Unverified Voracity Opens It Up
Feed Nico. A sea change from 2017, when Michigan's downfield targets were often Kekoa Crawford and Eddie McDoom, to 2018 in this department:
Nico Collins had an absurd 81.3 percent contested catch rate last season, easily leading returning B1G wide receivers. pic.twitter.com/tJ9Jznjnvg
— PFF College (@PFF_College) May 8, 2019
Getting the guy with a 71% catch rate and 12 yards per target just 52 targets was a tell about last year's failings on offense. ND had four WRs with more targets than Collins. OSU's #2 WR got 92 targets. A chunk of this is tempo and another chunk is Michigan's aversion to dropping back because of pass protection issues.
Also. Those pass protection issues weren't on the interior OL:
Here are the highest-graded returning pass blockers along B1G interior offensive lineman. pic.twitter.com/zKK66BFfsU
— PFF College (@PFF_College) May 9, 2019
That is also an incredible turnaround from the prior year, during which Michigan seemed to let every stunt up the gut through. Ruiz and Warinner also deserve some of that credit; Michigan was vastly more organized, and interior protection is often about finding guys to block.
Also also. Patterson may not have lit it up enough to be a one and done but he's got a platform to build on this year:
Here are the Top-3 highest-graded returning QBs you will see in the B1G this season. pic.twitter.com/u2fEtRhnkz
— PFF College (@PFF_College) May 6, 2019
With a starting running back who's an elite pass protector and also a former walk-on, Michigan should be a pass-first team in 2019. Just need one of Mayfield or Stueber to hit.
[After THE JUMP: Zach Smith does not surprise you]
More spread stuff talkin'. Ian Boyd on Michigan's transition probably won't be news for most people who read this site but it's a good high level summary:
Michigan’s spring game featured many of Alabama’s staple plays, including this backside slant pass option with some Wolverines personnel twists:
They’re in 21 personnel here, with a TE joining RB/FB hybrid Ben VanSumeren, in addition to a traditional RB. The RB runs a quick flat route to create a slant/flat combination on the backside while the FB is on a path to run outside zone to the other end of the formation.
The goal with RPOs is to make the defense worry about multiple skill players at the same time. This look gives the QB a sort of triple-option trigger that works backwards from pitch to handoff. RPOs work well from the spread but can also work from bigger personnel groups like this one. Essentially, Michigan is running an old-school outside zone play and a West Coast slant/flat route combination, like they might have done any other year. The difference is using a shotgun formation to run both plays at the same time.
No matter how Michigan organizes its personnel packages in real games, mixing in regular RPOs will play to Patterson’s strengths. It will also isolate Michigan’s offensive line against opposing fronts, once defenses back off to stop the quick passes.
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Going to be a lot more guessing by opposing defenses. I still remember how Northwestern had Michigan downloaded last year, charging pell-mell on every run and getting 15 yard drops on every pass. It was like they had our signals (again). With RPOs the charging pell-mell can get punished even when you're nominally in a run play.
The connection. 2020 combo guard Nimari Burnett got a rare off-campus Michigan basketball offer a couple days ago—he's visited campus but had to cut it short because of the flu—and looks like one of the rare five-star sorts Michigan can legitimately get in with. That's due to a small world connection with Luke Yaklich:
“I’ve known him since I was in second or third grade,” Burnett said. “He coached my AAU team when I was younger, and ever since I was in eighth grade he’s been recruiting me.”
That relationship, which Burnett described as "very good," may give Michigan a leg up in this recruitment. Burnett and Yaklich are in constant communication — they talk "almost every day; if not, five times a week."
Burnett cites Michigan's ability to prep guys for the NBA, so it might happen! A five star guy might value Beilein's player development over other incentives! I am going to kick this football!
Still reppin'. I will never understand why Urban Meyer would carry this guy's water for a decade:
#BREAKING: Former Ohio State coach Zach Smith arrested after altercation at school https://t.co/tnhCBlu8PM #10TV pic.twitter.com/jsfZRrxMm1
— 10TV.com (@10TV) May 9, 2019
They made Urban an associate AD and had him teach an ethics class after all this came out. Shameless.
I think the hockey roster is set now? Incoming goalie Erik Portillo got drafted by the USHL, Jack Randl returned to his junior team, Calen Kiefiuk decommitted, and Phillippe Lapointe signed with Jeff Tambellini's BCHL team. So unless something changes:
FORWARD
- OUT: Warren (graduated), Randl (transfer)
- IN: Johnny Beecher, Emil Ohrvall, Nick Granowicz (walk-on?), Jacob Hayhurst (grad transfer)
DEFENSE
- OUT: Hughes (NHL), Cecconi (graduated), Boka (graduated)
- IN: Cam York, Keaton Pehrson, Shane Switzer (grad transfer, walk-on?)
Michigan still has five other guys who are nominally 2019 recruits but if Kiefiuk isn't coming in I don't think 2001 birthdates with under 0.5 PPG are happening. If Michigan hockey summer picks off some more guys I'd bet Lapointe changes his plan and comes in.
If Michigan hockey summer forgets to raid the roster Michigan will lose just four points from their forward corps while adding three potential scoring line players. If folks get a bit better and Michigan doesn't lose a top line player for the back half of the season for the third consecutive year Michigan's scoring should improve. York is close to a 1-for-1 replacement for Hughes, and then Pehrson or Switzer just has to be an okay sixth D.
Goaltending? Uh. Well, you see
Fun! Stay tuned for next year when Michigan has approximately 20 commits, if you go by announced enroll dates and guys who will defer this year. Watching that shake out will be a thing.
Etc.: Shea Patterson one year after the waiver. MLS player compensation is far less than the other pro leagues.
Nico is not the fastest WR, but he is big, has good hands and knows how to get open. He will have a long time NFL future ahead for him if he stays healthy.
Zach Smith seems like a particularly unhinged, scary and dangerous individual. Hopefully someone can get some sense in to him before something terrible happens between him, his wife and family.
I think you mean before any more terrible things happen because terrible things have already happened and were covered up by Urban for a decade or so.
I still think he’s a solid 4.5 guy. Agree that he has an NFL future. I think all of Black/DPJ/Nico do and maybe Martin too.
Nico should never come off the field. Period.
Same goes for Tarik and DPJ. Add RBs, TEs and WRs around them...but even on 4th and 1 leave them on the field.
We should pass the ball 60% (+/- 5%) of the time each game.
You have the ultimate possession WR, the ultimate balanced blend of possession and speed. And then you have your burner who also has good size (and hands).
This trio should be better than Edwards, Avant, Breaston (I believe that was it). Better than Manningham, Arrington and Matthews.
Bring back Soup Campbell...we need a 1000 yard WR.
It will never happen. Our offense this year will be run first, just like always. Harbaugh is incapable of giving that up.
My favorite of ZS getting arrested is that he's wearing an OSU shirt. Even after getting canned he still loves the Bucks. What an idiot.
I'm sure he's still working through a closet of free clothes.
An idiot in a SEA of idiots!
You can always recognize them by their wardrobe... nutty!
is that his mug shot? get fired by OSU but still wear the only thing he can cling on that resembles any sort of accomplishment in life and have it on when being arrested.
He should be wearing a shirt with a picture of Earl Bruce then, because having a famous grandfather is the only reason he ever landed the job to begin with.
I just hope when I'm arrested I'm wearing my shirt that says
"CIVIL WAR GAMES 1861-1865
SOUTH TEAM
2nd PLACE"
Was a real conversation starter that time I got pulled over in Greenville, S.C.
As Michigan fans/alums we don't understand prison life - but as an OSU guy, Zach understands that he has to rep the right colors so that he can fit into the right gang inside the joint.
It also gives him some small amount of control over who's bitch he will be.
....and the other bucknut POS that should have served jail time
Not to knock Onwenu and Bredseon, but having the two Rutgers guards on the list probably says more about the tackles getting constantly run by as much as it does about the guards stopping everybody.
I would assume PFF isn’t giving good grades to players for just “not being the guy that screwed up”. Even if most plays had the tackles get run around, this grade would still mean the performed well when they were tested.
"having the two Rutgers guards on the list "
Out of curiosity I looked up some 2018 stats on the BIG website. FWIW:
Michigan attempted 347 passes and gave up 23 sacks.
Rutgers attempted 351 passes and gave up 16 sacks, which tied with Iowa for the fewest sacks given up.
The rutger interior OL on the list that high was surprising to me as well.
Writing off anything that says any Rutgers player isn’t bad isn’t exactly smarter. They just had a kid go in the 2nd last year.
Glad to see Bredeson and especially Onwenu getting some props. Tangibly shows how Warriner has already made a big difference on the interior line. Now let's just hope we see the Tackles evolve in similar fashion this year.
Brian - What do you know about hockey commit D Steve Holtz?
Steve. Holtz.
Hey, that's what I did when Brian said he was gonna kick the football!!!
Those pass protection issues weren't on the interior OL
The benefits of Ed Warinner and landing three borderline 5 star players out of high school in Bredeson, Ruiz, and Onwenu.
It is just the benefits of Ed Warinner. The line that was getting run through up the middle the previous year consisted of Bredeson-Kugler-Onwenu/Ruiz. The line that was good consisted of Bredeson-Ruiz-Onwenu. You'll notice those are basically the same players minus Kugler, who was an actual 5 star. The talent based on their recruiting ratings was basically identical if not a little worse. The only change was the coach.
Well, the coach AND each having a year more experience - which the experts say matters a bit with OL, yeah?!
I agree with you, experience helps. I am not so sure that was the case here though. Nobody had experience with Warinner's coaching. So everyone on that line started at 0 with regards to that. The previous year had 2 o-line coaches with neither coming back. The entire offensive philosophy both years was disjointed. They had experience playing football and 1 year experience with Pep as OC. My interpretation of that experience argument is that it matters mainly when there is consistency with your scheme and coaching staff, none of which Michigan provided the players going into last year.
Kugler was not a 5 star but he was highly ranked. That it took until his 5th year to start a game proved that he was overrated coming out of high school. Ruiz meanwhile was purported to be the best center prospect in a decade. Sliding him into the starting lineup along with Bredeson and Onwenu becoming upperclassman were as much of the reason for success as Warinner simplifying the schemes. It's not a mutually exclusive proposition.
Kugler was a 5 star according to Scout. Ruiz also started the back half of his true freshman year, so he was already in the starting lineup. Interior offensive line recruiting has never been a problem for us, we've had lots of high 4stars. Your original justification for the line getting good was recruiting rankings and Warinner. I'm simply pointing out the same highly ranked players were there when it was bad.
Ok and? On the 247 composite he was barely a top 100 recruit. That's a big difference. It took 5 years for him to start a game and even then he wouldn't have had the coaches not botched the tackle situation so badly that Mason Cole had to move from C to T. Brian has detailed how Kugler was not good at line calls and how Ruiz is. Warinner plus talent equals improved OL play. This isn't hard. Don't kid yourself that talent doesn't matter here and it's all Warinner. That's just dumb.
You've gone ahead and changed this discussion. You originally posted about the line being all top 100 prospects and a coach. Evidence contrary to that has disturbed you apparently and now you are moving the goal posts to talent. Which yeah of course talent matters. Talent is also not the same thing as recruiting rankings. It can also be nurtured or squandered, sometimes independently of coaches. You're so eager to defend your original position that you've started shitting on Kugler. Brian has also said that he isn't sure if it was Kugler being bad at line calls or the philosophy that he was taught, how much was him and how much was Drevno. Kugler could be shit at line calls, I don't know and neither do you. But none of that matters. Kugler was a very highly rated talent. Him and the other members of last years good interior offensive line were all part of a bad one the year prior. That goes against the recruiting rankings and coaching ethos you originally spun and makes it more coaching in this case. This particular case only, as in all things related to life, each case is different.
Wrong. The "line" was composite borderline 5 star recruits which Kugler was not. He like a lot of highly rated OL recruits that Hoke landed didn't pan out. Bredeson, Ruiz, and Onwenu were good players before Warinner arrived. Simplifying the scheme along with their natural talent yielded good results last year. That's the only thing I said. But hey, if you want to die on the hill that Kugler was some great player even though he wasn't a full time starter until his 5th year and wasn't drafted go right ahead. Talent mattes. Coaching matters. That's all I said. Stop looking for a fight. Shit is fucking old.
What are you talking about? Onwenu was ranked 20 spots lower than Kugler coming out of high school and you included him in that "line" of composite borderline 5 star recruits.
Speaking of shit being old, Maizen/Old98/Hei2man/1201/Mfrank/ etc.,etc.,etc., your shit is so old it's been through a dozen or so new MGoUsernames and with each one, the same wretched stench continues to pollute MGoBlog.
You continue to preach that only stars matter, someone proves otherwise, you move the goal posts, they point it out, your countermove is to throw players under your bus wheels AND call other MGoPosters dumb, they point it out, then you lose your shit.
Same old shit, same old shit, same old shit, then recycle under a new username, rinse and repeat, over and over and over again.
Yes, shit gets fucking old.
We’ve had literally so many high 4 stars that have busted hard on the OL, to imply that is why it’s gotten better is weird to me.
I mean look how well Ruiz pick's up the Hudson blitz in the clip above. We can work around the OT relative-weakness on most base plays, but agree to fully capitalize on Collins deep will require OT pass pro improvement. Stueber looked really good in the spring game and the competition should get that RT spot ready by the season ... whether it ends up being Stueber or Mayfield. And then the side benefit is that depth is developed such that there are 3 ready OTs just in case.
Coach Ed knows what he is doing. OL is going to be a huge strength this year.
It might also help that sometimes when we drop back it won't be always be a long developing route.
Multiple targets out of the slot/backfield, misdirection, slants, and RPOplays will stress the defense horizontally. I would expect this to limit the amount of time in pass pro on those plays for the tackles and hopefully also mean its a little easier for the WRs to get open when we do want to hit deep routes, which should let the ball get out faster as well. I think given everything we've seen so far the OT will not be as much of a factor this year and hopefully will improve with another year under Warriner
I am really hoping that our new offense does wonders for our defense too. Seeing all these plays, I just can't help but think this is the stuff that torched us against the good spread teams. Getting reps against an offense that throws the ball out quick and spreads it around will prepare the defense for the teams who do it regularly.
Maybe Smith thought police within the state of Ohio wouldn't arrest him in the OSU shirt.
I'm actually somewhat surprised they did
arresting officer must blame smith for urban leaving
I suspect the other two chunks of run-first-pass-seldom were:
- not repping pass plays for which they knew they would not have adequate protection
- comfort level by coaches with turning over the offense to a new QB
The good news is that all of this can change. If Warinner can coax decent performance from our tackles (and the team stays healthy) everything else will fall into place.
Maybe Urban taught "Ethics for Politicians".
Those target numbers for Nico are just OC malpractice.
Who would have ever guessed that bringing in the offensive guru from the 1-31 Cleveland Browns (see, e.g., "your name here" QB jersey) wouldn't work out?
I'm sure Pep had a great week of malpractice, though.
Those charts above highlighting player grades/players to watch is very fun to see.....not only because of the M love but I don't see one shitty looking O on any of them
Just goes to show you how easily cherry-picked advanced stats can end up telling you nothing about real results on the field against real competition.
Question regarding UM pass attack vs OSU pass defense:
I'm glad that Patterson is the leading returning passer, we have a great blocker at RB, & we've heard all spring the o-line is our team's strength. However, last year OSU gave us trouble up front getting pressure on Patterson. With most of their starting d-line back including Young & Cooper and most our o-line back, how will this year be any different? It's the same matchup last year that OSU won. Do we have any reason to believe that an offseason will change anything? Will Gattis' offense be able to use plays/routes that will mitigate the pass rush issues?
It's a good question. People always argue that our returning players will be better, but ignore the fact that other team's returning players that they're competing against will be too.
Nothing against our tackles, but I don't see them faring too well against Young & Cooper, just like last year.
"I will never understand why Urban Meyer would carry this guy's water for a decade"
Eh, I think some things are easy to explain. You are loyal to those who really helped you in some way. In some cases, you would be loyal to a great coach. In this case, the guy is not a great coach. Thus, he probably knows a lot of dirt about OSU. Stay loyal and the guy keeps his mouth shut about all the dirty shit going on there.
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