CCSU FOOTBALL: THE DAY AFTER

There are just too many players on a football team to do a man-to-man type thing like I do for basketball, so let's look at the team by units.

First, some overall thoughts: There's no official word, yet, but it doesn't sound from the tone the players were taking that they expect Gunnar Jespersen to play at JMU next week. Obviously it's a week away and anything can happen, and they might have just been upset at the moment, so we'll see, But keep that in mind. I would say he's questionable at best, but again that's just me speculating.

Jake White did a solid job filling in. I think his ability to hit Deven Baker for a TD right away gave him confidence, and more importantly, gave his teammates confidence in him. He admitted to making some bad reads on the interceptions he threw, which is another good sign, taking responsibility.
JMU's new stadium and nationally-ranked team will provide tough be a tough place for White's first start if it comes to that, but he doesn't look like he'll be scared.

Now the rest of the offense: For a half, it was good. Two different QBs led the team to scores and both had time to throw. Coach Jeff McInerney made me eat crow by throwing the ball more than usual (the last time CCSU had more passing yards than rushing yards was last year's opener at UNH), but I think part of that was because CCSU was disappointed in its running game. Chris Tolbert didn't look ready to cede the job to Brian Fowler yet. The loaded offensive line didn't do as good a job as it should have, and Brian Fowler looked rusty.
It's foolish to make sweeping generalizations about how good this team is after Week 1, but that running attack didn't look like many expected it to. The passing game looked ok, but everyone, including the coaches, need to take responsibility for that second half, in which CCSU's only first down came on a SCSU penalty in the final minute. I'm willing to chalk it up to Central taking its foot off the gas with a 28-0 lead, but the Blue Devils better have learned their lesson.You can't just turn the intensity back up, especially after the other team gets momentum.

On defense I thought Central looked ok for the most part. The young secondary showed its youth at times, but the biggest problem the defense had in the second half was being on the field all the time. For me, the biggest key was seeing the team get stops when they ewre needed, including that stop on fourth and goal on the first drive that might have swung the momentum in a big way. If Southern leads that game 7-0, Central might not have gotten off to such a good start itself.
The defense also made some big plays to force turnovers. Gene Johnson's score was huge obviously, and Charlie Williams made a big play to strip the ball. Tyrell Holmes made a really pretty catch on his pick as well.
Overall, the defense did a much better job than the offense, particularly in crunch time. They say the biggest improvements are between Week 1 and Week 2, but the injury to Jespersen and the quality of the opponent next week might hide some of those improvements. I think we'll know more after the trip to Wagner.
But for now, I don't see a ton of reason to panic. There is, however, room for improvement.