FB: Presidents' Athletic Conference

Started by admin, August 16, 2005, 05:14:07 AM

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ExTartanPlayer

One of the differences between last year's CMU team and this year's team is the development of secondary weapons.  Benger has tortured W&J (and others) for the last two seasons, but this year he has been relatively quiet by his standards (a monster game against Rochester, but merely "good" production in the other games, although it's obvious that several teams have made it the priority to shut him down).  This year, though, we've seen big plays from Prather, Mansfield, Hubbard (who was out last week and may still be out, which would be a shame), Richter, and even Cline (the 56-yard touchdown run against Thomas More was admittedly surprising to this observer; Cline is not really a dynamic quick-twitch athlete, but  if given some open field he has the straight line speed to make you pay for leaving a lane).  That will be crucial against W&J, who has a big offense of their own and frankly is too good to get beaten by one guy that they know will be getting the ball a lot.
I was small but made up for it by being slow...

http://athletics.cmu.edu/sports/fball/2011-12/releases/20120629a4jaxa

WashJeff68

Pre game with Gregg and Uriah on WJPA, watch game on the smart big screen compliments of CMU in Tennessee! Ain't technology grand?
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WashJeff68

two evenly matched teams. Neither Zubic nor Benger were major factors. With about 4. minutes left  CMU was down by 2 touchdowns and almost pulled it out. CMU vs CWRU should be quite a game. W&J has Westminster left.
Older than Springtime...Younger than dirt

Bob.Gregg

I said this to Mark during the game and I still don't know why or how to change it:

Running the offense looked SIGNIFICANTLY easier for CMU than for W&J.

Perhaps, Mark will ask Coach Mike that for Saturday's pregame show.
Been wrong before.  Will be wrong again.

ExTartanPlayer

Sorry folks, wanted to post a game recap but it's been a busy couple of days.

Overall it was a competitive and (IMO) well-played game with a lot of potential tipping points, some of which went in each team's favor, making it one of the most thrilling live-game-watching experiences I've had recently, even in a loss.  I'll try to recap all the highlights - admittedly, I'm looking at the PBP to assist my memory:

1Q: First possession to W&J, three and out.  CMU receives the punt and, after a nice rush by Benger for a first down, also punts.  W&J puts together a nice drive - if memory serves me right, early on this drive Rowse nearly hit Zubik for a bomb that would have gone for a TD, but he couldn't quite track it down; they moved methodically downfield from there, though - that ended with a turnover on downs after an illegal shift took a would-be touchdown off the board.  CMU puts together an extended drive of their own that ended in an INT just inside the red zone.  W&J puts together a few running plays and connects on a deep pass this time to Hearst for a TD.  7-0, Presidents.

2Q: after the W&J touchdown, CMU puts together another extended drive that resulted in another killer finish - getting stuffed on the 1-yard line three straight times for a turnover on downs.  The CMU defense holds and forces a three-and-out, but here is unsung play #1: punting from his own endzone, W&J punter Ty Mitchell launched a 57-yard punt that flipped the field position and had CMU starting way back in their own territory again.  CMU picked up a few yards but had to punt...and CMU punter Tyler Kohman answered with a 62-yard punt of his own for a touchback.  W&J moved the ball to about midfield before a punt; CMU completes one big pass before yet another key play, Cline (hit as he throws!) got pick-sixed by W&J linebacker Nick Murgo and suddenly it's 14-0 Presidents.  CMU goes three-and-out and it's starting to look bleak, but fortunately ANOTHER killer punt from Kohman (57 yards) pinned W&J back around their own 10-yard line.  The W&J offense goes on the move, chipping their way up to about midfield and this time CMU's defense came up with the big play, a pick by linebacker Kyle Brittain that he returned about 35 yards to set up the Tartans at the W&J 30 with around a minute before halftime.  Cline finally connects with Prather over the top; W&J blocks the PAT and it's 14-6 at halftime.

3Q: Tartans ball first, a nice drive with a mix of run/pass action gets them to the 25 before stalling, missed FG (that hurt; after the missed PAT, it would have been nice to pick up a few points there).  W&J moves the ball themselves to about the CMU 30 before a sack pushed them back and forced a punt.  The Tartans (after a GUTSY AS HELL fake punt call on 4th and 1 from their own 29 that picked up a first down) got to midfield and had to punt; Kohman, after several TERRIFIC punts all game, shanked one and W&J got to start from their own 39.  Rowse found Hearst for another big pass play and then sparkplug RB E.J. Thompson scampered in.  20-6, Presidents, and again it's looking like the game might get out of reach.  Rory Hubbard came up with a big kickoff return, Cline followed with a big scramble on third down, and then hit two straight nice balls to Prather to pull within 20-13 as we turn into the 4th quarter.  Shaping up to be a classic finish.

4Q:  W&J moves to about midfleld (stop me if you've heard this before) but then a sack and holding penalty moved them back and forced a punt.  CMU takes over at their own 39, and Benger breaks for a nice run...but fumbles!  Absolute killer there.  In a game filled with "turning points" that felt like the biggest single one to me.  CMU has the ball, and with that run would have been inside striking distance of a game-tying touchdown.  Instead, W&J ball, and they came up with a ballsy drive here - 9 plays, 8 on the ground, for a touchdown to pull ahead 27-13.  Yet again, it's looking bleak, and even moreso after a three-and-out gives W&J the ball back.  Fortunately, Kohman boomed ANOTHER huge punt (55 yards) and the CMU defense came up with a quick-ish stop.

So now it's 27-13, CMU getting the ball back, 4:24 to play.  Generally, in this situation, I would say the game is not over yet, but it's almost on ice.  Hold on, folks, now the fun starts.  After two incompletions, Cline hits Greenwell for 39 yards, a few plays later W&J gets hit for a roughing the passer call, and then Cline hits Prather for another big gain before scrambling in from 6 yards out.  27-20 with 2:46 to play.  Do you kick deep or onside there?  Given the way W&J was running the ball, I figured it had to be an onside...it was...and CMU gets the recovery (by the kicker, no less).  Unfortunately, Cline gets sacked for a loss of 9 on first down before two straight incompletions.  4th and 19.  Conference title hopes on the line.  Here comes the wildest play of the game (so far, I have not been able to find the video online, otherwise I would post it here).  Cline drops the shotgun snap.  Benger manages to pick up the loose ball and flips it back* (I use the word "back" in the sense that I mean "he returned the ball to Cline"), and Cline runs around before lofting a deep ball CAUGHT by Tommy Mansfield at the W&J 15 yard line!  First down!  But wait, flag on the play.  The call was illegal forward pass, saying that Benger's flip to Cline was forward and therefore Cline was not legally allowed to throw a second forward pass (I'm being totally, 100% honest, no homer here: I did not see well enough to know whether Benger's flip to Cline was forward, lateral, or backward).  Bummer.  Game over, Presidents win.

A few strategic notes:

- CMU defense did a great job against the W&J passing game.  Zubik is frankly terrifying and CMU bottled him up all game; save for the one big pass to #4 (Hearst) the secondary did a great job, and Rowse is a fine QB with a good receiving corps.

- However, the W&J offensive line and RB's really showed up, and that was the killer.  In the third and fourth quarter the Presidents were gashing the CMU defense big-time with simple, well-executed running game.  That drive to make it a 27-13 lead was 9 plays; 8 of them on the ground.

- W&J defense did a great job bottling up Benger after he has tortured them for the past two years.  He had a quiet 18 carries for 96 yards, and didn't gash them for any huge plays as he's done in the past.

- Prather remains the toughest thing for anyone to handle about the CMU offense.  The Presidents had an answer for just about everything CMU did except him.

- W&J kicked away from Richter most of the day.  Smart choice.  He's an extremely dangerous return man and I thought this was a great move on their part.

- W&J felt like they were in control for most of the game.  The only time I really thought CMU was about to seize control was when we got the ball back down 20-13 and Benger broke into the open field on that first play...a feeling that lasted about three seconds.  I feel terrible for Sam - he's an incredible player and I am sure that is still eating him up even now.

Will try to shootaround the whole PAC later in the week.
I was small but made up for it by being slow...

http://athletics.cmu.edu/sports/fball/2011-12/releases/20120629a4jaxa

Bob.Gregg

#4295
I've watched the replay:

Cline dropped the snap at the 32.
Benger picked it up and gave ground inside 30.
As Benger is being tackled at the 27, he throws the ball forward, Cline catching it between the 27-28 yard lines (edited 27.5-28 yard line).
Cline then throws downfield but the linesman on the CMU side immediately throws the flag when Cline throws the ball.

It was two forward passes on same play.

APOLOGIES, CMU Sam Benger.
No disrespect intended.
Was delayed getting to look at the video from CMU and was in a hurry to post these notes to ExTartanPlayer's writeup.
Been wrong before.  Will be wrong again.

wally_wabash

Impressive camera work that can easily discern the difference between the 27 and the 27.5/28 yard lines.  Most D3 game video is shot from one, maybe two cameras and almost always about 50 yards away from the action (when the action is closest to the camera).   

I think when a kid runs for 2,000 yards in a season we can get his name right.  Sam Benger has earned that.   :)
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bluestreak66

Don't know if this has been discussed, but has there been anymore talk of where TMC will end up after this year? Any conference rumors?
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WashJeff68

#4298
Wally,

I watched CMU's streaming broadcast and as you might expect from a technical school of CMU's repute, the picture was very clear (full screen on the 65 incher) and I've got pretty fast internet, so no buffering.

The camara person had a tough time following the action downfield, but based on what I saw if the angle was right (and it could have been since the action took place near the original line of scrimmage near mid field if I remember correctly, before the pass) it may well be clear what the relative position of Benger and Cline were to one another. Exact yards, who knows. But they should be able to verify if the call on the field was correct. In DIII it makes no difference aince there is no appeal to the booth, but I'm sure the CMU people would like closure. I couldn't tell, but I wasn't looking for that.

I lived in Cincinnati so know your alma mater well. One of only three all male colleges left, along with Morehouse and Hampden-Sydney. Great school.

Regards,

Jeff in East Tennessee, where it's tough to be a Vol fan this year!

Older than Springtime...Younger than dirt

Bob.Gregg

The CMU announcer, when indicating that there was a flag, asked if it was a forward lateral, then stated that, from his vantage point, it was.
From my seat, I couldn't tell and didn't recognize it right away.
The video appears to show Benger inside his 27 going toward 25 when he flips it and it's caught outside the 27.
Been wrong before.  Will be wrong again.

WashJeff68

ExTartan Player,

Great summary of the game. Thanks for posting!

Looks like we have a small core group here which is a shame. Other than 2 from CWRU, you from CMU, two from W&J and one from TMC,no other school is represented. Dont know if that is normal or not.

Jeff in East Tennessee

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ADL70

There are four CWRU followers, although Jeff posts very rarely of late.
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Bob.Gregg

Case Western, Wash/Jeff, Westminster and Carnegie-Mellon all win today.
CWRU, W&J and Westminster all unbeaten, a game up on CMU and two ahead of Geneva.

CWRU is @Geneva, non-conference vs. Washington U, hosts Westminster, @CMU
W&J hosts Westminster, then @ St. Vincent, @ Geneva, vs. Waynesburg
Westminster is @W&J, hosts CMU, @CWRU, hosts Geneva
CMU is @Thiel, @Westminster, bye week, hosts CWRU.

W&J has cleared all but one serious hurdle to the AQ, hosting Westminster this week.
Westminster, like W&J, needs no help, just win!  Toughest stretch of season starts Saturday for Titans--WJ, CMU, CWRU.
CMU has to root for Westminster win over W&J.
CWRU needs the same or the Spartans have to run the table and get a Pool C.


Thomas More has rebounded to middle of the pack at 2-3, likely to finish at 5-3 with St. Vincent, Bethany and Thiel left on schedule.
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SaintsFAN

Quote from: Bob.Gregg on October 14, 2017, 10:11:58 PM
Thomas More has rebounded to middle of the pack at 2-3, likely to finish at 5-3 with St. Vincent, Bethany and Thiel left on schedule.

With the way they are playing, it's too bad the schedule wasn't backloaded.  Replacing the OL and LB corps was a bigger deal than I thought it would be.  Thems the breaks.
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jam40jeff

Quote from: ADL70 on October 13, 2017, 01:24:28 PM
There are four CWRU followers, although Jeff posts very rarely of late.

I'm more of a lurker than a contributor around here these days, but I do still follow the games online and make it to a game or two each year.