Mustangs lose to Portland State, move to 2-5

Man, there was a lot going on last Saturday. Between homecoming, parents and family weekend, a logging competition, Alumni luncheons, soccer games, and myriad other events on-campus, I feel like one human could not possibly partake in everything.

I tried though.

Maybe more than other games, the loss to Portland State was really a game I can best describe in snap-shots. I may have missed a few, but here are a few key ones from where I stood and sat.

Chris Brown didn’t play. Neither did Dano Graves

Prior to the start of the game, it became evident that Chris Brown was not playing due to an undisclosed injury. Dano Graves has been on ice this year, apparently redshirting during what could have been his final year of eligibility. Instead of burning that redshirt, Tim Walsh chose to go with a true freshman at quarterback in Khaleel Jenkins. The last time Cal Poly started a freshman quarterback? I don’t know. It wasn’t anytime in my recent memory.

It was only 6-0, somehow

Joe Protheroe fumbles Cal Poly’s first play from scrimmage Saturday night. By Owen Main

I’m not sure how, but Cal Poly managed to fumble the opening kickoff and their first play from scrimmage, score a touchdown on their third possession, and take a 7-6 lead.

Actually, I do know how: their defense was well-prepared to start the game. Cal Poly’s defense generally has had really great game-plans schematically to shut down opposing offenses. Because of their great play and holding Portland State to a field goal, they just about nullified the first two miscues.

The 16-play, 78-yard drive seemed to do a lot for the Cal Poly bench and probably for freshman quarterback Khaleel Jenkins’ confidence. Cal Poly seemed to have stolen all the momentum right back with just under four minutes left in the first quarter.

Jenkins breaks one off

The juke was amazing, but I’m sure he’d give it back for a few of those fumbles. By Owen Main

Khaleel Jenkins showed why Tim Walsh felt good starting him before the first quarter was over. After the Vikings took a 13-7 lead, Jenkins capped a 75 yard drive with a 50-yard dash down the left sideline. It was the first of three long touchdown plays Cal Poly would execute on the night and gave fans a glimpse of what the freshman from San Diego can do. On the play, he put a move on a Portland State defender that just wasn’t fair and was down the sidelines in a flash. There’s a lot to look forward to there.

That second quarter

Tim Walsh said in his radio post-game interview that the Mustangs should have taken much more control of the game in the first half. He certainly meant the second quarter. In that quarter, the Mustang defense intercepted Vikings quarterback Alex Kuresa and held Portland State on fourth down on back-to-back possessions.

Against a team that has scored 115 points in their past two games, the defensive stands throughout the first half were a big deal.

What did the offense do to capitalize? Not much.

Cal Poly went four-and-out coming off the interception. After the defense once again held the Vikings, Khaleel Jenkins and Cal Poly actually put a nice drive together. Thirteen plays and 79 yards later, the Mustangs had the ball at the 8 yard-line, poised to go up 21-13. Instead, Jenkins fumbled the ball and the second quarter went by without a score on either side. When Cal Poly scored first in the third quarter, they should have been going up by two scores. Instead Portland State remained in striking-distance.

The penalty

If there was one play that really took the wind out of Cal Poly’s sails, it was probably a late hit by their defensive leader. Tu’uta Inoke. With the score tied at 28 early in the fourth quarter, the Vikings were driving. On a third and one at Cal Poly’s 27 yard-line, Cal Poly managed to sack Alex Kuresa, but Inoke came down on the pile a split-second late. Two plays after the personal foul penalty, Kuresa threw a touchdown pass to put the Vikings up for the first time in the second half.

It’s likely Portland State would have kicked a filed goal in that situation on fourth down, but they only won by a late field goal in the end. You can never put a whole game on one player or one play, but that was a really tough penalty for Cal Poly’s defense to take in that situation.

More Kyle Lewis?

Kyle Lewis has proven to be a big-play threat on the edge for Cal Poly’s triple option offense. By Owen Main

With injuries throughout the year to big-play threats like Joe Protheroe and Chris Brown, one has to wonder if it’s time to start to feature Kyle Lewis more. Lewis fumbled the opening kickoff, but somewhat made up for it by catching a 57-yard touchdown pass and blazing down the near sideline for a 29-yard touchdown run. Overall, Lewis had just six offensive touches, but that number might need to be around 10 for Cal Poly to stay balanced and explosive.

Speaking of the touchdown pass, the trick-play was pretty sweet. It came at just the right time. Props to Saga Tuitele, who had a really good game calling plays for his freshman quarterback.

Kuresa’s legs

Staying on the theme of props — big ones go to Alex Kuresa for what he did with his legs. After getting knocked-down a number of times in the first half, the Portland State quarterback was able to scramble and make big play after big play against Cal Poly’s defense. Along with his 232 yards and two touchdowns passing, the junior rushed for over 100 yards and two more touchdowns. In all, Kuresa accounted for four of the five touchdowns the Vikings scored.

Cal Poly’s defense tends to do a really good job of taking the other team’s base offense away.

Portland State had rushed for 465 and 368 yards in the past two weeks against relatively good teams. Cal Poly held the Vikings to just 154 yards on 42 attempts, including many Kuresa scrambles. Aside from the quarterback, Portland State netted just 53 yards on the ground on 24 carries.

The numbers game

Cal Poly ran 21 more plays than Portland State and held the ball for about 10 more minutes than the Vikings. The Mustangs out-gained Portland State by 150 yards for the game, but committed half as many fumbles in this one game that they committed all of last season.

Khaleel Jenkins showed some promise starting his first game. He rushed for 93 yards including a spectacular touchdown scamper, but his three fumbles turned out to really be the difference. Mustang fans know there will be growing pains going forward as Jenkins gets more experience. Jenkins is the first true freshman quarterback to start a game in as long as I can remember and his development will absolutely be the future of Cal Poly football.

Since playoffs aren’t really in play at this point, it’s natural to start to peek toward next year — even with over a month to go. A quarterback battle is already brewing in my head. Maybe it’ll stay there. Maybe it’s better that way.

For now, in the present, the Mustangs will try to go on a run to finish their season above .500. It won’t be easy. Six of their first seven opponents have been either FBS or top-25 FCS teams. Their eighth, Southern Utah, has moved up into the top-25 and will be the 7th top-25 or better team the Mustangs play in their first eight games. If you want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Cal Poly has had their chances this season and despite some excruciatingly close games, hasn’t come out on the right side of their must-win games early in the schedule.

Five games remain.