Report Card and Game Balls vs NC State

What can you say about yesterday? In the 1st quarter, we were clicking on all cylinders, however, late in the quarter, when we had a chance to put the Wolfpack away, we didn't do that, and for the rest of the game, we made more interesting than necessary. At the end of the day, though, we got the win, which is the most important. We're 4-1 (3-0 in the ACC), and getting ready for a trip to Chicago on Saturday Night vs Notre Dame on NBC. 

The Report Card for yesterday's game:

Offense: B-: The down side is that we only had 85 yards rushing yesterday on 32 carries as a team. Against a great team, numbers like that won't win many games. The up side, we had 651 yards of Total Offense (566 of those were in the air from Stephen Morris, who set a ACC record to boot in this game). Only one penalty on the O (False Start on Jeremy). We didn't finish drives strong in the middle of the game. We had 3 three and outs, and some 4 and outs. We did get the GW from Stephen on the 3rd and 11 play to Phillip. Need more consistency here and finish drives strong. We didn't take advantage of the short fields the D gave us, and to be a great team, we need to take advantage of those situations. 

Defense: C-: I liked the fact that we forced 6 turnovers (4 fumbles and 2 picks). What I didn't like was the fact that we allowed 664 yards of total offense (224 of those rushing, including 120 from Creecy alone on 19 carries). They need to stiffen up more in that area. I liked that we did sack Glennon twice, but didn't like the fact that we allowed him to go for 440 yards passing and 4 TDs. This area needs to get better and be consistent for 4 quarters. They did step up when it was needed though. 

Special Teams: C-: Three missed FGs by Jake, left 9 points on the field there, that could have cost us big time, against a great team, that'll come back to bite us. However, Dalton Botts had another solid game in the Punting area for us. Two huge punts inside the 5. They started their drives from an average of their own 20, while we started ours from an average of our own 32. On kickoffs, we were beginning drives from our own 25. The kicking game almost cost us a win yesterday. This area, especially with Jake, needs to shake this tough performance off because we're going to need him in big spots later in the year. 

Now to Game Balls. This week, I'm giving out 5 game balls:

1. Stephen Morris: 26-49, 566 yards (ACC record), 5 TDs, 1 INT. Simply phenomenal on that GW TD play. 
2. Phillip Dorsett: 7 receptions, 191 yards 2 TDs (including GW) 226 all-purpose yards.
3. Rashawn Scott: 6 receptions, 180 yards 2 TDs
4. Eddie Johnson: 7 tackles (1 TFL), 1 sack, 2 Forced Fumbles, 1 pass broken up
5. Dalton Botts: 2 big punts pinning NC State inside the 5, 0 TBs, 4 punts inside the 20

In closing, there were many mistakes made yesterday and points were left on the field. If we're going to take that next step, we have to take advantage of short fields we're given and we have to finish drives strong with TDs, not FGs. The question is which CANES team comes to Chicago on Saturday Night? The one that was dominant in the 1st quarter? or the one that was going through the motions for most of the game? If the latter shows up, it will be ugly in Chicago. If the former shows up, we win handily. 

NC State Preview

Its gameday at Sun Life Stadium as this afternoon, the CANES will take on the NC State Wolfpack at Noon. Both teams are 3-1, however, this will be the conference opener for NC State, while for the CANES, this will be their 3rd conference game of the season. 

Let's look at both teams by the numbers: 

(Note: National rankings in parenthesis)

Rushing vs Rush D
NC State 145.5 ypg (83rd) vs CANES 226 ypg allowed (109th)
CANES 159 ypg (T-67 {WVU} vs NC State 119 ypg allowed (35th)

Passing vs Pass D
NC State 245.5 ypg (53rd) vs CANES 226.25 ypg allowed (65th)
CANES 269 ypg (37th) vs NC State 206.75 ypg allowed (40th)

Total O vs Total D
NC State 391 ypg (76th) vs CANES 452.25 ypg allowed (98th)
CANES 428 ypg (50th) vs NC State 325.75 ypg allowed (30th)

Scoring O vs Scoring D

NC State 28.5 ppg (T-63rd {Michigan}) vs. CANES 32.5 ppg allowed (T-95th {FAU})
CANES 33.5 ppg (T-46th {L'Ville}) vs NC State 15.75 ppg allowed (27th)

TFLs allowed vs TFLs
NC State 7.75 TFLs allowed (T-111th {SC, UCLA}) vs CANES 6 TFLs pg (T-53rd {K-State, Duke, Minnesota, UCF, Wake})
CANES 4.5 TFLs allowed (T-31st {Minnesota, L'Ville}) vs NC State 8.5 TFLs pg (T-8th {UConn, BYU, LSU, Cincinnati})

Sacks Allowed vs Sacks 
NC State 3.5 spg allowed (T-113th {New Mexico State}) vs CANES 1.25 spg (T-94th {TN, UF, Miss. State, Wyoming, Miami (OH), Iowa})
CANES 1.5 spg allowed (T-42nd {UGa, Cuse, Cincinnati, Clemson, WMU, UVa, Akron, EMU, Fresno, Wyoming, Iowa}) vs NC State 2.75 spg (T-23rd {Bama, WKU, Fresno, Minnesota, Utah, Utah State, Toledo, WMU})

3rd Down O vs 3rd Down D
NC State 30-68 44.1% (47th) vs CANES 27-57 47.3% (105th)
CANES 31-61 50.8% (20th) vs NC State 13-51 25.5% (12th)

Turnover Margin
NC State +3
CANES -2

When you see the video of the TN game in the opener you can see that if we give Morris time to throw, he will torch that NC State secondary like TN did in Atlanta. We have faster and better receivers than TN does. You'll notice the pressure their defense puts on Glennon. One of the keys today will be to pressure Glennon and make him uncomfortable in the pocket. The D needs to build off the win @GT and continue to get better. 

Another key to this game will be to get Duke going and need another solid game out of Mike James. The receivers are the question, how much will they step up in the absence of Malcolm Lewis? We need to get the TEs going in this game today. 

I think in the end, this game will be close for a half, but in the 2nd half, I think the CANES will be too much and just too many weapons for NC State to overcome. 

My prediction: CANES 35 NC State 17

Report Card and Game Balls @GT

Well, what can you say about the miracle in Atlanta yesterday? This team did not quit, though it could have after giving up 36 unanswered points after being up 19-0 after one quarter. This team kept battling back and found a way to win. I believe yesterday, we turned the corner and hopefully, we build off this win and move ahead to where we need to get to. 

With that said, on to the report card:

Offense - A-: We were 11-16 on 3rd Down conversions. We had 609 yards of total offense. The O-Line had a very solid game allowing 0 sacks and doing an excellent job opening up the running lanes and protecting Morris in the pocket. The running game with Duke and MJ were very solid. Solid game all around here. However, Stephen did throw a pick and we lost a fumble. 

Defense - B-: The good side is that they came up big when they had in the OT session stopping GT on the 4th and Goal play. However, there are a few concerns here. For one, we allowed 419 yards total offense (287 of those on the ground, and 248 of those from the 2nd quarter on). We did sack Tevin Washington once. GT was 6-13 on 3rd downs. We had 8 TFLs for 27 yards and broke up a pass. The downer here is that we didn't force a turnover and that needs to change going forward. There is some improvement that can be made here, but still a solid game when it needed to have it. 

Special Teams - B: No touchbacks on the Punts. No touchbacks on Kicks, and Jake kicked one out of bounds, giving GT good field position on the first drive of the 2nd half and they scored the TD on that. He was 2-3 on FGs as well. We had one inside the 20 and Dalton had a punt downed inside the 10. In a game where field position was critical, GT started their drives from an average of their own 34, while we started drives from an average of our own 25. Gotta be better in that area. We had 101 yards in kick returns yesterday and 18 on Punts, while we allowed 84 yards on Punt returns and 93 on Kick returns. The Special Teams defense needs to clamp down on that a little more. Overall, solid effort, with room for more improvement. 

Now its on to the Game Balls. This week, I'm giving six game balls out. 

1. Phillip Dorsett - 9 receptions, 184 yards 1 TD and 202 yards all-purpose. 
2. Stephen Morris - 31-52, 436 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT. 
3. Davon Johnson - 7 receptions, 107 yards. 
4. Dalton Botts - 2 punts, 1 inside the 20
5. The Entire Defense - Came up big when it had to in that OT session stopping Tech on 4th and Goal
6. Mike James - 15 carries, 89 yards, 3 TDs (including the GW in OT). 

Solid effort all-around yesterday, there are areas on the Defense where we could still get better at, but I think yesterday, we finally turned the corner and hopefully we build off this win and keep getting better as the season goes on. 

Georgia Tech Preview

This afternoon at 3 p.m., its the CANES vs the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium up in Atlanta. You can see the game on the Regional Sports Network (i.e. Sun Sports, FOX Sports South, etc). 

When we played GT last, it was last year at Sun Life Stadium, when GT was #23 in the country and we manhandled the Jackets 24-7 and held them to 134 yards rushing on the day. This year, GT looks pretty good. They manhandled a very good UVa team last week racking up 461 yards rushing and almost 600 yards in total offense (594 to be exact). Make no mistake, our D will have their work cut out for them today. However, I really feel this D is going to step up and make plays. Injury wise, Denzel Perryman, Curtis Porter, Raphael Kirby, and Andrew Swasey are out for the game today. Allen Hurns and Vaughn Telemaque will play today, and its a big boost to get them back healthy and on the field, especially the latter. We must get off the field on third downs and make GT have to convert in long yardage situations (i.e., 7 yards or more). We can't have GT be in short yardage situations on 3rd down. Johnson isn't afraid to take a shot on 4th down, so the D needs to be aware of that. GT doesn't throw the ball that often, but when they do, we have to be aware of that. However, their M.O. is the running game, and that MUST be the focus of the D, stay in their lanes, and finish tackles. Simply put Assignment Football. 

Offensively, we need a solid game out of Stephen Morris. He was 20-35 for 211 last week (1 TD, 1 INT). Also, big games are needed from Duke and Mike James, but also I need to see a solid game out of Eduardo Clements. Protecting Morris will be critical because of the fact that last week, GT had 2 sacks on UVa's QB (Rocco). In the receiving area, need the TEs to come up big today, and also, I need to see Thompkins and DJ (Davon Johnson) finally step up and produce in key situations. 

In the end, I think we'll stop the Triple Option, and I think we'll make enough key plays to win the ball game today. 

My prediction: CANES 27 GT 10

Report Card and Game Balls vs Bethune-Cookman

Thoughts on Yesterday's game. Offensively, big performance from Duke. We had 426 yards total offense. Nice performance from Morris going 20-35 211 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT. However, of our 9 penalties, 4 of them on the Offense and all of them were false starts. Those are drive killing penalties you can't have. I didn't like the fact that the game was a little too close for comfort going into the 4th only up 24-10, but we got the job done and move on to 2-1 on the season.

Defensively, good performance from Tyriq McCord with 5 tackles (2 sacks, 2 TFLs). Shayon Green with 8 tackles and 1 broken up pass. However, we did allow 233 yards rushing (127 in the 2nd half, 106 in the 1st half), but compared to 255 yards rushing allowed last week vs K-State, its a slight improvement, but we can still do better. The down side is that Denzel was hurt, might not play in the next game @Georgia Tech. We did have 3 sacks in this ballgame and had a pick. Didn't like the fact we were EVEN on the turnover margin, against a good team, that's asking for trouble. We allowed 355 yards total offense, which was a little better, compared to almost 500 yards allowed vs K-State. However, there is still room for improvement here. 

Special Teams, Duke with the 95 yarder on the kickoff for the TD gave us a jolt confidence wise. Nice performance from Dalton Botts with 3 of his 4 punts inside the 20 and no touchbacks. Phillip had 4 PRs for 21 yards, helps with the Field position game. We started drives from an average of our own 41, while Bethune started their drives from an average of their own 20, which is very good special teams defense by us. 

Now to the Report Card:

Offense: A- Gotta cut the false starts out, but other than that, running game was much improved yesterday, and no three and outs, however, we do need to improve our 3rd down conversion rate, we were 4-11 in that regard, compared to 5-12 vs K-State, slight regression there. The passing game was much better here.

Defense: C  Now, I know its been much maligned, but they did come to play yesterday. compared to the almost 500 yards allowed vs K-State. Yes, we did allow 355 yards total offense, however, 233 yards were on the ground, and again, compared to the 288 yards rushing we allowed vs K-State, 233 allowed is a slight improvement, but there is much room to get better here and they will get better at stopping the run. The pass rush finally made an appearance yesterday, getting 3 sacks and a pick. I didn't like the fact that Bethune converted 7 out of 19 on 3rd downs, however, compared to the 8 of 11 K-State converted, its an improvement, but we can still be better in this area as well. 

Special Teams: A  Duke with the huge kick return for 6 gives us a big shot in the arm here. Pinning Bethune deep after Dalton's 3 of 4 punts inside the 20 was huge from a Field position standpoint. Malcolm Lewis had a 39 yard return on a kickoff. Dorsett had 21 yards on 4 PRs. Outstanding effort by the Special Teams unit yesterday. 

Game Balls: This week, I'm handing out four game balls. 

1. Duke Johnson: 14 carries, 94 yards, 2 TDs rushing. 3 receptions for 57 yards, and of course the 95 yard Kick return for a TD. 247 yards all-purpose yesterday. 
2. Stephen Morris: 20-35 211 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
3. Tyriq McCord: 5 tackles, 2 sacks 2 TFLs
4. Dalton Botts: 3 of 4 punts inside the 20, 0 touchbacks, 0 punt return yardage allowed

Yes, there is room for improvement and we'll need to get better stopping the run in the next game because the opponent is Georgia Tech on the road with the Triple Option. The key in the next game is assignment football. 

Bethune-Cookman Preview

This is the home opener for the CANES. The opponent is a familiar one in Bethune-Cookman. When they last met, the CANES had to work hard for a 45-14 victory over the Wildcats last year at Sun Life Stadium. 

Looking at Bethune-Cookman, this is a team that doesn't give up. They have a pretty good QB in Jackie Wilson from Fort Lauderdale. However, the Wildcats have had slow starts to their first two games, so hopefully, that trend will continue and the CANES start out much faster than they have the first two games, both times falling behind 14-0. 

When you look at last year's game, we started slowly in the 1st half, leading just 14-7, but pulled away in the 2nd half with 42 unanswered points to win comfortably. We know tomorrow, we can't have that happen again. The Defense must come out fast and make a statement for 4 quarters and get the taste of the loss in Manhattan, KS out of their mouths. The D cannot allow 422 yards like it did last year against the Wildcats, because that's going to be really asking for trouble. They held the ball for just about 39 minutes (38:59 to be exact). We have got to win the time of possession battle and we must win the turnover battle. 

We need a big game out of Duke, but I need to see a bigger game from the Defense tomorrow. I think we'll see that. This unit has to come out and make a statement in this game. 

In the end, I think we'll get big games from Duke, the D and on Special Teams. 

Prediction: CANES 42 Bethune-Cookman 14

Report Card for game @K-State

What could you say about yesterday? We were terrible in all three phases. 

Once again we fell behind 14-0, but this time, there would be no comeback. A couple of plays really turned the mo against us. 

At 7-0 in the 1st and on 3rd and 1, Eduardo gets the 1st down, but loses the ball and Brown recovers the fumble for them. and five plays later, its 14-0 K-State. 14 point swing on that fumble. Later at 17-3, first play of our next drive, Duke drops a sure TD pass that would have cut the K-State to 7 at 17-10. Instead, its a 3 and out series, that's another 14 point swing of momentum in their favor, because instead of 17-10, its 24-3 K-State. The one that really told how timid we were yesterday was the last drive at the end of the 1st half. At 24-3 down, we have a chance to get momentum our way with 7, instead we settle for 3 and instead of 24-10 down, we're down 24-6. Coming out of the locker room, we couldn't seize the mo and we had to punt, and K-State scores on that drive, 31-6, game over. They would add 21 more after that in the 4th. 

Once again yesterday, I didn't like the fact that we didn't have a pass rush at all, it was non-existent. I also didn't like the fact that we had 4 penalties for 30 yards, while K-State had 2 penalties for 12 yards. 

Time for the report card:

Offense: D- The reason for that is that of the four penalties yesterday, 3 were on the offense. We could not get the running game going. The sobering numbers: 29 carries, 40 yards (1.4 ypc). We had just 262 total offense yesterday, after having 415 last week up in BC. They handcuffed Duke by holding him to just 19 yards in just 6 carries. Credit K-State's D for doing a great job keying on Duke. Mike James wasn't much better either. Just 27 yards on 9 carries. The O-Line allowed Morris to be sacked 5 times, and fumbles twice, losing the ball both times. The one bright spot here was Clive Walford having 61 yards on 3 receptions, and 1 TD (near the end when K-State had the game well in hand). Very poor game all-around yesterday.

Defense: F  Once again, we allowed too many big plays and the biggest concern to me was no pass rush. We allow Colin Klein to have a big game. 71 yards rushing and 3 TDs. The pass defense was a little better, allowing just 210 yards passing, however, we allowed 498 yards total offense, and of those yards, 288 of those were on the ground, which included 106 yards by John Hubert alone. This unit could not get off the field on 3rd downs. When we needed a stop, it wasn't there. They were 72% on 3rd down conversions (8-11), and all of those were with less than 5 yards to go, the 3rd downs were short yardage situations. -2 in turnover margin will not win you games, and especially against a very good team like Kansas State is. 

Special Teams: D  Jake had two field goals. However, the return game was non-existent. The fact that K-State didn't punt until the near the end of the game was very disheartening. The bright spot is that Duke had 141 yards in Kick returns on 5 touches. When you give a team like K-State short fields to work with, they take advantage, especially when you have a running game like they do. They started drives from an average of their own 41, while we started our drives from an average of our own 28. That's not going to get it done. 

Its time to forget this game, but learn from it and fix the mistakes we made for next game on Saturday vs Bethune-Cookman in the home opener. GO CANES!