Good, Bad, Ugly - WIU

[HookedonGriz]

Good:

- seeing the kids not fold like a chair after getting down 14-0 in 2 mins
- flowers kick return to the house, you knew it was just a matter of time
- Sammy Akem continues to show he is one of the better receivers on this team and in the Big Sky
- a little bit more of a run game today with some actual bursts for yardage
- pass protection early was solid....started to break down later in game
- defense shutting down their run game to the tune of 2.1 ypc....this team ranks high on shutting down the run
- the defense only giving up 89 total yards in the second half
- Calhoun coming back to play the 2nd half

Bad:

- turnovers, came out -3....not gonna win many that way
- penalties - this team continues to hurt itself with crap penalties. They are not only one of the top penalized team in the Big Sky but in all of FCS....yikes.
- coaches shitting the bed and not taking points when they are there. It’s one thing if this team had proven it could pick up a 4th and 1 or 3rd and 2 but we have not done that well since the get-go. It’s almost laughable at the point.
- O Lineman literally swinging and missing on their blocks....like literally not even getting a hand on the guy in front of them. I watched a # of lineman completely whiff on blocks
- Sneed struggling badly on the deep ball. He could have had 2-3 more TDs if he makes those throws.
- the cute double reverse pass that almost got Sneed killed when it was 2nd and 3 from the 20ish. Just get upfield and pick up a first.

Ugly:

- that punt return coverage that gave up the TD
- the secondary in the first half getting torched for like 250
- being 1st and goal and turning ball over on downs.....again

Sorry, not sorry, that is a game that should have been won and it felt a shit ton like Stitt 2.0 with some of the coaching decisions, mistakes, and lack of execution. This team has a loooong ways to go. Strap in.

[AZGrizFan]

Yeah. As if Sneed doesn’t take ENOUGH hits, let’s throw a pass to him and make him a target! What, we don’t have enough receivers left over from Stitt?

[zengriz]

...if bobby doesn't step up and own...
...the more things changed...
...the more they stayed the same...

... ...

[1972]

Definitely a game we should have won, they scored 14 points in the first 90 seconds and 14 more in the last five minutes, so for basically 53 minutes plus we held them to 3 points. Lots of mistakes, very young team, I'm disappointed for sure, but lets all relax and give this team time to gel. I definitely saw some glimpses today of a pretty good team, obviously some bad plays also. We knew it was going to take some time. In the pre game, Bobby said that he feels we have the players on the offensive line to be dominant, they just need some time.

[HookedonGriz]

Definitely a game we should have won, they scored 14 points in the first 90 seconds and 14 more in the last five minutes, so for basically 53 minutes plus we held them to 3 points. Lots of mistakes, very young team, I'm disappointed for sure, but lets all relax and give this team time to gel. I definitely saw some glimpses today of a pretty good team, obviously some bad plays also. We knew it was going to take some time. In the pre game, Bobby said that he feels we have the players on the offensive line to be dominant, they just need some time.

Sorry when you can’t even get a hand, leg, finger, foot, or helmet on the large guy right across from you.....I’m not confident we have the players on the O Line to be dominant. Go back and watch how many total whiffs there were.

[MTGRZ]

Definitely a game we should have won, they scored 14 points in the first 90 seconds and 14 more in the last five minutes, so for basically 53 minutes plus we held them to 3 points. Lots of mistakes, very young team, I'm disappointed for sure, but lets all relax and give this team time to gel. I definitely saw some glimpses today of a pretty good team, obviously some bad plays also. We knew it was going to take some time. In the pre game, Bobby said that he feels we have the players on the offensive line to be dominant, they just need some time.

[1972]

Definitely a game we should have won, they scored 14 points in the first 90 seconds and 14 more in the last five minutes, so for basically 53 minutes plus we held them to 3 points. Lots of mistakes, very young team, I'm disappointed for sure, but lets all relax and give this team time to gel. I definitely saw some glimpses today of a pretty good team, obviously some bad plays also. We knew it was going to take some time. In the pre game, Bobby said that he feels we have the players on the offensive line to be dominant, they just need some time.

Sorry when you can’t even get a hand, leg, finger, foot, or helmet on the large guy right across from you.....I’m not confident we have the players on the O Line to be dominant. Go back and watch how many total whiffs there were.

Don't shoot the messenger, just telling you what Bobby said.

[Dmontanagrizzlies]

A little perspective. Going down 14-0 within the first 3 minutes is a throat stomper. I was impressed how the team bounced back, ON THE ROAD.
Youth and inexperience reared its head.
Staff adjusting together.
So, is it blown coaching or youth?
Seems like youth when 10 up under 5. Drops and fumbles, sprinkled in throughout
Amazing what a love and bitch; the momentum factor in football.

[uofmman1122]

Officiating was pretty ugly.

Still cannot believe the non-PI call when their guy tackled Toure to prevent a TD catch.

[grizfromhel]

Of course a disappointing loss. But focusing on one decision from the coach to "go for it" on fourth and 1 at the goal line is ...... nuts. As it turned out, and I believe was part of the initial calculation, WIU had a three and out and we soon had the ball at mid-field, where we marched down and scored. No harm, no foul.
There are just so many other things that happened in the game that can be questioned, that the focus on one coaching decision seems way over-done. The one that kills me is that punt return that turned the game around---- now that truly was a game changer--- and there must have been 7 or 8 white jerseys around him when he caught the ball and nobody got a clean shot at him. That really hurt !!

[grizpsych]

A little perspective. Going down 14-0 within the first 3 minutes is a throat stomper. I was impressed how the team bounced back, ON THE ROAD.
Youth and inexperience reared its head.
Staff adjusting together.
So, is it blown coaching or youth?
Seems like youth when 10 up under 5. Drops and fumbles, sprinkled in throughout
Amazing what a love and bitch; the momentum factor in football.

For me, it was devastating to watch the last 5 minutes after watching this team overcome their earlier misfortune. I'll have to watch the end again sometime, but right now I'm still having flashbacks of our secondary dropping back and only our D line trying to get to their QB.

[AZGrizFan]

Definitely a game we should have won, they scored 14 points in the first 90 seconds and 14 more in the last five minutes, so for basically 53 minutes plus we held them to 3 points. Lots of mistakes, very young team, I'm disappointed for sure, but lets all relax and give this team time to gel. I definitely saw some glimpses today of a pretty good team, obviously some bad plays also. We knew it was going to take some time. In the pre game, Bobby said that he feels we have the players on the offensive line to be dominant, they just need some time.

Sorry when you can’t even get a hand, leg, finger, foot, or helmet on the large guy right across from you.....I’m not confident we have the players on the O Line to be dominant. Go back and watch how many total whiffs there were.

Not confident? How about 100% certain we don’t?

[HookedonGriz]

Have to add another after looking at stats:

Dante Olson had another big game. He had 11 tackles, 1.5 TFL, .5 sack, and another pick. Kid is playing in total beast mode.

[PlayerRep]

Of course a disappointing loss. But focusing on one decision from the coach to "go for it" on fourth and 1 at the goal line is ...... nuts. As it turned out, and I believe was part of the initial calculation, WIU had a three and out and we soon had the ball at mid-field, where we marched down and scored. No harm, no foul.
There are just so many other things that happened in the game that can be questioned, that the focus on one coaching decision seems way over-done. The one that kills me is that punt return that turned the game around---- now that truly was a game changer--- and there must have been 7 or 8 white jerseys around him when he caught the ball and nobody got a clean shot at him. That really hurt !!

I agree. Had UM gotten a TD then, UM would have won the game. If UM had got 3 then, it turns out that UM would have lost the game anyway.

That being said, UM needs to develop a better way to pick up critical 1 yardes. Like many of you, I would not have called that play. Would have kept the ball in Sneed's hands for a run or pass.

[TxGriz]

The NIU game was going the same way, but fell 3 points short. 3+ more points and the Griz are 1-2.

[AZGrizFan]

The NIU game was going the same way, but fell 3 points short. 3+ more points and the Griz are 1-2.

And four less and we are 3-0. To me those games looked nothing alike.