"Reys" of sunshine

[Pollyanna]

After throwing all the dishes, breaking the furniture and kicking the cat, despite last night's abysmal performance, I think there are at least a few positives we can take out of the SJSU loss.

First, as the announcers pointed out, we're one of the youngest teams in NCAA football.

On the offensive side, we saw what I hope is merely the first glance at (finally) a big, possession receiver in Ray Pellerin, the true freshman from Houston Westfield. Bartel threw some good passes and some ones I bet he wised he had back, but he'll either come into his own as a junior and senior (as expected) or Chris Phillips is waiting in the wings. Also, as good as KK has been over the years, in all likelihood, he might not even be among the top 3 RBs on the team talent-wise. My only concern on the offense going forward is finding the heir apparent to Sterling and Steve.

On the defensive side, we're certainly going to miss our trio of fine linebackers next year – they're the only unit that played really well last night. But on the other hand, the old man of the offensive line (Melvin) will only be a senior next year. The rest of the starters will be sophomores and juniors, which is going to help immensely. We're going to lose Moodley and the great Jonus Rutledge next year, but candidly, I'm going to miss JR a lot more on kickoff returns than I am in the secondary – and I think we may have the makings of a devastating return man in Blake Warren. As for the rest of the secondary, Godfrey and Harris will return for their senior years, hopefully back 100%. And as for the rest, they're all very young and can only improve with strength and experience.

I'm not ready to throw in the towel yet, but then again, I'm Pollyanna.

[SMU4u2000]

Just curious -
Did the trio of fine linebackers (who are definitely workhorses) force at least one fumble or sack against a "fine" SJSU offense?

[KnuckleStang]

A thrill to meet you, Pollyanna. I loved your work in "The Parent Trap." And "That Dam Cat" wasn't too shabby either.

[FloridaMustang]

OUR LBs are honestly nothing to get excited about. The STILL miss assignments. They're all too slow. When the freshmen get out there, I'll be able to accept the missed assignments because they're going to be better football players.

[Nacho]

Sounds like you've already got your excuses for next year ready. Good preparation.

[Corso]

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
....First, as the announcers pointed out, we're one of the youngest teams in NCAA football.

Which is something that we can not forget! We need to remember in a couple years when these kids grow up and we're enjoying more success.

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
.... On the offensive side, we saw what I hope is merely the first glance at (finally) a big, possession receiver in Ray Pellerin, the true freshman from Houston Westfield.

That was a great catch by Pellerin, and he used every inch of his 6'3" frame to reach it. There will be more of those in the future - looked like a guy who knows how to take advantage of his size.

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
.... Bartel threw some good passes and some ones I bet he wised he had back, but he'll either come into his own as a junior and senior (as expected) or Chris Phillips is waiting in the wings.

I still go back to Bartel's mechanics. On the touchdown pass to Pellerin, he stepped into his throw and came over the top with the ball. We all know he has a strong arm, but he used his form and his legs to generate good velocity on the ball. Even on the long touchdown pass to Derron Brown, he was running to his right but still threw over the top. Had he side-armed it, like he has sometimes this year, it would (or could) have been swatted down. When he's sharp with his mechanics, he has a sensational arm. But he short-hopped some passes to receivers in the flat - and replays showed his arm coming around the side, with the ball never getting as high as his helmet. Unless you're Brett Favre or John Elway, those passes aren't going to be complete very often.

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
.... Also, as good as KK has been over the years, in all likelihood, he might not even be among the top 3 RBs on the team talent-wise. My only concern on the offense going forward is finding the heir apparent to Sterling and Steve.

That is a problem - I'm not sure what they'll do on the offensive line. I hear the center next year could well be Bryan Turner, and I think that should work out OK. He's not huge, but he has good footwork and technique - he'll get better as he gets stronger. I suspect the tackles next year will be Kieschnick and Darrin Johnson. The question is, do you try to choose which side they play on based on their own comfort level, or do you play Johnson on the QB's blind side because he has better size? If that's the case, one quarterback needs to solidify his claim on the QB spot - if (lefty) Chris Phillips is in and out of the lineup, then you have the tackles switching sides, which leaves you with no consistency.

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
.... On the defensive side, we're certainly going to miss our trio of fine linebackers next year....

The senior LBs have been very good, but I keep hearing good things about Reggie Carrington, and the freshmen are supposedly getting better every day in practice. Zach Hall will be a nice backup for D.D. Lee next year, and Avery Cleveland and Cory Muse are so fast for LBs -- the kind of fast that Stallion will appreciate.

Originally posted by Pollyanna:
.... .... We're going to lose Moodley and the great Jonus Rutledge next year, but candidly, I'm going to miss JR a lot more on kickoff returns than I am in the secondary – and I think we may have the makings of a devastating return man in Blake Warren....

That's true, but Warren returns kickoffs, and Rutldge returns punts. Can Warren do both? I think it is easier for a punt returner to take on kickoff return duty, rather than vice versa. I'll miss Jonas Rutledge on special teams and in the secondary - time for the young guys like Fred Turner and Ervin McGee and C.D. Moss to step up. And thank goodness we'll have a slightly seasoned Charles Akinyemi stepping in. He's small, but he can play.

[PerunaPunch]

I think you're backwards Corso. Warren gets punts, JR kickoffs.

[Corso]

Right - that's what I meant! (oops....)

[GoRedGoBlue]

The currently redshirted LBs are better than our starters, talent-wise. There shouldn't be much drop off there.

The key on D is those two true freshman Linemen, who are obviously not in NCAA shape. After a year of conditioning, they will be better prepared and can better spell Adami next year. Hopefully the ends will gain a few more pounds and retain their speed as well.

The Safety position looks good, I don't know about the corners at all, looks like Bennett is going to use athletic people and make them INTO CBs (Barnett). He may have done that with the CBs are KSU, I dunno.

[PerunaPunch]

Unfortuantely, I think all our safeties are dinged up to some degree or another. In any scenario, that position improves when we get Harris and Godfrey back, a year of strength training and conditioning in Sturdivant, etc.

[Corso]

The injuries to Rico Harris and Chris Godfrey show how precarious the secondary can be, since mistakes back there can be so glaring. We desperately need those two back at full strength, but I think we need to add at least one, maybe two in February.

Randy Duncan (of Mesquite): are you reading this? You need to be a Mustang!