Johns Hopkins 2021

[HopFan16]

They just made a few more plays than we did. It’s perfectly fair to question some
of the coaching decisions. They are not infallible. Yes in general they know a lot more than the average anonymouse forum poster, that’s for sure. But that doesn’t mean they don’t make mistakes.

Man, I am so saving this post.

Why? You disagree? The coaches are infallible?

[ABV 8.3%]

Hopkins fans........which BIG team do you fear? When, it really, really matters? In May....

[flalax22]

Hopkins fans........which BIG team do you fear? When, it really, really matters? In May....

All of them will bury the Jays right now

[flalax22]

D86F9901-031B-4B11-B5F8-D2E1C0CE8045.jpeg

Alex Concannon has 15 goals and 6 assists on the year.

1. Hofstra’s schedule vs JHUs - not comparable
2. Concannon is reportedly done for the year with an injury

[RumorMill]

The only possible explanation that I can accept is that these coaches are completely “gaming” this thing for the Big tournament. They are trying to keep all the other teams and coaches guessing and not knowing what JHU will throw at them… at this point Maryland… come playoff time. And I certainly hope this is the case. For example, the only possible reason #9 didn’t play in the 2nd half is because the coaches got scared the other teams would see he can actually score (I don’t think he is injured and of course hope not) … that of course is assuming no one paid attention to his hat trick in the first half. Now they have #32 running from X? Defense is all over the place… I’m just pissed because I picked Hop to win last weekend and again this weekend thinking they would bounce back and play angry.

[ABV 8.3%]

Hopkins fans........which BIG team do you fear? When, it really, really matters? In May....

All of them will bury the Jays right now

...playing for a draft pick/lottery slot.....got it.

But, to be clear, how are these just NOT good loses?

[ABV 8.3%]

The only possible explanation that I can accept is that these coaches are completely “gaming” this thing for the Big tournament. They are trying to keep all the other teams and coaches guessing and not knowing what JHU will throw at them… at this point Maryland… come playoff time. And I certainly hope this is the case. For example, the only possible reason #9 didn’t play in the 2nd half is because the coaches got scared the other teams would see he can actually score (I don’t think he is injured and of course hope not) … that of course is assuming no one paid attention to his hat trick in the first half. Now they have #32 running from X? Defense is all over the place… I’m just ticked because I picked Hop to win last weekend and again this weekend thinking they would bounce back and play angry.

angry? about what? this silly season? foolish that the BIG made the regular season completely meaningless.

Will put another question out: If you are writing a scouting report , on Hopkins, what are you righting down?

(anyone on here ever actually do a scouting report....actual "film" breakdown? )

so, what would you right....about Hopkins offensive sets? Open, with pairs screening for other pairs, roughly the same time?

Calling for peoples heads during a covid season where many top teams are missing players, or just not playing, at all (Ivy) seems a bit odd. Certainly, lacking observation skills.

[RumorMill]

The only possible explanation that I can accept is that these coaches are completely “gaming” this thing for the Big tournament. They are trying to keep all the other teams and coaches guessing and not knowing what JHU will throw at them… at this point Maryland… come playoff time. And I certainly hope this is the case. For example, the only possible reason #9 didn’t play in the 2nd half is because the coaches got scared the other teams would see he can actually score (I don’t think he is injured and of course hope not) … that of course is assuming no one paid attention to his hat trick in the first half. Now they have #32 running from X? Defense is all over the place… I’m just ticked because I picked Hop to win last weekend and again this weekend thinking they would bounce back and play angry.

angry? about what? this silly season? foolish that the BIG made the regular season completely meaningless.

Will put another question out: If you are writing a scouting report , on Hopkins, what are you righting down?

(anyone on here ever actually do a scouting report....actual "film" breakdown? )

so, what would you right....about Hopkins offensive sets? Open, with pairs screening for other pairs, roughly the same time?

Calling for peoples heads during a covid season where many top teams are missing players, or just not playing, at all (Ivy) seems a bit odd. Certainly, lacking observation skills.

Angry that they lost to Michigan who they beat by 7 goals earlier in the season. Angry that one of their captains and leaders is getting publicly called out and “benched”. Angry that they lost to Penn State who they beat by 7 goals earlier in the season.

“Silly season”? That’s the whole point, they have a season. Tell that to the 5th year seniors and “grad student” players. This is their last “season”. Every game means something to them and should mean something to everyone on the field.

Scouting report would say they are inconsistent and scared to make a mistake. Where was I calling for anyone’s head? Just complaining like most on here and wondering why you ice a player who shot 100% in the first half with 3 goals.

[nyjay]

The only possible explanation that I can accept is that these coaches are completely “gaming” this thing for the Big tournament. They are trying to keep all the other teams and coaches guessing and not knowing what JHU will throw at them… at this point Maryland… come playoff time. And I certainly hope this is the case. For example, the only possible reason #9 didn’t play in the 2nd half is because the coaches got scared the other teams would see he can actually score (I don’t think he is injured and of course hope not) … that of course is assuming no one paid attention to his hat trick in the first half. Now they have #32 running from X? Defense is all over the place… I’m just ticked because I picked Hop to win last weekend and again this weekend thinking they would bounce back and play angry.

angry? about what? this silly season? foolish that the BIG made the regular season completely meaningless.

Will put another question out: If you are writing a scouting report , on Hopkins, what are you righting down?

(anyone on here ever actually do a scouting report....actual "film" breakdown? )

so, what would you right....about Hopkins offensive sets? Open, with pairs screening for other pairs, roughly the same time?

Calling for peoples heads during a covid season where many top teams are missing players, or just not playing, at all (Ivy) seems a bit odd. Certainly, lacking observation skills.

Freely admit I'm not capable of writing such a scouting report. But if anyone on this forum is, I would absolutely love to read it to understand exactly what's (not) going on with the Jays offense. As I've noted before, I'm really having a hard time seeing exactly what they're trying to accomplish. Seems to me that a defensive game plan against Hop would be pretty simple - (1) don't be aggressive in your slides, Hop doesn't really have anyone who can break down defenses on a 1-on-1 basis; (2) maintain your structure and don't press out too much - Hop only has one guy who can beat goalies from deep (40); (3) be patient and keep sticks in passing lanes, Hop is hesitant to attempt skips and really has no one who is an above average passer, so let them have the adjacent; (4) don't worry too much about transition, just make sure you stop ball - if you do that, Hop probably won't push too hard in transition; and (5) when in doubt, play zone - Hop hasn't really figured out how to deal with it yet.

[a fan]

-Hop doesn't really have anyone who can break down defenses on a 1-on-1 basis
- has no one who is an above average passer
-Hop only has one guy who can beat goalies from deep

Given this, how are you going to score with any consistency? What D1 coach can take the above and drop 15+ goals needed to stay in a game with top teams?

And this is just the offensive half of the field.

[51percentcorn]

I'm not sure what the "cool" word is today but back in the day my daughter would tell me when she was aggravating the hell out of me - "Chill Dad Chill"
I think that's what we all need to do.
What record did you expect from a 2020 2-4 team - that was routinely getting boat raced before the pandemic - and then you throw in a whole new coaching staff but then give them no time to do virtually anything with their new team?
You might have hoped thought they could get Michigan twice and then maybe one at home against Ohio State or Penn State - virtually no chance against Maryland and with all the experience we knew Rutgers was going to be a tough out for sure - so at this point in the season most would have taken 3-5 or 4-4 at best. They are not horribly far from that.
Every game except the first Ohio State game has been competitive for at least the first half - they have had opportunities to be 5-3 instead of 2-6 - I think Wombat - and I don't say this often - has the right perspective - be happy you're watching Hopkins lacrosse at all and be even happier that you are watching into the 4th quarter thinking there's a chance.

As far as the game - the difference to me was the fact that the defense regressed in the first half and the Hopkins goalie did not - IMO - play well in the first half either - both the goalie and the defense played better in the second - but I thought Hopkins might have a decent chance of holding them to under the 14 goals they scored the first time. Ohio State was at 43% shot percentage in the first quarter and 40% for the first half - they were 28% for the second half. The other key factors were losing so many important 50/50 ground balls. I knew if Ignacio won the clamp and got the ball to space Ohio State was going to come up with it. I'm not saying Hopkins players were slow to try - they just don't win them. The other thing then is the 4 failed clears and the 15 turnovers - many at very inopportune times. After OSU scored to make it 12-10, Hopkins proceeded to turn it over on the ensuing face-off and again before falling behind 13-10 and then Williams scores, you win the ensuing face-off and turn it over again.

I will say one thing - however - Grimes had to be hurt right? He must have pulled something - slipped in the locker room at half - or he must have for some unknown reason told Milliman to do unnatural things to himself - tell me anything other than the coaching staff decided it would be a good idea to sub in for a guy who is 3 for 3 and gives you an added threat that you so desperately need? In fact a Grimes/Degnon/Angelus mid-field might be a ticket to ride.

For all the questions about Epstein - I find the defensive line-ups interesting - no Szuluk or Deans - and the switching around of giving guys short vs long sticks and asking them to assume different roles is clearly tinkering like Dr. Frankenstein.

I was hoping Epstein would play well - Ohio State is a good defensive oriented team and they clearly decided he wasn't going to be the deciding factor and of course they played some of the requisite zone - he needs to figure out the path forward,

[HopFan16]

Agree with all of the above.

At this point, we are officially eliminated from an at-large berth assuming they keep the requirement to be at least .500. Not that we were going to get one anyway—but it's somewhat liberating to be able to just concentrate entirely on the B1G tournament now. These next two games they need to actually decide who goes where and stick with it.

I would just like to know the story with Grimes. Given last week and the Sun comments I think this staff's current idea of motivating players is nontraditional to put it lightly so I would not simply assume an injury. There were multiple people commenting on the team's Instagram and Twitter posts (including the mother of another player) wondering what happened to him in the second half. If he was injured, I'm not sure why he wasn't then sitting on the bench or in the locker room. He was standing in uniform in the middle of the group of middies, but just didn't get back in the game. This is where 06's only salient point of the last 10 years comes in—assuming Ed Lee was not covering this game, there is no lacrosse media anymore to ask the coaches these things. Not anyone's fault, just the way of the world. "What happened to Grimes" in a close game in which he was 3/3 shooting and finally looking like the player we were excited about is a question that should be brought up. If it's an injury, then fine, but it'd be nice to know.

[Sagittarius A*]

I was hoping Epstein would play well - Ohio State is a good defensive oriented team and they clearly decided he wasn't going to be the deciding factor and of course they played some of the requisite zone - he needs to figure out the path forward,

Perhaps he could move into more of a Ryan Brown type role. A shooter from range and from the crease but up top instead of shooting from the wings.
With a clean look at the full 6x6 he would be a much more effective shooter instead of taking endless low angle shots. Also, moving him around a little as opposed to parking him on the wing wouldn't hurt either.

[steel_hop]

They just made a few more plays than we did. It’s perfectly fair to question some
of the coaching decisions. They are not infallible. Yes in general they know a lot more than the average anonymouse forum poster, that’s for sure. But that doesn’t mean they don’t make mistakes.

Man, I am so saving this post.

Why? You disagree? The coaches are infallible?

you are a Hopkins grad, you'll get there eventually as to why I made my post.

[51percentcorn]

BTW - I again would like to complement Dominique Alexander. I thought he did a great job on the broadcast yesterday. For example, when Hopkins got a possession because the ref saw the loose ball push and went with a play on - he absolutely nailed it. Smaller chance the ESPN talking heads get that play right from the get go. He's obviously not polished but I would take him as an analyst anytime. The play by play guy was totally fine as well - he tripped over the roster numbers and names a bunch of times but refreshing to hear one of those more local broadcasts where the call was completely fair.

[nyjay]

Agree with all of the above.

At this point, we are officially eliminated from an at-large berth assuming they keep the requirement to be at least .500. Not that we were going to get one anyway—but it's somewhat liberating to be able to just concentrate entirely on the B1G tournament now. These next two games they need to actually decide who goes where and stick with it.

I would just like to know the story with Grimes. Given last week and the Sun comments I think this staff's current idea of motivating players is nontraditional to put it lightly so I would not simply assume an injury. There were multiple people commenting on the team's Instagram and Twitter posts (including the mother of another player) wondering what happened to him in the second half. If he was injured, I'm not sure why he wasn't then sitting on the bench or in the locker room. He was standing in uniform in the middle of the group of middies, but just didn't get back in the game. This is where 06's only salient point of the last 10 years comes in—assuming Ed Lee was not covering this game, there is no lacrosse media anymore to ask the coaches these things. Not anyone's fault, just the way of the world. "What happened to Grimes" in a close game in which he was 3/3 shooting and finally looking like the player we were excited about is a question that should be brought up. If it's an injury, then fine, but it'd be nice to know.

You’re both right. We need to have patience. But as I mentioned above, I really didn’t think 2-8 was a likely possibility. And the fairly inexplicable tinkering combined with the various public statements from PM is making it very, very challenging to have that patience. Would love a media availability with JG or JK to see what they have to say.

[HopFan16]

BTW - I again would like to complement Dominique Alexander. I thought he did a great job on the broadcast yesterday. For example, when Hopkins got a possession because the ref saw the loose ball push and went with a play on - he absolutely nailed it. Smaller chance the ESPN talking heads get that play right from the get go. He's obviously not polished but I would take him as an analyst anytime. The play by play guy was totally fine as well - he tripped over the roster numbers and names a bunch of times but refreshing to hear one of those more local broadcasts where the call was completely fair.

Announcers were good. (Last week's were good too. Stanwick-Burch should get more games.) Ohio State's production, however, was abysmal. Is there not a single camera operator in the city of Columbus who is able to pan the camera over a few inches to follow the ball? And how hard would it really be to put a shot clock on the screen? You already have the score and game time up there—which, by the way, was an improvement from previous BTN+ broadcasts.

When Hopkins broadcasts a game, they have all of these things, and more (like replays)—all done by student and staff volunteers. It puts these BTN+ broadcasts at big football schools to absolute shame.

BTW, a big props to Hop's digital media director, Matt Lawrence, for putting the pregame shows together, along with all sorts of other stuff this year (the mic'd up videos, etc.).

[nyjay]

BTW - I again would like to complement Dominique Alexander. I thought he did a great job on the broadcast yesterday. For example, when Hopkins got a possession because the ref saw the loose ball push and went with a play on - he absolutely nailed it. Smaller chance the ESPN talking heads get that play right from the get go. He's obviously not polished but I would take him as an analyst anytime. The play by play guy was totally fine as well - he tripped over the roster numbers and names a bunch of times but refreshing to hear one of those more local broadcasts where the call was completely fair.

+1. Now if we could get a slightly better camera angle.

[HappyHourLax]

Agree with all of the above.

At this point, we are officially eliminated from an at-large berth assuming they keep the requirement to be at least .500. Not that we were going to get one anyway—but it's somewhat liberating to be able to just concentrate entirely on the B1G tournament now. These next two games they need to actually decide who goes where and stick with it.

I would just like to know the story with Grimes. Given last week and the Sun comments I think this staff's current idea of motivating players is nontraditional to put it lightly so I would not simply assume an injury. There were multiple people commenting on the team's Instagram and Twitter posts (including the mother of another player) wondering what happened to him in the second half. If he was injured, I'm not sure why he wasn't then sitting on the bench or in the locker room. He was standing in uniform in the middle of the group of middies, but just didn't get back in the game. This is where 06's only salient point of the last 10 years comes in—assuming Ed Lee was not covering this game, there is no lacrosse media anymore to ask the coaches these things. Not anyone's fault, just the way of the world. "What happened to Grimes" in a close game in which he was 3/3 shooting and finally looking like the player we were excited about is a question that should be brought up. If it's an injury, then fine, but it'd be nice to know.

You’re both right. We need to have patience. But as I mentioned above, I really didn’t think 2-8 was a likely possibility. And the fairly inexplicable tinkering combined with the various public statements from PM is making it very, very challenging to have that patience. Would love a media availability with JG or JK to see what they have to say.

It’s a hard pill to swallow having to watch Hopkins lacrosse under perform like this. I went to every home game and most away games during the 2005 unbeaten season....we’ve all been privileged to watch the highest level of lacrosse at Homewood year in and year out. Just need to taper expectations right now and understand that this is not going to be an overnight change, will probably take a few years before we are an elite program again.

[Ruffled_Feathers]

Good to see some people coming around to accepting the reality of our current mediocrity. While it does generally suck that we're bad at least we can calm down with some of the outrage posts of "Oh my gawd how could we possibly lose to those bums from Michigan!!1!1!1!!1!!! Everyone should be fired!!!" Those guys are on par with ours right now and our current Freshman class is not filled with guys playing like the cavalry quite yet; hopefully they improve over time but right now even they're a miss in comparison to some other teams in the B1G hitting on guys more ready for prime time like Rutgers Knobloch. Again you really need to ask yourselves is the problem simply just the players ability? There's of course still plenty of time to develop so I'm not writing off these guys just yet but it seems none of them came fully baked gotta put them back in the oven for another 15 minutes.

There's been some positives though even yesterday...

Clearing while we still flub it up sometimes has been much improved of late and the failures now are not so much due to ugly scheming/decision making and lack of "an open man" that we had seen with recent Petro teams but rather the guys on the field just failing to execute some throw and catch or geeking the ball on a cradle. There is at least some semblance of a plan and intention in comparison to the prior regimes plan of "lets throw away the first 10 seconds of the clearing clock subbing two guys and just hope they don't bother riding us at the midline".

Tyler Dunn looked good and Peshko and Grimes found a little footing as well. Hopefully this continues for the rest of this and into next season.

Degnon continues to improve in his shooting and deciding when to let it fly. His passing still leaves something to be desired; too many of these simple passes ending up being tossed at his intended targets feet rather than their shoulder.