Employed or not

[91catAlum]

And the defense he ultimately wants to run is the one run at UW which is where Kane has been learning for 2 years. Choate got word that Kane was "ready" and was getting offers from other schools, and decided to make the move. Is it a risk? Of course. It's always a risk replacing a successful coach. But TG is not the #1 DC in the league as you believe he is. ...

First off - We've already been running the D Choate has wanted to run since Day 1. TG was the DC of this D this Day 1. So how would Ione be more "ready" to run this D than a guy who has already been running this successfully for the past 3 seasons?

Second - TG was, by far & away, the #1 DC in the Big Sky. I don't even think this is an opinion. He was probably the #1 DC in the FCS actually. Just look at his background & legacy compared to all the others. Look at the recruits he was able to land vs. the others. That is what makes this situation so bizarre & insane.

Then why doesn't he have a job yet?

If you're truly interested in gaining more insight, you'll listen to the podcast I pointed out. If not, I'll just assume you don't actually want to know, you just want to complain.

[kennethnoisewater]

And the defense he ultimately wants to run is the one run at UW which is where Kane has been learning for 2 years. Choate got word that Kane was "ready" and was getting offers from other schools, and decided to make the move. Is it a risk? Of course. It's always a risk replacing a successful coach. But TG is not the #1 DC in the league as you believe he is. ...

First off - We've already been running the D Choate has wanted to run since Day 1. TG was the DC of this D this Day 1. So how would Ione be more "ready" to run this D than a guy who has already been running this successfully for the past 3 seasons?

Second - TG was, by far & away, the #1 DC in the Big Sky. I don't even think this is an opinion. He was probably the #1 DC in the FCS actually. Just look at his background & legacy compared to all the others. Look at the recruits he was able to land vs. the others. That is what makes this situation so bizarre & insane.

If he was the best in the country AND he got the best players in the country, there's no reason MSU didn't have the best defense in the country. I don't see a lot of other factors that could make that a better group. When you have the very best coach and, as a result, the very best players, you don't give up 45 to SDSU, 52 to NDSU, 42 to Cal Poly, etc.

I'm not knocking Ty, but that statement was a little too bold for my liking.

[Bobcatsinmso]

TG may never coach at the collegiate level again, he may well be heading in an entirely new direction. I think there is a lot more to this story than anyone but a handful of people know, and the rest of us will never know what that story really is. I wish Ty and his family the best of luck in his career and life going forward. Thanks for being a Bobcat! In Choate we trust.

[coachouert]

And the defense he ultimately wants to run is the one run at UW which is where Kane has been learning for 2 years. Choate got word that Kane was "ready" and was getting offers from other schools, and decided to make the move. Is it a risk? Of course. It's always a risk replacing a successful coach. But TG is not the #1 DC in the league as you believe he is. ...

First off - We've already been running the D Choate has wanted to run since Day 1. TG was the DC of this D this Day 1. So how would Ione be more "ready" to run this D than a guy who has already been running this successfully for the past 3 seasons?

Second - TG was, by far & away, the #1 DC in the Big Sky. I don't even think this is an opinion. He was probably the #1 DC in the FCS actually. Just look at his background & legacy compared to all the others. Look at the recruits he was able to land vs. the others. That is what makes this situation so bizarre & insane.

I'm not a numbers guy, but you would think the #1 DC in the Big Sky would have had the #1 defense in the Big Sky Conference, not the #4 defense in the conference and not the #74 defense in FCS...

[wbtfg]

And the defense he ultimately wants to run is the one run at UW which is where Kane has been learning for 2 years. Choate got word that Kane was "ready" and was getting offers from other schools, and decided to make the move. Is it a risk? Of course. It's always a risk replacing a successful coach. But TG is not the #1 DC in the league as you believe he is. ...

First off - We've already been running the D Choate has wanted to run since Day 1. TG was the DC of this D this Day 1. So how would Ione be more "ready" to run this D than a guy who has already been running this successfully for the past 3 seasons?

Second - TG was, by far & away, the #1 DC in the Big Sky. I don't even think this is an opinion. He was probably the #1 DC in the FCS actually. Just look at his background & legacy compared to all the others. Look at the recruits he was able to land vs. the others. That is what makes this situation so bizarre & insane.

I think we can all agree that our 2015 defense was pretty bad....one of the worst in the country. In 2016, we hired Choate and Gregorak to revamp the defense, and we got significantly better, but what have we done since then? Let's take a look.....

Scoring Defense:
2015 (Ash): 34.3 pts/game, 8th in the Big Sky
2016 (Choate/TG): 25.1, 2nd
2017: 25.0, 2nd
2018: 28.5, 4th

Total Defense:
2015 (Ash): 472.5 yards/game, 10th in the Big Sky
2016 (Choate/TG): 388.6, 3rd
2017: 406.9, 3rd
2018: 409.2, 4th

Looking at the numbers, Choate/Gregorak's first season was the best and has gotten worse each year. One would expect a coaching staff (especially one with the "best DC in FCS" to improve each and every year as the players get more familiar with the system and when coaches are able to get their own guys into the system. Three years into the new coaching staff, our defense should have been getting better, not worse. I assume you'd agree?

If you listen to Choate talk, he's quite clear in that he's trying to win CHAMPIONSHIPS. He doesn't care about being better than average, he's trying to be dominant. Judging strictly on the numbers, I would suggest that Choate is trying to curb the downward trend of our defensive performance based on the above statistics.

[CelticCat]

Choate doesn't appear to be afraid to cut ties with something (someone) that isn't working. Good or bad, if he isn't happy with the direction he will make changes. Not saying that is the case here, but it was clear we didn't have a defense capable of going too deep in the playoffs, regardless of how anemic our offense might have been. I thought TG could get us there with some influx of talent, younger guys on the roster, and a healthy LB corp, but who knows.

[Hawks86]

Boise States DC just left for Oregon.

[RobertCats]

Choate doesn't appear to be afraid to cut ties with something (someone) that isn't working. Good or bad, if he isn't happy with the direction he will make changes. Not saying that is the case here, but it was clear we didn't have a defense capable of going too deep in the playoffs, regardless of how anemic our offense might have been. I thought TG could get us there with some influx of talent, younger guys on the roster, and a healthy LB corp, but who knows.

I agree 100%, if you watched the winter conditioning program the kids are wearing the phrase “Never Again” on the back of their shirts. At first I thought “what an odd saying after one of our most successful seasons in awhile.” But Choate is not satisfied, yeah we made the playoffs and won a 1st round game but we were severely outplayed by the top programs in the country, “never again!”

[2-B-Champ]

IMO this was a performance issue that Coach Choate had to remedy. During the Montana Blitz Ty Tweets a picture of sign Deadman Basin and comments this is where you will find me if we don’t get off the field on 3rd downs. So I believe Choate and Ty had a conversation about this in the off season. We all know that Ty defense is a bend but do not break, it just might have bent just to much for Choate liking.
Here are some of the 3rd down conversion EW 8-17 47% PSU 8-16 50% ISU 9-18 50% UI 9-18 50% POLY 13-20 65% UNC 7-17 41% dUMb 6-14 42%

I didn’t make it to Homecoming due to weather and travel conditions but watch it on TV, I was pretty upset how our pass defense played that day, defense made their QB look like an All-American. Even the commentator mention it a few times why were our LB’s dropping 10-15 yard when they haven’t completed a pass down field. Completing dump passes or short crossing routes for 1st downs. dUMb game 42 % this one hurts the most, most of them were 10 yards or more. Choate was asked about the 3rd down conversions, he stated very frustrating.
So I believe this was the issue he need to resolve.

[wbtfg]

IMO this was a performance issue that Coach Choate had to remedy. During the Montana Blitz Ty Tweets a picture of sign Deadman Basin and comments this is where you will find me if we don’t get off the field on 3rd downs. So I believe Choate and Ty had a conversation about this in the off season. We all know that Ty defense is a bend but do not break, it just might have bent just to much for Choate liking.
Here are some of the 3rd down conversion EW 8-17 47% PSU 8-16 50% ISU 9-18 50% UI 9-18 50% POLY 13-20 65% UNC 7-17 41% dUMb 6-14 42%

I didn’t make it to Homecoming due to weather and travel conditions but watch it on TV, I was pretty upset how our pass defense played that day, defense made their QB look like an All-American. Even the commentator mention it a few times why were our LB’s dropping 10-15 yard when they haven’t completed a pass down field. Completing dump passes or short crossing routes for 1st downs. dUMb game 42 % this one hurts the most, most of them were 10 yards or more. Choate was asked about the 3rd down conversions, he stated very frustrating.
So I believe this was the issue he need to resolve.

Good post, and it's really interesting you mention the 3rd down stat. I went back and checked out 3rd down efficiency, and over the past years, we were worse than in 2015, when we had one of the worst defenses in the country.

Defensive 3rd down efficiency:

2015: 9th, 41.7%
2016: 3rd, 35.6%
2017: 12th, 49.4%
2018: 10th, 41.8%

[msufaithful]

IMO this was a performance issue that Coach Choate had to remedy. During the Montana Blitz Ty Tweets a picture of sign Deadman Basin and comments this is where you will find me if we don’t get off the field on 3rd downs. So I believe Choate and Ty had a conversation about this in the off season. We all know that Ty defense is a bend but do not break, it just might have bent just to much for Choate liking.
Here are some of the 3rd down conversion EW 8-17 47% PSU 8-16 50% ISU 9-18 50% UI 9-18 50% POLY 13-20 65% UNC 7-17 41% dUMb 6-14 42%

I didn’t make it to Homecoming due to weather and travel conditions but watch it on TV, I was pretty upset how our pass defense played that day, defense made their QB look like an All-American. Even the commentator mention it a few times why were our LB’s dropping 10-15 yard when they haven’t completed a pass down field. Completing dump passes or short crossing routes for 1st downs. dUMb game 42 % this one hurts the most, most of them were 10 yards or more. Choate was asked about the 3rd down conversions, he stated very frustrating.
So I believe this was the issue he need to resolve.

I’ve been re-watching the Idaho, UM game on Pluto over the last two months and I've bitched about the same thing. Another thing that bothers me is why can’t we get 3 and out when Padmos drops a punt inside the 10.

[CodyCat]

I think that one of the reasons that Ty didnt have the number one defense in the Big Sky was due to a lack of efficiency at times from our offense. There were lots of games in September and October were our offense did our defense no favors.

I also think that we have been so young the past few years on both sides of the ball. Kids were growing up, maturing, bulking up still. Ty frustrated me often. Especially with his lack of ability to make adjustments before halftime. But, I still think he is phenomenal DC. Kane has some pretty big shoes to fill but I think he is up to the task.

I just dont think its as easy as saying if he is the best DC in the Big Sky that he should have had the number one rated defense.

[wbtfg]

I think that one of the reasons that Ty didnt have the number one defense in the Big Sky was due to a lack of efficiency at times from our offense. There were lots of games in September and October were our offense did our defense no favors.

I also think that we have been so young the past few years on both sides of the ball. Kids were growing up, maturing, bulking up still. Ty frustrated me often. Especially with his lack of ability to make adjustments before halftime. But, I still think he is phenomenal DC. Kane has some pretty big shoes to fill but I think he is up to the task.

I just dont think its as easy as saying if he is the best DC in the Big Sky that he should have had the number one rated defense.

But statistically our defense was worse this year than it was in 2016. Which essentially had that same personnel as the 2015 defense, which was one of the worst in the nation. Additionally, the 2018 offense was much better and more efficient than the 2016 offense

[catatac]

I think that one of the reasons that Ty didnt have the number one defense in the Big Sky was due to a lack of efficiency at times from our offense. There were lots of games in September and October were our offense did our defense no favors.

I also think that we have been so young the past few years on both sides of the ball. Kids were growing up, maturing, bulking up still. Ty frustrated me often. Especially with his lack of ability to make adjustments before halftime. But, I still think he is phenomenal DC. Kane has some pretty big shoes to fill but I think he is up to the task.

I just dont think its as easy as saying if he is the best DC in the Big Sky that he should have had the number one rated defense.

But statistically our defense was worse this year than it was in 2016. Which essentially had that same personnel as the 2015 defense, which was one of the worst in the nation. Additionally, the 2018 offense was much better and more efficient than the 2016 offense

Aaaand, I'd say our schedule this year was not as difficult as 2016, other than the fact we had to plan NDSU as our last game.... but I could be wrong on the difficulty of schedule thing.

[Helcat72]

Choate wanted a change at defensive coordinator, expedited that change by hiring Kane and parting ways with Ty, Ty didn't expect to be gone for the 2019 season so he didn't have a job lined up, and now he is taking this time to enjoy his family and looking into possible non-football job opportunities.

People are allowed to believe what they want. But this was a coaching change made by Choate to try to make the defense better.

I call BS on this.

Our defense had made continual improvement under TG, culminating in last year's playoff win & elimination in the final 16 against a top 15 team in the nation, including FBS (NDSU).

TG had just presided over the greatest defensive call in MSU history against the jizz in missoula in what will go down in Bobcat lore as "The Stuff".

You don't fire DCs that do stuff like that. Remember, TG resigned unexpectedly. He was never let go or fired by Choate.

Ioane will not be an improvement over TG as the DC. Ioane is generally very overrated by Bobcat Nation as a coach & he's extremely fortunate he's been given this opportunity under Choate now. As fans, we're lucky to have landed Daly as the new LB coach to help with what will be a difficult transition for our program. Daly or Hout will likely be our DC 2-3 years from now I believe.

Some kind of sudden & unexpected "incident" happened with TG, I think most people realize that now.

I think Ioane is an upgrade over TG. The third down efficiency under TG was not acceptable. Plus our LB situation was horrible last year. Yes, injuries did not help but the talent in the room that TG built over 3 years did not measure up to BSC standards. It was time for a change and I love the change.

As far as I know, you and Vim are exactly right Gary!

[VimSince03]

Choate wanted a change at defensive coordinator, expedited that change by hiring Kane and parting ways with Ty, Ty didn't expect to be gone for the 2019 season so he didn't have a job lined up, and now he is taking this time to enjoy his family and looking into possible non-football job opportunities.

People are allowed to believe what they want. But this was a coaching change made by Choate to try to make the defense better.

I call BS on this.

Our defense had made continual improvement under TG, culminating in last year's playoff win & elimination in the final 16 against a top 15 team in the nation, including FBS (NDSU).

TG had just presided over the greatest defensive call in MSU history against the jizz in missoula in what will go down in Bobcat lore as "The Stuff".

You don't fire DCs that do stuff like that. Remember, TG resigned unexpectedly. He was never let go or fired by Choate.

Ioane will not be an improvement over TG as the DC. Ioane is generally very overrated by Bobcat Nation as a coach & he's extremely fortunate he's been given this opportunity under Choate now. As fans, we're lucky to have landed Daly as the new LB coach to help with what will be a difficult transition for our program. Daly or Hout will likely be our DC 2-3 years from now I believe.

Some kind of sudden & unexpected "incident" happened with TG, I think most people realize that now.

I think Ioane is an upgrade over TG. The third down efficiency under TG was not acceptable. Plus our LB situation was horrible last year. Yes, injuries did not help but the talent in the room that TG built over 3 years did not measure up to BSC standards. It was time for a change and I love the change.

As far as I know, you and Vim are exactly right Gary!

As you can see, I never stated Kane is a direct upgrade over Ty. Kane's past experience as a Co-Defensive Coordinator was mostly just a title instead of a coordinator who calls games. Jaime Marshall was the playcaller in 2015 and MSU ran his scheme. So this season will really be Kane's first full season calling plays. Does this mean he will do better than Ty? It obviously remains to be seen as Ty has been a defensive coordinator since 2010 and Kane hasn't even called plays for a full season. What I was relaying in the above quoted text was that Choate made this change because Choate believes Kane has a higher ceiling than Ty as a coordinator. Choate is betting on Kane being an upgrade over Ty over the next few years to take MSU where it needs to be as a defense.

Ty's style was instrumental in turning around a defense that lost its edge after the 2015 season. The fact that MSU was in the top 4 of the Big Sky in many defensive categories in 2016 was a testament to how good of a coach Ty is. Now obviously Choate's attitude on being tough and technically sound helped turn around the defense as well but Ty deserves a ton of credit. However, the "stats/trends" above regarding Ty's defenses were the same trends that waned on Griz fans when he was the DC in Missoula. Ask any Griz fan and they will tell you the same thing. Eventually, teams figure out the "bend but don't break" approach and they will scheme around it.

[FTG_1984]

Ask any Griz fan and they will tell you the same thing.

Ask any Griz fan their record against TG and they will tell you the same thing.

When this isn't the case in the coming seasons, we'll be talking about our new DC.

[Hawks86]

“The players are the program, coaches come and go"

[catscat]

Ask any Griz fan and they will tell you the same thing.

Ask any Griz fan their record against TG and they will tell you the same thing.

When this isn't the case in the coming seasons, we'll be talking about our new DC.

TG is gone. It's not going to change so why don't you just do us all a favor and give it a rest until the 2019 season is over and then if you are right, you can tell us all you told us so. We are well aware of how you feel, but it's time to get behind Coaches Choate and Ioane. I repeat, TG is gone! Continued harping on it will only further confirm that you are an a$$.

Go 'Cats!!

[GoCats18]

This is insane. I feel like I am reading a bunch of teenage girls gossip about the pretty girl they are all jealous of. Why does it matter what this guy decides to do with his life? Why are people so interested in this? The guy did a lot of good things at MSU and helped us beat UM three years in a row. It’s his life not yours. Let him enjoy it.