I hope Mike Hart is okay. It was reported that Mike Hart suffered a seizure on the sideline. I don't know how much Hart's medical situation affected the team on the field, but running back Donovan Edwards clearly seemed to be emotional and seemed to be on a knee next to Hart while the medical crew was attending to him. The TV crew also reported that a Michigan spokesperson said Hart had no history of similar events. Regardless, I hope this is a one-time thing and that Hart recovers quickly.
Hit the jump for more.
Outside zone troubles. Michigan's coaching staff knows more than I do, but I was frustrated by Michigan's early insistence on running outside zone. They found a little bit of Fool's Gold on Blake Corum's first run, which went for 50 yards, but it shouldn't have. Corum made four guys miss at the line of scrimmage on that play, a Barry Sanders-like effort. Indiana has a habit of bringing outside linebackers, corners, and safeties off the edge to mess with a lot of what Michigan does. I think the Wolverines would have been better off waiting until later in the game, when Indiana started to get a little bit tired, to run outside. Michigan had an advantage with the offensive line inside. Corum finished with 25 carries for 124 yards and 1 touchdown. Backup Donovan Edwards had 7 carries for just 15 yards.
I love J.J. McCarthy. J.J. McCarthy is the first Michigan quarterback since Jake Rudock who looks the part of an NFL QB. Michigan has gone through several starting quarterbacks since Jim Harbaugh arrived in 2015 - from Rudock to Wilton Speight to John O'Korn to Brandon Peters to Shea Patterson to Joe Milton to Cade McNamara - but McCarthy is the first one since Rudock to actually carry himself, make reads, and have the mechanics/arm strength to look like a true future pro. It was not an "exciting" game because he didn't really take any deep shots, but he was 28/36 for 304 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 1 interception. He completed 77.8% of his passes. The lowest completion percentage of his season was when he completed 69.2% of his throws against Maryland a couple weeks ago. For a comparison, McNamara only completed 77.8% or more of his throws twice - on 9-for-11 passing against Western Michigan in 2021 and when he went 1-for-1 against UConn earlier this year before getting injured.
Well, I guess the pass rush might be there after all. Michigan had 34 sacks altogether during the outstanding 2021 season, when Aidan Hutchinson set the team record and David Ojabo had a paltry 11.0 QB takedowns. Now through half the season, Michigan has 22 sacks. Amazingly, nobody in the Indiana game had more than 1.0. So seven different guys recorded sacks: LB Michael Barrett, LB Junior Colson, EDGE Jaylen Harrell, EDGE Braiden McGregor, EDGE Derrick Moore, EDGE Mike Morris, and EDGE Eyabi Okie. Indiana was tied at #86 in the country for giving up sacks, so it's not too surprising that Michigan's rushers got home, but it was relentless. Good for Indiana QB Connor Bazelak for hanging in there all game, but he was clearly feeling it and at the end of the game, he was resorting to chucking the ball far out of bounds almost immediately. He finished 25/49 for 203 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception, while taking those 7 sacks for -61 yards.
What if Indiana actually had good offensive players? Teams like Indiana, Rutgers, and Ole Miss always fascinate me, because their offenses operate at a breakneck pace but they rarely have great recruiting classes. Ole Miss is in better shape than Indiana and Rutgers from a recruiting perspective, but I wonder what kind of numbers a team like Alabama or Ohio State could put up with Indiana's Walt Bell as the coordinator. Presumably, with 5-star and 4-star offensive linemen, a 5-star QB with 5-star wide receivers wouldn't have to worry about getting sacked anywhere close to 7 times in a game. Maybe we'll never see it, but it's an interesting thought experiment.
The team misses Roman Wilson. Wide receiver Roman Wilson missed the Indiana game, and it seemed to be relevant, because A.J. Henning is not a very effective wide receiver as a junior. Henning got more snaps, but he's raw in much the same way that Steve Breaston was raw early in his career. Some guys are just return guys and gadget guys, and maybe that's all Henning will really be. His hands are questionable, and he doesn't adjust well to the ball when it's in the air. Wilson is the #1 speed guy on the squad, and he's a threat on bubbles, posts, fades, and end arounds/jet sweeps.
Beat Penn State. Indiana has played Michigan pretty tough over the past decade or so, and this was a bit of a trap game between playing at Iowa and then facing Penn State next week. The early 10-10 tie was concerning, but Michigan outscored the Hoosiers 21-0 in the second half and wore them out. The final score doesn't reflect how touch-and-go it was for a while, but the biggest numbers that matter are the 6 and the 0.
I did not watch the game, but afterwards I heard that McCarthy threw his first INT of the season. No INT is a good INT, of course, but perhaps there's a silver lining in it. McCarthy was riding a "no INT" streak going into this game, and perhaps -- just perhaps -- having that streak broken will get him to relax a bit more and do more of what he did later in this Indiana game.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the Penn State game is at home.
I thought Bazelak did well to hang in there as long as he did. He deliver some real nice balls under pressure, although the TD ball looked like it could have been lucky. Kind of had that 28 foot bank shot look about it.
ReplyDeleteI liked Braiden McGregor's sack a lot. I tend not to watch him specifically all that much, but that was the kind of play we have been wanting from him for a long time. It was a very smooth release from a guy kind of up into him and more than a little speed to the QB. I'll likely tune into him more frequently. If he can add the lower body strength that thunder and probably Elston and the defensive staff wants for him. Maybe Hutchinson esc ... ish. You'd have to be delighted for him, and us.
A couple people said Barry Sanders on Corum's first run. I can't argue. That run was a huge help in light of both the offensive and defensive staff's battling to get things figured out early. Lanky? Repent!!!
I'm guessing that Clemons doesn't block yet as well as the guys that were on the field, but we could use that speed. I'd like for him to hurry up in obtaining that skill or his route running or whatever it is that has him not seeing more balls. I am reasonably certain that whatever it is, isn't arbitrary. Although, maybe Harbaugh is poisoning McCarthy's mind against him in practice. I hate thinking that, but you never know when it comes to Jim Harbaugh.
Roanman
Why would Harbaugh do such a thing? I can see Harbaugh impressing upon McCarthy the relative merits of other receivers, but I find it hard to believe he'd be malicious in his coaching about Clemons. Harbaugh is an odd duck at times, but I don't think he has a malicious character.
DeleteHe was recently accused on this site of poisoning an entire offensive line against Cade McNamara. A man that would do something like that very definitely might choose to do the same thing with one lonely wide out.
DeleteThat was me again.
DeleteRoanman
I doubt that accusation has any truth to it. A coach who does that is a coach that will have team cohesion problems, and everything suggests Michigan has a fairly tight team ethos.
DeleteHa. The run absolutely was Sandersesque. Sanders has always been the canonical example of the exceptional RB who does matter. Corum is there.
DeleteBut there's nothing for me to repent for -- I said Corum was the most impressive freshman back I'd seen, and that he "deserves the hype" (see link below). I said he Corum probably matters after last year (even though he was a backup). No turning back after Maryland. He is him, as the kids say.
http://touchthebanner.blogspot.com/2021/08/2021-season-countdown-17-blake-corum.html
After last night's game, all I know is that Michigan is 6-0. I still do not know how good this team is. I will not be surprised if it loses to PSU and MSU. I also will not be surprised if it goes undefeated. Yesterday's game was a classic tale of two halves. If I only watched the second half, I would think this team is going to the playoff.
ReplyDeleteIt absolutely will be a surprise if MSU beats Michigan in AA or Michigan beats OSU in Columbus.
DeletePSU may be a battle for the Rose Bowl.
Wait a second, wait a second, the team is supposed to be better with JJ McCarthy starting, not worse. How can you even be saying they could end up in the Rose Bowl!!!
DeleteWho told you that Anon? The preseason AP poll had Michigan 8.
DeleteYou unknowingly don't like JJ McCarthy starting.
DeleteI agree with everything Thunder wrote about the 2022 team. The big concern here was the run blocking through 3 quarters was just not what we've come to expect from a Sherrone Moore OL. It does seem like playcalling could have something to do with that. Eventually they wore them down but it felt like Michigan let themselves get behind schedule a few too many times.
ReplyDeleteThey also got picked apart whenever Bazelack had time. This is pretty concerning for OSU and I'm not sure the 2021 recipe is going to be repeatable - they may have to find a new way to win.
The first half was the worst Michigan has looked all year but l agree with Thunder's stoicism here. The second half makes up for it and on the road with the Hart situation and the big injury to Trente and the whole trap game thing, I don't see it as a big problem.
I share the praise for McCarthy too. I don't put nearly as much stock into the completion percentage stat as Thunder - and Bazelack correctly throwing away the ball before he got sacked a dozen times illustrates why - but McCarthy is throwing good catchable balls in all 3 zones. I'd like him to go downfield more but I think that's on the coaches. McCarthy is throwing a few dumb balls a game still but a) so did McNamara and b)he's a true sophomore and I'd rather he have errors of aggression than errors of passivity at this phase. He uses his legs so well too - he does remind me of Harbaugh as a player.
The one spot where I really continue to be baffled by Thunder's take is the love for Jake Rudock. I don't think we'll ever agree here for a guy who is a NFL QB less than Deveon Smith is an an NFL back (Rudock played in fewer games and had fewer yards). A legitimate NFL QB wouldn't have 1 TD in 7 drives against OSU at the end of his 5. Speaking of fool's gold - that Florida game. Rudock was a 5th year senior surround by NFL players and was thoroughly mediocre.
Amazingly, I thought Rudock looked like an NFL QB...and he played in the NFL. I know it's preposterous for me to talk like he was an NFL-caliber quarterback, since he was . . . an NFL-caliber quarterback. Wait a minute...
DeleteDid Deveon Smith also "look like a true future pro"? He did more in the NFL than Rudock. Were you wrong about him?
DeleteYou can certainly hang your hat on going 3-5 in the NFL with an INT. The less black/white (NFL games/no NFL games) perspective for Michigan QBs is this:
DeletePatterson outplayed Rudock in college and was better in Year 3 than Rudock was in Year 5.
McNamara and Speight produced equivalent performances in year 3 and 4 respectively as Rudock did in year 5.
Rudock as a pro was mostly a practice squad guy and Peters, Speight and Patterson all got NFL camp invites too. Milton and McNamara probably will too. These are all fringe NFL QBs even if Rudock was one the Detroit Lions decided to actually put on the field.
We're talking about negligible differences in a winged helmet.
Rudock is not a model to be held up for JJ. It's disrespectful to Cade, Shea, Wilton, and most of all JJ - who is already better than Rudock ever was.
DeleteJJ is the best QB since Denard Robinson. JJ has a chance to put up a historical season as a passer:
+78% completion percentage (Shea's 65% is the bar)
+<1% interception percentage (Cade's 1.8% sets the bar)
+9.6 YPA (Denard's 8.8 YPA sets the bar)
+182 passer rating (higher than Denard's 150 in 2010 and Gardner's half-season 162
Notice whose name isn't on any of those comparison's - Rudock. The same guy who had the highest interception percentage of the Harbaugh era 2.3% (2015) after O'Korn 3.8% (2017) and Milton 2.8% (2020).
If JJ craps the bed against OSU the way Rudock did our fanbase will rightfully be critical. But he won't - his performance against Iowa (a top 5 defense on the road) is already more impressive than anything Rudock ever did in a Michigan uniform.
JJ's numbers will dip after he faces PSU, MSU, OSU. He's probably not going to break all those marks. JJ has had some cupcakes to inflate those numbers - but so did Rudock. So let's compare apples to apples.
DeleteHere are the 3 legit defenses JJ has faced (prior to week 6, per FEI)
#3 Iowa 18/24 for 155 yards 1 TD 0 INT 171 RTG
#31 Indiana 28/36 304 yards 3 TD 1 INT 143 RTG
#45 Maryland 18/26 220 yards 2 TD 0 INT 166 RTG
Here are the 3 most similar ranked defenses Rudock faced (all late in the year) in 2015 (per FEI)
#7 OSU 19/32 260 yards 1TD 0 INT 139 RTG
#25 PSU 25/38 256 yards 2 TD 1 INT 135 RTG
#47 Minnesota 13/21 140 yards 1 TD 1 INT 124 RTG
Across equivalent levels of competition, with equivalent opportunities (86 PA vs 91 PA) - JJ threw for more yards, more yards per attempt, higher completion percentage, more TDs, and fewer INTs. McCarthy is far better than Rudock already, as a sophomore. It's an insult to compare him back to Rudock as anything to aspire to.
It's also an insult to McNamara.
" McNamara only completed 77.8% or more of his throws twice" -- Rudock never did it once.
I don't think much of McNamara as a QB but as a leader he stepped up and delivered when Michigan needed him to. Rudock did not -- he offered no counter to OSU, he lost to MSU at home, threw 3 INTs in a road game against Utah, and left the Minnesota game losing. Sure he could carve up defenses that were weak (Indiana - 91st best D, Rutgers - 116th best, bowl-game Florida that didn't care) but when things were not going well around him, Rudock did not step up. In contrast, McNamara was at his best exactly when Michigan needed him - against OSU, @East Lansing, @Happy Valley, @ Nebraska.
McNamara may not make the NFL but he was a better QB for the Wolverines than Rudock. Just like McCarthy.
You're making a mountain out of a mole hill.
DeleteRudock and McCarthy are the two most NFL-looking QBs of the Harbaugh era.
Rudock actually played in the NFL.
McCarthy hasn't yet, and maybe he never will. But he looks the part.
The facts match what I'm saying. There's really nothing to argue, except you really, really, really like to argue.
I'm willing to die on this mole hill. It's not a favourable comparison and I think you'd scoff too if someone said Haskins or Corum looks like the first true NFL pro since Deveon Smith. (Yes I know evans made the NFL). Neither Smith not Rudock was obviously an NFL player or appreciably better than the guys who replaced them or they replaced. They're solid and did their jobs, etc, but they are not on the level of McCarthy and Corum.
DeletePatterson looked like a future NFL QB in 2018 and even had to announce he was returning. Pff rated him above haskins. He was a draft pick until he struggled/regressed in gattis' offense in 2019. Meanwhile It was a surprise to most when Rudock was drafted by Bob quinn. He was a fringe prospect and his needed a very strong pro day to barely get drafted by a bad gm working for a bad franchise. Some revisionist history to say he liked like a future pro while others didn't. All of them have been fringe until JJ.
DeleteI didn't/wouldn't say they're on the same level. Again, you're blowing this out of proportion.
DeleteI said McCarthy is the first NFL-looking QB since Rudock. Rudock made the NFL. The ONLY way the comparison doesn't work is if McCarthy doesn't look like an NFL QB to you, which is fine...but that's not what you're saying.
Rudock was an NFL player who spent five seasons on active rosters and/or practice squads.
Feel free to continue the argument if you want to argue against McCarthy looking like an NFL player. Otherwise, you're wasting your time.
Rudock didn't look like an NFL QB. Just like deveon Smith didn't look like an NFL RB to you.
Delete"I don’t think Rudock will get drafted, because he only played really well for a six-game stretch. But I am confident that he will get signed as an undrafted free agent, and I don’t see much of a reason why he couldn’t stick around for a while as an NFL backup or spot starter."
Deletehttps://touch-the-banner.com/goodbye-jake-rudock/
It turns out I was wrong. Not only did he look good enough to stick around in the NFL as a backup, but he was indeed drafted. So he was even better than I thought, and I had already pegged him as an NFL-level player back on March 16, 2016, prior to the NFL draft.
You're wrong. Take the L.
Jake Rudock played in the NFL in one year and one year only. He was the backup in 2017, played in 3 games and attempted 5 passes. He did NOT "stick around in the NFL as a backup" for a while. He spent couple years on practice squads. He was never a spot starter. You are right - you were wrong.
DeleteYou can look at this one of two ways:
1) How the player looked at Michigan
or
2) What the player accomplished in the NFL
If you're going by number 1 - which is the perspective you offered in the post - then Patterson gets the edge over Rudock. After the 2015 season, Rudock was not considered to be anything more than an undrafted free agent - per...you! Just like Wilton Speight and Brandon Peters - who were also signed as undrafted free agents. When the regular season was done in 2018, Patterson was considered an NFL draft pick. He even held a press conference because so many folks though he might go pro.
If you're going by number 2 - using NFL production as retroactive justification of "looking like a pro" - then do that consistently and admit that Deveon Smith was an NFL caliber back and the guys you called to play over him were not.
Smith and Rudock have parallel careers - but you're applying completely different logic to them to justify your old takes.
https://americanfootballdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/Jake_Rudock
https://americanfootballdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/De%27Veon_Smith
Speight and Rudock were not invited to the NFL combine. They worked out at pro days. Patterson was invited, and participated, - even after a disappointing 2019.
DeleteBonkers, bonkers take. Jake Rudock was drafted and played in the NFL. He looked like a pro...according to me, and according to the NFL staff that drafted him! You continue to be wrong. You're arguing against facts. I can't continue arguing with someone who doesn't accept factual statements.
DeleteRudock was not invited to the draft combine. Fact.
DeletePatterson was. Fact.
Rudock produced 24 yards in his NFL career. Fact.
Deveon Smith produced 27 yards in in his NFL career. Fact.
Rudock and Smith played in 2017 and no other seasons. Fact.
If you want to say you saw the light in college over the consensus view and those 24 yards prove you right -- by all means go for it.
Very few thought Jake Rudock would play in the NFL. Perhaps you and Bob Quinn are just under-appreciated scouting visionaries. If you want that W then it's yours to take... as long as you take the Smith L right along with it. Up to you.
Quinn said he picked Rudock because he lined up under center a lot in college and he liked the arm strength he showed at his pro day workout. No joke.
DeleteHere's what Bob Quinn actually said about Jake Rudock:
Delete- He really improved as his senior year went on
- He went to the East-West Shrine Game and did a good job down there
- The final thing that did it for us was he came to our local pro day and had a really good workout
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG8nLANMpU&ab_channel=ToriPetry
https://www.espn.com/blog/nfcnorth/post/_/id/74315/strong-workout-pro-style-system-helped-jake-rudock-find-home-with-lions
Delete"College football nowadays, there's a lot of quarterbacks that never go under center," Quinn said. "So, to take a quarterback from a system like that, you really have to teach him how to take the ball from a center, take a drop back, look at the field while moving back. "It's a big transition for a lot of these guys. So, to answer your question, yes, it does factor in and helped his cause
Allen and Driskel had been higher on the boards of most analysts, but Rudock was higher on Detroit's board.
That could be because the Lions knew him better than most. They completed a private workout with him in Ann Arbor and had him in Allen Park for the local pro day last week. And when he was there, they liked what they saw.
we tell our college scouts this, if you're going to put a draftable grade or a make-it level grade on a quarterback, I want you to see the guy live in-game. The arm strength really is very crucial to see live."
When Quinn saw the arm strength live during the workout, it sold him on Rudock's ability to be a future NFL quarterback.
Quinn was wrong. The two QBs drafted after Rudock had more productive careers. Rudock got a backup job when Orlovsky retired but a year later was demoted back to the practice squad.
DeleteRudock was not considered a draftable player by most people - including you. He got there, barely, thanks to Bob Quinn, a bad GM, using bad logic, who made an against-the-grain call late in the draft that was proven incorrect.
DeleteRudock did not look like future pro at Michigan, even though he became a future pro. You - a guy spent 3 years degrading Deveon Smith - who outproduced Rudock in the NFL - should be very cognizant of the distinction. One does not mean the other.
Some guys look like pros but aren't (Earnest Shazor, Shea Patterson) and some guys don't look like pros but are (Jordan Glasgow, Thomas Rawls). Sometimes you can have a hot take and be right (Jake Rudock) and sometimes you make one that is dead wrong (Ty Isaac and Deveon Smith).
What I think you tend to overrate is draft position - which is ultimately nothing but speculation and just requires one person to be wrong - and what you underrate is actual production. which requires actually being good. Jake Rudock has 25 more passing yards in the NFL than I do.
Jake Rudock was also replaced by Wilton Speight - who was able to generate identical production as a passer against a tougher schedule.
DeleteThunder on Patterson before the NFL draft
Delete"I could see him landing on a team as a third QB."
Thunder 2 years later:
"He never looked like a future pro to me."
Thunder on Rudock before the draft
"I don't see him getting drafted"
Thunder 5 years later:
"He looked like a true future pro"
I'm making a mountain out of a mole-hill but you keep shoveling dirt on your own grave. Here's some more:
https://touch-the-banner.com/2020-reeses-senior-bowl-thoughts/
S Josh Metellus (Michigan): Metellus doesn’t look like he can cover NFL wide receivers.
QB Justin Herbert (Oregon): People are saying Herbert helped himself at the Senior Bowl, but I still don’t see Herbert being able to pick apart defenses by going through his progressions. He’s Cam Newton with less running ability, in my opinion.
QB Jalen Hurts (Oklahoma): Hurts looked like he often has when he doesn’t have wide-open receivers streaking all over the place. He’s really slow to process things and check down.
I think Bob Quinn probably agreed with these...before he got fired.
@Thunder
DeleteI will give you credit here. You had a higher opinion of Rudock then most, and by making an NFL roster, he did more than most expected.
But to get there you have to acknowledge a key thing -- that most did NOT expect him to play in the NFL. As a person who likes to point out their predictions being right, I think you are better served acknowledging that you saw a bit more than others in Rudock than arguing he clearly "look like a true future pro".
If that was the case - if Rudock looked that good in college - 25 yards total and 1 year as a backup would be considered disappointing for a "true pro" drafted QB. But no Michigan fan I know is disappointed by Rudock's pro career - they are surprised he had any at all.
Either Jake Rudock looked the part in college and was disappointing (because he barely got drafted and barely played) or Jake Rudock didn't look the part in college and he was a pleasant surprise (because he hung around practice squads and spent a year as a backup QB). Your line of reasoning - that he looked the part and delivered doesn't hold up for all the reasons outlined above.
I like Rudock - he was a big factor in one of the 3 most enjoyable seasons in the last 20 years (2021, 2015, 2011). He's in med school now which I think is pretty dang cool.
DeleteBut there are a million reasons why he wasn't an especially good QB ranging from context (beaten out at Iowa after a lackluster 4 years, surrounded by NFL talent at Michigan, replaced by Wilton Speight without any notable back-stepping) to performance (4 years of mediocrity at Iowa, 3 INTs vs Utah, ineffectiveness against OSU and MSU).
His NFL career is a surprise (to most) but it was not an impressive one. It's hard to tell if anyone besides Bob Quinn thought he was an NFL QB and I don't know if Bob Quinn is someone you want to put a lot of weight on.
WR Power Rankings
ReplyDelete1. Bell - McCarthy has arrived at the same conclusion as Patterson and Milton.
2. Wilson - In more agreeing with Thunder, he was missed. Playmaker.
3. Johnson - that drop was awful but with Wilson out he redeemed himself after that. Still JAG.
4. Anthony - I think AA is better than Johnson - the way he catches the ball really stands out to me. But I trust the coaches in putting CJ out there ahead of him so he must be blocking better or running better routes. Once targeted - AA is the man.
5. Henning - he's a weapon but he's a hybrid RB/WR and again I agree with Thunder that his receiving skills aren't all the way there. This is part of why I thought Sainristil would stick at WR.
6. Clemons - nobody should get down on the freshman's future. He's just a promising as he was in August when a few people were predicting stardom. It's all still there for him. The he's playing at all in a such a deep WR room is impressive. The coaches know he's not going to be around for year 5 (barring a Bell situation).
7. Saintristil - he's not playing WR nor should he with how well he is doing on D but I put him here just to celebrate that.
Still not getting why Michigan is struggling with inferior teams. Can't be JJ though.
ReplyDeleteNot looking so good again. Dropped in AP poll. It's not just me that sees the team is not as good as last year. Put McNamara back in ASAP. But it sounds like he might be out for the year, and transferring out after the season.
ReplyDeleteBut everythings fine, right?
McNamara doesn't solve the run game issues and the defense's inability to deal with tempo or cover intermediate routes. The team was demonstrably worse when McNamara was in the games this year.
DeleteMichigan won the BIG10, and was in the playoffs, and it was a fun team to watch. I'll take McNamara's intangibles over McCarthy's stats. McNamara wins. And he inspires winning. The whole team looked, and had a better feeling about it, last year.
Delete"I'll take McNamara's intangibles over McCarthy's stats." lol. Keep posting! You are almost there. I am so close to being convinced we should start McNamara. What else you got?
Delete@anon 651. Is "Aiden Hutchinson" one of those intangibles?
Deleteomg, people are going on and on about how defensive stats are better this year. But that doesn't matter too, right? That list of excuses just keeps growing and growing and growing. What, you guys the energizer bunny?
Delete"The team was demonstrably worse when McNamara was in the games this year."
DeleteThat was a small, unfair sample set. Lots of really great QBs have a bad first game of the season. It happens all the time.
Hi Lank,
DeleteMichigan had 14 sacks at this same point last year.
They have 22 this year.
So you can remove this from the list of excuses for how the team looks with JJ McCarthy as starting QB.
Different teams, different schedules, same lame argument.
DeleteRoanman
I know Roanman, nothing matters, because howcthe team looks, and the drop in the AP CAN'T be JJ .
DeleteWe'll see what happens against Penn St .Hope for all you JJ fans Michigan wins .
"Hope for all you JJ fans Michigan wins ." We are Michigan fans and therefore root for Michigan, unlike yourself.
DeleteI've been a Michigan fan since probably before you were born. I had high hopes for this year .But with how the team has looked the last 3 weeks I have literally been brought to tears. The drop in the polls showd me theres lots if people that think Muchigan shouldn't be in the playoffs. And I had thought getting to the playoffs was very doable this year. But now Maybe Michigan is headed toward a NY6 game---I think. JJ McCarthy finally looked good in the 2nd half Saturday .Maybe there is hope. But I've already cried over my team maybe not getting into the playoffs .Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Michigan will win and look.like the better team on Saturday, giving a little hope for a National Championship. But if Michigan loses, you will not hear the end of it from me. It will be wall to wall see i told you so.
Deletehttps://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1580909578778456064/photo/1
DeleteEverything fine. Barely won last year, won by 4 TD's this year. Best team in the country
Delete@Anon 1027
ReplyDeleteThis team is exceeding expectations. They are 6-0. They are not - and never have been - expected to make the playoffs.
The playoff is not likely because beating OSU is not likely. Beating OSU in Columbus after they spent the offseason seething about how they haven't beaten Michigan since 2019 and hired a legit defensive coordinator is a lot tougher than beating OSU in Ann Arbor while they sit complacent happily knowing they are dominating the rivalry all century under Tresell and Meyer and let poor coaching on defense fester.
Michigan was preseason AP #8 - well behind Ohio State - you are acting like they were #1.
@Anon 1040
I hope that is hyperbole.
The thing you are missing is that Michigan isn't a national championship favorite with Cade McNamara either - and there's a good chance they aren't even 6-0 based on how he has played. Based on how scared the coaching staff was to use him until mid-way through 2021. How incapable he looked against Georgia. How badly he struggled in 2022.
Cade did a great job 'managing' the position in 2021 and 2021 was a great year. Enjoy it for what it is. Not a stepping-stone but an accomplishment. The best season in 25 years, and maybe the best for 25 more to come.
Now it's 2022 and Michigan is playing better than (most people) expected - the QB is on a pace that would break a bunch of record - and we're undefeated on a collision course for OSU - where we will be heavy underdogs most likely.
Collision course with OSU? The next 2 games are up in the air. Michigan has barely squeaked by in their 3 conference games and now the rest of these conference games are just a formality? Maryland, luck from the face mask fumble. Iowa, the fix was in with the refs (usually seems to be Michigan who the refs are screwing), and the worst half of football I've seen them play all year against Indiana. Bro, put the kool-aid down and other overused phrases apply.
DeleteCorum is playing great ball but he goes as the O-line goes. JJ is the saving grace for this team (and yes Rudock was the only NFL caliber QB Harbaugh has coached so wrong again). With McNamara this team loses to Maryland and Iowa.
Nosce Te Ipsum
@NTI
DeleteI appreciate the pretentiousness in the name.
Michigan has in fact NOT "barely squeaked by" any one of the conference games. The win probability against Iowa was over 80% all game and we never came close to trailing. Maryland and Indiana - even with some close scores in first halves, were never below 60%. Michigan - not once, all year - has ever looked seriously at risk of losing a game.
Michigan will be heavily favorites in all of the games until OSU. It's not a formality - it never is - and there's a good chance of 1 loss between now and OSU. But even if that happens, it's likely to be a winner-takes-all game in Columbus.
I came into this season expecting a 9-3 season. That could still happen but after dodging upset bids and two road wins, I think the chances of 10-2 or 11-1 are much better. And I am happy about that.
Lol. If you didn't see Bob Timberlake play, probably not. If you're brought to tears over being 6 and 0, you absolutely need to step back and get yourself some help.
ReplyDelete@Anon
DeleteMichigan did not begin the year in top 4. They ranked #8 with Cade as starter and #4 (now 5) since JJ was starter.
Michigan was also ranked 8 at this point 2021 (with Cade as starter). They lost to MSU and moved down, the beat OSU and moved up, they lost to Georgia and moved back down.
Now they're at 5 (better than last year) and the same thing will happen. If they beat PSU, MSU, and OSU they will be higher. If they don't they will not.
Michigan controls it's own destiny so the polls aren't relevant right now. If they are -- again, Michigan is ranked higher than they were last year at this point.
All of this is a comparison to a fantasy where Michigan is ranked in the top 3 if only Cade McNamara was chosen to be the QB, played better than he showed, and was somehow healthy.
I was thinking, you think thst prople that want National Championships need counseling, so you should become a fan of a BIG10 West team .There's lower expectations over there. They just try to get 9 or 10 wins, and ti get into maybe the BIG10 Championship in Indianapolis, where they get dominated by a BIG10 East team . Lower exoectations seems to be what . you want
DeleteStill Lol. No, I think fans crying over a football season need counseling.
DeleteAnd thank you for making the expectation argument. You have no right to expectations for this football team or any other endeavor for which you have nothing invested beyond your rooting interest.
The people in the program are busting their asses for an outcome, you contribute absolutely nothing to further that outcome. Turning on a television, or even buying a ticket gives you not the slightest most infinitesimal investment in the effort they put in.
Have some expectations for yourself and your own investments all day long, I don't begrudge you any of it. When you are nothing more than a fan, go and root, or not, you can even make lame accusations based on your own nonsensical fantasies concerning coaching and quarterback play but you don't get to whine nonsense about your expectation concerning other people's efforts.
And again, my dear Lord, you are in tears about being 6-0 in October of a college football season. Absolutely, seek help, get a life, get a grip on yourself. Pick a phrase, in your case, they all apply.
Also, grow a pair. Post a name.
Roanman
Jim Harbaugh is going for a National Championship. He doesn't hide that he wants a National Championship .
DeleteAnd I'm sure Roanman is your nane .
I have no problem with Harbaugh setting goals but I do have a problem with fans converting that goal into an expectation.
DeleteI think expectations should be reasonable and grounded in some reality.
The reality is that Michigan has not been a nationally elite team since before WW2. National titles under Bo were zero. Harbaugh has them back to that level - and had them there in 2016.
The advantages Michigan has put the program into the top 15 or top 25. They DO NOT put the program into the top 5. There are a host of DISADVANTAGES Michigan faces comparing to some of the other programs in the top 10 (weather, academics, recruiting base, NIL, etc.).
To get to the top 5 you need another edge. The only one that we have right now is Harbaugh -- who is paid less than several other coaches in the conference, so go ahead and count your lucky stars for his loyalty and passion for the program. Punching above our weight at HC is really all we have to be a top 5 program.
If you, as a fan, expect a national title -- my question for you is: On what basis?
"you contribute absolutely nothing to further that outcome"
DeleteRoanman is absolutely right. In fact, this kind of blanket negativity for a 6-0 team coming off their best season in a quarter century is absolutely counterproductive and detrimental to the program.
Recruits don't see fan negativity as a positive, no matter how some try to justify it.
"Also, grow a pair. Post a name."
DeleteNo one knows who you really are Roanman. So why do you say that? The name is meaningless. Why don't you tell us your real name?
You know what? It just dawned on me from the "personal attacks" whine. I know exactly who you are. You are the always Harbaugh hating and eternally wrong, the ever whining, Windycityblue.
ReplyDeleteWelcome back Windy.
And the I've been a Michigan fan before you were born thing. Talk about revealing yourself.
LOL. There can be no doubt.
Roanman
I am not Windy .And I don't hate Jim Harbaugh. This is too much for you .
DeleteI am known all over the world as Roanman, just not well.
DeleteI've suspected it's WindyCityBlue as well. The writing content and style is very similar. Also, the "This is too much for you" condescension is a tell.
DeleteI guess you didnt see, im not that person. Is that roo much for you to grasp? Looks like it is.
Delete"I am WindyCityBlue!"
Delete"No, I am WindyCityBlue!"
"Spartacus, are you here?"
"No, we are ALL WindyCityBlue!"
Michigan should start the lowliest QB on the depth chart! He has to be better than J.J.!
DeleteYou guys don't know what you're doing. I'm not that guy.
DeleteSome one is waving at you as you drive by that the bridge ahead is out. But you step on the gas.
DeleteVroooom! Yee-ha! Full speed ahead!
DeleteYes I do! I got it together on EVERYTHING!
DeleteIt is.
ReplyDeletePlease lend your brilliance to guide us dim-wits!
ReplyDeleteGuide us oh great one!
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to tell who is winning this argument - Anon who thinks Michigan sucks even though JJ is awesome or Anon who thinks Michigan sucks because JJ is awful. Or perhaps these are different Anons altogether.
ReplyDeleteOne thing - perhaps - the Anons can agree upon is that Michigan is most likely to go into OSU with 1 loss (+/- 1 if things go better/worse than expected) and that the winner of the Michigan/OSU game is likely to be Big Ten champ and that the loser of the Michigan/OSU game is likely not going to get a playoff invite. There's noise along the way but the season boils down to Michigan/OSU.
I used to argue against this perspective 5 years ago but now that Harbaugh has elevated this program back firmly into the top 10 programs and a 9-3 level is a baseline expectation I am there -- it's all about OSU.