re: If we don't make the playoffs next year would it be "underperforming"?

The standards by which we hold the football team have been declining. I don't think the program as a whole is declining as much as the expectations have. I truly believe people will get used to being mid-pack to slightly above in the SEC. As long as we're getting the big recruits people will continue to defend Miles. I can say that I have accepted the fact that Alabama is a notch above, and that we shouldn't measure ourselves against them.