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CHS vs Weatherford - How'd the Coogs do?

By Andrew Silva
September 3, 2006

This is to report on what areas the Coogs looked good and what areas need some work.
First we’ll tackle offense, starting with the play of the quarterback. I think Zach Stewart overall played an excellent game. Stewart has a lot stronger arm that I had thought and I think he is capable on making all the throws asked of him. There were some deep balls were Stewart needed more touch on the ball but all of his crossing routes and passes in the flat looked to be right on the mark. Stewart also great moving in the pocket and throwing on the run. On many throws he looked like he may have held onto the ball a tad too long, but overall I liked what I saw in Stewart. He made good decisions in throwing away the ball instead of into coverage also.
Next the offensive line. The offensive line did an excellent job in protection all night long. The only time Stewart was pressured was on coverage sacks when no receiver was open and Stewart had to hold the ball far too long. The o-line also did a good job pulling on their counters and misdirection. However I would have liked to see more push up front on short yardage. This o-line appears to be groomed for the type of offense the Cougars are looking to run this year.
The wide receivers still had too many drops, but did a much better job than in the scrimmage. I liked how they got up the field on the quick hitters and got the tough yards. The receivers who didn’t get the ball were asked to block the DB’s on the line on the quick passes and they will need some work on that in the coming weeks. Getting the timing down with their quarterback is something that will come as the season moves on.
Finally the running backs also looked good toting the rock last night. The two headed monster of Jones and Pimpton continues the Cooper tradition of talented running backs. They backs hit the inside holes hard and kept their feet churning until the whistle. Also it may not seem like much but I noticed the backs covering up the ball well when they were about to get hit.
Overall I was pleased with offense. I think as they continue to put in new plays and if Stewart can connect on the deep ball this offense has potential to be scary.
Now onto the defense. The defensive line did a good job of re-establishing the line of scrimmage during the game. The biggest struggle was keeping containment on the edge.
The linebackers did a good job of plugging the middle and other than the 70 yard run that went up the gut, the defense did a pretty good job of shutting down the run. I would have liked to see the backers flow to the ball better, especially on the pitch out to the sideline. The secondary struggled especially in the second half. The Kangaroos on one drive picked on the dragon on three consecutive plays. The Coogs seemed to be in man to man coverage and later made an adjustment so that their defenders weren’t on an island alone with their receiver. On the Kangaroos last drive the defense shut down the pass and made the plays when they needed to. I would have liked to see more pressure on the quarterback but overall the Cougars kept the Kangaroo offense in check. The Cougar defense was killed by the big play but I am sure they will remedy that in their next two weeks of preparation.
Finally, the coaches/intangibles. I have to say in all my years of watching Cooper football it’s hard to think of a bigger rush of adrenaline than seeing the Coogs come out in red jerseys. And the way they not only surprised the fans but the players too was an excellent motivator. Does the offense not have any intermediate pass routes? It seemed every pass attempt was either the quick hitter in the flat or something deep. I don’t recall seeing a single curl route or comeback run all night. If the Coogs want to be successful in the passing game it is essential to add those routes to the repertoire. Comebacks will keep the DB’s on their heels and help out on the long ball. There is only one other questionable coaching decision and that was the clock management. I will cover that in the next post.

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