Friday, June 19, 2015

Big Red Question Mark


Reis Seggebruch



The Cornell incoming class of 2018 is the only set of new freshmen I haven’t analyzed yet on the blog.

That’s because this is a very difficult crew to analyze and pick out 3-4 four standout players.

Thankfully, the official Cornell athletics website has decided to highlight some of their recruits using the assistant coaches to do the talking.

Based on some of that enhanced info, here are the Big Red newcomers that most caught my eye:

QB Dalton Banks has good size and comes from a decent football conference in San Antonio. He probably needs another year of development.

OL Zach Strong is a big load at 6-9 and 290 pounds coming in. He was a Georgia all state player, and looks ready to play.

RB J.D. PicKell, (not sure why the “k” is capitalized, but I’ll go with it), is smaller than his listed 6-0/200 pound numbers, but I like his speed.

And finally, I like LB Reis Seggebruch who is a converted nose tackle with a good knack for containing the run.

I know it’s not a long list, but Cornell is a program in trouble that would be under much more scrutiny if Columbia hadn’t been grabbing all the negative attention in the league the last two years.


I don’t know if Head Coach David Archer is in trouble as he enters his crucial third season in Ithaca. I don’t know for sure if Archer’s job is in jeopardy, but I would be surprised if it were. And with Columbia making a bold move to improve its program, Cornell’s big supporters will likely be asking when their administration will do the same. 

4 comments:

Coach said...

Re: Cornell- the previous 2 coaches (one being an alum) before Archer resigned. They both complained about the admissions disaster- Cornell admissions has been notorious for not accepting kids who fit within the Academic Index and the banding. Maybe Cornell will be the next stop for Mr. Fix-it, Rick Taylor.

Anonymous said...

Yes, Archer's situation is interesting. My take is he wasn't nearly ready to be a head coach. I think he got the job for some internal reason only the Cornell AD can explain. There were a lot more qualified candidates but as history shows, it has been really hit and miss with their hiring and they have paid the price for it when they make the wrong call. Archer has the right attitude for the job but is out of his depth. He needs a lot of help to get that program into competitive shape. It's kind of similar to Columbia, they need depth and reliable playmakers on the roster.

I'm not ready to count out Cornell since they are a spoiler team but I do wonder how much patience they will give Archer if they keep going belly up every season.

Coach said...

When a football program is as low as Cornell is, and admissions does not accept players that fit in the bands, the game is over until the administration makes a change. It would be interesting to know the number of players that Columbia has rejected these past few years that have fit in the bands. Hopefully, not many.

oldlion said...

I understand that portions of their once beautiful stadium have fallen into disrepair and are fenced off.