This was about all we saw of Brett Nottingham last season
It would be an understatement to say that Columbia needs
several of its players to bounce back for a better 2014 season.
And I’m already impressed by some of the players who have
decided to stick with the program and are showing a solid commitment to the Lions.
Two of them impress me the most.
First off is QB Brett
Nottingham. He could have ditched the team very easily after he injured his
wrist in the opener at Fordham and then saw the disastrous 2013 season unfold
before him.
He could have just focused on his studies and his future
career prospects, or even transferred to yet another school.
But he’s stayed in Morningside Heights, and for that you
have to color me impressed.
I was the leader of the “pinching ourselves crew” last year
when we first learned that the highly-regarded Stanford QB was coming to CU.
Perhaps seeing him knocked out of the season in week one was the price we had
to pay for that good fortune.
So now we get a “do over” and Nottingham has even changed
his number from 12 to 3 perhaps to remind us of the renewed hopes for a new year.
Nottingham may or may not put up big numbers this year. I’m
just not convinced Columbia has the O-line or the running game to keep him free
of enough pressure to excel. But it sure looks like he has the heart to make
things happen if he can get the minimum amount of help he needs.
Speaking of that help, the CU coaching staff owes Nottingham
a much better game plan and protection policy for this season and for the opener
against Fordham in particular. The Rams put a bounty on Nottingham’s head last
year and they collected it. Simply put, the Fordham game is just not important
enough to endure the undue risk of losing Nottingham again. I’m sure Brett is a
fierce competitor and will want to throw the ball and face the rush in every
single game, but we don’t have to let him commit suicide.
The next “comeback kid” for 2014 is WR Connor Nelligan.
Injuries drastically shortened his junior year in 2013 but
now he’s back in hopes of leading the receiving corps this fall. His challenges
are more physical than anything else; he has the support of this coaching staff
despite the fact that they did not recruit him.
So his fight to get back to the top of the WR depth chart,
(as far as we know), is impressive and highly appreciated. He could finish his
career with a bang-up season.
But there’s a good chance neither Nottingham nor Nelligan
will be able to really enjoy this season unless at least one of two of their
teammates has a solid comeback year.
Kendall Pace, 76, was a spectator to scenes like this all too often last year
Those players are Left Tackles Keith Ramljak and Kendall Pace.
Ramljak was pressed into service in the crucial “blind spot”
position as a freshman in 2012. He wasn’t stellar, but he showed some potential
and grit. Then he was injured for just about all of last season and everything
went on hold.
I’m holding out hope that Ramljak will be effective this
year. Based on his picture here, let’s hope
he’s spending more time in the weight room than he is with his personal
stylist.
Mangurian is still very high on Pace and continues to go out
of his way to say he’s a potential star. But frankly he looked just awful last
year as he was clearly not ready to play the position. It just wasn’t fair to
him and all the CU QB’s to put him out there and he was the prime example of
why it’s a big mistake for Columbia not to have a JV program like every other
Ivy team.
Okay, it’s a new year and there’s hope that Pace will be
much improved this time around. Or if he needs another year to prepare for
effective varsity play, so be it. We just can’t have a repeat of his
performance from last season.
Football is a team sport that relies on team coordination more than any other. Thus, the
efforts and talents of Nottingham and Nelligan could really go for naught if
the offensive line doesn’t show major improvement.
Let’s hope the commitment Nottingham and Nelligan have shown
will serve as an effective inspiration.
39 comments:
While the coaching staff deserves a lot of criticism for the team's extremely poor preparation last year, one mitigating factor is that Nottingham, Nelligan, Connors and Ramjlak were probably four of the six best players on O (with Garrett and Garner) and all of them much missed most of the season. Connors and Nelligan are both all-Ivy quality WRs, not just adequate starters. We had very few highlights last year but Connors' play against Yale was off the charts. Nine catches, few of them easy. If this core could stay healthy, we might be competitive in a few games. Granted, that's not saying much but we do have a few very good players.
Jake, do you literally mean that there was a bounty on Nottingham last year? Or was that hyperbole? Because if you have information to that effect, then it is even more reason to drop them from the schedule.
There was no specific "bounty," but there was a lot of talk in the Fordham locker room and practices in the days before the game about the Stanford golden boy.
The injuries hurt the team. Whenever you lose a QB and two proven receivers it's gonna sting but it's an opportunity for someone to step in and step up. Pace has a lot to prove this year but I wouldn't say he was as bad as you write Jake. As you wrote last year and the Spectator reported, Marcouros had most of his yardage, long runs and scores behind Pace. For the youngest player in the entire NCAA he was ok. His pass pro has to catch up with his run blocking.
While Pace wasn't ready to play last year, I did see some real potential on running plays. He is a very athletic guy, especially for his size, has the ideal frame to play left tackle, and will turn out to be a very good player if he can learn pass protection. I also,want to concur in Roar Lion's comments about Chris Connors. He knows how to run pass routes and has excellent hands, something I didn't see from the first year receivers.
I haven't see the spectator stats but I don't buy it. Every big run and catch I have seen by Marcorus that stands out is when he goes to the right.
Pace was simply not ready for the level of play last year. That's what you get what you rush a freshman into PT.
I love how the age of pace is in the excuse. He was terrible and was one of the weakest players on the team.
The Olay block is one of his favorites.
If he isn't at the level he should not play as it does a disservice to all involved.
Why is our o line so bad when we have an nfl online coach on the payroll? Just a thought
KP is now the youngest 18 Y/O in the entire NCAA... so what?!!! Both KP and Ramjlak should have been playing JV last year to adjust to the size, strength, and speed on this level of play. Neither would have seen time on any other Ivy, except maybe Cornell. Enough with the excuses and rationalization of last year's catastrophic season. We all no the reason why that happened. We just have to prepare ourselves for the inevitable. Regardless if we play Fordham the first game, or the 5th game of the season, we're doomed because of what this Staff has put out on the field. I know it, you know it, and the blind NHDC knows it. It's just shameful because we already know how this movie will end before it starts.
What you guys fail to understand is that he was the best we had. So ready to play or not is irrelevant. Anybody else would have been even worse. Pace answered the call and gave it his best effort.
Any roster updates?
What a coincidence. Guess who's on the Columbia football poster? Karma
This is amazing. We're celebrating someone's image getting on a poster. This is what we've become as a fan base. Wins don't happen, so we're excited about who gets their face on a poster. Pathetic.
Old Lion: Roster looks the same to me today. Remember, this regime is not as quick to delete names as the Norries Wilson guys were. We had some players remain on the roster all last year even though they were gone from day one.
somehow the image on a poster equates to being good? like i said in another post, what if this is as good as it gets and according to Danny White, it is.
as the line from a great movie goes...OH the Horror...
And for the record... we once had a poster cover boy in 2005, Alex Erhardt I think was his name, who was OFF the team before camp even started!
Wasn't celebrating Jake. Letting you guys know the poster is out and who was on it.
And you guys think I go over the top sometimes. Jake you made a simple statement into something it wasn't. Then the rest of these guys jump on not knowing what they are talking about. Who cares about the player on the cover in 2005?
Danny, please stop insulting everyone's intelligence and embarrassing yourself. In the context of a debate over how food Pace was as a player, you triumphantly posted the fact that he now appears on a poster promoting the season. Don't pretend that you just meant that as a passing comment on an unimportant thing, it's obvious you meant it as a big deal. Meanwhile, the bigger question is who exactly has even seen this poster? I had to search a long time before I finally found it on the CU football Facebook page that hardly anyone sees. The fact is that while I may be the biggest public critic of this program, I'm also the only one really promoting the players and the team in any evident way. Where's the article on the team website about the start of camp? Where are ANY player profiles? The other Ivy squads are already campaigning for attention for their players. We're still asleep. Well, not me... I've already profiled more players than the athletic dept. and the team will probably all season long. They may hate me over at Dodge Hall and the Campbell Center, but I sure do their jobs for them, don't I?
Jake I was not boasting about anybody. I said look at the coincidence at who's on the poster since he was a topic discussed. The problem with blogging is there is no context and people believe another's intent falsely. Your rant seemed angry and I could be wrong. The posters are all over Broadway and Amsterdam in store fronts and of course all over campus. I would say that's a form of marketing the team.
Okay, okay Danny I'll take your word for it. But I stand by my statement about promoting the team. I'm still doing the job for the program and honestly, I wouldn't mind taking a break.
Actually Danny, people who post here can form their own opinions. While Jake's info is a good read and useful, there's no bandwagoning and there never has been as far as I have seen for several years back.
You are the one who gets his panties in a bunch and attempts to rile others (definition of a troll).
Al, you are thousands of miles away and thusly irrelevant. Also, conditioning tests are complete and so is individual testing. Molina ran a 4.49 and Watson ran a 4.61. Augie ran a 4.57
When Al apologizes for his usual talk I will share the 10 fastest and 10 slowest 40 times. I get banned for what you allow Al to say freely.
DW- Do you ralize that you're acting like a child? How about you keep your covert 40 times and stay off the Blog. BTW, we don't care how fast they can run, they need to play better as a team! Seriously, what a ZERO!
#1 lion, a child complains about the same things on this blog every time they post so that makes you the child. At a minimum I contribute to this site with information that no one else has other than Pat and maybe Jake. So childish or not at least I bring something to the forum. Don't read from here on #1 since you are not interested. Here is a teaser fellas. These are averaged over two forty attempts. Fastest: Roane 4.42 Slowest: Wales 6.09. Also, no starters failed the conditioning test. Those that were not on campus this summer came back in great shape. However, there were more than a couple failed test and they are retaken each morning until passed.
Danny, I am with you versus the goons on this site (who are obviously the ones with their panties in a bunch, though of course they would deny it). The info you get is great, I had no idea that Molina is that fast! You have at least one appreciative audience, so keep it coming!
Roane did an average of 4.42? What about the WRs?
Danny
Can you explain to us why the staff is so lousy at communicating with the former players, alums, and fans?
Tell us who is going to surprise us this year, tell us if there are any impact freshman, tell us who is going to make a difference this year for us, tell us what a realistic expectation is for us. Will we be last in the league again? How long is it going to take Pete before we are a bona fide Ivy League program?
Give us some hope for crying out loud! I am begging you!
Danny, no doubt many athletes from all levels can put in great times at whatever conditioning drills. That is not impressive and inside info is not impressive when the tool delivering the info believes he is incognito.
WOF, try waiting for game time to get the hope you crave. My feeling is we'll be pleasantly surprised, Those who count us out before the season even starts do us a major disservice
On the other hand I can tell that even Jake is warming to the prospect of some good times ahead.
Danny, I don't see the point in reporting the slowest times, all you do is risk embarassing those players.
Danny,
Please tell me why the most important time in football, the 20 yd shuttle, has never been reported by the Columbia staff. Maybe they feel is is not useful info? Not sure if they even run that test. 40 yd speed is a key factor for WRs, but quickness is the best way to evaluate the remaining players.
Ask yourself how many times does anyone have to run an all out 40 yds in a game compared to a short 20 yard spurt.
Also, 3 of the 4 Under the Radar players are from Texas.
I'm back to keep an eye on The Wingman.
The only number that really counts is 0-10. For an 0-10 team to be crowing about speed stats is reason #112 why the rest of the league is rightfully laughing at us. And the ONLY way to get them to stop laughing is to beat them.
Meanwhile, I have another serious problem with some of these numbers and what they tell us about position choices:
Whatever Roane's real numbers are in the 40, he's clearly a serious speedster. He's also listed at 6-0 and 190 pounds. So he has super speed, (reportedly) and good size with lots of experience as an RB. Why the heck, then are our coaches putting him at DB? Should we be getting someone who's that fast and is not a Hobbit in size the ball AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE? I mean, I know the Ivy League is gaining in quality, but someone with Roane's speed would be able to turn the corner on 95-99% of the linebackers in this league and plenty of the safeties too.
As one of my fellow fans said when he first noticed this anomaly, "Something's wrong with this picture."
Jake,
You hit the nail on the head about Roane's speed and questionable DB positioning, however you miss the point about speed tests.
I don't think Danny was bragging, but the tests should be an evaluation tool to determine best possible position for each player., as you have pointed out with Roane.
My observation of pre-game practice
last year showed the player with the best hands on the team was DB named Peoples. Insiders confirm this observation. He was running back punts and kick offs when the WRs were dropping balls left and right.
Maybe Danny can confirm this.
Yes, I think it's amazing how often we see players who are simply out of position based on what they played when we recruited them. Best example is Marcellus Wiley. Thank God Tellier took notice of his physical changes and moved him from RB to DE.
With around 100 players on the roster each year, we're bound to have some guys who are not where they should be. Every coach needs to be very ready to NOT be loyal to the old plans and rip them up quick.
Re speed and RBs: balance is critical. That is why so many RBs are under 6', the most notable exception at Columbia being J Reese, who was around 6'1" and had phenomenal balance. So for all we know Roane may be best suite at DB even if he is the fastest guy on the team.
You may be right Old Lion, but you'll forgive me if I'm still concerned by a fast DB with bad balance who makes his living by running backwards a lot.
I am not saying that Roane has bad balance, only that great RBs usually have great balance. My guess is that Roane projected better as a DB, in which his speed will be hugely important.
Speed certainly isn't the only factor in determinig the best position for a player, and Roane's primary position in high school was DB, not RB, which says a lot.
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