2015 Football Season Post Mortem

[VULB#62]

I'll put in the placeholder. We need to look at both the strengths as well as the areas that need improvement. I'd also like to suggest one single rule to guide our dialogue based on a sound management principle that I have found works to positively improve situations. If ever someone had a gripe, they could come to me, but only if they also came with a thoughtful, suggested solution to that gripe (An example of an unacceptable visit: gripe -  the coach sucks; solution - fire him).  The rule:  gripes are always accompanied with thoughtful, suggested solutions..

I'm anticipating a really good discussion. Have at it posters 

[usc4valpo]

The football program must be looked at in a holistic manner in how it interacts with the university vision. Where does football fit in with Valparaiso University? Is it an important piece of the experience, or is it cash cow to bring in male students? What can be done to reduce the apathy to the football program?

Valpo needs to understand what this football program is about, define objectives and take actions to meet these objectives.

Valpo needs to make the football experience more likeable and exciting. Promote parties, get togethers and tailgating before the game.

Allow the best players to make you successful play - do not allow the millennials take control because they think are special or entitled.

[IndyValpo]

Current team retention. As we try to build some depth we need to keep as many current players as possible. This is a unique twist to non-scholarship programs. We will certainly lose some, we added 12 WR's and OL last year for instance, but this is battle #1.

Next year recruiting needs to be solid. We need DL and RB's particularly but can use any talented player regardless of position except perhaps at K. 

[valpochgo]

I agree ^^^....  Valpo can't keep losing players every year at the rate they were lost in the past.  The good teams in the PFL are able to retain their athletes.  I think it's just as important for Valpo to retain players as it is to recruit freshman.  I think the "all about the incoming freshman" mentality was a mistake that was made by the coaching staff this year.


I'm hearing that many freshman (even some that were playing) aren't happy and want to leave.  Valpo coaches need to address this if it's true so you don't bring in 50 freshman every year.  Personally, I didn't see any freshman that played any better than the upperclassman.  No matter who was in the game the outcomes were the same but a freshman is more willing to sit behind an upperclassman and then an upperclassman is willing to sit behind a freshman. 


I think the coaches went into a panic after the EKU game and started making too many personnel changes and the season spiraled out of control.  Playing a very good scholarship team early in the season shouldn't be a negative especially when you had so many kids suspended.  They should have just accepted the loss and continued on the path from the summer verses moving all the kids positions around and effecting the team morale.

[VU2624]

One issue which festered during the season and I have heard from a number of different players and parents of the players and includes both sides of the situation was a divide between the freshman and non freshman. It was all sourced from the coaches playing up their first full recruiting class to the level they did. I think it was a fairly large mistake which hopefully will not occur again.

The non freshman felt slighted and the freshmen felt less welcomed than maybe they should have been. The coaches did not create a roster of inclusiveness as there was repeated reference publicly and behind the scenes to the staffs first class. In short, those not recruited by this staff felt as if favorites were being played both in how they were treated in practice and with playing time. It doesn't matter what the reality of the situation was as the perception from both sides of the situation felt the negatives. I know of at least a few non freshmen who left the team because of it. The issue, overall, took most of the season to get past.

[VU2624]

Getting back to a how do we get better frame of mind.

Strength and conditioning has to improve. Too beat up at the end of the year and Jax wiped out, I think, 8 in total. I missed a few in my post game comments. Some of the players were much lighter at the end of the year which may have been a cause of the injuries.

The good news is, players have reported that the offseason program is going to begin far sooner than it has the last few years. So it is an issue which is recognized and that in itself is a good thing.

[VULB#62]

One issue which festered during the season and I have heard from a number of different players and parents of the players and includes both sides of the situation was a divide between the freshman and non freshman. It was all sourced from the coaches playing up their first full recruiting class to the level they did. I think it was a fairly large mistake which hopefully will not occur again.

The non freshman felt slighted and the freshmen felt less welcomed than maybe they should have been. The coaches did not create a roster of inclusiveness as there was repeated reference publicly and behind the scenes to the staffs first class. In short, those not recruited by this staff felt as if favorites were being played both in how they were treated in practice and with playing time. It doesn't matter what the reality of the situation was as the perception from both sides of the situation felt the negatives. I know of at least a few non freshmen who left the team because of it. The issue, overall, took most of the season to get past.

Makes a lot of sense.  It's a lot easier keeping freshmen "in their place" (i.e., waiting their turn) because they are coming into a new situation (this isn't HS anymore, Dude) than rearranging the culture of the returning 3 classes.  I also think that quantity, while good in one sense for identifying the truly talented among the new comers, also means that the number who don't measure up are much greater and, over the course of the season, this can be quite a liability especially when the team is not winning. I recall a conversation I had with Coach Cecchini at an alumni function right after he took the job.  He told me that he was used to a roster more in the 80-90 range at Lehigh and The Citadel than 100+ that Valpo seemed to carry.  But back there he was dealing with a different level of quality and skill (and some scholarships).  He certainly had the 100+ these past two seasons, yet, he may rethink the large class approach and perhaps be more selective (if that is possible).

[usc4valpo]

they need stability at QB, that is for sure.

My feelings is Cecchini needs to show positive results.

More medical staff may not be a bad thing.

Also, what can be done with the football atmosphere to keep players on the roster. How can you increase attendance beyond football parents?

I went to the game at Drake and fans tailgate and have fun before the game. They go to Jethro's BBQ and the Drake Library for lunch and a beverage. They draw around 2500 to 3000 per game but it's not a bad atmosphere - they also have a pretty cool old stadium used primarily for the Drake relays.

[VULB#62]

Addressing only the fan culture (at least for FB anyway):  IMO there really is none at Valpo. The university does very little to encourage and expand the pre-game experience. Much of that may be due to the university's adopted conservative (not in the political sense) approach to promoting the pre-game activities of any sport. I won't get into the missed opportunity after "the shot" in generating fan and alumni support going forward. Much of what is always done is geared to us older geezers who are comfortable with a slower paced ....whatever. Younger graduates? What incentives are provided to make the trek back for games (FB? BB?). Students? The students are left to their own, aren't they?  Come to think of it, it seems they are an afterthought.  There is only the volunteer pep band, which I do not believe receives much university support.

Why not designate a special tail gate lot and promote it?  Provide the opportunity to buy tailgate food and nonalcoholic beverages on site. But ..... Allow people to bring in beer and wine on their own. Move the parents' tent to that area.  Establish a drum line group (that is so inspiring) and augment and encourage the development of the pep band. Make them special. Have them perform in the tailgate lot before games. Invite students to tailgate as well. Foster total involvement.

Like at Drake, USC, my experience at Butler ( also watching the Marist fans in Poughkeepsie on three occasions) reinforced in my mind that if the university (read the president and the B of D) wants to understand how to involve alumni (they really need to come out of their cocoons) they have to see how these schools create, foster and nourish alumni participation through simple things like supported tailgating.

Valpo is a private university.  Private universities generally have a good reputation for avid alumni support. Valpo not so much. Valpo has a few big bucks donors, but once the average kid graduates, there is very little incentive to keep coming back and donating even a little bit. But at their stage of life, they just need to be attracted back as much as possible to encourage that love -- the donations ( after they pay off their loans  ) will come later. But that's how you build alumni fanaticism.

I would bet that most of us on this board evolved our love for Valpo over time and personal reflection. Hell, it took me 30 years to come back to campus (Sheer luck -- I got to see Macchi beat Robert Morris). But that's the Valpo way and has been for at least 50 years if not forever. That needs to be changed. It's an attitude thing.

I know this will not make our OL better. It will not make our QBs more accurate. It will not make our secondary coverage  tighter.  But it will help to create a compelling, competitive athletic environment that athletes, students, alumni and town citizens  will want to be a part of.   And this goes for MBB as well as other sports too.

[usc4valpo]

When potential recruits see a more vibrant football atmosphere, it can only be a positive influence for them to want to signup.

[VU2624]

The atmosphere at JU was a little different in that there was an alumni event combined with the fact that it was in a state which currently has a large number of players originating from for the final game of the season in which the players would be getting a ride home if they wished.

It was still a fun atmosphere...moreso than what I've experienced on campus....better attended and enthusiastically since more than just parents showed up. There were multiple instances of friends and non immediate family members and also a few of last years players and parents of some of those players came to the game.

The bizarre thing was that the alumni gathering was away from the game a bit although the attending alumni did make it to the game. Too bad a better show couldn't have been provided by the team. Why there wasn't an attempt to mix the tailgaters with the alumni I'm not sure.

I agree overall that the campus game experience improving might help the recruiting. What is the makeup of the typical basketball crowd? I imagine a fair amount of non alumni locals attend the game. That's the crowd the school needs to appeal to IMHO.

[VULB#62]

UP FRONT SIZE, STRENGTH & 1ST & GOAL

Sometimes it is good to hear what the announcers on the other side have to say about our team.  Generally, the views are pretty straight forward and, to a greater degree than ours, unbiased toward us.  I had only two opportunities (EKU and JU) to listen to opponent's broadcasts, but on both occasions one positive theme and one theme that I would call a 'comparative assessment'   came across.

The strength:  our kids play hard all 60 minutes despite, in many instances, being overwhelmed by superior opponent size, talent, speed, ......whatever.  This is a tribute to the kind of kids we have and the ability of the staff to help the kids maintain a level of intensity throughout the game even when things go south during a losing effort.  The reasons for things going south is a subject for a different post and a different discussion.

The comparative assessment:  The announcers for both EKU and JU very early on and at times during each of the games made clear references to Valpo's lack of size and strength up front on both sides of the ball compared to their squads.  That would be a 'duh' for EKU, but hearing JU provide the same assessment was a bit more disconcerting. Let's look at the D first.  Quickness and speed can take you only so far and for so long against bigger OLs.  If we are talking a 10 lbs. per man delta up front, it should not be that great a gap over the course of a full game.  A greater average than that per man wears a D down at an accelerating rate over the course of a game. Strength dissipates at a greater rate over time when our players must continually compensate for the weight/size differential.  And regardless of when in the game, it does not bode well for 1st and goal situations where bigger teams just bulldoze our smaller DL. If we are committed to a down-4 (2 DEs and 2 DTs) the DTs need to big enough and strong enough to fully control the A and B gaps.  These are the 300+ pounders you see in the pro games.  At our level, two  6-3, 285# studs are a good start.  The DEs both need to be at least John Guilford's size, speed and strength, so we are talking at least 6-4, 265# as targets. Depth should parallel the target sizes.

On offense, the better teams line up against us defensively with players that are pretty much equal to or in some cases bigger than our OL. The same concept of diminishing returns over the length of a game apply here as well.  As noted numerous times by posters, we are not getting much push from our OL and, on pass protection, we are sometimes steamrolled resulting in untimely sacks or pressures resulting in poorly thrown passes.  Very seldom do we command the LOS.  It is not just weight that comes into play, it's size combined with explosive power.  With respect to 1st and goal, it was frustrating on a number of occasions when we were inside the five with a 1st and goal, only to be held on three downs (sometimes losing yardage) and being forced to go for a FG instead of walking away with 6. The answer to this is more, bigger O-linemen in the >290 range.

Average running backs can very look good running through holes consistently made by a powerful line. An average QB can better manage a drive and complete passes when he has more time to go through his progressions and find open receivers.  Average LBs can make plays and the secondary can cover adequately when the defensive front 4 controls the LOS and pressures QBs.  A powerful OL can make short yardage situations something to look forward to.  With a bigger, stronger DL, we make more stops on short yardage and make it tougher on 1st and goal situations.

We have moved forward in the last year with the Biel weight training center.  The actual impact of which can only to this point be measured over only one full off-season (it was only finished fall of 2014 -- seems so long ago).  But it is a huge step in the right direction. Players who complete this next second off-season program should be noticeably stronger and a bit bigger.  And the news that the off-season program is starting much earlier in the year is a second step in the right direction. 

But in the long term, increased strength still does not fully compensate for the lack of up front size on both sides of the ball that I mentioned above.  I guess what I am saying is that we need to start with bigger OL and DL players and make them stronger, so that over the course of a) four seasons for each player and b) a full 60 minutes of every game, we maintain a level playing field, not one where we are playing uphill for most of games.  This is a recruiting and retention objective that, hopefully, has the staff's full attention as they evaluate potential class of 2016 candidates and assignments of returning players for next season. 

[VULB#62]

The bizarre thing was that the alumni gathering was away from the game a bit although the attending alumni did make it to the game. .....  Why there wasn't an attempt to mix the tailgaters with the alumni I'm not sure.

This goes back to the university's approach discussed below, 2624.  I think only alumni were contacted about that and arrangements were made specifically for them outside of the context of a general tail gate experience.  We need to first announce and coordinate tail gates at away games for anyone and everyone who follows the team and then include the alumni element within that whole tail gate experience.  I know that at Butler a lot of Valpo fans didn't even know that there was a Valpo tail gate sponsored by some of our fans.  It wasn't the sponsors' fault. They did a great fantastic job setting up the food and reserving the corner of the lot.  But registration and publicity was done only on the alumni web page (except for also being posted on this board by one of the sponsors).  BTW, when we got there, nobody greeted us, there were no name tags, no program of activities (again, not the sponsors'  fault -- which to my mind would fall on the shoulders of the appropriate university department(s)).  As a result, we just showed up, kind sat around for  a while, and ate and that was about it until we went to the game.  Again it's a change in approach that needs to be made and a new culture that needs to evolve.  Best place to start that is first at Valpo.  Set the expectation there and then push it out to the away sites 

[usc4valpo]

Valpo needs to quit being so damn conservative on some issues and activities. You do not want to create an educational atmosphere where you think you are living in a capsule for the rest of your life. OMG, beer on campus , where is this world coming to?

[VU2624]

UP FRONT SIZE, STRENGTH & 1ST & GOAL Sometimes it is good to hear what the announcers on the other side have to say about our team.  Generally, the views are pretty straight forward and, to a greater degree than ours, unbiased toward us.  I had only two opportunities (EKU and JU) to listen to opponent's broadcasts, but on both occasions one positive theme and one theme that I would call a 'comparative assessment'   came across. The strength:  our kids play hard all 60 minutes despite, in many instances, being overwhelmed by superior opponent size, talent, speed, ......whatever.  This is a tribute to the kind of kids we have and the ability of the staff to help the kids maintain a level of intensity throughout the game even when things go south during a losing effort.  The reasons for things going south is a subject for a different post and a different discussion. The comparative assessment:  The announcers for both EKU and JU very early on and at times during each of the games made clear references to Valpo's lack of size and strength up front on both sides of the ball compared to their squads.  That would be a 'duh' for EKU, but hearing JU provide the same assessment was a bit more disconcerting. Let's look at the D first.  Quickness and speed can take you only so far and for so long against bigger OLs.  If we are talking a 10 lbs. per man delta up front, it should not be that great a gap over the course of a full game.  A greater average than that per man wears a D down at an accelerating rate over the course of a game. Strength dissipates at a greater rate over time when our players must continually compensate for the weight/size differential.  And regardless of when in the game, it does not bode well for 1st and goal situations where bigger teams just bulldoze our smaller DL. If we are committed to a down-4 (2 DEs and 2 DTs) the DTs need to big enough and strong enough to fully control the A and B gaps.  These are the 300+ pounders you see in the pro games.  At our level, two  6-3, 285# studs are a good start.  The DEs both need to be at least John Guilford's size, speed and strength, so we are talking at least 6-4, 265# as targets. Depth should parallel the target sizes. On offense, the better teams line up against us defensively with players that are pretty much equal to or in some cases bigger than our OL. The same concept of diminishing returns over the length of a game apply here as well.  As noted numerous times by posters, we are not getting much push from our OL and, on pass protection, we are sometimes steamrolled resulting in untimely sacks or pressures resulting in poorly thrown passes.  Very seldom do we command the LOS.  It is not just weight that comes into play, it's size combined with explosive power.  With respect to 1st and goal, it was frustrating on a number of occasions when we were inside the five with a 1st and goal, only to be held on three downs (sometimes losing yardage) and being forced to go for a FG instead of walking away with 6. The answer to this is more, bigger O-linemen in the >290 range. Average running backs can very look good running through holes consistently made by a powerful line. An average QB can better manage a drive and complete passes when he has more time to go through his progressions and find open receivers.  Average LBs can make plays and the secondary can cover adequately when the defensive front 4 controls the LOS and pressures QBs.  A powerful OL can make short yardage situations something to look forward to.  With a bigger, stronger DL, we make more stops on short yardage and make it tougher on 1st and goal situations. We have moved forward in the last year with the Biel weight training center.  The actual impact of which can only to this point be measured over only one full off-season (it was only finished fall of 2014 -- seems so long ago).  But it is a huge step in the right direction. Players who complete this next second off-season program should be noticeably stronger and a bit bigger.  And the news that the off-season program is starting much earlier in the year is a second step in the right direction. But in the long term, increased strength still does not fully compensate for the lack of up front size on both sides of the ball that I mentioned above.  I guess what I am saying is that we need to start with bigger OL and DL players and make them stronger, so that over the course of a) four seasons for each player and b) a full 60 minutes of every game, we maintain a level playing field, not one where we are playing uphill for most of games.  This is a recruiting and retention objective that, hopefully, has the staff's full attention as they evaluate potential class of 2016 candidates and assignments of returning players for next season.

Agreed on all. Whatever the paper listed difference in size overall for Jax vs. Valpo, there was a bigger difference than on paper. It had to be 20 to 30 lbs per lineman and it did look like their DL outweighed Valpo's OL which really is tough to deal with unless the DL can't move at all. However, it's not so disconcerting to me overall in looking at the PFL because, let's face it, Jax goes outside the rules. Thus we are unlikely to compete with them. Hopefully a full offseason for the interior lines and TEs as well will help with the running game and offense in general.

[VU2624]

An issue which festered through half the season. After the Drake game:

Coach to Offensive unit:

"I know I can sleep well tonight because I called a good game".

This was said to the offense and was repeated to me by multiple players. It was still being repeated to me by players in multiple position groups and defensive players along with parents in a shaking their heads fashion on Saturday. Between this comment and the Stetson gameplan in which almost an entirely new scheme was installed on Tuesday with the players really not understanding why or having much faith in it, I don't think the players had a lot of belief in the staff. Whether this is supposed to be an issue or not, it was and this was illustrated with it still there more than a month later.

When coaches don't include themselves as part of a problem, the coaches become a bigger part of the problem.

Some of this staff is pretty young. Hopefully they learn from their mistakes. I think we may see some changes here at least in some fashion.

[VULB#62]

On a positive note: 

Senior linebacker Alex Green (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville Community) was named to the All-Pioneer Football League First Team, as announced by the league office Tuesday. Furthermore, John Guilford (Spencer, Ohio/Black River), Cody Cotton (Maywood, Ill./Walther Lutheran), J.J. Nunes (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore Lutheran), and Griffin Norberg (Sunrise, Fla./Western) earned Honorable Mention accolades as well.

Green led the Crusader defense in tackles for the third consecutive season, amassing 117 stops in ten games. His 11.7 tackles per game average led the PFL and was eighth in all of FCS football. Green also finished 11th in the country - and second in the league - in solo tackles per game, at 6.2.

Congratulation Alex on being the first Valpo PFL 1st teamer since 2006 and congratulations to John, Cody, JJ and Griff as well for being recognized for their play.  IMO, John should have been a second teamer.

http://www.valpoathletics.com/football/news/2015-16/15089/green-named-all-pfl-first-team-four-others-earn-honorable-mention-nods/#.Vl344oQ4ko8

http://files.streamlinetechnologies.com/valpoathletics/9DB11E6F-3F84-43E9-884D-91E1862A0213/2015AllPFLTeamRelease.pdf

[VU2624]

Congrats to Alex and the rest of the gang!

[VULB#62]

Considering that the 11 PFL teams have 24 "starters" (11 O, 11 D plus 2 ST) each, that's 264 candidates to be among the top 59 is pretty good.  Alex being in the top 11 is no mean feat. He's made over 100 tackles each of the last 3 years -  that's incredible consistency.

[dime life]

Great news...very happy for him.

[VULB#62]

More accolades for Alex Green and 3 others.

PFL Academic All League.

Redshirt sophomore Brian Lang (Chicago, Ill./Marist) was elected to the First Team thanks to a 3.94 grade point average. The accounting major was a Second Team recipient last season after helping the Crusader offensive line lead the nation in fewest sacks allowed per game (0.42). Lang started in nine of Valpo's ten games in 2015.

Alex Green (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville Community) received Second Team accolades one day after earning a spot on the All-PFL First Team. Green, a mechanical engineering major, led the PFL in tackles per game at 11.7. The senior linebacker sports a 3.43 GPA. Green was a First Team Academic All-PFL selection in both 2013 and 2014.

Green joins fellow mechanical engineering major John Guilford (Spencer, Ohio/Black River) on the Second Team. Guilford amassed 12.0 tackles for a loss this past season while maintaining a 3.36 grade point average in the classroom. The defensive end was a Second Team Academic All-PFL honoree in 2014.

Special teams standout Jarrett Morgan (Cooper City, Fla./Cooper City) also made the Academic All-PFL Second Team. Morgan, who handled 35 kickoff returns for 790 yards, recorded the game-tying touchdown at Davidson via an 89-yard kickoff return. The sophomore is a sports management major with a 3.33 grade point average.

http://www.valpoathletics.com/football/news/2015-16/15093/valpo-football-lands-four-on-academic-all-pfl-teams/#.Vl9ExoQ4ko8

http://files.streamlinetechnologies.com/valpoathletics/9DB11E6F-3F84-43E9-884D-91E1862A0213/2015AcademicAllPFLTeamRelease.pdf

[IndyValpo]

Apparently QB Conner Smith's injury has been determined to be career ending. Too bad this guy was awesome in HS.

[VULB#62]

If so, that's a shame.  For some unknown reason, that kid was followed by a gray cloud. Not fair. I viewed his recruiting highlights tape and was really impressed.  I would have liked to have seen him on the field in a college game situation -- just once.

On "paper*," the 2016 QB roster is down to 3 returning:  Ryan with the most experience, Dalton returning from shoulder surgery and Jake who redshirted last season. Ryan, mainly a passer not a runner,  showed some flashes, but also made some bad reads and gave up a few pick 6s. Dalton was a hybrid runner passer or passer runner, but our sample size is too small to pass judgment.  And we haven't seen Jake in a college situation yet, so we don't know what kind of ball he throws, how good/fast a runner he is or how he manages games.

In retrospect, Ben was best suited for the offense that Valpo is using as he could run, pass from the pocket  and pass on the run.  He proved that in the one year he was a starter.  Using him as the benchmark, Dalton was first in line this season due to his versatility until he went down and no one else could quite do all that was demanded of the position.  Essentially the QB slot was one-dimensional and posed no running threat.# That needs to be addressed - especially in that our O-line is/will be undersized and young even next year.  It will be interesting to see whether the offense (and therefore, the QB role) changes/adjusts as a result of what we could and could not do this season.

*rumors of a QB defection not withstanding

# That's fine if you have a flat out great passer.

[usc4valpo]

The other big general is how many of the 50 freshman will stay, regardless of the magnitude of playing time they had this year.

I think next year is a put up or shut up year for cecchini  and maybe where the football program goes.

[VULB#62]

The fact that 2015 was his first full class (started late after his hire in 2014 and only got, what, 15 to come in?) and he lost twenty-something seniors from the 2014 squad, I'd say season 4 will be the pivotal season. By that time the 2015 class will be juniors and the 2016 class will be sophomores.