In which we follow up on a promise.
Did we become a Big 10 team without telling anyone?
Game Recap in Three Sentences
The defense was stout for most of the game, holding VT to a 13% third down conversion rating and just 237 yards.
Aaron Philo came into the game at the end of the third quarter and gave a much needed offensive boost but it was too little too late, and a couple backbreaking drops killed potential late scoring drives.
Both teams couldn’t move the ball much at all – there was a sequence of five straight 3-and-outs and not counting the final possession there were 22 total drives with six or fewer plays.
Above The Line of the Week
- The defense. I can’t overstate that this was one of our better defensive efforts in recent memory. The 237 offensive yards for VT was their lowest all season by a margin of 100 yards and it was just their third game being held to under 30 points. 100 of their yards came on just three plays. Their first TD was busted coverage, their second resulted from a horrific third down spot that kept the drive alive, and their final came off of a short-field after a turnover. As a team we totalled 11 TFLs and two sacks.
- The deluge of internet content featuring dogs in halloween costumes.
- Aaron Philo. Welcome to the show young’un. It’s very clear to me that he should’ve come into the game much sooner; the offense had a spark with him and his arm was giving us a chance. If King can’t go against Miami then Philo should be the starter with no questions.
Unformed Thought of the Week
Can anyone explain to me why Pyron played any of the third quarter? Pyron’s first half stat line was 9-16 for 75 yards – why on earth would you look at that and not give the other guy a shot? His second half line was even worse: 1-8 for 5 yards and an INT on four drives where we failed to pick up a first down. I’m not gonna say that Philo would’ve won us the game for certain, but it’s abundantly clear that he was the better QB and we maybe could’ve at least had a shot if he had the extra time (we also would’ve had a shot with him as it was if it weren’t for two brutal drops). Key said afterwards that he considered playing Philo earlier; what the heck made him not do it? Nothing Pyron was doing was remotely helpful, let alone special. Add it to the growing list of coaching decisions that have made me scratch my head this season.
5 Star (7 Star, 5 Star) Developmental Program Haiku of the Week
Everything is dark
Will there be light at the end
Someone please save us
Anything But Football 1/? – Film Photography
Earlier this season I made the proclamation that I wouldn’t write the same old thing every time we lose a frustrating game. Well, here we are after losing another frustrating game so here’s the next entry in Anything But Football. This time, it’s film photography.
At the beginning of this year I bought an old film camera. While I was visiting my parents for Christmas, I went kayaking with a friend and she had one; I thought it was cool and found myself still thinking about it a couple weeks later. I would certainly never consider myself a “photographer”, but I brought a disposable camera to boy scout camp every year, I had a Coolpix in middle school, and I generally enjoy taking pictures on my phone so it felt like something I might enjoy. After doing the millennial’s requisite 50 hours of online research before making any kind of purchase, I bought a Nikon EM and lens for like $80. A couple months ago I “upgraded” to a 90s era Canon to get some additional features.
If y’all are anything like me, you’re a bit jaded by the prospect of a mostly digital lifestyle where AI and paid subscription SaaS are supposed to make everything “easy” (I swear I’m only 30, not a dramatic old man yelling at clouds). In some ways, messing around with these cameras has been my reaction to that; it’s a creative outlet where I can’t be tempted by some easy route that makes everything look good. When I load the camera with a roll of film, I’ve got a limit of 36 chances to capture something – it forces me to think about what’s worthy of capture and how it should be done. It’s not just tapping my phone screen, it’s thinking about things like exposure and focal points (the older cameras don’t autofocus!). I can’t even see how one shot turns out to inform my next one – it takes almost a month to get results back after sending the roll off for development and scanning (huge shout out to Memphis Film Lab in Ohio, they do awesome work). It feels bad when 6 of your 36 shots come back unrecognizably dark, but that makes the 6 great shots you love feel that much more special. At its absolute core it’s a physical, tangible creative process with delayed gratification and fun nostalgia for someone whose childhood was documented on film. It forces me to be intentional and present with what I’m doing. Am I good at it? Not really, no, but that’s not the point.
I was hooked after my very first roll. The feedback loop of tinkering with different film stocks and exposure strategies to get different results just scratches an itch in my brain. I don’t even edit the pictures once I have them in digital form – the whole point that I’m bought into is that the results from the physical medium are interesting and worthy in their own right without the modern compulsive need to edit the most amazing yet unrealistic shot you’ve ever seen. Not to mention the fact that it still blows my mind that I can press a mechanical button to open a shutter for a mathematically-exact length of time and expose a piece of plastic to light, then someone gives that piece of plastic a chemical bath, and the end result is a recreation of the world I was seeing through the viewfinder at a moment in time. Physics and chemistry are magical.
Of course, I mess up constantly. My first few rolls were full of hilariously underexposed shots, completely out-of-focus subjects, and compositions that just didn’t end up looking as good as I thought they would. It didn’t really matter though; I was having a blast and couldn’t wait to shoot my next roll. After a little while I got a better feel for what would make a good picture, and how to make the right adjustments in different lighting scenarios. I’m by no means an expert, but I’m very happy with several shots I’ve taken and I’d love to show y’all some.
Nikon EM, 50mm f/1.8, Fujifilm 400, Seattle
Neon just looks so cool in the film medium – there are even specific film stocks designed to get as much halation as possible out of artificial lighting. I love the moody atmospheric look here, it’s straight out of Blade Runner.
Nikon EM, 50mm f/1.8, Fujifilm 400, Mount Rainier
The white-out conditions really bring out the film grain here, and I love the way the trees fade softly into the background. It feels like a still from a movie; the grainy softness of the film medium lends a cinematic feeling that I don’t get from my iPhone shots of the same scene.
Nikon EM, 50mm f/1.8, Portra 400, Cape Cod
I love the framing here; the bright sun-lit kitchen in the middle contrasts nicely with the darker wood that fades into black around the edges. It’s a little underexposed, but I think that adds a nice moodiness.
Nikon EM, 50mm f/1.8, Kodak Gold 200, Vermont
Something about the angle looking downwards here is eye-catching to me. It feels like peering into a scene, and the contrast between the water and the rock moves your eyes around.
Canon EOS Rebel XS, 50mm f/1.8, CineStill 400D, Cape Cod
It may not look like much, but this is currently my favorite one I’ve taken so far. It has that perfect nostalgia magic for me – if you didn’t notice my brother’s Apple watch then you could absolutely believe this was 2002. The red of the lobster is deep and bold, while the flash and golden hour sun mix to provide wonderfully soft lighting. It looks how my childhood memories of the Cape feel.
Canon EOS Rebel XS, 50mm f/1.8, CineStill 400D, Boston
I’m obsessed with the way the willow tree on the left looks. I have no clue how to describe it properly, but it feels so weighty and lush. Something about it and the halation of the sunlight reflecting off the swan boat makes me think of the Wizard of Oz but I couldn’t begin to articulate why.
Canon EOS Rebel XS, 50mm f/1.8, Ilford HP5 Plus 400, Cape Cod
The film community is obsessed with black and white and while I still prefer color, there’s a certain gravity to something captured directly in B&W instead of just a B&W filter applied on top. This was taken on a foggy day and that really makes the film grain stand out in a cool, timeless way; you could convince someone this was taken at any point in the last 75 years.
And just to make sure y’all don’t think I believe myself to be some elevated artist now, here’s a sampling of my worst shots:
Anyways, if your interest is at all piqued by this then my advice is to try it – I’ve gotten a lot of joy out of it over the year and I’m excited to keep going. If you’re interested in seeing more shots, I post some from every roll on my Twitter @creespaschal (where you’ll also find my complaints about Tech football).
Look Ahead
Up next is a much-welcomed bye before Miami. Some time off is just what we need – either it’s enough to get a healthy Haynes King back or it’s enough to get Aaron Philo more comfortable with the first team offense. I can’t stress enough how desperately we need to pick things up on this home stretch; hopefully this bye gets us back on the right track.