WKU Football: Grading the Tops' Win at Middle Tennessee

WKU wins the 72nd version of 100 Miles of Hate to take a 36-35-1 lead in the series. How did the Tops grade out individually?

There ain’t NOTHIN’ like beating Middle Tennessee.

Ahh…

And to break a two game skid and head into a now HUGE homestand with UAB and North Texas, that’s all the bonus.

Now, we still didn’t see the best version of WKU (4-3, 2-1 C-USA). Western spotted Middle seven points on a mishandled handoff while also completely stumbling out of the gates offensively. MTSU recovered Kye Robichaux’s fumble and ran in for six seconds later. WKU was clearly in a funk to start, mainly with Austin Reed spraying the ball places he normally doesn’t, but just not quite clicking into place. It felt like WKU was in control the whole time, but falling down 14-0 could have been really devastating given WKU’s recent offensive struggles.

That didn’t happen, though, and the Tops scored the game’s next 14 points before Middle cashed in late in the second half for a field goal. Before that, MTSU (3-4, 0-3 C-USA) had seriously had issues moving the ball at all, and given the fact Middle did not find 300 yards on the night, Western’s defense really hampered a decent MTSU offense and kept them from really being able to do anything.

Finally, we saw the Tops consistently getting in the backfield, blowing up plays, forcing the impressive Chase Cunningham to get rid of the ball earlier or more off balance than he wanted. WKU only finished with one sack, but that’s not really indicative of how this game was played. I encourage you to look past that and see all of the other effects WKU’s front had on the Blue Raiders.

After halftime, WKU really took over, coming straight out of the half to go up 21-10. That was nice to see, because sometimes WKU comes out and allows a team to hang around or even take over in the third quarter. Instead, WKU finished the third quarter up 28-10 and in firm control.

Western did go for it on 4th-and-2 up 18 on its own 44 with 9:52 remaining. That was certainly the most baffling call of the game for WKU. Rick Stockstill has made a tradition of boneheaded foolishness in his time at Middle, and that’s why in 17 years he’s never won a championship. He made several silly decisions near midfield against WKU. We should be thankful Tyson Helton takes calculated risks instead of just riverboat gambling. But I still completely and vehemently disagreed with this call. If you don’t get that first down, you’re handing Middle the only possible ticket to come back. The only way a team comes back from down 18 is turnovers and quick scores.

Ultimately, two plays later, Darius Thomas delivers the ultimate backbreaker on a 42 yard interception return for a touchdown to put the Tops up 35-10. MTSU would find a way in garbage time to score a touchdown, but ultimately, WKU held MTSU to three points if you don’t really count the touchdown after the fumble from Robichaux and don’t count garbage time.

A nice victory with some clear room for improvement, let’s get into grading the Tops, starting with Keys to Victory. But first…

Side Note

In case Topper fans missed it, starting running back Kye Robichaux did leave the game with what appeared to be a wrist issue. After seeing him on the sideline and postgame interviews from Tyson Helton, who was actually very candid about his injury issues, Robichaux has a “little shoulder issue”. Interestingly, he seemed more concerned about Upton Stout’s knee, for what that’s worth. Will Robichaux return or will this end up being an AC joint? With the way he he was curling his arm, this felt more like an AC joint than a rotator cuff or labrum. With the violence of football, a lot of times that AC joint gets jammed more. You’ll see rotator/labrum issues generally with quarterbacks who get hit while throwing. He also mentioned starting left tackle Mark Goode is out for the season with his knee injury.

Grading the Keys to Victory

Stop Screwing Up: F

I was going to give the Tops a little credit, because it didn’t feel like there were as many penalties, but the penalties committed this game were more of the 15 yard variety than the 5 and 10. The Tops have just simply got to find a way to quit committing so many penalties. In seven games, WKU has one game with less than 50 yards of penalties (FIU). There’s nothing wrong with being aggressive, but the Tops just can’t avoid personal fouls for whatever reason. Some of them are fine, but it’s just a general issue that has to be cleaned up. The game CAN be played better; therefore, the Tops should attempt to play a little cleaner. Averaging nearly 70 yards per game, once stats populate in, WKU will stand outside of the top 100 in this category.

I went on a little longer than I meant to on the penalties, because there were other serious issues in this game. WKU’s offense handed MTSU seven points to start. Given that fact, good job by the WKU defense only giving up ten points, and seven came after the game was in hand by four possessions. The offense, however, really sputtered and hardly did anything in the first quarter. Also, Tyson admitted the offense sputtered late in the game, as well. Now, part of the later game issue was likely having your RB1 (Robichaux) out of the game. But the Topper offense definitely sputtered.

Also, the other main point to make this game a total F on just completely minimizing the Topper chances would be going for it on 4th-and-2 inside your own territory up 18 with less than ten minutes remaining. I know it ultimately worked out with the immediate pick-6, but what if it didn’t? Think of the likelihood of MTSU coming back with a short field down 18 vs. receiving the ball at the 20 (or less) and having to drive the field after the offense has struggled to move it all game. Keep in mind there are essentially ten minutes left in the game. The only way MTSU had any chance to get back in it was a quick score. This wasn’t 4th-and-inches. This was a solid 4th-and-2. So your odds are not much more than 50 percent that you’re going to succeed. Not only that, but you also lose two more yards and hand the ball a little closer to the goal line. I don’t want to hammer on it too much, but dude. Punt the ball. Or fake punt! That might have been an ok idea to do that. The main thing is it didn’t work and you easily could have given Middle life. Never ever self-inflict hope and momentum back into the opponent when they’re on the ropes.

Do it for the Goode Guys: A+

It’s confirmed left tackle Mark Goode is out for the season, but you couldn’t really tell by how well this WKU offensive line performed without him. Only allowing two tackles for loss and two pressures, this O-line was stout. This is now the fourth game the Topper line has held an opponent to zero sacks in seven games. I hope people appreciate how great this offensive line has been the last two years. I think this year could end up being the better unit in some ways. This is really incredible, especially if this line can survive losing the left tackle and not looking any different than before the loss.

Get Back to Chaotic Defensive Football: A

WKU was everywhere. That’s what it looked like to begin the season. Western was constantly in Chase Cunningham’s face, forcing him to make tough decisions all night. WKU had seven tackles-for-loss, forced an easy pick-six to seal the game, got one sack (on the final play), and helped keep MTSU under 300 total yards. Holding any team under 300 yards is hard to do. It’s something the Tops could not do last season. WKU’s defense was excellent against Middle.

Running Back By Committee: Just Do It: A-

They were forced to do it, but all I was asking here was to use Ervin-Poindexter and Moses some to keep the defense guessing. Robichaux has now clearly established that if he’s healthy, he’s the guy. Ervin-Poindexter seems to lack some patience in the running game and may not have the cutback vision with the ability to break tackles like Robichaux. But I was glad to see WKU trying to involve other running backs. It’s just sensible football. Even if your backups average under three per carry (15 carries, 40 yards) and only catch one ball out of the backfield (9 yards), that’s better offensive balance than the past couple of weeks. One thing I would like to see would be more Moses. DEP averages 3.1 yards per carry. Jakairi Moses averages 5.9. Moses is also much more yang to Robichaux’s yin.

Bring the Hate and Realize It’s Getting Late: B

Western definitely played hard and was engaged, so they get a pretty good grade here. However, part of this was also to be about your business and not do things that immediately decrease your chances of success. If you get stuffed, that’s one thing. But it’s getting late in the season at this point. It’s time to cut out the silly mistakes, the turnovers, the penalties. Be about your business. Who cares what anybody’s doing outside of your locker room? I think anyone watching the Tops knows the Tops knows the Tops need to quit shooting themselves in the foot.

Position Grades

Offense Overall: C

WKU’s offense finally did crest 30, but barely. Western continues to sputter, especially considering MTSU gives up well over 400 yards per game and nearly 300 yards through the air. WKU barely mustered a fairly average performance against an MTSU defense that is not very good with the exception of the defensive front. The main issue was the first half, when the Tops really struggled to do much of anything, specifically in WKU’s first four drives. Western had a total of 37 yards up to two minutes left in the first quarter. But Western also struggled a bit later in the game when looking to speed the game up and run the clock out. WKU’s fourth quarter wasn’t successful, either with only 81 yards and zero offensive points scored.

Quarterback: B-

I considered a C+, given the thrown interception, the part he played in Kye Robichaux’s fumble (exchange issue), and the overall struggle of the offense to perform at an elite level. However, after WKU’s offensive line adjusted to MTSU’s pass rush and gave Reed time, he was able to settle in, throw for over 60 percent after a rough start, and have two touchdowns to offset his one interception. He also contributed in the running game significantly with 39 net yards. On his one interception, I’m not sure if it was a conceptual issue or a hesitation issue, but Joey Beljan was open early if Reed had immediately thrown the ball. They made a nice fake to the running back, Reed held the ball behind his thigh, and I believe he just held it too long and ultimately it became triple coverage instead of Beljan one-on-one with a linebacker. Ultimately, the reason I give this man significant credit is avoiding negative plays. MTSU’s pass rush is excellent, and without his mobility and his ability to scare a defense with his legs, the Blue Raiders could have easily had four or five sacks. Some of that credit certainly goes to the offensive line, but I think the majority of the fact that there have been four games without a single sack has to go to Reed. He’s done an incredible job slithering around the pocket to avoid sacks for the most part. Give him credit there.

Running Back: D

With over 100 rushing yards from the running backs and another 18 through the air, this was a nice performance if you don’t account for the two turnovers. Unfortunately, both of those turnovers turned into 14 points for MTSU. You can’t cost your team 14 points, especially when the opponent only scored 17 total. Without turnovers, would Middle have scored at all? Maybe not. Certainly Western probably scores a touchdown or more and Middle likely wouldn’t have put up at least one of those touchdowns, if not both. Both turnovers were in WKU territory. MTSU needed 52 total yards for 14 of their 17 points. Also, this score is even lower because of the Kye Robichaux injury. That’s not blaming them, but it just sucks that he may be out for a while. He may be cleared immediately, but usually an AC joint sprain for example is both lingering and generally not something you ignored, especially when hand and grip strength is super important at your position. Besides vision, agility, and speed in open space, the very next thing a running back needs is the ability to squeeze the ball with either or both hands.

Wide Receiver: C-

Malachi Corley and Jaylen Hall were excellent. However, Daewood Davis and Michael Mathison (particularly Davis) were noticeably minimized on the stat sheet. Is Davis a little off from his big hit against UTSA? Could be. I think Middle certainly had a good corner, and they obviously did a good job trying to minimize WKU’s best receiver. Whatever the details, the WRs were not their best Saturday, although they weren’t horrendous, either. But against a terrible pass defense, this should have been an opportunity to feast and the Tops just didn’t.

Tight End: B+

FINALLY the Tops went after throwing to the tight ends! And it wasn’t just curls on the inside that happened to be open because Middle’s interior defense is terrible. Joey Beljan was used to the outside for some first downs. Josh Simon and Dalvin Smith were also involved. Not everyone produced yardage, but as a unit, they produced over 50 yards and a touchdown. Tight ends don’t have to be massively productive, but they need to be used. And please, look at the scoreboard. My theory is the more tight ends get involved, the more points appear. WKU’s offense was not as strong yardage-wise as it was against UTSA and Troy, but the Tops scored more with more ease. And when you look back at it, which of the last three games was WKU most likely to have scored more points in than it did? MTSU? Why? I really believe it’s a combination of using multiple running backs and using the tight end position to soften up the defense.

Offensive Line: A+

We can nitpick that it took a quarter to get the line settled and figuring out how to handle MTSU’s multiple abilities to pressure the backfield. However, for a unit that just got reshuffled due to injury to the most important position (left tackle) on the offensive line, to come up with a blank in sacks given up and only allowing a couple of tackles for loss, that’s incredible. Heck of a job, and after the first quarter, WKU really took way more control of the line of scrimmage offensively.

Defense Overall: A

Given the fact that 14 points were handed to Middle Tennessee, essentially (and more could have been scored by going for it in negative territory), it was a heck of a job to hold MTSU to 17 overall points and keep them under 300 yards. The only other points the Blue Raiders scored were at the end of the half in two minute drill. It’s really difficult to handle any team in two minute if they get a couple of positive plays. Instead of folding the tent and allowing Middle to go get a touchdown, WKU settled in as the field got shorter and forced MTSU to settle for a field goal.

Defensive Line: A+

WKU’s defensive line and front six plus were all up in the backfield all game against the Blue Raiders’ offensive line. Chase Cunningham had to scramble, and when he did, Western’s defenders were paying attention and didn’t really let him run for the most part. Also, a huge feather in the cap for the D-Line is containing a rushing attack. Check that box off. 63 yards rushing for Middle gets that one down. Western knocked out starting running back Frank Peasant and Middle’s backups were not much more effective. When the quarterback is the leading rusher with 29 yards, that’s a heck of a job. for any defense.

Linebackers: A

This is just to not have all A+’s, honestly. I think anybody paying attention knows WKU’s linebackers have gone from the weakness last year to the absolute strength of this defense. When you have great linebackers, you have a respectable defense, even if everyone else is terrible. Fortunately for WKU, the Tops are balanced all over the field. The only reason this isn’t an A+ is because of the incredible standard the linebackers have set. The linebackers were certainly the leading tacklers, as they should be. However, there were not as many explosive plays. No turnovers and little behind the line of scrimmage. Also, the linebackers are mainly responsible for tight ends and running backs in the passing game. Well, the running backs had over 50 yards receiving. I’m nitpicking, though. Western was excellent on all three levels Saturday.

Defensive Backs: A+

Kahlef Hailassee is an absolute nightmarish weapon for WKU’s defense. 2.5 more tackles-for-loss as a cornerback is just incredible. Whether it’s sacking or just making plays upfield, the man is an artist at the cat blitz. Not only that, but he’s physical with receivers, finds ways around blocks on screens, and is really the main disruptor on the back end for WKU. Second on the team in sacks and first in TFLs with an intercepion and a forced fumble, Hailassee has blossomed beyond what the coaching staff probably imagined in his second year. This guy’s working on a heck of a season. In addition, WKU’s other DBs gave Middle a hard time. Perhaps the best indicator of great, consistent play was that no single MTSU wide receiver had more than 43 yards. Everybody did their job and held the receivers down to 228 yards, including 50+ to the running backs, who are really not the DBs responsibility on most plays.

Special Teams: A

Finally! This team has FINALLY played a solid game on special teams. It only took seven games. Praise the Lord. There has been one other game where there wasn’t something goofy on special teams, whether it was a missed field goal, weird choices, fumbles, or kicking the ball out of bounds. There was none of that in this one, and the biggest bone I can pick is allowing a 28 yard return (on a kick from the 20) and bobbling a punt that ultimately was fine. You love to see explosive plays from your special teams if possible, but the main thing about this unit is winning field position and not making mistakes. WKU didn’t make any mistakes and made Middle drive the ball when given the opportunity to. Please let this be a sign of things to come! WKU could arguably have a much prettier record if it wasn’t for special teams blunders.

Coaching Overall: C+

The coaching staff had much nicer moments this game than the past few. However, there were still some debatable moments. A lot of the concerns from the past few weeks’ most obvious omissions (tight ends, running backs) and deficiencies (d-line pressure, special teams) were resolved. So give them credit there. But the decision making I still question a little bit.

Head Coaching: D+

Tyson Helton really had two moments that I think were extremely debatable and then I still believe he wasted two timeouts in the second half. Thankfully, it wasn’t a close game. However, I don’t know if Tyson was inspired by Rick Stockstill’s bravado in going for it on fourth down near midfield, but Stockstill’s decisions were also wrong. Going for it on 4th-and-2 up 18 in your own territory? It’s one thing if it’s 4th-and-inches. I could see that (I still would punt it). But this was a full two yards. AND the ultimate result was a loss of another two yards by “fumble” (backwards pass went out of bounds). Whatever the logic, please explain to me how this did not give Middle the ONE possible way of having a prayer with less than ten minutes remaining. If you punt it deep, Middle needs three scores the length of the field. You have virtually zero reward for gaining the fourth down, either. You still need a big gain or at least two first downs to get into long field goal range from your current spot on the field.

The other issue here was going for it on 4th-and-3 from the 26. That is a long field goal, but this is an opportunity to go up two possessions, and again, what is your reward for continuing the drive? It was more debatable last week at a 52 yarder to tie the game. That’s a longer field goal that Narveson is yet to prove he can make often in a game (career long of 53 twice). For this one, if you go for the first and get it, you still have to go down and score, and when you do, yes, it might be seven instead of three, but it’s still moving you ahead by another score, either way. In my opinion, percentages that you score a touchdown vs. kick a shorter field goal or don’t score at all pale in comparison to just simply taking the points. With how your offense has played lately, isn’t the prudent decision to take points? I’m not vehement, but that’s what I would do every time if I was coach.

Offensive Coaching: C+

I thought there were way more better decisions and strategy in this game than a few of the others in recent memory. Running backs were used in both the running and passing game? Check. Tight ends were used at all? Check. Continuing to use the quarterback in the running game? Check. Redeeming your play call sequence after several conservative play calls deep in the red zone with a tight end “levels” concept? Really nice play call there with both Beljan and Simon open! Big check. Those were all positives. I do think the coaches get a ding for not finding a way to get this team to produce more points, ultimately. 28 offensive points is still not what we’re used to, and there were points out there to be had.

Also, fourth down play calling was and has been pretty concerning. Here’s an alarming statistic: WKU is 8-for-19 (42%) on fourth down attempts on the season (T-98th nationally). Fourth down attempts are mostly by choice. Shouldn’t you be giving yourself at least a 50% chance to convert if you’re going to risk going for it? In this game, why would you call a deep throw on 4th-and-3? In our TTR chat, I named off about seven or eight concepts that seem more appealing than going for broke on 4th-and-short: Slants, RPO, run up the gut, QB draw, curls, levels, drag routes, jet sweep, screen, wheel, etc. Those are all calls I would consider before a deep shot in that particular spot. That has been the ultimate go-to on fourth down the past few games. Guess what? It is yet to work. And then the play call on 4th-and-2 late…you did call an RPO, but it was not effective and opened your offense up to unnecessary danger with the screen option. Let’s say that ball bounces differently, it doesn’t go out of bounds, and Middle picks it up and returns it for a touchdown. Let’s say Reed throws it and it’s picked straight out of the air? Reed is sacked for a ten yard loss? These were all possibilities with that particular play call.

Defensive Coaching: A-

Western’s defense was great once again, really handling Middle for most of the night. If the two post-turnover drives were removed, WKU’s defense really surrendered three point. If you want to count them for part of one of the turnovers since they had to allow a couple of first downs before giving up the touchdown, say the defense gave up six points on the day. Nine at most if you want to really punish them. That’s excellent, and Coach Tyson Summers has done a great job with this unit.

I have talked about how the WKU defense will steal a game or allow the Tops to be in a game they shouldn’t be. Well, I’d say this is the first game the defense definitely could be argued kept this game a win for WKU. Western turned it over twice in negative territory, which the Blue Raiders capitalized on. Imagine if WKU’s defense had been pretty average and gave up an extra 14 to 21 points. This game would have been much closer. Because they were so good, Middle never really had a chance after WKU took its 14-7 lead in the second quarter. For the most part, the defensive play calling and positioning was great. I think the lone issue was the field goal drive to end the first half. WKU played soft for about 40 yards before trying to be aggressive. Middle kicked a field goal and gave them real hope to come out in the second half and give the Tops a game. Since that field goal made such a difference in terms of score line and momentum, I’ll give him a little bit of a downgrade for that.

Overall: C+

I think this was a decent performance, and it’s certainly a positive to just get the W and move on from two straight losses. The main against a rival is to win, and to do it with ease is bonus. You can easily get sucked into a good game if you let the inferior opponent hang around. If you keep them at bay, you keep them from using the energy that might come out in a close game.

WKU made nice incremental improvements, getting people involved, using depth available, and really having a nice performance on special teams for the first time all year. WKU’s penalty issues still rear their ugly heads, but at least there wasn’t much disparity between the two teams. That’s when those yards can really hurt.

What I think is nice about this game is WKU won with ease and got to play some younger players, but also the Tops have plenty to work on heading into UAB. This wasn’t an FIU performance, when literally everything went right and you win by a historic margin. That doesn’t exactly give you much to work on, and frankly WKU came out a little flatter than a Troy team that felt disrespected.

Western, if they have any awareness and heart at all, should prepare this week like they never have. They should realize they’re back on track and fighting for a spot in a championship. If they lose this one, they’re almost certainly out of it. They would need some combination of UTSA, UAB, Rice, North Texas, La Tech, and FAU to lose at least two more games each from this point forward. If WKU just wins out, they will make the C-USA Championship Game with no other help other than needing La Tech to lose a game somewhere along the road (very likely).

Western’s fan base should be presumably charged back up for an epic battle against UAB. National TV, Shaq is there, and a do-or-die battle for conference title contention. Two of the three main favorites in the preseason, both teams have shown moments of brilliance, and then in the next breath seemingly shown moments of extreme vulnerability.

An interesting matchup, UAB scores less but allows less than WKU. Both teams have four wins with quality one possession losses. Both teams have shown offensive vulnerability but also an ability to score in the 40s and 50s. Both teams’ defenses have shown an ability to win a game, or at least get a crucial stop when called upon.

It’s time to quench the dragon fire, Tops and vanquish the Blazers.