Wake @ Duke - 3:30 PM ESPN2/ACCN

[PhDeac]

I totally disagree with this statement. This team CHANGED mid-season. I don't know if it is/was girlfriend problems, morale in the ranks, jealousy or what. But SOMETHING changed.

This team took the #4 team in the country to double OT and our QB threw for 6 TD passes and the very next week went to Tallahassee and routinely handled a 9-3 FSU team.

I get the gist of what you're saying but I want to know WHY this team did a 180 mid-season. It was more than obvious!! This was a 6-1 #10 team in the frigging country and totally SHIT THE BED the last 5 weeks. Something happened.

Coaches get a C- for this season and our in-game decisions were just God-awful in many, many situations. EVERY DAMN coach better take a good look in the mirror, starting with Clawson.

You'd have a point that something uniquely changed this season if this team didn't regularly fall off to end the season.

 

[Deacon92]

But other teams practice a base offense too. It may not be mesh but they have a base set

 

[Colonel Angus]

we held them to 10 points in 6 possessions from 2 minutes in 2nd to 5 mins in 4th. that should be enough to win.

Chris - Riley Leonard threw for 391 yards and 4 TD's and didn't have an incompletion until late in the 2nd qtr.

Do the other possessions in the game not count???

It never ceases to amaze how so many in our fanbase can rationalize god awful defenses while criticizing the ACC all-time leader in TD's.

 

[deacdixieboy]

I just don’t get why all of our upper class men regressed or didn’t improve (minus the receivers). Sam was way worse. His decision making is baffling. The OL got really bad. The D still blows. It makes no sense.

 

[Strattocaster]

I love Clawson but why don’t we have a serviceable defense in his 8th year? Some of that has to do with losing Elko several years ago and not hiring the right replacement but come on. It’s just embarrassing. Such a wasted season.

 

[Colonel Angus]

I have another theory. No inside info, just going with human nature.

Don't you think our guys get bored with practice? If all we ever run is the mesh, the whole time you've been a player....3,4, even 5 years, can you really get up for practice?

Just a thought....

Coach Lambert... is that you???

 

[wfu22fan]

I totally disagree with this statement. This team CHANGED mid-season. I don't know if it is/was girlfriend problems, morale in the ranks, jealousy or what. But SOMETHING changed.

This team took the #4 team in the country to double OT and our QB threw for 6 TD passes and the very next week went to Tallahassee and routinely handled a 9-3 FSU team.

I get the gist of what you're saying but I want to know WHY this team did a 180 mid-season. It was more than obvious!! This was a 6-1 #10 team in the frigging country and totally SHIT THE BED the last 5 weeks. Something happened.

Coaches get a C- for this season and our in-game decisions were just God-awful in many, many situations. EVERY DAMN coach better take a good look in the mirror, starting with Clawson.

One winning ACC season in 9 years. Grobe had 3. Dooley has 2.

Dooley sucked except 2 years. And left Caldwell with nothing.

 

[saus21]

Duke sucks and we suck worse

 

[ChrisL68]

Chris - Riley Leonard threw for 391 yards and 4 TD's and didn't have an incompletion until late in the 2nd qtr.

Do the other possessions in the game not count???

It never ceases to amaze how so many in our fanbase can rationalize god awful defenses while criticizing the ACC all-time leader in TD's.

defense is our weak link, yet when they stepped up, the record breaking offense could never take advantage. get a couple of first downs and we win holding them to 27.

 

[wufu bufu]

I totally disagree with this statement. This team CHANGED mid-season. I don't know if it is/was girlfriend problems, morale in the ranks, jealousy or what. But SOMETHING changed.

This team took the #4 team in the country to double OT and our QB threw for 6 TD passes and the very next week went to Tallahassee and routinely handled a 9-3 FSU team.

I get the gist of what you're saying but I want to know WHY this team did a 180 mid-season. It was more than obvious!! This was a 6-1 #10 team in the frigging country and totally SHIT THE BED the last 5 weeks. Something happened.

Coaches get a C- for this season and our in-game decisions were just God-awful in many, many situations. EVERY DAMN coach better take a good look in the mirror, starting with Clawson.

What I'm saying is that we were not the #10 in the country in reality. We had no good wins. We lost to a team in Clemson that is maybe a top 20 team. That #4 ranking was a joke. They don't even have a quarterback but he still lit us up.

Something changed for sure, and a large part of that is the schedule. We started playing real teams with a pulse. When have we really won against any meaningful competition?

Sam also loves to shit the bed in any big games. Love the dude, but there's no clutch in anything.

 

[Strickland33]

Duke sucks and we suck worse

take it back !!!

 

[mako1331]

We went 3-5 in a truly god-awful Acc. Outside of a week 1 FSU win over LSU, did the Acc have any impressive non-conference wins? I’m glad Claws has gotten us to a point where 7-5 is such a letdown but damn, 7-5 is such a letdown.

 

[mako1331]

What I'm saying is that we were not the #10 in the country in reality. We had no good wins. We lost to a team in Clemson that is maybe a top 20 team. That #4 ranking was a joke. They don't even have a quarterback but he still lit us up.

Something changed for sure, and a large part of that is the schedule. We started playing real teams with a pulse. When have we really won against any meaningful competition?

Sam also loves to shit the bed in any big games. Love the dude, but there's no clutch in anything.

FSU was a pretty good win I think.

 

[TheAbster]

What I'm saying is that we were not the #10 in the country in reality. We had no good wins. We lost to a team in Clemson that is maybe a top 20 team. That #4 ranking was a joke. They don't even have a quarterback but he still lit us up.

Something changed for sure, and a large part of that is the schedule. We started playing real teams with a pulse. When have we really won against any meaningful competition?

Sam also loves to shit the bed in any big games. Love the dude, but there's no clutch in anything.

Fair points. I still contend this team dropped off a cliff after being 6-1. Schedule might have been a factor. But ANY win in Tallahassee is pretty damn impressive and we followed it up with easily handling Army and BC (who beat NCSU).

Whatever the situation, Clawson needs to fill a legal pad of items to be addressed in the off-season. And I'll state what is, I'm sure, VERY unpopular. If Sam wants to move on, I think that's a great idea! I think some others should follow suit.

 

[Colonel Angus]

defense is our weak link, yet when they stepped up, the record breaking offense could never take advantage. get a couple of first downs and we win holding them to 27.

Agree the offense should have put the game to bed after the INT on 4th down (which should have been batted down but not complaining as a DB finally got a hand on a ball) but the only reason that game was even winnable was because of the offense in the first place.

As a result of the defense sucking so badly, the offense has been operating with close to a zero margin for error.

Even with a record breaking offense that's a recipe for a middling season.

 

[Buttermaker]

Does anyone even give a fuck about a bowl? I can’t picture us beating Elon at this point.

This is the best post I’ve seen that sums up our issues.

Clawson goes conservative at the worst possible moments and it bites us in the ass over and over again. If he doesn’t go conservative, he way overthinks the situation and we run dumb shit when the simple play wins the game. It’s incredibly frustrating because other than this one huge flaw of his, he’s a great fit for Wake and we are lucky to have him.

He needs to really think long and hard about how he manages games in moments like tonight or against UNC, or State or Clemson, etc. We’re a few gutless play calls away from being 9-3 and a few smarter play calls away from being 11-1.

Is he making these calls or allowing he OC to?

 

[Liquid Karma]

Wish I was wrong but I had a badddd feeling about this one after the defense allowed Syracuse with a gimpy QB and struggling offense to light up the scoreboard last week.

I've not once felt comfortable since the 2nd half of the Louisville game. Never ending sense of impending doom.

 

[PaddyWF]

Had to watch a tape delay, which ended before the game did so I missed the last 3 drives with 3 mins left.

The defense was incredibly bad. The throws Leonard had to make were SO easy compared to what Sam had to. Receivers were streaking across the middle for 8+ yards wide open almost every time. Why are we giving so much cushion every time?

The third-down defense is non-existent even when we did make some early-down stops. Explosive plays again and again. The passing defense is way worse than last season, and Lambert showed nothing encouraging at all as we got deeper into the season. We stuff runs occasionally on early downs, that is about the only improvement I can think of. We force no turnovers and plays so soft on passing downs, it is just way too easy for an opposing QB to complete fairly simple passes. While the defensive line makes some plays, they can't force good pressure on passing downs.

The defense got worse through the year. I know we had some injuries, but even when healthy the only "good" game we played was at Florida State.

It is so discouraging to watch Elko make a defense with similar (worse?) talent play coherently in less than one season. They are not great, they are least make you work for it. They were tightly covering our receivers for the most part even when we made plays, and that is with some dropped INTs. It is year 9 and we are completely lost defensively on coordinator number 3 post Elko, and I don't see a bright spot to point to besides Davis. Clawson has not been able to fix this, and it will likely be just as broken next season unless there are massive changes in the off-season.

 

[deac03]

Worst team in NC

 

[Strickland33]

I just don’t get why all of our upper class men regressed or didn’t improve (minus the receivers). Sam was way worse. His decision making is baffling. The OL got really bad. The D still blows. It makes no sense.

the receivers didn't really improve either tbh

hella inconsistent when you look at the season as a whole

our RBs may be the only unit that improved, though their blocking was pretty meh down the stretch?