The Bobcat Nation

First game that I got nervous in the first quarter. Definitely showed some weakness early but let’s not forget USD and NDSU showed the same if not worse issues last week. Biggest takeaway was that Idaho team was VERY good. Heck I think they could’ve had a real run with their play in the trenches and some talented players. We got fortunate on their mistakes but ultimately dominated. D-line struggled to get real pressure and with Idaho running 7-8+ man boxes we had a tough time running it early. Thankfully we have a dude named Tommy Mellott who used his incredible talent to get things rolling.

They made several unforced errors that the Cats had nothing to do with. Then the wheels came off.

allcat wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 6:50 am

They made several unforced errors that the Cats had nothing to do with. Then the wheels came off.

Cats score 21 in the last 4 minutes of the half (flashback to UCD game). Botched onside kick results in TD, they fumble cats get another, and then cats force a punt and Taco gets a good return and then Tommy takes off for 60 yards. Then doesn’t help them that they throw a pick to start the second half haha.

I came away feeling different. Thought we played a bad first half of football and was up 21. I personally didn’t think Idaho looked good at all but I do like their team and their coach.

We won’t be tested until Frisco. Regardless who wins today I’m guessing we’re double digit favorites.

ilovethecats wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 7:04 am

I came away feeling different. Thought we played a bad first half of football and was up 21. I personally didn’t think Idaho looked good at all but I do like their team and their coach.

We won’t be tested until Frisco. Regardless who wins today I’m guessing we’re double digit favorites.

I think USD wins today and will be a good test for the cats. You don’t win as many games in the MVFC as they did and almost sweep the DSU teams (OT loss in Brookings) by just being lucky. USD’s OL is massive and their defense will make things tough on the cats. I like the cats still, especially at home, but I think that team will put the cats to the test on both sides of the ball, especially if the cats don’t get any QB pressure against their OL. Couldn’t ask for a better team to prep them against whoever their Frisco opponent is than USD.

Hell of a win fellas. Congrats. Love the way y’all play ball.

Idaho is where we were in the Choate years. Getting good, but get blown out at the number 1 seed like we did at NDSU. Depth is the difference.

Eck is a great coach. I think he’s getting overly piled on for the onside kick decision. Bad execution, but the Cats were not ready for it, and that really would have swung the momentum their way.

Watching from home, the crowd seemed very impressive. Now that game is over and the Cats won, I think it is really beneficial for the program to have been the lone Friday night football game on TV. And now the boys get an extra day of rest over UCD/USD

I am really impressed at how well the cats are playing this late in the season. Missing quite a few players from the team that played at New Mexico this year. They seem to be so focused and ready to play.

The reason it’s tough to beat a team twice is that smart coaches can look at the edges you found against them last time and adjust. Idaho did that and gave the Cats’ run blocking a lot of trouble. Plus they really missed Scottre.

My biggest takeaway is that Tommy regularly only plays at about 60% of his capability. When he wants to take a game over, he almost always can.

ilovethecats wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 7:04 am

I came away feeling different. Thought we played a bad first half of football and was up 21. I personally didn’t think Idaho looked good at all but I do like their team and their coach.

We won’t be tested until Frisco. Regardless who wins today I’m guessing we’re double digit favorites.

Yeah, you know you’re a good team when a bad first half has you doubling them in time of possession and you’re up 21. I think Idaho is probably the 6th best team in the FCS this year but as @BelgradeBobcat said, Idaho is where we were in the Choate years.

I was frustrated all week that SDSU and NDSU got the easy matchups this week, but I may have overestimated Idaho or just failed to realize they were not really a threat. I think Davis - USD is going to tell us a lot about whether the Big Sky has caught up to the MVFC; I have a sneaking suspicion it has.

Lord Vigo wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 9:41 am

The reason it’s tough to beat a team twice is that smart coaches can look at the edges you found against them last time and adjust. Idaho did that and gave the Cats’ run blocking a lot of trouble. Plus they really missed Scottre.

My biggest takeaway is that Tommy regularly only plays at about 60% of his capability. When he wants to take a game over, he almost always can.

If MSU makes the title game, it’s going to be fun watching Tommy unleashed if the game is close late. He was still pretty conservative last night even when he was running and his timing was off a bit on longer throws. If everything syncs up all at once…

It’s crazy to me how lopsided the score was even though the Cats did not play as good as they have.

Bad:
The pick. Looked like Tommy got hit from my seat right at the release and it affected the throw? Oline had some issues last night and the running lanes weren’t as good as they have been.
Dropped passes. Ty had a real bad one that was gonna be 6. Uncharacteristic for him.
Guys running free in the secondary. Dwyer is good and he was a problem last night. Wilde on the Jacks is just as talented so if it comes to playing them in Texas the defense will HAVE to be better on the back end. As good as Ortt is he probably shouldn’t be manned up with no help like he was on the first TD.

Good:
Tommy and Adam just are tough as nails. Jones is gonna be all over the record books by his senior year.
We made them pay for every error they made and it snowballed on them.
Even though the inside run game was stymied a bit this team is so diverse they can win a multitude of ways.

1. The Cats never punted through the first 3 quarters. Even though Idaho was able to slow down our run game a bit, the Cats scored on every possession through 3 quarters, except the INT.

2. Idaho hit the big TD pass play but never drove the ball consistently for points. Really good game by the Cats starting D.

The interception they dropped should/would have been a touchdown. Tommy really settled down after that.

vike_king wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 10:26 am

The interception they dropped should/would have been a touchdown. Tommy really settled down after that.

He was laser focused on trying to get the ball to McCullough and it nearly cost him on that play. Thankfully I think that dropped interception knocked sense back into him about that.

CalgaryCat wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 9:28 am

Eck is a great coach. I think he’s getting overly piled on for the onside kick decision. Bad execution, but the Cats were not ready for it, and that really would have swung the momentum their way.

Watching from home, the crowd seemed very impressive. Now that game is over and the Cats won, I think it is really beneficial for the program to have been the lone Friday night football game on TV. And now the boys get an extra day of rest over UCD/USD

I thought the return team was in decent position for the onside kick and it would have been Bobcat ball regardless.

However, the fake punt by them in the 3rd on their 30ish should have worked and that was an error by the return guys, but with 52-19 and subs in most of the 4th it’s just picking nits. I’m guessing that fake punt will be discussed this week.

vike_king wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 10:26 am

The interception they dropped should/would have been a touchdown. Tommy really settled down after that.

You could kind of read lips late in the game when Chance was playing. Tommy was talking to Sean and it looked like they were discussing some missed reads there.

Idaho is a good team with athletic guys and size and MSU whooped them twice this season. Off to next week.

That was an extremely elaborate fake punt. My guess is the kid misinterpreted where he was on the field when he went to the ground. He was probably coached to just get the yardage and bail-beings teams can't afford to have their punters taking big hits.

vike_king wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 14, 2024 10:26 am

The interception they dropped should/would have been a touchdown. Tommy really settled down after that.

Should've been a pick for sure, but there's very little chance that kid outruns Mellott 50 yards to the end zone.