Trap Game

[Upstate]

So, instead of trying to defend Austin Wilson as the true starter, calling for HCSS and GMC to get fired, trying to convert Hunt into a linebacker, and downplaying the offense so far, let's talk about the ND game.

Notre Dame is playing its first "road game" of the season, with two weeks of prep and a matchup with Stanford above the Orange horizon. They've won games vs. Rice, Michigan and Purdue. Now, CMU was a team that beat Purdue pretty handily, same with ND. But ND really had some problems through the first 3 quarters against a very poor Purdue team. Purdue didn't muster 300 yards of offense, and ND didn't strike north of 400, either. It wasn't a pretty game, but Purdue hung in there, even with a very poor rushing display. So, I guess the question is: How can SU hang in this game with ND?

I don't think this ND team is comparable with some of the other top-10 teams we'v seen in previous years. Namely USC, FSU, Clemson. They were outgained 280-289 by a bad Michigan team, though they still won 31-0, and couldn't gain 2ypc in the contest. Golson really hurt them through the air, throwing 3 TDs. Against Purdue, Golson was sacked 4 times and held to ~4ypc. We've heard from CMU fans about Purdue's blitz scheme and getting to their QB Rush; can Syracuse do the same?

I'm not really thinking this is going to be a game as far out of reach as most will believe. This isn't '12 ND. Their run game seems suspect outside of Golson -- it feels more like a 1-man show. He can throw the ball and hurt you in a number of ways, and ND will always put out a good enough defense to frustrate you in a number of ways.

Personally, I think this game is going to need to be played similar to the UMD game on offense. Run a lot of plays, but more specifically, run a lot of running plays. If SU can keep up its torrid pace to go along with its spectacular OL, they can really force ND into playing a lot of men. Luckily, SU has a QB in Hunt who's smart with when to take a hit, when to slide and when to extend for a first down. He's made many a heady play in that regard. By establishing the run early (and during the first half), SU can work the play-action/zone read more effectively in the second half while the D hopefully bends but not breaks.

As discouraging a performance the Maryland game was, we saw that the offense can move the ball at will in the middle of the field. A break or two SU's way, and the game is in the bag. It'll take fewer mistakes, but this game is completely winnable against an overrated and untested ND squad. I think the team wants it and knows it can run the ball. And when you can run the ball, you've always got a chance.

 

[Full_Rebar]

One thing I don't want to see this weekend is the all-out blitzing with our DB's in press coverage. Make it a grinding, lower scoring game. Make ND go on long, slow drives to get points and expect them to load the box and dare SU to throw the ball.

I watched some of the Michigan game and at one point Gardner just started throwing to Funchess who was single covered. SU doesn't have a guy like him, but ND likes to play man on the outside and SU needs to test them deep early.

 

[TheCusian]

One thing I don't want to see this weekend is the all-out blitzing with our DB's in press coverage. Make it a grinding, lower scoring game. Make ND go on long, slow drives to get points and expect them to load the box and dare SU to throw the ball. I watched some of the Michigan game and at one point Gardner just started throwing to Funchess who was single covered. SU doesn't have a guy like him, but ND likes to play man on the outside and SU needs to test them deep early.

ND has issues running the ball and with Oline. Goulson is the guy. Contain and pressure.

 

[Ozcuse]

You're right Upstate. ND does look vulnerable. Lennay Kekua isn't walking through that door.

 

[JJReddawg]

Lennay Kekua isn't walking through that door.

Is there any way to really know?

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I am fully relying on ND looking forward to playing Stanford.

 

[TheCusian]

They reshuffled their entire OL in the bye week. Brian Kelly says they won't gel right away.

SS: licks lips and laughs maniacally.

 

[OttoForLife]

A Head Coach, like a CEO, has to see the big picture. HCSS should be doing everything he can to get the team prepared to win. However, two realities I hope he considers:

- Not being embarrassed a second week in a row
- Not losing face in the NYC/NJ market

That said, I think ND is a dangerous team. For all the talk of Hunt/WRs, I hope we find a way to get the running game going in a big way on Saturday. Try to control the tempo and keep ND's offense off the field as much as we can.

 

[upperdeck]

people over reacted to the maryland loss.. to say we poorly is vastly over stating what happened. if you want to say we made too many mistakes that is far different from how most described the game. maryland turned a handful of good plays and bad decisions by us into points and we turned a bunch of solid plays and good decisions into nothing. when was the last time we scored 40 on a p5 team, NW in 2012 and UL in 2012 and thats what we usually would score given the amount of offense we produced. Missouri was the last non bowl game we produced 500 yds other than wagner. about 16 games ago..

focus on the positives.

from 2003 - last game we had 550 yds twice. thats 11 years of frustration..

 

[Crusty]

I really don't think anybody knows what ND is yet, including ND. The same can be said or the OBWG. What we do know it that this is about as perfect a trap game as we will ever have against the Irish. The NY Post is calling it a scrimmage, their next game is Stanford and we must be pissed at screwing up the MD game. When you are mad at yourself it really doesn't much matter who is on the other side of the ball. Anger can be a great equalizer.

We rise and fall on Hunt's shoulders so for us to win Mr Hyde has to stay in Syracuse and Dr Jeykll has to show up at MetLife. If we get Hunt's best game (I think we saw his worst last Saturday) this game is winnable.

We can't pick the wrong defense and fall behind by a couple of scores. If we can make it a possession game we will be in good shape.

I also don't think we have seen the whole playbook yet so I expect as many different things this game as the last.

I am going to keep going to these MetLife games until we win one!

 

[upperdeck]

we won in yankee stadium, we won in the old meadowland. i think met life owes us one.

 

[Millhouse]

i wonder what teams' records are in trap games. i bet it's amazingly great. i would love to have more trap games

 

[JoeSU]

I didn't have the stomach or time go back and watch the MD game, but it seemed to me that when we blitzed in the 1st half, Locksley guessed right a few times and we got burned (like the 90 yd bubble screen). We seemed to move away from it for the rest of the half, playing on our heels, which gave Brown more time. In the 2nd half, finding ourselves down 18, we had to take some chances to get back into it, and we seemed to blitz a lot more often, and with more success.

My point is I hope we stay in Golson's grill the entire game and play aggressive defense. That's who we are, and I think we need to roll the dice a bit. Let's face it - ND generally has better athletes at most positions, and our secondary isn't good enough to play soft zone coverage, so think we need to try to pressure Golson (but contain him when we do). I would rather see us go down swinging, than lay back and have the Golden Domers coast to an easy win.

 

[Millhouse]

I didn't have the stomach or time go back and watch the MD game, but it seemed to me that when we blitzed in the 1st half, Locksley guessed right a few times and we got burned (like the 90 yd bubble screen). We seemed to move away from it for the rest of the half, playing on our heels, which gave Brown more time. In the 2nd half, finding ourselves down 18, we had to take some chances to get back into it, and we seemed to blitz a lot more often, and with more success.

My point is I hope we stay in Golson's grill the entire game and play aggressive defense. That's who we are, and I think we need to roll the dice a bit. Let's face it - ND generally has better athletes at most positions, and our secondary isn't good enough to play soft zone coverage, so think we need to try to pressure Golson (but contain him when we do). I would rather see us go down swinging, than lay back and have the Golden Domers coast to an easy win.

i wonder if that was a locksley guess or if that's something that they players always have in their pocket after counting the defensive players in the box. most bubble screens aren't called plays, they're just options that are always there. i don't know if that play is different with it being a RB having to go in motion

screens punish teams that cheat. we cheated good and early on that play.

 

[007]

So, instead of trying to defend Austin Wilson as the true starter, calling for HCSS and GMC to get fired, trying to convert Hunt into a linebacker, and downplaying the offense so far, let's talk about the ND game.

Notre Dame is playing its first "road game" of the season, with two weeks of prep and a matchup with Stanford above the Orange horizon. They've won games vs. Rice, Michigan and Purdue. Now, CMU was a team that beat Purdue pretty handily, same with ND. But ND really had some problems through the first 3 quarters against a very poor Purdue team. Purdue didn't muster 300 yards of offense, and ND didn't strike north of 400, either. It wasn't a pretty game, but Purdue hung in there, even with a very poor rushing display. So, I guess the question is: How can SU hang in this game with ND?

I don't think this ND team is comparable with some of the other top-10 teams we'v seen in previous years. Namely USC, FSU, Clemson. They were outgained 280-289 by a bad Michigan team, though they still won 31-0, and couldn't gain 2ypc in the contest. Golson really hurt them through the air, throwing 3 TDs. Against Purdue, Golson was sacked 4 times and held to ~4ypc. We've heard from CMU fans about Purdue's blitz scheme and getting to their QB Rush; can Syracuse do the same?

I'm not really thinking this is going to be a game as far out of reach as most will believe. This isn't '12 ND. Their run game seems suspect outside of Golson -- it feels more like a 1-man show. He can throw the ball and hurt you in a number of ways, and ND will always put out a good enough defense to frustrate you in a number of ways.

Personally, I think this game is going to need to be played similar to the UMD game on offense. Run a lot of plays, but more specifically, run a lot of running plays. If SU can keep up its torrid pace to go along with its spectacular OL, they can really force ND into playing a lot of men. Luckily, SU has a QB in Hunt who's smart with when to take a hit, when to slide and when to extend for a first down. He's made many a heady play in that regard. By establishing the run early (and during the first half), SU can work the play-action/zone read more effectively in the second half while the D hopefully bends but not breaks.

As discouraging a performance the Maryland game was, we saw that the offense can move the ball at will in the middle of the field. A break or two SU's way, and the game is in the bag. It'll take fewer mistakes, but this game is completely winnable against an overrated and untested ND squad. I think the team wants it and knows it can run the ball. And when you can run the ball, you've always got a chance.

Lots of interesting stuff there.

With respect to what we might see on O, if I were ND I would game plan on how to limit Hunt's rushing yardage and how to limit SU's inside running game. IMO, they are going to force Hunt to beat them in the air. So, we might not see what we saw in the UM game... I hope we see more roll outs, bootlegs and waggles, quick slants, traditional screens, and play action mixed in with the power running game.

 

[tipphill]

we are NOT a trap game ----we cannot catch a ball, we are not a threat---we can run and hunt can run thats it---everyone knows it

 

[TheCusian]

we are NOT a trap game ----we cannot catch a ball, we are not a threat---we can run and hunt can run thats it---everyone knows it

Dude, it's Wed. We're onto fair evaluation and positivity.

 

[Crusty]

we are NOT a trap game ----we cannot catch a ball, we are not a threat---we can run and hunt can run thats it---everyone knows it

OK I'll call Shafer and tell him don't bother.

 

[Chip]

Dude, it's Wed. We're onto fair evaluation and positivity.

In his defense, it's only Tuesday, not Wednesday.

Tomorrow, all butterflies and daisies.

By Thursday, limited doubt that we'll win.

 

[AZOrange]

So, instead of trying to defend Austin Wilson as the true starter, calling for HCSS and GMC to get fired, trying to convert Hunt into a linebacker, and downplaying the offense so far, let's talk about the ND game.

Notre Dame is playing its first "road game" of the season, with two weeks of prep and a matchup with Stanford above the Orange horizon. They've won games vs. Rice, Michigan and Purdue. Now, CMU was a team that beat Purdue pretty handily, same with ND. But ND really had some problems through the first 3 quarters against a very poor Purdue team. Purdue didn't muster 300 yards of offense, and ND didn't strike north of 400, either. It wasn't a pretty game, but Purdue hung in there, even with a very poor rushing display. So, I guess the question is: How can SU hang in this game with ND?

I don't think this ND team is comparable with some of the other top-10 teams we'v seen in previous years. Namely USC, FSU, Clemson. They were outgained 280-289 by a bad Michigan team, though they still won 31-0, and couldn't gain 2ypc in the contest. Golson really hurt them through the air, throwing 3 TDs. Against Purdue, Golson was sacked 4 times and held to ~4ypc. We've heard from CMU fans about Purdue's blitz scheme and getting to their QB Rush; can Syracuse do the same?

I'm not really thinking this is going to be a game as far out of reach as most will believe. This isn't '12 ND. Their run game seems suspect outside of Golson -- it feels more like a 1-man show. He can throw the ball and hurt you in a number of ways, and ND will always put out a good enough defense to frustrate you in a number of ways.

Personally, I think this game is going to need to be played similar to the UMD game on offense. Run a lot of plays, but more specifically, run a lot of running plays. If SU can keep up its torrid pace to go along with its spectacular OL, they can really force ND into playing a lot of men. Luckily, SU has a QB in Hunt who's smart with when to take a hit, when to slide and when to extend for a first down. He's made many a heady play in that regard. By establishing the run early (and during the first half), SU can work the play-action/zone read more effectively in the second half while the D hopefully bends but not breaks.

As discouraging a performance the Maryland game was, we saw that the offense can move the ball at will in the middle of the field. A break or two SU's way, and the game is in the bag. It'll take fewer mistakes, but this game is completely winnable against an overrated and untested ND squad. I think the team wants it and knows it can run the ball. And when you can run the ball, you've always got a chance.

Ok, I will preface this by sayin I watch these guys every week. Nds run game is not more suspect than 2012, the talent is far better, they are certainly not 1 headed, they will throw 3 v diff bacs against us. Second they thrive off of explosive plays. Golson won't grind you with 8 yard runs. He will scramble looking downfield for the 50 yard throw behind your DBs. We could out gain them by 200 yards and lose by 3 tds. Another thing that cuse needs to be wary of is special teams. Kelly basically overlooked this for 3 years but this year they're diff, dangerous.

For cuse to hang, the need to push nds DBs and lbs over the middle. Thyre suspect there. And you HAVE to contain golson. Don't blitz. Give him a lot of zone reads, don't let him break down your secondary and burn you deep. And on d, you have to tackle, especially the backs.

 

[TheCusian]

In his defense, it's only Tuesday, not Wednesday. Tomorrow, all butterflies and daisies. By Thursday, limited doubt that we'll win.

I'm a day ahead. I'm an efficient mofo.

 

[Entropic]

Best chance to win this game is to score more points than ND.

 

[ORANGEsPHK]

Ok, I will preface this by sayin I watch these guys every week. Nds run game is not more suspect than 2012, the talent is far better, they are certainly not 1 headed, they will throw 3 v diff bacs against us. Second they thrive off of explosive plays. Golson won't grind you with 8 yard runs. He will scramble looking downfield for the 50 yard throw behind your DBs. We could out gain them by 200 yards and lose by 3 tds. Another thing that cuse needs to be wary of is special teams. Kelly basically overlooked this for 3 years but this year they're diff, dangerous.

For cuse to hang, the need to push nds DBs and lbs over the middle. Thyre suspect there. And you HAVE to contain golson. Don't blitz. Give him a lot of zone reads, don't let him break down your secondary and burn you deep. And on d, you have to tackle, especially the backs.

I hope CB reads this post but I get the feeling it will be same predictable blitz package that relies on our DBs to cover while the blitzing LBs and Safeties contain Golson - doesn't sound so great as far as containing a mobile QB IMO.

I said this sarcastically, but I do hope that CB realizes that the QB is mobile enough and routine S/LB blitz could mean some serious real-estate for Golson to run or find an open receiver in single coverage. CB blitzes almost all downs, time to change it up and drop some back into coverage.

 

[kcsu]

This game is no different than maryland. Keep everything in front of you on D the press coverage and make them earn it. No long scores. Run the ball down their throats and than run some more. Pound the rock force them to put 8 in the box RUN THE BALL.

 

[SmilinBob]

It is a trap game as SU is probably looking ahead to Louisville and FSU, I hope the kids are focused vs ND.