your logo could be here

THE ILLNESS: An 0-2 start to conference play.

THE MEDICINE: A conference win!

After suffering what seemed like an unexplained “team illness”, the first 0-2 start in conference play in a long, long time, Ft Hays State was just the “medicine” the Mules needed to begin “the road back to recovery”. It’s a long road back, but the Mules had to start somewhere. What better place than with the new conference “doormat”? I say this, not out of any disrespect to the Tigers and their fans. Ft Hays, likewise, has to start somewhere and this is their debut season in perhaps the toughest conference in Division II College Football?

I call Ft Hays the “doormat” for the simple fact that they are an 0-5 team whose average margin of loss is greater than any team in the conference, both overall (losing by 24 points per game) and in three conference games (where they’ve lost by over 30 points per game). Now, to give them a little hint of credit, those three games were against good teams in Emporia, Washburn, and Central. They too will get a reprieve this Saturday as they take on 0-5 SBU. Someone will come out of Bolivar, Missouri with their first win in 2006 and the other will still be a “doormat”. Doormats are good medicine for teams trying to find themselves.

FURTHER DIAGNOSIS:

An optimist would say the Mules are just 7 points from being 5-0, but the realist would say, the fact of the matter is that they are still 3-2. I don’t want to get into what the pessimist would say, because pessimists are losers in my book. Now, there are three other teams in the conference who would love to be 3-2 right now, but in Warrensburg, Missouri, this being the “last place team in the middle tier” of the MIAA is strange territory.

Link To MIAA Standings

I said it before, and I’ll say it again, the Mules will pretty much have to “Win Out” to make the post-season. The simple reasoning is a three-loss team usually has to rely on “factors” often beyond their control to keep the season alive into the second half of November. Those “factors” include…

…how other top teams in the conference fair…
…the comparative Strength of Schedule (SSI)…
…and even the subjective opinion of a committee at season’s end.

So here at the midpoint of the regular season, let’s not talk about things that are beyond the team’s control. The post-season while still a distinct “possibility”, is along way from being a “probability”. So instead, let’s talk about things the team can control and grade the team in these “controllable” areas, which are…

…Blocking, Running, Passing, Catching, Pass Defense, Run Defense, Tackling, Kicking, Punting, Kick & Punt Returning, and Kick & Punt Blocking.

THE CURE:

BLOCKING:

The post-season will not happen unless the “Union” makes a marked improvement, especially in the area of pass blocking. I say this with some of the better opposing defenses in the conference still ahead on the schedule. While Toby is still perfect in regard to not having thrown a single pick in five games, he has not had the kind of time he has needed to look at all his downfield options and furthermore has been sacked, hurried, and hit way to much. Can you imagine what kind of year he would be having if he had more time to make decisions in the backfield? Grade… …and I’m being kind… C-

RUNNING:

Let’s face it, Will Caldwell has been less than 100% on the season and we have seen heavy doses of Jeremy Braden as a result. Braden is a good utility back, but he has not proven to be a game breaker. Will Caldwell still has that kind of “game breaker” potential if he can get healthy and unleash it. The “Union” will also, obviously, continue to play a role in this potential outcome. Grade for the rushing game… C+

PASSING:

I’ll save the criticism on the passing game for the write-up on “Catching”. When we’re talking about the passing game with regard to “Passing”, TK couldn’t do much better. 300 more yards passing last Saturday, 2 TDs and still 0 INT's on the season. What’s so amazing is that Toby has been doing it week after week now while nursing himself back to health. He hasn’t been 100% yet for a conference game. Since this isn’t an evaluation on the QB overall, but a look into the area of “passing”, there’s no where to go with this except to say TK has been as close to perfect as a college QB can be. Grade… A

CATCHING:

Anyone who has been around the Mules for a few years can only imagine what it would be like to have Delanie Walker or Todd Devoe lined up at wideout for TK to throw to. The Mules desperately need a playmaker on offense. I say this and will add that we don’t necessarily need a future NFL'er out there like Walker or Devoe; just 1 or 2 guys of the following caliber would make this offense very dangerous for opposing defenses: Greg Schmidt, Kevin Nickerson, Nate Thomas, Don Robinson, Jimmy Connor, Jamison Heiskell, Micah Heffner.  Do any of these guys have any eligibility left? I love Mike Spiegel and Matt Jacobsen as they are tenacious football players, but neither one, thus far, has proven to be a playmaker. Chad Ridley hasn’t shown us much at all? Toby Korrodi went a respectable 20-of-33 for 300 yards and two touchdowns, yet here’s a telling stat for ya and the reason why you’ll see the Passing grade is so high and the Catching grade so low. Of the 13 incomplete passes last week, 10 of them were drops! Unacceptable! Can someone besides Ted Maxwell please catch the dang ball? Grade… D. Only thanks to Teddy.

OVERALL OFFENSE… C+

* * * * *

PASS DEFENSE:

Central leads the MIAA in pass defense efficiency. Opponents have scored only 1 passing TD against the Mules in 5 games and completed less than half of their attempts. All-American Kendall Ricketts tied an MIAA record last week for his 4th career INT returned for a TD; and he’s just a Junior. Opponents don’t even throw to Bruce Williams side of the field any more. Grade… A

RUN DEFENSE:

About the only vulnerability the Mules have shown is to teams who have a big strong back who can pound it up the middle, but even then, they tend to bend and not break refusing to give up the big run play and being excellent . Adrian Singletary has recovered 2 fumbles. Grade… B+

TACKLING:

It’s very difficult to offer much criticism of this defense. They are fast and they tackle well. Whether it’s the D-Line, the LBs, or even the D-Backs, they all tackle well. Andrew Jilles has 3 sacks and 6 tackles for loss on the season thus far and Rod Washington has 5 tackles for loss. Grade… A-

OVERALL DEFENSE… A-

* * * * *

KICKING:

Spencer Webb is a perfect 23 for 23 on Extra Points on the season and a respectable 9 of 13 on FGs, but he missed a couple of chip shots last week and a key attempt in the Washburn game several weeks ago. Some are down on him, but I have to continue giving him love for now. Grade… B

PUNTING:

Matt Frankel is a close 2nd in the conference in punting, as an individual, but as a team, the Mules lead the MIAA in “Net Punting” allowing only 25 total return yards after 18 punts. Grade… A

KICK & PUNT RETURNING:

UCM is 7th in kick returns and 5th in punt returns with a conference leading 2 PRs for TD. Since this is usually a strong area for Willie Fritz coached teams, I’ll tend to be a little more critical here, because I know the expectations are higher in Warrensburg. Some teams think of this area as an afterthought, while others make it a priority. Because it’s a priority, the fact that the Mules are deep down in the middle of the pack, they’ll get a Grade of C-.

KICK & PUNT BLOCKING:

3 blocks in 5 games. Most teams would be happy with this, but again, in Mule land, this is just enough to garner a respectable Grade of… B

OVERALL SPECIAL FORCES… B

* * * * *

So, with the Defense getting an “A”, Special Forces a “B”, and the offense a “C”, this team could do some real damage against the heavy hitters coming up if the offense can step it up a notch. The next heavy hitter arrives this Saturday; a 4-1 team in Missouri Western that played the defending national runner up, 5-0 Northwest Missouri, to a 24-21 score in Maryville.

* * * * *

Note: I apologize to anyone in the “medical profession” for my write-up this week as the analogy I used is from an area almost completely foreign to me.

Want to see your company or business logo here?

Click here to become a sponsor of MulesCentral.com!

Copyright © 2006 MulesCentral.com. All rights reserved. This website is an independent source of news and information, and is not affiliated with UCM or the NCAA.