Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Doughton: Confident amid the disappointment
9/12/2021 6:00:00 PM | Football
Blue Raiders showed maturity and poise in loss to No. 19 Virginia Tech, both during and after the game
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — There are a great many things I will not miss once the COVID-19 pandemic is just something we relay to our children or grandchildren as an incredible time that we lived through. One thing I perhaps will miss, however, is the zoom interview.
While nowhere near as good for reporting as an in-person interview due to zoom being a much more challenging method of building rapport between the interviewers and the subject (the in-person interviews I'm lucky enough to have each week during practice have been a stark reminder of this). But compared to the phone interviews that used to happen if you couldn't make a road trip? There's no comparison.
Saturday was my first chance to experience that dynamic post-game this season for the Blue Raiders. It was a tough game in Blacksburg for them, no question. It would've been tough had No. 19 Virginia Tech blown the doors off of the team on the field. But it perhaps was even tougher given that's not what happened at all. Middle Tennessee was right there a good majority of the game, especially in the first half.
"I'll give credit to their team—they fought hard throughout the whole game," wide receiver CJ Windham said of the Hokies. "But so did we. I felt like it was more us shooting ourselves in the foot more than anything. Kind of foolish penalties that killed our confidence at times where we needed to be going."
But across the zoom screen, as the green screen background that looked like the normal press conference tapestry flickered in and out with the maroon lockers of the visiting locker room in Lane Stadium, it was easy to pick up on the dynamic of the 2021 following the loss.
Confidence.
Disappointment too, to be sure. As Rick Stockstill said, the Blue Raiders only made the trip six hours east to win. But after their performance on Saturday, it was clear that this team felt like the 35-14 loss had proven this team could belong at the top of Conference USA. The tone was reflective, but not solemn. Their heads were held high. Even a smile or two crept through as they answered questions.
"We've got something good going," quarterback Bailey Hockman said. "We've just got to execute a little bit better and make sure that we're on top of things in front of the sticks, get our run game going a little bit. I think we'll be able to have a great rest of the season."
It was a refreshing note for this reporter to see, and one I could embrace. Because for large portions of Saturday, Middle Tennessee played really well (or to use Coach Stock's terminology: "fought their guts out"). The defense's front seven generated good pressure against an offensive line much bigger than they were. The offense out gained the Hokies through the air by over 120 yards against a secondary lengthier than any other they're going to face this season.
And Windham is right, a lot of what moved the game into a more comfortable position for the Hokies was a result of Blue Raider mistakes. A couple of bad personal foul penalties killed a MT drive and extended a VT one in the first half. And the offense's sole turnover came at perhaps the worst time, resulting in a defense defending a short field down two scores, and the resulting touchdown was too much to overcome.
"Today we had to have a great game," Hockman said. "And we had a good game. But that's how the chips fall sometimes."
To be fair to Virginia Tech, they also did their part in making it a difficult game, taking care of the football and not letting the Blue Raider running game find any sort of rhythm. But that challenge is part of the reason spirits remain good for the conference opener in San Antonio next week.
UTSA will be a tough early test for the Blue Raiders. Picked second in the C-USA West in the preseason media poll behind reigning conference champ UAB, the Roadrunners have had a dream start to their season, upsetting Illinois on the road in their season opener and blowing out FCS opponent Lamar in Week 2. For Middle Tennessee's part, they still have a chip on their shoulder from the two-point loss in the Alamodome a season ago.
But after seeing how they responded coming off the field in Blacksburg, I think this team has the temperament and leadership to rise to the occasion. The good news is, we only have to wait one week to find out.
"We showed signs that we are capable of being an elite team," Windham said. "We are going to be a little more hungry next week, and we have the confidence that we are a good team."
While nowhere near as good for reporting as an in-person interview due to zoom being a much more challenging method of building rapport between the interviewers and the subject (the in-person interviews I'm lucky enough to have each week during practice have been a stark reminder of this). But compared to the phone interviews that used to happen if you couldn't make a road trip? There's no comparison.
Saturday was my first chance to experience that dynamic post-game this season for the Blue Raiders. It was a tough game in Blacksburg for them, no question. It would've been tough had No. 19 Virginia Tech blown the doors off of the team on the field. But it perhaps was even tougher given that's not what happened at all. Middle Tennessee was right there a good majority of the game, especially in the first half.
"I'll give credit to their team—they fought hard throughout the whole game," wide receiver CJ Windham said of the Hokies. "But so did we. I felt like it was more us shooting ourselves in the foot more than anything. Kind of foolish penalties that killed our confidence at times where we needed to be going."
But across the zoom screen, as the green screen background that looked like the normal press conference tapestry flickered in and out with the maroon lockers of the visiting locker room in Lane Stadium, it was easy to pick up on the dynamic of the 2021 following the loss.
Confidence.
Disappointment too, to be sure. As Rick Stockstill said, the Blue Raiders only made the trip six hours east to win. But after their performance on Saturday, it was clear that this team felt like the 35-14 loss had proven this team could belong at the top of Conference USA. The tone was reflective, but not solemn. Their heads were held high. Even a smile or two crept through as they answered questions.
"We've got something good going," quarterback Bailey Hockman said. "We've just got to execute a little bit better and make sure that we're on top of things in front of the sticks, get our run game going a little bit. I think we'll be able to have a great rest of the season."
It was a refreshing note for this reporter to see, and one I could embrace. Because for large portions of Saturday, Middle Tennessee played really well (or to use Coach Stock's terminology: "fought their guts out"). The defense's front seven generated good pressure against an offensive line much bigger than they were. The offense out gained the Hokies through the air by over 120 yards against a secondary lengthier than any other they're going to face this season.
And Windham is right, a lot of what moved the game into a more comfortable position for the Hokies was a result of Blue Raider mistakes. A couple of bad personal foul penalties killed a MT drive and extended a VT one in the first half. And the offense's sole turnover came at perhaps the worst time, resulting in a defense defending a short field down two scores, and the resulting touchdown was too much to overcome.
"Today we had to have a great game," Hockman said. "And we had a good game. But that's how the chips fall sometimes."
To be fair to Virginia Tech, they also did their part in making it a difficult game, taking care of the football and not letting the Blue Raider running game find any sort of rhythm. But that challenge is part of the reason spirits remain good for the conference opener in San Antonio next week.
UTSA will be a tough early test for the Blue Raiders. Picked second in the C-USA West in the preseason media poll behind reigning conference champ UAB, the Roadrunners have had a dream start to their season, upsetting Illinois on the road in their season opener and blowing out FCS opponent Lamar in Week 2. For Middle Tennessee's part, they still have a chip on their shoulder from the two-point loss in the Alamodome a season ago.
But after seeing how they responded coming off the field in Blacksburg, I think this team has the temperament and leadership to rise to the occasion. The good news is, we only have to wait one week to find out.
"We showed signs that we are capable of being an elite team," Windham said. "We are going to be a little more hungry next week, and we have the confidence that we are a good team."
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