Nevada vs. La Tech

With one game left in the season, Nevada is on pace to finish its best season in history since it’s joined the ranks of the division 1 elite. At 11-1 this Nevada team has shown that it is capable of matching up against any team out there on any given Saturday. Will we ever get that respect? Probably not, but the real fans, the coaches, and the players know it…and that’s all that matters.

Nevada has already traveled as far west as it can go this season (Hawaii), and now it will go as far east as a WAC opponent will let them (Louisiana). Much like Boise State has had Nevada’s number over the past few years; Nevada has had La Tech’s.

The only real question going into this game is how much will Colin Kaepernick play. On the verge of a few more records the question is, does Ault put him in a position to get the records and set his place in history more-so than he already has, or does he save his star quarterback for a bowl game? Either way expect him to play the first half and put up, dare I say Heisman like numbers?

Another question going into this game is what defense will show up. Will it be the defense that allowed Boise State 24 first half points, which by all means is respectable, or will it be the 2^nd half defense that held Boise State to 8 rushing yards? Either way the game should be pretty much in hand, but for ranking sake we need the 2^nd half defense to be there.

Last game we saw great defense from Duke Williams who made a great 1-on-1 tackle in the open field saving a critical first down. Brandon Marshall and James-Michael Johnson also kept their games up and have become one of the best linebacking duo’s in college football this year. But what’s more impressive is #58 Ryan Coulson and the already brilliant Dontay Moch. Both of them are defensive linemen and on every play that we give up for 20 or more yards, one of these two is down field in position to make the tackle. Coming from two “hog-mollies” that’s down right impressive. This defense is fast and outrunning them is a tough task to do, breaking tackles on the other hand might be a bit easier, evident in the Boise State game.

As far as our offense goes we showed last week why we are one of the best offenses in the nation. The pistol went in fully loaded and tore apart one of the best defenses in the country. After a slow start, it seemed like there was nothing that could be done to stop Colin Kaepernick. Unlike previous Boise State games, he took it to the air and lit up their secondary much like we have been lit up in the past. I don’t expect much of a stand from the bulldogs this weekend, if Nevada can tire out Boise State’s defense, it can put La Tech’s to sleep.

Now you might hear that this team is looking past La Tech and they feel like they can do nothing wrong but there’s really nothing to look past. Going into this game a bowl game is guaranteed, which and against whom we will know after this weekend. What’s not is a ring and that trophy. Utah State doesn’t stand a chance entering the smurf turf of Boise. Hawaii hosts UNLV which isn’t a conference opponent so they will finish the season with a ring guaranteed. If Nevada wants that ring, it will take a win against La Tech and they know that. Last week was Nevada’s shining moment, but this week is their championship moment. A win against Boise State means nothing to this team unless there’s a ring associated with it at the end.

I’m expecting a valiant effort from La Tech, but with the swag this Nevada team is walking around with, I expect it too be too little too late. Unfortunately I still don’t see us getting that shut-out. But I do think we will see Mike Ball finally run back a kick-off, unfortunately I see them doing the same thing.

Final Score Prediction

Nevada 48 – La Tech 17

Enough is Enough

“The Wolf Pack will finish AT BEST, 5-3 in the WAC”

These are the words of Juan Lopez, a student who writes for the school newspaper, The Sagebrush. The sad thing is that it’s Nevada’s school newspaper. And this single quote is all I need to remind myself of why I started this blog.

For far too long now I have heard students talking about how bad this Nevada team is, all the while knowing they have no idea what they are talking about. Now I realize that Nevada is not a football school by any means and most of the students who attend don’t really care, let alone know the rules. But you have to realize that those who get their information about this team read it in the school newspaper, at least that’s what I’ve noticed. And quite frankly, the writers of The Sagebrush haven’t known what they’ve been talking about for at least 8 years.

You, Juan Lopez, are part of this problem while you sit there laughing as your friends cheer on this team.

“Their optimistic cheers aimed at the 42-inch flat screen TV in front of them were funny to me. Regardless of what was happening on the field, they thought Nevada would snap out of it. But I knew there was no climbing out of that 17-point hole. Nevada wasn’t mentally tough enough. End result: A 27-21 season-shattering loss.”

You then went on to call this team mediocre for losing to Hawaii saying at best this is a 5-3 team in conference play. I really do enjoy how you didn’t say “if they don’t change fast” or “if they continue to play this way”, you just came out and said that 5-3 is the BEST this team can do as if you’re some expert on college football, or even Nevada football.

The rest of your article went on to criticize Colin Kaepernick (do yourselves a favor and click on the picture, it gets nice and big for you all to read for yourself). Saying the loss was 100% his fault. That he runs too flashy and loose with the ball. That this is the worst playing you have ever seen by Kaepernick and he “is getting progressively worse and it’s bringing down the entire team.”

You basically did everything but say that he needs to be benched.

My question is this, did you cry when you found out we beat Fresno and Boise State? I’m assuming those are the 2 other teams you expected us to lose to, are they not? Or did you act like you never made the statement that this is a 5-3 team at best? Luckily you’ve kept your mouth shut about football since your column after the Hawaii game…until yesterday.
In yesterday’s edition you made no acknowledgment that you were wrong in your prediction although we all know you were just hoping for a loss against Boise State so you could say that we would lose against La Tech as well and you could be right. Because that’s the type of person you are Juan Lopez, you think you know what you’re talking about but you know NOTHING.

What I want to know is why all of a sudden you sounded proud of this team, saying the game “almost brought tears to your eyes.” Or better yet how on October 19, 2010 you threw Colin Kaepernick under the bus, then on November 30, 2010 you called him “the best athlete in school history, hands down.” You then went on to say “This capped Kaep’s career as one of the best players in NCAA football history.”

Now I’m not saying he’s not amazing, in fact I’ve been saying that for at least 2 years now, but since when do you believe this? And do you honestly believe this or are you just writing what everyone else says? You have become the John Kerry of Nevada sports writing with your “flip-flopping” stances.

I’m disappointed in The Sagebrush for not checking individual’s credentials when hiring them. Students rely on you to get the facts straight and all you have done is confused them and filled their heads with nonsense. To be honest I don’t even know why they still publish The Sagebrush, nothing of any worth has been published in there for as long as I have picked it up.

Juan Lopez, thank you for giving me the motivation to continue my blog; I might not understand the game as much as a lot of people out there, but I sure understand it a million times more than you.

Buncha Crap System (BCS) Part 2

Excuse me as I rant, but let’s get this weekend straight BCS ranking wise. It started out with #2 Auburn barely beating #11 Alabama (9 team difference in ranking), and to be honest had McElroy not been concussed, I think Alabama would have pulled off the win.

Then there was an upset in #19 Nevada beating #4 Boise State (15 team difference in ranking). Boise State was a 14 point favorite and yes there was a field goal missed that could have won he game but lets give credit to the Nevada defense who not only shut down a high-powered offense in the 2nd half but also stopped them in overtime.

Number 5 LSU lost to #12 Arkansas (7 team difference in ranking).

Oklahoma State at #9 got beat by #13 Oklahoma (4 team difference in ranking), in what was an amazing 4th quarter by Oklahoma.

#20 Utah barely beats BYU in a game that shouldn’t have even been close.

And then we get the rankings…

#2 jumps Oregon who has done nothing wrong to get the #1 spot.
#11 barely falls, moving back only 5 spots to #16.
#5 drops 5 spots to #10.
#12 jumps 5 spots in comparison.
#9 drops back to the #14 spot, once again a 5 spot drop.
#13 who pulled off the upset moves up 4 spots to the #9 position.
#20 who should have lost stays put at #20, they shouldn’t have any complaints about this.

So, so far everything looks up to par and the only thing to question is did #2 Auburn really deserve to overtake the BCS #1 ranking? Let’s talk about Nevada now who pulled off an amazing come from behind win when all the lights were on them.

#4 Boise State gets booted from the top ten to #11, a 7 rank drop.
#19 Nevada, little sister of the poor Nevada, who put on a show that people will talk about for at least a year jumps 2 measly spots in the BCS.

There is no respect given to a little school, the only thing sports programs are talking about is how Brotzman missed the kick. NOT about how this Nevada team, against all odds, being down 17, went in at halftime and made the adjustments that shut down a potent offense and in the end won the game.

The fact of the matter is this, everyone who has a say in the votes believes this, “Boise State handed the game to Nevada, Nevada did nothing to earn that W”.

Now let us talk about Colin Kaepernick, have we heard anything about him? Forget the records he now owns, he only put up better numbers than Cam Newton but he doesn’t even get mentioned 99% of the time that a commentator talks about that game.

Cam Newton had 216 yards through the air as opposed to Colin Kaepernick and his 259.

On the ground Kaepernick had 45 yards rushing with an average of 4.5 per carry, Newton 1.8 per carry for 39. Should we also mention that Cam ran 12 more times in this game?

Kaepernick threw a pick that was amazingly intercepted and not his fault; it was a ball that should have been caught.

Cam Newton did however bring a team from behind to win a game against a team that was the favorite.

Kaepernick did the same damn thing only showing composure many athletes would rival. With 13 seconds left in the game, Colin was able to tie the game up with an amazing pass into tight coverage.

Just give the guy some credit, that's all I'm asking. Here's were the 2 guys now stand, and keep in mind that by the end of the season, Colin Kaepernick will have put up 4,000 yards of total offense:
The AP poll seems to be more accurate with Nevada at #14, that's closer to what they really are than #17.

Boise St. vs. Nevada Recap

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED!!!! (as said by Maximus)

What a fun game to watch and an amazing performance but let’s be honest, it takes a little luck, and I love Kyle Brotzman! The game of football is all about how you capitalize when you get a chance and that’s what Nevada did, I’m just glad it wasn’t Ricky Drake kicking our game winner.

The hearts of Nevada fans dropped as somehow Kellen Moore made a hell of a throw downfield and still left 0:02 on the clock to win the game with a field goal. Why we did not have at least 4 men in a deep zone, I still don’t know. But that’s beside the point, the point is that had that kick gone, Boise State would still be getting the praise they deserve. They would hop over TCU and close the gap against Auburn, after what I consider a poor performance on their part. They had a shot at a national title game, although they would have never gotten it, they had a shot.

Boise State is a great team, but so is Nevada, and I’ve been saying that for a while. Do I think Nevada could match up against Auburn or Alabama? Yes, do I think we could win? No, but for so many people to write us out of the Boise State game before it even started, hurt. I never thought I would have to defend myself from my friends who didn’t believe Nevada had a chance. After the first half the odds-makers looked like they overestimated Nevada and that Boise would cover the 14 point spread, thousands of people thought they had just won a nice bet because “Nevada is a horrible team and Boise State is gonna run all over them”. But I said it would be a close game and would be decided on the final possession by 3 points or less…now I may have gotten the score wrong a little but I was pretty spot on.

The first half we played ugly on offense. Their defense had no problem containing us, their offense may not have moved the ball as fast as they usually do but they moved it. The second half though could not have been a different story. After letting them run all over us in the first half we held them to 8…yes I said 8...yards on the ground for the rest of the game. The defense held them to 1-6 on 3^rd downs. This defense who has struggled and people said was horrible was BY FAR the best defense I have seen in college football this year, in the second half that is.

I can only hope that that game showed this Nevada team is better than South Carolina, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Nebraska, Missouri, and Arkansas. Unfortunately we will have to wait till tomorrow to find out but it doesn’t seem like it. Hardly any of the commentators are talking about it today and when they do they just state how Boise lost, not that Nevada played an amazing game to knock them off their throne.

The game is over. Nevada has pretty much assured itself a share of the WAC title and a great bowl game. But what has not been discussed are the records that were set last night.

Congratulations to Colin Kaepernick, you are now the only quarterback in NCAA history to throw for 2000 yards and rush for 1000 in the same season, for 3 seasons in a row. I believe this record will stand for a long time if not forever.

Congratulations to Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua, you are now the most prolific rushing duo in the history of college football passing Eric Dickerson and Craig James. You still have 2 more games to set that number higher.

For now the biggest game in school history is over, Ault can rest, there won’t be the naysayers like there was after the Hawaii game. You proved you are an amazing coach; the adjustments you made at halftime were perfect. You led your team into battle and beat one of the best teams in D1 football.

To everyone who says Boise State didn’t deserve a shot at a national title, if you watched the game last night you saw nothing but praise for them from the commentators, then they showed quotes from all the coaches whose teams have lost to them this year…all of them said that this is a legitimate team and possibly the best in the nation. You killed a Virginia Tech team that lost to a D2 school, but they play in a BCS conference and will win it and get their BCS game. At the end of the season they will be ranked ahead of you just as you will remain ranked ahead of Nevada. This is the cruel world we live in that makes no sense.

If you truly understand football and you watched the game last night, then you know how good of a team Boise State really is and now you know why I said this will be the greatest Nevada team in its school history.

Oh and how cool is this? I took this screen cap at 3:00am PST (click to see a bigger picture of it)...

A Little Dose of HIstory

16-84-5

No that’s not a locker combination that will lead you to millions of dollars. They’re key numbers for amazing records.

16 – The number of yards Colin Kaepernick needs rushing to become the FIRST player in NCAA history to throw for 2000 yards and rush for 1000 yards in 3 consecutive seasons.

84 – The number of rushing yards Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua need COMBINED to become the most prolific rushing duo in NCAA history. Who holds that record? Just a guy by the name of Craig James and E.D., E.D. by the ways might be one of the greatest running backs to play in the NFL and the 2^nd overall pick of the 1983 NFL draft, none other than Eric Dickerson.

5 – The number of rushing TD’s Colin Kaepernick needs to hold the record for the most rushing TD’s by a quarterback in NCAA history. He currently has 55. With 3 more he passes that guy Tim Tebow who I’ve never been a fan of, and with 5 more he passes Eric Crouch. Now both may have had great college careers but Crouch never made it in the NFL, and well Tebow…let’s just say I hope he doesn’t make it. Either way its great company to be in and leading that category is just another notch on a belt for a quarterback who’s already achieved more than anyone thought possible.

I give you this information because you should know and I can easily see the commentators neglecting all of this information as we see at least 1 record broken tonight. 10:15pm EST, 7:15pm PST, tune your dials to ESPN, it’s going to be a good one.

Boise St. vs. Nevada

So Nevada plays possibly the most complete game of the season and drops a spot in the BCS. Welcome to the BCS era ladies and gentlemen. Does this mean anything? Yes, it means if we lose to Boise St. we will be out of the ranking picture.

If there’s one thing different with this Nevada team this year than from years past its that they can step up to the big game. Look at Cal, BYU, and Fresno State. Sure BYU wasn’t as good as they were thought to be, but that’s a team that we easily would have lost to in the past. We also wouldn’t have beaten Cal in the past, and Fresno State would have been up for grabs. Nevada is not exactly a team that can win when they fall behind, so this year that was a positive, and we almost pulled it out against Hawaii as well. Boise State on the other hand is a completely different story, they might be the best team in the nation, definitely the most complete team if you ask me.

But Boise State has always brought out the best in us, we put up great numbers against them and they don’t seem to look so dominant. In years past we didn’t have the team that could beat them yet it was always close and a nailbiter. This year Nevada HAS the team capable of walking out of Mackay a winner and making talking about Boise State a thing of the past. The sad thing is if we win, we won’t get the recognition we deserve, and well Boise State will be talked about how they just were never a really good team. If we lose, I still don’t see Boise State moving up, even if Oregon and Auburn both lose, I can easily see a 1-loss team moving ahead of Boise State and TCU to play in the national championship game. (I’m working on a nice little piece on the BCS which I’ll post this week)

Judging by the spread for this game, the “experts” think it should be a pretty easy win for the Broncos. I beg to differ. I honestly believe that this game will be decided on the final possession of the game and the difference in score at the end will be 3 points or less.

The key to the game is to get the lead early and play mistake free. If Nevada’s defense can hold the Boise State offense on their first 2 possessions and score on their first 2 possessions, we could be looking at an upset. On the other hand if Boise state does the opposite and holds us on our first 2 possessions, we could be looking at a disappointing night. As far as mistakes, this will be a high intensity game and we could see some fights. Those could be a good thing, what’s a bad thing is Ricky Drake kicking another kickoff out of bounds, what is that? 4 times this year so far?

I don’t expect our defense to hold this team scoreless, but I do know that they are capable of forcing them to punt on 4-6 possessions. On the other hand, our offense, if it gets in rhythm can prove extremely difficult for the Broncos defense to contain. I’m expecting the Nevada secondary to back off a little and allow short passes but try everything to prevent the long ones. Maybe even some 3 deep coverage on 2^nd down?

If Nevada is behind by more than 10 at half it’s going to be a tough game to win. Anything closer than that and its anyone’s game. This might prove to be one of the best games of the year

Final Score Prediction

Someone 45 – Someone 48

New Mexico State vs. Nevada

I don’t have much to say about this game except for the fact that it probably shouldn’t be played. New Mexico State is one of the worst teams in all of college football. Their defense is horrible and their offense can hardly be called an offense. This will be a stat padding game for Tyler as I don’t expect to see Kaepernick play but maybe one possession in the second half. The running game will look like a beast as always, and our defense will look like one of the best in the country. I would not be surprised to see this end in a shutout or a killing, speaking of which someone should call 9-1-1 before the game even starts.

The big news about this game is Colin Kaepernick, that guy that I think is the real MVP of college football this year. He will accumulate more than 54 yards rushing and will most likely throw for a touchdown, hopefully to Brandon Wimberly. Why is this important? Well the latter will give him the school record for TD passes. The first however will make him the FIRST player in NCAA history to pass for 2000 yards and rush for 1000 in 3 seasons. If that doesn’t say something about this kid then I don’t know what does. It will be a night of history.

Final Score Prediction

New Mexico State 0-13 – Nevada 42-83

Colin Kaepernick

As the season slowly comes to an end we start seeing who the favorite is to win the Heisman. Now it’s no surprise that Auburn’s Cam Newton is the favorite to take home the trophy, but does he really deserve it? Sure he’s putting up great numbers and sure the quality of play is higher in Auburn’s conference but that shouldn’t matter.

The Heisman is essentially the MVP of all 120 D1 teams. If you ask me the MVP is an individual whom the team would not have been the same without, he is the Most Valuable Player, a game changer, the glue that holds the team together. If we look at the numbers Cam Newton does have better numbers, but they are only slightly better.

Here’s the thing, Cam has only been doing this this year and not without controversy. Whether it’s his fault or his fathers fault, his reputation has and will continue to remain scarred. He plays on a team that’s stacked with talent. Remember the Patriots that had that amazing season and ended up losing in the Superbowl? What happened the next year when Tom Brady went out? A now struggling quarterback looked like he should have been the #1 pick in the NFL draft. My point is with a team like Auburn, you could take 90% of the quarterbacks out there and put them in his place and they will have great numbers. And don’t take this the wrong way, I’m not saying Nevada’s team doesn’t have talent, because its got plenty of it, its just a different level of talent.

On the other hand there’s a kid who 119 D1 schools passed on. A kid that no one gave a shot and when he was finally given that shot he turned into one of the best quarterbacks college football has ever seen, yes I said it. If you want a most valuable player then you have to look at a kid who’s been doing this for 4 years, not just 1. A kid who has amassed 9,237 yards passing, 3,852 yards rushing, and 132 total TD’s; those numbers will grow as there’s 4 games left in his career. He’s also one of 2 quarterbacks to ever throw for 2,000 yards and run for 1,000 in back to back seasons, and he’ll make it 3 years in a row this Saturday. I know that the Heisman is not based off of previous year numbers but at some point you need to realize how consistent and how dominating an individual really has been. So he plays in the WAC, is that his fault? Remember nobody else gave him a shot; he didn’t have the option to go to any other conference.

When it comes down to it Cam/Cam’s family has clearly shown that he’s just in the game for the money (as sad as it is). Kaepernick on the other hand could be in the Major Leagues throwing fastballs and being worth a few million but instead he’s in college, getting an education and playing a game that he loves. He’s a kid that if was 18 again and graduating high school, I can almost guarantee 100+ schools would have offered him a full-ride to their institution. All he does is prove every critic wrong, yet when we discuss Heisman candidates his name is rarely mentioned.

Colin Kaepernick will not win the Heisman, he won’t win the Davey O'Brien, he probably won’t even win the WAC player of the year award. They’ll give the Heisman to Cam Newton and 4 years from now take it away due to some recruiting violation. Colin Kaepernick, one of the most dominating players in college football history will never be remembered as he should.

If you really know football and you don’t blind yourself with the politics of conferences then you know who the real Most Valuable Player is.

Nevada vs. Fresno State Recap

In a game that was more than a nail-biter, we saw a Nevada team that we needed to see. This team has not trailed much this season, in fact when we trail this season we usually lose, the only game we trailed was the game against Hawaii. Yes it would have been nice to go into Fresno and completely demolish them, but that’s not what happened. The team was forced to stay in the game which is what will happen come November 26^th (have you circled this date yet on your calendars?).

The defense looked sluggish at times but made plays when they needed to be made. Once again there was strong dominating performances from James-Michael Johnson, Brandon Marshall, and Dontay Moch. I hope you caught the beginning of this game because on Fresno’s first drive of the game Dontay leveled a receiver about 20 yards from the line of scrimmage. Just the fact that a lineman made the tackle that far down the field is impressive, but Dontay flat out laid some wood. The kid runs a 4.2 40-yard dash! More-so the only major problems with the defense were caused by play calling, not players. Sure there was a few missed tackles but other than that I felt like the defense played great.

Offensively it looked like we struggled at times but in the end we made the plays we needed to make. Now lets talk about how bad of a decision Kaepernick’s interception was! I mean he basically threw that into double coverage to a receiver that was blanketed! Yea, I’m sorry but that was a GREAT decision and its something that every Nevada fan should be happy with. Why? You’re either thinking I’m on crack right now or that I’m being sarcastic right?

Well I’m not. That decision shows confidence in Kaepernick that his receivers can make the catch and more importantly that he can put the ball where it needs to be! Now I’ve watched that play probably 10 times over and Malcolm Shepherd should have made that catch.

This game showed we can come from behind and that we don’t get rattled easily. Even the Hawaii game showed us this except we couldn’t come back and win that one. This team has learned what it needs to do to win and if I’m Boise St., I am definitely a little worried about November 26^th. I’m just wondering…will Brandon Wimberly, probably the best wide receiver on this team, get a touchdown this year?

I’m still predicting #18 in the BCS standings!

Nevada vs. Fresno State

If you’ve been following my blog you know that I pointed out a few key games earlier in the season. Well this week is one of them as Nevada travels to Fresno. At the beginning of the season this Fresno team was ranked higher than us, then they hit a few speed bumps. I assure you however that they are still a good team and this will be a tough game.

Some good news is that Fresno is banged up at the offensive line position which could alter their play calls. This should also let our defensive line light up their quarterback. If they truly are dinged up and are using some reserves, I expect defensive coordinator Andy Buh to call more blitzes. Look for delayed blitzes coming from the linebacking core in this game; I would not be surprised to see us rack up 6-8 sacks in this one.

Offensively it will be interesting to see if Ault decides to showcase the passing game again or if we take it to the ground. Our rushing game is so good that I’m pretty sure we could win a game without throwing a single pass, but as we saw last week, the more Kaepernick throws the ball the more it opens up the running game, allowing us to get those 30, 40, and 50+ yard runs.

Regardless of how this game is turning out in the 4^th quarter, I expect Kaepernick to stay in for the entirety of the game as this is the best team we will face in the upcoming weeks before Boise St. It is imperative that Kaepernick gets as much practice against a good defense as possible. He will also set 2 records in this game as he only needs 1 rushing TD to become the Schools all time leader, and 1 passing TD to become the Schools all time leader.

I’m calling this a close and entertaining game. I mean ESPN has made it their Saturday night game after all! IF Nevada puts up a dominating performance under the biggest lights there is during the season, expect a big jump in the polls. Nevada is capable of completely manhandling this team but I honestly don’t see that happening, I hope I’m wrong.

Final Score Prediction

Nevada 52 – Fresno State 48

Idaho vs. Nevada Recap

Nevada ranked 18^th?

Is it possible?

I think come tomorrow’s BCS selection show we might just see Nevada sitting at #18. Here’s why: #’s 22,21,19,15, and 12 lost. I think those 5 teams will fall below us in the BCS rankings. #’s 8,6, and 5 also lost but I do not think they will fall below us.

Here’s another thing, Nevada played its best game to date this season. Yes I know that one can argue that our best game was against Cal, but lets be honest, this was complete domination. Nevada racked up 844 yards of total offense, the highest number put up by any team this season. Nevada also used it’s 3^rd string quarterback on it’s final possession.

Now I know Idaho isn’t exactly a great team but we did what we’re supposed to do, pull ahead and keep on moving forward. Our special teams played like crap at times but somehow found a way to remedy their mistakes. Nevada forced 4 turnovers which is what we were supposed to do.

The play of Kaepernick could not have been better. I also want to point out how well Brandon Wimberly, James-Michael Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Duke Williams, Rishard Matthews, Malcolm Shepherd, Lampford Mark, Vai taua, and Mike Ball played in this game. It is rare for 10 players to shine the way these 10 did today. Now if only Isaiah Frey would turn his head more often and join this group.

What I saw today out of this team was a team that DESERVES to be ranked and could compete with every team in the nation. If this kind of play keeps up, we could be seeing a #3 Boise St. vs #14/15 Nevada matchup come November 26^th that should have the Broncos a little weary. As it is right now, I don’t see the spread being more than 7pts. Lets hope that this play keeps up through next week at Fresno St, another tough opponent that we can’t look beyond.

And just in case anyone is wondering, had Nevada not have lost to Hawaii, we could be talking about a team that would most likely be ranked #6 or 7 tomorrow.

In Defense of a Great Coach

Lets all point the finger at Ault!

That’s going to be the talk on campus come Monday and it will probably be echoing throughout the community.

Why do we have to mimic Philadelphia fans? Get real here people, last time I checked Ault doesn’t put on a helmet and shoulder pads and line up in the field of play. This is college football, anything can happen on any given day. If we’re going to start chanting “fire Ault”, then Alabama fans should be chanting “fire Saban” and Ohio State should be chanting “fire Tressel”. I mean come on, those were teams ranked #1 when they lost. We were ranked a measly #19, and quite honestly, with the way we’ve been playing, we didn’t deserve that.

Do we lay the blame on Kaepernick? I mean he did have 2 fumbles, 1 of which should have been a touchdown, and 2 interceptions? Or do we lay the blame on Wimberly because he let the last interception go off his hands? How about Dontay Moch for not having more sacks in this game? No, you move one. These aren’t professionals, they went out there and, maybe not in the 1^st half, but in the 2^nd half played with every last drop of heart and energy they had. So you applaud them on a valiant effort.

Lets face it, if we would have gotten a BCS game, it might have been against Alabama or Auburn, or Ohio state, and as must as I would love to say we would have hung in there (notice I’m not saying win here), we would have been slaughtered. I’m talking 70-3 type stuff here. But that’s not the point, the point is we got the BCS game right? Let me tell you something, I’m a Buffalo Bills fan, we went to 4 straight Superbowls, and lost them all. When I tell someone I’m a Bills fan and they say “Boy I Love Losing Superbowls” or how we couldn’t win one, I say at least we were good enough to get to 4 in a row…and you get laughed at because it means NOTHING. Anyone remember Hawaii’s Sugar Bowl experience? Exactly, its not brought up.

We can only hope that this game was a wake up call for the team, that we go into this bye week focused, and that we come out like a real football team and not one that struggles to pull away from San Jose State and UNLV. We beat Cal and BYU, big deal, I hate to break it to you but those teams suck.

All I’m saying is the man has over 200 wins. He’s had teams lead the nation in passing in one year and rushing in another year, the only coach in history to be able to claim that. He’s in the college football hall of fame. He invented an entire offensive system that’s taking the game of football by surprise. The only thing he hasn’t done is parted the Red Sea. Give the guy a break and think for yourself before you follow the masses.

Nevada vs. Hawaii

So you want a shootout? There probably wont be a better one this season.

This weeks game against Hawaii is far from being called a sure thing. Hawaii may not be able to run the ball well, but their passing attack more than makes up for it. Their starting quarterback, Moniz, already has 2,245 yards through the air. For comparison Kaepernick is standing at 1,321. Big deal right? Well here’s the thing, our secondary is starting to struggle again and this game could be a trap.

Defensively this year we turn it up in the second half, evident of most teams scoring the majority of their points in the first. Pressure from the defensive line has to be enough to make Moniz make bad throws because Hawaii’s receivers will beat us down the field. If we can keep those receivers contained however, we could have quite a nice number of sacks on the evening.

Offensively we have to avoid the stupid penalties we’ve been committing as of late. I don’t see their defense being able to stop us, but Kaepernick has thrown 3 interceptions, 1 in each of the last 3 games, this could hurt as here as stopping them on defense will be tough.

There will be critical performances expected of Brandon Marshall and James-Michael Johnson as they will find themselves in man to man coverage on wide receivers. Isaiah Frey needs to turn his head, which he probably won’t. Some how we need to force 3 turnovers or it will be a nail-biter.

I hate to say it but I see this one close till the end.

Final Prediction:

Nevada 55 – Hawaii 45

Total Yards Prediction:

Nevada 660 – Hawaii 595

SJSU vs. Nevada

Sorry for the delay but school comes first.

Besides, there's not much to talk about when it comes to this game. SJSU is wishing they didn't have this game to play.

I see this game being an absolute blowout (I hope).

From the offensive side of the ball expect huge numbers. Kaepernick has been struggling to put up numbers as of late as you can see by that awesome graph I made. On the other hand Vai has been picking up the slack. This is not a problem as it shows how talented we are on the offensive side of the ball. Expect Kaepernick, and Vai to break some huge runs this game. Also expect some short passes to Virgil Green and Brandon Wimberly to end up going for big gains as this SJSU defense has had trouble making tackles in the open field.

Defensively expect the defensive line to have a field day. More big numbers from them as this SJSU offensive line will have a hard time giving their quarterback the time he needs. Expect quick screen passes that our defense will be prepared for. At the linebacking core expect more big numbers from Brandon Marshall and James-Michael Johnson. There is a chance that our secondary will give up a big play or two but I'm not seeing that very likely in this game. Instead I see 1-2 interceptions by our secondary.

Final Score Prediction:

SJSU 3 - Nevada 79

Nevada vs. unlv

Is it too late to cancel this game and find another team to play?

Last year the unlv game was the turning point in our season. It’s when we started putting up amazing numbers, and interestingly enough, it’s been like that for a few years.

This game should have been played earlier or not at all.

Is there a chance unlv will win this game? Sure, but it’s a 0.0001% chance. Now unlv fans are going to talk about how the rebels put up 45 against a New Mexico team, the same team that lost to Oregon 72-0 in the first week of the season. Should the rebel fans feel good about this win? Of course, they need to have some confidence so that we can demoralize them more. The rebels still have no shot in this game, but you won last week, so I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and say momentum will score you 10 in this game, ok maybe 13.

NEVADA on the other hand is coming into this game after cracking the top 25 for the first time since 1991, although a scoreboard-poor performance against BYU. And this is a rivalry game, not sure if it’s more so for the fans or the players, if this will be your first trip to one of these games you’ll soon know what I’m talking about.

Every other year, this game is played in Vegas, the ONLY time you will see UNR on the scoreboard and not NEVADA. Ault hates this, as does every NEVADA player, so does every NEVADA fan. Expect Ault to go in there and have no regard for sportsmanship. Kaepernick also needs to make up for the lack of numbers in the BYU game. Expect NEVADA to put up 73 at least, but don’t be surprised if they put up over a hundred…yes I said a hundred.

I expect this game to open in the sportsbooks with NEVADA as a 24 point favorite, which I believe we will easily cover.

Final Score Prediction:

NEVADA 87 – unlv 13

The cannon will stay blue, it's real colors. When you hear them refer to us as UNR don't question our identity, just remember the words from one of the most successful coaches in college football history:

“Our university began in 1874. We are the University of Nevada. For some reason in the mid-70s, this UNR, University of Nevada, Reno deal came in. When I came back to coach, this is the first thing we started on. In '92, we put a major campaign on. We are the Nevada Wolf Pack. That’s what we are.”
- Coach Ault

Nevada vs. BYU Recap and Ranking Implications

Congratulations on the Pack for starting 4-0. Our offense was potent as always, methodical, and unable to be stopped. Our defense stepped it up and was looking good. There are 3 things that have me a little disturbed however:

1. There were too many stupid penalties given up by our team.

2. TURN YOUR HEAD ISAIAH!!!!!!!! (read my blog breaking down the defense if you don’t know what I’m talking about here)

3. Ault…what are you doing? I’m a fan of yours and I’ve always defended you but we needed to run the score up in this game, which we easily could have done, but after going for 4 4th downs you went conservative? I’m having a hard time understanding this, but you’re the coach. Next time however, please take Kaepernick and Vai out of the game, why risk an injury when we’re not trying to pad stats?

Ranking Implications

It was a solid win for the Pack, but the scoreboard doesn’t reflect how uneven this game was. If it weren’t for a stupid fumble and taking it easy in the ENTIRE 2nd half, we could have easily scored the 66 I called, BYU however had no chance of getting the 17 I gave them credit for.

We needed some key losses from teams ranked 20-25 this week and unfortunately we only got 2. This should put us at #24, but there’s a wild card, UCLA. After loosing to #25, they went on to beat #23 and #7 (on the road). Don’t be surprised to see UCLA leap-frog us and push us back to #25. We dominated the time of possession in this game but the score just doesn’t show how one sided this game was, this will hurt us.

In all honestly look for Nevada to be ranked #23-26 (yes, I know we’re ranked #26 right now) when the rankings come out.

Breaking Down Nevada's Coaching

Coaching

If there’s been one knock on the team over the past years from the fans, it’s been Ault. Coach Ault demands respect and I think the fans are finally going to see that this year. Sure in years past we all questioned some of the calls he made and sure his record in big games aren’t great but let’s face the facts. This guy knows how to win. There’s a reason he’s in the College Football Hall of Fame. If you don’t want to buy that then just think about this…who else could we get? Ault has molded this offense around Kaepernick, and guess what…it works. His offensive scheme, the pistol, has been adopted by many other college, high school, and even NFL teams becuase it works.

Andy Buh has taken over the defensive side of the ball and so far the results are much better than last year. It will be interesting to see what ensues the rest of the season. There are a few minor issues with the secondary that if he fixes will result in 7-14 less points given up each game.

Have faith in Ault Pack fans that's all I ask. And don't forget that Kaepernick can audible when he get's to the line.