Griz turn focus to offensive execution during bye
“Save
Sep 13, 2016, 7:00 PM
AJ MAZZOLINI
[email protected]
Two positives will come out of Montana having two weeks to review the film from its game at Northern Iowa.
First, the Griz have twice as long to bask in the warmth of their best road in half a decade. Secondly, they have two weeks to clean up the issues on offense.
The Grizzlies' offense was just plain offensive at times Saturday in its 20-14 upset of No. 3 UNI. Head coach Bob Stitt now has a fortnight to further drill his players on decision making on the field. It's see and react for the Griz, Stitt said.
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For instance, too often UM was unable to take advantage of deep passes when the Panthers came out in a Cover 1 defense, in which defensive backs play man-to-man on receivers and one safety drops deep in the middle of the field. With 1-on-1 coverage on the outside, Stitt wants his quarterback to pick apart defenses.
"We've got good receivers and we've got to score in those situations," he said. "Then they get back in zone and you can run your offense again.
"It's offense for dummies when they're playing man. You just go after 'em. We didn't do a good job of that."
The reasons for that were multiple: a quarterback's off day, an offensive line playing down two starters, receivers missing their marks, poor decisions across the board. Most of that can be fixed up during the bye week.
Unfortunately some things can not.
***
Time to heal
The Griz, now nationally ranked No. 7 by STATS, were a few men short in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Not all of them will be healthy when Montana re-takes the field Sept. 24 at Cal Poly for the start of Big Sky Conference play.
Most notably is the injury to center Ben Weyer, which appears severe enough that the senior will miss a good portion if not all of the season. Stitt would not comment on the specifics of the injury but called the length of time Weyer will be out "unfortunate for him" and the team.
Weyer was lost for all of 2015 when an ACL and meniscus tear in his right knee in fall camp required surgery, his second severe injury to the knee in hardly a year's time. He tore his PCL against Wyoming in 2014, though continued to play. Near the end of the third quarter in Montana's season opener against Saint Francis, his first game back, Weyer went down again clutching the same knee.
He sparked hope for a quick return by jogging off under his own power, but that does not appear to be the case.
Stitt said senior right guard Devon Dietrich, who left Saturday's game with a left leg injury, has made strides and is expected to be back against Cal Poly. Junior Robert Luke relieved him against the Panthers while junior Cooper Sprunk handled the snapping duties in Weyer's absence.
There should also be good news in the backfield where sophomore Jeremy Calhoun did not play because of a concussion. Barring setbacks, he's likely to return in two weeks to help a unit that was whittled to one healthy body late against UNI.
With junior Treshawn Favors favoring an ankle, senior John Nguyen handled almost all the carries -- 24 for 76 rushing yards -- and gave the Northern Iowa defense little to guess at in defending the run game.
While senior Joey Counts remains out because of legal issues, the Griz had redshirt freshman Holden Ryan warming up before the game with the RBs. Ryan, who was signed as an H-back receiver out of Billings Central before converting to linebacker during spring ball, could have gotten into the game Saturday, Stitt said.
"Holden is definitely an athlete and he's very smart," Stitt said. "Holden's a guy we can trust and he may be a guy that stays there."
The Griz will have their full corps of receivers against Cal Poly as well as both junior James Homan, who missed the opener and played sparingly at UNI, and redshirt freshman Lamarriel Taylor will be close to 100 percent.
Also working back from injury is senior safety Yamen Sanders, who missed UM's first two games. The Griz have avoided rushing him back because of their depth at the position and excellent play so far from current starters Justin Strong, a junior, and redshirt freshman Josh Sandry.
***
Prep for Poly
Stitt said his programs aren't the kind that grind during a bye week and hold intra-squad scrimmages to try and stay sharp. He'll let players recuperate and hold regular practices this week focusing internally on the mental side.
Next week the team will really put its attention on Cal Poly, the upcoming opponent. By then the Grizzlies' young redshirts on the scout team will have their marks down emulating the Mustangs' patented triple-option offensive attack.
"We want to be fresh next Tuesday and we want our scout team to be ready to roll," Stitt said of his objectives for the bye week. "Going against a team like Cal Poly, we need our offensive scout team to be really good. By Tuesday we want them to be sharp as heck running the scout cards."
***
Hitting the road
Before the Grizzlies take to the road for a second straight game, this time in San Luis Obispo, California, Montana's coaches will be packing their bags this weekend for key recruiting trips.
With a Friday and Saturday off, UM's coaching staff will spread out across the state and region in hunt of the next generation of Griz players. It's the only free weekend for the coaches during the high school football season.
An early open week means the Griz will play nine straight Saturdays to end the regular season, but it also gives coaches a chance to get to some recruits before other bidders.
"We're gonna get out and see kids play early and hopefully we get a few more commitments," said Stitt, whose program is up to nine verbal commits already. "If you're later, maybe you've missed out on a guy."
“Save
Sep 13, 2016, 7:00 PM
AJ MAZZOLINI
[email protected]
Two positives will come out of Montana having two weeks to review the film from its game at Northern Iowa.
First, the Griz have twice as long to bask in the warmth of their best road in half a decade. Secondly, they have two weeks to clean up the issues on offense.
The Grizzlies' offense was just plain offensive at times Saturday in its 20-14 upset of No. 3 UNI. Head coach Bob Stitt now has a fortnight to further drill his players on decision making on the field. It's see and react for the Griz, Stitt said.
Advertisement: Story Continues Below
For instance, too often UM was unable to take advantage of deep passes when the Panthers came out in a Cover 1 defense, in which defensive backs play man-to-man on receivers and one safety drops deep in the middle of the field. With 1-on-1 coverage on the outside, Stitt wants his quarterback to pick apart defenses.
"We've got good receivers and we've got to score in those situations," he said. "Then they get back in zone and you can run your offense again.
"It's offense for dummies when they're playing man. You just go after 'em. We didn't do a good job of that."
The reasons for that were multiple: a quarterback's off day, an offensive line playing down two starters, receivers missing their marks, poor decisions across the board. Most of that can be fixed up during the bye week.
Unfortunately some things can not.
***
Time to heal
The Griz, now nationally ranked No. 7 by STATS, were a few men short in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Not all of them will be healthy when Montana re-takes the field Sept. 24 at Cal Poly for the start of Big Sky Conference play.
Most notably is the injury to center Ben Weyer, which appears severe enough that the senior will miss a good portion if not all of the season. Stitt would not comment on the specifics of the injury but called the length of time Weyer will be out "unfortunate for him" and the team.
Weyer was lost for all of 2015 when an ACL and meniscus tear in his right knee in fall camp required surgery, his second severe injury to the knee in hardly a year's time. He tore his PCL against Wyoming in 2014, though continued to play. Near the end of the third quarter in Montana's season opener against Saint Francis, his first game back, Weyer went down again clutching the same knee.
He sparked hope for a quick return by jogging off under his own power, but that does not appear to be the case.
Stitt said senior right guard Devon Dietrich, who left Saturday's game with a left leg injury, has made strides and is expected to be back against Cal Poly. Junior Robert Luke relieved him against the Panthers while junior Cooper Sprunk handled the snapping duties in Weyer's absence.
There should also be good news in the backfield where sophomore Jeremy Calhoun did not play because of a concussion. Barring setbacks, he's likely to return in two weeks to help a unit that was whittled to one healthy body late against UNI.
With junior Treshawn Favors favoring an ankle, senior John Nguyen handled almost all the carries -- 24 for 76 rushing yards -- and gave the Northern Iowa defense little to guess at in defending the run game.
While senior Joey Counts remains out because of legal issues, the Griz had redshirt freshman Holden Ryan warming up before the game with the RBs. Ryan, who was signed as an H-back receiver out of Billings Central before converting to linebacker during spring ball, could have gotten into the game Saturday, Stitt said.
"Holden is definitely an athlete and he's very smart," Stitt said. "Holden's a guy we can trust and he may be a guy that stays there."
The Griz will have their full corps of receivers against Cal Poly as well as both junior James Homan, who missed the opener and played sparingly at UNI, and redshirt freshman Lamarriel Taylor will be close to 100 percent.
Also working back from injury is senior safety Yamen Sanders, who missed UM's first two games. The Griz have avoided rushing him back because of their depth at the position and excellent play so far from current starters Justin Strong, a junior, and redshirt freshman Josh Sandry.
***
Prep for Poly
Stitt said his programs aren't the kind that grind during a bye week and hold intra-squad scrimmages to try and stay sharp. He'll let players recuperate and hold regular practices this week focusing internally on the mental side.
Next week the team will really put its attention on Cal Poly, the upcoming opponent. By then the Grizzlies' young redshirts on the scout team will have their marks down emulating the Mustangs' patented triple-option offensive attack.
"We want to be fresh next Tuesday and we want our scout team to be ready to roll," Stitt said of his objectives for the bye week. "Going against a team like Cal Poly, we need our offensive scout team to be really good. By Tuesday we want them to be sharp as heck running the scout cards."
***
Hitting the road
Before the Grizzlies take to the road for a second straight game, this time in San Luis Obispo, California, Montana's coaches will be packing their bags this weekend for key recruiting trips.
With a Friday and Saturday off, UM's coaching staff will spread out across the state and region in hunt of the next generation of Griz players. It's the only free weekend for the coaches during the high school football season.
An early open week means the Griz will play nine straight Saturdays to end the regular season, but it also gives coaches a chance to get to some recruits before other bidders.
"We're gonna get out and see kids play early and hopefully we get a few more commitments," said Stitt, whose program is up to nine verbal commits already. "If you're later, maybe you've missed out on a guy."
