New Football Blog up on the VU site

[VULB#62]

Dale Carlson just posted a new blog on the VU site that talks about the Spring and discusses a number of the players.  Pretty interesting. Jalen Johnson (DE) has put on 20 lbs. and at the end of last season he was blowing people up. Good to see Hoffman back at QB with a little pressure behind him from two other QBs.  I'm hoping the D can keep the scoring down so the O can compete.  Tough trying to win a game from 30 points behind by the end of the 1st quarter. Biggest barometer in the fall IMO -- YSU: gotta do better than 13-77.  I'd take a 21-38 verdict as a good omen.

[covufan]

Dale Carlson just posted a new blog on the VU site that talks about the Spring and discusses a number of the players.  Pretty interesting. Jalen Johnson (DE) has put on 20 lbs. and at the end of last season he was blowing people up. Good to see Hoffman back at QB with a little pressure behind him from two other QBs.  I'm hoping the D can keep the scoring down so the O can compete.  Tough trying to win a game from 30 points behind by the end of the 1st quarter. Biggest barometer in the fall IMO -- YSU: gotta do better than 13-77.  I'd take a 21-38 verdict as a good omen.

Not sure YSU is the best barometer, but I would gladly take a 21-38 verdict!  YSU will be our highest rated opponent next fall, and we will be there lowest rated opponent (I think).  We'll be getting paid to play there the same way YSU got paid to play Michigan State last year. 

I would like to see an increase in our scoring offense from 16 to 21-23, and a decrease in our scoring defense from 45 down to 31 or so.  Just increasing our number of offensive plays and controling the ball better should keep the opposing offense off the field.  Looking forward to a good fall season!

[vu72]

I agree with covufan.  A 14 point loss at YSU, who beat the future FCS National Champion,North Dakota State, after pummeling us, is not going to happen.  If we get out of there at 14-48 I'd be very happy.

In 2003 when we last won the PFL Championship, we opened the season losing 34-0 to Murray State.  Murray then lost their next game to Kentucky 37-6.  That year we had David Macchi as our quarterback, argueably the greatest QB to ever wear the Brown and Gold.  YSU is a full scholarship team who we are not ready to go head to head with.  Not now and probably not ever.

[VULB#62]

I originally put down 21-45, but then felt an unexplainable need to go under 40 points allowed.  Anyway, I'm homing in on fact that we play the same scholarshipped FCS school in back to back years.  Don't know who YSU brings back from last year's team, but my feeling is that any difference in VU's favor from last year will tell us a lot, early, about the progress (or lack thereof) of the program. Last year the delta was 64 points. I'd love to see that 17 point spread I mentioned earlier.  But a 30 or even a 40 point difference would tell us something positive.  Another blow-out like last year and .............. arghh.      Obviously once the PFL season starts it'll be the usual suspects.

[covufan]

I originally put down 21-45, but then felt an unexplainable need to go under 40 points allowed.  Anyway, I'm homing in on fact that we play the same scholarshipped FCS school in back to back years.  Don't know who YSU brings back from last year's team, but my feeling is that any difference in VU's favor from last year will tell us a lot, early, about the progress (or lack thereof) of the program. Last year the delta was 64 points. I'd love to see that 17 point spread I mentioned earlier.  But a 30 or even a 40 point difference would tell us something positive.  Another blow-out like last year and .............. arghh.      Obviously once the PFL season starts it'll be the usual suspects.

A blowout could still happen, and there still be much improvement VU's side.  I don't know when the YSU second and third teamers entered the game, and what the YSU pass/run ratio was in the second half, but if YSU is playing their first team more, and is still running their regular offense in the second half, our team could be getting valuable experience, but still end up in a blowout.  I'm also hoping to see improvement in the first 3 games of the year.

[78crusader]

I think a better barometer for our football team's progress will be the games against St. Joseph's, the non-conference game against Duquesne, and the PFL games against Marist and Davidson. 

Paul

[milanmiracle]

Dale Carlson just posted a new blog on the VU site that talks about the Spring and discusses a number of the players.  Pretty interesting. Jalen Johnson (DE) has put on 20 lbs. and at the end of last season he was blowing people up. Good to see Hoffman back at QB with a little pressure behind him from two other QBs.  I'm hoping the D can keep the scoring down so the O can compete.  Tough trying to win a game from 30 points behind by the end of the 1st quarter. Biggest barometer in the fall IMO -- YSU: gotta do better than 13-77.  I'd take a 21-38 verdict as a good omen.

If they're within 17 points of YSU I'll eat my own shoe. Maybe within the first quarter they'll be within 17, but I doubt anything other than that. This isn't a game that should even take place and expecting anything other than a flogging in public just isn't realistic.

On a positive note, they recovered nicely after that blowout last year and progressed as the season went on. Let's hope they can move past this game and look forward to competing against more realistic competition.

[milanmiracle]

Dale Carlson just posted a new blog on the VU site that talks about the Spring and discusses a number of the players.  Pretty interesting. Jalen Johnson (DE) has put on 20 lbs. and at the end of last season he was blowing people up. Good to see Hoffman back at QB with a little pressure behind him from two other QBs.  I'm hoping the D can keep the scoring down so the O can compete.  Tough trying to win a game from 30 points behind by the end of the 1st quarter. Biggest barometer in the fall IMO -- YSU: gotta do better than 13-77.  I'd take a 21-38 verdict as a good omen.

Not sure YSU is the best barometer, but I would gladly take a 21-38 verdict!  YSU will be our highest rated opponent next fall, and we will be there lowest rated opponent (I think).  We'll be getting paid to play there the same way YSU got paid to play Michigan State last year. 

I would like to see an increase in our scoring offense from 16 to 21-23, and a decrease in our scoring defense from 45 down to 31 or so.  Just increasing our number of offensive plays and controling the ball better should keep the opposing offense off the field.  Looking forward to a good fall season!

For the record the final of that game was 28-6 with a lot of wasted opportunities by YSU. I watched that whole game and YSU was in it until halfway throught the fourth quarter.

"The underdog Penguins held their own in the first half, controlling the ball for 19:36 thanks to a 14-8 advantage in first downs. After a scoreless opening quarter, Michigan State finally took the lead on a 6-yard touchdown run by Larry Caper."

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/ncaa/gameflash/2011/09/02/48846_recap.html#ixzz1tfxgg4Q5

YSU is much closer to Michigan State than Valpo is to YSU.

[valpotx]

It may help some in recruiting to have an auto-bid to the playoffs:

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/04/30/fcs-playoff-expansion-takes-next-step/

[VULB#62]

According to Coach Carlson, that's one reason (besides the guarantee, I suppose) why PFL teams like Valpo are playing the likes of WIU and YSU:  to establish some level of competitive relationship/track record.  Admitted that Dayton, Jacksonville, USD and such have fared a bit better than VU, but it's a commitment PFL teams have made.  Just noted that USD will play Cal Poly, Western NM and @ Harvard (yeah, non-scholarship) this season.  Back in the day, didn't Valpo play Yale at the Yale Bowl?  I think that team lost.

[valpotx]

Yes, we lost to Yale at their place when I was in school.  I think we had a decent team, and got beaten pretty badly

[setshot]

We did and we got blown away both at the Yale Bowl and at Soldier's Field. I lost a few bucks to a golfing buddy of mine who is a Yalie(class of '53). Shoot!