Firstly, what really gives me hope for the future, is how many young players are showing flashes. Ryquell Armstead, Ventell Bryant, Kip Patton, Michael Dogbe, Freddie Booth-Lloyd, Thomas and of course Randall in the secondary.
Two, IF this team keeps on the roll they’re currently on, we could be looking at an unprecedented draft class.
P.J. had another good game, as the numbers show, but he really looks like he’s not comfortable with secondary and tertiary reads. I’d really like to see him make strides on this skill, because he’s got one hell of an arm. When I say that, I don’t mean he can throw it a country mile, but he’s very accurate and he displays special touch when needed.
Ryquell Armstead, I don’t see anything on the film that indicates as to why he’s fumbling. On his fumble during the first drive, he seemed to be stopped with both hands on the ball. The more I watch Jahad Thomas, the more I think he’s a super explosive change of pace back. In fact, I think he has the opportunity to become an Eric Bienemy/Eric Metcalf/Tim Dwight type of player, possibly on the next level. I suspect he might be better used playing 25-30 snaps/10-12 touches a game. His vision and change of direction are fantastic. You look at the play in the 1st quarter called back by the illegal shift, that’s a thing of beauty, the 28 yard gain on 2nd-29 wasn't too shabby either..
On that note, I generally like to see a team have a Bell Cow. I haven’t seen enough from Jager Gardner to tell if it’s him, no one’s seen enough out of T.J. Simmons. I’m wondering if Ryquell Armstead can get the ball security issues under control, it could be him.
Robbie Anderson could be on the road to greatness. He runs much better routes now than 2 years ago, he has size, long speed, and despite last week, really showed some soft hands, held on after some strong hits, and is a willing blocker, although at this point in time, he’s more of an annoyer when asked. I'd hoped to see more snaps for Adonis Jennings, just an incredibly strong receiver, I'd love to see more blocking situations out of him.
Kip Patton continued to make serious strides and I notice Cole Boozer out as a blocking TE in the first quarter.
Nice job on rotating the OL (mainly the Guards). Shabazz Ahmed has made very good strides. Although he was pushed back on a few runs, all in all, he locked on well.
If I was going to guess, I’d say that Snow doesn’t blitz until the ball is inside the Temple 30, and, quite frankly, it appears we don’t need to.
The DL had a particularly strong game. While the fellas you’d expect to dominate did just so, Ionaidas, Praise Martin, Walton, but Riddick has played particularly well, as has Robinson, and Dogbe. But Freddie Booth Lloyd is just fun to watch! Huge, violent, quick, powerful, the kid is going to be a game changing destroyer. Unmentioned here is Nate D. Smith. The young man is collecting his share of sacks, but I really question if 4-3 DE is a realistic spot for him. He’s really taking one for the team here, and God Bless him for it. I truly hope he collects enough to garner some interest and he can get a chance to get a shot at 3-4 OLB, which I see as his natural spot.
I noticed that Matakevich was used much more in zone pass coverage. I’d mentioned that he struggles in pass coverage, but in truth, it’s man coverage. Stephaun Marshall had a solid game, displaying why he has a single digit number.
Again, I can’t complain with results, although I’ve carped on the huge cushions both of our CBs give. Snow talks about not giving up the big play, and this is part of it. It’s not flashy, it’s not sexy, it’s the exact opposite of the 85 Bears, but it works.
Last year I was really excited about Shamir Bearfield, Cequan Jefferson, and Khiry Lucas. Jyquis Thomas, and much more so, Delvon Randall have passed these highly regarded players. Do yourselves a favor and keep an eye on Randall (#26) on special teams, this kid is incredible! Nate L. Smith is slowly but surely garnering more snaps. He’s pretty clearly passed Boye Aromire on the depth chart with Hayes out.
The punt that hit Artell Foster resulting in our second turnover, I can’t tell if it was Anderson or Foster, but it’s really just a fluke play. THIS is the kind of stuff that we need to get cleaned up or UCF or ECU is going to beat us. Avery Williams is such a nice bright kid, he really makes some bone-head mistakes, like the Kick Off he tried to handle instead of going up field to block for Anderson.
Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention unsung MVP Alex Starzyk. He’s on his road to becoming the Brandon McManus of Temple Punters.
