In Reply to: Reasonable Expectations for This Year? posted by SMBruin on May 15, 2026 at 12:14:32
Long term, I'm very optimistic that Chesney's the right guy and will eventually put us in contention with the best in the conference.
But let me again remind folks, we won 3 games last year. Next year isn't going to be the top of the bell curve, it's going to be the first data point. With competent coaching it will be the true test of where we are. I believe that right now there are too many variables still in play to predict headline-grabbing success in Chesney's first year.
The question was not "What are your highest hopes for the season?" It was what is reasonable.
5-7. This is not a prediction. It's what I think is fair to expect from a new coach. Even a great one. I do not think 6-6 and bowl qualifying is reasonable in the circumstances. It is certainly reasonable to expect that to happen by 2027. 5-7 is not failure: it's progress. Other coaches at other schools will certainly recognize that. Most of them would shy from the circumstances Chesney has embraced. Two more wins is not nothing. If Chesney can improve by 2 games each year, by 2029 we'd be at 11-1. Does that seem like failure to you?
If we get relegated in the meantime, so be it. When we start winning like I expect, eventually we'll get unrelegated.
So here's the difference. If we are 5-7 at the end of the season, I'll be satisfied. Apparently others won't be. So I worry that excessive expectations will create a negative environment for a coach actually doing a good job. And it could undermine his whole program.