(08-31-2013 09:00 PM)emu steve Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 08:38 PM)EagleSam Wrote:  Do you see what other FCS teams are doing tonight? Some of them shouldn't be taken lightly. We played awful for most of this game, but Howard also played pretty well. That QB is a talented kid.

Exactly!!! I've been posting for days do NOT sleep on these FCS schools. The better FCS schools can create havoc for the big boys.

FCS teams have been giving FBS teams fits this weekend.

N. Dakota State beat Kansas State (which went to a BCS bowl last season).

E.Washington beat nationally ranked Oregon State.

McNeese State is killing So. Florida.

Towson beat UConn.

And there were a LOT of close games involving FBS and FCS.

They benefit from FBS transfers being immediately eligible and FCS opponents over looking them. Playing an FBS school is normally a highlight on an FCS team's schedule and viewed as a practice game for some FBS teams.

Most of you people are just blowing smoke. Howard is a bad D2 team and we made them look good. Another thing to point out we had to play our starters the entire game just to get a win. Our 2nd and 3rd stringers got no work so they are a big unknown and will have to be played in the next 2 meat grinder games which isn't fair!

CMU lost Kater and Tipton with possible season ending injuries. WMU injury issues have already been discussed here plus their QB may have gotten a concussion in the MSU game. I'm just glad EMU is healthy. I saw Gillespie on crutches but other than that are there any injuries?

(08-31-2013 09:35 PM)TheWoodenNickle Wrote:  CMU lost Kater and Tipton with possible season ending injuries. WMU injury issues have already been discussed here plus their QB may have gotten a concussion in the MSU game. I'm just glad EMU is healthy. I saw Gillespie on crutches but other than that are there any injuries?

and we still barely beat a bad D2 team!

(08-31-2013 09:26 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  Most of you people are just blowing smoke. Howard is a bad D2 team and we made them look good. Another thing to point out we had to play our starters the entire game just to get a win. Our 2nd and 3rd stringers got no work so they are a big unknown and will have to be played in the next 2 meat grinder games which isn't fair!

Whatever. We won. Considering we lost to an FCS team last year, I'll gladly take this win, even if we played like poop.

(08-31-2013 09:26 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  Most of you people are just blowing smoke. Howard is a bad D2 team and we made them look good. Another thing to point out we had to play our starters the entire game just to get a win. Our 2nd and 3rd stringers got no work so they are a big unknown and will have to be played in the next 2 meat grinder games which isn't fair!

Sir, you are incorrect.

Wayne State, Grand Valley State, Saginaw Valley State, etc. are D-II.

Howard is I-AA or FCS as are teams such as N. Dakota State, Towson, E. Washington, etc. which beat big name teams such as Kansas State, UConn, Oregon State, etc.

There is a lot of variability within FCS. Some schools are very good; others mediocre. Howard is probably 'average' among FCS schools.

As far as what we saw on the field tonight:

I will concede that EMU played 3 quarters of unimpressive football.

The 4th quarter was rather impressive.

We are better than we played during the first 3 quarters but not as good as we looked in the 4th quarter.

The OL was shaky. The DL wasn't bad. I still believe LB is weak. DBs made some costly mistakes, but when a DB makes a mistake it can be 6 points.

On the otherhand, Benz looks like the real deal. RB is definitely a strength (how does Darius Jackson make a trackman, Hill, look slow???), WR/TEs are fine.

I believe the development of the OL will indicate what kind of season we will have.

If the OL matures, we will win some shootouts.

English did play a lot of players at many positions. It is called 'rotation' not first or 2nd teams.

Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

(08-31-2013 09:54 PM)emu steve Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 09:26 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  Most of you people are just blowing smoke. Howard is a bad D2 team and we made them look good. Another thing to point out we had to play our starters the entire game just to get a win. Our 2nd and 3rd stringers got no work so they are a big unknown and will have to be played in the next 2 meat grinder games which isn't fair!

Sir, you are incorrect.

Wayne State, Grand Valley State, Saginaw Valley State, etc. are D-II.

Howard is I-AA or FCS as are teams such as N. Dakota State, Towson, E. Washington, etc. which beat big name teams such as Kansas State, UConn, Oregon State, etc.

There is a lot of variability within FCS. Some schools are very good; others mediocre. Howard is probably 'average' among FCS schools.

As far as what we saw on the field tonight:

I will concede that EMU played 3 quarters of unimpressive football.

The 4th quarter was rather impressive.

We are better than we played during the first 3 quarters but not as good as we looked in the 4th quarter.

The OL was shaky. The DL wasn't bad. I still believe LB is weak. DBs made some costly mistakes, but when a DB makes a mistake it can be 6 points.

On the otherhand, Benz looks like the real deal. RB is definitely a strength (how does Darius Jackson make a trackman, Hill, look slow???), WR/TEs are fine.

I believe the development of the OL will indicate what kind of season we will have.

If the OL matures, we will win some shootouts.

Ohhh I'm so unimpressed. And by the way they were vote to finish 6 in their conference! They are Old D2that they try to make look good by calling them D1 AA please! Just more smoke in peoples eyes!

(08-31-2013 09:56 PM)masttg Wrote:  Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

I do but you people obviously don't! Just because you give it some kind of fancy name doesn't change the facts they are a bad so called "FCS" team just as much as a bad D2 team.

(08-31-2013 10:02 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 09:56 PM)masttg Wrote:  Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

I do but you people obviously don't! Just because you give it some kind of fancy name doesn't change the facts they are a bad so called "FCS" team just as much as a bad D2 team.

They are not D2. That is 100% inaccurate. They are FCS or D1AA. D2 schools only give our 35 schollies or so. 1AA give out 65. There is a HUGE difference between the two. And as Steve rightly points FCS teams are becoming good enough to beat BCS conference teams. If Appy State did not teach to respect these teams than James Madison should have.

But then Howard is nowhere near the category of those teams. Howard would have been routed by Toledo or NIU. EMU has made very little progress in English’s five years defensively and that is disheartening.

I'll leave the emoticons out.

The entire team seemed to play better as the game went on. I am happy with the win especially since our history with FCS teams isn't always a sure thing.

I am going to chalk the "problems" up to Coach English taking over the duties as the DC and Coach Parrish implementing a new offense and the units still being on a learning curve. It was the first game with many new players with new coordinators and "new" systems against a real opponent (i.e. not against familiar players in practice). So, I'll cut them some slack there.

What blew my mind was the clock/game management during Eastern's last possession. With about 1:31 left on the clock Benz takes a knee. Game clock stops. Three second elapses. With about 1:28 left on the clock Benz takes another knee. Game clock stops. Another three seconds elapses. I look at my son and say, "There's no way they can run the clock out doing this." Then EMU runs a running play and picks up around 11 yards, which leaves it at 4th and 3. EMU has to punt the ball away giving Howard a chance to close the score a bit. What the heck was that all about? It looked like the coaches didn't have a clue as to how to close the game out.

Yes! Victory formation only works if the other team is out if TOs. EMU staff looked bad there.

(08-31-2013 10:24 PM)wolverineeagle Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:02 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 09:56 PM)masttg Wrote:  Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

I do but you people obviously don't! Just because you give it some kind of fancy name doesn't change the facts they are a bad so called "FCS" team just as much as a bad D2 team.

They are not D2. That is 100% inaccurate. They are FCS or D1AA. D2 schools only give our 35 schollies or so. 1AA give out 65. There is a HUGE difference between the two. And as Steve rightly points FCS teams are becoming good enough to beat BCS conference teams. If Appy State did not teach to respect these teams than James Madison should have.

But then Howard is nowhere near the category of those teams. Howard would have been routed by Toledo or NIU. EMU has made very little progress in English’s five years defensively and that is disheartening.

semantic! The "good" D2 schools where GIVEN D1 stasis by calling them "D1 AA" and the "bad" D2 schools where kept as D2. These so called football supporter would be praising the win if we where playing a high school team. And we should of been playing our 2nd and 3rd stringers late in the second half to give THEM practice and to see how they fare in a real game!

(08-31-2013 10:47 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:24 PM)wolverineeagle Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:02 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 09:56 PM)masttg Wrote:  Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

I do but you people obviously don't! Just because you give it some kind of fancy name doesn't change the facts they are a bad so called "FCS" team just as much as a bad D2 team.

They are not D2. That is 100% inaccurate. They are FCS or D1AA. D2 schools only give our 35 schollies or so. 1AA give out 65. There is a HUGE difference between the two. And as Steve rightly points FCS teams are becoming good enough to beat BCS conference teams. If Appy State did not teach to respect these teams than James Madison should have.

But then Howard is nowhere near the category of those teams. Howard would have been routed by Toledo or NIU. EMU has made very little progress in English’s five years defensively and that is disheartening.

semantic! The "good" D2 schools where GIVEN D1 stasis by calling them "D1 AA" and the "bad" D2 schools where kept as D2. These so called football supporter would be praising the win if we where playing a high school team. And we should of been playing our 2nd and 3rd stringers late in the second half to give THEM practice and to see how they fare in a real game!

No, it is not semantics. D2 players are generally smaller and slower than D1AA players. Have you ever watched a D2 game?

Dear Friends,
Being at the game and not having the ability of replay, one of the biggest detriments to Eastern was the officials and their calls. Having players go out of bounds and the clock not stop, having a conference with Howard coaches and no timeout called, and at the very end of the game Eastern having the ball and after two taking of knees by the quarterback the clock does not continue to run, and no timeouts are called. I could mention more, but I truly believe these MAC officials have it out for Eastern. They make the most stupid calls of any officials I have seen anywhere.
As far as the rest of the game is concerned; I would agree with the fact of poor tackling by the defense, too many times poor pass coverage by the defensive backs and linebackers, and no real pass rush by the defense.
What some posters are ignoring is that they are not giving Howard any credit for being a better football team than expected. What also seems to be ignored is that Eastern was down 24-13 and came back to win 34-24. That showed me that this team doesn't give up, when they could have easily folded. Does this mean that Eastern can beat Pennsylvania State next week? Probably not, but I wouldn't count us out either. Remember as far as our offense was concerned, Eastern didn't want to show too much of what they may be capable, to the Pennsylvania State scouts. So, the constant off tackle plays and short passes (with a few exceptions) was all Eastern wanted to show. There were no reverses, flea flickers, etc., to show our next opponents how to defense our attack. In the end, it was a win, and that is better than a loss.

(08-31-2013 10:57 PM)wolverineeagle Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:47 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:24 PM)wolverineeagle Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 10:02 PM)emussuperfan Wrote:  

(08-31-2013 09:56 PM)masttg Wrote:  Hey Super are you being obstinante? Or do you really not know the difference between Howard and GVSU?

The defense did not tackle well, letting QB draws, screens, and the occassional off-tackle get too far. Some kickoffs and punts were poor.

Benz looks good. RBs look good. Secondary was alright.

I do but you people obviously don't! Just because you give it some kind of fancy name doesn't change the facts they are a bad so called "FCS" team just as much as a bad D2 team.

They are not D2. That is 100% inaccurate. They are FCS or D1AA. D2 schools only give our 35 schollies or so. 1AA give out 65. There is a HUGE difference between the two. And as Steve rightly points FCS teams are becoming good enough to beat BCS conference teams. If Appy State did not teach to respect these teams than James Madison should have.

But then Howard is nowhere near the category of those teams. Howard would have been routed by Toledo or NIU. EMU has made very little progress in English’s five years defensively and that is disheartening.

semantic! The "good" D2 schools where GIVEN D1 stasis by calling them "D1 AA" and the "bad" D2 schools where kept as D2. These so called football supporter would be praising the win if we where playing a high school team. And we should of been playing our 2nd and 3rd stringers late in the second half to give THEM practice and to see how they fare in a real game!

No, it is not semantics. D2 players are generally smaller and slower than D1AA players. Have you ever watched a D2 game?

yes today but they where being called D1 AA!

Look people I understand you don't want EMU to be a real D 1 "A" school in football I get that just please stop pretending you do. And here is what really erkis me, our soccer teams plays a real highly ranked true D 1 "A" school and very nearly beats them and is belittle and demeaned. But our football plays a truly inferior team from a lower division and barely beats them and you people are singing their praise like they going to win every game!

Who is singing their praise? Everyone has been critical of the way they played today, and not one person has given off the notion that they are going to win every game. You're reaching. There is a difference between being happy with a win (even one where we sucked, for the most part), and thinking your team is a world beater. People are just relieved that we didn't lose to an FCS team again.

Guys lets stop this and be glad that we are 1-0 for the season, last year we would had lost this game.. Lets start talking about next week game...

(09-01-2013 04:30 AM)NUPudge Wrote:  Guys lets stop this and be glad that we are 1-0 for the season, last year we would had lost this game.. Lets start talking about next week game...

The interesting thing about the game is that EMU looked rather mediocre and rather good in the same game.

As Ken mentions EMU put on 21 points on Howard (I assume it was all in the 4th quarter).

I'm going to re-watch the 4th quarter but the offense was beautiful to watch.

P.S. no one is going to beat out Benz (we were silly to think a frosh might do it). My only problem with him is that he hasn't learned how to throw the ball away to prevent sacks. He throws a very nice ball. I liked his one nice run.