Rutgers-Tulane film study: analyzing the ugly
- By Guerry Smith
- Joe Kennedy's Wave Crest
- 7 Replies
Let's start by pointing out the horrendous announcing. Somehow, Beth Mowins and Joey Galloway never commented or noticed Tulane getting a holding penalty on the opening kickoff that moved the ball from outside the Tulane 30 to the Tulane 9. I mean, they never noticed it while talking about Rutgers playing without its starting RB. I've never seen anything like it, but Mowins did manage to call Tulane "Temple" in the exchange.
Other points
1) The trend for the day was set on the first play, when Lazedrick Thompson was met by about four red shirts at the 11. Tulane actually ran better than I expected, but aside from Sherman Badie's spectacular 87-yard TD run, the Wave lost the battle at the line of scrimmage most of the time. It was a bad opening possession. A screen on second down had no chance, and a draw to Thompson on third down showed the coaches did not trust the offense. Not saying it was a bad call, but it was a conservative call.
2) Tulane's defense should have stopped Rutgers on its opening drive. Ater stuffing a run on the first play, the Wave got victimized by a dump-off to a running back when Nico Marley lost his balance going for a sack and Eric Thomas had to cover two receivers in the flat. He chose the tight end and ignored the RB, allowing him to gain 18 yards. After another first down run went nowhere, Royce LaFrance got pushed out of the way on an 7-yard run to set up a third-and-1. Marley had terrific penetration to bust up the third-down play. The Wave had the fourth-down play stuffed, too, but Parry Nickerson bounced off a tackle after knifing through, allowing Rutgers to pick up the first down. A nice throw and catch on a comeback route on Lorenzo Doss moved the ball to the 10, where Marley blew up another play to create a second-and-13, but Ade Aruna and Edward Williams were blocked effectively on a sweep that gained 10 yards, setting up third-and-goal at the 3. Doss should have been in position to stop the third-down pass, but he moved forward, apparently hoping for an interception, and watched the ball sail over his head for a touchdown.
Analysis: at the time I thought Tulane's D was going to have a good day. It gave up a few plays but was getting good penetration and blew an opportunity to stop Rutgers on fourth-and-1 and blew another opportunity to force a field goal when Doss made his mistake. Boy, was I wrong.
3) Thompson picked up a first down with a nice hard run on third-and-short on Tulane's second series. A screen to Badie would have picked up more if Colton Hanson had not inexplicably stopped to block an inside guy instead of continuing to run outside. Chris Taylor then got beat badly for a sack, killing that possession. Badie then almost converted a first down on a short dump off, but as he tends to do at times, he made himself too easy to tackle after making two guys miss. He needed to gather himself and lunge forward. The thing is, no one else would have come even close to getting the first down.
Analysis: It had the potential for a good drive, but Taylor's whiff ruined it.
4) Tulane's defense began to break down quirky. After a 9-yard run on 1st down, Rutgers beat Darion Monroe deep down the sideline when he took a poor angle and did not have as much speed as the guy he was covering. Nothing much else needs to be said. Monroe just misplayed it. On the next snap, Sam Scofield let a guy get past him when he played to shallow and could not catch up to him as Gary Nova made a nice throw on the run for a touchdown. Too easy.
Analysis: This wasn't youth. Monroe and Scofield got beaten on consecutive plays, and Tulane already was in T-R-O-U-B-L-E.
5) On Tulane's next snap, two Rutgers linemen were virtually untouched to blow up first down. No idea what happened there. Lee was pressured into a throwaway incompletion before throwing a gorgeous rope down the middle of the field to Teddy Veal, who broke three tackles before being dragged down at the Rutgers 39. This was Lee at his best, making a throw few recent Tulane QBs could make while under heavy duress. Hanson pulled and made a nice block to spring Thompson for 5 yards. Veal then was called for an illegal block in the back that was 1 yard past the line of scrimmage before Badie gained 12 on a screen, stepping out of bounds a yard short of the first down as the first quarter ended. A Rutgers DT then split Hanson and Nathan Shienle to stuff Thompson on third down before Sean Donnelly drove his guy to the ground on fourth down, clearing the way for Thompson to get a first down. Lee hit James for 13 yards, moving the ball to the 12 before another flag hurt Tulane. Matt Marfisi and Veal were called for a chop block away from the ball on a Badie run to the 5, moving the ball all the way back to the 24. A pass into coverage in the end zone wasn't close, and Lee held the ball far too long on third down, taking a sack all the way back at the 36. Still not sure exactly when Lee got hurt.
Analysis: Another penalty killed Tulane. Without that chop block, it would have been third-and-3 at the 5 with a real chance for a touchdown. Instead, the Wave had to punt.
6) After a Peter Picerelli punt was downed at the 1, Tulane stuffed the first play and had Rutgers in third-and-4 before the play that ended the day, with Doss letting a receiver get inside of him and then making little effort to tackle him at the 22. Good-bye. Everyone in the Tulane secondary was clearly slower than Andrew Turzilli, the receiver, who created more separation with each step on his way to a 93-yard TD.
Analysis: Another DB got beaten inside, but then Doss made an even bigger mistake, flailing with one arm instead of going for the tackle. A preseason All-America candidate can't make a mistake like that.
When Devin Powell went out on the field for an injured Lee on the next series, the rest of the game became irrelevant. Tulane had no chance, but immediately, Shienle was called for a snap infraction.
7) On Rutgers' next possession, which started at the Tulane 41, the defense finally came up with a stop. Doss busted up a screen for a loss. Nico Marley then made a nice open-field tackle to force a punt.
Analysis: The defense was playing pretty well, except of course, when it wasn't on the three huge pass plays in a row that created TDs No. 2 and 3. That's what made this performance even more frustrating. Tulane's reputed strength became its weakness.
8) Let's pause for a moment to recognize Badie's awesomeness in the open field. Taking a simple handoff from the 14, he cut outside and was gone by the time he got past a defender at the Tulane 30. No one was catching him as he accelerated past everyone with ease. Then, of course, Andrew DiRocco banged the extra point off the left upright despite a good snap and hold.
Analysis: Badie received good blocks from fullback Dante Butler, guard Chris Taylor and Donnelly to spring him.
9) Rutgers ran well early on its next drive, but Scofield timed a blitz perfectly to get a sack and Nico Marley blew up a short pass unblocked. Nova then threw a pass after going two yards past the line of scrimmage. That set up a Tulane 2-minute drill that featured by far the best run of Powell's career, a 23-yarder that was 13 yards longer than his previous career best, prompting an unintentionally humorous comment from Galloway that Powell provided a running threat unlike Lee. Well, on that play he did.
Analysis: When I say that DiRocco saps the energy of everyone around him, this is what I'm talking about. Tulane should have been down 21-10 at the half, but instead the score was 21-6 after his missed extra point and his terrible 36-yard field goal attempt right before the half. Mowins called him DiRicco before the field goal. His kick was at least five yards wide left and never had a chance, so Tulane entered the locker room disappointed rather than happy.
The second half was uneventful, except for Powell maybe playing himself out of the backup role, which will be significant if Lee is not ready to play against UConn. Nick Montana may not be done yet. The defense wore down a little earlier than you'd like to see but did not break down, allowing 10 points while the offense never picked up two first downs on the same drive after the break.
This post was edited on 10/1 4:41 PM by Guerry Smith
Other points
1) The trend for the day was set on the first play, when Lazedrick Thompson was met by about four red shirts at the 11. Tulane actually ran better than I expected, but aside from Sherman Badie's spectacular 87-yard TD run, the Wave lost the battle at the line of scrimmage most of the time. It was a bad opening possession. A screen on second down had no chance, and a draw to Thompson on third down showed the coaches did not trust the offense. Not saying it was a bad call, but it was a conservative call.
2) Tulane's defense should have stopped Rutgers on its opening drive. Ater stuffing a run on the first play, the Wave got victimized by a dump-off to a running back when Nico Marley lost his balance going for a sack and Eric Thomas had to cover two receivers in the flat. He chose the tight end and ignored the RB, allowing him to gain 18 yards. After another first down run went nowhere, Royce LaFrance got pushed out of the way on an 7-yard run to set up a third-and-1. Marley had terrific penetration to bust up the third-down play. The Wave had the fourth-down play stuffed, too, but Parry Nickerson bounced off a tackle after knifing through, allowing Rutgers to pick up the first down. A nice throw and catch on a comeback route on Lorenzo Doss moved the ball to the 10, where Marley blew up another play to create a second-and-13, but Ade Aruna and Edward Williams were blocked effectively on a sweep that gained 10 yards, setting up third-and-goal at the 3. Doss should have been in position to stop the third-down pass, but he moved forward, apparently hoping for an interception, and watched the ball sail over his head for a touchdown.
Analysis: at the time I thought Tulane's D was going to have a good day. It gave up a few plays but was getting good penetration and blew an opportunity to stop Rutgers on fourth-and-1 and blew another opportunity to force a field goal when Doss made his mistake. Boy, was I wrong.
3) Thompson picked up a first down with a nice hard run on third-and-short on Tulane's second series. A screen to Badie would have picked up more if Colton Hanson had not inexplicably stopped to block an inside guy instead of continuing to run outside. Chris Taylor then got beat badly for a sack, killing that possession. Badie then almost converted a first down on a short dump off, but as he tends to do at times, he made himself too easy to tackle after making two guys miss. He needed to gather himself and lunge forward. The thing is, no one else would have come even close to getting the first down.
Analysis: It had the potential for a good drive, but Taylor's whiff ruined it.
4) Tulane's defense began to break down quirky. After a 9-yard run on 1st down, Rutgers beat Darion Monroe deep down the sideline when he took a poor angle and did not have as much speed as the guy he was covering. Nothing much else needs to be said. Monroe just misplayed it. On the next snap, Sam Scofield let a guy get past him when he played to shallow and could not catch up to him as Gary Nova made a nice throw on the run for a touchdown. Too easy.
Analysis: This wasn't youth. Monroe and Scofield got beaten on consecutive plays, and Tulane already was in T-R-O-U-B-L-E.
5) On Tulane's next snap, two Rutgers linemen were virtually untouched to blow up first down. No idea what happened there. Lee was pressured into a throwaway incompletion before throwing a gorgeous rope down the middle of the field to Teddy Veal, who broke three tackles before being dragged down at the Rutgers 39. This was Lee at his best, making a throw few recent Tulane QBs could make while under heavy duress. Hanson pulled and made a nice block to spring Thompson for 5 yards. Veal then was called for an illegal block in the back that was 1 yard past the line of scrimmage before Badie gained 12 on a screen, stepping out of bounds a yard short of the first down as the first quarter ended. A Rutgers DT then split Hanson and Nathan Shienle to stuff Thompson on third down before Sean Donnelly drove his guy to the ground on fourth down, clearing the way for Thompson to get a first down. Lee hit James for 13 yards, moving the ball to the 12 before another flag hurt Tulane. Matt Marfisi and Veal were called for a chop block away from the ball on a Badie run to the 5, moving the ball all the way back to the 24. A pass into coverage in the end zone wasn't close, and Lee held the ball far too long on third down, taking a sack all the way back at the 36. Still not sure exactly when Lee got hurt.
Analysis: Another penalty killed Tulane. Without that chop block, it would have been third-and-3 at the 5 with a real chance for a touchdown. Instead, the Wave had to punt.
6) After a Peter Picerelli punt was downed at the 1, Tulane stuffed the first play and had Rutgers in third-and-4 before the play that ended the day, with Doss letting a receiver get inside of him and then making little effort to tackle him at the 22. Good-bye. Everyone in the Tulane secondary was clearly slower than Andrew Turzilli, the receiver, who created more separation with each step on his way to a 93-yard TD.
Analysis: Another DB got beaten inside, but then Doss made an even bigger mistake, flailing with one arm instead of going for the tackle. A preseason All-America candidate can't make a mistake like that.
When Devin Powell went out on the field for an injured Lee on the next series, the rest of the game became irrelevant. Tulane had no chance, but immediately, Shienle was called for a snap infraction.
7) On Rutgers' next possession, which started at the Tulane 41, the defense finally came up with a stop. Doss busted up a screen for a loss. Nico Marley then made a nice open-field tackle to force a punt.
Analysis: The defense was playing pretty well, except of course, when it wasn't on the three huge pass plays in a row that created TDs No. 2 and 3. That's what made this performance even more frustrating. Tulane's reputed strength became its weakness.
8) Let's pause for a moment to recognize Badie's awesomeness in the open field. Taking a simple handoff from the 14, he cut outside and was gone by the time he got past a defender at the Tulane 30. No one was catching him as he accelerated past everyone with ease. Then, of course, Andrew DiRocco banged the extra point off the left upright despite a good snap and hold.
Analysis: Badie received good blocks from fullback Dante Butler, guard Chris Taylor and Donnelly to spring him.
9) Rutgers ran well early on its next drive, but Scofield timed a blitz perfectly to get a sack and Nico Marley blew up a short pass unblocked. Nova then threw a pass after going two yards past the line of scrimmage. That set up a Tulane 2-minute drill that featured by far the best run of Powell's career, a 23-yarder that was 13 yards longer than his previous career best, prompting an unintentionally humorous comment from Galloway that Powell provided a running threat unlike Lee. Well, on that play he did.
Analysis: When I say that DiRocco saps the energy of everyone around him, this is what I'm talking about. Tulane should have been down 21-10 at the half, but instead the score was 21-6 after his missed extra point and his terrible 36-yard field goal attempt right before the half. Mowins called him DiRicco before the field goal. His kick was at least five yards wide left and never had a chance, so Tulane entered the locker room disappointed rather than happy.
The second half was uneventful, except for Powell maybe playing himself out of the backup role, which will be significant if Lee is not ready to play against UConn. Nick Montana may not be done yet. The defense wore down a little earlier than you'd like to see but did not break down, allowing 10 points while the offense never picked up two first downs on the same drive after the break.
This post was edited on 10/1 4:41 PM by Guerry Smith
