A deep dive into the Sharks.
The home opener for the 2024 season will take place on Saturday at 7:00 pm as the Frogs are set to take on the Long Island University Sharks. The Sharks lost last week to Albany by a score of 27-21 but should have won the game as they outgained their opponent by over 100 yards. This game should be a comfortable win for the Frogs and a good opportunity to iron out the mental mistakes that plagued them week one.
Offense
The starting quarterback for the Sharks is redshirt sophomore Luca Stanzani. Stanzani was limited to just three games in 2023 by injury but appeared in eight games as a freshman in 2022 completing around 59% of his passes for 1,219 yards, 13 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. Stanzani had a solid week one against Albany, completing 20 of 31 attempts for 179 yards and three touchdowns. Stanzani does a good job of protecting the football with only seven interceptions in his entire collegiate career.
While Stanzani is not a huge threat in the designed quarterback run game, TCU struggled with preventing the quarterback scramble against Stanford. The adjustments to prevent quarterback scrambles will be something to watch for on Saturday. Stanzani’s top target in week one was Michael Love who had six catches for 69 yards and a touchdown. The preseason All-Northeast Conference selection’s best year came in 2022 when he caught 51 passes for over 700 yards and 3 touchdowns. Love is listed at only five foot ten and 180 pounds but is a very solid route runner who can create space against man coverage.
Ludovick Choquette is the starting running back for the Sharks and had an impressive debut in week one with 15 carries for 128 yards rushing. Choquette also caught four passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. Choquette transferred to LIU after three years playing for Western Illinois where he demonstrated solid power and balance as a rusher. Standing at five foot ten and weighing in at 215 pounds, Choquette is a very physical runner with the ability to easily run through arm tackles.
Choquette and @Lucastanzani17 making an impact week one! What an honor @NECFootball #FinsUp https://t.co/smBFdw8xdS
— LIU Football (@LIUSharksFB) September 2, 2024
Defense
The defense for Long Island had a solid week one, holding Albany to just 20 offensive points as seven came via a fumble by the LIU offense that was picked up by Albany and returned for a touchdown. Albany had under 300 yards of total offense and was held to under a 50% completion rate against LIU. The Sharks did a decent job of generating pressure in week one and picked up a sack against Albany. The run defense for LIU was solid last week as Albany was held under 100 yards rushing as a team.
Nomination for College Football All-Name Team
Backup quarterback Drew Person of Exton, Pennsylvania wins this week’s nomination for the All-Name Team.
Overall
This should be a comfortable blowout win for the Frogs and anything other than that will be cause for concern. Things to watch for will be the rushing attack for TCU that struggled at times against Stanford in week one and fewer mental mistakes on both sides of the ball. Fewer personal fouls on defense and fewer drops on offense are two specific areas to watch for improvement.
Final Score Prediction: TCU 57, LIU 6