Leonard Hamilton has taken FSU as far as he can.  9 years ago when Coach Hamilton came to FSU he was known as a recruiter and a Defensive minded coach.  The same is true today.  He has consistently brought talent to FSU that we have never seen on the basketball court.  The kids are tough, they are good citizens and the play with heart throughout the game.  Nobody can question Hamilton’s defense,  it’s consistently performing at the upper echelons of college basketball.

The slams against Hamilton have been that he’s a poor developer of talent, that offensively he’s not getting it done, and that he’s a poor game day coach.  This is where I say Evolve or Go Coach.  Show us how wrong we are.  Get a bench coach that can develop these kids on the offensive side of the ball.  You are bringing in talent then letting them go and they only know half the game.  For God sakes manage the game.  Take a timeout to set a play at the end of a half, the game or in overtime.  Who knows you might actually get a shot off.

You said it your self  Coach, ” We’ve got to improve in some areas that have challenged us during the course of the year,” and “what we have to be careful of is not allowing a disheartening loss in the Sweet 16 to define our season.  We’ve come a long ways.  And I think that we have taken another step in the right direction.  We’re not satisfied with the fact that we’ve only made it to the Sweet 16.  But when you look at the big picture, you have to say that we are getting closer.”

Coach Hamilton and the men’s basketball team, worked their butts off and I’m proud of what they accomplished.  But that’s as good as it gets unless we develop an offense and manage the game better.  The question is has Coach Hamilton taken them as far as he can.  Unless he changes I think the answer to that is YES.

This is undoubtedly one of the most talented classes that FSU has signed. I love what Coach Fisher and his staff have put together. They have a class that is big, strong and fast. They filled holes they had in the team on both sides of the ball, but more importantly stockpiled talent that will serve the team well in the future. By all measures they are building toward a National Championship.

BUT!!!!! FSU has had great classes in the past. I’d say in the past 10 years FSU has consistently been one of the top underperformers when it comes to producing on the field. Now that seems to be changing. Coach Fisher and his staff seemed to turn a corner last year. They took a team that at the bottom in defense and Coach Stoops and staff coached them up. Coach Fisher stepped back on the offensive side of the ball and Coach Coley stepped in and kept the ball rolling offensively.

Time will tell how FSU will perform, but it doesn’t happen without coaching. It doesn’t happen unless the kids buy into the program. It won’t happen on athleticism alone, it happens when a players whole body, heart, mind and soul are in the game.

So here’s to hoping that Coach Fisher and staff get the most out of these young men. That they continue to mold and train them to be not just Noles but men as well.

Go Noles!!!!!!

The Good and there’s alot of it for me is as follows:

1. The succession from Bobby Bowden to Jimbo Fisher has occurred.  That’s not to say that Jimbo is the savior of the FSU program, although if you look at what he did on the offensive side of the ball you certainly have to be optimistic.  He’s also installing a “Nick Saban” like system at FSU where it’s about process and how you build a winning program.  Copying the best program in the nation isn’t a bad idea, and in Jimbo, FSU has a guy that knows how to do that.  But success isn’t guaranteed and we’ll have to see what happens.  But the program has a new direction and a clear leader for the next several years and to that I say AMEN brother, lets get behind him and see how he does.
2. There’s a new defensive staff in town.  Thanks to Jimbo he cleaned house and the new Defensive Coaching Staff led by Mark Stoops will begin an effort to improve the most abysmal defense in FSU history and on the lived at the bottom of the NCAA in defensive output.
3. Christian Ponder is back as well as a offensive line that has grown and matured together.  Ponder could in fact be a Heisman hopeful this year if his receivers hang on to the ball.
4. FSU has the talent to win.  They aren’t stocked with 5-stars but they aren’t trying to play with walk-ons either.  These kids have talent and with the coaching staff Jimbo has assembled and the changes in strength training and nutrition that have been put in place, these kids are being given the support they sorely needed.

The Bad:

1. The Bobby Bowden situation was poorly handled.  FSU bears part of the blame but the lion’s share goes to Bowden himself.  He refused to let go.  He put a school and a program that he loved in a very difficult position and held them hostage until his demand were met.  Not a selfless act and not the act of a friend that has the programs best interests at heart.
2. FSU is still stocked with talent from the previous regime.  These kids may or may not buy into the new philosophy.  These kids are not coached for success.  If they buy in things could swing positive quickly.  If they don’t, it may be another year before Jimbo’s team really begins to emerge.

The Unknowns:

1. Defense!!!!!!!  Mark Stoops can and will turn this defense around, the question is when.  Is it this year or next?  Who knows?  Oklahoma will offer the first real grade on FSU’s defensive revival so put 9/11 on your calendar for another reason.  Remember those that died in NY but also hope for a revival that lifts the FSU defense from the ashes.
2. Christian Ponder.  Is that arm 100%?  He sure looked good this spring.  How will he look this fall?
3. Offensive Playmakers.  Who steps up to be FSU’s featured back.  Eddie Gran’s not saying, but somebody has to and the same question can be asked of the wideouts.

Overall I’m very optimistic.  Can FSU contend for the ACC Title?  Yes!  Can they be a top 10 program this year?  Maybe!!!  Could they also finish at 7-5?  Yes.  Will they?  I don’t think so.  I’m also extremely bullish on what is happening in Tallahassee.  If any of the Mainstream Media would get out of their chairs and make the trip to Tallahassee, I think they would be also.

For FSU their savior was Breesus and the New Orleans Saints.  FSU chose yesterday to announce it assessment of game and event losses due the the academic fraud case that has swirled around the university for the last few years and the obvious hope is that it all gets washed away in the outpouring of love and support for the New Orleans Saints.

Listed below is what the FSU Athletic Department determined to be the official count of vacated wins for each sport.

FROM THE 2006-2007 BASEBALL SEASON:
4 victories total consisting of:
-3 Regular Season
-1 NCAA Post Season

FROM THE 2006-2007 MEN’S BASKETBALL SEASON:
22 victories total consisting of:
-19 Regular Season
-1 ACC Tournament
-2 NIT Post Season

FROM THE 2006-2007 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SEASON:
16 victories consisting of:
-13 Regular Season
-1 ACC Tournament
-2 NCAA Post Season

-AND FROM THE 2007-2008 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SEASON:

-6 Regular Season victories

FROM MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY:
-2006 ACC Championship – 2nd Place to 3rd Place
-2006 NCAA Regional – 1st Place to 2nd Place
-2006 NCAA Championship – Maintain 30th Place
-2007 ACC Championship – 3rd Place to 6th Place
-2007 NCAA Regional – 2nd Place to 4th Place
-2007 NCAA Championship – 20th Place to 25th Place

FROM WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY:
-2006 No Adjustments
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain Championship
-2007 NCAA Regional – Maintain Championship
-2007 NCAA Championship – 3rd to 4th Place

FROM THE 2006-2007 FOOTBALL SEASON:
5 victories consisting of:
-4 Regular Season
-1 Emerald Bowl Championship

-AND FROM THE 2007-2008 FOOTBALL SEASON:

-7 Regular Season victories

FROM MEN’S GOLF:
-No 2007 Regular Season Tournaments Won – No Wins Vacated
-2007 ACC Championship – 4th place to 6th  place
-2007 NCAA Regional – 5th place to 8th place
-2007 NCAA Championship – 13th place to 15th Place

FROM THE 2006-2007 WOMEN’S SOFTBALL SEASON:
32 victories consisting of :
-30 Regular Season
-2 ACC Tournament

FROM MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING:
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain 1st Place
-2007 NCAA Championship – Maintain 17th Place

FROM WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING:
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain 2nd Place
-2007 NCAA Championship – 17th place to 26th  place

FROM MEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD:
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain Championship
-2007 NCAA Championship – 2nd Place to 4th Place

FROM WOMEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD:
-2007 ACC Championship – 4th Place to 7th Place
-2007 NCAA Championship – Maintain 30th Place

FROM MEN’S  OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD:
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain Championship
-2007 NCAA Regional – Maintain 1st Place
-2007 NCAA Championship – 1ST place to 2nd Place

FROM WOMEN’S OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD:
-2007 ACC Championship – Maintain 3rd Place
-2007 NCAA Regional – 5th place to 6th place
-2007 NCAA Championship – Maintain 14th Place

As everyone can see this is about more than football.  This strikes at the heart of FSU as an ACADEMIC institution.  It calls into question the very reason for FSU’s existence.  This has been a major embarrassment to the university and to the past President TK Wetherell.  The NCAA investigated and has handed down it’s sanctions.  Hopefully the story is ending.  It’s now time for FSU to move forward and re-establish itself as a tier 1 research university and wipe the crud of this scandal off its shoes.

On the booster front, FSU is pressing hard to fill seats at Doak Campbell next year.  They entered into the 21st century and fired of emails to the booster organization, customizing a FSU jersey in the hands of Jimbo Fisher with your name on it.  OK this might seem a little quirky, but what ever is going on is working because donations are said to be vastly outpacing last year and things a pointing in the right direction for higher ticket sales and greater attendance at Seminole home games.

Fisher then set about assembling an all star staff.

Jimbo Fisher – Head Coach

Rick Trickett – Asst Head Coach & Offensive Line Coach

Eddie Gran – Associate Head Coach / Running Backs Coach & Special Teams Coach

James Coley – Offensive Coordinator & Tight Ends Coach

Dameyune Craig – QB Coach

Lawrence Dawsey – Passing Game Coordinator & Receivers Coach

Mark Stoops – Defensive Coordinator & Defensive Backs Coach

Greg Hudson – Asst Head Coach Defense & Linebackers Coach

DJ Eliot – Defensive Ends Coach

Odell Haggins – Defensive Line Coach

Vic Viloria – Strength & Conditioning

These guys are awesome.  They love working with the kids.  They love recruiting but more importantly they love their families and are committed to building a winning program and maintaining the balance in their lives that will keep them sane.

Finally, National Signing Day (NSD) has come and gone, but again FSU seemed to pull off the impossible.  When Fisher took the reins the class was projected as a top 20 class, nothing more.  But with his arrival can a renewed vitality and an apparent plane load of Cuban coffee for FSU’s recruiting guru James Coley.  Nobody knows how these kids will do in school.  But the clear fact in National Championships start with top 5 signing classes.  FSU didn’t quite get there this year, ESPN topped them out at #6.  But that is one heck of an improvement and seems to bode well for FSU’s climb back into national prominence.

It’s an absolute disgrace what has happened.  FSU let itself down, it let the student population down and disgraced State of Florida and sullied the reputation of a fine academic institution and anyone that has or will graduate for it.  That is TK Wetherell’s legacy, and the Athletics Department is complicit in this legacy.  FSU spent so much of its time as an institution trying to build Bobby Bowden’s legacy that it forgot it’s primary role was that of educators.

So that brings me to the continuing saga of the NCAA sanctions and yesterdays announcements by the NCAA and FSU.  As reported the NCAA announced its denial of the appeal and for its part FSU expressed its disappointment and astonishment that its arguments fell on deaf ears.  But it is what wasn’t said and what wasn’t done that grates at me.  In that position, FSU could have chosen two paths, extend the story (which they did) or end it.  They did their usual verbal dance around the issue and then said they had no idea how many games would be affected by this decision or how many championships would be vacated, and that it would take some time to figure all that out.  That they were so sure their appeal would win the day that they chose not to calculate these things in advance.  Thus guaranteeing that there will be additional stories about academic fraud at FSU.  What are these people thinking?  Can or will anyone rein them in?  Why not have the list prepared?  Why not announce immediately that here is the exact number of games we calculate, the exact number of championships to be vacated?

The picture says it all.  A few flakes are wrecking havoc on a great institution.  We need to eradicate these people from FSU.  TK Wetherell and Randy Spetman can’t go fast enough.    Eric Barron is FSU’s new president and he needs to bring this to a close.  He needs to restore academic integrity to FSU.  This insanity must end.  The story has to stop.  I look forward to the day that FSU is no longer linked to an academic fraud story.  FSU could have ended it yesterday instead of choosing to extend the story.  WHY????????

It’s a good question.  Arriving in 1976 he found a program is serious need of work, and off to work he went.   He spent the next decade recruiting staff, recruiting players, working boosters, working politicians and building a program that was dominate for it’s time.

Bobby rode that wave for over a decade and watched as his teams took on all comers and sent most home bloodied and beaten.  But the wave crested and he hasn’t been able to catch another one.  Countless blogs and sportswriters have detailed the mis-steps along the way, but I’d like to add to that that football is a young man’s game.  It’s not for the feint of heart.  It’s all about winners and losers and Coach Bowden has watched his team become accustomed to losing.

I don’t think we are the most talented team on the field any longer, but I do believe we aren’t far from it.  We need a few key players, especially on the defensive side of the ball.  We already have kids that other top programs like Florida, Alabama, Texas and USC have gone after, but we need more.

To do that Coach Bowden needs to stop looking back and start to look forward.  His career is behind him.  It’s time for him to retire.  Sit back and relax, enjoy your Saturday’s.  Let Jimbo start a new era at FSU.  Who knows if he is the right leader, but it is time for a new leader.  Your time at FSU is gone, it’s time for a new age at FSU.

Even the statue is pointing the way to the door.  Bobby Bowden is a Legend.  What he has done for Florida State, for Florida Football, and for NCAA Football is undeniable.  He helped define the measure of a successful program and set standards that even today are difficult to match, BUT (and you know what that means).

The game seems to have passed him by.  Maybe it’s that he doesn’t have it anymore.  Maybe it’s that he’s holding on too tight.  Maybe it’s that he is completely disengaged.  Maybe it’s that the organizational structure that exists at the top is organized like a bowl of spaghetti.  I don’t know.  I don’t think anyone knows.  I’m not sure there is any one cause, but what is evident is that there is a very vocal segment of the FSU family that is sure that the patriarch must go.

This seemingly was set off by the BC loss, but this has been long in coming.  For years there has been an undercurrent of discontent in the Seminole Nation.  But now that discontent has boiled to the surface.  When you analyze the teams performance, as Bobby says, we seem to be so close to getting it right.  But is this the team that will get it right and is this the staff to teach them how.  Increasingly it seems not.

FSU needs to move and move quickly.  Coming into the 09 season, many were hopeful for a good performance.  Perhaps a trip to the ACC Championship and maybe a BCS Bowl.  But that seems to be gone and with it seems to have gone hopes for the ’10 campaign also.  The offense has been moving the ball, but has struggled in the Red Zone and with turnovers.  Both of those can be fixed, easily, who knows but we do seem close there.  Defensively we seem lost.  We are being hammered with big plays and don’t seem to have the playmakers now or on the bench to close this gap.  That has truly savaged the Seminole Nation’s Spirit.  Unfortunately it is also affecting recruiting and calling into question the strength of the ’10 class of recruits.

So what can be done?  I don’t have a solution but I do have a suggestion.  Dragging Bobby through the mud will disenfranchise boosters and ex-players, many (some) that will believe FSU did Bobby a dirty.  So I’d argue that we keep him, and neuter him, if he’ll accept it.Keep him as head coach, but elevate Jimbo Fisher to Assistant Head Coach.  Bobby would have one report, Jimbo.  On the other hand everyone else would report to Jimbo.  That leaves him free to hire a new defensive staff if he’d like.  Mickey Andrews has been looking to retire for a while, so the Defensive Coordinator slot would open up and leave Jimbo the opportunity to evaluate the other coaches on their abilities and merits.  I question if Jimbo could pull off Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator, so does FSU/Jimbo need to look for or appoint his replacement on Offense.  YES!!!!!

I believe in this team and this school.  This can be done and this situation turned around.  There would be enough time to salvage some of the ’10 recruiting class and bring FSU back to National prominence sooner rather than later.  Bobby’s time is drawing to a close.  He knows it.  We know it.  It is important to handle this Legend with class and dignity.  I believe there is a way to do it, I hope someone figures it out.

This loss was worse than the Miami loss.  The Miami loss was a high energy frantic rush to the finish that we almost won.

The loss to USF was a beat down.  We lost in all phases of the game.  This was an organizational failure from top to bottom.

Coaches.  You can teach, but isn’t your job really to motivate.  Where was the motivation?  Why didn’t we play with any heart?  If you are Bobby Bowden, Jimbo Fisher, Mickey Andrews or anyone else on the coaching staff you have to be asking yourself why your message isn’t sinking in.  We knew this was USF’s “National Championship”.  We knew their kids would come in with chips on their shoulders from not playing at another major Florida Program.  So what.  This is OUR HOUSE.  NO ONE COMES INTO TALLAHASSEE AND DOMINATES US!!!!!  Until recently.  There is a malaise hanging over the program that needs to be blown away.  Only you coaches know what it is, but it has to be fixed.

Players.  Oh you dear things.  What are you doing?  You got blasted in every phase of the game.  Dropped passes, fumbles, poor blocking, missed defensive assignments.  You made USF look dominating.  They weren’t that good, don’t kid yourselves.  YOU WERE THAT BAD.!!!!!!!

Both coaches and players hold the future of the Seminole football program in their hands, and you risk squandering it.

Yes it was.  FSU suffered a heartbreaking loss to Miami Monday night.  It’s an instant classic, not for it’s skillful play but for the pure energy that it provided.  Neither team distinguished itself on defense or special teams and both teams can feel excited about their offense, but have to know that the production can against defenses that are riddled with question marks.

Coach Bowden’s description of the game yesterday was “we out-mistaked them”.  So true.  FSU didn’t make adjustments on defense to Miami’s first down passing attack.  They couldn’t get pressure on the quarterback.  They couldn’t slow Miami’s return team and more importantly couldn’t cover receivers in space.

An instant classic and a crushing loss for a team that thought it was on the precipice of greatness.  This lost will test their metal.  Saturday FSU starts back on the road to redemption.