tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post2525233782761243906..comments2024-03-28T20:09:43.455-04:00Comments on Touch the Banner: Kansas State 31, Michigan 14Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-23758049981701844802013-12-30T19:36:40.119-05:002013-12-30T19:36:40.119-05:00Jehu Chesson III was our biggest hitter this year....Jehu Chesson III was our biggest hitter this year. Good for him, but damning for the rest of the team.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-90233141389392008042013-12-30T13:35:05.963-05:002013-12-30T13:35:05.963-05:00What have you read about him that makes you think ...What have you read about him that makes you think Funk is not the problem? (honest question)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-24201236229042326302013-12-29T21:36:24.252-05:002013-12-29T21:36:24.252-05:00Good analysis overall, but I don't understand ...Good analysis overall, but I don't understand the RR comment -- it implies there was something unusual about yesterday's performance. Mattison & co in 2013 got bombed against Indiana, Penn State and OSU and gave up critical late drives against Neb (whose offense was horrendous) and Iowa, and barely hung on against Akron. I'm not impressed that they were able to shut down CMU, UConn and a 5-win Northwestern team.<br /><br />That's the most sobering part of this year -- everyone spent copious amounts of internet ink complaining (understandably) about Borges, but the defense and Mattison faded to blah before our eyes. I realize there is some youth, but there is no excuse for experienced, talent corners like Taylor and Countess to get lit up multiple times and the defense overall to make so few key stops.<br /><br />I hope everyone can get it together next year and 2014 can be like 2006, where a 7-win season is followed by a national title contender (and 2006 had its flaws, but man were they tiny compared to what we have now), but the D's performance this year made me wonder even more than I would have otherwise.<br /><br />In any case, thanks for the analysis all year. Here's to a better 2014.Rob Pollardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-7381823856252590192013-12-29T21:24:27.664-05:002013-12-29T21:24:27.664-05:007-6 or 8-4? Wow, Michigan has fallen farther than ...7-6 or 8-4? Wow, Michigan has fallen farther than I thought. How does a coach gets to keep his job if he posts (hypothetically) records of 8-5, 7-6, and 8-4? While playing in the 4th (or perhaps 5th) best conference in the country?<br /><br />An 8-4 record would mean, by default, that Michigan lost--again--the majority of its "red-letter" games and wasn't competitive for the B1G championship, let alone the national championship. That kind of performance will send fans and donors away in droves, which is the one thing Brandon won't be able to stand.<br /><br />Realistically, it's nine wins as the bare minimum next year (and the losses can't be to ND, OSU and MSU). In year four, Hoke has "his guys" -- it's time for them (and the coaches) to step up. And if nine wins is too hard and/or unrealistic at Michigan when you have 5th-year senior starting QB, whoo boy.<br /><br />Rob Pollardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-89961655669644746042013-12-29T20:31:12.962-05:002013-12-29T20:31:12.962-05:00I'd say 9-3 should be the bare minimum in 2014...I'd say 9-3 should be the bare minimum in 2014, or Hoke and his staff can go. All of our rival games are away games. Some growth pains are to be expected. I get it. But I can only tolerate 3 losses in 2014. No need to waste this much money on them, as they are just not very good. suduri xusaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13514381713516547280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-15700714182271995662013-12-29T20:25:20.977-05:002013-12-29T20:25:20.977-05:00I've said all year long that our D was suspect...I've said all year long that our D was suspect and each and every game proved my point in spades. Once again when we need Mattison and the D to pitch a complete game they wiffed, big time. They made another avg Offense look like supermen, lost the time of possession battle and basically looked like swiss cheese out there. The K-State D consistently tackled while our D layed down like blocking dummys.<br /><br />I repeat my condemnation of Mattison, the game has passed him by. Not once did he have them jamming a receiver at the line and he had the D playing tentative all game until the outcome had already been determined. <br /><br />Time to clean house and start over again. Hoke did a great sales job on us but hasnt delivered. What a joke Michigan football has become.... 5 losses or more in 5 of the last 6 seasons now. <br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-43409344821422607062013-12-29T20:03:59.691-05:002013-12-29T20:03:59.691-05:00Thunder, will you write-up a post-mortem on the se...Thunder, will you write-up a post-mortem on the season? I've only been reading this blog since after Ohio. I'd love your take on what happened to this season after ND. It seems to me Hoke and Mattison didn't really trust the personnel since they employed a "bend but don't break" DAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-9158738860569853932013-12-29T19:48:58.567-05:002013-12-29T19:48:58.567-05:00Heads better roll. We are too easy on the coaches....Heads better roll. We are too easy on the coaches. Consecutive negative yardage... Makes me want to explode at the thought of it. Even horrible bottom feeder teams don't get negative yardage on the ground. This is something that should get people fired by halftime. If people aren't fired after this crap DB and Hoke are idiots.suduri xusaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13514381713516547280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-78845101599148874532013-12-29T19:19:14.531-05:002013-12-29T19:19:14.531-05:00No, Gallon was a high school QB, as was Robinson.No, Gallon was a high school QB, as was Robinson.Thunderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09708792562446136381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-12807476359141434922013-12-29T18:56:44.181-05:002013-12-29T18:56:44.181-05:00@Lank: You may be thinking of the immortal Terranc...@Lank: You may be thinking of the immortal Terrance Robinson as the former H.S. QB. Gallon's pass was a huge surprise and a great--albeit wasted--play.Magnum P.I.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-47666474079490137052013-12-29T18:09:30.853-05:002013-12-29T18:09:30.853-05:00I don't think our S&C staff should be gett...I don't think our S&C staff should be getting a pass on criticism.—DonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-74676142711242968952013-12-29T17:51:44.385-05:002013-12-29T17:51:44.385-05:00If you put things in perspective, I don't see ...If you put things in perspective, I don't see how you you keep Hoke after an 8-4 season, no matter who he beats. That would a one game improvement in 4 years, which could come by sheer luck as much as anything. Even 9-3 is pretty dodgy, unless we start off slow and come on really strong at the end of the year, kicking everyone's ass and winning at least the division, if not the conference. I think any less than 10-2 and a Legends division title and Hoke should be out. Virtually all of the roster will be players he himself signed next year, and with three top recruiting classes in a row, there's no excuse for not doing better than MSU and Nebraska.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-25920345346833004582013-12-29T17:48:55.845-05:002013-12-29T17:48:55.845-05:00First of all, I'm really gonna miss the kids f...First of all, I'm really gonna miss the kids from "The Muck" every one of them has been a man, a football player and tougher than Hell.<br /><br />On the issue of toughness, this team ain't. From our jowly Head coach, through our just plain fat OC, our Senior Tackles and all the rest of the way through the roster, this team is soft as pudding. I'm sitting here thinking on it, and with the exception of a Stribling bowling ball hit which was mildly blind side, I can't think of one signature hit for the entirety of this season. There probably is one or two, but they weren't impressive enough to make my RAM. <br /><br />I also can't think of one instance where of one of our guys just flat took someone on face up and won big. This includes our two Senior and one thought to be All American Tackles. <br /><br />If this is my team, I'm channeling Bo and The Mellow Men and I'm running this batch of girls until they puke, then tomorrow if they come back, they're gonna puke again.<br /><br />When Spring rolls around, I'm taking every single allowed minute in pads and we're hitting. When Fall Camp starts, we're doing it again. And I don't give a rat's patootie who I lose to injury as they are all soft anyway.<br /><br />I might even go all Bear Bryant at Texas A&M on their heads.<br /><br />I understand young teams and never knowing what team is gonna show up and as everybody around here knows, I have defended this team on that basis all Fall, but ..... FOOTBALL IS A COLLISION SPORT. You gotta hit somebody, or there is no point having your useless ass out there on the field.<br /><br />There is a five letter word for Team # whatever this team is and it starts with P.Roanmanhttp://justthinking.usnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-22173964963687515222013-12-29T17:13:18.657-05:002013-12-29T17:13:18.657-05:00I agree with just about everything here. Funk has...I agree with just about everything here. Funk has to go, and by tomorrow, if Hoke and Borges have any guts. They can't just close their eyes and assign no blame for the kind of offensive performance we had this year. "Youth" just doesn't explain it. But I think that if our offense is still bad enough next year that Borges would be under the axe, it won't matter, because we'll be something shitty like 8-4, and Hoke will be out on his ass anyway, taking everyone else with him. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-2935376610944455072013-12-29T17:05:48.686-05:002013-12-29T17:05:48.686-05:00Well, frankly, the same could be said about just a...Well, frankly, the same could be said about just about every position on the field since Hoke and company have been here. Where have we really seen top-notch player development? RB, Oline, QB, WR, LB, CB, S, Dline…pretty much all have been below expectations. LB has been a particular disappointment. It looked as if we'd have one of the better groups in the Big Ten this year, but Ross, Bolden and Morgan were all very average as playmakers, and RJS was a non-factor. Poor reads, mediocre tackling, and caught out of position regularly. None of those guys showed the slightest improvement from the beginning of the season to the end.<br /><br />Oline was obviously also a big disappointment, but at least you'd expect them to take longer to reach their peak.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-23771300164447996362013-12-29T15:18:40.414-05:002013-12-29T15:18:40.414-05:00That wouldn't surprise me, but that kind of co...That wouldn't surprise me, but that kind of complacency really reflects what's wrong with Michigan sports programs in general. They make coaching decisions based on loyalty, sentiment, and who is a Michigan man, not on performance. That we could have such an abyssmal performance on offense, not just in this game, but over and over and over, with no one losing their job over it, is just insane.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-45703675265855016262013-12-29T15:13:30.530-05:002013-12-29T15:13:30.530-05:00"it seemed like Borges and head coach Brady H..."it seemed like Borges and head coach Brady Hoke had basically decided to give up and try to develop the kids for next year." Eccept for a few isolated games it seemed like they did that early in the season instead of just for the bowl game. Michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16110824687189541761noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-66840932406890862632013-12-29T14:59:33.110-05:002013-12-29T14:59:33.110-05:00@Lanknows ... agree, to a point. If Michigan beat...@Lanknows ... agree, to a point. If Michigan beats MSU and OSU but loses to three or four others, then the pressure is manageable. But beating MSU and OSU but losing to 5 or 6 others would bring a lot of pressure ... mostly because the question would be: "You can beat our rivals but lose to teams we should crush?"DonAZnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-70484914440479938792013-12-29T14:56:32.169-05:002013-12-29T14:56:32.169-05:00On the coaching changes, I'd probably be okay ...On the coaching changes, I'd probably be okay with Mallory moving on. I feel like our corners have not really come along as much as we'd like in his three years. This was masked by good safety play in '11 and '12 but not this year.Jamesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-28589061560646663972013-12-29T14:52:06.870-05:002013-12-29T14:52:06.870-05:00As for the defense stiffening in the second half, ...As for the defense stiffening in the second half, I don't know about that. KSU moved the ball on every possession but was less effective in the red zone for whatever reason. They only punted once, and even then they had driven into our territory.Jamesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-14655237395075786892013-12-29T14:50:11.753-05:002013-12-29T14:50:11.753-05:00Let's not forget that we tried a halfback pass...Let's not forget that we tried a halfback pass in the 2012 ND game and it backfired, getting picked off. This play call is awesome if it works and gets ripped to shreds if it doesn't. If he'd called this against Ohio and it'd failed, yikes. Everyone would be upset that he didn't put the game in the hands of his QB who threw for 450 yards that day. Hindsight is 20/20.<br /><br />Jamesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-60986094875776332172013-12-29T14:13:23.490-05:002013-12-29T14:13:23.490-05:00That's why heads should roll. As much as I lik...That's why heads should roll. As much as I like our linebackers I don't see why we need two LB coaches. Get some good coaches for the OL and DL instead, as our OL and DL are garbage in year three.suduri xusaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13514381713516547280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-33242253956765786322013-12-29T14:12:05.355-05:002013-12-29T14:12:05.355-05:00Gallon would be gone anyway. It is not a middle fi...Gallon would be gone anyway. It is not a middle finger to the Michigan world, it is just an attempt to make extra points.suduri xusaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13514381713516547280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-19673320412158201942013-12-29T14:10:57.876-05:002013-12-29T14:10:57.876-05:00Anything equal to or worse than 7-6 in 2014 would ...Anything equal to or worse than 7-6 in 2014 would make me get a pitchfork to drive Hoke and his chubby assistants out of town. suduri xusaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13514381713516547280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2440694009017367434.post-67502728197767640782013-12-29T13:43:37.260-05:002013-12-29T13:43:37.260-05:00I think what games you win are more important than...I think what games you win are more important than the final record. If you finish strong and beat some rivals, fans will be OK with a lackluster overall record. The problem Rodriguez ran into was starting strong, finishing poorly, and losing to OSU/MSU. Did I say Rodriguez....Lanknowsnoreply@blogger.com