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Hello ponyfans. It sounds like the game is on, so I thought it might be a good idea to respond to some of the questions raised on the message boards about the cats.
First off, don't look for KSU to be terribly sharp in their first game. The offense REALLY struggled in the first game last season against Iowa. Early on in most seasons, the o relies on turnovers, special teams, and the d winning the field position battle to set up the offense with a short field.
Moreover, the cats will be breaking a new qb. The day the SMU-KSU game is played will be the first start for our qb. It will probably be Sophomore El Roberson, a guy who excels at running and needs to work on refining his passing skills. He is in a battle with newcomer Marc Dunn, a qb transfer who was the junior college player of the year in 2000. He is supposedly a very accurate passer, but no one really knows how he'll do against D-1 opponents.
On defense, our linebackers will be excellent. There will be 3 new starters among the defensive backs, and 3 new starters on the d-line. We will probably miss DT Mario Fatafehi the most as he tended to dominate even against the toughest opponents (could shut down the run).
On special teams, we have a brand new field goal kicker. Whoever wins the job will be untested. Also, our punter Travis Brown struggles to get the ball off quickly, so you might have a chance at blocking a punt. The bad news for SMU is that Aaron Lockett will likely be our punt returner and he is GOOD.
Our second game will be on September 8th at USC Trojans. You can see why KState so desperately wanted to get an early game in order to give their new qb a chance to get his feet wet in friendly Manhattan instead of on the road.
Visit kstatefans.com if you want to talk football with folks much more knowledgaeble than I am. It looks like you have a bunch of returning starters from a team that ambushed KU last year. I would expect a pretty close game for the first 2 and a half quarters while KSU struggles to find itself on offense and breaks in all the new starters on defense. If the players come together, they should pull away in the 4th quarter. If SMU comes up with some turnovers or or big special teams plays, look out. Can't wait to see you all in Manhattan.

How much depth do you guys have at O and D lines? That is what really takes the life out of us. Most big time teams we play are able to rotate 6-10 defensive linemen and that wears our small and shallow O-line down. We only have 3-4 D-linemen to rotate. Depth is what hurts us and for a big school like KSU, I don't think you all will have that problem.

Also, turnovers really kill us. We make many and get few.

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Go Red, Go Blue, Go Mustangs, S M U

Also, we will have a pretty new QB. Both of ours, Luker and Page, have had game experience, but neither have been a consistent starter. This will be the biggest game they have ever played in also.

Our kicking game is not very good and we have some freshmen coming in, so it could very well be a new starter. Sounds like we have some similarities, except the caliber of player you all are dealing with is most likely higher than ours.

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Go Red, Go Blue, Go Mustangs, S M U

We're not that deep but our talent level will be considerably higher than yours.

Look for our running game to be one of the best you will face all year and we really try to feature a balanced attack as much as possible. The QB is a question mark, but our WRs are excellent and our running backs are very solid.

You will not face a better special teams unit all year. It is a coach Snyder trademark, and it alone can beat you. Lockett will be All-American @ the punt return position and I'd be shocked if we don't run one back agianst you guys.

Good luck (you're going to need it) and I look forward to discussing football with you fellas the next few months.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by ashppurplehalfcat:
<B>We're not that deep but our talent level will be considerably higher than yours.

Look for our running game to be one of the best you will face all year and we really try to feature a balanced attack as much as possible. The QB is a question mark, but our WRs are excellent and our running backs are very solid.

You will not face a better special teams unit all year. It is a coach Snyder trademark, and it alone can beat you. Lockett will be All-American @ the punt return position and I'd be shocked if we don't run one back agianst you guys.

Good luck (you're going to need it) and I look forward to discussing football with you fellas the next few months. </B></font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

A good note for us, we handle running games very well, at least until our defense fatigues due to being on the field 90% of the time. TCU last year was a great example. Tomlinson could do nothing in the first quarter and a half. We had TCU shut down, but our defense quickly buckled because they had been on the field for 21 out of the first 26 minutes.

Our special teams still needs work but it seems to have improved a little. Would not be surprised if you all run one back for a TD, I just hope it is at the end of the game so fewer people are watching.

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Go Red, Go Blue, Go Mustangs, S M U

It will be hot as hades also.

We have a pretty deep oline, and it is experienced. 9 of our offensive starters will be seniors. I agree that the SMU d will probably start strong, but wear down by the 3rd quarter. (That sounds exactly like KSU 12 or so years ago when Snyder just started building up the program.)

The d-line depth is a question mark. The starting DTs will include a guy (Robinson)who who earned a starting spot last year and is very solid but not dominating. The other guy is a senior juco transfer Togiai who didn't play much last year, but came on toward the end and rotated in during the Big 12 championship game and the bowlgame. Backups will be inexperienced.
The ends will be junior Melvin Williams (never started before) and probably new juco transfer Henry Bryant, who is supposed to be a speed guy. Backups at this spot will also be inexperienced.

What kind of offensive scheme does SMU use? Who are your best offensive players and what are their strengths?
Thanks.


[This message has been edited by KSU Cat (edited 06-18-2001).]

Well, our offensive coordinator was at Southern Miss with Moss. When he came in during his first spring we thought we were going to be seeing a variety of formations and motions with a strong passing game to many of our receivers (the strength of the team). What we saw last year was nothing like what he presented in the spring. We saw the typical Cavan run the ball all game to Kris Briggs, our RB, and that does not work. First of all our line is small and lacks power needed to effectively run the ball all game.

It is hard to say what we will run, but I will put my money on the original, ineffective Kris Briggs trying to pound the ball on the ground type thing, unless Luker or Page (the two QB's fighting for the starting role) have a great two a days and then we might see a lot more concentration on passing.

Bottom line...Our offensive line is not as strong as it could be to effectively run any offense. If we pass the QB will be throwing from his heels and if we run the running backs have little blocking so they have to create for themselves. We have VERY VERY little depth at offensive line so if we have any Fall Camp injuries we will be in a lot more trouble than we already are.

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Go Ponies!