San Diego

[VU2624]

....and we're on to San Diego.

San Diego coming off a bye.

Marist beats Sacred Heart.

Why does this worry me?

[usc4valpo]

Will Ron Burgandy and the channel news 4 San Diego team be broadcasting the game?

[VULB#62]

Attached are the Sagarin results through this past weekend.  I've added color coding for upturns and downturns in rating/score movement.  You'll note that some teams can drop in score but rise in ratings and vice-versa.

Also below are the PFL scores as well. (Bold are PFL teams/  Underscored are 2015 opponents)  [CLICK TO INCREASE SIZE]

Dayton 24, Duquesne 13
Valparaiso 86, College of Faith (Ark.) 0 Bye   
South Dakota 52, Drake 0
Marist 34, Sacred Heart 27     
Morehead State 28, Kentucky Christian 0
Butler 41, Taylor 10
Presbyterian 23, Campbell 13
USD Bye
Stetson Bye
Davidson Bye
Jacksonville Bye

[covufan]

If we end up on the positive side of turnovers, we might have a chance in the fourth quarter. 

Valpo  24

USD    31

[VULB#62]

USD's record is 1-1

San Diego State (FBS)  37    USD  3

USD  45  Western NM (D-II  - Rocky Mountain Ath. Conf.)  21

From the USD website:

(San Diego, Calif.) -- The USD Toreros (1-1) opened their home schedule with a convincing 45-21 victory over an athletic Western New Mexico University squad. The win improves USD's mark against the Mustangs to 5-0, but also ends a string of three games that were decided by seven points or less. USD heads into a bye week before opening up PFL play at Valparaiso on September 26th.

Redshirt freshman QB Anthony Lawrence made the most of his first collegiate start by completing 20-of-34 passes for 254 yards and four touchdowns. His main target on the night was tight end Ross Dwelley who hauled in 10 balls for 123 yards and one score. Brian Riley caught five balls for 115 yards with touchdown receptions of 37 and 38 yards.

USD also had a balanced ground attack with Jereke Armstrong rushing for a career-best 109 yards on 14 carries. He found the end zone twice on runs of 24 yards (1st quarter) and 54 yards (4th quarter). Running mate Blake Martin turned in a solid performance as well with 70 yards on 13 carries. USD's other scoring came on a Justin Priest 13-yard touchdown reception from Lawrence early in the fourth period, and a 27-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Daniel McManus right before halftime.

"We were okay for a while but hit a little bit of a rut in the third quarter," said head coach Dale Lindsey. "Fortunately for us our defense did enough to keep them (WNMU) out of the end zone. Overall I thought we had better improvement, but they are a hard team to play, especially when they get out in space. They are always tough and fight you all the way to the very wire. Moving forward we are going to continue to improve our running game, and heading into the bye week we'll look to improve on a lot of little things."

Defensively the Toreros were led on the outside by cornerbacks Devyn Bryant (2 interceptions, 1 breakup, 3 stops) and Jamal Agnew (1 interception, 1 breakup, 4 stops). Sophomore DE Jonathan Petersen seemed to be everywhere as he finished with 6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and 2 quarterback hurries. On the other end, Joe Nomellini knocked down two passes, recovered a fumble and recorded the team's lone sack. Safety Ray Clark totaled a team best 7 stops, while Colton Giorgi chipped in with 5 stops.

WNMU (1-1) was paced by QB Mitch Glasmann (22-49 for 297 yards, 2 TDs), RB Marqus Rodgers (18 carries for 74 yards, 1 TD), and WR Xavier Ayers (9 receptions for 132 yards). USD led 24-7 at the halftime break, and extended their lead to 45-14 midway through the final period, before the Mustangs scored one last time on a Larry Young 12-yard reception from Glasmann.

For the game USD totaled 459 yards of offense (186 rush, 273 pass), but more importantly, had just one turnover.

STATS
Team Totals   WNMU   USD
First Downs        19      22
Net Yards Rushing   87      186
Net Yards Passing   305      273
Total Offense Yards   392      459
Fumbles: Number-Lost   3 - 1      0 - 0
Penalties: Number-Yards   4 - 37   6 - 72
Punts - Yards        5 - 165   5 - 167
Possession Time          26:33   33:27
Third-Down Conversions     3 of 15 (0.200)   8 of 16 (0.500)
Fourth-Down Conversions       2 of 2 (1.000)   1 of 1 (1.000)
Sacks By: Number-Yards      1-9   1-2
Field Goals           0-1 (0.000)   1-1 (1.000)

USD BOTOM LINE -- USD can score in the air,  but is also vulnerable through the air.

[VULB#62]

Watch the USD Preview   

http://www.valpoathletics.com/football/news/2015-16/14864/valpo-football-preview-week-4/#.VgCRDLS4ko8

[valpotx]

San Diego 35
Valpo 17

[usc4valpo]

USD 49
Valpo 6

[VU2624]

I hope coach was just giving us the coachspeak when he said something to the effect of "when we started looking at San Diego this week...." and that nary a minute was spent preparing for COF when an extra week for San Diego might have been in order.

[VULB#62]

They do have last year's VU tape of the game out in San Diego, so they could break down some general frequencies and tendencies -- the O and the D will probably be basically the same, except there will be personnel changes that might impact the play selection and defenses called.  But USD is not required to supply any tape until after the game on the Saturday before the Saturday we play.  Even though they had a bye, I don't think they would have given us 2 weeks to prepare.  So the staff really could't "look" at this USD team until this past Sunday.  Once they received the tape (probably an electronic feed of some type and downloaded) they'll compare last year's scouting report with the new info and come up with a game plan based on the new strengths and weaknesses that showed in this year's edition of USD.

The biggest prep for USD was getting the team's collective head straight and working on execution and the elimination of mistakes.  They pretty much did that and did it without losing anyone to injury that I know of.  I was interested in Coach's comment about Brandon.  He said he was cleared; he said he was running; but he also said "we'll see" regarding whether he will play or not.  They are being cautious about that concussion -- and rightly so.

So, Alex Green is coming back after sitting out COF, and it will be either Ryan or Dalton who starts at QB, the game determining whether we see just one of them or both.  We are pretty much at 100%.  Let's see if our kids come to play 60 minutes of tough football.  I have faith that they will.

[vu72]

They do have last year's VU tape of the game out in San Diego, so they could break down some general frequencies and tendencies -- the O and the D will probably be basically the same, except there will be personnel changes that might impact the play selection and defenses called.  But USD is not required to supply any tape until after the game on the Saturday before the Saturday we play.  Even though they had a bye, I don't think they would have given us 2 weeks to prepare.  So the staff really could't "look" at this USD team until this past Sunday.  Once they received the tape (probably an electronic feed of some type and downloaded) they'll compare last year's scouting report with the new info and come up with a game plan based on the new strengths and weaknesses that showed in this year's edition of USD.

The biggest prep for USD was getting the team's collective head straight and working on execution and the elimination of mistakes.  They pretty much did that and did it without losing anyone to injury that I know of.  I was interested in Coach's comment about Brandon.  He said he was cleared; he said he was running; but he also said "we'll see" regarding whether he will play or not.  They are being cautious about that concussion -- and rightly so.

So, Alex Green is coming back after sitting out COF, and it will be either Ryan or Dalton who starts at QB, the game determining whether we see just one of them or both.  We are pretty much at 100%.  Let's see if our kids come to play 60 minutes of tough football.  I have faith that they will.

They better!  I'm coming all the way from Dallas to see the game!!   

[VULB#62]

See you at the FB Alumni hospitality tent?

[vu72]

See you at the FB Alumni hospitality tent?

I'll be there!

[VULB#62]

From the Valpo Athletic Twitter page.  This year, it might be just a bit closer in score but with us unfortunately on the short end 

[tweet]647056787716313088[/tweet]

[VULB#62]

The pre-game release is out.  RE: The 2-deep, some observations:

OFFENSE
Jake/Brandon are the  #1 RBs. Grayson is #3/
QBs are  Ryan (Soph)/Dalton (Frosh) -- I think Ryan will start.
Freshman Mason Sutter is the #1 TE; Jr. Aaron Brunner is #2
Our starting OL is: Soph, Soph, Sr, Soph, Sr..
WR: Soph, Soph
Defense
5 Senior starters, 3 juniors, 2 sophs,  1 Freshman (S-Joey Diaz-Martinez)

Are we young or what?    The spread on D is what you might expect in a regular, healthy program.  However, on O, whoa!.  We have a lot to look forward to over the next couple of years.  But, right now, we could use a Dave Lass or a David Macchi to pull it all together.  Both could pass but they ran so well too.  They were bold and they each exuded leadership.

Ah, but the immediate big question is can these youngsters bring it to USD on Saturday? On Brown Field. For 60 minutes. On Saturday.  Stay tuned Crusader fans.

Side note:  In going back to the records I noticed that Eric Hoffman is in the same conversation with those two all-time greats record-wise.  Too bad he led teams that, with the exception of his passing, were nowhere close to the caliber that Lass and Macchi had behind them.  And BTW Ben Lehman is #4 all-time in total offense for a season.   Sorry, but I wound up loving Ben at QB last year - wish he was back for one more year  He was a left over, second string QB from the Carlson era.  He learned an entirely new offense in less than a year.  And he wound up leading the team to 4 wins, only got sacked TWICE (I believe), and amassed 2477 yards of total offense in just his first season as a starter.

[VU2624]

Ben was great considering the circumstances. Started off slowly but was a very efficient player the second half of the season. Another year for him would have been great for the program.

[VULB#62]

Here's a nice article by Paul Oren about 5th year senior and Captain Nate Koeneman leading into the USD game.

http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/college/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-fifth-year-senior-looking-to-leave-football-program-in/article_18c04478-30eb-5e94-bc36-93a0b0879932.html

[VULB#62]

The returning kids know they hung with USD and should have won last year.  Ever the optimist, I'm thinking they will stay with USD and not back down. However, we are still so young and so inexperienced at QB.  So.....   In a well played game USD earns this one 35-24. 

How we play in this game is key to going into Davidson and getting a PFL win next week. 

[VU2624]

The offense will have to surprise me in order for Valpo to be competitive in this game. Dink and dunk won't work on a consistent basis although the offense might move the ball for a few first downs each drive. If they can get over the top a few times, they might get something done. San Diego is going to score so Valpo has to keep up with them.

ESPN3 12:30

[bbtds]

Will Ron Burgandy and the channel news 4 San Diego team be broadcasting the game?

No. Worse. ESPN3. Just kidding!

[bbtds]

They do have last year's VU tape of the game out in San Diego, so they could break down some general frequencies and tendencies -- the O and the D will probably be basically the same, except there will be personnel changes that might impact the play selection and defenses called.  But USD is not required to supply any tape until after the game on the Saturday before the Saturday we play.  Even though they had a bye, I don't think they would have given us 2 weeks to prepare.  So the staff really could't "look" at this USD team until this past Sunday.  Once they received the tape (probably an electronic feed of some type and downloaded) they'll compare last year's scouting report with the new info and come up with a game plan based on the new strengths and weaknesses that showed in this year's edition of USD.

The biggest prep for USD was getting the team's collective head straight and working on execution and the elimination of mistakes.  They pretty much did that and did it without losing anyone to injury that I know of.  I was interested in Coach's comment about Brandon.  He said he was cleared; he said he was running; but he also said "we'll see" regarding whether he will play or not.  They are being cautious about that concussion -- and rightly so.

So, Alex Green is coming back after sitting out COF, and it will be either Ryan or Dalton who starts at QB, the game determining whether we see just one of them or both.  We are pretty much at 100%.  Let's see if our kids come to play 60 minutes of tough football.  I have faith that they will.

They better!  I'm coming all the way from Dallas to see the game!!   

I pray that you bring the huge upset to Valpo. 

USD   35
Valpo  36



GO VU!!!!!

[usc4valpo]

I believe in the power of prayer, but I think the Toreros had a clearer connection to the almighty today, especially after 2 PM when they went to work. The baby Crusaders are having a great learning opportunity.

[VULB#62]

Observations from the VIP tent in the east end zone and the stands.

Advancement and the Athletic Department/Crusader Club got special permission from the President's Council for a really nice entertainment venue for donors and Crusader Club members in the east end zone complete with great food and beer and wine - yes, this is not a typo. VERY nice program and great atmosphere to congregate with a lot of major donors, many of whom, just knew that Valpo had a football program.  These guests were 10 yards away from the end zone and were right on top of the Valpo squad as it warmed up at the beginning of the game. The goal was to involve these donors more in the football program.  Everyone I talked there said this was a wonderful experience and that this sort of thing needed to be continued and expanded.

Now about the game.  It was a game of two halves (duh, of course) in the sense of how Valpo played.  We played super the first 1½ quarters: an opening defensive 3-and-out and 2 picks in the half says it all. Going up 3-0 early on was huge.  But it was also a hint at what would come later. Over the rest of the game, the offense could not sustain drives, the QB play was erratic and passing was not precise/accurate. In his post game, Coach Cecchini mentioned the lack of a running attack. That too, but the ineffectiveness of the passing game allowed USD, IMO, to take away the running game.  They just teed off and came.  A good case in point in the first quarter, in USD territory, the TE slipped down the seam and was wide open over the middle at about 15 yards out -- overthrown, and instead of a sure TD, we make the FG or get no points (don't remember the sequence). Had we been more successful at that kind of thing, the pass would have to be honored and maybe that running game becomes more successful.  Another reflection of our current situation is that on our final drive of the game with 1st and Goal at the four we could not convert and settled for the FG.

My other observation was that, maybe with the exception of the 1st quarter, USD began most, if not all, their drives around mid-field or better. USD is very talented team (good, fast  RBs, more than adequate young QB, big O and D Lines and taller, fast DBs  - BTW they have a freshman from Illinois, #99, who is a defensive end and TE and goes 6-8, 315 lbs and scored their final TD).  Even casual fans near me commented at how our D-Line was just overwhelmed at times.  You can't give a good team like USD such great field position over and over.  Some of those were due to our short punts, going on 4th and short and not making it by 6", or on one occasion when our senior punter, who did poorly on his return to the lineup, was replaced by the freshman kicker, he out-kicked the coverage with a really good punt that resulted in a good runback to mid-field.

In summary, we showed that we are potentially ½-way there by most (not all) of our play in the first half.  The kids, if they can recapture that attitude and speed of play against Davidson over 60 minutes, will earn a win.  BUT, we need more consistent QB play in order to sustain drives, give the D more time off the field, and gain better field position throughout the game. Of course all phases need to continually improve and that, unfortunately, will be a slower process than any of us, or even the team, would want, but Davidson, coming when it does, gives us a equal opportunity moment to go nose to nose in a competitive game.

[FloridaFootball]

Last years Valpo team would have beaten this years San Diego squad. Revenge would have been the big motivator, plus experienced players. Valpo lost 25 seniors, many with  a lot a playing experience. Patience, this years team is young and will gain valuable experience. There may be a few bumps along the way, but the future is bright. There is some talent there. Davidson is a winnable game.

[VULB#62]

Brandon Vickrey in the Post Trib:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/sports/ct-ptb-football-san-diego-valparaiso-st-0927-20150926-story.html#

Paul Oren in the NWITimes:
http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/college/valparaiso-university/crusaders-stumble-in-homecoming-loss-to-san-diego/article_0d198f0d-5222-50ca-95f0-0ca8b0c35503.html