Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 8:59 am

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 7:56 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:39 pm

Aggie19 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:02 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 5:48 pm

Trueblue14 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:23 am

Do we know who our defensive coordinator will be?

Bert Watts LB coach at Memphis and former Fresno State DC will be the DC. Anderson and Watts are represented by the same agent. I would look for Watts to be announced right after Memphis’ bowl game on the 23rd or maybe after signing day tomorrow.

He looks pretty white, didn't Anderson say yesterday in his press conference that his OC, DC and ST coordinators were all minorities?

Oops, I just went back and listened. I was getting info from two college coaches who stopped by my school and
“assured” me that Watts would be the new DC. So, we will see.

Jete, so who you saying will be the DC?
Cause you’ve now said two different people...

Not sure what you mean if you reread my posts. I said Bert Watts and only Bert Watts based on what a couple of coaches in the profession told me. I went back and listened to Coach Anderson’s presser to hear him say his coordinators would be minorities. Coach Watts appears to be white (maybe he is not; but I don’t know). I was just confirming from the previous poster that he appears to be white. Now I am confused!

He appears more gray than white to me.
To be fair the vampire's have been under represented at USU for years.

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 9:22 am

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 8:59 am

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 7:56 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:39 pm

Aggie19 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:02 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 5:48 pm

Trueblue14 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:23 am

Do we know who our defensive coordinator will be?

Bert Watts LB coach at Memphis and former Fresno State DC will be the DC. Anderson and Watts are represented by the same agent. I would look for Watts to be announced right after Memphis’ bowl game on the 23rd or maybe after signing day tomorrow.

He looks pretty white, didn't Anderson say yesterday in his press conference that his OC, DC and ST coordinators were all minorities?

Oops, I just went back and listened. I was getting info from two college coaches who stopped by my school and
“assured” me that Watts would be the new DC. So, we will see.

Jete, so who you saying will be the DC?
Cause you’ve now said two different people...

Not sure what you mean if you reread my posts. I said Bert Watts and only Bert Watts based on what a couple of coaches in the profession told me. I went back and listened to Coach Anderson’s presser to hear him say his coordinators would be minorities. Coach Watts appears to be white (maybe he is not; but I don’t know). I was just confirming from the previous poster that he appears to be white. Now I am confused!

He appears more gray than white to me.
To be fair the vampire's have been under represented at USU for years.

I'd be ok with this guy too. Either him or Banda would be good additions as DC. I almost prefer Watts to be honest. Watts is familiar with the MW and California recruiting from his 3 years as DC at Fresno and then UC-Davis before that. Coached some good Bulldog defenses and Memphis is also having a good year. I think having someone connected in Cali would be good.

I'm hearing Bojay MAY HAVE turned down his job offer. No definite word on Stacy Collins yet.

aggies22 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 11:11 am

I'm hearing Bojay MAY HAVE turned down his job offer. No definite word on Stacy Collins yet.

Interesting, do you think he has job offer elsewhere or just wanting a fresh start?

This could hurt imo. I know not everyone agrees but we needs at least one Poly on staff.

flying_scotsman2.0 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 12:07 pm

Why was Watts the DC at Fresno, then LB coach at Memphis? What happened for him to move down from DC?

He was probably part of the last staff that was fired.

Elkaggie wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 12:03 pm

This could hurt imo. I know not everyone agrees but we needs at least one Poly on staff.

It would be important to have a poly coach on staff. If he leaves they can certainly bring in another poly coach.

I imagine he lost his DC spot when Fresno made the HC change and Tedford was let go last year. Watts likely just needed to find a landing spot for a year while he looked to get a DC job again.

I think I'd prefer Banda.

flying_scotsman2.0 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 12:07 pm

Why was Watts the DC at Fresno, then LB coach at Memphis? What happened for him to move down from DC?

Probably wanted some fresh blood.

USU78 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:37 am

Banda. Aranda.

Auspicious, if true.

Don't tease me 78.... yet we can only hope. Speaking of Aranda, his Baylor stint has some growing pains after watching part of the game on Saturday.

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 9:22 am

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 8:59 am

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 7:56 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:39 pm

Aggie19 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:02 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 5:48 pm

Trueblue14 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:23 am

Do we know who our defensive coordinator will be?

Bert Watts LB coach at Memphis and former Fresno State DC will be the DC. Anderson and Watts are represented by the same agent. I would look for Watts to be announced right after Memphis’ bowl game on the 23rd or maybe after signing day tomorrow.

He looks pretty white, didn't Anderson say yesterday in his press conference that his OC, DC and ST coordinators were all minorities?

Oops, I just went back and listened. I was getting info from two college coaches who stopped by my school and
“assured” me that Watts would be the new DC. So, we will see.

Jete, so who you saying will be the DC?
Cause you’ve now said two different people...

Not sure what you mean if you reread my posts. I said Bert Watts and only Bert Watts based on what a couple of coaches in the profession told me. I went back and listened to Coach Anderson’s presser to hear him say his coordinators would be minorities. Coach Watts appears to be white (maybe he is not; but I don’t know). I was just confirming from the previous poster that he appears to be white. Now I am confused!

He appears more gray than white to me.
To be fair the vampire's have been under represented at USU for years.

This made me laugh outloud.

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 8:59 am

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 7:56 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:39 pm

Aggie19 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:02 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 5:48 pm

Trueblue14 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:23 am

Do we know who our defensive coordinator will be?

Bert Watts LB coach at Memphis and former Fresno State DC will be the DC. Anderson and Watts are represented by the same agent. I would look for Watts to be announced right after Memphis’ bowl game on the 23rd or maybe after signing day tomorrow.

He looks pretty white, didn't Anderson say yesterday in his press conference that his OC, DC and ST coordinators were all minorities?

Oops, I just went back and listened. I was getting info from two college coaches who stopped by my school and
“assured” me that Watts would be the new DC. So, we will see.

Jete, so who you saying will be the DC?
Cause you’ve now said two different people...

Not sure what you mean if you reread my posts. I said Bert Watts and only Bert Watts based on what a couple of coaches in the profession told me. I went back and listened to Coach Anderson’s presser to hear him say his coordinators would be minorities. Coach Watts appears to be white (maybe he is not; but I don’t know). I was just confirming from the previous poster that he appears to be white. Now I am confused!

I don't think BA stated that. I think he said this coaching staff will be very diverse. I don't think he said that his coordinators would be minorities specifically. But I definitely might have missed it.

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 2:32 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 8:59 am

splintorb wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 7:56 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:39 pm

Aggie19 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 6:02 pm

Jete2 wrote: ↑

December 15th, 2020, 5:48 pm

Trueblue14 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 10:23 am

Do we know who our defensive coordinator will be?

Bert Watts LB coach at Memphis and former Fresno State DC will be the DC. Anderson and Watts are represented by the same agent. I would look for Watts to be announced right after Memphis’ bowl game on the 23rd or maybe after signing day tomorrow.

He looks pretty white, didn't Anderson say yesterday in his press conference that his OC, DC and ST coordinators were all minorities?

Oops, I just went back and listened. I was getting info from two college coaches who stopped by my school and
“assured” me that Watts would be the new DC. So, we will see.

Jete, so who you saying will be the DC?
Cause you’ve now said two different people...

Not sure what you mean if you reread my posts. I said Bert Watts and only Bert Watts based on what a couple of coaches in the profession told me. I went back and listened to Coach Anderson’s presser to hear him say his coordinators would be minorities. Coach Watts appears to be white (maybe he is not; but I don’t know). I was just confirming from the previous poster that he appears to be white. Now I am confused!

I don't think BA stated that. I think he said this coaching staff will be very diverse. I don't think he said that his coordinators would be minorities specifically. But I definitely might have missed it.

He did. He said something to the effect that as far as he knows we'll be the only program in the country that will have a minority as OC, DC and Strength Coach.

That said, it's possible that things have changed since he said that.

UCF OC Anthony Tucker is 100% confirmed.

aggies22 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 4:46 pm

UCF OC Anthony Tucker is 100% confirmed.

I really want Banda - any news on him?

Last night on a Zoom call with Coach Blake, speaking of the defense, he made reference to Miami, and how they fly around the field, to the ball, aggressive, etc. Didn't say anything about Banda but did talk about Miami. Isn't that where Banda is coaching?

newhouse9 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 5:02 pm

Last night on a Zoom call with Coach Blake, speaking of the defense, he made reference to Miami, and how they fly around the field, to the ball, aggressive, etc. Didn't say anything about Banda but did talk about Miami. Isn't that where Banda is coaching?

Woah, woah, really? What was this Zoom call? Yes, Banda is from Miami and is one heck of a recruiter. Their fans felt like the safety play and tackling became much better when he came aboard.

I don't know. I got invited, so we joined!

I'm hopeful that the reference by Coach was a slip or hint of some kind. Fingers crossed!

newhouse9 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 5:14 pm

I don't know. I got invited, so we joined!

I'm hopeful that the reference by Coach was a slip or hint of some kind. Fingers crossed!

If you don't mind answering what other thoughts and opinions did you have a Blake Anderson? Did he mention anymore of his plans for success?

I feel that he is honest about the state of things. He's talked to the players, especially the seniors. He mentioned Shaq Bond and that he had just spoke to him (I may be confusing timing and calls) and that Shaq is fired up. Hopefully that means he is staying. He is really concerned about having a diverse and highly talented staff. Is completely focused on the strength program and thinks our players are in for a serious change of intensity there.

I'm looking forward to seeing how he develops the program. But I'm a fan. He's a good man.

newhouse9 wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 7:21 pm

I feel that he is honest about the state of things. He's talked to the players, especially the seniors. He mentioned Shaq Bond and that he had just spoke to him (I may be confusing timing and calls) and that Shaq is fired up. Hopefully that means he is staying. He is really concerned about having a diverse and highly talented staff. Is completely focused on the strength program and thinks our players are in for a serious change of intensity there.

I'm looking forward to seeing how he develops the program. But I'm a fan. He's a good man.

Thanks for sharing I appreciate that. We locked in a lot of areas this last year but one that was obvious was our strength and conditioning of the team. It's nice to see that that will be a very large Focus. I do believe that Blake is a very good man.

BLUERUFiO wrote: ↑

December 16th, 2020, 5:06 pm

Woah, woah, really? What was this Zoom call?

The Upper Eastside Football Fan Leadership Council is putting together a Zoom meeting with the new coaching staff. Primarily to offer them some help and insight. Don't worry, after the meeting there will be a survey sent to the rest of the fan base to gather their input.

I thought the MW Wire podcast had great insight from a beat writer who's covered Anderson's tenure at AKST. A few things stuck out A) Anderson is an incredible offensive recruiter and has a knack for finding talent (sometimes in odd places) and has always produced high-octane offensive attacks and B) his defensives have always been lackluster, the guest on the podcast emphasized that Anderson really needs to find a DC for USU who he doesn't have to micro-manage and would allow him to focus on his offensive genius.

https://mwwire.com/2020/12/16/podcast-g ... -anderson/

What is Kevin Clune up to these days?

Aggie formerly in Hawaii wrote: ↑

December 17th, 2020, 12:17 am

What is Kevin Clune up to these days?

Hopefully, not moving back to Logan.

ususports wrote: ↑

December 17th, 2020, 1:27 am

Aggie formerly in Hawaii wrote: ↑

December 17th, 2020, 12:17 am

What is Kevin Clune up to these days?

Hopefully, not moving back to Logan.

He spent 2020 out of football. He was the LB's coach at Memphis in 2019 where he was ironically replaced by Bert Watts.

OrangeCountyAggie wrote: ↑

December 17th, 2020, 12:05 am

I thought the MW Wire podcast had great insight from a beat writer who's covered Anderson's tenure at AKST. A few things stuck out A) Anderson is an incredible offensive recruiter and has a knack for finding talent (sometimes in odd places) and has always produced high-octane offensive attacks and B) his defensives have always been lackluster, the guest on the podcast emphasized that Anderson really needs to find a DC for USU who he doesn't have to micro-manage and would allow him to focus on his offensive genius.

https://mwwire.com/2020/12/16/podcast-g ... -anderson/

So from what I saw looking at coaching a state changed their dc two years ago for a bad dc. The one before lead to some really good moments and he was actually really good looks kinda like banda is looking to be. Those were the years they one the sun belt twice and beat ucf in a bowl game.

Aggie formerly in Hawaii wrote: ↑

December 17th, 2020, 12:17 am

What is Kevin Clune up to these days?

Ironically, Coach Clune is a Defensive analyst at BYU.

https://footballscoop.com/news/sources- ... e-defense/

“Blake Anderson is targeting Miami’s Ephraim Banda to become the Utah State defensive coordinator, sources tell FootballScoop.

Sources tell FootballScoop no deal is in place at this time.

Banda is currently the co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Miami, where he has coached the past five seasons.

A longtime disciple of Manny Diaz, Banda began working under him as a graduate assistant at Texas and then joined Diaz as a defensive assistant for the 2015 season at Mississippi State.

Defenses on which Banda has worked have ranked among the top 13 nationally in yards per play allowed five times in the last seven seasons.

Banda would inherit a defense that ranked 110th in yards per play, 122nd in total defense, 124th in scoring and 123rd in passing efficiency in 2020. The Aggies went 1-5 this fall.”

So Anthony Tucker is official for the OC as well as a few other offensive coaches. Any other word on any of the position coaches that we are are pursuing?

3rdGenAggie wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:50 am

Yossarian wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:45 am

Sl7vk wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:42 am

Yossarian wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:40 am

Aggie84025 wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:36 am

AGGIEinIOWA wrote: ↑

December 14th, 2020, 11:08 am

aggies22 wrote:Expect to hear Paul Jackson from South Carolina named as the strength and conditioning coach. Also don't be shocked to see Bojay Filimoeatu and Stacy Collins retained.

So Shane Beamer must not be retaining Jackson then. That’s a pretty big get for us.

I’m glad Collins is being retained. He’s gotten a lot of good players for us out of the NW. maybe he goes back to special teams coach and one other position.

Question about Bojay. Isn’t Filimoeatu Tongan decent, which is same as Frank? Hopefully Bojay can help smooth over some of the damage. I’d like to see another poly or two and strong LDS connection. We are going to need to rebuild some trust within those demographics.

I hope he brings in a coach that understands the returned missionary program and the importance of it. That is one area that helped turn this thing around. Not saying that should be our only focus, for sure should be something that is important for USU. We are obviously going to open and spend a lot more time in Texas, Florida and the south which I think will be great. Most important thing is to get guys that want to be in Logan since it is a lot different from other places. I am stoked to have BA leading the charge.

Even if he doesn't have a coach on staff that is LDS, he will not have a shortage of outside advisors that can explain how the missions work and how to recruit LDS kids.

Is the missionary program that difficult to decode?
We make it sound like it's more complicated than solving world hunger....
It just takes the ability to do some basic math, and understand the benefits that come along with 2 extra years of development.

I don't think the math part of it is the difficult part. I think having a coach that understands why the kids go and how it could be off-putting if you get the reputation as a guy that tries to talk kids out of going on a mission. That's one area where an advisor can help - be he a coach on staff or otherwise.

He just was very clear about being a religious person in the press conference. He won't have any issue with the mission program or recruiting LDS kids at all.

Has anyone heard if Fajaro (sp?), the old coach at Logan High has been retained as a consult? He might help bridge that LDS gap for recruiting.

It is Favero and no... all he did was study film