Good, Bad, Ugly, and Post-game Thoughts

[ZebraCat]

Bad: Let's just say it, Lamson had a bad game after having one of his best last week. He needs to learn how to see the deep ball faster and give his WR a chance. King had his guy by about 10 yards easy and if Lamson throws that ball in the field of play we either get the catch or get the PI because the DB definitely panicked. He's been good with ball security almost all year so I think yesterday was an anomaly there.

I think Howe needs to take a real look at our defensive gameplan and reevaluate. Teams know how to beat us now, quick passes under the shell. Our dline never gets a chance to get home because the ball is always out under 2 seconds and they get worn out trying. Let our DBs play a little tighter and make the QB think for that extra half-second to get our pass rushers home. I think that will help with those hail-Mary shots too that Reno was floating into an area when we had a free rusher. Oh, and for God's sake, if the opposing team has 1 good WR, put our best corner on him and follow him around. Don't let them scheme him into getting covered by LBs and safeties!

Good: We pretty much always had this game in hand. Sure Yale made some great plays but we were 1 flukish fumble away from putting the game away up 2-3 scores with 6 minutes left just like we did with the Gris. Lots of good film for us to look over and show guys how 1-5 plays a game can make all the difference.

Lamson didn't have a bad game. He was 10-16, and 4 of those incompletions wete batted at the LOS. King also didn’t have have his guy beat by 10 yards There was separation, but it wasn't huge. Lamson definitely could have made a better throw further up the sideline though.

For one of the most accurate passers in FCS, 10/16 is pretty bad. Although the 2 uncalled blatant PIs have something to do with that. But the 5.7 yards per attempt is pretty terrible too.

Really the worst thing about Lamson's game yesterday was the 2 fumbles.

I don't disagree on the 10/16, but like I said, 4 of those passes got batted down. Yale knew what they wanted to do on quick passes, and did it well. Even if 2 make it through, he's at 75% again.

The fumbles weren't all that surprising. He's been closing to losing the ball in a number of games this year. Every time I see someone coming from behind him, I cringe.

[ZebraCat]

Running game was solid but otherwise this was a very ugly game for the offense.
Pass pro was not great and neither was Lamson. Two fumbles. Wasn't seeing the open man when he did have time. Passing game has to be better, period. And so does ball security for Lamson.

Cats pass rush was non existent and run D wasn't great. But credit Yale for some of that, their O line and RB are legit grown ass men.

If not for the tipped ball INT inside our 5 yard line, we likely would've been in a tie game mid way through the 3rd quarter, in a game we were favored by 27. After beating UC Davis and winning in missoula, it seemed like the Cats were peaking. But yesterday was a big step back from that. Hopefully just a good wake up call for the team to make a run now.

Did we watch a different game? Pass pro was great. Lamson had a clean pocket most of the game.

Pass rush was fine. If Reno had to move beyond his first read, we got pressure. The Taylor pick was a direct result of Eiden getting to Reno mid throw. He had multiple "oh sh*t" get the ball out shovel passes because of the pressure. Pressure was not an issue.

If you think the passing game didn't have any issues yesterday, then yes we did watch a different game

I'm confused. Are we talking about rhe passing game as a whole, or pass pro? Because pass pro wasn't an issue. I didnt saying the passing game didn't have problems.

[tetoncat]

Running game was solid but otherwise this was a very ugly game for the offense.
Pass pro was not great and neither was Lamson. Two fumbles. Wasn't seeing the open man when he did have time. Passing game has to be better, period. And so does ball security for Lamson.

Cats pass rush was non existent and run D wasn't great. But credit Yale for some of that, their O line and RB are legit grown ass men.

If not for the tipped ball INT inside our 5 yard line, we likely would've been in a tie game mid way through the 3rd quarter, in a game we were favored by 27. After beating UC Davis and winning in missoula, it seemed like the Cats were peaking. But yesterday was a big step back from that. Hopefully just a good wake up call for the team to make a run now.

Did we watch a different game? Pass pro was great. Lamson had a clean pocket most of the game.

Pass rush was fine. If Reno had to move beyond his first read, we got pressure. The Taylor pick was a direct result of Eiden getting to Reno mid throw. He had multiple "oh sh*t" get the ball out shovel passes because of the pressure. Pressure was not an issue.

Reno was not a threat to run. Would have loved to have spy on RB as they did that little late flip or dump off multiple times. Stats only show 1 sack bit seemed more than that.

[justafan]

the Bad...this game tape will be available SFA and the gris......the ugly? goes without saying it was after the game..the good we get another chance.....

[84CatGrad]

Good: Not playing our best and still moving on.
NDSU not playing their best and going home (or staying home).
Yale. I tip my cap to them.

Bad: Offense. We gotta score more than 21 points at home.

Ugly: The hold on the fake FG. I don't know that our guy gets a first down but you can't bear hug a defender from behind and expect to get away with it.

[onceacat]

Bad: Let's just say it, Lamson had a bad game after having one of his best last week. He needs to learn how to see the deep ball faster and give his WR a chance. King had his guy by about 10 yards easy and if Lamson throws that ball in the field of play we either get the catch or get the PI because the DB definitely panicked. He's been good with ball security almost all year so I think yesterday was an anomaly there.

I think Howe needs to take a real look at our defensive gameplan and reevaluate. Teams know how to beat us now, quick passes under the shell. Our dline never gets a chance to get home because the ball is always out under 2 seconds and they get worn out trying. Let our DBs play a little tighter and make the QB think for that extra half-second to get our pass rushers home. I think that will help with those hail-Mary shots too that Reno was floating into an area when we had a free rusher. Oh, and for God's sake, if the opposing team has 1 good WR, put our best corner on him and follow him around. Don't let them scheme him into getting covered by LBs and safeties!

Good: We pretty much always had this game in hand. Sure Yale made some great plays but we were 1 flukish fumble away from putting the game away up 2-3 scores with 6 minutes left just like we did with the Gris. Lots of good film for us to look over and show guys how 1-5 plays a game can make all the difference.

Lamson didn't have a bad game. He was 10-16, and 4 of those incompletions wete batted at the LOS. King also didn’t have have his guy beat by 10 yards There was separation, but it wasn't huge. Lamson definitely could have made a better throw further up the sideline though.

For one of the most accurate passers in FCS, 10/16 is pretty bad. Although the 2 uncalled blatant PIs have something to do with that. But the 5.7 yards per attempt is pretty terrible too.

Really the worst thing about Lamson's game yesterday was the 2 fumbles.

I don't disagree on the 10/16, but like I said, 4 of those passes got batted down. Yale knew what they wanted to do on quick passes, and did it well. Even if 2 make it through, he's at 75% again.

The fumbles weren't all that surprising. He's been closing to losing the ball in a number of games this year. Every time I see someone coming from behind him, I cringe.

Batted passes are a stat of poor play by the QB. I'm not sure why you are trying to say those aren't on Lamson.

[onceacat]

Running game was solid but otherwise this was a very ugly game for the offense.
Pass pro was not great and neither was Lamson. Two fumbles. Wasn't seeing the open man when he did have time. Passing game has to be better, period. And so does ball security for Lamson.

Cats pass rush was non existent and run D wasn't great. But credit Yale for some of that, their O line and RB are legit grown ass men.

If not for the tipped ball INT inside our 5 yard line, we likely would've been in a tie game mid way through the 3rd quarter, in a game we were favored by 27. After beating UC Davis and winning in missoula, it seemed like the Cats were peaking. But yesterday was a big step back from that. Hopefully just a good wake up call for the team to make a run now.

Did we watch a different game? Pass pro was great. Lamson had a clean pocket most of the game.

Pass rush was fine. If Reno had to move beyond his first read, we got pressure. The Taylor pick was a direct result of Eiden getting to Reno mid throw. He had multiple "oh sh*t" get the ball out shovel passes because of the pressure. Pressure was not an issue.

Reno was not a threat to run. Would have loved to have spy on RB as they did that little late flip or dump off multiple times. Stats only show 1 sack bit seemed more than that.

Reno was under a lot of pressure, mostly with a 4 man rush. He got knocked out of the game on one of those hurries which lead to the backup QB throwing a pick. He also got 2 or 3 shovel passes off when he was already in the grasp & then there was the uncalled grounding.

And, as other have pointed out, he had a lot of quick passes...cant pressure a QB if he has the ball out in 2 seconds.

[ZebraCat]

Bad: Let's just say it, Lamson had a bad game after having one of his best last week. He needs to learn how to see the deep ball faster and give his WR a chance. King had his guy by about 10 yards easy and if Lamson throws that ball in the field of play we either get the catch or get the PI because the DB definitely panicked. He's been good with ball security almost all year so I think yesterday was an anomaly there.

I think Howe needs to take a real look at our defensive gameplan and reevaluate. Teams know how to beat us now, quick passes under the shell. Our dline never gets a chance to get home because the ball is always out under 2 seconds and they get worn out trying. Let our DBs play a little tighter and make the QB think for that extra half-second to get our pass rushers home. I think that will help with those hail-Mary shots too that Reno was floating into an area when we had a free rusher. Oh, and for God's sake, if the opposing team has 1 good WR, put our best corner on him and follow him around. Don't let them scheme him into getting covered by LBs and safeties!

Good: We pretty much always had this game in hand. Sure Yale made some great plays but we were 1 flukish fumble away from putting the game away up 2-3 scores with 6 minutes left just like we did with the Gris. Lots of good film for us to look over and show guys how 1-5 plays a game can make all the difference.

Lamson didn't have a bad game. He was 10-16, and 4 of those incompletions wete batted at the LOS. King also didn’t have have his guy beat by 10 yards There was separation, but it wasn't huge. Lamson definitely could have made a better throw further up the sideline though.

For one of the most accurate passers in FCS, 10/16 is pretty bad. Although the 2 uncalled blatant PIs have something to do with that. But the 5.7 yards per attempt is pretty terrible too.

Really the worst thing about Lamson's game yesterday was the 2 fumbles.

I don't disagree on the 10/16, but like I said, 4 of those passes got batted down. Yale knew what they wanted to do on quick passes, and did it well. Even if 2 make it through, he's at 75% again.

The fumbles weren't all that surprising. He's been closing to losing the ball in a number of games this year. Every time I see someone coming from behind him, I cringe.

Batted passes are a stat of poor play by the QB. I'm not sure why you are trying to say those aren't on Lamson.

I'm not sure I agree with that. I think they're more a product of a good defensive gameplan, and some luck. The ball hits an arm/hand 6-8 inches wide somewhere in that small area, that's some luck. Regularly getting your hands up because you know Lamson has a long throwing motion, seeing when he starts that motion is a good gameplan and good coaching. If he's throwing the ball off a guy's helmet, yeah, that's a bad.

[onceacat]

Bad: Let's just say it, Lamson had a bad game after having one of his best last week. He needs to learn how to see the deep ball faster and give his WR a chance. King had his guy by about 10 yards easy and if Lamson throws that ball in the field of play we either get the catch or get the PI because the DB definitely panicked. He's been good with ball security almost all year so I think yesterday was an anomaly there.

I think Howe needs to take a real look at our defensive gameplan and reevaluate. Teams know how to beat us now, quick passes under the shell. Our dline never gets a chance to get home because the ball is always out under 2 seconds and they get worn out trying. Let our DBs play a little tighter and make the QB think for that extra half-second to get our pass rushers home. I think that will help with those hail-Mary shots too that Reno was floating into an area when we had a free rusher. Oh, and for God's sake, if the opposing team has 1 good WR, put our best corner on him and follow him around. Don't let them scheme him into getting covered by LBs and safeties!

Good: We pretty much always had this game in hand. Sure Yale made some great plays but we were 1 flukish fumble away from putting the game away up 2-3 scores with 6 minutes left just like we did with the Gris. Lots of good film for us to look over and show guys how 1-5 plays a game can make all the difference.

Lamson didn't have a bad game. He was 10-16, and 4 of those incompletions wete batted at the LOS. King also didn’t have have his guy beat by 10 yards There was separation, but it wasn't huge. Lamson definitely could have made a better throw further up the sideline though.

For one of the most accurate passers in FCS, 10/16 is pretty bad. Although the 2 uncalled blatant PIs have something to do with that. But the 5.7 yards per attempt is pretty terrible too.

Really the worst thing about Lamson's game yesterday was the 2 fumbles.

I don't disagree on the 10/16, but like I said, 4 of those passes got batted down. Yale knew what they wanted to do on quick passes, and did it well. Even if 2 make it through, he's at 75% again.

The fumbles weren't all that surprising. He's been closing to losing the ball in a number of games this year. Every time I see someone coming from behind him, I cringe.

Batted passes are a stat of poor play by the QB. I'm not sure why you are trying to say those aren't on Lamson.

I'm not sure I agree with that. I think they're more a product of a good defensive gameplan, and some luck. The ball hits an arm/hand 6-8 inches wide somewhere in that small area, that's some luck. Regularly getting your hands up because you know Lamson has a long throwing motion, seeing when he starts that motion is a good gameplan and good coaching. If he's throwing the ball off a guy's helmet, yeah, that's a bad.

I guess agree to disagree? If guys are getting their hands up and you have a slowish windup, maybe a better choice of targets?

Some of that is on coaches too. If the D is focusing on batting passes instead of a big pass rush, there are lots of options that dont involve throwing through the defensive line. Screens, shovels, sideline throws, bubble screens, etc.

Credit Yale for sure, but also put some of that on bad decisions from Lamson & the OC for not giving him space to throw.

[TomCat88]

Lots of thoughtful comments here, not a ton to add except:

Not going for it on 4th and inches at the 50 when you are averaging 6 yards per carry.

I thought it was a good conservative move. Make them drive the length of the field.

[CatBlitz]

Lots of thoughtful comments here, not a ton to add except:

Not going for it on 4th and inches at the 50 when you are averaging 6 yards per carry.

I thought it was a good conservative move. Make them drive the length of the field.

I get the concept but I completely disagree given the flow of the game and how we were running the ball.

[aucat]

From my perspective, we dropped off quite a bit from our strong performance in Missoula, while the team over the hill continued their impressive play. I was SO in hopes that SDSU would win that game so we could hopefully make it to a rematch. The UM win yesterday was very impressive and they appear to be very determined to play us again in Bozeman.

If we don't play much better this coming Friday night, we won't need to worry about that potential rematch with UM. I'm hoping that we have our "off game" behind us and will really show up the rest of the way.

[Long Time Cat]

Good: Paul Brott was a beast and had a monster game. Adam Jones had a good game in spite of our lackluster offense. The Bobcats won, and for some reason, I never felt like they were in danger of losing. We have not played two bad games in a row all season and I don’t expect that to start now!

Bad: Lamson’s fumbles. Fortunately it didn’t cost us the game. He is a smart guy and a tough competitor.I think he gets that cleaned up.

Ugly: it was an ugly win, but it was a win, and the Cats are still playing football, so it’s all good baby!

[SparkCat]

From my perspective, we dropped off quite a bit from our strong performance in Missoula, while the team over the hill continued their impressive play. I was SO in hopes that SDSU would win that game so we could hopefully make it to a rematch. The UM win yesterday was very impressive and they appear to be very determined to play us again in Bozeman.

If we don't play much better this coming Friday night, we won't need to worry about that potential rematch with UM. I'm hoping that we have our "off game" behind us and will really show up the rest of the way.

We won a game against a good team while playing our worse game.

Griz beat, despite Mason being back, a completely handicapped SDSU team.

Cats will be fine, and I’m confident that the defense will tighten up and the offense will run the damn ball!

[onceacat]

Lots of thoughtful comments here, not a ton to add except:

Not going for it on 4th and inches at the 50 when you are averaging 6 yards per carry.

I thought it was a good conservative move. Make them drive the length of the field.

SiX yaRdS pER CaRRy!!!!!!

Run the damn ball.

[Catbacker_1]

I agree the vibe felt off.

Student section was sleepy.

Student section has been sleepy all year. Not sure they know how to be engaged consistently.

[Catbacker_1]

Running game was solid but otherwise this was a very ugly game for the offense.
Pass pro was not great and neither was Lamson. Two fumbles. Wasn't seeing the open man when he did have time. Passing game has to be better, period. And so does ball security for Lamson.

Cats pass rush was non existent and run D wasn't great. But credit Yale for some of that, their O line and RB are legit grown ass men.

If not for the tipped ball INT inside our 5 yard line, we likely would've been in a tie game mid way through the 3rd quarter, in a game we were favored by 27. After beating UC Davis and winning in missoula, it seemed like the Cats were peaking. But yesterday was a big step back from that. Hopefully just a good wake up call for the team to make a run now.

Did we watch a different game? Pass pro was great. Lamson had a clean pocket most of the game.

Pass rush was fine. If Reno had to move beyond his first read, we got pressure. The Taylor pick was a direct result of Eiden getting to Reno mid throw. He had multiple "oh sh*t" get the ball out shovel passes because of the pressure. Pressure was not an issue.

If you think the passing game didn't have any issues yesterday, then yes we did watch a different game

I'm confused. Are we talking about rhe passing game as a whole, or pass pro? Because pass pro wasn't an issue. I didnt saying the passing game didn't have problems.

I also disagree on pass protection not being a problem. Yale blitzed off the edge multiple times based on what I could tell was the running back alignment and if they were putting someone in motion. If taco didn’t go in motion and the running back was lined up opposite the LB was coming resulted in multiple passes tipped and one of the sacks on Lamson.

[BelligerentBobcat]

I agree the vibe felt off.

Student section was sleepy.

I think everybody, myself included, thought this game would be a cake walk. It clearly wasn’t. They’ll fix it, I think this team and these coaches have earned that trust. They all know this effort wasn’t good enough.

[kwcat]

I agree the vibe felt off.

Student section was sleepy.

Student section has been sleepy all year. Not sure they know how to be engaged consistently.

Most of them are there pretty early to get their spots. Might be a little bit of a marathon.

[BelligerentBobcat]

Good: Not playing our best and still moving on.
NDSU not playing their best and going home (or staying home).
Yale. I tip my cap to them.

Bad: Offense. We gotta score more than 21 points at home.

Ugly: The hold on the fake FG. I don't know that our guy gets a first down but you can't bear hug a defender from behind and expect to get away with it.

Bear hug from behind?

I don’t think we watched the same play.