Cardinal Newman - Can they be run on?

[penguin]

Looking at the somewhat limited stats available, it appears Petaluma may be in for a tough game considering how stingy Cardinal Newman's defense is against the run. Take a look at the yardage they've given up this year:

112 - Central Catholic
154 - Elsie Allen
219 - Montgomery
163 - Rancho Cotate
161 - Ukiah
94 - Windsor

Now, I wasn't able to find rushing stats for the Palma, Santa Rosa, Piner, and Maria Carrillo games. And I left out the Del Oro game because it does appear to be the exception and a true outlier based on the rest of the season.

But based on the other 6 games, they are only allowing 150 yards per game. Or in other words, about 200 less than Petaluma averages on offense. So could we see another game where Petaluma struggles as a result of not being able to get their run game going?

[sainttown]

True, but Allen finished 0-10 and Ukiah had a dismal season to boot. Rancho and Windsor have been up and down all season so it's no real surprise either. It'll be a rough night for Petaluma, I agree, but those stats are a bit misleading.

[Nblsupporter1]

The newman defense has looked good the last two games.. Bowman, Laron and Ratto are hard to look past.. Should be a good game, Petaluma wont lay down and give it to the cardinals.. both teams want it and can stop the run

[htown707]

It may be tough sledding but I think Petaluma will win the football game. Ok Petaluma had a bad game last week, who cares? A win is a win. You want to talk about a good defense, what about Petaluma? They only gave up about 12 points per game during the regular season. Also, I was not impressed by Newman's offense at all on Saturday, the only points they scored came off a blocked punt witch they recovered inside the ten yard line. I really think that Windsor outplayed Newman, they just blew the opportunites they were given in the 2nd half when Windsor drove deep into Newman territory but the drive stalled and they turned the ball over on downs twice inside the Newman thirty, Once in the red zone. Also the mistakes that Newman made, turnovers, penalties, ect. you are not going to get away with that against Petaluma, if Newman turns the ball over like they did against Windsor, it may get ugly.

[Ben Herrington]

Hard to look ast just stats. What happens in the 4th when the score is 40-0? The starters come out, and the other teams offense begins to score.

[SCLMCAL]

Newman beats P-town. Ya i said it

[Ben Herrington]

LOL yeah you said it all right...

[penguin]

Had Windsor not been the poorest punting team in the county, they're probably still playing Cardinal Newman right now. But I expect a better CN offensive team with James in. If anything, it affords them the luxury of running more than four plays.

But yeah, if Petaluma is as tight as they were against RC and continues to struggle with their running game, CN could win. But CN is going to have to score. And keep in mind, RC's only TD last week came as a result of a fumble recovery that was taken inside Petaluma's 10. This is a better defense than CN has seen since switching their offense.

[dynomite]

The question I have is, "how much does Petaluma know about the Toss"? Sure, they'll have some film on it, but it is a tough offense to stop if you don't see it regularly. Yes, If Newman runs it next year, it'll get shut down. But they'll hopefully be back to Spread.

Also, I for one have never been a big fan of Petalumas coaching staff. This is a week they get to prove themselves by making good adjustments and having a good plan. And I mean no disrespect to Ellison himself and all his accomplishments. Just mind boggling to me that you run Veer for 30 yrs and are satisfied with being a decent SCL team but not winning many titles.

But I am willing to eat my words if they dominate CN this weekend.