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Game Thoughts (Part 2)

tlwwake

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Oct 29, 2008
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I rewatched the game and had some more thoughts. Most (if not all) of this is applicable to this week's game vs TCU, so here you go!


8-0.
With Toledo going down last night, there are now only 10 undefeated teams remaining.

Streaking. You think this team has confidence? That's now 10 straight wins dating back to last year.

Winning on the Road. Since 2008, Oklahoma State is 22-11 in Big 12 road games.

David Glidden.
This guy has been sensational this season. He is a 3rd down machine. In 2014, he was our leading receiver with 42 catches, 598 yards & 2 TDs. In 2015, he 38 catches, 628 yards & 3 TDs and we still have 4 regular season games left.

Mason Rudolph. For what he's been given, #2 has been really impressive thus far. He has a below average offensive line & running game and the WRs have been inconsistent. Mason is currently at 63.9% on his passes. In 2014, Daxx Garman was 54.9%. In 2013, Chelf was at 56.4% and Walsh was 59.5%. In 2012, Chelf was at 60.4%, Walsh was 66.9% and Lunt was 61.8% (http://www.sports-reference.com). How about this guy's toughness? On the 1st reverse with Washington, he put a Texas Tech LB on his rear end. That drive led to the first OKST touchdown of the day.

Hunter's INT. Tech was driving it down the field pretty easily (49-45 Cowboys in the 4th). Jimmy Bean had gotten hurt and come back into the game. He went down again on this drive; Brailford replaced him & Clark replaced Ogbah. The next play #94 blows past the RT and puts some nice pressure on the QB. The quick throw ended up in the hands of #17 in white. Mahomes and Grant didn't seem to be on the same page, but #94 was in his face as he made that throw. Excited about our redshirt freshmen ends!

Drops. 7 in total. Sheperd had 2 (deep pass & 3rd down on sideline). Washington had 3 (2 catchable jump balls & a sideline pass). Lacy had 2 (over-the head ball & a catchable high pass in redzone). The 2 catchable jump balls would've been difficult catches, but have all seen #28 catch those before. But, 5 of the 7 drops cannot happen. Drops happen in every football game, but we can't have this many and expect to win games. They killed a couple drives in the Tech game. As a group, the WRs have been inconsistent all year. I'm hoping they are more consistent going forward.

Missed Tackles. This number could vary either way, but I counted around 18 missed tackles. Let's break that number down. A couple of these came from the Jakeem Grant run. But, the rest are from defenders overrunning the play and trying to arm tackle the QB/RB and then missing open field tackles on WRs. Tech has great offense with numerous playmakers, but TCU has even better weapons including a quicker, more experienced QB and arguably the best WR in the country. Gundy: "I thought we came out flat because we didn't tackle well, but I also think Texas Tech is pretty good on offense. Would we have liked to have played better? Sure, but I think the answer would have been to tackle better."

Jordan Burton. He's learning on the run like most transfers have to do, but he's quietly been really solid for us. It seems like the game is starting to slow down for him. He's 2nd on the team (only behind Sterns) in tackles with 53 total & 36 solo. On a 1st down play after we took a 49-45 lead in the 4th quarter (12:04 remaining), Mahomes flung it out to Jakeem Grant. Jordan Burton shed the WR block and got Grant to the ground.

35-38 in the 3rd. This was a big defensive possession for us coming off the big McClesky punt return for a TD. We had the momentum, but were still behind by 3. We get them to a 3rd & 5 on their own 29. We have a 3-man rush on with Ogbah, Brailford & Taylor. Our ends force Mahomes up in the pocket and Ogbah gets him from behind. If Ogbah didn't get him, Brailford had ran right past the RT and was coming full speed right behind Ogbah. It's truly amazing to watch Ogbah work.

Rudolph on 3rd Down & Long: Rudolph had 7 different 3rd & mid-to-long situations throughout the game. I'm not counting the empty hand fumble in the 1st quarter and the hail mary before halftime. In the 7 different 3rd down & mid-to-long plays, he converted 4 of those through the air. One that really stuck out to me was a 3rd & 12 timing route to Austin Hays on the sideline. He made a perfect throw and Hays made a great catch. The 4/7 rate on 3rd and distance should've been 7/7. Washington dropped a catchable pass, Lacy had one go through his hands on a 3rd & 9, and then on a 3rd & 18 Rudolph stepped up in the pocket and threw a dime over to the sideline and Sheperd dropped it. In summary, Rudolph is money on 3rd downs. We have a special one at QB.

Darrion Daniels. For a true freshman DT, I've been really impressed. He obviously needs an offseason with Coach Glass to get the upper body strength where it needs to be to compete at this level, but he has a quick first step and has been a solid back-up for us. On a run play (10:15 left in the 3rd), Daniels shoved the left guard straight back into the Tech RB then Ogbah came through to help take him down; really impressive play from a true freshman.

Kick Returns. Aside from your touchbacks and a kid out of bounds, we were able to return 3 kickoffs all game. We had Jeff Carr & Chris Lacy back there and Carr took all 3. In 2 of the 3, we didn't even get it back to the 20-yard line. This really put our offense in poor field position to start a couple of drives. I'm not sure if this is a blocking issue, a returner issue, or both.

Offensive Line: We started the game with Salako, Wilson, Lundblade, Robinson, Crabtree. Midway through the 2nd quarter (6:26 left), Jesse Robinson replaced Michael Wilson at LG and Paul Lewis came in at RG. Then to start the 2nd half, Wilson was back in at LG and Robinson went back to RG. Midway through the 3rd quarter (6:52 remaining), they moved Robinson back to LG and brought Lewis in at RG. Michael Wilson then came back at LG the very next possession. Honestly, I didn't notice much difference between the 2 different line-ups. It is worth noting Walsh & Taylor had their success running the ball with Wilson at LG & Robinson at RG. That line-up finished the game.

Crowd. In 2013, we were favored to win the league and we averaged 59,125 (6 games). In 2014, our attendance dipped and we averaged 54,387 (6 games). In 2015, our attendance has come back up and we have averaged 56,929 (4 games) and still have our 3 biggest home games remaining. I'm hoping for the best crowd of the season! Let's fill it up and get Boone Pickens Stadium rocking!! GO POKES!
 
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