So Far, Athlon on 1st-year coaches

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

http://athlonsports....campaign=Buffer

[yeaauburn 21]

Giddy Up!

[AUsince72 11,084]

1 of only 3 A+'s. People are starting to take notice.

[eibua12 81]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

[AUsince72 11,084]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

[aushrink 22]

why do people hire skip holtz?

no imagination.

[Strychnine 1,804]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

[BirdofPrey76 0]

why do people hire skip holtz?

no imagination.

Because the thenator's thon is really thomething!

[AUsince72 11,084]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

HAHA!! Sorry, didn't mean it like that. No, I actually LOVE my in-laws. My wife has a HUGE family. Yes, they are UT fans (ALL live in or near Knoxville, except us) but the men all love college football...the women all cook like Paula Deen...they seem to love me.... it's all good as far as I'm concerned!! Just saying, I have been treated with nothing but respect by UT fans, even wearing my AU gear (even while we sucked) so I'm good with the U of T. Nice catch though haha!!! NOT TO MENTION.... UT hates bama!!!! They can't be THAT bad right?

[TheBlueVue 177]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

My sister lives there and her children all went to UT. I've been to a few UT games over the years myself and always had a great time even when they whipped us. I aint no big UT fan but I dont hate them. I can even pull for them against UGa and bamr and UF. At other times I'm just a non-biased observer.

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

HAHA!! Sorry, didn't mean it like that. No, I actually LOVE my in-laws. My wife has a HUGE family. Yes, they are UT fans (ALL live in or near Knoxville, except us) but the men all love college football...the women all cook like Paula Deen...they seem to love me.... it's all good as far as I'm concerned!! Just saying, I have been treated with nothing but respect by UT fans, even wearing my AU gear (even while we sucked) so I'm good with the U of T. Nice catch though haha!!! NOT TO MENTION.... UT hates bama!!!! They can't be THAT bad right?

Sorry

Couldn't help myself

My in-laws are dies-hard AU fans, but can't pass on an opportunity to opine about what their daughter could have been if only...

Only opposing fan base I've really disliked was Ga Tech back in the day

[AUsince72 11,084]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

HAHA!! Sorry, didn't mean it like that. No, I actually LOVE my in-laws. My wife has a HUGE family. Yes, they are UT fans (ALL live in or near Knoxville, except us) but the men all love college football...the women all cook like Paula Deen...they seem to love me.... it's all good as far as I'm concerned!! Just saying, I have been treated with nothing but respect by UT fans, even wearing my AU gear (even while we sucked) so I'm good with the U of T. Nice catch though haha!!! NOT TO MENTION.... UT hates bama!!!! They can't be THAT bad right?

Sorry

Couldn't help myself

My in-laws are dies-hard AU fans, but can't pass on an opportunity to opine about what their daughter could have been if only...

Only opposing fan base I've really disliked was Ga Tech back in the day

GT fans...I know, weird right? Growing up in NE Atlanta (Gwinnett County) they could be some pretty obnoxious football fans. Being how they hated UGLY I thought we'd get along but...nope. Not as hateful as ugly fans but I guess they annoyed me because, to me, listening to nuclear engineers talk about football was probably like them listening to a football fan talk about nuclear engineering. Just a bunch of jibberish....

[WarEagle84 0]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

[gravejd 3,280]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

So your saying AU didn't struggle last year?

[AUsince72 11,084]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

My sister lives there and her children all went to UT. I've been to a few UT games over the years myself and always had a great time even when they whipped us. I aint no big UT fan but I dont hate them. I can even pull for them against UGa and bamr and UF. At other times I'm just a non-biased observer.

Exactly..not like I sit on pins and needles watching UT play (or even watch at all, if a better game is on) but I keep an eye on them. And I actually DID watch them on pins and needles during OT of the UGLY game and was SO disappointed when that guy fumbled going into the endzone... Had the laptop on that game and the TV on the AU/Ole Miss game..

[TheBlueVue 177]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

My sister lives there and her children all went to UT. I've been to a few UT games over the years myself and always had a great time even when they whipped us. I aint no big UT fan but I dont hate them. I can even pull for them against UGa and bamr and UF. At other times I'm just a non-biased observer.

Exactly..not like I sit on pins and needles watching UT play (or even watch at all, if a better game is on) but I keep an eye on them. And I actually DID watch them on pins and needles during OT of the UGLY game and was SO disappointed when that guy fumbled going into the endzone... Had the laptop on that game and the TV on the AU/Ole Miss game..

I spoke with sis after that UGa game and said the same thing. I couldn't believe they lost that one the way they did.

[Strychnine 1,804]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

I wasn't referring to what players are on the roster, or where they came from. What I meant is that Oregon has continuity. They were already built, not struggling. You have to go back to 2007 to find a season with more than 3 losses (and it was 9-4). Helfrich took over after being the OC for 4 years, and it's business as usual there. They have had the same DC for 14 years!

Malzahn had to come in and replace an entire staff, AND change change the team culture. Yes, I do think that Gus already having some players here that were familiar with his offense is critical to the degree of success in this Auburn turnaround. I like what Kingsbury is accomplishing at Texas Tech as well. It's impressive for someone with no head coaching experience. However, in a discussion of impact 1st year coaches have made, Oregon's Helfrich has no business on that list. There was, quite simply, no impact that he needed to make.

[augolf1716 21,448]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

HAHA!! Sorry, didn't mean it like that. No, I actually LOVE my in-laws. My wife has a HUGE family. Yes, they are UT fans (ALL live in or near Knoxville, except us) but the men all love college football...the women all cook like Paula Deen...they seem to love me.... it's all good as far as I'm concerned!! Just saying, I have been treated with nothing but respect by UT fans, even wearing my AU gear (even while we sucked) so I'm good with the U of T. Nice catch though haha!!! NOT TO MENTION.... UT hates bama!!!! They can't be THAT bad right?

Sorry

Couldn't help myself

My in-laws are dies-hard AU fans, but can't pass on an opportunity to opine about what their daughter could have been if only...

Only opposing fan base I've really disliked was Ga Tech back in the day

Oh and I always thought GTech fans were great..............................NOT bunch of SOB's pricks. ok I feel better

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,830]

Butch earns an B

[WarEagle84 0]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

So your saying AU didn't struggle last year?

That was more a collapse than a struggle.

[WarEagle84 0]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

I wasn't referring to what players are on the roster, or where they came from. What I meant is that Oregon has continuity. They were already built, not struggling. You have to go back to 2007 to find a season with more than 3 losses (and it was 9-4). Helfrich took over after being the OC for 4 years, and it's business as usual there. They have had the same DC for 14 years!

Malzahn had to come in and replace an entire staff, AND change change the team culture. Yes, I do think that Gus already having some players here that were familiar with his offense is critical to the degree of success in this Auburn turnaround. I like what Kingsbury is accomplishing at Texas Tech as well. It's impressive for someone with no head coaching experience. However, in a discussion of impact 1st year coaches have made, Oregon's Helfrich has no business on that list. There was, quite simply, no impact that he needed to make.

I agree with most of what you say, but just wanted to point out that Gus didn't have to completely rebuild. I am thrilled at the staff he has put together and the impact they have made on the team this year, and he most definitely deserves consideration for COTY honors.

[Strychnine 1,804]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

Oregon is a poster-child for coaching continuity. Chip Kelly was the OC and took over when Bellotti moved to AD, then hiring Helfrich as his OC. After Kelly went to the NFL, Helfrich became the HC. To be on that list, a first year coach should have inherited something that was struggling.

If you're going to use that logic, Gus shouldn't be on that list. He recruited most of these guys to play his offense. I think he deserves all the credit in the world for restoring a winning attitude to this team, but don't pretend he inherited a bare cupboard.

I wasn't referring to what players are on the roster, or where they came from. What I meant is that Oregon has continuity. They were already built, not struggling. You have to go back to 2007 to find a season with more than 3 losses (and it was 9-4). Helfrich took over after being the OC for 4 years, and it's business as usual there. They have had the same DC for 14 years!

Malzahn had to come in and replace an entire staff, AND change change the team culture. Yes, I do think that Gus already having some players here that were familiar with his offense is critical to the degree of success in this Auburn turnaround. I like what Kingsbury is accomplishing at Texas Tech as well. It's impressive for someone with no head coaching experience. However, in a discussion of impact 1st year coaches have made, Oregon's Helfrich has no business on that list. There was, quite simply, no impact that he needed to make.

I agree with most of what you say, but just wanted to point out that Gus didn't have to completely rebuild. I am thrilled at the staff he has put together and the impact they have made on the team this year, and he most definitely deserves consideration for COTY honors.

He was fortunate in having some players here that were already familiar with his offense, and there was certainly already talent here. However, getting staff in place and on the same page, teaching requisites to players, and completely flipping their attitude, work ethic, and conditioning in one offseason is quite an achievement when you look at the results against where we were last year. It's literally night and day. People on this board are making references to our defense as something other than a joke for the first time in a while. Year one of his tenure and we control our destiny in the SEC. I know 3-9 was one thing, but there's also the fact that we weren't very competitive with the SEC's good teams in 2011 either. 8-5 was considered decent by many in 2011, but I was bothered by all 4 of those SEC losses being blowouts.

I certainly am not trying to say anything bad about Oregon's Mark Helfrich, as he certainly appears to be a good coach in control of his program. He did come into the best possible situation that a new head coach could though.

[JFDTiger80 791]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

I lived in Knoxville 10 years. I found it difficult to be an AU fan while there. Knoxville and their newspaper, understandably talk about nothing other than UT. It gets old when you are cheering for another team. Lot's of people talk about the great game day experience. I personally do not like their stadium. It is large, but the seats in the upper deck are so steep, it feels like you could fall down the stairs if you are not careful. I am not sure if this is still the case, but UT had the smallest seat area per person of any stadium. They only allowed like 16 inches between seats. That makes it very tight.

Knoxville, is a great city to raise a family. There is very little crime, and the cost of living is low with no state income taxes. You are right about the people, very friendly.

[AUsince72 11,084]

Really Oregon was stacked it would take Lee Corso to mess that up, and CTT left TT well prepared on D and obviously better then expected on O, but the next few week will really tell us the story. Butch Davis should be at least and A

I assume you mean Butch Jones, but I totally agree with you. Having to clean up the mess of the last years of Fulmer, Kiffin & Dooley, he has done a remarkable job. They SHOULD have beat UGLY (can't blame the guy for trying to reach over the goal line....guess he's just got small hands, poor guy" and pulled it out against USCe after being demoralized by Oregon. He kept them together, kept them believing and frankly, AU vs UT is going to be a whale of a game!!! My wife's family all live in Knoxville and have taken me to games. Can't speak for everyone here, but I personally love UT...they are my 2nd fave behind my beloved Tigers as when I sit in the UT section with her family they all treat me with nothing but respect (not the family..the fans). That's just commentary on my part....

In-laws take you just to dis you???

HAHA!! Sorry, didn't mean it like that. No, I actually LOVE my in-laws. My wife has a HUGE family. Yes, they are UT fans (ALL live in or near Knoxville, except us) but the men all love college football...the women all cook like Paula Deen...they seem to love me.... it's all good as far as I'm concerned!! Just saying, I have been treated with nothing but respect by UT fans, even wearing my AU gear (even while we sucked) so I'm good with the U of T. Nice catch though haha!!! NOT TO MENTION.... UT hates bama!!!! They can't be THAT bad right?

Sorry

Couldn't help myself

My in-laws are dies-hard AU fans, but can't pass on an opportunity to opine about what their daughter could have been if only...

Only opposing fan base I've really disliked was Ga Tech back in the day

Oh and I always thought GTech fans were great..............................NOT bunch of SOB's pricks. ok I feel better

AUGolf, just asking out of curiosity (since I grew up in NE Ga), your hatred of all things yellowjacket stem from those bizarre Chan Gailey era games? Because before that I couldn't even find a GT fan under a rock since AU had not lost a game to them, before that, since the late years of the Barfield era. I remember going to games at their tiny little stadium, after going to the Varsity first, of course, and watching Bo, Aundray, Tillman, et al have their way with them. The stands were LITERALLY 60% AU fans...it really did feel like a home game. Sometime in the mid-80's, they even tore down the stands in one endzone because pretty much for ALL their games, the opponents fans filled that end. Now, when AU lost those two games to Chan Gailey teams (which was SO freakin' surreal) yes....that's when the nerds suddenly thought they knew football. Even that 90 team, that backed it's way into the natty title didn't really have a following.