UMD Game 1

[BulldogFan]

First, wasnt super excited about paying $20 to watch the stream, but I will say the camera work was good - announcers were not.

Offense

Offensive line struggled. Bad snaps, poor blocking, and an overall lack of readiness. I thought going in this would be a strong group for the Dogs but they didn't show it on Thursday. Im glad they have two weeks to sort that out.

WR group had some challenges as well. Ames had a few easy ones that he dropped and a couple times seemed to quit his routes early. If not for dropped balls UMD would have put up two more scores for sure.

RB by committee and for the most part I thought they looked good. Had an illegal block on a big pitch and catch to Pitz that would have put UMD inside the 10 but that's easily corrected.

TE - They need to get Pitz more involved in the offense. I think he had just a couple of catches and then the one that didnt count because of the penalty. Maybe it was game planned that way but I would love to see him get more looks.

QB - Walljasper was slinging it and was accurate. Hoping that means his shoulder has recovered and we are in for a huge year, but at the very least, it was promising. They didnt do much with designed runs for him, guessing on purpose to keep him healthy. But over 300 yards and 4 TD throwing in under 3 quarters or less works.

Defense

Dominate. I was impressed at how fast they played and the DB's covered well. Klopp was a machine, seemed like he knew the play call the way he was getting to the ball. Played as a unit and I think only gave up one first down until they started subbing out to 2nd and 3rd string guys. I know it was against NMU but these guys are ready to play.

Special Teams

Back to 2022. I think its time to change kickers. We cant have missed extra points, missed field goals, and kick offs that go out of bounds. Gave up four points here and field position. Against a Mankato or Augustana those 4 points could mean the game. Inexcusable. Punter seemed to punt well but who wants to punt :-)

Two weeks off and then Moorhead comes to town. May try to get to that game.

[vikingfaithful]

Coaches will tell you teams improve the most from game 1 to game 2. Sometimes hard to gauge your team against a weaker opponent.

[BulldogFan]

Game 2 Thoughts

OLINE - They are struggling. This is the weak spot of the team at this point. Unable to get to the second level, unable to make contact in some instances, and snaps continue to be all over the place. This is going to only become more apparent when they face the stronger defenses in the NSIC. HUGE CONCERN.

WR - Dropped balls continue to be a problem. As poor of an effort they (collective team not the WRs) had against the Dragons the game still would have been a W had the last ball not been dropped in the end zone on a wide open look with a great pass.

RB - #1 RB was injured and didnt return. Hopefully not serious. Overall a solid effort but fumbles need to be taken care of.

TE - Not sure if teams are scheming to take Pitz out of the equation or the game plan is calling for more WR looks, but seems he isnt getting the ball much. I know they missed a huge opportunity when Walljasper under threw him in the first series that would have been a TD, but other than that not much his direction.

QB - Walljasper at over 600 yards passing in two games and barely a nibble on the ground. Not sure if this is on purpose to prove his shoulder can hold up, if its because the oline is struggling with run fits, or a combo of both. Seems like it would have been smart to grind out the game in his hands during the final series rather than running a trick play and throwing the ball.

Defense - Gave up a ton of passing yards but mostly short stuff. Overall they did a pretty good job and shut down the run game. This will continue to be the strength of the team.

Special Teams - Another kickoff out of bounds and a missed game winner. Hitting only 60% of our FG's, 15% of kickoffs are out of bounds, and 83% on XP. Honestly I'd expect better from a grad student kicker.

Coaching - I think you can chalk the L up to coaching last week. The rest of the game aside, the last drive with 3 minutes left in the game and the Dogs were throwing the ball, running trick plays, and eating very little clock. With the game on the line and running a trick play through the backup QB who hadn't thrown a ball for how long, who thought that was smart. Nobody was surprised to see that ball thrown into the dirt and STOP THE CLOCK. The play call there says I have no faith in my players and scheme so this is the best thing I saw on Madden this week. The Dragons had all 3 timeouts to start that drive and UMD didn't force them to use any essentially giving them the ball back with 3 TO's and the 2 minute warning to win the game.

Your best RB (the QB) barely has had any designed run plays called for him this year. Your best target (Pitz) has minimal targets through 2 games. In situations where it's 4th and doable you hand the ball to a kicker that makes 60% of his kicks. And you're running gadget plays with the game on the line. UMD should be a consistent playoff team and the goal shouldnt be 8 wins in a year.

[Purple Mav Man]

Do you think the lack of Walljasper runs is due to limiting hits on his shoulder?

[CollegeFBGuy]

Do you think the lack of Walljasper runs is due to limiting hits on his shoulder?

Has to be…I can’t imagine they just randomly decided to do a 180 on his style. With the way he ran, if he’s healthy, I’d think they would want that part of his game too

[vikingfaithful]

Short passes are Dragons run game.

Thought a couple of Bulldog OL and TE Pitz was on some pre-season all-star lists.

[BulldogFan]

Short passes are Dragons run game.

Thought a couple of Bulldog OL and TE Pitz was on some pre-season all-star lists.

Williams (LT) and Pitz are both on some watch lists.

[BulldogFan]

Has to be…I can’t imagine they just randomly decided to do a 180 on his style. With the way he ran, if he’s healthy, I’d think they would want that part of his game too

Does having him throw 30 times a game have less impact on his arm then running the ball? Honestly dont know the answer to that one.

[vikingfaithful]

Does having him throw 30 times a game have less impact on his arm then running the ball? Honestly dont know the answer to that one.

Anyway, you view Walljasper he is an amazing QB, he can segue from a running to passing QB effortlessly.

[CollegeFBGuy]

Does having him throw 30 times a game have less impact on his arm than running the ball? Honestly dont know the answer to that one.

I don’t know his injury or the extent of it, but throwing would certainly would be an issue. Impact to the shoulder, after being hit 20-25 times would probably be an issue.

Either way, good for him to be able to do both well. Hopefully he stays healthy

[BulldogFan]

Was a good game on Saturday as it should have been against Mary. Defense dominated throughout. Would have been a shutout if not for a scoop and score late in the game when the backups were getting some time. Almost felt bad for the Mary QB as he was getting pressure every single play. Walljasper ran the ball more than he has all year and was over 100 yards. Still puzzled why Pitz isnt being utilized more this year. I think he only had one reception all game and it wasn't for much. Cox continues to dazzle with another missed FG and another kickoff out of bounds. They had their backup out there later in the game and he looked pretty good. Maybe it's time to make a switch there.

On to game 4 which should be a snoozer ahead of the big matchup against Auggie.