UTSA was better than expected last week as they took then No.24 Houston to triple-overtime before falling to the Cougars. Meanwhile, Army was disappointing, losing on the road at Coastal Carolina.
Here are the three keys to a bounceback from the Black Knights:
Stop Frank Harris
Harris does everything for the Roadrunners. He is the main reason that the school finished 12-2 last week, and he was exceptional as they built a 21-7 lead over the Cougars in Week 1. Harris went 28-of-43 through the air, passing for 337 yards and three touchdowns. He was also able to control the game on the ground, adding a touchdown with his feet and an additional 63 yards.
It is worrying that Army forced just two punts from Coast in Week 1. That suggests that the defense is giving up too many easy years, a real problem when facing a player like Harris.
Run Game Takes Off
Army was its usual self in the first half against Coastal. They rushed for 183 yards and generally were able to keep the chains moving. The Black Knights even hit on a couple of long touchdown passes when they found the line clogged. The problem was that this kind of attack isn’t sustainable for Army. They finished with just 202 yards on the ground, with the offense just not getting going in the second half. Finishing 5-for-12 on third down is not sustainable.
Control the Clock
The other reason that Army fell away in the second half in Week 1 was their inability to control the clock. We know that Army needs a time of possession in their favor to win, something that wasn’t even close against Coastal Carolina. Army had the ball for just 22:44 in the game, losing the time of possession by 12 minutes. The combination of stalled drives and that inability to get their hosts off of the field doomed the Black Knights.
They simply must win the time of possession against UTSA to have any chance of a win.
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