Finally got around to listening to the boundary corner (feature TKP's own Shelton Moss) with 247's Matej Sis, and there were some interesting tidbits on the coordinator hiring process:
- JDB from ECU was our first choice for playcaller, but he went to Ole Miss (where he was previously a TE coach)
- Franklin interviewed multiple people for the DC role, but landed on Pry. He allegedly interviewed a bunch of current players who he wants to keep and made sure they were okay with it
Episode was launched before decisions on Brookes, Moore, or Mines were announced.
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Comments
So we landed our coach, but got big dogged on coordinators?
OC yes. Not DC. Franklin landed his top choice for DC and the players okayed it.
The players being okay with Pry, if true, is actually a big relief.
I'm just so curious why the team seemingly quit on the staff during the second half of the Vandy game. Did Pry's words and motivation to the team as HC just start to ring hollow? Did they not buy into Siefkes and Monty? It appears like they are perfectly fine with Pry returning as DC so it seems it's not an issue with Pry as a coach. Drawing my own conclusions, it appears to me like Pry was just very bad at picking assistants and made bad hires with Monty and Siefkes.
I'm also relieved that it sounds like Franklin will be doing most of the legwork in building the defensive assistants around Pry (he has the network unlike Pry IMO). If Pry is calling the plays in his scheme with great assistants and recruiters around him, I think it could work well just like it did at PSU.
I don't think the Vandy game was that much quit... I think Vandy was just way better in the trenches than we were (go look at their portal class - basically everyone they brought in was in trenches), and by the second half, Vandy stopped making mistakes, and both teams started playing to their true talent level.
I also imagine that it's extraordinarily demoralizing for the defense when you're unable to score, and playing your ass off might get you to a point where you could maybe get into field goal range and win. That was one thing 2-3 decades ago, but in the modern era of football, it's absurd.
Was this not also the game that the Vandy offense drove down the field in a lengthy drive, and the D was completely gassed, yet we chose to punt immediately thereafter on 4th and Inches? (My memory is failing me)
That also broke the team and fanbase I think, when it was clear the momentum had shifted.
Yes
Honestly it didn't seem like we changed on defense - our only stops in the first half were lucky vanderbilt mistakes rather than us stopping them. Then just add in that we got worn down by the grinding and physical attack we were not able to stop and our offense shitting the bed in their few opportunities
skip to around 9:30 to get to the Brent Pry discussion (the first 9.5 min are intros and some discussion on Mike Vick's induction to the HOF)