{"id":2333,"date":"2014-12-18T08:00:15","date_gmt":"2014-12-18T14:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=2333"},"modified":"2014-12-17T14:26:04","modified_gmt":"2014-12-17T20:26:04","slug":"msu-football-life-6-5-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2014\/12\/18\/msu-football-life-6-5-season\/","title":{"rendered":"MSU FOOTBALL: Life After A 6-5 Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"msu<\/a>The holiday turkey and all the fixings, made the same as they\u2019ve always been made, just didn\u2019t taste as good.<\/p>\n

The blue skies and cool breezes didn\u2019t help the mood either. Pretty good matchups during college football\u2019s rivalry week probably didn\u2019t hold much interest.<\/p>\n

Days were filled with more than a few what ifs and coulda, woulda, shoulda questions.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m just wondering, McNeese Cowboys fans, did I hit it pretty close?<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t feel abandoned in the wasteland of early football withdrawals. McNeese coaches and players are right there with you.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not easy for anyone who wears the blue and gold in this region of the state when a season that harbored so much promise and so many high expectations ends so abruptly and badly.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve heard it already. The near-historic upset of Nebraska in Lincoln to start the season had to mean the Cowboys were ready for another Southland Conference championship run. For weeks, the Cowboys were ranked in the Top 5 on national FCS polls.<\/p>\n

Was it all a fa\u00e7ade?<\/p>\n

In some ways, this team got caught up in the early season hype surrounding the near miss against the Cornhuskers. Then came the ill-advised (in my opinion) public talk of chasing a national championship. Early routs of outmanned Prairie View, Arkansas Tech and Nicholls State fed the optimism. The defense was scoring a record amount of points and the rotating quarterbacks were working.<\/p>\n

The first red alert was the season-ending injury to promising young wide receiver Kent Shelby, who went down with a leg injury in that 61-7 demolition of Arkansas Tech. The Cowboys had a full stable of receivers, but none were 6-feet, 3-inches and 190 pounds of bona fide deep threat like Shelby.<\/p>\n

Another season-ending knee injury to freshman cornerback Ja\u2019Len James put a dent in the secondary\u2019s depth that would come back to haunt the defense once conference play began.<\/p>\n

There were three pivotal SLC matchups in which McNeese had to go at least 2-1 to be in the mix at season\u2019s end. The first on the schedule loomed large and would set the tone for the rest.<\/p>\n

Sam Houston State, with first-year head coach K.C. Keeler, was still in the afterglow of SLC titles in two of the last three years, and back-to-back trips to the FCS national championship game. The BearKats were a huge step up from the Wonder Boys (Arkansas Tech).<\/p>\n

New quarterback Jared Johnson exposed the Cowboys\u2019 defensive weakness to a mobile, running quarterback who could also stop and throw with accuracy. Johnson burned McNeese for 190 yards of rushing and 192 yards of passing and three touchdowns. It was easily his best game of the season. Too bad it popped up early against the Cowboys.<\/p>\n

In the remaining marquee conference showdowns, Northwestern quarterback Zack Adkins, SFA quarterback Zach Conque, Southeastern\u2019s Bryan Bennett and Lamar quarterback Caleb Berry, all seemed to have season-high stats in one category or another.<\/p>\n

The Cowboy defense couldn\u2019t slow down the SLC\u2019s top quarterbacks enough to offset the offense\u2019s lack of production over the final stretch of the season.<\/p>\n

At one point, the injuries to offensive starters (outlined in detail in the last Lagniappe edition in my \u201cPainful Toll\u201d column) got ridiculous. Head coach Matt Viator could mask them against contests against easier SLC foes like Abilene Christian and Incarnate Word, but the drop-off in talent, consistency and scoring became crystal clear from the second half of the Northwestern State game through the season-ending three-game slide of losses to Stephen F. Austin, Southeastern Louisiana and Lamar.<\/p>\n

The mind-boggling ending to the Lamar game added insult to injury.<\/p>\n

The replay booth reversal of that Lamar catch, fumble and McNeese touchdown was \u201ca microcosm of the last several weeks\u201d of the debacle that was the second half of the Cowboys\u2019 season, according to head coach Matt Viator.<\/p>\n

A deceiving 3-1 start finished with a telling 3-4 ending. And that controversial loss to border rival Lamar was like getting sucker punched while on one knee.<\/p>\n

The Cowboys weren\u2019t supposed to lose to the Cardinals, especially at Cowboy Stadium, where Lamar hadn\u2019t won since 1982.<\/p>\n

On a side note, Viator likes the fact the Southland Conference is the first league in the FCS to implement instant replay. He found it ironic that he was at the forefront among all SLC coaches in support of replay, but didn\u2019t see a single replay decision go his way.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s football,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s just calls. It just so happens that this was the year we didn\u2019t get any (replay decisions). We didn\u2019t get a one. (Remember the critical replay reversal of a Southeastern La. fumble.) I like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

By now you know my position on the slew of injuries and how they were the primary cause of the Cowboys\u2019 demise down the stretch. That position won\u2019t stop some fans from wondering whether the problems are too big for Viator and his staff to overcome. The expected internet posts and blogs say it\u2019s time for a change at the top and bottom of the coaching staff.<\/p>\n

In media interviews, McNeese Athletic Director Bruce Hemphill has already said that won\u2019t happen and Viator is the right man to lead this football program. Calls for coaching changes always surface when expectations aren\u2019t met.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s today\u2019s college football. Early season optimism has to be satisfied at the end as well.<\/p>\n

Viator has proved his mettle and his ability to win football games and conference championships.<\/p>\n

But this is an impatient society and fan base. We\u2019re in the time of \u201cwhat have you done for me lately?\u201d Football coaches live with that hanging over their heads every day, every week and every season.<\/p>\n

This will be another off-season when Viator and his entire staff should do some serious introspection and analysis, as I know for a fact they do every year. But this go-around should be more in-depth, and involve talent evaluation, depth and recruiting, offensive and defensive schemes and philosophies and situational coaching.<\/p>\n

Legendary NFL Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells once said \u201cyou are what your record says you are.\u201d Unfortunately, the numbers show the Cowboys have been a bit better than average in three of the past five seasons. McNeese has posted 6-5 records three of the past five years, along with a 7-4 finish in 2012 and a great bounce back 10-2 season in 2013.<\/p>\n

Viator\u2019s Cowboys have missed the FCS playoffs four times over that same five-year span.<\/p>\n

Under the \u201cwhat have you done for me lately?\u201d banner, McNeese hasn\u2019t won a playoff game since its national championship game appearance in 2002.<\/p>\n

Viator lives with those numbers every day. He knows that until he ends that streak and wins a post-season game, the playoff record and those failures will be trotted out again this time of year.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to win, and even more difficult to keep a program on top of the elite heap, knowing all that. Ask Youngstown State and Georgia Southern.<\/p>\n

Sam Houston State went looking for a new head coach in January in hopes of cracking the code of three-time defending national champion North Dakota State. The BearKats lost to the Bison in two of the last three FCS title games.<\/p>\n

Sam Houston struck gold and didn\u2019t lose a step with the hiring of Keeler. The former Delaware head coach brought with him a resume that included an FCS national title in 2003 and an 11-3 playoff record.<\/p>\n

He knows how to coach and prepare game plans for big games; these talents were on display in the team\u2019s 21-17 opening round playoff victory over Southeastern Louisiana. Keeler knows how to recruit talented players and assistant coaches. He\u2019s a proven winner, and will have an ample budget on this level of football to continue his successful track record.<\/p>\n

The bottom line is Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin (which lost to Northern Iowa in the first round), Central Arkansas and Southeastern Louisiana have turned the corner and are not going anywhere.<\/p>\n

Neither are Viator and the Cowboys.<\/p>\n

They will come back loaded with four senior running backs \u2014 Kelvin Bennett, Derrick Milton, Dylan Long and Nate Holmes, along with breakout tailback Ryan Ross, who will be a true sophomore. Viator will have quarterback Daniel Sams ready for his senior year, and working full-time this spring, with the goal of improving his passing accuracy and defensive reads.<\/p>\n

The offensive line will lose one starter in all SLC tackle Antoine Everett and will return improving tight end Zach Hetrick.<\/p>\n

There will be imposing voids on the defensive line, as three of four starters graduate. And there will be a huge hole in the secondary, with the departure of safety Aaron Sam.<\/p>\n

But the Cowboys return four starters in the defensive backfield, led by safeties Brent Spikes and Dominique Hill.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the year we don\u2019t have many seniors (13 and not all were on scholarship), so we will hopefully move some things to have a decent signing class,\u201d said Viator. \u201cWe will not have a huge recruiting year, but fortunately for us, we have a lot of guys coming back. But we have to get them healthy and working in the off-season so we can get better.\u201d<\/p>\n

The debate about signing FBS transfers and the ways in which Sam Houston, SFA and Southeastern have used that to their advantage, rages on. McNeese isn\u2019t shying away from the practice either. Viator signed three significant FBS transfers this year. All cracked the starting lineup at various times, including Sams, Milton and cornerback Jermaine Antoine.<\/p>\n

Whenever possible, the FBS avenue needs to be used to upgrade positions quickly. You can take the high road about building with recruits; two years and done; questions over questionable players and their character; but if you ignore available talent on the open market, you will find your program on the low road of mediocrity.<\/p>\n

The Cowboys will have to locate and find help for the defensive line on the FBS transfer wire or try the junior college route, as they did with starting defensive end Brian Hine. If they can sign a D-lineman to match Hine\u2019s intensity, then half the battle will be won.<\/p>\n

The winning formula begins and ends at quarterback.<\/p>\n

Nearly every elite and championship caliber college team on the FBS or FCS level possesses a mobile, elusive quarterback who can break down a defense with his legs and his arm.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the difference between winning or losing; of being in playoffs and bowl games or being home for the holidays.<\/p>\n

The Cowboys have one more year with Sams, who led the team in rushing before he reinjured his thumb late in the season. He proved his running skills on the FBS stage as a backup quarterback at Kansas State, and didn\u2019t disappoint with those skills once he was in the blue and gold.<\/p>\n

Running will only get you so far, though. A quarterback will be called on and expected to complete at least 50 percent of his passes and make plays downfield through the air. Sams struggled mightily throwing the football, completing only 47 percent for a meager 62-yard average per game.<\/p>\n

Next spring, Viator and his offensive brain trust must develop Sams into a true duel threat quarterback. That\u2019s job No. 1. Other key jobs are keeping him healthy through spring, August and the entire season.<\/p>\n

If these things are done, then there is hope for much happier holidays in 2015.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Get Rick Sarro\u2019s perspectives on sports on Soundoff 60, which airs Monday through Sunday nights at 9 pm on Suddenlink Channel 60 and Saturday and Sunday mornings at 10 am as well.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The holiday turkey and all the fixings, made the same as they\u2019ve always been made, just didn\u2019t taste as good. The blue skies and cool breezes didn\u2019t help the mood either. Pretty good matchups during college football\u2019s rivalry week probably didn\u2019t hold much interest. Days were filled with more than a few what ifs and [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":278,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[591,64,33],"yoast_head":"\nMSU FOOTBALL: Life After A 6-5 Season - BestOfSwla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2014\/12\/18\/msu-football-life-6-5-season\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MSU FOOTBALL: Life After A 6-5 Season - BestOfSwla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The holiday turkey and all the fixings, made the same as they\u2019ve always been made, just didn\u2019t taste as good. 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