Some quotes about Paul Rhoads

[Biggus Piggus]

Definition of mediocre
:  of moderate or low quality, value, ability, or performance

Now which is it, moderate, or low? Geez. No wonder we cannot agree.

[bennyl08]

You are overly fixated on sequential ranking. Concentrate on dispersion not sequential order.

I hear what you are saying. See my above post. I understand the difference b/w ordinal and cardinal numbers.

For example, if 1st place is at 100, 3rd place is at 95, and 4th and below are sub 80, there's a big difference b/w 3rd and 4th. If first and 2nd are above 90, and 3rd through 10th are b/w 75 and 80, then there isn't much of a difference b/w 3rd and 7th and the cardinality doesn't have much value. Being 3rd there is much worse than being 3rd in the above.

However, it all goes back to people assigning negativity to a word that doesn't have any built in negativity. We'd rank sequentially in the middle of the back in the SEC was all I was saying. You guys hear me saying mediocre and assume it is a critique. As if I'm badmouthing Rhoads. That isn't the case. He had 3 years with top 12, 3 years right around 30, and 30 years 70 and worse.

Average total defense value for SECW by year
2010: 42.6
2011: 45
2012: 45.1
2013: 62
2014: 42
2015: 45.4
2016: 61   7-year average: 49

Rhoads average total yards is 39.5. On average, we'd be right there, just barely on the plus side of the middle in total yards. As has already been shown, his ppg is much more steady and consistent and I'd reckon we'd be much closer to the top than the middle and that's a more important statistic.

[bennyl08]

Definition of mediocre
:  of moderate or low quality, value, ability, or performance

Now which is it, moderate, or low? Geez. No wonder we cannot agree.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/mediocre

1. of only ordinary or moderate quality; neither good nor bad; barely adequate:

2. not satisfactory; poor; inferior:

I concede that there is a secondary meaning of the word that does have a negative connotation. Probably due to people misusing the primary so much that the misuse became a common usage similar to decimate (which strictly means to remove 1/10th of, but has in modern times come to also mean basically a total destruction of).

Apologies for using a word with variable meaning.

Feel free to replace "mediocre" with "a middle grouping" or "middle of the pack relative to SEC standards" to clarify.

[factchecker]

Definition of mediocre
:  of moderate or low quality, value, ability, or performance

Now which is it, moderate, or low? Geez. No wonder we cannot agree.

Mediocre has become the new catchy term along with the "participation trophy society" slogan.

Everyone who whines and complains on a message board retorts with the "I'm not a fan of mediocrity" claim.

I guess there are a lot of Mad Max fans.

[longpig]

so CPR's defenses dominated the Big East. 

[Smokehouse]

For what it's worth here are total points allowed (national rank) for his Iowa State teams. Not sure what you can extrapolate from that considering some of that is clearly on his defensive staff and he was working at a talent disadvantage against some really good offenses. He had a lot of up and down games where ISU would look great against one opponent then get stomped by another, especially by the end of his tenure, and it sometimes didn't average out pretty.

I don't think it means much but there ya go:

2009: 22.2 (32)
2010: 31.5 (88)
2011: 30.2 (78)
2012: 25.7 (44)
2013: 36.7 (106)
2014: 39.3 (118)
2015: 35 (101)

[Pork Twain]

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/mediocre

1. of only ordinary or moderate quality; neither good nor bad; barely adequate:

2. not satisfactory; poor; inferior:

I concede that there is a secondary meaning of the word that does have a negative connotation. Probably due to people misusing the primary so much that the misuse became a common usage similar to decimate (which strictly means to remove 1/10th of, but has in modern times come to also mean basically a total destruction of).

Apologies for using a word with variable meaning.

Feel free to replace "mediocre" with "a middle grouping" or "middle of the pack relative to SEC standards" to clarify.

Here I am, just sitting here wondering when being ranked 30 out of 128 or only finish behind Bama and LSU became average.

[bennyl08]

For what it's worth here are total points allowed (national rank) for his Iowa State teams. Not sure what you can extrapolate from that considering some of that is clearly on his defensive staff and he was working at a talent disadvantage against some really good offenses. He had a lot of up and down games where ISU would look great against one opponent then get stomped by another, especially by the end of his tenure, and it sometimes didn't average out pretty.

I don't think it means much but there ya go:

2009: 22.2 (32)
2010: 31.5 (88)
2011: 30.2 (78)
2012: 25.7 (44)
2013: 36.7 (106)
2014: 39.3 (118)
2015: 35 (101)

Interesting. What did they do beforehand? However, I'd agree that it doesn't mean much. He was the HC there, not the DC. He'd have influence of course, but it wouldn't be entirely his. Just going off of my perception about their program, I figure anything better than 100th is probably good.

[tophawg19]

I believe John Chavis was quoted by an announcer that basically said he didn't care about yardage, just points.

Yeah, I  know yards ==.  Just saying what a well-respected DC's basic philosophy is.

the yardage given up tends ro determine how well the offense does . you can't put them on a long field all the time and expect success

[hawgsalot]

People praised saint Nick for hiring a shamed coach to replace Kiffin.  CBB does the same thing only PR wasn't shamed and people nit pick it to death.  Bottom line CBB knew Robb was gone if he didn't see improvement and did an incredibly smart thing in bringing in PR a year before the change.  PR will be a stud DC!

[lutherheggs]

Bottom line is, if we got him as our DC, he can't be very good and is not in demand for positions anywhere else.

[Biggus Piggus]

Interesting. What did they do beforehand? However, I'd agree that it doesn't mean much. He was the HC there, not the DC. He'd have influence of course, but it wouldn't be entirely his. Just going off of my perception about their program, I figure anything better than 100th is probably good.

Look at the whole Big 12.

[Arthur pigby sellers.]

If you compare his average defensive points allowed per game of 21.5 during his 8 years as DC vs NCAA  defensive rankings during that time, his  21.5 his average would have him ranked in the 20's to 30's nationwide depending on the year.

[Hawgar The Horrible]

Bottom line is, if we got him as our DC, he can't be very good and is not in demand for positions anywhere else.

I had you pegged all wrong. Didn't realize you and Rhoads agent were that tight. Impressive.

[Smokehouse]

Interesting. What did they do beforehand? However, I'd agree that it doesn't mean much. He was the HC there, not the DC. He'd have influence of course, but it wouldn't be entirely his. Just going off of my perception about their program, I figure anything better than 100th is probably good.

In the give years before Rhoads they were 105, 42, 33 ,101, 63, 115 in the rankings. I imagine if you dug really deep you'd see that the good years correlate to seasons that had a lot of redshirted juniors and seniors, just like any talent-challenged program. The worst defensive ranking of that bunch was with Chizik as HC at ISU.

[Smokehouse]

Look at the whole Big 12.

Yeah, I'd give an asterisk to most defensive coaches in the Big 12. Crap defense just seems to be a culture in the conference at this point.

I think there's some decent DCs in the Big 12 who won't get considered elsewhere because defense is just shot to hell in the conference but would do well somewhere else if given the opportunity. Glenn Spencer at OSU is one I think would do great if he made it to another conference.

[LZH]

Come on, we had #76 (5546 total yards allowed/40 tds) and the mediocre #30 was just a little better (4728 yards allowed/51 tds). 

That's what, about 75 yds per game difference? That's a trip all the way down the field. Actually, the 11 TD difference would be right in line with this. Had we given up 75 yards less per game last year it isn't all that unreasonable to think we could have saved a touchdown per game too.

May not have won any more games, but 75 yards and one touchdown per game is a lot. And yeah, give me a top 30 defense any season.

[PonderinHog]

What we need is a lousy punter.  That way the offenses we face will have a shorter field and our defensive stats will look a lot better.

[Smokehouse]

What we need is a lousy punter.  That way the offenses we face will have a shorter field and our defensive stats will look a lot better.

"Sure, we gave up 45 points a game, but look at how few yards we gave up!"

[lutherheggs]

What we need is a lousy punter.  That way the offenses we face will have a shorter field and our defensive stats will look a lot better.

I like the way you think. Surprised Bielema could not figure that out this past season and bench Toby Baker.

[MountieDawg]

Some quotes about Paul Rhoads...

From Auburn's news release when it hired Rhoads in 2008:

Rhoads' defenses' at Pitt regularly were among the nation's leaders in various categories, finishing fifth nationally in total defense in 2007 allowing just 297.7 yards per games. This past season, Rhoads' Pittsburgh defense, held a high-powered West Virginia offense to a season-low nine points. The Panthers were third nationally in pass defense allowing just 167.3 yards per game in 2007.

Under his direction, Pitt's defense has been regularly listed among the nation's leaders in various defensive categories. His track record of success led The Sporting News to name him the Big East's best defensive coordinator in its 2006 college football annual.

With an aggressive philosophy, Rhoads' Pitt defenses scored 10 defensive touchdowns during three seasons from 2004-06, including four in 2006, one shy of the school record.

In 2004, Pitt ranked ninth nationally with 17 interceptions en route to the Big East title and Fiesta Bowl berth.

During Pitt's victorious Insight Bowl season in 2002, the unit played at its highest level since the late 1980s. The Panthers ranked among the nation's top 25 in seven different categories and allowed their fewest points in a season since 1988 despite playing in a school-record 13 games.

In 2001, the Panthers gave up just 7.4 points and 182.6 yards over a five-game winning streak heading into the Florida Tangerine Bowl. The unit ranked among the nation's top 30 in five different categories at season's end. Additionally, Pitt finished with 38 quarterback sacks, its highest sack total since the 1987 season.

As secondary coach, Rhoads had five players taken in the last six NFL drafts, including 2006 Thorpe Award Finalist Darrelle Revis, who was the first secondary player selected.

***

American Football Monthly in 2007 mentioned Rhoads as one of the leading collegiate practitioners of the zone blitz, which helped Pittsburgh rack up huge interception and sack numbers.

***

From a Nov. 2007 story in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

There are many theories about what has helped Pitt's defense turn things around in recent weeks and, while there are a number of statistics that show how much better the defense has played in its past three games, the key ones seem to be a big increase in sacks and pressures on opposing quarterbacks.

The most popular theory is that the Panthers are blitzing more and playing a more aggressive style of defense.

That might sound good and the numbers seem to support it -- the Panthers have had 10 sacks in the past three games; they had a total of five in consecutive losses to Connecticut, Virginia and Navy -- but Pitt defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads said it is not the case.

In fact, he said in some respects Pitt has blitzed less than it had in some earlier games.

And he is puzzled by popular criticism that his defensive schemes and game plans are passive, and that he does not coach an aggressive style of defense. He believes aggressiveness is critical, but frequent blitzing is not the only way to play aggressive defense.

"I believe in aggressiveness and I have always coached aggressiveness," Rhoads said. "I have never put numbers out there on the table publicly, but I can tell you, if you break down my eight years at Pitt, I can certainly point to a lot higher numbers of games lost that we blitzed more than normal and a lot more games that we won that we blitzed less than normal, but the perception is that wasn't the case. People seem to think we only blitz in wins, but that's not at all accurate.

"And aggressive football and attacking football can be played with a four-man rush because those things are based on how well, as I like to say, your players are going north in attacking an offense. And it really has to do with how fast your team plays, and that comes from how confident they are."

Rhoads said the three main reasons the Panthers have played better defense in the past three games are, in no particular order:

• Field position as a result of the offense not turning the ball over. Quite simply, the Panthers are defending far fewer short fields.

• Confidence and experience. The younger players are getting experience, have begun to taste success and success breeds more confidence.

• Hunger, desire. He said the Panthers have had exceptional practices in the past month, and they are starting to believe in what they are doing.

***

From a Deseret News story about the Utah-Pitt Fiesta Bowl game in 2004 (Utah won 35-7):

Utah offensive coordinator Dan Mullen takes a more cautious approach. He said Pitt actually matches up better against the Utes than any defense they've faced this year because the Panthers' strength is their simplicity.

"They don't do a ton on defense, but what they do they do very well," Mullen said.

"We see a lot of different defenses that use a lot of different schemes and have guys moving everywhere — Pitt is very sound. They are going to be tough because there are not a lot of weaknesses. They are just going to sit there and keep it in front of them make you execute. They are going to be the toughest defense we've faced."

CBB went to 3 rose bowls, a Texas Bowl, Liberty and Belk.