Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Copy and Improve


Tony Reno


Here’s how you know you have a good recruiting class: you get more than one or two players who had actual scholarship offers from FBS schools.

And so, I give you the Yale football class of 2018 , or what we know of it so far.

In addition to the list of the players in the link above from The New Haven Register, the Yale Daily News today interviews a few of the commits personally.

I don’t mean to puff up Yale unnecessarily. The fact is, I don’t like Tony Reno is as good an overall leader as he is a recruiter. But he IS a very good recruiter and we should learn some lessons from him. While we’re taking multiple players from individual schools like Norfolk Academy, (again, did I mention that I WENT to Norfolk Academy??? That should give you an idea about how good a football factory that place is), Reno doesn’t even have more than one player from any single STATE.

Instead of the “we know better approach” Pete Mangurian is using for everything from eliminating JV football to insisting on immobile/non-running QB’s, we should be employing the “copy and improve” method when it comes to what our Ivy rivals are doing.  

Speaking of Mangurian, he was quoted today in an article in the Altoona Mirror about Penn State’s new QB’s coach, Ricky Rahne.

Rahne spent his first three years as a player under Mangurian at Cornell from 1998-2000.  

Here’s what Mangurian said:

"The biggest thing about him is the moment never gets too big for him," said Pete Mangurian, Cornell's head coach during Rahne's first three years. "He's very calm. He's one of those guys that's an emotional player, kind of wears it on his sleeve a little bit, which is a good thing. But as the pressure mounts and the stakes get higher, he tends to calm down and get much more focused. The thing that's important about Ricky is I believe he'll be able to transfer that calmness and that kind of 'close everything out and focus on the moment' to the player."


Well, I’m sure glad that Mangurian values QB’s who are calm under pressure. Maybe that’s what he was trying to find out about our players over the last two years when he put them behind an offensive line that would Minister Maginot proud. 


Fun Viewing

Check out the old film of the 1968 Dartmouth Indians that Bruce Wood put up on his site the other day.

The film includes highlights of Marty Domres and the Lions coming into Hanover late that season.


Hoops Stat

I just saw this fun stat from the Ivy League Sports offices:

"Princeton & Columbia lead the NATION in lowest % of shots as 2pt jumpers & they both force an above avg % by oppts."

So, we shoot from long range and we don't let opponents do the same to us.

Discuss.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

It would be more interesting to hear what Rahne has to say about Pete off the record!

Seriously, has any player at any point ever had positive feedback about Pete? Rahne would be diplomatic certainly but who, other than Wendell Davis (because Pete gave him a job)?

Unknown said...

Lol Jake, CU has TWO kids with FBS offers from the SAME school! Hows that supporting your post. I know you said more than two, but the complete class isnt out yet. So are you willing to admit PM and company have a good recruiting class?????? Dont forget about the players they beat Harvard,Brown,Yale and Cornell out for. And what about kids that had scholarship offers from other FCS schools? But that wouldnt fit into your agenda now would it...lol.

Unknown said...

You guys are too negative. Why would Rahne have anything bad to say about PM off the record when they WON together? Jake, you went to that school in Virginia 100 years ago so explain to me how football at the school then is relevant to present day?As for FBS guys, Nottingham and Hilinsky are those same guys you speak of. And Garrett didn't have any offers and became first team All-Ivy so what's your point? Yale hasn't been winning either!

Unknown said...

after seeing the link showing the Yale recruits, i see more than one player from SIX different states, and TWO players from the SAME school. Get it together man. We know you dislike PM and Co. but before you get on them have your argument and facts together! GEEEZZZZ!

Anonymous said...

I don't remember Rahne as a player other than his name and stats showing up in game reports so I can'say for sure...BUT, when a team that normally struggles (like Cornell, pick a season other than '71, '88 and '90) a good QB can get you over the hump. And they didn't win that much. Cornell did better than they normally would with Rahne.

I am curious what Rahne would have to say about the experience with Pete as HC. I don't know if it would be positive or negative. i am interested to know if anyone ever has benefited from his coaching - ever.

Unknown said...

Alswingman, you don't sound very intelligent. PM coached in the NFL for a long time. He was obviously doing his job and benefitting players and franchises or he wouldn't have lasted 10 mins. He also improved the Cornell program during his tenure. Just because YOU don't like the guy doesn't mean everybody hates him.

Anonymous said...

Your personal attack is laughable as is your retort. Please do some research, on this board and elsewhere> Come up with some solid details as to Pete's effectiveness and the results. Note the conditions for his exits from his previous positions. I'll give you a hint: he obviously hit a plateau when he was overlooked to be promoted from TE coach to OC in New England. It is a privilege to coach in the NFL no doubt and kudos for making it that far in his career but he is a lousy coach.

Unknown said...

I guess I'm with Danny. How can you coach and last for TWENTY yes in NFL and be a lousy coach? I thought he left NFL for Cornell and vise versa. The present RB coach C Nice played for PM at Cornell, I guess he liked him :)

WOF said...

I find it comical that Pete ia willing to an interview with the Altoona mirror but he continues to be in witness protection program when it comes to fans, alumni and former players for Columbia.

I remain, very truly yours, Richard Szathmary said...

I suspect, whatever Columbia's sports info people want to suggest, that our 13-6 record so far owes far more to the simple fact that Columbia generally dominates the boards every game. And to the general poise Columbia displays. This is a well-coached team.

At the Cornell game, a Cornell fan sitting behind me remarked on CU staring games named Cohen and Rosenberg. (Who's starting to remind me of long-ago NYU great Barry Kramer.) So I mentioned to her that Cohen is in fact our leading rebounder. I then passed her the program so she could see where Cohen went to h.s., a Christian academy in Florida.

"That settles it," she said. "He's gotta be a convert. Probably Rosenberg too."

Jake said...

What, you never heard of a mixed marriage? Rosenberg btw is the full deal. Even went to play in Israel this summer.

Anonymous said...

An interesting point is raised. Would Pete be vilified as much if his name was Itzhak Cohen?

You can do anything for 20+ years and still be bad at it. We all cross paths with people in careers that are like that. Networking.

Pete was obviously liked by Dan Reeves and as said, kudos on the accomplishment of being hired in the NFL - by the same guy (Reeves). He never rose above position coach anywhere except as an interim OC when someone else was fired and he was never considered for higher NFL positions. He won a handful of games at Cornell.

That's show biz. Congratulations, now hit the bricks.

Unknown said...

Lol. You guys hatred is laughable. You forgot to mention he was hired by someone not named reeves in Tampa and new england. Get your facts straight, he was promoted in 2003 to OC, no interim tag. Wikipedia is a great tool, use it.And show me a coach in the NFL that hasn't been fired before, comes with the job. And most coaches get their jobs through networking, welcome to reality. We're stuck with PM for a least another yr, quit crying about it and try to be positive....geeez.

Anonymous said...

Bob, as stated many times already Pete was fired from Tampa because his players thought he was a jerk and not communicating well. Imagine that. NFL players, probably in their 20's, under the most junior, under-prepared head coach in NFL history (Raheem Morris) gets Pete fired for being "abrasive". So the joke is on CU because that is the same guy supposedly relating to CU players now.

Pete was TE coach for Belichick, bypassed for an open OC position, pouted and left.

As for being positive, everybody wants to see the team do well but supporters of the program also deserve to have a head football coach that steps up and takes accountability instead of casting blame away from himself.

Bob and other Pete apologists, before you reply, just think about what Jake has been asking for - evidence that Pete has the program headed in the right direction as his backers claim. Good recruiting class, let's see what he can do, but what else ya got?

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Ungvar said...

Pat Denny, 6'3" 265 lbs, C, Fox Chapel HS, Pittsburgh, P
A

http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1681146/pat-denny#

Big Dawg said...

This is starting to seem like WW I trench warfare. We are saying the same things repeatedly.

The argument devolves upon two positions: Pro PM = "The cupboard was bare", the upper classmen had bad attitudes, he wanted a faster team, he wanted his guys. He needed time to put his stamp on the team.

Anti PM = he dissed his starters, he ignored quality/experienced players, the basic skill sets were lacking, he dissed the parents and the fans, his play calling/strategy was problematic, he was 0-10.

Now we will have him for year 3, for better or worse. This will be his year to live or die. The team is his, there are no longer any excuses. The only question now is what defines "success" in year 3? What is the magic number?

My personal thoughts? I think the terrible basic skills I constantly saw displayed by players and the game tactics I saw, along with his terrible PR skills, show a profound set of weaknesses. But again, year 3 will tell the tale.

Unknown said...

well said big dawg. I will join the other side of PM haters if he doesnt turn things around...4 wins or better is the standard for me!

Unknown said...

and al, what coach has ever had CU headed in the right direction? is it PM problem that he is in a long line of losing coaches here at CU? he's only in yr 3(give him a chance with his guys), instead of FIRING guys every 2-4 yrs, let them ride it out and see what happens, everything else hasnt worked!

Unknown said...

My two cents. I just believe that you let a coach play out their contract and you support them thru the process. Coaching is not easy and it damn sure isn't easy at an institution with a losing history that goes back to the Romans. Let the coach do his job and make changes

Unknown said...

if necessary.

WOF said...

Bob and Danny

It is just so frustrating when it is obvious he is his own worst enemy and he is missing so many opportunities to garner support from within the alumni, fans, and former players.

He has made his challenge so much harder by the way he has handled so many things...

Anonymous said...

The BGA Dartmouth film is hilarious. Love seeing the full stands and the (much larger in those days) Ivy marching bands.

Princeton still does bonfires, if they win the Big 3. Does anyone else still do them?