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No Bowling for Young Men
Posted by
mad dog
,
19 November 2011
·
43 views
Not to pour salt into the wound or anything, but we should have won this game. And not in a sour grapes sort of way. More like the kind of way where an official tells another that the had a clear line of sight when he knows he didn't.
Lance Dunbar scored on the second goal line attempt in the third quarter. He was laying on a defensive player, reached the ball across the goal line, and scored. But an official came in from the far side, waving his arms like he saw Lance's knee down. Here's the truth, as borne out by video replay: it wasn't.
Here's the thing: if the ball, for any reason, ends up in the end zone, it is probably worth a look, guys. And, Coach Mac, you might want to have a guy stationed near a replay machine who can tell you to challenge the play when the refs blow one and are convinced they got it right. Or, better yet, just kick the dang field goal and tie the game up.
But even in this, where you were clearly robbed of a touchdown, you lose the right to complain when you can't figure out how to keep a guy between the end zone and the deepest receiver. There are some games where the zebras just can't get out of their own way (what the hell was that "illegal touching" call at the end of the first half?), but if you had made more plays in the game, you don't leave the game in their hands. And I expect that's one thing the coaches are telling their players tonight.
Now there's being out of position, and then there's whatever the pass defense was doing back there in the first half. Yikes. The first deep bomb to Keshawn Simpson looked like two defenders in the place at the same time, both taking the underneath, and neither playing the seam. I'm pretty sure that's not how Coach Bowen drew it up. The second one was a little baffling, because it just looked like no one played the deep ball. It didn't look like a zero coverage play - there was a defensive back there, but it looks like there may have been a little freelancing going on.
It is just the same tune in a season-long song about defensive lapses. And here's the truly frightening part - it probably is going to get worse next season. Of the eight players on the two-deep in your secondary, seven are seniors. There are a few young players on the roster who have something, at least according to their paper. But it is a lot to ask for young players to shoulder the load carried by 23 and 24 year old men. We'll see how that works out.
Offensively, there was a lot more positivity that just will never make it into the stat sheet. I witnessed maybe the best the offensive line pass blocking performance of the year all year long. There's a lot of youth on the line, and it looks like they may be developing sooner than most expected. The most exciting thing is that the same five guys have started 10 straight games at the same spots. Being able to get used to the guys around you can build some serious chemistry, and you'll return four of them next year.
And maybe that's part of the maturation of Derek Thompson. Not only does the offensive line get to gell together, but, as a quarterback, once you get to trust your offensive line, you feel more comfortable standing in the pocket. As we all know, a comfortable quarterback is a productive quarterback - just look at what Tony Romo is doing with the Cowboys as his offensive line improves as a unit.
A good offensive line makes decent quarterbacks and running backs great. It is absolutely essential if you plan to put points up on the board with regularity. And it loooks like we have a solid core for the next three years.
As part of our ongoing series on the maturation of QB Derek Thompson, the Mean Green's quarterback showed another weapon in his arsenal tonight - the touch pass. On the scoring drive in the second half, he showed that he can take something off his throws and still be effective twice - the first on the back shoulder of James Hamilson (who made the catch of the night, btw), and the second on the scoring lob to Brelan Chancellor. For a guy who is known for a rocket arm, it is encouraging to see him look comfortable throwing something south of Mach 3. Now, it should be said that Thompson's first interception also came of a lob, but I think the fact that he was getting facehugged by a WKU defender at the same time might at least partially explain the lack of accuracy. As far as the second one, you got me. Chalk it up to a young QB trying to do too much.
It may have just been me, but the game felt over as soon as the Toppers rushed onto the field and snuck the ball to kill any replay of Dunbar's touchdown. Psycologically, the team never recovered, and, to me, that's the most disappointing thing about tonight. Where was that mental toughness we've gotten used to seeing? Where was the passion and gutsiness to dig your way back into the game? After a long season of Spartacus and William Wallace, this team felt more like Eeyore or Debbie Downer.
Dig deep for the closer, guys. There will be no bowls this year, but if you had told me that we would be playing for a five win season in the finale against Middle Tennessee, I'd have been alright with that. It is right in line with my personal expectations.
And it's more winning than we've seen around these parts in a long time.
-md
Quick Hits
God love Derek Akunne, but Zach Orr he is not. He seemed stiff and took more than one bad angle to the ball carrier. I don't think it was an effort thing - he just looked a little lost at times. And, unfortunately, WKU seemed content to take advantage of the greenhorn throughout the game.
Bobby Rainey is unquestionably a good running back, but bump tackling and poor angles didn't exactly hurt his night. Credit his offensive line for dominating the line of scrimmage and him for taking advantage of his opportunities.
Not a bad turnout, all things considered. With a large portion of students heading home early for thanksgiving, a losing record and a less than enthralling matchup, combined with several Greek formals taking place tonight, I was fully expecting a painful 1999-2000 size crowd. While we probably would like to make a habit out of drawing over 20k per game, tonight's 17 was a lot better than expected.
Is it just me, or is the WKU Mascot really tough, but fun to identify. Guesses include love child of clifford and a frog and a molecule of Hemoglobin. Really, though, your guess is as good as mine. Probably better.
Lance Dunbar scored on the second goal line attempt in the third quarter. He was laying on a defensive player, reached the ball across the goal line, and scored. But an official came in from the far side, waving his arms like he saw Lance's knee down. Here's the truth, as borne out by video replay: it wasn't.
Here's the thing: if the ball, for any reason, ends up in the end zone, it is probably worth a look, guys. And, Coach Mac, you might want to have a guy stationed near a replay machine who can tell you to challenge the play when the refs blow one and are convinced they got it right. Or, better yet, just kick the dang field goal and tie the game up.
But even in this, where you were clearly robbed of a touchdown, you lose the right to complain when you can't figure out how to keep a guy between the end zone and the deepest receiver. There are some games where the zebras just can't get out of their own way (what the hell was that "illegal touching" call at the end of the first half?), but if you had made more plays in the game, you don't leave the game in their hands. And I expect that's one thing the coaches are telling their players tonight.
Now there's being out of position, and then there's whatever the pass defense was doing back there in the first half. Yikes. The first deep bomb to Keshawn Simpson looked like two defenders in the place at the same time, both taking the underneath, and neither playing the seam. I'm pretty sure that's not how Coach Bowen drew it up. The second one was a little baffling, because it just looked like no one played the deep ball. It didn't look like a zero coverage play - there was a defensive back there, but it looks like there may have been a little freelancing going on.
It is just the same tune in a season-long song about defensive lapses. And here's the truly frightening part - it probably is going to get worse next season. Of the eight players on the two-deep in your secondary, seven are seniors. There are a few young players on the roster who have something, at least according to their paper. But it is a lot to ask for young players to shoulder the load carried by 23 and 24 year old men. We'll see how that works out.
Offensively, there was a lot more positivity that just will never make it into the stat sheet. I witnessed maybe the best the offensive line pass blocking performance of the year all year long. There's a lot of youth on the line, and it looks like they may be developing sooner than most expected. The most exciting thing is that the same five guys have started 10 straight games at the same spots. Being able to get used to the guys around you can build some serious chemistry, and you'll return four of them next year.
And maybe that's part of the maturation of Derek Thompson. Not only does the offensive line get to gell together, but, as a quarterback, once you get to trust your offensive line, you feel more comfortable standing in the pocket. As we all know, a comfortable quarterback is a productive quarterback - just look at what Tony Romo is doing with the Cowboys as his offensive line improves as a unit.
A good offensive line makes decent quarterbacks and running backs great. It is absolutely essential if you plan to put points up on the board with regularity. And it loooks like we have a solid core for the next three years.
As part of our ongoing series on the maturation of QB Derek Thompson, the Mean Green's quarterback showed another weapon in his arsenal tonight - the touch pass. On the scoring drive in the second half, he showed that he can take something off his throws and still be effective twice - the first on the back shoulder of James Hamilson (who made the catch of the night, btw), and the second on the scoring lob to Brelan Chancellor. For a guy who is known for a rocket arm, it is encouraging to see him look comfortable throwing something south of Mach 3. Now, it should be said that Thompson's first interception also came of a lob, but I think the fact that he was getting facehugged by a WKU defender at the same time might at least partially explain the lack of accuracy. As far as the second one, you got me. Chalk it up to a young QB trying to do too much.
It may have just been me, but the game felt over as soon as the Toppers rushed onto the field and snuck the ball to kill any replay of Dunbar's touchdown. Psycologically, the team never recovered, and, to me, that's the most disappointing thing about tonight. Where was that mental toughness we've gotten used to seeing? Where was the passion and gutsiness to dig your way back into the game? After a long season of Spartacus and William Wallace, this team felt more like Eeyore or Debbie Downer.
Dig deep for the closer, guys. There will be no bowls this year, but if you had told me that we would be playing for a five win season in the finale against Middle Tennessee, I'd have been alright with that. It is right in line with my personal expectations.
And it's more winning than we've seen around these parts in a long time.
-md
Quick Hits
God love Derek Akunne, but Zach Orr he is not. He seemed stiff and took more than one bad angle to the ball carrier. I don't think it was an effort thing - he just looked a little lost at times. And, unfortunately, WKU seemed content to take advantage of the greenhorn throughout the game.
Bobby Rainey is unquestionably a good running back, but bump tackling and poor angles didn't exactly hurt his night. Credit his offensive line for dominating the line of scrimmage and him for taking advantage of his opportunities.
Not a bad turnout, all things considered. With a large portion of students heading home early for thanksgiving, a losing record and a less than enthralling matchup, combined with several Greek formals taking place tonight, I was fully expecting a painful 1999-2000 size crowd. While we probably would like to make a habit out of drawing over 20k per game, tonight's 17 was a lot better than expected.
Is it just me, or is the WKU Mascot really tough, but fun to identify. Guesses include love child of clifford and a frog and a molecule of Hemoglobin. Really, though, your guess is as good as mine. Probably better.
