Purdy is also arguably the best (or one of the best) QBs we have ever had. Hunter is a big 12 level QB who will hopefully learn a lot from last year. QBs can definitely make or break a team, but I don't think it was Hunter who broke us last year.
Ryan Clanton to be new offensive line coach
- Thread starter Connor_Ferguson
- Start date
Fortunately, he is brilliantBen has a more than full time job in WI. We are stuck with his FIL
I think interceptions last year were significant and no one seems to be addressing them.
You would think that it was a “brutal critique”, anyway.
The problem is that most of the stuff he talks about doing as if it were something new, Myers did for years.
Like lining up players in different positions. I mean, even if you didn’t listen to Myers’ press availabilities, all you had to do was watch the practice videos to see the players at different positions. Caused some confusion on here at times.
This seems pretty much akin to the new HC who comes in and says, “We were SHOCKED at how few players on the team could bench 400 pounds when we got here…”
I mean I think it's fairly obvious that they were a problem.
But how many were on bad down and distance situations? How often was ISU in obvious passing downs because they couldn't run the ball? All of these things are connected. They were also brutally bad in the red zone in a way that will be hard to replicate.
Dekkers was far from perfect and I'm happy to admit it, but the offense being run with a banged up RB corp as if they were still able to just rely on future NFL bell-cows is what made the QBs job so hard in the first place. A poor O-line and being constantly behind the sticks will make basically any QB look bad and make mistakes.
The most important scheme of any offense is getting the defense to think you are going to do one thing, but actually planning on something else. That component of the offense has been lacking for years at ISU. We run when we were supposed to run and pass when we are supposed to pass, luckily for us, we had NFL skilled players and that carried us through enough to make it work.
I for one am excited about the new OL coach and the new offensive coordinator, it's about time we used motion to set up plays and use the tendencies of each defense against them. Spread the field to run the ball, take time of the clock and we will be fine.
I for one am excited about the new OL coach and the new offensive coordinator, it's about time we used motion to set up plays and use the tendencies of each defense against them. Spread the field to run the ball, take time of the clock and we will be fine.
I know very little about Oline technique, but I love that Clanton is changing the mindset and stressing the need for our guys to be more violent.
I don’t think Clayton was necessarily saying the same thing Myres was saying. Offensive lineman tend to only worry about their individual block and their technique on that block. Clayton wants them to understand more of there role within the play and what the keys to success are for that play. His hope is that this will lead to a more confident and violent block. Last year we did not appear to know what we were doing and why we were doing it on the offensive line and it made us look very passive most of the time.
I agree. I feel like he wants the whole line to know what everybody is supposed to be doing on each play, rather than only what is in their little box. Last year it seemed that when we lined up for the snap, if the defense was in a different alignment than what was expected for the play call, our guys didn't react. We sometimes had one lineman blocking air while a d-lineman/linebacker ran right past them. Evidently that wasn't "their" guy to block on that play.
If you line up, and the guy you are supposed to block isn't there or in the place he is supposed to be, you can adapt better knowing the assignments of the rest of the line.
When has Iowa State had a dominant offensive line? None that I remember.
Without a doubt the OL has been a problem for ISU for a number of years, just look at how few lineman we have getting drafted and playing in the NFL compared to EIU and UNI.
The hardest thing is projecting where a 17/18-year-old kid is going to be when he is 21/22. Start with the frame to add weight, and then look to see if he is a good athlete not just a big guy. EIU has made a living bringing in kids that wrestled during HS, as it teaches them how to move on their feet and use their hands and body to gain leverage.
Hopefully ISU will start recruiting much the same way. We are never going to get plug in and play lineman, have to start finding kids that will be that type of player down the road.
The hardest thing is projecting where a 17/18-year-old kid is going to be when he is 21/22. Start with the frame to add weight, and then look to see if he is a good athlete not just a big guy. EIU has made a living bringing in kids that wrestled during HS, as it teaches them how to move on their feet and use their hands and body to gain leverage.
Hopefully ISU will start recruiting much the same way. We are never going to get plug in and play lineman, have to start finding kids that will be that type of player down the road.
Yeah, I have no doubt Purdy would have pulled out a couple of those close losses and we would have been 6-6 instead of 4-8. But you can’t expect every QB to be Purdy. Dekkers is good enough to win with. You just have to give him some kind of running game and more than one guy to throw to. It would also help if the TEs could block instead of getting run over.
IMO... Dekkers has the potential to be better than Purdy. He has a high ceiling IMO.
The Davis brothers ran behind some above average lines under the tutelage of Steve Loney. The 70s O-lines were pretty damn good.
