Norfolk State has struggled mightily this season, and Michael Vick might have the answer as to why. Among the problems his Spartan team has faced, Vick identified excessive penalties as one thing holding his team back from true greatness.
“Do I like what I see? No, I don’t. We’ve got to stop beating ourselves. Penalties kill momentum, and right now, we are shooting ourselves in the foot too often. That’s something we have to clean up immediately if we want to win football games,” Vick said in Monday's MEAC Coaches Call.
He added, “We can’t change the fact that we’re young and still learning. But we can control our actions. That starts with eliminating penalties, and I’m going to keep pushing that every day.”
He has a point in his critique of his team. Through the first few games of the season, they've amassed 65 penalties that have resulted in a total of 538 yards lost, and they average 89 penalty yards per game. Only Delaware State has been penalized more, though they've overcome their woes to jump out to their best start for the football program in nearly 20 years. Vick would like that to be the story of his team.
But penalties only tell one part of the story. Vick has found his team involved in a QB competition that very well may have cost them games earlier in the season. Otto Khuns has looked to be the clear QB1 for the Spartans and has since received significant reps at quarterback, but early in the season, Vick was determined for Israel Carter to be the signal caller.
However, Norfolk State has shown glimpses of a team that could come together in time for conference play. They still boast several standout players, including Kevon King and Khuns himself. The Spartans put together 415 yards of total offense in a balanced attack and nearly kept pace with Hapton enough to take the lead last Saturday. Perhaps the bye week following Saturday's game against Wofford could prove to be beneficial for the Spartans as they look to make a run in the MEAC.
