Shawn Jones is in his tenth season as the radio play-by-play voice of Mules football, basketball and baseball. In addition to his radio and television duties as host of Sportspage, he is UCM's Associate Athletic Director for External Relations in charge of marketing, promotions, media relations, fund-raising events and special events. Greg Hassler is in his ninth season as the sideline reporter and pre and post-game host for Mules broadcasts. He is the Sports Director of flagship stations 1450 KOKO and The Bar 98.5 FM. Joe Moore and Bob Jackson will provide color analysis this season and Moore will also contribute to this column. Jackson has been a part of the UCM broadcast team since 1981 and is UCM's Athletics Promotions Coordinator and Web Manager. Moore is a former Mules football player and UCM Athletic Media Relations Director. He is now an instructor in UCM's Department of Communication.

  by Joe Moore
  Central Football Radio Analyst
  September 2, 2009

 

Five Things We Learned

With their 39-28 win over Southwest Baptist last Thursday, the University of Central Missouri Mules taught us some things. Some we knew, some we didn’t, but all are relevant.

1 - Eric Czerniewski is one heck of a quarterback. The MIAA’s co-Offensive Player of the Week with a 29-for-41, four TD, 354 yard night. He hit eight different receivers, meaning he is adept at finding the open man and spreading the ball around. He did just enough in avoiding the rush to keep drives alive. And he led his team back from a second half deficit. Eric has truly developed from his freshman year to be one of the elite quarterbacks in the always quarterback-heavy MIAA. As long as he is behind center I believe the Mules have a chance.

2 - We have a Fast pair of tailbacks. That’s Fast with a capital “F.” Not since the days of Kegan Coleman and Lee Thompson have the Mules had a pair of scat backs with the ability to take it to the house on any given play. But with Anthony Stewart and Tywon Hubbard in the backfield, defenses will not just be able to sit back and force Czerniewski to throw underneath. Whether catching a screen pass and taking it 70 yards, as Stewart did on the Mules’ first play from scrimmage in ’09, or rattling off runs of 16 and 11 yards on successive plays, as Hubbard did in the third quarter, the Mules’ ball carriers appear to have the vision and patience to give would be tackles fits.

3 - It takes a lot longer than three weeks of fall practice for an offensive line to come together. This is not a new revelation. The Mules had to replace three starters from 2008. That means getting to know one another’s line calls, strengths and weaknesses, and building trust. That doesn’t come in practice. That comes from game action, when your body is beaten down, you are facing third and short or fourth and the game and knowing your buddy is going to take care of his business so you can take care of yours.
One thing is for sure, though, four sacks is too many. Also, three times the Mules had to use two plays to get the ball in from inside the two yard line. Those are gut-check downs where offensive linemen should be licking their chops: the defense knows you’re gonna run, and you want to show who’s boss!

NOW, on the flip side, twice the Mules converted on fourth-and-eight for touchdowns, once when Czerniewski hit tight end DeMarco Cosby for a 25 yard touchdown in the first quarter, and again when Czerniewski found Hubbard for a 30-yard score in the fourth. Rarely in a SEASON does an offense convert twice on fourth and long. That speaks to some talented offensive line play that gave the Mules’ signal caller enough time to convert those plays. I expect to see major improvements this Saturday as the Union gets a chance to look at film, learn from its successes and failures, and take the next step.

4 - Defenses can't let opponents gain big yards on first down. On first down, you want to hold your opponent to at most three yards. This forces long yardage situations on second down, and really limits the playbook. It also tends to keep the field position battle in your favor.

Southwest Baptist averaged almost 5.6 yards per play on first down. They had eight plays of 11 yards or longer, three of 23 or longer. Twice they escaped holes deep in their own end of the field. Granted, five times the Mules dropped SBU for losses on first down, and 10 times the Bearcats were stopped for no gain. THAT is what you want on first down. Tilt the scale more in that direction, and this Mules defense is going to be formidable for any opponent this fall.

5 - Those new all-red unis are SWEET! I can’t say that the black numbers on red jerseys are radio broadcaster friendly, but at least they have a thick white border to make them stand out. I always wanted us to get red pants when I played, but heck, I just wanted grass stains on my pants when I played! To whomever made this uniform decision, Well done!

"View From The Press Box" is published every Wednesday throughout the football season.