Football Gameday: Case vs. Trine
Zac Ruetz
Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: Football
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The Spartans will need to settle into a comfortable offensive rhythm just in case the Thunder's rushing offense gets too intense for the Spartan defense to handle. Either way, this weekend's game will definitely be the toughest of the season, pending a deeper run in the playoffs. Time will reveal the true strength of this Spartan football team that will be remembered at Case for years to come.
The Thunder are a formidable opponent for Case's talented rushing defense, and have managed over 2300 yards this season with seven running backs. These 234 rushing yards per game compare with Case's 317 passing yards per game; it also indicates their only statistical discrepancy versus the Spartan rushing defense, which has held its opponents to just over 100 rushing yards per game.
The fact that the Trine offense utilizes seven running backs in nearly every game indicates that they are able to put in new backs on nearly every play for a shared responsibility of the total yardage gained.
The passing game, however, is lacking to say the least. A grand total of 1900 yards is incomparable with the passing yardage total of Case senior quarterback Dan Whalen, who has amassed a whopping 3010 yards this season. The Thunder may be a slightly less disciplined team as well, considering an average of 73 yards per game penalized against them this season (compared with Case's 47 ypg).
"[Trine's] offensive line is real big and real fast, but they have some tendencies that some of our coaches have pointed out which should help in the game," senior linebacker Jeff Brown said. "They have a good offense, and it's definitely the best we'll see all year. No team really makes the playoffs without being good on both sides of the ball."
The Spartan rush defense will have to lock down their home field and stop the powerful Trine rushing game if they want to have any shot at an offensive shootout.
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