Fridge's Excuse

[OregonBird]

This is true. As frustrating as it's been to watch this team basically be stuck in neutral the last 5 years it's still far better than anything we did in the '90s. There was actually talk at one time of moving down to 1-AA for football because we were never even close to being competitive.

A valid point.

However, back in the Krivak/Duffner/Vanderlinden eras there was far less talent in the Metro areas. Back then you'd find maybe a dozen D-1 football prospects but now there are 3x that if not more, with probably a dozen guys going to elite programs. Add NoVA, Tidewater peninsula VA, South/Central Jersey, Southern PA, and there's plenty of talent to recruit. I understand that some kids want to leave home to play out of state (heck, I did too) but it bothers me that Fridge can't keep just one or two more kids per year in state.

I also think the UMD has improved its "Brand Equity" since those times. It is one of the Top public universities in the US and the schools of business and engineering get even more notoriety. Add to that the luster of national championships in other sports as well as improving facilities and Maryland should be a much easier "sell" than in those years.

Given the reasons above, I'm not satisfied with what Fridge has done since the Gator Bowl. Here is what I do expect:

1. Bowl Games 4 out of 5 years; winning records before and after the bowl

2. Top 25 ranking in most years (4 out of 5)

3. Compete for conference title maybe every 3 years; other than Miami and FSU with their recruiting base and tradition, who should be consistently beating the Terps?

4. Beat the teams they are supposed to beat...soundly (MTSU, EMU)

5. Be competitive in each game, particularly conference games, even steal a few conference games from time to time.

I expect a rolling, two year average of 8-4. I don't think this is unrealistic or unreasonable.

[Danielos38]

If the man can get kids to Champaign, IL, an ugly campus in the middle of nowhere with bad facilities and no tradition, he could certainly attract talent to College Park.

Wow. I know this is totally off topic, but Illinois is a pretty campus, (just as pretty as MD) and the basketball stadium and facilities aren't horrible. Even thought its exact location is the middle of nowhere, its within a few hours on high speed roads of Chicago, Indianapolis, Milwaukee and St. Louis. I hope you've been there before you slam it like that.

[Dracula]

A valid point.

However, back in the Krivak/Duffner/Vanderlinden eras there was far less talent in the Metro areas. Back then you'd find maybe a dozen D-1 football prospects but now there are 3x that if not more, with probably a dozen guys going to elite programs. Add NoVA, Tidewater peninsula VA, South/Central Jersey, Southern PA, and there's plenty of talent to recruit. I understand that some kids want to leave home to play out of state (heck, I did too) but it bothers me that Fridge can't keep just one or two more kids per year in state.

I also think the UMD has improved its "Brand Equity" since those times. It is one of the Top public universities in the US and the schools of business and engineering get even more notoriety. Add to that the luster of national championships in other sports as well as improving facilities and Maryland should be a much easier "sell" than in those years.

Given the reasons above, I'm not satisfied with what Fridge has done since the Gator Bowl. Here is what I do expect:

1. Bowl Games 4 out of 5 years; winning records before and after the bowl

2. Top 25 ranking in most years (4 out of 5)

3. Compete for conference title maybe every 3 years; other than Miami and FSU with their recruiting base and tradition, who should be consistently beating the Terps?

4. Beat the teams they are supposed to beat...soundly (MTSU, EMU)

5. Be competitive in each game, particularly conference games, even steal a few conference games from time to time.

I expect a rolling, two year average of 8-4. I don't think this is unrealistic or unreasonable.

Totally agree with this. Why are we settling for Fridge mediocrity? We don't have to anymore.

What's the point in saying "Well at least Fridge isn't as bad as the other guys".

Who cares about the past. We should be striving to be a consistent top 25 team, we have all the necessary resources to do so today. Settling for Fridge and his mediocrity is so boring. MD football has a lot of potential.

I don't expect us to be a powerhouse every year, but OBird's expectations are attainable and that is what we should be striving to be, let's at least TRY to get better.

We are surrounded by solid talent, let's get it here and develop it. No excuse not to.

[OregonBird]

Wow. I know this is totally off topic, but Illinois is a pretty campus, (just as pretty as MD) and the basketball stadium and facilities aren't horrible. Even thought its exact location is the middle of nowhere, its within a few hours on high speed roads of Chicago, Indianapolis, Milwaukee and St. Louis. I hope you've been there before you slam it like that.

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I've been on a lot of campuses b/c of travel and playing baseball in college and I wouldn't put Illinois in the top 1/2 of the ones I've been. Since I live in Oregon I might be a bit spoiled by U of O as well. That's my opinion.

I think you get my point. The Fridge has a lot of selling points for UMD therefore I think he's underachieving.

[Danielos38]

Point taken.

[Baltimore Chop]

To those of you who want to fire Fridge after he started the season a "mere" 4-2...

Just wondering -- who do you want to replace him with? Give me a short list of coaches who you think would do better and explain why.

[OregonBird]

To those of you who want to fire Fridge after he started the season a "mere" 4-2...

Just wondering -- who do you want to replace him with? Give me a short list of coaches who you think would do better and explain why.

I'm not one calling for his ouster just yet. If the Terps miss going bowling this year which implies a losing record, then yes I want him gone. I still want Cosh gone though. I'm guessing the Terps do just enough this year to go to a lesser bowl and Fridge will save his job for another two years.

I'll play along with this game though, I'll name three guys I wouldn't mind checking out.

1. Mike Locksley- he's one of the top recruiters in the nation and he's a good, developing OC. He's young and can relate to this generation so I think guys would play hard for him all the time. He has ties to the MD program and would probably want a head job somewhere.

2. Bobby Johnson- the guy is winning at Vanderbilt, enough said. He'll be highly sought after following this season and I'm guessing he'll get a top gig somewhere so I doubt he'd be a possibility.

3. Brian Kelly (Cincinnati HC)- he's building a solid program and his offense is very exciting which is needed to sell the expanded Byrd stadium. His name will get mentioned for some top jobs in a year or two.

[Birds of B'more]

I'm not one calling for his ouster just yet. If the Terps miss going bowling this year which implies a losing record, then yes I want him gone. I still want Cosh gone though. I'm guessing the Terps do just enough this year to go to a lesser bowl and Fridge will save his job for another two years.

I'll play along with this game though, I'll name three guys I wouldn't mind checking out.

1. Mike Locksley- he's one of the top recruiters in the nation and he's a good, developing OC. He's young and can relate to this generation so I think guys would play hard for him all the time. He has ties to the MD program and would probably want a head job somewhere.

2. Bobby Johnson- the guy is winning at Vanderbilt, enough said. He'll be highly sought after following this season and I'm guessing he'll get a top gig somewhere so I doubt he'd be a possibility.

3. Brian Kelly (Cincinnati HC)- he's building a solid program and his offense is very exciting which is needed to sell the expanded Byrd stadium. His name will get mentioned for some top jobs in a year or two.

Being a guy who attends Ducks games, I'm surprised you left Chip Kelly off the list. He also coaches a high-octane offense, has east coast ties (New Hampshire and coached 1 year @ Johns Hopkins) and will likely be a hot commodity this offseason. Or did you purposely omit him in hopes that he'll stay in Eugene?

[OregonBird]

Being a guy who attends Ducks games' date=' I'm surprised you left Chip Kelly off the list. He also coaches a high-octane offense, has east coast ties (New Hampshire and coached 1 year @ Johns Hopkins) and will likely be a hot commodity this offseason. Or did you purposely omit him in hopes that he'll stay in Eugene? [/quote']

Ah yes, Chip Kelly. Not sure he's ready for head coaching job but the offense sure would sell a lot of tickets.

There are plenty of talented coaches out there who should get a look.

But, as I said in my previous post, Terps go to something like the Tire Bowl and Fridge will be safe.

[BaltimoreTerp]

Phllip Fulmer??

You mean a great coach for his alma mater who had a great start followed by a few up-and-down seasons causing the fans with extreme expectations to call for his head?

[Dr. FLK]

You mean a great coach for his alma mater who had a great start followed by a few up-and-down seasons causing the fans with extreme expectations to call for his head?

The man is 100 games over .500 in his career. I certainly hope you aren't comparing him to the Fridge.

[BaltimoreTerp]

The man is 100 games over .500 in his career. I certainly hope you aren't comparing him to the Fridge.

Only in the sense that I figured the first responder wouldn't have a sense of humor

Of course, I figured it would be Tony :laughlol:

[Tony-OH]

I'm not calling for Friedgen's head but I wouldn't be upset if they let him go. The Terps are a border line top 25 in most seasons that Friedgen has been here so I'm not sure you can ask for more. I'm glad he gave up play calling duties but the new guy is not very creative. My major concern with Friedgen is the same as my main gripe about Gary, and that's his recruiting, especially a QB is not very good.

I don't understand how he can not find at least a decent QB to build around. I'd like to see a QB that comes in and is starting at least as a sophomore so we know we have three years with a guy. Turner is a backup a best, Steffy is a great kid who should do nothing but hold a clipboard, and from everything I've heard, Portis wouldn't know a weak side blitz from a zone coverage.

For the most part, I've come to accept that the Terps football team will never be a powerhouse (unlike Basketball where I expect them to be a powerhouse). As long as they are competitve and in bowl consideration each year, I think that's ok. Would I like to see a program that could compete on a BCS level once in awhile, sure, but it may be a bridge too far.

[OregonBird]

As I said a few posts above, Fridge will save his job this year and the program will be mired in mediocrity for a few more years. We'll hear the same excuses, players are young, "I can't reach these guys", need time to get the right players to fit the system, etc.

I still think this program should be in the Top 25 in most years and compete for the conference title every 3 years. No one in our division or the conference is really a football powerhouse anymore. With all the talent within driving distance of the school, not getting the players shouldn't be an excuse. Therefore its about the coaching.

I predict the Terps win 1 of the next 3 and go to a lesser bowl, thus causing many to consider the season a "success." With this team you never know what's going to happen. They could lose or win the next three.

[Todd-O]

As I said a few posts above, Fridge will save his job this year and the program will be mired in mediocrity for a few more years. We'll hear the same excuses, players are young, "I can't reach these guys", need time to get the right players to fit the system, etc.

I still think this program should be in the Top 25 in most years and compete for the conference title every 3 years. No one in our division or the conference is really a football powerhouse anymore. With all the talent within driving distance of the school, not getting the players shouldn't be an excuse. Therefore its about the coaching.

I predict the Terps win 1 of the next 3 and go to a lesser bowl, thus causing many to consider the season a "success." With this team you never know what's going to happen. They could lose or win the next three.

Yeah... what was up with Fridge saying he couldn't communicate because of a generational thing? You're the coach, Ralph... your JOB is to figure out how to reach people and get them trained, motivated, and able to perform.

Good grief.