Daily Vanguard

September 24th, 2008

Football Practice Log: Wednesday, September 24

Anyone who has interacted with Portland State head coach Jerry Glanville for more than a few minutes of chummy conversation knows that he is rarely serious. 

Glanville has been known to poke fun at local TV personalities while on camera. 

He called starting linebacker and now NFL talent Jordan Senn the “Javelin Thrower” months into last season when the two-sport athlete might have been his best player. 

And the Man in Black often tries to jog his way down the practice field on cool mornings, to find that he can handle only about 10 yards before slowing to an ambling saunter. 

Glanville likes to kid TV sportscasters. Glanville likes to kid his players. Glanville even likes to kid Glanville. 

With this said, when Glanville is actually serious for a second, not only is it a rarity but it is also a moment where absolute concentration is necessary. 

One of those moments occurred following practice Tuesday morning. 

After Glanville had ran through the lengthy list of injuries his players has sustained versus the Cougars Saturday, he looked forward to playing Sacramento State this weekend and deviated from his typically trite approach to interviews. 

“This is big,” Glanville said about the Vikings’ upcoming matchup with Big Sky foe Sacramento State. 

The look on Glanville’s face was of a man and coach that had just suffered through a pair of tough road losses. 

Glanville went on to state the not only is this Portland State’s first conference matchup but is also a formidable challenge for his team because the Hornets have improved greatly since the Vikings defeated them on a fourth-quarter prayer a season ago. 

Based on Sacramento State’s performance thus far, it appears Glanville is spot on. 

Here’s a breakdown of what the Vikings can expect versus Sacramento State, who is 2-2 overall and 0-1 in the Big Sky after losing to Weber State last weekend: 

Offense: 

The biggest difference between Sacramento State and Portland State is that the Hornets actually boast a balanced offensive attack. 

Sacramento State averages almost 193 yards on the ground per contest and 216 yards through the air. On the contrary, the Vikings and their pass-happy run-and-shoot scheme gain gobs of yards through the air and less than a few on the ground. 

Watch for running back Evander Wilkins, who has a 5.5 yards-per-carry average and picks up nearly 103 rushing yards a game, to make his presence known in a large way against a Portland State defense that has been slashed for sizable gains almost a will. 

Tony Washington is another player Portland State players and fans should keep an eye on. In four games this season, Washington has amassed 425 receiving yards, with an 18.5 yards-per-reception average and three scores. 

Washington owns a pair of solid hands and happens to be a receiver that is always in the right place at the right time. Last season he pulled in a 44-yard game-winning touchdown pass off a deflection in the waning moments to defeat Northern Colorado. 

Some players simply make plays. Sure that is what every player is supposed to do, but there are those special ones that make a habit of being playmakers. 

With 23 catches and a 67-yard reception under his belt, Washington is surely one of those players: a playmaker. 

This could make for a nightmare for the Portland State secondary. 

But some relief will come the Vikings’ way. 

Just as the football gods had planned, the same uncertainty Portland State has faced at the quarterback position this season will be mirrored by the Hornets on Saturday. 

Sacramento State’s top quarterbacks, McLeod Bethel-Thompson and Jason Smith, will likely be unavailable for Saturday’s matchup. With their top two signal callers on the shelf, the Hornets will be forced to turn to sophomore Duncan White, who has yet to make a start in the college ranks. 

An obvious key will be how Glanville’s patent 3-4 scheme attacks White. Will Glanville apply the pressure with a blitz or two from the corner? Will he disguise the call as a blitz and retreat to coverage? Will he send secondary players to change things up? 

Those questions might answer this one: Will the Vikings pull out the victory? 

Defense:
  

Things will be a bit different for the Vikings this weekend. 

The fact of the matter is Portland State is not facing off against a squad that is as pitiful at stopping the run as Washington State, because the Hornets are almost the model of excellence when it comes to stymieing the opposition’s rushing attack. 

Sacramento State has given up an average of 78 rushing yards per contest this season and has only had three rushing touchdowns scored on them in four games. Now that is much better than the Cougar’s 230 rushing yards a game allowed. 

With that said, Portland State will have to stick to passing the ball against the Hornets, which should not be a problem for the Vikings. Offensive coordinator Mouse Davis has not been afraid of dialing up the pass this season, calling for his quarterbacks to throw about 80 percent of the time. 

The good news for the Vikings is that the run-and-shoot should be effective against the Hornet’s defense. Sacramento State allows a fairly substantial 260 passing yards per game and gives up almost 15 yards per catch, a stat that tells Portland State, “You have the green light.” 

And when a team shows Mouse the green light the results are usually unfavorable for the opponent. 

Practice notes: Glanville continued to mix, match and swap out the components of his defense Wednesday morning. 

On some plays, senior Aaron Dickson would line up at strong safety. Then other plays junior Jordan Brown would fill in at cornerback. And on other snaps, freshman Cody Worthen would expend so much energy playing free safety that secondary coach Alundis Brice would have to yell for him to grab some water. 

Worthen’s extended playing time was not only the result of his fine performance versus Washington State, but also due to an injury to starter Chris Assily. Dropping back to intercept an erred pass from Kramer Hagan, Assily collided with linebacker Eloka Anyaorah. 

Assily laid on the ground holding his right knee for a few minutes, as Glanville and his coaching staff let their mouths gape in disbelief. Luckily for the Vikings, Assily returned to his feet after about five minutes and spent the rest of practice with ice on the knee. 

The injury seemed less than serious, which will make it interesting whether Assily practices on Thursday. 

But the secondary was not the only place on the defense that experienced some reshaping, as Anyaorah also took several snaps with the first-team defense. Glanville said Tuesday that with junior outside linebacker Ryan Pedersen recovering from shoulder injury, Anyaorah may have more opportunities than usual against the Hornets. 

One more note on the secondary, strong safety Michael Wightman’s inability to properly cover the flat on screen passes has forced him into Glanville and Brice’s proverbial dog house. It is commonplace for Wightman to take a verbal lashing a few times every morning. 

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 24th, 2008 at 9:46 pm and is filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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