That was about as putrid a half as I could have imagined. There needs to be some serious butt-chewing in the locker room, because that was pitiful.
Everything that was wrong last year? It's wrong in the first half. Kellen Mond was a headcase again, not running when he should, running when he shouldn't and forcing passes that weren't there. The offensive line was getting whipped by a JV front 7. They couldn't run inside at all, and there's no excuse for that. Caleb Chapman dropped two passes, including one that would have been a big gainer. Running the clock out with 1:15 left was just flat weak. Dan Moore gave up a turnover by getting beat off the end - again.
On defense, they got better as the half went on. But they still gave up 85 yards rushing to a lousy offensive line and got no pressure on Seals. DeMarvin Leal was certainly the bright spot, with 4 tackles and 1.5 TFL. Aaron Hansford looks pretty good too, and leads the team with 7 tackles. But the three biggest problems were lousy tackling, which allowed backs to get away from potential TFLs, mental mistakes that led to big plays and just bad schematic choices. They seem totally unprepared for the idea that Seals might try to operate by rolling out and moving the pocket. But the lack of pressure is really bad. They didn't blitz a lot, but when they did, they didn't get home. That's inexcusable.
Even the special teams were sloppy. Ainias Smith made a horrible decision by returning the punt out of the end zone, followed by a clear foul in the end zone. Chase Lane didn't have to bring the kick out when A&M was down 3-0. Nik Constantinou shanked a punt. They're damned lucky that the defense started to show up and slowed down the run.
The offense needs to take this kickoff and get some semblance of tempo. They have had NONE so far. Go down, score points, then get the ball back and score again. You're the more talented team, so stop screwing around and play like it. This is just a sick joke and a bad indicator of what's to come -- unless something changes at halftime.
Everything that was wrong last year? It's wrong in the first half. Kellen Mond was a headcase again, not running when he should, running when he shouldn't and forcing passes that weren't there. The offensive line was getting whipped by a JV front 7. They couldn't run inside at all, and there's no excuse for that. Caleb Chapman dropped two passes, including one that would have been a big gainer. Running the clock out with 1:15 left was just flat weak. Dan Moore gave up a turnover by getting beat off the end - again.
On defense, they got better as the half went on. But they still gave up 85 yards rushing to a lousy offensive line and got no pressure on Seals. DeMarvin Leal was certainly the bright spot, with 4 tackles and 1.5 TFL. Aaron Hansford looks pretty good too, and leads the team with 7 tackles. But the three biggest problems were lousy tackling, which allowed backs to get away from potential TFLs, mental mistakes that led to big plays and just bad schematic choices. They seem totally unprepared for the idea that Seals might try to operate by rolling out and moving the pocket. But the lack of pressure is really bad. They didn't blitz a lot, but when they did, they didn't get home. That's inexcusable.
Even the special teams were sloppy. Ainias Smith made a horrible decision by returning the punt out of the end zone, followed by a clear foul in the end zone. Chase Lane didn't have to bring the kick out when A&M was down 3-0. Nik Constantinou shanked a punt. They're damned lucky that the defense started to show up and slowed down the run.
The offense needs to take this kickoff and get some semblance of tempo. They have had NONE so far. Go down, score points, then get the ball back and score again. You're the more talented team, so stop screwing around and play like it. This is just a sick joke and a bad indicator of what's to come -- unless something changes at halftime.
