SB Nation User Blog: cougfan

Can we get it over with and hand USC the death penalty already

cougfan — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 08:06:21 -0000

Can we get it over with and hand USC the death penalty already

Reggie Bush, OJ Mayo, and now Joe McKnight. It has to be close to coming to a head by now.

Or the NCAA could turn a blind eye to their cash cow, again...

Harmeling Interviews Reggie Moore

cougfan — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:32:40 -0000

Harmeling Interviews Reggie Moore

Good interview between Harmeling and newcomer Reggie Moore.

My favorite:
"CF.C: Finish this sentence: This season will be a success if..
Moore: We bring our defensive effort for 40 minutes a game."

He also says he wants to improve his off-ball defense the most. I love his attitude.

UW gets another seconday violation: buying booze for recruits

cougfan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:44:35 -0000

UW gets another seconday violation: buying booze for recruits

Having hosts buy recruits booze is only a secondary offense. I'm not saying this is an exclusive practice to UW, in fact I think it happens almost everywhere, but I would think getting caught buy booze for a recruit would get more than a slap on the risk. It also happened during Sark's first weekend as coach, similar to the other violations.

Am I off base thinking that having players get caught buying booze for recruits should be more than a slap on the wrist?

EDIT NUSS, 12/16: Please note that the UW has said the report does not mention alcohol. I've put up a post updating the situation. Make of it what you will.

Why the 'pack hybrid' doesn't work

cougfan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:00:03 -0000

EDIT NUSS: Promoted to the front page because it's a thoughtful piece with equally thoughtful discussion in the comments. If you're interested in a technical look at why our defense has been misfiring, this is a must read. Enjoy.

First, I'd like to point you to the Fanshot about Harmeling's in-game thoughts about last nights game on the CF.c boards:

Fanshot Link to Harmeling's thoughts

I wanted to highlight some of the insight Harmeling gave on the defense. It was an eye opener as to why the "pack hybrid" isn't working. Below are his thoughts specifically on the d:

On the new system:

it's very similar- but now they extended their pressure more...which can be good and bad. By definition, the Bennett "pack" defense mandates that players not guarding the ball be in a 16 foot radius of the rim, which ensures they are in position to help on any penetration. The current system doesn't demand the players be in the "pack" which to me seems a bit counter productive...

On the pack hybrid:

let me clarify- in my opinion, either you play the pack- or step out, pressure the ball heavily, deny passing lanes, and push to the baseline (like UW). Because they are trying to deny passes as well as be in the pack, it puts the players in a tough position: do I deny the pass or be in the gap to help penetration? It is very hard, if not impossible, to do both. So this type of pack "hybrid" contradicts the very rules and concepts that make the pack so successful. Hard to be consistent this way.

On whether you can play uptempo in the Bennett system:

I've been pondering that question for the past 5 years. I believe you can. However, Bennett "type" of players generally aren't great in the open court, so I believe the lack of uptempo play in that system was at least in part due to personnel. Although I must say- a team that plays somewhat uptemp and holds true to the pack D would have to be a VERY well conditioned team

The pack in itself is designed to pack the lanes, take away easy shots, and force teams to shoot over it. What we've seen in the past from Tony's teams is if an opponent can consistently knock down a 3, we were screwed. In order to solve this, Bone has extended the defense and is trying to get the team to jump passing lanes more often. So, he's trying to pack the lanes, but at the same time extend and ball deny, which in itself leaves the lane open. When we see confusion or a man wide open in the lane after a high screen, this is part of the reason why. The pack specifically keeps all 5 within a close radius of the hoop with everyone helping clog the middle.

Harmeling also answers why it's very tough to play a pack in an uptempo. In the pack, you're working you butt off on D, always getting back, and constantly moving on that end of the floor. The pack requires all 5 to get back on D as quickly as possible and assume their positions within a close radius of the hoop. This is why you didn't see us crashing the offensive glass with more than 1 guy. Add trying to run the floor and an uptempo offense and you may well have to carry guys off the floor. It's just not plausible to do both, thus the switch to this hybrid.

So, why are we trying to run this defense right now? We can't really run an uptempo offense and a pack defense and the pack-hybrid negates most of the positives of the pack. If we tried to do both, our guards may survive, but our bigs like Casto wouldn't be able to play any serious minutes. Not to mention the breakdown that would occur as the season wears on.

The question I pose is what do you want to see? Should we use the athletes and scorers we have in Bone's offensive scheme and scrap the pack, moving more towards an aggressive on-ball defense? Should we revert to the old system of a slow-down and pack defense? Is it plausible to do both? In my opinion, the pack hybrid needs to fall by the wayside and we should step up the on-ball pressure, our ball denies, and force the ball to the baseline as he says. I can't see using the pack hybrid he's developing working because you're sacrificing the major principles of both the pack, and the Bone defense he installed at the other schools he's been at.

On the BCS and Bowl Selection Committees

cougfan — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:35:26 -0000

If you haven't seen the bowl selections yet, here they are:

Citi BCS National Championship Game
Texas vs. Alabama

FedEx Orange
Iowa vs. Georgia Tech

Tostitos Fiesta
Boise State vs. TCU

Allstate Sugar
Florida vs. Cincinnati

Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi
Ohio State vs. Oregon

I'm going to ignore the Rose and Orange bowls and focus on the other 3 bowls involving teams that have legitimate gripes with the BCS.

What the BCS, and specifically the selection committees, did here was set themselves up for a "we told you so" moment and essentially created the matchups in order to shed the system in the best light. Specifically, the Boise State-TCU matchup highlights what's wrong with the system and the screwing non-BCS conference schools get.

Here's what the BCS wants to happen, in my mind:

BSU-TCU: Who cares, one of the smaller teams takes out the other undefeated team

FLA-CINCY: Florida takes out Cincy

This leaves the Alabama-Texas winner the undisputed national title winner in the minds of those that run the BCS.

It's a shame they don't even have a plus one system this year because Texas, Alabama, TCU, and Boise State or Cincy (probably the latter), could really make for some entertaining games. Instead, we get the same junk again and two non-BCS teams playing each other instead of getting a shot at the big boys. The system is broken and has always been broken. Unfortunately, the money invested in the bowls and the current system will prevent it from being fixed anytime soon.

I'll take my tinfoil hat off now and hope Cincy beats Florida and that TCU-BSU is an entertaining game, causing BCS chaos. I really have no interest in watching B12 vs SEC football for the national title as it stands now.

Also, if you like cheap entertainment remember to follow @insidetheBCS on twitter. In order to make it easier to see what people think, check out this insidetheBCS twitter search. The public has spoken and they are pissed.

1	Alabama	13-0	1	2841	.9968	1	1470	.9966	1.0000	2	.998
2	Texas	13-0	2	2721	.9547	2	1409	.9553	.9200	3	.943
3	Cincinnati	12-0	4	2467	.8656	4	1280	.8678	.9300	5	.888
4	TCU	12-0	3	2579	.9049	3	1336	.9058	.8400	4	.884
5	Florida	12-1	5	2395	.8404	5	1240	.8407	.9100	1	.864
6	Boise State	13-0	6	2358	.8274	6	1216	.8244	.7800	6	.811
7	Oregon	10-2	7	2130	.7474	7	1096	.7431	.7800	7	.757

Edit: Added the final standings for the top teams. Notice Cincy was ranked 2nd by the computers and one loss Florida was ranked ahead of TCU. They also have Oregon and Boise State equal and well behind the rest. I'd love to know how the computers rank, too.

Another Day, Another Football Arrest

cougfan — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:33:20 -0000

Another Day, Another Football Arrest

Brandon Jones joins the party this time arrested for Assualt 4 DV.

Note: The link takes you to the Pullman PD logs. It is under November 30, 2009, case number 09-P09642. Same name, middle initial (C for Christopher), and birthday as cornerback Brandon Jones.

Two in a row: Klay gets another Pac-10 POW honor

cougfan — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 09:42:03 -0000

Two in a row: Klay gets another Pac-10 POW honor

29.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.0 steals in 3 games at the GAS. He's the 17th player to win it back-to-back all time.

So, in case anyone was wondering....Klay is still good. Real good

Coug Basketball Gets Some Love

cougfan — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:53:48 -0000

Coug Basketball Gets Some Love

From thebiglead, a well known national sports blog: "Thompson probably is going to be the Pac-10 player of the year, and the Cougars could be the third NCAA tournament team from that league this year."

Your Pac-10 Player of the Week: Klay Thompson

cougfan — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:13:45 -0000

Your Pac-10 Player of the Week: Klay Thompson

Like you expected any less after the week he had.

30.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. Not a bad week at all.

NCAA Basketball Ref Study Yields Predictable Results

cougfan — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:23:50 -0000

NCAA Basketball Ref Study Yields Predictable Results

The lesson here: be aggressive, push and shove, and the foul count will still end up even. NCAA refs want to appear fair so they strive for even foul counts. This should be obvious to anyone who's watched NCAA games.

Not mentioned by still relevant: Pac-10 refs are terrible.