The OFFICIAL 2017 College football RANDOM THOUGHTS thread

malbaker86

malbaker86

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Sauce Dab said:
Richt? Hell nah. He was one of the main reasons we got Cam. Cam wanted to play for UGA but Richt wanted him at TE :6FraudCamby:
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Man coaches overthink it sometimes. Derrick Henry wanted to come to UF but Muschamp wanted em at DE and Clinton Portis all but was signed with UF but Spurrier wanted em as a cornerback.
 
malbaker86

malbaker86

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Found this old article in 2013 about Miami.
For UM football, things haven’t been the same since Don Soldinger departed

If you’re looking for a specific date where the Hurricanes’ football program went off the rails – competitively speaking – a good start would be Jan. 2, 2006.

That morning, four UM assistant coaches – Don Soldinger, Art Kehoe, Vernon Hargreaves and Dan Werner – were let go by head coach Larry Coker three days after the conclusion of the 2005 season.


Don Soldinger coaching up Frank Gore. (Miami Herald)

Their crime? UM had just finished a 9-3 campaign, the program’s second consecutive nine-win season, and after the Hurricanes ended the year with a humiliating 40-3 loss to LSU in the Peach Bowl, the search for scapegoats began.

The firings were especially surprising in the cases of Kehoe and Soldinger. Kehoe was on the staff for each of Miami’s five national championships. Soldinger, in two stints as a UM assistant, won two national titles and developed a who’s who list of running backs.

That wasn’t enough to save their jobs.

Coincidence or not, the Hurricanes have been floundering ever since. Those nine wins that cost the assistants their jobs? UM has managed only one nine-win season since 2005.

“We were 64-10,” Soldinger said of UM’s record from 2000 to 2005. “C’mon, man. Who else was doing that? They wanted to go in a different direction. They did. They put it in reverse and slammed on the gas.”
Soldinger isn’t bitter. Just disappointed.

A UM fan since he was a kid growing up in Miami, the 68-year-old Soldinger loves the school like family. That’s why he’s so thrilled about being inducted tonight along with six other Hurricane greats into the UM Sports Hall of Fame at Jungle Island in Miami. [A cocktail reception begins at 6 p.m. followed by dinner and the induction presentation. Go to UMSportsHallofFame.com for more info.]

“It means a lot,” said Soldinger, who served for five seasons as a linebacker and tight ends coach under Jimmy Johnson and then as running backs coach and special teams coordinator from 1995-2006 under Butch Davis and Coker. “It’s overwhelming. When you’re setting your goals, you don’t think, ‘I’m going to get in the Hall of Fame.’ I just worked hard, hoped my kids did well and tried to win a few games.”

Soldinger certainly did all of those things. During his second UM stint, Soldinger worked with some of the best running backs of the past decade, including Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis, Frank Gore and Willis McGahee.

Not all those guys were five-star recruits coming out of high school. Portis, for instance, was recruited as a running back by only two schools – UM and South Carolina. Soldinger helped develop Portis into one of the most productive NFL running backs of his generation. But at Miami, Portis had to compete for playing time with the likes of McGahee, Gore, James Jackson and Najeh Davenport.

“You talk about trying to keep guys happy, that was the toughest part,” Soldinger said. “Clinton used to tell me, ‘You’re holding me back, coach.’ I said, ‘You’ll be fine.'”

Except for clinics and such, Soldinger has not worked in coaching since he was fired by UM. He thought there was a chance of returning to the Hurricanes when Randy Shannon became coach in 2000, but that didn’t happen.

“I learned so much being around him,” said Kehoe, rehired as offensive line coach after Al Golden became UM’s coach in 2010. “He’s an old-school, grinder, tough guy. He taught me a lot of football. He’s the godfather of my son Jake. He’s a terrific human being. Don Soldinger is an ultimate true Hurricane who gave his all to this place. I would love to see him coaching. Everybody he coached loved him and respected him.”

At this point, it seems unlikely Soldinger will get back into the coaching business. Still imposing physically at 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, he spends much of this time keeping himself in shape – 135 miles a week on his bike – and spending time with Phyllis, his wife of 44 years. And lately, Soldinger has been working on tonight’s induction speech.

“They told me my speech needed to be between three to five minutes,” Soldinger said. “I said, ‘Bro, that’s impossible.’ I spent 16 great years there. I need more than that.”
*****
Being inducted along with Soldinger are Ken Dorsey (football), Brent Romberg (football), Bryan Gillooly (diving), Jay Tessmer (baseball), Norm Parsons (golf) and Ed Contreras (baseball).
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malbaker86

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Sauce Dab said:
:dahell: I didn't even know this. Sounds about right tho :heh:
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Gator Prospectus
Henry a massive 2013 prospect
Monday, May 16, 2011 at 12:58 by Jeff Barlis

Spectators watch Derrick Henry’s vertical leap at the Nike combine in Orlando in March. (Photo submitted by Derrick Henry) Check out the photo gallery below.

Derrick Henry is a massive prospect.

As in 6-foot-3, 230 pounds, but also as in one of the best early recruits in the Class of 2013.

The rising junior running back out of Yulee, Fla., is a freakish athlete who set the nation’s top Nike SPARQ Rating (123.09) this March in Orlando with a 4.53-second 40 and a 38.5-inch vertical.

Henry held the nation’s top spot for a week before being topped by Nashville, Tenn., receiver Justin Batey. But Henry is the only junior in the Nike SPARQ top 20.

Many scouts and analysts look at his size and athleticism and see a future linebacker or defensive end. But Henry is determined to stick at running back and has 5,263 rushing yards and 65 touchdowns in two seasons to his credit.


“I’m just staying focused on running back,” he said at the Nike camp in Tallahassee in April. “That’s why I come to these camps and learn more. Being a big back, you get coaching. They tell me to keep my hips low, be crisp on my routes, work on pass protection. In college, pass protection is a big deal.”

Apparently, college coaching staffs see Henry as a running back, too. He already has over 50 offers.

Florida, Georgia, Florida State, Alabama and South Carolina are showing the most interest, he said, and the feeling is mutual. Henry lists those schools as his t0p five and speaks with enthusiasm about each.

But one school stands above the rest.


“I’m a Florida fan,” he said,”and they’ve got that new pro-style offense.”


Henry, who watched UF’s spring game on TV, was overjoyed when he saw the Gators bring in Charlie Weis and a new offense that was better suited for his talents.


“I felt ecstatic,” he said. “I said, ‘Whoa, Florida is back! Big backs are coming!’ They picked up Matt Jones, so that’s a big plus. We both could be there. Then I read articles about the running backs saying they liked the new pro-style offense. Chris Rainey said he liked it, he could see more. So that was really good.”


He has seen a lot growing up a Gator. From Steve Spurrier to Ron Zook to Urban Meyer, the new coach staff under Will Muschamp now has Henry extremely excited.


“When they won the national championship with Fred Taylor and all those guys, and just seeing how the Gator Nation has come so far,” he said. “From Urban Meyer picking it back up to going to the pro-style offense. You never know what could happen now.


“I’ve got faith in my team and always will have faith in the Gator Nation.”
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My god Muschamp was so fukking stupid when it came to evaluating offensive talent :snoop:
 
RammerJammer

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It's gameday :blessed:

Games on TV today:

Texas Southern @ Florida A&M, Noon ET, ESPNU.

Oregon State @ Colorado State, 2:30 ET, CBSSN

Portland State @ BYU, 3 ET, ESPN

Chattanooga vs Jacksonville State, 6:30 ET, ESPN.

South Florida @ San Jose State, 7:30 ET, CBSSN.

Rice vs Stanford, 10 ET, ESPN.
 
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