FB: American Southwest Conference

[CruFrenzy]

The reality is it's been 4 years and that's more than a big enough sample size to see the truth of the matter.

Ohio State lost Urban Meyer in 2018 after winning the title in 2014 and hired Ryan Day. They were back to the national championship in 2020 and won another in 2024, they remained extremely relevant despite losing an all time great HC during that entire 10 year span.

Even better example is North Dakota State:

Won 3 titles under Craig Bowl from 2011-2013
Won 4 titles (played in 5) under Chris Klieman 2014-2018
Won 2 titles under Matt Entz (played in 3) from 2019-2023

Just won another title under Tim Polasek and are currently #1 ranked team in FCS this year.

So it can be done. Not saying it's easy, there's a reason only one team can win the whole thing. But consistently not even being close to contending with our athletes and resources is crazy.

[crufootball]

I think your last statement says it all. We are not most D3 programs. We have as much as any program in the country when it comes to resources to work with. There is no excuse for losing 3+ games three years in a row, likely missing the playoffs for the second time in three years (again, would be three in a row without the expanded field), and getting blown out routinely. Hardin-Simmons has officially surpassed us as a program, and it's not even close at this point.

Harmon went undefeated and made a deep playoff run in his first year with a nearly intact team coming off a dominant national championship run. Since then he has been a joke, despite sneaking into an expanded playoff and getting hot during that stretch. The ongoing problems that plague the team are not being fixed. I don't expect a national championship every year, but I do expect to see a team making progress, being regularly competitive against good teams, making the playoffs more often than not, and (heaven forbid) actually earning a playoff game AT HOME once in a while. If Harmon can't handle these reasonable standards with the resources at his disposal, he doesn't need to be leading this team. This is not close to our standard.

Not even close — we beat HSU seven games ago.

UMHB is doing a lot of things now that it didn't regularly do under Coach Pete, and the biggest difference is the level of competition.

We've faced UWW every single year in the regular season under Coach Harmon, where his record is 1–3. Coach Pete's regular season record against UWW was 0–2.

We just had to get on a plane to face a Division II team. Coach Pete's record against D2 teams in the regular season? 0–0 — because we never had to play one.

Harmon also took the team on the road to play Bethel, a program that went 22–3 in the two years before facing us. And this week, we're playing Texas Wesleyan, who is even better than that Bethel team. Coach Pete's record against NAIA opponents was 5–1, but those games were against Southern Nazarene and Southern Oregon — solid programs, but middle-of-the-road at best during those years.

I'm not trying to hand Coach Harmon a gold star. But to ignore the level of competition and the challenges he's faced compared to Pete isn't fair or accurate.

And as far as "sneaking into the playoffs" goes, my first year as a UMHB fan was 2004 — an incredible year, no doubt — but it was also the year we got steamrolled on homecoming by Hardin-Simmons.

[UMHB03]

I think your last statement says it all. We are not most D3 programs. We have as much as any program in the country when it comes to resources to work with. There is no excuse for losing 3+ games three years in a row, likely missing the playoffs for the second time in three years (again, would be three in a row without the expanded field), and getting blown out routinely. Hardin-Simmons has officially surpassed us as a program, and it's not even close at this point.

Harmon went undefeated and made a deep playoff run in his first year with a nearly intact team coming off a dominant national championship run. Since then he has been a joke, despite sneaking into an expanded playoff and getting hot during that stretch. The ongoing problems that plague the team are not being fixed. I don't expect a national championship every year, but I do expect to see a team making progress, being regularly competitive against good teams, making the playoffs more often than not, and (heaven forbid) actually earning a playoff game AT HOME once in a while. If Harmon can't handle these reasonable standards with the resources at his disposal, he doesn't need to be leading this team. This is not close to our standard.

Not even close — we beat HSU seven games ago.

UMHB is doing a lot of things now that it didn't regularly do under Coach Pete, and the biggest difference is the level of competition.

We've faced UWW every single year in the regular season under Coach Harmon, where his record is 1–3. Coach Pete's regular season record against UWW was 0–2.

We just had to get on a plane to face a Division II team. Coach Pete's record against D2 teams in the regular season? 0–0 — because we never had to play one.

Harmon also took the team on the road to play Bethel, a program that went 22–3 in the two years before facing us. And this week, we're playing Texas Wesleyan, who is even better than that Bethel team. Coach Pete's record against NAIA opponents was 5–1, but those games were against Southern Nazarene and Southern Oregon — solid programs, but middle-of-the-road at best during those years.

I'm not trying to hand Coach Harmon a gold star. But to ignore the level of competition and the challenges he's faced compared to Pete isn't fair or accurate.

And as far as "sneaking into the playoffs" goes, my first year as a UMHB fan was 2004 — an incredible year, no doubt — but it was also the year we got steamrolled on homecoming by Hardin-Simmons.

We did narrowly beat them 7 games ago..... and we've been utterly curb-stomped by them in three of our other four most recent matchups with them. Again, they're in a different league than us right now, and it isn't getting any better. Getting blown out multiple times per season is common under Harmon. It very rarely happened when Fred was in charge.

I understand that the level of competition has been high. We used to win consistently against quality competition, and we almost ALWAYS showed up and acquitted ourselves well even in defeat. Harmon's teams don't even look like they want to be on the field half the time.

I don't expect to go undefeated every year, but I do expect to show up and compete in every game. I also expect that when we have a down year, the coach will make the necessary adjustments and corrections to get the program back on it's feet, not continue to wallow in mediocrity with the same approach that has been failing for several years.

UMHB is not some low-budget college playing in a 1,000 seat high school stadium. We have the resources and tradition to continue fielding a great program. Maintaining this level of mediocrity for multiple years at a program like ours is completely avoidable.

[D3fanboy]

Off the top of my head, Coach F is up there with Larry Kehres at UMU, and Gagliardi at St John's and UWW's Lance Leipold, now at Kansas.

LOL

[CruFrenzy]

Right... why should the 4th winningest head coach in college football history be mentioned as an all time great? LOL !

[Etchglow]

Good first half by UMHB, this crowd sucks though... Zero energy.

[zipmac22]

I bet if the offense was allowed to actual use real plays instead of running up the middle a lot of the times. Or perhaps when the defense actually wrap their arms around the ball carrier to tackle instead of throwing their body through the air and hope they knock someone down.

Why are there still players on the field instead of sitting on the bench when they keep causing bonehead penalties over and over again? I have just about given up expecting to see someone different at QB. After six games the starting QB should be able to run move the ball down the field instead of all those three and out.

If Coach Harmon is able to turn the team around start playing with a purpose the fans will be there, but when we see more of the same old, same old its not going to happen.

[CruFrenzy]

I bet if the offense was allowed to actual use real plays instead of running up the middle a lot of the times. Or perhaps when the defense actually wrap their arms around the ball carrier to tackle instead of throwing their body through the air and hope they knock someone down.

Why are there still players on the field instead of sitting on the bench when they keep causing bonehead penalties over and over again? I have just about given up expecting to see someone different at QB. After six games the starting QB should be able to run move the ball down the field instead of all those three and out.

If Coach Harmon is able to turn the team around start playing with a purpose the fans will be there, but when we see more of the same old, same old its not going to happen.

I wrote a little about it on x but there were some positives.

For starters we do seem to finally be getting our best offensive weapons on the field at wideout. Quinci Jones #4 was probably our best portal grab in the offseason at receiver and he looked it yesterday, he's been hurt most of the season. Quinci Jones, Watson, Vidal and BJ Stewart all healthy you have your self a pretty good WR corps. The next and bigger issue like you said is QB play which has been bad all season, hate to say that but it's the truth. With 0 second half points and game after game of poor QB production idk what we have to lose, let Carson Horton play - he's the only QB that's shown any spark at all for us this season and with the improved WR's we might just have a decent shot at winning out with him in there. He's a gamer, he showed that at the end of HSU game. Small sample size yes but he rips it and again what else do we have to lose at this point?

Defensively we have to heal up. Still missing both starting defensive ends McGruder and Gaige Sanders. Get those guys back and that makes a huge difference up front.

I thought Brzezniski looked great at middle LB yesterday, good for him!!

[UMHB03]

I bet if the offense was allowed to actual use real plays instead of running up the middle a lot of the times. Or perhaps when the defense actually wrap their arms around the ball carrier to tackle instead of throwing their body through the air and hope they knock someone down.

Why are there still players on the field instead of sitting on the bench when they keep causing bonehead penalties over and over again? I have just about given up expecting to see someone different at QB. After six games the starting QB should be able to run move the ball down the field instead of all those three and out.

If Coach Harmon is able to turn the team around start playing with a purpose the fans will be there, but when we see more of the same old, same old its not going to happen.

I wrote a little about it on x but there were some positives.

For starters we do seem to finally be getting our best offensive weapons on the field at wideout. Quinci Jones #4 was probably our best portal grab in the offseason at receiver and he looked it yesterday, he's been hurt most of the season. Quinci Jones, Watson, Vidal and BJ Stewart all healthy you have your self a pretty good WR corps. The next and bigger issue like you said is QB play which has been bad all season, hate to say that but it's the truth. With 0 second half points and game after game of poor QB production idk what we have to lose, let Carson Horton play - he's the only QB that's shown any spark at all for us this season and with the improved WR's we might just have a decent shot at winning out with him in there. He's a gamer, he showed that at the end of HSU game. Small sample size yes but he rips it and again what else do we have to lose at this point?

Defensively we have to heal up. Still missing both starting defensive ends McGruder and Gaige Sanders. Get those guys back and that makes a huge difference up front.

I thought Brzezniski looked great at middle LB yesterday, good for him!!

When I saw Michaux trot out onto the field to start the game, I almost started wondering to myself if he has some kind of compromising blackmail info on Harmon or something. By all accounts Harmon is a good man, so I say that in jest, but I honestly can't comprehend what the coaches think he brings to the table that would compel them to keep putting him out there to throw one wounded duck after another every game. At 47 years old, and not in the best shape of my life, I really do think that I could complete some of the routine passes that he misses on a regular basis.

[Crubacker]

I'd rather have an ugly win than a loss.  As long as they keep putting up W's, I don't think anyone really cares how crappy the offense is, BUT, sure takes a lot of pressure and fatigue off the defense when the offense can stay out on the field longer than 3-4 plays at a time.

[crufootball]

Did anyone else understand the gift that the TWU coaching staff gave us at the end of the games? They score to make it 28-19, if they just kick the PAT to make it 28-20 the game is still in front of them, but by going for 2 and missing it the game was basically over.

[CruFrenzy]

I bet if the offense was allowed to actual use real plays instead of running up the middle a lot of the times. Or perhaps when the defense actually wrap their arms around the ball carrier to tackle instead of throwing their body through the air and hope they knock someone down.

Why are there still players on the field instead of sitting on the bench when they keep causing bonehead penalties over and over again? I have just about given up expecting to see someone different at QB. After six games the starting QB should be able to run move the ball down the field instead of all those three and out.

If Coach Harmon is able to turn the team around start playing with a purpose the fans will be there, but when we see more of the same old, same old its not going to happen.

I wrote a little about it on x but there were some positives.

For starters we do seem to finally be getting our best offensive weapons on the field at wideout. Quinci Jones #4 was probably our best portal grab in the offseason at receiver and he looked it yesterday, he's been hurt most of the season. Quinci Jones, Watson, Vidal and BJ Stewart all healthy you have your self a pretty good WR corps. The next and bigger issue like you said is QB play which has been bad all season, hate to say that but it's the truth. With 0 second half points and game after game of poor QB production idk what we have to lose, let Carson Horton play - he's the only QB that's shown any spark at all for us this season and with the improved WR's we might just have a decent shot at winning out with him in there. He's a gamer, he showed that at the end of HSU game. Small sample size yes but he rips it and again what else do we have to lose at this point?

Defensively we have to heal up. Still missing both starting defensive ends McGruder and Gaige Sanders. Get those guys back and that makes a huge difference up front.

I thought Brzezniski looked great at middle LB yesterday, good for him!!

When I saw Michaux trot out onto the field to start the game, I almost started wondering to myself if he has some kind of compromising blackmail info on Harmon or something. By all accounts Harmon is a good man, so I say that in jest, but I honestly can't comprehend what the coaches think he brings to the table that would compel them to keep putting him out there to throw one wounded duck after another every game. At 47 years old, and not in the best shape of my life, I really do think that I could complete some of the routine passes that he misses on a regular basis.

Haha, yea... I don't know for sure but I'd guess it's coach Lee making the decision to continue to start Michaux. I know there was some family connection and he was probably told he'd have the job as a graduate transfer from Illinois, but at this point the season is past being on the line and you have to play the guy that gives you a chance. I know Horton has been practicing through a tweaked hamstring so that could also be at play, I'm really not sure.

Guess we'll see what happens next two weeks vs Howard Payne and ETBU. Whoever starts vs Hardin Simmons on Nov 8 would ideally not be making their first collegiate start...

[Etchglow]

Did anyone else understand the gift that the TWU coaching staff gave us at the end of the games? They score to make it 28-19, if they just kick the PAT to make it 28-20 the game is still in front of them, but by going for 2 and missing it the game was basically over.

Yeah, that blew my mind.  Game was basically over by them missing the 2pt conversion.

[IC798891]

The logic I've heard (not saying I agree with it):

You need 2 one way or another, at least if you miss it early, you can call plays the rest of the way knowing you need that extra possession, which may save you enough time to get it, whereas if you wait until 28-26 and miss, it may be too late

[D3fanboy]

Did anyone else understand the gift that the TWU coaching staff gave us at the end of the games? They score to make it 28-19, if they just kick the PAT to make it 28-20 the game is still in front of them, but by going for 2 and missing it the game was basically over.

a mid NAIA football program making a poor football decision? How do those coaches even show their faces at their real jobs on Monday?  Great win for UMHB