Proud of the way Nico played

[Alto1]

His WR's were rarely open and yes he missed a couple. Routinely had pressure in his face and on the edges. WR's get very little early seperation. OSU is a very good and talented football team. OUR WR were complete no shows last night.

One of our receivers had a bad drop late in the game for a TD. Brazzell I think.
Nico made a good enough throw for that one to be caught.

 

[BigALWiLson]

One of our receivers had a bad drop late in the game for a TD. Brazzell I think.
Nico made a good enough throw for that one to be caught.

The best pass last night had to be the deep middle with two defenders. That was a rope and the sideline shot in the 2nd quarter. Matter of fact I think they both came on the same series

 

[SpaceCoastVol]

I agree with your point, but Manziel won the Heisman as a redshirt freshman.

Manziel also had circus acrobats that made unbelievable catches. He threw up a TON of garbage that they somehow came down with.

 

[wmcovol]

Nico looked like he was the only one on that field who really wanted it. Major props to him. He gave it everything. In the end, he didn't get much help from the o-line, coaching, and receiving corps. He's only getting better

Very impressed with his maturity & courage. He played tougher than most of the big linemen.

 

[10seV4L]

He certainly has a way to go. He seems afraid to turn it loose. He needs to trust what he sees and let it rip. Ball has to come out quicker. Way quicker.

... I'm starting to think that's a side-effect of having too much Hall-Z on the brain. It creates brain fog, disorientation, and loss of profound, athletic motor skills. I'm thinking it should be avoided until at least 25 years of age or older, when the QB brain has finished fully developing

*Blue font

 

[C-south]

How can you possibly know how they feel?

You have to start with “objection!”

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

All of those guys you listed had better players around them than Nico my guy. Sampson is very good. He is about the only one on this offense who might have played for any of the teams you mention with any of those guys. Lets be fair Nico has had some ups and downs but he certainly has the ability. He needs better weapons at wr and an OL who can pass block.

The players around those guys wouldn’t have looked too great if they played with Nico.

 

[Volfan1000]

Nico looked like he was the only one on that field who really wanted it. Major props to him. He gave it everything. In the end, he didn't get much help from the o-line, coaching, and receiving corps. He's only getting better

Nico proved that he could be a leader of this team last night.

I think CGE receives the 2025 season to show that he can put a solid offensive line together.

CKP will also probably have a make or break coaching season in 2025.

 

[BigALWiLson]

The players around those guys wouldn’t have looked too great if they played with Nico.

You can't possibly know that in all honesty. When a QB doesn't have consistency in his OL it is hard to have a rhythm when you are always guessing who is going to olay a damn block infront of you and potentially get you killed. I am not saying he has been perfect, he needs to grow just like this entire football team. He doesnt run around like Manziel, but he damn sure isn't partying every night like him either. Tua hardly ever got touched in college because Bama had the best talent money could buy. Lawrence had a very good OL and Wr we wish we had. Very good defense there also. The OSU guys you mentioned all had better teams. If I left any out it all starts with OL and if you don't have a good one you need wheels. All of those guys all had escapability. Nico has it but he also needs a little time.

 

[brockytop]

Well said, OP.

 

[FLVOL_79]

He showed toughness. Not JG toughness (veiled incompetence) but true take matters into my own hands regardless of the cost toughness.

 

[ForMyLosses]

You can't possibly know that in all honesty. When a QB doesn't have consistency in his OL it is hard to have a rhythm when you are always guessing who is going to olay a damn block infront of you and potentially get you killed. I am not saying he has been perfect, he needs to grow just like this entire football team. He doesnt run around like Manziel, but he damn sure isn't partying every night like him either. Tua hardly ever got touched in college because Bama had the best talent money could buy. Lawrence had a very good OL and Wr we wish we had. Very good defense there also. The OSU guys you mentioned all had better teams. If I left any out it all starts with OL and if you don't have a good one you need wheels. All of those guys all had escapability. Nico has it but he also needs a little time.

So what you’re saying is that maybe it’d be a good idea to spend some more NIL money to support Nico (8$ million qb) with better talent. Maybe Josh and the boys should do what everyone is saying. Open up the checkbooks it’s time to start writing blank checks on some actual blue chip elite level talent at every position.

 

[BigALWiLson]

He showed toughness. Not JG toughness (veiled incompetence) but true take matters into my own hands regardless of the cost toughness.

Nico didn't play great. However he showed more heart and toughness than about 95% of our players and coaches. I thought he did a good job on most of his runs and he threw a few dimes also. I wish the guy had better supporting cast.

 

[BigALWiLson]

So what you’re saying is that maybe it’d be a good idea to spend some more NIL money to support Nico (8$ million qb) with better talent. Maybe Josh and the boys should do what everyone is saying. Open up the checkbooks it’s time to start writing blank checks on some actual blue chip elite level talent at every position.

Lol open the check books to coaches who know what it takes. Then go land the guys who can and will get it done

 

[ForMyLosses]

Lol open the check books to coaches who know what it takes. Then go land the guys who can and will get it done

We need a tier 1 elite coaching support staff under Heupel. The fact that chip kelly is their oc and ours is Joey hazel (goodwill donation dei hire) has had me laughing all weekend. Genuinely does anybody have a realistic idea what coaches we could hire and at what positions?

 

[BigALWiLson]

We need a tier 1 elite coaching support staff under Heupel. The fact that chip kelly is their oc and ours is Joey hazel (goodwill donation dei hire) has had me laughing all weekend. Genuinely does anybody have a realistic idea what coaches we could hire and at what positions?

I think we need a real OC. Heupel should handle Nico. WR coach POPE is not the guy and a OL coach. We need some discipline as a team overall. I would be satisfied replacing OL and WR. I personally do not like Halze, I don't think he brings anything to the table, however if we change OL and WR coaches it may warrant another year.

 

[ForMyLosses]

I think we need a real OC. Heupel should handle Nico. WR coach POPE is not the guy and a OL coach. We need some discipline as a team overall. I would be satisfied replacing OL and WR. I personally do not like Halze, I don't think he brings anything to the table, however if we change OL and WR coaches it may warrant another year.

and that’s only half the problem defense needs new db coach and dc (Tim banks against above average to elite passing offenses is his kryptonite). I’m just asking for names of the possible replacements. Hypothetically speaking.

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

You can't possibly know that in all honesty. When a QB doesn't have consistency in his OL it is hard to have a rhythm when you are always guessing who is going to olay a damn block infront of you and potentially get you killed. I am not saying he has been perfect, he needs to grow just like this entire football team. He doesnt run around like Manziel, but he damn sure isn't partying every night like him either. Tua hardly ever got touched in college because Bama had the best talent money could buy. Lawrence had a very good OL and Wr we wish we had. Very good defense there also. The OSU guys you mentioned all had better teams. If I left any out it all starts with OL and if you don't have a good one you need wheels. All of those guys all had escapability. Nico has it but he also needs a little time.

I think people often overlook how important a QB is to getting the most out of the OL. I don’t think Nico is good at reading defenses pre or post snap, I don’t think he has a good internal clock, and I don’t he does well about getting through his progressions. Those sorts of things do not help an offensive line at all.

To me, watching Nico this year was the most disappointing thing I’ve seen out of Tennessee sports in a long time. He isn’t the worst player I’ve seen, but the expectations and early signs are so far from what we saw for the vast majority of this season that it is extremely disappointing. I never believed Milton was any good, and I wasn’t sold on JG, but I thought this guy was gonna be a stud, and he doesn’t look any better than those guys.

 

[BigALWiLson]

I think people often overlook how important a QB is to getting the most out of the OL. I don’t think Nico is good at reading defenses pre or post snap, I don’t think he has a good internal clock, and I don’t he does well about getting through his progressions. Those sorts of things do not help an offensive line at all.

To me, watching Nico this year was the most disappointing thing I’ve seen out of Tennessee sports in a long time. He isn’t the worst player I’ve seen, but the expectations and early signs are so far from what we saw for the vast majority of this season that it is extremely disappointing. I never believed Milton was any good, and I wasn’t sold on JG, but I thought this guy was gonna be a stud, and he doesn’t look any better than those guys.

Ever stop to think Halze may be a negative ? He is still a young QB. He has the tools he needs coaches to do better. Our WR's are also not very good and are not well coached. There is a lot in play outside just the QB. Let's see how he looks after the off season. Maybe we get a new OC, OL and WR coach for Christmas because these guys just do not tickle the fancy

 

[BigALWiLson]

We also never run routes to allow him any rhythm outside the sideline swings. Nico is most effective in the middle of the field and we rarely run routes there

 

[bpalmer28]

I am a bigger fan of Nico now after that game than I've ever been. We just need to get him some help.

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

Ever stop to think Halze may be a negative ? He is still a young QB. He has the tools he needs coaches to do better. Our WR's are also not very good and are not well coached. There is a lot in play outside just the QB. Let's see how he looks after the off season. Maybe we get a new OC, OL and WR coach for Christmas because these guys just do not tickle the fancy

I certainly don’t think Nico is the only issue. But he is an issue, and he is the only issue that was supposed to be a tremendous asset.

 

[BigALWiLson]

I certainly don’t think Nico is the only issue. But he is an issue, and he is the only issue that was supposed to be a tremendous asset.

And he still has time. He was a big part of the Bama win, and honestly speaking he was the only one who got off the bus at OSU. I will reserve judgment until we have a larger sample size. He is 11-3 as a starter. Pretty good start. Now get better and progress your career

 

[BigALWiLson]

I think people often overlook how important a QB is to getting the most out of the OL. I don’t think Nico is good at reading defenses pre or post snap, I don’t think he has a good internal clock, and I don’t he does well about getting through his progressions. Those sorts of things do not help an offensive line at all.

To me, watching Nico this year was the most disappointing thing I’ve seen out of Tennessee sports in a long time. He isn’t the worst player I’ve seen, but the expectations and early signs are so far from what we saw for the vast majority of this season that it is extremely disappointing. I never believed Milton was any good, and I wasn’t sold on JG, but I thought this guy was gonna be a stud, and he doesn’t look any better than those guys.

Mays called the protections my guy. WRs never get open early because we run all vertical combos. It ain't the throws that are the issue. The guys are not getting open until he is usually out of time. Sure he misses some open guys but again coaching is a problem at several levels. Can't blame Nico for everything no matter how you spin it. You alluded to that. He needs an OL and a proven dependable guy preferably a couple. Sampson carried the load now it's time our QB carries the load because he is the only one returning that has proven to be mentally tough enough to show up on the big stage that includes coaches

 

[GulfCoasterVol]

Dude we’ve seen redshirt freshmen win Heismans and championships. Our redshirt freshman can barely crack 100 yards against anyone with a pulse.

Also I have witnessed Willie Martinez-coached Tennessee teams get gashed through the air over and over again many times.

For the most part, most of our DB's have not looked back for the ball since 1986.