Week 5 Open

Week 5 is now open.  I will advance the week on Sunday (9/14).

Air Force vs Nevada
Miami (OH) vs Toledo
SMU at TCU


This week's Game Of The Week comes to us from the PAC12 as the #24 Arizona State Sun Devils travel to southern California to do battle with the #19 USC Trojans.  Both teams came into the season with changes at the Head Coaching Position as Steve Sarkisian took over at USC while the Sun Devils grabbed the hottest commodity in the coaching ranks in Nate Anderson (after his stint in Tuscaloosa).  Despite their #19 rankings the Trojans have not looked anything like a top 25 team as they have struggled to a 1-2 start.  The Sun Devils, on the other hand, have rebounded from an opening day loss to Air Force by posting back to back victories as they have re-entered the Top 25 at #24.  Arizona State will rely on a potent offense that boasts the #1 passing attack (356 yards/game) as well as the #4 Total Offense (514 yards/game) in the country.  The Sun Devils look to continue their winning ways while the Trojans look to avoid an 0-3 conference start.

Progress Report

We are a third of the way into the season and so far so good for Coach TomBarry DiClemente and his Multiple Style offense.  Its only a four game sample but as you can see from the chart above its been a success as the Air Force attack is much more balanced and because of that, more effective.  While the running numbers were bound to slip as we moved away from the Triple option the Points Per game, Passing Yards Per Game and Total Yards Per game have all increased with the Falcons being in the Top 25 in the country in all the major team offensive categories.

Player Spotlight


QB Nate Romine

No player has benefited from the change in philosophy more than QB Nate Romine.  Romine was as excited as anyone when news of the new coordinator was announced and he showed that excitement by busting his butt in the offseason to get accustomed to the new style.  While there is still room for improvement, Nate's effectiveness is a huge reason why the offense is more balanced, more potent and the team is currently 4-0. 

181.0 QB Rating
61/84 (72% Completion Percentage)
1,006 Passing yards
5TD
5INT
40 Rushes
183 Rushing Yards
6TD

What started out as a shootout between two potent offenses turned into a blowout in Los Angeles. ASU head coach Nate Anderson had a come to Jesus talk with the ASU defense after they gave up 21 points in the first quarter, and it must have worked as USC only scored 3 points in the second quarter and didn't cross midfield in the second half. 

The ASU offense took advantage of the opportunities the defense provided and scored 28 points in the 2nd quarter to put the game away. The offense then took the opening kickoff of the 2nd half and marched down the field to make the score 49-24. The USC offense sputtered on their next possession, and punted to pin the ASU offense inside their 5 yard line. The ASU offense then went on an 18 play, 90+ yard, 9 minute drive that took all but 29 seconds of the 4th quarter, to put the finishing touches on a dominate performance. 

We might have a QB controversy on our hands!! Mike Bercovici stepped in for the injured Taylor Kelly and has been nothing short of amazing!! In the 2 and 1/2 games he's been under center he's put up the following stats:
222.8 QB Rating
63-88 (72%)
1152 Passing Yards
11 TDs
0 INT
384.0 YPG
2 Rushing TDs


Taylor Kelly will be back in 2 weeks and we'll  go back with him as he is higher rated (92 OVR compared to 79 OVR) and is a senior. Bercovici has us excited for next year though as he is making a strong case to be the starter. Solid games from Jalen Strong and Reggie Smith as they had 248 and 177 receiving yards respectively. 

The offensive philosophical switch made after the Air Force game seems to be the right one as we have one, if not the, top offense in the country. 

Next Up: Bye Week
Players of the Game
Offense: Mike Bercovici, QB, 30-35, 505 Yds, 6 TD
Defense: Zach Abdorrahimzad, LE, 3 Tkls, TFL, Sk

Air Force Remains Undefeated

Not even the rain could dampen the mood in Colorado Springs as the Air Force Falcons defeated the Wolfpack of Nevada 28-14 to move to 5-0 and remain amongst the ranks of the unbeaten.  All was not pretty though.  After singing his praises in the Week 4 report, QB Nate Romine had a poor game in which he threw 3 picks.  Luckily for the Falcons a strong defensive performance and 244 yards on the ground as a team helped mask the QB's efforts.  There were bound to be bumps in the road so days like this are not a total shock, but he can't afford to have too many of them down the stretch as expectations have risen given the fast start.  Things won't get any easier next week as the team travels to Texas to take on the SMU Mustangs.

FINAL SCORE

Nevada Wolfpack 14
Air Force Falcons 28

FORT WORTH — The SMU Mustangs came back from a 21-0 deficit to shock the TCU Horned Frogs, thanks to the late game heroics of QB Matt Davis.

With the 31-28 road win, SMU improves to 4-0 under new OC Mr. Mustard, while TCU falls to 1-3 in what has been a disastrous start for the Frogs in 2014.

TCU appeared well on its way to a blowout win, capitalizing on an early INT by Davis to take a quick 7-0 lead. The next possession, SMU was forced to punt and TCU took a run play 95 yards to begin its next drive.

Late in the second quarter, SMU found its rhythm offensively, scoring its first touchdown, and capitalizing on a TCU turnover to take a 21-10 deficit into the half. But heading into the locker room, there was still little sign that SMU could sustain any sort of momentum against TCU on either side of the ball.

In the second half, it was all SMU. Davis relied on a punishing run game (269 yards on 48 carries) to soften TCU's secondary for the occasional strike downfield. The Mustangs closed to 21-17 in the third, then fumbled away another scoring chance, only to have their defense get the ball right back with an INT. After another brilliant drive by Davis, HB Kevin Pope ran it in from 2 yards out for the go-ahead score.

Backed into a corner, TCU would strike back quickly after falling behind 24-21. But the minute march down the field left too much time on the clock. The SMU offense covered the length of the field in 2 minutes to take back the lead on a read option, leaving TCU only 11 seconds on the clock for a pair of desperation heaves.

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Players of the Game
Offense: QB Matt Davis — 16-29 for 151 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs; 23 carries for 129 yards, 2 TDs
Defense: CB Jesse Montgomery — 1 INT, 1 tackle

One game remaining:

Miami (OH) vs Toledo