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Post by matteosandiego on Aug 30, 2015 17:39:48 GMT -8
One week before the beginning of a new Aztec football season, I began to let my mind drift about all the possibilities that 2015 have in store for the team. With all the preseason hype of being the Western division champions, it's easy to get excited and rightfully we all should. But I know myself and many others have been very critical of coach Rocky's tenure up until this point. You only have to remember the way the season ended for our red and black to understand. A one point Loss in our own backyard to a subpar navy with arguably our best Senior offensive player suspended for the biggest game of the year was not a good finish. This latest video of Coach Long being interviewed by the Idaho Statesmen puts my high expectations in check. We all know that coach Long tends to undersell his team so they don't get a big head. But we also know he is incredibly candid in all of his interviews and most times you can tell when he is downplaying and when he is truly shooting from the heart. Last season with quarterback injuries and Ezell Ruffin being injured we failed to beat many legitimate teams. Including all three of our rivalry games versus Fresno State, Nevada, and Boise State. It may be a big season to gage wether coach Rocky is the man to lead us to that next level. Sure we have four straight bowl appearances, but would we have those If TCU, BYU, or Utah were still in the MWC? Makes you wonder. Lastly i for one am incredibly excited to see what our team is made of this year! What our new coaches are made of. But most of all what Coach Long is continuing to be made of. Enjoy the season everyone, enjoy the tailgates, enjoy the pageantry, and enjoy Aztec Football! youtu.be/hszhfqum1-0 |
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Post by aztecfan1 on Aug 30, 2015 18:27:23 GMT -8
I share your enthusiasm. We have excellent overall talent at many positions as well as depth on defense. Barring injury on the OL we should be in the conf championship game vs Bosie who may be undefeated on Dec 5. Winning in CFB is 80% about having better players. So it's mostly what Rocky has done to get the right pieces on the board. Now can they get that 20% coached up to get them to believe in the 4th qtr when the chips are down? We shall see soon . The greatest game every created is almost here.
Go Aztecs - Go
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Post by zurac315 on Aug 30, 2015 18:49:39 GMT -8
I'm hoping we have a QB and a couple or WRs.
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Post by sdsuballer on Aug 30, 2015 20:13:53 GMT -8
Yeah Baby... 13-0 for this cup cake schedule. #No more Excuses#
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Post by aztecfan1 on Aug 30, 2015 21:17:20 GMT -8
Yeah Baby... 13-0 for this cup cake schedule. #No more Excuses# With just a little bit of effort on your part you could moderately education yourself about college football. Then you'd understand how stupid your "cup cake" mantra is. It is tired and nonsensical. |
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Post by matteosandiego on Aug 30, 2015 22:43:12 GMT -8
Yeah Baby... 13-0 for this cup cake schedule. #No more Excuses# Yikes. CAL and Penn State are tough. CSU and Utah State also. |
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Post by Luchador El Guerrero Azteca on Aug 31, 2015 0:58:58 GMT -8
Yeah Baby... 13-0 for this cup cake schedule. #No more Excuses# Nice troll |
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Post by AztecWilliam on Aug 31, 2015 8:06:48 GMT -8
Thirty years of mostly disappointing football by the Aztecs cautions me to not expect too much. Frankly, I do not think this year's team is head and shoulders above the competition. Cal and Penn are clearly much stronger over all than the Aztecs, and CSU and USU are probably good enough to beat us if we stumble just a bit. Worst case, that means four losses right there. Then there is the not unusual sight of an Aztec team tripping over its own feet in a loss to a team that clearly should represent a fairly easy W. That's five losses. Then, might we fall flat again in a minor bowl (which is almost certainly the only kind of bowl we will appear in) against a team that in all honesty is no better than average? That adds up to another 7-6 season.
I hope, and to be honest also think, that this team will not lose six games this season. But I did not anticipate a 7-6 season in 2014. Let's not forget that even a win over Navy would have meant an 8-5 finish, not exactly the kind of season that marks the beginning of a Boise State, Utah, or TCU type of run in the Top=25.
The important question is this; If SDSU finishes with just 7 or 8 wins, will the school's administration understand that Rocky Long is never going to elevate this program to the 10 wins per season, Top-25 level that is required to put the program on a firm footing for the future?
Or will the AD say to him self; Well, sure, we would like to see more than 7 wins, but, heck, that makes six winning seasons in a row. What's wrong with that?
AzWm
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Post by standiego on Aug 31, 2015 8:31:22 GMT -8
At Penn State and At CAL with two very highly rated QB's . Very difficult games
Realize in today's rules that favor the offense . No D is going to shut down the other team . By the 3 or 4th Q, the other team has made adjustments so it is all about execution and controlling the line of scrimmage.
So same as most years need execution from the OL and QB. Other teams are going to try to force our QB's to make positive plays .
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Post by AccessBowlTime on Aug 31, 2015 8:45:30 GMT -8
Watching ESPN's Gameday preview show, Hackenberg's arm is so strong he's being projected to go #1 in next April's draft. Not just the first QB taken, the first player taken. Considering how bad the kid was last year, that was highly surprising to hear. Makes me a lot less optimistic about our chances of taking that one down to the wire. Considering the type of offense Cal runs, I've never thought we had much of a chance in that one. But THREE other losses? With this schedule that would be inexcusable. Period.
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Post by MarshallU on Aug 31, 2015 9:01:38 GMT -8
would be nice, but sadly, no.
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Post by AztecCamera on Aug 31, 2015 9:27:34 GMT -8
Penn State are really underestimating us and we match up well against them. Just pound it with Pumpy and our D is better.
If things don't work out the way we wanted this year, please don't go to the Poinsettia Bowl and embarrass us in our own stadium and city again. Bowls are about travel and seeing new cities, not staying home in beautiful "tropical" San Diego. I still have nightmares about the BYU loss and that Navy team last year was a joke.
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Post by sdcoug on Aug 31, 2015 9:39:04 GMT -8
Penn State are really underestimating us and we match up well against them. Just pound it with Pumpy and our D is better. If things don't work out the way we wanted this year, please don't go to the Poinsettia Bowl and embarrass us in our own stadium and city again. Bowls are about travel and seeing new cities, not staying home in beautiful "tropical" San Diego. I still have nightmares about the BYU loss and that Navy team last year was a joke. Navy was far from "a joke". Shows lack of knowledge about other college football teams. Game opened at -1.5 by Vegas. They respected them very much. Game line ended up being -3, or a FG. It was decided by a FG, a relatively easy one we missed. I swear if the uniform doesn't say "Texas" or "Nebraska" many in our fan base don't know who they are and assume they stink. Do agree we don't want Poinsettia again. |
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Post by sdsudevil on Aug 31, 2015 10:01:11 GMT -8
Looking at Cal's Run D, it wasn't bad at all (145/game). I just wonder if it was because they were actually that good, or because they were facing a pass happy schedule. Looking at their schedule results last year, I chose four games where I felt they had to face good rushing teams (Stanford, Oregon, USC, and UCLA). Sure enough, three of those games, the run game was successful. But I can't think of much by way of a true rushing talent in the PAC that they faced (perhaps Freeman). It makes me question those stats, and how that will translate to DP. With PSU, we know they have faced extremely talented run games, and have been fine.
It leads me to believe that a shootout win vs Cal is more plausible than a victory over Penn State. In both games, we are going to need a good performance under center.
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Post by csfoster on Aug 31, 2015 10:10:23 GMT -8
This will be our first 10+ win season in several decades. Do not be surprised. Enjoy!  |
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Post by AztecWilliam on Aug 31, 2015 10:31:52 GMT -8
Watching ESPN's Gameday preview show, Hackenberg's arm is so strong he's being projected to go #1 in next April's draft. Not just the first QB taken, the first player taken. Considering how bad the kid was last year, that was highly surprising to hear. Makes me a lot less optimistic about our chances of taking that one down to the wire. Considering the type of offense Cal runs, I've never thought we had much of a chance in that one. But THREE other losses? With this schedule that would be inexcusable. Period. Well, it may be inexcusable, but that does not mean it's unthinkable. Yeah, I know, I'm playing the Debbie Downer role here, but I can't help it. Look, one way or another, the SDSU football program has gone from excellence under Coryell and Gilbert (go to the links page and check out our year-by-year records in the '60s and '70s on the College Football Data Warehouse) to mediocrity or worse. Please understand that NONE of the last 34 Aztec teams has come close to the level of success seen under those two coaches. Consider the following: Coryell & Gilbert: 20 seasons (1961-1980). 8 win seasons = 6 9 win seasons = 3 10 win seasons= 4 11 win seasons= 2 Undefeated seasons = 3 The Seven Usual Suspects: 34 seasons (1981-2014). 8 win seasons = 6 9 win seasons = 2 10 win seasons= 0 11 win seasons= 0 Undefeated seasons = 0 Furthermore, the Aztecs were ranked in the Top-25 at least twice under Coryell (1969) and Gilbert (1977). Lately? One should not forget the Curse of Montezuma which has struck us down so often. (Examples: the "phantom fumble" in the 2004 CSU game, and the Six Blind Mice officials against Missouri ('10) who could not see an obvious block in the back that enabled the Tigers to score a last minute TD for the win). And then there are the various foolish calls by SDSU coaches. My favorite is the time Tom Craft got pissed at his #1 punter, left him home for the Wyoming trip, and had to use two backups who delivered punts of under 10 yards. Needless to say, we lost that game largely because Tom made a dumb decision. What's your favorite Aztec coach screw-up post 1980? Anyway, I will hope for the best in 2015, but will not be shocked it if turns out to be less successful than what we want to see. The reality is that coaches who are the creme of the crop generally build solid winning programs (meaning 10 wins per season) by their fifth year. We must keep in mind that 2015 is Rocky Long's fifth year. I like him, but there is more at stake than how one feels about the head coach as a human being. I would not tolerate a coach who is a complete anti-social jerk. On the other hand, a coach who reliably wins 10 or more per season would have to be a pretty big jerk (or rule breaker) to warrant getting fired. AzWm |
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Post by aztecfan1 on Aug 31, 2015 11:44:41 GMT -8
You have been conditioned to expect defeat from the jaws of victory and after 40+ years of memories I get that. I expect this year to be different. 9 wins is very doable barring terrible injuries
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Post by ignoranus on Aug 31, 2015 12:01:12 GMT -8
Chad Bunn deserves a mention on this thread.
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Post by vision on Aug 31, 2015 12:02:14 GMT -8
Yeah Baby... 13-0 for this cup cake schedule. #No more Excuses# How many college football teams go 13-0 in any given year? one? Two? That is unrealistic for ANY team. If we can win 10 that would be HUGE~!~ |
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Post by originalshow00 on Aug 31, 2015 12:07:47 GMT -8
I am guessing 11 wins since we will be playing 14 games.
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