Instant (and perhaps intoxicated) Analysis

Real tough loss in OT tonight for your Tigers.  A few thoughts:

(1) We lost a running back tonight, but gained another one.  Josey looked great but unfortunately, he's all that appears to be left on the depth chart. 

(2) We also appeared to gain a quarterback.  While I could argue with a couple of decisions, Franklin looked like an entirely different QB than he did last week and one that will win quite a few games in his career.

(3) In non-positive news: our defense was horrible.  If you play a soft zone at all times, the line as the get to the QB not part of the time, but all of the time.  If someone isn't always in his face,  good QB can pick apart the zone.  That's what happened tonight.  Our line got a few key sacks late in the game, but overall we didn't provide adequate pressure that would protect our secondary playing in a soft zone.

(4) In positive news, the District watch party was amazing.  Penn Quarter was packed.  We need to make this the site of the watch party.

(5) As I said previously, we've got to get used to a team that gets better every week.  Areas to get better: closing quicker on the soft zone, Franklin making better decisions (and not scampering for a 1.5 yard gain each time), receivers running better routes, o-line providing better protection, and the d-line getting more penetration.

(6) As I said previously, I'm a big Gary Pinkel fan.  I posed a question in a previous post about whether or not if the Little 9 were dissolving 10 years ago, would we be listed among the untouchables (Baylor, K-State, Iowa State).  I think we would have.  Then GP arrived and took us to a higher level.  Tonight, though, GP and his staff lost us this game.  My issues:

(a) Not calling timeouts in the drive at the end of the first half.  I know we don't have a Gabbert QBing and I know he was tying to play conservative and not turn the ball over, but COME ON WE'RE TRYING TO WIN A GAME.  A few good plays and we're in striking distance.  We miss a 50+ FG to end the half but wouldn't have had to kick that long of one if we had called timeouts.  We basically wasted around 20 seconds and those 20 seconds would have allowed for one or two more plays that could have got us closer and led to a more realistic field goal. 

(b) With more points on the board he would have had more of a cushion to go for it on the goal line on the first drive in the second half.  We settled for a field goal, but if we failed to get into the end zone we would have had them pinned on the 1 yard line.

(c) We had them stopped at the end of the third quarter and settling for a field goal, but they got a penalty and instead of making them settle for a FG we accepted and gave them an extra freaking down.  They used that down to get a...touchdown.

(d) Let's review: at this point if he had even made one of these decision opposite of what he did, we've won the game in regulation...

(e) ...but he didn't.  So we march the ball down the field in the last minutes of regulation and get into field goal range in the last seconds and...

(f) ...ice our own kicker.  Evidently GP says ASU was jumping off sides a lot during the game and he was trying to get us another 5 yards...that would have been great if we would have needed another 5 yards for a weak legged kicker.  Instead our strong legged kicker misses after back to back timeouts by GP. 

(g) Never fear, we can always win in OT.  We just need to win the flip and take the ball to put pressure on the other team...oh...wait...we won the flip but chose to play defense because statically the team that takes the ball first wins.  Makes perfect sense.

(h) I don't know who was calling offensive plays in OT, but they did an awful job.  GP or Yost, its doesn't really matter. 

Summary
Its hard to see heroes make mistakes, but GP and his staff made PLENTY tonight.  They took us to our current heights, but the reality is this loss also has to be pinned on them.  It wasn't all bad, though.  The DC crew found a new watch party location, and we found a new QB and RB.  The good news, as one Mizzou fan told us tonight: we weren't going win a national championship this year and this game was just a non-conference loss.  In other words, we'll live to fight another day.  Here's to that, and here's to our players and coaches cutting down on their mistakes and living up to their potential.