--- Sitting with two wins on the season, it was back onto the road as we faced our second conference opponent of the year. San Jose State was going to be a tough nut to crack, as they entered with the #17 passing offense in the nation, putting up 294.8 yards/game. Thankfully that would be just about all our defense would have to contend with, as the Spartans managed only 100 yards/game on the ground, ranking #118 in the nation. Regardless, our defense and its inability to stop passes, would be in for a major challenge today. San Jose State won the coin toss and elected to kick.
Preston Roberson got us opened up with a 20 yard kickoff return, lining us up at our 19 yard line. Roberson started the drive with a 5 yard rush, followed by a three yard gain to leave third and three. Adam Powers lined up in the shotgun on third down, threading a pass through the secondary to Eric McGuire. McGuire was able to pull in the ball briefly, but a hit by the safety knocked the ball loose and incomplete, leaving us punting on fourth and three. A shanked 33 yard punt was muffed by the returner, but the Spartans were able to quickly pick it up and return it 12 yards to our 42 yard line.
Kevin Pierre got the drive started with a 6 yard rush, before being wrapped up for a two yard loss after a blitz, leaving the Spartans facing third and 6. Johnny Freeman rifled off a pass on third down to Kevin O’Brien, but he was unable to hold onto the ball, leaving fourth and 6 from our 38. Out of field goal range, the Spartans elected to go for it on fourth down. It would be nothing but money for the Spartans, as Freeman threw up a 38 yard touchdown pass to Bryant Vincent, giving San Jose State a 7-0 lead with 6:54 left in the first quarter.
It would take us only 12 seconds to equalize, as Roberson took the ball one yard deep in the end zone, and proceeded to weave his way through multiple blocks, before hitting the outside and sprinting up the right sideline for a 101 yard kickoff return, tying it up 7-7 with 6:42 remaining.
A touchback on the kickoff gave San Jose State the ball at their 25 yard line. A heavy blitz by our defense forced Freeman to throw a quick off-target pass to Bradley Davis, who wasn’t able to hold onto it as he went out of bounds, bringing up second and 10. Pierre took the handoff on second down, but wasn’t able to find a lane to run, brought down by the defense for no gain to leave third down. With pressure bearing down on him, Freeman threw a quick pass underneath to Pierre, but he was instantly tackled by the outside linebacker for a gain of only three yards, bringing out the punt team on fourth and 7. No return by McGuire on the 38 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 33 yard line.
Roberson got the drive started with a four yard rush around the right tackle, before being brought down for no gain after attempting to go up the middle. Dropping back to pass on third and 6, Powers was able to connect with David Douglas for an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 48 yard line. Powers followed that up with a 15 yard strike to McGuire, advancing the chains again, this time to the SJSU 36. Roberson received the handoff on first down, but never had a chance for much of a gain, quickly wrapped up by the blitzing linebacker for a gain of only one yard. A pass over the middle to Tim Fields was completed for a 9 yard gain, leaving us facing third and inches at the 27. Roberson took the ball on first down, managing to just barely get across the line of scrimmage for a two yard gain, moving the chains to the 25. Brian Paris, in his first carry of the game, got a huge hole courtesy of blocking by the line, allowing him to penetrate into the secondary for a 15 yard pickup and a first down at the 11 yard line. Roberson took the ball on first down, fighting his way to a three yard gain, followed by a two yard rush that left us facing third and 5 from the 6 yard line. Powers was able to connect with Dre Martin on a slant route, but the pass was behind Martin, forcing him to stop and reach back for the ball, allowing the defense to tackle him for a gain of only 5 yards, leaving fourth and one from the one yard line. Settling for a 19 yard field goal, the kick by Richard Burnette caught a bit of the crosswind, pushing it to the left and bouncing it off the left upright, no good.
San Jose State lined up at their 20 yard line after the missed field goal, Pierre taking the ball on the ground for a 6 yard gain, followed by a gain of four to leave third and inches. San Jose State tried to get cute on third down, as we brought the house. Freeman initially dropped back to pass, before taking off to his right on foot. Just before he was hit by the blitzing outside linebacker, he pitched the ball to Antoine Wyatt, but it wouldn’t work out for the Spartans, as Wyatt was immediately tackled for a four yard loss, bringing the punt team back out on fourth and four. That would be the final play of the first quarter, the score still all knotted up at 7-7.
Opening up the second quarter, an 8 yard punt return by McGuire on a 38 yard punt got us lined up at our 43 yard line to start our next drive. Roberson received the handoff on first down, but was quickly brought down for a gain of only one yard. Ryan Conley picked up a first down for us, hauling in a pass from Powers for a gain of 16 yards to the Spartan 39 yard line. Roberson took the ball on first down for a 5 yard gain, but we would end up going backwards, as Roberson was immediately stuffed on second down for a one yard loss, leaving us facing third and 6. An incomplete pass intended for McGuire, the pass by Powers underthrown, left fourth down and the field goal unit coming out. Burnette was able to just muscle the 52 yard field goal over the uprights, giving us a 10-7 lead with 6:44 left in the second quarter.
San Jose State opened up their drive through the air, but a dropped ball by Vincent left second and long. It wouldn’t take long for the Spartans to get a new set of downs, a screen pass to Pierre going for a 21 yard gain down the right sideline, before finally being pushed out of bounds at the 46. A blitz on first down forced Freeman to throw the ball away. Freeman dropped back on second down, but was sacked for a six yard loss, leaving the Spartans facing third and 16. Freeman launched a deep pass down the left sideline to Brian Allen, but instead of an almost sure touchdown, he was unable to hold onto the ball, dropping it incomplete to bring up fourth and long. A three yard loss on the return by McGuire, after a 32 yard punt, left us starting from our 25 yard line.
Our first play from scrimmage was nearly a disaster, as Powers found Michael Smith cutting across the middle, complete for what was a 13 yard gain, until Smith fumbled the ball as he was being tackled. Thankfully, before any of the defense could react, Douglas was running his route nearby and was able to quickly scoop up the loose ball to preserve possession at the 39 yard line. The call on the field ended up being reviewed, the refs reversing the fumble, saying his knee was down before the ball came loose. It was officially a 13 yard completion to Smith, leaving us instead at the 38 yard line. Roberson took the ball on first down for a 6 yard gain, before rumbling ahead for a pickup of 7 yards and a first down at the SJSU 49. Weaving his way through a gap in the defense, Roberson was able to continue punishing the Spartans with an 11 yard carry and a new set of downs at the 38. Coming to give Roberson a breather, Paris was able to pick up four yards on first down, followed by a second four yard rush to leave us facing third and two. Taking a chance on the ground, Roberson was stuffed for no gain on the carry to bring up fourth and two. The 47 yard field goal attempt by Burnette ended up coming up short, turning the ball over to San Jose State at their 30 yard line.
Pierre got the drive started for the Spartans with an 11 yard rush, giving them a quick first down at the 41. Another sack by the defense pushed Freeman and the Spartans back 7 yards, setting up second and 17. An incomplete pass, caught by O’Brien, but not before he was out of bounds, left San Jose State lining up on third and very long. A nearly intercepted third down pass brought the drive to an end with no damage, brining out SJSU’s punt team on fourth and 17. A 13 yard return by McGuire on the 37 yard punt got our drive started at our 41 yard line, just 1:36 left until halftime.
Coming out passing on first down, the pass intended for Martin fell incomplete, as Martin got caught in traffic during the play. Any chance of extending our lead before half ended on second down, as the pass intended for Douglas ended up thrown behind him, the ball promptly picked off by cornerback Marcus Allen, who got four yards on the return before being tackled at our 47 yard line.
A quick pass over the middle to Vincent on first down only picked up one yard, but not to be denied, Freeman went right back to Vincent on second down, the pass complete for a gain of 11 yards and a first down at our 34 yard line, San Jose State taking their first timeout with 1:17 left before half. Freeman found Davis on first down for a gain of three yards, the Spartans calling their second timeout with exactly one minute left in the quarter. We caught a massive break on second down, as Freeman heaved a pass into the end zone intended for Vincent, the cornerback blowing coverage on the play. A catch and it would have been a 31 yard touchdown, but Vincent would proceed to drop the completely wide open, uncontested pass, saving our defense and bringing up third and 7. The Spartans handed the ball off to Pierre on a delayed run, Pierre fighting his way to a 7 yard gain, but our defense managed to bring him down short of the first down marker, leaving fourth and inches from the 24 yard line, the clock down to 41 seconds and ticking. The Spartans lined up on fourth down, trying to get our defense to jump offside. It would only end up biting them in the ass, as a false start pushed them back to fourth and 5, leaving the field goal unit coming out. Our lead would end up secure, as the 46 yard field goal attempt by Demetrius Henry ended up getting caught in the crosswind and pushed wide left and no good, giving us the ball back at our 29 yard line with 19 seconds left on the clock.
Taking over after the missed field goal with only 19 seconds remaining, it was straight into the air on first down. Douglas pulled in a first down pass for a 14 yard gain and a first down at the 43 yard line, but he wasn’t able to get out of bounds before being tackled, forcing us to use our first timeout with 13 seconds remaining. An incomplete pass intended for Martin brought up second down, 10 seconds on the clock. Powers was able to fire off a pass to McGuire on second down, good for an 18 yard gain down to the SJSU 39 yard line, but our second timeout stopped the clock with only 5 seconds to go. We would have to manage a quick pass of at least 10 yards over the middle and immediate timeout if we had any hopes of a field goal before halftime. Conley was able to pull in the pass, and due to the outside linebacker overplaying the pass, had a wide open field in front of him. Instead of diving and calling timeout, Conley tried to sprint it in for a touchdown, but was chased down by the safety and cornerback for only a 34 yard gain, brought down at the 5 yard line with no time left. With that, we headed into halftime with only a 10-7 lead, our chance at extending it blown.
Opening up the second half, a 22 yard kickoff return gave San Jose State the ball at their 20 yard line to start the third quarter. Pierre got the drive started with an 11 yard rush and a quick first down for the Spartans, out to their 31 yard line. The defense was ready on first down, tackling Pierre for only a one yard gain, before a completion to Davis picked up 14 yards. To add salt to the wound, a flag for a facemask penalty was thrown on the tackle, giving the Spartans 15 extra yards and a first down at our 41 yard line. A screen pass to Vincent on first down gained 6 yards, followed by a 9 yard rush by Wyatt, giving San Jose State a first down at the 26 yard line. An incomplete pass on first down intended for Davis was almost intercepted before the ball could hit the ground, but the catch couldn’t be made, giving San Jose State second down and 10. A 10 yard rush by Pierre set the Spartans up with third and inches at our 17 yard line. Wyatt was able to get the first down and then some, rushing for a five yard gain down to our 12 yard line. A 9 yard rush by Pierre pushed the drive down to our three yard line, the Spartans lining up to second and one. Trying to pitch the ball to the right, our blitz blew the play up as Wyatt was brought down for a four yard loss, leaving third and 5 at the 8 yard line. The defense would come through in its biggest moment of the game, our zone defense leaving no one open for Freeman to throw to, as he took too long and ended up sacked for a 7 yard loss, bringing out the field goal unit on fourth and 12 from the 15. Henry squeaked the 32 yard field goal inside the right upright, tying the game back up at 10-10 with 5:22 left in the third quarter.
McGuire received the kickoff in the end zone, kneeling it down for a touchdown to start us at our 25. Roberson took the ball on first down, but was quickly brought down for only a gain of two yards. Lining up under center on second down, the pass intended for McGuire ended up nearly intercepted by the cornerback, in what would have almost assuredly been a pick six. An off-target pass intended for Douglas on third down was broken up, and we were forced to punt the ball right back on fourth and 8. A 25 yard punt return on the 41 yard punt gave San Jose State the ball at our 41 yard line. The booth reviewed the play, to see if Kevin Hill had stepped out of bounds. We ended up catching a break, as it was ruled that his right foot just went out of bounds while he was making a cut, leaving the Spartans instead starting at our 49 yard line.
The drive got started with a dropped pass by Vincent, bringing up second and 10. A 5 yard rush by Pierre set up third and 5. Dropping back for a screen pass, Freeman was unable to complete the throw to Pierre, ending up hit as he threw, with the wound duck ball falling to the turf incomplete, bringing out the punt team on fourth and 5. The 44 yard punt ended up bouncing down at the 5 yard line and rolling into the end zone for a touchback.
Taking over at our 20 yard line after the touchback, we came out passing on first down, hoping to eventually open up the run game. The first down pass intended for Martin ended up way over thrown and out of bounds, getting us off to a poor start. Douglas would get us some momentum, hauling in a pass on second down for a 14 yard gain, moving the chains to the 34. Roberson took the ball on first down, fighting his way through the defense for an 8 yard gain, before being brought down for a one yard pickup, leaving us facing third and one at the 43. Paris received the handoff on first down, managing to gain two yards and the first down at the 45 yard line to keep us in business. Powers kept the ball himself on first down, but had nowhere to run as the blitzing middle linebacker brought him down for a one yard loss. An 8 yard completion to Douglas got us close to a first down, lining up on third and three. Smith would keep us moving down the field with a 10 yard completion and a first down at the SJSU 37 yard line. Throwing a play action pass on first down, Powers hit Fields over the middle for a gain of 18 yards, moving the sticks to the 19 yard line. Turning back to the run game on first down, Roberson could only get one yard before being brought down by multiple defenders. That would be the last play as the final 10 seconds ticked off the clock, bringing the third quarter to an end, still all tied up at 10-10.
Opening up the fourth quarter, facing second and 9 from the San Jose State 18 yard line, Powers dropped back in the shotgun, trying to connect with Paris over the middle, but the ball was knocked loose and incomplete, leaving us lining up for third and 9. A pass to Douglas was broken up by the cornerback, and we were forced to take our chances on another field goal. Burnette managed to drill the 35 yard kick through the uprights, giving us a 13-10 lead with 8:50 left in the game.
A touchback on the kickoff gave the Spartans the ball at their 25 yard line. Freeman dropped back to pass on first down, waiting and waiting, looking for anyone to come open. It wouldn’t be as the blitz was finally able to break through, sacking Freeman for a 9 yard loss to leave second and 19 from the 16 yard line. Bringing the pressure again on second down, Pierre received the handoff but was immediately brought down for a one yard loss, setting up third and 20 at the 15. Freeman was able to avoid another sack, getting off a high pass to Vincent, but going up for the pass that was also behind him, his momentum carried him out of bounds for only a 7 yard gain, bringing out the punt team on fourth and 13. The failure of our return team to block left McGuire tackled for no return on the 36 yard punt, starting our drive from the 41 yard line.
Lining up on first down, despite being hit in the backfield, Roberson was able to pick up four yards on the carry, followed by a gain of only one yard, leaving us looking at third and 5. Douglas would come through huge for us on third down, hauling in a pass from Powers then beating the cornerback up the sideline for a major 32 yard gain, setting us up with a first down at the 21 yard line of San Jose State. A first down rush by Roberson picked up 6 yards around the right tackle, followed by a four yard carry by Paris to leave us facing third and inches from the 11 yard line. We put the ball back into the hands of Paris on third down, and he didn’t let us down, managing to gain one yard to set us up with first and goal from the 10 yard line. Paris kept the ball on first down, but again could only gain one yard. Powers kept the ball on second down, but couldn’t find anywhere to run, brought down for no gain to leave third and goal at the 9 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on third down, a pass to Matt Leierer was complete, but also ended up for no gain, leaving us facing fourth and goal at the 9 yard line. The 26 yard field goal by Burnette made it inside the right upright, increasing our lead to 16-10 with 2:57 left in the game.
A touchback on the kickoff gave San Jose State the ball at their 25 yard line. Emptying the backfield on first down, the pass intended for Davis was nearly intercepted by the outside linebacker, unable to hold onto what would have been a certain pick six. A handoff to Pierre on second down went nowhere, as he was tackled for a one yard loss, leaving the Spartans lining up on third and 11, with 2:38 remaining. Freeman was able to avoid the sack on third down, getting off a pass to Allen, but another dropped interception kept the ball in Spartan hands. With 2:26 left in the game and all three timeouts left, San Jose State elected to punt the ball on fourth and 11 from their 24 yard line. A 5 yard return by McGuire on the 37 yard punt gave us possession at the 43 yard line, looking to close out the final 2:15 of the game.
Starting the drive on the ground, Paris received the handoff for a three yard gain, San Jose State calling their first timeout with 2:11 remaining. Another rush by Paris gained four yards, leaving us with third and three, San Jose State’s second timeout called with 2:08 to go. A third straight rush by Paris got the job done, picking up 11 yards on the play and a first down at the SJSU 38 yard line, the Spartans calling their third and final timeout with 2:05 left in the game. A first down rush by Paris ended up with no gain, bringing up second and 10, the clock under two minutes and ticking. A four yard rush by Paris set us up with third and 6, one minute left on the clock. An 8 yard rush by Paris on third down would seal the victory with a first down at the 26 yard line of San Jose State. Powers would take to a knee a single time, running out the final 10 seconds on the clock and our 16-10 win over San Jose State.
With the win, we improve to 3-1, 2-0 in Mountain West action. With the loss, San Jose State drops to 1-4, 0-1 in Mountain West play. Up next, we head back into non-conference action, as we hit the road to take on Old Dominion. The Monarchs enter the game 2-1, 0-1 in C-USA action. Old Dominion opened their year a 35-18 win over Idaho, then beat FCS West 45-20. They suffered their first loss to Louisiana Tech 40-16, before recovering and defeating FCS Southeast 26-21 heading into our game.
Final Score
16,
10
Stat(s) of the Game:
Utah State Offense - A rather decent day for Powers, ending 15-25 for 217 yards, however, no touchdowns and one interception. Rushing, Roberson led the way with 73 yards on 22 carries. Paris followed up with 61 yards on 13 carries. Receiving, it was another big day by Douglas, who ended with a team high 79 yards on five receptions. A total of eight receivers caught at least one pass today, six of them ending with double digit yards.
Utah State Defense – Up and down once more. Rough first quarter, great second quarter. Partially rough third quarter, great fourth quarter. Three things killed San Jose State today. #1, constant blitzes that led to four coverage sacks. #2, switching in the middle of the first quarter from zone defense to mostly man defense. Rest of the game was 90-95% man defense, with always at least one LB or DB blitzing during the play. And finally #3, dropped passes. San Jose State suffered from seven dropped passes during the game, three by Vincent, and two each by Davis and O'Brien. One drop came on a wide open pass in the end zone that would have been a guaranteed touchdown, and the others came on some major key third down plays.
Utah State Kicking – A terrible day. Burnette did manage to stay above 50% for the day, going 3-5 in field goals, making from 52, 35 and 26 yards out, but missed on kicks of 19 and 47 yards. Can make a field goal from 52 yards out, but comes up short on a 47 yard kick. Sounds about right actually.
He did manage to go 1-1 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
| Team |
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Final Score |
|
7 |
3 |
0 |
6 |
16 |
|
7 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
10 |
| Time |
Team |
Result |
Play |
Score |
| First Quarter |
| 6:54 |
|
Touchdown |
B. Vincent, 38 yard pass from J. Freeman (D. Henry kick) |
7-0 |
| 6:42 |
|
Touchdown |
P. Roberson, returned kickoff 101 yards (R. Burnette kick) |
TIED 7-7 |
|
| Second Quarter |
| 6:44 |
|
Field Goal |
R. Burnette, 52 yard field goal |
10-7 |
|
| Third Quarter |
| 5:22 |
|
Field Goal |
D. Henry, 31 yard field goal |
TIED 10-10 |
|
| Fourth Quarter |
| 8:50 |
|
Field Goal |
R. Burnette, 34 yard field goal |
13-10 |
| 2:57 |
|
Field Goal |
R. Burnette, 26 yard field goal |
16-10 |
| Utah State |
Stat |
San Jose State |
| 16 |
Score |
10 |
| 19 |
First Downs |
8 |
| 348 |
Total Offense |
146 |
| 38 - 131 - 0 |
Rushes - Yards - TD |
22 - 44 - 0 |
| 15 - 25 - 0 |
Comp - Att - TD |
9 - 22 - 1 |
| 217 |
Passing Yards |
102 |
| 0 |
Times Sacked |
4 |
| 8 - 15 (53%) |
3rd Down Conversion |
1 - 11 (9%) |
| 1 - 1 (100%) |
4th Down Conversion |
1 - 1 (100%) |
| 0 - 0 (0%) |
2-Point Conv |
0 - 0 (0%) |
| 4 - 0 - 2 (50%) |
Red Zone - TD - FG |
1 - 0 - 1 (100%) |
| 1 |
Turnovers |
0 |
| 0 |
Fumbles Lost |
0 |
| 1 |
Intercepted |
0 |
| 22 |
Punt Return Yards |
30 |
| 119 |
Kick Return Yards |
22 |
| 489 |
Total Yards |
198 |
| 2 – 36.0 |
Punts - Average |
7 - 37.9 |
| 1 - 15 |
Penalties |
1 - 5 |
| 22:54 |
Time of Possession |
13:06 |
| Goal |
XP Reward |
Completed |
| Win a Game |
100 |
x1 |
| Score a Touchdown |
25 |
x1 |
| Kick/Punt Return Touchdown |
50 |
x1 |
| 3 Consecutive Wins |
150 |
x1 |
| 45+ Yard Field Goal |
10 |
x1 |
| Rush for 100 Yards |
25 |
x1 |
| NCAA Record: Longest Kick Return (101) |
300 |
x1 |
| Kneel Last Min Q4 While Ahead |
10 |
x1 |
| 3+ Sacks |
50 |
x1 |
| Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| Pass Completion Over 50% |
30 |
x1 |
| 350+ Offensive Yards |
50 |
x1 |
| 10+ First Downs |
50 |
x1 |
| 4+ 3rd Down Conversions |
25 |
x1 |
| Goal |
Expectations |
Progress |
| Target Wins Per Season |
6 |
3 |
Originally Posted by johntom2000
I had the same deal last year. Got into work on Saturday morning one week, and there in the air studio were three sets of tickets for games Saturday, Sunday and Monday. There was a note with them giving me the option of giving them away on air or keeping them for myself. I gave away the Saturday and Sunday tickets since I couldn't use them, but kept the Monday tickets and went to the game. They were great seats. Like I said, only two or three rows up from the field, directly behind home plate. They're basically season holder tickets, probably from a CEO or something from one of the big local companies in town that occasionally will donate tickets to either give away on air or let staff there at the station go to a game.
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks