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What went wrong against Princeton?

The troubles began along the line of scrimmage.  The offensive line performed poorly at both run blocking and pass blocking in the 31-3 loss to Princeton.  The Tigers had 5 sacks and 10 TFLs in the contest.  Lamar and Salter simply did not have the open holes that they had in previous games.  Princeton blitzed frequently and instead of using their aggressiveness against them, we played exactly how they wanted us to.  The plays were too slow to develop and Rawlings (18/37, 164 yards, 1 fumble) held onto the ball too long.  Conlin’s play calling was predictable from the first snap.

Rawlings and Marcinick are clearly not on the same page at all and have not been for weeks.  The receiving corps in general ran sloppy routes and had butterfingers.

The defense has improved since the early woes against the Patriot League opponents, but we still can’t count on the unit to keep the game close when the offense goes three and out every series.  Princeton’s deep routes were open frequently and surely Harvard will try to exploit that this week.  Carlson had a nice interception and return, but the offense sputtered and had to settle for three points.

Dieter Eiselen went down with an injury and we hope he’s OK.

16 replies on “What went wrong against Princeton?”

I’ve been very disappointed with Marcinick’s play so far this season. There has been very little improvement from last year. This is an ongoing trend in the program. Our coaches haven’t developed a single player

“Princeton’s deep routes were open frequently and surely Harvard will try to exploit that this week.”

That’s the sad truth.
Even if the Bulldogs somehow manage to remain in the game this coming Saturday as the clock winds down, Harvard knows all it has to do is start throwing deep, and it will eventually connect for a TD. Especially with a receiver of J S-M’s caliber in the lineup.

That’s what happened two years ago. Yale comes back to tie the game in the 4th, but Harvard wins on a 50 yard pass.

I’ve never seen a team, and this is the last 3-4 years, get burnt so much on 20+ yard passes.

I’m not gonna claim there is no reason to criticize Coach Reno and the assistants. However, Reno will stay for now because we were 8-2 just two years ago, barely losing in Cambridge, and 6-4 last year despite an incredible torrent of injuries (the worst Carm has seen in 53 years of Yale football).
Obviously the QB’s and D simply did not come together this year; however the injury level has again been huge, half the OL is out, Candler Rich barely played, Bo Hines and Spencer Rymzewski (bad spelling, sorry) not at all. Lamar and Harris were KO’d out of the Princeton game — anyone know their status for Harvard?
Normally I am Mr. Optimism and would dream of holding the Cantabridgians to 20 points (like last week but for 4 quarters) and getting a pick-6 from Hayden Carlson, a PR TD from Alessi, and pulling off a 23-20 upset. But we are so beat up I don’t really think it is possible.

Why ARE we “so beat up”? This has been going on for the last five years. Are practices too tough, or not tough enough? Are the players out of shape? I am impressed with the number of players staying in New Haven over the summer to work out, and every August the coaches say how much stronger they are, but ARE they? I suppose every Ivy team will have a bad year of injuries now and then, but EVERY year? What on earth are we doing or not doing?

They should let Emil Johnson run the football strength program once again. Just look at how much beefier the guys on the 2006 squad were compared to this year

I think this season has shown that Coach Reno is not the man to take the program forward. It’s not just the losses, it’s the way we are regularly blown out. It’s the fact that throughout his tenure our pass defense has been lousy, both in terms of terrible technique in coverage and the complete lack of a pass rush. Yes, it’s the injuries. It’s the way highly touted players come into the program, play right away, then disappear. It’s the way key positions get bounced among three-four players with no one established and given the chance to develop. This has gone on for 5 years, with the only exceptions being the Varga-Roberts offense masking the other problems. It’s the fact that the program is no longer relevant to any of its target audiences: attendance is a joke, student body could care less, fewer alums coming out, and zero profile in the local community with little to no local media coverage. Tom Beckett may feel otherwise, and it’s his call, but I would very much welcome a change, and as soon as possible.

If Reno manages to stay around another year, will there be some turnover with the assistant coaches?

I don’t understand that the majority of the runs are up the middle or into the short side of the field. That worked with Varga who could break tackles but a quick and light back like Lamar needs some room to maneuver. The offensive play calls, this year, and punting in opponents territory decisions are really poor coaching decisions. I have attended Yale games at the Bowl or on the road since the 1960s. This is the first year I attended only one game. The first vs. Colgate was enough. The team was not properly prepared. I was deeply embarrassed. I had invited guests to see an exciting team and game. They left at halftime. Watched the rest on web or TV. Something needs to change.

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