Old Dominion Monarchs 24, Eastern Michigan Eagles 20
Here are the highest-graded players and top takeaways from the Monarchs' 24-20 win over the Eagles in the Bahamas Bowl on Dec. 23, 2016.
Old Dominion Monarchs
Quarterback grade: David Washington, 69.8
Washington works magic in the pocket for an effective downfield attack
David Washington didn’t always have a clean pocket to throw from, but he was still able to use his legs to extend plays and fire the ball downfield with success. The fifth-year quarterback made three defenders miss in the backfield on passes, and he broke four more on plays brought back by penalties. Even though he was on the go, he was still able to connect on deep throws, as five of his 10 completions traveled further than 10 yards in the air, and three went for more than 20 yards.
Top offensive grades:
RB Ray Lawry, 83.9
WR Jonathan Duhart, 75
QB David Washington, 69.8
WR Zach Pascal, 69.2
RG Tyler Compton, 61.5
Lawry bounces outside and carries Monarchs to victory
Eastern Michigan had a lot of trouble keeping Ray Lawry between the tackles in the ground game, and he repeatedly gashed the Eagles when he bounced his zone runs to the outside. He broke 10 tackles in the game, and all 10 came on runs outside of the tackles, where he averaged 7.1 yards per carry. Lawry still picked up 4.9 yards per run on the interior, but he was most dangerous when he broke it outside and made a man miss in space.
Top defensive grades:
DL Rashaad Coward, 87.7
ED Bunmi Rotimi, 82.0
ED Oshane Ximines, 78.6
S Denzel Williams, 77.8
DL Miles Fox, 77.4
Coward not afraid to absorb double-teams and lock down the interior
In his highest-graded game of the season, Rashaad Coward was almost unblockable at nose tackle. One man was almost never enough, as the senior used his superior size and strength to demand double-teams and control multiple blockers at the same time to redirect the Eagles' running backs to the outside. No Monarchs were able to sack Eastern Michigan QB Brogan Roback, but Coward led his team with two QB hits to add to his stellar performance.
Eastern Michigan Eagles
Quarterback grade: Brogan Roback, 81.5
Unable to do it all, Roback can’t finish Eagles' comeback attempt
Brogan Roback put together a valiant comeback effort, bringing the Eagles back from a 10-point deficit to tie the game and ultimately fall short, as he was unable to carry the team on his back. His final completion percentage was only 56.3, but if you account for his three throwaways, three dropped passes, two batted passes, and a spike, he recorded an adjusted completion percentage of 71.4. When his offensive line was able to give him time to throw, Roback had a 100.5 NFL QB rating (on his 37 dropbacks with no pressure).
Top offensive grades:
QB Brogan Roback, 81.5
WR Sergio Bailey II, 79.5
WR Eddie Daugherty, 72.3
WR Dieuly Aristilde, 69.8
LG Steve Nielsen, 68.2
Eagles spread the ball around, but no one is able to take over
Brogan was able to get everyone involved in the offense, as he targeted nine different receivers through the air, and five different Eastern Michigan players carried the ball on the ground; no individual play-maker was really able to step up and take command of the game, however. Sergio Bailey II was once again effective as a downfield threat, as six of his seven targets and four of his five catches traveled more than 10 yards in the air, but outside of a pair of big runs from Blake Banham and Breck Turner, the Eastern Michigan ground game was not putting its offense over the top.
Top defensive grades:
ED Jeremiah Harris, 85.2
DL Dion Dawson, 79.0
DL Mike Brown, 77.0
CB Jason Beck, 76.0
DL Luke Maclean, 75.2
Eagles' back end can’t finish what defensive line starts in run defense
Old Dominion RB Ray Lawry was able to gash the Eagles' defense at the second and third levels, but Eastern Michgan’s defensive line didn’t do a bad job of at least redirecting him into the arms of their teammates, who weren’t always able to finish plays. The Eagles missed 19 tackles as a team, eight coming from defensive backs and five from linebackers. Even as their defensive line rotation kept them fresh up front, no one behind them was able to step up and consistently make plays against the run.
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