Quick Reaction: NT 37 vs Tulane 45
HoCo loss to the league's best team
We said that the worst case scenario was that NT would be unable to stop the run, and the pass rush would get to Chandler Morris. That happened, and there were other issues. Tulane started with a 3-and-out, but Eric Morris’ offense followed with the same. Understanding can be given for being pinned inside the five, but necessity is necessity. Tulane scored on three straight drives and it wasn’t all because of the defense.
Chandler Morris led his team to a field goal attempt and walked off the field as NT was down 7-3. When he next touched the ball, the squad was down 21-3. Mackenzie McGill showed that he is a freshman and fumbled on the kickoff return. Tulane scored in two plays. North Texas never got closer than 37-24 after Morris scampered for 20 yards early in the third quarter. North Texas held Tulane on a 4th and 1 — giving the stadium and the team a little hope for a second.
The very next play was a worst-case-scenario. Chandler Morris was hit on his blindside, fumbled, and hurt his shoulder. Tulane scored the very next play.
After that Mestemaker had a one-series cameo before an NT punt.
Tulane punted their next two possessions but North Texas took seven minutes to score on their 19-play 80-yard drive. The following drive took only two minutes but the onside-kick was no-good. The game was over for a longer time than was official, and we saw another disappointing effort by the team on a nationally televised game. Morris is 0-2 on national television (ESPN2/FS1) this year, and both were blowouts.
Here are some quick thoughts :
1. Another Slow Start At Home
North Texas started the game with three drives, one field goal for 3 points and two punts. There was one three-and-out. In a game they expected to have to score and help the defense as much as possible, they sputtered. It didn’t help to get pinned inside the five, but again, that is simply a difficulty that must be overcome. College football isn’t about easy.
North Texas ended another drive with a turnover on downs, (two on the day) and also added the sack-fumble. There were miscues, drops, and penalties again. This offense is explosive, and tallied 500+ again, but 13 points and 144 yards came in the fourth quarter when it was all just about said-and-done.
2. Defense Was Dominated Again
Last week there were bright spots — the five straight three-and-outs gave me some hope — but this morning Tulane did what they wanted in the first half. Makhi Hughes had 169 yards in the first half alone (of his 195). This game was a chance to right some wrongs from the TTU game earlier this season, but we saw again that the defense as a group are too light for this kind of game. Tulane, and Memphis both want to run through you. A couple of years ago UAB was happy to do the same, and UTSA won the league relying on a powerful run game. Remember when NT lost the CUSA title game because they could not stop the run?
Well it is all the same thing. There were moments but those are fleeting and all lost in the avalanche of yards. Tulane’s game plan was to run, run, then do a play-action pass. North Texas stopped this twice by my recollection — an incomplete pass, and an interception from Jaylen Smith. The rest of the time the redshirt freshman looked poised and in control. He threw 13 passes and completed 10 for 175 yards and 3 scores. It looks like a stat line from a ‘95 Nebraska QB.
Tulane had 472 yards of offense, 297 of which came on the ground. They put up 6+ yards per rush.
The line was pushed back, the linebackers were caught in traffic and too slow, the secondary was too light and too inexperienced. The highlight tape will show multiple instances of guys getting knocked on their backsides as Tulane scampers into space.
3. The Work Needed To Reach An AAC Title Is Defined
North Texas has a better offense than they did last year, but Tulane didn’t fall asleep this time. Jon Sumrall is a very good defensive coach and had good game plan for NT. Still, North Texas moved the ball well and was hurt by injuries and self-caused mistakes.
The NT defense absolutely needs more experience (coming with time) and some strength (recruiting and development). We thought getting a little better defensively would make a world of difference in these two games. Last year Tulane/Memphis were one-possession losses. This season only one was. Tulane is much better at running than NT is at stopping it. The league does not have a real answer for a Chandler Morris led offense at the moment, but they can keep him off the field by running the ball and controlling the game.
The Good News
Tulane/Memphis (and Army after a bye) are the class of the league. North Texas made too many mistakes to really give themselves a chance and that is the problem. The margin for error is so small that mistakes are game-losers even if they are early in the game. The defense has to be better. The hope is that natural development, some recruiting, and another season of planning will address that.
Everyone is calling for Matt Caponi’s head, and while it might be the tiniest bit unfair to pin it all on him, that is also the nature of the game. He does not have the benefit of the doubt. He has a thin resumé and a thick paycheck. A change likely comes after the season ends but a bye week is maybe the time to make a change. Unfortunately it is also a two-week preparation period for Army, a unique offensive attack and a very good cohesive team.
Army is not as physically imposing as Tulane or Memphis. They block well, but it is about technique and effort more than it is an overt domination. After that is UTSA, a struggling team with offensive problems of their own. Then an ECU team who fired their coach, followed by a struggling Temple team. The point is that while every game is to be taken seriously, the margin for error against these other teams is greater than these last couple of weeks.
Next year we can and should expect much more of a competitive game in these matchups and hold Morris to that goal. right now we wanted progress (but got a mixed grade). The stated goal — ie, realistic one — was about getting to a bowl game after coming short last year. North Texas is still 5-3 and just one game shy of getting eligible for the bowls. That would represent progress, and the climbing of a rung of this ladder.
As it is, you can make the argument that no one showed up for this game except Tulane’s run game.
More on the podcast tomorrow.