09-06-2019, 08:42 AM
While I normally bristle at the "we didn't execute" excuses made by coaches, it sure looked like there were a number of plays in the first half where Costello didn't see wide open guys down field and eventually scrambled for a yard or two, or dumped it off. I worry a bit that Shaw's focus on not making "mistakes" causes players to tighten up and not see and take the shots they are given. With a Plunkett/Elway/Luck type QB, and nothing else, I think they would have scored more in the first half for sure. That said, I don't think a coach can blame players on execution just because they didn't play like Plunkett, Elway or Luck. Shaw seems most comfortable in a clamped-down, constipated, punt-fest like last week's game and the Sun Bowl before that. It makes the games hard to watch, but it does produce a lot of wins. I don't know where Shaw stands in history's long list of coaches (other than first on Stanford's all-time win list); but he's legions ahead of Helton.
p.s., I don't buy into the "USC is wasting elite talent" thing. Over the last two years, for example, Stanford has had more players drafted into the NFL than USC. The year before that, Stanford had 2 first rounders. What USC has is the Hollywood Hype machine. Perfectly talented players get turned into national heroes because they play for the premiere team in the media capital of Earth. JT Daniels played like you'd expect of a very young true Freshman last year, yet you'd think he could walk on water based on all the press coverage he got. Sure USC has plenty of talent, but Stanford's athletes are every bit as "elite" as USC's.
p.s., I don't buy into the "USC is wasting elite talent" thing. Over the last two years, for example, Stanford has had more players drafted into the NFL than USC. The year before that, Stanford had 2 first rounders. What USC has is the Hollywood Hype machine. Perfectly talented players get turned into national heroes because they play for the premiere team in the media capital of Earth. JT Daniels played like you'd expect of a very young true Freshman last year, yet you'd think he could walk on water based on all the press coverage he got. Sure USC has plenty of talent, but Stanford's athletes are every bit as "elite" as USC's.