The Grambling offense had its most complete game of the year last week in a 50-7 dismantling of Mississippi Valley — even if, as coach Rod Broadway said, they could have actually scored a few more times.
Grambling’s 271 yards rushing, 24 first downs, 5.5 yards per play and 0 fumbles represent either season bests or Top 3 performances in every category. (GSU averaged 5.9 yards per play against Alabama A&M, opened the season with 26 first downs against South Carolina State, and also had no fumbles against Prairie View.)
GSU’s 446 total yards of offense against Valley isn’t just the highest figure so far in 2009, it’s the most this group has put up since Nov. 20, 2008 (498 against Texas Southern) — and just the seventh time GSU has gone over 400 yards in the Rod Broadway era. (Two of them, actually, came against Valley: Grambling also put up 512 in 2008.)
That’s saying something for an offense that once had 6 fumbles in a single game (against Northwestern State), and just nine first downs against Jackson State. Broadway credits a healed-up Greg Dillon, who had been struggling with an ankle injury since Sept. 26.
“He played on one leg for three weeks, and I think he grew some through that process,” Broadway said. “If we can add some of he things he does well, like scrambling, we could continue to improve on offense.”
Done: Dillon’s 237 yards of total offense was the most since putting up 317 against Prairie View.
Going inside the numbers, we see how the injury took away one element of his game: Dillon, who last year averaged 4 yards a carry while putting up 962 rushing yards (before adjustments for sacks), had just 31 total rushing yards between the Oklahama State and Mississippi Valley games.
That’s 8 yards against Prairie View, 13 against Alabama A&M and 10 against Alabama State — before adjustments for sacks. Take away that yardage, and Dillon ran for an astonishing minus-5 net over the previous month of football.
Fast forward to last Saturday’s home game against Valley, and we see Dillon running for 132 total and 96 net yards. He also passed for two scores, and ran for two more.
What a difference an ankle makes.
Will be so glade when the Broadway/Spady convervative era is over with. Spady is the worst oc in recent history at GSU.