I get what JW is trying. By design, he wants an offense that can score quickly, capitalizing on defensive takeaways which Cal can now produce. Example: opponent turns-over the ball at their 40. Wilcox wants to be able to score within a couple of plays on fast strike, big play. Nothing kills another team like a fast score off a takeaway. The thing is, Cal's not there yet...but that's the idea.

I have a feeling that part of it was, he was grasping for straws trying to think of a good answer to say. I suspect that, for the last several weeks, there is something of a discrepancy between what he has said to the media, versus what he has said behind closed doors. He's not the kind of guy who is going to throw anybody under the bus.

Big C said:

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I have a feeling that part of it was, he was grasping for straws trying to think of a good answer to say. I suspect that, for the last several weeks, there is something of a discrepancy between what he has said to the media, versus what he has said behind closed doors. He's not the kind of guy who is going to throw anybody under the bus.

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I completely agree with this, though that is entirely speculation. To expand on the speculation, I wonder if Beau chose to playcall from the coaching box rather than staying on the field, or if he was told to operate out of the box?

25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

Rushinbear said:

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25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

---

I agree with everyyou said except the last sentence. McIlwain is a smart kid. I know this because he's a Cal student. As such, he is also likely to be quick-witted. Given that he spent a great percentage of his life playing football, I would also imagine that he is well-verses enough in football to be quick-witted on the football field, too. That isn't to say that there may be times he might have a brain fart or that sometimes the game is moving too fast for him. But even this latter does not mean he's not quick-witted enough to play the game as it is that he's not comfortable enough in the offense, yet.

Like many ithers on this board, I admire our players. My eyeballs tell me that every single one of them plays hard for the school we all love. I will disagree with anyone who bashes our players. I also take umbrage with anyone who suggests that our players are not intelligent, whether on or off the field.

By the way, it still bothers me that people used to say Marshawn was a dumb jock who didn't belong at Cal. Marshawn proved his academic mettle by sticking at Cal for three years before going to the NFL (and then finishing his degree later). The same goes for those who claim Desean was not bright enough for Cal. The dude was a math major! I don't know if he ever got his degree, but he at least completed two years of Cal academicsincluding math classes, which I'm sure you all realize is no joke!before moving on to the League.

01Bear said:

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Rushinbear said:

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25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

---

I agree with everyyou said except the last sentence. McIlwain is a smart kid. I know this because he's a Cal student. As such, he is also likely to be quick-witted. Given that he spent a great percentage of his life playing football, I would also imagine that he is well-verses enough in football to be quick-witted on the football field, too. That isn't to say that there may be times he might have a brain fart or that sometimes the game is moving too fast for him. But even this latter does not mean he's not quick-witted enough to play the game as it is that he's not comfortable enough in the offense, yet.

Like many ithers on this board, I admire our players. My eyeballs tell me that every single one of them plays hard for the school we all love. I will disagree with anyone who bashes our players. I also take umbrage with anyone who suggests that our players are not intelligent, whether on or off the field.

By the way, it still bothers me that people used to say Marshawn was a dumb jock who didn't belong at Cal. Marshawn proved his academic mettle by sticking at Cal for three years before going to the NFL (and then finishing his degree later). The same goes for those who claim Desean was not bright enough for Cal. The dude was a math major! I don't know if he ever got his degree, but he at least completed two years of Cal academicsincluding math classes, which I'm sure you all realize is no joke!before moving on to the League.

---

McIlwain was Player of the Year in Pennsylvania and had a 3.99 GPA:
https://usatodayhss.com/2015/gatorade-pennsylvania-football-poy-brandon-mcilwain

25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

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Yes, the objective should be to move the chains. Consider two RBs, one who breaks off a 50 yard run every 5 runs and zero the rest (averaging 10 ypc) and one that gets 2.6 yards every carry. The first will have a lot of three (or 4) and outs. The second can get you a first down every 4 downs and a TD every drive.

Our biggest problem is we run on first down out of spread for 1 yard too often. We put in McIlwain and run him up the middle too often. We force ourselves into passing situations. We don't have speedy WRs or creative routes/plays to get guys open.

Short yardage power football, with TEs, FBs and even extra OLs is how Harbaugh got Stanford's (and the 49ers) offense turned around. You need to create mismatches. If you don't have speed, go big. Then use misdirection to create more advantages for your guys.

Wilcox needs to hire Brian Billick as a consultant. He won a Super Bowl with no offense and Trent Dilfer as QB.

calumnus said:

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01Bear said:

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Rushinbear said:

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25To20 said:

---

When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

---

I agree with everyyou said except the last sentence. McIlwain is a smart kid. I know this because he's a Cal student. As such, he is also likely to be quick-witted. Given that he spent a great percentage of his life playing football, I would also imagine that he is well-verses enough in football to be quick-witted on the football field, too. That isn't to say that there may be times he might have a brain fart or that sometimes the game is moving too fast for him. But even this latter does not mean he's not quick-witted enough to play the game as it is that he's not comfortable enough in the offense, yet.

Like many ithers on this board, I admire our players. My eyeballs tell me that every single one of them plays hard for the school we all love. I will disagree with anyone who bashes our players. I also take umbrage with anyone who suggests that our players are not intelligent, whether on or off the field.

By the way, it still bothers me that people used to say Marshawn was a dumb jock who didn't belong at Cal. Marshawn proved his academic mettle by sticking at Cal for three years before going to the NFL (and then finishing his degree later). The same goes for those who claim Desean was not bright enough for Cal. The dude was a math major! I don't know if he ever got his degree, but he at least completed two years of Cal academicsincluding math classes, which I'm sure you all realize is no joke!before moving on to the League.

---

McIlwain was Player of the Year in Pennsylvania and had a 3.99 GPA:
https://usatodayhss.com/2015/gatorade-pennsylvania-football-poy-brandon-mcilwain

---

I didn't say McI is unintelligent. I said he is not quick witted in these fb pressure situations. It's as if the picture in his brain fuzzes up or has blind spots when he has to make an instantaneous decision. Something like that. How else do you explain his looking at a location and not seeing an opposing db, and throwing it to that very spot? Over and over?

And, youth? This is his third year in FBS fb. He started six games at SoCar. You think they would have benched him, for good, if they didn't see something that distressing? With all that athletic talent? Now, he's had a rs year, a spring, and a fall camp, plus all these plays this year and he did the same thing at the end of the WSU game.

He puts up a positive front, but this has to be eating at him. Someone needs to make the decision for him - no one can fault you for your effort - you haven't given up and we know that you never will, no matter what. But, you're a wr now. You can breathe again. You don't have to be something because others expect you to be (I'm speculating here).

Rushinbear said:

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calumnus said:

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01Bear said:

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Rushinbear said:

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25To20 said:

---

When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

---

I agree with everyyou said except the last sentence. McIlwain is a smart kid. I know this because he's a Cal student. As such, he is also likely to be quick-witted. Given that he spent a great percentage of his life playing football, I would also imagine that he is well-verses enough in football to be quick-witted on the football field, too. That isn't to say that there may be times he might have a brain fart or that sometimes the game is moving too fast for him. But even this latter does not mean he's not quick-witted enough to play the game as it is that he's not comfortable enough in the offense, yet.

Like many ithers on this board, I admire our players. My eyeballs tell me that every single one of them plays hard for the school we all love. I will disagree with anyone who bashes our players. I also take umbrage with anyone who suggests that our players are not intelligent, whether on or off the field.

By the way, it still bothers me that people used to say Marshawn was a dumb jock who didn't belong at Cal. Marshawn proved his academic mettle by sticking at Cal for three years before going to the NFL (and then finishing his degree later). The same goes for those who claim Desean was not bright enough for Cal. The dude was a math major! I don't know if he ever got his degree, but he at least completed two years of Cal academicsincluding math classes, which I'm sure you all realize is no joke!before moving on to the League.

---

McIlwain was Player of the Year in Pennsylvania and had a 3.99 GPA:
https://usatodayhss.com/2015/gatorade-pennsylvania-football-poy-brandon-mcilwain

---

I didn't say McI is unintelligent. I said he is not quick witted in these fb pressure situations. It's as if the picture in his brain fuzzes up or has blind spots when he has to make an instantaneous decision. Something like that. How else do you explain his looking at a location and not seeing an opposing db, and throwing it to that very spot? Over and over?

And, youth? This is his third year in FBS fb. He started six games at SoCar. You think they would have benched him, for good, if they didn't see something that distressing? With all that athletic talent? Now, he's had a rs year, a spring, and a fall camp, plus all these plays this year and he did the same thing at the end of the WSU game.

He puts up a positive front, but this has to be eating at him. Someone needs to make the decision for him - no one can fault you for your effort - you haven't given up and we know that you never will, no matter what. But, you're a wr now. You can breathe again. You don't have to be something because others expect you to be (I'm speculating here).

---

I agree with part of what you say about his deficiency in making decisions under pressure.
The "under pressure" should be emphasized.
1. Some QB's get tunnel vision under pressure and cannot see the entire field (and the defender that is in position for the INT or pass break-up.
2. As Pawlawski once said, a young QB has a tendency to throw high under pressure because of the extra adrenaline running through his body in those situations.

These two reasons could easily explain 90% of Mac's INTs.

GivemTheAxe said:

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Rushinbear said:

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calumnus said:

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01Bear said:

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Rushinbear said:

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25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

It's got to be a combination of grind it out and big plays. To grind it out, you've got to have everything work together, play after play. That's really hard to do. Now, if your OL is dominating the DL, it's easier, but still takes a mistake free half. One drive after another. Ideally, you grind it to the opponents 25 and then drop the big pass over the top - it's tougher to grind it out as you get closer to the goal line. And, it's tougher to go over the top, too, because the DBs are more highly concentrated/have less ground to cover.

True, if you pop a big play from your half and it fails, you're sending your D out too soon after having been out there before.

We didn't make the big play at the end because BM can't make that pass - the coverage was tight and the ball needed to be zinged in there. He doesn't have the height to see the field and doesn't have the arm to zing it in and he doesn't have the quick wittedness to make and execute the right decision in time.

---

I agree with everyyou said except the last sentence. McIlwain is a smart kid. I know this because he's a Cal student. As such, he is also likely to be quick-witted. Given that he spent a great percentage of his life playing football, I would also imagine that he is well-verses enough in football to be quick-witted on the football field, too. That isn't to say that there may be times he might have a brain fart or that sometimes the game is moving too fast for him. But even this latter does not mean he's not quick-witted enough to play the game as it is that he's not comfortable enough in the offense, yet.

Like many ithers on this board, I admire our players. My eyeballs tell me that every single one of them plays hard for the school we all love. I will disagree with anyone who bashes our players. I also take umbrage with anyone who suggests that our players are not intelligent, whether on or off the field.

By the way, it still bothers me that people used to say Marshawn was a dumb jock who didn't belong at Cal. Marshawn proved his academic mettle by sticking at Cal for three years before going to the NFL (and then finishing his degree later). The same goes for those who claim Desean was not bright enough for Cal. The dude was a math major! I don't know if he ever got his degree, but he at least completed two years of Cal academicsincluding math classes, which I'm sure you all realize is no joke!before moving on to the League.

---

McIlwain was Player of the Year in Pennsylvania and had a 3.99 GPA:
https://usatodayhss.com/2015/gatorade-pennsylvania-football-poy-brandon-mcilwain

---

I didn't say McI is unintelligent. I said he is not quick witted in these fb pressure situations. It's as if the picture in his brain fuzzes up or has blind spots when he has to make an instantaneous decision. Something like that. How else do you explain his looking at a location and not seeing an opposing db, and throwing it to that very spot? Over and over?

And, youth? This is his third year in FBS fb. He started six games at SoCar. You think they would have benched him, for good, if they didn't see something that distressing? With all that athletic talent? Now, he's had a rs year, a spring, and a fall camp, plus all these plays this year and he did the same thing at the end of the WSU game.

He puts up a positive front, but this has to be eating at him. Someone needs to make the decision for him - no one can fault you for your effort - you haven't given up and we know that you never will, no matter what. But, you're a wr now. You can breathe again. You don't have to be something because others expect you to be (I'm speculating here).

---

I agree with part of what you say about his deficiency in making decisions under pressure.
The "under pressure" should be emphasized.
1. Some QB's get tunnel vision under pressure and cannot see the entire field (and the defender that is in position for the INT or pass break-up.
2. As Pawlawski once said, a young QB has a tendency to throw high under pressure because of the extra adrenaline running through his body in those situations.

These two reasons could easily explain 90% of Mac's INTs.

---

Fair enough. Probably enough has been said about this already and I'm as guilty as the next guy. The coaches aren't going to pay attention to any of this anyway. It's just the result of fan frustration.

25To20 said:

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When the defense is playing as well as it is, the offense mostly needs to take care of the ball. If we only average a few yards per play, and never get those 20 to 30 yard "chunk" plays, that is fine. Yet, Coach Wilcox was talking about needing to get some big plays late in the WSU game. He put Brandon in the game because he thought that gave the team a greater opportunity to make the big play.

I like JW, but I think he is wrong on that point. We really needed to grind things out on the play when Brandon threw the pick, not make a big play. The other thing is if you can sustain a long drive, even if it is just long on clock time and not on yardage, you give the defense a great opportunity to rest, and you wear down the opponent's defense. If the other team is giving us short gains over and over, then we should take it and be happy.

---

I think that he was covering for Baldwin's gut feeling.

I dont think McIlwain gets in that close to the goal line for chunk explosive plays. I think he gets in for Baldwins gut feeling that the D is keying on Garbers strengths and McIlwain can exploit some part of the D Baldwin thinks is exploitable.

I guess the problem I'm having is your use of the term "quick-witted" (or in this case, the lack thereof). It suggests that McIlwain is not intelligent (I believe I laid out why I disagree with that assessment earlier).

I tend to think McIlwain hasn't settled in as QB because the offense is too new for him (even if he had a redshirt year last year). Or more likely, he's not being prepared to react to the defenses that are being thrown at him.

My guess is that McIlwain relied on superior athleticism and talent in high school (and before?), but in college, all the players he faces have superior athleticism and talent. As a result, what he's "been trained" to do won't/doesn't work sufficiently often.

McIlwain needs to be retrained (read: developed) to anticipate and react to the different defensive looks that will be thrown against him, along with the superior athleticism and talent of the opposong defensive players. However, based on what we've seen, I doubt that Baldwin and Tui are doing that to any significant degree.

01Bear said:

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I guess the problem I'm having is your use of the term "quick-witted" (or in this case, the lack thereof). It suggests that McIlwain is not intelligent (I believe I laid out why I disagree with that assessment earlier).

I tend to think McIlwain hasn't settled in as QB because the offense is too new for him (even if he had a redshirt year last year). Or more likely, he's not being prepared to react to the defenses that are being thrown at him.

My guess is that McIlwain relied on superior athleticism and talent in high school (and before?), but in college, all the players he faces have superior athleticism and talent. As a result, what he's "been trained" to do won't/doesn't work sufficiently often.

McIlwain needs to be retrained (read: developed) to anticipate and react to the different defensive looks that will be thrown against him, along with the superior athleticism and talent of the opposong defensive players. However, based on what we've seen, I doubt that Baldwin and Tui are doing that to any significant degree.

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Yeah, I thought about that term before I used it and the connotation it might carry, but I thought that this is what I mean and if some want to interpret another way, they can. I could have used the word "choke", but I'm not sure that is the same and it, too, carries a negative sense. I don't think it equates with intelligence. I don't doubt he is.

I have to disagree with you about the phenomenon we're discussing. I think that it's in the brain wiring, somehow, and would be hard as hell to erase and rewire or to train out. And, is that the responsibility of a coach to go to such an extent with one guy? It's kind of like trial attorneys and research attorneys. Research types get up in court and stammer their way through. Trial attorneys have no patience for the drudgery. Could you train the slow-wittedness out of a research type? Would it be worth it?

The other problem is some physical attributes, namely height, "thickness" (or robustitude - from weightroom jargon) and arm. At this point, we are almost evaluating him as if he were a jc recruit. He's wiry, fast, has a ton of quick-twitch musculature and is very coordinated/athletic. And, he is determined - he doesn't quit. But, these minuses affect his ability to excel at qb. I've been saying all along that he's a wr. I think he'd be happy there, would be successful and would be just what the team needs. He'd be a star for us.

Oh, Lord, I hate to talk about one of our own like this. But, it's a big controversy going far beyond him and he's in the big leagues now and needs to get used to it. We've talked about many of our past qbs in the same way. Doesn't make it right, but that's the nature of the beast. This is nothing compared to the perennial top 10 schools.

Sports are full of very smart people who couldn't get out of their own way and therefore played below their capabilities. I tend to think the deeper thinker (smarter) you are the more you have a tendency to screw yourself up.

82gradDLSdad said:

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Sports are full of very smart people who couldn't get out of their own way and therefore played below their capabilities. I tend to think the deeper thinker (smarter) you are the more you have a tendency to screw yourself up.

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You might be onto something. Cal athletics' achilles heel might be a Cal education because the point there is get you to think deeply by training and way too much.

82gradDLSdad said:

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Sports are full of very smart people who couldn't get out of their own way and therefore played below their capabilities. I tend to think the deeper thinker (smarter) you are the more you have a tendency to screw yourself up.

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I'll adopt that as my excuse for being a mediocre basketball player in my younger days. It wasn't my lack of height, inability to jump over a sheet of paper, nor my slowfootedness. Nope, the reason I never truly excelled on the hardwood was because I was too smart!