Observations from the sideline: Cincinnati

[PonyPride]

Observations from the sideline: Cincinnati
Check out some of the storylines in the Mustangs' loss to Cincinnati

Shall we get the obvious out of the way? There were plenty of reasons for the Mustangs' first loss of the season, which dropped them to 5-1: dropped passes ... a missed field goal ... the clock mismanagement at the end of the first half that allowed more than 20 seconds to count off, forcing a field goal instead of even one shot into the end zone ... just 75 rushing yards ... a kickoff that went out of bounds ... the team will have plenty about which to talk during film review.

On to Navy.

• Speaking of dropped passes: I counted four for TE Kylen Granson, which makes no sense because if he doesn't have the best hands on the team, he's very near the top of the list. As a rule, get the ball near him and he'll catch it. Can he miss one? Sure, anyone can. But what we saw Saturday against Cincinnati was completely atypical for Granson ... but there is a reason: only in the fourth quarter did I realize he played with some kind of brace on his left wrist. The biggest part seemed to be on the back of his wrist, like some kind of overgrown watch, so if nothing else, maybe it affected his ability to flex the wrist, as ... say ... would be done when flexing the hands while reaching toward a pass.

Is that the only reason? Not sure. On the other hand, how cool is it to have a tight end catch four passes for a team-leading 68 yards and think "that was an off night"?

• On Cincinnati's first drive, the Bearcats were granted an injury timeout ... which they did not deserve. While covering SMU's Tyler Page on a crossing route, Cincinnati defensive back Arquon Bush ran out of one of his shoes. He picked it up and headed for the sideline, but seeing that the Mustangs were lining up to run another play, meaning he never would make it to the sideline, he sat down. Bush was no more injured than I was, but he scored the Bearcats what amounted to an uncharged timeout. Frustrating if you're SMU, but every sport has ways of buying extra time.

• To me, the best player, or at least one of the best, was defensive tackle Elijah Chatman. He's listed with five tackles, two of which were tackles for loss — I thought it was more than two, but if not, give him two more right at the line of scrimmage. On a night when SMU failed to sack Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder at all, Chatman offered by far the most penetration into the Bearcats' backfield. The way in which he made the tackles was equally impressive. Twice, Chatman (who at his listed 6 feet and 272 is considered a little undersized for a defensive tackle) shot through Cincinnati's huge offensive line and swallowed up the ball carrier and slammed him to the turf — I don't know if he wrestled in high school, but he looked like it. Another time, the runner (Ridder, if memory serves) was running laterally past Chatman, who reached out with one hand and yanked him to the ground while being blatantly held by the offensive lineman. Chatman has a reputation as an intense weightlifter, but those plays didn't show just the ability to move a pile of iron, but exceptional hand strength, as well. At the beginning of the season, head coach Sonny Dykes raved about Chatman, calling him the Mustangs' most improved lineman from a year ago. Saturday was Chatman's best performance as a Mustang.

• Danny Gray's injury was significant, including to the comeback effort. When he and cornerback Ahmad Gardner went up for a bar on the left sideline and crashed to the ground, it took a toll on both of them — Gardner got up limping, favoring what looked like a knee but stayed in the game. Gray stayed down for a few minutes, and when helped up by the training staff, headed straight to the locker room. After the game, Sonny Dykes said what coaches are supposed to say, about how football is a physical sport and any time someone goes down is an opportunity for someone else to step up and perform, but obviously any comeback effort will be hampered by the loss of a top receiver, especially one with Gray's speed. Maybe the most notable result was that Gray emerged from the locker room, still in uniform. I don't talk to players about injuries, but when a fan in one of the front rows yelled something to him about whether he was OK, Gray nodded that he was. He had a bag of ice on his hand or wrist, but shortly thereafter tore it off and tried to catch some passes on the sideline. He ended up not coming back in, but the fact that he wanted to try to play through it was an indication of his toughness and competitiveness.

• With 11:58 to go, the Mustangs trailed by 18 and kicked a field goal. Based on the reaction from the crowd, many of the fans did not agree with the decision to go for three points. It was an unpopular call, but it was the right call. With the methodical, run-first approach of the Cincinnati offense and its big offensive line, a failed shot at the end zone would have effectively ended the game right then — even if the Bearcats didn't score again, they could have chewed up more clock. Against a pass-happy team, the philosophy might have been different, but against Cincinnati, it was absolutely the right decision. As it turns out, it didn't matter as the game got away late, so it was a moot point, but the decision to send Chris Naggar out for a field goal made it a two-possession game at the time, and was the right call.

• Those who watched the Facebook Live pre-game show (an hour before home games) heard the discussion about how Dykes often talks about "the process" through which every team has to go — learning the right way to practice, the way to prepare for games, to play, learning to win, learning to win on the road, learning to win even when not mustering a top performance, etc. Saturday's game marked another step in the process — learning to handle the moment and knock off a top opponent — and one that remains unchecked on the list of steps. But another is response. Dykes often refers to seeing how his team will respond, the need to put a game in the rear-view mirror and get ready for the next.

That is especially challenging this week, after the Ponies' first loss of the season and the lopsided margin, but dwelling on this game would be dangerous. Navy, with its unorthodox option offense, awaits. The Midshipmen are hard enough to prepare for under any circumstances, so it is critical that the Mustangs review the Cincinnati game and move on to the next.

[Charleston Pony]

• With 11:58 to go, the Mustangs trailed by 18 and kicked a field goal. Based on the reaction from the crowd, many of the fans did not agree with the decision to go for three points. It was an unpopular call, but it was the right call. With the methodical, run-first approach of the Cincinnati offense and its big offensive line, a failed shot at the end zone would have effectively ended the game right then — even if the Bearcats didn't score again, they could have chewed up more clock. Against a pass-happy team, the philosophy might have been different, but against Cincinnati, it was absolutely the right decision. As it turns out, it didn't matter as the game got away late, so it was a moot point, but the decision to send Chris Naggar out for a field goal made it a two-possession game at the time, and was the right call.

I agree it was the right call at the time because we still had to overcome a 3 score lead...but I also couldn't help think about was how we botched the end of the 1st half and what might have been.

[JasonB]

• With 11:58 to go, the Mustangs trailed by 18 and kicked a field goal. Based on the reaction from the crowd, many of the fans did not agree with the decision to go for three points. It was an unpopular call, but it was the right call. With the methodical, run-first approach of the Cincinnati offense and its big offensive line, a failed shot at the end zone would have effectively ended the game right then — even if the Bearcats didn't score again, they could have chewed up more clock. Against a pass-happy team, the philosophy might have been different, but against Cincinnati, it was absolutely the right decision. As it turns out, it didn't matter as the game got away late, so it was a moot point, but the decision to send Chris Naggar out for a field goal made it a two-possession game at the time, and was the right call.

I agree it was the right call at the time because we still had to overcome a 3 score lead...but I also couldn't help think about was how we botched the end of the 1st half and what might have been.

The third down call was the problem. You can't do a zone read on third and long unless you are intending to go for it on fourth. Should have passed it on third.

[TidePony]

Correct ^^^

[PonyPride]

Two other things:

Sonny Dykes has made a point since he has been at SMU that he wants bigger players on the offensive line, and the Mustangs' recruiting has reflected that philosophy. But a gap remains. SMU isn't as big on the defensive front as last year, and Cincinnati's offensive line is huge. Four of the five starters are 6-4 or taller, including 6-7 tackle Darius Harper, and they could get bigger — their backups include 6-8, 278-pound freshman Cam Jones and 6-9, 335-pound sophomore Lorenz Metz. Cincinnati's basketball team only has three players taller than that.

The other thing that should have been mentioned in the first post was the speed of the Bearcats' front seven, particularly defensive end Myjai Sanders, who looked like a sprinter coming out of starter's blocks all night. At one point, he got around the corner and was chasing the ball carrier — and closing — when someone in a Cincinnati jacket looked at me and said "he does that to everyone. Dude is an absolute freak of nature." The Mustangs had a little better luck keeping Shane Buechele in one piece when leaving a running back or tight end in to help with protection.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Cincinnati's offensive line is huge. Four of the five starters are 6-4 or taller, including 6-7 tackle Darius Harper, and they could get bigger — their backups include 6-8, 278-pound freshman Cam Jones and 6-9, 335-pound sophomore Lorenz Metz. Cincinnati's basketball team only has three players taller than that.

That is insane!!

[ALEX LIFESON]

Cincinnati's offensive line is huge. Four of the five starters are 6-4 or taller, including 6-7 tackle Darius Harper, and they could get bigger — their backups include 6-8, 278-pound freshman Cam Jones and 6-9, 335-pound sophomore Lorenz Metz. Cincinnati's basketball team only has three players taller than that.

That is insane!!

I was on the 4th row behind Cincy's bench. Even before kickoff, I could see that they were bigger, stronger, faster, more athletic........everywhere.