Game thoughts, look ahead, etc.

BozoneCat · Post by **BozoneCat** » Mon Oct 11, 2004 1:00 pm

This game was ugly, but oh so great. We came out flat as pita bread in the first half, and I know everyone was thinking, "here we go again..." I was so mad that I didn't even want to go drink some beer at halftime - can't remember that ever happening! Thankfully, we pulled out another miracle win. Good teams/programs find a way to win games they shouldn't - just look over to the west a ways (anyone who thinks the griz are the #5 team in the nation, talk to me - I have a bridge I want to sell you). Hopefully, we can learn a lot from what worked and what didn't work this week (ahem... I'll take "No Huddle" for $100, Alex) and begin to implement some changes this week.

Domineck played a monster game, save for his fumble in the first half. I think we saw the beginning of what will be a very solid rest of the season at the tailback position, and will be even better when Milton is getting the rest of the runs instead of Beal. He ran very hard on every carry, broke a lot of tackles, and did what Kramer loves most - falling forward for 3 yards every time he was finally tackled. He showed good hands with 9 receptions, and also showed a knack for finding the open spots in the flat on those catches. We saw that he does have some pretty good speed after all, when he made a great 50-yard run that was stolen from him by the inept refs. If he can continue the play he has given us the last couple of games, our team will be in very good shape come November.

Guinn looked great on some plays, and horrible on others. Overall, I would say he had a pretty disappointing performance for the second week in a row. He made a couple really tough catches, then dropped 2 screen passes where there was no one around him. He needs to step up this week and reestablish himself as our go-to receiver.

I would also like to give Eddie Sullivan props. He has played great since coming into the starting lineup, and has surprised by showing that he has some speed and the ability to stretch the field more than I first thought. He plays hard on every play, is a good blocker, and is a great cheerleader on the sidelines. If his crazy hair is any indication of his exhuberant personality, I can say that he is quite the character, and a really good guy. He is great for this team.

Travis played okay, again. It was a killer when he missed that wide-open bomb to Guinn - gotta hit that. Overall, he played very well in the second half, and put the ball on the money almost all the time. His interception occured because Guinn slipped when making his cut, it wasn't a horrible throw (although a terrible result, obviously). I think Travis, more than anyone else on our team, benefits and seems to thrive in the no huddle. He is so intelligent out there, I think he makes good calls at the line and reads defenses with scary accuracy. Once again, the guy is a winner, and he added another page to his legacy with his tackle-breaking scamper to get us in position for the win.

Our defense played a great game, as usual. They gave up 2 long drives in the first half, but that is what happens when your offense keeps going 3-and-out. Mollohan, Sebastyan, and Force all stood out to me. Our corners did a much better job, although we still need to move up at the line (especially when the opponent is pinned inside the 5). Weber had a good game plan, but our defense just beat them. BTW, was I the only one who thought Wiley King (#84) was a punk?

As harsh as I have been on Bailey, this game wasn't his fault. He called a lot of plays that simply were not executed. Add a couple boneheaded calls to that, and you get our first half. You can't blame the coaches when a guy drops a screen pass that is well set-up, or when a guy fumbles. We did move the ball pretty well on Weber, but lack of execution and stupid mistakes killed a lot of our drives.

Bottom line, it doesn't matter if the score was 52-0 or 20-17, it is still a W. What is important is that we learn from our mistakes and make some adjustments in our game plan and execution this week. If we can do that, I don't think Portland will make it too close (big "if," though...)

WYCAT · Post by **WYCAT** » Mon Oct 11, 2004 1:16 pm

I agree about the Friz winning games they should loose. They have made a living of that this year. Also agree about Eddie Sullivan - great spirit and very solid performance the last few games. Guinn looked out of it most of the day. I don't know what has happened to him.

Domineck impressed me all day - just hold on to the ball. If he can stop that problem, I think Milton will have a hard time getting anything but backup time from here on out.

I also agree on your assessment of Travis, okay. He played within himself and the interception should be credited to Guinn slipping. It bothers me though that he is at his best scrambling. The deep ball to Guinn was a bad throw. He missed him by close to 10 yards. With our lack of scoring those big plays will have to be there. He looked a lot better in the no huddle as you mentioned. Looser and more confident.

Finally, I am glad to hear you say something about moving up on the receiver especially when WSU was backed up against their own goal line. When Travis dropped the punt inside the 1 and Fuller immediately gave up about 9 yards on a quick out in front of him I could have cried. Give the D a chance. I can think of at least 2 maybe 3 times they did that to us from within their 10 yard line and all in front of Fuller. The D was good though around 250 total yards surrendered. If it hadn't been for Williams' fumble to start the second half, they would have pitched a shutout after half time.

Bleedinbluengold · Post by **Bleedinbluengold** » Mon Oct 11, 2004 3:27 pm

From a fly-on-the-wall standpoint, I thought the O Line played their best game Saturday, which probably had a lot to do with how well Domineck played.

No Huddle = simplicity....coincidence that the Cat O does better in No Huddle? ahhhh, NO is the correct answer.

I think, in general, our O matches up mano a mano against anyone in conference. Why not keep the play selections simple and let our guys win their individual battles? Forget about numerous shifts and motion. Motion a guy when you need to know if the secondary is in zone or man. Otherwise, you're only complicating things.

Look, for umpteenth time, if the receivers just catch the ones that hit them in the hands, the offense will roll.

I think our Offense is emotional. So Bailey needs to let them play with emotion. Don't let them think too much, and don't try to be methodical to the nth degree. Let the guys run around and make plays. There is no defense in this conference that can stop that...well, except the CATS!!!

I'm counting the lucky stars that we get EWU and PSU in Bozo. Unless things change dramatically, I can't see us winning in Flagstaff. I'm worried about SAC, too. Those guys are bound to just have everything go right for them one game - I hope to hell it's against the friz.

Edit to respond to WYCAT: You would much rather be crying about a 9 yard out at the 1 compared to 99 yard TD. I'll give the young corners all the leeway they need to get confident. If you look at this year's stats against I-AA opponents. The D has made a living making the other team go more than 80 yards for a TD...that will just win ball games. Antoher way to look at it - most offenses the Cats will face this year do not have the patience to run those hitch routes all game - let's let the other offense make the mistake and make them take 10-12 plays to score a TD...the only offense that has that kind of patience and skill is EWU.

jagur1 · Post by **jagur1** » Mon Oct 11, 2004 3:50 pm

This is my thought on the no huddle. In the games the cats lose the defense gets tired and gets run over. A couple of 3 and outs early in the game could get the cat defense tired and then you have a problem. See Griz second half of the NDSU game as an example, Griz had 3 quick 3 and outs, ran no time off the clock since they used the no huddle.

Helcat72 · Post by **Helcat72** » Mon Oct 11, 2004 6:28 pm

I was watching the friz game against ISU and heard the announcer say that they call the formation and come to the line where Oches calls one of about 7 or 8 plays they run from that formation. That sounds like the kind of offrense Travis could really excel in.

WYCAT · Post by **WYCAT** » Tue Oct 12, 2004 2:03 pm

Bleedinbluengold wrote:

Edit to respond to WYCAT: You would much rather be crying about a 9 yard out at the 1 compared to 99 yard TD. I'll give the young corners all the leeway they need to get confident. If you look at this year's stats against I-AA opponents. The D has made a living making the other team go more than 80 yards for a TD...that will just win ball games. Antoher way to look at it - most offenses the Cats will face this year do not have the patience to run those hitch routes all game - let's let the other offense make the mistake and make them take 10-12 plays to score a TD...the only offense that has that kind of patience and skill is EWU.

I would rather make them beat us deep than absolutely GIVE them 10 yards play after play. A lot more things have to go right to complete a 50 yard pass than a 10 yard throw with the DB still 10 yards back. Besides, it gives the pass rush a chance to get to the QB which doesn't happen on a 3 step drop. And as far as giving the corners leeway to get confident - I don't think that is going to happen until next year. Play the game the way it is supposed to be played - I think they are being held back to some extent. And it happens more than just on first down deep in the other teams territory. Look at how many times we have given up a big 3rd and long completion by deploying the same tactic. Fuller, Austin, etc. are fast enough and good enough athletes to stay with most receivers - give them a chance. The play that we are talking about here gave WSU an easy out from the 1/2 yard line and took the defense out of a great opportunity. What happens if they would have had to punt from inside the 5 instead of the 30 or wherever they ended up?

Bleedinbluengold · Post by **Bleedinbluengold** » Tue Oct 12, 2004 8:04 pm

WYCAT - I totally appreciate your comments. However, I think the facts and the defensive stats prove my point. The Cat D is much improved over last year's in terms of points allowed. I don't know about yardage, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn that the D is giving up more yardage this year simply because the opposing offenses are not starting at their 35, they are starting inside their 20. Points allowed trumps yards given - every single game.

This year, soft corner play is a smart move. Maybe next year, after a year of experience, those corners will have more confidence in themselves to go face to face, and still stay with somebody on the deep ball.

Secondly, if you watch the corners, MOST of the time, once the opposing offense is in the Red Zone, the corners are rolling up and choking those short routes off.

MSU01 · Post by **MSU01** » Tue Oct 12, 2004 9:36 pm

WYCAT wrote:The play that we are talking about here gave WSU an easy out from the 1/2 yard line and took the defense out of a great opportunity. What happens if they would have had to punt from inside the 5 instead of the 30 or wherever they ended up?

The thing here is that at least 90% of the time, an offense will run the ball in this situation. The defense stacks up against the run and the CB's have to play man coverage with little or no help. The important thing is that Weber still had to punt both times. I'd much rather allow the offense to get a couple first downs than have Wiley King celebrating in the end zone after a 99 yard TD.

WYCAT · Post by **WYCAT** » Wed Oct 13, 2004 8:08 am

I'd much rather allow the offense to get a couple first downs than have Wiley King celebrating in the end zone after a 99 yard TD.

I agree guys that a 9 yard gain is better than a 99 yard TD but nobody has done that to us yet. I think we are assuming if our corners come up they are automatically going to get burned deep. They are better athletes than that IMO. Under a lot of circumstances the bend but don't break defensive mentallity is good. I just feel like part of our CB problems is that they are being told to hold back too much especially in some situations like at the other guys 1 and 3rd and 15's. Just my thoughts.