John L. Smith has seen his fair share of star signal callers in his life.
Between stints coaching in the Big Sky, the Big West, Conference USA, the Big Ten and the SEC, the longtime head coach has had to game-plan for a collection of NFL talent. Within his own squads, he’s coached players like Walter Payton Award winners John Friesz and Doug Nussmeier at Idaho, Chris Redman at Louisville, Jeff Smoker at Michigan State and Tyler Wilson at Arkansas. Each one was drafted into the NFL between the third and sixth rounds.
As Smith’s Fort Lewis Skyhawks prepare for their season opener in Bozeman, Smith can’t help but be impressed with his most recent challenge under center.
“One thing that REALLY stands out about Montana State is their quarterback,” Smith said. “He’s exceptional. He keeps everything alive. He can make plays, create plays, everything. He’s an outstanding player.”
Prukop signals in practice
The hype conjured up by Dakota Prukop this off-season has been formidable. As a first-year starting sophomore, Prukop piled up more than 3,500 yards of total offense and accounted for 31 total touchdowns despite missing two games with an injury. After an off-season spent honing his pocket presence and training with quarterback guru George Whitfield, Prukop is a preseason All-America with his eye on winning the Payton himself.
“I expect him to do everything right,” MSU third-year offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey said when asked his expectations of his star. “I expect him to put up a lot of yards, a lot of touchdowns but more importantly, I expect him to control the offense and win football games. That’s what he needs to do this year. He needs to understand that he has a lot of weapons around him and that he doesn’t need to do it all by himself. He needs to be able to distribute, get the ball in the right place in players’ hands in open space and let them go to work for us.”
During Tuesday’s press conference, Cramsey compared MSU’s offense to a fully loaded gun. The comparison isn’t far off, if a bit hyperbolas. Montana State returns five offensive linemen with starting experience, including four seniors and junior All-America guard J.P. Flynn. The backfield features four capable runners, including juniors Chad Newell and Gunnar Brekke. The wide receiving corps expects to play nine guys, led by senior captain Mitch Griebel. And the tight end group added 6-foot-6 senior Miami transfer Beau Sandland.
“I think I’m one of the most fortunate quarterbacks in the nation,” Prukop said. “I have a multiple running backs and a receiving corps that’s three-deep at every position and I’m behind the best offensive line in the country. My job is easy. Anytime you see my name in the paper, it’s because everyone else did their job.”
Prukop and the Bobcats will receive their first test from a Skyhawks defense that struggled to stop anybody last season. In 2014, FLC gave up 35 points and 451 yards per game, including almost 300 yards per game through the air. The Division II visitors will likely be physically overmatched against a team that averaged almost 39 points and almost 500 yards per outing last season.
To complicate things, FLC senior linebacker Ryan Ross will not make the trip after injuring his knee in practice earlier this week. The captain notched a team-high 98 tackles last season. Without Ross, the onus to slow down Cramsey’s spread option attack will fall on the defensive front, a group that includes 6-foot-2, 284-pound senior rush end Juan Hull, 6-foot-2, 260-pound senior defensive tackle Dalten Lane and 6-foot, 232-pound defensive end Sione Folaumoeloa.
“Any time you lose a guy, it’s major I guess but our front is going to have to carry the load,” Smith said. “Montana State is going to line up, bang and try to shorten the game by running the rock. Our front, which is the strength of our defense and maybe our football team, is going to have to carry the load. We will rotate as much as we can. It’s kind of a good matchup because we project they are going to run the football, shorten the game and get out of there.”
Fort Lewis runs a 4-2-5 defense that blitzes on roughly 25 percent of its downs. The Skyhawks blitz more the closer opposing offenses get to the red-zone. On the back end, Fort Lewis employs quarters or Cover-4 coverage almost exclusively, something Prukop said will be “a relief” after facing MSU’s new multi-faceted defense all off-season.
“It used to be that we were strictly four-down with our defense so when we played a team that had any three-down looks, it was tough,” MSU ninth-year head coach Rob Ash said. “It was a new preparation, something we had to simulate with just our scout team. But since we’ve played against three-down and four-down linemen all spring and summer, it’s much, much easier for our offense to get ready for whatever we are going to see.”
With an opening game against a decided underdog followed by a bye and 16 days off before playing again at No. 6 Eastern Washington, Montana State will look to put the Skyhawks away as soon as possible. That means establishing the run and maintain control of the trenches.
“Every football coach will tell you that if you can get the run game going, everything will be easier,” Cramsey said. “It’s an advantage we have of having an experienced offensive line and the running backs that don’t dance around and having a quarterback like Dakota who can be as dangerous a running back as he can be a thrower. We have to establish the run every single week.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
