Michigan has reportedly found its new offensive coordinator after parting ways with Kirk Campbell. Reports are coming out that head coach Sherrone Moore has hired North Carolina offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey.
Hit the jump for more.
Lindsey is a native of Alabama and played wide receiver at North Alabama. After spending some time in the late 1990s and early 2000s as a high school coach in his home state, he moved up the coaching ranks at Troy (QB coach), Auburn (offensive assistant), Southern Miss (OC/QB coach), Arizona State (OC/QB coach), Auburn (OC/QB coach), Troy (head coach), UCF (OC/QB coach), and then North Carolina (OC/QB coach). He has spent a lot of time with Gus Malzahn at Auburn and UCF, and he worked under current Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken when Monken was the head coach at Southern Miss. (Side note: I wonder if John Harbaugh was involved at all with perhaps feeling out Monken for offensive coordinator suggestions.)
I think this is a very good hire for the Wolverines. I've seen some people upset because Lindsey hasn't spent more than a few years at any particular spot, but . . . welcome to modern college football. If you're a successful coordinator, you're wanted at higher levels or as a head coach. Michigan has seen that in recent years with Mike Macdonald, Jesse Minter, and even Sherrone Moore; Moore would have been a head coach elsewhere if he hadn't basically been pegged as a "head coach in waiting" at Michigan.
Lindsey checks most of the boxes I was looking for as an offensive coordinator. While he's more of an 11 personnel guy than a 12 personnel type, he does have success with a physical run game. He also adds the QB to the run game, which I think is going to be an important factor for new quarterback Bryce Underwood. Lindsey also gets production from his quarterback, both as a passer and as a runner. I think UNC was limited with its personnel this past season, but he still did some good things in the passing game.
STARTING QB STATS OVER PAST THREE SEASONS AS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
- 2024 Jacolby Criswell (UNC): 58% completions, 2452 yards, 15 TD, 6 INT; 96 yards rushing, 3 TD
- 2023 Drake Maye (UNC): 64% completions, 3608 yards, 24 TD, 9 INT; 449 yards rushing, 9 TD
- 2022 John Rhys Plumlee (UCF): 63% completions, 2586 yards, 15 TD, 8 INT; 862 yards rushing, 11 TD
STARTING RB STATS OVER PAST THREE SEASONS AS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
- 2024 Omarion Hampton (UNC): 281 carries, 1660 yards, 15 TD
- 2023 Omarion Hampton: 253 carries, 1504 yards, 15 TD
- 2022 Isaiah Bowser (UCF): 205 carries, 799 yards, 16 TD
What I see is a coach who adjusts to his personnel. When Lindsey was at UCF with John Rhys Plumlee (who was not a talented thrower and transitioned to WR at one point in his career), he let Plumlee run all over the place, letting the QB become the team's leading rusher. When he had a great talent with Drake Maye - who was both a good passer and runner - he had Maye throwing for 3,600 yards and running for 449 yards and 9 scores.
Things I expect to see from Lindsey at Michigan:
- RUN GAME: Inside zone, outside zone, power, GT counter (plus bubble screens as run game relief)
- PASS GAME: Downfield passing game, intermediate throws over the middle of the field, quick screens
- PERSONNEL: 11 personnel (1 RB, 1 TE)
Of course, Moore will have some say about what Lindsey runs and what personnel he uses. Perhaps Lindsey will find ways to incorporate more tight ends and fullbacks. Again, I think Lindsey has adjusted to his personnel, but a couple of his mentors (Malzahn and Monken) have shown the ability to use tight ends/fullbacks in their power spread offenses. So even though that hasn't been a big component of Lindsey's offenses in the past couple years, I think he has the resources to make that adjustment if Moore challenges him to do so.
Overall, as I said above, I think this is a good hire for Michigan. Lindsey is an established coach with good connections, and he has a Drake Maye-level player in 5-star freshman Bryce Underwood. Michigan really values physicality and the run game, and Lindsey's running backs run for a bunch of yards and/or score a bunch of touchdowns. I would like to see Michigan pursue a quality running back to be that bell cow ball carrier, and they of course need to find some wide receivers to try to open up that passing game. The transfer portal is going to be key this off-season, but that was going to be the case regardless of the offensive coordinator hire.
Only one TE at a time doesn't sound very Harball. Do we have Zone OL guys? If we're not going to SMASH, Marshall plus another should suffice; I would have been more open to Cole Cabana, but still prefer a transfer
ReplyDeleteTo be explosive though, we'll want playmakers at WR. Guys who can stretch the field - do we have any WRs who have ever had a 4o yard reception? 3o?!?
Transfer Portal. Sell the new OC and set him up for success
I think we'll see some 12 personnel because of the personnel (Bredeson/Klein) and because of Lindsey's history.
DeleteWe have zone OL guys - Michigan's been running a ton of zone runs.
You can still be a tough running offense with 11 personnel. It's not so much about the personnel, but about the mentality and emphasis. You can have a soft 11 personnel (Ohio State) or a tough 11 personnel, which is what Michigan has done plenty of over the past several years.
Yes, playmakers are needed at WR. I think Andrew Marsh is a good start, but as Moore said recently, they need some bigger receivers, including some guys who can get downfield.
But outside zone? Do we have the feet on our OL to stretch?
DeleteI think we do with some of the young guys. Michigan started to run some outside zone against Ohio State as a change of pace. These younger players Michigan has recruited over the past couple years are more athletic than some of the older guys who are graduating or have recently graduated. Blake Frazier, Andrew Sprague, Andrew Babalola, Evan Link, etc. can all run outside zone, IMO.
DeleteThere are also different ways to run OZ. Some coaches like to really stretch the edge to try to open up seams inside. Some coaches like to capture the edge to run outside, like a sweep play. Based on my (admittedly limited) knowledge of Lindsey/Malzahn, I think he's going to be more the latter. Whereas Rich Rodriguez tried to run with guys and open up inside seams, I think Lindsey/Malzahn will use OZ when they can reach/pin the DE and get outside.
The RR oline came to mind, as did Minnesota (v.2o23)
Delete"I think Lindsey/Malzahn will use OZ when they can reach/pin the DE and get outside"
DeleteHow easy/effective is it to "pin the DE and get outside" in this age of super-athletic DE players? I guess this is relative to the ability to open seams inside. Is it a 50/50 coin toss which works better, or with the development of these really big, really strong, and really mobile defensive linemen, does one now have a better chance over another?
It depends on the defensive front. It's tough to run that type of scheme against Michigan because they use the stand-up defensive ends/wide-9s like the Ravens have used for a long time. So if you face a defense like Michigan's, you're probably just not going to run that stuff.
DeleteBut if you face a 3-man front or a team that plays a tighter 5-tech DE (which Don Brown ran), then you can use an H-back, a tight end, motion a TE from out wide, etc. to help with pinning that DE inside. Kind of like the pin-and-pull Michigan tried to run with Alex Orji against Indiana near the goal line, except Michigan tried to use Peyton O'Leary to pin the Indiana DE, which failed miserably because O'Leary's just not the right guy to do it.
I think OZ might be used more as a constraint play. In other words, "Okay, if you decide to put a bunch of guys in the box to stop our inside zone, then we're going to pin you inside and try to get to the edge." But really the hope is to use that inside zone blocking scheme and RPOs as your bread and butter.
"What I see is a coach who adjusts to his personnel."
ReplyDeleteIt is my strongly held opinion that this is or at least should be at or near the very top of the list of qualifications for anybody wearing the title of coach. Sadly, not always.
Yes! Several years ago, I worked for a coach who wanted to run a certain offense, but he didn't have a running back who could do the job.
DeleteSo naturally...he took our best offensive lineman, told him to shed some weight, and made him a running back. The kid fumbled a bunch and averaged like 2.6 yards/carry. But that was an example of a coach trying to mold his players to his system, and it failed miserably. We won 2 games that year and he was gone by the next season (not necessarily for that decision, but still).
You should have advised the coach that RBs don't matter
Deleterent free forever @jellllly
DeleteWonderful!
ReplyDeleteExcellent write-up. Thanks, Thunder!
ReplyDeleteI would have been a bit more skeptical had Moore given in to the temptation to go find "a name" for the sake of having "a name" as the new OC. From other things I've read, Chip Lindsey is a somewhat thoughtful man, one who listens and considers things, then incorporates what he's learned into what he already knows. If that is true, then I suspect the match with Moore should be good.
I suspect we'll see an evolution, not just from 2024 into 2025, but probably through 2025 and into 2026 as guys develop and new guys are brought in.
Now the question is: are there any other coaching shuffles in the wings? On the offensive side of the ball there is Grant Newsome as OL coach. Smart guy, by all accounts a high-character guy, but somewhat new to the coaching role. Does Lindsey keep Newsome and take on some of the OL guidance himself?
Similarly, Ron Bellamy ... 2024's WR corp underwhelmed. How much of that was on Bellamy, and how much was on the relatively poor QB room, and the under-utilization of the offensive playcalling overall?
I can't be mad at Bellamy, misses were a thing this year. Then our receivers all blocked, which absolutely has to be a thing in an offense that wants to balance and even more so in an offense that wants to smash. As an aside, this is an under appreciated part of our looking to get bigger bodies at WR.
DeleteAs for Grant Newsome? I don't know, ya know? He might need help. But the only place I can see that help coming from is the head coach. If I were Moore, I'd spend much, if not all of my position time hanging with the OL. His future depends on it to my way of thinking.
Nice work Thunder. This was a good analysis.
ReplyDeleteI like his experience level and the potential flexibility too. The connections with big names like Malzhan and Monken is good.
On the negative side -- I'm a bit skeptical of guys like Campbell who hitch on to an elite talent and then get credit, seemingly more than is deserved, for the personnel they are fortunate to be coaching. Possible here that Linsey is seeing a bump in profile due to coaching Maye.
Also thinking skeptically -- too much flexibility can be a bad thing. Sometimes you need to have an identity and know who you are and what you do well.
I guess we'll find out.
In terms of personnel -- If Bredeson is back then I want to see 12 or 21 personnel deployed. If not, I could see them evolve away from Harbaugh offense that almost always has an extra TE/FB on the field and uses them as outside WRs, slot WRs, in-line TEs, H-backs, and fullbacks. Not clear if Lindsey will want to do the same stuff, or if Moore will force him to.
Anyway, I'm glad you like the hire Thunder. That's encouraging.
If I'm calculating right, Bredeson should have at least one year eligibility left, right? It looks like he red-shirted in 2021 (played in one game), then appeared in every game in 2022, 23, and 24. What I can't recall is whether the COVID extra year was just 2020, and if so then Bredeson has just one year left.
DeleteI doubt he has much NFL interest, or at least I haven't heard his name associated with him considering leaving for the NFL, so I'm guessing he'll be back. The NIL money for one more year is more than going undrafted.
Behind Bredeson is the new kid, Eli Owens, who seems to be a lot of people's favorite, if not for just ability than for attitude.
@ Anonymous 1:08 p.m.
DeleteBredeson should be back unless he's jumping to the NFL or transferring. COVID was only an exemption for 2020. Bredeson arrived in 2021 and redshirted that year, so he has used 2022, 2023, and 2024 as his eligible seasons, leaving a return in 2025 as a possibility.
Yeah there is probably more money it for him to stay and get NIL than jump to the NFL in the short term. I do think he'll get NFL interest, but H-backs are not highly sought after in the NFL, though I do think the old school heavy running game is gaining in importance as the amoeba defense becomes more common.
DeleteI just don't think devoting the NIL budget (whatever it is there are some limits to it) to a RB is a smart idea, anymore than I think devoting a lot of NFL salary cap to a RB is a smart idea.
ReplyDeleteI think with Marshall and Hall you have a couple promising players, with different bodies and running styles. Freshman historically have been able to contribute to the rotation as well, and we have a few of those. If they want to pull a guy up from the lower levels to have another option in the room, that's great. Just don't spend big money for say a Quishon Judkins type -- use that on your OL and DL instead.
As for WR - I'm sure they are going to get some guys but I don't know how much better it's going to be than McCulley/Morris types because, based on what Sam Webb is saying, Michigan is not willing to pay premium money for WRs. For Harbaugh's offense this made a lot of sense. TBD if Lindsey (and the QB room) move the needle on the relative lack of importance of and investment in the position.
Agree in general principle: someone would have to be a *really* special RB to get the same NIL considerations as, say, a really good QB or DB. Blake Corum was in the neighborhood of that. I don't know if any of our RBs rise to that.
DeleteBy REALLY special, I'm thinking 'second coming of Barry Sanders' special.
Agree Anon. It was worth some money to get Corum back, IMO, even if Edwards/Mullings could have replaced him more or less on the field. Part of it was his leadership and character in the locker room. Part of it was depth. Part of it was playmaking. He was a special RB and a big contributor to a special team. Worth it in that unusual case.
DeleteThe coaches know what they have in the RB room. If we do not have a true RB1, then invest in one
ReplyDelete