Ozzie82

Something tells me that having a debate with someone who has stated the subject isn't debatable wouldn't be a productive use of my time.

Since you still don't understand what a special teams coach does, here's a c/p from a post I made back in February: I reached out to an acquaintance of mine, who has coached in the MAC, FCS, and D2, and is currently the head coach at at D3 school in Ohio. I asked him if special teams coaches are supposed to be well versed in kicking and punting techniques; his reply: "No. (the position) has much more to do with the mechanics and execution of the units outside of the specialists themselves. Specialists today are birds of a feather who train and work in their own circles and really work on perfecting there craft in the offseason and really work to maintain consistency during. Many places like Ohio State will have consultants or advisers that are specialists guys to help coach through but no... the coordinator is going to have everything to do with typically everyone else but those specialists unless it is in regard to what they want them to specifically execute."

I'd love to see you sit down and debate that with Pawlak. It would be hilarious! We could do a pay per view and raise money for the HPC II!

That is true, thus the timing for Hergel. The registration is set up with FBS in mind, not FCS schools that are playing in the spring. The NCAAs should have made an exception for FCS teams. It is yet another stupid NCAA rule.

There are other reasons that he would leave that have nothing to do with what you mentioned. (Edit: not $, don't go there!) BTW, I am in no way saying that I agree/disagree with his decision.

I have no idea, but I do know that there is a reason he felt confident to make the decision he did. His choice may end up backfiring or working in his favor, who knows. But he's a damned good OLman.

I thought we'd cleared up that college special teams coaches don't teach kicking technique. If you have a problem with how deep kickoffs go, or FG/XPs, it's a recruiting problem. If there are problems with allowing kick off returns, or getting kicks blocked, that's a special teams coach problem. UND has returned 4 blocked kicks for TDs in the last 11 games, and have had no kicks blocked. If Kostich keeps that up he'll be off to an FBS job.

Tried to focus on him during replays on the big screen (I was at the game). The hardest thing to learn for a young lineman is knowing when to disengage from a double team and engage on a blitzer or a stunt. Many high schools don't teach that, so it can be a learning curve when reaching college football. I saw him successfully disengage multiple times; his brain and his feet were quick enough to do it successfully. I didn't watch him on every play, but from what I saw he looked like a veteran. Much to like about this young man. Side bar - don't shoot the messenger - according to Hergel's twitter feed he got an offer from Washington State. That's damned impressive.

Exactly.

Yep. Hergel is the main reason that Quincy is at UND.

Edit to say that I still believe that UND can and will win this Saturday. And it helps a ton that there are 4 veterans surrounding the new guy.

- I love the "next man up, we got this" positivity from Holm and Tobin in Tom Miller's article, but Hergel's loss is a big deal. No other way around it. Offensive lines are about teamwork more than any other position group on the field and losing him now throws everything off. - We can argue about who is the best lineman on the team, but the fact that it's close shows how good this unit has been, and how substantial losing Hergel is. - Teeder, I love your optimism on Lavelle. I hope you're right about his upside. But there is no way that he or Kilty or anyone would have beaten out Hergel, no matter his upside, anytime over the next two years. Hergel is a hell of a player. Lavelle or Kilty would have slid into Tobin's spot next season after he graduated. - During a couple of games I kept wanting the Hawks to put in the second team OL earlier in the fourth quarter to get them more reps. I wish they had.

Every one of your posts is an explosion of positivity, a ray of sunshine in a rainstorm. You must be a riot at parties!

A player's parent designed them, sells them to other parents. Not licensed by the university.

iramurphy, I'm with you. The main reason that the OL is so good this year is that they are experienced. Blowout games like the one on Saturday are a blessing because it gives the young players some experience and reps. In fact, I was hoping they'd put in the 2nd team OL when they got the ball back at the 8:00 mark (and up by 4 scores) in the fourth quarter because they need the reps. Same holds true for other positions. I wanted to see Vaughn in there more often at the end (although I understand the need to get more snaps for Schuster).

Not you, Dustin!

Well said. Most of his posts sound like that. He knows the least amount about football of any poster on this site. He's really good at being opinionated, though.

Yeah, that's an excellent comparison. With kickers and goalies the skill set is so different from the rest of the team. (Side bar - I think kicking in football is weird. It's bizarre how it became such a crucial part of the game and why it stayed.)

At the risk of sounding like I'm related to Kostich (I'm not), I did some further research on his responsibilities as special teams coordinator. Since the other big complaint about the special teams was that the kicking game has left a lot to be desired in recent years, I wanted to find out exactly what special teams coaches do. Are college special teams coaches supposed to be experts on kicking and punting techniques, especially since it seems that special teams appears to be a gateway job when moving up levels (D2 head coach becomes a ST coordinator at a Power 5 school)? I reached out to an acquaintance of mine, who has coached in the MAC, FCS, and D2, and is currently the head coach at at D3 school in Ohio. I asked him if special teams coaches are supposed to be well versed in kicking and punting techniques; his reply: "No. (the position) has much more to do with the mechanics and execution of the units outside of the specialists themselves. Specialists today are birds of a feather who train and work in their own circles and really work on perfecting there craft in the offseason and really work to maintain consistency during. Many places like Ohio State will have consultants or advisers that are specialists guys to help coach through but no... the coordinator is going to have everything to do with typically everyone else but those specialists unless it is in regard to what they want them to specifically execute." This makes sense to me. I think the kicking issues are more of a recruiting issue. I don't know if Kostich is primarily responsible for recruiting kickers and punters (it would make sense if he was and would be open to praise or blame if so), but it seems that if a kicker is struggling is has less to do with coaching and more to do with the player.

CM Sioux said: Hasn't the other aspects of special teams been pretty good as far a blocking kicks and covering kicks - yes it's a total picture but certainly has improved over the last few years. I thought UNDBIZ's comment of a "few" blocks per year didn't sound right (a "few" to me means 3 or more), so I dug into the stats. Only 2017-2019 stats were available on the UND website, and they did not indicate which type of kick is blocked (punt, place kick). Summary: CM Sioux is correct, UNDBIZ is incorrect. According to the stats, (some) other aspects of special teams have clearly improved in the last few years. Here is the data: 2017 Opponents: 2 kicks blocked (Montana St., Sac St.) UND: 2 kicks blocked (vs. Montana, vs. E. Washington) Even 2018 Opponents: 2 kicks blocked (SHSU, Idaho) UND: 4 kicks blocked (SHSU, Idaho St., Sac St., Weber St.) +2 UND 2019 Opponents: 0 kicks blocked UND: 3 kicks blocked (Montana St., No. Colorado, So. Utah) +3 UND

Two things were abundantly clear last night. 1. Notre Dame is one of CFB’s top teams, but is not elite. 2. Ohio State is elite. And absolutely belonged in the playoffs.

What a shame that Cinci didn’t get in. The 4 team playoff has really changed FBS football for the worse. They must expand to at least 8 teams so that deserving teams like Cincinnati and Coastal Carolina have an opportunity to go to the playoffs. Plus expanding will even out recruiting... right now most high level recruits are going to Alabama, Ohio State, Clemson, and Georgia because they have the best chance at the playoffs.

Nebraska is fantastic. Great fans, great stadium, tailgating, Runza... it’s a great gameday experience. Can’t wait for UND to play there.

It’s fantastic. I tried to do the whole experience - went to the band practice the night before, pep rally, the game day trumpets in the admin building, and the game itself. It’s pretty fantastic. I took my dad, who grew up an ND fan thanks to being Irish Catholic, and had never been there before. My only regret is that I don’t have a picture of us together at the stadium (he has since passed away). Highly recommended.

You just described the exact method that the committee has always used to choose the top 4 teams - the eye test. They have no guidelines to follow... they don’t have to choose conference champions, they are not bound by any statistical guidelines. Their only job is to pick - in their view - the best 4 teams at the end of the season. (I’m not necessarily advocating for OSU.)