Week 5: West Holmes (4-0,1-1) at Ashland (3-1,1-0)

• ArrowGrad02

  

  West Holmes in 2012: #2 in DIII, Reg. 11
  8/24 A Triway (3-1) [4:13] Win 41-22
  8/31 H River View (1-3) [3:11] Win 55-12
  9/7 A Coshocton (1-3) [4:15] Win 41-7
  9/14 H Madison Comprehensive (3-1) [2:6] Win 31-28 2 OT
  
  Ashland in 2012: #7 DII, Reg. 7
  8/24 H Wadsworth (2-2) [1:2] Loss 28-35
  8/31 H Dover (2-2) [3:11] Win 31-14
  9/7 A Sandusky (0-4) [2:6] Win 58-7
  9/14 A Wooster (1-3) [2:7] Win 26-17
  
  P.S.- West Holmes is (4-0,1-0). Typo on my part.
• Greatwhite

  West Holmes (4-0,1-1) I guess you are already giving us the loss
• Old Rider

  

  Two completely different styles on O...this should be a great game!
• thePITman

  

  How serious was Perone's injury last week?
• ArrowGrad02

  

  Greatwhite;1273157 wrote:West Holmes (4-0,1-1) I guess you are already giving us the loss

  Sorry about that. Typo on my part. Should be another great game this year!
• jaco

  This will be a fun game to watch. Outcome depends entirely upon who imposes their style of play upon the other.
  
  Ashland's loss to Wadsworth was to another "run first" team, so it can happen. BUT, if Ashland gets out ahead and forces West Holmes to play catch up it could be a long night for the Knights. Ashland has alot of offensive weapons.
  
  Ashland was an interesting team to watch. They're very small and there's not one kid on that roster I envision playing even D3 football in college. But they execute their offense exceptionally well. You'd better bring your track shoes.
• OQB

  

  Should be a great game....two teams trying to do completely different things on offense. Saw Ashland last week, they have a pretty good ball club but IMO I don't think this team compares to the past playoff teams the Arrows have fielded.
• ArrowGrad02

  

  Doesn't compare? Can you explain your reasons as to why not?
• Greatwhite

  thePITman;1273304 wrote:How serious was Perone's injury last week?

  Serious enough. Lets just say the decision to play or not will be made later in the week
• wallyk

  This Arrow team is better than last on both sides of the ball. How good is the WH secondary?
• thePITman

  

  West Holmes' secondary is not the greatest, IMO, but Arnold (played Safety against us) is the epitome of a "ball hawk" on both sides of the ball. He might be short and skinny, but he's fast and aggressive going for the ball with good ups. Great ball skills. Their other defensive backs might not have the ball skills, but they're all strong and fast athletes.
  
  Against West Holmes, we threw for our most yards of the season (364) and 2nd most TD (3), but also the most interceptions (3). Their D-line is good, though, and will cause pressure. If you can protect yourself, you should be able to throw.
• jaco

  That's an interesting point - Ashland's offensive line versus West Holmes defensive line. The key is for Ashland to get rid of the ball quickly and neutralize them. With a five receiver set you really don't have a choice but to get rid of the ball quickly. Honestly, Ashland has to have the smallest offensive line in the OCC. I was shocked. A couple of those kids can't be 5'8".
  
  If receivers aren't getting open, that could spell big trouble for Ashland. Something tells me, though, that's not going to be an issue.
  
  This game will come down to whether or not Ashland gets out on top early and minimizes turnovers.
• thePITman

  

  Don't let the fact that West Holmes is a run-dominant team make you think they can't score quickly or score in bunches. At the end of the first half, they ran a no-huddle offense against us, going the length of the field in probably about 2 minutes, all runs except for 1. Then in the 4th quarter they scored in 3 consecutive offensive plays, runs of 2, 54, and 58 yards. As explosive and dominant of a rushing attack as I've seen in a long time (outside of the Mooneys and Colerains of the world).
• Greatwhite

  jaco;1274211 wrote:That's an interesting point - Ashland's offensive line versus West Holmes defensive line. The key is for Ashland to get rid of the ball quickly and neutralize them. With a five receiver set you really don't have a choice but to get rid of the ball quickly. Honestly, Ashland has to have the smallest offensive line in the OCC. I was shocked. A couple of those kids can't be 5'8".
  
  If receivers aren't getting open, that could spell big trouble for Ashland. Something tells me, though, that's not going to be an issue.
  
  This game will come down to whether or not Ashland gets out on top early and minimizes turnovers.

  Interesting point Jaco. Triway was killing us with the short passes. We were blitzing and just couldn't get to Carmichael in time because he was getting rid of it so fast. In addition, the three receiver side was running what I call rub routes, or essentially picking for the one receiver. West holmes changed in the second half and sometimes brought a linebacker out so they could press with a safety or other db over top. We also started blitzing from the outside. Those were a couple of things that led to us breaking away and Parker's Interceptions.
• jaco

  Greatwhite;1274401 wrote:Interesting point Jaco. Triway was killing us with the short passes. We were blitzing and just couldn't get to Carmichael in time because he was getting rid of it so fast. In addition, the three receiver side was running what I call rub routes, or essentially picking for the one receiver. West holmes changed in the second half and sometimes brought a linebacker out so they could press with a safety or other db over top. We also started blitzing from the outside. Those were a couple of things that led to us breaking away and Parker's Interceptions.

  
  
  I haven't seen Triway yet this year, but I think that you're going to see a more polished, precise air attack with a more mobile QB. Ashland's QB is not someone you want to flush from the pocket. He can beat you with his feet. He was outrunning Wooster's DBs, and they're not slow. (Sloppy in coverage, yes, but not slow). Occasional pressure off the edge and collapsing the pocket is probably the name of the game. Contain and collapse!
  
  I think Wooster only had 29 rushing yards in 20 attempts, but that probably speaks more to Wooster's inability to run the football than Ashland's "run stuffing" abilities. Maybe I'm wrong there.. They just seemed a pretty small, but quick, team. But as always, Ashland is extremely well coached and disciplined in what they do. Should be one of the games of the year. Very well could be "winner take all" for the OCC.
• Mr. 300

  

  Knights continue to play solid on the offensive side, and just enough on defense to keep the string going. Back to back wins over 2 quality teams, and very physical games! Now its time to get ready for Orrville, who at any time is gonna wake up from the funk they're in.
• BRF

  

  Did I just read some respect talk from Mr. 300?
  
  BTW, I voted for ya in this game.