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mat1992

Bye Week Stats

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Let's take a look at the Tigers at 2-3 (0-2 CAA) right before the bye from a stats outlook, adding some comments.

After playing Morgan State (10-0), Maryland (17-63), St. Francis (16-14), Stony Brook (17-25) and #14 Villanova (9-24), Towson has shown they can compete in all of their FCS games but can't finish the two key CAA games, partially due to injuries, coaching, execution, personnel, scheme, and a little bad luck.

Let me pontificate for just a second. After covering this program since 1989, I've seen worse teams. I've seen bad lines on both sides and I've covered teams that really underachieved and overachieved. I'm not ready to completely put this team on the underachieving part due to injuries, but they are headed there. And injuries are a part of life, even as Rob Ambrose said after the Villanova game, that Nova did a better job of handling their injuries and that was on him.

Starting with the stats, we were told that this team was in a better position if Morgan Mahalak was injured again and honestly, I had to believe Rob Ambrose from what I saw from Ryan Stover until the last couple of weeks in camp where I didn't think he was that sharp. Last season, Towson averaged 4.3 yards per rush, 156.5 rushing yards per game, and 22.1 points per game. This season, they are averaging 94 yards rushing per game and a dismal 2.8 yards per carry with 181.2 passing yards per game (212.2ypg last year). What's the biggest difference?

 

Start with the offensive line. Last year's line had a lot of different combinations due to injuries but for the most part, had a lot of experience.

They opened the season at South Florida with Mahalak at quarterback, senior T. Vallelly at TE, seniors Dessensburg and Summers at WR, senior Sam Evans and junior Antonio Harris at guard. Senior Brady Stup at center, soph. Matt Kauffman at right tackle and senior (r-junior) Fred Santarelli at left tackle, with Vito at RB. Boy have times changed. Eventually r-junior Shawn Flaherty would come in at guard for Evans and Mahalak missed six full games. Vito got hurt but was replaced by Shane Simpson who ran for 784 yards and 5.6 yards per carry with three scores. He also caught nine for 64 yards and was an all-conference kick returner.

But the difference between that 4-7 team was they had more depth at RB and Summers and Dessenburg stayed healthy throughout the season. The one name that Towson has missed this season, aside from Evans, Flaherty, Stup and Santarelli on the offensive, is Deshaun Wethington. He played in 10 games, averaging 5.8 yards per carry and ran for 438 yards as the THIRD running back. Darius Victor played in just four games due to injury so Wethington became Vito-lite. He was actually about as heavy as Vito as the season went on (225-230) at 5-10. But he couldn't hang around this season academically and that was a bigger loss than I'd thought it would be. They tried adding a juco running back from Baltimore in Sherrod Hawkes, but he was injured in the off-season. He wasn't huge (205 or so), but might have been a pretty good addition. C.J. Williams (15 yards, 12 carries) hasn't been healthy and when he's been there, he hasn't done a lot to make people miss.

You can blame the two young true freshmen in Adrian Platt (143 yards, 3.2ypc, long of 15) or Kobe Young (51 yards, 3.6ypc, long of 27), but even Simpson has struggled (3.5ypc, 104 yds) behind this line. When Stover is your leading rusher at 155 yards (3ypc), something is wrong. And he's not Vick or even Enders back there.

But to give the line credit, they are doing a decent job pass blocking. Stover has played in every game this season and has started four. At times, he's held the ball too long, not atypical of a freshman QB. He's been sacked with Mahalak, 13 times. They've had 13 fumbles, losing six. Stover has two TDs and three picks. Mahalak has three picks in that first game, while playing injured. Stover has completed 54.5 percent of his passes for 865 yards.

Take away two ridiculous wild cat calls with Williams in the Morgan game (where he got hurt) and Villanova game, it's been a somewhat predictable offense. However, it's difficult to make certain creative calls when you don't get push up front or you can't run the ball. You can run play-action and boots all you want but the defense isn't going  to get faked out that often if you can't run the ball.

So sure, maybe the players behind the offensive line aren't ready. If this is the best five we have, things are really not going to change much. Even if Simpson comes back against Richmond (hear mixed reports but I don't see it), it's going to be tough.

But not having Mahalak, Simpson, Shane Leatherbury (hurt knee in Md game), Tre Kilgore (2 catches in 3 games), John Tsimis (has played in one game with four catches) and Sam Gallahan for the first three games has been devastating to the offense. Instead of losing younger players, we've lost our older ones. Tsimis and Williams were grad transfers and have been non-factors. Maybe they gambled too much on both guys. Leatherbury was going to add speed to the lineup as a juco. You have him and Simpson in the lineup, you have two guys with 4.4 speed. Without them, there are really no playmakers other than true freshman Rodney Dorsey, who as hampered by a groin injury in camp. He still doesn't appear to be 100% because if he was, it's doubtful he would have been caught from behind on two long runs.

Good news is that Jabari Greenwood has 31 catches for 300 yards and Brent Richardson has 12 for 105, Neither has a TD. Two TRUE freshmen have the only receiving TDs in Jabari Allen and Dorsey. Richardson is basically a redshirt freshman after missing all of last season due to an injury after redshirt his first year in 2015. Greenwood rarely played at KY. The receiving corps was deep to start the season but they really couldn't afford to lose that many rotation guys.

On defense, other than the devastating injury to Zain Harps-Upshur (8 tackles), there are few injuries. They are allowing 25.2 points per game (ok, take away Md game and it's not too bad. Around 16ppg). Allowing 161.8 rushing yards per game and 178.2 passing yards per game.  Amazingly, last year's numbers are similar (161.8 ypg rushing) are  similar (170.5ypg passing allowed). However, if changing Matt Hachmann to Lyndon Johnson really didn't mean much, at least they improved their third-down conversion rate allowed from 48% last season to 32% this season. They had just 20 sacks in 11 games last season with nine sacks in five games this season so they are about on the same pace. At least they are forcing more turnovers with seven picks (just nine last season) and only three fumbles recovered (nine forced).

We are missing a quarterback, a starting running back, and three key receivers, on offense. The defense will not have Harps-Upshur for the season and may not have  JPD (concussion) for the Richmond game. The depth up front has been lacking. When you are playing so many true freshmen, something is wrong.

Even on defense, Towson has played true freshmen in S Coby Tippett, who had a fumble recovery last week, DT Tibo Debaille, and CB Vashon McCants Jr.. On offense, Dorsey, Platt, Young, and J. Allen. With Mitch Boals out, the Tigers had to move Lyrics Klugh to safety in the last two games. They even moved WR Morgan Scroggins to safety, who has played both ways this season. With JPD likely out against Richmond, McCants or r-freshman Jamal Watson will have to start at corner along with Tyron McDade. That's unless Boals is back so Klugh can go back to corner.

Diondre Wallace leads the team in tackles with 42, JPD was second with 30 and has a pick. Monty Fenner leads the team with three INTs. Kanyia Anderson leads with four sacks and 9 TFLs.

 

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Interesting info but like I have said before if some of the players not getting it done when you going to try other players.at this point I don't think anyone else can do any worse try scott try Bryant try different lineman combinations.i had said onetime before if your time is not willing to run through a brick wall for the staff there needs to be a change I like to be positive but at this point Rhode Island and William and Mary are the only teams I think we will beat 

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David Bryant is ok but I don't think we're all of a sudden going to start rushing for 150 yards per game just because he's a big back.. CJ is fine as the short-yardage back. We need a healthy Shane. Stover has to take care of the football and make more plays in the air. I think we get some of those injured receivers back but you have to get them the ball. If Mahalak doesn't return, I don't know if we beat W&M. Unless Stover makes a huge improvement in the bye week. I give up as far as them making OL changes if it doesn't happen this week, it will never happen unless there are injuries.

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The more and more I am in this forum I am starting to see that the only young men that  get a shot is the ones that are liked.they have used 4 RB all of them together through 5 games don't have 350 yards.the line is not blocking so that's the problem maybe but they do enough to have more of a running game then that.no running game equals no passing.lets get right to it bad play calling slow making adjustments give the players something to work with.change personal around get a look from other players evaluate.you don't know who can play if you don't try them.i can tell you this much from what I have seen so far nothing has been impressive.give james scott and David Bryant a chance to help the back field if nothing else they can soften the defense.give the little 3rd string QB a few snaps see what he can do you might just find a gemstone but if you don't evaluate in reel time you want know

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Mat, you say "You can run play-action and boots all you want but the defense isn't going  to get faked out that often if you can't run the ball." True enough, but if your personnel is no match for the opponent's' personnel, you have to keep them off balance. Use a trick play now and then (running back option pass), or the QB rolls right, then passes left to the RB (we used this against Fordham in the playoffs, and Vito scored a TD), or fake pitch to the RB sweeping left and the QB rolls right (we used this from time to time with Enders and Athens, always for decent gains, but not once since then).  More important than the particular result is that it causes the defense to slow down and starting thinking; that alone can help other plays work better. I see no willingness to be inventive.

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One thing I'm going to add, and I know it's not popular to praise the coaching staff, but it's about penalties committed. We are averaging 39 yards per game and 5.5 penalties, while our opponents are averaging 74.6 yards in penalties per game, around 8.5 per game. Considering we have had so many new players on offense and a r-freshman quarterback, that's not a bad stat.

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I agree with the stats numbers don't lie.people keep asking about Morgan I hope the young man is ok but the future is stover at QB build on him you got 4 years left really develope him don't keep switching by time this guy is jr or sr you my have what you need.not taking nothing from Morgan or Shane because they both are good players but they showed out against 4 bad teams that Towson beat Shane may be playing on Sundays one day but he is going to half to stay under 200 pounds if he going to be effective for the team his body not ment to carry the weight he is carrying which leads to injury in a nut shell no your personal get the best out of them by putting them in good situation on the field as a coach that's what you do.you have receivers that are fast on the team don't focus on the speed focus on running good routes.Be a coach teach that's the job and wins will come 

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