Wednesday: An evening with Bud Foster
I’M A BIG FAN OF CASUAL SWEARING IN INTERVIEWS. When star shortstop Manny Machado came through the Carolina League last year, he must have dropped the F-bomb a half-dozen times with me in 30-minute conversation in the Frederick dugout. He wasn’t mad; that’s just how he talks. “Sometimes the grind of the long season gets to me, and then I remember my mom worked three [bleepin'] jobs to give me a chance. I’m so [bleepin'] lucky that I get to play the [bleepin'] game that I love everyday.”
To me that means the filter has been removed, the subject is being honest and telling you what he or she thinks, not necessarily what he or she thinks people want to hear.
In Bud Foster’s case, he’s probably accomplishing both.
Never heard the word “dog-ass” as an adjective before last night. Maybe I’ve just lived a sheltered life. But here is what Foster said when he was talking about Pitt:
“They’ve got a new staff, they’ve got good players, they’ve got a good program. Just a couple years ago they were in the Fiesta Bowl. So it’s not like we got beat by some dog-ass team when it’s all said and done. It’s a good program. They’ve won the Big East championship. They’re a BCS conference football team. It’s not like we got beat by James Madison or somebody. Excuse me, but understand that.”
Of course, he didn’t leave it at that. The internal evaluation was the more important thing, and this is what he said about Tech’s defensive performance:
“No intensity. No passion. Inconsistent effort. Lack of communication…We need to be more physical; we got pushed around. We had inconsistent efforts, and that’s not who we are.”
Foster recalled his film room speech to his team as going something like this:
“This is how we do it around here. This is how we’re going to do it. This is how we have done it and why we’re successful. We showed plays that are unacceptable and why they happened. The bottom line is every play that they had, it was us not doing what we were supposed to do…There were a couple plays down the field where we had it definitive if we execute right on the outside. We had some communication issues.
“That goes back on me. I’m going to take responsibility for that, and I won’t let it happen again.”
MORE HOKIES
-Andy has an excellent piece on Tech’s biggest offensive problem: the lack of a running game. Read that here.
-Andy has more on the defense here.
-What’s up with Logan Thomas? Andy explores here.
-Clearly no dog-ass efforts from Mr. Bitter.
UVA FOOTBALL
-Doughty has a feature on defensive end Ausar Walcott, who’s on the right path after a suspension.
Bet he was looking curve...
-Pretty jealous that I didn’t know Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench was coming to the Taubman last night. Fortunately Doughty knew and did a nice interview with him here.
-I once heard an XM radio interview with Bench where he talked about his hitting approach. Did you know that he went into every at-bat looking curveball and adjusting to the fastball? Usually it’s the other way around, but his hands were so quick that he could pull that off. Bench seems like a guy you could spend a whole day talking baseball with and you’d still be wishing you had more time.
HIGH SCHOOLS
-Ray Cox has a feature on Donte and Steven Peoples of Galax.
PENNANT RACES!
-Orioles win their 14th straight extra-innings game, tying it with a two-run Chris Davis single in the ninth and beating Seattle 4-2 in 18.
-O’s are now in a virtual tie for first in the AL East with the Yankees, who got rained out last night. New York has a day-night doubleheader with Toronto today, while Baltimore closes out its series in Seattle with Tech alum Joe Saunders facing King Felix.
-Per @masnORIOLES on Twitter, Baltimore calls up pitcher Dylan Bundy. Using every arrow in the quiver. I like it. Nationals probably don’t.
-Angels beat Texas behind Jered Weaver (18-4). L.A. is three back of Baltimore/New York for the second AL wildcard spot. The top spot is still held by the A’s, who fell to Detroit last night. Texas leads Oakland by three games in the AL West.
-Cardinals beat Houston and have a 1.5-game lead for the second NL wildcard spot over the Dodgers, who will play a doubleheader in Washington starting at 4 p.m. today.
MISCELLANY
-My friend John informs me that the complete series of “Get a Life” — that short-lived sitcom starring Chris Elliott as a 30-year-old paperboy — is finally out on DVD. Sweet.
NAME THAT TUNE
Holes in our spirit causin’ tears and fears
One-sided stories for years and years and years
I’m inferior? Who’s inferior?
Yeah, we need to check the interior
Of the system that cares about only one culture
And that is why…
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September 19, 2012 - 8:47 AM
Gotta love interviews with Bud. I believe the song is Take the Power Back by Rage Against the Machine.
Jordan scores quickly. Nicely done. Usually the RATM songs last till at least 1 p.m.
I think Bench was married to a looker (briefly) in the 70′s who Playboy offered like $10K to pose for them.
She reportedly asked Bench what he thought and he said: “Sounds like damn good money to me”.
I don’t think she posed or thought much of his response. I don’t think they wound up being married long.
As a Red Sox fan I always thought the series got stolen from us by the umps on that Armbrister call by the umps. He interfered with Fisk on the throw to 2nd. At any rate, ARMBRISTER HIMSELF should have been out because Fisk contacted him with the ball before the throw and he was not on a base. Armbister was awarded first base. He, at least, shoudl have been out.
This was also the famous series where Luis Tiant was called for a balk and Tony Kubek brought Joe Morgan into the studio and asked him repeatedly in looking at it in slow motion “Where’s the balk Joe?” which Morgan could never identify where it was.
Interesting that both coach Foster and Wiles took the blame for the defense being schooled. It was also telling that Wiles sensed the players weren’t ready during the warm up and tried to get them fired up. I wonder what Gray had to say about the secondary’s woe.
I just wonder why the offense coach can’t say the same thing. It’s the same old song we hear each seasons.
Aaron, I’m surprised you didn’t post a link to the retro uniform Virginia is going to wear against TCU. It looks similar to the Buffalo Bills’ uni back in the 90s when they had 4 straight Super Bowl flops.
The Doughty article with Bench was excellent. I especially appreciate the points Bench made about Rose and the steroid crowd. Those are points the new generation of sportswriters likes to ignore, because of their lack of respect for the game.
I respect Bud Foster because he leads his defense. He is a man (cue Mike Gundy), he takes responsibility (even when it’s not always his fault) and he doesn’t throw his players under the bus like Brian Stinespring ALWAYS does or make stupid excuses like Frank AND now Shane Beamer are so comfortable doing (We were just fill in the blank number of blocks away from winning the game).
What was the name of the MLB show that aired on Saturday mornings for kids back in the 1980′s? I remember that Johnny Bench usually had a role, as did the San Diego Chicken.
Wow, Bob, you Red Sox fans really carry baggage around a long time, don’t you?
I remember that Armbrister play really well, and I was just a kid. That was a great World Series. Sadly, I fell asleep watching Game 6 and missed one of the best home runs in the history of baseball.
Luis Tiant was great, too. He was all knees and elbows coming at you – how a batter picked up the ball was beyond me. I remember my little leagues coaches not being too wild about the exposure he was getting, given we all tried to pitch the same way. Many dugouts got pegged with pitches by 11 year olds trying to do that whacky windup.
If Bud showed the defensive plays that were unacceptable and why in the film session, it had to be the longest one ever. I recall very few that were acceptable.
I found the answer to my own question, thanks to Wikipedia — The Baseball Bunch! That was the greatest show back when I was 7 or 8. I wish MLB did more of this sort of thing for kids nowadays
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Baseball_Bunch
The Armbrister call was Karma paying back the Reds for the blown call at the plate on the non-tag by Elrod Hendricks in the 1970 World Series against the Orioles.
T. Preston,
Maybe so but as a Red Sox fan it only prolonged “the curse”. Red Sox shouldn’t be getting paybacks for the O’s!
Another great part of that series was when the Reds had runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 out and Bench was at the plate. I think the count was 3-2 and there was some question about whether they should even intentionally walk Bench given that George Foster would bat next and he was like RBI leader for the NL that year. The Red Sox manager came out and talked to the pitcher and catcher and signalled for them to walk Bench.
The pitcher proceeded to fire a perfect corner strike and Bench was caught looking. Truly one of the great series of our time, even though the Sox got robbed.
Well, let`s just hope this Saturday isn`t another Dog Day Afternoon coming up. That would make it a 3 Dog…Day. And yes coaches it`s Easy to be Hard on the players after the fact. Bud was to the point that saying that last Saturday would not happen again was his top priority No wagging the dog from him. And yes, I checked. Bowling Green`s nickname is Falcons not Terriers, Poodles, Pit Bulls…..thank goodness.
I always wondered what happened to Get A Life, I had thought it was called The Paper Boy. RP, Good info on the Baseball Bunch. Maybe MLB Network should pick something like that up, maybe even air the old episodes.
You’ve got to remember, Rick H, that BoSox fans were the ones who WRONGLY blamed Bill Buckner for losing the World Series, back in the day. That is despite the fact the Sox had a 7th game to play in which they could have easily won, or despite the fact of all the other equally tragic mistakes made by other players in Game 6, where a hobbled Buckner made a regrettable error that stupidly ignorant BoSox fanatics labeled him as a goat – because of BoSox fans stupidity and whiny paranoia – for the rest of his life.
You know, the BoSox led the SEVENTH game of the ’86 Series, the game AFTER Buckner’s error, they led the SEVENTH game of the World Series 3-0 in the sixth inning, and choked it away. In a game where Buckner played and went 2-4 at the plate.
But the blame reverted to the SIXTH game error of Buckner, because that’s how BoSox fans roll. See, Calvin Schiraldi didn’t get the blame, despite gagging in the 7th game and losing the game for the BoSox, because it was easier to blame Buckner, as though karma had denied the BoSox, when it was just another gagging choke job by themselves.
Remember, Buckner’s family was harassed so recklessly and received so many death threats that they eventually moved to Idaho just to escape the stupid ignorance of Sox Nation.
Calvin Schiraldi, Bob Stanley & Bruce Hurst remain ‘innocent’ of all epitaphs hurled by the ignorant BoSox fans, because BoSox fans are… well… too eager to point the finger wrongly. One more comment about BoSox fans – they got their World Series titles by mimicking the New York Yankees in overspending to acquire more talent than everyone else. The same Yankees who they berated for about eight decades for the very actions they used to get their World Series titles. Need I say – hypocrites?
Oh, they pretend to ‘forgive’ Buckner, who was wrongly accused by the fools and hypocrites, but you still hear about how he was the one who lost the Series, don’t you? Did I mention hypocrites?
Don’t get me started on the hypocritical lying fools that represent BoSox nation. I might go off on a rant if you do…
Y’all have a nice day…
Maybe not a dog ass team but it was sure a dog ass loss. Glad Bud sees that. What he doesn;t see is that PIT is having a dog ass season. He bears responsibility, too. A whole bunch of responsibility.
I am supposed to watch the BG game with my San Antonio breathren. Don;t know if I can take it yet.
Anybody think Logan Thomas should be given more flexibility in calling his own plays on the field? I think so. It just seem to me that since Stinespring went back to the booth, the running game went to hell, and the shot of O’Cain and Stinespring sitting side by side showed one thing – awarkwardness between those two. I get the feeling that Stinespring is overruling O’Cain calls, but I might be delusional on that.
I also think that Shane Beamer have no clue what to do with the running back. For example, Scales got going, I would think Shane would keep Scales in since he is a pounder, but according to the tweets I read on my timeline, Scales wasn’t put on the field much.
I really think my feeling like this is 2008 all over is starting to become true. That’s my perception and my reality now. Until proven otherwise.
It’s a dog ass dog world guys. That’s all I can say.
Ralph, those Terriers really come after ya!
Trevor, we’re just starting to get a glance of why Shane Beamer shouldn’t be ‘The Anointed One’ to succeed his father , despite all the worship of the lemming brigade.
He can’t coach up his first crew of RB’s without a superstar, but he’s supposed to be the one to carry on Frank’s legacy of never coming close to even playing for another MNC, at least in the mind of the lemmings.
Maybe by the time Frank is finally wrenched away from his head coaching title, Shane can recruit Michael Vick’s son to play QB, and the fantasy will live on for another generation…
I’ll say it again folks – we’re looking at a JoePa/Bobby Bowden situation here, but nobody wants to admit it.
Crocked road,
This is one Bosox fan that blames the manager for starting Al Nipper in game 3 and basically making it a throw away game which opened the floodgates for the Mets.
And I never condone fans who do stupid things like that to a player.
Guys, heard on Twitter that UNC’s basketball coach, Roy Williams, is undergoing surgery on his kidney to remove tumor. That doesn’t sound good. I have to wonder if he may take a medical leave of absence, which could be a blow to the UNC’s basketball team.
I’m dog-assed tired of a let down game being the cause of the VT coaching staff to get these players motivated.
If any of you guys are looking for something fun to do this evening, come check out the cornhole tournament at Colonial Downs in Vinton at 7PM tonight. It’s the same group of guys from AMac’s article in Sunday’s extra section.
Anyone can play, any skill level (18 and up since there’s gambling inside Colonial Downs). We random draw for partners, so you don’t even have to worry about bringing anyone with you to play. Everyone pitches in 5 bucks, and all of that pays back out to the top few teams. Come out early and get warmed up!
Colonial Downs also gives good beer specials to cornhole players. Come on out and have a good time!
Bob H, so maybe Karma was taking away from the O’s with the Jeffrey Mayer fiasco? Why do the Yankees get all the breaks?
Well two things, I was correct in my assessment of the defense, no outside contain as verified by Wiles in his critique. That’s an easy fix with a couple of adjustments if the players listen and cover their areas. I just don’t think the LB’s have the speed to do outside coverage when the ends crash, which is often. We have a multitude of LB’s playing after healing from injuries. Maybe the recovery isn’t as successful as advertised. Secondly, let Logan be Logan. Beamer is famous for trying to groom his favorite players for the future. Thomas is not a pocket QB, don’t try to make him one. Drop him back, move the pocket, roll him out, give him the latitude to make the decision to run or throw. Also, give him more than two receivers, give him at least four with one hot receiver to go to when everything else fails. Moving him around will slow the rush and give the OL a better opportunity to block.
Here’s a 2 minute clip from the Baseball Bunch. As a side item, remember when Pete Rose was likeable? (I wonder if he had money riding on which kid would round first base the fastest?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5wk-r7sYtg&feature=share
Haha, RP. If he did, he’d never admit it…until the book came out, anyway. I liked Bench’s quote about Pete in Doughty’s story:
Then, he turned to a female photographer.
“Here, young lady, you married?” Bench asked. “You have kids? Think Pete should be in the Hall of Fame? Whatever! Go home and tell your kids, ‘There’s no more rules.’ That’s my answer.”
It’s going to be SOO interesting when this year’s Hall of Fame balloting is done. All the contortions to excuse Barry Bonds will be amazingly hypocritical, but you can already hear them coming…
T. Preston,
Answer: Because they are the Yankees. Just ask one of their nauseating fans (sorry for the redundancy).
Speaking of fans that lose touch with reality I see that Josh Morgan got death threats after the Rams game.
CR, I agree on the JoePa/Bobby Bowden. I appreciate the fact that before Beamer, Tech wasn’t even a blip on the national radar, but now is considered as one of the most stable programs in the country. Sure, I wasn’t around during the “lean years” of the 80s and 90s (maybe because I was a wee child who never even heard of them until 1999). Ugh, I keep repeating myself on when I followed Tech.
Shane Beamer, if I recall right, was a special team coordinator and defensive back coach at South Carolina before he came to Blacksburg. I suspect his mom have something to do with his being hired on the staff, but I wouldn’t know because I don’t have proof. And God forbid that I upset the apologists.
Two things I like about Shane, though, is his question/answer session on Twitter. He has answered a couple of my questions. The other is his enthauntism. He really enjoys working with the running backs, of that, I’m certain. Right now, it is his first year as a running back coach, and I have to give him the benefit of doubt, even though he appears to be lost about what to do with the running game issue. At least he has Billy Hite to ask for advice, and I hope he listens.
As a lifelong Reds fan, I am well aware of Johnny’s stance on Pete.
Johnny and Pete were never clubhouse pals. Both egos of both men could not stand the attention the other received in the press.
In fact Johnny became a better quote and leader of the team just because of his disdain for Pete hogging all of the beat writers time filling notebooks with quotes.
In there contempt for each other, their competitive drive made them both better players.
Dang, you guys are being a tough crowd on Shane.
Hell, he’s living in a dog-ass world. He has to work with a r-Fr, true Fr, and another guy that hadn’t so much as toted the pigskin in a college game. Zero carries of experience – among 3 guys.
If he had Ryan Williams and David Wilson back there, you all would probably be promoting him to head coach right now.
I don’t know that Billy ever had to deal with that lack of experience.
He can recruit – that’s what he can do, but geez, cut the guy some slack. He’s having to make chicken crap into chicken salad.
Trevor, I did admire Shane’s openness, and spirit, something that I NEVER see in his father any more, unless Stinespring is insulted. Of course, now that Shane has been on the staff for 18 months or so, it seems like the Frankism’s are growing on him. The bullbleep about ‘a couple of blocks here & there’ irritates me beyond belief. It is a gutless cowardly way of avoiding responsibility, and Frank Beamer does it more than any other coach I know. If that’s what we’re going to have to suffer through once Frank decides to anoint Shane the next Pope… err… head coach, no thank you.
BTW, Shane was also RB coach all of last season. It’s just that he had David Wilson, so he didn’t have to do anything. Then again, maybe that’s why our RB’s are in the state they’re in, because Shane either coasted last year, or didn’t know how to ‘coach them up’.
What if they were playing quality opponents each week? Do you not think that the players would know that they better play well or get embarrassed. You cannot play one descend opponent and 3 or 4 weak ones and get any better. It happens every year. It just does not work.
Ok, I just did some quick and dirty research on Shane Beamer. Apparently, one year he did coach running backs, at Mississippi State (2006), and the year before, as a cornerbacks coach. I gotta give him props, he cut his teeth recruiting in the SEC, that helps, but with him changing different coaching jobs, I have to wonder if that’s scrambling his mindset. But again, that’s an impressive resume he has. Reference
Rick H, it’s kinda easy to coach a running back when he’s an NFL bound back. He did say that he was going to have to earn his money starting this season, which is why I’m giving him the benefit of doubt. If anything, I think he ought to take over as the special team coordinator, especially with his extensive experience there. Again, that’s just my opinion, and we all know my opinion amounts to a hill of beans.
To Bob H, the famous Bench strikeout was in the 1972 World Series by Rollie Fingers and the Oakland A’s. Maybe my most painful moment as a Reds fan ever…But lots of good ones, including this year for a change.
“When Dick Williams, A’s manager, came to the mound and told me, ‘We’re going to fake an intentional pass to Bench, but throw a strike. But don’t throw a fastball because he is a fastball hitter,’ ” Fingers said. “I said, ‘What? What are you talking about? Is this Little League or what?,’ ” Fingers said he told Williams. But being a good corporal, Fingers followed orders. “I threw probably the best slider I’d ever thrown in my life,” he said of the called strike three. “When I see Johnny Bench, I never mention it. But he usually brings it up and says, ‘That was the most embarrassing moment of my life.’ ”
paying ton of bills this week on Pitt on juicy moneyline of +340 … lovely smelling a monkey in woodpile, boys! it pays!
I think Pitt. is a better team than the Hokies.Beamer will never give a victor the compliments,only that they were lucky the hokies played so poorly.
“…You cannot play one descend opponent and 3 or 4 weak ones and get any better…”
It worked for Alabama last year, and got them a spot in the national title game! When it was time for bowl games, they had only played 4 D1 teams that had records over .500!