16 close losses since the Orange Bowl

[HeavyPetter]

I think the kicker from North Davidson would have been better than Newman...and he wanted to come to Wake. He had been going to WF summer camps and was good friends with Swank.

And there had to be other better kickers out there than Newman. Lots of them.

Really? So where is this vaunted kicker from North Davidson kicking now?

I don't disagree that there are lots of better kickers out there than Newman. There are lots of better defensive linemen and offensive linemen and running backs and linebackers than the ones we have too. And those guys are on the field a lot more than the kicker.

The coaching staff signed Newman. Maybe they made a mistake, maybe they didn't, based on whom they extended offers and who decided to take one. It doesn't matter at this point. This is the team. these are the guys that the coaches chose, and these are the guys that the coaches have to coach everyday.

By the way, did you see the Alabama game last week? They thought they had a good kicker when they recruited him, but he can't hit the broad side of a barn. Blair Walsh had three solid years for Georgia, but he's having an awful senior season. Kicking isn't easy.

 

[Buttermaker]

Right, so a big o-line that has enough depth to stay fresh and grind it out in the 4th. Also at least 2-3 good running backs to do the same thing (or one workhorse that doesn't fumble).

So basically, we need everything else any other team would like to have in order to succeed and win close games.

That would be helpful, yes, but there are other ways to gain yards besides the power running game. See most of our offensive plays this season. You can continue throwing the ball, particularly when the other team thinks you are going to run. Continue doing what was successful earlier in the game.

 

[Buttermaker]

I think the kicker from North Davidson would have been better than Newman...and he wanted to come to Wake. He had been going to WF summer camps and was good friends with Swank.

And there had to be other better kickers out there than Newman. Lots of them.

Newman was pretty highly thought of IIRC. Some guys just don't pan out that well.

Wake got Swank because [big state school I can't recall - UGA?] wanted him to walk on. Many schools don't give schollys to kickers, at least not right out of HS. Maybe we should rethink that strategy.

 

[Wakeforest22890]

I was under the impression that the snap/holds were bad on both kicks against Clemson since they were both so awful. I was at the game so saw no replays but I got several texts from friends about the second one in particular being bobbled by Wulfeck, like I said I don't know if this is true or not, but even if it's not Newman just had a bad game.

He's not "worse than some random kicker from North Davidson", he's a Lou Groza semi-finalist who is doing pretty well to have a bad line protecting kicks, a relatively bad long snapper, and a decent holder.

 

[ChrisL68]

Newman was 15-16 heading into the ND game, but apparently our coaches needed to retroactively know he was an unreliable kicker this year.

 

[diverdeac]

yeah, the schools with the same handicaps as wake are the usual football powers. you know, like

oklahoma
texas
usc
florida
lsu
alabama
georgia
ohio state

i'm the one being irrational

Are any of these teams on our schedule?

 

[Milhouse]

Are any of these teams on our schedule?

no

you probably could have gone to the quick links drop down menu on the top right area of the webpage. there is an option to select the 2011 football schedule.

you're welcome

 

[Deacsfan27]

Newman was 15-16 heading into the ND game, but apparently our coaches needed to retroactively know he was an unreliable kicker this year.

Not only that, it was a 32 yarder...it was a bad kick, at a bad time. He said after the game that he was uncomfortable for some reason (I think it was the surface there). He changed cleats and just didn't really have good balance other than for the extra points.

 

[OblongPickle]

yeah, the schools with the same handicaps as wake are the usual football powers. you know, like

oklahoma
texas
usc
florida
lsu
alabama
georgia
ohio state

i'm the one being irrational

No you're being a pussy Wake fan that is content with doing better than expected yet not finishing when you have the opportunity.

We should be 7-3 AT LEAST right now...yet we're 5-5 and going into the final two games needing a win to be bowl eligible.

 

[Deacsfan27]

No you're being a pussy Wake fan that is content with doing better than expected yet not finishing when you have the opportunity.

We should be 7-3 AT LEAST right now...yet we're 5-5 and going into the final two games needing a win to be bowl eligible.

Nobody is arguing that we have squandered away chances to win games this year. The argument is over whether or not fans are being rational in complaining about close losses, when in fact it is the style of football that has garnered us success in the past as well.

You can't have your cake and eat it too. Of course I would love to have held onto the lead on Saturday (and win more close games), but it is unrealistic to believe that when the pressure is on both teams, that a team with inferior talent (in most cases) will triumph 55-60% of the time. That is just unfeasible imo.

 

[Milhouse]

No you're being a pussy Wake fan that is content with doing better than expected yet not finishing when you have the opportunity.

We should be 7-3 AT LEAST right now...yet we're 5-5 and going into the final two games needing a win to be bowl eligible.

huh? i don't think i've made a single post about this season.

 

[Deacsfan27]

That guy is at East Carolina. Look, it's no skin off my back. There are about a thousand things more important to me than whether or not Wake Forest wins a football game. I'm just telling you that he is a key liability in the program. You want a kicker like Newman? Fine. You got him....and he will just keep costing us games in key kicking situations.

We have Chad Hedlund waiting in the wings, he was committed to TCU before he came here. If there is any slippage next year, then expect Hedlund to take over.

Jimmy Newman has the two longest streaks in Wake Forest history for field goals. It is absolutely absurd to judge him based off of two bad kicks this year. They were at poor times, and it was admitted by Coach Grobe and Jimmy Newman that this was the case. If you take out his field goals against Duke and FSU, then we lose those games, so it isn't that he is incapable of making big kicks either.

He is 15/19 on the year (79%), good enough for 26th in the country, which is ranked much higher than most players statistically on this team.

 

[morrison2951]

He is 15/19 on the year (79%), good enough for 26th in the country, which is ranked much higher than most players statistically on this team.

Unfortunately, in his most recent attempts, he is 0/3 (0%), in losses to ND and Clem's son, where we had leads in both games and needed all the points that we left on the field.

 

[KanhojiAngre]

Unfortunately, in his most recent attempts, he is 0/3 (0%), in losses to ND and Clem's son, where we had leads in both games and needed all the points that we left on the field.

So is it his fault that it was so close?

Couldn't you just as easily look at other plays during the game and find points lost?

 

[KanhojiAngre]

We should definitely rethink that strategy! In our style of play, the kicker is one of the most important players on the team.

The Alabama kicker Foster is on scholarship. First one ever, I believe.

So that's worked well.

 

[HeavyPetter]

We should definitely rethink that strategy! In our style of play, the kicker is one of the most important players on the team.

Yeah, I 'm sure we'd have a ton of guys lined up to pay $55,000 a year for the chance to be a walkon kicker.

 

[bojanglefunk]

So is it his fault that it was so close?

Couldn't you just as easily look at other plays during the game and find points lost?

Yes. He hits those two Saturday and we win.

 

[KanhojiAngre]

Yes. He hits those two Saturday and we win.

I was not aware of that.

 

[HeavyPetter]

That's only part of the story, now, isn't it?

There is this little thing called "range" that comes into play when evaluating place kickers....and Newman has none. This changes the entire offensive strategy.

Not really. The offensive strategy is to score touchdowns and if you don't, then don't get knocked out of field goal range. Some teams think they're in field goal range at the 35. Wake is in field goal range at the 25.

Newman is:

7/7 from 20-29 yards
6/8 from 30-39 yards
2/4 from 40-49 yards

Those numbers are pretty average for a college kicker.

 

[KanhojiAngre]

That's only part of the story, now, isn't it?

There is this little thing called "range" that comes into play when evaluating place kickers....and Newman has none. This changes the entire offensive strategy.

One touchdown > two field goals, right?

I hate field goals. But at least they're a sure thing.