Hoke for Tomorrow Misses its Chances
- Denard looks like he is indeed much improved as a passer. His throws were mostly accurate lasers and his ball placement looked very good.
- The Devins create a bit of a problem for the opposing defense and are a wonderfully athletic duo to have. Hopefully they will be a mismatch in our favor the rest of the year.
- Toussaint does not look ready for prime-time. In fact, he looked slow and indecisive.
- Troy Calhoun seems to have a problem down under. I can't recall ever seeing anyone grab their junk so much on national television.
- Funchess - Looked the part of the athletic freak mismatch, hauling in 4 passes for 106 yards and his first Michigan TD (congrats). We may have a very special talent here.
- Gardner - Was much improved in his routes it appeared, reeled in another TD and generally looked like a receiver.
- Norfleet - Didn't bust one but you can feel it coming. Ran one back to the 36 but must have ran 72 yards to get there.
- Denard - Gets his 20 carries when he is about as big as anyone on the opposing defense; made the most of them. 200+ yards rushing and passing. Should have had no INTs too. Please stay healthy.
- Troy Calhoun's Crabs - Proved just distracting enough to let Michigan escape his clutches. Hard to clutch anything when one hand is so constantly occupied.
September 9th, 2012 at 6:11 PM ^
Troy Calhoun seems to have a problem down under. I can't recall ever seeing anyone grab their junk so much on national television.
Hahaha ^^^^^^ THIS!!!!
I was like, "Is this dude trying to show our sideline how well equipped he is?" Must of had to dig deep in the underwear drawer and only had some undies that didn't fit right.
September 9th, 2012 at 6:37 PM ^
I noticed ABC/ESPN gave him the Elvis treatment starting in the fourth quarter. They only showed him from the waist up, but by then, the damage had already been done.
September 9th, 2012 at 7:14 PM ^
He was probably in such ecstasy over how effective his offensive schemes were that he thought he was having great sex. I swear, I thought the guy was laughing out loud at times. How many receivers were ridiculously open, how many counters were sprung? It was a coach's wet dream. Either that or he was so busy gameplanning that he didn't shower all week.
September 9th, 2012 at 7:46 PM ^
There's no such thing as too much analysis for me. You do good stuff. Keep it up.
September 9th, 2012 at 7:59 PM ^
Seconded. I always enjoy reading your recaps.
September 9th, 2012 at 8:12 PM ^
I didn't notice any Troy Calhoun junk-grabbing from my seats. I did notice him wandering halfway out to the center of the field on numerous occations. We were really shocked they never got a sideline warning. Between that, the uncalled illegal forward motions, and a few other things we just figured the refs were feeling extremely patriotic.
September 10th, 2012 at 10:44 AM ^
September 9th, 2012 at 8:48 PM ^
I really enjoy reading these every week, don't stop just because ace also does a recap. You do a great "fan" break down, which is a style that I like. Please keep doing them.
September 9th, 2012 at 9:30 PM ^
was very nerve racking for me because I was streaming the game. I had no idea that the station was having the trouble, I just assumed that my stream died at a terrible time. Then I tried some other streams, and they were all like that. I thought I wouldn't be able to see the end of the game at all.
September 9th, 2012 at 9:47 PM ^
The Devins. I love it. Our dynamic receiver duo.
September 10th, 2012 at 7:32 AM ^
I was at the Notre Dame game, years ago, when they came out in the triple option with a second-string QB and beat a favored Michigan team. If I was an opposing coach, I would seriously think about installing some option plays. At the very least, I think we can expect to see a lot of play fakes from other teams within the parameters of their standard offensive schemes.
Hopefully, AFA ends up being "one of those games" from which the coaching staff can take a lot of "teachable moments," and the defense is a lot better because of the experience.
September 10th, 2012 at 1:38 PM ^
I'd like to see Borges do the same thing with us
Put a few option packages in to mix it up and keep the opposing defenses back on their heels.
Think about it; Denard, another speedster like Norfleet or Hayes, a bigger back like a Rawls or Hopkins. Run the triple option and also throw out of it. Defenses would have their hands full.
September 10th, 2012 at 9:44 AM ^
Ace's recap, because it's usually been such a long time before we received any post mortem. But I hope you won't give these up; like them alot.
September 10th, 2012 at 9:56 AM ^
and they solidified in time for the bulk of the B1G season. There was such wholesale change up front, that I am hoping for a coached up noticable improvement by the time we play State (and hopefully ND). the loss of Molk, Huyge, and Koger seem to have similarly impacted O line leadership and chemistry. Again hoping for some gelling as we progress.
We knew these were the spots that would be question marks. In years past we have watched Michigan State coach up a new dline, and Ohio do the same. So lets hope for question marks becoming good exclamation points.
September 10th, 2012 at 11:36 AM ^
I'm observing the same things from Denard's passing (increased accuracy, better footwork), but I'm wondering how long the 'Denard is a terrible passer' meme sticks around in the national media discourse...
September 10th, 2012 at 1:14 PM ^
1. ROTFL about Calhoun as his junk, my wife who gives 2 shits less about watching football was pondering the meaning of life after watching him grab his junk so much (seriously I had to spend 3 quarters with her asking me "why do men grab it all the time?")
2. "Choke the bitch in the studio", I was ecstatic that I actually go the game on a local channel and didnt have to resort to a web stream so when the feed cut out, and my foray into internet radio resulted in the same shitty ESPN coverage I was about to blow a gasket. Glad to see others acted that way.
September 10th, 2012 at 7:17 PM ^
My wife clued me in on the Calhoun grabby hands too. Makes me wonder if that is where their eyes always are...
September 11th, 2012 at 1:35 AM ^
I like the option idea, but it's too late now. The tripe option as AF, Navy, or GT run it requires timing and practice and isn't something you can run with any positive effect after only a few hours of practice. It also requires a completely different blocking scheme and techniques. Now if we were to run it out of a spread with more spread option principles...I love it. This is something that wouldn't take a great deal to scheme since our guys already know it, and would be very effective with our current players.
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