Just got back in from Terre Haute and thought I would share my thoughts. Firstly, a 30-20 loss to Northern Iowa, while disappointing, isn't the end of the world. These guys boatraced us 62-7 last year and we were within striking distance the entire game despite missing our entire starting LB corps and having a pretty pedestrian offensive day. Keep chopping Sycamores, better days have arrived and will continue to do so!
Also wanted to give a shout out to the new boardies that I met, Eleven, SycamoreFan317 and the slew of others. Was hoping to meet a couple more of you, but what can you do. Also a big thanks to Tom for lending me hammers, lighters and everything else someone could need this year -- and the programs when I was in Vegas! Mucho gracias!
Offensively
We were contained pretty well by UNI. I give a lot of credit to their front four as they really did a great job of neutralizing the running game and also pinning back their ears and getting to Fouch on passing downs. There was a reason they were ranked so highly coming into the game. That said, we did expose them in spots and we missed on some things that would hav been huge.
Our running game has struggled against teams with good defensive lines so we really need to figure something out there. It seemed like we were in 2nd and 3rd and long pretty much every series -- we need to find a way to have more manageable down and distance. I'm ready to table the wildcat as well, because we just seemed to get stuffed every time anymore. Also, still a lot of dancing and not running straight ahead. Hope our backs watched UNI because they did a great job of hitting the hole or cutting and going... no hesitation. Even on "stopped" plays, they seemed to get 4-5 yards. Also noticed that all of their runners turned and backed into contact or piles so they could fall backward and get extra yardage.
The passing game was still pretty solid today. Aside from several bad throws by Fouch, he looked pretty decent and our receivers always seem like they're going to catch anything he throws, especially Kent and Hilton. I think it would have been more effective had they had to stay honest, but the lack of running game allowed them to drop the LBs into the secondary and they always seemed to have 4-5 guys at the ball quickly.
Defensively
Missing our entire linebacking corps really hurt. We really had no speed along the outside and they took advantage of that all day long. It seemed like any time they cut one to the outside, they got big chunks of yardage -- this is where we really missed Ryan Roberts today. That said, we made some nice stops and I thought our defensive linemen were held all day long. I know of at least 3-4 occasions where a DL was tackled to the ground from behind when he got past the offensive linemen and there was no flag on the play. I think today showed we need more depth and speed and that will come -- can't fault the effort.
Special Teams
I'm not going to spend much time here. They still need work, both in coverage and protection. Wish we could age Corey as he'll absolutely boom one and then kick one to the 20. Consistency will come with age. I'm sure there is a ton more I could add, but I'm good with what I saw today. The program has improved and the product on the field is leaps and bound better. Those young men should be proud of the turnaround this program has had because of their hard work and effort. It's a joy to drive a couple hours every saturday to watch them play.
Oh, one last things. I'd fire the referees today. I thought they were absolutely terrible all day long.
Also wanted to give a shout out to the new boardies that I met, Eleven, SycamoreFan317 and the slew of others. Was hoping to meet a couple more of you, but what can you do. Also a big thanks to Tom for lending me hammers, lighters and everything else someone could need this year -- and the programs when I was in Vegas! Mucho gracias!
Offensively
We were contained pretty well by UNI. I give a lot of credit to their front four as they really did a great job of neutralizing the running game and also pinning back their ears and getting to Fouch on passing downs. There was a reason they were ranked so highly coming into the game. That said, we did expose them in spots and we missed on some things that would hav been huge.
Our running game has struggled against teams with good defensive lines so we really need to figure something out there. It seemed like we were in 2nd and 3rd and long pretty much every series -- we need to find a way to have more manageable down and distance. I'm ready to table the wildcat as well, because we just seemed to get stuffed every time anymore. Also, still a lot of dancing and not running straight ahead. Hope our backs watched UNI because they did a great job of hitting the hole or cutting and going... no hesitation. Even on "stopped" plays, they seemed to get 4-5 yards. Also noticed that all of their runners turned and backed into contact or piles so they could fall backward and get extra yardage.
The passing game was still pretty solid today. Aside from several bad throws by Fouch, he looked pretty decent and our receivers always seem like they're going to catch anything he throws, especially Kent and Hilton. I think it would have been more effective had they had to stay honest, but the lack of running game allowed them to drop the LBs into the secondary and they always seemed to have 4-5 guys at the ball quickly.
Defensively
Missing our entire linebacking corps really hurt. We really had no speed along the outside and they took advantage of that all day long. It seemed like any time they cut one to the outside, they got big chunks of yardage -- this is where we really missed Ryan Roberts today. That said, we made some nice stops and I thought our defensive linemen were held all day long. I know of at least 3-4 occasions where a DL was tackled to the ground from behind when he got past the offensive linemen and there was no flag on the play. I think today showed we need more depth and speed and that will come -- can't fault the effort.
Special Teams
I'm not going to spend much time here. They still need work, both in coverage and protection. Wish we could age Corey as he'll absolutely boom one and then kick one to the 20. Consistency will come with age. I'm sure there is a ton more I could add, but I'm good with what I saw today. The program has improved and the product on the field is leaps and bound better. Those young men should be proud of the turnaround this program has had because of their hard work and effort. It's a joy to drive a couple hours every saturday to watch them play.
Oh, one last things. I'd fire the referees today. I thought they were absolutely terrible all day long.
