Game Preview 2010: EMU


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Essentials

Overview

LaRoy Reynolds and the Hoos are looking for a win.

The first ever meeting between Eastern Michigan and Virginia in football isn’t exactly the kind of thing for the grand marquee. EMU snapped an 18-game losing streak last week … and it took the biggest comeback in school history to do it. The Eagles trailed by 21 points in the second quarter before rallying past Ball State 41-38 in overtime. UVa, meanwhile, has not defeated a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent this season – in fact, you have to go back to Oct. 17, 2009 at Maryland to find the Hoos’ latest FBS victory.

None of that matters right now to Virginia coach Mike London. He wants to win a game – any game – and the next chance to do that is against Eastern Michigan, making its first ever trip to the state.

“I look at this as an opportunity to play well and win a game. We need to win a game. You lose a game and it’s a long week of answering questions. You think about what you could have done better, while the guys are going to class all week going through all of that,” London said. “The only way you take care of that is playing well and giving them a chance to win a game. That is the first and foremost concern as we go through our process, and our mindset going into this particular game.”

Of course, the most recent loss against North Carolina has led to a long few days of questions about senior quarterback Marc Verica . The Hoos’ starter threw three interceptions against UNC in a deflating 44-10 loss, leading some to call for a new QB under center. London diffused the controversy early in the week and continued to support Verica in Wednesday’s ACC teleconference. London’s logic? There are still six games to play in 2010 and Verica still gives the team the best chance to get wins in those games based on practice and in-game performance. Back-ups Ross Metheny and Michael Rocco, both freshmen, are having trouble getting the team in the right formations, making the right reads, and making the right throws consistently.

“There is a vested amount of interest in Marc Verica and what he’s seen and what he’s done. I know it’s frustrating for others and for himself to see him throw three interceptions, and then everyone wants a quick change. But the other guys that are behind him are still in a phase of
development,” London said during Wednesday’s ACC teleconference. “We’ll continue to look for opportunities to put them in the game, but right now Marc gives us the best chance to win. To answer your question about at what point, there are still six games left in the season. So, by no means is anyone panicking or anyone saying we’ve got to make changes.

“But I am cognizant of the fact that going into a game, that if we’re not on with the passes or making good decisions, then you’ll have to maybe put someone else in there,” London continued. “But we have confidence in Marc and what he can do. We’ve seen what he can do. So we’ll keep moving down that path. There are six games left and still opportunities for this football team to win games. We’re going to keep moving forward.”

The Eagles’ defense may provide the ideal salve for Verica and the other Cavalier offensive players in general. EMU has allowed at least 28 points in each of its seven games this season. With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at this week’s opponent.

Priorities And Picks

PRIORITIES

No big plays. Do you realize that 3 of 6 UVa opponents this season have scoring plays of at least 70 yards? Richmond, FSU, and UNC all broke off big touchdown plays. Georgia Tech had 8 plays of 20 yards or more even though none of them scored. Yuck. In the name of good defense, gang tackle and finish plays this week!

Run, run, run. EMU can’t stop the run and Keith Payne has been one of the most consistent performers on offense; Perry Jones has big play ability too. Just run, run, run your way to a win.

Find a passing rhythm. The passing game has been struggling in recent weeks. After – and only after – using the run to set the tone and take the lead, work on some passing plays that challenge the quarterbacks without ruining their rhythm.

PICKS

BLAIR: “We need a win,” Coach London said. I couldn’t agree more. It’s nice to have a break from conference play, where the Hoos have been getting pulverized. The Eagles have a solid passing attack, so the Cavalier secondary needs to get their act together. Communication will be key. Hopefully Marc Verica will put his critics to rest with a solid performance on Saturday. Hoos 37, Eagles 6, Picks record: 4-2

KRIS: First things first, don’t be upset, grumbling, and ready to boo if the Cavaliers aren’t leading by three touchdowns at the end of the first quarter … because by game’s end, they will be up by that much. At least. EMU’s defense isn’t very good, the offense can be contained and shut down if you take out some big plays, and other than punt coverage, the special teams aren’t an equalizer of any sort. In other words, the Hoos are better in all three phases this week and it will show. Hoos 48, Eagles 14, Picks record: 5-1

EMU’s Offense

  • Offense: Multiple
  • 2010 averages: 20.9 points per game, 143.3 rushing yards per game, 187.7 passing yards per game
  • Strengths: Quarterback, running back, big plays
  • Questions: Turnovers, lost yardage plays
  • Players to watch: QB Alex Gillett, RB Dwayne Priest , WR Kinsman Thomas, WR Ben Thayer

As the weeks pass, one theme has become more and more concerning for Virginia fans watching the Cavalier defense: tackling. The Hoos have had trouble finishing plays and wrapping up tackles to prevent opponents from moving the chains, bursting through for large gains, or, at worst, pulling away to touchdowns. On the season, UVa has allowed 26 plays of 20 yards or more, considered big plays for the offense:

  • UR – 2 rushing, 2 passing
  • USC – 1 rushing, 1 passing
  • VMI – 0 rushing, 3 passing
  • FSU – 2 rushing, 1 passing
  • GT – 6 rushing, 2 passing/receiving
  • UNC – 1 rushing, 5 passing/receiving

Even with Eastern Michigan on the schedule this week, the trend is troubling. After all, the Eagles have produced 23 plays of at least 20 yards on offense this season so their offense is capable of creating problems at times. Certainly, quarterback Alex Gillett is the biggest culprit when it comes to big play and overall offensive success for EMU. On the season, Gillett has 97 carries for 376 yards and 3 touchdowns rushing to go with 1,082 yards and 10 touchdowns passing (6 interceptions). He’s coming off a huge game against Ball State, an Eastern victory that snapped the program’s 18-game skid. In that contest, Gillett set program QB records with 35 rushing attempts for 189 yards and 2 touchdowns; he also completed 10 of 18 passes for 225 yards and 3 more touchdowns. For that effort, he was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Offensive Player of the Week.

London said Gillett is someone the Hoos have to keep an eye on this week.

“It was interesting in the Ohio State game, he threw the ball a lot. Last week in the Ball State game, kind of a wildcat formation, he ran the ball a lot. He’s very talented, very athletic and he’s one of the guys that we will definitely have to hone in on because of what he does,” London said. “He touches the ball, he can throw it, and also I think he ran like 35 times last week which is a lot of carries for a quarterback. Obviously, he’s become a significant part of their offense.”

Gillett’s backfield partner Dwayne Priest is also capable of producing a big day with four 100-yard rushing games in his career, including two this season. Priest averages a healthy 4.4 yards per carry and he has 340 yards rushing with 5 touchdowns on the season. Gillett’s targets in the passing game include Kinsman Thomas and Ben Thayer, who have combined to catch 7 of Gillett’s 10 TD passes on the season. Thomas has 20 receptions for 406 yards and 4 touchdowns, while Thayer has 19 grabs for 254 yards and 3 touchdowns.

EMU’s Defense

  • Defense: 4-3
  • 2010 averages: 43.4 points per game allowed, 228.3 rushing yards per game allowed, 214.6 passing yards per game allowed
  • Strengths: Forced fumbles, quarterback pressure, linebacker
  • Questions: Points allowed, third down defense, run defense
  • Players to watch: LB Tim Fort, DE Javon Reese, LB Neal Howey, DB Marcell Rose

Just a guess, but you’d have to bet that Eastern Michigan’s defense isn’t having a lot of fun. The Eagles have allowed a least 28 points in every game this season and 4 of 7 opponents have posted 38 points or more. Central Michigan and Vanderbilt tossed up matching 52’s while Ohio State poured it on with 73. It all adds up to 43.4 points per game allowed. Yikes.

While that should be good news for a Virginia offense that has stumbled in recent weeks (especially against UNC with 5 interceptions), there are a couple of areas in particular that EMU struggles: rush defense and third down defense. The Eagles have allowed 228.3 rushing yard per game this season, which ranks 117th out of 120 FBS teams. UVa should use heavy doses of Keith Payne , Perry Jones , and Raynard Horne early in this one to help build a lead; the passing game, which could use some fine-tuning, can wait until it is needed. The second area, third down defense, is a startling number for defensive coordinators – EMU has allowed its opponents to convert 52% of the time this season. Not surprisingly, that ranks dead last in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Frankly, if you see much, or any, of UVa punter Jimmy Howell this weekend, it could be considered a bad day for the Cavalier offense.

With that said, the Eagles do have a handful of playmakers. Starting in the linebacker corps, Tim Fort and Neal Howey lead the team in tackles by a landslide. Fort has piled up 62 tackles on the year, 35 of the solo variety; for perspective, the team’s third leading tackler has 36 total tackles. Fort has 4 tackles for loss and 2 forced fumbles, which is a strong-suit of sorts for this defense – the Eagles have knocked the ball loose 6 times this season. Howey, meanwhile, has 55 tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, 3 quarterback hurries, 2 pass break-ups, and 2 forced fumbles as a weak side linebacker.

The most disruptive player on passing downs appears to be Javon Reese, a junior defensive end. Reese has recorded a team-leading 3.5 sacks on the season. He also has a fumble recovery. As a team, EMU does create a little bit of pressure with 9 QB sacks and 16 QB hurries on the season – UVa’s shuffled offensive line does need to pick up on the rushers in order to give Marc Verica or other Cavalier quarterbacks time to make throws.

EMU’s Special Teams

  • 2010 averages: 38.0 yards per net punt, 7.4 yards per punt return allowed, 19.6 yards per kick return, 21.7 yards per kick return allowed
  • Strengths: Punt coverage, kick return
  • Questions: Punt return, field goals/distance
  • Players to watch: P Jay Karutz, PK Sean Graham, KR Corey Welch

The punt coverage team appears to be the strength of Eastern Michigan’s special teams. Punter Jay Karutz averages 40.4 yards per punt and he has landed 8 punts inside the 20-yard line. The Eagles’ coverage team allows just 7.4 yards per return on average and 38.0 yards per net return. The punt defense number ranks 45th nationally, while the net punt average ranks 34th nationally – for a team that has struggles in the win-loss column, that’s a pair of very respectable numbers.

The kickoff coverage unit is not as successful, allowing 21.7 yards per kick return. Raynard Horne may not get many chances on Saturday, but if he does, this is an area the Hoos can exploit. The Cavaliers rank No. 1 in the ACC in kickoff returns and Horne is the league’s top individual returner at 27.5 yards per return.

One final area to keep an eye is the field goal game. London spoke about the “cliff” for kickers a couple of weeks ago, placing UVa’s drop-off point for accuracy with the ball near the 30-yard line or approximately 45-yard field goals. For EMU, the drop-off point appears to be at around 40 yards; kicker Sean Graham is 3 of 5 on the season for field goal attempts with both misses coming last week (attempts of 33 and 40 yards). The only other attempt beyond 40 yards this season came on a 42-yard make at Vanderbilt.

The Final Word

As Mike London said on Monday: “We need to win a game.” The players need it. The coaches need it. The fans need it. Pretty much any Hoo anywhere needs it. It has been a rough October so far after all. And while defeating Eastern Michigan, assuming the Cavaliers get the job done, won’t suddenly cure everything that has plagued the team in recent weeks, it sure will cheer people up.

But proceed with caution if you’re just chalking this up as a win without the game being played. While EMU just snapped an 18-game skid, it did play Miami of Ohio to a close 28-21 loss and nearly knocked off Army in a 31-27 setback. In other words, the Cavaliers still need to show up and they still need to execute better than they have in recent losses.

If the Hoos do that, then it will be a positive step in the right direction as Coach London tries to get this ship turned around.