Bick to BAYLOR???? Say it aint so Jack!!!

[Dawgbitten]

Dwayne, Quit trying to spin the Rice loss into something positive. It was an UGLY LOSS that shouldn't have happened.

These Rice wins that you speak of came against: Navy (won by 7),
SMU (won by12 points), and Tulsa (won by 15). They beat us by 17!!! You should also be bothered by this loss along with the SMU loss.

Rice's loss during this time came from UTEP! We will lose to them too if we play like we played those two!

Simple fact is we shouldn't have lost these two games and it is a darn shame our coaches and players could not find a way to win.

I hope you are right about these dividends for next year.

[DONW]

Dwayne,
I hope you're right about Bicknell being hired away from Tech and not fired. That means we're going to have a great season next year.

[Tech77]

Don, and all, we have got a young head coach who is operating with new assistants in several positions. I think he has learned some tough lessons this year. I hope so, for his sake and our's. We are not financially able to just say fire the coach and start over. Plus, I think any of that kind of talk is WAY premature anyway. We're all disappointed (frustrated, if you will :lol: ), but Coach Bicknell is going to be given more time to get this thing going in the right direction. There is just no doubt about that at all. Those calling for his head are just not facing facts. He will be given more time. I will be overjoyed if he can get things turned around, and I know you will be, too.

[touchdown123]

His learning season was in 2000. The year we lost to SFA and killed by Middle Tenn State! Similar to our Rice lose and SMU loss isn't it? This is his fourth year now, most of those players are recruited by him. Whatever our problem is, poor talent or bad coaching, it is his fault.

I babied his ass in 2000, I ain't gonna do it again.

[HounDoggy1]

DB,

As Dwayne said, "This is ONLY our second year of conference play and 90% of us would be thrilled if someone would have told have told us 18 months ago that our record would be (9-3) through 12 conference games"-

I take issue with part of what he said.

I think 100% should be, given the talent levels and lack of money... in comparison to those we've played.

[glm47]

Don, and all, we have got a young head coach who is operating with new assistants in several positions. I think he has learned some tough lessons this year. I hope so, for his sake and our's. We are not financially able to just say fire the coach and start over. Plus, I think any of that kind of talk is WAY premature anyway. We're all disappointed (frustrated, if you will :lol: ), but Coach Bicknell is going to be given more time to get this thing going in the right direction. There is just no doubt about that at all. Those calling for his head are just not facing facts. He will be given more time. I will be overjoyed if he can get things turned around, and I know you will be, too.

The man makes $250,000. I'm not interested in excuses, just results. His record speaks for itself.

[PawDawg]

He can't make the tough decisions. He has defensive players who have been in the system for three, four, five years who can't get the job done and have never gotten it done, but he refuses to admit as much by keeping them on the bench in favor of better athletes. He all but said this last night on the Growl. He insults the intelligence of DAWG fans by saying "everybody's about equal in talent". Bottom line........He doesn't want to hurt anybody's feelings. That's B.S.!!

I can't take credit for this quote, but I liked it................

"Bicknell is Carl Torbush with twice the personality."

[CaseyDawg]

Great Post Maddawg. I am tired of the excuses. I am tired of one good year followed by a bad one and wondering why we cannot build a fan base. I am tired of hearing about our players being seen out until 2 or 3 the night before a game (Nevada) and other disciplinary issues. I am tired of watching us fall apart in the second half. Most of all, I am tired of getting beat by teams with less talent.

I refuse to believe that Rice or SMU had more talent than us. If they do then our coaches need to find better players.

[Dawgbitten]

Houndoggy,
If someone would have told me that 2 of those 3 losses came from teams equivalent to the ULS or a weak MAC team, I would NOT have been thrilled! Sure the 9 game win column looks good, but not the losses to those two.

I also don't buy into to the money excuse any more. Look at Bowling Green. If you think JA looks small, drive by their stadium sometime. Hell, they are so poor they have come to JA for a pay check a time or two.

Read up on how the BG coach turned their team around a couple of years ago and how he takes ZERO Sh** from his players and expects excellence from them. Sure they are in the MAC and have played patsies from the Big 12, BUT they are winning on their level. We can't even do that.

[HounDoggy1]

DB, one of those UL teams had one of our former and highly touted coaches at the helm for three years and recruited 95% of the starters they have this year.

And be careful about thinking we are all that much better than they --- as MOST of OUR skill players basically have equal talent.

The ONLY difference is where they came from. Some north of Bunkie, the others south.

Both coaching staffs are having trouble getting less talented players to perform to OUR expectations and cater to OUR competitive egos.... (less talented in terms of what is left after major programs take what they want.)

We have to be able to walk before we can run.... and in both situations, coaches have a difficult road when trying to coach less talented players and placing their fortunes on those that were not as talented or as easy to coach as players in thier former jobs.

It's a frustrating experience and those who are accomplishing it at places like Bowling Green are just plain lucky. When the BG glitter wears off and this group of players graduates, replacing them with players who will keep them winning consistently will be few and far between.

[Dirtydawg]

DB, one of those UL teams had one of our former and highly touted coaches at the helm for three years and recruited 95% of the starters they have this year.

Well, that sure is a brilliant statement. Considering he was the coach there for the past several years and that Bustle only took over for this year, who else would have recruited the starters?

[Dawgbitten]

When that group of players are gone? The guy ran off about 25 of the players soon as he took over in '99. I only counted 17 seniors on the roster. I don't know how many of those are starters and he is loaded down with freshmen. He also has an Evangel player on the roster. Hmmmmm.

He lost 9 games in '00 and then went 8-3 last year. He may go undefeated this year! That is FAR from luck! That is coaching.

We do not recruit the same talent as the Uls anymore. Sure we may get a few that had a ul on their list, but the ULs are recruiting against Southland schools still. Please don't insult our players like that. They may not be playing to their potential, but they are far superior to the ULs talent wise.

[StrayDawg]

I agree DB. Coaching can overcome lots of problems or it can cause them. One of our biggest problems right now is that the coaches have no control over what happens on their own team. Players staying out late is both a lack of dedication on the part of our players and a lack of discipline on the part of our coaches for not having bed checks.

HounDoggy1----again, I'm glad that you are so dedicated to our programs, but it seems that you go pretty far out of your way sometimes to make excuses for the shortcomings of people who are paid very well to get results. Saying that Bicknell is "learning" assumes that he doesn't know what he is doing now. How many times are we going to give him entire years to "rebuild" when he has been here for four years and is now living off of his own talent?....talent that doesn't respect his position as head coach.

If Baylor is looking to become a competitor in the Big XII, this is not the type of coach they are looking for. If they are looking for a young guy they don't have to pay much money, then Bicknell is perfect for them. He would be a lower paid coach in the Big XII, but still make more than he does at Tech. Plus, the attention that is paid to the Big XII is much better than the WAC.

I can understand some of JB3s perdicament. He is in a position that is scrutinized by lots of people and he probably feels that playing conservatively is a good way to not get fired. Problem is that playing conservatively can lose games, which is a great way to get fired.

Bottom line is if Baylor writes Oakes a check to buy out Bick, I say we take it. Use the money to pay off some of the atheletic debt hanging over our heads and that can free us up to pay more in the future. Conroy is probably high on the list to succeed Bick as HC, but I would like to see Rick Smith in there too, even though the D hasn't done what we thought it would. A coach can't succeed without the respect and dedication of his players.

I also like DawgBitten's idea of hiring a guy from Bowling Green or another school in a small conference. The WAC does get better exposure than many conferences, and while we are not on the same level as the Big 10 or the Big XII, we do find ourselves in a position where we can now recruit from some other schools rather than always being the guys that other schools come to to pluck promising young coaches from winning programs.

I'm leaving tonight to go to San Jose. If anyone is there this weekend, I'll probably see you there.

Go Dogs! Turn this thing around!! :arrow:

[Bill Pup60]

Seems that the general consensus on this thread is that JBIII could not really be in the running for a step upwards, ven if it was to Baylor. ( And that would not be that much of a step.)

But perception is 80% of the game. And it appears that JBIII has something that the media likes. Today in the Houston Chronicle there was a big article about coaches on the hot seat. As a sidebar they had a list of the "hottest prospects" for moving up in to some of these positions. Had about 10 names, I think. Anyway. Jack Bicknell III was prominently listed. The clip on him said.. "having a down year now, but is an offensive guru...."

So anything could happen. This ain't rocket science and the dolts who run many of these programs do good to find their way to the office in the morning.

[PawDawg]

The clip on him said.. "having a down year now, but is an offensive guru...." - Quote provided by Bill

Yeah is is a genious. We had folks in the stands last year calling the plays in the Tulsa game. "JOE, JOE, JOE!!!" .................and it was a darn good thing, because he apparently hadn't thought of giving Joe the ball against the worst defense in the WAC while the winds were gusting up to 50 mph.