Post Game: The tale of two halves

[G-BEARS]

- I thought Ryan McKinley had a good game breaking up passes and sticking on his guy. Some fans around me were a little frustrated with him though in situations where he wouldn’t very aggressively get after WRs that had just made a catch. He stuck to his cover well and had some key breakups through the game. Markell Sanders also was good when EWU attacked downfield, a very nice pick to end a drive where EWU was threatening to put some points up.

Only you could talk up our cornerbacks after getting 550 passing yards hung on them, can't make this shit up... :lol:

 

[BWahlberg]

- I thought Ryan McKinley had a good game breaking up passes and sticking on his guy. Some fans around me were a little frustrated with him though in situations where he wouldn’t very aggressively get after WRs that had just made a catch. He stuck to his cover well and had some key breakups through the game. Markell Sanders also was good when EWU attacked downfield, a very nice pick to end a drive where EWU was threatening to put some points up.

Only you could talk up our cornerbacks after getting 550 passing yards hung on them, can't make this shit up... :lol:

YAC on the continued screen passes and it seemed many of the passing TDs were to slot targets or when they'd cut through the zone coverage.

 

[Ursus1]

EWU coaches made adjustments ..... Griz coaches got schooled

 

[RobGriz]

EWU coaches made adjustments ..... Griz coaches got schooled

A familiar tale...

 

[fanofzoo]

I only watched the 2nd half, but what I saw reminded me of the Prukop led MSU teams. Play fast, Put up a ton of points, but defense is gassed in the 2nd half and can't stop anyone.


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Seemed that way, when EWU went to the hurry up there were many times the DL wasn't even lined up and I think we had 1 or 2 substitution fouls.

Much has to do with the fact that the D was always on the field as the O couldn't move the ball.

 

[zengriz]

...3 things...
...fans drank...
...the players played...
...coaches got out coached...

... :shock: ...

 

[BadlandsGrizFan]

I'm still of the impression that if you score 41 points you should win those games 95% of the time. Which leads me to believe Stitt isn't necessarily the problem. His boy at D coordinator is.

I don't envy his position, but many coaches have canned their guy to self preserve and right the ship while many others chose to go down with that ship.

 

[IdahoGrizFan]

I'm still of the impression that if you score 41 points you should win those games 95% of the time. Which leads me to believe Stitt isn't necessarily the problem. His boy at D coordinator is.

I don't envy his position, but many coaches have canned their guy to self preserve and right the ship while many others chose to go down with that ship.

That is a fact, 41 points will win you a lot of games..... Except for the defense giving up 6 TDs in the second half. That will ruin any stellar offensive performance.

Just to be clear, I am a fan of Stitt and his offense, it is going in the right direction and will only get better. The defense is where the issue is. In the first half we had lots of pressure on the Eastern QB. I saw linebackers on him I saw corners hitting him. In the second half I don't remember seeing the blitz anymore, am I wrong? The QB had all kinds of time to stand in the pocket and pick us apart. I remember a 3rd and 17 and what happens? The QB runs for 18! It is just frustrating to watch. This seems the same mode of operation from last year. No improvement from one game to the next. I hope next week proves me wrong. I hope next week the D comes out and shuts down Portland State. My fear is Portland State will have an offensive break out game. Why does it seem the Griz allow this now? Just asking questions.

One other thing, is it just me or have we stopped utilizing JLM? Two completions for 8 yards. I remember about 3 other passes that were either low and behind him or the defender gets away with interference when the defender went over his back. He is a dynamic player and can kill you in open space. Two completions are not enough.

Again, I will cheer the Griz on no matter what but I feel the direction of the D is severely lacking.

 

[krammer]

Brint,
Been a frequent reader and appreciate your Post Game Reports. Many Griz fans truly appreciate the time you spend on them.

Why no mention of defensive scheme? Or the amount of passing yards given up?

What are your thoughts on the defensive scheme?

i too appreciate your work,,,but the swing, bubble,circle or wheel routes (what ever you want to call them) are all up to the safeties responsibility to recognize quickly and tackle....all the safeties had a tough time last night in doing this, which includes our montana kids..... we were just not as good both scheme and talent wise as eastern imo.....coach speak like, we played hard and will learn from this will only get a coach so far.....a great quote from winston chuchhill when england had their back to the sea was "sometimes your best is not good enough, sometimes you have to do what is necessary" .....

 

[G-BEARS]

- I thought Ryan McKinley had a good game breaking up passes and sticking on his guy. Some fans around me were a little frustrated with him though in situations where he wouldn’t very aggressively get after WRs that had just made a catch. He stuck to his cover well and had some key breakups through the game. Markell Sanders also was good when EWU attacked downfield, a very nice pick to end a drive where EWU was threatening to put some points up.

Only you could talk up our cornerbacks after getting 550 passing yards hung on them, can't make this shit up... :lol:

YAC on the continued screen passes and it seemed many of the passing TDs were to slot targets or when they'd cut through the zone coverage.

Eastern exploiting our defensive scheme doesn't equate to the cornerbacks playing well. Although I will give you that the blame is more on Semore

 

[srgrizizen]

A few thoughts.

The Griz couldn't defend the swing passes to the sidelines. The EWU receivers, or some of them, are good blockers, but UM needed to make more of those plays. From the upper deck, I could hear the Griz coaches screaming in the second half, for the secondary to read quicker and come up faster. Don't think this was only for the swing passes.

Gabrud wasn't always on with his longer passes, but he sure was good at moving and scrambling, and then finding the open receiver. Did this time and time again. Thank good the south end zone back line was not 18 inches longer.

The sequence before and after Jensen's pick was just a killer. Think I read that EWU scored 14 in 27 seconds.

The plays weren't coming in fast enough for the D to get set up. Were slow getting in position multiple times. EWU took advantage of us at times with their super hurry-up. Too many missed tackles, especially in space. Those usually aren't easy tackles, but we needed to do better.

The conference needs to do something about EWU constantly faking injuries to slow down the Griz O. Happened multiple times. After being down for a bit, the players would get up and walk off and not even go to the trainers or training table. I wonder if any of them didn't come back in the game right away. Total BS.

Giving up the long kickoff return to start the second half was a bad way to start the half, and led to EWU getting off to a good start with a TD.

As Brint noted, the KO return game was pretty weak. Either EWU's coverage was super, or our guys weren't blocking. I would have put in JLM for KO's later in the game.

FG's and extra points continue to be perfect.

We needed Williams to get off some 50 plus yard punts. Didn't happen. 6 for 35.5 with a long of 40..

Nice game by the backers, especially Buss. Strahm played well, but he would have been better and more up to game speed and condition, if he had played more this season. AS I thought would occur, Strahm started the second series and played the rest of the game.

Thought our D seemed to tire a bit. 96 plays by both teams.

Note sure I would have gone for it on 4th down, I think the first time we did it. We were ahead. Why not pin EWU pack, and give the defense a better start.

EWU is better than I thought, as is Gabrud. The top EWU receivers had 18 and 13 receptions.
Longest pass given up was 50. The two top receivers' longs were only 28 and 27.

Griz run defense continued to be terrific.

Didn't like seeing one of the frosh receivers slide with feet forward to avoid a hit, and then not picking up an easy first down. We got the first down on the next play, fortunately.

Lee ran very well, and his TD was excellent.

Very good crowd. Nice night for football. Not as cold as I thought it might be.

I certainly won't give up on the team or the coaches, but it looks like every game will be a battle. Jensen will improve. As Brint noticed, safety depth is a problem. By the way, I thought Delaney got hurt celebrating the KO coverage, or whatever play it was, when he jumped and pushed his teammate who must have made the tackle, and then must have come down wrong.

:thumb: :thumb: PR, IMO this is your best post I've ever seen. Nice analysis and no long rants over how hopeless the Griz are until Stitt is fired and no fights with other posters who dare to have a contrary opinion. Keep it up.

 

[PlayerRep]

To be clear, I have never said the Griz are hopeless or Stitt should be fired. Not sure who you were directing that at. And, I rarely come after posters until after they have come after me. And, I don't care if posters have different views that I do, but I sometimes am happy to point out that I believe their views are wrong.

 

[G-BEARS]

The conference needs to do something about EWU constantly faking injuries to slow down the Griz O. Happened multiple times. After being down for a bit, the players would get up and walk off and not even go to the trainers or training table. I wonder if any of them didn't come back in the game right away. Total BS.

Yes! I mentioned this and someone looked at me like I had a tin foil hat on...

 

[birdieman]

- Tucker Schye had himself yet another ballgame. 3 sacks, 4.5 TFLs, and another FF and recovery. I have no idea if he can keep this pace all season but if so he’s shaping up to be one of the most feared DE’s in the conference. I was worried teams would key in on him and totally take him out of the game, but with the need to also watch Buss and now with Rodriguez emerging you’d think Tucker’s opportunities are going to continue. Kidder passing down #37 to Tucker seems to have been a great decision.

- I’m not sure what the kickoff return blocking scheme was but every time Toure got to the 20 yard line he faced 5 to 6 totally unblocked EWU players. Someone posted that Toure “played scared” back there… I disagree, I think he just was tired of getting destroyed by a group of white jerseys that were flying at him full speed and unblocked. That was a punishment he took last night. Not sure what the breakdown was but that needs to be analyzed on film.

- Safety is now paper thin depending on the health of Evan Epperly who went out late. Mick Delaney appeared to suffer a pretty major injury based on seeing him in street clothes, on crutches, and with his whole leg in a brace, and then Ep hits the wall funny and appeared to also hurt his leg. Sandry re-aggravated his ankle injury too, Strong still has that club on. That puts us down to very few fully healthy safeties.

Schye- I agree, another great game, in spite of being held on a frequent basis... I think he played every down on defense, so someone please explain to me why he has to run in all the way down to the two yard line to block as an interior lineman on PAT's(and field goals)??? I know we have some talented young OL who would do just as well..Give him some rest, for Christ sake!!

Kickof return scheme- There is none. Why not at least a couple times reverse direction and try the other side.. Catch the ball and run straight up the gut obviously wasn't working... Personally, I would like to see a smaller, quicker returner. Toure, I think, is too big a target back there..Give me someone who can quickly change direction and speed..JLM fills that bill, but I can see not using him for fear of injury.. Epperly was a great returner in high school..Sneaky fast, but I am questioning if he really wants the contact out there. And again, Banks played almost every down on defense..Why is he out there on KR's as a wedge blocker after the other team has just scored???

Safety- We could be in a world of hurt real soon if the injury bug hits that bunch. On previous threads, there has been some talk of converting one of the many WR's to the defensive side.. My candidate, # 84 Jed Nagler, as a safety. Watch this kid on kickoffs..He is on a mission. He wants to hit somebody..he has put on some weight since his days at Whitefish, where he was one of the fastest kids in the state that year. He would absolutely be a force from the FS position..

 

[putter]

Scary thing for me was reading the Kaimin article. Gubrud basically said watching Montana on film was exactly what they got in the game, no adjustments so they knew how to attack the defense. That was why it was such an explosive 2nd half...EWU adjusted, Montana did not. 2016 re-do

 

[George Ferguson]

Scary thing for me was reading the Kaimin article. Gubrud basically said watching Montana on film was exactly what they got in the game, no adjustments so they knew how to attack the defense. That was why it was such an explosive 2nd half...EWU adjusted, Montana did not. 2016 re-do

Tucker Scheye said that he didn't think EWU did a damn thing different in the second half. He said they went a little faster is all. He said the reason for the success in the second half was, the d-ends didn't get home like they did in the first half. He praised Gubrud and then said "at the end of the day, we still have to get home and we didn't."

 

[BadlandsGrizFan]

I'm still of the impression that if you score 41 points you should win those games 95% of the time. Which leads me to believe Stitt isn't necessarily the problem. His boy at D coordinator is.

I don't envy his position, but many coaches have canned their guy to self preserve and right the ship while many others chose to go down with that ship.

That is a fact, 41 points will win you a lot of games..... Except for the defense giving up 6 TDs in the second half. That will ruin any stellar offensive performance.

Just to be clear, I am a fan of Stitt and his offense, it is going in the right direction and will only get better. The defense is where the issue is. In the first half we had lots of pressure on the Eastern QB. I saw linebackers on him I saw corners hitting him. In the second half I don't remember seeing the blitz anymore, am I wrong? The QB had all kinds of time to stand in the pocket and pick us apart. I remember a 3rd and 17 and what happens? The QB runs for 18! It is just frustrating to watch. This seems the same mode of operation from last year. No improvement from one game to the next. I hope next week proves me wrong. I hope next week the D comes out and shuts down Portland State. My fear is Portland State will have an offensive break out game. Why does it seem the Griz allow this now? Just asking questions.

One other thing, is it just me or have we stopped utilizing JLM? Two completions for 8 yards. I remember about 3 other passes that were either low and behind him or the defender gets away with interference when the defender went over his back. He is a dynamic player and can kill you in open space. Two completions are not enough.

Again, I will cheer the Griz on no matter what but I feel the direction of the D is severely lacking.

I also am a fan of Stitts offense but on defense it looked like we also went away from spying the qb in the 2nd half??? It was very successful in the first.

 

[bearister]

I'm still of the impression that if you score 41 points you should win those games 95% of the time. Which leads me to believe Stitt isn't necessarily the problem. His boy at D coordinator is.

I don't envy his position, but many coaches have canned their guy to self preserve and right the ship while many others chose to go down with that ship.

That is a fact, 41 points will win you a lot of games..... Except for the defense giving up 6 TDs in the second half. That will ruin any stellar offensive performance.

Just to be clear, I am a fan of Stitt and his offense, it is going in the right direction and will only get better. The defense is where the issue is. In the first half we had lots of pressure on the Eastern QB. I saw linebackers on him I saw corners hitting him. In the second half I don't remember seeing the blitz anymore, am I wrong? The QB had all kinds of time to stand in the pocket and pick us apart. I remember a 3rd and 17 and what happens? The QB runs for 18! It is just frustrating to watch. This seems the same mode of operation from last year. No improvement from one game to the next. I hope next week proves me wrong. I hope next week the D comes out and shuts down Portland State. My fear is Portland State will have an offensive break out game. Why does it seem the Griz allow this now? Just asking questions.

One other thing, is it just me or have we stopped utilizing JLM? Two completions for 8 yards. I remember about 3 other passes that were either low and behind him or the defender gets away with interference when the defender went over his back. He is a dynamic player and can kill you in open space. Two completions are not enough.

Again, I will cheer the Griz on no matter what but I feel the direction of the D is severely lacking.

EWU coaches well aware of JLM. Seems he was double covered most of the game.


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[poorgriz]

The conference needs to do something about EWU constantly faking injuries to slow down the Griz O. Happened multiple times. After being down for a bit, the players would get up and walk off and not even go to the trainers or training table. I wonder if any of them didn't come back in the game right away. Total BS.

This should be relatively easy to document and send to the conference powers that be. And if nothing is done, what's good for the goose...

I don't think that is against the rules. I believe the "Penalty" for that is that you have to sit out the next play. Lame? Maybe, but they won.

 

[coyote]

...3 things...
...fans drank...
...the players played...
...coaches got out coached...

... :shock: ...

Copy 1 and make a number 4 - I know it doesn't fit your pattern.