There is a connectivity to this week’s game between SMU and Stephen F. Austin. Mustangs head coach Sonny Dykes sees the film of the first two weeks and says his team needs more consistency. And then, in the SMU home opener against SFA, the Mustangs will face a team that is 0-2 and has struggled on both sides of the ball. Just as the coach ordered.
SMU Needs Better Consistency
“I think the good thing is that our guys know that based on our performance so far this year, you know, we’ve played well at times in week one and well at times in week two. I don’t think we have put a full game together by any stretch of the imagination, Dykes said this week. That gives you a sense of the over arching theme with the coaching staff this week. The Mustangs have yet to be truly tested and this week does not figure to change that.
SFA, in its two losses, has scored a grand total of 24 points. Ironically, that is how many points it is also giving up per game. It’s hard to win like that. The Lumberjacks are averaging 287 yards of offense per game, with most of it coming through the air. They still have not hit the 200-yard rushing mark for the entire season.
It’s All About SFA’s Quarterback
A bright spot early on for the Lumberjacks has been the play of quarterback Trae Self. The transfer from Butler Community College started last year as a sophomore. He threw for more than 2,500 yards and twelve touchdowns. This year he is throwing at a 65% completion rate while averaging 209 yards passing per game. He has also thrown at least one touchdown pass in six straight games going back to last year.
“He’s completing a high percentage of his throws,” Dykes said. “They do a good job of creating easy throws for him and helping him get the ball to guys who can really run. I have been impressed with that. They’ve got a good scheme, and they know what they are doing. I am not surprised by that.”
Keeping The Foot On The Pedal
As for his own team, Dykes says there is much to work on, even as the Mustangs dominated throughout much of the game at North Texas last weekend. “I think we have to continue to improve.” He said he noticed a difference after the fast start on both sides of the ball. “We didn’t execute as well as we wanted to at times. And we didn’t pressure the quarterback as much as we needed to. We missed a tackle or two in the second half as well.”
He said one of the things he is looking for this week is a better level of sustained consistency. With a big lead at halftime against North Texas, there were periods of executional let down last weekend. “One of the things that we talk to our players a lot about is that if you want to be a great football team, you have to learn to play great no matter wat the score is, whether you are behind or whether you are ahead. The expectation is still to go out there and perform at a very high level. You measure yourself against your ability to go out and perform.”
Protecting The Franchise
While the SMU offense erupted for more than 700 yards last week, Dykes thinks there is room for improvement there also. “We can execute better. There were some routes that were not as clean as they need to be. Our quarterback got hit too much. That is one of the big things for me that we’ve got to get fixed.” Shane Buechele went 24of 33 for 344 yards and four passing touchdowns and was sacked only one time. North Texas was credited with five quarterback hurries and he was hit numerous times in the pocket. He also ran five times for 29 yards and a touchdown. On one scramble, North Texas was flagged for a late hit as Buechele had already gone into his slide. Protecting the senior signal caller better this week is high on Dykes’ priority list.
After playing two games in three weeks on the road, Dykes says it will be nice, even in the COVID-limited setting, to play a game at home. “There was a certain level of discomfort in week one just because it was not what guys were accustomed to.” Dyes pointed out that SMU players were spread out over three different areas just to get dressed. Even at home Saturday, half the team will dress in the locker room and the other half in the weight room, just to make ensure some social distancing. “It will be nice to be here for our fans. It will nice to have our band. The atmosphere is so different now than what we are accustomed to, but it will definitely be nice to her some people rooting for us.”
