Week 5: WC v. Nixa

After three weeks of pounding the pavement, Webb City returned home to host the Nixa Eagles - who came in fresh off wins against Neosho and Carthage and just a 1-point loss to Branson from being unbeaten.

What was known about Nixa was that they had a big running back and were tough and physical. The questions for WC seemed to swirl more around the health of QB Patrick Drake. I am told there was some speculation ahead of the game that perhaps the Cards should go with Sophomore Breckin Williams regardless of Pat's health. The first half on Friday showed 2 things:
1. Pat is healthy
2. When it comes to running the offense - and I mean all of it, which is what makes it so dangerous - Pat knows what he's doing and that comes from a lot of experience.

The Cards came out hot and early on this looked to be a blowout. For most of the first half, Nixa couldn't stop WC. Webb never punted in the first half - a fumble and the half ending were the only two times WC didn't put it in the end-zone.

The second half was a little different story. Nixa hung in there and refused to give up. They made some adjustments at halftime and WC was no longer able to score at will. Strong defense and 3 interceptions allowed WC to cruise on to the win.

After 2 weeks of weaker opponents, Nixa was a legitimate test for WC. Next Friday Neosho comes to town. That game has been highlighted on the schedule for a while, but has lost some of its hype after Neosho dropped not only the game with Nixa, but then lost a close one at home against Carthage on Friday. My take on that isn't that Neosho is weaker than people thought, but more likely they're going to be very hungry when they roll into Cardinal Stadium. WC will need to be very focused on this opponent (not looking past them to Branson or Carthage) to stay unbeaten.

Week 4: WC at Ozark

It's safe to say this one didn't go the way I thought it would...at least not in the way I was expecting it to.

About 6 plays into the game, Patrick Drake ran for a first down near mid-field with the play ending near the WC sideline. Through the legs of the WC players on the sideline we could see one pair of Columbia blue pants still laying on the turf. When the QB's sister, grandparents, and uncle are sitting next to you and he was the ball carrier it doesn't take long to inventory the players who have returned to the huddle and figure out that it's #5 that's down.

That was a scary moment for his family - as it would be for any family - as he laid there for minutes on end and then finally the stretcher and backboard were rolled out. Early word from the sideline was that he was moving all limbs, but his neck was sore. Eventually Pat's parents and brother converged on the sideline and then migrated to the south end of the field. Britt (Pat's sister, my wife) walked down to where they were examining him and then returned to the stands to report that they were transporting him to the hospital for examination, but that it appeared he was okay.

The radio was reporting way ahead of the actual medical process, by halftime they had said he was fine and would be back next week - at one point they apparently reported he'd be back at the stadium before the end of the game. Pat may well return next week, but it was the 4th quarter before the doctor actually saw Pat and diagnosed a severe neck sprain - next week questionable.

Once the game resumed WC had to face the reality of 2 QB options:
1. A junior who is coming off an injury and has had few reps over the last several weeks.
2. A sophomore with very little varsity experience.

Enter Sophomore Breckin Williams.

I fully expected a steady dose of Braxton Baker for the rest of the night in an effort to shorten the game and get a win. I even said to Britt's gramdma that I thought Breckin would mostly be turning around and handing it off.

I was wrong.

First play, WC dialed up a 1-step fade to Chris Hance for a big gain. A couple of plays later Williams hit Boo Rodgers crossing in the endzone for the game's opening score.

From there we saw a pretty wide open approach. Probably less veer option than Pat tends to run, but WC was forced to the air as Ozark had designed their scheme to stop one man - Braxton Baker (and they were fairly successful at that, relatively speaking).

Braxton eventually picked up some yards and scored a touchdown, but did not get to dominate Ozark the way he does with most opponents. But the reason WC's offense is so potent is that Baker isn't the only weapon.

Williams played well for a guy that hasn't played at the varsity level - 4 TD passes and 1 on the ground. It was a much better showing than I expected - no offense Breckin, that was a tough spot and you just never know how it's going to go.

The WC defense looked good - overall - against a scrambling QB and a spread attack. This is significant because if there's one thing that always concerns me a little going into a game it's a spread attack. In the time I've been watching WC football, pass defense has not been a consistent strong-suit. It appears that speed is paying off in the back end right now.

WC cruised to a 42-7 victory. Ozark's only score came when they recovered a fumble (which should not have been ruled a fumble - more on the officials in a minute) at the WC 1 and managed to punch it in on 3rd down.

The Ozark coach had some pretty lame comments that are quoted in the Joplin Globe. Coach, you got jacked up on a night when you had every advantage. You probably ought to show a little more respect rather than acting like you were ever in the game.

The officiating for the 3rd straight week appeared to be handled by 4 of the opposing team's dads. Seriously, every time WC got a first down they'd call it back for a penalty no one saw. There was no way they could do enough to keep Ozark in the game, so it was just annoying and made the game last forever. Homer officials are annoying. Where do they get those bozos?

WC hosts Nixa next week. Nixa beat Carthage in Carthage so it should be a good game. I certainly hope that Patrick's recovery goes quickly, we'd love to see him out there Friday night running the offense, but of course want to make sure he's ready to go physically before he does that.

Week 3: WC at Willard

The best part of Friday night for me was the burrito at Q'doba before the game.

Why?

After 2 solid opponents and watching WC come to life in the clutch it was hard to get too excited watching them roll over a comparably weak Willard team.

The Good:
- WC came out throwing. A 45-yard pass from Patrick to Boo Rodgers and a 19-yard pass to Austin Daniel put WC in the end zone for the first time after just those 2 plays. Patrick added a second passing touchdown later in the 1st quarter. It felt like they passed a lot, but according to Globe stats they only attempted 6, connecting on 4 of them for the 2 TDs and 98 yards.
- The defense got to see an option offense - the first of the season against the new 3-5 stack defense. You could tell they were still figuring some things out as Willard actually racked up a fair number of yards.
- Everyone got to play (that was dressed out).
- 1O and 1D were done before half-time.

The Bad:
- Smallest visitors seating area I've ever seen. To Willard's credit, they cleared out 1/3 of their home seating for the sea of red, which WC quickly filled to 80% capacity (thus making it the most full section of the home side).
- No real test. To me, this wasn't a game the Cards were ever really challenged in. I hope they don't come out terribly flat next week.

Next week, at Ozark. Good news: Q'doba is on the way. We'll see how the game goes. Carthage beat Ozark down week 1. I suspect they're a lot better than Willard, but I'm not expecting a challenge the likes of Rogers.

New Shower Head

This blog has become about the most random collection of ramblings I can think of (and I thought of them all, so I'm not sure if me thinking it's random means something or not). Well, add one more to the chaos...

For several months now my wife and I have been putting up with a mediocre shower experience due to a lack of water pressure. Reason? I'm pretty sure the issue was deposits in the shower head that were restricting flow. I took it off and soaked it in CLR (which will kill your grass by the way) and vinegar - not at the same time - thinking this would break it up and get things moving again.

Unfortunately CLR doesn't work like they show on TV.

On Saturday evening after OSU's big win (I refused to go to dinner with my parents until the game was over - or OSU had no chance to win, whichever came first) and dinner with my parents Brittany said something about needing to "run by" Target (do not be deceived, those words should not indicate anything quick about what is getting ready to happan - though if challenged death and destruction will ensue). I walked virtually every non-clothing aisle (Brittany made sure those got fully inspected). In the process I ran across 2 things I found worthy of purchase:
1. A 4gb jump drive for $9
2. A Waterpik shower head for $11 (on clearance)

The reason I'd been putting up with the lack of water pressure was that I just hated to drop $30 on a shower head at Lowe's since the last time I did that it only took a year before I ended up right where I was at.

But for $11, maybe it would be worth it.

I have become quite proficient with shower head removal/install, so it only took about 5 minutes to remove the old head and install the new. A quick test revealed that there were no pesky leaks and we were in business. Now for the awesome part...

A post-mowing shower late in the afternoon revealed that the new shower head produces nearly the same water pressure as my power washer!

I'm pretty sure this just shaved 3 minutes off our shower times, if that's not environmentally friendly I don't know what is!

Week 2: WC at Rogers

Sports fans know that games and seasons turn on a series of single moments - and sometimes just one or two. For the first 18 minutes of WC's game at 7A Rogers (AR) it looked like the Cards were going to get roughed up. I was concerned going in. Anytime you match up with a school that much larger you just never know what to expect. Early on it looked like we (notice how I say "we" now?) were in trouble. It took 3 plays and 49 seconds for the "Mounties" to go 70-ish yards and score. On their second possession it didn't take much longer.

To be fair, WC found itself in a hole at home against Rogers last year (Also down 14-0 in the first quarter before Mack and the boys started clawing their way back - see post from that game). When WC got their first defensive stop the crowd settled a little, but with no signs of life on offense through the first quarter I was still very on edge.

Finally, late in the second quarter the Novocaine (explanation of this reference found in post linked above) started to work and the Cards "mounted" a 70-yard drive to get on the board. The PAT (that's Point After Try, not a reference to my brother in law, he had nothing to do with this kick attempt) failed and the half ended at 14-6.

Side-note: The Rogers QB should have been penalized for spiking the ball on what proved to be the final play of the half. Doing so would have forced Rogers to run another play and likely punt it back to WC. The officiating and clock operation were suspect all night, but what do you expect?

A half-time text I sent to a friend said something like: "Halftime 14-6. We're not dead yet, but we've got to play cleaner to win. Novocaine starting to work if we can eliminate mistakes."

WC has developed this reputation for wearing you down until their running game can just beat you into submission. We saw it repeatedly last year. They would go on these impressive 10 and 12 play, 70 and 80 yard drives again and again. At times they'd consume nearly an entire quarter in the process. You hear commentators talk about the need to stay with the running game into the second half during college and pro games, but rarely does it work as noticeably as I've seen it work for WC.

That last drive of the first half gave me some hope that WC could control the ball and start putting some points on the board. Set to receive the second half kickoff would provide a chance to either tie or at least get within 1 or 2 early in the half.

First and 10 from their own 20 I'm looking for the Cards to keep grinding like that last drive of the first half. Didn't happen. Braxton Baker took it 80 yards on the first play. 2pt attempt failed, 14-12 Rogers.

The Cards got it back, drove down and Baker scored on a 25-yard run. A 2pt conversion made it 20-14.

Next possession Jeremiah Box scored and it was 26-14. Box scored again on the next possession, PAT succeeded to make it 33-14.

The Mounties hit a long pass to get to 33-21.

Next Baker scored on a 33 yard run.

Yes, it all happened about this fast.

Then we got to see Pat's wheels again. Pat had a good 2nd half running the offense, ran the veer options very effectively mostly pitching and letting Box and Baker shoulder the load. But from his own 22 yard line we saw a repeat of last week's first offensive play of the game. Pat turned the corner, hit the jets and was gone. This time he had a one-man convoy called Braxton Baker ensuring no one was going to get near him. A cheap shot in the back at the 5-yard line left Baker on the turf (not hurt) and of course no call. John Rod was hot - and understandably so. That touchdown made it 46-21.

The Mounties hit one more long pass (against the 2nd team defense) before the Cards put the 1D back in (after Rogers recovered an onside kick) to get one final stop, then drove it to the the Mounties 16 yard line with 1:55 on the clock.

On 1st and 10 and with no doubt they could have shoved it in the end zone, John Roderique did what he always does: showed he has more class and discipline than most. I would have probably left the starting offense in there long enough to score again for a number of reasons:
1. Rogers had recovered an onside kick after their TD against the WC 2nd team D.
2. Rogers was fairly mouthy - or so it appeared based on the way one of their guys was taunting (?) the WC crowd late in the game (hey, buddy, check the scoreboard and get back to me).
3. How often do you get a chance to "hang half a hundred" on an opponent that much bigger than you?

Second team O went in and successfully killed the clock. You're welcome, Rogers.

Observations:
- I'm not sure the Novocaine theory works for this Cards squad. In the sense of them wearing you down in the first half it does, but they don't do a lot of grinding once it starts to work. It's like they numb you with Novocaine and then hit you with hard drugs. I say that because once they get rolling they'll just put it in the end zone on you in one or two plays and ask questions later.
- I'm not kidding about WC being fast. If you let Pat, Braxton, or Jeremiah get behind you good luck catching them. I'm not saying it can't be done. I'm saying it's not going to be easy. WC hasn't always had that many speed threats in the backfield at once.
- The 3-5 stack defense is growing on me. I like having all those linebackers in there against the spread attack. I'm still not convinced it's cut out to deal with short yardage, but I do think it fits WC's personnel in 2009.
- Putting up 40 points in one half (and leaving 6 or 7 on the table at the end) is impressive against any opponent, I'm not sure what happened in that locker room, but it was as dramatic a turn around as I've ever seen from one half to the next.
- 560 - That's what WC racked up in rushing yards last night. WOW. Braxton had nearly 300. Pat and Jeremiah both went over 100.

I started off talking about moments in sports, so I'd better bring it back to there. Bookends, right programming guys? Here's what I see. Any good team always has at least 1 gut-check moment where they have to look one another in the eye and decide whether they're going to win or lose. In 2006 it was at Pittsburg, down in the first half and looking rough a big play on D sparked a comeback and they took it all the way to the Dome and a title. In 2008 a minor scare at Harrisonville in week 1 was followed by a short nightmare against Rogers before the Cards decided to refuse to give up and ultimately went 15-0. I'm not predicting anything about 2009. Lot's of games to play. Tough matchups at home against Neosho and Carthage, tough road games as well. I am saying I think the Cards learned something about themselves last night and I expect them to play with more confidence going forward. Having come back from down 14-0, on the road, against a big, fast team like Rogers should ensure they're not going to panic when things get tough - which they no doubt will.

It looks like to me the keys for the next couple of weeks are:
1. Don't overlook Willard or Ozark, teams that are not nearly as highly regarded as their first two opponents.
2. Get / stay healthy. Luna played offense last night and looked good. Scott Roderique did not suit last night, need him to get healthy.
3. Continue to improve. You can tell they've got some guys that are still learning - especially on defense. These should be great games to get some game speed experience that will make them better as they head down the road toward district play.

Lessons in Light Bulbs

File this one in your "Ryan is an idiot" folder.

If you've ever found yourself behind my Civic after dark you might have noticed that one of the two tail lights on the passenger side was out. A few have pointed it out to me thinking I wasn't aware - I appreciate the concern, had I not known I certainly would have wanted to.

The light got knocked out several years ago when my dad inadvertently backed into the Civic. The bulb got replaced (by me) and that fixed the brake light, but for some reason the low intensity tail light didn't work. I figured there was probably a fuse issue or something, but didn't really dig into it.

[Insert soothing voice of Robin Sigars reading "The Little Acorn"] And time moved on...

I decided yesterday to take a stab at fixing it / getting it fixed. I knew it wasn't likely to pass inspection with it out. I thought before paying someone to fix it I'd mess with it (that's a technical term for trying to fix something when you have no idea what is wrong or what needs to be done - it pretty much never works).

Thankfully this particular model Civic was designed in a way that makes this particular bulb easy to get to. Two screws and a quick disconnect of the wiring harness and I had the fitting loose where I could look at it.

I inspected the bulb, both filament wires looked fine.

I pulled the bulb from the socket, looked fine.

But that was when I noticed that on one side of the bulb there were 3 contact wires and on the other there were 2. So I looked down in the socket and sure enough on one side there were 3 metal contact pads, on the other side there were 2.

The light bulb in my head finally came on. I stuck the bulb back in the socket (3 metal pieces against 3 metal pieces, 2 against 2) and presto! Working tail light!

5 years of a tail light out came down to the fact that I stuck the bulb in the socket wrong and never realized it.

Like I said, put this one in the Ryan's and idiot folder.