Pony NATE-tion: Denton rebound?
Better offensive line, quarterback play key against UNT
Posted on 09/05/2014 by PonyFans.com
PonyFans.com is proud to welcome back, for his second season as a columnist, Nate, who is 13 years old, in eighth grade, might want to be a sports writer and knows more about football than a lot of people who already make their living covering sports. Nate will offer his thoughts and will preview each game throughout the season, looking at a key player, matchup or statistic that could prove relevant in each upcoming game … and explain why it will impact the outcome. Feel free to post comments and constructive criticism, ask him questions, and/or give suggestions for upcoming columns!

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Nate says that an improved performance by the offensive line will go a long way toward determining the SMU offensive success at UNT (photo by PonyFans.com).
This weekend, the SMU Mustangs will try and bounce back after being thumped by Baylor as the Bears cut the ribbon at McLane Stadium.

The Mustangs rushed for a grand total of -24 yards. Now, a lot of that yardage was lost on sacks, but still that shows Baylor’s domination up front. The BU defense looked outstanding as they, holding SMU to 67 total yards! But the Mustangs’ next opponent, North Texas, got blasted by the Texas Longhorns in new head coach Charlie Strong’s debut with his new team. The offense for UT was average at best, but man, oh man did the UNT offense just get stuffed! The Mean Green threw for just 15 yards. That is really impressive, especially in this day and age of pass-happy offenses.

So, to put it bluntly, there was a chance the Mustangs were walking into a buzzsaw, and a buzzsaw they got. The Ponies should have a better game against a lesser opponent this week against North Texas, which is having a rebuilding year after losing nearly 20 important players from last year’s Heart of Dallas Bowl champion team. North Texas had nothing against the Longhorns; UNT’s offense was really bad and the Longhorns’ defense looked pretty good, too.

SMU should be OK defensively, as well the Mean Green’s offense is gutted with next to no weapons. The Mustangs’ offensive line will do better against the Mean Green’s defensive line, which is not as good as Baylor’s defensive front. Look for running backs Prescott Line and Kevin Pope to have good games. The Horns averaged a solid 4.1 yards per carry. In Waco, there were more and more flashes of Line’s potential. He has a lot of potential. He just hasn’t quite put it together yet — emphasis on yet — but I see him finally having his coming-out in the second half of the season. The Mean Green also got burned pretty badly through the air, versus Texas giving up 354 yards in that department.

Now, to the Mustangs’ quarterback situation. Neal Burcham had a lot more snaps than Matt Davis, but when Davis was in, the offense showed some signs of life. Burcham is a solid pocket quarterback while Davis has been hanging out with Johnny Manziel and has potential to be a premier playmaker with his legs. The one huge mistake was Davis’ interception when he was scrambling and threw the ball across his body across the whole field and it was a layup of an interception for Baylor. He had to throw the ball away there, but then again, he had five or six green jerseys running him down. But still …

Burcham has room to improve, obviously, as he seemed to hold on to the ball too long in the pocket and the pocket closed in and he got sacked. Again, he has four or five Bears running after him so a lot of that is pinned on the SMU line. Burcham has to get rid of the ball more quickly, and Davis has to keep making plays, but be smart doing it. Head coach June Jones has not said who would start against UNT, but it’s very possible that more than one quarterback will play.

This is a game the Mustangs should win. Looking at their schedule with a brutal front half, this is the one game in the first half of the season that SMU needs and clearly can win. UNT is weak on defense and especially on offense. If Taylor Lasecki and company hold the rush at bay and give Burcham and Davis and open up some holes for Pope and Line, SMU has a good chance of winning with room to spare.

Nate’s Take: SMU 28 North Texas 13

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