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Tiger Takeaways: What we Learned from the Opener
The 2016 season did not get off to a good note as the Tigers fell 26-11 in Morgantown to West Virginia. Here are three observations from the loss:
1. The passing offense still needs significant work
Never once have I seen a quarterback get such effusive praise for completing less than half of his passes in a game. But that is exactly what happened as Drew Lock went 23/51 for 280 yards and a garbage time touchdown in the game. While it is true that Lock did look better than last season, there was a lot that looked very similar to last year’s anemic offensive showing.
The most disheartening thing to watch for me was when Lock would hit a receiver in the hands and they couldn’t make the catch. Most notably was J’Mon Moore in the third quarter. But Lock also deserves his share of the blame as he still has frequent accuracy issues. They seem to be the worst on deep balls, which are almost always underthrown. Lock showed improved timing on the short to intermediate throws, but not much beyond that.
Moreover, the offense is going to have to throw a lot because the offensive line cannot get any push up front in run blocking. Alex Ross led the team with 67 yards on 18 carries, averaging 3.7 yards per carry. Backup quarterback Marvin Zanders gave the stagnant running game somewhat of a boost with 47 yards on seven carries.
2. The defense is not up the typical standard up front
It wasn’t entirely horrible up front, as the Tigers did have a couple stands inside of their own five yard line as they held WVU to field goals. But there were too many times where the WVU running backs just broke through the hole and there was nobody there to tackle them. Justin Crawford led the way for the Mountaineers with 101 yards on 21 carries and Russel Shell added 90 yards on 16 carries.
Inside, somebody needs to step up. Terry Beckner was a top recruit nationally and needs to play like it. But beside him one of Josh Augusta or A.J. Logan needs to step it up and plug up the run which will allow Beckner to make plays.
The loss of Craig Kulangowski looked huge in this game. Perhaps Jackie Shipp will get it turned around, but Shipp often predicated his defenses on blitzing and the Tigers usually only rushed four. This will be an issue that will have to get worked out over the course of the season.
3. The secondary might be the best unit on the team
The secondary is a veteran unit and they held their own very well against the Mountaineers. Dana Holgerson usually has a high flying passing attack, but Skyler Howard was held without a touchdown pass in this game. Daikiel Shorts did rack up some yards with 131 on eight catches, but nobody else was that effective against the Tigers secondary. Aarion Penton and Anthony Sherrils both got interceptions in the game.
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