Check out these stats from last night. The first number for each is NIU and the second is SDSU

Total yards 429-263
Pass yards 268-136
Rush yards 160-127
First downs 23-10
Third down conversions 8/17 - 1/14
Time of possession 34:27-25:33

This was against the number 19 team in the country who had previously beaten Arizona State and Stanford.

It reminds me of the first half of the Boca Raton Bowl against Marshall when we dominated statistically and yet were losing at half, which also included a kick return if I'm not mistaken.

The moral: turnovers and kick six's will kill you. We have a heck of a team though.

In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

(10-01-2017 09:17 PM)NIU1981 Wrote:  Check out these stats from last night. The first number for each is NIU and the second is SDSU

Total yards 429-263
Pass yards 268-136
Rush yards 160-127
First downs 23-10
Third down conversions 8/17 - 1/14
Time of possession 34:27-25:33

This was against the number 19 team in the country who had previously beaten Arizona State and Stanford.

It reminds me of the first half of the Boca Raton Bowl against Marshall when we dominated statistically and yet were losing at half, which also included a kick return if I'm not mistaken.

The moral: turnovers and kick six's will kill you. We have a heck of a team though.

Great post.

(10-01-2017 09:19 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

Rocky Long is obviously a great coach.
That kick-off return by the #2 receiver was incredible.
Their talent advantage over us was huge in both RB, punt returners, and their QB's.
He may have out coached NIU in the kick return department, however NIU stopping their running game was a coaching success.

Did any other team manage to stop their running game? Chapman's experience and lack of turnovers was critical. Santa will learn and get better.

Kudu's to NIU for making adjustments and not allowing another one.
The second half adjustments were an NIU coaching success.
NIU seems to have a formula to make up for the talent gap, when we are not hit by multiple key injuries. Having a steady coach for five years obviously is an advantage.
Who would have thought after last year that NIU could be in a Position to win.
Had NIU won, it would have been an incredible victory for the books.

You do make an excellent point regarding the weakness of NIU special teams!
In 2003, NIU special teams were incredible!
I do wish that our special teams were a strength.
Hopefully they will improve.
Special teams does need more speed and better coaching.

(10-01-2017 09:17 PM)NIU1981 Wrote:  Check out these stats from last night. The first number for each is NIU and the second is SDSU

Total yards 429-263
Pass yards 268-136
Rush yards 160-127
First downs 23-10
Third down conversions 8/17 - 1/14
Time of possession 34:27-25:33

This was against the number 19 team in the country who had previously beaten Arizona State and Stanford.

It reminds me of the first half of the Boca Raton Bowl against Marshall when we dominated statistically and yet were losing at half, which also included a kick return if I'm not mistaken.

The moral: turnovers and kick six's will kill you. We have a heck of a team though.

You did not mention one other key statistic

NIU turned the ball over four times to SDSU's zero. It is very hard to win when you give up a kick return TD and have -4 turnover differential.

(10-01-2017 09:50 PM)sterling1man Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:19 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

Rocky Long is obviously a great coach.
That kick-off return by the #2 receiver was incredible.
Their talent advantage over us was huge in both RB, punt returners, and their QB's.
He may have out coached NIU in the kick return department, however NIU stopping their running game was a coaching success.

Did any other team manage to stop their running game? Chapman's experience and lack of turnovers was critical. Santa will learn and get better.

Kudu's to NIU for making adjustments and not allowing another one.
The second half adjustments were an NIU coaching success.
NIU seems to have a formula to make up for the talent gap, when we are not hit by multiple key injuries. Having a steady coach for five years obviously is an advantage.
Who would have thought after last year that NIU could be in a Position to win.
Had NIU won, it would have been an incredible victory for the books.

You do make an excellent point regarding the weakness of NIU special teams!
In 2003, NIU special teams were incredible!
I do wish that our special teams were a strength.
Hopefully they will improve.
Special teams does need more speed and better coaching.

I couldn't believe that we lead 31-14 at half...it seemed like smoke and mirrors. Most of the second half Rocky went very vanilla and just didn't want to make a mistake. I know many Aztec fans wish he would have been more aggressive in the second half, although it worked out fine. It seems he is OK putting all the pressure on the defense. I give full credit to NIU's defense. Against ASU, and many teams last season, we did the same thing but were able to run off huge chunks of the clock. NIU's defense didn't allow 3 runs up the middle for a first down. But be aware if the game was tied or so close in the 3rd quarter, the Aztecs offense would have been far different.

Thanks for going easy on us.

(10-02-2017 07:07 AM)DiehardHuskie Wrote:  Thanks for going easy on us.

They even took it easy on us in the 4th quarter when they were only up by 6. Very nice of them.

(10-01-2017 10:10 PM)Huskie_Jon Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:17 PM)NIU1981 Wrote:  Check out these stats from last night. The first number for each is NIU and the second is SDSU

Total yards 429-263
Pass yards 268-136
Rush yards 160-127
First downs 23-10
Third down conversions 8/17 - 1/14
Time of possession 34:27-25:33

This was against the number 19 team in the country who had previously beaten Arizona State and Stanford.

It reminds me of the first half of the Boca Raton Bowl against Marshall when we dominated statistically and yet were losing at half, which also included a kick return if I'm not mistaken.

The moral: turnovers and kick six's will kill you. We have a heck of a team though.

You did not mention one other key statistic

NIU turned the ball over four times to SDSU's zero. It is very hard to win when you give up a kick return TD and have -4 turnover differential.

Bingo

That was a real "but other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?" game.

Turnovers being the key in football is such a given it's like gravity, where you don't even think about it. Then you fall on your ass real hard and remember.

Played so well, other than the colossally bad turnovers.

Sports, man.

(10-01-2017 10:13 PM)Aztecbill Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:50 PM)sterling1man Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:19 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

Rocky Long is obviously a great coach.
That kick-off return by the #2 receiver was incredible.
Their talent advantage over us was huge in both RB, punt returners, and their QB's.
He may have out coached NIU in the kick return department, however NIU stopping their running game was a coaching success.

Did any other team manage to stop their running game? Chapman's experience and lack of turnovers was critical. Santa will learn and get better.

Kudu's to NIU for making adjustments and not allowing another one.
The second half adjustments were an NIU coaching success.
NIU seems to have a formula to make up for the talent gap, when we are not hit by multiple key injuries. Having a steady coach for five years obviously is an advantage.
Who would have thought after last year that NIU could be in a Position to win.
Had NIU won, it would have been an incredible victory for the books.

You do make an excellent point regarding the weakness of NIU special teams!
In 2003, NIU special teams were incredible!
I do wish that our special teams were a strength.
Hopefully they will improve.
Special teams does need more speed and better coaching.

I couldn't believe that we lead 31-14 at half...it seemed like smoke and mirrors. Most of the second half Rocky went very vanilla and just didn't want to make a mistake. I know many Aztec fans wish he would have been more aggressive in the second half, although it worked out fine. It seems he is OK putting all the pressure on the defense. I give full credit to NIU's defense. Against ASU, and many teams last season, we did the same thing but were able to run off huge chunks of the clock. NIU's defense didn't allow 3 runs up the middle for a first down. :But be aware if the game was tied or so close in the 3rd quarter, the Aztecs offense would have been far different.

The Aztecs had 139 yards in the first half while "trying". They had 124 yards in the second while "coasting". 43 seconds into the second half the score was 31-21. I find it hard to believe your coach said "hey, we've had trouble stopping their offense, and our offense is struggling, but let's shut it down and go conservative. We have a 10 point lead". Cmon man. I think SDSU is better than their play Saturday night. But some teams just create a bad match up. NIU was a bad match up for SDSU. To try and make it seem there were justifications for being outplayed sounds P5ish.

One of the most frustrating losses in recent memory. Boy, we should've won that game. We totally outplayed them. We are a better football team than them. We just made some terrible, terrible turnovers and as we all know.... turnovers kill. Especially 4!

Gosh, I wanted that win. Keep pounding the rock on that final drive on the 20! smh

frustrating loss. San Diego State is who we thought they were, and we let them off the hook!

Amazing to think that this team is a lot closer in OOC to 4-0 than they are to 1-3. Bodes well for the only important season: MAC season!

(10-02-2017 09:47 AM)Lord Stanley Wrote:  Amazing to think that this team is a lot closer in OOC to 4-0 than they are to 1-3. Bodes well for the only important season: MAC season!

Yup. 2017 is all about MACC. This OOC has been fun and also a great learning experience for the team. Plus, minimal injuries! I want a MACC more than anything this year.

Same. At the end of the day, being a MAC program, the ultimate prize is a MAC title! We enter MAC play 2-2, with a lot of positives. Lets start off MAC play with a WIN!

Beat Kent State.

I am not sure who writes the 5 things learned after NIU and other MAC games at Hustle belt, but this is sums it up pretty well:

5. The MAC should be worried
NIU might only be 2-2 right now but the MAC teams that are unfortunate enough to play the Huskies this year should be shaking in their boots. The defense has shown week after week that points against the Huskies come at a premium and that, whether you use a run heavy offense or an air raid offense, the NIU defense can handle it. On offense, under Santacaterina, NIU has moved the ball pretty well and can score both on the ground and through the air. If the Huskies can keep this level of play up, a trip to Detroit should surprise no one.

(10-02-2017 10:44 AM)NILAW Wrote:  I am not sure who writes the 5 things learned after NIU and other MAC games at Hustle belt, but this is sums it up pretty well:

5. The MAC should be worried
NIU might only be 2-2 right now but the MAC teams that are unfortunate enough to play the Huskies this year should be shaking in their boots. The defense has shown week after week that points against the Huskies come at a premium and that, whether you use a run heavy offense or an air raid offense, the NIU defense can handle it. On offense, under Santacaterina, NIU has moved the ball pretty well and can score both on the ground and through the air. If the Huskies can keep this level of play up, a trip to Detroit should surprise no one.

Dave Drury covers NIU for them. As with all hustlebelt writers, they are fans of the school they cover and almost always an alum. Dave is an alum and a big time fan as well.

(10-01-2017 09:50 PM)sterling1man Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:19 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

Rocky Long is obviously a great coach.
That kick-off return by the #2 receiver was incredible.
Their talent advantage over us was huge in both RB, punt returners, and their QB's.
He may have out coached NIU in the kick return department, however NIU stopping their running game was a coaching success.

Did any other team manage to stop their running game? Chapman's experience and lack of turnovers was critical. Santa will learn and get better.

Kudu's to NIU for making adjustments and not allowing another one.
The second half adjustments were an NIU coaching success.
NIU seems to have a formula to make up for the talent gap, when we are not hit by multiple key injuries. Having a steady coach for five years obviously is an advantage.
Who would have thought after last year that NIU could be in a Position to win.
Had NIU won, it would have been an incredible victory for the books.

You do make an excellent point regarding the weakness of NIU special teams!
In 2003, NIU special teams were incredible!
I do wish that our special teams were a strength.
Hopefully they will improve.
Special teams does need more speed and better coaching.

NIU Special teams looked pretty solid against Nebraska. The Huskies owned field position nearly the entire game. Kick of returns happen, I don't think it means our Special Teams Squad is bad.

(10-02-2017 02:26 PM)niu50yrdline Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:50 PM)sterling1man Wrote:  

(10-01-2017 09:19 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  In the post-game Rocky Long said that they had seen something on kickoff coverage from last year they thought they could exploit, and we seemed to be doing things the same thing this year.

I wonder if that's why Marshall was able to run one back against us also, and I believe Arkansas did too. Ohio State might have, except we kept kicking the ball out of bounds.

Rocky Long is obviously a great coach.
That kick-off return by the #2 receiver was incredible.
Their talent advantage over us was huge in both RB, punt returners, and their QB's.
He may have out coached NIU in the kick return department, however NIU stopping their running game was a coaching success.

Did any other team manage to stop their running game? Chapman's experience and lack of turnovers was critical. Santa will learn and get better.

Kudu's to NIU for making adjustments and not allowing another one.
The second half adjustments were an NIU coaching success.
NIU seems to have a formula to make up for the talent gap, when we are not hit by multiple key injuries. Having a steady coach for five years obviously is an advantage.
Who would have thought after last year that NIU could be in a Position to win.
Had NIU won, it would have been an incredible victory for the books.

You do make an excellent point regarding the weakness of NIU special teams!
In 2003, NIU special teams were incredible!
I do wish that our special teams were a strength.
Hopefully they will improve.
Special teams does need more speed and better coaching.

NIU Special teams looked pretty solid against Nebraska. The Huskies owned field position nearly the entire game. Kick of returns happen, I don't think it means our Special Teams Squad is bad.

I wonder how much nerves can affect that opening kickoff, wonder if there is a risk of over-pursuing, losing your lane integrity with the kickoff adrenaline. Never expected a comeback when it was 31-14, that did show some huge resilience. Huskies should have won that game though, that was a W, the sequence at end of half was the decider in my opinion.

Our tackling was horrendous on special teams all night -- although no one laid a hand on the guy in the kick 6...