Pre-Game Look: USD @ KSU

[aldewitt]

Great game. Physically equal. No talent gap. Well coached. Probably not getting invited back! LOL

[thebacksackdad]

Sept 1, 2018 21:02:34 GMT -6 aldewitt said:

Great game. Physically equal. No talent gap. Well coached. Probably not getting invited back! LOL

Completely agree!!! 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[gopheryote]

UUUHHHGGGGG! So close....

[Yote 53]

When you have a chance to beat a P5 team you have to capitalize. We let this one get away. Up 24-12 we had ample chance to extend that lead and put KSU away. Didn't do it.

Yeah, it's great to come close. But I don't feel good about this one. Should have been a W.

Lessons learned, have to finish, can't make mistakes. That 5 yard penalty at the end was the difference between OT and losing

[thebacksackdad]

Now I'm a bit biased here... but WI has a great team and is not going to put a wimpy non con team on their schedule because it'll hurt their championship bid.

Coaches know coaches. The fact WI agreed to play us in '24 is a testament to Alverezes faith in our staff that we're going to be that perennial powerhouse.

Keep the faith! This was an incredible game for a young team. Definitely one of those learning experiences games. The best swords are those that are pounded under high heat.

This is a true team... coaches and players that work, play, care and help each other both on and off the field. These men are already champions in my book and will legitimize it soon and you can take that to the bank!!!

The nucleus has been built, is in place and its just a matter of time until this team comes to fruition. Enjoy the ride!

[yoteforever]

I see that K State must’ve watched our game film vs SDSU and learned the cramp factor. ( I think his cramp was legit )

[Charlie]

Sept 1, 2018 21:12:49 GMT -6 Yote 53 said:

When you have a chance to beat a P5 team you have to capitalize. We let this one get away. Up 24-12 we had ample chance to extend that lead and put KSU away. Didn't do it.

Yeah, it's great to come close. But I don't feel good about this one. Should have been a W.

Lessons learned, have to finish, can't make mistakes. That 5 yard penalty at the end was the difference between OT and losing

This one stings because the chances were there. How many balls hit receivers in the hands and they flat out dropped them. That would have extended some drives and change the whole complexity of the game. But it was good to see lots of young guys step up and play with no fear and make plays. Can’t wait to watch this team next week in the dome!

[kiyoat]

Agree about missed opportunities, but I’d rather see those “low” balls the receivers missed vs “high” balls that turn into INT’s. Our QB was playing smart and it just about worked.

[sdyotefan]

Awesome effort by the Yotes!! Disappointing end but overall many encouraging signs--D played great first 3 Qs but finally got worn down some in 4th (was 93 degrees at KO), as Charlie said many young players made plays, O line pass protection was overall very good with over 50 passes, coaches had Coyotes prepared!! Pack the Dome Yote fans and get out to road games--this team deserves your support!!! Go Yotes!!!

[Yote 53]

I was most impressed with the D and our O-line play. The O-line protected Simmons pretty well. Good signs going into the season.

[teamsd]

Wow. What a night. I don’t believe in moral victories. I wanted to win, but I am feeling optimistic about this season.

Here are a few of my takes:
- Wow, K-States Facebook broadcast is legit.
- Our offensive line came to play. They protected Simmons very well. When things got tight, Simmons usually had enough time to toss it up.
- I was impressed with the tempo of our offense. The noise got the best of us a few times but we seemed to keep our composure. I loved seeing the team pop back up and
- the defense really weathered the storm. K State is the type program that can get down hill in a hurry. I am very proud of the defensive effort tonight.
- special teams needs some work. We got bailed out of one kick return and the second cost us any momentum we had left.
- Simmons proved that this is his team and that he is ready for the job. His arm was as good as advertised and, although it is only one game, I think he seemed much more accurate.
- I think games like this are very interesting. It’s easy to get excited when you beat an FBS team- rightfully so. Alternatively, it’s easy to get upset when you come so close to winning because you start saying “what if?” The most important thing is that this loss better fuel our team and emphasize the importance of the process throughout the season. This team can be any team they want to be if they continue to improve each rep at a time.
- next week is a new opponent. I believe NC was projected to finish at the bottom of the Big Sky this season - so what. NC has a very talented quarterback and will be calling our name next week. We need to move on.

How did we do on injuries ?

[Yote 53]

Upon further reflection, really impressed with our defense. We kept K-State bottled up all day, only gave up one offensive TD to them IIRC. That's a Big 12 offense that is used to putting up basketball type points.

I don't think it's too bold to say that the punt return we gave up for a TD was the difference in the game. That big play changed everything. But offensively, K- State did diddly squat. That bodes real well for us as the defense is what we have needed to take this program to the next level.

[elcoyote]

Looks like a lot of genius prognosticators on other boards and sites either don't know what they're talking about or their wishful thinking won't be coming true. I thought field position was a killer for a lot of the second half.

[Iceman]

Wow. That was an entertaining game to watch. Saw a lot of good things from our team. Also saw a few things that scare me.

I thought the O line looked good. They are improved. It also hurt them that Tyler Johnson at center got hurt this week and didn’t play. They did a good job adjusting.

Austin Simmons looked good. I wish he would have looked to run the ball a few more times though.

Levi Falk looked great. I like the number change. He reminds me of a Van Roekel.

Defense looked pretty tough as well. I think we had 8 tackles for loss including 3 sacks. I also think because we were giving them the ball back so fast in the second half, the defense got too tired again. As long as we keep running the fast paced offense, I just think it kills our defense because they are always on the field. This is the main reason we give up points like that later in games. Also combine in the injuries gave us fewer subs yet on defense.

Scary things:

Special teams were a bit of a struggle today. Hopefully we can continue to get better on those.

Our wide receiver group is always talked about how good and how deep they are. I thought they could have been better today. Simmons completion percentage wasn’t over the top today but that was due to the receivers dropping some balls they should have caught.

I wonder how we are on injuries. I counted at least 5 starters that went out with injuries that didn’t come back in.

[elcoyote]

I didn't notice starters coming out and not going back in. Most just seemed shaken up. Maybe Coker? Who were they?