Observations - It's more than the Coach and/or the Players

[Statler]

Just got back from Tulsa - stayed until the very end.

Facts:

1. Letter to the Daily Campus implying that the SMU fans don't deserve this team.
2. USM game - team plays flat. Players are making stupid fouls. Teammates are yelling at each other.
3. Player(s) get suspended for the Tulsa game.
4. Team flat again. Play uninspired.

===Subplot. Very interesting that team runs to the locker room and does not stay to hear Varsity played by M Band after the game. Player family members commenting, "has the team ever done that before?"

I don't know what it is, but there is something else going on with this team. For those of who think Tulsa had better athletes. Sorry, the folks with football knowledge at the game all commented that we were bigger, stronger, faster.

The Tulane game will tell a lot. If we just squeek by or deity forbid we lose, then we will know that "Houston, we have a problem."

[Get_Some_Ponies]

Who was suspended and why?

[goldenstang]

Taylor Reed. I am not sure why, maybe has something to do with him going insane last week.

[HorsePower]

The players were embarrassed and split. Should they have left? No, probably not, but that's the least of what went wrong today.

Whatever was wrong, hopefully they left it all up there north of the Red River.

[Gotcha]

Wasn't some obnoxious fans screaming obscenities at the players and coaches at the end of the game??? Maybe that's why they split...Dunno...

[GRGB]

Taylor Reed. I am not sure why, maybe has something to do with him going insane last week.

He late hit a usm player out of bounds uncalled for hit

[DiamondM75]

Let's blame the geldings.

[Gotcha]

Taylor Reed. I am not sure why, maybe has something to do with him going insane last week.

He late hit a usm player out of bounds uncalled for hit

More than that. It started several games earlier. Remember TCU fight? Reed needed to be suspended. He was out of control....

[smoosmoo]

I don't know what it is, but there is something else going on with this team. For those of who think Tulsa had better athletes. Sorry, the folks with football knowledge at the game all commented that we were bigger, stronger, faster.

This is a really bad case of denial. Bigger? Not true. Tulsa's o-line and d-line are just about as big and much more experienced than ours (5 lbs doesn't mean anything if the lighter guy has better technique &/or more experience). They have 10 guys they can rotate in at o-line with very little drop in performance. We have 8 guys and a big drop after that.

Their d-line overpowered our o-line all day and forced JJ to make quick (& bad) decisions all day. For every sack, there were 3 or 4 near misses.

Their o-line ran right at our d-line's throat and dominated. They thought so "highly" of us they practically abandoned their spread offense, lining up at "Power I" formation. Even when we knew they were running it, they still made first downs. The closest we got to doing anything right (forcing a 4th & goal on 1), they just lined up again and hit the opposite gap and scored.

Depth charts (not 100% on but good reference anyway):
http://smu.rivals.com/cdepthtext.asp
http://tulsa.rivals.com/cdepthtext.asp

Faster? I don't know which game you were watching but I saw their huge H-back outrun anyone we put on him (LB, CB, Safety) and get wide open again and again. I saw their QB running at will juking would-be tacklers for first downs and extra yardage on busted plays (who apparently hadn't run well all season, hampered by injury).

They had like a dozen RBs who all ran well - a big power guy and several other fast guys who were able to run and make screens at will against our "bigger, faster" defense without even throwing vertical for most of the game. TU didn't even throw down the field except for a couple "dart" passes. They are usually a deep passing team. They out-manned us with basic short plays. They had no need to risk throwing deep (it was really windy!!).

I saw their crazy CB push our WRs around and jump routs, intercepting 3 passes in the first half! I saw their athletic d-line ruining every passing play and completely shutting down Zach Line for the first half. Sure he had some yards in the 3rd Q but it was too little too late and it was more them playing back (to not give up big plays) then us stepping up. That really worked out for us, huh? On one drive, we got to 4th down 3 times and another 3rd and 17... It took over 7 minutes and ended with them making a goal-line stop. So zero points, just like the "mercy drive" at the end which was picked off.


SMU has been decent for 2 seasons, and hopefully this is the 3rd. Tulsa has been decent going back to 2003 (they had 2 rough seasons, but if we consider "7-7" decent they have far exceeded that most years). Tulsa was like 10-3 and top-25 last year (we are lucky we beat them 21-18 at home) and if you paid attention to C-USA, you'd know they won 10+ games a bunch of years. They have been one of the top "teams to beat" like Houston. We always played them well, even when they were undefeated and ranked one year. Now they crushed us.

[SMUstang]

I don't know what it is, but there is something else going on with this team. For those of who think Tulsa had better athletes. Sorry, the folks with football knowledge at the game all commented that we were bigger, stronger, faster.

This is a really bad case of denial. Bigger? Not true. Tulsa's o-line and d-line are just about as big and much more experienced than ours (5 lbs doesn't mean anything if the lighter guy has better technique &/or more experience). They have 10 guys they can rotate in at o-line with very little drop in performance. We have 8 guys and a big drop after that.

Their d-line overpowered our o-line all day and forced JJ to make quick (& bad) decisions all day. For every sack, there were 3 or 4 near misses.

Their o-line ran right at our d-line's throat and dominated. They thought so "highly" of us they practically abandoned their spread offense, lining up at "Power I" formation. Even when we knew they were running it, they still made first downs. The closest we got to doing anything right (forcing a 4th & goal on 1), they just lined up again and hit the opposite gap and scored.

Depth charts (not 100% on but good reference anyway):
http://smu.rivals.com/cdepthtext.asp
http://tulsa.rivals.com/cdepthtext.asp

Faster? I don't know which game you were watching but I saw their huge H-back outrun anyone we put on him (LB, CB, Safety) and get wide open again and again. I saw their QB running at will juking would-be tacklers for first downs and extra yardage on busted plays (who apparently hadn't run well all season, hampered by injury).

They had like a dozen RBs who all ran well - a big power guy and several other fast guys who were able to run and make screens at will against our "bigger, faster" defense without even throwing vertical for most of the game. TU didn't even throw down the field except for a couple "dart" passes. They are usually a deep passing team. They out-manned us with basic short plays. They had no need to risk throwing deep (it was really windy!!).

I saw their crazy CB push our WRs around and jump routs, intercepting 3 passes in the first half! I saw their athletic d-line ruining every passing play and completely shutting down Zach Line for the first half. Sure he had some yards in the 3rd Q but it was too little too late and it was more them playing back (to not give up big plays) then us stepping up. That really worked out for us, huh? On one drive, we got to 4th down 3 times and another 3rd and 17... It took over 7 minutes and ended with them making a goal-line stop. So zero points, just like the "mercy drive" at the end which was picked off.


SMU has been decent for 2 seasons, and hopefully this is the 3rd. Tulsa has been decent going back to 2003 (they had 2 rough seasons, but if we consider "7-7" decent they have far exceeded that most years). Tulsa was like 10-3 and top-25 last year (we are lucky we beat them 21-18 at home) and if you paid attention to C-USA, you'd know they won 10+ games a bunch of years. They have been one of the top "teams to beat" like Houston. We always played them well, even when they were undefeated and ranked one year. Now they crushed us.

All right then, just call it poor preparation for the game.

[redpony]

I'm beginning to get the impression that the team is as divided as this board.

GO PONIES!!!

[Stallion]

Tulsa also outrecruited SMU in 4 out of the last 5 years according to Rivals. Of course Rivals doesn't take into account the several Division 1A transfers on either team but Kinne would be a big plus in that analysis. Too often SMU fans know a little bit about their own team and next to nothing about their opponent. Southern Miss had better Rivals recruiting class than SMU too in most years and especially in 2007, 2008 and 2009(the upperclassmen)

[FIVE-O-FAN]

I'm not arguing with the results, you are absolutely right. Just taking issue with the statement regarding experience. O line is one of the most experienced in the country and D-line has quite a few games under their belt as well.

[Dutch]

Wasn't some obnoxious fans screaming obscenities at the players and coaches at the end of the game??? Maybe that's why they split...Dunno...

he should probably be suspended too, huh.

[redpony]

Experience counts only when you show up and are ready to play. IMO if we would have played as well against USM as we did against TUwho and UCF we could have won that game, the same for Tulsa.
P!$$ poor efforts = P!ss poor results.

GO PONIES!!!