Off
the Air
Lynn Meredith
Teamkong
We’re
back or are we?? That seems to be the question on most Gorilla
fans minds. Recovering from the Emporia State upset
with a dominant performance against Missouri Southern last
Saturday night has many people again cautiously optimistic, but
wondering if the Gorillas are good enough to survive the next
three weeks.
Winning big is always a good thing!
Pitt State was outstanding in every area
against Mo Southern and 49-0 hardly tells the story. It rained
for three quarters, the Gorillas substituted freely and the wind
hampered some of the offense or the score could have easily been
higher. The Lions are not a good team and are riding out their
season creating expectations for their next savior who can
resurrect a program mired in mediocrity.
The win was good for the Gorillas. We were
able to iron out some issues that bothered us in the Emporia
game. The D-line was able to slant and do some technique things
while the Linebackers again swarmed to the ball carrier. The
Secondary wasn’t challenged too much, but they lined up well
and played hard the entire game.
Meanwhile, the O-Line dominated and allowed Philpot and Race to
run through some great openings. The Quarterbacks struggled with
their passing at first, but continued to press through the
discomfort until their form returned and the passing game
flourished. Say what you want about Mo Southern being a team
notched slightly above Rolla…winning big is good for the soul
and especially good for the Gorillas as they enter the toughest
stretch of their season.
Western is a good team…
November is a tough month and it starts
with Mo Western. The Griffons are a solid team with lots of
weapons and a confident attitude. Western has never lacked for
confidence against the Gorillas and usually plays pretty well
against us. Remember last year, when Andy Majors had to rally
the team with a late TD drive to win? Or the last few times in
St. Joe, where Pitt State has met with bad weather, bad
officiating, lightning, and a fired-up Griffon team? There has
been some times that Pitt State has had emotional let downs
against this team. I have seen it a couple of times on the road
and once at home in recent years, but it’s different this
year. As we all know, we’ve already had the let down this
season.
Look for the Griffons to follow the Emporia
mold of pounding us up the middle and also add some scrambling
Quarterback to the mix. Western will want to run in the same
style as the Hornets and PSU will be ready this time. But the
Griffons have a weakness…the accuracy of their quarterbacks.
They have thrown 11 interceptions in 7 games. That will be their
nemesis again this Saturday. After we shut their run down and
force them into the pass.
What now??
Well…we all know to expect tough games
from here on out! The blowouts are over…unless there is some
freaky turn of events during a particular game. The Gorillas are
good enough to win out, but they have to play at a high
level…an emotional level…much like the St. Cloud
performance. That game epitomizes the Pitt State style of play.
Where emotion causes adrenaline surges that results in
exceptional plays…turnovers….points!
When the Gorillas are best….they are emotional….they are
revved up….they play almost unconscious football. The Gorillas
were not that way two weeks ago versus Emporia and it surprised
me. The team learned from that day and despite the lingering
hurt…that day will serve us well. It will serve us well the
next three weeks. It will remind us of what happens when we
check our “on the field” personalities at the gate … when
we don’t properly prepare for opponents during the
week….when we go through the motions and just expect to win by
showing up.
So to answer my own opening
question….we’re back!!
I expect the Gorillas to win….because
they now know what happens to teams that are less than 100%
ready.
PSU 31-17.
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