While Cleeland had an excellent second half, i think a lot of credit needs to go to the O line. They showed up in the second half and gave Cleeland the extra time he needed to throw strikes.

How did we come out so flat on both sides of the ball? Too much joy? Does this buttress the argument that 2s and 3s at QB need PT? I'm guessing we also miss the veteran leadership from the Ivies.

It seemed like the team was filled with nerves and butterflies. Thankfully, halftime they had a chance to catch their breath and regain composure. The offensive line definitely improved in the second half. During the final drive, I turned to my son and said, that the last play appeared to be in slow motion, but in a good way

So much better on the line of scrimmage in the second half. Resilient bunch of guys.

"So do we still remain at #6?"
I have noticed that a victory, no matter how close or the quality of the opponent, is rarely a reason for a team dropping in the ratings. I suspect that most of the voters only look at the scores. The only other factor is what a team below them in the rating pulls off a big upset over a strong FBS team. That might put them ahead of the Aggies.

Post-game comments from Plough:

“I told our guys at halftime that I don’t have a 21-point play on the chart, so let’s just go out and try to make a play and then try to get a score and do it one step at a time,” said third-year Aggie head coach Tim Plough.

“This is the magic of Aggie Pride. We kept our composure and came back against a very good Portland State team. I always say you have to win all your home games and then try to steal a weird one on the road.”

Regarding the safety:

“I don’t know if that gave us a spark, but it did give us two points, so our mentality was let’s go get seven more points.”

About Treynor Cleeland:

“We’ve always known he was special, even if he still has a lot to learn, but he showed great poise in the second half.”

“It was a great lesson for him and will give him something to build on.”

https://www.thewaryone.com/p/fourth-quarter-heroics-lift-aggies?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F33b11bf8-826e-4523-9edb-7974f5c725ba_6100x4067.jpeg&open=false

I thought the key was the TD drive after the free kick return for TD was called back. That kept the momentum after the safety and got us going.

Surprised we didn’t run Fisher more. I think he was 5-24 yds at the half….5 yards a clip. That might have taken the pressure off Cleeland a bit more in the first half. His run on the tying run was gigantic!

Rankings this early in the season are meangingless. I wouldn't put much stock into any poll till week 8.

100% agree with you Dr. The run game was working and should have been used more. I think overall it was just one of those games where everyone was nervous and out of battle rhythm.

Is #90 Trent Carrade out with an injury? I didn’t see him play in last night’s game.

I was looking forward to Boogie the transfer RB from Weber. He was out injured too?

they mentioned he was out in pregame radio show but no details.

We had several key players out for the game:

S - Rex Connors
TE - Winston Williams
DB - Kam Totton
DL - Trent Carrade
RB - Chauncey "Boogie" Sylvester

I hope we are at full strength by the time that the Griz roll into town.

I don't disagree, I was simply responding to aggies07. As far as the FCS is concerned, the rankings are meaningless altogether until the every end.

what % of this sub will be at the griz game? I’ll be there!

Portland State was 1-11 last year, has a subpar stadium, and minimal funding. I hope we learned our lesson.

I think PSU wins 3 games this year. They have a really rough schedule. I also think Fisk is an amazing coach. If they can increase funding and support I think he could take them to a good place. I also think he realistically will be gone in a few years.

Considering the result was similar two years ago, I'd say we're still learning.

You can see he stepped out before the ball crossed the plain, do you see that too. Not that I’m complaining but looks pretty clear. The underlining dirt is kicked up.

I don't think you can tell from that angle, PA. The crumb rubber from this angle appears to be outside the white sideline but it could also just be that the crumb rubber is actually kicked up in the air and is inbounds but simply appears out of bounds from this angle.

I see what you’re saying. But I would think one wouldn’t be able to see the white line if that was the case.

We had several key players out for the game

noticed that Carrade was in street clothes on sideline. Was hoping to see Chauncey Sylvester but radio feed says he was out. I think a bigger back would be helpful in certain situations.

Few is a stud so I don’t think we missed Carrade.

Carrade is really good also. He was one of the team leaders on the DL last season. Are they ever in the game together?

My bad

I was surprised by the lack of commitment to the run game the first couple drives. Down the stretch there were at least two outside runs that were setup to go if not for a missed chip by a receiver or tight end. Need to clean that up.

Few wrecked PSU’s entire third quarter by himself. He’s extremely impressive. I thought Madruga played well also.

Having the benefit of replay I think your spring qb evaluation is going to wind up correct. I was skeptical that a freshman coming from a run first hs offense would be able to operate at a high level out the gate but that second half was extremely impressive and the ball really jumps out of his hand. Also think Eddie K and this version of Gbatu are more dangerous down the field than the crew from last season.

We also need to catch the ball. Not sure if those dropped passes just had too much on them but that needs resolution.