Jump to content

Game 1—@Penn State Nittany Lions


zipsoutsider

Recommended Posts

1 hour ago, Captain Kangaroo said:

The Zips passing game is unknown right now.

 

QB Tommy Woodson is reportedly healthy and ready to play. That would be huge for the Zips, because he is a talented senior. If receivers get open, he hits them. And he throws a nice deep ball. 

 

The receivers are mostly new, but I like them. I look for Williams to have a fantastic Freshman season. Tough to tell with Stewart, because he's been dinged up . If he's healthy, he's going to be a great one. Dixon looks really promising...Wolf and Coney are proven seniors...Chapman looks good in the slot. My only concern with our passing game is how long it will take for Woodson to shake off the rust, and how long it will take for him to develop chemistry with the new guys. I don't have any concerns regarding the actual talent.

 

So to answer your question - If Penn State stacks the box, we have a great chance to bust some big-gainers. Our OL is a strength, Woodson is a talented vet and we have talent at WR. 

 

Our secondary is the #1 strength of the team. If Gilbert and Davis can be any kind of disruptive force in the backfield, the Zips DB's will get a pick or two. 

 

The Zips staff needs to play-to-win. If we're ultra-conservative on offense, then we'll lose 48-7. 

 

In games like this, for the smaller team to win, someone unexpected needs to break out. I'm excited to see Andre Williams and Jamal Davis III (Pitt transfer)mmake their Akron debuts. 

 

 

Good stuff - thanks, Captain!

 

Supposedly the coaches have been encouraging McSorely and Stevens (back-up QB) to focus a bit more on their RPO choices. If true, I am curious about that: In our first four games last year, McSorely was much more restrained in how he ran the RPO; it was when he turned loose that Penn State's offense really took off. Maybe they held the reins in early last year because Moorhead's system was new. Not sure why they would hold a tight leash this year . . . maybe because they think the O-line is better, and therefore the rushing attack will improve?

 

Four days and a wake-up!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Buckzip said:

Brian bell is back on the roster. I feel this tips the odds slightly in favor of the Zips vs PSU. :rock:

I couldn't agree more Buck. My only hope is that PSU doesn't back out of the game. :rolleyes:

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Buckzip said:

Brian bell is back on the roster. I feel this tips the odds slightly in favor of the Zips vs PSU. :rock:

 

This is why I always ask everyone to stop freaking out about the roster posted online.  It's a rolling thing, and who knows what the regs are it.  But I can tell everyone from updating the roster in the recruiting forum, that it changes...wildly...throughout the year.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There seems to be a lot of talk from GT and the coaches about the defense returning to its 2015 level of play. The first half of this game should give us some insight. I remember being impressed with how well the D played in the first half of the 2015 game against Oklahoma and knew they had something special. Last year against Wisconsin, the D looked overwhelmed from the beginning of the game. I suspect our secondary will be as good or better than 2015, but I don't see the D line being quite as good. For as great as Jatavis Brown was that year, Grice and a healthy Marcus in my opinion made that defense what it was.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

29 minutes ago, WD UA 2015 said:

There seems to be a lot of talk from GT and the coaches about the defense returning to its 2015 level of play. The first half of this game should give us some insight. I remember being impressed with how well the D played in the first half of the 2015 game against Oklahoma and knew they had something special. Last year against Wisconsin, the D looked overwhelmed from the beginning of the game. I suspect our secondary will be as good or better than 2015, but I don't see the D line being quite as good. For as great as Jatavis Brown was that year, Grice and a healthy Marcus in my opinion made that defense what it was.

Darryl Monroe played well for us and Grice played above his talent level, IMHO. He was an emotional leader for the D. I felt like the the D last year lacked leadership. I hope that a couple if guys step up and lead the D last year. 

 

I think the D line is still evolving, but they did show significant improvement throughout the season in 2016. I don't think PSU is a very good measuring stick for the D. Troy and Iowa State are better. PSU is so stacked on offense that we could be solid on D and still get beat, soundly on D.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 minutes ago, zipsoutsider said:

Darryl Monroe played well for us and Grice played above his talent level, IMHO. He was an emotional leader for the D. I felt like the the D last year lacked leadership. I hope that a couple if guys step up and lead the D last year. 

 

I think the D line is still evolving, but they did show significant improvement throughout the season in 2016. I don't think PSU is a very good measuring stick for the D. Troy and Iowa State are better. PSU is so stacked on offense that we could be solid on D and still get beat, soundly on D.

 

 

Agreed that Troy and Iowa State will be a better overall indication, but holding Oklahoma to 22 yards rushing on 17 carries in the first half that year showed the talent level we had on the line. Regardless of stats, our line was fast and dominant overall in the first half of that game until fatigue set in due to endless 3 and outs by our offense. Compare that to last year's Wisconsin game where we got pushed around from the start, before anyone had a chance to get tired.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...