2020 michigan state

BOOOOOOK: The Kickstarter for HTTV 2021 ends this week. This year you can customize which rewards you want. Also I had to write way more of it than usual, which means the Lord of the Rings references start on like Page 6. Consume!

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FORMATION NO—Wait, is this a joke?

No. Let’s get through it.

Why?

I needed the data for HTTV—both the UFR data and snap counts. Also completeness.

So you are going to UFR the defense against Penn State too?

Lol hell no.

FORMATION NOTES: I called this MSU’s 4-2-5 Eagle. They used it almost every 3rd and long. Note the FS is bailing at the snap—that happened a lot.

This was 4-2-5 Wide 9:

Because the DE is in a wide 9.

SUBSTITUTION NOTES: Line was Hayes-Filiaga-Vastardis-Stueber-Mayfield until they lost Mayfield at the beginning of the last drive and he was replaced by Barnhart. Honigford got 9 snaps as a TE—Eubanks returned and passed All after the latter had another drop. Mason was used as both tight end and fullback. Charbonnet got the most snaps of the RBs with Evans, Corum, and Haskins splitting the backup share, plays with 2 RBs and the Haskinscat they used twice in goal line situations. Cornelius Johnson and Roman Wilson got more time than Sainristil outside. Bell was in the slot when Jackson was not.

Also I accidentally uploaded a bunch of the clips without sound, sorry.

[After THE JUMP: When you refuse to run with your QB the WILL’s gonna have a good time.]

FORMATION NOTES: MSU was still very MSU in this game, alternating between shotgun and single-back formations from under center. They frequently looked like crack-sweep era Harbaugh, although no crack sweeps came out:

Michigan is in a four man front with Barrett (23) lined up as a SAM; this was their most common look but they used their usual  array of three man fronts with a lot of weird stuff that doesn't work very well. Safety count and depth varied wildly. You'll note that on the above snap Michigan's deepest player is at seven yards.

For much of the second half they were two-high and shot someone down; cover two safeties getting over the top of routes at the sideline did not happen.

SUBSTITUTION NOTES: On the DL, Paye and Hutchinson were almost omnipresent. Vilain and Upshaw got avfew snaps each. Ojabo also got in but as a SAM. DT rotated between Kemp, Jeter, Hinton, and Welschof with Kemp by far the most used.

VanSumeren got 15 snaps as the 3-3-5 SAM; as mentioned Ojabo was out there as a SAM but only on passing downs.

At LB, Ross and McGrone ominpresent until McGrone went out, and then Shibley was in for McGrone the whole way. Similar situation at viper, where Barrett got almost every snap until going out late; Solomon got the last few drives.

In the secondary, Hill, Green, and Hawkins got every snap. Gray got replaced by Perry in the third Q. Paige got a dozen or so snaps as a fifth DB.

[After THE JUMP: I have no expectation you will click, it's okay]

Things discussed:

• We eat our crow.
• Where was the QB run game?
• Fake Craig on Twitter
• Ben Mason and Chuck Filiaga missing assignments
• Minnesota's defense is just awful
• Slow corners: what to do? Not much they can do.
• What were they seeing in practice?
• Don't blame the refs for DPI/DHolding—those weren't close calls.
• Where were the downfield throws?
• Pressure and coverage go hand in hand but MSU was looking at the fly route immediately and nobody's pass rush gets home in time for a first read like that.
• What can they clean up, what's just missing (e.g. a downfield passing game).
• Why didn't we test MSU on the edges???
• I sneak in a little Indiana preview.

[Hit the JUMP for the player, and video and stuff]