Holy S$#@! Arizona State was in a bowl game? I don't check this forum for a week or so and all hell breaks loose. Next thing you are going to tell me is that Ram created an NFL conspiracy thread...
Holy S$#@! Arizona State was in a bowl game? I don't check this forum for a week or so and all hell breaks loose. Next thing you are going to tell me is that Ram created an NFL conspiracy thread...
Originally Posted by jaymo76
Holy S$#@! Arizona State was in a bowl game? I don't check this forum for a week or so and all hell breaks loose. Next thing you are going to tell me is that Ram created an NFL conspiracy thread...
Yeah, it was an ugly bowl game, but Arizona State did what they needed to make it to one. It'll be interesting to see if they can repeat it next season.
Not sure when I'm going to start the new season. Took a break the last couple days from gaming, so not sure if I'll extend the NCAA break or jump into the new season sometime this week.
Sent from my Droid Maxx using Tapatalk because I'm a lazy ass
Utah State Inks Series with Bowling Green, Navy and Notre Dame
By Staff Reports on June 18, 2023, at 6:25 PM
LOGAN — As the summer heats up and football practices begin, the coaches and players of Utah State found out just exactly who they'd be playing over the next five seasons, as the final pieces of the 2024 through 2027 schedules were put together, with Utah State agreeing to a home and home series with both Bowling Green and Navy, while signing an agreement with Notre Dame for a "two for one" series, with Notre Dame hosting two games in South Bend, while playing a third game at a neutral site, similar to the current three game contract with Michigan.
With the new additions to the future schedule, Utah State will travel to Notre Dame in 2024 and 2025, take a one year hiatus and then close out the Notre Dame series at a neutral location yet to be determined in 2027. Utah State will begin the Navy series in 2025 hosting the Midshipmen at Romney Stadium, followed by a visit to Annapolis in 2026. And Utah State will also open the Bowling Green series in front of friendly fans in 2026, before making the return trip to Doyt L. Perry Stadium in 2027.
A year ago, during the summer of 2022, the Utah State athletic department also announced extensions to the annual Beehive Boot series with both BYU and Utah, extending both of those fierce rivalry series through the 2027 season.
The new series with Notre Dame and Navy extends the list of highly competitive non-conference opponents on the schedules of the Aggies, that have seen Utah State in recent years play the likes of Auburn, BYU, Michigan, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, Tulsa, USC, Utah and Wisconsin.
Listed below are the upcoming and future non-conference schedules for Utah State:
2023
Utah
at Michigan
at BYU
at Miami University
2024
at Utah
Michigan (at neutral site)
BYU
at Notre Dame
2025
Utah
at BYU
at Notre Dame
Navy
2026
at Utah
BYU
at Navy
Bowling Green
2027
Utah
at BYU
at Bowling Green
Notre Dame (at neutral site)
Game One
Game Story
--- After another winter, spring and summer of weight lifting, training, spring practices, meetings, two a days, scrimmages and practices, it was finally time to kick off another season of Utah State football. Coach Ramius entered the year with a shiny new 5 year contract extension and an expectation of 7 wins each season. Coming off an 11-2 season and a 7-1 mark in the Mountain West that saw Utah State just come up short of a trip to the conference title game, the Aggies were looking to win much more than just 7 games each season. The big question going into the year would be if they could rise to the challenge, with tougher non-conference schedules and somewhat weaker recruiting classes coming in.
Despite the losses to graduation after last season, not all hope was lost, as redshirt senior QB Jason Barnes took back the reigns of the offense, while redshirt senior Brian Paris and sophomore Benjamin Silva became the two headed rushing attack for the Aggies following the departure of Matt Leierer. Probably the biggest question would be the defense, which suffered quite a few losses to graduation, after already having some sub-par performances last season. The first test of the season would not be an easy one, as rival Utah came into Romney Stadium for the Battle of the Brothers. We won the coin toss and elected to kickoff.
A touchback on the opening kickoff would give Utah the ball at their 25 yard line to open the season, with Kirby Smart starting his first year at the helm of Utah on offense. A dropped pass on first down would get the drive started, followed by our first defensive meltdown of the season, as Donald Walker took the handoff on second down, weaved his way through a couple of holes around the left side and proceeded to break his way through three different tackles on the way to a 27 yard carry and a first down at our 48 yard line. Going into the air on first down, another dropped pass would bring up second and long for the Utes. Thanks to excellent pressure by our defense on second down, Ryan Tatum was forced to get rid of the ball to avoid a sack, leaving Utah with third and 10. Throwing up a deep bomb on third down, the pass would pay off for Utah as Maurice Allen was able to get behind his man going down the right sideline, hauling in the pass from Tatum in stride for a 48 yard touchdown pass, giving Utah a 7-0 lead with 9:26 left in the first quarter.
A 27 yard return by David Douglas would start us off at our 24 yard line. Starting our drive on the ground, Brian Paris would get us initially off on a good foot, rushing up the middle for an 8 yard gain, before being tripped up in the backfield for a one yard loss to leave us facing third and three. Taking a chance through the air on third down, the pass from Jason Barnes to tight end Jack Long was on the target, but a timely hit by the middle linebacker was enough to knock the ball loose and incomplete, forcing us to punt on fourth and three. A 15 yard return by Trey Riley on the 44 yard punt would set Utah up from their 38 yard line.
Utah would come out passing the ball again this drive, as Tatum quickly found his mark, hitting Clint Lee on an out route for a four yard gain, followed by a dump pass to Matt Dahl, good for a 9 yard gain to give Utah a first down at our 48 yard line. Walker would receive a pitch around the right side from Tatum on first down, but our defense was able to keep him bottled up and brought him down for a three yard loss to leave second and 13. Walker would make up those lost yards on second down with a 6 yard carry around the left end, bringing up third and 7 for the Utes. Somehow, Tatum would manage to chuck up a pass across his body to Riley, who would dive and stretch out to haul the pass in for a 21 yard gain as he slid out of bounds, giving Utah a new set of downs at our 24 yard line, our defense back to being incompetent. A first down pass from Tatum to Josh Griffith would actually see Utah go backwards, as Griffith was forced to give up ground while trying to avoid being tackled, only to be tripped up at the 27 yard line to leave second and 13. Our defense would both play great, and horribly, on the same second down play, as a blitz would find Tatum surrounded by blue jerseys in the backfield, and seemingly sacked for a 10 yard loss as he kept backpedaling, only for him to spin his way out of the grasp of two different players and nearly break free on the run. Thankfully extra movement slowed Tatum down long enough for the rest of our defensive line to close the distance and he was finally sacked for a 6 yard loss, leaving Utah with third and 19. Running a screen pass on third down, it would be broken from the start as our defensive end broke clean through and nearly sacked Tatum before tripping and falling. Tatum was forced to rush his screen pass to Walker, who was left unprotected and could only pick up two yards before being dragged down, leaving Utah attempting a field goal on fourth and 17 from our 31 yard line. The 48 yard kick had the distance and appeared to be sailing towards the center of the goalposts, but it slowly started to hook back outside over the final 10 yards and ended up missing just wide right, giving us back the ball at our 31 yard line, still only trailing by a touchdown.
Lining up after the missed field goal, Paris would again get us started off huge on the ground, this time with a 9 yard rush around the right end, followed by a four yard gain to pick up a first down at the 44 yard line. It would be no going on first down as Paris was quickly met at the line for no gain, while a second down attempt would net just three yards to leave us facing third and 7. Lining up in the shotgun on third down, Barnes dropped back and rifled a pass to Adam Washington, but the pass would end up leading the receiver too much and was thrown ahead of Washington, allowing Utah’s defense to break it up and force another punt on fourth down. The 54 yard punt would bounce down around the 10 yard line and going into the end zone for a touchback.
Lining up at their 20 yard line following the touchback, Utah came out attempting to pass, but a blitz and poor pass protection would see Tatum almost instantly sacked on first down for a four yard loss. A second down completion to Lee would go for a 10 yard gain, forced out of bounds at the 26 yard line to leave third and four. Tatum dropped back to pass on third down, but the blitz would get to him, the defense hitting him as he threw to force an incomplete pass and a Utah punt on fourth and four. A 13 yard return by Jesse Breedlove on the 36 yard punt would start our next drive from the Utah 49 yard line.
Taking over on first down just inside Utah territory, we would once again call upon our running game to start the drive, as Paris took the handoff from Barnes for a 10 yard gain around the left end and an immediate first down at the Utah 39 yard line. Another rush by Paris, this time up the middle, would go for a gain of 6 yards to bring up second and four. Continuing to pound the ball, Paris would rumble his way to an 8 yard carry, moving the chains once again, this time to the Utah 25 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Paris would be followed up by Benjamin Silva’s first carry of the game, good for a 7 yard rush to give us a first down from the 11 yard line. Paris would resume the backfield duties on first down, rushing for a 6 yard gain as we continue to plug away at the defense’s apparent main weak link, their inability to effectively stop the run. That would be our last play of the quarter as the clock ran out before we could get another snap off, bringing the first quarter to an end with Utah leading 7-0.
Starting the second quarter, we lined up on the 5 yard line, facing second down and four. Paris would take the handoff, plow his way into the mass of bodies in front of him and fight and drive his way into the end zone for a 5 yard touchdown, tying the game up at 7-7 with 9:57 left in the quarter.
Another booming kickoff to the back of the end zone would result in another touchback, giving Utah the ball once more at their 25 yard line. It appeared to be our defense’s turn to be inept at stopping the run, as Walker took the handoff on first down and plowed straight up the middle into the heart of our defense, still managing to weave his way to a 10 yard carry before being brought down for a first down at the 35 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun, Tatum tried to fire a pass to Jerrell Lewis, but ended up overthrowing the ball for an incompletion. Attempting a screen pass on second down, the completion to Walker would end up going for no gain, leaving the Utes with third and 10. Managing to shake his way out of a sack, Tatum was forced to step up into the pocket as quickly throw the ball downfield as our blitz closed in around him, the pass ending up well over 15 yards behind the nearest receiver, all of whom apparently went racing downfield on fly routes. The incomplete pass would see the promising Utah drive come to an end and another appearance by the punt team on fourth down. A one yard return by Breedlove on the 35 yard punt gave us the ball at our 31 yard line.
Paris would be called on once more to get our drive off and running, only able to pick up three yards this time around. Paris would manage to fight and roll his way to a 5 yard gain on second down, bringing up third and two. Letting Paris do his thing on third down, he would come through with a three yard carry, setting us up with a first down at the 41 yard line. Continuing to pound away on the ground, Paris would pick up 5 more yards with a first down carry, followed by a huge 10 yard rush up the middle to get a new set of downs at the Utah 44 yard line. Trying to change things up and going into the air on first down, we would end up promptly back in our own territory as Barnes was sacked while still dropping back and driven back for a 9 yard loss to bring up second and 19 from our own 47 yard line. Now with no choice but to pass on second and very long, Barnes lined up in the shotgun, but his pass attempt intended for Washington was broken up over the middle to leave third down. Taking a prayer down the left sideline, the pass thrown to David Douglas would end up swatted down near the 10 yard line, forcing us to punt away. An 11 yard return by Riley on the 39 yard punt would give Utah the ball at their 25 yard line.
Lining up on first down following the punt, Utah would waste little time burning our defense on the ground, as Walker weaved his way around multiple defenders on the way to a 14 yard carry and a quick first down at the 39 yard line. Our defense would be ready the second time around, as Walker was quickly swallowed up in the backfield for a two yard loss to leave second and 12. A second down screen pass would likewise go nowhere as Walker was driven out of bounds for no gain on the reception, leaving third and 12. An incredibly ballsy play call, Utah would call the exact same screen pass for the second play in a row on third down. This time it would pay off as our defense was caught off guard this time, allowing Walker to haul in the pass all alone and race up the left sideline behind blockers for an 18 yard gain and a first down at our 46 yard line. Derrick Ross would take the handoff on first down, fighting his way to a gain of just two yards to leave second and 8. Another rush by Ross would go for a 6 yard gain to bring up third and two. Instead of giving the ball to Walker on third and short, Tatum would drop back to pass and tried to connect with Griffith over the middle, only to have the pass broken up to leave fourth down. Stranded out of field goal range at our 37 yard line, the Utes elected to go for it on fourth down. Ross received the handoff and initially looked to go up the middle, only to find a wall of bodies in his way. Attempting to bounce outside the right tackle, Ross would find himself in the path of the blitzing outside linebacker and would be tripped up and thrown off balance, finally pushed down and tackled for a two yard loss to force the turnover on downs.
Lining up at our 39 yard line following the failed fourth down attempt, this time we decided to change things up and came out passing on first down, but the pass over the middle intended for tight end Sam Livingston was thrown past both the receiver and defender and incomplete, leaving second down. Despite being hit at the exact same time the ball got to him, Douglas was able to haul in a pass from Barnes for a 15 yard gain on a comeback route, giving us a first down at the Utah 46 yard line. A first down handoff to Paris would net 6 yards, followed by a 7 yard rush to move the chains to the 33. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, Barnes was finally able to get a pass into the hands of Washington, only to have it knocked out by the defender during the tackle, the ball falling incomplete to leave second down. Aaron Allen would come through for us on second down, hauling in a pass from Barnes along the left sideline for a 13 yard gain, resetting the down marker at the 20 yard line. Returning to the ground on first down, the defense was ready for us as Paris could only manage a two yard gain to set up second and 8. This time around, a pass intended for Livingston would find its target for a 13 yard completion, setting us up with first and goal from the Utah 5 yard line. Paris would take his first crack at the end zone, rushing outside the right tackle for a three yard gain to move us to the two yard line. On the tenth play of the drive, Paris would take the handoff from Barnes and plow forward into the end zone for a two yard touchdown, giving us a 14-7 lead with 1:12 left in the second quarter.
Another kickoff drilled deep into the end zone would result in yet another touchback, with Utah lining up at their 25 yard line. A first down screen pass by the Utes would see Walker pick up 13 yards and a quick first down, moving the chains to the 38 yard line. Griffith would keep things moving with a 13 yard reception over the middle for a first down at our 49 yard line. Rushing to the line, Tatum quickly dropped back and tried to connect with Dahl on first down, but his pass was off the mark to bring up second down, the clock stopped with 56 seconds remaining. From there, the offense would melt down as Tatum found himself quickly sacked on second down for a four yard loss, before a woefully overthrown pass intended for Walker sailed out of bounds, forcing Utah to punt on fourth and 14. Breedlove would let the 53 yard punt go into the end zone for a touchback.
Following the touchback, we lined up at our 20 yard line, still 33 seconds on the clock and all three timeouts in the bag. We didn’t have very many expectations with so little time, but we felt it better to at least make a token attempt at moving down the field rather than just taking a knee and running off 30+ seconds in a one possession game. Our first down pass attempt, intended for Allen, never had a chance of being completed as it was quickly broken up, leaving second down and 29 seconds to go. The second down pass attempt, this time intended for Jake Morris was nearly intercepted near midfield, bringing up third and long with 24 seconds remaining. At this point, with our lack of success obvious, we handed the ball off to Paris, who would gain two yards to leave fourth and 8. Utah would call their first timeout with 22 seconds to go. A 44 yard punt that landed right next to the sideline with no chance for a return would leave Utah starting from their 33 yard line with just 16 seconds left on the clock.
Coming out passing on first down, as expected, Utah would again burn our defense with that fucking screen pass, as Walker caught the ball behind a wall of blockers and raced down the right sideline for a 27 yard gain, finally forced out of bounds at our 40 yard line with 9 seconds left. Instead of playing prevent defense, with our crappy pass coverage, we chose to bring the blitz on first down, and it paid off as Tatum found little time to stand in the pocket, forced to rifle an errant pass downfield in the direction of Allen, only to have the ball be overthrown. The incomplete pass would leave second down from the 40 yard line and only 5 seconds remaining on the clock. Chucking up a Hail Mary into the left corner of the end zone, the pass would be intercepted at the goal line by cornerback Mike Moses with no time left on the clock, sending us into halftime holding a 14-7 lead.
Opening up the second half, a massive 62 yard kickoff return down the left sideline by Douglas would set us up with likely the best field position of the entire game, starting our drive from the Utah 36 yard to begin the third quarter. Douglas had nothing but wide open green in front of him after clearing the initial coverage by Utah and seemingly was on his way to a 98 yard kickoff return, but two Utah players were slightly faster and were able to chase him down from behind thanks to having the pursuit angle, and saved what would have been an assured touchdown in the process. Lining up at Utah’s 36 yard line, Paris got us started on the ground, but would only manage to pick up two yards on the first down carry. Another rush by Paris would pick up 6 yards this time around, bringing up third and two. Paris would just manage to keep our drive alive with his third down rush, getting the two yards necessary before being tackled, moving the chains to the 26 yard line. Continuing to grind it out, Paris fought his way to a 5 yard carry on first down, followed by a 6 yard rush to pick up the first down at the 15 yard line. Silva would keep us moving forward with a 6 yard rush on first down, followed by a four yard rush by Paris to leave us with third and inches. Silva would come back in the game on third down and get the job done, racing up the middle for a gain of four yards to set up first and goal at the one yard line. Paris would take the handoff on first down, picking up maybe six inches before being tackled to leave second and goal. Paris wouldn’t be denied on second down, plowing forward into the end zone for his third rushing touchdown of the game, this time from one yard out, to increase our lead to 21-7 with 6:06 left in the third quarter.
Another deep kickoff would result in a touchback and Utah got lined up from their 25 yard line. Just when it couldn’t get any worse for the Utes, Tatum took the snap from under center on first down, dropped back to try and pass, only to find our blitz in his face. Scrambling desperately to find a space to either run or throw the ball away, he spun and sprinted around from one side of the collapsing pocket to another, got tripped up by Walker who had lined up in the backfield, somehow managed to spin off one sack attempt only to be hit by another defender. During the contact with the defender, the ball was jarred loose from Tatum’s throwing arm and fumbled, promptly picked up by defensive end Steve Jones, who managed to advance it four yards before being tackled to give us possession of the ball at the Utah 11 yard line. This play would disprove the previous prediction, following the kickoff return, that the best field position of the entire game would see us starting from the Utah 36 yard line, as we managed to knock 25 yards off that number and set ourselves up at the 11 yard line thanks to the defense.
Lining up at the 11 yard line following the fumble recovery, Paris went right back to work on first down, picking up two yards on the carry before being spun down. The second down carry would be a bit more successful, as Paris would rush for a gain of three yards to leave third and five. Paris would take another crack at it on third down, picking up three yards in the process, but still come up short to leave us with fourth and two from the three yard line. Ramius was faced with a tough play call decision. Kick the extra point distance field goal and take a 17 point lead, or gamble and try to get those two yards on the ground and extend our lead to 21, or leave Utah stuck with no wiggle room should we fail, as they would be in the shadow of their own goalposts. We would take the fourth down gamble and go for it all, but much like Utah last half, it wasn’t meant to be as Paris was shut down immediately for no gain, turning the ball over on downs at the three yard line.
Lining up along the goal line following the failed fourth down try, Utah was in a precarious position, with no room for lost yardage. That would end up not being a concern as Walker would shed off FOUR different defenders on his way to a 9 yard rush on first down. Another 9 yard rush by Walker, against shaking off multiple tackle attempts, would pick up the first down at the 21 yard line. Ross would take over on first down, getting around the corner and up the right sideline for a 19 yard gain and moving the chains to the 41 yard line. In another sign of bullshit, even Tatum would proceed to shake off three different tackle attempts while scrambling from the blitz, managing to run and slide his way to an 8 yard carry to leave second and two. Utah, infatuated with screen passes, would throw another on first down, this time to Ross for a gain of 17 yards and a new set of downs at our 35 yard line. (Boy, when this game fucks you, it REALLY fucks you). Walker would receive the handoff on first down, only able to gain one yard on the carry before being spun down to leave second and 9. Utah would go into the air on second down, but the pass from Tatum intended for Lee was off the mark and incomplete to bring up third down. Utah would run yet another screen pass on third down, but thankfully a diving tackle at the knees would send Ross to the ground for no gain on the play to set up fourth and 9 from the 34 yard line. The 51 yard field goal attempt, like the first one, was plenty long enough, but also like the first one, would sail wide right and we would get the ball back at our 34 yard line.
Paris would again get our drive off and running following the missed field goal, taking a handoff on first down for a gain of four yards, followed by a second four yard rush to leave third and two. Despite the failures of the previous drive, we decided to take another chance on the ground on third down, as Paris fought his way forward for a three yard gain to get the first down at the 45 yard line. Silva would take over on first down, only to be quickly stood up for just a one yard gain, leaving second and 9. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, Barnes would rifle off a pass to Allen on an out route, completed for a gain of 9 yards to leave us looking at third and inches. The clock would run out without another snap and that would be the end of the third quarter, our lead standing at 21-7.
Opening up the fourth quarter, we lined up on third and inches from the Utah 46 yard line. Paris would get the handoff and would rumble for gain of 6 yards to pick up the first down at the 40 yard line. A first down carry by Paris would gain 7 yards, followed by a big 10 yard rush around the right tackle, moving the chains to the Utah 23 yard line. Silva would keep the momentum going with a 7 yard carry of his own, after which Paris would take the second down handoff for a gain of four yards to give us a first down at the 12 yard line. Silva would return to the backfield on first down, this time rushing for a gain of four yards. A second down rush by Paris would pick up three yards, leaving us with third and three. This time Paris would not be denied, fighting his way forward for a gain of three yards to give us first and goal at the two yard line. A one yard rush by Silva would bring up second and goal just outside the goal line. Another carry by Silva would see him met at the line of scrimmage for no gain, leaving third and goal. Silva would get the job done on his third try, punching it in for a one yard touchdown to increase our lead to 28-7 with 6:26 left in the game.
Utah would again field the kickoff in the end zone and kneel down for a touchback, starting their drive from the 25 yard line. The Utes would come out passing on first down, as Tatum stepped up in the pocket and took the hit as he threw, completing a pass to Dahl for a gain of 14 yards and a quick first down at the 39 yard line. Tatum would take off scrambling on first down, but would only gain four yards before being dragged down hard. A pass on second down would see Griffith pull in a 7 yard completion, good enough to get the first down at the 49 yard line. Going back to Griffith on first down, Tatum would complete the pass, but only for a two yard gain. The next play, the Utah offense would finally break our defense, as Riley cut across the field and was able to lose his man, hauling in a pass from Tatum near the 30 yard line with not a soul around him. One tackle attempt would see Riley shake his way out of it before being tripped up at the ankles and falling into the end zone for a 49 yard touchdown pass, cutting our lead to 28-14 with 5:05 left in the game.
Leonard Hart would only manage 19 yards on the kickoff return, forcing us to line up from our 18 yard line, by far our worst field position of the day. Silva would get us started on first down with a four yard gain, followed by a three yard rush to leave third and three. We would keep it on the ground on third down, where Silva (as Paris had seemingly up and disappeared from the game) managed to stumble his way to a 6 yard gain, giving us a first down at the 31 yard line and keeping the clock running with 3:43 and counting left In the game. Silva would find a great hole on first down and ran it all the way to a 10 yard carry, setting up second down and inches. A three yard rush by Silva would get the job done and reset the down marker, moving the chains to the 44 yard line. Freshman Kyle Hall would see his first collegiate action on first down, managing a two yard carry before being tripped up. Utah would call their first timeout of the half with 2:16 remaining. A two yard carry by Silva would leave us with third and 6, Utah’s second timeout called with 2:14 to go. While a pass play would be the most prudent course of action in the situation, needing 6 yards for a first down, we elected to run the ball on third down as it would force Utah to choose to either burn their final timeout of the game with just over two minutes remaining and down by 14, or have sit on their timeout and watch us take another 30 seconds off the clock before punting. Either way, it was a seemingly better option than taking a chance through the air and risking an incomplete pass. Silva would nearly get the first down, but he would be brought down for a gain of only four yards, forcing us to punt the ball on fourth and three from the Utah 49 yard line. The Utes would elect to burn their final timeout of the game, leaving them with 2:11 left and a 14 point deficit, with no way to stop the clock for the rest of the game other than getting out of bounds. In a solid punt, Ed Allen would punt the ball 37 yards and straight out of bounds at the Utah 12 yard line to leave the Utes no chance of a return.
Utah’s offense lined up from their own 12 yard line, just 2:07 remaining in the game and facing a 14 point deficit. It would no surprise to anyone following the game, that Utah would be going aerial assault from here on out. The aerial assault nearly lasted all of one play, as Tatum tried to fire a first down pass to Dahl, only to have it nearly intercepted (but sadly dropped) by Hall, leaving second down. Naturally, our defense would keel over and die on the next play as Lewis caught a pass over the middle from Tatum and, thanks to breaking his way out of three different tackle attempts, turn it into a 51 yard reception before a defender was finally able to hang on and drag him down, giving Utah a first down at our 37 yard line. Trying to go right back to Lewis on first down, the pass from Tatum would be dropped incomplete, leaving second and 10. This time, Tatum would not get away with his mistake, as his pass attempt down the left sideline intended for Allen was intercepted by Moses, his second of the game, and return 7 yards to give us possession of the ball at our 26 yard line with 1:43 remaining.
Silva would take the first down handoff following the interception, rushing for a gain of one yard to leave second and 9 and the clock running. Snapping the ball with 1:01 left, Silva took the handoff from Barnes and raced up the middle for an 8 yard gain, leaving third and one. Despite there being less than 30 seconds when the ball was snapped, we gave the ball off to Silva one last time, letting him pick up 6 yards on the carry and one last first down at our 40 yard line with 20 seconds left to go in the game. Despite being absolutely unnecessary, Barnes would line up under center and kneel down the ball with 13 seconds to go, just to put the icing and cherry on top of the cake of our 28-14 win over rival Utah, our second straight victory over the Utes.
With the win, we open our regular season at 1-0. With the loss, Utah opens their year 0-1. Up next, it’s on the road, for the first of many times this season, to take on the Red Hawks of Miami University.
Final Score
28,
Stat(s) of the Game:
Utah State Offense - A very quiet and poor day for Barnes, as he started off ice cold in the first quarter and never got much of a chance after as our running game took over, ending the day 4-12 for 50 yards passing. Hopefully it was just early season rust, as he will no doubt be needed, and called upon heavily, in future games. Rushing, Paris had a career day, running for 195 yards and three touchdowns on 44 carries. Silva ended his day with 78 yard and one touchdown on 19 rushes. Freshman Hall had two yards on his lone rush, the first of his collegiate career. Receiving, it was a very quite day as Allen led the way with 22 yards on two receptions. Douglas had 15 yards on a lone catch while Livingston ended with 13 yards on a single catch. Long and Washington were both targeted, but both marked with drops.
Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Had some trouble in the first quarter, had a lot of trouble in the fourth quarter, and had some horrible drives in-between that they thankfully didn't break on. It pretty much seemed to depend on which defense showed up from individual drive to individual drive, if we would shut the Utah offense, or if their offense would have their way with us and drive right down the field with huge runs and even bigger passes. Defense will no doubt be a major liability this season. Special teams however showed promise, especially the 62 yard kickoff return by Douglas to open up the second half. If Douglas doesn't somehow return at least a couple kickoffs this season, it will be a major shock after today's performance.
Utah State Kicking – A pretty much nonexistent day for Marcus as he didn't attempt any field goals. He did however end up going 4-4 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 7 0 0 7 14 0 14 7 7 28
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 9:26 Touchdown M. Allen, 48 yard pass from R. Tatum (S. Mayhew kick) Second Quarter 9:57 Touchdown B. Paris, 5 yard run (D. Marcus kick) TIED 7-7 1:12 Touchdown B. Paris, 2 yard run (D. Marcus kick) Third Quarter 6:06 Touchdown B. Paris, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick) Fourth Quarter 6:26 Touchdown B. Silva, 2 yard run (D. Marcus kick) 5:05 Touchdown T. Riley, 49 yard pass from R. Tatum (S. Mayhew kick)
Game Stats
Utah Stat Utah State 14 Score 28 15 First Downs 21 377 Total Offense 314 19 - 86 - 0 Rushes - Yards - TD 66 - 264 - 5 20 - 35 - 2 Comp - Att - TD 4 - 12 - 0 302 Passing Yards 50 4 Times Sacked 1 3 - 9 (33%) 3rd Down Conversion 9 - 15 (60%) 0 - 1 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 1 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 - 0 (0%) Red Zone - TD - FG 5 - 5 - 0 (100%) 3 Turnovers 0 1 Fumbles Lost 0 2 Intercepted 0 25 Punt Return Yards 14 0 Kick Return Yards 106 413 Total Yards 434 3 – 41.7 Punts - Average 5 - 44.0 0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0 15:39 Time of Possession 24:21
Utah State Coach Goals
Goal XP Reward Completed Win a Game 100 x1 Score a Touchdown 25 x4 Force a Turnover 25 x3 Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1 Kneel Last Minute Q4 While Ahead 10 x1 3+ Sacks 50 x1 Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards 50 x1 Beat a Rival School 50 x1 100% Red Zone Efficiency 50 x1 Score 21 or More Points 50 x1 10+ First Downs 50 x1 4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1
Utah State Contract Goals Update
Goal Expectations Progress Target Wins Per Season 8 1
Job Security Status
100%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 03-11-2015 at 10:28 AM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State dominated Bowling Green 45-13, extending Ohio State's win streak to 43 games. In the upset of the week, Texas upended #2 Notre Dame 41-20. #4 Alabama knocked off #11 Georgia 38-17. #6 Michigan dispatched Hawaii 44-20. In a runner-up to upset of the week, Fresno State stunned #7 Nebraska 28-7. In the 2023 Texas Kickoff Classic, #23 Kentucky shocked #8 TCU 28-14. #10 UCLA survived Rutgers 37-28. #14 Miami topped Toledo 38-17. #16 South Carolina routed LSU 52-20. And #24 Florida rolled Massachusetts 59-21. Outside the Top 25, the 2023 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game would see Tennessee wallop Louisville 42-7.
For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State opens the year 1-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with a 45-13 win over Bowling Green. Morsdraconis, #5 West Virginia remains 0-0 (0-0 Big 12) with a bye week. Souljahbill, Southern Miss remains 0-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Jaymo, Arizona State remains 0-0 (0-0 Pac-12) with a bye week. LeeSO, Auburn remains 0-0 (0-0 SEC) with a bye week. SCClassof93, #16 South Carolina opens the year 1-0 (1-0 SEC) with a 52-20 rout of LSU. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State remains 0-0 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a bye week. Florida International remains 0-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Navy remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week. Tulsa remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week.
In Mountain West action, Utah State knocked off Utah 28-14. Fresno State stunned #7 Nebraska 28-7. Louisiana Lafayette would score with three seconds left to tie and then win in overtime, 42-35 over Boise State. The Rocky Mountain Showdown would see Colorado prevail over Colorado State 31-17. #6 Michigan slapped around Hawaii 44-20. California survived Nevada 23-20. And Northern Illinois topped Wyoming 21-14.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (40 first place votes) remains the #1 team, Alabama (21 votes) jumps two to #2, Virginia Tech remains #3, West Virginia climbs one to #4 and Michigan jumps one to #5. Wisconsin jumps three to #6, UCLA climbs three to #7, Ole Miss leaps four to #8, Notre Dame drops seven to #9 and Florida State climbs three to #10. Miami climbs three spots to #11, Oregon jumps three to #12, South Carolina moves up three to #13, TCU drops six to #14 and Georgia Tech moves up two to #15. Georgia falls five spots to #16, Texas A&M moves up one to #17, Oklahoma jumps one to #18, Connecticut climbs one to #19 and Kentucky jumps three to #20. Stanford remains #21, Navy remains #22, Texas enters the poll at #23, Nebraska plummets 17 spots to #24 and Florida (301 points) falls one to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Kansas State (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Kansas State (261 points) is #26, followed by Cincinnati (234), Arkansas (184), USC (148) and Vanderbilt (28).
An early season look at the Heisman race, Ohio State QB Jordan Watkins is #1, Oklahoma QB Ben West is #2, Florida QB Joseph Brown is #3, Nebraska QB Cary Woods is #4 and Michigan QB Brian Brewster is #5.
Your season is fixed. You already know all the results of all your games because you're the one scripting it.
#Puppetmaster
Last edited by souljahbill; 01-06-2015 at 05:46 AM.
Damn straight!
Do you know how many times I had to replay that game over and over until I could get that interception at the end so it would make the game have a thrilling ending for you "drooling masses" reading my thread? I really need to buy a second controller to make these scripted plays and outcomes easier to produce.
Sent from my Droid Maxx using Tapatalk because I #TrustTheScript
You ever have a game where the game/CPU does everything it can to fuck you over every chance it gets? Yeah, I think this is one of those games. I've already had 3 or 4 moments where there has been some shady bullshit going on by the CPU, and I'm still only in the first quarter.
There's always "that game" where you're like, the CPU has decided it's going to win and you have no choice but to take it. It's always a game where you know you're going to win beforehand because your team is way better.You ever have a game where the game/CPU does everything it can to fuck you over every chance it gets? Yeah, I think this is one of those games. I've already had 3 or 4 moments where there has been some shady bullshit going on by the CPU, and I'm still only in the first quarter.
Yeah, I'm having that game right now. The "occasions of bullshit" have climbed now to 6 or 7 and I still have 5 minutes left in the second quarter. It seems like it's one thing after another, just never ending.
Yep, this is definitely "that game". Never ending shed tackles (I love how Miami's QB can constantly break his way out of three or four consecutive tackle attempts, right from one to the next, and never even be slowed down), flying DBs (apparently Miami either has Harry fucking Potter playing as DB or this is the college football version of Angels in the Outfield), numerous plays were every single Miami player initiates an absolutely flawless, perfect block that completely takes my defense out of the play for the first 10 yards, or their QB, despite being in the middle of being sacked, will fire off a PINPOINT ACCURATE pass 25 yards down field. And don't even get me started on the fucking WORTHLESS fucking challenge system. Nothing is EVER fucking reviewable in this game!
Worst yet, there's still 9 fucking minutes left in the third quarter.
Dude, we've all been there. Your team is worthless and the opponent is full of Greek Gods who can do no wrong.
Yep.Except why couldn't it be someone worthwhile? Why Miami OH of all bloody teams? I don't think they even won two games last year, yet they're playing like the New England Patriots.
Sent from my Droid Maxx using Tapatalk because I #TrustTheScript
I told you. It's ALWAYS against a team you should beat. Some crappy team plays WAY up and your team plays WAY down. So frustrating because it feels like the game is cheating.Yep.
Sent from my Droid Maxx using Tapatalk because I #TrustTheScript
Yep. That's what it's felt like the whole game. I actually had one play, where I got screwed, that went under automatic booth review, and I honest to god 100% expected for the game to say the play stands just say "F U" to me. I was legitimately shocked when the game reversed the play. Thankfully I'm midway through the third quarter (took a break to eat dinner), so I'm almost through the pain.
Game Two
Game Story
--- Coming off a successful season opener, one that saw us defeat our hated rivals for the second year in a row, it was onto the road for the first of many times this season, we headed to the Midwest to take Miami University. The RedHawks were a team that surprised us last year, as they held a 14-7 lead after one quarter and only trailed 21-14 at halftime, considering they were 1-8 going into the game.
Unfortunately, we would be going into the game blind this time around as we would be Miami’s season opening opponent. Whether the RedHawks had improved from last season’s dismal record or declined even more remained to be seen. Also remaining to be seen would be if Jason Barnes could overcome a poor first game and start finding his groove as a QB, as we would not be able to rely exclusively on the running game all season. Miami won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A 19 yard kickoff return by Leonard Hart gave us the ball to start at the 20 yard line. Starting things off on the ground, Brian Paris took the handoff on first down for a gain of 5 yards, followed by a 6 yard rush to get a first down at the 31 yard line. Paris would keep pounding it away on first down, fighting his way forward for a gain of 3 yards, before a three yard rush on second down would leave us facing third and four. Trying out our passing game early on, Jason Barnes lined up in the shotgun on third down and hit an open Adam Washington right in the hands over the middle, only to have Washington drop the ball incomplete, forcing us to punt on fourth down. A 27 yard return by Tavares Chase on the 42 yard punt gave Miami the ball at their 48 yard line. However, there was a booth review on the play, and in what quite possibly would be the biggest screw job of the game, despite clear video evidence showing Chase’s footing stepping out of bounds THREE different times on the return, the full 27 yard return was upheld and Miami started near midfield.
For the second straight game, it would be a first appearance by our opponent’s head coach, as Tyson Hart was newly christened the Miami head coach during the offseason. So far, it seemed a promising start to his career. Dropping back to pass right out of the gate, Eddie Wright tried to connect with Raishaun Lee deep downfield over the middle, but Lee was unable to pull the pass in as it bounced off his hands and fell incomplete. In a repeat nightmare from last game, Miami came out on second down running a screen pass, as Wright successfully connected with Jon Lamb for a 10 yard completion and a first down at our 42 yard line. Wright took the snap on first down and quickly pitched it left to Lamb, but our defense thankfully caught on fast and was able to bring Lamb down for a two yard loss on the play. Lining up on second and long, Wright showed his mettle, standing up in the pocket and taking the hit, as he fired off a pass to Daniel Moore over the middle, good for a completion of 33 yards and a first down at our 11 yard line, with only an ankle tackle saving a touchdown. Lamb would need just one play to find pay dirt and he took a handoff from Wright and rumbled straight up the middle for an 11 yard touchdown, giving Miami a 7-0 lead with 6:43 left in the first quarter.
David Douglas would only manage an 18 yard return on the kickoff, leaving us lining up from our 19 yard line. We would again try to get things rolling first on the ground, as Paris took the first down handoff for a gain of 6 yards, followed by a 9 yard rush to move the chains to the 34 yard line. Lining up under center on first down, Barnes quickly dropped back and fired off a pass to tight end Jack Long, only to have the ball knocked loose on contact by the linebacker, leaving second down. Another pass attempt, this time intended for Douglas, was broken up by the cornerback to bring up third and long. Barnes would finally manage to complete his first pass of the game with an 8 yard completion to Aaron Allen, but it wouldn’t be enough as we were forced to punt on fourth and two. A 36 yard punt by Ed Allen would sail out of bounds at the Miami 23 yard line.
Lining up at the 23 yard line after the punt, the RedHawks came out passing on first down, as Moore was apparently part Superman, covering an inexplicable amount of yards and making a diving, stretched out circus catch on the pass from Wright, good for a gain of 16 yards and a quick first down at the 39 yard line. Finally feeling pressure from our defensive line, Wright was forced to throw the ball away on first down. Second down would see even less success as Lamb was tackled in the backfield on a rush for a three yard loss to leave third and 13. The drive would end up coming to a quick end as a quick completion from Wright to Chase, also resulted in a quick tackle, with Chase limited to just a three yard gain and the RedHawks punting on fourth and 10. A fair catch on the 33 yard punt gave us back possession at the 27 yard line.
Taking over on offense following the punt, this time we decided to bring it straight at Miami, as Barnes dropped back from the shotgun and rifled a pass over the middle to Benjamin Silva, good for a quick 15 yard strike and a first down at the 42. Staying in the shotgun on first down, Barnes tried to connect with Washington, but unfortunately overthrew the pass incomplete. Long would come through for us on second down, as a slant route would see him come open across the middle for a gain of 12 yards and a new set of downs at the Miami 45 yard line. Returning to the ground game, Paris took the handoff on first down and fought his way forward for a gain of 5 yards, followed by a four yard rush to leave us facing third and one. A three yard rush by Paris would be more than enough to preserve the drive, moving the chains to the 33 yard line. Continuing to pound the ball on first down, Paris managed to pick up four yards on the play, followed by an 11 yard dash by Silva to pick up the first down at the 18 yard line. Taking a chance through the air on first down, the pass intended for Allen was overthrown and nearly intercepted, leaving second down. Staying in the air on second down, instead of getting inside the 10 yard line as intended, the play would instead result in a catch by Douglas at the 5 yard line and on into the end zone through the body of a defender for an 18 yard touchdown pass, tying the game up at 7-7 with 1:13 left in the first quarter.
A touchback on the booming kickoff would give Miami the ball at their 25 yard line. Lamb would get things started with a rush around the left end, picking up 6 yards in the process. Dropping back to throw on second and four, the pass from Wright intended for Trey Atkins was dropped near the first down line to bring up third down. In a MASSIVE headbanging on the wall moment, Miami would turn a screen pass, that seemed destined to fail until a diving defender completely missed on the tackle, into a 69 yard touchdown catch by Lamb, who raced up the right sideline and into the end zone to give Miami a 14-7 lead with 31 seconds left in the quarter.
A 45 yard kickoff return by Hart would set us up with great field position, starting from our 48 yard line. Paris would get us off and running on first down with an 8 yard dash up the middle to leave second and two. That would be all we would get off however as the clock ran out to bring the first quarter to an end, Miami leading 14-7.
Starting the second quarter, we lined up on second and two from the Miami 44 yard line. Paris would again get the handoff and was able to work his way over the first down marker for a gain of four yards, down to the Miami 40. Trying to rush the ball once more, it was no go as Paris was quickly met at the line and devoured for no gain. Going into the air on second down, Barnes tried to connect with Washington, only to have the pass intercepted by safety Brian Griffith, returned 11 yards to the Miami 46 yard line.
Taking over following the interception, Wright would come out running a QB option, managing to break three different tackle attempts to turn it into a 19 yard rush, giving Miami a first down at our 35 yard line as apparently nothing we did could stop or bring down any Miami ball carrier. Another QB option on first down, would AGAIN see Wright break four fucking tackles on his way to a 35 yard touchdown rush, giving Miami a 21-7 lead with 8:37 as the CPU continued to really pile on the bullshit this game.
Hart would recover some of the momentum for us, thanks to impeccable blocking, with a huge 70 yard kickoff return up the right sideline, setting us up to start our next drive at the Miami 27 yard line. Paris would again get us started, picking up three yards on a first down carry, followed by a 5 yard rush to leave us facing third and two. Somehow, despite the blitz, Paris would just manage to pick up three yards on the carry, picking up a new set of downs at the 16 yard line. Paris would continue to pound the ball at the Miami defense, taking the handoff on first down for a much needed 7 yard gain, followed by a 7 yard rush by Silva to set us up with first and goal from the three yard line. Paris’ first crack at the end zone would result in a two yard carry, moving the ball to the one yard line. Lining up on second and goal, Paris would not be denied this time as he plunged into the end zone for a one yard touchdown, cutting Miami’s lead to 21-14 with 5:46 left in the second quarter.
Another touchback on the kickoff would give Miami the ball at their 25 yard line. Our defense came out on first down looking to make a statement, and they would do just that, as Wright found himself quickly under pressure while dropping back to pass, forced into throwing the ball away to avoid a sack and bring up second down. We would catch a big break on second down, as a pass from Wright to a wide open Chase, for what would have been at minimum an assured first down, was thankfully dropped incomplete, leaving Miami with third and long. Finally, after numerous close calls, our blitz would finally manage to get to Wright and sack him, bringing him down for a 7 yard loss and forcing the RedHawks to punt on fourth and 17. A 6 yard return by Breedlove on the 38 yard punt gave us the ball at our 49 yard line.
We would continue to do what we do best and start the drive on the ground, where a pair of 5 yard rushes by Paris would leave us facing third and inches inside Miami territory. Handing it off to Paris on third down, he would get the first down and then some, as he found the gap and raced ahead for a 15 yard gain and a first down at the Miami 26 yard line. Silva would take over on first down, fighting his way to a gain of four yards, followed by a two yard rush by Paris to leave us with third and four. Trying to pass on third down, the throw intended for Allen would be swatted down by Superman DB in a recreation of the movie “Angels in the Outfield”, forcing us to settle for a field goal. The 34 yard field goal by Doug Marcus was good, further cutting Miami’s lead down to 21-17 with 2:45 left in the first half.
Another kickoff, another touchback, and Miami was back in action from their 25 yard line. Lamb would receive the handoff on first down, but was only able to gain one yard on the play. Lamb would try his luck again on second down, but was quickly stood up for no gain to stick Miami into a third and 9 situation. In a very questionable third down play, Wright was able to get a pass off to Chase for a 9 yard gain, but it appeared Chase was stood up short of the first down marker and driven out of bounds without crossing the line, however the refs gave him a first down on the play. Naturally, it was impossible to challenge the marking on the field, and Miami got to keep their drive moving at the 35 yard line. Our defense refused to go down without a fight however, as Wright was forced to throw the ball away on first down. Unfortunately the success was short lived as Wright connected with Atkins over the middle on the very next play for an 18 yard completion and a first down at our 46 yard line. Thankfully, we would next get burned on Miami’s first down screen pass this time, as one of our defenders hurdled his blocker and managed to drag Lamb down for a gain of only 6 yards, leaving Miami with second and four and forced to use their first timeout with 1:14 left on the clock. Despite being dragged down by our blitz on second down, Wright was somehow magically able to still fire off a dead accurate pass downfield to Chase, good for a 16 yard gain and another first down at our 25 yard line as there seemed to be no earthly way for our defense to do anything to stop this drive. After completing a first down pass to Chase for a gain of 8 yards, Wright tried to pull a QB option on second down, only to find himself running straight into our defensive line and instantly tackled for a 5 yard loss, setting up third and 7, Miami calling their second timeout with 54 seconds to go. Thankfully, with the threat of a sack looming, Wright would overthrow his third down pass, sending it out the back of the end zone and incomplete to bring up fourth and 7. Inexplicably, instead of kicking the 39 yard field goal, Miami would instead opt to go for it on fourth and 7 for no noticeable reason. Naturally, Wright, aka Harry Fucking Potter, would shake off three different defenders in the pocket and rocket another accurate pass over the middle to Jamaal Carter for a 21 yard completion, setting Miami up with first and goal at our one yard line. Rushing to the line of scrimmage, Wright would try to get the touchdown through the air, but the pass to Thad Russell was dropped, leaving second and goal. The RedHawks would try and pitch the ball right to Lamb, but one of our guys was able to break through the line unblocked and drive Lamb backwards, eventually brought down for a 5 yard loss to bring up third and goal at the 6 yard line. Again trying their chances through the air, it was not meant to be for Miami as Wright’s pass intended for Damon Guidry was dropped as he ran out of the back of the end zone, forcing Miami to finally settle for a field goal on fourth and goal. The 23 yard field goal by Matt Patterson would sail through, extending Miami’s lead to 24-17 with 16 seconds left until halftime.
A 15 yard return would be all Hart would manage, leaving us stuck at our 17 yard line with 12 seconds to go. We would find some quick success as Jon Morris was able to get open and behind his man deep over the middle, hauling in the pass from Barnes for a quick 25 yard strike to give us a first down at our 42 yard line. An immediate timeout stopped the clock with 7 seconds remaining, time for one, MAYBE two more plays. Instead of having a chance at anything, the first down pass would be intercepted and the clock would expire during the play, sending us into halftime trailing 24-17.
Opening up the second half, another touchback would give Miami the ball at their 25 yard line to start the third quarter. Thankfully, despite the offense coming out trying to run a screen pass on first down, our defense was able to recognize it and broke up the pass right away to force second and long. It wouldn’t take long for our defense to completely steamrolled once more, as Miami would make every perfect block and Lamb would have an entire goddamn half of the field to run his way to a 26 yard gain, giving Miami a first down at our 49 yard line. After a QB option run by Wright that would pick up 8 yards, he would again show flashes of Joe Namath and fire a perfect pass to Lee right at the sideline for a Sportscenter highlight one foot toe drag 17 yard catch and first down at our 24 yard line. After being forced to get rid of the ball on first down, Wright would come back on second down and find a WIDE OPEN, completely unguarded Russell for a 13 yard gain and a first down at the 11 yard line, a diving ankle tackle the only thing keeping that play from becoming an even longer touchdown pass. Somehow, our defense finally stood up and made a play on first down, as it was our turn for a little Angel shit as a pass from Wright, intended for Lee, was instead jumped and intercepted by safety James Campbell in the back of the end zone for a touchback.
Lining up at our 20 yard line following the interception and touchback, there was no doubt that we absolutely had to score a touchdown here. With the way the Miami offense (and game) was bending us over, anything short of a touchdown to tie the game right here and right now would probably make it impossible to come back. Coming out running on first down, Paris would get us moving with a 5 yard gain, followed by a three yard gain to bring up third and two. Going all in with the run game, Paris would get the ball and wouldn’t let us down, as he rumbled his way to an 8 yard rush and a first down at the 36 yard line. Silva would come in on first down and keep us moving with a 6 yard dash, followed by a four yard rush by Paris to leave us with third and inches. Silva would get the call on third down, rushing forward for a gain of 5 yards to get a new set of downs at the Miami 49 yard line. Paris would try to keep us moving on first down, but his carry would pick up just two yards. Going into the air on second down, Barnes would find Raymond Watson over the middle for a big 13 yard gain, resetting the down marker at the Miami 34 yard line. Returning to the ground game on first down, Paris would go straight up the middle for a 6 yard gain on the play. Silva would return on second down, and in quite possibly the most blatant bullshit from the game today, Silva would suddenly fumble the ball after a two or three yard gain, the fumble would promptly be picked up by a defensive tackle and said fat ass defensive tackle would take the ball 72 yards back for a touchdown, with not a single one of my faster offensive players able to run his fat ass down. Now, the game would initiate a challenge of the play on its own, and in a miracle, the call would legitimately shockingly be reversed and Silva would be credited with a four yard run, after it was confirmed he was already down by his elbow before the fumble occurred. (Author’s Note: I’ll be honest, despite the video evidence of Silva being down, and despite the announcers saying they thought he was down, I 100% legitimately expected the game to fuck me over and say the play would stand as a fumble/Miami TD, just because that is exactly the kind of game this game has been today.) So, after surprisingly not getting screwed on the replay and being able to continue our drive, we lined up on third and two, with Paris getting the call. It would be close, but Paris was just barely able to get two yards on the play and pick up the first down at the 24 yard line. Changing it up on first down, Barnes lined up under center, only to quickly drop back and rifle a pass to tight end Sam Livingston, good for a quick gain of 21 yards to give us first and goal at the three yard line. Paris would get first crack on first and goal, gaining one yard on the play to move the ball to the two yard line. Paris would not be denied on his second try, punching it in for a two yard touchdown to finally tie the game back up, 24-24, with 3:45 left in the third quarter.
Another kickoff would result in another touchback and Miami lined up from their 25 yard line. Lamb would get things started on the ground with an 8 yard rush, followed by a dash of 7 yards to pick up a first down at the 41 yard line. Trying to run around the right side, the delayed handoff from Wright to Lamb would leave him a sitting duck, quickly brought down for a two yard loss to leave Miami facing second and 12. Despite being hit by two different players, Wright would still manage to fire off a perfect pass on second down to a wide open Chase, who proceeded to break his way out of two tackles on his way to a 51 yard reception, before finally being yanked down at our 10 yard line, giving Miami first and goal. Going into the air on first and goal, Wright tried to connect with Moore along the left sideline, but the pass was dropped. Lamb would get the ball on second down, picking up only three yards on the play despite nearly running from sideline to sideline, setting up third and goal from the 7. The RedHawks would run a screen pass on third and goal, but Lamb would only be able to gain a single yard on the play, as almost our entire defense has been dropped back into zone on the play, and thus almost no one bit on the screen. Facing fourth and goal from the 6 yard line, Miami would settle for a 24 yard field goal, taking a 27-24 lead with 1:32 left in the third quarter.
A 24 yard kickoff return by Hart would get us back on the field at our 27 yard line. Paris would get our drive started, but a breakdown by our offensive line would limit his first down rush to just two yards. It would take just one pass to see us down by double digits, as a pass intended for Jack Long would be intercepted and returned 36 yards for a touchdown to put Miami up 34-24 with 45 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
An 18 yard return by Douglas on the kickoff would find us starting from our 20 yard line. Forcing Barnes right back into the saddle, we came out in the shotgun on first down, his pass attempt intended for Allen swatted away from behind and incomplete. Tristan Muhammad would come through on second down, pulling in a pass from Barnes for a gain of 11 yards and a first down at the 31 yard line. Barnes would drop back to pass on first down, but was hit as he went to throw and had the pass broken up. Allen would get us back moving forward on second down, as he hauled in a pass for a 15 yard gain and a new set of downs at the 46. We would fail to get another snap off before the clock ran out, bringing the third quarter to an end with Miami leading 34-24.
Opening up the fourth quarter, we lined up with a first down at the 46 yard line. Paris would get the quarter underway with a four yard rush around the right tackle, followed by another four yard rush to leave us with third and two. A 7 yard rush would solidify the first down, moving the chains to the Miami 40 yard line. A first down pass intended for Douglas would get broken up, while a pass on second down, intended for Kyle Hall, was nearly intercepted, leaving us facing third and long. Dropping back to pass on third down, Barnes was forced to rush his throw, intended for Allen, and overthrow his target, leaving us facing fourth and long. Down 10, against a team our defense has been pretty much worthless at stopping all game, with only 8:38 remaining in the game and sitting on the Miami 40 yard line, we figured now was as good as any to take a stab on fourth down. It most likely wouldn’t much matter if we didn’t get it, as the end result would probably be the same whether we failed to convert on fourth down or punted. This time around, Barnes would complete the pass to Allen, but he would be stopped short for just a 5 yard gain, and we would turn the ball over on downs at the Miami 35 yard line.
Lamb would get the Miami offense off and running with a three yard rush on first down, before a second pass attempt, intended for Atkins, sailed long and out of bounds to bring up third and 7. Despite completing the third down pass to Russell, our defense was able to limit the damage to just four yards on the completion, forcing Miami to punt away on fourth and three and giving us a momentary breath of hope. Miami’s punter would shank the kick, sending it straight out of bounds for just 19 yards, setting us up in good shape at our 39 yard line.
Lining up after the shanked punt, we came out firing as Barnes found Watson on first down for a quick 11 yard gain and a first down at midfield. Unfortunately we’d momentarily go cold, as pass attempts to both Washington and Muhammad resulted in incompletion passes, leaving us with third and long. Thankfully Allen would come through with a huge catch on third down, good for a gain of 10 yards and new set of downs at the Miami 40 yard line. Running the ball on first down, Silva took the handoff and plowed ahead for a 5 yard gain, followed by a second 5 yard rush to leave us with third and inches. Silva would get the call on third down, and with a two yard rush, he extended our drive to the Miami 28 yard line. A play action pass on first down would see the defense bite and find Watson wide open along the right sideline, good for a 10 yard completion to leave us with second and inches. Despite facing a goal line defense, Silva was able to rumble ahead for a three yard gain and a new first down at the 15 yard line. Going back to the air on first down, with a necessity of scoring and time ticking down, Barnes fired off a pass to Allen for a quick 12 yard gain to set us up with first and goal from the Miami three yard line. Hall would take the ball on first down, bouncing outside the right tackle for a two yard gain, down to the one yard line. Silva would return to the backfield on second down and need just one play to punch it in for a one yard touchdown, cutting Miami’s lead to 34-31 with 4:17 left in the game.
Our kickoff would again send the football sailing into the end zone for a touchback, lining Miami up from their 25 yard line. Now was truly do or die for our defense. The RedHawks would come out passing on first and second down, but thanks to a good pass rush and good coverage of the receives, Wright was twice forced to throw the ball away to avoid a sack, resulting in a quick third and 10. Probably our biggest break of the entire game, Chase had been able to get behind his defender and very possibly could have taken a catch all the way down the field, 75 yards for a touchdown, but by the grace of god, he would end up dropping the ball he went tried to catch it and turn up field at the same time, forcing Miami to punt on fourth and 10 from their 25 yard line. A 10 return by Breedlove on the 35 yard punt would give our offense the ball right at midfield.
Our offense came on the field following the punt, needing a field goal to tie, a touchdown to potentially win, and just 3:56 in which to score one or the other. We elected to start the drive on the ground, letting Silva get us started with a four yard rush up the middle. Another handoff to Silva would gain three more yards, leaving third and three. Seeing this as a four down drive no matter what, we kept the ball in Silva’s hands, and he would come through in the clutch, picking up three yards on the play to move the chains to the 39 yard line. A big run by Hall would go for a 10 yard gain, leaving us with just second and inches, upon which Silva would take the handoff from Barnes and fight his way to gain of a single yard, picking up the first down at the 29 yard line with 1:58 remaining. After getting three yards on the ground out of Silva, we would end up going backwards as Barnes was sacked for an 11 yard loss, leaving us facing third and 17, our first timeout called with 1:03 remaining. Going into the air on third down, Barnes was able to complete a pass to Allen, but it would go for only 8 yards, setting up a game deciding fourth and 9 from the 28 yard line. We called our second timeout with 47 seconds remaining to decide on the play. A field goal was briefly thought about, but at 45 yards, when we’re lucky if our kicker even has the distance for a 35 yard field goal, that was quickly dismissed as it would all but likely end up another attempt falling 7+ yards short and bouncing in the end zone. No, our best chance would be on offense. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t happen. The defense brought the blitz and Barnes was forced to scramble to avoid a sack. In the mean time, Allen was his only option of a completion, but he would be quickly tackled for a mere four yard gain, turning the ball over on downs at the Miami 24 yard line.
Lining up in victory formation, Wright would drop to a knee on first down. Even though it would do literally no good, we called our final timeout with 40 seconds remaining. Wright would drop to a knee one more time. Letting the clock dip down to 5 seconds to go, the RedHawks would snap the ball again, but instead of dropping to a knee, they would hand the ball off to Lamb for a one yard loss to end the game, handing us a 34-31 defeat.
With the loss, we drop to 1-1. With the win, Miami University opens their season 1-0. Up next, we head to Ann Arbor to get our annual prostate exam from the #5 Michigan Wolverines. The Wolverines opened their season in week one, drubbing Hawaii 44-20, before entering a bye week ahead of our contest in the Big House.
Final Score
34,
Stats of the Game:
Utah State Offense - Another piss ass day for Barnes, ending 16-32 for 198 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. If Barnes doesn't pull his ass out of his head soon, he's getting benched, enough is enough. Rushing, Paris led the way with 158 yards and two touchdowns on 36 carries. Silva finished with 63 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries, Hall had 12 yards on two rushes. Receiving, Allen led the way with 63 yards on seven catches. Douglas had the only receiving touchdown, which also came on his only catch of the game for 18 yards. In total, 8 receivers caught at least one pass today, and all of them ended with double digit yards.
Utah State Defense/Special Teams – No comment.
Utah State Kicking – A perfect day for Marcus, going 1-1 on field goals with a 34 yard kick, as well as going 4-4 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 7 10 7 7 31 14 10 10 0 34
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 6:43 Touchdown J. Lamb, 11 yard run (M. Patterson kick) 1:13 Touchdown D. Douglas, 18 yard pass from J. Barnes (D. Marcus kick) TIED 7-7 0:31 Touchdown J. Lamb, 69 yard pass from E. Wright (M. Patterson) Second Quarter 8:45 Touchdown E. Wright, 35 yard run (M. Patterson kick) 5:47 Touchdown B. Paris, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick) 2:49 Field Goal D. Marcus, 34 yard field goal 0:16 Field Goal M. Patterson, 24 yard field goal Third Quarter 3:45 Touchdown B. Paris, 2 yard run (D. Marcus kick) TIED 24-24 1:32 Field Goal M. Patterson, 24 yard field goal 0:45 Touchdown J. Quinn, returned interception 36 yards (M. Patterson kick) Fourth Quarter 4:17 Touchdown B. Silva, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick)
Game Stats
Utah State Stat Miami University 31 Score 34 26 First Downs 13 422 Total Offense 392 55 - 224 - 3 Rushes - Yards - TD 21 - 97 - 2 16 - 32 - 1 Comp - Att - TD 16 - 33 - 1 198 Passing Yards 295 1 Times Sacked 1 10 - 15 (66%) 3rd Down Conversion 2 - 10 (20%) 0 - 2 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 1 (100%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 5 - 4 - 1 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 4 - 1 - 2 (75%) 3 Turnovers 1 0 Fumbles Lost 0 3 Intercepted 1 17 Punt Return Yards 26 205 Kick Return Yards 0 644 Total Yards 418 2 – 39.0 Punts - Average 4 - 31.8 0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0 27:41 Time of Possession 12:19
Utah State Coach Goals
Goal XP Reward Completed Score a Touchdown 25 x4 Force a Turnover 25 x1 Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1 Play in an ESPN Classic Game 75 x1 Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards 50 x1 Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1 Pass Completion Over 50% 30 x1 100% Red Zone Efficiency 50 x1 Score 21 or More Points 50 x1 350+ Offensive Yards 50 x1 10+ First Downs 50 x1 4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1
Utah State Contract Goals Update
Goal Expectations Progress Target Wins Per Season 8 1
Job Security Status
100%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 03-11-2015 at 10:28 AM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State demolished Tulsa 56-17, upping their win streak to 44 games. In the upset of the week, Michigan State toppled #2 Alabama 35-28. In the game of the week, #3 Virginia Tech knocked off #6 Wisconsin 38-17. #4 West Virginia doubled up Texas Tech 42-21. #7 UCLA beat #21 Stanford 28-14. #8 Ole Miss got past Missouri 42-28. Syracuse stunned #9 Notre Dame 42-38.
#10 Florida State hammered Florida International 49-28. #12 Oregon flew past Virginia 35-21. #13 South Carolina violated UAB 66-10. #15 Georgia Tech escaped Vanderbilt 31-26. In the 2023 Cowboys Classic, #18 Oklahoma shocked #16 Georgia 31-29. #17 Texas A&M beat Eastern Washington 45-24. #20 Kentucky beat Arkansas 42-28. #23 Texas walloped California 56-37. Tennessee shocked #24 Nebraska 31-28. #25 Florida topped North Texas 52-31.
For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State improves to 2-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with a 56-17 drubbing of Tulsa. Morsdraconis, #4 West Virginia opens their year 1-0 (1-0 Big 12) with a 42-21 win over Texas Tech. Souljahbill, Southern Miss remains 0-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Jaymo, Arizona State opens the year 0-1 (0-0 Pac-12) with a 52-21 shellacking from LSU. LeeSO, Auburn opens the year 1-0 (0-0 SEC) with a 44-7 thrashing of Cal Poly. SCClassof93, #13 South Carolina improves to 2-0 (1-0 SEC) with a 66-10 horsefucking of UAB. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State opens the year 1-0 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 45-10 rout of Western Carolina. Florida International opens the year 1-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a 24-13 win over Tennessee State. Navy remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week. Tulsa opens their year 0-1 (0-0 American) with a 56-17 loss to #1 Ohio State.
In Mountain West action, Air Force slipped past Georgia State 38-35, San Jose State knocked off Colorado 28-24, Hawaii rolled Youngstown State 34-3, Fresno State escaped Portland State 24-17, Colorado State edged out Florida Atlantic 21-20, San Diego State topped Northern Arizona 27-14, New Mexico got past Coastal Carolina 24-13, Miami University cheated their way past Utah State 34-31, Purdue smoked Nevada 45-17, Baylor topped Wyoming 34-7 and Montana shocked UNLV 37-34 in overtime.
In a separate game of note, BYU defeated Utah 37-34 in overtime. That will set up the BYU-Utah State game as the deciding game for the Beehive Boot, in addition to the Old Wagon Wheel.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, in a stunner, Virginia Tech (33 first place votes) jumps two spots to steal the #1 ranking. Ohio State (27 first place votes) drops one to #2, West Virginia climbs one to #3, Michigan jumps one to #4 and UCLA moves up two to #5. Ole Miss jumps two to #6, Florida State leaps three to #7, Miami jumps three to #8, Oregon climbs three to #9 and Wisconsin drops four to #10. South Carolina climbs two to #11, Georgia Tech jumps three to #12, TCU moves up one to #13, Oklahoma vaults four to #14 and Texas A&M climbs two to #15. Alabama plummets fourteen to #16, Connecticut jumps two to #17, Kentucky climbs two to #18, Navy moves up three to #19 and Texas jumps three to #20. Notre Dame falls twelve to #21, Georgia drops six to #22, Florida climbs two to #23, Kansas State enters the poll at #24 and Stanford (257 points) drops four to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Nebraska (from #24). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Cincinnati (237 points) is #26, followed by USC (175), Baylor (95), South Florida (78) and Louisiana-Lafayette (61) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting points this week include New Mexico (49), Tennessee (29) and SMU (28).
An early season look at the Heisman race, Ohio State QB Jordan Watkins is #1 (LW: #1), Oklahoma QB Ben West is #2 (LW: #2), Florida QB Joseph Brown is #3 (LW: #3), Texas QB Justin Jones is #4 (LW: NR) and Nebraska QB Cary Woods is #5 (LW: #5). Falling off the Heisman Watch List this week was Michigan QB Brian Brewster (LW: #5).
Whichever cocksucker coded the game in such a shitty way as to allow it to so blatantly cheat like that, I hope they choke on a dick.
That's all I have to say about the Miami game.
I think I'll be back on hiatus for at least a few days while I get rid of the desire to take an acetylene torch to my disc.
I've been there plenty of times. On the bright side, you're about to blow Michigan out. The opposite is also true. Your team will play like crap against lesser schools but will murder a better team. It's absolutely crazy how that works sometimes.
Wow! Ram totally called it. The fix is in!
Like Soulja, these games drive me crazy. I have had my fill of them in Madden 15. My last one was in the playoffs last season. My controller almost went through the TV.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks