SB Nation - Eastern Michigan Eagles

10 Reasons to Watch Eastern Michigan vs Northern Illinois tonight

Mike Breese — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:05:57 -0000

Eastern Michigan Eagles @ Northern Illinois Huskies (-21)
GAMETIME: 6:30 CST
TV: ESPNU
H2H: 23-14-2 Huskies

As we begin to sell our soul to ESPN's weekday schedule, here are some reasons why EMU-NIU should be the center of your attention, at least for a half:

1. Battle for Bowl Eligibility

6 wins will not only make the Huskies bowl-eligible, it also matches the win total from last year with an extra 3 or more games to go in the season. It's looking like more than 6 wins will be needed to get into a bowl game this year, but would be quite the accomplishment in only Jerry Kill's second year here as Head Coach.

2. Short Week Phenomena

It will be interesting how both teams react after the very short turnaround from Saturday. While NIU played a home game at 11 AM, the EMU Eagles had to travel all the way to Fayetteville for a night game. These factors give the Huskies a day and a half, maybe two days of extra preparation.

3. 'Kill Ball'

Run the ball, stop the run, don't turn the ball over. Simple, yet effective. In the last two games, NIU has out-gained their opponents a combined 477-20 on the ground. It should be interesting to see what this 15th-ranked rushing attack does to the 120th ranked run defense of EMU. The only teams that throw less than us are GT & the military academies. You're gonna see 8-9 guys in the box on every single play.

4. RB Chad Spann

A recent recruit called Northern Illinois "Running Back U". I was watching the former Huskie Michael Turner play for the Falcons on Monday night and blasphemous thoughts rang through my head. I thought that Turner was pulling some Spann moves out there breaking tackles left and right. Consider #28 a 'Mini Burner'. He runs harder than any running back I've ever seen play. He'll go in to piles, keep driving his feet, spring out of there like houdini for a touchdown. Truly a spectacle to watch. 5th in the nation in scoring with 14 TDs on teh season.

5. QB DeMarcus Grady

With starter Chandler Harnish out with a knee injury, DeMarcus has stepped up and lead this team to two straight victories. He hasn't passed much, but isn't expected to. Essentially we are running the wildcat formation with him in shotgun, as it seems he always to hit the corner when sprinting out to grab the first down. In his third straight start, expect for more passes being called to gain him some experience in that department.

6. DT Jake Coffman

The 25-year-old former Marine continues to impress, even after moving from DE to the middle after a season-ending hand injury to Brian Lawson. He's had 7 TFLs and 3.5 sacks these past two games. Definitely the soul of the defense and somebody to be looked up to.

7. Ron English

Here's a guy that you've probably heard of, having worked as both a defensive coordinator at Michigan and at Louisville. He's taken on project hell at Eastern Michigan. Less than 10 miles from Ann Arbor, lies Ypsilanti home to the relatively unknown Eagles. If English can't fix the program there, then no one can.

8. The Weather

Dekalb, IL is home to some of the stranger weather that you happen to see in the Midwest. You name it, you'll probably see it in the course of a day. Last week it was 25-30 mph winds. This week, who knows. In 2006 & 2008, November ESPN weekday broadcasts featured a "Fog Game" where you couldn't even see the field against Toledo & Central Michigan respectively.

9. You're sick of Thursday night Beamer Ball

10. You're sick of Holtz-on-Holtz crime

Self explanatory.

SEC Power Poll Ballot: Week Nine

T Kyle King — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:39:06 -0000

It has gotten to the point where I look forward to casting my SEC Power Poll ballot about as much as a one-hit wonder enjoys looking at the Billboard top 40 five weeks after the band’s first single charted. We both know it’s all downhill from here.

This is the Shelby Foote novel that best summarizes a Georgia fan’s experience of following the SEC Power Poll. No, the image isn’t blurry; you’re still drunk from Saturday . . . or, if you’re not, you should be.

1. Florida Gators (8-0): Don’t make me explain this one, please.

2. Alabama Crimson Tide (8-0): Nick Saban still fields the most complete team in the league, but the ‘Bama bye week, coupled with "The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party Like It’s 1999," allowed the Sunshine State Saurians to slip past the Red Elephants. Fear not, though; the Tide will get their shot at the Gators in the Dome.

3. LSU Tigers (7-1): Scoring 42 points on an in-state rival that used to play in the SEC doesn’t impress me; heck, we did the same thing last year. Shutting out said in-state rival, though? That I’ll give you credit for doing!

4. Auburn Tigers (6-3): Just when you thought it was safe to go back to taking the Plainsmen for granted, Gene Chizik’s club rebounds with a vengeance. Hopefully the disadvantage of facing Auburn at home will be offset by the advantage of having the worse record.

5. Tennessee Volunteers (4-4): All this orange at the top of my ballot makes me want to puke, but Lane Kiffin’s outfit is .500 with a bullet, baby!

6. Arkansas Razorbacks (4-4): Yes, it was just Eastern Michigan, but the Hogs hung 63 on the ~~Chippewas~~ ~~Spartans~~ ~~Broncos~~ ~~Wolverines~~ whatever bumbling bunch of Michiganders that was.

7. South Carolina Gamecocks (6-3): I’d pay cash money to get these guys in November just once so we could cruise to an easy win, too. The Palmetto State Parachutists begin their annual descent. The Navy Seals don’t drop with this kind of clockwork.

8. Mississippi Rebels (5-3): When people spend the preseason talking you up because of your favorable schedule, you’re already doomed.

9. Mississippi St. Bulldogs (4-5): It sounds like an insult, but it isn’t: Dan Mullen’s squad is the best 4-5 team in the country. While all three of the league’s rookie skippers have done better jobs than expected, Coach Mullen clearly is the best of the first-year sideline-stalkers, and maybe even the SEC coach of the year.

10. Kentucky Wildcats (4-4): Rich Brooks’s squad lost by a little at home to the team that lost by a little at home to the team that rolled the Red and Black up and smoked them at a neutral site. That gets the ‘Cats ranked right behind the Bulldogs to whom they just lost and right ahead of the Bulldogs who sport an identical record but haven’t looked good in all three phases of the game for 60 straight minutes since New Year’s Day 2008.

11. Georgia Bulldogs (4-4): Anyone who protests this placement needs to call my office and schedule an appointment to come look me in the eye and say, "I believe Georgia would beat at least one of the teams listed in your top ten next Saturday." If you’re prepared to do such a thing, call yourself a cab, because you’re in no shape to be driving anywhere.

12. Vanderbilt Commodores (2-7): Vandy hung with Georgia Tech for a half, which I’ll be happy if the Red and Black can do on November 28.

Sigh.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Week 9 Preview -- World Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party Gets Motivated

cocknfire — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 07:01:32 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

Can Georgia regain its balance against Florida?

Browse more photos »

Weekend Open Thread begins at 11 a.m. ET

LOWERING EXPECTATIONS
World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party: Georgia vs. No. 2 Florida (Jacksonville), 3:30 p.m .ET, CBS

It's been a month since Florida looked like the juggernaut that everyone expected at the beginning of the season; 10-point margins of victory or less against three straight teams, two of them unranked, will do that to anybody. And while Kentucky doesn't exactly look like a terrible team this year, there are still questions about whether the Wildcats are the kind of upper-half SEC team that has given Florida fits this year. UK remains the only SEC to lose to the Gators by more than 10.

It seems like's it been a month since Georgia has played a game that was regarded as relevant before kickoff. After all, the back-to-back trips to Tennessee were supposed to be uneventual, even if the showdown with the Vols in Knoxville ended up being one of the swing games of the season as far as our perceptions. Then the Dawgs took a week off, probably a welcome development given how the season was going to that point, before emerging for what is almost universally recognized as the most important game of the season and one of the more momentous of the Mark Richt Era. Not because of its impact on the standings; almost everyone expects the Gators to win the division sooner or later. But Richt's critics are growing, even if they remain on the fringe of the Georgia fan base, and nothing will shut them up like a victory against Florida.

If Florida has looked unimpressive against every above-average SEC team they've played, though, Georgia has looked uneven against almost every SEC team they've played period. Only the 34-10 win over dreadful Vanderbilt, a team that consistently scares any team ahead of it in the league standings, looks even moderately impressive. Either the offense or defense has disappeared or failed in each of the team's six other games, and both melted down in the shelling in Knoxville.

And the results don't lie; aside from passing yardage, rushing defense and sacks on both sides of the ball, Georgia fails to rank in the top half of the conference in any major stastistical category. Their passing defense has been eviscerated and the running game has fallen to last in the league. Pair that with the 112th-ranked turnover margin in the nation and you can see why the Bulldog faithful are downtrodden this season.

By comparison, Florida's problems seem rather tame. The Gators rank first or second in the SEC in nine of the 13 offensive or defensive categories tracked by the NCAA. Only passing yardage and sacks allowed rank outside of the top three in the league. No, the offense hasn't been quite as explosive in terms of points as some of the Gator faithful would prefer, but the handwringing seems a bit overwrought.

How do you factor in the various motivational ploys attempted by the two teams in the run-up to the game? That seems to be the million-dollar question. If the Dawgs do take umbrage at Urban Meyer's prodigious use of timeouts to get playing time for the eighth string last year, the question is whether they can turn that into enough of a psychological edge to overcome the gaping statistical disadvantage they face. The Gators have tried to counter by dredging up the memories of the Riot by the River in 2007. But if Lane Kiffin's comments and the return of the wounded Tim Tebow weren't enough to spur the offense to great things, why should we expect a two-year old incident to do the job?

All of which makes this as mysterious and intriguing a game as any this week and maybe any in the season to this point. A cold-blooded view of this game demands the selection of the Gators, but nobody's winning this one by 16 points.

Florida 24, Georgia 13

THE EAST UNDERCARD
No. 21 South Carolina at Tennessee, 7:45 p.m. ET, ESPN / ESPN360.com

If by some bizarre series of events one of the teams in the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party doesn't win the East, the winner of this game is the likeliest bet to do it. More probable is that these teams are playing for second place in the division and a chance at the Capital One Bowl or a bid in the Outback depending on where the other players are headed when the season is done.

Not that either of these teams would walk away from that possibility. The Gamecocks' best seasons since entering the SEC have ended in Tampa and a visit to Orlando would be gravy. Even playing in Florida would have to be considered an accomplishment for Lane Kiffin in his first season and maybe an indication that the hopes Tennessee fans have pinned on him aren't just the dreams of homers.

Setting up the implications of the game are important, if for no other reason than that it promises to be less than scintillating football on the field. Both teams are defined by mediocre offense and solid defense in combinations that lead to ugly wins that please fans far more than impartial observers. The Vols' 45-19 win against Georgia is the best win on either team's slate by miles, and Tennessee has shown little evidence that it can reproduce that kind of sustained success on both sides of the ball.

South Carolina, for its part, has mastered the art of winning without any bells and whistles. The 16-10 win against Ole Miss looks better than it did a couple of weeks ago, but the Gamecocks spent last weekend trailing Vanerbilt before ending up with a 14-10 win. So is the 6-2 record a mirage built on smoke and mirrors or some sort of lower-quality version of 2006 Florida?

Tennessee has outscored South Carolina by almost 6 ppg this season, but only outgains them by 19 ppg. If the Gamecocks can turn up their red-zone scoring a bit, they can wipe out that advantage and maybe reverse it. But South Carolina fans have been waiting for that to happen for several weeks now; a Monte Kiffin defense is less than an ideal place for it to start. This might seem like a homer pick. If so, fine; I'm thoroughly confused by this game.

South Carolina 18, Tennessee 16

LIKE TWO PINE BOXES PASSING IN THE NIGHT
No. 25 Ole Miss at Auburn, 12:21 p.m. ET, SEC Network / ESPN360.com

Well, Tommy Tuberville finally did leave one of these programs in a pine box, but it was a metaphorical pine box and the program he was leaving was located in the Greater Opelika Area and not in Oxford. So perhaps there's not as much personal animosity in this rivalry this year, but it's still an important game in the SEC West. Ole Miss needs to win out to have a credible shot at going to Atlanta, and even that might not be enough.

The Rebels come in having won their last two games by a combined score of 78-30, a feat that seems somewhat less impressive when you consider that the opponents were UAB and Arkansas. But for a team that couldn't score points against any competent defense for the first half of the season, even blowing out Arkansas' suspect defense was something of an accomplishment. If QB Jevan Snead can keep progressing and the defense keeps up its solid play, Ole Miss will have a great shot at a good season.

Auburn is moving in the other direction. The Tigers have lost their last three in a row, scoring 23, 14 and 10 in outings against Arkansas, Kentucky and LSU respectively. It seems that Gene Chizik's rebuilding project will take more than one year after all.

Ole Miss 23, Auburn 9

DON'T CALL IT AN UPSET
Mississippi State at Kentucky, 7 p.m. ET, FSN / ESPN360.com

Kentucky is still something of a mystery this season, though we at least have a reason after the Auburn game to think that the Wildcats are a decent team. Aside from that victory, though, indicators are few and far between. UK lost to three of what are generally regarded as the four best teams in the conference and have so far swept through a nonconference schedule packed with cupcakes so sweet diabetics were advised not to watch the games.

Quick: Which of these teams has the better offense statistically? If you said Mississippi State, you're correct. Not only that, but the Western Division Bulldogs are only allowing 5 ypg more than the Wildcats. These are actually two fairly evenly matched teams. If anything, you might have to give the advantage on paper to State.

Not that this game should sneak up on Kentucky by any stretch of the imagination. After last week's heavyweight bout with Louisiana-Monroe, UK goes from playing Mississippi State this week to facing scary FCS foe Eastern Kentucky next week. The Wildcats will be reminded this week why they build schedules like they're afraid of playing real teams.

Mississippi State 17, Kentucky 14

NERD BOWL
No. 11 Georgia Tech at Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m. ET, CSS / ESPN360.com

Since when did Georgia Tech rejoin the SEC? All three of the Yellow Jackets' FBS nonconference games feature SEC opponents: at Mississippi State, at Vanderbilt and vs. Georgia. This is by far the most lopsided of those three games, though it's not the biggest advantage Georgia Tech has ever had on an opponent.

You know all about Georgia Tech's vaunted flexbone system: 291.6 ypg, second in the nation only to Nevada. The defense has been mediocre, but when you can score 32.6 ppg on offense that doesn't catch up to you much; Tech's only loss was at Miami.

Vanderbilt comes in at 2-6 with wins over a bad FBS team and an FCS team and almost nothing working on either side of the ball. But they somehow keep the other team from scoring large numbers of points. That won't be enough against Georgia Tech.

Georgia Tech 27, Vanderbilt 6

WAVE GOODBYE
Tulane at No. 10 LSU, 8 p.m. ET, PPV / ESPN360.com

If it weren't for the Razorback's entry this week for worst game in the history of the conference, this would be the least watchable matchup this week. Tulane has won twice this year, against FCS's McNeese state (by 10!) and at Army. Those also happen to be the only two games the Green Wave has lost by less than three touchdowns. But it is the last game in this series for the foreseeable future. So there's that.

LSU 42, Tulane 14

THIS IS BAD EVEN FOR A CUPCAKE
Eastern Michigan at Arkansas, 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU

If Arkansas was going to play an FBS team this weekend, it could hardly choose an easier one than Eastern Michigan. The Eagles are ranked 181st in Division I by Jeff Sagarin; there are only 120 teams in the FBS, and according to his rankings they are the worst of the bunch and worse than 61 FCS teams. These are the games you almost want the home team to lose.

Arkansas 58, Eastern Michigan 3

BYE: No. 1 Alabama

Week 9 MAC Roundtable Roundup: Halloween Eve

Mike Breese — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:52:47 -0000

This week's MAC Roundtable Roundup takes a look at the different thoughts around the MAC Blogosphere, yo. These privileged fellows include: Temple Football Forever, ~~Fire Up Chips~~, Let's go Rockets, FalconBlog, Rasor on the Zips & Over The Pylon. OK, so maybe we don't have FUC's answers for this week yet. Man, do I love their acronym though.

Read on for some Q&A, a coach lookalike Halloween contest and the vaunted MAC Power Poll.

1. Both Ball State and NIU took an early 1900's approach to offense in winning their games this weekend primarily through the ground game. This brings the question: Are you satisfied with the balance of your offense currently? Would you like to see more passing or more rushing?

Toledo bloggers would like to see more of a running game because of the revolving door at QB and the deep talent that they have at the RB position. FalconBlog wants to run more and looks to NIU's attack from 2004-06 for inspiration.

I think you be balanced even if you are a predominant passing team, so long as you can effectively keep the defense honest and run the ball if there are seven in the box, and convert a third and one when you need it. Conversely, if you are a running team, you need to keep the safeties honest by going over the top. The best example I can remember is the Garrett Wolfe NIU teams. Very run heavy play selection, but the ability to go deep to really good receivers as your guys crept up to the line.

Temple FB Forever wants somebody else to touch the ball other than freshman stud RB Bernard Pierce. Ball State bloggers...well they're a little handcuffed at the moment:

For Ball State, I couldn’t care any less about balance. I only care about the win. I am bloodthirsty for victories, and frankly, I don’t care about the sort of statistical oddities needed to win. The first part of the season, our offense was very balanced…. both the passing and rushing games sucked something awful. That led to an 0-7 start. When we become unbalanced, not by choice but by circumstance, we win. Therefore, by the transitive property the more unbalanced we become the more likely we are to win. It’s science.

2. The two best teams in the MAC in Central Michigan & Temple take on non-conf opponents in Boston College and Navy respectively. What positives or negatives come from playing OOC opponents this late in to the season?

The consensus is that CMU needs this victory to boost themselves into the Top-25. LetsGoRockets fears for Danny LeFevour's health:

Unfortunately, CMU risks sustaining injuries to key players facing an undoubtedly bigger team than they’re used to facing with MAC opponents. An injury to LeFevour and CMU suffers a huge set back for the rest of the year.

Mike Rasor believes that Temple just needs to focus on the conference and OTP sees the Temple Owls falling back to reality losing to Navy this weekend.

3. For fun, predict the outcome of the impending doom the 0-7 Eastern Michigan Eagles face as they travel to Arkansas this weekend.

FalconBlog's description of this game is just dripping in smart metaphors:

This is a little like predicting the outcome of deer hunting from the perspective of the deer. I feel bad for Eastern. They are sorta like GM, turnaround plan after turnaround plan, yet all that ever transpires is another turn around plan.

TFF is a little more optimistic than most:

Eastern Michigan will cover the 36 1/2-point spread and lose something like 45-17, 42-21.

Resident SEC expert OTP (They cover both Ball State & Kentucky) sees the other side of the spectrum:

If this was the Houston Nutt led Arkansas Razorbacks, then I would say EMU actually had a shot. Since they are led now by King o the Dickbags Bobby Petrino, I fully expect an ass stomping. And one that isn’t stopped simply because they’re up by 40. Arkansas-52, EMU-7.

4. If your team/coach were to wear Halloween costume, what would they be?

LetsGoRockets pretty much stole our costumes, as they want to be Dr. Jeckll/Mr. Hyde. But what two players would wear those costumes? I pick Aaron Opelt & Austin Dantin.

FalconBlog sees Dave Clawson either metaphorically or physically looking like The Professor from Gilligan's Island.

TFF likes Temple coach Al Golden as Tom Cruise. Too easy:

As for OTP, sigh:

Let’s see… for Stan Parrish, it would have to be a character that has had great success in the past but has fallen on hard times now. It would need to be someone that is not necessarily the nicest guy in town. It would need to be someone who is age appropriate.Easy answer…

And Rasor's got some great stuff for Akron's coach:

There's no need to pile on poor J.D. Brookhart. I could say that his coaches could dress as a parole officer, paramedic and NCAA sleuth, but that would be over the top.

5. MAC Power Poll Time

CMU (unanimous)
Temple (unanimous)
NIU
Ohio
WMU
Toledo
Kent
Bowling Green
Buffalo
Ball State
Akron
Miami
EMU

The top-2 spots seem to be solid at least for a week or so because both of these teams play OOC, as noted above. Ohio is still 4th after losing to Kent State? OK...And also I feel Miami OH is very underrated and will get their first win this weekend against Toledo.

Don't Bet On It!: Around the SEC

T Kyle King — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:27:16 -0000

In straight-up wins and losses, I was 5-1 in last week’s SEC predictions, although I misread the final margins by which the top two teams in the league would emerge victorious while nailing precisely the sort of game the Palmetto State Poultry would play. The upshot is that I am 47-7 in league forecasts this autumn, so a stumble is inevitable and you are cautioned, as always . . . Don’t Bet On It!

Here are this week’s SEC tilts, all of which will be played on Saturday because this ain’t the Big East, brother:

Eastern Michigan Eagles at Arkansas Razorbacks: Way to man up on the non-conference schedule, Hogs. "So, who do you want to play?" "Let’s play a team from Michigan!" "Great! How about Michigan?" "No . . . too tough." "How about Michigan State?" "No . . . too tough." "How about Central Michigan?" "No . . . too tough." "How about Western Michigan?" "No . . . too tough." "How about Eastern Michigan?" "The third-best directional MAC school in Michigan? Perfect!" I had to look up Eastern Michigan’s nickname---seriously, if the abbreviation of your university is "EMU," you need to call yourselves the "EMU Emu" and let Jimmy Clausen be your sideline mascot, sans costume---and the rule still holds: if I have to look up your nickname, you aren’t beating an SEC team. Arkansas wins.

Tulane Green Wave at LSU Tigers: I would make fun of Louisiana State for continuing to play an in-state rival that used to belong to the SEC and has been bad more often than good for most of the last several decades, but, then, we still play Georgia Tech, so I don’t have much room to criticize. The Bayou Bengals are going to steamroll the Green Wave into the asphalt of the parking lot and use whatever is left over to pave small highways in the Pelican State. (Why small highways? Because it isn’t called Fourlane University. Think like a Louisianan.) LSU keeps the good times rolling.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Vanderbilt Commodores: If the Engineers are favored by 24 or fewer points, bet on the Ramblin’ Wreck. You may rest assured that Paul Johnson and his charges know that the Red and Black beat the Music City Sailors by 24 points and the Golden Tornado’s mission this weekend will be to defeat the ‘Dores by more. The Yellow Jackets will run right over Vandy and all seventeen of the Georgia Tech students who make the trip to Nashville will take full advantage of their only opportunity to tell an opposing fan base, "Give us your lunch money, nerds!"

Mississippi St. Bulldogs at Kentucky Wildcats: Evidently, UK fans are still a bit touchy about their school’s reputation as a roundball power only. (If it’s any consolation, we currently suck at everything except women’s gymnastics, and even that program is apt to take a step back this season.) This weekend, the ‘Cats have an opportunity to prove themselves in the Commonwealth. I don’t think they’ll do it. Dan Mullen has the MSU players believing in their ability to play toe-to-toe with the best in the league. That hasn’t translated to many victories yet, but the Western Division Bulldogs are ready to go on the road and beat a bowl contender in conference play.

Mississippi Rebels at Auburn Tigers: Will the real parvenu please stand? Fans of both schools are staring wistfully at their 2009 teams and hearing Rod Stewart’s "Reason to Believe" running through their heads. (The acoustic version from the MTV special, not the original single that was released with "Maggie May" as the B-side.) This will be the first season since 1994 in which these two teams meet without either of them being coached by Tommy Tuberville and I’m going to let my heart make this pick, because my head says to go with the Plainsmen and I hate Auburn, so I’m opting for Ole Miss, even though I’m pretty sure I’m going to regret that call.

South Carolina Gamecocks at the rich man’s South Carolina Gamecocks: Who knew a decade ago that there would ever come a day when two SEC teams were facing one another, one of them was coached by Steve Spurrier, and I’d say, "I hope that obnoxious SOB gets his tail handed to him on Saturday" . . . and I’d be referring to the other guy? I know better than to predict that even the Evil Genius is going to ring up half a hundred on the Big Orange---so far, Lane Kiffin’s mouth is writing checks Monte Kiffin’s defense can cash, at least against pro-style offenses---but this is liable to be the kind of game Darth Visor’s Big Chickens have specialized in winning: low-scoring and butt-ugly. There’ll be a safety in there somewhere and the winning team will not score more than 16 points, but I believe vengeful will get the better of stupid as Lane Kiffin tallies another moral victory and South Carolina strikes a blow for waiting until you’ve actually accomplished something before you start running your smart mouth.

You may feel free to run your smart mouth in the comments below, but, whatever you do, please be sure to heed the most important piece of advice you will get all week: Don’t Bet On It!

Coming Soon: National Games of Interest.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Week 9 MAC Roundtable: Halloween Edition

Mike Breese — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:02:57 -0000

Here we are again hosting the MAC Blogger Roundtable for what could be the last time this season. This is where I ask questions to the various MAC blogs out there as they answer them throughout the week on their respected sites. These privileged fellows include: Temple Football Forever, Fire Up Chips, Let's go Rockets, FalconBlog, Rasor on the Zips & Over The Pylon. Commence.

I'd definitely like to see a bit more passing for the Huskies. Sure, our starting QB is out in Chandler Harnish but without more of a balanced offense I don't think we'll be able to get better as a team. Sure, running the ball only will work against winless teams like Miami and the like, but what about when we face a team like Central Michigan. I'd like to see Coach Kill take the training wheels off a little.

CMU has slowly been creeping in to the Top-25 and winning @ BC will cement their spot on the national radar. It's only on ESPNU, but I think that a couple more people will jump on the LeFevour-for-heisman campaign after this one. Temple-Navy is a good litmus test for the Owls and should be a great matchup of styles. The only negative I can see from these games is a potential for injures, which would hinder the only thing that really matters: A MAC Championship.

3. For fun, predict the outcome of the impending doom the 0-7 Eastern Michigan Eagles face as they travel to Arkansas this weekend.

The spread is 38 points, but I think that's being generous. 63-3 PIg Soohie.

4. If your team/coach were to wear Halloween costume, what would they be?

The Huskies would have to dress up as Two-Face from Batman fame. NIU is a shady, shady team that can look great against Purdue & WMU and then go ahead and look ugly losing to Idaho, Toledo and even winning @ Miami.

This week I hope to see a more stable Harvey Dent.

5. MAC Power Poll Time

1. CMU - nearing top-25 status

2. Temple - made statement @ Toledo

3. NIU - underrated win @ Miami

4. WMU - held off Buffalo in OT

5. Kent State - very impressive win @ Ohio

6. Ohio - fell victim to the Flashes

7. BGSU - tough loss to CMU

8. Buffalo - OT loss @ WMU

9. Toledo - suffering without their 1st and 2nd string QBs

10. Ball State - won cripple fight @ EMU

11. Miami OH - very underrated passing game and defense

12. Akron - Bad, but not as bad as...

13. EMU

Home and Home Jerseys for Tennessee / South Carolina: the Biggest Halloween Party in the Country

Hooper — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:15:31 -0000

More photos » by Mary Ann Chastain - AP

Bring 'em! Just without the camouflage sleeves, please. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain)

Browse more photos »

UPDATE: Ok, this was intended to be a plea to have this happen. This is NOT a breaking report that this has actually happened. But hey, I'm glad that Gamecock fans are on board with the idea! --Hooper

So we tried to get home and home jersey going for the Third Saturday in October, and somebody down south didn't like the idea. Moving on. This week, we have a rare night game. At home. On Halloween. With the home team sporting orange and the away team carrying an alternate all-black home uniform.

Please make this happen.

We haven't seen a home-and-home game yet in the SEC, and there obviously aren't many schools willing to do it. Tennessee has already shown interest in the idea, and now they can take it one step further by granting it on their home turf. This would make for one awesome party in Neyland Stadium as both teams take the field in Orange and Black.

This is the ESPN Game of the Night.

Not to be confused with GameDay, but it's kind of a big deal. Televisions will have it on nationally. And take a look at the games that will be on at the same time:

Eastern Michigan Eagles (0-7) at Arkansas Razorbacks (3-4) ESPNU
Mississippi St. Bulldogs (3-5) at Kentucky Wildcats (4-3) ESPN GamePlan
Kansas St. Wildcats (5-3) at Oklahoma Sooners (4-3) Regional
Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (4-3) at Troy Trojans (5-2) Regional
New Mexico Lobos (0-7) at San Diego St. Aztecs (3-4) Regional
Washington St. Cougars (1-6) at Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-2) NBC, natch.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (7-1) at Vanderbilt Commodores (2-6) ESPN GamePlan
South Carolina Gamecocks (6-2) at Tennessee Volunteers (3-4) ESPN
Tulane Green Wave (2-5) at LSU Tigers (6-1) ESPN GamePlan
Michigan St. Spartans (4-4) at Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-4) Big Ten Network
Texas Longhorns (7-0) at Oklahoma St. Cowboys (6-1) Regional
Wyoming Cowboys (4-3) at Utah Utes (6-1) Regional
USC Trojans (6-1) at Oregon Ducks (6-1) Regional

Thanks to the ESPN/SEC contract, the only two games of national interest (Texas/OSU and USC/Oregon) are regional coverages (as of the typing of this post). Even if one or both of those get picked up on national broadcasts, the Tennessee / South Carolina game is one of the better ones available.

It's great for recruiting.

This will be fun. Tennessee should have a lot of recruits on official visits. Show them that the team and the stadium are all about having a great time (along with competing to win, of course).

It will sell.

Advertise Neyland Stadium as the biggest Halloween party in the country - maybe even the world. You'll be accurate.

Just please: do it.

Poll

Do you want Tennessee in Orange and South Carolina in Black on Halloween?

Yes! UT Orange and SC Black, head to toe!

617 votes

Yes! UT Orange and SC Black, but no orange pants!

129 votes

No!

45 votes

791 votes | Poll has closed

Week 6 MAC Power Rankings

Mike Breese — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 01:24:51 -0000

Rank	Team	Comments
1 (-)		CMU absolutely dominated EMU on homecoming winning 56-8 against the pesky Eagles. LeFevour accounted for 6 TDs, half on the ground and half through the air. The 5-1 Chips are starting to get a healthy amount of top-25 votes. Next up: Potential game of the year @ rival Western Michigan.
2 (-)		The bye week made the Huskies look good as the team they beat up on the week before in Western Michigan beat up on the Toledo Rockets badly. Up next: @ Toledo
3 (-)		Weren't too impressive beating the Zips 19-7 on the heels of 2 Matt Rogers INTs and a blocked punt. Akron actually outgained the Bobcats 346-292 yds. Up next: The offensively terrible Miami OH Redhawks at home.
4 (+1)		Temple was on par with Ball State this weekend, but three Cardinal fumbles and two interceptions by Jaiquawn Jarrett put the Cherry & White over the top. The Owls controlled the clock with freshman RB Bernard Pierce running for 125 yds and 2 TDs. Up next: Army at home.
5 (+1)		The Broncos must have been pissed they were a homecoming opponent for the 2nd straight week as they went in to Toledo and opened up a can. WMU showed how much of a force they can be in this conference. Up next: A potentially season-changing game against CMU at home.
6 (+1)		The Bulls beat up on Gardner Webb at home in a much needed break of a game. Up next: A must-win home game against the Akron Zips.
7 (-3)		I predicted that WMU would bounce back against the Rockets and it wasn't even close. UT is severely limited on defense and their offense didn't show up either. Up next: The always dangerous NIU Huskies at home.
8 (+1)		BG got the victory they were so-seeking against Kent State on the road. This game was decided in the final seconds, even though the Falcons out-gained the Flashes by over 200 yds. Up next: Battle of the Birds @ Ball State.
9 (-1)		The ship is sinking fast in Akron. The pink slip for J.D. Brookhart may be coming. Up next: Road trip to the champs in Buffalo. That one could get ugly.
10 (-)		Yardage against Temple was about equal, but the 'Hard-luck Cards' turned the ball over 5x. Up next: Home against a BGSU team, where they can hopefully salvage their first victory.
11 (+2)		I'll give them one thing: They're not as bad as EMU or Miami. Up next: @ EMU
12 (-1)		The defense is kinda good as it gave up only 16 pts to Northwestern, but the offense is horrible. Zac Dysert threw 3 INTs and got knocked to the turf an absurd amount of times. Up next: @ Ohio
13 (-1)		Ron English is up a creek without a paddle. Up next: Kent State at home to salvage some dignity.

Week 6 in the Non-Con: What I Want

Bama Hawkeye — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:45:09 -0000

We have favorites and we have loyalties, but if the Big Ten is going to climb out the national perception doldrums, we're going to have to do it together. That means that we have to all be pulling in the same direction. Here's what I want to see from each Big Ten team in their non-conference battles this week. These columns are really short this time of year...

Indiana (@ Virginia Cavaliers)

I want to see Indiana continue to play with the energy that has made them one of the pleasant surprises in the Big Ten this season. Virginia is bad. However, Al Groh teams win games. Somehow. Ask North Carolina. I don't know if Indiana wins this one, but I want to see them put forward their A-Game.

Northwestern (vs. Miami University)

I want to see the Wildcats pound the alma mater of this site's founders. Most importantly, play a complete game, Wildcats. Don't let them back in like you did Eastern Michigan. Don't fail to show up like you did with Purdue. The RedHawks are horrible (0-5, they've given up at least 29 points in each game). Show us just how bad they are.

Where have you gone, Big Ben? Oxford hasn't been the same since you left.

Penn State (vs. Eastern Illinois)

This is the most highly anticipated game of the Penn State season as they face their traditional arch-rival: the Panthers. Wrong Panthers? Well, then don't get anybody hurt. And take it easy on Jake. After all, he is the only Hawkeye quarterback to lose to Penn State this millennium.

What I Want

I want three wins and two blow-outs. This is very possible.

What I Expect

I expect Al Groh to beat Indiana on his way to 6 wins and another year at the helm of UVa. I hope I'm wrong about this.

What We've Got So Far

The Big Ten is 25-9 (.735) out of conference. The league is 5-7 against BCS Conference teams (plus Notre Dame). Purdue's loss to Notre Dame guarantees that the Big Ten can finish with no better than a .500 record against the other BCS schools. The league has two losses to non-BCS teams (Northern Illinois over Purdue and Central Michigan over Michigan State).

Unit by Unit: Breaking Down Michigan Football's Defense Following Its Win Over Eastern Michigan

Maize n Brew Dave — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:54:55 -0000

We're running a little behind, so it's time to get into the Michigan Eastern Michigan Unit by Unit breakdown. We'll take a hard look at the players and the coaches for each particular unit on the team, and bring them in for a pat on the back or a wag of the finger. After we've looked at each position, we'll give you a final wrap on the team's play on Offense and Defense (Special Teams too!). If you're looking for more detail, game bullets are here, the wrap up is here, the boxscore is here, and the general AP recap is here. There are the links, so now let's take a good hard look at....

The Defense

Photo via John T. Greilick via Detroit News.com

Michigan had a statistically decent day against the Eagles. They allowed below 300 total yards, giving up 106 passing yards and 179 yards on the ground. Eastern only posted 17 points, and 7 of those were the direct result of a really awful pick thrown by Denard Robinson. Plus, Michigan was without one of its starting linebackers and playing a coach that recruited a number of the players on Michigan's defense. So, it was a good day. Yes?

Yes. It was. While there will always be things you can nitpick (and we will, we will), the Defense seems to be playing alright. If I have a concern, it's that Michigan allowed Eastern to march down the field twice and put up 10 points early in the game. Most of that was on the ground. But the running game was something we always knew this defense would have trouble with. Before we get into the nitpicking, I think it's fair to say that before the season I told you this was what we'd get you would've taken this in a second.

Defensive Line

John T. Greilick via Detroit News.com

Overall a moderate day for the defensive line. At this point it’s clear that Mike Martin and Brandon Graham are the anchors of the group and should both vie for First Team All Big Ten status, if not All American status. Yes, I think Mike Martin (only a sophomore) is that good. The sackless Brandon Graham is only sackless because he’s facing double and triple teams on a regular basis (triple being TE/T and a rub from the TB). Even so he’s been about half a second from recording a number of sacks on the season. The eastern game was no exception. From these two the only concern was Martin tweaking a foot or a leg early in the game, though he did return. Otherwise, it was standard good to excellent performance from the pair, mixed in with the rare loss of discipline on a play here and there.

After Graham and Martin, Craig Roh and Ryan Van Bergen were passable to good on the afternoon. Roh is still a freshman and still prone to overpursuit and running himself out of position. He did show some great concentration on his interception, fending off a lineman at the last possible second to make the grab. Roh is at his best in the pass rush, but is (and will probably continue to) struggling with the run. Van Bergen on the other hand looks totally out of position at DT. He’s simply not built for it. Eastern routinely doubled him, blew him off the line, and opened a big ole running gap. One on one Ryan’s shown some great strength and speed, but when he’s contending with two linemen he’s going to lose that battle 99 times out of 100 and it seems Robinson’s scheme (at this this scheme) requires the DE/DT to be able to hold that ground.

Which brings us to Ronaldo Sagesse. The Wrecker from Québec….er. The French Wrench? Whatever… If there has been one defensive leap forward that the fanbase (and the coaches for that matter) weren’t expecting, it’s been Sagesse’s giant leap forward into being a pretty good DT. He’s clearly athletic, but now that he’s getting some real coaching… damn son. Two TFLs in limited playing time and the ability to handle double teams. You’ve gotta love it. Even Greg Banks, yes he of PS3 fame and inexplicably high player ratings, contributed at DT on Saturday. There’s something going on with the defensive line coaching that I’m really, really excited about. When Will Campbell, all world freshman Will Campbell, is barely scratching the playing time surface in favor of Sagesse and Banks, and those two aren’t just filling space but are contributing; you should be excited down the road.

(More after the jump....)

The Linebackers

It’s been said elsewhere, but the Big Ten’s suspension of Jonas Mouton basically on game day was bush league. I don’t condone what he did. He clearly hit Olsen. But if you’re going to suspend a player do it in a timely manner and let the team adjust for the player’s absence. It’s a small consolation that they did this with Purdue’s Zach Reckman. Still, minor annoyance.

It’s a minor annoyance because Mouton, like Obi Ezeh, has been passable at best at linebacker on the season. While Mouton is a better option than Kevin Leach out there at SLB, the tackle numbers were about the same and the mistakes were pretty similar. I know I’m being harsh, but the linebacking play hasn’t been very good for a bunch of retuning starters at LB. But enough about who didn’t play and back to who did.

Mouton’s fill in, Kevin Leach, wasn’t noticeable during my first watching of the game. His name was called a lot on tackles and he had 7 before the half. My initial impression was that the kid was alright. On a second/third watching, he wasn’t as good as I thought but wasn’t awful by any means. Most of his contact was made well beyond the line of scrimmage and his gap control was off. To his credit, Leach showed some decent wheels and found himself involved in or making a lot of tackles. He’s a little undersized, so perhaps that’s why he’s fast for the position. But his size is a bit of a detriment as Linemen locked onto him and drove him toward Ypsi. Mouton’s been pretty good at shedding blocks this season so there was clearly a dropoff in run support with Leach in. As Eastern really didn’t throw at Leach I can’t really gauge his usefulness in that capacity. Critiques aside, Leach is a friggin walk on. The fact that he was out there, contributing, is awesome. Where you can look at the glass half full regarding J.B. Fitzgerald or our other LB recruits, I look at it as half full. Depth is an issue, but the fact that Michigan can plug in a walk on at a critical position and not get torched as a result is a good thing. Congrats to Leach on a good game.

At MIKE, Ezeh had his usual meh kind of day. He continues to excel rushing the passer, continues to wait for contact on the run rather than engaging the hit, and continues to alternate good run support with bad gap reads. If there’s one thing you can say, Ezeh’s consistent. You know what you’re going to get. Ezeh’s not going to be a dominant middle linebacker at this point. It could happen, but the chances are fairly remote. He’s a good linebacker and I’m content with that. When he tackles, he wraps people up. When he blitzes he makes plays. He’s just not Chris Harris. And I’m cool with that.

Stevie Brown, again, had what I considered a decent day. He made some stops, played good coverage, wrapped up consistently. Brown success at his new position will be judged by how he handles the conference season, but so far he’s easily been the most consistent and arguably best linebacker on the field each game. Against Eastern he was aggressive, good in coverage, and attacked the ball carrier in space. If he was three inches taller and 50 pounds heavier he’d be all world. Right now, though, he’s pretty good and deserves some praise. J.B. Fitzgerald played. That’s about it.

John T. Greilick via Detroit News.com

The Secondary

Considering that the majority of Eastern’s yards came on the ground and they only posted on touchdown through the air, it’s hard to be too critical of the secondary. Boubacar Cissoko bounced back from a rough Notre Dame game to have an excellent game in coverage. Donovan Warren continued to be Donovan Warren, clearly showing that he is arguably the best cover corner in the Big Ten. Troy Woolfolk and Mike Williams were passable in coverage, and despite a mistake in coverage here and there (minor ones people, shading issues rather than "that looks like a run so why is the ball going over my head?" mistakes).

Run support, well, that was another matter. The only player in the group not to make a horrid tackling mistake was Donovan Warren, who spent a good portion of his day making run tackles he should’ve have needed to make. Cissoko froze on an open field tackle on Schmit, whiffed and allowed an additional 15 yards to a slow lanky white boy. It was reminiscent of Coner’s ole! on Stevie Brown in the spring game. Likewise Troy Woolkfolk came up to lay a big hit but forgot about the whole "wrap him up" thing allowing another ten yards. Overall, while the coverage was decent, the tackling in the secondary was very bad against the run and may be cause for concern. Watching the game, I think the secondary’s issues were more lack of focus and playing down to their competition rather than a systemic problem. I honestly think after battling Notre Dame’s receivers to the death, the secondary thought they could just pop Eastern’s players and they’d go down. Hopefully, this was a learning experience along those lines.

It should be noted that when Mike Williams went down, Jordan Kovacs again replaced him without issue. Whenever you can replace a safety mid game and not end up crying, it’s win win. Kovacs was basically invisible to me, other than the occasional thought of "who’s the melanin deficient dude in the secondary?" So far, Kovacs is easily the best of the many walkons on the team and has thus far proven himself to be a capable player. The real test of this theory will begin over the next few weeks as teams start to attack Michigan’s secondary with a little more frequency and try to isolate Kovacs, Williams and Woolfolk in the passing game. I can’t imagine a Big Ten Offensive Coordinator saying "Oh look, a walkon. Lets go after Warren instead."

For the game, yay! No Big Plays! Woo. Overall, it’s still too early to tell.

Special Teams

After an off game, Zoltan has returned to his normal self and is back to booming the ball. He booted 4 punts for a 45.5 average, including a 59 yarder. Not so bad. The field goal unit was barely used, but Jason Olesnavage was good on his only try and all his extra points. The return game was decent off the tee, but we garnered almost nothing off punts. Part of this had to do with Eastern shanking the ball. Part to do with our obvious attempts to block everything. And finally, part to do with our desire not to turn the ball over. I’m fine with this. Out coverage on kickoffs and punts was much better than against Notre Dame. I’m positive this had something to do with the quality of athletes we were facing, but overall a much, much better coverage game.