The Confidence Game

Hope that the Cougar Nation is enjoying this week of sitting at number 25 in SOMETHING for the first time in three years. Don’t know about you all, but Brinkhater has been feeling like he’s been on a Hawaiin vacation. Man, is beating Daisy, Daffy, and Donald sweeeet!

Now, onto UCLA.

Well, much to the chagrine of my detractors, this week’s game really comes down ONCE AGAIN to the play of, well, Mr. Alex Brink.

Now, without invoking the ire of all of his fan club of three (as compared to my army of ONE), here are some pretty plain facts surrounding Mr. Alex:

1) His arm strength is too weak to beat elite competition.
2) He is MUCH better and effective when he has a running game.
3) He has NOT played with much confidence during his entire tenure with the program.

(I am BEGGING you all to stay with me here)

Now, I know that some of you are gonna argue about claim #1, but that point is really irrelevant because we aren’t going to play anyone who is elite the rest of the way. So let’s move on.

Point #2 is going to be of premium concern–at least for this weekend–because the Shmuck’s run defense was TERRIBLE and you, me, and America know that UCLA’s game plan is going to be to stop the run and play the “beat me Brink” game all day and night.

Which brings me to point #3: THE CONFIDENCE GAME.

When you look back on Alex’s career objectively, he really hasn’t had an opportunity to develop confidence not only as a QB, but as a leader. Consider:

Year 1: He inherits the job and gets bombed against the Beavs and SC. He recovers to play VERY well in the upset @ UCLA, then gets bombed against ASU, then plays well against a 1-10 UW team. Then, he heads into offseason competition with Swogs–the team’s Captain.

Year 2: He wins job over Swogs and plays well in first three games. He then throws 900 picks against the Beavs (along with 7,000 yards) and the rest is history: despite a 1900 yard running back, we lose 7 straight (and we KNOW that the locker room was divided on him and Swogs). He doesn’t fold, but the confidence just isn’t high. THEN, he leads us to victory, on the road, against the Huskies. As this blog attests, I thought he broke through at that point. But then:

Year 3: He starts the year by playing HORRIBLY against Auburn. With the exception of SC, his limitations, the boo-birds, and the potential promise of Rogers just rattle Brink’s cage to the bone. Mind you, all this time you see quotes that look like confidence from Brink, but really they are brash, arrogant comments from a really insecure kid (case-in-point following the Auburn loss, he says that was his “first” bad game…..) On top of that, Brink can’t beat any of the elite. Hell, he can’t beat ANYONE with a winning record. Plus, now the team can’t score in the redzone…..BUT THEN,

A BREAK THROUGH.

This time, though, there is no offseason to stop the momentum like last year following the Huskies. Moreover, this breakthrough came with an injured J. Hill and without Cody Boyd. And, while it did not come against an Elite Team, it came against a RANKED team. And, this breakthrough was all about Brink.

Now, I still contend that Brink can not and will not beat anyone who is elite, but, again, he just doesn’t have to now. And Brinkhater is now of the mind that Alex has stepped out and is now ready to play his game of efficiency and savy with the utmost success and results.

While the defensive injuries are certainly reason for pause, the rest of this season really comes down to offense and our ability to score. If we do, then 9-3 is possible, and even more than that, if 9-3 is possible, so is 10-3.

So, consider this message to recruits in the off-season, Cougar Nation:

10 win seasons in 4 of the last 6 years!

Yes, Cougar Nation that tagline is indeed possible. And, yes, Alex Brink is the guy to take us there.

Go Cougs