(KBTX) – Sam Houston opens its season on the road Saturday at Troy, facing a Trojans team that went 8-6 last year and finished first in the Sun Belt West. The Bearkats enter as 16.5-point underdogs.<\/p>\n
Kickoff between the Bearkats and Trojans is set for 6 p.m. Saturday in Alabama. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.<\/p>\n
Bearkats look for stability in year two<\/p>\n
Sam Houston struggled in head coach Phil Longo\u2019s first season, going 2-10. Longo said the team feels that it has more stability entering year two.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re very happy with the progress in camp,\u201d Longo said. \u201cThere have been numerous rooms where we have had more competition. And we say iron sharpening iron all the time. But that\u2019s been going on in a bunch of rooms in camp, and they\u2019re starting to shake out a little bit now in the secondary and at linebacker and on the offensive line and at receiver.\u201d<\/p>\n
Defense faces test against Troy passing attack<\/p>\n
Troy threw for nearly 3,000 yards last season. Longo said week one will test his secondary.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt always starts with how well we play up front, and I think the more effective we are on the D-line, the more that helps the back end,\u201d Longo said. \u201cBut the back end is longer this year. We use our hands a little bit better, and that tends to complement a good front four. With guys like Ish Atkins and Cesar McGee, two longer corners, that helps them and it helps us up front. It\u2019ll be fun to watch that matchup on Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leading that passing attack is Troy redshirt senior quarterback Goose Crowder.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I do know is they have a returning quarterback that\u2019s very good, and I think that that will be the guy that they lean on in Saturday\u2019s game,\u201d Longo said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s going to be the guy that we have to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the Trojans have a veteran starting quarterback, they also have a new offensive coordinator, Adam Austin, which adds another wrinkle to game prep.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe big mystery in defending Troy with our defense is what direction is the offense going to go and what is the character of the offense going to be in this opening game,\u201d Longo said. \u201cWhat we think we have and what actually plays out on Saturday sometimes are two different things. I\u2019d like to think on our end we have a pretty good feeling about where our strengths and weaknesses are, and we\u2019re going to let our strengths and those kids and that type of play lead us. And I really don\u2019t think Troy will do anything different.\u201d<\/p>\n
Longo addresses offensive line rotation<\/p>\n
Longo said he expects to use seven or eight offensive linemen but has not finalized the rotation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are at seven and maybe eight,\u201d Longo said. \u201cThe physical part of the eighth player is not an issue. It\u2019s, are we going to get him where he needs to be mentally? We\u2019ll have a better feel for that in a few days. We\u2019ve got a front five we\u2019re very happy with. We have two that we feel like we\u2019ll rotate in the game to keep everybody fresh.\u201d<\/p>\n
Team relatively healthy entering opener<\/p>\n
Longo said the Bearkats enter the season in good health.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are relatively healthy right now,\u201d Longo said. \u201cWe have lost a couple for a few months, maybe two for the year. We have not really been affected very much in our two-deep on offense or defense. Right now, I\u2019d say we\u2019re pretty healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Longo on offensive approach, defensive line depth<\/p>\n
Longo said the offense aims for efficiency rather than a set run-pass ratio.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t care if we throw at 70 and run at 10 or if we run at 70 and throw at 10,\u201d Longo said. \u201cI just want to be efficient doing both. If you\u2019re going to load the box, then that\u2019s what we want to be able to do efficiently. If you\u2019re going to cover and drop eight, we want to be able to run the football and throw the thing underneath.\u201d<\/p>\n
Longo pointed to quarterback Landon Locke\u2019s ability to adjust plays based on the defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cLandon puts us in a position to attack the weakness of the defense from a down-to-down situation, and that will be half the battle for us on Saturday,\u201d Longo said.<\/p>\n
Longo said the defensive line is the most improved position group from last season.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re deeper there than we were a year ago,\u201d Longo said. \u201cWe went into the La Tech game last year with no healthy defensive tackles for the most part, and it was a struggle. We don\u2019t have that issue this year, at least not right now. I think we have an opportunity to be better on the defensive line than we were a year ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Special teams additions<\/p>\n
Longo discussed new special teams contributors punter Cal Joseph, from Wake Forest, and kicker Sam Carpenter, from Pitt.<\/p>\n
\u201cSam and Cal bring some maturity. They\u2019re both veterans,\u201d Longo said. \u201cAll I\u2019ve seen from both of them is maturity and the grind. They\u2019ve had a tremendous August camp, and I think the two of them are ready for opening day.\u201d<\/p>\n
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