Weber State Football: Wildcats mystified by offensive woes

Weber State is in a bit of a spot.

Not only do the struggling Wildcats have a rare short week to try and solve the mystery of Cal Poly's explosive triple-option, but they must somehow clear up the disappearance of their own missing offense.

The Wildcats, done in by three second-quarter UC Davis' touchdowns before eventually losing Saturday, 37-13, have been outscored by an astounding 110-12 in the first half of games in 2012.

Also, Weber State, 0-5 for the first time since 2004, has been hit by a number of injuries, especially at receiver.

Junior Chase Nakamura, who caught nine passes this season, broke his left arm during Saturday's loss to UC-Davis. He will miss the rest of the season, as will junior receiver Shaydon Kehano, out with a broken leg.

Sophomore linebacker Luke King will also miss the rest of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery.

"We're not going to put the pads on as much as we usually do," WSU coach Jody Sears said in anticipation of the Wildcats first ever Friday night game at Stewart Stadium (6 p.m.). "We have depth issues at spots."

Depth is only one of several issues facing Sears and Weber State (0-5, 0-2 Big Sky), which plays its third ranked FCS opponent this season in Cal Poly (4-0, 2-0).

Weber State was once again betrayed by its failures to generate any offense in the first half against UC-Davis. It turned over the ball five times and allowed four sacks. After five games the Wildcats rank last in the Big Sky in scoring offense, averaging just 16.6 points per game.

"No question about it, it is a concern," said Sears, who was surprised by the Wildcats' reaction to an emotional UCD. "The biggest thing as coaches, we've got to get the kids' mindset aggressive early.

"I thought we had a great week of practice. It didn't show up in the first quarter."

Strong conference

Weber State remains the only winless team in a Big Sky Conference that has four teams ranked in the top 25, including Cal Poly. Montana State is ranked second, while Eastern Washington and Northern Arizona are ranked seventh and 18th, respectively.

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