I Have a Definite Concern.....

Not about the Nevada game. I think Hawk will have the ready for this week's "championship game" on the blue. He's already stated publicly that Nevada is the second best team we've played since Georgia (I tend to agree - well, maybe tied with Oregon State anyway), and there's just no way he is going to let the team look past the Wolf Pack. Or, at least I hope he won't.

No, my concern is the New Mexico State game the following week.Why? Because it's against a celler-dweller team (possibly the worst in the WAC), and it's only 5 days before the Thursday night showdown with Fresno State. What a recipe for disaster. Not only will the team know they will have a short week to prepare for the true second-best team on our schedule, but they will assume an easy victory over NMSU at home.

I hope I'm an absolute fool.

2 Out of 3 Ain't Bad

Well. Someone's paying attention.

Jared Zabransky was named WAC offensive player of the week for his performance against Utah State. He was officially 26 of 39 for 328 yards passing, four touchdowns, no picks. I'm sure he had some rushing yards as well, but that number's not mentioned. His QB rating for the game was a lofty 171.17. (Hmmm. Sounds kinda Dinwiddie-like).

On defense, Chris Barrios put in a studley performance with 11 tackles (6 solo), a sack for -9 yards, and a forced fumble. Too bad he wasn't in position to scoop it up and run for a TD. Maybe next week against Nevada? He's certainly capable.

The special teams award went to Fresno punt returner Jose Fernandez who had 88 return yards, including a 72 yarder for a score.

29 and counting.....

Well, Saturday's shellacking of Utah State (45-21) can be summarized thusly:

'Z' is apparently back. 350+ yards passing, TD's galore, no interceptions, no fumbles. Some still think he is not progressing through his reads correctly, others feel his long ball is lacking. Me, I'll take a win any way he can get it done. Again, he is not Dinwiddie. He is 'Z'.

Multi-dimensional offense. I have to hand it to the Aggies - they simply were not going to let us run up and down the field on them. I swear, sometimes it looked like they were putting 11 in the box. So, if they want to play that way, let 'Z' light it up in the air. Fine by me.

Some big-time plays (finally) from the receiving core. Some spectacular catches, some prefectly run routes. 'Z' was able to spread it around all day.

Sacks by the 'D'. And, some more sacks. And, a couple more. Now, all we need is some picks by the DB's.

When are we going to see the Ian Johnson from earlier this year - breaking tackles and straining for a few extra yards; sliding through gaps in the 'D' line?. I sincerely miss that guy. The back I've seen lately looks like someone's sister.

And when are we going to see some big-time runs? Like, breaking a big one for a score? Lee Marks had a 30+ yard gainer last week againse San Jose, but that's been about the highlight of the running game whis year. This week, Carpenter ran for a big score - off a screen. Great run, but it's still not a "running" play.

Kicking game is definitely getting better. Montgomery kicked a 44 yarder, and Stringer's punt are generally perfect. (By the way, he is on the Ray Guy watchlist this year - pretty good for a junior).

Next game - Nevada on the blue. First truly big WAC game of the season. Potential championship (although Fresno might like to have something to say about that :)

We're finally getting back on the radar, with 3 votes in the USA Today poll. Beating Nevada would probably get us some votes in both polls.

Later.

'Z', or not to 'Z'

Once upon a time there was a man - we'll call him Mr. Z-Basher - who attended a game and sat three rows behind me. During the course of the game, Mr. Z-Basher continuously berated and condemned the play of one Jared Sabransky, the current QB for BSU. If 'Z's play was not perfect, Mr. Z-Basher let everyone in the section know about it. "Oh, that was a crappy pass" "Did you see that deep receiver open? Is he blind or something?" "Put Tharp in, get that amateur out of there."

As the game progressed, and 'Z' got into more of a groove, the comments from Mr. Z-Basher dwindled. Finally, BSU got ahead by a big enough margin, the coaches sat 'Z' down, and told his backup Taylor Tharp to get ready to play. Then, the most amazing thing happened. The opposing team's inconsistent punter actually kicked the ball instead of shanking it. The result: BSU ended up with field position inside their own five yard line. Boy, this would be a good test of the clean-up crew.

Young Tharp, handed the ball off to a second string running back. Loss of a couple. Then young Tharp threw a deep ball to a receiver - a very pretty pass even if somewhat short. Incompletion. On third down an apparent middle screen or flare pattern was called - the coach later said the receiver ran the route wrong - a moot point because it was a very poor pass easily picked off by the opposing team. I doubt if the receiver had run the route perfectly it would have mattered.

Suddenly from behind me I hear, "What the hell is 'Z' doing? Is he trying to lose the game for us? They need to replace that guy with a decent QB - like Tharp." (I dunno - maybe this guy is Taylor's uncle or something?)

I immediately turned around and responded, "That was Tharp." and under my breath added you idiot. Mr. Z-Basher looked confused, so I explained, "They sat 'Z' down after that last score and put Tharp in." Suddenly, without missing a beat, Mr. Z-Basher transformed into -- Mr. Hawk-Basher! "What the f...? They put him in inside the five yard line? That's the stupidest coaching decision I've ever seen. Has Hawkins lost his mind?"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I figured there was no sense in trying to explain that once the coaches took 'Z' out and gave the next series to Tharp, there is no way in hell they would completely crush the kid's confidence just because of poor field position. "Sorry kid, we'd leave you in if we were close to the 20, but we don't have enough faith in you inside the five." I wouldn't even expect that from a bad coach.

Moral of the story: I wonder how many other fans either weren't paying close enough attention, or - perhaps even worse - subconsciouly want Zabransky to fail so badly, that they attributed a screwup by a nervous backup to 'Z' in order to further their "'bench 'Z'" campaigns.

QB comparison

'Z's detractors like to compare him to his immediate predecessors Bart Hendricks and Ryan Dinwiddie - both record setting quarterbacks and excellent passers. There's no question 'Z' is not as good a passer as either of them. He is more like Hendricks thatn Dinwiddie in that he is ver mobile. He just lacks that deep ball capability that Dinwiddie had. But, is that all there is to the story.....?

In 2003, in my opinion the best team BSU had ever fielded, Dinwiddie was "the man". But, he also had a cast of supporting characters that made his job look really easy. His receivers were the kind of players who could "make up" for a not-perfect throw, juke a DB, and run down the field for a big gain. He had running backs who could run a pass route better than a lot of receivers. (By the way, why is nobody calling for benching the receivers or running backs? None of the current crop has pulled off the kind of big play that were common that season). I can remember few times when Dinwiddie threw up a prayer and let his exceptional receivers make the play.

In 2004, Zabransky took the wheel. The record improved over the 2003 team, but the schedule was lighter and there were far too many close games - especially on the road. 'Z' had some explosive receivers left, the running backs made some huge plays, and most importantly in my view - Tyler Jones was kicking field goals at an unbeatable pace. It was common to see the offense stall inside the 35 yard line, only to see TJ come in and save the day. Without his foot BSU would have been 8-3 at best instead of going 11-0.

In 2005, we have a crop of new receivers, and a couple new faces at running back. None of those players have put in any really dominating performances so far this year. They are truly playing like the "blue collar" team they aspire to be. And, because there has been no "big play" magic, some folks seem to think that's 'Z's fault.

Quotes

Ian Johnson regarding BSU's versatile senior running back Jeff Carpenter: "For an old guy, I thought he still had some awesome moves."

Dick Tomey, San Jose's head coach, on why he likes BSU: "Playing somebody like Boise State, which is such an accomplished winner, and watching them on tape, is good for us. They are what we're trying to be. It's like being in a classroom with a bunch of good students. You need to get your game up to where they are or you're not going to survive."

Coach Hawkins on Dick Tomey and his Spartans: "Dick has those guys playing hard. Their whole mentality is way different than it was before. They'll be a very, very dangerous club when they come in here. We've got to play a lot better than we've been playing."

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More Milestones

Not only is BSU going for it's 28th consecutive home win and 28th consecutive WAC win, but (assuming San Jose doesn't pull the upset of the century), a win this weekend will be BSU's 300th as a 4 year school. And then, a win next week at Utah State would the 500th all time for BSU.

28

That's the magic number. This week the Broncos are playing for their 28th straight conference win, as well as their 28th consecutive home win. Funny how this week the streaks coincide with each other.

27 home wins, the current number, is 10th best in the modern footbal era (since 1937).

San Jose State comes to town this Saturday. I believe this game will tell the tale for the rest of the season. The offense (especially 'Z') has to get it's confidence back, and we need to reverse the -11 turnover ratio (almost last in the nation) before things improve. Defensively - well, there should not be a problem containing SJSU's offense.
We need to score a whole bunch of points! That's the ticket!!

Apology accepted.

Hawkins apologized at the booster luncheon on Tuesday for his team playing so poorly the fans had to start booing. He recognizes the importance of the "entertainment value" of the team as well as maintaining a winning record. He promised to not let it happen again. Let's hope so.

Ugly win

It took me a couple of days to fully digest BSU's 21-14 win over 1-AA Portland State. While I'm satisifed with a win, I'm certainly not satisfied with another "pull the rabbit out of a hat" trick.

Observation 1: PSU is a well coached team, especially on defense. Their "closing" skills and tackling are first rate. Too many times the PSU defenders stuffed what appeared to be big plays by BSU running backs - often before the back got into the secondary.

Observation 2: BSU is not a well coached team - at least if you go by this game. PSU came out with fire in their eyes, BSU did not. Now, some opponents bring with them built-in motivation, and the coaching staff can just let it feed itself. Other opponents - like a lower division team after 4 high profile games - require some nudging in the motivation area. Which was conspicuously missing Saturday night.

This lack of fire and brimstone is a huge worry. If you look at the five games so far, only the Bowling Green game can be considered a coaching success. The Georgia game was over early because of player screw-ups, and the Oregon State game was lost because of poor execution as well. Hawaii - that's really a toss-up between poor coaching and poor execution. Hell, we had a dozen procedure and holding calls against PSU because of brain farts - not the kind of smooth play you expect by game 5.

Come on Hawk, get those boys prepared to play!!

Observation 3: Portland State running back Joe Rubin is the real deal. He sees the holes and makes the play. Sure, we stuffed him in the second half, but it's only because we put 7 or 8 guys in the box, and our defensive players are more athletic. Put Rubin on BSU's team, and he's got 200+ yards per game guaranteed.

Observation 4: Our backs need to watch Joe Rubin's game films. I like our backs. They are very talented. But too many times I've seen them take too many stutter-steps, or cut the wrong way, or (shudder) run into their own blockers before the running play develops. (And please - quit trying to run Marks up the middle. He is an outside back. He's just not big enough to blow through a solid defensive line).

Observation 5: Statitics don't lie, but liars cite statistics. Sure most teams would be happy to have a QB complete 22 of 29 passes. But, having 250+ yards passing and only 7 points doesn't cut it. Put another way, a good QB could be 4 of 20 if those 4 completions result in, or lead to, scores. Now, I'm not knocking 'Z' as so many are fond of doing right now, but there's something not right in the offense when you have nearly 500 yards of total offense and only 21 points (normally, we'd have 45+ points by then). Perhaps some adjustments need to be made to account for the lack of a vertical passing game. Many of the slants and screens seemed to work pretty well against PSU, as well as the rollouts and the option plays. Let's face it, 'Z' is not a drop back passer. Let's quit trying to make him one.

News From the Front

Daryn Colledge (boy, he will be missed after this seaon) has been invited to play in thie year's Senior Bowl. He joins Matt Hill (2001) as the only Broncos invited to that all-star talent showcase (so far). It's a pretty good indicator that the offensive tackle will go pretty high in the NFL draft.

Did I mention kicker Tyler Jones is back with the Chicago Bears? He was invited back onto the practice squad, but hopefully it means playing time later this season. His talents should not be overlooked.

True freshman Orlando Scandrick is a pretty cool character. After scoring 8 points on blocked kick returns (and getting burned for a TD and commiting a crucial pass interference call) during the Hawaii game, the conerback had this to say, "I expect to be an All-American before I leave here." And later, "If I had to grade myself, I think I played at least a C-minus, close to a D."

Wow. Confidence and humility. What a combo. If that effort was a C-minus or a D, imagine what his 'A game' would be like.

How ironic. I found out today Hawkins and Peterson were assistant coaches of Portland State's TimWalsh at Sonoma State and Portland State. Almost makes you not want to blow PSU out....

"Little" game coming up

After going 2 and 2 against 2004 bowl winners, the Broncos are due for a break. 1-AA Portland State will be a good "break" for the team. Now, I'm not assuming an automatic blow-out (although it may happen), but I do expect to see quite a few underclassmen getting some reps Saturday.

Marty Tadman commented that the defense was really looking forward to a more "traditional" offense coming into town. After enduring two of the most gimicky offenses around (Hawaii's run and shoot and Bowling Greens spread "no-huddle that takes longer than a huddle" offense), I'm sure he's right.

The weather for Saturday should be alright. There's a 30% chance of showers, but around here than could mean anything. I'm sure the temps will be in the comfortable range, and unless we get a monsoon, any precip should have no impact on either team.

There's a group from Bronco Country who are trying to get a new kickoff cheer going. Before the the kick the crowd is supposed to say, 'Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh'. When the kicker kicks it, the crowd is supposed to say, "Boooom!". When the received catches the ball, "Go BIG BLUE". Sounds kinda fun. We used to do something similar many, many years ago; but during the "Skip Hall dark ages", most of that went by the wayside.

Quick Hits

Orlando Scandrick, who returned both a blocked field goal and a blocked PAT for scores, was named WAC special teams player of the week. You know, after thinking about it, I figure BSU had more than 300 return yards last week. Yikes! I guess that more than makes up for losing the offensive yards battle.

Oddly enough, we rank first in both rushing offense and rushing defense in the Wac. Yet we're at or near the bottom in the passing offense and passing defense. Irony rears it's ugly head again.

Kyle Stringer is a punter's punter. His athletic skills as a converted running back allowed him to gain 13 yards after a muffed punt attempt to keep a crucial drive alive. And, as the holder on PAT attempts, he salvaged a bad snap on BSU's last punt attempt. And last but not least, he had a tackle (not a "saving" tackle - no, he sped down the field to get the tackle at about the 30) after he kicked the ball off.

Portland State, BSU's next opponent on the blue, currently has the top running back in Division 1-AA. I guess it's too bad we got such a "poor" rushing defense .

Actually, we have a lot to thank PSU for. If they had not blown out BSU some 13 years ago, we would not have picked up (their coach) Pokey Allen, who should really be credited for starting our turn-around and ascension into 1-A ball. Of course, there were a few ups and downs between then and now (like Pokey dying from cancer), but the "seeds of success" were really planted by him.

Bizarre win

BSU rallied past Hawaii 44-41 in one of the strangest games I have ever witnessed. While WAC football may not technically be the best footbal, it certainly takes the cake as far as entertainment value goes.

Some of the more bizarre moments:

• An interception returned 40 yards by BSU's Marty Tadman for a touchdown (BSU's only score in the first half)
• Hawaii's QB Colt Brennen puked all over the field and then threw a 29 yard TD pass
• A field goal blocked by BSU's Daryn Colledge and returned 69 yards by Orlando Scandrick for a touchdown. On the very next play Orlando is burned for a 73 yard touchdown pass
• A school record 92 yard punt return for a TD by Quentin Jones. On his next punt return Jones turned the ball over leading to a quick score by Hawaii
• BSU punter Kyle Stringer bobbled a snap, and then ran out of danger around the outside for 13 yards to get a first down (which lead to evening up the score in the thrid quarter)
• A blocked extra-point kicked blocked by Colledge and returned by Scandrick for a defensive 2-point conversion
• BSU turned the ball over 4 times and still won the game
• Hawaii outgained BSU by more than 100 yards, played well enough to win, and still lost the game
• Zabranbsky was something like 3 of 15 for 50 yards in the first half, yet 18 of 33 for 210 yards by the end. (Figure it out. He must have been 90% in the second half). Talk about a tale of two halves for that guy. Horrid to brilliant.
• Overall, Colt Brennan makes Timmy Chang look like an amateur. He's the real deal.

As I watched the game visions of BSU's close calls on the raod last year came to mind - as well as BSU's loss this year at Oregon State. It seemed like every time the team had a chance to put the game away - something - a penalty or a turnover or a dropped pass would happen. In retrospect, it's unnerving to think that the offense only scored 21 points while the defense and special teams accounted for 23. Yet.... we still won.

Isn't college football wonderful?