Saturday scrimmage reports

[91catAlum]

Hopefully come game time, Bailey is 100% on his field goals. Still hard to think about the two that Daly missed in the SDSU game, then they win on a fake field goal. Consistency would be huge for us in the kicking dept this year.

In the last 12 months, I think the MSU football team has exactly ONE field goal of longer than 30 yards.

(disclaimer: I think I’m right but don’t care enough to look it up and verify)

I think you're right, and this is going to be a huge problem IF we can't iron out the placekicker position STAT! Is the new kid just trying to impress with his leg strength? Or, is he just missing badly on FG's? Luke Daly and Cunningham were lights out on FG's because their focus was on accuracy and touch for the points, rather than booming it every time. Again, I hope this gets solved because as was the case last year, we will win or lose close games on such things as 3 points here and there.

The 45 yard miss tonight was not a terrible miss. It started out on the right line but faded left. At least that's how it looked from my vantage point. Had plenty of leg to go much farther than 45, so ya maybe he does need to take some power off his kicks, IDK..
On a positive note, his kickoffs all went to the goal line or deeper. So that will be a big improvement over last season.

[Anacomando]

Andersen is the starter. I’m 99% sure.

Defense won the day. The offense had their moments. Ifanse and Sumner and Barkley look very good at RB. I’m guessing Andersen was 60% passing. He would’ve run for at least two more scores.

The one head scratcher for me is two long TD runs untouched right up the middle. Maybe the defense was focusing elsewhere on some kind of drills or something else that left the middle exposed.

In your judgment, Tom, were the turnovers more the result of an opportunistic defense, or sloppy offense?

The defense is scary and they make the QBs jumpy imo. The offense is going to mess up teams that are average-to-good on defense.

There are some studs running with the 3s on defense.

TomCat makes it sound like the Cats are Alabama or late-80's Miami. Words such as "scary" or "mess up teams" are strong words and surely by the way you talk this team will roll Western Illinois. Let's just give it time and see if those flash words hold up throughout the season. This is a 6-5 team or maybe 7-4 at best. Let's not get crazy here! I'm correct to state that you gushed over Murray's passing ability last preseason. Next thing you know, you'll annoit Murray a Rhodes Scholar! Not trying to be disrespectful but get back to reality a little bit here Tom....

[Darth Yoda]

Just got back to Helena, and i'm surprised - and glad - to read the rosy reports on here regarding the QBs. To me, the QBs were overall pretty inconsistent. None of them were overly impressive IMO. Now I'm sure alot of that is because the defense is great, but still it wasn't what I was hoping for.

Troy started the game and got the Lion's share of the plays. He did lead the offense down into the red zone a couple times where drives stalled out, so thats mostly good. But he often threw behind receivers, and once he missed a wide open receiver about 15 yards downfield with a bad overthrow. On a drive later in the scrimmage he took off the red jersey, and took a run about 50 yards for a TD. So he is deadly with his legs... but inconsistent throwing the ball. He threw an INT on a quick out that was a combination of great defense by Greg Filer but also Troy throwing the ball when he probably shouldn't have since the corner recognized and sat on the route.

Rovig was steady for his first couple drives, then going against the #1 defense he drove into the red zone and threw a TD pass to McCutcheon in the left corner of the end zone with Tyrel Thomas draped all over him. It was called back for a penalty, so the very next play, Rovig throws another TD pass to Sullivan on the right side with Hadley in good coverage. Seemed like perhaps Rovig was taking charge... until later in the scrimmage he overthrew a wide open receiver by at least 5 yards right into the arms of safety Luke May.

Should mention that Thomas got dinged on that TD play - he went to the ground for a minute and then had to be helped to the sideline with what I'd speculate to be an ankle twist. Not sure how serious but he did not return. Also COnnor Wood got dinged early on. Also a leg or foot. He walked off under his own power, but very gingerly. Probably OK but I didn't see him return either (but i could be wrong on that).

Was disappointed that Travis Jonsen did not take a snap at QB... strange. He was in the scrimmage early on at WR and RB. One play was an option play with him at RB and Troy at QB, Troy pitched the ball to him but he lost the handle and the defense recovered. I wonder if he got dinged up on that play or something, because I didn't see him back in the game after that play. Not sure.

Beltran was steady but didn't stand out one way or the other. Bauman was as advertised - he's big and has a cannon for an arm. He isn't scared to put the ball into tight spaces over the middle, and he threw a nice deep ball down the right side that fell incomplete due to good coverage and perhaps underthrown just a bit. He led a drive down to the 2 yard line, but it stalled out with a stuffed run up the middle, then a 5 yard penalty, and then Bauman made a bad throw on a slant. Its also evident that he isn't 100% comfy with the playbook yet - one play, he turned left to hand off, but the RB and blocking went right. I think he ended up getting tackled for a loss on that one. He's also tough - he took at least 2 big shots (no red jersey for him or Beltran) and bounced right up. The defense was not taking it easy on anybody tonight, there were a few big sticks. Even Rovig (with red jersey) got shoved hard to the ground once on a scramble outside.

The RBs were solid. Ifanse started and looked good. He looked shorter but thicker than he's listed, but who knows. I didn't see big bacon play at all. Tyrell Burgess was in a walking boot. I was surprised to see Barkley at RB and he looked good! He's small but shifty, hits the hole quick, and has the speed to break a long one - he had about a 40 yard TD run (although that might've been against the 2s, not sure). He also caught a short pass in the flat and took it for about 20 yards. Lane Sumner also looks good.

But take all my words on the QBs with a grain of salt, because 1) Choate said that the playcalling would be very vanilla, and 2) the defense looks real stout. The pass rush is back, and they were a problem often tonight, even for our mostly veteran O-line. I didn't notice Sterk but Fa'anono was a beast. Coverage was generally very good too, which is probably another reason the QBs were inconsistent in my opinion.

Thanks for the write up 91. I agree with much of what you said but I want to add my take on Andersen. I was sitting with a few other fans and we all saw the same thing when he had 2 drives stall out quickly: the D knew he was handcuffed with the red Jersey they they played that way (jumping routes leading to the int, etc.). We agreed outloud that they couldn't do that stuff if the game was live, and on the next series it was live. As expected TA ran right past them.

The key point is that TA can and will be an effective passer, but it starts with the D needing to respect his run. Early in the scrimmage the whistle blew ridiculously quick a couple times (once on Jonsen too), and the D knew they could just handwave to stop the play. None of that happens in a real game, and when the D plays it honest with his ability to run, suddenly more routes will be open and easy for TA to connect on. He's QB1 all the way.

[The Big Meowski]

Andersen is the starter. I’m 99% sure.

Defense won the day. The offense had their moments. Ifanse and Sumner and Barkley look very good at RB. I’m guessing Andersen was 60% passing. He would’ve run for at least two more scores.

The one head scratcher for me is two long TD runs untouched right up the middle. Maybe the defense was focusing elsewhere on some kind of drills or something else that left the middle exposed.

In your judgment, Tom, were the turnovers more the result of an opportunistic defense, or sloppy offense?

The defense is scary and they make the QBs jumpy imo. The offense is going to mess up teams that are average-to-good on defense.

There are some studs running with the 3s on defense.

TomCat makes it sound like the Cats are Alabama or late-80's Miami. Words such as "scary" or "mess up teams" are strong words and surely by the way you talk this team will roll Western Illinois. Let's just give it time and see if those flash words hold up throughout the season. This is a 6-5 team or maybe 7-4 at best. Let's not get crazy here! I'm correct to state that you gushed over Murray's passing ability last preseason. Next thing you know, you'll annoit Murray a Rhodes Scholar! Not trying to be disrespectful but get back to reality a little bit here Tom....

Tom thinks the Cats are going to be pretty good this year. If he is wrong, what can we do to get that put on his permanent record? Maybe he has some kind of badge we can pull?

[Rich K]

This team will roll Western Illinois.

[TomCat88]

Andersen is the starter. I’m 99% sure.

Defense won the day. The offense had their moments. Ifanse and Sumner and Barkley look very good at RB. I’m guessing Andersen was 60% passing. He would’ve run for at least two more scores.

The one head scratcher for me is two long TD runs untouched right up the middle. Maybe the defense was focusing elsewhere on some kind of drills or something else that left the middle exposed.

In your judgment, Tom, were the turnovers more the result of an opportunistic defense, or sloppy offense?

The defense is scary and they make the QBs jumpy imo. The offense is going to mess up teams that are average-to-good on defense.

There are some studs running with the 3s on defense.

TomCat makes it sound like the Cats are Alabama or late-80's Miami. Words such as "scary" or "mess up teams" are strong words and surely by the way you talk this team will roll Western Illinois. Let's just give it time and see if those flash words hold up throughout the season. This is a 6-5 team or maybe 7-4 at best. Let's not get crazy here! I'm correct to state that you gushed over Murray's passing ability last preseason. Next thing you know, you'll annoit Murray a Rhodes Scholar! Not trying to be disrespectful but get back to reality a little bit here Tom....

That’s a good observation, because I don’t know what I’m talking about 99% of the time.

There are in fact some studs running with the 3s and there are at least six very good corners. If you’ve been following my posts you’ll recall I said MSU is likely to go 3-8 the year they went 4-7 and that Choate was overly focused on his post game approach to the media. I’ve also been saying the QB position isn’t as big of a concern as the pass rush and kicker. And Murray had a great camp last year and improved on his freshman campaign as well as during the season. I did think MSU was a contender for the playoffs last year. They went 5-6, but could’ve easily been 8-3. Narrow Losses to SDSU, KSU and NAU, all playoff teams, were all that separated them from the playoffs. Those things account for the 1%.

The security blanket ‘let’s just wait and see’ approach is nice and safe and you’re far from the only sports fan that uses it, but I’m not operating in that mode over something as trivial as sports. If I think things are a certain way, good or bad, I’ll say so and if it turns out I’m wrong that’s the way it goes sometimes.

[St George]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

[TomCat88]

Murray looked much better in camp last year than any of these quarterbacks, statistically. In the controlled environment he was able to stay within the confines of the plays and the personnel were able to function in unison.

The defense is better than last year. The pass rush from all three units was noticeably better. The OL is very good or their would’ve been a lot more sacks. The corners are not only deep, but good. Many of the complete passes were through tight windows.

Andersen made quite a few mistakes yesterday. You can worry about that or understand they’re good learning experiences.

[catsrback76]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

He's been MIA from practice since last week and it sounds like he might even be MIA on campus (from my read). It is likely that he won't be playing unless he has some serious mia culpa's. Because Coach has not mentioned him I would say, "Ciao, big Bacon"... but I hope I'm wrong.

[gtapp]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

I heard he has not been seen at practice for several days nor at the scrimmage yesterday. Could just be an excused absence.

[gtapp]

Andersen is the starter. I’m 99% sure.

Defense won the day. The offense had their moments. Ifanse and Sumner and Barkley look very good at RB. I’m guessing Andersen was 60% passing. He would’ve run for at least two more scores.

The one head scratcher for me is two long TD runs untouched right up the middle. Maybe the defense was focusing elsewhere on some kind of drills or something else that left the middle exposed.

In your judgment, Tom, were the turnovers more the result of an opportunistic defense, or sloppy offense?

The defense is scary and they make the QBs jumpy imo. The offense is going to mess up teams that are average-to-good on defense.

There are some studs running with the 3s on defense.

TomCat makes it sound like the Cats are Alabama or late-80's Miami. Words such as "scary" or "mess up teams" are strong words and surely by the way you talk this team will roll Western Illinois. Let's just give it time and see if those flash words hold up throughout the season. This is a 6-5 team or maybe 7-4 at best. Let's not get crazy here! I'm correct to state that you gushed over Murray's passing ability last preseason. Next thing you know, you'll annoit Murray a Rhodes Scholar! Not trying to be disrespectful but get back to reality a little bit here Tom....

I get a lot of crap for being a pessimistic poster and even I think they will be 8-3 this year.

P.S. It's not pessimism it's realism!

[TomCat88]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

I heard he has not been seen at practice for several days nor at the scrimmage yesterday. Could just be an excused absence.

Unless we have another big dude built like Natee, then I’m pretty sure he was lining up with the kick return team at the beginning. The announcer said his name wrong as I recall causing a few chuckles in the press box. He was wearing a red penny.

[91catAlum]

Just got back to Helena, and i'm surprised - and glad - to read the rosy reports on here regarding the QBs. To me, the QBs were overall pretty inconsistent. None of them were overly impressive IMO. Now I'm sure alot of that is because the defense is great, but still it wasn't what I was hoping for.

Troy started the game and got the Lion's share of the plays. He did lead the offense down into the red zone a couple times where drives stalled out, so thats mostly good. But he often threw behind receivers, and once he missed a wide open receiver about 15 yards downfield with a bad overthrow. On a drive later in the scrimmage he took off the red jersey, and took a run about 50 yards for a TD. So he is deadly with his legs... but inconsistent throwing the ball. He threw an INT on a quick out that was a combination of great defense by Greg Filer but also Troy throwing the ball when he probably shouldn't have since the corner recognized and sat on the route.

Rovig was steady for his first couple drives, then going against the #1 defense he drove into the red zone and threw a TD pass to McCutcheon in the left corner of the end zone with Tyrel Thomas draped all over him. It was called back for a penalty, so the very next play, Rovig throws another TD pass to Sullivan on the right side with Hadley in good coverage. Seemed like perhaps Rovig was taking charge... until later in the scrimmage he overthrew a wide open receiver by at least 5 yards right into the arms of safety Luke May.

Should mention that Thomas got dinged on that TD play - he went to the ground for a minute and then had to be helped to the sideline with what I'd speculate to be an ankle twist. Not sure how serious but he did not return. Also COnnor Wood got dinged early on. Also a leg or foot. He walked off under his own power, but very gingerly. Probably OK but I didn't see him return either (but i could be wrong on that).

Was disappointed that Travis Jonsen did not take a snap at QB... strange. He was in the scrimmage early on at WR and RB. One play was an option play with him at RB and Troy at QB, Troy pitched the ball to him but he lost the handle and the defense recovered. I wonder if he got dinged up on that play or something, because I didn't see him back in the game after that play. Not sure.

Beltran was steady but didn't stand out one way or the other. Bauman was as advertised - he's big and has a cannon for an arm. He isn't scared to put the ball into tight spaces over the middle, and he threw a nice deep ball down the right side that fell incomplete due to good coverage and perhaps underthrown just a bit. He led a drive down to the 2 yard line, but it stalled out with a stuffed run up the middle, then a 5 yard penalty, and then Bauman made a bad throw on a slant. Its also evident that he isn't 100% comfy with the playbook yet - one play, he turned left to hand off, but the RB and blocking went right. I think he ended up getting tackled for a loss on that one. He's also tough - he took at least 2 big shots (no red jersey for him or Beltran) and bounced right up. The defense was not taking it easy on anybody tonight, there were a few big sticks. Even Rovig (with red jersey) got shoved hard to the ground once on a scramble outside.

The RBs were solid. Ifanse started and looked good. He looked shorter but thicker than he's listed, but who knows. I didn't see big bacon play at all. Tyrell Burgess was in a walking boot. I was surprised to see Barkley at RB and he looked good! He's small but shifty, hits the hole quick, and has the speed to break a long one - he had about a 40 yard TD run (although that might've been against the 2s, not sure). He also caught a short pass in the flat and took it for about 20 yards. Lane Sumner also looks good.

But take all my words on the QBs with a grain of salt, because 1) Choate said that the playcalling would be very vanilla, and 2) the defense looks real stout. The pass rush is back, and they were a problem often tonight, even for our mostly veteran O-line. I didn't notice Sterk but Fa'anono was a beast. Coverage was generally very good too, which is probably another reason the QBs were inconsistent in my opinion.

Thanks for the write up 91. I agree with much of what you said but I want to add my take on Andersen. I was sitting with a few other fans and we all saw the same thing when he had 2 drives stall out quickly: the D knew he was handcuffed with the red Jersey they they played that way (jumping routes leading to the int, etc.). We agreed outloud that they couldn't do that stuff if the game was live, and on the next series it was live. As expected TA ran right past them.

The key point is that TA can and will be an effective passer, but it starts with the D needing to respect his run. Early in the scrimmage the whistle blew ridiculously quick a couple times (once on Jonsen too), and the D knew they could just handwave to stop the play. None of that happens in a real game, and when the D plays it honest with his ability to run, suddenly more routes will be open and easy for TA to connect on. He's QB1 all the way.

I agree that some things change when TA takes off the red jersey, and receivers will be more open. But taking off the red jersey doesn't fix the inaccurate throws.
After hearing Choate's comments about TA being overly "geeked up" or whatever, that certainly explains some of it, such as the bad overthrow to a wide open WR 15 yards downfield. But neither of those (red jersey, geeked up) explain the throws behind guys on crossing routes, or the short throw on the INT on the quick out, do they? I guess I don't know for sure. Perhaps I'm being overly pessimistic or expecting too much, but I definitely didn't see what I was hoping to see.

[mslacatfan]

Well... I’m excited to see the first game. Some random thoughts-

I think we could potentially have a 4yr starter at RB with Ifanse.

FaAnono- probably does not get the recognition he deserves. He was a big time recruit out of high school, and seemed to battle injuries throughout his career... now fully healthy, 5th year senior. Choate raves about him. I would not be surprised to see him blow up and have an all American type season.

Troy Andersen- first game will provide some clarity. Are we looking at Murray 2.0 (athlete who can’t pass), or a drastic improvement??? I’m guessing/hoping he will be a solid improvement. His leadership ability alone will make a big difference. The TD run he had yesterday........ my god!... how everyone keeps referring to him as a race horse, that is very accurate. He looks like rob gronkowski, but runs like Shawn Johnson. Unreal.

True freshman- excited to see the depth chart released. Could be a good amount of true freshman seeing playing time. This class is crazy talented.

Baumen- I really hope he redshirts, which i think will happen. This guy is legit. I think we are looking at another 4 year starter at qb, starting next year.

Defense- reminds me of those early 2000 defenses under Kramer. Talent at every position, great depth. I can’t wait to watch these guys just dominate teams!!!

Kicker- I’m as nervous as everyone else. This cost the cats like 2 or 3 wins last year....... have not seen or read anything that is suggesting much of an improvement...... hopefully bailey figures it out. This will once again determine the outcome of several close games this year.

[mslacatfan]

Andersen is the starter. I’m 99% sure.

Defense won the day. The offense had their moments. Ifanse and Sumner and Barkley look very good at RB. I’m guessing Andersen was 60% passing. He would’ve run for at least two more scores.

The one head scratcher for me is two long TD runs untouched right up the middle. Maybe the defense was focusing elsewhere on some kind of drills or something else that left the middle exposed.

In your judgment, Tom, were the turnovers more the result of an opportunistic defense, or sloppy offense?

The defense is scary and they make the QBs jumpy imo. The offense is going to mess up teams that are average-to-good on defense.

There are some studs running with the 3s on defense.

TomCat makes it sound like the Cats are Alabama or late-80's Miami. Words such as "scary" or "mess up teams" are strong words and surely by the way you talk this team will roll Western Illinois. Let's just give it time and see if those flash words hold up throughout the season. This is a 6-5 team or maybe 7-4 at best. Let's not get crazy here! I'm correct to state that you gushed over Murray's passing ability last preseason. Next thing you know, you'll annoit Murray a Rhodes Scholar! Not trying to be disrespectful but get back to reality a little bit here Tom....

I get a lot of crap for being a pessimistic poster and even I think they will be 8-3 this year.

P.S. It's not pessimism it's realism!

[Cat Grad]

Red zone penalties again this year, and this was just a practice. There're still issues with the long snapper and holder. I think this could be a good year if they get these things cleaned up in pregame prep and pay attention to it each week.

[catsrback76]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

I heard he has not been seen at practice for several days nor at the scrimmage yesterday. Could just be an excused absence.

Unless we have another big dude built like Natee, then I’m pretty sure he was lining up with the kick return team at the beginning. The announcer said his name wrong as I recall causing a few chuckles in the press box. He was wearing a red penny.

Whoa, good news. Please disregard my impressions and thoughts above!

[mslacatfan]

Did I miss something? Where is the Big Bacon?

I heard he has not been seen at practice for several days nor at the scrimmage yesterday. Could just be an excused absence.

Unless we have another big dude built like Natee, then I’m pretty sure he was lining up with the kick return team at the beginning. The announcer said his name wrong as I recall causing a few chuckles in the press box. He was wearing a red penny.

Whoa, good news. Please disregard my impressions and thoughts above!

In colters article- he said that he has been absent since last week and was not at the scrimmage?...

Colter, can u confirm?

[Darth Yoda]

Just got back to Helena, and i'm surprised - and glad - to read the rosy reports on here regarding the QBs. To me, the QBs were overall pretty inconsistent. None of them were overly impressive IMO. Now I'm sure alot of that is because the defense is great, but still it wasn't what I was hoping for.

Troy started the game and got the Lion's share of the plays. He did lead the offense down into the red zone a couple times where drives stalled out, so thats mostly good. But he often threw behind receivers, and once he missed a wide open receiver about 15 yards downfield with a bad overthrow. On a drive later in the scrimmage he took off the red jersey, and took a run about 50 yards for a TD. So he is deadly with his legs... but inconsistent throwing the ball. He threw an INT on a quick out that was a combination of great defense by Greg Filer but also Troy throwing the ball when he probably shouldn't have since the corner recognized and sat on the route.

Rovig was steady for his first couple drives, then going against the #1 defense he drove into the red zone and threw a TD pass to McCutcheon in the left corner of the end zone with Tyrel Thomas draped all over him. It was called back for a penalty, so the very next play, Rovig throws another TD pass to Sullivan on the right side with Hadley in good coverage. Seemed like perhaps Rovig was taking charge... until later in the scrimmage he overthrew a wide open receiver by at least 5 yards right into the arms of safety Luke May.

Should mention that Thomas got dinged on that TD play - he went to the ground for a minute and then had to be helped to the sideline with what I'd speculate to be an ankle twist. Not sure how serious but he did not return. Also COnnor Wood got dinged early on. Also a leg or foot. He walked off under his own power, but very gingerly. Probably OK but I didn't see him return either (but i could be wrong on that).

Was disappointed that Travis Jonsen did not take a snap at QB... strange. He was in the scrimmage early on at WR and RB. One play was an option play with him at RB and Troy at QB, Troy pitched the ball to him but he lost the handle and the defense recovered. I wonder if he got dinged up on that play or something, because I didn't see him back in the game after that play. Not sure.

Beltran was steady but didn't stand out one way or the other. Bauman was as advertised - he's big and has a cannon for an arm. He isn't scared to put the ball into tight spaces over the middle, and he threw a nice deep ball down the right side that fell incomplete due to good coverage and perhaps underthrown just a bit. He led a drive down to the 2 yard line, but it stalled out with a stuffed run up the middle, then a 5 yard penalty, and then Bauman made a bad throw on a slant. Its also evident that he isn't 100% comfy with the playbook yet - one play, he turned left to hand off, but the RB and blocking went right. I think he ended up getting tackled for a loss on that one. He's also tough - he took at least 2 big shots (no red jersey for him or Beltran) and bounced right up. The defense was not taking it easy on anybody tonight, there were a few big sticks. Even Rovig (with red jersey) got shoved hard to the ground once on a scramble outside.

The RBs were solid. Ifanse started and looked good. He looked shorter but thicker than he's listed, but who knows. I didn't see big bacon play at all. Tyrell Burgess was in a walking boot. I was surprised to see Barkley at RB and he looked good! He's small but shifty, hits the hole quick, and has the speed to break a long one - he had about a 40 yard TD run (although that might've been against the 2s, not sure). He also caught a short pass in the flat and took it for about 20 yards. Lane Sumner also looks good.

But take all my words on the QBs with a grain of salt, because 1) Choate said that the playcalling would be very vanilla, and 2) the defense looks real stout. The pass rush is back, and they were a problem often tonight, even for our mostly veteran O-line. I didn't notice Sterk but Fa'anono was a beast. Coverage was generally very good too, which is probably another reason the QBs were inconsistent in my opinion.

Thanks for the write up 91. I agree with much of what you said but I want to add my take on Andersen. I was sitting with a few other fans and we all saw the same thing when he had 2 drives stall out quickly: the D knew he was handcuffed with the red Jersey they they played that way (jumping routes leading to the int, etc.). We agreed outloud that they couldn't do that stuff if the game was live, and on the next series it was live. As expected TA ran right past them.

The key point is that TA can and will be an effective passer, but it starts with the D needing to respect his run. Early in the scrimmage the whistle blew ridiculously quick a couple times (once on Jonsen too), and the D knew they could just handwave to stop the play. None of that happens in a real game, and when the D plays it honest with his ability to run, suddenly more routes will be open and easy for TA to connect on. He's QB1 all the way.

I agree that some things change when TA takes off the red jersey, and receivers will be more open. But taking off the red jersey doesn't fix the inaccurate throws.
After hearing Choate's comments about TA being overly "geeked up" or whatever, that certainly explains some of it, such as the bad overthrow to a wide open WR 15 yards downfield. But neither of those (red jersey, geeked up) explain the throws behind guys on crossing routes, or the short throw on the INT on the quick out, do they? I guess I don't know for sure. Perhaps I'm being overly pessimistic or expecting too much, but I definitely didn't see what I was hoping to see.

We're definitely in a wait see, but I do see it differently.

I think I know the 15 yard cross you're talking about and yes, it was behind, but not by much. The reciever tried to one hand it and failed. I felt the receiver could have adjusted and caught the ball with two hands. He didn't do Andersen any favors in that play.

The INT was when it became painfully obvious the D wasn't playing it straight up. That's exactly when the penny came off. The next two passes were bullets exactly on target. 2 plays later Andersen was crossing the goalline with the closest defender trailing by 10 yards. That's more of what I think we'll see a week from Thursday.

Edit: I just want to make further emphasis on the point I'm making. The 2 completions by Andersen right after the penny came off were very straight forward pitch and catch because the D suddenly knew they had to respect Andersen's running ability. As soon as they adjusted to stop the easy throws, Andersen made them pay with his feet. This kid will be a nightmare for defenses this year.

[91catAlum]

Just got back to Helena, and i'm surprised - and glad - to read the rosy reports on here regarding the QBs. To me, the QBs were overall pretty inconsistent. None of them were overly impressive IMO. Now I'm sure alot of that is because the defense is great, but still it wasn't what I was hoping for.

Troy started the game and got the Lion's share of the plays. He did lead the offense down into the red zone a couple times where drives stalled out, so thats mostly good. But he often threw behind receivers, and once he missed a wide open receiver about 15 yards downfield with a bad overthrow. On a drive later in the scrimmage he took off the red jersey, and took a run about 50 yards for a TD. So he is deadly with his legs... but inconsistent throwing the ball. He threw an INT on a quick out that was a combination of great defense by Greg Filer but also Troy throwing the ball when he probably shouldn't have since the corner recognized and sat on the route.

Rovig was steady for his first couple drives, then going against the #1 defense he drove into the red zone and threw a TD pass to McCutcheon in the left corner of the end zone with Tyrel Thomas draped all over him. It was called back for a penalty, so the very next play, Rovig throws another TD pass to Sullivan on the right side with Hadley in good coverage. Seemed like perhaps Rovig was taking charge... until later in the scrimmage he overthrew a wide open receiver by at least 5 yards right into the arms of safety Luke May.

Should mention that Thomas got dinged on that TD play - he went to the ground for a minute and then had to be helped to the sideline with what I'd speculate to be an ankle twist. Not sure how serious but he did not return. Also COnnor Wood got dinged early on. Also a leg or foot. He walked off under his own power, but very gingerly. Probably OK but I didn't see him return either (but i could be wrong on that).

Was disappointed that Travis Jonsen did not take a snap at QB... strange. He was in the scrimmage early on at WR and RB. One play was an option play with him at RB and Troy at QB, Troy pitched the ball to him but he lost the handle and the defense recovered. I wonder if he got dinged up on that play or something, because I didn't see him back in the game after that play. Not sure.

Beltran was steady but didn't stand out one way or the other. Bauman was as advertised - he's big and has a cannon for an arm. He isn't scared to put the ball into tight spaces over the middle, and he threw a nice deep ball down the right side that fell incomplete due to good coverage and perhaps underthrown just a bit. He led a drive down to the 2 yard line, but it stalled out with a stuffed run up the middle, then a 5 yard penalty, and then Bauman made a bad throw on a slant. Its also evident that he isn't 100% comfy with the playbook yet - one play, he turned left to hand off, but the RB and blocking went right. I think he ended up getting tackled for a loss on that one. He's also tough - he took at least 2 big shots (no red jersey for him or Beltran) and bounced right up. The defense was not taking it easy on anybody tonight, there were a few big sticks. Even Rovig (with red jersey) got shoved hard to the ground once on a scramble outside.

The RBs were solid. Ifanse started and looked good. He looked shorter but thicker than he's listed, but who knows. I didn't see big bacon play at all. Tyrell Burgess was in a walking boot. I was surprised to see Barkley at RB and he looked good! He's small but shifty, hits the hole quick, and has the speed to break a long one - he had about a 40 yard TD run (although that might've been against the 2s, not sure). He also caught a short pass in the flat and took it for about 20 yards. Lane Sumner also looks good.

But take all my words on the QBs with a grain of salt, because 1) Choate said that the playcalling would be very vanilla, and 2) the defense looks real stout. The pass rush is back, and they were a problem often tonight, even for our mostly veteran O-line. I didn't notice Sterk but Fa'anono was a beast. Coverage was generally very good too, which is probably another reason the QBs were inconsistent in my opinion.

Thanks for the write up 91. I agree with much of what you said but I want to add my take on Andersen. I was sitting with a few other fans and we all saw the same thing when he had 2 drives stall out quickly: the D knew he was handcuffed with the red Jersey they they played that way (jumping routes leading to the int, etc.). We agreed outloud that they couldn't do that stuff if the game was live, and on the next series it was live. As expected TA ran right past them.

The key point is that TA can and will be an effective passer, but it starts with the D needing to respect his run. Early in the scrimmage the whistle blew ridiculously quick a couple times (once on Jonsen too), and the D knew they could just handwave to stop the play. None of that happens in a real game, and when the D plays it honest with his ability to run, suddenly more routes will be open and easy for TA to connect on. He's QB1 all the way.

I agree that some things change when TA takes off the red jersey, and receivers will be more open. But taking off the red jersey doesn't fix the inaccurate throws.
After hearing Choate's comments about TA being overly "geeked up" or whatever, that certainly explains some of it, such as the bad overthrow to a wide open WR 15 yards downfield. But neither of those (red jersey, geeked up) explain the throws behind guys on crossing routes, or the short throw on the INT on the quick out, do they? I guess I don't know for sure. Perhaps I'm being overly pessimistic or expecting too much, but I definitely didn't see what I was hoping to see.

We're definitely in a wait see, but I do see it differently.

I think I know the 15 yard cross you're talking about and yes, it was behind, but not by much. The reciever tried to one hand it and failed. I felt the receiver could have adjusted and caught the ball with two hands. He didn't do Andersen any favors in that play.

The INT was when it became painfully obvious the D wasn't playing it straight up. That's exactly when the penny came off. The next two passes were bullets exactly on target. 2 plays later Andersen was crossing the goalline with the closest defender trailing by 10 yards. That's more of what I think we'll see a week from Thursday.

Edit: I just want to make further emphasis on the point I'm making. The 2 completions by Andersen right after the penny came off were very straight forward pitch and catch because the D suddenly knew they had to respect Andersen's running ability. As soon as they adjusted to stop the easy throws, Andersen made them pay with his feet. This kid will be a nightmare for defenses this year.

That's a good point about the INT and the red penny coming off, just before Troy scored the TD. Perhaps that had a bigger effect than I realized. Certainly hoping you're right!