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Ultimate Insider Podcast E99: Syracuse Wrap-up, Stanford Preview

November 20, 2024
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In today's episode, Cal Hall of Fame QB and color analyst Mike Pawlawski talks with Cal head coach Justin Wilcox about the Bears' 33-25 loss to Syracuse and previews their 127th Big Game matchup with Stanford on Saturday.

You can hear the audio podcast on SoundcloudSpotify and Apple Podcasts or on most podcast streaming services. You can also view the podcast on the video below:

Ultimate Insider Podcast E98: Wake Forest Wrap-up, Syracuse Preview

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Ultimate Insider Podcast E99: Syracuse Wrap-up, Stanford Preview

1,466 Views | 5 Replies | Last: 15 days ago by UrsineMaximus
bearsandgiants
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Thanks for posting this. In it, Wilcox really reveals exactly why we struggle to meet our potential and why he's such a mediocre (at best) coach. He lays it right out there for everyone, that the goal is to score 4 touchdowns and limit the opponent to 3. He says they say it every time. That's what they teach the players and judge success by.

So the goal for every game is to effectively win 28-21 (assuming we don't shank any PATs, which he didn't address). This is why we've never succeeded. This is why we play down to lesser competition and play not to lose a lead every second half. This is why we have so many close games (and why those are mostly losses). Nobody we play coaches that way, to barely win the game.

We need a coach whose goal is to score 50+, every week, and shut out the damn opponent. The goal should be to not allow a single freaking score, and this guy's out here making $5million and telling the guys to keep it to 21?

This really explains everything to me and is probably the most disappointing, and revealing, thing I've ever heard come out of the coach's mouth. You can't change that approach. It's engrained, and it's disastrous.
ducky23
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He said something kinda similar after Pitt that realy really pissed me off.

When explaining his rationale for going for 2 early in the game, he explained that they thought it would be a very close game so the extra point early on would really help.

I mean…why does he assume it's going to be a close game? *** is that? A good coach aims to destroy the other team, not just to try to win a squeaker.

I really believe this attitude helps explain why we couldn't beat both FSU and Pitt. We were clearly the better team on paper then both, but he gives them so much respect going into the game, that he plays to not make mistakes rather than just playing it like you know you're way better and blowing them the F out.

He coaches from fear not confidence. You should have contempt for your opponent. But especially don't give your opponent undue respect that they haven't earned.
jy1988
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ducky23 said:

He said something kinda similar after Pitt that realy really pissed me off.

When explaining his rationale for going for 2 early in the game, he explained that they thought it would be a very close game so the extra point early on would really help.

I mean…why does he assume it's going to be a close game? *** is that? A good coach aims to destroy the other team, not just to try to win a squeaker.

I really believe this attitude helps explain why we couldn't beat both FSU and Pitt. We were clearly the better team on paper then both, but he gives them so much respect going into the game, that he plays to not make mistakes rather than just playing it like you know you're way better and blowing them the F out.

He coaches from fear not confidence. You should have contempt for your opponent. But especially don't give your opponent undue respect that they haven't earned.
Nice guys don't destroy their opponents. That's why we can't consistenly pull away and win. Walsh understood that FB was like war on the field. I just don't understand why JW doesn't get this.
calumnus
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ducky23 said:

He said something kinda similar after Pitt that realy really pissed me off.

When explaining his rationale for going for 2 early in the game, he explained that they thought it would be a very close game so the extra point early on would really help.

I mean…why does he assume it's going to be a close game? *** is that? A good coach aims to destroy the other team, not just to try to win a squeaker.

I really believe this attitude helps explain why we couldn't beat both FSU and Pitt. We were clearly the better team on paper then both, but he gives them so much respect going into the game, that he plays to not make mistakes rather than just playing it like you know you're way better and blowing them the F out.

He coaches from fear not confidence. You should have contempt for your opponent. But especially don't give your opponent undue respect that they haven't earned.


Unfortunately, I don't think it is "too nice" or "courage" so much as it is that he is just not that smart. Too often he just does not make the smart choice, the choice with the highest probability of success. Certainly if he ever took statistics and probability at Oregon, it did not sink in. He has not learned on the job either, still making these mistakes on year 7 and 8.

There are plenty of examples of not so smart people who are successful because they are smart enough to hire and surround themselves with smart people and trust them and back them. Wilcox does not appear to be even that smart. Other than DeRuyter, I have not been greatly impressed with any of his coordinators or the process he used to select them.
UrsineMaximus
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Don't create your fears.

Wilcox obviously does and ingrains this attitude/philosophy on his team. Just disastrous. It explains the turtle during the Miami game along with so many games during his tenure.
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