Ranking our player's performances:
Just a quick little "good night friends" post. Who was most impressive today?
My e-pinion:
1) Force - obvious
2) Minor - he didn't really appear in any of the "big" plays, but still ran for over 100, and 6.9 YPC. He's an incredible football player, IME. He scored a TD, helped move the ball, and most importantly, helped control the clock.
3) Stonum, over Odoms. Both had great games. Stonum had the kick return, but 'Tay had two huge catches in the final minutes. 'Tay does, however, need to keep a closer eye on the clock, and I previously dumped on Stonum, so he gets the nod over 'Tay in this post.
4) Stevie Brown, over Donovan Warren. Both were excellent. To the naked eye (and without reviewing tape, and after me pounding shots all night) I think they both did a great job tackling in the open field. DW had at least one awesome break-up, and SB caused a fumble. SB is playing a new position, so I'm giving him the nod in a close decision.
5) Greg Mathews - obviously he caught the game winner. He also had a sweet one-handed catch. Most weeks he'd be at #1 or #2, but today we had so many excellent individual performances that he drops a little.
Honorable mention:
Savoy - stepped in an made a big catch, but also dropped the potentially winning TD.
Disappointing performance:
Zoltan - he sets the bar high, and today was a bit of an off-day for him.
September 13th, 2009 at 4:01 AM ^
He had a few, don't you recall that 34 yard scamper he had that got us to the 1 on the opening drive of the 2nd half?
September 13th, 2009 at 7:40 AM ^
I also thought the same thing about Minor. His back to back runs on that 1st drive (for 16 and then for 34) were a major turning point in establishing the offense in the 3rd quarter. I think that he showed why he's the better back and why we're better off with him getting the bulk of the carries once he's healthy. But even still, it's shocking how great Force was in the 3rd and 4th quarters. He really demonstrated that he's the leader (something missing last year) and I hope that keeps getting better from here. I also hope RR will forget about the QB rotation now.
Koger also had a great game (but maybe not top 5).
September 13th, 2009 at 11:43 AM ^
I meant in the sense that he didn't have any "memorable" plays on the last drive. He certainly made valuable contributions, hence his #2 ranking. Sorrry for being unclear.
September 13th, 2009 at 7:22 AM ^
He was outmatched out there by Floyd and Clausen, but it would have taken a Woodsonesque effort to shut them down today.
September 13th, 2009 at 7:41 AM ^
Both Warren and Brown were OUTSTANDING.
September 13th, 2009 at 8:15 AM ^
He's finally found a home. Donovan did great too, but Golden Tate is no Micheal Floyd; Floyd is going to be a beast. When Donovan was matched up against Floyd, things were a little more challenging for him.
September 13th, 2009 at 8:55 AM ^
I actually thought 'Tay did fine on the play where he didn't go out of bounds. He had a chance to house it if he beat one guy. Sometimes you gotta take a risk.
September 13th, 2009 at 10:49 AM ^
Was anyone else impressed with Ezeh catching up to the Notre Dame player (sorry can't remember who it was)and saving what would have been a TD-but called back anyway? He showed some serious determination.
September 13th, 2009 at 1:06 PM ^
It was Kyle Rudolph the TE. The play was called back though.
September 13th, 2009 at 2:03 PM ^
Ezeh had an ugly and forgettable game.