Funchess was hurt last year (toe)
Asked Funchess about lack of TDs in '14. He revealed broken right toe and torn ligaments suffered in ND, played in pain, still not 100%
— angelique (@chengelis) March 21, 2015
So he played hurt last year. That certainly explains some of the lack of production. I've never broken my toe or torn ligaments in my toe (I assume that's where the ligament tears were) but I imagine that it makes it pretty hard to run crisp routes and get up for jump balls.
UPDATE: the Detroit News has a much fuller story on this now (LINK). Main points:
- Funchess "tore a ligament, cracked some bones off and ruptured some cartilage"
- Didn't play against Miami (OH) but took a shot to play against Utah, when he reinjured the toe
- It still hurts, but he won't need surgery
I'd like to, but I'm not buying it... plenty of players are hurt and play through it. But then again, it's not about the wins or loses or how many TDs I score or any stats... those are just numbers.
How about you go out there and run around like a WR with a broken right toe. If Derrick Walton gets a pass for turf toe why the fuck doesn't Devin Funchess get one with a broken toe and torn ligaments thanks to our incompetent buffoon of a HC?
He said that quote at a time when M Football was at its lowest while keeping the team insulated from critics. God forbid we give him a second chance.
What's your evidence that he isn't a team player. He seemed alright when I talked to him.
"Wins are losses are just a statistic"
Also, him ready to bolt for the NFL without even finding out who the next coach would be was pretty telling.
You seem to be insinuating that it's a bad thing that he declared. This kid has worked his tail off to get where he is (believe it or not) and now he's got the chance to fulfill his lifelong dream of playing in the NFL.
No matter who the coach was going to be; he would (and should) have declared for the draft. I, for one, am happy for the kid.
It makes a lot of sense that he was playing hurt. He looked SO good in the first couple games and then just tailed off... It's amazing how much vitriol has been spewed towards this kid on this site.
Tyrone Butterfield wouldn't be the worst #1 if he played Appalachian State.
I'm glad he's gone, too. He is to the Hoke era what Tate Forcier was to the RR era. I personally don't think he would've meshed well with Harbaugh, someone who thinks of wins and losses as more than just a statistic.
He said that after being frustrated about losing another game. After being grilled by reporters about how the team sucks and is 2-5 or whatever it was at the time, he cracked and said that. It's hard to put up good numbers when nobody can pass the ball added on to this injury. It's amazing the grudges people here. He wasn't even a coach but a player.
Lol yeah fuck Devin Funchess for going to the NFL in a profession that can derail careers permanently with freak or nagging injuries.
He's so damn selfish!
This may very well be the dumbest argument against him not being a "team player" I've heard. Stauskas, Burke, GRIII, Hardaway, etc. all left before their eligiblity was exhausted in basketball - are they quitters? If all of them had returned, this team would have been in the NCAA tournament and very well could have won it. Bunch of a-holes if you ask me, looking toward their future after playing very hard for the University.
When I spoke with him I defintely didn't get the feeling he was a team player - we must have caught him on different days
a player says that wins and losses are just a statisic. They pretty much are saying they don't care. No other way to really interpert that. And a lesson to the kid, if he wants to seem like he cares about his team, I would avoid making statements like that.
But i am sure everyone watched the same games I did and Funchess played very uninspired football. I think it would have been better for everyone involved if he did shut it down.
So your opinion is that he doesn't play hard, but if in the future he plays hard and is successful you can cheer him on? Oh, also, he didn't put the team ahead of his own needs, even though he led the team in catches, TDs, yards, etc.
Again, you are entitled to your opinion, but doesn't mean it doesn't come across as pretty myopic and trite.
You do realize that Michigan was 115 in total offense and Funchess caught a whopping 4 TD passes. The entire offense was bad. What would we have been without Funchess 4 TDs and 733 yards? 119th in total offense. If you think the other poster was Myopic and Trite, I would say you bringing up Funchess statisics in a feeble offense reeks of desperation.
The premise of his argument is that Funchess didn't play hard/hurt because he didn't care about the team and put his personal gains above those of the team. Then you helpfully pointed out that the Michigan offense was terrible this year, almost historically poor. And had it not had Funchess, it would have been even worse, as if the fact the team could have sucked more (?) supports the argument that Funchess didn't give a shit. This is likely arguing the difference between apples and Michigan offenses under Brady Hoke.
By this same logic, Devin Gardner, Derrick Green, De'Veon Smith, Drake Johnson, Amara Darboh, and everyone else on the offense didn't care about the team either. I mean, had you removed any of there contributions, the team would have been worse. The whole offensive line didn't care either, as otherwise they would have blocked better on passing downs and opened up more holes for the backs.
That's why I hate this line of argument; there's nothing to it beyond looking at a team's overall struggles and assigning it to a player deemed "the fault." Taylor Lewan got this treatment two years ago, and it was just as dumb then but because offensive linemen don't have stats it was even harder to provide any substance to the argument.
Funchess had a bad year. Nobody is arguing with that. The fact his bad season was still demonstrably better than any other WR (or really any other offensive player who saw the field significantly) seems lost in the shuffle I'd imagine Funchess would agree he didn't have a great year, and I'm sure he didn't go at "100%" for every play. That, of course, makes him human, and like virutally every other football player in modern history. But I am forever bothered by people on a blog calling out college kids for failing to meet whatever arbitrary threshhold of effort they've defined as fans. It's lazy, ignores reality, and does nothing more than stoke flame wars.
March 22nd, 2015 at 11:17 AM ^
My point is simple, what I, and I am sure everyone else on this board watched last year, is a team that played with an embarrassingly lack of heart. How much of it was attributed to the coaches and their preparation of the kids? In my opinion a lot, but I am sure that part of it is up to debate. What is not up to debate is that week in and week out this team quit last year. They quit in the Notre Dame game, they quit in the Utah game, they quit in the Minnesota game, and they bent over in the MSU game and took their annual trip to the woodshed, and Hoke pretty much said "Thank you sir, may I have another" by way of an apologetic press release.
Along the way it wasn't hard to see which players were checked out, key among them was Funchess. Pull up any tape of him and you will see lack of effort clearly, be it by giving up on routes, not sustaining blocks, and by dropping basic passes. It was so prevalent that it left me shaking my head week in and week out. Then he had his famous quote about how wins and loses were just statisics and you realized exactly how much his head was in the game.
I brought up the statisics in response to another poster, but you missed the point entirely. The point was that any statiscally contribuiton to an offense that bad is marginal and that you can just toss out the stats. What you can't toss out is how much effort you saw from certain players. One player you brought up was Drake Johnson. Now I dont care what his stats were, what I did care is when he got into the game he fought for every yard and he played like he cared. He was an inspiration and example to everyone and we need more Drake Johnsons (and I think that is what Harbaugh is trying to build). If I saw that sort of effort from Funchess, I would be signing his praises, unfortunately what I saw was the exact opposite.
And as for your quote
"But I am forever bothered by people on a blog calling out college kids for failing to meet whatever arbitrary threshold of effort they've defined as fans. It's lazy, ignores relaity, and does nothing more than stoke flames of wars"
There is nothing arbitary about fighting to get off the line, sustaining a block and concentrating on the ball. It is called doing your job and it is easy to see who is doing it and who isn't. At least for those of us who know football. And I don't mean to be harsh there, but anyone that can defend the effort that Funchess was putting out either doesn't understand the game or otherwise has some agenda. Bo understood the importantance of effort, Harbaugh understands that it, and Hoke (and apparentely some fans) don't and it showed up on the field.
March 22nd, 2015 at 11:19 AM ^
You're the kind of guy that gets mad when athletes go out after a loss, aren't you.
March 22nd, 2015 at 11:26 AM ^
but i will admit i do get upset when Michigan gets manhandled by MSU and has 2 wins over OSU in the last 15 years. I know it is irrational but I can't help it :(
Maybe anyone that isn't happy with the state of Michigan football should take David Brandon's advise and find another team to root for. Clearly the only acceptable opinion is everything has been swell and all the kids try "really, really hard".
March 22nd, 2015 at 11:29 AM ^
At least you admit that you're irrational, that's the first step.
is it really necessary to bring Hoke into it? There are plenty of players who want to play and ask to play. Michigan has qualified medical staff. Believe it or not there is a actual hospital on campus. He would not have been out there without medical clearance. You can say what you want about the Morris issue but playing Funchess with a broken toe is not Brady Hoke's decision. To think otherwise is absolutely ridiculous.
I hate half the people who watch sports. What a hot take, easy stance guy! I guess you're entitled to an opinion though.
Funchess did play through it. He played basically every game. That is, by definition, "playing hurt." Now, if "playing hurt" means being as good as he would be healthy and also giving a bunch of fans on the internet a personal sense of accomplishment by cheering him on then, no, Funchess didn't play hard enough.
I thought we don't talk about injuries?
I'm surprised it took this long for this to be mentioned.
Maybe now we can stop being such dicks towards him?
That's not going to happen.
Judging by some of the winners in this thread, I'm guessing that ship sailed a long time ago.
Hoke screwed him over in that game. Not that hard to see when he got dinged up.
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If you've never had issues with your feet before it can be extremely painful. I have issues due to under pronation, plantar fasciatis and generally being overweight. Wether I'm playing bball or flag fball I have to stretch contsantly or the pain I get is excruciating. Trying to play with torn ligaments and a broken toe seems like it would be far more difficult. That sucks for him and certainly sheds some light on his lack of production last season. I hope he has an excellent pro career.
Hoke should've said something. It would have saved Funchess from ridicule and the fans from a lot of anger.
hoke wasn't aware of the injury...
lol, when he used to say "boo-boo" we all thought he was being coy; but now i'm convinced that's the extent of his medical knowledge.
I don't think so. It really looked like Funchess was half-assing it out there for a good part of the season, and fans have a right to pissed at lack of effort. It turns out there was another explanation, which Hoke never revealed.
Didn't help matters that he was half-assing it while wearing the #1 jersey that he requested to wear.
What was wrong with his hands the year prior when he blew the Iowa game not catching easy passes when he was 5 yards open?