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Hacksaw’s Thursday Podcast…1pm…NFL PREVIEW
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“READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL-RAMS-NOT THE SAME TEAM”
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A big weekend ahead of us
And big questions for the LA Rams.

 

Sean McVay has done a marvelous job with the LA Rams, winning a Super Bowl, getting to a second Big Show, and taking a rebuilding team to a 10-win season.

But things look and feel different as the Rams get ready to renew a bad blood NFC-rivalry with the Detroit Lions this weekend.

Yes he still has legendary QB-Matthew Stafford.
Yes he has do everything WR-Cooper Kupp back healthy.
Yes he hopes 2nd year WR-Puka Nacua can exceed what he did last year.

But he does have the pillar of his defense in Pro Bowl tackle Aaron Donald who retired.

And they don’t have leading tackler LB-Ernest Jones, whom they just traded to the Tennessee Titans in a contract dispute.

And for the first time in a couple of years, McVay has to deal with something he did not deal with in past seasons, a siege of injuries before opening day.

The Rams have 3-injured offensive lineman, including both their starting tackles.  They have 3-lineman playing out of position.

All that impacts Stafford in protection packages, and it may impact their ability to run the ball too with young star Kyran Williams and rookie BJ Corum.

They also don’t have starting TE-Tyler Higbee, yet to recover from end of season surgery.

The defense, with Donald and Jones gone, will be very young.

But they think their top two picks, DE-Jared Verse and DT-Brandon Fiske will step in and play very well.  But those two, coupled with Kobie Turner and Byron Young, means a ton of youth along that defensive wall.  That is alot to ask.

They also think middle linebacker Omar Speights can handle what Jones used to get done.

The secondary is led by warhorse safety John Johnson and imports ex-Bills high pick Tre White, coming off two injuries, but is otherwise made up of young guys too.

This will be a very different defensive side of the ball.

The schedule, oh my.

Open at Detroit..then face the Niners, at Chicago, and Green Bay before we get to October.  Back to back games mid year at Seattle-at Miami.  And then a late season gauntlet, Eagles-Bills here, at San Francisco, at the Jets there.

Better get healthy upfront quick.  Better grow up quick on defense quick too.

My heart says a big challenge for McVay.  My head says (9-8) at best.

Rams-Lions grudge match.  Stafford vs Jared Goff.  McVay vs a fire brand in Dan Campbell.  Going to be some 1st week war.

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Hacksaw’s Thursday Podcast-1pm
NFL PREVIEW
You Tube Channel-Lee Hacksaw Hamilton
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“YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?”

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Here comes the NFL season, and there are great opening games this weekend.
Here comes the much anticipated seasons for the Chargers.
Here are the storylines to watch in the “Fight for LA”

CHARGERS:

Jim Harbaugh-Justin Herbert…That should be quite a combo.  Harbaugh has won everywhere in his career…as a QB and a coach.  His resume is spectacular.  His impact on Herbert should be profound.

The Bolts have 23-new players on this roster, and are excellent in two areas.  3-first round picks in the offensive line.  A 7-man linebacker crew that could be the best rush package in the league.

But there are so many question marks other places.  Can WR-Josh Palmer stay healthy?  Is this a different year for last year’s first round pick, the struggling Quentin Johnston?  Is there depth in the wide out group led by rookie Ladd McConkey?

Yes heavy duty RB-Gus Edwards has a history, but he also gets hurt. Who knows what JK Dobbins can do, considering the two major injuries he had in Baltimore.

The OL is loaded with talent, the latest being RT-Joe Alt.  They can pass protect, but can they run block?

The blitz scheme under Jesse Minter will be fun to watch.  We’re coming to get you, how you going to block all these guys?  From Khalil Mack to Joey Bosa and everyone in between, that 7-man linebacking unit will be special.

But after getting rid of 3-defensive tackles, do they have the right help to play alongside Morgan Fox?

The secondary needs Derwin James to make plays, and not play all over.  He was lost in coverage at times last year.  His running mate Alois Gilman played well, and for the most part so did Asante Samuel on the corner.

Does Kristan Fuller make a big difference?  Does the late summer deal for Elijah Molden give the Chargers good veteran backup coverage.?  Which of the young athletes, and they can all run, steps up and learns to play at the next level on Sundays?

The kicking game is superb.  Cameron Dicker has earned his $5M per year extension going (52-for-55) on field goals.  The punter is trustworthy.  And we all await to see the damage that Darious Davis can do returning kicks with the new NFL kickoff rules.

And then there is a rugged schedule.  Home games early with the Raiders-Chiefs.  Road games in Denver, against Bo Nix, and in Cleveland, with its Dog Pound Defense.  Joe Burrows-Bengals and Lamar Jackson-Ravens show up here in mid season.  But there are back to back road games vs Kirk Cousins-Falcons and the trip to Arrowhead to the Chiefs.  Late season, they get Baker Mayfield and the Bucs in LA, and finish up with a road game vs the Raiders, and we do remember the (63-21) beatdown late last fall.

As the longtime Voice of the Chargers, I think they could go (10-7).  But I also know there is an injury factor, relating to Justin Herbert.  And there is always an injury factor that could impact an offensive line, the defensive front, or Joey Bosa’s nagging injury history.  So they could also go (7-10).

Harbaugh will be a fiery leader.  GM Joe Hortiz knows talent, based on his track record with the Baltimore Ravens.  Maybe a year from today, with another draft under his belt, the Bolts might be a true AFC playoff game finalist.

Enjoy the renewal of the rivalry….the ‘Show Me Your Lightning Bolts-vs-The Silver & Bleak’.

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Hacksaw’s Monday Bonus Podcast
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‘SAN DIEGO STATE–NOW WE FIND OUT’
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Now we find out how really good San Diego State football is, when Oregon State comes to town.

The Aztecs overwhelmed 1AA-Texas AM-Commerce, with big plays on offense, and a relentless defense.

They face a Beavers team that also overwhelmed an outmanned 1AA-Idaho State team.

So it’s really hard to guage how good either one really is.  SDSU’s offense rang up a 468-yard night.  The defense had 4-sacks, 3-takeaways and 8-tackles for loss in the lopsided win.

The Beavers ran for 379-yards against a Big Sky Conference opponent.

Both rosters are loaded with transfers, and both excelled in their opening games.

Coach Sean Lewis is off and running, but ahead are two teams who were in the Pac 12 last year, Oregon State, then Cal.

The Beavers new coaching staff, led by Trent Bay, who replaced Johnathon Smith, who went to Michigan State, face Oregon-Purdue the next two weekends after they leave Snapdragon Stadium.

Coach Sean Lewis’ Monday press conference
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Alot of growth coming out of the win
We need alot more discipline, stop penalties, that will be the emphasis.

Danny O’Neil did not have stage fright.
Finished strong-found the speed of the game in second half
He was not off by that much throwing the ball

Marquez Cooper makes people miss at this level
High workload, balance, explosiveness, toughness.
He got stronger as game went on to handle workload
He has tremendous pride in performance
Elite competitor-first rep on Tuesday, last carry in game
Mindset, makeup, makes him special.

First half, we had too many guys not cope with speed of the game.
Kids got into flow, got feel for the game
No magic sauce to what we do.
We cleaned things up as game went on
Our guys now know what winning takes
Now know level of work it takes to pass the test to win

Wide receiver guys-fresh legs helps us run our system
Our guys allow us to play at full speed
We ran 78-snaps in the game-that’s who we are
Everyone has tape of what we have run other places
We won’t surprise anyone but we can create stress on opponents

Aztecs defense..very opportunistic
Started 2nd half-caused issues for their QB
Guys were firing defensively up front
We have long rangey guys who are explosive
Play fast-think fast-do things fast-have real toughness

Penalties we had-emotion of the moment
Play with emotion..got to be smart-don’t be emotional
We know what are calls that will be madee
Don’t get behind the sticks

Oregon State..can control line scrimmage
2-running backs transferred from Colorado-Ole Miss
Both dynamic backs..quick..get dirty yards too
3-edge rushers on defense
Strong athletes in secondary
They will lean on the run game for 379-yards

LT-still having test on knee-ankle..out couple of weeks

New rules..small sample size
Pace of play has gone down a bit..length of games-snaps gone down
Tablets really great use on sidelines-show players immediately what happened
Taught our WRs on fly what Commerce was doing in secondary
O’Neil-gave him bread crumbs to be successful
Found out how much information QB can handle
Give kids the tools to make the plays and solve the problems
QB cannot be robot-play on instinct

Front seven on defense played well
Sacks, tackles for losses, hits on QBs
Need to do techniques better, but that’s playing game

Past coaching experience, playing 3-Power 5s on the road
Anytime you go on road-you leave comfort of home
Seeing Oregon State here will be fun
Want fans to come see the San Diego kids on Saturday night.

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Hacksaw’s Holiday Monday Bonus Podcast-1pm
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‘AZTECS FOOTBALL-WHAT I SAW-THINK’
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I must have misinterpreted something, misheard the statement, or maybe the Aztecs new head coach lied to me.

Any of that is possible.

But when Sean Lewis kept using the term ‘Aztecs Fast’, I thought he meant his offense.  Maybe he meant his defense.

San Diego State staggered at the start, was trailing, then destroyed Texas AM-Commerce on Saturday night…the (45-14) hammering of the Lions.

So as the weekend finished, SDSU is in first place in the Southland Conference and tied for first place in the Mountain West.  The life of luxury for one week.

Here are my notes as the night progressed.

STAGE FRIGHT:..Freshman QB-Danny O’Neil really shrugged, overthrows, flustered, pocket presence, got rocked.  I thought the play calling should have let him find rhythm throwing to backs, crossing patterns, short passes to tight ends to settle in.  They didn’t till late in the second quarter.  The second half was so different.

OFFENSIVE LINE…They could not handle the early blitz package.  They didn’t run block very well.  They got punched in the mouth much of that first half. And they lost their starting left tackle with a knee injury.

DEFENSE..They were Aztec Fast-everywhere, swarming, storming, gang tackling, and they never gave up relentless pursuit from start to finish.  The defense got there..got there fast…got there in a foul mood.

TOUGHNESS..They got stronger and stronger as the night wore on, and they played with a chip on their shoulder.  It was a nasty night, 31-combined penalties for 273-yards.  Need to tone down the shots on defenseless players.

I TOLD YOU SO..Lewis kept running players in at a frantic tempo…3-snaps in a (;51) span.  I wrote down with 3-minutes left till halftime, the Lions defense was gassed.  They could not run in the secondary, they could not get to O’Neil any longer.  And when they could not keep up the route was on.

BIG PLAYS..Told you so a second time, that big plays would come after big plays.  47-yard TD run.  44-yard TD pass.  Massive chunk plays that allowed them to finish with a (468-180) yard edge in offense and a (73-49) edge in snaps.
When they were done, SDSU had plays of 19-28-29-30-44-47 yards.  Hell, more big plays in one night than we saw in an entire season last fall.

STARS..RB-Marquez Cooper was powerful and explosive enroute to his (223Y) rushing effort.  O’Neil got bolder and better as the second half wore on (214Y-2TD). WR-Louis Brown had (3R-91Y) with a TD bomb.  WR-JaShaun Poke caught 6-balls.  The tight ends were unstoppable in the second half..  The defense had 3-takeaways-4 sacks and were in the Lions backfield all night.  JD Coffey had a pick six-TD return.   CB-Dalesean Staley had an interception TD wiped off the books by a penalty.  The DBs were jumping routes and jumping into the face of the skill players.  No place for the timid.

FANS..The upper deck was 70% empty, and the disappointment to me about fan support in this football community stuns me.  The student body was in full throat with the ‘Show’ putting on its ‘We Will Win Chant’ to start the game.  The fans and the band were better than the first half of the game.

TEAMS..The Lions were coached by former Arena League QB-star Clint Dolezel.  He just needs lots more skill people to match the Texas toughness
his kids brought to the field.  They just ran out of gas.  The Aztecs (Transfer U) had 55-new players  on its opening night roster.  The Texas-Chamber of Commerce roster had 51-transfers on its opening night roster.

WHAT’S NEXT..Enjoy the win, the week in first place in these conferences, because next week Oregon State comes to town.  The Beavers had two running backs combine for (315Y) rushing in their clobber job win over Idaho State in a mismatch route.  The following week the Sean Lewis circus has to go to Cal.

CLOSING COMMENT..Hope this town pays attention to what was on exhibit on Saturday night.  For disenfranchised Chargers fans, maybe you should give this team a look-see.  The Stadium was loud, rocking with just 18,000 on hand.  Imagine what it could be if they put 30,000 hanging from the rafters.  Imagine too if Sean Lewis words about ‘Aztecs Fast’ had meanings to both offense and defense.
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“COLLEGE FOOTBALL STORYLINES”
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New faces-new places in college football.

The College Football Conference Chaos.

The 12-team playoffs and who goes where.

A look at the big storylines, the conference races and the postseason.

It’s all on my Great Sports Weekend Website:

Link: https://youtube.com/live/ATCFqj3Kxpw?feature=share

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