OCs_Inner_Eagle {l Wrote}:HJS {l Wrote}:Hated Applebaum when he was here. I have zero doubt I’ll hate him the second time around. That said, a player’s coach like Hafley must’ve known how Mahogany and Kendall felt about Guges and Baum before making the switch. I think Chud could be excellent if he is all-in on the job.
That said, these are wildly uninspiring hires (which has been par for the course on the offensive side of the ball under Hafley). Assistants show a coach’s network. Hafley has none besides D. However, i am happy that this has been and will continue to be Hafley’s hand-built ship to go down with. If he (likely) fails, it won’t be because a meddling AD saddled him with coaches he didn’t want.
Hafley wasn't going to get any superstar hires being on the hot seat this year, as he wasn't going to get the $$$ to overcome that issue.
I can't imagine Hafley could do better than Applebaum. But just because the O-Line was disastrous last season doesn't mean it performed to expectations before that.
Presumably Chudzinski will tutor Shimko in his offense, so that Shimko can take over and expand on it in a year or two. I can understand you don't want to change the offense again if you survive this year. But is Shimko such a star that he's the one you choose to groom? Was he so much better than Gunnell, for example? I know Gunnell won't be asked to come back, but he surely picked up some tricks working under Chesney and his creative OC this year. This is where the Rutgers thing makes me wonder, why was Shimko kept around and Gunnell shunted off to RBs? We can say oh Shimko understands the X's and O's and that's not Gunnell's thing, but the coaching staff's Rutgers affinity would make me wonder if there are some shaded perspectives going on.
I remember all the views that the 2021 Offensive Line should have been SO GOOD, and this has to be all Matt Applebaum's fault. Well, as I kept insisting at the time, Alec Lindstrom and Ben Petrula were completely overrated college Offensive Lineman. There was no real depth, so their starting positions were secured. Alec Lindstrom has now just signed with the Memphis Showboats. No one wanted him in the NFL. And Ben Petrula could not catch on with anyone. Matt Applebaum may not be perfect, but he was never going to make very experienced inadequate Offensive Lineman great.
Speaking of, how is this Offensive Line going to perform in 2024 without Mahogany and Hergel? If you think Conley is stepping in, and is going to be good, I have a bridge that I can sell you. Recruiting and developing athletic Offensive Lineman is a challenge for ALL in college football. IMO we need to attack the Midwest and Plains of the country and find the big wrestlers. That is where the Big Ten finds all of their good lineman. The cheapest and easiest path to finding a competitive ACC OL is to find them in high school.
