Kent State football preview ........

[gman2]

Haven't been around as much for obvious reasons but still want to contribute as much as possible. Hopefully these will be of benefit to some guys. I'll post each team here as soon as I can get them up each day. Sorry in advance if the formatting is a little screwy.

 

[gman2]

Looking back at 2004

The Doug Martin era at Kent State got off to a less than spectacular start to say the
least. After receiving his promotion from offensive coordinator in 2003 to head coach
in 2004, the Flashes promptly went out and lost 6 of their first 7 games (with the lone
victory coming against 1-AA Liberty). It was looking to be another dismal campaign for
their program, but the Flashes really got their act together and finished the 2004
season on a 4-game winning streak, while outscoring those four opponents by a
combined 185-64. That 4-game winning streak is the longest winning streak for KSU
since the 1976-1977 season.

All the talk surrounding the Kent State football program is about how they "turned the
corner" at the end of last season, which goes to show how low the expectations have
been for KSU football the last handful of years. As nice as their winning streak was, it
still must be kept in proper perspective, because their five wins came against Liberty
(again, a 1-AA team), Ohio University (4-7 last season), Eastern Michigan (4-7 last
season), Buffalo (2-9 last season), and Central Florida (an NCAA-worst 0-11 last year).
To their credit, they thoroughly dismantled those teams, so if nothing else, they have
established themselves as a fairly legitimate team and are no longer an easy "W" for
the elite teams in the MAC. And their four conferences losses were all pretty good
showings. They lost on the road to Central Michigan 24-21 and had a chance to send the game into overtime but had two field goals blocked in the final 7:00, including a 37-yard attempt with 0:30 left in the game. Kent lost to rival Akron 24-19 at home in a game where KSU outgained the Zips in first downs (23-14) and in total offense by 112 yards (390-278). The Flashes got beat up by Miami 47-27 on the road, but were ahead 20-14 with a couple minutes to go before halftime before imploding and getting blown out. And their other conference loss came at home to Marshall 27-17 in a game Kent truly let slip away. The Flashes were up 17-7 at halftime but allowed Marshall to score 20 unanswered
points in the 2nd half and win by 10. For the game, Marshall only had 239 yards of total offense. Big plays hurt Kent State in that game. They
allowed a 75-yard screen pass to go for a touchdown and they also had a punting miscue that gave Marshall the ball on the Kent 3-yard line,
allowing for a 3-yard scoring drive in the 3rd quarter. Travis Mayle also missed two field goals in the game for the Flashes.

There is reason for optimism if the Kent State defense has a repeat of their 2004 performance. The Flashes had the MAC's #1 total defense
last season (allowing just 297 yards per game), they were #2 in rushing defense (allowing 95 yards per game and just 2.7 yards per carry)
and they had the best passing defense in the conference (just 202 yards per game). They also held some solid QBs to subpar games --
Akron's Charlie Frye was only 17-29 for 178 yards and Eastern Michigan's Matt Bohnet (EMU had the 4th best passing attack in the MAC
despite their 4-7 mark) was only 15-31 for 115 yards. Overall, the Flashes are returning 7 of 11 starters on that side of the ball, so its likely
that they will have a pretty solid year defensively.

The problem is that there are huge holes to fill on the offensive side of things. Josh Cribbs, who started four years at QB for the Flashes, is
gone to the pros, and the Flashes have no experienced QB ready to fill in. It's impossible to overstate how big a loss Cribbs is to the program.
There were so many times when he single-handedly kept Kent in games with his amazing athleticism and play-making ability. Opposing
teams had to alter their gameplans significantly when he was behind center because he was so versatile and dangerous. He accounted for an
amazing 75% of Kent's total offense in 2004, So it's a little presumptuous to think that Kent State is going to keep the momentum rolling
from last season's strong finish while they break in a brand new quarterback. There's also a huge void at running back now that David Alston
has graduated. As a team, Kent ran the ball for 1695 yards last year. Between Cribbs at QB and Alston at RB, those two accounted for a
staggering 1565 of those yards. So there are some serious question marks offensively for the Flashes

 

[gman2]

Looking at the Kent State offense

The Flashes have huge question marks at quarterback and running back as they head
into 2005. Trying to find someone to replace Josh Cribbs is tough enough, but the task is
considerably more daunting for KSU because the two quarterbacks who are 1 and 2 on
the depth chart have thrown a combined FOUR PASSES in a Kent State uniform. Not
only did Kent lose Cribbs to graduation, but their backup QB from last year (Antwan
Smith) transferred out of the program.

The likely starter is JUCO transfer Michael Machen. He threw for over 2,000 yards and 22
touchdowns last year at Coffeyville Community College, and at 6 foot 6 and 240 lbs, he
definitely has the physical tools to be a legitimate MAC quarterback. The other option at
quarterback is sophomore Tom Sitko, who is coming off a season-ending injury in last
year's opener against Iowa. So not only are the Kent QBs inexperienced, but one is
brand new to the Kent system (Machen) and the other is trying to come back from a
knee injury (Sitko). If Machen is as good as advertised, however, the Flashes might turn
this into a position of strength.

The situation is equally as uncertain at running back for the Flashes. David Alston is
gone and no returning running back carried the ball more than 20 times last year. The Flashes converted Luke Tillman from H-back to running back toward the end of last season, and it looks like they are going to stick with him as
the starter heading into the fall. The Kent coaches are optimistic that they'll have success running the football this season, but the loss of
Alston to graduation left a significant void in the backfield.

Wide Receiver should be a position of strength for Kent State. While they lost a big-time playmaker in Darrell Dowery (68 catches for 712 yards
to lead the team in '04), they bring back seven players who had ten or more catches last fall. Najah Pruden and Derrick Bush are the best of the
returning receivers. Pruden missed the final 2 games of the season in 2004, but when he is in the lineup, he can really stretch the field. Bush will
move around in multiple formations and he caught 25 passes last season while also going 3 for 3 in the passing game and threw a touchdown as
well. It's imperative for the Kent receivers to be collectively solid this year to give the young quarterbacks confidence and consistently move
the chains.

The offensive line returns 3 full-time starters from last season while also returning two lineman who made spot starts at some point in 2004.
The Flashes are experienced in the kicking game, with placekicker Travis Mayle and punter Joshua Brazen both returning for their senior
seasons. Mayle has been pretty consistent for Kent State in the past, but he was only 6 of 11 in field goal attempts last year and missed four
extra points. Brazen averaged 40.3 yards per punt last season. All told, the special teams for Kent should be solid if unspectacular.

 

[gman2]

Looking at the Kent State defense

With all the question marks and inexperience surrounding the Kent State offense, it's safe to say that the defense is going to play a large role in
the outcome of the Flashes 2005 season. Seven starters return from the MAC's #1 overall defense last season. While the Flashes probably
overachieved a little on defense last fall, they do bring back a solid group that should be pretty tough to score on.

The Flashes were very solid against the run last year, and Dan Muir is back to lead the front three. Bruce Rice is moving from the defensive line
to play linebacker, and that will make a terrific group of linebackers even better. Justin Parrish anchors the linebackers and he had a
statistically dominant season in 2004. He had a school-record 14 sacks and had 17.5 tackles for loss last year. Last season, he trailed only
Marshall All-American Jonathan Goddard in both categories.

In the secondary, Kent State is set at cornerback with Usama Young being the best of the DBs, but they lack experience at the safety position.
The battles are between sophomores and redshirt freshmen so this could be the only weak link in an overall solid defense.

 

[gman2]

Kent State summary

This is a team that has a lot of question marks on the offensive side of the ball but relatively
few question marks on the defense side of it. Offensively, a lot of the burden is on Michael
Machen to step in and prove himself to be a bona fide MAC quarterback after having a
terrific JUCO season last year. The running game needs to solidify itself and somebody has
to seize control of the starting job and become the workhorse, otherwise its going to be
tough for Machen to get his receivers the ball.

The defense should be one of the better units in the MAC this fall, and its vital for them get
consistent stops early in the season while the Kent offense tries to break in its new
personnel and find its identity. Justin Parrish has the potential to have a huge season at
linebacker.

The early part of Kent's 2005 schedule is no cakewalk. They open the season on the road
against Michigan State before coming home to play what should be a tuneup game against
Southeast Missouri State. After that game, however, they open the MAC schedule at home
against Miami University before embarking on a 3-game road trip against Ohio University,
then travel to play an improved Eastern Michigan team, and then play a non-conference
game at Navy. Last year, the Flashes dug themselves a huge hole by going 1-6 in their first
seven games. A repeat of that would really set their program back. The coaches and players really feel like their solid finish in 2004 has put
them on the right track for 2005 and beyond. But this Kent State football after all -- so any optimism should be cautious and tempered at best.
Aside from that, the face of the program (Cribbs) is gone and the Flashes are going to have to adjust to life without him in a hurry. Can they do
it? It's going to be really tough despite the fact that the defense should keep them in a lot of games. It would be optimistic to think that Kent is
going to keep the momentum from the end of 2004 rolling and turn it into an above-.500 2005 season. It is much more realistic to expect them
to have an erratic season filled with learning experiences ad a lot of ups and downs, especially on offense. Anything more than 4 wins should be
considered a success for the Flashes in 2005. Road games at Ohio University and Eastern Michigan are no longer the freebies they once were.
The way the schedule sets up, its very likely that the Flashes could struggle in September and October but finish off with a couple of wins in
November.

 

[Thunder Lips]

didnt you go pay? did you buy a banner?

 

[Master Capper]

did you buy a banner?



:mj07: :mj07: :mj07: :mj07: :mj07:

 

[GOAT]

nice i see a blow out at mich. st. hope all is well my mac bro. lets get money. GOOD LUCK. :clap: