jesse minter avant garde blitz artist

FORMATION NOTES: The UFR Glossary is here and you may want to brush up because DeBoer made me bring out rare formations like a true under-center Single-Wing, and weird notations like Z->Y means the WR and TE have switches spots. This is the Go Go setup (aka Single-Wing RB) that UNLV was running way back in September.

I put covered players in parentheses, but Washington also managed to get away with some illegal formations where nobody was covered, in which case I just put a question mark in there, e.g. Go Go Right (?).

"Hide H" was a trick where Rome Odunze hid out at tight end and got M to align in a mismatch. That's him trying not to be noticed as the H-back on the top of the formation (where all the Michigan players are pointing).

I'm using "Flex" for a TE split out wide for a 2x2 set. "Demi" means the TE isn't tight but neither is he in the slot (see #37 on the left). Also we were treated to a skycam version of this game, so I can provide a few canonical examples of terms we're often flinging around, and some new ones. Michigan in the above is in an G front, which means the nose is head up over the guard. Sometimes he was over the tackle, which I call Wide, where the DT is lined up over a tackle.

Letters or numbers (A, AA, 0) in the defensive front that means they've added LBs on the line of scrimmage in that alignment (A gap, both A gaps, head up on the center, etc). Another nuance I can capture with greater accuracy than usual is the difference between Kirby Smart's "Mint" front and a true 404 where the DL are heads up on the tackles—I think a lot of the Tites I charted this year were actually Mint. Michigan got creative too. This is "Crable":

I'll also try to note in the text when Michigan used sim pressures, since that's going to be relevant.

[After THE JUMP: Winning a natty.]

Matt Demorest, Realtor and Lender and I have brought back our (sometimes-)weekly video short. The purpose of these is to show you something on film that you as a fan will be able to pick up on when you see it in the future. Or to just show you what people are talking about.

This one was a special one where we get into the meat of how Michigan’s passing defense was so good. Specifically, how Minter was great at marrying his pressures and fake pressures to his coverages, playing “made you look” with NFL-bound Michael Penix until he gave up on the read and throw abilities that made them the most lethal offensive weapon of the last decade.

If you're in the housing market, Matt's the guy.

There is nothing after the jump because it's video content.

UFR Glossary: Here.

Substitution Notes: Lots of snaps to go around this week. Benny got more run in the DT rotation than normal. No Morris at DE meant a lot more snaps for D.Moore, Okie, and McGregor—Upshaw only got a handful on the edge in addition to his role as Racecar DT. Rolder also got in for about a third, mostly at the expense of Barrett, with Mullings not playing until late. Turner and Johnson got the bulk of CB with Green rotating with WJ and plus a few when Turner cramped. Moten got the start at FS but then got authoritatively benched, with Quinten Johnson seeing the field before Moten did in the 2nd half.

Formation Notes: Nothing that weird. I noticed too late that Purdue lining up the RB behind the tackles was a pass tell so it's not in the formation charting, but here's what that looked like.

Also for the sake of brevity and everyone's screens I shortened "Aidan O'Connell" to "AOC" in the charting. If you can't contextually tell Purdue's quarterback from a U.S. Representative from New York, you are officially too Online and this is your intervention. For the sake of the comments, please keep unclever observations about it to yourself.

[After THE JUMP: So many plays.]