 The 2011 season maybe just three games old, but first-year Kent State head coach Darrell Hazell is finding out that it is a lot harder to be in the head coach’s chair than in one of the assistant coaches.
Kent State is 0-3 for the first time since 2000 after being shutout at Kansas State 37-0 last Saturday. On the Golden Flashes second play of the game, junior quarterback Spencer Keith was intercepted by defensive back David Garrett, who returned it 45 yards for a touchdown. From that point on, it was all Wildcats as they scored on their next five possessions (three touchdowns and two field goals) in building a 34-0 lead at halftime.
Despite the slow start, Hazell is still upbeat when asked about his team. “The spirit of our team right now is still pretty good.” he said. “I love this football team and their attitude right now.”
A couple of thorns that have stuck in the Golden Flashes side so far this season are an ineffective offense and penalties, especially at crucial times.
The offense has scored just 19 points over the first three games, with only two touchdowns. Last week in Manhattan, its most sustainable drive came in the fourth quarter when they moved the ball 70 yards from their own 21 to the Kansas State nine, eating up 9:28. Nontheless, the Flashes came away empty, turning the ball over on downs.
The running game that was a question mark when the 2011 season began is last in the MAC, averaging just 60.3 yards per game. Keith has struggled, completing just 44.7 percent of his passes for 294 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions.
With penalties, KSU committed 11 of them against Kansas State for 136 yards. Eight of the calls were personal fouls, while three of them were infractions of the new chop-block rule. In the first three games, they have been whistled for 24 penalties (262 yards), second highest in the league to Toledo (29). “We had too many penalties and they hurt us, especially on some of those long drives they had,” Hazell said.
One bright spot out of the Kansas State game was the running of freshman Trayion Durham, who gained 72 yards on 18 carries to lead the Flashes ground game. Fellow frosh Anthony Meray added 45 yards on 10 carries.
“We took some strides in the running game. I thought we did some nice things running the football for the first time this year.” Hazell said. In fact, against the Wildcats, the Flashes ran for 118 yard, compared to just 63 yards in the first two games.
KSU returns home to complete the non-conference portion of its schedule Saturday as the Jaguars of South Alabama come to Dix Stadium for a 3:30 PM kickoff. “There are a lot of unknowns about them.” Hazell said. “They have two good running backs (both are red-shirt freshmen in Kendall Houston & Demetre Baker). (They also have) a good quarterback (another second year freshman in C.J. Bennett), and they have a good head coach (Joey Jones)
South Alabama, located in Mobile, has a football program that is in just its third year of existence (a span of 20 games). It is a school that is ‘transitioning’ into the Football Bowl Subdivision. It is an independent at the Football Championship Subdivision (Division-I AA) in 2011 and 2012 before moving into the FBS and the Sun Belt Conference in 2013. USA competes in the Sun Belt in its other intercollegiate sports.
USA suffered its first loss as a program last Saturday when it traveled to North Carolina State, falling to the Wolfpack 35-16 it was the first outing agianst a team from the FBS. “We played a great game” Jones said.. “The effort and all of those things we talked about were there. We did not panic and went in and played well. We just did not make enough plays to win the game.”
Jones, who has been with USA since the inception of the program, was a wide receiver at Alabama playing for the legendary coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. He played professionally in the early 1980’s in the NFL and the United State Football League before turning to coaching.
“They are known for their defense,” Jones said of Kent State. “They were top five in the country last year against the running game, and have one of the best players I have seen in Roosevelt Nix. He is undersized, but he can really play”
The Flashes know this game is crucial for their confidence as they open MAC play with two tough road games (at Ohio and Northern Illinois) waiting in the wings. “Hopefully our team is growing up a little bit .We understand we have to play better and hopefully these challenges we have had in the first three weeks, will pay dividends for us down the road. Hazell said.
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