UR at MD

[WebSpinner]

if you observed what we did on kickoffs after lively burnt us the first time, you then know we knew what to do with him and we were able to do it, easier on kickoffs than punts to put it somewhere else. on punts, we attempted to kick it away from him but he still got to the ball, cannot coach quickness and speed. the only thing to do is just kick it out of bounds or go for it on every 4th down which would have worked out better for us. this game could have been a 70 thrown on us, keeping it to 50 was OK but could have been less if, when we did tackle lively, should have twisted his ankle and knee to get him out of the game.

 

[CarolinaSpider]

I watched several games Saturday and majority of kick offs were going in the end zone. Why cannot a potential all CAA kicker who should have gained leg strength and better muscle mass, not get it in the end zone without 40 mph wind behind him. Johnny Jones was 5'7 and consistently got it past the goal line. Before my time is up I would love UR to return to a strong kicking game. Am I wishing for too much? Helkowski I believe will be a good one but way too inconsistent.

 

[WebSpinner]

understand and agree with what you are saying Carolina but looking at some games yesterday and last night, a lot of it is just speed, guys kicking it around the goal line but the returners did not even get to the 20. either we have no speed or the guys just run to the wrong spots. there are some speed burner returners in the caa and if our coverage is going to be like this, we need to continue to pooch it or keep it along the ground. with punting, if we cannot cover better then just go for it on 4th down but really doubt we will face another guy like lively at our level. quite frankly, have seen some really bad kick and punt coverage in the nfl as well. know with DC, we had both excellent coverage and returns so it can be done.

 

[TBSpyder]

Not surprising that Maryland had a better running game, given the huge difference in size of the linemen. But we actually had a better passing game. And the interception by David Jones was impressive. Yes, Maryland would have probably ground out a win because of their ground game. But we were routed because of special teams. I saw no sign that we had scouted Maryland's return game. No evidence that we practiced an effective strategy to deal with their return game. It's almost impossible to win, when you get the ball at the 20, and the other team takes possession in your own half of the field. If it weren't for the disastrous special teams play, Maryland doesn't score more than 28 or 35 points.

We may not face another kick returner as skilled as Likely, but we will face other talented return teams, we MUST fix this. If we do, we're going to have a more successful season than many expected.

 

[AnnapSpider]

Unfortunately, we did poorly last year on return coverage, and obviously, nothing was done to improve it.
Danny, this is on your shoulders now!

 

[WebSpinner]

you guys, the point is we did alter our strategy and began pooching and kicking off along the ground. you cannot pooch a punt and it did seen we tried to punt it away and to the sideline but he got to them anyway. we had no player even close to where the ball landed, lack of speed, they blocked us well or whatever, did not see how they blocked our outside cover guys. we tried, nothing worked.

 

[urmite]

What happened to Vergos? I missed his injury.

I thought our O Line did a very good job today.

Mo, it was on D not O. Velardo I believe.

 

[97spiderfan]

Remember how excited we were when we nearly beat NC State a few years ago and I think ended up 3-8 or something awful like that. These BCS games are largely meaningless, we don't have the number or quality of players that a BCS school has. The only stock I take in this game is that we had no one seriously injured. I understand the financials involved but wish we didn't have to play a BCS school. It just isn't a level playing field.

 

[32counter]

JMU lost 52-7 to the Terps to open up their 2014 season.How did the Harrisonburg mob do in 2014?

 

[WebSpinner]

typically we don't have much chance but we have won these games and think the players want to play them and think as fans, we like to go to them. now, as the difference between the two levels widens, which it is doing, maybe have to revisit at some time. know i do not want to play just a fbs lower level school or program like odu so either power 5 conf or all fbs.

 

[MolivaManiac]

know i do not want to play just a fbs lower level school or program like odu so either power 5 conf or all fbs.

Think you mean "or all FCS" and I agree. Basically, ACC or bust.

 

[WebSpinner]

yep, getting old sucks sometimes.

 

[Spidermaniac]

you guys, the point is we did alter our strategy and began pooching and kicking off along the ground. you cannot pooch a punt and it did seen we tried to punt it away and to the sideline but he got to them anyway. we had no player even close to where the ball landed, lack of speed, they blocked us well or whatever, did not see how they blocked our outside cover guys. we tried, nothing worked.

Think Spinner's assessment hits the nail on the head. It is ludicrous to believe that Likely was not scouted,. His speed, cutting ability, and the Terps' return set-up were too much for our punt team to cover. While so many speculate about the ease of hitting the ball out of bounds or going for it on 4th down, I wonder how long any coach or fan base would stand for 20 yard net punts or turnovers on downs that give a BCS opponent consistent short field opportunities. It wasn't like Helkowski was aiming for the coffin corner on those punts. Suspect he was trying to get it as deep as he could and still aim for the sidelines -- extremely difficult task from one's own territory with a burner like #4 back there. Helkowski would still have to hit the ball 40 yards from the line of scrimmage to net 25 yards and ensure that the ball would not get in Likely's hands. By the way, had the kick-off team not hit the ball to short men by popping or squibbing it, Likely would have hauled the ball out from up to nine yards deep. Terps' Groza Award winning kicker hit consistent kick-offs to the middle of the end zone. To expect better from our kickers would be a stretch.

 

[paward]

I am over this game already. Next team up.

 

[32counter]

+1.Been reading a whole lot of nothing.

 

[Hanca]

Special teams are an ongoing nightmare. Give another coach a chance. Saw some positives but, please throw to tight end.