| 17 August 2010
A new head coach. A new season. And a new chance for the Portland State Vikings to leave last season behind.
Last Saturday, the Vikings held their first official football scrimmage of the season and there were some hard hits and standout plays on both sides of the ball. Unfortunately for the players, the summer weather was in the mid 90's at the time. This didn't appear to slow anyone down, however, and new coach Nigel Burton appeared confident that his team will be focused and ready for a better finish than their disappointing 2-9 record in 2009.
There are only a few short weeks until the Vikings' first game against the Arizona State Sun Devils on September 4th and there are still some questions that need to be answered before the first kickoff:
Will the defense be improved? Nigel Burton, who was both a previous PSU assistant coach, as well as most recently the Defensive Coordinator for the Nevada Wolfpack, will be introducing a new 4-3 scheme, one that he's brought with him from his time with the Wolfpack.
The defense will be led by Ryan Rau, a junior middle linebacker.
"I have to be a leader and start calling the shots. I'm kind of the quarterback of the defense so if anything messes up, I'm the guy people are going to look at. So I have to make sure I am on top of my game," Rau said.
In 2009, the PSU defense allowed 33.8 points and 413.2 yards per game, numbers Burton is attempting to lower by coaching the team to attack more and remove any hesitation they may feel on the field. Adapting to a new scheme should help as Burton brings in proven defensive experience from a talented Nevada team.
Will new running back Cory McCaffrey have a break out year? After slotting in at receiver the past two seasons, Junior McCaffrey moves back to his natural position of running back, a position he played all four years during high school.
The state of Oregon is already very familiar with McCaffrey, who is the leading rusher in state history with 8,460 yards to his name. To put this in context, that number is the 16th best in high school football history and over 3,000 yards more than the 2nd leading rusher in the state.
Similar to the new defensive changes being implemented, the offense is being revamped, as well. Burton is implementing the Pistol offense, one that is known for being run heavy, which counters past years of predominantly pass heavy Vikings offense. However, the coaching staff have reported this will result in an even attack with around 50% pass and 50% rushing.
Which quarterback will start? Seven different quarterbacks played in PSU's first scrimmage on Saturday, not a number you want to see just weeks before the first game. However, the battle will most likely be pared down to three very soon as the coaches want the quarterbacks with the best shot of starting getting the most reps in practice. The three likely to make the cut are junior Connor Kavanaugh, senior Tygue Howland, and senior Drew Hubel.
Hubel comes into the year ranked fifth in school history for passing yards with 6,538, but an off-season knee surgery opens up some questions about whether he'll be 100% in time for the start of the year. On the other hand, Kavanaugh started the scrimmage and played the most snaps. He brings a slightly more versatile skill-set to the table as a duel threat, both through the air and on the ground. Howland was at quarterback for the play of the day, however, as he threw a 61 yard touchdown pass to sophomore receiver Justin Monahan.
Here are the numbers from the scrimmage for comparison:
Kavanaugh: 7-9 for 71 yards, resulting in one FG.
Howland: 3-4 for 84 yards with one touchdown.
Hubel: 4-7 for 50 yards with one interception.
The questions are there. Now Burton and the Vikings wait to find the answers.
photo:oregonlive
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