Second viewing thoughts and grades: Central Michigan

[UPDATE: Sorry for the chopped copy and typos. I wrote it late Sunday and pushed out a draft instead of the final.]

Addazio thinks his issues are injuries. The reality is that it is offense. This game reinforced that. Addazio waste scoring opportunities and that is a primary reason why these games can be frustrating live and rewatching. This week the place to point was the FG attempts. But there was more than that. Fumbles on potential scoring drives. Bad execution on a few critical plays. If anything, Addazio's recruiting (i.e. superior talent) is what won this game. Not some sort of brilliant game plan or great adjustment.

Offense: B-

They kept it simple for Brown and he was fine. Mostly short passes. He is still not as accurate as we need. There were times when he threw behind guys and they had to stop or adjust. I did appreciate that he was more willing to tuck and run as needed.

Dillon was over 100 yards for the first time. Much of that was behind good holes from the line but he did make a few reads and cuts that were good. Hilliman was productive too. The TDs are a big deal, although it felt like it was less about him making a big play. More like it was his turn on the drive. 

The OLine was good. The only big mistake -- the safety -- seemed more like an unaccounted for corner rushing in. I don't think that was a missed assignment on Montiero. Petrula had a snap issue, but in general played well. There were lots of big holes on the right side.

I don't know why our WRs can't break bigger plays. I guess, I am glad they are showing solid hands and pulling things in, but where are the big runs after the catch? The three main targets -- Sweeney, White and Smith -- were fine but we didn't open things up nor break anything open. Thadd Smith got swallowed up on his one sweep. Sometimes he might need to read and cut up field. 

It seemed like BC wanted to run the ball and given the field position, it made sense. BC never really put Brown at risk and did what it needed to do. But that doesn't mean the Loeffler didn't have some issues. There were some slow developing plays -- the first 4th down, the safety -- that are so frustrating given the time and place of the game. In those moments, execution is primary and we continue to look sloppy. 

Defense: A-

Landry is basically our defensive decoy. I understand moving him around. I don't love the idea of him getting snaps at LB. Anyway, while he is getting all the attention, it enabled the rest of the DL to have their best games. Ray looked good. Allen had some big plays. Ray Smith was solid.

Bletzer keeps playing better than I thought he would. He's blown up that quick pass to the flat multiple times. He's making tackles. Lamont is very active too. New LBs sometimes seem a step behind the play, but Lamont is pursuing with authority. Schwab was good. 

Denis is having a great year. I know many of his INTs are just bad throws that he is waiting on as sort of a center fielder. But he is still tackling well. Still doing well in coverage. Harris was fine. He's active but I still feel like he is also missing some guys too. Yiadom and Moore were both good. 

One thing that bothered me -- and I feel like it is becoming an issue -- was the continued missed tackling. How many times did Central Michigan extend a play when the initial tackler didn't make a stip and no one helped? Reid and Addazio need to fix that issue. Reid didn't need to do much creatively. Central Michigan played that poorly.

Special Teams: B+

The only reason for the lower Special Teams grade was due to the missed field goals. I hope they don't become an issue.

Walker really shined. I know CMU screwed up the punts and coverage, but Walker still made good decisions on fielding them and was very aggressive on the returns. Those returns calmed the O and changed the game.

Knoll was good. The kickoffs were fine. It didn't make a difference but I thought it was interesting that BC elected to kick after the safety instead of punt.

Overall: B-

I hope he learned his lesson on 4th down, but my fear is Addazio did not learn anything. I think he still views game plans as those reserved for powers and those used against weaklings. What he should see on 4th is that good things happened on one of the drives, leading to a score. And on failed attempt, it did not lead to CMU points directly. 

If Dillon is really banged up than keeping him on the field late will be viewed as another mistake. I actually have no quibble with Dillon getting caries late. He's young and the idea is to help him grow and develop. More snaps does that.

Beyond strategy and player usage, the one thing that I do give Addazio credit for is not doing a full panic when Central Michigan got the safety early. When things are going poorly, a moment like that can seem like "here we go again." But it wasn't. Instead the team stuck with the game plan and overpowered Central Michigan.

BC should have scored more. BC should have tackled better. But in the end, they did enough to win. I don't feel better about Addazio, but I hope this serves as a boost to the team.