Positives on offense

[Million$Mullet]

Mike, I mean a QB that can play up against the competition you play. A QB that gives you a chance to beat a opponent that is better than you and can beat defenses down the field. We have had two in 8 seasons here at UL, Gautier and Broadway.

Nunez > Tua

[CajunT]

Nunez > Tua

LOL! You played the game, you know better than that my man. Tua can stretch the field.

[CajunT]

Ok, that makes sense. Interesting that in his press conference yesterday Coach Napier said that for us to function at the level we desire, the QB play must be exceptional.

High percentage completions are great if you are moving the chains. But every once in a while you have to try and take the top off the defense or they will play 7 or 8 in the box.

[Turbine]

How many times did our DE take the first fake up the middle and leave the end exposed for a huge run by the QB? I don't remember seeing much blitzing or running stunts, just straight bull rushes and we could not overtake their OL. LB seemed to be out of position much of the night to stop the run. As you said, we did not have gap control. Is that coaching or poor decision making on the field? Either way, it must be corrected.

When an opposing coach knows your individual players tendencies whether it's "first fake" or something entirely different, you are in for a long night.

Add to that facing an opponent with somewhere between 104-130 YEARS of experience just from the senior class, and you get games like Saturday.

I just hope the coaches don't try to fix to many things because of Saturday. Just not having to face an opponent like that will fix many problems automatically.

[Ray Finkle]

I think a lot has to be said about Napier's character after giving that press conference. The man took 100% ownership for the results and didn't place blame on anyone / anything else. Everyone on here is saying that no one expected to win, but by the look of Napier's genuine disappointment, I think he really believed he could win that game. I think him going for it on 4th down so many times says that he really was trying to stay in it as much as possible. The guy is an absolute perfectionist and if you listen to him talk, he named exactly the things we could've controlled that we did not do very well. I do not think he is going to be the coach that will take the credit for improving our team from last week to this week simply because we will play a lesser opponent. I think he will still be critical of performances that are not sound, regardless of the opponent. We didn't get the results we wanted, but we've got the guy who know what a duck looks like, walks like, and sounds like, and right now, he knows we need a lot of work if we're ever going look like a real football team.

[CajunT]

I think a lot has to be said about Napier's character after giving that press conference. The man took 100% ownership for the results and didn't place blame on anyone / anything else. Everyone on here is saying that no one expected to win, but by the look of Napier's genuine disappointment, I think he really believed he could win that game. I think him going for it on 4th down so many times says that he really was trying to stay in it as much as possible. The guy is an absolute perfectionist and if you listen to him talk, he named exactly the things we could've controlled that we did not do very well. I do not think he is going to be the coach that will take the credit for improving our team from last week to this week simply because we will play a lesser opponent. I think he will still be critical of performances that are not sound, regardless of the opponent. We didn't get the results we wanted, but we've got the guy who know what a duck looks like, walks like, and sounds like, and right now, he knows we need a lot of work if we're ever going look like a real football team.

Nunez has no character questions period. Coach Napier said the right things, no coaches were thrown under the bus. Let's see how the players and the staff respond this week to a poor performance.

[ULGrad@HOU]

We have been needing improvement at the QB position for years now. I think Nunez is putting a lot of effort into it and I think he has several positives, but there is no doubt, the level of play has to be higher for UL to succeed, now and in the future. It's possible for Nunez to continue to improve, and I hope he does.

[Million$Mullet]

LOL! You played the game, you know better than that my man. Tua can stretch the field.

What’s crazy is that Andre has the ability to do the same. His arm is obviously not as strong but the kid can still sling it. One of the things I told my dad during the Grambling game was that although he was super accurate on the short and intermediate routes, he needs to get the ball out there faster. Quicker DB’s were gonna eat that stuff up. Also on his long balls, he puts too much air under it. He needs to put that thing on a rope and let it go. I think with the improvement on the o-line he will only get better. I’m still very optimistic for this season

[VObserver]

Nobody in our conference would do much better than we did against Ms St. Except for Alabama, we will not face another team that has depth and talent anywhere in the same universe as the Dawgs.

We did not execute well in critical situations last week, but that is fixable, and Napier and staff will get it fixed.

I agree with your optimism.

[CajunT]

What's crazy is that Andre has the ability to do the same. His arm is obviously not as strong but the kid can still sling it. One of the things I told my dad during the Grambling game was that although he was super accurate on the short and intermediate routes, he needs to get the ball out there faster. Quicker DB's were gonna eat that stuff up. Also on his long balls, he puts too much air under it. He needs to put that thing on a rope and let it go. I think with the improvement on the o-line he will only get better. I'm still very optimistic for this season

I think you have made some interesting points. There is no doubt that Nunez can improve his throwing motion to get the ball to his receivers. Drew Brees had to learn how to throw differently after returning back from his surgery.

I listened to Coach Napier's comments and he stated that our QB's have to play better for us to have a chance to win. To many fans look at stats and believe it tells the entire story of the game and how effective the QB was in the offense. Like I stated, I believe he can function in the SBC and win if he gets the football to his play makers. But my opinion still is going forward, Coach Napier and his staff will need to find a QB that can do more than function in his offense to have opportunities to compete against the better programs on the schedule in the future.

[CajunNation]

I think you have made some interesting points. There is no doubt that Nunez can improve his throwing motion to get the ball to his receivers. Drew Brees had to learn how to throw differently after returning back from his surgery.

I listened to Coach Napier's comments and he stated that our QB's have to play better for us to have a chance to win. To many fans look at stats and believe it tells the entire story of the game and how effective the QB was in the offense. Like I stated, I believe he can function in the SBC and win if he gets the football to his play makers. But my opinion still is going forward, Coach Napier and his staff will need to find a QB that can do more than function in his offense to have opportunities to compete against the better programs on the schedule in the future.

Completely agree.

Part of my patience and perspective mantra revolves around the fact that the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd string QB's in 2020 aren't on campus yet. Also, I'm fairly certain the starting QB next year will be a true Freshman.

This coupled with the massive rebuild needed on the defensive side demands patience and perspective....and accepting any win totals these next 2 seasons with a grain of salt.

Trust the process. Commit to the cULture.

[CajunT]

Completely agree.

Part of my patience and perspective mantra revolves around the fact that the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd string QB's in 2020 aren't on campus yet. Also, I'm fairly certain the starting QB next year will be a true Freshman.

This coupled with the massive rebuild needed on the defensive side demands patience and perspective....and accepting any win totals these next 2 seasons with a grain of salt.

Trust the process. Commit to the cULture.

I think that depends upon how this season plays out. If we can play .500% football this season and considering what we return next season on the offensive side of the football, Coach Napier may very well find a transfer QB to bridge the gap with his true freshmen. There is entirely too much talent returning on the OL, WR, RB and TE next season to completely give in to rebuilding mode only and let a true freshman QB take the reins of the offense.

The defense will be young next year, but up front you will still have Manac, Dillion, Hill, Jones, Ochoa and a few others on DL. Boudreaux, Farrod and Miller all return a LB. The foundation for a solid defense is there, perhaps adding a few JC transfers to help. I'm not ready to concede to a complete rebuild at this point after 2 straight losing seasons. I think a lot of it depends upon how this season plays out.