Cyclones too much for Bison
Written by Daniel Gunderson Friday, 11 September 2009 08:00
The weather was perfect for the opening night of the college football season for both Iowa State University and NDSU. Calm and crisp 71 degrees outside, coupled with a cloudless evening sky was the backdrop for a 7:06 pm kickoff. Jack Trice Stadium was filled with 48,831 fans, most of them decked out in cardinal and gold, all of them screaming at the top of their lungs excited for a season filled with endless possibilities. It was a breathtaking scene that any fan would appreciate.
The opening drive for the Cyclones may have caught the Bison, still in awe of that picturesque scene, off guard. ISU marched down the field with their no huddle offense and scored the first touchdown of the game in a matter of 3:10. They covered 81 yards in nine plays to take a 7-0 lead. The touchdown came on an 18 yard rush by Alexander Robinson.
“Anytime you’re trying to get ready for that offense, you do everything to simulate it in fall camp,” Head Coach Craig Bohl said after the game. “The speed is a little bit different, and the reads are a little bit different. We got our players positioned a little bit different after the first drive.”
The next five offensive drives for both teams were met with solid defense and both teams were forced to punt. It wasn’t until the third offensive series for NDSU that they saw some positive feedback. On the first play of the drive, Pat Paschall broke free for a 62 yard gain to the ISU 18.
Quarterback Nick Mertens followed that up with a 13-yard completion to fullback Drew Hushka making it first and goal at the five-yard line. Two plays later, however, Mertens would bring back images of last year. On a quarterback sneak, Mertens had the ball punched out of his hands and saw the fumble recovered by the Cyclones Josh Raven. The turnover would cost the Bison an opportunity to put points on the board.
“Anytime you get down to the one yard line and fumble, especially early in the game, that has a huge impact,” Bohl said. The Cyclones took the turnover and promptly marched down the field 80 yards on 10 plays for their second score of the game. The drive was capped off by an Austen Arnaud five yard rush to paydirt. With a scoring opportunity fumbled away, and the score already 14-0, the Bison could have just thrown in the towel. Mertens and the Bison offense responded in tremendous fashion, however, as three drives later they put together their own scoring drive.
It started with a turnover by Cyclone quarterback Arnaud that was recovered by Matt Anderson on the ISU 43. The Bison than covered those yards in a matter of three plays taking 1:16 off the clock. A Pat Paschall one-yard touchdown run is what sealed the drive for NDSU as they pulled within seven. The teams exchanged field goals before the half and the score was 17-10 Cyclones going into the break.
NDSU would start the second half with the ball and the momentum, but saw both of those things slip away with one weird series of events. On a second and six from the ISU 46, Mertens threw a pass that was deflected at the line of scrimmage. As the ball hung tantalizing in the air, the Cyclones David Simms reached up and grabbed the pigskin for the interception.
The ensuing Cyclone drive saw Arnaud take the offense 65 yards on six plays in 2:18, capped off by a 39-yard pass to Marquis Hamilton. The Bison looked to be beaten, but they summed up the energy to put one more substantial drive together.
The Bison would score on the next offensive series as Mertens made an amazing 15 yard pass to Matt Veldman in the back of the end zone for six. The extra point brought the score to 24-17 and that would be all the closer NDSU got that evening. A field goal near the end of the third pushed the lead to ten for ISU, and another Arnaud to Hamilton touchdown sealed the game early in the fourth.
Although the Bison lost, a couple of things could be taken out of this for positive reinforcement.
First, Mertens looked much better in this game than in many he played in last year. Although he turned the ball over twice, he didn’t let it affect his overall performance as he went 15-27 for 178 yards and a score. He also ran the ball 11 times which is encouraging to see considering that his athleticism wasn’t used much or at all in some games last year.
That brings us to our second positive, the offense. Brent Vigen has opened the playbook to anything and everything. Reverses, quarterback draws and even the option are some of the plays that Vigen featured in his debut as offensive coordinator.
Thirdly, Pat Paschall will be a big time player for this team. His 146 yards on 21 attempts and a touchdown were by far the best performance for the Bison offensively.
Finally, Preston Evans is already poised to have a solid career at NDSU. The sophomore was a monster on defense coming up with 11 tackles, seven of them solo and two of them behind the line.
Building on these positives, and fixing some of the negatives will help the Bison get ready for their next opponent, Sam Houston State University, this Saturday down in Huntsville, Texas.
