The QB thing obviously comes with small sample size and opponent caveats but I'm with the consensus on Mac. But I'm going to go ahead and carry the torch for Maddie a little. I could see where that Cole line about him having that x factor about him came from. I feel like he has the highest ceiling of the 3 in this offense but he's also a little behind in development. If everything clicks in him I could see him taking over. But if one of the others does well enough or if he's a slow burn developmentally he could also just be a guy who never fully actualizes.

Not sure if it has been talked about but I want to give props to the students. From the beginning they has FANTASTIC energy and 5min after kickoff the stands were filled fairly well even with it raining.

12k in attendance and easily over half were the students.


Thank goodness for the running clock and the QB controversy because me focusing on Maddie is the only thing that made the 2nd half watchable.

(08-29-2014 07:36 AM)klake87 Wrote:  

(08-29-2014 07:25 AM)7 Wrote:  

(08-29-2014 07:03 AM)cawoo22 Wrote:  

(08-29-2014 06:30 AM)jjprender Wrote:  How bad was attendance ???

Good student attendance, so-so on the west side. I'd guess somewhere around 12K. I left at the half. Came straight from football, got pissed all over, saw us score 35, went home, hooked up the computer, watched the rest warm & dry.

Yeah, it would have taken a true diehard to stay for the second half of that one. If I still lived in Sycamore I would have watched the second half at home.

If it was just me, I would have probably hung out. Little Cawoo was with me, though, and we both came straight from football practice. Neither of us really dressed for the weather (sweatshirts are better than nothing, but not by much).

I saw a couple of "Die Hards" from this board on TV late in the game. They looked wet but seemed to be enjoying themselves.

The students are always great. Always.

(08-29-2014 08:24 AM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  Not sure if it has been talked about but I want to give props to the students. From the beginning they has FANTASTIC energy and 5min after kickoff the stands were filled fairly well even with it raining.

12k in attendance and easily over half were the students.


Thank goodness for the running clock and the QB controversy because me focusing on Maddie is the only thing that made the 2nd half watchable.

I think that was one of the big reasons why they moved the game to a Thursday night. If it had been Friday or Saturday, the majority of students would have gone home for the holiday and missed the game. By having it on Thursday, you assured that a large portion of students would still be on campus on game night and think of going to the game.

The west side was always going to be trouble with this game because a lot of alums and donors, including you John, weren't happy with the Presbyterian game being scheduled to begin with. Attendance for this game wasn't going to be great even if it was on the weekend, so athletics probably took the best option and got a really good student turnout.

(08-29-2014 08:28 AM)7 Wrote:  The students are always great. Always.

This was better than usual. They were just electric for that first half.

NIU on the cover of the tribune this morning, huge pic of ACRB!!!
  ImageUploadedByCSNbbs1409319492.108565.jpg (Size: 73.77 KB / Downloads: 44)


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IT was warm and raining. No lightning. Perfect night to hang out and get wet.

Starting QB should be McIntosh. Maddie was missing easy throws in the 2nd half even though it was raining hard when he was in the game. Maddie still need some work but is clearly the gifted runner

(08-29-2014 08:28 AM)7 Wrote:  The students are always great. Always.

Yep.

Good to hear about the students. If the past few years haven't gotten the student body excited, I'm not sure what will.

My game thoughts:

-I'm with the consensus....definitely start McIntosh against Northwestern and leave him in unless he really has a terrible first half. He looked smooth and confident, the offense was fastest with him in, and he has the longest tenure in the system. I still have a lingering concern about him, for no reason other than the coaches' apparent reluctance to give him the job sooner than they are. Hell, they still haven't, technically.

-I wasn't sold on ACRB being Stingily's replacement, and still wasn't after his first 5 or so carries last night. But he really got going as the game went on. He and Akeem are going to be a nice combination, and behind that offensive line, good luck.

-Is this the most talented/deep receiving corp we've ever had? I wasn't on board in 03/04 but this is certainly the best I've seen. I know it's becoming the running joke around here but Brown is ALWAYS open! If he and Tommy can stay healthy.....

-Hard to get too excited about the defense considering the opponent. But 127 yards is 127 yards. The secondary looked excellent last night. Smalls was having a great game even before his interception. I'm salivating thinking about our secondary in a couple years with how young/talented we are there. Will come in handy as we begin playing our home and homes with the best mid-majors in the west.

-I love the switch to the 3-4. It's about time. For as long as I've been an NIU fan, I've never felt our defensive line was a strength outside of maybe 2012. We always seem to have a couple guys with nice sack numbers but the eye test tells a different story, especially against the best teams on the schedule. Sending an extra linebacker out there lessens the influence of a thin defensive line and strengthens our best position at the same time.


All in all, can't complain, and I had a blast watching.

This Northwestern game is a big one. Remember, most locals can't name a player on our team now that Lynch is gone. They aren't expecting much from us this year. A win over "Chicago's Big Ten Team" in a year when we were supposed to drop off would be impressive. Would be hard to ignore us.

(08-29-2014 08:40 AM)klake87 Wrote:  IT was warm and raining. No lightning. Perfect night to hang out and get wet.

oh it was not that warm at all where a cold rain feels refreshing, I was pretty cold by the time we left at end of 3rd.

(08-29-2014 08:59 AM)BobL Wrote:  

(08-29-2014 08:40 AM)klake87 Wrote:  IT was warm and raining. No lightning. Perfect night to hang out and get wet.

oh it was not that warm at all where a cold rain feels refreshing, I was pretty cold by the time we left at end of 3rd.

Your old like me. you don't count

(08-29-2014 08:23 AM)DogTracks Wrote:  The QB thing obviously comes with small sample size and opponent caveats but I'm with the consensus on Mac. But I'm going to go ahead and carry the torch for Maddie a little. I could see where that Cole line about him having that x factor about him came from. I feel like he has the highest ceiling of the 3 in this offense but he's also a little behind in development. If everything clicks in him I could see him taking over. But if one of the others does well enough or if he's a slow burn developmentally he could also just be a guy who never fully actualizes.

Hey Dog Tracks - I think you are 100% spot on here with your analysis. I agree totally. Really hoping Maddie continues to develop and becomes "the man". His athleticism is ridiculous and huge upside potential for our offense.

Went back and ran some numbers to see just how fast NIU was going in the first half last night.

They ran 70 plays (which is absurd) and had the ball for 17:33. That's one play every 15 seconds.

Now these aren't going to be exact numbers due to score effects (ie running the clock out late in the game), but I tried to pick games where it would be pretty true numbers.

2013 NIU (against Ball State):
73 offensive plays in 26:47 TOP.
1 play every 22 seconds.

2011 NIU (against Kansas):
62 plays in 23:11 TOP
1 play every 22 seconds

2013 Auburn (against Alabama)
85 plays in 32:16 TOP
1 play every 23 seconds

2011/12 Oregon (Rose Bowl)
64 plays in 24:18 TOP
1 play every 23 seconds

So a play every 22-23 seconds per game seems to be the general number even for the fastest offense in college football. I was actually surprised to see NIU was still going as fast as the other ones last year.

I have no doubt NIU's offense will slow down against teams that don't suck, but a 1 play every 15 second pace in 70 plays is pretty damn absurd.

As always, nice research 7.

(08-29-2014 09:06 AM)7 Wrote:  Went back and ran some numbers to see just how fast NIU was going in the first half last night.

They ran 70 plays (which is absurd) and had the ball for 17:33. That's one play every 15 seconds.

Now these aren't going to be exact numbers due to score effects (ie running the clock out late in the game), but I tried to pick games where it would be pretty true numbers.

2013 NIU (against Ball State):
73 offensive plays in 26:47 TOP.
1 play every 22 seconds.

2011 NIU (against Kansas):
62 plays in 23:11 TOP
1 play every 22 seconds

2013 Auburn (against Alabama)
85 plays in 32:16 TOP
1 play every 23 seconds

2011/12 Oregon (Rose Bowl)
64 plays in 24:18 TOP
1 play every 23 seconds

So a play every 22-23 seconds per game seems to be the general number even for the fastest offense in college football. I was actually surprised to see NIU was still going as fast as the other ones last year.

I have no doubt NIU's offense will slow down against teams that don't suck, but a 1 play every 15 second pace in 70 plays is pretty damn absurd.

Nick Saban just heard about NIU's play rate:

(08-29-2014 09:20 AM)cawoo22 Wrote:  Nick Saban just heard about NIU's play rate:

This is beautiful!

Per the Hustle Belt:

Quote:But if there was a question going into the game, it was NIU's defense. And did they ever show up. The Huskies held the Blue Hose to just 126 yards of total offense - 58 passing and 69 rushing. They forced three turnovers (two fumbles and a pick), had three sacks, and didn't allow Presbyterian to score for the first 44 minutes. They completely shut down Presbyterian's two best receivers - Tobi Antigha and Jeremiah McKie. The duo (which had over 1,900 yards last year) managed 4 catches for just 13 yards, including a lost fumble from Antigha.

This is Presbyterian. Hard to make any assessment of the Defense as a whole against a team that our 3rd stringers were having success moving the ball against...


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