Blame Nick Holt - Week 9

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I couldn't help but notice all of the mixed emotions and angst for or against Nick Holt after getting a whiff of what was last weeks game (if it could be called a game) against Stanford. From my viewpoint, I was honestly pretty disappointed, to say the least, about the overall performance, though the offensive numbers were great at the end of the first half for the Dawgs, scoring would have been nice ..., and I was only able to come away from the game with a few good things to say about the defense.

1. The D held Stanford to a field goal on its second possession in the first half
2. Sean Parker provided a bunch a really nice hits.
3. The D could have easily given up 80 points, but didn't.
4. At least we won't have to play Andrew Luck again, ever.

Now on to the stats for the game.

1 - the total number of three and outs Washington forced on Stanford.

10 - the number of drives in which Stanford produced a score of some sort. (8 touchdowns, 2 fieldgoals)

0 - The total number of QB sacks Washington had.

9 - Total number of negative plays the Cardinal had on offense.

0 - The total number of negative plays the Cardinal had that weren't penalties

1 - The total number of times Stanford punted.

11 - The total number of drives Stanford had.

56 - The average amount of yards Colorado gained per drive.

65 - Stanford's point total.

67 - Stanford's 3rd down conversion percentage.

446 - Stanford's total rushing yardage.

169 - Stanford's total passing yardage.

615 - Stanford's total offense.

More after the jump

Now for some more stats ...

Stanford's first third down came on its 12th play from scrimmage. On two separate occasions, Stanford had 4 consecutive 1st down plays (meaning there were 4 times where Stanford was able to get another first down from a previous without getting a second down.) Washington gave up 20 plays of 10 yards or more, which accounted for 77% of Stanford's first downs. Finally, this is the second week in a row in which the Huskies have failed to force a single turnover.

If this was a game where Dawg fans were looking for an improvement, then you will be sorely disappointed. In fact, I would give anyone $500K in Monopoly money to find one place in which there was defensive improvement from the Colorado game to the Stanford game ... seriously.

Stanford has some things going for it, many of which have been mentioned in previous posts and comments. Frankly, I don't feel like talking about any of those things, EVER! I'm going eat some crow also, because I was under the impression that the defense really turned a corner in the second half against California. However, in hindsight, though the defense may have turned a corner against average to crappy teams, the Husky defense cannot play good teams in a way that emits even a spark of confidence, from even the hardiest homer around.

The question then arises, naturally of course: Who should we blame? Sure we could blame Holt. He is the defensive coordinator. Maybe we could blame recruiting, or even the strength and conditioning coach, but that just wouldn't be as much fun as this: Gaddafi's death and subsequent lack of being buried is the sole cause of the defense's lack of resembling a defense, but more a resemblance of a bunch of barriers in an obstacle course in which Stepfan Taylor was able to practice his cuts. I mean, what else could have caused this. Clearly the D was more worried about how Libya is going to react, now that their corrupt dictator is dead. I mean gosh, that definitely would have put me out of my game mode.

I just don't see Nick Holt as being the only person to blame, but he should be blamed for something, nonetheless. Therefore: Nick Holt, I blame you for the headache I had last night, and my subsequent unwillingness to take asprin so I could go to sleep.