Elon Defeats Stony Brook 30-20

[Redwyn]

I braved Hanna and went to the game this afternoon. Besides some sloppy plays, mostly on the part of Stony Brook (a failed wraparound gave Elon a return for a touchdown), I thought the two teams were rather evenly matched. Both defenses befuddled the offenses (and we know SBU can score from the Colgate result), but it seemed to mostly be give and take.

Props to Stony Brook for standing up to a ranked opponent, and congrats to Elon for the great rebound after Richmond.

Can anyone else share their perspective on these teams?

[Seawolf97]

Hats off to Elon for a good game under nasty conditions. SBU's offense couldnt get untracked and the passing was terrible. SBU played good D and I think we got 3 sacks on Elon.

Eddie Gowins had another outstanding game 122 yards and a TD . The rest was all about the weather- the 2nd half was a deluge !

[Seawolf97]

I think our offense has to improve this week if we are play well against Maine next Saturday.

[ngineer]

I appears Maine struggled with Monmouth today. Though weather can be a factor.

[Seawolf97]

I appears Maine struggled with Monmouth today. Though weather can be a factor.

I saw that score but you are right. Our field was flooded in the 2nd half never saw that before . The grounds keepers were actually pushing water out of the south end zone during the game.
Maine will be tough and after last year Im sure they want us .

[Seawolf97]

A couple interesting stats from today

Total Off. yards SBU 354 Elon 259
Rush yards SBU 197 Elon 18
Pass yards SBU 157 Elon 241
SBU had 4 sacks on the Elon QB
We pretty much won the the tale of the tape but lost .

[Redwyn]

A couple interesting stats from today

Total Off. yards SBU 354 Elon 259
Rush yards SBU 197 Elon 18
Pass yards SBU 157 Elon 241
SBU had 4 sacks on the Elon QB
We pretty much won the the tale of the tape but lost .

Wow...that's quite a different rushing mark than I had thought. We had some impressive tackles for loss. Must be where that comes in.

So, given the difference in stat marks, can this be considered a positive step for Stony Brook, or a regression from the Colgate game?

Maine looks to be a great foe. Is there an easy way to get streaming from the game?

[Elon Fightin' Christians]

Elon's DEF has to stop giving up big plays. Richmond had 2-3 last week, and SBU did it again this week.

[Uncle Buck]

These teams were not evenly matched by any stretch. I don't care what the stats say. Yes Elon gave up a couple of big plays, but other than that, they were never really threatened. A big chunk of the SBU rushing yardage came on one run late in the game by Gowins.

Elon is a passing team so the lack of rushing yardage is not surprising. They did exactly what they had to in order to win and IMO, played very vanilla. Granted SBU let up a punt return, Elon got shafted on that long called back TD due to a bad pass interference call. At 30-13, Elon's offensive game plan was about at vanilla as could be. The first TD by SBU was on a pass when the Elon end, #91, ran a complete circle around the QB without ever touching him? Very odd, never seen that before, a complete circle.

My concern if i were Elon, the QB sacks. They were all coverage sacks, but Riddle has zero escapability and holds the ball way too long. Other than running straight backwards, he doesn't seem all that mobile. Bottom line, stats aside, this game never seemed that close IMO and the others i attended with. Any time Elon needed to chew clock, they did. No doubt SBU is much improved, but on a dry day, i think Elon definitely puts up more points.

[Redwyn]

but on a dry day, i think Elon definitely puts up more points.

Mmm, I'd love to have seen what this matchup would have been in good weather.

[Uncle Buck]

Mike McCarty was the old OC at Hofstra when i played my senior year and it looked like a lot of our old formations yesterday. The shovel pass underneath, the stacked trips etc. I know he had a lot more in the bag that he just didn't put out there.

It's not that i'm knocking SBU, this is definitely a year that I think you guys will take HU down. It's just that Elon while maybe not great all around, were solid and played to get the lead and then just hold it. They only hit the gas when they had to and the game never seemed close after they went up 13-0. Colgate never tested your QB, while he seems composed, his accuracy is not great and the one TD pass was a prayer, he just ran for his life and threw it up. I wonder if the team came in overly confident from their domination of Colgate.

On a last note, Gowins is the real deal IMO. I like the Cuttino (sp?) kid, but Gowins seems to run much tougher.

[Bull Fan]

Mmm, I'd love to have seen what this matchup would have been in good weather.

It'd been 50-something to 20-something. Seriously.

Not to slight any of the SBU faithful here, but this was by no means an even matchup, and the stats you posted up, while factual, didn't exactly tell the tale.

Elon, as Uncle Buck mentioned, reigned in the offense (pun intended). They wanted to show no flair- weather the rain had anything to do with it, or the lack of need for it against an overmatched SBU team. They won the game with the bare minimum of offense, yet put up 30 points - the bulk (if not all) before the deluge. They even had a td taken away on a phantom offensive PI call- it was absolute horse**** officiating on that play... as both receiver and defender were playing the ball.

Defensively, #91 danced around the SBU QB on that touchdown- I remarked at the time it looked like he was dancing around a brass pole. He did everything but put a helmet on the passer, allowing an easy TD strike. Can't figure that one out, but #91 definitely knew it as he came off the field.

SBU was outmatched, and I think the SBU faithful here need to take off the rose-colored glasses. You really don't want to see Elon in good weather. xlolx

[Uncle Buck]

Bull Fan could be harsh in the criticism and yes Elon was the better team. I still think SBU is much improved in a lot of different parts of the game and will beat its fair share of teams. I almost wonder if the Colgate win had them walking with a little too much swagger. They had really taken it to Colgate. Maine will definitely be a winnable game though, should be a fun trip up to Orono for those who go.

[Seawolf97]

I think your input is pretty much on target. I hope our quarterback improves he did not look good at all yesterday. Several times he had open receivers and missed fired . Maybe it was the defense or the weather or both but he was having problems most of the game.
Elon is one of the best. Scott Riddle is everything they say about him and didnt seemed phased by much . Well on to Maine Saturday another good opponent.

[Uncle Buck]

I think your input is pretty much on target. I hope our quarterback improves he did not look good at all yesterday. Several times he had open receivers and missed fired . Maybe it was the defense or the weather or both but he was having problems most of the game.
Elon is one of the best. Scott Riddle is everything they say about him and didnt seemed phased by much . Well on to Maine Saturday another good opponent.

Your QB is young and will only get better. I mentioned to the people i was with that the one thing i like about him, he seems to carry himself with confidence. Not cocky, but seems to have a short memory and doesn't look like he gets flustered. That's a great quality in a QB and one that i wouldn't mind seeing in our newly appointed starter.

[Seawolf97]

Your QB is young and will only get better. I mentioned to the people i was with that the one thing i like about him, he seems to carry himself with confidence. Not cocky, but seems to have a short memory and doesn't look like he gets flustered. That's a great quality in a QB and one that i wouldn't mind seeing in our newly appointed starter.

Yeah I was sorry to hear to about your QB's injury. I hope he does well . We lost Brandon Mason one of our backs for season but we have Eddie Gowins who stepped in big time . Hope he stays healthy.

[Uncle Buck]

I said it earlier, i like Gowins better than Cuttino. I think he runs tougher and has more forward lean.

[Bull Fan]

Harsh but true. I will say, injury to Savage or not, it will be a good matchup with Hofstra this year. Since I've been able to catch both SBU games so far this year, I think the Wolves have some potential within their own conference.

[Uncle Buck]

Savage being gone kills us, his leadership and moxy will be missed.

[Seawolf97]

Harsh but true. I will say, injury to Savage or not, it will be a good matchup with Hofstra this year. Since I've been able to catch both SBU games so far this year, I think the Wolves have some potential within their own conference.

I was glad to see Colgate knock off CCU today. While it is impossible to compare games and teams week to week Coastal doesnt sound all that tough.

[elon77]

I was glad to see Colgate knock off CCU today. While it is impossible to compare games and teams week to week Coastal doesnt sound all that tough.

a lot of CCU's team is in jailxnodx

[PaladinFan]

Colgate will have a test heading up this weekend.

[SoCon48]

I was glad to see Colgate knock off CCU today. While it is impossible to compare games and teams week to week Coastal doesnt sound all that tough.

Might be diff when the all get out the pokey.;)

It's amazing what those guys learn while locked-up.

[SoCon48]

I braved Hanna and went to the game this afternoon. Besides some sloppy plays, mostly on the part of Stony Brook (a failed wraparound gave Elon a return for a touchdown), I thought the two teams were rather evenly matched. Both defenses befuddled the offenses (and we know SBU can score from the Colgate result), but it seemed to mostly be give and take.

Props to Stony Brook for standing up to a ranked opponent, and congrats to Elon for the great rebound after Richmond.

Can anyone else share their perspective on these teams?


Anytime a passing team can put 30 pts on the board in a monsoon rain as Elon did, offense is not likely to be a problem.

[Redwyn]

Can anything be said about Stony Brook's defense? They looked very sharp at times, showing explosiveness. I'm a bit concerned about their miscues, resulting in a few holes that Elon exploited (this could just be because of the overmatch I'm reading about on the part of Elon). I've always thought of SBU as a defensive team, given that for the past 5 years their offense seemed inconsistent at best.

[gophoenix]

A couple interesting stats from today

Total Off. yards SBU 354 Elon 259
Rush yards SBU 197 Elon 18
Pass yards SBU 157 Elon 241
SBU had 4 sacks on the Elon QB
We pretty much won the the tale of the tape but lost .

A lot of the offensive difference was the fact that we started on a short field so much. We had 106 return yards to the SB 21.

That field looked like a nightmare in the 3rd and 4th quarters. I saw through one hurricane when we played Charleston Southern in 2002 and it wasn't anything compared to the downpour on Long Island Saturday (at least from what the video looked like). There were points you couldn't see the team standing on the other side of the field.

[Bull Fan]

Good point about the field position. In the first half, it seemed Elon was starting off at around their own 40.

Uncle Buck mentions the Elon QB having cement on his feet; my gripe was his backward retreat when faced with a passrush. It seemed he was hesitant to get rid of the ball, was he overconfidant of being able to connect against this defense, or is this just a trait of his?

There were some height mismatches they never seemed to take advantage of.


Can anything be said about Stony Brook's defense? They looked very sharp at times, showing explosiveness. I'm a bit concerned about their miscues, resulting in a few holes that Elon exploited (this could just be because of the overmatch I'm reading about on the part of Elon). I've always thought of SBU as a defensive team, given that for the past 5 years their offense seemed inconsistent at best.

SBU may have had decent defense in the last 5 years, but let's take into account you're playing a better schedule this year. You're going to go through some growing pains against some teams; others, you're going to sneak up on. And again, I maintain Elon took it easy with the playbook. I don't think anyone in that stadium witnessed the full capabilities of a pass-happy offense. Elon kept resorting to a running play that resulted in nothing, and I thought I saw some frustration in the Elon QB after the play netted almost nothing. I'm going to think this was weather-induced, otherwise we'd have seen an airshow.

I actually think SBU can jump all over Hofstra this year, especially under the circumstances. Last year the Wolves showed some fire in the belly for that road game.

The field was atrocious towards the end of the game, I could only imagine what it'd have been like on actual grass.

[ElonPride]

Good point about the field position. In the first half, it seemed Elon was starting off at around their own 40.

Uncle Buck mentions the Elon QB having cement on his feet; my gripe was his backward retreat when faced with a passrush. It seemed he was hesitant to get rid of the ball, was he overconfidant of being able to connect against this defense, or is this just a trait of his?

There were some height mismatches they never seemed to take advantage of.



SBU may have had decent defense in the last 5 years, but let's take into account you're playing a better schedule this year. You're going to go through some growing pains against some teams; others, you're going to sneak up on. And again, I maintain Elon took it easy with the playbook. I don't think anyone in that stadium witnessed the full capabilities of a pass-happy offense. Elon kept resorting to a running play that resulted in nothing, and I thought I saw some frustration in the Elon QB after the play netted almost nothing. I'm going to think this was weather-induced, otherwise we'd have seen an airshow.

I actually think SBU can jump all over Hofstra this year, especially under the circumstances. Last year the Wolves showed some fire in the belly for that road game.

The field was atrocious towards the end of the game, I could only imagine what it'd have been like on actual grass.

A couple miscues by Elon let SB back into the game. The TD called back for offensive pass interference and a missed EXP on our side.......and a botched sack that let the SB QB throw a prayer into the endzone for a TD.

The plan for the game seemed to be take the lead (as Elon did at 30-13), and hold on for dear life during all the deluge of rain.

The difference in the game was special teams. Elon did a great job pinning SB back for long field(Riddle had 2 quick punts that pinned SB back), on punt returns and Wilcox had a monster day on kickoffs.

SB is a good team, and I knew this wasn't going to be a blowout. I said preseason that SB would make a run for the Big South title, and I think they may do it their first year! I do though, think it would've been more of a 42-20 score in good weather.

[Bull Fan]

The PI call was an embarassment to officiating.

I loved the pooch kicks, they were well executed.

Haven't seen Elon in a few years, and they're somewhat impressive. Good luck in the SoCon this year.

[SoCon48]

The PI call was an embarassment to officiating.

.

The Elon radio announcers agreed with the call.

[gophoenix]

The Elon radio announcers agreed with the call.

Lembo also agreed with it in interviews; not only agreed with it but called it a good call.

[ElonPride]

The Elon radio announcers agreed with the call.

They did? I sure as heck don't remember that. I do remember one saying that it was questionable.

[Bull Fan]

Unfortunately we don't have access to the gamefilm, but man, it appeared that both receiver and d-back had their eyes on the ball, and it even looked like there was daylight between them. I don't remember seeing any arms around each other. If there was any contact, it was a play that could've been left alone... penalties could be called on 95% of all plays. If this was a statement call, it was a poor decision. I felt vindicated for the Christians to see them score the next touchdown.

[SoCon48]

The one who elaborated on what happened agreed with it and said it was an unfortunate call.

[Bull Fan]

Paint me silly. Since there was no replays during the game, it was a judgement call for all involved. Did he also agree that it was a beautiful, blue-bird day outside?

[SoCon48]

Paint me silly. Since there was no replays during the game, it was a judgement call for all involved. Did he also agree that it was a beautiful, blue-bird day outside?

I've made no comment about agreeing with the call itself, just stating that neither announcer was vehement and the other was agreeing with it.

They were more objective about the officiating than many team employed announcers are.

As to your jab about the blue bird weather, they bitched an moaned the whole time. Think there was a prob with the wind actually blowing rain on them and into their booth and said they couldn't wait to get out of there.

[Bull Fan]

SoCon48, they really would've been upset if we had half the wind that was predicted. Even in the upper level of the stadium, we felt relatively now breeze at all- just hard, hard rain in the 4th Q. But the booths are up there, so I could see them being upset ;)

I thought the Elon fans travelled pretty well, they were out in relative force. I wonder if there's any future plans in the works with Hofstra?

Sorry to hanker on about the PI call. I was an objective fan that day, I don't cheer for SBU nor Elon; but that had to be what appeared to be one of the worst PI calls I've ever seen- and I've watched many a pass-dominated games following Hofstra over the years. Blew my mind.

If your QB can learn to dump the ball and minimize losses, you could have a real nice attack and 2008 season. On some sacks, he just ran straight back and took huge losses. Otherwise, a solid looking team.

[ElonPride]

If your QB can learn to dump the ball and minimize losses, you could have a real nice attack and 2008 season. On some sacks, he just ran straight back and took huge losses. Otherwise, a solid looking team.

That has been a concern of mine since last season, and seems to be of major concern for Lembo.

[elon77]

That has been a concern of mine since last season, and seems to be of major concern for Lembo.

better protection will take care of alot of the problem. Remember though, they have only faced Richmond( a team that held UVA to 16 points ) and Stony Brook in a dang flood. I still think Riddle and Co. will be OK.xthumbsupx

[SoCon48]

That has been a concern of mine since last season, and seems to be of major concern for Lembo.

Against App, Riddle's "dumps" were 20 yard completions plus some short dumps that gained 20 yards.

[gophoenix]

better protection will take care of alot of the problem. Remember though, they have only faced Richmond( a team that held UVA to 16 points ) and Stony Brook in a dang flood. I still think Riddle and Co. will be OK.xthumbsupx

Maybe so. I can't say. I can say I am worried. We aren't using the tools that gave us success last year. Right now we are not making plays with good routes that take advantage of our receivers. In many cases, Riddle has had plenty of time to make plays but has thrown short or thrown long to receivers. I am not laying the blame all on Riddle, it just seems to be that as a team, we aren't playing like we did last year. This whole offensive play calling by committee is apparently not working.

The D looks worse off than it actually is. 6 stops where the should have been and the number of yard given up drops from 700 to 400 in two games. If they can work to actually commit and take down someone, we'll be ok here (nothing spectacular, but adequate).

[ElonPride]

The D looks worse off than it actually is.

The defense plays big this year, but it doesn't seem like their head is in it 100% of the time. Stony Brook only converted 2 third down situations out of 15! They forced 2 turnovers, but gave up 354 total yards. Take away the 49 yards pass (which was a prayer by the QB) and the 72 yards run, and the D did pretty well. If they keep their heads in the game for 4 quarters, they will limit those big plays and start to look respectable on paper.