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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 17:57:51 GMT -5
Post by classof83 on Dec 5, 2022 17:57:51 GMT -5
It hasn’t been the MO of DC Rogers to use a spy. They rely mostly on gap assignment and relentless pursuit. Again, not saying Sluka won’t have success in QB designed runs but I don’t think that’d be the bread and butter. I’d say the broken 8pocket runs would be. As far as gaining anything off tackle, you guys certaintly bottled him up last time. The major difference between April 2021 and now is that Sluka is much more of a complete QB now. Back then, if his 1st option wasn't immediately open, it was duck, tuck and run. Now, he both a) has weapons downfield and b) is able to effectively utilize them. As far as our offensive game plan, I expect the ground and pound to be our bread and butter with designed off-guard / QB draw run plays and downfield pass plays mixed in. We are much more apt to throw on 3rd down with an empty backfield than we were past two seasons. Fellow HC fans: if my memory jogs me correctly, weren't we also without Asante and Tenio Ayeni against SDSU last time? I seem to recall both were hurt and Spencer Gilliam was our top WR threat in that game -- and Sluka was not yet really at the point where he could effectively get anyone the ball in what was his 3rd career start. Another point to make about that COVID spring season, HC had played 3 games before playing SD State. SD State had played 8 games.
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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 18:01:43 GMT -5
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Dec 5, 2022 18:01:43 GMT -5
As far as gaining anything off tackle, you guys certaintly bottled him up last time. The major difference between April 2021 and now is that Sluka is much more of a complete QB now. Back then, if his 1st option wasn't immediately open, it was duck, tuck and run. Now, he both a) has weapons downfield and b) is able to effectively utilize them. As far as our offensive game plan, I expect the ground and pound to be our bread and butter with designed off-guard / QB draw run plays and downfield pass plays mixed in. We are much more apt to throw on 3rd down with an empty backfield than we were past two seasons. Fellow HC fans: if my memory jogs me correctly, weren't we also without Asante and Tenio Ayeni against SDSU last time? I seem to recall both were hurt and Spencer Gilliam was our top WR threat in that game -- and Sluka was not yet really at the point where he could effectively get anyone the ball in what was his 3rd career start. Another point to make about that COVID spring season, HC had played 3 games before playing SD State. SD State had played 8 games. You're right. Lehigh Fordham Bucknell (PL championship) SDSU (FCS Round of 16) So it was actually only Sluka's 2nd start then I believe. Pretty sure he came on relatively early in the Fordham game but Degenhart started Im fairly certain.
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Post by efg72 on Dec 5, 2022 18:09:39 GMT -5
Earlier today I commented that SDSU's size did not concern me but rather their speed (particularly on D). At lunch this afternoon, a colleague expressed surprise that we were comparable to a MVFC team who he thought matched up well size-wise with Big 10 Iowa. With time to kill this afternoon before coaching a hockey game this evening, I decided to dive into the rosters. I don't think I could compile the 40 time for both teams so I settled for comparing height and weight based by position. Obviously size is but one factor in comparing rosters (such as where they are from, level of competition, grade level, experience, stats, etc).
| HC |
| SDSU |
| Position | Height | Weight | Height | Weight | OL | 6-5 | 295 | 6-5 | 298 | DL | 6-3 | 264 | 6-3 | 253 | LB | 6-1 | 225 | 6-1 | 205 | S | 6-1 | 198 | 6-1 | 182 | CB | 6-1 | 186 | 6-1 | 184 | WR | 6-1 | 191 | 6-1 | 190 | TE | 6-4 | 234 | 6-5 | 233 | RB | 6-0 | 211 | 6-0 | 196 | FB | 6-1 | 240 | 6-3 | 235 | QB | 6-3 | 215 | 6-3 | 220 |
Notes: HC breaks down safeties into Free vs. Strong, SDSU groups them together Both HC and SDSU only have 1 FB listed I only included Sluka and Gronowski at QB
Here is the Spreadsheet
I speak with glasses that are somewhat purple, so to our Jack rabbit hosts take it for the spirit in how it is offered saturday will be the second game this year where we are playing without a bullseye on our back SDSU as the #1 team has had it all season, even against Iowa SDSU is a quicker and better Defensive team once we lost Dobbs SDSU has real talent on the offensive side of the ball Holy Cross can match that talent offensively Holy Cross has superior special teams SDSU is incredibly well coached period Holy Cross has the X factor and Chesney and staff have not been out coached this year SDSU fans, based on podcasts and articles, view this game as a mismatch and blowout players and coaches view this game as a war and every play as life and death by all predictions this is a 41-14 type of game if that is the result I will say great game and be so proud of the wonderful 12-1 season. Good luck to our gracious hosts from SDSU as you go all the way however this will be a war, a war that only Crusaders know how to wage and a coach that knows how to get us over the finish line saturday is our everything for this year and like Crusaders we will wage a Bitter fight with all our might final score will be a shock to the Valley, Sky and CAA conferences Holy Cross 37 SDSU 35 Oliver, Coker, Shorter, Morris, Ng, and Sluka and the O line have career games Anderson has another outstanding performance as he slows down Davis. Haskins, Reichwein, Kuznetzov, and the D make plays Gronowski and Kraft along with Jadon and Jaxon have great games offensively Freeman and Sanders are special on D What a game
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Post by thecrossisback on Dec 5, 2022 18:12:17 GMT -5
Got bored and wanted to compare. 12 games each.
Sluka overall record 25-4?
Flutie Heisman 1984 Stats
Passing 233/386 3,454 Yards 27 TD's 11 INT's
Rushing 66 for 379 and 3 TD's
Sluka 2022 Stats Passing 141/240 2,366 Yards 26 TD's 3 INT's
Rushing 177 for 1,021 10 TD's
Stetson Bennet Georgia 13 Games Passing 269/395 3,425 Yards 20 TD"s 6 INT's
Rushing 47 for 184 yards and 7 TD's
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Post by ndgradbuthcfan on Dec 5, 2022 18:25:42 GMT -5
Guys, I watched 2 1/2 quarters of Delaware/SDSU and believe me, Delaware beat themselves. lol Not really but it wasn't as bad as the score indicates. Delaware lost their qb after first possession and that had to have some impact. In the first half SD scored 3 tds and Delaware had 2 fgs and one short fg miss. Delaware was able to move the ball, just couldn't finish which apparently was a season long problem for them. EFG is right on the money, Crusaders win a close one.
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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 18:44:17 GMT -5
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Dec 5, 2022 18:44:17 GMT -5
Clay Matvick and Rocky Boiman on the call.
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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 18:55:54 GMT -5
Post by midwestsader05 on Dec 5, 2022 18:55:54 GMT -5
Another point to make about that COVID spring season, HC had played 3 games before playing SD State. SD State had played 8 games. You're right. Lehigh Fordham Bucknell (PL championship) SDSU (FCS Round of 16) So it was actually only Sluka's 2nd start then I believe. Pretty sure he came on relatively early in the Fordham game but Degenhart started Im fairly certain. I was there. Yes, Tenio and Ayir were out. CJ Hansen got his first start at Guard for an injured Jack Bowler. Luke Newman came in as a freshman for Grady Smith after Grady broke his leg first play of the game. Smith was already starting for Brian Foley who also didn’t play due to injury. Needless to say CJ and Luke are a bit different now. Defense was without Terrell Prince. Haskins was just getting his feet wet and had a tough day with the Janke twins. John Smith muffed a punt at the 50 yard line. I have a first hand account of 2 SDSU OL telling a friend Dobbs was the best LB they had played against. Olsofka only played one series last week. We will miss him if he still can’t go.
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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 19:04:44 GMT -5
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Post by midwestsader05 on Dec 5, 2022 19:04:44 GMT -5
To take this game into the 2nd half, our O is gonna have to sustain some drives. We have a top 5-10 offense in FCS with balance that has to keep our D off the field. SDSU’s offense has a legit 8 pro prospects on it. That’s not a misprint. They have 8 starters that have a legit shot to make 53 man rosters. OT #74 and OG #60 play on the same side. TE Kraft back after injury in the Iowa Game is a legit 2/3 round prospect. Other TE #87 probably goes on day 3. WR Janke twins plus RB Davis (his back-up is also a stud and healthy again) and finally QB Gronowski. It is a legit power 5 FBS offense.
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SDSU
Dec 5, 2022 22:42:12 GMT -5
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Post by Xmassader on Dec 5, 2022 22:42:12 GMT -5
I kinda sorta have to agree with BBC here - I think, for instance, if he was the Fordham QB he would get under my skin some. He's brash, he's ultra confident.........but he walks the walk, and I am very glad he's on the side that wears purple! For those national pundits that are lukewarm on HC, I think they underestimate what his personality/presence brings to the team. I know I become more impressed with it every time I watch him. To paraphrase hc87 “Winnah Winnah Chicken Dinnah!” 25-4 in 2+ seasons, 3 PL championships. Not much more needs to be said.
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Post by A Clock Tower Purple on Dec 5, 2022 23:15:18 GMT -5
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SDSU
Dec 6, 2022 0:22:29 GMT -5
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Post by jackedforlife on Dec 6, 2022 0:22:29 GMT -5
Clay Matvick and Rocky Boiman on the call. Interesting fact, Clay Matvick was a local sportscaster in the early 90s at the local NBC affiliate.
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Post by jackjd on Dec 6, 2022 0:22:41 GMT -5
Clay Matvick and Rocky Boiman on the call. That's good news for Jackrabbit fans. Clay Matvick, a Minnesota guy, was a broadcaster at a TV station in Sioux Falls, SD and has covered the Jackrabbits. Odds are pretty good we won't get called San Diego State. Hate being called San Diego State. Edit: LOL. jackedforlife and I were thinking the same.
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SDSU
Dec 6, 2022 6:17:46 GMT -5
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Post by cruskater31 on Dec 6, 2022 6:17:46 GMT -5
Earlier today I commented that SDSU's size did not concern me but rather their speed (particularly on D). At lunch this afternoon, a colleague expressed surprise that we were comparable to a MVFC team who he thought matched up well size-wise with Big 10 Iowa. With time to kill this afternoon before coaching a hockey game this evening, I decided to dive into the rosters. I don't think I could compile the 40 time for both teams so I settled for comparing height and weight based by position. Obviously size is but one factor in comparing rosters (such as where they are from, level of competition, grade level, experience, stats, etc).
| HC |
| SDSU |
| Position | Height | Weight | Height | Weight | OL | 6-5 | 295 | 6-5 | 298 | DL | 6-3 | 264 | 6-3 | 253 | LB | 6-1 | 225 | 6-1 | 205 | S | 6-1 | 198 | 6-1 | 182 | CB | 6-1 | 186 | 6-1 | 184 | WR | 6-1 | 191 | 6-1 | 190 | TE | 6-4 | 234 | 6-5 | 233 | RB | 6-0 | 211 | 6-0 | 196 | FB | 6-1 | 240 | 6-3 | 235 | QB | 6-3 | 215 | 6-3 | 220 |
Notes: HC breaks down safeties into Free vs. Strong, SDSU groups them together Both HC and SDSU only have 1 FB listed I only included Sluka and Gronowski at QB
Here is the Spreadsheet
Great stuff! I’d be interested to see the breakdown after the depth charts come out, maybe it doesn’t even change. But on average HC size shows across the roster. Searching for any hope haha!
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SDSU
Dec 6, 2022 6:28:30 GMT -5
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Post by cruskater31 on Dec 6, 2022 6:28:30 GMT -5
To take this game into the 2nd half, our O is gonna have to sustain some drives. We have a top 5-10 offense in FCS with balance that has to keep our D off the field. SDSU’s offense has a legit 8 pro prospects on it. That’s not a misprint. They have 8 starters that have a legit shot to make 53 man rosters. OT #74 and OG #60 play on the same side. TE Kraft back after injury in the Iowa Game is a legit 2/3 round prospect. Other TE #87 probably goes on day 3. WR Janke twins plus RB Davis (his back-up is also a stud and healthy again) and finally QB Gronowski. It is a legit power 5 FBS offense. Would they be pro prospects if they were playing in the PL or even the CAA?
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Post by mm67 on Dec 6, 2022 7:50:33 GMT -5
It's not merely size which is determinative. Size & Speed. We have seen slow teams with great size lose to faster, quicker teams. Speed places blockers & tacklers in better position. Additionally, compare getting hit by a truck traveling 10 mph with one speeding at 50mph. HC has both size & speed.
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Post by hiltonheadcrusader on Dec 6, 2022 7:54:51 GMT -5
Herb Brooks: "If we play them ten times, they may win nine......but not this game...."
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Dec 6, 2022 8:03:31 GMT -5
To take this game into the 2nd half, our O is gonna have to sustain some drives. We have a top 5-10 offense in FCS with balance that has to keep our D off the field. SDSU’s offense has a legit 8 pro prospects on it. That’s not a misprint. They have 8 starters that have a legit shot to make 53 man rosters. OT #74 and OG #60 play on the same side. TE Kraft back after injury in the Iowa Game is a legit 2/3 round prospect. Other TE #87 probably goes on day 3. WR Janke twins plus RB Davis (his back-up is also a stud and healthy again) and finally QB Gronowski. It is a legit power 5 FBS offense. Would they be pro prospects if they were playing in the PL or even the CAA? If you’re good, they’ll find you.
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Post by hc1998 on Dec 6, 2022 8:07:02 GMT -5
My two cents, which many may say is not that insightful and is more in line with common sense, is that we absolutely need a couple of turnovers, perhaps even one that advances the ball for us (i.e. a muffed punt). We are MUCH more talented than a typical PL champion and have shown that we can play with anybody...but we are going up against the top team in FCS, a team that is also undefeated with a much more difficult schedule (I do note, for a #1 team, they have 2 wins by 2 points and 1 by 3...not sure if those games were as close as they sound or if there were late scores, but often the #1 team runs through everyone). I think for a good part of the game we can match SDSU play for play...but I also think there will be at least 2 drives where they just bulldoze us and 2 drives where we can't put anything together on offense. I feel like for such an incredible season, we haven't forced as many turnovers as in the past (if my quick look was correct, that was confirmed 23 this year, 38 last year). We absolutely have to win the turnover battle and likely need to be +2...we do that, I think we have a game
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 6, 2022 8:09:15 GMT -5
Agree with all the above except I’m pretty sure they have one loss and not undefeated.
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Post by rgs318 on Dec 6, 2022 8:11:07 GMT -5
hc1998, nicely expressed and food for thought. Thanks for your post and analysis.
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Post by hc1998 on Dec 6, 2022 8:21:23 GMT -5
Agree with all the above except I’m pretty sure they have one loss and not undefeated. You are absolutely correct, and I knew that...kind of overlooked the Iowa loss. Just the same, while a loss, holding an above .500 Big Ten team to 1 TD is pretty impressive.
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Post by cruskater31 on Dec 6, 2022 8:53:19 GMT -5
My two cents, which many may say is not that insightful and is more in line with common sense, is that we absolutely need a couple of turnovers, perhaps even one that advances the ball for us (i.e. a muffed punt). We are MUCH more talented than a typical PL champion and have shown that we can play with anybody...but we are going up against the top team in FCS, a team that is also undefeated with a much more difficult schedule (I do note, for a #1 team, they have 2 wins by 2 points and 1 by 3...not sure if those games were as close as they sound or if there were late scores, but often the #1 team runs through everyone). I think for a good part of the game we can match SDSU play for play...but I also think there will be at least 2 drives where they just bulldoze us and 2 drives where we can't put anything together on offense. I feel like for such an incredible season, we haven't forced as many turnovers as in the past (if my quick look was correct, that was confirmed 23 this year, 38 last year). We absolutely have to win the turnover battle and likely need to be +2...we do that, I think we have a game Awesome stuff 98! I do agree we certainly need turnovers and perhaps win the field position battle through special teams play. That being said, our 23 turnovers gained are good for 12th in FCS. Turnover margin is #1 in FCS. That's nothing to sneeze at!
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SDSU
Dec 6, 2022 9:09:59 GMT -5
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Post by jackedforlife on Dec 6, 2022 9:09:59 GMT -5
Agree with all the above except I’m pretty sure they have one loss and not undefeated. You are absolutely correct, and I knew that...kind of overlooked the Iowa loss. Just the same, while a loss, holding an above .500 Big Ten team to 1 TD is pretty impressive. Undefeated in the FCS. The Iowa loss was 7-3 and it was not a TD, rather a FG and 2 safeties. The punter from Iowa was the MVP that day as he place 2 punts inside the 1 1/2 yard line.
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 6, 2022 9:14:17 GMT -5
I feel better already!!!
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SDSU
Dec 6, 2022 9:21:49 GMT -5
Post by hc1998 on Dec 6, 2022 9:21:49 GMT -5
You are absolutely correct, and I knew that...kind of overlooked the Iowa loss. Just the same, while a loss, holding an above .500 Big Ten team to 1 TD is pretty impressive. Undefeated in the FCS. The Iowa loss was 7-3 and it was not a TD, rather a FG and 2 safeties. The punter from Iowa was the MVP that day as he place 2 punts inside the 1 1/2 yard line. Jacked, thank you for the correction! I remembered there was something quirky about that game, but without dedicating the time to go look it up, I was assuming it was a punt return TD or something like that. Now that you say it, I remember the safeties, and remember thinking how many people with 7 in a super bowl pool go from confidence to dejection upon a safety...Iowa found a way to rescue that box!
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