The game played out sort of how I thought it would and you know this already if you read the “What to Watch” or listened to the podcasts this week. UC Davis is a good team and they are significantly better than they showed last year in the playoffs when things just snowballed on them. The Jacks get the “w” and there is still plenty to improve upon. This is really the best type of result for an early non-conference game.

*One thing needs to be noted. This was the one game a year when my entire family attends. I have a 7, 5, and 2 year old. They stayed for the first quarter and a half and then headed home. My observations from the first quarter and a half are limited due to this.

Rants & Raves

Rave: The Jackrabbit defense was again pretty darn solid! The busted coverage on the 68-yard UC Davis touchdown was the only major hiccup. Otherwise, UC Davis had to play pretty darn perfect in order to move the ball down the field. For much of the game they were unable to do that because of the terrific effort of the Jacks. The Jackrabbits held Ulonzo Gilliam to just 33 yards on 11 carries with 15 of those yards coming on a single carry in the 4th quarter. I joked on the podcast that the Jacks really needed to make sure he broke the UC Davis record at home instead of on the road in order to make it more special. The Jacks took it seriously apparently!

Rave: Jackrabbit tailgating was awesome yesterday! The beautiful weather and a big crowd all around the stadium made for a fun atmosphere. It was good to see friends that I only see a few times a year at tailgating!

Rant: My only complaint from tailgating is UPD giving minors to a group of students who were standing around an wooden spool just drinking beer and minding their own business. They weren’t playing loud music, it didn’t appear that there was hard alcohol, and they weren’t making a mess. Just leave them alone!

Rave: The Jackrabbit defensive had to show off their depth this week. With key players down at every level, new guys showed up. Tucker Large, Matthew Durrance, and Dontay Johnson at safety were really impressive (along with Colby Hueter). At linebacker, Daeton Mcgaughy really showed off his speed and instincts while Jason Freeman showed off his physicality. On the defensive line, it was a quieter week for the group, but I thought Caden Johnson made the most out of his first start and showed awesome hustle throughout.

Rave: Mark’s touchdown pass to Tyler Feldkamp was one of the wildest plays I have seen in person. A horrible snap had me hoping that Mark would just recover the bouncing ball and chuck it out of bounds. However, Mark kept his cool and Tyler Feldkamp did a good job of finding some open space. What a fun play and a good highlight of Mark’s composure and athletic ability.

Rant: I played center in high school and I experienced how hard it is once you lose the touch on the shotgun snaps. It is all you can think about. The snap count becomes a challenge and then the defense puts a guy head-up over you and now have to get that snap perfect, get the guy blocked, and remember the snap count. It’s a lot and it usually doesn’t end well! Gus struggled for the entire game with his snaps. Low, high, and wide. Luckily Mark was able to corral most of them but I think it certainly disrupted the timing of many plays. I’m hoping Gus can spend some time with the mental performance coach this week and get it worked out.

Rave: Beer sales were super smooth and easy. It seemed like many enjoyed it.

Rant: The concession stand lines were insane! Fans were (half) joking that they were thirsty and were forced to get a beer because they would have missed to much of the game waiting for a water. Hopefully this is remedied.

Rave: I thought Hunter Dustman again did a really good job handling the punting and kicking duties. I just hope someone is ready to take a few kickoffs here and there throughout the game.

Rant: I’d like to see Coach Lujan find a way to get the Janke twins the ball earlier and more often in the first half. They are the biggest threats on offense to make a game breaking play at this point. That seemed to be an emphasis early in the second half.

Rave: I thought other than one or two plays, Colby Christensen had a really solid debut at right tackle and John O’Brian was very good at right guard. I have no idea when and if Bo Donald will return but I saw enough good yesterday from Christensen and O’Brian to think that we’ll be okay if that is the combination we get.

Rant: I hope we never play Iowa again. This team is wayyyyy to beat up for this stage of the season. It sounds like there are players who are out for the year while others will miss a number of weeks. We may have hung with them but the cost is too much.

Rave: The more I think about this game the better I feel. UC Davis is indeed a very good team. The Jackrabbits were playing without 7-ish preferred starters and the young guys really showed out. The Jackrabbit offense is showing flashes of how dynamic it can but the consistency isn’t there year. Hopefully they can iron out the wrinkles next week and start firing on all cylinders before they head to Missouri State.

Game Balls

Offense: Isaiah Davis (25 carries, 112 yards)

Defense: Adam Bock (9 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 QBH)

Special Teams: Tucker Large (even though it didn’t count)