The Spiders are HUMMING. The strongest 2nd half in a game this season to cap off an impressive 4-0 month of October. Plenty of momentum heading into the bye with all three phases playing at a high level.

Drives

1st half drives on the left, 2nd half drives on the right

Offense

10 drives – 5 TDs (50%), 4 punts (40%), 1 FG (10%)

What a 2nd half by this UR offense. Four offensive TDs, controlled the line of scrimmage, and didn’t take our foot off the pedal. Easily our most complete 60 minutes of football this season that erased a lot of questions from the past few weeks.

Kyle Wickersham – Well would you look what happens when you let #16 go out and play quarterback. No overly basic playbook, no QB draws/power on 75% of the plays – just the real Richmond offense with incredible results. Easily Wickersham’s best game of the season and we not only got to see the arm strength, but pinpoint accuracy down the field.

We hadn’t seen anything like that from Wickersham this season, yet none of it came as a surprise. He showed these abilities during the spring and fall camp, he just hadn’t had the chance to put it all together in a game. The only incompletion he threw down the field was the drop by Clarke down the right sideline – the ball to Garcia Jr. for our first TD was perfect, the ball to Griffin on a huge 3rd down conversion was perfectly timed, and he looked comfortable the entire game.

Overall the passing distribution looks ideal for both QBs. Many started to few Wickersham as our “running QB” but that sells him far too short. His size and running ability are an asset for this offense however his arm talent can’t be overlooked. It was a relief to finally see him turned loose and he didn’t disappoint the Homecoming crowd. Safe to say we’ve got two QBs capable of commanding this offense moving forward.

Cam Coleman – Just when we thought the QB situation would be clarified, it only gets murkier. No news yet on the status on Coleman’s injury however it seems the bye week is well timed. It was a very shaky 1st quarter for Coleman but how he settled in afterwards was very encouraging. Missed an early TD to Garcia Jr. on a great play design and another big throw that he normally makes, but the 2nd and 3rd quarters saw him start to find his rhythm. It was game #5 for Coleman, who can now no longer redshirt, so I’m sure there was some added pressure on his mind with that decision.

I have to give credit where credit is due – I was worried about how they’d use two QBs and they executed it flawlessly. Good decision to bring Wickersham in after the shaky start but also a good call to go back to Coleman after a few drives. You don’t want either guy to feel like they’re getting pulled after a punt or non-scoring drive, so getting back to Coleman in the 2nd quarter made sense to me. Great game plan and great execution from the staff.

How we approach this two weeks from now will be interesting. We didn’t burn Coleman’s redshirt for him to backup Wickersham but it’s hard to not see more of #16 after this past weekend. The severity of Coleman’s injury may make it easier to turn more towards Wickersham however if he’s back for Elon I’d expect to see both operating this offense going forward.

Screen game – Another week where we’ve seen our screen game improve, especially to our running backs. Savon has always done well in space and we’ve had one or two dialed up the past few weeks that worked for solid gains. We beat Campbell outside a lot as well, so it’s good to see an area that was really hurting us early on become a wrinkle we can turn to do keep defenses off balance.

Offensive Line – The first three drives saw Campbell rush 5+ on nearly every play which we countered well with some screens and slants. After that, they never really got home again, as our O-line allowed for us to have some big gains.

I don’t think many people had Richmond finding more 20+ yard passing chunk plays than Campbell, but that’s exactly what happened. Six Spiders had a reception of 20+ yards, as both QBs had plenty of time to work the ball downfield thanks to another strong outing from the Hawgs up front.

Ja’Vion Griffin – Really glad we got to see #5 back for the Spiders. If he doesn’t run a great route and convert that 3rd & long late in the 1st quarter that entire 1st half likely plays out a lot differently. It was a slow start for the offense but that allowed us to go down and tie it up and avoid falling into a big hole. He’ll be even healthier after an extra week of rest so expect to see his targets rise.

2nd half scoring – I’d say scoring 34 2nd half points helps to solve the 2nd half scoring woes. The fact that Campbell looked so worn down was even more encouraging than the points, as a team with a large roster and 18 FBS transfers should (in theory) have more well-rested bodies to play late in games. By the end of the game you could tell they were done but we weren’t letting up. A statement 4th quarter by this squad to set the tone entering November.

Defense

11 drives – 4 punts (36%), 4 turnovers [1 on downs] (36%), 2 FGs (19%), 1 TD (9%)

The Camels struck early yet were held to their worst offensive showing this season by the UR defense. Only 13 points allowed, one TD drive, and another multi-turnover game. Campbell didn’t even reach 300 yards for the day and were completely outmatched by the Spiders in the 2nd half.

Turnovers – Richmond has forced 2+ turnovers in eight of nine games this season, with five of those games having 3+ takeaways. That gives us an average of 2.5 takeaways per game and has made up how often we’ve given the ball away. Despite maintaining our top spot for turnovers forced in the FCS we only have a +5 turnover differential. The 18 giveaways on offense haven’t been great but this defense has picked up the slack. With the offense playing cleaner the past few weeks I’d expect that +/- to go up more by the end of the season.

Defensive Line – I know they didn’t get Campbell’s QB on the ground as much as they would’ve liked but overall I thought they did a great job of collapsing the pocket and forcing him to scramble. Rush lanes were well maintained and we’re a few missed tackles (or missed holding calls) away from keeping them to even fewer points. I talk a lot about the edge guys but the trio of Murray, Fitz, and Stocklinski have continued their steady play through October. Campbell had very little room inside and so much of their high tempo offense was limited by their inability to win at the line. After Saturday the Spiders allow the 3rd fewest yards on the ground in the CAA (112) and the 3rd lowest YPC (3.3).

Tristan Wheeler – Rather anticlimactic but Wheeler is officially the #2 tackler in Richmond history. Now up to 455 total and while he won’t reach the #1 spot it’s remarkable how consistent he’s been since he stepped on campus. I said during the linebacker preview this summer that it’s hard to fully appreciate something you’re so used to seeing each week, but with 12 tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery, #30 continues to find ways to remind us.

Wayne Galloway – Think it’s safe to say the switch from Hoilette to Galloway has been damn near perfect. Another pick-6 for Galloway, who continues to excel in defending both the run and the pass. Hoilette has done well in the pass rushing role so we’re still taking advantage of both guy’s skills, however the play of Wheeler and Galloway alongside each other this season has this LB room at another level.

Special Teams

Is Owen Laughlin the greatest fake-punt specialist in Richmond history? If you’ve got someone better in mind please let me know, however after another successful conversion this weekend I’m willing to make that claim. The Michigan State one was easy – this one wasn’t. Great fight to get across the line, and quite frankly if he doesn’t make it the Spiders are in a quick 10-0 or 14-0 hole. Key turning point in the game.

This is almost becoming the Aaron Trusler section at this point. Four punts, 45.2 average, long of 56, and three inside the 20. It’s a weapon for the Spiders, as a majority of those inside the 20 are actually inside the 10. Forcing teams into picking up an extra 1st down might not seem significant on one drive but over the course of a game, and a season, it adds up quickly. Worth of All-CAA honors with three weeks to go.

Next Post

FCS Playoffs update (Friday morning)

The team (ideally) shouldn’t spend the bye week looking ahead at the playoff picture, but that won’t stop us fans. I’ll summarize where the different models have us, what we need to happen in the CAA, and who we should be rooting for the upcoming week.