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Wilcox Addresses Offensive Struggles, Position Moves and More

October 4, 2022
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Coming off the second subpar offensive performance in the last three weeks after their 28-9 loss to Washington State Saturday, it’s clear something is not working on the offensive side of the ball, whether it’s offensive line struggles, quarterbacking, playcalling or something else.

Cal head coach Justin Wilcox was asked today in an abbreviated bye week media session if they might consider using the bye week to introduce some outside voices to the program to help turn things around, whether it be offensive consultants or something else to help jump-start the offense.

“There’s a lot of experience on the offensive staff, different systems, players and schematics and we’re constantly trying to do what’s best for our team and our players,” said Wilcox. “If there was something we could do to be a quick fix in terms of blocking, throwing, catching and running, then yeah, obviously we’d do that. However, we have the know-how. We need to work with our players and coaches and share the responsibility to perform better.

“There’s no excuse. We need to be much better. I think that’s obvious. Are there tweaks? Yeah, absolutely. There are tweaks. But we’re not bringing in eight new people right now. That’s not what’s best for the program.”

The 6th-year head coach knows they're not getting the job done consistently and takes ownership of the missed expectations.

“This is a results-oriented deal we’re in,” said Wilcox. “We have to produce. Coaches -I do- offense, defense, special teams do, the players do. And that’s not undue pressure, that’s just the way that it is. So when we go out and don’t perform to our capability, then there’s gonna be truth being told and it doesn’t always feel good. And it’s not, ‘Hey, it’s okay, just move to the next one.’

“It’s not okay. We can’t accept that. Nobody should. So we talked about that at yesterday’s meeting. I certainly don’t get the feeling that the players are accepting what happened. It happened and we need to learn and grow from it and everybody has a responsibility to be better and be a part of the solution. We’ve got to go out and produce.”

With QB Jack Plummer taking a beating in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s loss, Wilcox was asked if they considered taking the veteran QB earlier than they did before bringing in redshirt frosh backup QB Kai Millner for the last series.

“No, we did not,” said Wilcox. “He came out, he was dinged up and we pulled him out because he was hobbling around a little bit.”

On Plummer’s status for Colorado after the bye, Wilcox noted:

“(He’s) a little bit dinged up but I anticipate him being ready to go after the bye week,” said Wilcox. “We were told it was not a long-term issue.”

In last week’s win over Arizona, soph linebacker Femi Oladejo split time both inside and outside but after the WSU game, it appears OLB is likely to be his future landing spot.

“We think long-term for him, he’s going to be best suited there,” said Wilcox. “We knew even as early as a year ago that it could be a potential landing spot for Femi, just based on his physical development and his size, stature and skill set. So we’re planning on a long-term move. He’s got all the tools to be a very, very good edge player. Doesn’t mean he can’t play inside linebacker but I think in the long run for both he and his future and the team, it’s the best thing.”

The main beneficiary of Oladejo’s move seems to be redshirt soph ILB Mo Iosefa, who got plenty of work on Saturday after being unavailable the first three weeks of the season.

“Last week, Mo got the majority of the reps and Mo has a lot of physical tools to be a good inside linebacker,” said Wilcox. “He still needs to improve. That position -the mike position- needs to get better. We need more production there, both run and pass. What we're looking for is the best combination of guys and when they go in there, they need to earn the right to stay in the game and keep their spot and if we need to add more competition, we will.”

A series of personnel and position moves on the offensive line seemed to pay big dividends in Cal’s big 49-31 win over Arizona last week but vs. WSU, particularly in the second half, the o-line was back to their usual struggles in the loss, giving up four sacks and far too many hurries and QB hits. Might further moves be considered?

“We’re trying to find the best combination of guys who are able to identify the guys they should block then use the proper technique to block them. Obviously, this past week wasn’t nearly good enough in any regard. I believe those guys can play much better and right now, we’re looking at everything, whether it’s positions, techniques, or schemes. Everything’s being assessed right now. Then we’ll have a plan for what’s best moving forward on how to give the guys the best opportunity to go out and play well.”

After the bye week, Cal’s matchup with Colorado in Boulder was announced as a noon kickoff time (11 am pst) where the 3-2/1-1 Bears will look to get back on the winning track against an 0-5 Colorado team in seeming disarray after dismissing head coach Karl Dorrell and his staff after the Buffs fell to Arizona decisively Saturday.

Other stories:

Bears Fall Decisively in the Palouse, 28-9

Bear Insider Ultimate Insider Podcast E39: Cal vs WSU Preview -Video & Transcript

Discussion from...

Wilcox Addresses Offensive Struggles, Position Moves and More

20,294 Views | 93 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by Cal Strong!
Golden One
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calumnus said:

Arcadiabear said:

Why is bringing a consulting in such a bad thing? Why did Wilcox dismiss it so quickly when there are PLENTY of coaches who just got fired and would love to be a consultant (Frost, Chryst, etc). Look at what TCU did, they brought in sonny, then sonny went out and proved himself at SMU and they brought him right back

He is saying if there are quick fixes like how to tackle better and how to block better, throw better.

those are not quick fixes, u work all offseason for those. Those are SKILLS that takes years to master. But you know what are quick fixes? playcalling.


Agree 100%. Playcalling is the immediate fix. It might not make us a Rose Bowl team, but with better playcalling we would have beaten Notre Dame and WSU, we'd be undefeated with UW coming to Memorial. We'd be ranked. We'd likely be hosting Game Day. There would be buzz around the program heading into the matchups against the conference powers.

Didn't Peterson bring Tedford in as a consultant at UW?
Wilcox's considerable ego won't allow him to bring in a consultant.
Cal Strong!
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Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.
Econ141
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Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.


But you just gave him another 5 year extension. He can just say yeah, get fired, and sip on Martinis the rest of his life (alongside Christ and Knowlton).
heartofthebear
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okaydo said:

72CalBear said:

okaydo said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?


Woah.

I got to sit next to Wilcox on the BART ride from Powell to Downtown Berkeley this morning.

After discussing Season 2 of Starz's "P-Valley" and Harry Styles' new album "Harry's House," I posed your question to him word for word.

Here's his response:

"We need to play 60 minutes of good football. There are no easy games in this league. We're not where we need to be yet, but we're getting closer. We need to play more consistently if we want to win this one. Offensively, we need more explosive plays. We need to be more efficient with the ball. We have to play how we're capable of playing. We have to control the tempo. Our guys gave it everything they had. The game was really a lot closer than the final score would indicate. Both teams were playing at a high level. This team has showed a lot of pride , poise, character and heart."
He'll be looking for a different seat next time. I've run into Tedford several times while coaching and even stayed in contact with Holmoe when he left for BYU. Having a casual conversation when someone isn't working and on duty always makes me want to ask more basic and general questions, like "How's the family? etc. I don't pity a high paid coach like Wilcox when he's off duty, but shy away from business questions. Being a teacher and owning my own business, I don't like that myself. Yet, I never was responsible for such a huge enterprise as being a HC for a major college team. I like Wilcox and simply hope he spends more time and money on recruiting big mean linemen!


It's a joke. I had hoped it'd be obvious since I googled "coachspeak.".
I thought it was pretty funny. 100% coach speak and, if you had really seen him and asked the question, that is likely what he would have said... or he might have said, "get away from me punk."
DiabloWags
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okaydo said:



I got to sit next to Wilcox on the BART ride from Powell to Downtown Berkeley this morning.

It's a joke. I had hoped it'd be obvious since I googled "coachspeak.".


Ive run into Wilcox on two occasions this year at my local coffee shop just before Spring ball started. We chatted about sports in general, but I felt uncomfortable asking him anything specific regarding the upcoming season. I let him take the lead on that and all he said was he really loves Spring Ball because we get to find out who the Quarterback is. He sounded really excited! But we more or less talked about "general" stuff, Eugene, the Warriors, my experience at Cal, etc. I handed over my Sporting Green on both occasions. He was alone, and left shortly after he had his coffee and fruit cup.

I told him that my last game as an undergrad was The Play in '82.
So he shared the following . . .

He said that whenever Furd had The Axe, they changed the score on the plate of the trophy to 20 - 19. Whenever Cal got The Axe back, they changed it back to the winning score, 25 - 20.

He seemed like a genuinely good man.
Just wish he'd hire a new OC.


"Cults don't end well. They really don't."
Cal Strong!
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fat_slice said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.


But you just gave him another 5 year extension. He can just say yeah, get fired, and sip on Martinis the rest of his life (alongside Christ and Knowlton).
Then it would be no different than a normal Wilcox press conference. Except at least the question would be interesting for once.
Big C
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Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.

Of course I understand. Again, how is a coach going to answer this question, put to hin in front of the media? Well, obviously, we can rule out "No." or even "Maybe." So now we're down to some version of "Yes." In fact, that's what I would answer: "Yes."

Sure it's a "fair" question. The reason not to ask the question is that there is absolutely no answer that would have any sort of value whatsoever (unless he were to answer anything except "Yes", which would result in an avalanche against him... maybe that's what you're looking for?).
Cal Strong!
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Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.

Of course I understand. Again, how is a coach going to answer this question, put to hin in front of the media? Well, obviously, we can rule out "No." or even "Maybe." So now we're down to some version of "Yes." In fact, that's what I would answer: "Yes."

Sure it's a "fair" question. The reason not to ask the question is that there is absolutely no answer that would have any sort of value whatsoever (unless he were to answer anything except "Yes", which would result in an avalanche against him... maybe that's what you're looking for?).
But by this logic, why are we even doing press conferences?
Big C
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Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.

Of course I understand. Again, how is a coach going to answer this question, put to hin in front of the media? Well, obviously, we can rule out "No." or even "Maybe." So now we're down to some version of "Yes." In fact, that's what I would answer: "Yes."

Sure it's a "fair" question. The reason not to ask the question is that there is absolutely no answer that would have any sort of value whatsoever (unless he were to answer anything except "Yes", which would result in an avalanche against him... maybe that's what you're looking for?).
But by this logic, why are we even doing press conferences?

Because some people feel placated by listening to them? Because they engender semi-lengthy threads on fan websites? I refuse to waste my time, for reasons I expressed above. If there is a transcript (thanks BI writers!) I will skim it.
Cal Strong!
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Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.

Of course I understand. Again, how is a coach going to answer this question, put to hin in front of the media? Well, obviously, we can rule out "No." or even "Maybe." So now we're down to some version of "Yes." In fact, that's what I would answer: "Yes."

Sure it's a "fair" question. The reason not to ask the question is that there is absolutely no answer that would have any sort of value whatsoever (unless he were to answer anything except "Yes", which would result in an avalanche against him... maybe that's what you're looking for?).
But by this logic, why are we even doing press conferences?

Because some people feel placated by listening to them? Because they engender semi-lengthy threads on fan websites? I refuse to waste my time, for reasons I expressed above. If there is a transcript (thanks BI writers!) I will skim it.
Cal Strong thinks it might be a strong idea to try a press conference in which the reporters actually ask challenging questions.
DiabloWags
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Cal Strong! said:



Cal Strong thinks it might be a strong idea to try a press conference in which the reporters actually ask challenging questions.

When in the history of College Football has this ever happened?
Never.

College beat writers get paid peanuts.

No one is ever going to do anything but offer up "grapefruit" sized questions to allow the Coach to hit it out of the park.
No one in their right mind would risk ostracizing themselves in the press pool given the piddly amount of money they make.
"Cults don't end well. They really don't."
Dgoldnbaer
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Sportswriters in general, when interviewing an athlete or a coach, more often than not sound like the dumbest person in the room. Their questions are so ridiculous at times it sounds as if it's the first time they've ever interviewed anyone or it's as if they don't know the obvious.
bluehenbear
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DiabloWags said:


He said that whenever Furd had The Axe, they changed the score on the plate of the trophy to 20 - 19. Whenever Cal got The Axe back, they changed it back to the winning score, 25 - 20.
If you watch videos of the furd rally comm people when they've gotten back the axe from Cal, you always see someone affixing a sticker to it, presumably doing exactly this.

I assume someone on the Cal rally committee has the responsibility of peeling it off.
Big Dog
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Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Big C said:

Cal Strong! said:

Cal Strong wishes that one of the BI or other reporters would ask Wilcox:

"Coach, you have been here for six years. You have recruited every single player on the roster. And you haven't had a winning conference record, and overall you have a sub-.500 record. We all love you. But at this point, what is the plan to get us to the Rose Bowl? Are you the man to do this? And realistically, do you think you can do this in the next five years?"

WHAT IS THE DOWNSIDE OF ASKING THIS?

Having to hear more "coach speak". Tell me how he could answer those questions that would please you?
It not about pleasing Cal Strong. It about communicating with him the expectations and seeing if he understands them. Then seeing if he has a plan or even a goal to get us there.

Reporters ask him all sorts of silly questions. Why not mix it up and ask one important one?

"Are you the man to do this?" Classic example of what I'm talking about: How's he going to answer that?

The "this" is the part of the you don't seem to be understanding Big C. "This" means Rose Bowl. Are you able to get us to a Rose Bowl. And can you do this in the next five years?

It is a perfectly fair question for someone making millions of dollars each year. There no reason not to ask this.
Baby steps, cal strong, (weak) baby steps.

I'd ask what is his plan to get above .500 in conference play?
DiabloWags
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Dgoldnbaer said:

Sportswriters in general, when interviewing an athlete or a coach, more often than not sound like the dumbest person in the room. Their questions are so ridiculous at times it sounds as if it's the first time they've ever interviewed anyone or it's as if they don't know the obvious.

Agreed.

For example, the questions that the Warrior's press pool serve up to head coach Steve Kerr after a game are downright ridiculous.
It's literally a waste of everyone's time.


"Cults don't end well. They really don't."
Bobodeluxe
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Coach, would you rather have won the game?
Cal Strong!
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Here a strong press conference answer from a coach at a similar program as Cal's.

PaulCali
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Big C
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Bobodeluxe said:

Coach, would you rather have won the game?

Maybe!
okaydo
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Dgoldnbaer said:

Sportswriters in general, when interviewing an athlete or a coach, more often than not sound like the dumbest person in the room. Their questions are so ridiculous at times it sounds as if it's the first time they've ever interviewed anyone or it's as if they don't know the obvious.

You're right. Sportswriters ask dumb questions, especially when they're like "Talk about ...."


But oftentimes, journalists learn that asking dumb questions (out of a press conference context) elicits the most quotable answers.
Gobears49
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Bringing in a consultant from the outside won't be any help because they won't know our offense, personnel, and recent history.

But getting someone who knows all of those things could be a big help. i suggest AT (Aristotle Thompson), our great running backs coach, who has to know the offense and its players. He might provide some insight as to a few things we could change which could help the team.
eastcoastcal
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Cal Strong! said:

Here a strong press conference answer from a coach at a similar program as Cal's.


Way too substantive, fiery, and empowering. Why didn't he blandly state that we simply have to 'execute better' and that no matter what he says, nothing will make the players feel better?
Cal Strong!
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eastcoastcal said:

Cal Strong! said:

Here a strong press conference answer from a coach at a similar program as Cal's.


Way too substantive, fiery, and empowering. Why didn't he blandly state that we simply have to 'execute better' and that no matter what he says, nothing will make the players feel better?
It certainly a strong answer to those who ask "well, what do you expect him to say?"
 
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