Game 10 Ark State

[LS71]

On the 2-point conversion...if he didn’t stop to try to cut in on the defender, he would’ve scored.

Oy. Just turn it upfield rather than bracing for impact.

You said it better than I did.

[Jack]

Should have tied it. Play was there just needed to dive into the end zone. Good job by the Red Wolf DB in securing the tackle.

[kd68]

Just checked the score. 33 points is usually good enough to win. I would say we have to work not on our defense also.

[Bay Area UMie]

Painful loss…the kids gave an admirable effort…on the positive side, we played the #115 rated FBS team tough on the road…maybe this elevates us up from #131, the bottom position in the FBS rankings, above pitiful Akron who currently stands at #130…let’s hope so, being crowned the lowest rated FBS program 4 consecutive years is an indignity we need to avoid…next year Arkansas State is one of the 6 very winnable games on the schedule…The upcoming Army game at McGuirk will be tough, they played a solid Troy team to a standstill on the road today and narrowly lost 10-9.

[Camby4Life]

First game all year I returned to watch the entire 4th quarter. I gave up today after the 1st and goal from the 2 debacle.

James Blackmon is the type of qb DB should go after. Underclassman starter for a P5 school who transfers down to continue and finish career as a starter. Seems to be a trend when a qb gets recruited over by a coach. We just need an offense and a coordinator that a qb would want to play for. Casula isn’t the answer.

[NDR18]

Would a decent QB this year make a difference with our current roster or would certain positions need to be upgraded as well?

[inthescoop]

This team could have quit by now. The effort was there. Texas A&M could get real ugly.

Personally, I did not expect anything from DB & company year 1. It starts next year and ya damn right, there’s a shit ton of work ahead of that coaching staff.

Would a decent QB this year make a difference with our current roster or would certain positions need to be upgraded as well?

There needs to be upgrades everywhere.

[Worcester_To_Amherst]

Just checked the score. 33 points is usually good enough to win. I would say we have to work not on our defense also.

Olson threw a pick 6 to be fair

[Merlin Samuels]

This team could have quit by now. The effort was there. Texas A&M could get real ugly.

Personally, I did not expect anything from DB & company year 1. It starts next year and ya damn right, there’s a shit ton of work ahead of that coaching staff.

Would a decent QB this year make a difference with our current roster or would certain positions need to be upgraded as well?

There needs to be upgrades everywhere.

You make a good point: this team hasn’t quit. Texas A&M probably has by now.

[TheInsider]

Just checked the score. 33 points is usually good enough to win. I would say we have to work not on our defense also.

Olson threw a pick 6 to be fair

Pick 6 and the pick in the endzone was at min a 10 point swing. Brady for his career has about a 50% competition rate and gets picked off every 25 attempts.. he is far to inaccurate to be a winning QB here.

[RagingCager]

I give the players credit for fighting until the end… this was a game they could’ve/ should’ve won; hopefully that will be the case next season. I still think Olson is a capable QB at this level, but at times is hampered by poor play calling and a weak offensive line. I won’t make excuses for all of the interceptions, but he would have a better chance to succeed and develop with a more effective OC and offensive line. Every game this year there seems to be a series of calls that just boggle the mind…. in this one it was the first time they had a 1st and goal from the 2 and ran some kind of a crazy trick play followed by a run wide to the left- why not just run your big back up the middle 4x if nec for what should have been an easy TD? Instead, the series ended with a heart breaking Int. There were also several instances when Olson was stuck with a 3rd and long with a line incapable of providing the time necessary to pick up the 1st down downfield.

I hate to bring up a sore spot or beat a dead horse, but the team next door to us, that was also mired at the bottom of the D1 A rankings last year, just beat Liberty to become bowl eligible at 6-5… this was with a 4th string freshman QB, which begs the question : to whom or what do knowledgeable fans attribute their dramatic turnaround this year, and what will it take for UMass to follow suit moving forward?

[photoman]

^ maybe a newer off campus stadium like they have.

[Berkman]

Will never happen.

[DirSport]

Some numbers that jumped right out of the box score: UMass ran 94 offensive plays to ASU's 42, and had 41:30 of possession time compared to 18:30. One week, at least, when the defense wasn't spending far too much time on the field.

[Jack]

Some numbers that jumped right out of the box score: UMass ran 94 offensive plays to ASU's 42, and had 41:30 of possession time compared to 18:30. One week, at least, when the defense wasn't spending far too much time on the field.

Exactly DirSport. Some stats that jumped out to me: our D held the Red Wolves to 0-8 on 3rd down conversion attempts; we had 200 yds more of total offense than the Red Wolves and 25 1st downs for UMass to 11 for ASU. Ridiculous that we didn't win this game.

I'll never understand why we were throwing the ball on the 2 yd line. Throwing from the 2 is difficult. Olsen predictably got picked. Just bring in the heavy package and run the ball in from the 2. If you don't make it - take the FG. Had we done so we likely would've won the game.