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Tigers blown away at home
10/6/2007
By NICK McQUEEN
Hays Daily News
In an attempt to ease the pain of his team's first home loss of the 2007 season, Fort Hays State University football coach Kevin Verdugo stuck to his philosophy.
"When people need a little love and understanding the most, is probably when they deserve it the least," Verdugo said.
The Tiger coach didn't feel like his team was deserving of much more than what they got in a 37-9 homecoming loss to Missouri Western State University on Saturday at Lewis Field Stadium.
"I didn't feel like we deserved a whole lot today, but that's not the right path to take,"¬ Verdugo said. "We need to continue to be positive. We're back to .500. In essence, that's 0-0 and a fresh start to our season."
The loss drops the Tigers to 3-3 overall and 1-3 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. An abysmal offensive performance quickly turned a close game into a blowout for the Griffons.
"When we do well, we execute well, when we don't do well, we don't execute well,"¬ said senior tailback Jordan Hickel. "That's what it all comes down to."
Fort Hays managed just 208 yards and no offensive points and was 0-for-1 in its only trip inside the Griffon 20. The troubles began in the first quarter, when Missouri Western (4-2, 2-2) picked off a pass by Tiger senior quarterback Shane Jackson and took it 26 yards to the house for a 7-0 lead.
"That's a ball that should never go out. You never throw an an outside ball that late," Verdugo said. "That should have been thrown out of the yard and you can't make that mistake. That's a simple execution problem."
The pick came after both Fort Hays and Missouri Western went three and out on their first possessions. The Tigers' series was the first of many on the day where they failed to move the ball with any success, getting just 14 first downs on a windy and warm October afternoon.
"It was windy out there, but that's an excuse," said senior quarterback Ryne Salyer, the second-half quarterback for the Tigers. "We practice in the same stuff every day. That didn't really affect us that much."
After a punt on the Tigers' third possession, Missouri Western didn't have much trouble moving with the wind, especially with short field position at the Tigers' 20-yard line after a bad snap to Tiger junior punter Tyler Elder. The Griffons used four plays to score from 11 yards out on fourth down, a run by freshman La'Darrian Page.
The Tigers managed to drive to the Missouri Western 7-yard line, but a missed 24-yard field goal attempt by senior kicker Justin Barr resulted in a failed attempt on Fort Hays' only visit to the red zone.
Fort Hays had just 89 rushing yards against the MIAA's worst statistical run defense.
"I was impressed with their defense, especially their linebackers,"¬ said Hickel, who netted 64 yards on the ground. "We leave one linebacker open and it's my job to make them miss. It's tough when they're so quick."
The Tiger defense, meanwhile, was solid in the first half, with the exception of one play, a 96-yard pass completion from freshman quarterback Drew Newhart to sophomore receiver Cedric Houston after the Tigers buried the Griffons deep in their own territory.
"Our defense did a great job and got them down in a huge position for us,"¬ Verdugo said. "We just probably took a deep breath and exhaled and the next thing you know -- we just have to play on every single play."
Barr put the Tigers on the board with a 41-yard field goal with 5:18 left before halftime and pinned Missouri Western deep in its own territory with a ball placed near the sideline on the ensuing kickoff. That led to a fumble on Missouri Western's first play, recovered by Tiger senior linebacker Zach Scruggs in the end zone for Fort Hays' only touchdown of the game.
Griffon junior kicker Dustin Strickler made a 19-yard field goal in the third quarter.
With Salyer at quarterback, the Tiger offense still struggled to move the ball through the second half, getting only to the Missouri Western 46.
"We just all need to step up as a group. The quarterback needs to step up and make some plays," Salyer said. "We're a good offense and we have the talent, we just need to start stepping up and making some plays."
Salyer was 7-of-14 in the second half for 35 yards. Jackson, who sat out the second half with a case of dehydration, was 8-for-16 with one interception for 84 yards.
In the fourth quarter, Page had a 26-yard TD run and a the Griffons connected on a 33-yard scoring pass from sophomore backup QB Barron Bradshaw to junior Anthony Anderson.
The Tigers take to the road to play Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, Mo., on Saturday.
Sports reporter Nick McQueen can be reached at (785) 628-1081, Ext. 128 or by e-mail at nmcqueen@dailynews.net.
| Scoreboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Score |
| BB | 5/11 | Central Missouri | L 4-2 |
| BB | 5/10 | Missouri Western | W 4-3 |
| BB | 5/09 | Emporia State | L 6-5 |
| BB | 5/04 | Pittsburg State | W 17-5 |
| BB | 5/04 | Pittsburg State | L 4-3 |
| BB | 5/03 | Pittsburg State | L 15-7 |
| BB | 5/03 | Pittsburg State | L 5-4 |
| SB | 5/02 | Central Missouri | L 3-1 |
| SB | 5/02 | Missouri Western | W 3-2 |
| SB | 5/01 | Pittsburg State | W 6-0 |
