Surprise! A completely new look, easier to use and easier to read Lake The Posts to help you with the season opener. Enough about me, let’s get in to the Northwestern – Vanderbilt season opener which is at 6:35 pm ct tonight! Read more after the jump.
In a game filled with question marks at RB for both teams, NU fans will have to wait and see on Arby.
Northwestern (8-5 in 2009) at Vanderbilt (2-10 in 2009)
Last Meeting: 1952 (20-20 tie) TV: ESPN Gameplan (Fee for service), ESPN3.com, CLTV (See upper right for TV channels)
Radio: WGN-720 AM (Dave Eanet & Ted Albrecht), WNUR 89.3 FM
Twitter: @NU_SportsLIVE Line: Northwestern by 3 Coaching Stats: NU – Pat Fitzgerald (5th year – 27-23, 15-17) vs Vandy – Robbie Caldwell (1st game)
2-Minute Drill:
The quest for solidifying program consistency at the next level begins in earnest tonight as NU kicks off its 123rd season of football. Step one – a win over Vanderbilt – would kickstart the path towards a potential first in NU history over that lengthy span – a third straight bowl appearance. Anything less than an 8-win season AND a bowl win at this point would be a major disappointment, which is a good thing. Somewhere, Gary Barnett is similing as we’ve now inserted a new line into his famous catchphrase “Expect (Bowl) Victory”.
All eyes are on Dan Persa whom most NU fans feel very confident about despite the fact he’s seen extremely limited, albeit extremely valuable playing time. Concerns abound for the non-existent NU run game and the secondary. Tonight will be a great sign to really show how good our offensive line truly is or whether or not we simply don’t have legit Big Ten caliber RBs. In fairness, Arby Fields’ health is in question and is one of the main storylines in the game.
Conversely, the SEC’s Vanderbilt Commodores are trying to rebound from an emotional roller-coaster ride of a summer that saw there head coach – Bobby Johnson – retire just weeks before kickoff and thus thrusting the “awww shucks” Robbie Caldwell in to the head coaching job. If that wasn’t enough, both of Vandy’s star RBs – SEC Freshman of the Year Warren Norman – AND scintillating back-up Zac Stacy suffered severe injuries in the past three weeks but are expected to play. Norman actually had surgery just 10 days ago on his knee, yet all signs point to him having made a near miraculous recovery and he’s expected to start. Dual-threat QB Larry Smith was awarded the start just last week. Smith started 10 games in his career including the Commodores 2008 bowl game, but missed half of last year with a hamstring injury. Downfield accuracy is a concern, but expect Vanderbilt to run out of the gates in this one.
Chris Marve is the defensive star for Vanderbilt who boasts a solid LB crew. NU will be relying on the front seven to help build the secondary’s confidence early in the season. The NU scouting report is rather simple – throw downfield. Kevin Watt and Vince Browne will be huge factors in this one as they need to create havoc for Smith.
NU has had a history of very conservative and slow starts in non-conference games in the Fitz era. I’m really hoping we don’t overplay the run as if we’re trying to prove something we may not be. The ‘Cats have reloaded at WR – AGAIN – and fans are expecting little drop-off in productivity as Jeremy Ebert is back at full strength alongside the acrobatic Sidney Stewart and stellar Demetrius Fields. Drake Dunsmore will figure to get a lot of looks in this one as well.
The most exciting player for NU may very well be the speed demon Venric Mark. Fitz will likely start him as the PR and the true frosh is sure to get WR reps as well. What a night it could be for Mark if he busts one and re-establishes NU as a special teams threat.
This is the type of game on paper that NU should win by double digits, but we all know how well the program does when there are any kind of expectations – ESPECIALLY in non-conference games. Thus, I’m counting on a slugfest and down-to-the-wire finish.
Stats to Stew On… Fitz is looking to move to 5-0 in season openers and move to 12-4 in season openers since 1995. NU has not had a 100-yard rusher in any game since Tyrell Sutton did so in the ’08 Alamo Bowl. Also, NU is the only team in the nation that did not post a single rushing play of more than 25 yards last season. In a scheduling quirk, NU is playing its second consecutive SEC opponent (Auburn in 2010 Outback Bowl).
Poll Results: 72% of you believe NU’s division draw was good, 13% don’t like it and 15% say it doesn’t matter.
Did (N)U Know?
Northwestern is starting a combined 5 senior starters tonight (4 defense, 1 offense)? Also, the ‘Cats return a record of 56 letterwinners and 31 players who have started at least one game. I told you 2011 is looking like literally like a banner year. Northwestern seeks to win its 9th of its last 10 regular season non-conference games.
Lake The Posts Factor: 3.0
You’ve heard this for nine months. A road game in SEC territory against ANY SEC opponent is no gimme. Yes, expectations are low in Nashville, but it will be a full house at Vanderbilt Stadium under the lights and you can bet it will be hostile. This is the exact type of game we’ve been known to blow and a win here could really set the tone for the must-win first six games of the season.
Pick to Click: Jeremy Ebert
I’m excited to see the healthy junior be able to go full tilt. You get the sense Ebert is Persa’s go-to favorite target and will be a 7-10 per game reception kind of guy.
LTP Prediction Northwestern 23 Vanderbilt 20
It will be nauseating, but the ‘Cats pull out another white knuckler improving their remarkable streak of games decided by 7 points or less. The ‘Cats have gone 24-7 in their last 31 games decided by 7 pts or less.
21 Responses to GAMEDAY IS HERE! So Is The New Look LTP!!! Let’s Get It Started!!!!!
How brutal is our non-Persa rushing game? Yikes. Amazing that a Vandy team that played so poorly is down only one. Man, we had the throat on the neck before that game-changing fumble. Amazing how quickly momentum turns. Need a big first drive here…
The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.
Hands down, Apple’s app store wins by a mile. It’s a huge selection of all sorts of apps vs a rather sad selection of a handful for Zune. Microsoft has plans, especially in the realm of games, but I’m not sure I’d want to bet on the future if this aspect is important to you. The iPod is a much better choice in that case.
Yo! Is it okay if I go a bit off topic? I’m trying to read your site on my iPad but it doesn’t display properly, do you have any suggestions? Thank you for the help I hope! Ashton
In a game filled with question marks at RB for both teams, NU fans will have to wait and see on Arby.
Email me if you have any issues posting comments – laketheposts@gmail.com
Liking the new design, LTP.
By the way, it’d probably be best if you turned off comment approval. That would make things a lot easier on you.
My Pick to Click is Sidney Stewart….
Go Cats!!!
Testing
Apologies to everyone for commenting issues… A few bugs to work out.
All issues should be fixed.
For anyone having problems being blacked-out on DirecTV 666, I’m getting the game on DirecTV 698 (Comcast California).
How brutal is our non-Persa rushing game? Yikes. Amazing that a Vandy team that played so poorly is down only one. Man, we had the throat on the neck before that game-changing fumble. Amazing how quickly momentum turns. Need a big first drive here…
Indeed – channel 698 on DirecTV is the best signal to watch the game..
Persa has been dynamite tonight…so lets keep running the ball with Fields and Schmidt and going nowhere. LET PERSA THROW THE BALL MORE THAN 10 YARDS!
Nice call on the score.
Nice call on the pick to click too…LTP on the ball
Very nice game by Persa.
Whew….we’ll take it.
Fitz is now 5-0 in openers, 28-23 overall.
The Zune concentrates on being a Portable Media Player. Not a web browser. Not a game machine. Maybe in the future it’ll do even better in those areas, but for now it’s a fantastic way to organize and listen to your music and videos, and is without peer in that regard. The iPod’s strengths are its web browsing and apps. If those sound more compelling, perhaps it is your best choice.
Hands down, Apple’s app store wins by a mile. It’s a huge selection of all sorts of apps vs a rather sad selection of a handful for Zune. Microsoft has plans, especially in the realm of games, but I’m not sure I’d want to bet on the future if this aspect is important to you. The iPod is a much better choice in that case.
I’m so confused – should I go with the iPod or Zune?
Yo! Is it okay if I go a bit off topic? I’m trying to read your site on my iPad but it doesn’t display properly, do you have any suggestions? Thank you for the help I hope! Ashton
What happened to the links to edsb and the other national cfb sites? other than that I love the new look. . .
My Blog Title…
http://buysildenafil-citrate.com...
I’ve read some good stuff here. Definitely worth bookmarking for revisiting.