Cal Strong! said:

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heartofthebear said:

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The punter was dropping the ball too low before kicking it and it allowed for blocked punts. That has been observed and commented on. I trust it is being addressed.

While Rags coaching is questionable at times, his recruiting is off the charts. Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. Rags has been a stand-up guy and highly motivated. He doesn't make excuses and takes responsibility for problems. He is exactly the kind of Cal Strong guy you keep asking for.

Firing a guy who is strong overall just because he is weak in some areas is an overall weak thing to do. I expect him to improve.

One of the main ways a program gets weakened is by compulsively firing and hiring people every year. That creates instability in the program. Cal already has had a great deal of turnover from last season. So it is best not to expand that any more this season.

Baldwin had 3 years. Rags had a bad year last year. Lets give him at least 2021 before we call for his head.

You should know that I have expressed concern that Cal is too enamored with Australian style punting. I don't think it has really worked for Cal as much as the old school guys like Bryan Anger and others have in the past. And I don't know why it has become a 100% cross over rather than a diversification. I'm okay with an Australian style guy here or there. But we have not had a regular punter in quite some time now.

I know why we like the Australian style. It is to reduce the chance of a run back. But I think that is weak.

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Cal Strong disagree with Heart of the Bear. It true that sometimes you need to give coaches time to develop. But losing a Big Game never acceptable due to something like this. Working kinks out against UC Davis or Washington State frustrating, but understandable. Not knowing how to block a PAT and losing to furd for this reason WEAK. Weak coaches shouldn't coach at Cal.

Rags has had 4 years. If 3 was enough for Baldwin, then why is 4 not enough for Rags?

What frustrate Cal Strong the most is that head coaches who are not Cal alumni always treat furd like "just another game." But Big Game isn't just another game. Humiliating stanfurd is the primary reason we have a football program. So if you lose the Big Game because you couldn't block a PAT, then someone's head needs to roll.

Stanfurd isn't just another game. Preparing to beat furd is the most important thing a Cal coach will do all year. If you screw it up, then you need to find another job.

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I can't really disagree with you. But I think Cal has had a legacy of less than adequate STs play, particularly coverage teams. We have gone to these very questionable punting and blocking tactics to offset that. But it has not worked. Now we are trying to get bigger, stronger and faster in order to improve our coverage teams and our team overall. We'll see if that works.

We have run ST coaches out of town, only to have them success other places while the replacement does not improve the unit. This suggests that it may not be coaching but something more systematic. I don't know. Who would you hire to replace Rags?

heartofthebear said:

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Cal Strong! said:

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heartofthebear said:

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The punter was dropping the ball too low before kicking it and it allowed for blocked punts. That has been observed and commented on. I trust it is being addressed.

While Rags coaching is questionable at times, his recruiting is off the charts. Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. Rags has been a stand-up guy and highly motivated. He doesn't make excuses and takes responsibility for problems. He is exactly the kind of Cal Strong guy you keep asking for.

Firing a guy who is strong overall just because he is weak in some areas is an overall weak thing to do. I expect him to improve.

One of the main ways a program gets weakened is by compulsively firing and hiring people every year. That creates instability in the program. Cal already has had a great deal of turnover from last season. So it is best not to expand that any more this season.

Baldwin had 3 years. Rags had a bad year last year. Lets give him at least 2021 before we call for his head.

You should know that I have expressed concern that Cal is too enamored with Australian style punting. I don't think it has really worked for Cal as much as the old school guys like Bryan Anger and others have in the past. And I don't know why it has become a 100% cross over rather than a diversification. I'm okay with an Australian style guy here or there. But we have not had a regular punter in quite some time now.

I know why we like the Australian style. It is to reduce the chance of a run back. But I think that is weak.

---

Cal Strong disagree with Heart of the Bear. It true that sometimes you need to give coaches time to develop. But losing a Big Game never acceptable due to something like this. Working kinks out against UC Davis or Washington State frustrating, but understandable. Not knowing how to block a PAT and losing to furd for this reason WEAK. Weak coaches shouldn't coach at Cal.

Rags has had 4 years. If 3 was enough for Baldwin, then why is 4 not enough for Rags?

What frustrate Cal Strong the most is that head coaches who are not Cal alumni always treat furd like "just another game." But Big Game isn't just another game. Humiliating stanfurd is the primary reason we have a football program. So if you lose the Big Game because you couldn't block a PAT, then someone's head needs to roll.

Stanfurd isn't just another game. Preparing to beat furd is the most important thing a Cal coach will do all year. If you screw it up, then you need to find another job.

---

I can't really disagree with you. But I think Cal has had a legacy of less than adequate STs play, particularly coverage teams. We have gone to these very questionable punting and blocking tactics to offset that. But it has not worked. Now we are trying to get bigger, stronger and faster in order to improve our coverage teams and our team overall. We'll see if that works.

We have run ST coaches out of town, only to have them success other places while the replacement does not improve the unit. This suggests that it may not be coaching but something more systematic. I don't know. Who would you hire to replace Rags?

---

It is all about putting good players on the field. ST under "early Tedford" were solid because of his philosophy of finding HS guys who demonstrated ST ability. In many cases, he brought them in as walk-ons. The best example of that was Mike McGrath, a premier gunner who earned First Team All-Conference recognition for his ST work. Tedford also played a lot of linebackers who could run (and tackle) on special teams giving the unit a boost in speed.

The coaching issue is a red herring. Heck, many people here wanted Alamar fired. It wasn't Alamar (as he has proven at Stanford). It was the lack of talent.

Anyone who thinks it is Ragle's fault is an idiot. Stupid fans think churning coaches is the solution to every problem. It isn't. Identifying and successfully recruiting talented players is the answer.

71Bear said:

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heartofthebear said:

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Cal Strong! said:

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heartofthebear said:

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The punter was dropping the ball too low before kicking it and it allowed for blocked punts. That has been observed and commented on. I trust it is being addressed.

While Rags coaching is questionable at times, his recruiting is off the charts. Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. Rags has been a stand-up guy and highly motivated. He doesn't make excuses and takes responsibility for problems. He is exactly the kind of Cal Strong guy you keep asking for.

Firing a guy who is strong overall just because he is weak in some areas is an overall weak thing to do. I expect him to improve.

One of the main ways a program gets weakened is by compulsively firing and hiring people every year. That creates instability in the program. Cal already has had a great deal of turnover from last season. So it is best not to expand that any more this season.

Baldwin had 3 years. Rags had a bad year last year. Lets give him at least 2021 before we call for his head.

You should know that I have expressed concern that Cal is too enamored with Australian style punting. I don't think it has really worked for Cal as much as the old school guys like Bryan Anger and others have in the past. And I don't know why it has become a 100% cross over rather than a diversification. I'm okay with an Australian style guy here or there. But we have not had a regular punter in quite some time now.

I know why we like the Australian style. It is to reduce the chance of a run back. But I think that is weak.

---

Cal Strong disagree with Heart of the Bear. It true that sometimes you need to give coaches time to develop. But losing a Big Game never acceptable due to something like this. Working kinks out against UC Davis or Washington State frustrating, but understandable. Not knowing how to block a PAT and losing to furd for this reason WEAK. Weak coaches shouldn't coach at Cal.

Rags has had 4 years. If 3 was enough for Baldwin, then why is 4 not enough for Rags?

What frustrate Cal Strong the most is that head coaches who are not Cal alumni always treat furd like "just another game." But Big Game isn't just another game. Humiliating stanfurd is the primary reason we have a football program. So if you lose the Big Game because you couldn't block a PAT, then someone's head needs to roll.

Stanfurd isn't just another game. Preparing to beat furd is the most important thing a Cal coach will do all year. If you screw it up, then you need to find another job.

---

I can't really disagree with you. But I think Cal has had a legacy of less than adequate STs play, particularly coverage teams. We have gone to these very questionable punting and blocking tactics to offset that. But it has not worked. Now we are trying to get bigger, stronger and faster in order to improve our coverage teams and our team overall. We'll see if that works.

We have run ST coaches out of town, only to have them success other places while the replacement does not improve the unit. This suggests that it may not be coaching but something more systematic. I don't know. Who would you hire to replace Rags?

---

It is all about putting good players on the field. ST under "early Tedford" were solid because of his philosophy of finding HS guys who demonstrated ST ability. In many cases, he brought them in as walk-ons. The best example of that was Mike McGrath, a premier gunner who earned First Team All-Conference recognition for his ST work. Tedford also played a lot of linebackers who could run (and tackle) on special teams giving the unit a boost in speed.

The coaching issue is a red herring. Heck, many people here wanted Alamar fired. It wasn't Alamar (as he has proven at Stanford). It was the lack of talent.

Anyone who thinks it is Ragle's fault is an idiot. Stupid fans think churning coaches is the solution to every problem. It isn't. Identifying and successfully recruiting talented players is the answer.

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Well, that is what I was trying to explain to Calstrong but you said it better. Calstrong has a point though. I mean Rags has brought in a lot of talent and, with the depth at DB, LB and RB, we should be able to field strong STs. What I find hard to believe is that we lost to Oregon St. via a blocked kick and then the same problem lost us the Furd game. How does that not get fixed right away?

heartofthebear said:

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71Bear said:

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heartofthebear said:

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Cal Strong! said:

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heartofthebear said:

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The punter was dropping the ball too low before kicking it and it allowed for blocked punts. That has been observed and commented on. I trust it is being addressed.

While Rags coaching is questionable at times, his recruiting is off the charts. Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. Rags has been a stand-up guy and highly motivated. He doesn't make excuses and takes responsibility for problems. He is exactly the kind of Cal Strong guy you keep asking for.

Firing a guy who is strong overall just because he is weak in some areas is an overall weak thing to do. I expect him to improve.

One of the main ways a program gets weakened is by compulsively firing and hiring people every year. That creates instability in the program. Cal already has had a great deal of turnover from last season. So it is best not to expand that any more this season.

Baldwin had 3 years. Rags had a bad year last year. Lets give him at least 2021 before we call for his head.

You should know that I have expressed concern that Cal is too enamored with Australian style punting. I don't think it has really worked for Cal as much as the old school guys like Bryan Anger and others have in the past. And I don't know why it has become a 100% cross over rather than a diversification. I'm okay with an Australian style guy here or there. But we have not had a regular punter in quite some time now.

I know why we like the Australian style. It is to reduce the chance of a run back. But I think that is weak.

---

Cal Strong disagree with Heart of the Bear. It true that sometimes you need to give coaches time to develop. But losing a Big Game never acceptable due to something like this. Working kinks out against UC Davis or Washington State frustrating, but understandable. Not knowing how to block a PAT and losing to furd for this reason WEAK. Weak coaches shouldn't coach at Cal.

Rags has had 4 years. If 3 was enough for Baldwin, then why is 4 not enough for Rags?

What frustrate Cal Strong the most is that head coaches who are not Cal alumni always treat furd like "just another game." But Big Game isn't just another game. Humiliating stanfurd is the primary reason we have a football program. So if you lose the Big Game because you couldn't block a PAT, then someone's head needs to roll.

Stanfurd isn't just another game. Preparing to beat furd is the most important thing a Cal coach will do all year. If you screw it up, then you need to find another job.

---

I can't really disagree with you. But I think Cal has had a legacy of less than adequate STs play, particularly coverage teams. We have gone to these very questionable punting and blocking tactics to offset that. But it has not worked. Now we are trying to get bigger, stronger and faster in order to improve our coverage teams and our team overall. We'll see if that works.

We have run ST coaches out of town, only to have them success other places while the replacement does not improve the unit. This suggests that it may not be coaching but something more systematic. I don't know. Who would you hire to replace Rags?

---

It is all about putting good players on the field. ST under "early Tedford" were solid because of his philosophy of finding HS guys who demonstrated ST ability. In many cases, he brought them in as walk-ons. The best example of that was Mike McGrath, a premier gunner who earned First Team All-Conference recognition for his ST work. Tedford also played a lot of linebackers who could run (and tackle) on special teams giving the unit a boost in speed.

The coaching issue is a red herring. Heck, many people here wanted Alamar fired. It wasn't Alamar (as he has proven at Stanford). It was the lack of talent.

Anyone who thinks it is Ragle's fault is an idiot. Stupid fans think churning coaches is the solution to every problem. It isn't. Identifying and successfully recruiting talented players is the answer.

---

Well, that is what I was trying to explain to Calstrong but you said it better. Calstrong has a point though. I mean Rags has brought in a lot of talent and, with the depth at DB, LB and RB, we should be able to field strong STs. What I find hard to believe is that we lost to Oregon St. via a blocked kick and then the same problem lost us the Furd game. How does that not get fixed right away?

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Two thoughts...

Has Cal recruited good players who are effective special teamers?
I give everyone a pass for the botched mess that was the 2020 season*. The season should NEVER have been played.

* Note: I am the last person to accept excuses for on-field performance. However, I am giving every player on every team a pass for last year. They were all negatively impacted.....

Cal Strong appreciate the strong contributions of other strong bears here. But Cal Strong wouldn't be strong like Cal if he didn't point out how weak-headed the "talent over coaching" argument is.

Blocking a PAT is all about coaching. We have plenty of players strong enough to block a kick. We lost to furd because our players didn't know what to do, not because they weren't talented enough to execute one of the most basic assignments in football.

If our talent isn't strong enough to block a PAT, then why are we keeping Rags around? If his value is in recruiting, and after four years we don't have 9 guys who can line up and block a PAT, then he can't have done that great of a job with recruiting.

It true that Alamar has done much, MUCH better at stanfurd. But that doesn't necessarily mean he should have stayed at Cal. Sometimes getting the pink slip is the best thing for a coach, because it wakes them up and forces them to improve.

Most of all, Cal Strong sick and tired of coaches like Dykes and Wilcox who graduated from weak colleges spouting off lines about stanfurd being "just another game," and "we're not playing against a rivalry, we're playing against stanfurd." This simply isn't true. And if it is, then both the coaches and the AD should be fired. Their most important responsibility is to beat furd. The Big Game isn't like other games. And if we lose because of coaching, a head needs to roll.

The problem was fixed.

oskidunker said:

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The problem was fixed.

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Cal Strong no see how problem got "fixed."

Remiggio has 184 return yards called back because of penalties vs. Oregon State, and we lose by 4.

Next week is Big Game. So coaches have chance to correct special teams weaknesses before most important game.

Then we lose again, this time to stanfurd. All because of another ST screw up. We lose axe.

The only way problem get "fixed" is if Rags go steal axe from furd and smuggle it back to Berkeley. Short of that, problem not "fixed," since the problem is that we lose Big Game because of his screw up. Rags cost us most important game of the year just a week after his unit cost us game against Oregon State.

He says he fixed it. We will see.

oskidunker said:

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He says he fixed it. We will see.

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Did he go break into furd and get us the axe back?

If not, then we already know he no fix it.

The tree has the axe at Dumpster Muffins trailer in Modesto.

Strong reporter: Coach, you've lost the last two games because of major coaching failures on special teams. What is going on?

Coach: Don't worry, we've fixed it.

Weak reporter: Oh, well that's all good. Sorry for asking.

Coach: I accept your apology. Do better next time.

Weak reporter: Yes sir!

Strong reporter: Actually coach, for our students and alumni, the Big Game is the most important aspect of your job. And due to the inability to block a PAT, stanfurd now has the axe. A lot of students and alumni seem to think that losing the axe is a much bigger problem than you do.

Coach: No it's not. We fixed it. Stanfurd doesn't really matter any more than Oregon State. Stanfurd is just another game.

Weak reporter: Makes sense. You've fixed it!

Strong reporter: Actually coach, losing the axe is a really big deal here.

Coach: I went to Oregon, so I don't really know anything about the axe. But no worries, we fixed it.

Weak reporter: Sounds great coach! I guess the axe isn't all that important.

Strong reporter: Weak reporters and fans make coaches weaker. They no hold people to account.

concordtom said:

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I haven't been on Football Growls in some time.
Cal Strong appears to have adopted a language pattern similar to the typical 1950's characterization of a Chinese immigrant.
Weak.

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Cal Strong no alive in 1950s. Cal Strong no weak internet racist. Cal Strong rely on strength, not weak racism accusations when discussing matters.

Cal Strong all about strong grammar. He teach several otherwise strong bears how to correctly format their ellipses . . . like Cal.

Cal STRONG!!!

Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Cal Strong! said:

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AunBear89 said:

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It is very weak of Cal Strong! to confuse excuses with explanations. Be strong like Cal, not weak like snowflakes.

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Cal Strong no hide weak excuses in weaker explanation gift wrap. Strong teams that win no need excuses. Strong teams that win no need explanations.

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A Cal grad speaking to other Cal grads in pidgin English is weak.

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I like Cal Strong. Less word, save time. More time think what strong what weak. Cal Strong have more time think make him smart than you

Sincere,
PDX Bear

I'm awonderin' if the Coach "fixed it" like
BearInsider fixed the pop-ups? How does the
Coach know what his personnel situation will be
next year?


"Could you repeat that address again
because I can't understand your
accent, sir."

Lomiton said:

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Cal Strong, et al.,

If you are going to be pissed at Rangle, you should be pissed at the fact that Cal didn't try to do a line over load in an attempt to block a kick.

Unfortunately Furd had their first team FG/XP team on the field so not if it would have worked. Because, you know, they had real game (and multiple season) experience.

As for Cal, they didn't even have enough linemen that week to even practice special team line play live. Oh, and how many starter and backup FG/XP players were out?

Anyone with half a football brain would know that's a recipe for disaster.

But hey, by playing that abortion of a season Cal athletics got some much needed money for the coffers and delusional BI posters/boosters get 12 months to regale us with their coaching fantasies about how the execution errors of 2020 would have never happened if they were at the reins.

Not sure how Cal football would survive without you all and your insights.

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Lomiton posting WEAK today . . . like Cal special teams under Wilcox.

Weak universities played same season that we did. But they stronger at football than Cal in 2020. That WEAK!!!!

remb8888 said:

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I like Cal Strong. Less word, save time. More time think what strong what weak. Cal Strong have more time think make him smart than you

Sincere,
PDX Bear

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PDX Bear posting STRONG today . . . like Cal . . . and Tasmanian food . . . and Cal Strong!!!

Cal STRONG!!!!!!

Lomiton said:

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Strung: Cal offensive and defensive lines were affected by Covid and Covid protocol more than any team in the Pac-12. Fact.

Dealing with this situation wasn't about your typical in season "next man up" but attempting to replace multiple positions lock, stock and barrel - on both sides of the line AND special teams.

How in the world any sane person could say that the 2020 season circumstance was due to Cal coaching is beyond me.

If you really wanted to have helped maybe you could have stepped in with one of your Outback witch doctor friends and provided some sorcery to address our pandemic related misfortune. Now that's the type of effort I would consider to be "Cal Strong!"

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Sorcery weak! Sorcery no win axe. Squats and blocking and pushups and tackling win axe!!!

Blaming covid weak!! Every single team in the Pac-12 had chance of catching Covid. But stanfurd figured out how to line up a team to beat us. We no figure out how to line up a team to beat them. They get to take home the axe.

We tied for second weakest team in entire conference. That not strong.

Another way of saying " that not strong" . . . that WEAK!!!!

Cal Strong! said:

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Lomiton said:

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Strung: Cal offensive and defensive lines were affected by Covid and Covid protocol more than any team in the Pac-12. Fact.

Dealing with this situation wasn't about your typical in season "next man up" but attempting to replace multiple positions lock, stock and barrel - on both sides of the line AND special teams.

How in the world any sane person could say that the 2020 season circumstance was due to Cal coaching is beyond me.

If you really wanted to have helped maybe you could have stepped in with one of your Outback witch doctor friends and provided some sorcery to address our pandemic related misfortune. Now that's the type of effort I would consider to be "Cal Strong!"

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Sorcery weak! Sorcery no win axe. Squats and blocking and pushups and tackling win axe!!!

Blaming covid weak!! Every single team in the Pac-12 had chance of catching Covid. But stanfurd figured out how to line up a team to beat us. We no figure out how to line up a team to beat them. They get to take home the axe.

We tied for second weakest team in entire conference. That not strong.

Another way of saying " that not strong" . . . that WEAK!!!!

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I'm not sure sorcery is weak. Because only sorcery, strong sorcery, explains the bedevilment of Cal Football & Basketball for the past 40+ years.