I would like to personally thank Coug03 for finally pulling out of my shell and getting me back to posting about Cougar basketball. I've been waiting for something to get after and a recent discussion on Abe Lodwick has inspired me. So, thank you, brother.

There seems to be a bit of a divide in the opinion of Lodwick, and his contributions to the team. Some have even voiced their opinion about his minutes, whether he's getting enough or too many. There is also a bit of a misunderstanding (in my opinion) of Lodwick's role within the offense. When Coug03 posed a very simple and straight forward question, I felt that the question couldn't be answered without going a bit deeper into the offense that the Cougs have been running this year. The question; "What position do you think he is playing on offense the majority of the time?" While many would argue that he is playing some minutes at the "3", I can say with a great deal of confidence that that is just not the case.

I'll start by addressing one of my largest pet peeves about basketball; the numeric position system. This game doesn't always break down to "this guy plays the 4" or "that guy plays the 3". Many times it is a simple as bigs and smalls, or posts and guards. Based on what we've seen so far this year, I'd say that Bone's offense is a pretty simple "screener/shooter" flex. This is a system in which two screeners will provide screens for three shooters. Those screeners loosely fall into the catagory of "bigs." Those minutes have been going to four players; Casto, Lodwick, Motum, and Simon. (Enquist gets some minutes if the team is in foul trouble) You will find these screeners hovering along the side of the key, extending out to the three point line, and even screening from the elbow and across the free-throw line.

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I'm trying to max out my push-ups and sit-ups for a military PT test. I had great progress in my first month, but I seem to have hit a plateau. I"ve got 7 weeks to add about 20% more to my scores. I am a personal trainer but training myself has always been more difficult than training my clients. Any suggestions on some training methods to shake things up would be greatly appreciated.

were just the lead bumper on the prime-time Sportscenter.

Hell yeah. I think that might be a first.

I'm tryin' hard not to get too excited about what's going on, but going to the game next weekend with Nuss will be the highlight of the winter for me. If they win, I might run naked through the UW campus ... who's with me? I know Nuss will do it.

GO COUGS, DAMMIT!

I'm curious to see what our little community values in its players. Take a vote, and then take a guess at who is who. Be straight about it, don't look up player stats before you vote or comment, just use the numbers in the poll. This way we can leave romance and emotions out of it. I will give a little wrinkle and the results a few days from now.

Vote/discuss/enjoy.

A late night film study of the UCLA game last night revealed an amazing number to me. It is no secret that I've been lobbying for Marcus Capers' PT over the past few weeks, and I'm very happy to see him pushing 30 minutes per game over the last three contests. It is easy to be critical of the kids offensive inabilities in his current phase of development, but one thing that cannot be denied is his defensive contributions to this team.

The number that amazed me was the number "1". One. Uno. One, singular field goal was scored against Marcus Capers in 27 minutes of play. That number is even more impressive when you consider that at least 20 of those minutes was while he was defending Mr. Shipp, who certainly isn't some spanky reject from Oregon State, or a fundamentally special needs player like Vinoy Overton.

All his weaknesses aside, if this team had an equivelant to a "lock-down corner," Capers would be it. Add in his rebounding and I think that it is obvious why he has taken minutes away from the upperclassmen. If Rochestie, Thompson, and Baynes are scoring, then this team doesn't need much O from Capers, and his defensive abilities will contribute in a large way to the success of this team in the Pac-10

Disclaimer: You all know that I am long winded. This post is big. If you are not a die-hard or a Cougar Basketball junkie, you might want to avoid the fallowing.If you are going to delve into this abyss, go to the bathroom first, and get a snack.

Here it is folks. This is where we get to talk personnel and tactics all at the same time. And it is true that those two things go hand-in-hand because there are some things that you just can't get done when some players are on the floor.

Let's start with this:

With some slight variations, this is the basic offense we've seen from the Cougs most of the year. This is the offense that is run when Daven Harmeling plays at the 4. It made perfect sense with the personnel that Coach Bennett had to work with, and against the lesser opponents, it worked beautifully.

The basic function of the 4-1 motion is two fold. First, the focus is obviously the 5. And we all know that getting Aron Baynes as many shots as possible in the paint is a big deal. Secondly, the perimeter players are in constant motion, keeping the defense moving and on their toes. Patience is at a premium and eventually the defense will break down and you get a driving lane or an open jumper. Simple enough, right?

Well, in the Cougs case, it became simple enough to defend. One would think that this would give all the room in the world for Baynes to work inside while the perimeter players swarm and confuse the defense, but good teams (especially our Pac-10 foes) know that Baynes is the number one option, and many Pac-10 teams have encorporated elements of the Bennett Pack Defense into their schemes. Teams have sagged down to Baynes and that is why his shot attempts have been so low. But like every good offense their is always a counter adjustment:

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Here are Jo-Jo's player grades for the game against Stanford, which I've combined into one post and promoted to the front page. There's a lot of good stuff in here, so enjoy. -- Nuss

The Frontcourt

Aron Baynes - B+
I think that it is safe to say that Mt. Baynes is the foundation around which the Cougar frontcourt is built. We know that, the coaches know that, all of the Pac-10 knows that. Which is why it is going to be increasingly more difficult to get him shots in the remaining 15 games this season.

Saturday night Stanford did an excellent job of limiting Baynes to four shot attempts, and though he struggled from the field against Cal (2-9 from the field) he served as his usual efficient self on Saturday, making two baskets and hitting 3-4 from the line. But don't let his low scoring fool you -- the dude collected 9 rebounds, had a beautiful post move and was solid as a rock throughout the entire game. The only reason why I don't give him an A is because he did have a couple of ball handling miscues that cost the Cougs some buckets and botched the recieving end of a couple gorgeous DeAngelo Casto interior passes. But the B+ is nothing to be down about; defensively, he was always there and when paired with Casto created an interior defense that was all but impossible to break.

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Much has already been commented on what we all witnessed the other night. I think it is safe to say that everyone noticed that something was different. I decided to do an extensive breakdown of the film from the other night's game to try to put into words exactly what it was that we saw. While all of us have obviously noticed the change in personnel, I am going to try to stay away from that as much as possible and just talk X's and O's (I will have an individual player grades and commentary on both the frontcourt and backcourt coming later), but the personnel issues do play a part.

To start with, I think it safe to say that the Cougar offense has been absolute garbage for quite a few weeks running. Comments have flooded CougCenter about the effectiveness of Taylor Rochestie, lack of a perimeter shooter, lack of free throw attempts (which is a direct result of the lack of ability to penetrate), and of course which combinations of players give this team the best opportunity to be successful on the offensive side of the ball. It has been my (unpopular) opinion that coach Bennett has put way too much of a straight jacket on this group of players to this point in the season, and that while the offense has been increasingly unproductive, Bennett has refused to waiver from his discipline. Until halftime Saturday night.

Watching this team all season, you can see that these guys have all of the talent and ability to have an effective offense. But they continually look hesitant, unsure, lacking confidence and down right afraid to take the shot. At first it was hard to notice, and I remembered watching Dick coach this team when Harmeling was a freshman. I remember thinking that this year's team was similar in their look of confusion. But it really came home to me when Grady posted this video (go ahead and watch it, you'll see what I mean). We all look at that and think "damn, I miss Low and Weaver." But there is more there than that. That is a team that took advantage of opportunities when they had the chance.

Perhaps that is what Rochestie has been doing with his untimely pull-up jumpers with 20 seconds on the shot clock. But you can see it in this current group; they never push the ball when they get the chance. Now I know that we have all come to love the slow, half-court efficiency of Bennett ball over the years, but part of being efficient is taking the easy, high-percentage shots that are there for the taking. And fast break opportunities are some of the highest percentage shots you can get. And the Klay Thompson dunk served as proof positive of that. But was Klay acting alone? Who does this kid think he is? Nobody has pushed the ball like that all year. Surely coach Bennett wouldn't approve!

Well, before that destiny-changing dunk occurred, I found something on the film that showed me coach Bennett had finally taken the leash of these kids. No, it wasn't the sweet post move that DeAngelo Casto had to get them going, it actually occurred at the start of the Cougars second possession of the half. It started with a beautiful help side block by Casto, Thompson retrieving the ball in the corner and charging hard up the floor. The Cougars were running? The possession eventually ended with Rochestie missing a layup, but what I saw was very subtle. I missed it when I was watching the game live, but noticed on the replay. Casto blocks the shot, and starts to pursue the loose ball. Thompson picks up the ball and as he starts to move up court Casto weaves in front of him and motions with his hand, as if to say "LET'S GO! LET'S PUSH IT!" It was evident that this was by design in the fact that all of the Cougs were screaming down the court (even the Baynes Train was sprinting). And it wasn't the only time we saw it either, it happened several times through the course of the second half.

The good Lord knows that I would have loved to be in that locker room at halftime, but since I wasn't I can only speculate. Thus, having to guess by the evidence seen in the second half I believe that Tony finally came to the conclusion that enough was enough, and that this team isn't going to win without scoring some points and it's just not coming in the half court. Now that's not to say that they are going to be running up and down the floor like Louisville, but that video from years past shows that the Cougar teams that have made the Tournament haven't been afraid to push the ball when the opportunity presents itself. If nothing else, a new approach was entered into the fray Saturday night, and at the minimum it produced "The Dunk."

I know this team is young. And I know that it takes time and that the Bennetts, though they offer freshman minutes, don't often let freshman have much freedom. That was certainly the case under Dick. But for as great as that class was, four years ago, this year's freshman class is even better. You can see it in their facial expressions, they have been frustrated. I believe that, to this point, the Bennett handcuffs that were meant to serve as a teaching tool while the upperclassmen carried the team have served to terrorize the confidence of the freshman. And when it became obvious that we couldn't count on Harmeling, Koprivica, and to some extent Rochestie to carry the scoring punch for this team, the wheels came off the wagon.

Coach needs to let these kids play a bit. I think it makes the upperclassmen more effective and that is what a team is all about. This is Tony's first go as a head coach bringing in a huge class full of talent. And I think maybe he has held them back just a little bit. But I think that the second half against Stanford showed that there are at least two freshman on this team that have ability to play fulltime minutes, along with the freedom to make some plays happen.

Can any of you faithful Coug fans tell me who lead the team in scoring the last time they played at the Univeristy of Idaho? Given the nature of this community I'm sure that many can. But, for those of you who can't it was a sophomore guard by the name of Mac Hopson.

via graphics.fansonly.com

Hopson came off the bench that night and in only 14 minutes produced an impressive line:

FG-FGA 3FG-3FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S
  5  -  5       3  -  3       1  -  1    0    3      3    1    14   3   0     0    2

Those numbers are stagering, and I would be impressed to see any of the current Cougs put together a line like that against the Vandals this weekend. But where do those numbers come from? Who was this guy? Well, in all honesty those numbers shouldn't have fooled anyone. Mac Hopson was the starting point guard for the 2006-2007 Washington State University Men's basketball team. You know, the one that made the NCAA tournament. At least he was when the season started.

Hopson will again be playing in the WSU @ UI game this Sunday night, this time wearing Gold and Black. Now the starting point guard for the University of Idaho, Hopson is averaging 17.2 points, 5 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 1.6 steals per game. So, how does it come to this? How does a kid with this much talent end up facing off against a team that he was contributing for just two season ago? Let's take a look back.

The Josh Akognon factor
With Daven Harmeling our lingering waft of precious fragrance from that first Bennett recruiting class, Coug fans long for the rise of the next great group of studs to come through the system. Looking back at that class, it was Robbie Cowgill, Derrick Low, and Kyle Weaver that were the backbone of the group, leading the Cougs in the glory that we've all shared in over the past few years. But when you turn back the clocks, and look at that class as they came through the doors in Bohler as freshman, things didn't quite turn out how one would have thought. A 6-9 248lbs. post from the legendary Mater Dei HS by the name of Chris Henry was considered the highest rated recruit the Cougs brought in. Henry's post precense coupled with the guard play of Low was to be the cornerstone of the Bennett rebuild in Pullman.

Coming in late and a little under the radar was a 6 foot tall gun slinger from California; Josh Akognon.

via cache.gettyimages.com

This young man eventually went on to be the Cougars leading scorer in the sophomore season of that harolded class. He had a higher fg% and 3fg% than Low, but something happened shortly thereafter. Akognon requested his release and transfered. He now spends his time scoring 25.5 points per game for Cal State Fullerton.

I couldn't tell you how many times I've said over the past two seasons "imagine how good this team would be if they hadn't lost Josh Akognon?" Remeber two seasons ago, when the big question was "who is the man? Who is going to be the guy that will take the game winning shot if they need him to?" That guy would have been Akognon, and those Cougar teams could have really used him. Well, enough on that.

Back to Hopson
Two weeks after Akognon got his release, rookie head coach Tony Bennett signed his first ever recruit to Washington State univeristy.

"Mac is a welcomed addition to our program," Bennett said. "He had an excellent season with NIC. He is a very good student, comes from a wonderful family, and has a burning desire to be at Washington State and compete in the Pac-10. The fact that he in an in-state recruit and has three years of eligibility left excites me all the more."

Wow, that is some praise. And Hopson stepped right in as Akognon's replacement, starting seven of the first eight games of the season for the Cougs. But the development of another sophomore started the decline of Hopson's career in Pullman. But it might not be who you would think. The easy guess would be Taylor Rochestie. Yeah, he came outa nowhere that season. Rochestie was still in nowheresville at that point. It was the shooter; Daven Harmeling. As Harmeling's stock was rising, coach Bennett needed to find a way to get him more minutes. That way came in the form of giving the ball handling duties back to Low and Weaver and giving the minutes to Harmeling.

December 5th, 2006. The night the Cougs beat Gonzaga, launched Harmeling to legendary status. That game, we will never forget. What is forgotten, however, is that it was the first game of the season that Hopson didn't play in. Just four nights later Hopson responded with the afore mentioned perfect game against the Vandals, but he was seen only sparingly for the rest of the season.

Coming off the bench as a backup point guard, Hopson started sharing time with yet another sophomore (now all the man crushers can celebrate). This time, it was a fellow transfer; Taylor Rochestie. Hopson and Rochestie split small amounts of minutes through out most of the rest of the season. I can only imagine what that battle looked like in practice on a daily basis as they where fighting for the same precious minutes. As the season went on, Rochestie's knee got stronger and his minutes increased while Hopson's deminished. Then something unpredictable happened. The legend of Taylor Rochestie was about to begin.

The foundation of a love affair
On Valentine's day in 2007, in Seattle, Rochestie came off the bench to lead all scorers in WSU's victory over Washington. After the game coach Bennett had this to say about him, "He gave us a spark off the bench and he defended too. He is showing the things we saw in him. He helped us in so many ways tonight." Rochestie also showed his leadership by saying of himself "I tried to take control of the situation." A new leader was blossoming.

The next weekend was a battle for the two competing point guards. At the University of Oregon they split bench minutes and though it appeared that Hopson had the better night, Bennett rewarded Rochestie with his first start as a Coug at Oregon State. Though you wouldn't have noticed then, looking back at this game you can almost smell the irony.

Weaver came off the bench that night (uhh?) and played 33 minutes, leaving 32 minutes for Hopson and Rochestie to split. And while neither of them had an accumulative impact on the game it was Hopson's jumper with 35 seconds left in the game that gave the Cougars the win. I remember watching that game and thinking "I like this kid. He's raw, but he's got something going for him."

After that night, Rochestie went on the greatest streak of his Cougar career, scoring 21 in an overtime victory over USC to end the regular season, 20 in a Pac-10 tournament win over UW, and 15 in an NCAA first round victory over Oral Roberts. Rochestie had solidified himself, Hopson wasn't even a blip on a radar screen. While coach Bennett recieved a truck load of awards, within a month of the end of the run, Hopson gets his release from the team and looks for a new home.

Back to the now

via www.nmnathletics.com.edgesuite.net

Hopson ended up down the street at the UI, where his father Phil is considered a "former Vandal Great." Maybe it's where he was meant to be all along. But, much like how I felt about Akognon, I've thought of Hopson over the past two years. Especially this season as the Cougs lack depth at ball handling. I can imagine what this team would look like if he were still there. Surely he would be seeing plenty of minutes and putting him on the floor with Rochestie would have been a sight to see.

So, if you needed any more of a reason to get excited about this game on Sunday (which most of us who frequent this site are Cougar basketball junkies without extra motivation needed), picture this; A reunion of two point guards, both of which have gone on to success, that just two season ago where battling it out for the same bench minutes on a now legendary team, facing each other like they might have so many times before in practice. Only this time they are wearing different uniforms. And this time, the result goes in a column.

As a fan, I know that I am looking forward to this underlying battle.

Rochestie v. Hopson
Ding - Ding

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Editor's Note: One of the many awesome things about SB Nation is that whenever one of you puts together an especially spectacular FanPost, we have the option of "promoting" it to the front page. This is one such post. Enjoy. -- Nuss

Much has been noted about the struggles of the Cougar offense, and the play of Taylor Rochestie specifically. Being the mentally disturbed Cougar fan that I am, I spend far too many ours breaking down film on this team that I love so much, and I'm finding trends that bother me, and answers to questions that create more questions to be answered. So, let's get right down too it:

News Flash - Taylor Rochestie is struggling

I know that is nothing new to this community, and I believe that Nuss is working on something to discuss about that, so I will not dive to heavily into it on this post. cfred and I have been discussing what exactly is wrong with Rochesties game right now, and while this team needs him to be effective, scoring points, and taking shots, what they need from him more is to help create and rise level of his teammates play.

Now, taking "quality" shots leads to scoring and hence makes him more effective. But taking a large "quantity" of shots because he is forcing the issue leads to 2-11 shooting, not scoring points, and ineffectiveness. Again, since Nuss is working on a break down of this topic, I will leave this one alone for now, but let's take a look at the bigger picture.

The Offensive System

I'm wondering how much of this problem has to do with the system itself. The Cougs move the ball around a lot and once they are in their half court set, depending on what position Daven Harmeling is playing, they motion with 3 or 4 men on the perimeter. Lots of ball movement for sure, but is any of it with the intention of getting a quality shot? Much is being done in terms of movement, but it doesn't appear that there is much going on off the ball, or support for the ball handler, that creates a quality shot. They just keep the ball moving until the defense breaks down and THEN they look for the opportunity.

There is a big difference between that and creating an opportunity. I guess I just got used to seeing Derrick Low come off of screens with the intention of a catch-n-shoot shot opportunity, or Kyle Weaver forcing the defense into making a bad decision rather then waiting for them to fall asleep.

I guess the point is this: As I see it right now, this offensive system is not doing anything to create any perimeter offense at all. Defenses have bracketed Aron Baynes in the post rendering his game ineffective to the offense, and our guards robotically rotate around the perimeter waiting for someone to do something. Eventually that leads Rochestie to attacking the basket against a packed lane, and heaving up a "layup" from about 8-14" from the basket (where I come from this is called a floater or runner and unless you name was Gary Payton you were kicked out of the gym for attempting that shot. Nuss-I'm sure you can here the echo of coach Ottmar as you read this).

This team needs to incorporate the creation of quality shot opportunities from the perimeter players in order to be successful. Right now, all I'm seeing is movement for the sake of movement.

The Personnel

As stated above, this team does not have the same personnel profile as last year's team. In the current guard rotatioin (Rochestie, Klay Thompson, Nik Koprivica, Harmeling (who is a perimeter offensive player)) players with the skill set of Low and Weaver don't exist. Koprivica and Harmeling can shoot, but only from a stationary position, that means that someone else needs to create their opportunity by drawing their defender. This should be the role of Rochestie and Baynes.

I don't think Thompson has the foot speed (yet) to play the role that Low did. But, I think Rochestie does and I remember over the past two years watching Low bring the ball up court and then giving up the ball in the half-court offense to run around his off the ball screens and get open looks. I think Rochestie can fit into this role, but not until he knocks the dust off the net a little bit.

Help in this area may be closer than we think in the form of Micheal Harthun, but we don't really know much of anything about him yet, in terms of real game experience against a legit opponent. Needless to say, with this element lacking in the offense Harthun's potential intrigues me.

This team also missed the aggressiveness that Weaver had in going to the basket. I think Marcus Capers can give us what Weaver did as a penentrator, but it looks like Coach has him on a leash. Remember when Weaver was a freshman? He couldn't shoot to save his life (kinda what Capers is showing us right now). But he could penetrate and cause the defense to break down, and he could actually get to the rim, sometimes convert and/or get freethrows.

I think it's time Coach Bennett opened up the depth chart a bit and started using this freshman class more. I know these guys don't have the seasoning that the others do, and I'm not calling for Coach to bench the upperclassmen, but these younguns bring something to the table that the vets don't posess. Fact is, this upperclass group is losing games against good teams. I love Harmeling, and I stand by Koprivica when others don't, but the fact of the matter is they are statues. Because of that, this offense struggles when the are both on the floor at the same time. Is that to say that they can't help this team? No, they are very important to the team's success. Is that to say their minutes need to be cut? No, but something needs to change.

Looking Forward

It has become clear what the Cougs are doing (offensively) right now is not working against good teams. With the cupcakes almost all gobbled up now, aside from two games with Oregon St. this team will have it's hands full the rest of the way.

This team needs to find a way to get quality shots against quality defenses, and as much as it pains me to say this; Rochestie is not giving them the best opportunity to win right now. As I've said all year long; Rochestie is the key to this offense and it will come in ways that don't show up in the stats. He is the fuel that runs the engine and he has to be sharp and precise because Koprivica, Harmeling, and Baynes are not good enough at creating their own shot.

I think this team needs to see more of Capers off the bench, with a bit of freedom to see what he can do. I think  this team needs to see Harthun before it sees Lodwick off the bench, because Harthun might be the type of shooter that is missing in this offense. I know those are all question marks but one thing that isn't is this; if this team enters Pac-10 play with the same game plan they have used over the past five games, they will be in some serious trouble.

Baylor was the game that the Cougs needed to win for me to feel comfortable heading into conference play. Baylor is way good, better than I thought coming into the season but I noticed it the first time I saw them on TV. Gonzaga exposed every single weakness on this Cougar team the other night, and by every weakness I mean everything from skill, to athleticism, to mentality, to schemes. The Cougs got caught with their pants down in an uncomfortable situation.

The team has continually improved over the course of the non-conference season, right up until half time the other night. That continual improvement is great, but I am one who believes that there also needs to be some "changes" in order to servive the Pac-10. That is, if making the Tournament again is the goal for this season.

Well, after finally getting the chance to watch this team in person (on television) last night, I feel very good about what this team can accomplish this season. As I watched this game I couldn't help but think of how much this team looks like last years team. Yes, some of the components are different, but as a unit they were sound as a pound. It really does speak to the coaching ability of Tony Bennett, and his dedication to the system, and working players into that system.

As it has always been under the Bennett regime, offensive execution tells the story. If the Cougs can play under control with the ball and get (and make) quality shots, the defense will put them in positions to win the game. And that is exactly what happened. This team was calm, and never paniced, even when Barry Stewart hit some three's in the first half to bring the Bulldogs back from a rough start. Even during an 11-0 run in the second half that cut the Cougs lead to single digits. Never was this team rattled, they kept their composure, and finished the game. Deja vu.

As it has been over the past two seasons for Cougar opponents, the Bulldogs had this look on their face for most of the game; a look of confusion. A look that said "how are we losing to these guys?" That is a look that has been etched on the faces of Pac-10 players for the past two seasons, and until a team has endured 40 minutes agianst the Cougs, they just don't get it. That is what gives me a bit of hope about todays match-up with #4 Pitt.

After watching the Cougs in their decisive victory, I bacame intently interested in watching the Pitt v. TT game last night. And as I sat and watched the first half, I found myself repeatedly saying, "they wouldn't get that shot against the Cougs," and "these guys don't play any defense." As the half went on I realized how much Pitt looked like UW, and my eye's began to widen. This team, this #4 team, could easily drop a game against WSU. Now, before I go any farther, I will preface these comments by saying that I did not watch the second half in which the Panthers man handled Tech. But in the first half I could honestly say that there was nothing, NOTHING, about that team that worried me as a Coug fan.

The Cougs style of play puts them in one of those catagories, as a team that could honesty beat anyone in the country. Is that to say that the Cougs will win tonight? I don't make predictions. But I will say this; If Pitt did not seriously prepare themselves for what the Cougs are bringing to them tonight, they could be ripe for the pickin'. Does Pitt have better athletes than WSU? Yes. Maybe even better basketball players? In some cases, yes. But are they a better basketball team? I don't think so. WSU, at times, looked like they were toying with the Bulldogs last night. And if the Panthers aren't carefull, it will happen to them too. The Panthers up and down, early offense, individual style of play falls right into the hands of the Cougs defense. If the Cougars can be patient, run their offense, and be efficient with the basketball, it will be upset central tonight in the Legends Classic, and it will be the look on the face of Levance Fields that will say something to the effect of "what the hell just happened."

Can anyone verify this?

I got my daily Seahawks text message from Q13 today, which is usually as reliable as hell, and it said that Robinson and Sean Locklear are questionable for the game.

WHAT THE HELL!! If he can't go, who are they gonna run out there? The same three they had last week (and Keary Colbert)?

Could someone please give me solid information to the contrary before I have an anxiety attack.

Do they reactivate Jordan Kent? Is he ready to carry the load? Or do they look for another slappy FA reciever and continue to avoid the fact that K-Rob is waiting for a phone call?

Seneca Wallace is out for a month as well, so with all the contingency plans falling apart too, what do they do?

A lot of people are calling for Courtney Taylors head, but you can't afford to cut him now. The 'Hawks made several moves last week and with the new injuries, they are stuck right back where they were a week ago. Any fresh suggestions?