Rants & Raves: Delaware



The Jackrabbits are headed to Frisco!  They dominated the Blue Hens on both sides of the ball to secure a 33-3 victory and advance to their first FCS National Championship game.  When it became clear that the Jackrabbits were going to win I found myself getting emotional.  I've been in the stands for so many disappointing semi-final losses where I was SURE the Jackrabbits going to win and if felt cathartic to get over the hump.  Now it is time to win a natty!

Rants & Raves

Rave: The Jackrabbits dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.  The #ChainGang was the most productive statistically that they have been all season and the #605Hogs created a clean pocket for Mark while also creating ample room for Pierre and Isaiah to do what they do.

Rave: The Jackrabbit defense as a whole looked really fast and really physical and it seemed to take the wind out of the Blue Hen's sails early on.  The defense allowed just 3.2 yards per play(!), had 7 sacks, and 12 total TFL.  They held the CAA player of the year, running back Dejoun Lee, to a .8 ypc average.  It was complete and total domination

Rave: Mark Gronowski continued to build on his outstanding freshman campaign going 10 for 16 for 162 yards and 2 passing TD along with 1 receiving TD.  He just looks so in control out on the field.  He  has found his accuracy on short and intermediate throws and is so so so close to reconnecting on the deep ball.  I said in the summer of 2020 that I thought Mark was going to be the guy and he has not disappointed me.  I'm excited for his future!     

Rave: Kudos to the administration and athletic department for hosting such a busy and amazing weekend at SDSU.  Graduation, a playoff football game, and a softball game all happening at the same time were a logistical nightmare that they seemed to pull off without any major hiccups.

Rant: Again, home clock opperator … please wait for the ball and chains to be spotted before you restart the clock.  

Rave: The tight end group for the Jackrabbits really has become a mismatch for opposing defenses.  Zach Heins is too big for defenders and Tucker Kraft and Blake Heins are too shifty for linebackers and too big for safties.  They are all matchup nightmares for opposing defenses.  

Rave: The Jackrabbits had ZERO penalties.  Yes, ZERO penalties.  This writer could not be happier or more proud of this statistic.

Rave: Coach Eck, excellent call on the trick play.  It was the perfect time and caught Delaware completely off guard.

Rave: After two weeks of wide receivers running free in secondary, the Jackrabbit defense appeared to tighten up against a nice duo of wide receivers.  This partially goes to the credit of the defensive line who was relentless against the Blue Hen quarterback Nolan Henderson.  

Rave: I thought the special teams was fantastic.  They clearly saw what I saw and went for the punt block a few times.  The kick return by Jordan Meachum was great and Jaxon Janke's big punt was a great moment in the game.  Nice job to Ben Dinkel on punts and Keaton Heide and Cole Frahm on the kicking game.

Rant: Kicks out of bounds drive me nuts.

Rave: I thought Jackrabbit Nation showed up and showed out to support the Jackrabbits on Saturday.  There were times the crowd could be heard over the TV broadcast.  The players seemed to feed off that energy for the second straight week.

Rave: I have been heartened to see how many of the Jackrabbit faithful are making plans to go to the game in Frisco.  I will be there with my dad and we are both beyond excited.  


Game Balls

Offense: #605Hogs, they kept Mark clean against an attacking defense

Defense: #ChainGang

Special Teams: Jordan Meachum


Whats Next?

The Jackrabbits head to Frisco to take on Sam Houston.  They'll play at 1pm and the game will be on ABC.  Tickets are also on sale via the Jackrabbit Ticket Office.


Go Jacks!

Matt 



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