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ULM Pregame / ULL Thoughts
Posted by
mad dog
,
22 October 2011
·
14 views
This is the danger of high expectations. While every fan might hold out hope that even the darkest of circumstances can turn around into the dawn of a conference champtionship, taking that belief and banking on it leads to frustration and outright anger.
Louisiana isn't a bad team. Far from it - they're clearly the cream of the sun belt crop at the moment. And, while Arkansas State is currently sitting undefeated in conference at 3-0, the Cajuns look like they're enjoying the catbird seat at this particular moment.
So what do you say about a Mean Green squad that's hanging with them neck and neck through three quarters, only to lose on yet another defensive collapse? Do you take the positivity route, and praise a losing effort as a moral victory? Or do you bottom line it as a 20 point loss?
Chosing which spin to put on the loss is largely a matter of personal preference. In my opinion, the team is performing better than it has in years. And that is understandably hard to see when when you're on the losing end of a blowout loss.
A binary view of pressure on the quarterback would gauge that entirely on the number of sacks. Did you get the quarterback or didn't you? That's the bottom line approach. However, a subjective view will allow you to see the progress when it is more sublte. Maybe the defensive end didn't get the sack, but instead got pressure on the quarterback, forcing a bad pass. Or, even more subtle than that... maybe you miss the quarterback by three steps instead of five.
Does getting closer to your goal count as progress, or does only the actual accomplishment matter?
The answer to that question probably mirrors what you think about the season so far.
Louisiana isn't a bad team. Far from it - they're clearly the cream of the sun belt crop at the moment. And, while Arkansas State is currently sitting undefeated in conference at 3-0, the Cajuns look like they're enjoying the catbird seat at this particular moment.
So what do you say about a Mean Green squad that's hanging with them neck and neck through three quarters, only to lose on yet another defensive collapse? Do you take the positivity route, and praise a losing effort as a moral victory? Or do you bottom line it as a 20 point loss?
Chosing which spin to put on the loss is largely a matter of personal preference. In my opinion, the team is performing better than it has in years. And that is understandably hard to see when when you're on the losing end of a blowout loss.
A binary view of pressure on the quarterback would gauge that entirely on the number of sacks. Did you get the quarterback or didn't you? That's the bottom line approach. However, a subjective view will allow you to see the progress when it is more sublte. Maybe the defensive end didn't get the sack, but instead got pressure on the quarterback, forcing a bad pass. Or, even more subtle than that... maybe you miss the quarterback by three steps instead of five.
Does getting closer to your goal count as progress, or does only the actual accomplishment matter?
The answer to that question probably mirrors what you think about the season so far.
