(2 hours ago)KartyFan Wrote: Really hoping msqueri is still around and posting Sunday morning/afternoon/evening thoughts. Would love Matt's thoughts on this one!
In the meantime, some observations from the stadium and watching key plays after...
1. My biggest takeaway was that despite OL injuries, we were able to control the line of scrimmage on offense. Ford and others generally could get a couple yards before contact, and there were many instances of an extra 2-5 yards pushing the pile. Credit to both Ford and the OL for not giving up on the play. Regardless of current talent level (Stanford and Hawaii), I saw the foundations of a physical brand of football returning to the farm. Pass was generally quite good as well.
The run and pass protection made this look like a "normal" offense. The past few years, it felt like we were trying to figure out any way to gain yards with no run game and nonexistent pass blocking, even against mediocre competition. It was nice to feel like I was watching a real team, even if it turns out not to be a very good real team.
2. Agree with those who said Davis Warren was good-not-great. There were several key throws that were slightly off, and the receivers did not do Warren any favors making tough catches (until Liam Thorpe on the last drive). I think game management was strong, and he did make quite a few good throws. I think a very underrated aspect of his performance was pocket presence. We had good pass protection, and Warren made the protection look even better by making good decisions in the pocket. This was sorely missing last year with Gulbranson and Brown, who didn't seem to be able to scan field while avoiding pressure.
3. Tackling seemed solid, very few (any?) missed tackles. A welcome change - we'll see how that looks against Miami. Defense also had some nice lateral speed. There were a few times I thought Alejado or a RB had the corner on us, and the DL or LB tracked him down. Again, we'll see how that looks against ACC competition.
4. Obviously disappointing to go from dominating the game to trailing. I don't agree with those who thought we turtled, or that our OL fell apart after losing our center. I did not generally see conservative play calling, I saw quite a few pass attempts, including well down field. We just didn't execute well and never built momentum on a drive. Penalties hurt us, and we didn't quite connect on some passes. I don't think mentality or strategy was the issue - we are just not a great team and these runs will happen.
5. I thought the offensive scheme was varied and interesting. Tried to get positive yards but took some shots, recognizing that it is very hard to sustain a drive 4-5 yards at a time. Liked what I saw.
6. QB/WR connection was promising but also needs to get much better. Felt like most completions were to wide open receivers. Throws into traffic did not connect. But so great for two true freshmen to contribute meaningfully. If we can sustain last year's talent retention going forward, this bodes very well.
7. OL injuries, sigh... Seems like for several years we have started the year down a couple starters, and we lost another one today. Not good when you get taken into the locker room in a cart. Let's hope some of these guys can return in the coming weeks.
8. Game atmosphere - Fan Fest was chock full of people celebrating Pacific Islander Heritage Day. A great concept for Tavita's first game, and it attracted a good number of people who would not have otherwise come. Thank goodness, because attendance was again poor. I had hopes that the Tavita era would provide an immediate bump. Not quite. The sunny side was virtually empty along with all corners. The shady side first deck did seem full. I was chasing children around and couldn't tell from the crowd that Ford's fumble was overturned to a TD. Bottom line, get some wins and people will come back. In this day and age, we probably need a lot of wins for that. I will keep coming.
9. This feels like 2008. Coming off 4-8 season with some momentum, still not a good team but laying the foundation for something better. Not sure the next Andrew Luck is on the roster so I am not predicting greatness in two years, but we seem to have the wind at our backs. Next week won't tell us much unless we contend (quite unlikely), so we'll have to wait three weeks until Duke for another measuring stick of where we are.
Great post! Seeing wide receivers wide open speaks well about the playcalling / offensive scheme, imo. (Tho it also may suggest Stanford played against a poor defensive secondary.)
Also, while I'm not sure, I'm thinking that injuries may have hit the WR corps as well as the offensive line. Neither Nico Brown, the Yale WR transfer, nor Carter Shaw, the UCLA transfer (and David's son) showed up in the participation chart. We already knew that a starter from last year, Caden High, was out because of injury. Overall, I thought the group that got on the field played pretty well, fwiw.