field with wideouts and pass out of the 'gun all day - anything but what we've been doing. Could that be any less effective?
Wouldn't you love to hear someone like Lewan's honest thought's on this and other topics, such as the competency of Borges and Funk?
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:01 PM ^
+1
People get upset over the dumbest shit.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:11 PM ^
I'm a grad student sitting in my kitchen in sweatpants. I deserve answers, man.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:24 PM ^
Like a game played by 19-20 yr olds that has no bearing on almost anyone's life except those directly participating in the game?
Yeah, amazing how that happens.
November 24th, 2013 at 12:00 AM ^
Just like you feel the need to comment on a blog about said 19-20 yr olds and the fans that support the team they play for.
November 24th, 2013 at 8:36 AM ^
I wasn't judging, simply stating the reality of what we are all doing here - which is getting upset over the dumbest shit.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:11 PM ^
I don't think people are expecting him to tear his hair out, but why even have a press conference if he's not going to say anything? I don't watch/read the press conferences anymore because it's the same bullshit, "Welllll..... we need to execute and increase physicalness... I'll have to watch the tape." I guess Hoke doesn't want to give out any information, but at this point, why the hell not?
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:56 PM ^
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:02 PM ^
It does not solve the many problems, but this team is flat.
November 24th, 2013 at 12:04 AM ^
His emotion is meaningless window dressing. I only care about whether or not he can convey that he has a handle on the issues. Then I want to see actual results to support that fact. His responses and three or four straight games where the offense has under 200 yards total does not demonstrate he has a handle on this. Not every defense should be able to shut down our offense.
I have never seen anything like this! The only thing comparable was the defense under RR.
November 23rd, 2013 at 5:58 PM ^
If you have seen one you've seeen them all.
November 23rd, 2013 at 6:02 PM ^
After this exchange I have changed my mind, don't think Hoke is the guy moving forward:
Angelique- "Can you put your finger on what's the issue with the offense?"
Hoke- "I think it is a comination of all11 guys out there. I think at times we hit on 11 cylinders, at imes it's 10, others it's 9. Seems to be rotating through"
NOT A SINGLE MENTION OF COACHING? If I was a player on the team I'd be pretty tired of being thrown under the bus just to protect the OC.