McNeese Recap

(The following is likely going to be thoughts that go all over the place. The first things that pop into my mind will be the next things you read.)

I wasn’t at the Sam Houston game, but I’ve taken Monty’s word for it that the players didn’t put forth a lot of effort. That certainly didn’t seem to be the case Saturday night.

I thought Robbie played well. I can think of five passes right off that should have been caught, and I’m sure there were more. I also remember Magic making some catches that were pretty difficult. Against Sam, Gambles played much better than he did against Texas State. Against McNeese, it was Magic who got back into his usual groove. The 4th down pass at the end certainly seemed catchable as well. And with 31 seconds remaining, that’s time for several more shots and moving the ball to the endzone.

Another two of Robbie’s passes that should have been caught were by Grimes and McKnight (maybe on back-to-back plays??). The thing I liked about it though was seeing how upset the two of them were when they came to the bench after the drive ended.

After the game was over, the first question out of the mouths of McNeese fans: “How much longer is 21 going to be around?” They were relieved to hear that Grimes was a senior.

The second question: “What about number 40? He was really putting some big blocks on our guys.” They were disappointed that McKnight was just a sophomore.

Back to Grimes, I think he set career marks in carries and yards and added two more touchdowns making him the career leader. He’s now #5 in career rushing yards and will have a good shot at passing Kentrel for #4 on Saturday.

The defense held the Cowboys to just 250 total yards. If we knew going into the game that MSU would have fewer than 300 yards, I’d have given us a high percentage to win. Even in the weather, neither team had a “turnover.” The defense’s play meant that on paper, UCA won every statistical category except for penalties and fourth-down conversions.

One of those fourth-down attempts was actually just another special teams blunder. You know, the one that set up MSU at the 16, the one that put the team down 14-3. The stats might not show this as a turnover, but that’s certainly what it was. This was game-changing play #1 in favor of the Cowboys.

Game-changing play #2 was obviously the de-flagged block in the back. Maybe someone watching on TV can actually explain to me what happened there. We were in complete shock when the MSU offense started cheering and running to the sidelines in celebration.

I don’t know what else there is to say. Maybe that’s why there’s little to no discussion of the game on the forum. We once again had chances to win the game. Instead, we lose a heartbreaker, again.

Hate It

It’s inherent that people like to win. Players, coaches, fans, everyone’s happy when you’re winning.

I’ve never bought into the whole “a coaches job is to motivate the players thing.” Sure, I think a motivational speech can help, but am I the only one that just hates to lose? I’m not talking about just “my team” losing. I hate when I lose things. I hate to lose church-league softball games. No one has to motivate me. I play hard because I freaking hate losing. And it’s church-league softball!

I wasn’t there, but I’ll take Monty’s word for it. He was standing on the sideline and said the players were lifeless (paraphrase). And the results certainly back up his statement.

But I’m not lumping all players into this, the defense was amazing – again. If they were also lifeless, they at least put out enough effort to win the game. Sidenote: It’s too bad the special teams has screwed our points allowed several times this season, or it’d be even more incredible than it is.

We’re not accustomed to the Bears losing. More specifically, we don’t lose this many conference games. After Conque’s first season – taking over a 4-6 season for those that weren’t around back then – his teams have lost more than three conference games just one time, 2003. Another reminder, that was the season we lost Zak Clark in fall camp, and we ended up recovering somewhat and winning the last three games. So, this season is certainly not the norm.

Like 2003, this team could have won our last three games. I was fully prepared and expecting to beat Sam Houston. I find it hard to believe, even after that game, the Bearkats are the better team. And yes, I know that the better team doesn’t always win.

Now, we’re in a position where we’re sitting at a .500 record overall and a 2-4 conference mark with two games to go. You can’t finish the SLC at .500. But you can make sure you’re not finishing 7th. Hope for a Texas State win (is that allowed?) and we can finish 5th. No, it’s not good or even acceptable with all the returning experience we have, and I know what we lost last year and in the offseason. But finishing 4-3 certainly would have been better than 3-4 or 2-5.

You can blame the coaches for playcalling, the talent on the field, etc. But don’t give me some crap about how the team isn’t motivated. I’m not buying it. I know this team has technically nothing left to play for at this point. I can’t imagine that any preseason team goal is still attainable. It’s called pride, and this team needs to have some on Saturday against McNeese. Why? Because I hate losing, and they should too.