The Pitt game had soooo many angles to write about and discuss that its hard to know where to start.
Game conditions were as miserable as can be. Reminded me of the Nebraska game last Fall when I drove up but wound up watching the game from the Penn Stater bar instead of sitting in a chilling downpour.
As expected (from this vantage point), Pitt owned the first half but threw it away with sloppy play. But they were pumped and running the ball down our throat with great success. right at the soft young underbelly of the PSU D. This is a game that could have gone down to the wire. BUT here comes #1 once again saving our bacon. His 2 TDs were remarkable and gave us breathing room in the first half.
#24 was a jinxed man, with two huge plays nullified by penalties. But Miles is now rock-solid toting the rock, catching a flare pass for (almost) 6 pts, and is a much needed replacement for SB. And he has plenty of company, even if #2 isnt yet ready for prime time. I like the occasional pair of RBs in the backfield.
I was also glad to see so many frosh and sophs playing Defense in Waves, gaining experience, and looking like a much improved group. Not quite cohesive but much more organized than in the App State game. The opinions of many that "We will be fine" seems more and more justified.
LBer depth is forming before our eyes. DE's are filling holes, getting pressure, and tackling in a way that the other guy stays tackled. DBs are providing run support and rallying to the ball.
No one newcomer stands out but collectively we can now see depth and speed and many players making nice plays, with far fewer glaring errors. Yes, Martha, the difference between Game 1 and Game 2 IS huge. Now lets see it continue . And every indication is that it will.
Gilliken disappointed last week but helped us to dramatically swing/control field position, which perhaps was the single most important reason we won the game. And we look solid with our FG kicker.
Rotating at least three TE's into the game, sometimes playing two at once, looked fairly effective. We are still rough around the edges there, but things are improving, especially with our blocking.
#3 had another rough game, as did a certain tall rangy WR. Dont look now, Alice, but replacements in the form of HippenHamler are the real deal. And I suspect a certain injured tall, rangy true frreshman WR - when he returns from the injury list - will push #84 to live up to his potential.
So, one week after a game where nothing worked in the 4th quarter, we saw a team begin to emerge. They got a lot of help from Pitt miscues, and perhaps from Pitt's emotions burning out as the game went on and they kept shooting themselves in the foot. But they survived a first half challenge, and started to stabilize, and then to dominate the entire 2nd half. It was remarkable that our D went from giving up 200+ yards in the first half to pocket change during the entire 2nd half.
For a coach who says all games are the same, CJF was a raving lunatic on the sidelines. It seems to have worked.
PS I officially "forgive Slade for his two fumbles in the downpour.
I hope CJF will, too. A fluke.....helmet to the ball and rip out after he was down. That wont happen again.
Game conditions were as miserable as can be. Reminded me of the Nebraska game last Fall when I drove up but wound up watching the game from the Penn Stater bar instead of sitting in a chilling downpour.
As expected (from this vantage point), Pitt owned the first half but threw it away with sloppy play. But they were pumped and running the ball down our throat with great success. right at the soft young underbelly of the PSU D. This is a game that could have gone down to the wire. BUT here comes #1 once again saving our bacon. His 2 TDs were remarkable and gave us breathing room in the first half.
#24 was a jinxed man, with two huge plays nullified by penalties. But Miles is now rock-solid toting the rock, catching a flare pass for (almost) 6 pts, and is a much needed replacement for SB. And he has plenty of company, even if #2 isnt yet ready for prime time. I like the occasional pair of RBs in the backfield.
I was also glad to see so many frosh and sophs playing Defense in Waves, gaining experience, and looking like a much improved group. Not quite cohesive but much more organized than in the App State game. The opinions of many that "We will be fine" seems more and more justified.
LBer depth is forming before our eyes. DE's are filling holes, getting pressure, and tackling in a way that the other guy stays tackled. DBs are providing run support and rallying to the ball.
No one newcomer stands out but collectively we can now see depth and speed and many players making nice plays, with far fewer glaring errors. Yes, Martha, the difference between Game 1 and Game 2 IS huge. Now lets see it continue . And every indication is that it will.
Gilliken disappointed last week but helped us to dramatically swing/control field position, which perhaps was the single most important reason we won the game. And we look solid with our FG kicker.
Rotating at least three TE's into the game, sometimes playing two at once, looked fairly effective. We are still rough around the edges there, but things are improving, especially with our blocking.
#3 had another rough game, as did a certain tall rangy WR. Dont look now, Alice, but replacements in the form of HippenHamler are the real deal. And I suspect a certain injured tall, rangy true frreshman WR - when he returns from the injury list - will push #84 to live up to his potential.
So, one week after a game where nothing worked in the 4th quarter, we saw a team begin to emerge. They got a lot of help from Pitt miscues, and perhaps from Pitt's emotions burning out as the game went on and they kept shooting themselves in the foot. But they survived a first half challenge, and started to stabilize, and then to dominate the entire 2nd half. It was remarkable that our D went from giving up 200+ yards in the first half to pocket change during the entire 2nd half.
For a coach who says all games are the same, CJF was a raving lunatic on the sidelines. It seems to have worked.
PS I officially "forgive Slade for his two fumbles in the downpour.
I hope CJF will, too. A fluke.....helmet to the ball and rip out after he was down. That wont happen again.
