Great win vs UVA, however we arguably have a tougher road game this week. I'm a bit worried about an emotional hangover. Hopefully the team re-focuses fast, as this is a sort-of SBC Championship from last year.

Troy was a bit hot and cold yesterday in their loss to a ranked Kansas St. I'm expecting a close game. It'll be televised on the NFL Network.

(09-10-2023 02:11 PM)JMUPride Wrote:  Great win vs UVA, however we arguably have a tougher road game this week. I'm a bit worried about an emotional hangover. Hopefully the team re-focuses fast, as this is a sort-of SBC Championship from last year.

Troy was a bit hot and cold yesterday in their loss to a ranked Kansas St. I'm expecting a close game. It'll be televised on the NFL Network.

The best thing about winning is that it makes the next game a big one. Saturday night on the NFL network. Excited for the for the buildup up to Saturday.

Troy is currently a 2 point favorite. Vegas seems to think it'll be a toss-up and I think they're right. Feels like a 27-24 type game.

NFL network? Sheesh. Add another “free trial” to the list I guess.

I thought Troy might give K-State a better fight than that, was a little surprised by that result

(09-10-2023 02:58 PM)JMU13 Wrote:  NFL network? Sheesh. Add another “free trial” to the list I guess.

Worth it - excellent production

Feel pretty good about the rush defense. Hopefully the pass defense tightens up.

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(09-10-2023 05:00 PM)hburg Wrote:  Feel pretty good about the rush defense. Hopefully the pass defense tightens up.

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Definitely.

Stats listed on ESPN.

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(09-10-2023 03:08 PM)s2dsayer Wrote:  I thought Troy might give K-State a better fight than that, was a little surprised by that result

I was as well. I don't think a lot of our fan base would have been pleased with that result had we played KSU. Not saying we would have done better, but Troy is a more complete team right now than us and should have been able to keep the game competitive.

(09-10-2023 03:29 PM)bcp_jmu Wrote:  

(09-10-2023 02:58 PM)JMU13 Wrote:  NFL network? Sheesh. Add another “free trial” to the list I guess.

Worth it - excellent production

Agreed. Imagine 2 years ago any of our fans complaining about a primetime Saturday game on NFL network.

Most sports bars and restaurants will have this game, or will happily turn it on for those who don't have it at home. Would make a fun watch party event.

Radio.... to Zone...to Flo....to ESPN/NFL...

An area of weakness so far for them has been TOs. 6 fumbles (4 lost) and 2 INTs through two games. If we can win the turnover battle I like our chance.

I definitely expected Troy to put up more of a fight with K State and thought that game would be more of a toss up than it ended up being. I also expected us to win more handily against UVA though. Need to work out the issues in our pass D and get more consistent pressure on the QB, improve there and I'll be very confident in every game we have left. Don't and we could drop just about any one of them.

I think we continue improving, but do still give up a little more through the air than we'd like to see.

JMU 27
Troy 21

Oh and predicting a score that would almost definitely mean a couple JMU field goals reminds me... Really great to see Camden Wise looking comfortable and making his kicks right from the start this year, happy for him after the struggles he had last year.

Is anyone going to the game? 4 hour drive, I’m on the fence. I was supposed to drive to UVA with Cent but I caught Covid. I feel like I may need to redeem myself this weekend

So I'm really eager to see how our run game works against Sun Belt teams. From what I've heard, UVA has a particularly good D-line, especially considering how not-great the rest of the team is.

We do a lot of zone blocking. That requires somewhat more athletic and smart offensive line play; there are a lot of circumstances where one lineman blocks a d-lineman, and the guy next to him throws a quick shoulder on the defender and then looks for a LB or safety to seal off, making lanes. Those kinds of plays are the ones that require some dancing by the running back, as he waits for lanes to open, but it also means that if the d-line beats his block, or the rest of the defense is smart and fast, they can collapse on the play, essentially bottling it up before it develops. So that means they're higher risk/higher reward. And against a top-notch DL, those plays have a higher chance of never really getting started, which happened to us a bunch last weekend. If UVA's DL is really good, that may be the best we see in that department all year. (and if that's as bad as it gets, then it's not too bad.)

Gap runs, on the other hand, basically say "We're building a blocking lane around this spot" -- those are where the RB sprints at the spot with and builds momentum. They're a lot less likely to break for 15 yards, but a lot more likely to get at least 2 yards. Considering the brute power of some of our backs, I'd really like to see those happen more, because Ty Son Lawton running downfield at full speed vs a linebacker hurrying to get in position is going to work well for us. All the more if we have a legit downfield threat (which McCloud can definitely go long) -- put 3 wideouts and a TE in the game, and the defense will have to go with small/fast rather than big/strong. That means it's much more of a chance that Lawton hits a nickelback or safety than a linebacker. I'll take that matchup all day long.

This was the game I penciled in as the toughest on the schedule. Both as a team and situation, this appeared to be the toughest game IMO.
Now that the season is underway, I don't feel quite as strong, but I do think it's among the toughest games we'll have this year.
While we made a ton of mistakes, we somehow managed to win. I think this team will see that it has a lot of cleaning up to do. Cignetti called our passing defense "awful" so I have to imagine that will be a major focus on this week.
He also referenced last year's Georgia Southern game, which we all remember to be one of the more frustrating games last year. He said this game must not be another Ga Southern. Hopefully that message will resonate with the players and they will play well this Saturday.
While Troy definitely showed weaknesses last weekend, they have probably played the best team that either team faced this year. Cignetti mentioned that game was also a game of momentum. Troy hung in with K State but the game got away from them.
I think this game will be all about eliminating mistakes and the team that plays the most error free wins this game. Just hoping that's the Dukes.
Really big game this weekend.

(09-10-2023 05:11 PM)hburg Wrote:  Stats listed on ESPN.

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Troy (1-1/0-0)
W SFA 48-30
L @ #17 K State 42-13

JMU overall stats a hair better, but Troy has faced a stronger SOS so far (SFA > Bucknell and K State > UVA).

I recorded the Troy St @ K State game on FS1 (was on at the same time as JMU @ UVA). Troy had their 12 game winning streak snapped. It was 14-10 when K State got the ball at their own 34 with 49 seconds left 2nd qtr and then in 5 plays scored a TD with 10 seconds left to make it 21-10 at the half.
https://troytrojans.com/sports/football/...score/6726

Stats:
https://troytrojans.com/sports/football/stats

Roster:
https://troytrojans.com/sports/football/roster

QB #18 6th yr rSr Gunnar Watson (6’3”, 210). Started 9 games 2020 7 games 2021, and was the full time starter last year.
https://troytrojans.com/sports/football/...tson/10372
vs SFA 14 of 22 for 198 yds, 4 TDs/1 INT
vs K State 17 of 32, 167 yds, 1 TD/1 INT.
Obvioulsy experienced with 30+ starts/5k + career passing yds. Looks like a good arm, decent accuracy. Looked like tried to force some passes into tight coverage vs K-State.
And if Gunnar comes out, the backup QB is ‘Goose’ lol

Jr RB #28 Kimani Vidal (5’8”/215).
2022 2nd Team All SBC, rushed for 1132 yds
2020 & 2021 Honorable Mention All SBC.
https://troytrojans.com/sports/football/...idal/10369
-vs SFA 25 carries for 248 yds.
-vs K State 17 carries for 87 yds. Had a 46 yd run, other 16 carries went for 41 yds.

Of the 8 WR on their 2 deep, 3 are listed at 6’3”, and 1 at 6’1”. No WR over 100 yds through 1st 2 games. #6 I believe it was made a couple of circus catches vs K-State though.

Starting OL game notes vs K State listed avg about 6’4”/308.

Defensively they run a 3-4 (or a 3-3-5). Only guys listed over 250 are the 2 interior guys, so not real big. Not as big as UVA, but look quicker. K State put up 250 passing/147 rushing.

Troy starting NT is one of those big 300+ DL (6’3”/317) wearing a single digit # (4). And his name is Buddah.

I have no idea what to think about this game. Few points of reference for comparison, other than those fairly even stats.

I don’t know if Troy’s passing game is good enough to beat JMU, but we’ll find out because that is what the Dukes will force them to do. Jacob Thomas needs to play a lot better. He looks good enough for his size/speed combo, but he was out of position many times against UVA.

It will certainly be an upset to beat the Sun Belt champs on the road.