What we know after Tennessee game

[ikenyon]

the attitude that games like yesterday don't matter because we were expected to lose and we should pat ourselves on the back for losing by 29 and getting 557 yards is so incredibly stupid.

I don't remember anyone saying this.

That's the general attitude I get from the athletic department/coaching staff.


AD Kingston tweeted "Very proud of @BG_Football tonight. We gave a talented, nationally ranked team all they could handle" -- Like, a 29 point loss and 400 rushing yards is all they could handle?

I'd rather there be a little sense of urgency to fix things.

[BGSU33]

One could argue the two most concerning and troubling issues with last year's team was the defense (essentially the tackling) and penalties. Yes, I know it was only one game, but what was very bothersome was both issues were very apparent yesterday, again. That was very disapponting to see.

Also, it hasn't helped any that in each of the last two years, we've had the $hit kicked out of us right out of the gate to start the season. The first quarter vs Tennessee had very much the same feeling as the WKU game last year as by the time the first quarter ended, we were already down by three scores and were facing a huge uphill battle the rest of the way. It's deflating to know you have a good team but see it get it handed to it like that in game one. And don't look for that trend to end as we open at places like Ohio State (next year) and Oregon in recent years to come. Which is why we MUST win a game or two in the non-conference slate because if this team goes 0-4 we could lose the season right there before getting into the MAC schedule. Two years ago when we beat Tulsa it really felt like it spring-boarded us to a great year - which it did as we won the MAC Championship and 3 of our 4 losses were by a measly 7 points. Even if you go back to the opener at Florida three years ago, we lost, but there was a lot of enthusiasm - even on this board - despite losing because in the fourth quarter we were within a few points. I remember people questioning why we felt so good after we lost. Our very own AD (GC) made the same statement. But the last few years, come the fourth quarter, we were being blown out.

[Schadenfreude]

the attitude that games like yesterday don't matter because we were expected to lose and we should pat ourselves on the back for losing by 29 and getting 557 yards is so incredibly stupid.

I don't remember anyone saying this.

That's the general attitude I get from the athletic department/coaching staff.


AD Kingston tweeted "Very proud of @BG_Football tonight. We gave a talented, nationally ranked team all they could handle" -- Like, a 29 point loss and 400 rushing yards is all they could handle?

Okay. But you did leave out his hash tag. If memory serves, it was #nomoralvictories

[Indiana4]

1. Biggest improvement is between game one and two......The D will get better, I don't have stats in front of me but I believe TN had an average start at midfield. It is hard to defend a 50 yard field.
2. We passed for over 400 yards on the 22nd ranked pass defense from last year. Only two teams had over 300 last year and their pass D gave an average of 189 a game.
3. The score was lopsided, it started to get away at the end of the first half, after looking at the replay-Twice our guys were "mugged" in the end zone, fist Gallon then Lewis. A missed assignment on the field goal, and add the fumble at the four. 24 points that we didn't get. Then if you want to add the drives we stalled and settled for field goals, bottom line we left a lot of points out there. We could have easily put up 50 points on the day.
4. As far a special teams, #7 is a stud, but we had issues all day which set the stage for their offense. Babers has a good point of the 2 & 3'd that make up most special teams. The 2&3's in the SEC are similar to our ones,
5. Offense will get better, a couple drops, some over throws and a couple mis communications along the way. I see no problem of throwing for 500 yards a game.

Looking forward to these next three games........

[Siborg]

Some coaches believe in using starters on ST and some do not. I believe Clawson changed from using 2nd & 3rd stringers to mixing in some starters. The result was our coverage improved. At the moment Babers seems not to want to use starters. It will be interesting to see if that changes.

[BGSU33]

Some coaches believe in using starters on ST and some do not. I believe Clawson changed from using 2nd & 3rd stringers to mixing in some starters. The result was our coverage improved. At the moment Babers seems not to want to use starters. It will be interesting to see if that changes.

One position we do use a starter on special teams that I actually wish we wouldn't (only because of how screwed we'd be if he was injured) is on kick returns with Clint Stephens. Don't get me wrong, Stephens is good there, but with Nick Johnson being dismissed, we're down to essentially Stephens and Hunter at CB with a huge question mark behind those two. I saw Rhodes back there too on KR's which I was interested to see (although his lone "return" was a blunder) but I hold my breath every time I see Stephens on a return now. To say we're thin at CB would be a HUGE understatement. The fact that we're using one of our two only real good options at CB as a KR....well, it makes me very nervous.

[Falcon137]

Here is the replay....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA78TpB6zeg" target="_blank

After rewatching...the defense wasn't as bad as I originally thought. With about 4:30 to go in the quarter, Malik Brown takes a bad backside angle on 3rd and 5 and Dobbs runs for a first down. Different ballgame if the D can get a 3 and out and get the ball back to the offense after scoring 17 straight. The stretch from the end of the first through that point in the 2nd showed what that system came do to opposing teams.

For as small as we all thought the dline would be, they rolled out some big units. Royster, Minns, Lunsford, Brown is a big line. They'll have plenty of options throughout the year. Someone said they thought the D was slow. I thought they looked like the fastest defense I have seen from a BG team. They had problems with pursuit angles, but I thought they had good speed.

Tennessee hit their big pass plays deep middle, between the safeties in the new Tampa 2 scheme.

Hardy looks like he will be an all conference player. He was impressive.

The non call on Gallon was just brutal and the fumble between Johnson and Moore just looked like not enough reps together. This team is going to rack up tons of points and yards. At 42-27, BG had 2 possessions, 1st and goal and came away with just 3.

Special teams was absolutely brutal, no way around it. Probably a 14 point swing. They'll get better. Tennessee was far and away the most athletic and deepest team they will play all year.

Excited for the rest of the nonconference. Johnson is going to keep getting better as he knocks more and more of the rust off. For as good as he and the offense was, they bogged down once they got inside the 10. This offense is going to be fun this year. They did a great job using formations and motion to get the matchups they wanted for, Moore, Lewis, and Dieter....and that was against a good SEC defense.

[jpfalcon09]

Here is the replay....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA78TpB6zeg" target="_blank

After rewatching...the defense wasn't as bad as I originally thought. With about 4:30 to go in the quarter, Malik Brown takes a bad backside angle on 3rd and 5 and Dobbs runs for a first down. Different ballgame if the D can get a 3 and out and get the ball back to the offense after scoring 17 straight. The stretch from the end of the first through that point in the 2nd showed what that system came do to opposing teams.

For as small as we all thought the dline would be, they rolled out some big units. Royster, Minns, Lunsford, Brown is a big line. They'll have plenty of options throughout the year. Someone said they thought the D was slow. I thought they looked like the fastest defense I have seen from a BG team. They had problems with pursuit angles, but I thought they had good speed.

Tennessee hit their big pass plays deep middle, between the safeties in the new Tampa 2 scheme.

Hardy looks like he will be an all conference player. He was impressive.

The non call on Gallon was just brutal and the fumble between Johnson and Moore just looked like not enough reps together. This team is going to rack up tons of points and yards. At 42-27, BG had 2 possessions, 1st and goal and came away with just 3.

Special teams was absolutely brutal, no way around it. Probably a 14 point swing. They'll get better. Tennessee was far and away the most athletic and deepest team they will play all year.

Excited for the rest of the nonconference. Johnson is going to keep getting better as he knocks more and more of the rust off. For as good as he and the offense was, they bogged down once they got inside the 10. This offense is going to be fun this year. They did a great job using formations and motion to get the matchups they wanted for, Moore, Lewis, and Dieter....and that was against a good SEC defense.

I noticed much of the same on D, bad angles and poor pursuit. These things are correctable and are to be expected with a young group learning a new scheme. I was happy with how they battled however to keep the team in the game during the first half. The good news is they won't see athletes like Dobbs and Hurd the remainder of the season.

After watching the replay, I noticed on punt coverage that the first guys down the field ended up being spaced apart too far without any support. There was notably a lack of aggressiveness which speaks to either guys not being sure of their lanes or perhaps a little intimidation. Either way, hopefully these guys can be coached up and given the proper adjustments to remedy those mistakes.

[Falconfreak90]

1. Biggest improvement is between game one and two......The D will get better, I don't have stats in front of me but I believe TN had an average start at midfield. It is hard to defend a 50 yard field.
2. We passed for over 400 yards on the 22nd ranked pass defense from last year. Only two teams had over 300 last year and their pass D gave an average of 189 a game.
3. The score was lopsided, it started to get away at the end of the first half, after looking at the replay-Twice our guys were "mugged" in the end zone, fist Gallon then Lewis. A missed assignment on the field goal, and add the fumble at the four. 24 points that we didn't get. Then if you want to add the drives we stalled and settled for field goals, bottom line we left a lot of points out there. We could have easily put up 50 points on the day.
4. As far a special teams, #7 is a stud, but we had issues all day which set the stage for their offense. Babers has a good point of the 2 & 3'd that make up most special teams. The 2&3's in the SEC are similar to our ones,
5. Offense will get better, a couple drops, some over throws and a couple mis communications along the way. I see no problem of throwing for 500 yards a game.

Looking forward to these next three games........

Pretty much sums it up for me.