How do you guys feel about him? I thought he looked pretty solid in the first half when he was with the first-teamers. Poole, predictably, was awful. I looked over his rushes, and I believe he broke the 2 yard mark twice with 11 carries. That's pretty bad against anyone, much less the 97th ranked defense in the land. Lane looked OK in the wildcat and Neal still seems like he could fumble at any moment. I don't see what we've got to lose by giving him more carries. Oh wait, it's that awesome 1.2 yards we might gain if we hand it off to the guys that have sucked for 9 games.
Did you see Poole's first run? He ran either into the guard or the center so hard I'm sure it hurt his damn back. He bounced off him and fell down. I really don't think he could do a whole lot better if the other team weren't allowed to tackle him. He finds ways to tackle himself. I know our line hasn't been stellar, but I've seen a few times where he's had a hole the size of a minivan and not been able to get into it. Jaron was in there immediately and getting the 4 yards available to him. Average production makes him a superstar here.
I don't doubt Jaron gives you a few wrinkles but I wasn't giddy at seeing a fifth string walk on become our best back. The "fast lane" formation leaves me with nightmarish thoughts of 2008 all over again.
I don't think this staff sees Toney as the future at RB. If he is and they do......our ceiling is lower that it needs to be to get where we want. He is a solid back that did well with the opportunity that was given, and going forward he and Lane would get the rest of our carries, if it was me. Poole is not the entire problem with the running game, but he has a share. Didn't hurt for Pender to see us playing a walk on at RB either.
I don't think it's a coincidence that stud rb recruit is in town to watch a walk on get all the carries
We have to go 2-1 to close the season if we want to make a bowl. Unless Worley really, really grows a lot, that ain't happening without a better running game.
Poole looks like a virgin running through a field full of [breasts], and he wants to touch them all. The worst field vision I have ever seen in a D-1 back. I have had very few, if any, high school scrubs that had worse field vision.
I think he was going at a much better clip in the first half when we were running more first team stuff.
I dunno. Poole managed 1,000 last year somehow. This year the entire attack returns plus a more talented backup and we may not break 1,000 as a team, which has never happened for UT with an 11 game schedule. Has only happened twice in 60 years and both times was with a ten game schedule.
Even crappy freshmen are supposed to become less crappy sophomores. All these guys are supposedly talented. No serious injuries, but they haven't improved a bit. Something isn't right.
No, it's cause he looks like a high school sophomore. Derrick Brodus & Jaron Toney: Postgame MTSU - YouTube
There was quite a bit more senior (older) leadership last year. Who do they have guiding them now? Poole is a self-proclaimed quiet person. They lost Hardesty and Moore, and others, and I think it shows on the field. Coaches can only do so much (not saying ours are), and then it's left to the players to lead. I don't see anyone really leading our o-line except Bray.
Hardesty wasn't here last year. I've never really heard of Moore being some huge leader and I doubt a wide receiver whose only real game was the deep ball was talking a whole lot of pep to the OL and Tauren Poole. We also lost Gerald Jones, who I didn't know, but didn't strike me as some great motivator and Kevin Cooper, whose minutes were steadily given away to Channing Fugate.