After last year’s disaster in The Game, two things were really clear:
- Day built a program that optimized our chances to win the natty.
- TCUN had built a program that optimized their chances against us.
By winning the natty, Day settled any debate on Point 1. But these were always two separate issues. My question: Has Day made the programmatic changes needed to address Point 2?
Last November, there was obviously a lot of frustration, but I also remember the sense that folks had constructive suggestions about what Day needed to do differently (programmatically, not just play calling).
I’d love to hear from people who were making those suggestions: Did Day do what you think needed to be done? Do you think Day has made programmatic changes to get us over the hump in The Game? What do you see us doing differently this year, compared to years past?
To my untrained eye, it looks like he doubled down on what worked best defensively last year, and we’re less likely to get gassed on D in the 4th quarter than (arguably) happened 2021-2023. Offensively, there’s something in the use of tight ends that seems really different this year, combined with cultivating the deep-ball threat, which I think is likely to improve our passing production, even if they again succeed in stifling our running attack and getting consistent pressure on the QB.
So, my answer would be “yes.” Are you seeing something similar?
