Bobcat Game Day Notebook: Weber State
10/18/2014 12:43:00 PM | Football
Montana State plays its only October home game today
Everybody sees the '0-6- next to Weber State in the Big Sky Conference standings. But Montana State head football coach Rob Ash says he's not worried about his ninth-ranked Bobcats looking past the winless Wildcats today, for a simple reason.
"Video," says MSU's eighth-year head coach. "That's been a blessing for us.Our players all watch video, and they can see how good Weber State is and how competitive they've been."
Since losing the opener at Arizona State 45-14, the Wildcats have been extremely competitive. WSU lost to three-time defending national champion North Dakota State 24-7 in a game that was contested well into the fourth quarter in game two. Since then, Weber State lost 42-31 at Sacramento State, 35-20 at Stephen F. Austin, 31-28 at Southern Utah, and 30-24 to Cal Poly.
"They have a quarterback who really throws the ball well, two excellent running backs in Zach Smith and Bo Bolen, a speed receiver and a big receiver with good length," Ash said. "They have talented players across their entire defense. Weber State is a very talented football team."
* * * * *
The Bobcats face several personnel issues today. Running back Anthony Knight will serve a one-game suspension, and defensive end Garrett Marino was dismissed from the team this week. Defensive backs Eryon Barnett and Bryson Keeton are game-time decisions with injuries. Receiver Tanner Roderick is expected to start at the Z spot.
* * * * *
Montana State's recent offensive fireworks have been well-documented, and Ash has a fundamental reason for that success.
"We've really done a good job taking care of the football lately," he said. "Early in the year we averaged two turnovers a game. We'ver only turned it over twice in the last three games, and last week we didn't turn it over at all. That's an important factor."
* * * * *
Turnover margin has been an important factor for Weber State, as well. The Wildcats have turned the ball over 13 times in six games, while taking it away just three times. "We need to create some takeaways today," Ash said.
* * * * *
Ash said the team's recent offensive pyrotechnics - 136 points in the last two games - don't linger in front of his team. "We don't challenge our offense to score more points than it did the week before," he said. "We want the offense to play an efficient, clean game and score enough points to win. That's our goal each week."
