1. The drive that could have been. With a 14-6 lead, Western Kentucky had a 2nd-and-goal on the Louisville 1-yard line late in the third quarter, instead of punching it in, the Hilltoppers lose 15-yards on consecutive plays. To cap off the travesty of errors on the drive, Ryan Nuss had his 32-yard field goal attempt blocked and returned to the WKU 31-yard line, which eventually led to a Cardinals touchdown on a Dae Williams 1-yard run. That seven-point swing turned out to be a costly one.
2. Shanley shines. In Drew Eckels' absence, it was Steven Duncan that got the start for the Hilltoppers on Saturday. However, it was Davis Shanley who shined the brightest under center against the Cardinals. The redshirt freshman finished with 240 yards, connecting on 22 of 33 attempts for one touchdown. Sure, there were a couple of ill-advised passes and times Shanley held on to the ball to long and gave up some field position. He's young and that's expected. Overall though, he seems to be a viable, productive option as the Tops wait for their starting quarterback to return.
3. Hello, running game. It's been a while. While WKU didn't out rush the Cardinals on Saturday night, the did tally 168 yards on the ground and that's a total we haven't seen from this offense in quite sometime. D'Andre Ferby led the way with 74 yards on 16 attempts for an average of 4.6 per carry.
4. A bright future in LaFrance and Samuels. Since the running game went for over 100, I figured it deserves some more praise. Particularly when it comes to a couple of young bucks in redshirt freshman Joshua Samuels and true freshman Garland Lafrance. The two combined for 80 yards on only 12 carries for an average of 6.7 per carry. LaFrance also had five catches for 20 yards.
My offensive strategy moving forward: find more ways to get these two the ball.
5. Not your Maine's Hilltoppers. Sure, the Hilltoppers blew another double-digit lead for the second consecutive week, but this time it was a more exciting environment to do it in - on the road at Louisville. In doing so, the Tops figured out how to run the ball, they have a very respectable backup quarterback, and their defense will keep them in ball games. Those are some positives to build on moving forward the rest of the season.
Now, if they can just figure out how to stop getting their field goals blocked.
2. Shanley shines. In Drew Eckels' absence, it was Steven Duncan that got the start for the Hilltoppers on Saturday. However, it was Davis Shanley who shined the brightest under center against the Cardinals. The redshirt freshman finished with 240 yards, connecting on 22 of 33 attempts for one touchdown. Sure, there were a couple of ill-advised passes and times Shanley held on to the ball to long and gave up some field position. He's young and that's expected. Overall though, he seems to be a viable, productive option as the Tops wait for their starting quarterback to return.
3. Hello, running game. It's been a while. While WKU didn't out rush the Cardinals on Saturday night, the did tally 168 yards on the ground and that's a total we haven't seen from this offense in quite sometime. D'Andre Ferby led the way with 74 yards on 16 attempts for an average of 4.6 per carry.
4. A bright future in LaFrance and Samuels. Since the running game went for over 100, I figured it deserves some more praise. Particularly when it comes to a couple of young bucks in redshirt freshman Joshua Samuels and true freshman Garland Lafrance. The two combined for 80 yards on only 12 carries for an average of 6.7 per carry. LaFrance also had five catches for 20 yards.
My offensive strategy moving forward: find more ways to get these two the ball.
5. Not your Maine's Hilltoppers. Sure, the Hilltoppers blew another double-digit lead for the second consecutive week, but this time it was a more exciting environment to do it in - on the road at Louisville. In doing so, the Tops figured out how to run the ball, they have a very respectable backup quarterback, and their defense will keep them in ball games. Those are some positives to build on moving forward the rest of the season.
Now, if they can just figure out how to stop getting their field goals blocked.
