11-22-2021, 10:20 AM
(11-22-2021, 09:45 AM)Jamesy Wrote:(11-22-2021, 07:30 AM)Austroturf Wrote: I would contend that the decline, though less obvious, started even earlier. As has been pointed out by other Cardboard members, the largest single issue on the team today is soft and deficient line play. An erstwhile strength of the Stanford team identity has become a liability, as we are being regularly dominated in the trenches. This decline was already partially apparent in 2015, but really hit hard during the 2016 season. The 44-6 drubbing at the hands of the Dawgs in Seattle was primarily due to a complete failure of both lines -- an anemic performance that had never been seen before in the halcyon Harbaugh-Shaw days. McCaffrey (fresh off his Heis-man runner-up season) couldn't even crack 50 yards rushing. It was an embarrassment for the prior year's Rose Bowl champions and #7 team in the nation (at the time). Not coincidentally, it should be noted that this was two seasons after Turley's promotion (2014) to director of sports performance at Stanford, removing him from 100% dedication to the football program. This game made it clear that Stanford's days as bully of the block were over, at least temporarily: no more "intellectual brutality", or "revenge of the nerds", or "party in the backfield". The Dawgs picked our lines to pieces that day.
If there is one single statistic that best illustrates the decay in the prowess of both the O-line and our defensive front seven, it is the differential between rushing yards gained and rushing yards allowed. Whereas our best teams in the past dominated in this area, the current teams are being crushed. Here are the numbers since the inception of the Shaw era.
Stanford Opponent Diff.
2011.......210.6......84.4.......126.2
2012.......174.3......97.0.........77.3
2013.......207.4......89.7........117.7
2014.......158.8.....104.5........54.3
2015.......223.6.....139.3........84.3
2016.......208.9.....145.8........63.1
2017.......202.6.....169.4........33.2
2018.......107.9.....146.1.......-38.2
2019.......105.7.....150.8.......-45.1
2020.......133.2.....222.0.......-88.8
2021.........90.2.....243.8.....-153.6
2021 is almost a mirror image of 2011. These are the raw numbers and do not lie. I have no other explanation for this but complacency. Shaw is too smart not to have seen this year-by-year development. Latest in 2017, he should have been screaming at the athletic administration for a hand-picked S&C coach dedicated to the football program. And, yes, he should have been scouring the coaching ranks for top-flight line coaches. Also, not coincidentally, long-time D-line coach, Randy Hart, retired after the 2015 season. Shaw took no action, or none that was evident. The decay continued. And here we are.
Just for comparison, here are the numbers for Wlat's last year up to and including Harbaugh's last year.
Stanford Opponent Diff.
2006.........65.1.....210.5......-145.4
2007.......111.2.....169.3........-58.1
2008.......199.6.....152.9.........46.7
2009.......218.2.....137.9.........80.3
2010.......213.8.....120.8.........93.0
Anybody see a pattern?
Turley's promotion to Director of Sports Performance was more in name only and had no impact on his time commitment to the football team.
So did Turley's abilities decline during the years after 2014? Did he have worse recruits to work with? There's no denying the trend in the performance of both lines is down. What is your take on the root cause?