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Skip Holtz Plans To Shake Up Depth Chart, Reward "Productivity And Effort"

Will this make a difference, or is Skip Holtz merely re-arranging the deck chairs?

Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE - Presswire

Who knows what this implies about how his staff handled the first six games of the season, but after Thursday's practice, Skip Holtz sounds like he's ready to make some changes to the depth chart.

"We've graded every play and we've moved the depth chart accordingly," Holtz said. "We're not going to reward talent. We're not going to reward experience. We're going to reward productivity and effort and guys that have been grading well. The depth chart has bounced around an awful lot today to see what it would look like."

Oh, if only Doug Woolard had followed Skip's lead and rewarded productivity, rather than rewarding talent or experience! We may not have such a problem on our hands.

And remember how Skip spent all of fall camp telling everyone who would listen about his team's experience and leadership, and how that would carry the team through? Yeah, I guess not so much anymore.

"I think all those young guys bring something to the table. They're bringing a new energy and excitement and enthusiasm to the field right now that's fun to watch," Holtz said. ...

"We're going to let them dictate who's going to play and who's not, by their productivity and their effort. Some things are going to change, because from what I've seen in the last three days, there are some guys that deserve the right to play, guys that are hungry, that really want to be on that field. They've shown that in the last three days."

Is it just me or has Skip been all over the map this week? First it's "Oh, we're so close to turning it around, we have to stay focused!" Then it's, "Look at how Louisville turned it around last year after a bad start, even though their situation was not at all like ours!" Now it's, "The depth chart is up for grabs!"

Also, will new players make any difference when you're calling defenses that are so easy to decode that even Temple can complete 75% of their passes? Just wondering. I assume the coaching depth chart will stay the same...