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Weekend Review

Sept 9 - Sept 12

College Football

• Knight Nation: Before I dive into this past week's game, I just wanted to send my sincere thank you out to Knight Nation. Winning in college football takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Unfortunately, we ended up on the wrong side of the scoreboard this past week but, when I logged on to Twitter after the game, I saw so much love and support from fans. That really means a lot when the fans have your back win or lose. What matters now is how we bounce back. Knowing we have the best fans in the nation cheering us on gives us that extra push to come back better and stronger. 
• Louisville:
  • Cardinal's Offense: Louisville had a very balanced attack Friday as they threw the ball 39 times and ran it 37. Their running game consisted of stretch, inside zone, and QB runs, most of which were not designed. We knew coming into this game that we had to contain #3 in the run game and, honestly, besides that 30 yard run, I felt like we did a good job on that front. He's a good player so it was expected that he would make a few big plays and it is always tough to defend against a good dual-threat QB.
  • As a defense, we know after watching film that we left a lot on the table and that there is work to be done. The good part is that these are things that we can fix. I am confident that we will be a great defense. We are ready to improve over this bye week and fix the errors we made this past Friday. 
  • Injuries: Injuries are a part of sports. It is ideal to come into a game with all of your players healthy and to leave that game the same way. The fact is, that just doesn't happen sometimes. We had some teammates go down this past week and it hurt us. I just ask those of you that are reading, to keep those teammates in your prayers for a speedy recovery and swift bounce back! 
• End thoughts: Losses always hurt. This one was especially heartbreaking with so many highs and lows during the game but we must put this one in the past and move forward!
  • My goal for this season is to get another AAC ring and I know the whole team shares that vision. 
• Around CFB this weekend:
  • Florida - Alabama: The Gator's put up 439 yards on the Alabama defense this past week in a nail-biter that nearly ended up falling in Florida's favor. The Crimson Tide pulled through for the 31-29 win. This was a great game that came down to the end. I think these teams could very well meet in the SEC championship in December.
    • Florida's rushing attack is looking phenomenal: averaging 336 yards per game! 
  • Cincinnati - Indiana: The Hoosiers went toe-to-toe at home with the #8 ranked Bearcats this past Saturday. Through 3 quarters, Indiana looked poised to pull off the upset. Cincinnati fought hard and showed Indiana that there are 4 quarters in the game. The Bearcats ended up outscoring the Hoosiers 15-0 in the final quarter.

NFL Football

• Tampa Bay - Atlanta
  • Buccaneers: You know what time it is!!! GO BUCS!!! Mike Edwards with two pick sixes?! Even with a couple of concerning injuries, I thought the defense did a really good job of holding everything together. Tom also proved, once again, that there are many dangerous targets on the offense. There were a couple concerning turnovers on the Bucs end and almost a sluggish feel part way through the game where Atlanta closed in on the lead. Hopefully they can clean this up throughout the season and play at a high level for all 4 quarters. 
  • Falcons:  Atlanta definitely capitalized when the Bucs started looking sluggish. I also think this team has a lot of potential. However, they really hurt themselves with crucial errors. It's hard to win a game giving up two pick sixes. We always talk about how we don't want to "beat ourselves" on the field with penalties and bad plays. Atlanta certainly didn't put themselves in a position to win here.
• Pittsburgh - Las Vegas:
  • Raiders: I may have been wrong in newsletter 1 when I said the Steelers were my sleeper choice. The Raiders have come out 2-0 over the Ravens and the Steelers even without their Pro Bowl running back, Josh Jacobs. I was also really impressed by that Carr to Ruggs 61-yd TD! They're both looking sharp this year. I had Carr on my fantasy football bench... definitely regretted that decision.
  • Steelers: Their defense came into the game without many starters and lost T.J. Watt part way through but they really need to figure out how to be productive on offense if they want to be a contender by the end of the season. I'm a firm believer that a good defense can win you games but team wins are the only way to be consistently solid in the face of any adversity. 
• Kansas City - Baltimore:
  • Ravens: Lamar always seems to find a way, man. I was worried for the Ravens towards the end of the preseason when new players seemed to be ending up on the injury report every single day. Even with a nasty pick-six early in the game, Jackson managed to pull himself together and throw for 239 yards and rush for another 108. That's one thing that I love about watching Lamar Jackson play: he always seems composed. You can tell when players are having an off game and are letting bad plays shake them up mentally. He's a really good example of how important it is just to focus on the next play instead of worrying about what happened in the past or what the scoreboard says. It was like icing on the cake when he sealed the win with a run on fourth and 1.
  • Chiefs: Like I said with the Steelers, a great defense can win you games. Unfortunately, it's looking like the opposite problem is affecting KC. Their defensive struggles are becoming more and more apparent and will end up losing them games. The only way to overcome this is for the offense to put up massive points but that hasn't happened in their first two games. It will be interesting to see what adjustments are made because, as of right now, KC is looking a lot more vulnerable than they did last season.

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