*Meet the new Dave; same as the old Dave. I found his performance to be a sub-par effort overall, and that's just not going to get it done. I mean, when you line up behind the wrong player on the first play -- and then throw an easy pick -- you know what kind of day it's gonna be.
The announcers said earlier that he was impressive (which he wasn't), but it wasn't a UNC 2009 disaster-level performance, either. For a good chunk of the time he was off-target, he didn't always go through his progressions, and he forced the ball into coverage at times -- in other words, making the same mistakes as last year. His receivers bailed him out a few times (like Coleman on his long play), though not every pass he threw (in the first half) was bad. He got worse as the day went on, however, and he clearly still has to work on the decision-making and accuracy. It's the kind of game that will work against Weber State, but not an ACC squad. Uncle Dave still has a lot left to prove and I suspect this game didn't really assuage the concerns of BC fans.
*Marscovetra threw all of three balls, so there's basically nothing to evaluate. I had hoped to see more, and I think we will next week, especially if Shinskie continues to be mediocre.
*No problems with the running game: Montel seems to be as good as ever, and backup Phifer looks fine.
*The defense was relatively unimpressive. There was still no pass rush to be seen, and Cameron Higgins had way too much time to get rid of the ball. The run defense was fine as usual, but the pass coverage was too soft. They needed the Gause pick-6 for some confidence, but it was a tip drill lucky play.
*Herzlich did fine in limited play, all things considered. I don't think anyone could have expected a dominant performance.
*I'm pretty pleased right now that Nate Freese is the kicker. The only miscue was the squib kickoff which trickled out of bounds at about the 1/2 yard line, and I can't bash him too much for that.
*Very nice 59-yard* punt by Quigley in the 4th quarter. He's improved quite a bit in the last few seasons.
*Overall, this wasn't the kind of effort I expected a game that meant so much to the team with Mark's return. There are several flaws which need to be addressed and I never thought Weber State would score 20. I'm pleased that they won, and displeased that it wasn't the stress-free W I expected.
(*I've heard it was more than that...I wasn't paying attention)
I was initially upset about the squib kick after the penalty, but after thinking about it, what more can be done? They could have easily booted through the end zone for a touch back, but they're trying to bury Weber inside the 20 and you do your best to keep the ball away from the returner. The end result was the ball on the 25 instead of a touchback on the 20. Not much difference there. It's hard to control a ball's bounce.
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