Is smack in the middle of an ugly rebuild. It’s not ideal and it’s extremely hard to watch for passionate fans when it feels as though it’s being compounded by a coaching staff that has struggled to find any semblance of a passing game, but all the same it’s where this program is now. Will Herring said it best last night when he said “we didn’t get this way overnight” and it’s an extremely true statement from a roster management standpoint.
This fact doesn’t excuse the offensive coaching decisions from last night or over the course of this season and Coach Freeze should be held accountable for those, but I still believe the larger issue with this team is its current talent level more than it is the coaching. When things are this ugly people look to point the finger at what they see as the issue and it’s hard for proud fans to admit a team like Ole Miss is better than yours for two years in a row. Again this staff can absolutely do some things differently to make this team more efficient, but as my friend @StatsMatter likes to say you can coach a B level talent to its max and at the end of the day its B level talent. Yes recruiting services get things wrong as guys like Roger McCreary, Daniel Thomas, Nick Fairley, Kevin Green, Tyrone Green, Ben Grubbs, Dontarrious Thomas, and etc exceed their ranking, but that’s the exception and not the rule. As a quick reminder let’s review what the prior regime inherited compared to the current regime, and you tell me which situation was better.
Harsin Inherited Team:
1. QB Bo Nix (Future NFL player)
2. CB Roger McCreary (2nd Round NFL Draft Pick)
3. OLB D. Hall (2nd Round Draft Pick)
4. RB Tank Bigsby (3rd NFL Draft Pick)
5. DE Colby Wooden (4th Round NFL Draft Pick)
6. LB Owen Pappoe (6th Round NFL Draft Pick)
7. LB Zakoby McClain (2nd Team All-SEC player)
8. WR Kobe Hudson (23 receptions / 500 yards receiving / 2 TDs this season).
9. DT Lee Hunter (25 tackles and 3 sacks this season)
10. S Jaylin Simpson (potential All-SEC season)
11. WR Jarvarious Johnson (818 career yards receiving & 5 TDs)
There are more but I’ll stop there. Now let’s look at who Freeze inherited that Harsin added and you’ll notice a trend with more defensive talent than offensive talent in both situations:
1. RB Jarquez Hunter (72 rushes / 309 yards / 5 TDs)
2. DT Marcus Harris (29 tackles / 4 sacks this season)
3. LB Eugene Assante (52 tackles / 3.5 sacks)
4. CB DJ James (21 tackles / 2 ints)
5. DB Keionte Scott (15 tackles / 2 pass break ups - more valuable than his stat line would suggest but has been injured)
6. WR Jay Fair (22 receptions / 248 yards / 2 TDs)
7. RB Damari Austin (26 rushes / 131 yards / 1 TD)
8. S Donavon Kauffman (15 tackles / 2 FF / 1 int)
9. DT Jayson Jones (10 tackles / 0 sacks)
I think it’s pretty easy to see the stark difference in impact players Harsin inherited vs what Freeze inherited even if you account for Simpson and Var on both rosters, and I didn’t even mention TD Moultry, Pegues or LT on the Harsin roster.
Again this team could absolutely be better coached, but it’s talent ceiling is what is, and there is no easy way to get out of this other than to stop the QB shuffle and recruit better players. One of those issues you can fix today, the other one will take several more years. Sorry this wasn’t more of a typical JHead sunshine post, but like our talent level it is what it is today.
This fact doesn’t excuse the offensive coaching decisions from last night or over the course of this season and Coach Freeze should be held accountable for those, but I still believe the larger issue with this team is its current talent level more than it is the coaching. When things are this ugly people look to point the finger at what they see as the issue and it’s hard for proud fans to admit a team like Ole Miss is better than yours for two years in a row. Again this staff can absolutely do some things differently to make this team more efficient, but as my friend @StatsMatter likes to say you can coach a B level talent to its max and at the end of the day its B level talent. Yes recruiting services get things wrong as guys like Roger McCreary, Daniel Thomas, Nick Fairley, Kevin Green, Tyrone Green, Ben Grubbs, Dontarrious Thomas, and etc exceed their ranking, but that’s the exception and not the rule. As a quick reminder let’s review what the prior regime inherited compared to the current regime, and you tell me which situation was better.
Harsin Inherited Team:
1. QB Bo Nix (Future NFL player)
2. CB Roger McCreary (2nd Round NFL Draft Pick)
3. OLB D. Hall (2nd Round Draft Pick)
4. RB Tank Bigsby (3rd NFL Draft Pick)
5. DE Colby Wooden (4th Round NFL Draft Pick)
6. LB Owen Pappoe (6th Round NFL Draft Pick)
7. LB Zakoby McClain (2nd Team All-SEC player)
8. WR Kobe Hudson (23 receptions / 500 yards receiving / 2 TDs this season).
9. DT Lee Hunter (25 tackles and 3 sacks this season)
10. S Jaylin Simpson (potential All-SEC season)
11. WR Jarvarious Johnson (818 career yards receiving & 5 TDs)
There are more but I’ll stop there. Now let’s look at who Freeze inherited that Harsin added and you’ll notice a trend with more defensive talent than offensive talent in both situations:
1. RB Jarquez Hunter (72 rushes / 309 yards / 5 TDs)
2. DT Marcus Harris (29 tackles / 4 sacks this season)
3. LB Eugene Assante (52 tackles / 3.5 sacks)
4. CB DJ James (21 tackles / 2 ints)
5. DB Keionte Scott (15 tackles / 2 pass break ups - more valuable than his stat line would suggest but has been injured)
6. WR Jay Fair (22 receptions / 248 yards / 2 TDs)
7. RB Damari Austin (26 rushes / 131 yards / 1 TD)
8. S Donavon Kauffman (15 tackles / 2 FF / 1 int)
9. DT Jayson Jones (10 tackles / 0 sacks)
I think it’s pretty easy to see the stark difference in impact players Harsin inherited vs what Freeze inherited even if you account for Simpson and Var on both rosters, and I didn’t even mention TD Moultry, Pegues or LT on the Harsin roster.
Again this team could absolutely be better coached, but it’s talent ceiling is what is, and there is no easy way to get out of this other than to stop the QB shuffle and recruit better players. One of those issues you can fix today, the other one will take several more years. Sorry this wasn’t more of a typical JHead sunshine post, but like our talent level it is what it is today.
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