BSD Fantasy Draft Matchup Championship: Chris vs Clay

It’s been a fun ride, but all good things must come to an end. We are here at the championship game of the BSD Fantasy Draft, where Team Chris takes on Team Clay. The rosters are below, followed by their game plans on how they will hoist the first annual BSD Fantasy Draft Championship Belt!

Chris’ Game Plan

Look at us. Hey, look at us. Who would’ve thought? Not me.

When we started this whole draft thing, I thought I’d be in it just for some fun memories. Never thinking I’d be sitting here putting together a game plan on how to win the whole dang thing. But here we are, and here I am, so let’s get to it!

I’m starting with my strength, which is my defense. When I look at Clay’s offense, I see a few things - first, Robinson is a great scrambler, but not the best passer; second, a pair of solid, if not necessarily top tier running backs; and three a couple of dangerous wide receivers, one a deep threat, and the other a possession receiver.

With all of that in mind, I’m going to start with the back end and work my way toward the front. Kim Herring is the only All-American safety Penn State has had in the B1G, so his primary responsibility will be keeping a lid on Bryant Johnson and the deep threat. Similarly, Alan Zemaitis is the only All-American cornerback the Lions have had since 1993, and his primary job will be to lock down Tony Johnson. With that sort of coverage, I don’t think MRob is going to beat me with his arm. That also leaves Pittman and Sargeant to divvy up covering Smolko or either RB out of the backfield, and crashing down in run support.

My linebacking tiro of Mauti-Hull-Stupar will cover the intermediate routes, but their biggest job will be to keep Robinson in front of them. If he can’t rush, and has to pass the ball to beat me, I like my chances. They’re also stout enough to take him on and actually bring him to the ground. With the back end of my defense nullifying the passing game, that leaves my defensive line to contain the run. Haynes-Kennedy-Crawford-Scioli features two All-Americans up front, and a quartet that can hold their own even without blitz support. The passing game won’t be there for the taking, and the front four wreaking havoc by themselves mean Clay’s offense will struggle, which is exactly what I want - pull him down into the mud with me.

On offense, Clay has one of the better DE pairs I’ve seen, and I have to imagine he’s going to send them after Collins with a quickness. I really like my offensive line in the run game, and I plan on neutralizing his pass rush with a lot of straight runs; when his LBs crash down to support, play action to Royster, Cain, and Carter will move me down the field in chunks.

The back end of Clay’s defense is his weakness, and I really like DaeSean to eat in this game. To avoid being picked apart by BaeSean, Clay will have to commit a double team, meaning Royster out of the slot, or either of my RBs out of wheel routes, becomes exceptionally problematic for him. Will I blow the lid off of Clay’s defense on every drive? No, but I will absolutely move the chains. Collins is too smart, and too good of a field marshal to get bogged down by the defensive line. Once any of my skill players get past the first level, it’s show time.

Lastly, and I have yet to actually bring this up in either of the previous matchups, but if push comes to shove and I need a last-minute FG for the win, I really like that my K/P specialist is a kicker. If asked, could Tyler Davis punt the ball? Absolutely. Can Jeremy Boone kick field goals? I doubt it. Having a kicker that holds the school records for FG percentage, consecutive field goals made, and consecutive extra point conversions made may just be the X factor that decides it.

But let’s see what Clay has to say!

Clay’s Game Plan

Chris’ team is unquestionably well balanced. Noah Cain and Evan Royster lead a bruising run game, while DaeSean and Kyle Carter provide solid options in the intermediate passing game. Luckily, however, the lone deep threat is Chaz Powell, who had a grand total of 33 receptions over three seasons.

Defensively, he’s solid at all three levels with Mike Mauti, Alan Zemaitis and Michael Haynes leading the way. Again though, I don’t really see a game changer there. So, now for my game plan.

On the offensive side, it’s time to break out the triple option. The best way to slow down Michael Haynes is by analysis paralysis. The goal is to put Haynes in a lot of read situations, and then neutralize Mauti by having Eric McCoo as a pitch man in the triple option. Additionally, we finally get to work in Isaac Smolko who can provide an outlet running down the seam for a pop pass. Hopefully we can get a couple of deep shots to Bryant Johnson and we’re in business. I don’t imagine either team breaking the 30-point barrier in this one.

On defense, the game plan remains similar to the semifinal matchups with Jared. I plan on playing a lot of single-high safety looks with Adrian Amos over the top and Stephen Obeng-Agyapong coming down into the box as a pseudo fourth linebackers. I trust that my front seven, led by the defensive line, plus SOA can contiain Royster and Cain and while Kerry Collins provides a formidable threat, his receiving targets don’t do much to worry me.

Ultimately, I’d like to keep the game in the 20s with the belief being that my speed at running back and quarterback, as well as a dynamic wideout in Bryant Johnson will make the difference with a couple of big plays.