I've been a frequent visitor to this board since SDSU joined the MVFC...but, I've been an infrequent poster (and the inner voice is telling me now is not the time to post!).
I know that SDSU's passing statistics for the season leading up the Saturday's game, were awful. On one of the threads on this board, there were a couple of posts that noted SDSU's passing game was supposed to be real solid -- at least that was the pre-season prediction. Those comments made some SDSU fans chuckle. We've been complaining about a one-dimensional offense: Zach Zenner, the nation's leading rusher, but no complimentary passing game.
However, there are some important facts that SDSU fans had to keep in mind and those facts may at least explain some of Saturday's game result.
The Jackrabbits' quarterback, Austin Sumner, was one of the top quarterbacks in the league last year -- as a red-shirt freshman who only played seven games. He was throwing to Dale Moss -- a basketball player who came out for football for just last year. (Moss is currently a receiver in the Tampa Bay organization on its practice squad with an excellent chance of making the playing roster next year.) We thought Sumner would start this season where he left off last season. But, in practice prior to the first game, Sumner dislocated his thumb on his throwing hand and it was a serious injury. About two weeks ago we started hearing the thumb was starting to come around. Obviously, by Saturday the thumb was now significantly improved and Sumner gained confidence with every throw. If you were able to watch the game, you'd note he was highly accurate.
Another fact: our expected top receiver, Aaron Rollin, took a super-hard hit in the second game against SE Louisiana and bruised his lungs. Weird injury. He was hospitalized for several days and then had to be driven back to South Dakota because the injury prevented him from flying (concern about clots). So, he was out for several games. On Saturday, it appears he was returning to form.
YSU prepared to meet a running game. Made good sense because that's all SDSU has had this year,...until Saturday. Now that our passing game has returned, we went with it. Our great running back, Zenner, had a light day and it was the first time he ran fewer than 100 yards in a game (he still averaged more than 5 yards per carry).
Every time SDSU has won this season (we're 6-2 overall, 4-1 MVFC), fans of our opponents have ripped on their teams and coaches because they lost to an inferior team. We're hoping Southern Illinois fans do that this Saturday.
I was a student at SDSU when we first started playing Youngstown in the early 1970s (Jaworski). The Youngstown games were big deals, attracting as much or more attention than some of the conference games against regular rivals. Saturday's game was a big deal -- it was our homecoming but it was also a game against a known and respected opponent. 14,966 fans showed up in less-than-ideal weather (our games also have to compete against the best pheasant hunting in the country). Met some YSU loyalists who drove in from Idaho!