Family Dinner Table: Tops Sloppy Despite Lopsided 44-17 Tally Over UTEP
FB: Western Kentucky shook off the loss to Boston College and thoroughly dominated UTEP despite several significant mistakes.
Western Kentucky took care of business against UTEP. Heading into the game, winless UTEP posed some problems for WKU in certain areas, and UTEP proved to frustrate WKU a little bit. However, the Tops ultimately got it done, winning by 27 in a game that was very rarely in contention.
After a kick return for a touchdown to open the half, UTEP was down to WKU only 27-14. After WKU’s subsequent drive stalled after two first downs, the Tops punted, and UTEP made its way into field goal range. The Miners would the kick in a field goal as the Topper defense stepped up and forced a three pointer when UTEP would clearly prefer to cut the score to a single score.
WKU would then go on from that moment midway through the third quarter and keep UTEP from scoring the rest of the game.
First of all, UTEP is an 0-6 team that can play decent football. They may not have the talent, but their coaching staff knows what they’re doing, and they just need to get some talent in there and they could improve quickly. Shoutout to the Miners. They seem to have a good culture and the right formula working. They just need to build it.
WKU improves to 4-2 for the first time in a long time. The Tops are 2-0 in CUSA and sitting in prime position to move forward and have a special season. Ultimately, this game was basically a check box on the way to bigger fish to fry. The box is checked.
Now let’s see how the McCay’s break it down after the big win.
If you’re a sports fan, hopefully you have someone you can talk about your favorite team with. Well, for father-son duo David and Matt McCay, they are each other’s backboard to see if any of their ideas are of any account. Every once in a while, those bricks clank against the backboard and find their way into the bucket. Most often, it probably looks like you in your backyard shooting it off of the gutters of your house, Jackie Moon.
Heated battles may happen around the dinner table at your home, so in honor of those tense moments when you nearly roll into a fight about long snapper depth, we salute you with this series from the McCay’s. Hopefully they won’t roll into a public argument, but hey things happen.
Before and after each game, Matt and David will put their own spins on their thoughts on the matchup. In a preview article, they’ll talk about what they see, whatever that may be, whether it’s about the food at the stadium, fan experience, roster depth, or big picture football thoughts. One will go and then the other. In a postgame article, they will react with whatever vitriol or euphoria they feel at the time.
In honor of the Monday morning quarterbacks, the heated debates, the differing opinions, and the people screaming from the upper deck and their wives grabbing their arm telling them to shut up because you’re embarrassing them, this one’s for you.
Papa McCay
David’s Initial Thoughts
In our predictions, I said 42-10 and I was off by nine total points. Matt guessed 48-14 and was off by seven total. I don’t think either one of us believed that WKU would allow Lucas Carneiro #17 to attempt 3 field goals in a game. Lucas was 3-3, good from 25, 42, and a long of 54. Lucas is now 7-8 on FGs and 21-21 on XPs for a total of 42 points on the season. Trust the man more and let him kick.
UTEP came into the matchup 0-5 and struggling with turnovers and penalties. The Miners only committed two late penalties for 13 yards and threw one interception. So why did UTEP only score 17 points? The WKU defense was dominant on Thursday night, allowing only 330 yards, most of them late in the game as they were trying to catch up, while WKU had in younger players. Western’s defense held both UTEP quarterbacks to 14-24 passing for 178 yards one TD and one interception combined and QB ratings of 35 and 14. UTEP had nine offensive plays greater than 10 yards, and only one greater than 20.
The bright spot for UTEP was Ezell Jolly #22 who had 27 rushes for 127 yards. Kenny Odom #6 caught a well blocked and poorly defended (due to mistimed blitz) screen pass that went for 76 yards and a TD.
Thoughts About WKU
WKU’s offense amassed 482 yards total, including 218 yards rushing. Western scored five TDs and three field goals, had 20 first downs and was 4-4 on 4th down. A nice yards and point explosion at home after a 20 point outing on the road in Boston.
Caden Veltcamp #10 had an ok outing, completing 18/27 passes for 264 yards passing, three TDs, and one interception. Caden added 13 rushes for 29 yards and a TD. Veltcamp’s ball control was better this week, only throwing one interception on a deflected pass at the goal line in the first quarter.
This was the best rush offense I’ve seen WKU have in a long time with 218 yards as a team. Led by Elijah Young #3 with 60 yards, George Hart III #9 with 55, and K.D. Hutchinson #15 for 46, the Tops ran the ball by committee. This is the fifth straight game of more than 100 yards rushing, and WKU now averages 120 yards rushing per game.
The Western receiving corps was explosive with several long receptions in this game. Michael Mathison #4 had a special game with two catches for two TDs and added two rushes and another TD. Easton Messer #8 led WKU receivers with six catches for 106, including a beautiful catch and run for 57 yards. Kisean Johnson #0 had another five receptions for 82 yards.
As I said earlier, the defense had a great game limiting points to 10. There were some missed blocks and assignments that led to a UTEP 100 yard kickoff return for a TD. Western did commit 5 penalties for 50 yards. The officials did not call any penalties on the Miners until the fourth quarter, but they missed several obvious pass interference, holding, and face mask penalties. I say obvious, because my wife complained about them, and she rarely complains about officiating.
Hey Western wins and moves on. Now, its on to Huntsville, Texas on Wednesday against the Sam Houston State University Bearkats. This game initially looks like a coin toss game opens with WKU as 2.5 point underdogs.
GO TOPS!!!
Young Buck McCay
Big Red Helmets
The major news besides Western getting to 2-0 in CUSA is the WKU Equipment Room once again playing chess and not checkers. A truly unique helmet design, WKU donned these beauties in the likeness of WKU’s legendary mascot, Big Red.
How cool are these?!?
Support the Tops
Yeah unfortunately WKU’s crowd was pitiful. Barely over 12,000 people is frustrating. This team is 4-2 and looks like a legit team. A lot of people had their fall breaks canceled because of the issues in Florida and the mountains. Show up!
Breaking it Down
When you head into the meat of your schedule but have a clearly inferior opponent, your goal is to take care of business and never really have it be in doubt. That box is checked. WKU took the early lead, led 27-7 at half, and never led by any less than 13. They also shut out the Miners after allowing ten straight points early in the second half. That’s how you take care of business!
But Then Again…
There were plenty of things for WKU to need to work on. A major concern was the kick return for touchdown. Once WKU plays the class of the league (like this week against Sam Houston), horrible coverage like that kick, when the guy makes one cut and is past the entire special teams unit and takes it to the house. If the other team is going to make an explosive play like that, let them earn it. Let it be some crazy individual play rather than no less than three or four guys out of position.
Another big one was the 76 yard touchdown reception to UTEP’s Kenny Odom. A beautiful play design where his guys dragged WKU’s defenders past them just in time for Odom to catch the ball and have two convenient blockers. That was a really nice play design, and WKU happened to call the wrong defense on top of a couple of mistakes, and the play was busted for 76 yards. That has not been a very common occurrence this season, and it’s something that cannot happen in much closer games.
WKU’s offensive line was looking other-worldly, but they have come back to Earth some. Now, let’s be fair: Boston College had some freaks, and UTEP, despite the winless campaign, leads the conference in sacks. However, over half of WKU’s sacks have come in the last two weeks. They gave up three more this week. Through six games, the WKU offensive line can only give up a few more sacks to match last season’s (historically low) total. 20 sacks given in a regular season is perfectly reasonable, but the more concerning thing is the trend. Is WKU’s O-Line going to solidify and quit making significant mistakes? Or will they shore up their protection and keep Veltkamp and Finley (if he’s ever healthy enough) and the running backs safe?
Despite an excellent overall defensive effort, WKU still massively struggles to stop teams on third down. When it’s 50/50 that you can get off the field on third down, you’re relying on early down turnovers to keep your opponent off of the scoreboard. WKU is allowing exactly 50 percent conversions on third downs for the season, and this game was actually worse than 50 percent. This is a must fix for the WKU defense. The defense is rising quickly in terms of yards allowed, points allowed, and turnovers forced. However, if they can’t stop somebody on third down, they’re praying for luck to be had instead of being solid enough to go out and get the stop.
Breaking Down the Quarterback
Caden Veltkamp was also not his very best this game. He is getting better at getting down and not taking as many hits (thank God), although he still takes a few more than I would like. My guess is the guy is pretty sore because he holds on to the ball and takes big hits in the field. Yes, he’s a big guy and can sustain more than a 5’10” 180 pound quarterback could take, but it’s deeply concerning.
On top of the hits he’s taking, he’s still making some poor to average decisions that sometimes cost his team. On his lone interception, he had his running back for a much more simple play than throwing over the middle. It’s incredibly unlikely that he throws a good ball and anyone stops Elijah Young from securing the football for the much more straightforward score.
There was also a play where the Tops ran some vertical patterns (I believe one was a wheel) and Dalvin Smith is running outside of the numbers. Out of shotgun, Veltkamp takes a three step drop, hitches up, and pats the ball and hesitates. Meanwhile, Dalvin Smith is running wide open waiting on the ball. Veltkamp hesitates and then throws it, allowing the defender to catch up and make a play. These are minor things that come with experience. Still a young QB, Caden is coming along. But he’s making mistakes.
Another thing I noticed about him. On one play, he had no sense of the pocket, no sense of the edge rusher, and he gets absolutely plastered. He held on to the ball, didn’t slide around in any way, and easily could have had a sack fumble and the ball skittering around in the WKU backfield. His left tackle needs to do a better job, but he’s got to recognize danger.
Overall, he’s coming along, and WKU’s best offensive games have come with Caden Veltkamp leading the offense.
TJ Finley in a Boot but More Mobile
In sitting directly behind the bench, you can see plenty of things. One thing to note was TJ Finley. First of all, what a good guy. Injured and out for the foreseeable future, he’s engaged on the sideline and still carries a presence. One thing I did notice is he’s still in a boot, but he absolutely put some weight on his bad foot and even hopped once or twice reaching for a ball on the sideline.
Since he’s still in a boot, it seems obvious he will not be back for another few weeks, but he is definitely healing and body language tells me he may be available sometime before the season is over.
Michael Mathison is Back!
WKU has several receiver that contribute and have shown ability in the past. Dalvin Smith, Kisean Johnson, and Easton Messer are all very good options that have produced. All three have at least two touchdowns, and Messer has had not one but two touchdowns called back.
They’re very productive, but a known quantity previously missing has been Michael Mathison. Until this game, Mathison had three catches for 21 yards, 12 yards on three carries, and zero touchdowns. This game, he was incredibly valuable in the red zone, finding the end zone in both the passing game and the run game.
You have to feel great for him after such a long journey back from injury. Mathison was one of WKU’s most reliable receivers three seasons ago. Injury last season kept him out all year, and he had been battling new injuries in both game one and game two.
This guy adds a real end zone threat if he’s firing on all cylinders.
Keys to Victory
Don’t Lighten Up, Tighten Up!: C+
On the one hand, WKU did clear up some issues from earlier in the year. However, new ones arrived. Two huge plays allowed UTEP to score 14 of its 17 points. Otherwise, WKU’s defense basically allowed three points and 250 total yards. Instead, much more pedestrian numbers resulted. As far as tightening up issues, honestly WKU added some more concerns. The good news is those mistakes should have the players’ attention instead of feeling entitled and assured of victory going forward. WKU is going to have to continue to improve, or silly mistakes could be their undoing.
1 Ball, 2 Ball, 3 Ball: B-
To explain, this refers to the types of throws Caden Veltkamp makes. A 1 ball is a bullet, a 2 ball is a pass with both zip and touch, and a 3 ball is a pass with plenty of air under it. Veltkamp was better than a few of his games, but he still made some freshman mistakes. A couple of the hits he took were completely his fault. The interception was his fault. Perhaps a differently thrown ball in that case would have helped prevent a batted ball turned interception.
Keep UTEP Under 25 Points: A+
I told y’all that UTEP would struggle to score unless WKU just allowed them to. On the one hand, a kick return for a touchdown is not good. However, even so, Western gave up 17 points, and 14 of those points were on boneheaded mistakes by the coverage. WKU did what it was supposed to do here, and it wasn’t even really close to being any more than what was allowed.
Turnover Party: D+
Although WKU forced a turnover, there was little threat of a turnover other than the one. With a team like UTEP that turns the ball over multiple times per game, it didn’t really feel like the Tops got that close to a second turnover. Besides not committing penalties, this was how UTEP was able to be in the game for a little bit despite getting dominated in most areas.
Sack Race: C+
On the one hand, three sacks defensively is plenty of havoc wreaked to cause some problems. On the other, giving up three to match it takes away a lot of that benefit. WKU gets a slightly passing grade on this because the Tops did generally control the line of scrimmage. We’ll give them a little credit but not a ton.
Conclusion: Check that One Off the List
I think we both are fairly pleased with the performance, but we also know the Tops have their work cut out for them at Sam Houston. At 5-1 against a fairly respectable schedule, SHSU is not a team WKU can afford to just allow to do whatever they want.
This next one is also a game on the road against a Texas crowd. Even if they don’t pull significant numbers, I always thought Texas crowds had good energy and helped their teams out some.
UTEP is in the books. We’re happy with the result. As long as you win, there’s nothing really to panic about. However, the Tops need to lock in and be ready for what could be one of the better battles in all of college football this week.
It’s now the meat of Conference USA season in football, basketball news is springing up, Volleyball and Soccer are deep in CUSA play and prepping for the postseason, and the Topper calendar is in full swing. Don’t you want to be connected with the only WKU outlet that provides real, unbiased perspective with live tweeting, breaking news, a podcast, and full-length articles? No one else does exactly what we do, and it’s all for FREE! There’s no charge for the one stop shop that is The Towel Rack!
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GO TOPS!!!!