Rants & Raves: Indiana State

The Jacks (6-1, 3-0) came away with a 42-23 victory over Indiana State (3-4, 1-2) on Saturday in a game that felt like it was never really in doubt.  In what has now become the norm, the Jacks at times played like an unstoppable machine but also like a team who sometimes can't get out of its own way.  Maybe this is just who this team is in 2019, we are seven games in after all.  They can obviously be better and if they put it together for an entire game, watch out! Overall, I'm really proud of this team for just taking care of business this week.  They came off of a huge emotional win at YSU and have NDSU next week.  Indiana State is down so nobody would be shocked if they had stumbled through this one.  There were some plays that weren't pretty but overall they took care of business in a 19 point victory.

Rants & Raves
Rave: The #Chaingang (defensive line) had a huge game on Saturday.  They were credited for 6 of the 8 sacks that the Jackrabbit defense earned.  The constant flow of bodies is so impressive and pays dividends in the second half.  Winkelman, Earith, Ogunrinde, Hicks and Smenda can be deployed in so many different ways (Terveer is injured).  There were times on Saturday where Hicks used his linebacker experience and dropped into coverage.  Earith also stood up a couple times on the interior.  I couldn't tell if he was a spy or if he was just poking for a hole in the ISU offensive line but it was impressive either way.  The interior offers an equally deep roster with Ward, Hildahl, Krolikowski, Sanders, and Stacker.  The ESPN3 announcers kept commenting that the Jacks were getting lots of players not listed on the depth chart reps.  They obviously hadn't done much homework as the Jacks have been using 11 guys for most of the season.  However, it was cool to see Jassan Eubanks earn a partial sack towards the end of the game.  He certainly has some juice off the edge.

Rant: Don Gardner has be a better a leader and not get that personal foul penalty. Indiana States wide receivers were chippy and seemed to have something to say at the end of every play but he just can't cost his team 15 yards.  The camera never showed exactly what happened but I think most people can infer from where the Indiana State wide receiver was grabbing.

Rave: I am so happy for Kal Hart for recording his first career touchdown.  The senior is the ultimate team player.  We all know Kal for his spectacular blocking but he also has made plays in the passing game when given the opportunity.  Injuries have impacted the depth at the tight end position and freshman Tucker Kraft was on the travel roster this week but Kal really stepped up and showed some senior leadership.

Rave: I think Eddie Miller played maybe his best game of the season along the offensive line.  He did a great job of picking up a hard charging blitz on the Janke touchdown reception and he also helped create some huge holes in the running game.

Rant:  It is becoming a trend that the Jackrabbit safeties can be had on playaction fakes. For the second week in a row, an opposing tight end caught a touchdown pass in the redzone off of  a playaction fake.  NDSU  is killing teams on playaction again in 2019.  One of their TE's has 5 TDs on 5 receptions on 5 playaction fakes.  Now is the time to get this corrected or the Bison will have some easy TDs next Saturday.

Rave/Rant: I thought J'Bore looked more comfortable in the pocket than he has at times this season.  He showed good mobility throughout the game either tucking and running or buying some time for his receivers to get open. However, he took some hellacious hits in the 3rd quarter that are somewhat concerning.  Eck really ripped into the #605Hogs during the quarter break and the offensive line responded by opening a massive hole in the run game for Pierre Strong on the very next play.

Rave: Adam Anderson and Jaxon Janke were excellent in their complementary roles on Saturday finishing with a combined 8 receptions for 124 yards and 1 TD.  Both are so physical, tough, and dependable.  It is clear that J'Bore has a lot of trust in both and they both showed their unique talents and dependability.  With defenses focusing more and more on stopping/slowing Cade and Pierre it is becoming imperative that Adam and Jaxon win their 1 on 1 matchups.  On Saturday they did.

Rave: Chase Norblade is a player who is really standing out to me.  In a ten day span last fall, Norblade earned offers from Northwest Missouri State (a top D2 program), and PWO offers from SDSU and Nebraska.  He chose SDSU and has been impressive since stepping foot on campus.  Saturday he showed really dependable tackling in the run game and capable coverage in the passing game.  I think he has likely earned some more reps and is a prime candidate to have his redshirt pulled.

Rant: I'm not going to exacerbate the point but the Jacks really need Vinny to clean up his game.  He knows it, the coaches know it, the fans know it.  He's a senior and needs to finish his career on a high note. 

Rave: Cade Johnson and Pierre Strong continue to terrorize MVFC defenses.  Cade finished with 7 receptions for 134 yards and a TD while Strong took 17 carries for 147 yards and a pair of TDs.  This type of balance between the run and pass defense is huge and keeps defensive coordinators guessing.

Rave: Turnover margin of +3 is huge

Rant: Third down efficiency 5 of 12.  The Jacks didn't control the ball enough in the second half and that is mainly because they went 3-and-out twice and 5-and-out once (Their other possession resulted in a Strong TD run to cap a good sustained drive).  Likewise the Jackrabbit 3rd down defense wasn't as good as it has been throughout the season with ISU going 8 of 17 and converting on both of their 4th down attempts.

Rave: Levi Brown really stood out to me watching the game.  The dude is 6'4 and can run.  Backhaus and Rozeboom were their usual playmaking selves but Brown has really turned it on the last three weeks.

Game Balls
Offense: Cade Johnson
Defense: Quinton Hicks

• I don't believe this but the official stat book shows that Q didn't record a single defensive statistic.  This goes to show that stats don't always tell the whole story.  He was everywhere on Saturday and very disruptive in the passing game.  I have been so impressed with how he has adjusted to college football and also playing with his hand in the ground.  On Saturday he was so disruptive bending the edge in the pass rush and set-up sacks for his teammates in at least two instances.  He also had a near interception on a zone blitz that I'm sure he would love to have back.

Special Teams: Preston Tetzlaff

Go Jacks!
Matt