IIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTT’SSSSSS MONDAY!!!!
And…..it’s not a victory Monday, for the first time following a game this season. I was there and saw the dog turd of a performance firsthand. Plenty to say, so let’s get down to it. I don’t have a quirky intro today. Not in the mood.
1) That was as helpless a defensive performance as I’ve seen in a while.
There have been steaming turds of performances over the years, including under Mario (MTSU, Duke, etc.), but watching a half-healthy Haynes King run THE SAME DAMNED PLAYS over and over and over again and continually gashing the Canes defense was one of the most frustrating experiences of my football watching days.
The players have plenty of blame. I saw a defensive front that couldn’t win at the point of attack. That took bad angles. That lost one on one to their blocker for most of the game. I saw a lot of the back of Georgia Tech OL jerseys down the field.
And to me, it looked like a group that wasn’t well prepared. I don’t know if that’s on Jason Taylor, Joe Salave’a, Lance Guidry, whoever. They were a big reason in my mind why the Canes fell flat on Saturday afternoon.
2) The linebackers weren’t any better.
Guys were out of position and run fits were bad. That was evident on the second (I think) play of the game where the Georgia Tech defender broke through the line and tore off a 65-yard gain that really set the tone for the day. Kiko was bad in coverage and was on skates on that slip screen touchdown on third down to the running back.
A really gross day all around for the front seven.
3) I felt, at times, like I was watching Lance Guidry impersonate Mark D’Onofrio in Atlanta.
You all know the meme/joke by now. The one from a decade or so ago where D’Onofrio’s secondary was WAAAAAAAY back in the end zone on goal to go. I felt like that at times on Saturday with the Canes’ defense. Fans around me were all marveling at how far back the Canes’ safeties were despite the constant rushing attack. Didn’t see really any run blitzes to speak of or any major tweaks to try to force Georgia Tech to do something. I know that can be dangerous against a read option offense, but sometimes you’ve got to try SOMETHING to force a negative play and get a 3, 4, 5, 6 yards at a time offense to play off schedule and behind the sticks. That did not happen nearly enough, and that, to me, falls on the defensive coordinator.
Mario Cristobal had better be having a damned serious conversation with Guidry over this bye week because his defense is going to be the reason this team loses another game and misses the playoff, which is inconceivable with this offense but very possible.
4) Speaking of offense, I have a message to Cam Ward: TAKE OFF AND RUN THE DAMNED BALL WHEN IT’S THERE!!!! TAKE THE DUMP OFFS WHEN THEY’RE THERE!!!!
The number of times that Ward continues to hang in the pocket for 4, 5, 6 seconds looking 20-25 yards down the field is maddening at times. An 8-yard run is a good play on 2nd and 10, and with his athleticism, he can make a guy miss and get past the marker. That needs to happen WAYYYYYYY more than it has the last several weeks. And the checkdown passes need to happen more often instead of hanging onto the ball and risking a sack.
In short, sometimes you’ve got to take what the defense is giving you.
5) However, at least the Virginia Cavaliers delivered the Canes a gift on Saturday night with an upset of Pitt.
That put the Canes right back in control of their destiny again. At this point, if Miami can find a way to win at home against a bad Wake Forest team that just lost by 10 at home to Cal and then get a win at Syracuse, all of their season goals will still be there, and this gross loss will be far less painful in retrospect.
Of course, the Canes lost their path to a playoff spot if they made it to Charlotte undefeated and lost, but hey, it should have always been about winning the ACC anyways. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself.
We’ll see if the soul searching and evaluation gets this team, particularly this subpar defense, to play any better when the Canes take the field for Senior Day next Saturday against the Demon Deacons.
Go Canes!