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Week 9: #2 Sac State vs. #14 Idaho

B

BuckeyeHornetFan

Active member
Let’s get the discussion started.

First off, I didn’t use the “coaches poll” when citing the rankings, but rather the Stats Perform Top 25.

It’s clear to me the coaches don’t really watch the games closely until they breakdown film to actually prepare for an opponent. Otherwise what on earth are they basing ranking Montana State over Sac State?

Montana State has wins over 2 opponents the Hornets beat by much larger margins. And beyond that, their 5 point win over Weber was made possible by not 1, not 2, not 3, but FOUR unforced safeties because the Weber long snapper kept launching the ball out of the back of the end zone. But I digress…..

Moving on to Idaho, they surely look to be a much improved team from a year ago and their fanbase on the 247sports forum seem to believe they will handle the Hornets on Saturday (shocking, right?).

Admittedly, I haven’t seen Idaho play a single down yet. So I’m in no position to make any predictions or guesses.

But solely judging from their performances at FBS Washington State and FCS Montana, they seem to be pretty darn good.

The Hornets are likely gonna have to play better than they did against Montana last week to get another W.
Clean up the penalties. QB play must be more consistent. Pass defense needs to step it up.

Let’s go get another one!
 
Week 9 - #2 Sac State vs #14 Idaho

The 2nd ranked Hornets (7-0, 4-0 BSC) host the surging 14th ranked Idaho Vandals (5-2, 4-0 BSC) for homecoming. Head Coach Jason Eck has made an immediate turnaround on the Vandal program in his first year and will likely earn BSC Coach of the Year. The Vandals should be ranked higher as they have won five straight after a tough but competitive start against two Power 5 programs. It was evident the turnaround was immediate when the Vandals opened up with close losses at Wazzou, 17-24, and at Indiana, 22-35. The Vandals most recent wins include a statement win at Montana, 30-23, two weeks ago and a 56-21 rout of Portland State at home last week and find themselves in contention for a BSC title run.

The Vandals run-pass option offense is in the top tier of the BSC and is led by redshirt freshman quarterback Gevani McCoy (122/171, 1607 yds, 16 TD, 3 INT). McCoy is very mobile (his rushing stats don’t properly reflect this) and has a strong, accurate arm that can stretch the defense down the field. The main targets at receiver are Jermaine Jackson (32 rec, 677 yds, 4 TD) and Hayden Hatten (35 rec, 457 yds, 5 TD) and both are capable of making big plays. The Vandal run game has two solid running backs that complement each other in speed and power. Anthony Woods (89 car, 523 yds, 2 TD) has the speed and elusiveness to break chunk yards and Roshaun Johnson (76 car, 257 yds, 6 TD) is used in short yardage situations. The Vandal offensive line has decent size and mobility on run blocking but has struggled in pass protection at times.

Offensive Team Stats
  • Points scored per game: 35.6 (4th BSC)
  • Total Offense: 417.7 ypg (164.9 rushing ypg / 252.9 passing ypg) (5th/3rd BSC)
  • Turnovers: 3/1 (INT/Fum)
  • Redzone: 26/28 - 18/8 (TD/FG)

The Vandal defense operates out of the 4-2-5 and they are a stingy and gritty bunch that is currently 2nd in the BSC in total defense. They do an excellent job in pursuit to the ball and are good tackers once there. The Vandal secondary has snagged 11 picks on the season, which is good enough for 2nd in the BSC. Linebacker Fa’Avae Fa’Avae (63 tkl, 3.5 TFL, 2 sac) leads the Vandal defense in tackles, safety Tommy McCormick (37 tkl, 4 INT) leads the team in picks, and defensive end Leo Tamba (18 tkl, 5 TFL, 4 sac) leads the team in tackles for loss and sacks.

Defensive Team Stats
  • Points allowed per game: 23.1 (4th BSC)
  • Total Defense: 306.0 ypg (107.1 rushing ypg / 198.9 passing ypg) (3rd/2nd BSC)
  • Turnovers Forced: 11/4 (INT/Fum)
  • Redzone: 19/24 - 17/2 (TD/FG)

Idaho has the most accurate kicker in the BSC in Ricardo Chavez (12/14 FG, 25/25 PAT) who has hit from 47 yards out. Chavez (26 punts, 4 I-20) also handles the punting duties and has a long of 54 yards. Jermaine Jackson (11 ret, 157 yds, 1 TD) is a dangerous punt returner that has taken one to the house. The Vandal special teams also snagged a stealthy on-side that turned the tide in the win at Montana two weeks ago.

Hornet Team Stats
  • Points scored per game: 45.9 (1st BSC)
  • Points allowed per game: 20.6 (3rd BSC)
  • Total Offense: 514.0 ypg (261.7 rushing ypg / 252.3 passing ypg) (2nd/4th BSC)
  • Total Defense: 377.6 ypg (107.0 rushing ypg / 270.6 passing ypg) (2nd/11th BSC)
  • Turnovers: 8/4 (INT/Fum)
  • Turnovers Forced: 7/4 (INT/Fum)
  • Redzone Offense: 36/41 - 30/6 (TD/FG)
  • Redzone Defense: 17/21 - 13/4 (TD/FG)

Idaho leads the BSC in red zone conversions and have gotten points on all but 2 trips. They also hold on to the ball and burn clock at a BSC leading average of 36:46 minutes per game as McCoy is the most efficient quarterback in the BSC. The Hornets struggled against a mobile quarterback a week ago and the Hornet defense will have their hands full in this one as the Vandal offense is capable of moving the ball effectively on the ground and in the air. Idaho is a resilient and gritty team that is better than the one we played last week so I expect another close one. The Hornets will need to execute a lot better than they did last week if they want to stay undefeated…and I think last week's close game will have everyone refocused and ready to go. Hornets win another close one at home.

Stingers Up!
 
Believe it or not, Idaho has a forum. Glad all 3,000 who attend their games have a place to congregate.
They seem pretty cocky. Their QB is accurate, so it will be DB day like we faced at Cal Poly. The HC was the SDSU OC last year, so we should have some good film on his tactics.
Hope Dunniway has focused on his accuracy, seems to have thrown alot of pics in the last two games.
Would be nice to have another 16,000 in attendance.
 
https://sactownsports.com/category/podcast_player/?a=41e84c23-606d-47f5-8dd9-af3a011f666c&pr=15abe589-a30b-4324-b5d4-ada501777e65&pl=7774e8fa-ac53-453d-9d85-ada5017b290d&n=Stingers+Up+-+The+Sacramento+State+Football+Podcast+with+Jason+Ross
 
Greetings from Moscow! thanks for letting me post.

First, congratulations on the season you have had so far! You got a heck of a coaching staff! Eck has said your Head Coach is the best in the conference. This game will be our toughest of the season. I know your staff won't overlook us like the Griz did. The Griz were expecting the Vandals to fall apart after a few series and win the game. This is not the Petrino Vandals.

I wouldn't say we are over confident coming in. In fact most of the fan base is still leery of the team having a collapse or bad showing to take the loss. Eck has proven us wrong and even called out one of Podcasters from @TubsAtTheClub to stop picking against the Vandals after the Griz win. We definitely are going to have our hands full on Saturday.

Your running game with Skattebo and O'Hara is top notch and if we even want a chance to be in the game we have to limit the run. We have had issues with physical backs giving us fits. UNC's back and UM's back did cause us issues early on. Our defense is and has been up to the challenge all year. We don't give up the big play very often. We tend to flock to the ball. Our strongest part of our D is our front seven with the the back end quietly becoming better as the season progresses. Our Safety McCormick #18 leads the team in interceptions with 4. This ties the total # of interceptions the whole defense had last year and this year we have 11. The Vandal D will take every opportunity to take the ball away.

The Offense has been getting better as the season has progressed. Our QB McCoy will stay in the pocket, but will extend plays to get the ball down field. He will run if it is there, but he would prefer to throw. Doesn't turn the ball over very much. Woods #28 true freshman is our #1 back. He is out of Palmdale, CA and I don't know how an FBS team missed him! He has power and quickness with great vision. Cummings #20 is another shifty back followed by Johnson our goal line/short yardage power back. Hatten and Jackson are our 2 wideouts that have been making plays and leading the team in yards and catches. O-line is young, but vastly improving as the season progresses. We do have issues running against good run d's and we sometimes have problems with good pass rushers. We are far from perfect and this unit is always the question mark for us going into a game. How will the O-line do this game?

Overall the Vandals will run the clock and try to limit their opponent on time of possession. It will be a 30-24 or 30-29 game. It should be a good game to watch as long as the Vandals show up to play. If not the Hornets will run away with the game.

Good luck on Saturday.
 
Green Cookie Monster said:
Believe it or not, Idaho has a forum. Glad all 3,000 who attend their games have a place to congregate.
They seem pretty cocky. Their QB is accurate, so it will be DB day like we faced at Cal Poly. The HC was the SDSU OC last year, so we should have some good film on his tactics.
Hope Dunniway has focused on his accuracy, seems to have thrown alot of pics in the last two games.
Would be nice to have another 16,000 in attendance.
Click to expand...

I'd like to think that we are not cocky - we have been terrible for the better part of 20 years. Eck has been a shot in the arm and fans are getting excited again. Idaho is a good team! But Sac State deserves their rank and of course Idaho should be underdogs. Good luck, enjoy the game.
 
Green Cookie Monster said:
Believe it or not, Idaho has a forum. Glad all 3,000 who attend their games have a place to congregate.
They seem pretty cocky. Their QB is accurate, so it will be DB day like we faced at Cal Poly. The HC was the SDSU OC last year, so we should have some good film on his tactics.
Hope Dunniway has focused on his accuracy, seems to have thrown alot of pics in the last two games.
Would be nice to have another 16,000 in attendance.
Click to expand...

You guys need to stretch out your O-rings. We're going in dry.

McCoy is going to put on a clinic. Make sure Dunniway is watching so he can up his game.
 
Welcome Vandal fans. Sorry for the delayed approval, been out of pocket all week. We use to let new posters post immediately but there were waves of spam bots that forced that change.
 
VandalPride97 said:
Is there any truth to the rumor that Dunniway melts down after a couple sacks?
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No. However his decision making the past few weeks has been head scratching at times. Tonight, we should have never started throwing the ball late in the 3rd with our running game absolutely shredding the Vandal D.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SM3Jnhi9ddw


Alright, first off what a gutsy way to pull this game out and officially punch the ticket for the playoffs. Hornets were in complete control for most of the game and let a good Idaho team off the mat and almost choked it away only to grab the win late. This team is very resilient, but I think there are some issues on both sides of the ball that put a shot at another BSC title and subsequent playoff run in peril.

Offensively Idaho had no answer for the Hornets rushing attack. Skattebo (17 car, 134 yds) and O’Hara (26 car, 129 yds, 1 TD) went off in large part because of the domination that the Hornet offensive line had up front. However the passing attack is in a complete funk right now. The touchdown throw to Miller (3 rec, 45 yds, 1 TD) was stellar, but the passing game never really got going. Dunniway (6/17, 81 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT) is just forcing too many throws down the field. The first pick was a 50-50 ball that the defender had well covered. The second pick was a pass that Williams (1 rec, 8 yds, 1 TD) should have caught. Martin has played sparingly the past few weeks (injury?) so that could be a major reason as to why the passing attack is now sputtering.

The biggest concern is the way the Hornets let Idaho back into it. Following the Idaho score that made it a 24-14 game, the Hornets opted to pass the ball instead of pound away on the ground. The Hornets went 3 and out (all passes), defense forced a stop, then another pass on the ensuing possession for the first pick, a subsequent UI touchdown drive to make it a 3 point game, then another pass for the second pick that led to the last UI touchdown drive. Hornets didn’t throw the ball once in the game winning drive. It’s concerning that the playcalling seemingly tried to force the passing game to work instead of sticking with what is working. I’d like to think this is being nitpicky but we’ve seen this enough to know that it’s more of a trend than an exception. The Hornets won’t escape with a win against better teams.

Defensively the Hornets kept with their “bend but don’t break” mentality and kept a potent Idaho offense in check until late in the game. Unfortunately the Hornets were on the field too much and this defense got burned on some good plays by Idaho. That pass from McCoy to Hatten to take the late lead was an absolute dime. Hornets also lost contain on quite a few running plays in which Idaho was able to gain some chunk yards. Major credit to the Hornet defense for getting one last stop to secure the win. Idaho had plenty of time to drive for the win, or at least a game tying field goal.

As the final games of the season loom, the concern on this side of the ball is the lack of pressure up front. The Hornets don’t seem to get much pressure without a blitz, and even then they rarely get a sack. I don’t expect this to get rectified at this point in the season, so it’s more on how the play calling adjusts in-game on when and how the blitzes will come.

Special teams stayed consistent. Sentkowski (1/1 FG, 4/4 PAT) came through again and credit to the in-game adjustments on shortening the kick-off to force fair catches as the Idaho return game was getting it done.

Big win, very tough game at Weber State up next.

Stingers Up!
 
Where was Marshel Martin? Hasn't he had a catch consecutively in like a dozen+ games?
We need to get back to utilizing the TE receiver position.
Run more SkatPack, we should be a run first, pass when necessary team with him, Fulcher, Tau-Tolliver, O'Hara, Gable.
Not one RB swing pass, saw Dunniway look them off before heaving his INT's.
 
Green Cookie Monster said:
Where was Marshel Martin? Hasn't he had a catch consecutively in like a dozen+ games?
We need to get back to utilizing the TE receiver position.
Run more SkatPack, we should be a run first, pass when necessary team with him, Fulcher, Tau-Tolliver, O'Hara, Gable.
Not one RB swing pass, saw Dunniway look them off before heaving his INT's.
Click to expand...

He played snaps on the game-winning drive. We held him out trying to get him healthy. He was only available “if needed”. So we brought him in as a decoy for three plays during the winning drive. He needs to get healthy.
 
stingthemgood said:
Green Cookie Monster said:
Where was Marshel Martin? Hasn't he had a catch consecutively in like a dozen+ games?
We need to get back to utilizing the TE receiver position.
Run more SkatPack, we should be a run first, pass when necessary team with him, Fulcher, Tau-Tolliver, O'Hara, Gable.
Not one RB swing pass, saw Dunniway look them off before heaving his INT's.
Click to expand...

He played snaps on the game-winning drive. We held him out trying to get him healthy. He was only available “if needed”. So we brought him in as a decoy for three plays during the winning drive. He needs to get healthy.
Click to expand...

Yep, they said as much on the radio. He’s hurting, but suited up in case of emergency…
 
Very nice W on Saturday. Idaho is a solid team.

Good news was the Hornets controlling the game from the start. Bad news was allowing the Vandals back in with a chance to steal the game. But even better news was SAC’s response to the late-game momentum change and adversity. They put together a clutch game winning drive doing exactly what they had done to build the initial 17-point lead in the first place.

O’Hara and Skattebo continue to impress. They are a unique rushing duo that isn’t so easy to slow down and stop.

The 17K attendance was impressive, especially considering it was Halloween party weekend and the KINGS also hosted a home game the same night. Still the Hornets game outdrew the KINGS-Heat game.

Considering the attendance of the past 2 games, I should think 20K+ for the Causeway Classic is a strong possibility.

Final thought: The tactic of opposing Big Sky fans (on their own forums) to belittle the Hornets, their history and this SacBuzz forum never ceases to amuse. It’s pretty juvenile and unbecoming. And the level of delusional comments apparently knows no bounds. Just crazy ridiculous jealous stuff, honestly.

Apparently many Big Sky fans are threatened by and can’t handle the Hornets ascension and success the past 3 seasons. They’d better start getting used to it.
 
BuckeyeHornetFan said:
Very nice W on Saturday. Idaho is a solid team.

Good news was the Hornets controlling the game from the start. Bad news was allowing the Vandals back in with a chance to steal the game. But even better news was SAC’s response to the late-game momentum change and adversity. They put together a clutch game winning drive doing exactly what they had done to build the initial 17-point lead in the first place.

O’Hara and Skattebo continue to impress. They are a unique rushing duo that isn’t so easy to slow down and stop.

The 17K attendance was impressive, especially considering it was Halloween party weekend and the KINGS also hosted a home game the same night. Still the Hornets game outdrew the KINGS-Heat game.

Considering the attendance of the past 2 games, I should think 20K+ for the Causeway Classic is a strong possibility.

Final thought: The tactic of opposing Big Sky fans (on their own forums) to belittle the Hornets, their history and this SacBuzz forum never ceases to amuse. It’s pretty juvenile and unbecoming. And the level of delusional comments apparently knows no bounds. Just crazy ridiculous jealous stuff, honestly.

Apparently many Big Sky fans are threatened by and can’t handle the Hornets ascension and success the past 3 seasons. They’d better start getting used to it.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't let that get to you. Every fanbase has their dbags...some more than others (looking at you ejizz). Long time Hornet fans (and posters) had to endure many years of suckitude and losing and that is the tradition most of these fanbases attribute with Hornet football so there is no surprise that they can't cope with a dominant Hornet program that has only lost 1 BSC game in the last 3 years.

That said, ejizzers have taken it the hardest. You have to keep in mind that the longtime Montucky fan enjoyed a dominant program with a long run of BSC titles and playoff runs. Then they had to endure seeing most of the other top FCS programs move up to FBS while they got left behind with "the little sisters of the poor", so they probably thought they would dominate FCS...nope. They have been passed by other programs they used to dominate and are now nothing more than a paper tiger on the football field (last BSC title in '09) that has seen their inbred brethren surpass them in literally every sport and also "inferior" programs like the Hornets come into dominance on the gridiron. Their butthurt is at DEFCON level 1, and it's a glorious sight to behold. Their cries to "leave the BSC" for someplace "better", as if any FBS conference out there wants a fledgling liberal arts university with less than 10k enrollment and no media market, is the icing on the cake. :lol:
 
SDHornet said:
I wouldn't let that get to you. Every fanbase has their dbags...some more than others (looking at you ejizz). Long time Hornet fans (and posters) had to endure many years of suckitude and losing and that is the tradition most of these fanbases attribute with Hornet football so there is no surprise that they can't cope with a dominant Hornet program that has only lost 1 BSC game in the last 3 years.

That said, ejizzers have taken it the hardest. You have to keep in mind that the longtime Montucky fan enjoyed a dominant program with a long run of BSC titles and playoff runs. Then they had to endure seeing most of the other top FCS programs move up to FBS while they got left behind with "the little sisters of the poor", so they probably thought they would dominate FCS...nope. They have been passed by other programs they used to dominate and are now nothing more than a paper tiger on the football field (last BSC title in '09) that has seen their inbred brethren surpass them in literally every sport and also "inferior" programs like the Hornets come into dominance on the gridiron. Their butthurt is at DEFCON level 1, and it's a glorious sight to behold. Their cries to "leave the BSC" for someplace "better", as if any FBS conference out there wants a fledgling liberal arts university with less than 10k enrollment and no media market, is the icing on the cake. :lol:
Click to expand...

I don’t. Nothing is gonna gonna derail my enjoyment of the rise of this program. I just think it’s noteworthy and hilarious.

I’m not typically one to go to opposing teams boards to post. I’ll check them out sometimes during a week when the Hornets play that team, but almost never sign up and post. Because I don’t get carried away with it. I just like reading the thoughtful, objective posts and laugh at the ridiculous ones,.

E-Griz is the only board I’ve actually signed up for and posted at over the years, and that’s really only because their board is super active and they do have a decent base of knowledgeable and semi-objective fans. But they surely have some super biased nut balls too. It’s hella fun to read their meltdowns.

That said, all the other Big Sky fanbases that don’t have the tradition of Montana or EW mocking the Hornets program as if they are somehow above it never ceases to amuse.
 
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