The Wolf Pack’s Zeke Robbins (13) leaves his feet to tackle Texas State’s Rontavius Groves. Nevada won the game, 38-14, at Mackay Stadium.
Photo by Steve Ranson.
Grading the Nevada Wolf Pack’s 38-14 victory over the Texas State Bobcats at Mackay Stadium last Saturday …
QUARTERBACK: B
The Wolf Pack has a passing attack after all. Well, sort of. Shane Illingworth and Nate Cox split the quarterback duties once again and this time it produced an efficient and productive passing game with just a hint of explosiveness.
The two Pack quarterbacks combined to complete 16-of-20 passes for 144 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. No, it wasn’t Chris Vargas of 1993 or Carson Strong of a year ago (the Pack is still looking for its first touchdown pass of the season), but it was welcome after last week’s dunk-and-dunk-and-run-for-cover offense last week at New Mexico State (in a 23-12 win).
Illingworth completed his first five passes and finished 11-of-13 for 101 yards. He even connected on a 31-yard strike to Jamaal Bell and a pair of 18-yarders to Bell and Dalevon Campbell. Illingworth played eight drives, leaving after the first possession of the third quarter (like in the opener). The former Oklahoma State quarterback did produce two touchdowns, giving the Pack a 14-7 halftime lead. Illingworth was likely pulled after the opening drive of the third quarter according to a now familiar Pack script, but he also didn’t exactly leave on a high note. His last five drives produced no points, 54 yards, two first downs and four punts. The only drive that didn’t end in a Pack punt during that stretch was stopped by halftime at the Pack 39. Both of Illingworth’s touchdowns and 73 of his 101 yards came in the first quarter over his first three drives.
Cox entered the game and, well, Texas State imploded. The Wolf Pack defense took over the game and Cox took advantage of the Pack momentum. The Wolf Pack scored 24 points over the first eight minutes that Cox was in the game, though the backup quarterback was really just at the right place at the right time. The defense forced three turnovers in those eight minutes and even scored a touchdown. Cox’s first three possessions all began in Texas State territory, leading to two Pack touchdowns and a field goal. Cox did score on an 8-yard run so he deserves some credit for the 24-0 Pack run. But his other touchdown drive covered just 20 yards and lasted just two plays, though it was his 18-yard scramble on first down that set up the score. Cox was 5-of-7 through the air for 43 yards and picked up 29 yards on eight runs.
RUNNING BACK: C -
Toa Taua and Devonte Lee, it seems, had a huge Silver and Blue target on their backs. The two Pack backs did combine for three short touchdowns (two by Taua) so it wasn’t a completely wasted afternoon for the workhorses of the offense. But Taua and Lee also didn’t contribute much to this victory. Taua had just 36 yards on 18 carries. And even those numbers were inflated by a meaningless 15-yard run on 3rd-and-23 late in the second quarter. Just four of Taua’s runs were for more than three yards. Lee had 20 yards on just five carries and did score on a 5-yard run. He also had a 12-yard run. But the Pack gave him just one carry in the entire second half. The 56 combined yards on 23 carries by Taua and Lee are the second fewest yards when they both played and had 20-plus carries in their five-year career. The lowest was 32 yards on 22 carries against San Diego State on Nov. 9, 2019.
RECEIVERS: C +
The wide receivers, so far, have not gotten many opportunities to shine in this Wolf Pack offense, especially when Cox is in the game. But Jamaal Bell is emerging as this position group’s leader. Bell did have six catches for 60 yards with 49 of those yards (18, 31 from Illingworth) coming on the Pack’s first touchdown drive. Illingworth also provided Dalevon Campbell’s (18 yards) and B.J. Casteel’s (seven yards) only catches and both catches for Tyrese Mack (14 total yards). Just one of Cox’s five completions (six yards to Bell) went to a wide receiver.
OFFENSIVE LINE: C
The Wolf Pack couldn’t run the ball efficiently and the offensive line did allow its first two sacks of the season. So, there is work to be done up front. There just was no room for the Pack backs to operate. Taua had 10 yards over his first 10 carries. He had seven total yards over his last six carries. At times it was painful to watch. But this is what the Pack can look forward to all season if it doesn’t open up its passing game. Opposing defenses, it seems, know the Pack playbook as well as the Pack quarterbacks. So don't blame the offensive line for most of this. Texas State’s defense focused on stopping Taua and Lee and the Pack offensive line never seemed to have any answers. The good news is that the only penalty on the offensive line was a false start on Zac Welch.
DEFENSIVE LINE: A +
Dom Peterson dominated the second and third quarters. The senior tackle had a 7-yard sack and a quarterback hurry in the second quarter and a 14-yard sack and a fumble recovery in the third quarter as the Wolf Pack defense blew the game open. Peterson, with the help of teammate Louie Cresto, also trapped Texas State running back Jahmyl Jeter for no gain and the very next play pounced on a fumble by Bobcats quarterback Layne Hatcher. Peterson, after just two games, is already making a case for Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year. Dion Washington also had a hurry on Hatcher, leading to Bentlee Sanders’ interception and return for a touchdown.
LINEBACKER: A +
The Pack linebackers, like the defensive line, do not get a ton of tackles. But they are making things difficult for opposing quarterbacks and running backs just the same. Texas State finished with minus-12 yards rushing on 25 carries thanks, mainly, to 43 yards of losses on four Pack sacks. The Bobcats also had just one run of 10 yards or longer. James Hansen’s sack in the third quarter, leading to a Texas State fumble, helped put the game away. Adam Weynand also had a sack for a 10-yard loss. Marcel Walker had four tackles, two of which were for a loss. Drue Watts had three tackles and Maurice Wilmer recovered a fumble.
SECONDARY: A +
We might be looking at one of the best defensive backfields in the country. The Wolf Pack secondary picked off four passes in the season opener and followed that up against Texas State with a performance just as dominating. Bentlee Sanders was outstanding with two interceptions, returning one for a 28-yard touchdown and a 38-7 Pack lead with four minutes left in the third quarter. Sanders also forced a fumble and had five tackles, two for losses. But he wasn’t alone. Tyriq Mack and Tyson Williams punished Texas State ball carriers all afternoon. Mack finished with nine tackles and Williams had seven, two for losses. Kacee Williams had three tackles while Zeke Robbins and Darion Green-Warren each broke up a pass.
SPECIAL TEAMS: A
Brandon Talton’s 50-yard field goal gave the Pack a 17-7 lead midway through the third quarter before the Pack defense took over the game. Matt Freem had a 52-yard punt and one for 44 and 46 yards but he also had punts of 36, 35 and 20 yards that he’d like back. Texas State’s return teams did nothing and Jamaal Bell did return one Bobcat kickoff 31 yards.
COACHING: A
Head coach Ken Wilson is now the first Pack coach to start his head coaching career at 2-0 since Chris Ault did it in 1976. Yes, of course, many Pack head coaches would have started 2-0 if given the chance to play New Mexico State and Texas State but that is not what matters right now. The important thing right now is that Wilson did, indeed, win his first two games because he made sure he would win, with a conservative game plan designed to eliminate costly mistakes. The Pack just went through the last five years with a head coach that would take unnecessary chances because, well, that coach had an offense that covered up a lot of his silly whims. But Wilson doesn’t have that type of offense. He’s a defensive coach. He doesn’t have any whims. So Wilson has put the first two games into the hands of his defense and that defense has responded even better than anyone could have expected by forcing nine turnovers. The Pack, of course, now leads the nation with a plus-9 turnover margin. Wilson is now, officially, the smartest head coach in the country.
OVERALL: A
Yes, the offense is still a bit disturbing. The Pack had just 13 first downs and a mere 274 total yards. The Pack couldn’t even run the ball well against Texas State. And the two quarterbacks put up three fewer passes against Texas State than they threw in an ultra conservative effort at New Mexico State. But we’ll worry about the offense later. That’s because the Pack hardly needed any offense at all to win its first two games. Make no mistake, the defense beat Texas State. The defense drained the life out of the Bobcats. The defense broke the Bobcats’ spirit. And it happened so fast the Bobcats didn’t know what hit them. In a span of about four minutes in the third quarter, the Wolf Pack defense forced and recovered two fumbles and intercepted a pass, turning a dangerous 17-7 lead into a 38-7 blowout. The Pack offense ran just eight plays. It was a silver and blue Texas tornado.
