Football gets crushed by No. 5 Delaware 51-13

[mat1992 2,235]

https://towsontigers.com/news/2023/10/28/towson-football-downed-by-5-6-delaware.aspx

Better team won but that start was putrid and something has go to change in their philosophy in terms of starting out games slow and playing poorly at home. Backup QB Zach Marker had more speed than anybody on Towson's team and was one of the fastest players on Delaware. He completed 16 of 16 at one point and threw for 307 yards in the first half. Tackling? Busted coverage everywhere? Two No. 21st on the field during kick returns? A muffed kickoff? And for some reason, Shinnock decides to stay with Nathan Kent the entire game. It baffles the mind. 

[mat1992 2,235]

Opening comments

"Delaware played great and we didn't. That was the result of us not being on point and us not being good as we're capable of. You saw Delaware expose any time we were out of position on defense. Their QB played extremely well. We had a couple of sack opportunities he evaded. Went three and out twice and then on kickoff returns, we leave the ball on the ground and don't secure it. We started slow and could not overcome it."

 

On slow starts and home games

"Yes. What is it I don't know. We changed things up this week and we did a lot of things different. That's what I was talking to our seniors after the game. What are we missing here? What am I missing through this process? We go on the road and play really well and at home and we haven't. Obviously I'm missing something. It's killing me to watch it. Our best can beat anybody in the country. Our good gets us beat and our average gets us killed. We played average today and we got killed."

On Delaware

"We left some people wide open. They are firing on all cylinders. Every position they have and something good can happen. They throw a five-yard hitch to their RB and he takes it 75 yards. He's that explosive. We didn't leverage right and were out of position. Shouldn't have that big of a game. They through the ball deep and their WR found a way to catch it. They make you play 53 1/2 and make you play downfield. You have to cover every inch to beat them an we didn't."

On taking risks with Kent

"I cant answer that. We tried to go deep a couple of times. We tried to script it up to have some things. He had some pressure a couple of times."

On taking Kent out?

"There was a little bit (thought). He's our guy and we have to continue how to help him where he needs to get to. As we've been going, we just felt like we had to get better in what we're doing. My challenge to our team is that we have three games left. We want to finish as strong as we possibly can. We will plug away with that."A

 

At the half, what he said

"I kept reiterating to our guys what I saw in the first half doesn't resemble who we are. But it's how we played. It's how we played, not who we played. If we are going out and miss reads and coverages, go out and not connect, miss blocks, drop balls. We just don't have enough in us to be able to overcome that. We never gained any momentum in the first half. Delaware kept finding a way to get the ball in their playmaker's hands. We couldn't derail it. They didn't punt the ball the entire game. We're not doing something to stop the process there."

 

[TigerFan54 102]

I'll say this: The Hens' QB was dynamic. We may have allowed his receivers to get open, but he didn't miss them. And as Mat says, he's very quick. He eluded pressure and found the open guy. But here's the thing: He played last year at Iowa Central Community College. There had to be other guys out there like him, but somehow our coaching staff couldn't find anybody to come in and challenge last year's 4th stringer for the starting job. How does that happen??

[TSU88 1,073]

5 minutes ago, TigerFan54 said:

He played last year at Iowa Central Community College. There had to be other guys out there like him, but somehow our coaching staff couldn't find anybody to come in and challenge last year's 4th stringer for the starting job. How does that happen??

From the looks of things today, I would have guessed he played last season for the Dolphins. As to why we couldn’t find a JUCO and/or portal guy to compete with last year’s 4th stringer, well, I’ve been asking that question since the beginning of the season. Frankly, I don’t think there’s a good answer 

[TuTigers2012 1,071]

27 minutes ago, TigerFan54 said:

I'll say this: The Hens' QB was dynamic. We may have allowed his receivers to get open, but he didn't miss them. And as Mat says, he's very quick. He eluded pressure and found the open guy. But here's the thing: He played last year at Iowa Central Community College. There had to be other guys out there like him, but somehow our coaching staff couldn't find anybody to come in and challenge last year's 4th stringer for the starting job. How does that happen??

 

18 minutes ago, TSU88 said:

From the looks of things today, I would have guessed he played last season for the Dolphins. As to why we couldn’t find a JUCO and/or portal guy to compete with last year’s 4th stringer, well, I’ve been asking that question since the beginning of the season. Frankly, I don’t think there’s a good answer 

Some coaches and programs can some can’t. Same with point guards. We just can’t do it. Watching Jmu and odu and for some reason Jmu has a new qb dominate every year. Yes they have more money and resources, but a new qb every year that just seems to work? No one hits the lottery consecutively like that.  
 Time will tell for this new coach

[mat1992 2,235]

Tough to recruit as a brand new staff. I’m sure they liked a lot of QBs they couldn’t get and unfortunately so did previous coaching staff. We lost plenty of recruiting battles to Delaware and JMU. We need to beat the others. Let’s see what happens in the offseason. As shitty as this effort was, we still managed to beat two pretty good ranked teams on the road with Kent at QB. Imagine when we actually find a quality quarterback with a strong arm and agility.

If you read all the comments from every press conference, you can read between the lines. He consistently talks about little margin for error and that our best can beat anyone in the country and our good can get us beat, average get us killed. 
 

In other words, there’s a lack of talent and speed or lack of players who fit his system. My biggest concern in defense is that the same coverage and mental errors have happened over and over. Will more talented players listen? 

[Blounge 521]

Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change 

[Blounge 521]

Delaware is starting to look like JMU in 2015 just whooping everybody’s ass with more money, talent, and fan support than anybody. They look prepped and ready for the FBS jump. Towson needs to be the next Delaware/jmu in that we invest bigger on sports but don’t make the jump to fbs. We gotta aim to be the top CAA school athletically. We clearly aren’t #1 academically so gotta do something to be #1

[TuTigers2012 1,071]

1 hour ago, Blounge said:

Delaware is starting to look like JMU in 2015 just whooping everybody’s ass with more money, talent, and fan support than anybody. They look prepped and ready for the FBS jump. Towson needs to be the next Delaware/jmu in that we invest bigger on sports but don’t make the jump to fbs. We gotta aim to be the top CAA school athletically. We clearly aren’t #1 academically so gotta do something to be #1

That’s easier said than done. Jmu, Delaware, WM and the basketball schools have had success and their students and alumni actually care. They have pride in their schools and programs. The community comes out win or lose too (for the most part). 
We are just there. We aren’t the worst but definitely not in the top tiers. 

Why do we have school with 23k students and around 7k living on campus and can’t draw more than 100 of them for games?? It’s not proximity. Dorms and apartments are close.  We aren’t located in the middle of nowhere like some schools but not in a major epicenter where there’s so much going on all the time. 
 

People on here preach “recruiting local”. While I don’t agree, as theres more talent in bordering states, why do we get burnt by local-ish kids, that go to schools such as Albany. Unh. Maine. Rhode Island?!

Yesterday was my first football game since 2019 Elon debacle. (Tried to go to home opener but got to the gate as lightning hit). Why are people being forced to park at the union garage still when the parking lots are half full??  You’re not going to get many people to come if they have to park “far” away (in their minds). Walk and then see plenty of open spots.  
 

The game day experience is stale.  The band plays the same songs that they did when I was a prospective student in 06 and 07.  Announcer has been the same forever it seems and is boring. Stands are so far from the action. While the new track looks good, it just sucks to have that. 
Our production quality sucks.  If we are going to have a few games on tv, where people and potential recruits can actually see us, the entire production needs to improve.  Camera work, graphics, picture are all subpar. The announcers are comically bad. I’m not asking for Kevin Harlan but the PBP and color guys for hoops and football aren’t good. The entire production screams perry hall high vs Eastern tech, not a d1 college.

women’s sports have been great and are even better now that the best women’s program left the conference. The men have been lagging (to be nice). 
What the hell do we want to be?! Do we want to be a good fcs football program and average 4,500?  Do we want to be a mid major contender? Do we want to play and try to compete in a niche sport in the spring?  What we cannot be, is all three. It is to expensive and difficult to do, and have limited resources spread amongst all 3. Delaware can handle it because they draw 15-17k for footbalL and 2k for basketball 
 

There’s a common denominator between the preseason 4 in basketball. The league has gotten worse and in the past few years it’s been easier to make the football postseason,( you can argue hoops too), and we have had less success.  It’s tough to try and do it all, especially in our situation. 

[Bay Area Tiger 347]

17 hours ago, TigerFan54 said:

I'll say this: The Hens' QB was dynamic. We may have allowed his receivers to get open, but he didn't miss them. And as Mat says, he's very quick. He eluded pressure and found the open guy. But here's the thing: He played last year at Iowa Central Community College. There had to be other guys out there like him, but somehow our coaching staff couldn't find anybody to come in and challenge last year's 4th stringer for the starting job. How does that happen??

We got a QB here in San Francisco at CCSF who threw for another 3 TD’s and ran for 2 yesterday and has his team 8-0.  Dorian Hale would fit that Towson offense that Pete wants to ultimately run.  Take a look at him coaches!!!