Random Thoughts on the SDSU Game

by Class of 66 on Sep 6, 2009 6:25 AM PDT

Bumped. I will not be able to chime in with extended thoughts until later this evening. 66 seems to have captured a good portion of my notes. So bumping this up to get the morning/afternoon convo going. Of course you have extended thoughts, fire them up in the fanposts. GO BRUINS. -N

I'm not sure that there are any big "take aways" from this game -- obviously SDSU is regrouping and rebuilding and not a touchstone for where we stand, today. But, I do think this game helps us see where we will be, soon. To me, the future looks very bright.

For me, the biggest take away is that I now see what a UCLA Norm Chow offense can look like. And, I really like it. Throwing the ball down field, throwing to a lot of receivers, keeping the D off balance. Balanced attack -- 38 runs and 31 passes. A running game. And, a running game that gains yards up the middle. With an O line and the right kids at the skill positions, we will move the ball. Bless NC for his patience last year. I think he saw the potential at UCLA and was willing to go through the rebuilding process. We are still in it. Think about what we will be when we have a team full of CRN/NC recruits.
We are a young team and will make young team mistakes. Not hard to see and we all seem to agree that we will have our young moments (which correspond, in many ways to the gray moments some of us Geezers have). But, to me the key is not to look at the mistakes but rather to see what we do after making them, and I think we pulled things together and responded well.
Our young kids played very well. Very well indeed. It's been documented, no need to focus on it, but several kids getting their first playing time looked good. I love our depth at the skill positions -- our running backs and receivers have great potential. It looks like we will be running deeper rotations at those positions. If the coaches can get the players to buy into "fewer touches" for the greater good and egos don't get in the way, we will give the staff a lot of combinations to throw against the other team. We have speed, finesse and power on our bench -- just pick the right tool for the right job and get it done. More after the jump.

The O line looked much better. How much better is yet to be seen. Tenn will be a good test. But, there seemed to be a real difference in attitude. They seemed "tougher".

We are bigger and stronger. Everyone has been saying that -- and it shows on the field. And, I think it shows in attitude.

Wonder why we are playing Brehaut and Thigpen instead of giving them a Red Shirt year? I think it is because CRN and his staff are so confident in our recruiting ability that they are not worrying about treating these kids as precious rare assets to be adored but not used. This isn't the china you got when you got married -- the stuff that sits in the closet. This is the everyday stuff you use and enjoy. There's more out there should you need it.

I would love to see the D come out, the first time it is on the field, and dominate. For all that is said about how it is one of the best units in the country, it is not sufficiently consistent to hold that label, right now. There is so much there that I really cannot understand the slow starts. That said, during 9 out of 15 possessions SDSU did not get a first down.

In the second half, we were able to play field position football -- much of the game was played, on both sides of the ball, inside SDSU's 50 yard line, and at that point we started to dominate.

This will be an interesting year. We look better. But so do other Pac 10 schools. Cal was expected to be strong and looked very strong. Washington looked good -- Locker is the real deal.
Was it only two years ago I went into every fall Saturday with my eyes half shut -- wanting to see the game but not really wanting to see it? Now I can't wait. Thank you CRN, coaches and players. You are bringing us back to where we belong.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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I only caught the second half

So I’m not as optimistic as ‘66 sounds about our progress. I was shocked at how flat we looked. I saw a team that looked like one of Dorrell’s teams, allowing the opposition dictate the style and tempo of the game. The offense looked sluggish.

I tell myself CRN kept the offense under wraps to prevent Tennessee getting anything on film they can scheme against. But that’s just looking for the silver lining in the rain clouds.

why we are playing Brehaut and Thigpen instead of giving them a Red Shirt year?

That was also shocking to me. If we were going to use Brehaut, what was the point of the depth chart? Wasn’t he 3rd string? It has to be like you said, CRN must know something we don’t know.

A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment. John Wooden

by MexiBruin on Sep 6, 2009 8:23 AM PDT reply actions

I think Coach Chow went vanilla in the second half

to save it for Tennessee as you suggest. He got away from play action which worked in the first half and ran a very simple offense.

I think Brehaut played because Prince tweaked his knee and reminded the staff he has knee issues and we have to have a backup who can lead this team because Prince does have a pretty significant history of injury.

"when you've seen how big the world is, how can you make due with this?"

by silverlakebruin on Sep 6, 2009 9:19 AM PDT up reply actions

Prince

looked amazing in the first half, and I wish you could have seen it.

by captainqtp on Sep 6, 2009 11:22 AM PDT up reply actions

Few quick Offense thoughts

-The O line looked head and shoulders above where it played last year. There were the occassional breakdowns (or not holding blocks) but they at least felt much less frequent.
-Prince gave a lot to feel good about in the 1st half – throwing downfield, high completion rate, and showing mobility as well as hanging in the pocket. That 1st fumble was all on Kai – the ball never reached Prince’s hands. The 2nd half was completely different though – gave CRN/Chow/Prince a lot to look over and improve upon during film.
-I thought all RB in the game looked good. I like the depth there. Knox, DC, and the Jet all imprerssed.
-I would have liked to see more WR get involved. Outside of a couple Rosario passes, everything went to Austin and Embree. Would have liked to see Carroll, Pressley, Moutra, anyone else get involoved. Also would have liked to see more RB catches out of backfield (I think both FB had a pass though).
-I, as others have expressed, am also dissapointed that Brehaut’s redshirt year was just burned on a few meaninigless plays at the end of the game. Defenitely would have preferred to keep that option/decision in the hip pocket until later in the season when more trends could be identified. No problem here with using Thigpen because I think his speed could be used on O and Special Teams as the season moves on.

Overall, a win to feel good about. With all the youth that is sure to improve as the season goes on – the future looks bright!

Free Brandon Wood!

by gorams77 on Sep 6, 2009 9:44 AM PDT reply actions

Fixable mistakes

The most encouraging aspect of the game was that the mistakes the team made are all fixable, and not a case of underwhelming talent that makes you think it will be a long season. The Center-QB exchange? Fixable. Holding on to the football? Fixable. The interceptions that were telegraphed? Fixable. this game did not leave me feeling that what the team needs to work on to improve will be a difficult process.

Having said all that, the most discouraging aspect were the injuries. Granted, 2 do not look serious, but seeing Price and Prince down made me sick… especially after hearing about poor Hester’s injury. The CBs cannot afford to have any more injuries. Hopefully Hester does get back within the time frame they set out. Viney will need to hold down the fort for at least 2 road games.

by UCLA4Life on Sep 6, 2009 2:48 PM PDT reply actions

I cut the D a little slack on this one

I hear where you are coming from, as it was a theme last year to get a slow start on D. Seems like the 1st possession almost always lead to a score by the opponent.

However, where I cut them some slack is they were facing a SDSU team with zero tape on them as they had a brand new offense and head coach, plus they held closed practices.

I, for one, was impressed at how quickly they made adjustments once they saw what they were dealing with.

by Free the 16 on Sep 6, 2009 10:14 PM PDT reply actions