Joe Moorhead sends message to fans about offensive production, plans for QBs
Criticism about the Mississippi State offense is mounting inside the Bulldogs’ fan base, and many fans are becoming increasingly impatient with coach Joe Moorhead.
Calls for a change at quarterback from Nick Fitzgerald to Keytaon Thompson have become louder and more often in recent days following MSU’s loss at LSU when Fitzgerald was 8-for-24 passing for 59 yards and four interceptions. Moorhead said the common theme in recent picks by Fitzgerald has been that the throws were late.
Moorhead said at his Monday press conference that the coaches have thought about giving Thompson the chance to start a drive in both the first and second halves, and if he gives the team a spark, they might go in that direction. Moorhead then added that they absolutely must find a way to generate more explosive plays while protecting the football.
The main decision to stick with Fitzgerald so far, according to the coach, is that he plays better in practice.
The Bulldogs return to action on Saturday when they play host to Texas A&M at 6 p.m. local time on ESPN.
Head coach Joe Moorhead says he appreciates the fans' patience in his attempt to make this a championship-level program.
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) October 22, 2018
Moorhead: “We have, in the offensive staff room, discussed not making a change but giving KT an opportunity to start a drive in the first and second half.”
Keytaon Thompson is being discussed. There you have it.
— Brett Hudson (@Brett_Hudson) October 22, 2018
Moorhead points out the three losses are to teams with a combined 19-3 record, but he understands the frustration.
“Times like these, after losses, are usually when the suggestion box is full.”
“The criticism is warranted when we don’t perform well."
— Brett Hudson (@Brett_Hudson) October 22, 2018
Moorhead says there isn't a big disparity between Fitzgerald and Thompson in practice, but Fitzgerald is still the better player in practices.
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) October 22, 2018
Moorhead says he's been in Keytaon Thompson's shoes before — a backup QB who fans are calling to be put in. Moorhead says Thompson has handled the situation well and hasn't been a distraction to the team.
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) October 22, 2018
I hope KT crushes it in his drives and gives the rest of the offense a spark that it definitely needs.
Moorhead has put himself in a real bad position. If Thompson comes in and plays well, people are going to rightfully wonder why he hasn’t played more. Being the better practice player does always equal the better game day player, especially when the guy playing on game day has been terrible. So much for getting fitted for rings.
Don’t mind losing but this is just embarrassing. Championship standard, my a$$.
Exactly.
I still think the fire Moorhead crowd is crazy. The dude is trying to install a new system in a program that was already having a ton of trouble passing the ball. Fitz doesn’t look the same since the injury and is just lost in Moorhead’s system. Hate it for him but it’s true. I do believe Fitz has given everything he has for the team but everything he has just isn’t good enough.
This post makes too much sense during the meltdown we are experiencing. Moorhead inherited this team (with lots of talent) but his offensive scheme requires more intellect/reads than what Mullen ran. Expectations were too high (he didn’t help with the “ring” comment) with a roster that isn’t known for passing well. So I expected some hiccups, but it’s downright stubborn to keep Fitz in after the passing performance he’s had. I’m not calling for Moorhead’s job since we won’t see his true potential with the program for a few more years, but being this many games in without a QB change, there’s no excuse for.
Mullen was 5-7 in his first season. Moorhead doesn’t have the personnel that he needs. He has a QB that was perfect for the previous coach’s system. Give him time to recruit a team
Mullen was 5-7 with a team coming off an abysmal coaching tenure. A good cook can use what’s in the cupboard, so can a good coach. A trip to Atlanta or a single loss to Alabama would be similar to that 5-7 season, as in completely moving up. Do NOT compare them. 8-4 would be acceptable providing Moorhead shows some ability to make adjustments, but right now I don’t see us beating aTm, though their pass defense might allow one of our qbs some play.
Don’t get me wrong, I think calling for his job is premature, but he is wasting a lot of talent installing his system. What’s his reasoning for not playing a different QB? Why is he not utilizing his running backs? Part of coaching is utilizing the talent you have, and as far offense goes he’s not. He can’t even make a decision on a punter, when it is obvious. Kid must be booming it in practice.
He didn’t NEED to install a new system until he had the personnel to run it. What he NEEDED to do was take an almost intact 9-4 team and run what they were good at until then. If State had been devoid of talent and coming off a 5-7 season it would be different. All Moorhead has proven is that he is incapable of running an offense which diverges from what HE thinks is the best way. It shows his lack of understanding for a lot of the game. I.E., he doesn’t understand football. Like another guy on here said, all he had to do was dust off Mullen’s playbook for this year. Keeping him is simply a waste of kids talents.
He never said they’d win rings THIS year. He just said they’d need it. It’s called motivation tactic. Nobody’s gonna play harfor a new coach if he comes in Talkin about how bad they’re gonna suck.