Without two of their usual starters, senior receiver Davonta Jones and defensive back Steven Montac, the Rams were able to fend off a scrappy Alcovy team and cruise to a 33-7 victory. Within the game Newton was able to realize the depth it has at quarterback and at running back. The Tigers saw that they’re not without promise on defense and that turnovers are still a problem.

Kurt Taylor
Back when the Giants won the super bowl in 2008, Eli Manning’s first Super Bowl, they had three running backs nicknamed “Earth, Wind and Fire.” Each back was different, and each one had a different style. Brandon Jacobs was Earth because he was a head down run-straight-at-you style runner. Derrick Ward was Wind (speed) and Ahmad Bradshaw was Fire (playmaker).

Newton might have found its own “Earth, Wind and Fire” with the emergence of sophomore running back Kurt Taylor. Romario Johnson is the Fire; he lights it up when he runs the ball. Artice Hobbs is the Wind; he has the speed to break off long gains, which is especially useful in the passing game. Taylor can be the Earth. He’s a small back, but only in height. Taylor is a big-small back; he’s physically built to be a bruiser.

Taylor will take a lot of punishment as he runs downhill, but he’ll also dish a lot of punishment out. He will get you the extra yard and maybe more the way he runs, but don’t look for a lot of big gains yet; he only had one rush for more than 10 yards on Friday. He also won’t be of much use on passing downs; he doesn’t have the speed yet to get a whole lot of separation from linebackers. Still, Taylor is a nice change of pace from Newton’s usual rushers, and he’ll provide a nice spark for a couple more years.

Depth at QB
No one ever really asks the question, “What happens if our starting quarterback goes down?” People just pray to the football gods that it never happens and hope that what’s-his-name never has to take a snap. When Rams’ coach Terrance Banks took Johnson out of the game for a drive in the first half and entirely in the second half, freshman Myron Middlebrooks stepped up and the Rams didn’t miss a beat.

Middlebrooks only completed a couple of passes, and he also had one interception on a deep ball, but he did look good running the ball. In the shotgun in Tiger territory, Middlebrooks dropped back looking to pass, but after seeing nothing he liked, he took off through the middle. The freshman, who’s as tall as a receiver and as skinny as a pack of Slim Jims, got inside the 10 and looked to be stopped but juked his way past a defender and spinned off another defender into the endzone. It’s worth noting that Alcovy’s defense has a lot of freshmen, so seeing as how those players are the same age, you might expect the trend to continue when Johnson graduates.

Drive stoppers
Penalties and turnovers were the theme of the night, but turnovers were an essential problem to an already struggling Tigers team. Twice, Alcovy running back Kenyon Kelley got into Rams’ territory after breaking off 50-plus yard runs and twice the Tigers weren’t able to score.

The first time, Kelley fumbled after getting what would’ve been a first down inside the 10-yard line and the Rams recovered. The second time, the Rams got pressure on Hickson and the Tigers turned it over on downs.

Newton’s second score of the game came after Kelley got popped and fumbled the ball returning a kick after the Rams’ first touchdown. That’s three turnovers in the first half alone, two of which could have resulted in points and changed the game for Alcovy. Turnovers are something the Tigers have been struggling with all season, but with so much youth on the team, there’s not really anyone to turn to. The players are growing and learning on the fly, which is all they can do.

Ballhawking Tigers
On defense, the Tigers weren’t half bad. Alcovy only gave up one big play and that was a 95-yard touchdown pass on Newton’s opening drive. After that play, the Tigers sort of settled their nerves and played well defensively.

The defense was put in bad positions mostly because of turnovers, but they played well despite the circumstances. The Tigers came down with three interceptions in the game, two of which came from D’Anthony Bell when the Rams attempted to go deep down the middle of the field. Bell was there waiting twice, coming down with two really nice grabs.

The team also recovered a Newton fumble, shortly before giving the ball back with a fumble of their own. If the Tigers can stop putting themselves in bad field positions, the defense might be able to get some stops and create a spark for the offense.