September 9th, 2008 12:00am
Carson-Newman's Achilles' Heel over the years has been pass defense and if you judge purely by the stat sheet, it may appear that it was the sole reason for C-N's 20-13 loss to North Alabama last week.
But in reality, it was a combination of factors that cost the Eagles. There were missed opportunities early in the game to take a 14-0 lead while the Lions were on their heels. There was the fact that quarterback Alex Good didn't throw the football as well as he is capable of. There was also the fact that C-N gave up first downs twice on 3rd-and-long late in the game when they needed to get the ball back.
The bottom line is that although the loss stings and may very well cost the Eagles home field advantage in the playoffs, this game was still very valuable to maturation of this team. C-N is still a very young team with no recent playoff experience and a game like this one will give the Eagles an idea of what it takes to compete at a level necessary to win big in the post-season. Even though the Eagles will probably roll through the SAC, Ken Sparks should have no problem getting the attention of his team when he sees an issue that needs correction. All he'll need to say is "remember UNA".
Other Random Thoughts from Week Two
-The MIAA continues to impress, going 8-2 in non-conference play last week. The league finished up non-conference play 13-3 against D-II opponents which should put at least three teams from this league in the playoffs. It appears that Central Missouri, Washburn, Northwest Missouri, Pittsburg State, and Nebraska-Omaha will all be strong challengers for the league title.
-The only real question I had about North Alabama coming into the season was on defense, where several new faces are on the field this year. But any questions were answered resoundingly against Carson-Newman. It's not easy to prepare for everything a veer offense can throw at you, but the Lions were impressive in containing everything C-N did. UNA has to be the favorite in the region at this point.
-I haven't gotten into Harlon Hill talk yet this year simply because I think it takes a month before it is fair to start compiling a list of favorites. But North Alabama quarterback A.J. Milwee would certainly have to be near the front of the list with his 31-45 401 yard passing performance against Carson-Newman.
-Grand Valley proved last weekend in a 49-21 win over Indianapolis that the Lakers will be outstanding offensively this season. The Lakers did, however, give up 205 rushing yards to the Greyhounds. It will be interesting to see how a young GVSU defense develops as the year goes on.
-Even though California dropped a 24-17 decision to Bloomsburg last week, I still think the Vulcans have the potential to be the best team in the region. The heavy rain and wind from Hurricane Hanna favored the run-heavy BU offense and took California out of its element. Plus, I think the Vulcans are still trying to get all of the new players on the same page. It will be interesting if these two teams meet again in the PSAC title game in November.
-Colorado State-Pueblo celebrated the reinstatement of its football program and the opening of a new stadium with a 24-13 win over Panhandle State. While the win was obviously a milestone for CSU-P, it is also quite an indictment on an OPSU program, that quite frankly, shows no ability to compete at this level. The Aggies' next six opponents are NAIA teams, where hopefully OPSU can pick up a win or two.
-Last week's Central State-West Virginia State game at Soldier Field drew 35,000 fans. Attendance figures like this should answer the often asked question of why so many HBCU programs prefer to play in these "classics" even if it means choosing not to participate in the playoffs. Congrats to both programs for having such a successful event.
Central Oklahoma- Texas A&M Kingsville Game Moved
With Hurricane Ike bearing down on South Texas, school officials from UCO and TAMU-K were faced with the decision to either cancel this Saturday's game or move it. Instead of playing in Kingsville as scheduled, the Javelinas will head north to UCO on Saturday, with the Bronchos then returning the favor and returning to Kingsville next season. Nice job by the administration at both schools to be proactive about the situation and make sure the game gets played.
Top Games This Week
American International (1-0) @ Southern Connecticut State (1-1)
Thanks to Northeast-10 columnist Paul Falewicz giving me a heads up, I now know that this game between AIC and SCSU is actually a conference game, while the second meeting between the two teams on November 8th is a non-conference tilt. I had that backwards in my column last week.
These two teams appear to be the class of the league, and there is a chance that the winner may run the table in the conference. Many people (including yours truly) thought that SCSU would run away with the conference this season and make an improved showing in the playoffs. But a year of experience apparently has not corrected the Owls defensive problems and to top it off, All-league quarterback Steve Armstrong was lost to a leg injury last week and may not return this season. This will be a good game, but I think home field and the running of Jerom Freeman will be just enough for the Owls to pull it out. Southern Connecticut 30 American International 27.
Grand Valley (1-0) @ Saginaw Valley (1-0)
For as badly as GVSU has dominated the GLIAC in recent years, SVSU has been the one team that has given the Lakers as much trouble as anyone. The Cardinals were the last team to beat the Lakers in a conference game (in 2004) and SVSU was really the only team to challenge GVSU during the regular season last year. Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that these two schools are major rivals.
With GVSU's inexperience on defense, there may be two or three teams GLIAC teams with the potential on a given Saturday to give the Lakers trouble this fall and possibly pull the upset. But of all those teams, I feel SVSU is the most talented. The Cardinals have enough talent on defense to at least slow down GVSU and as long as they hold on to the football, the Cardinal offense should score points. It won't be easy, but GVSU will escape with its 32nd GLIAC victory in a row. Grand Valley 27 Saginaw Valley 20.
Missouri Southern (2-0) @ Pittsburg State (2-0)
Everyone focuses on Pitt State versus Northwest Missouri as the big rivalry in the MIAA, but that is more of mutual respect sort of thing between the two top programs in the conference. Meanwhile, the MSSU-PSU rivalry is based purely on proximity and hatred. The two schools are just 30 minutes apart and they don't care for each other.
The reason you don't hear more about this rivalry is simple: MSSU hasn't had much success as a program or against the Gorillas over the years. But the Lions have gotten better the last couple of seasons under former Northwest Missouri offensive coordinator Bart Tatum and they did put a scare in PSU last year before losing, 31-28.
The Lions haven't beaten the Gorillas since 1993 and the losses have generally followed the same pattern: MSSU hasn't had the horses defensively to slow down PSU. This could be another very good game, but I'm betting the streak. Pittsburg State 33 Missouri Southern 24.
Missouri Western (1-1) @ Northwest Missouri (1-1)
Just like the Pitt State-Missouri Southern rivalry, this is another MIAA match up based on proximity and hate. Although MWSU has done better against NWMSU than MSSU has done against PSU, this is still a series dominated by the Bearcats.
The two teams are similar in that they both have good offenses but have questions defensively. Making this game even more important is that the loser is in a precarious position when it comes to postseason potential. I think the Bearcats will win this game, but it may be entertaining. Northwest Missouri 35 Missouri Western 23.
Henderson State (1-1) @ North Alabama (2-0)
Both of HSU's games this season have been against FCS schools, but that fact is a bit deceiving when you consider that the Reddies pounded a bad Arkansas-Pine Bluff team last week. HSU was picked fourth in the GSC preseason poll, so this team has the talent to compete with the top teams in the league. But Central Arkansas shredded the Reddie pass defense two weeks ago and I expect A.J. Milwee to do the same this week. HSU's only hope is that UNA overlooks them a bit and that quarterback Roch Charpentier plays a bit better than he has so far this season. North Alabama 33 Henderson State 20.
Texas A&M-Commerce (1-1) @ Abilene Christian (1-0)
I decided to preview this game based on the fact that these two teams were the preseason favorites in their respective division in the LSC. But clearly, the two divisions are not created equal-- the South went 5-1 against the North last week.
TAMU-C is averaging just 13.5 points and 281 yards of offense through two games and that won't get it done against an ACU team that can put up points at will. Lion quarterback Terry Mayo has been a disappointment thus far, completing just 46% of his passes. He'll have to play much better for his team to have any shot in this game. Abilene Christian 42 Texas A&M-Commerce 17.
Mailbag
[Q] One of the things I miss about having old regional columns is that there is no one to rank the teams by region each week. I know you did give a top ten in each region in your pre-season column. Is there any chance you could do that for us each week?
Pete
[A] Well, the main reason I haven't done it in the past is that it is fairly time consuming to rank 40 teams. But yours is about the third request I have received recently on this subject so I will try to add it to the column as time allows:
Super Regional One
1. Bloomsburg (2-0) Two straight wins over top 25 teams gets the Huskies the top spot.
2. Indiana (1-0) IUP was impressive defensively in the opener.
3. California (1-1) Let's see how the Vulcans recover from their first regular season loss since 2006.
4. Edinburg (2-0) The Scots have allowed just 21 total points in two games to go along with a talented offense.
5. Shepherd (2-0) The Ram defense appears more than capable of carrying this team to another WVIAC title.
6. West Chester (1-1) We'll find out a lot about this team after Saturday's game with FCS power Delaware.
7. Southern Connecticut (1-1) The Owls are still not there defensively, but this team can score points.
8. American International (1-0) A win over conference rival Southern Connecticut would put this team in position to contend for a playoff berth.
9. Glenville State (1-1) The Pioneers will get a chance to prove themselves against Shepherd this week.
10. West Liberty (1-1) The Hilltoppers' offense is too talented to be held down for long.
Super Regional Two
1. North Alabama (2-0) Hard to argue with the Lions being in the top spot after last week.
2. Valdosta State (2-0) The defending champs look terrific on defense.
3. Carson-Newman (1-1) The Eagles will still be a factor in the region come playoff time.
4. Newberry (0-1) The Indians played Valdosta State tough.
5. Delta State (0-1) Giving up 52 points to FCS power McNeese State shows that this team is not the same as last year defensively.
6. Tuskegee (1-0) This team has a good chance to run the table.
7. Henderson State (1-1) We'll find out if the Reddies are for real this week.
8. Albany State (2-0) It appears that the Rams will once again push for a playoff spot.
9. Catawba (1-1) The Indians have too much talent to not recover from a rough start.
10. Tusculum (1-1) The Pioneers were schooled but a FCS team last week, but this team is still pretty talented, especially on defense.
Super Regional Three
1. Grand Valley (1-0) No explanation needed.
2. Saginaw Valley (1-0) This might be the only team in the region with the physical ability to play with the Lakers.
3. Minnesota-Duluth (2-0) The Bulldogs were fantastic in pounding Missouri Western last week.
4. Michigan Tech (2-0) Impressive in beating two good teams to start the season, but the Huskies have a brutal schedule in front of them.
5. Chadron State (1-1) The loss to Pittsburg State isn't too much to worry about as long as the Eagles win the RMAC again.
6. Northern Michigan (1-0) The Wildcats were very impressive in pounding a solid Northwood team last week.
7. Winona State (1-1) The Warriors started to come together last week.
8. Ferris State (2-0) Undefeated by a total of three points.
9. Minnesota State (1-1) That 20 point loss to Central Missouri is starting to not look so bad.
10. Ashland (0-2) Despite the winless start, this is a talented team.
Super Regional Four
1. Abilene Christian (1-0) ACU is downright scary offensively.
2. Nebraska-Omaha (1-0) The Mavericks were shaky at times last week and still won easily.
3. Central Missouri (2-0) The Mules have been very impressive thus far.
4. Central Washington (2-0) Shaky in the opener, but the Wildcats were dominant last week.
5. West Texas A&M (2-0) The Buffaloes still make a lot of silly mistakes-- 16 penalties for 173 yards against UCO.
6. Northwest Missouri (1-1) The Bearcats are not the same team defensively as the past few seasons.
7. Pittsburg State (2-0) PSU's win over Chadron State will be very important come playoff selection time.
8. Washburn (2-0) Tough to rank a team that just beat an FCS club this low, but the region is loaded.
9. Tarleton State (2-0) The Texans will likely not face a significant test until mid-season.
10. Missouri Southern (2-0) The Lions get a shot at finally knocking off rival Pittsburg State this week.
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