This Week’s Obsession: Are We On Track?
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Nick’s Question:
Are we on track? What is, what isn't, what's ahead.
Reasonable expectations. [Patrick Barron]
Adam: Of course the program is on track. What are the legitimate complaints from the people who think it's off track? They point to the record against Michigan State and Ohio State or fret about the lack of development of the offense, but those two things are presented devoid of context, which makes them utterly devoid of meaning.
A glimpse at the future [Bryan Fuller] |
The offense has had trouble developing because two quarterbacks have been whisked off to the hospital, the other one didn't develop the way they thought he would when they brought him in three years ago, the starting left tackle got injured last October and hasn't been back since, the receiver who looked like he might at least muddy the waters with regard to the "freshmen receivers suck" rule broke a bone in his foot, things are still stabilizing at right tackle after a midseason starter switch, Crawford and Perry and Higdon and Isaac have all missed bits of time due to injuries, the staff is still finding which gap-blocked and zone-blocked runs work well with the Frankenline, pass protection woes have forced Michigan to use a bunch of max protect and two-man routes, and the new passing game coordinator has had to alter his playbook three times to fit the quarterback who was going to start and then the one who split snaps with him during fall camp and lost the job and then the one who didn't get any snaps with the ones until said first starter was in a back brace.
That was the longest sentence I've ever written on this blog; that was intentional. Do not tell me the offense is off track.
The rivalry game complaining doesn't make sense to me. They've fallen to the fluke of all flukes and a stupid spot and have failed to be competitive in one half of one MSU or OSU game since Harbaugh was hired. Competitiveness is where I draw my line in the sand. They were able to hang with both rivals in year one, decidedly defeated one and went toe-to-toe with the other in year two, and managed to stay competitive with one while throwing in a monsoon with an offense that was functionally more frightening than a Teddy Ruxpin.
I don't know what the people are expecting who truly think this program is off track. Some years you've got a golden horeshoe in your butt. Some years you can't catch a break. Look at the young players gaining in-game experience and the track record of the staff and there's hope yet.
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[After THE JUMP, David @s Ace and Brian. Brave boy]
Seth: Adam is right: the level I want to be at is Bo--i.e. go into every season with a real shot to win it all--and last year's team is a good example of that level. Football is too random to ask for more: Ohio State is the best team in the country this year by S&P+ and has two losses; Carr won a national championship with the Griese offense and lost to Illinois with senior Tom Brady. It's natural for your human brain to try to replace randomness with patterns that don't exist, and favor whichever pattern best serves your interests. If you haven't learned to keep those instincts in check this deep into adulthood, don't be surprised when your contributions to the marketplace of ideas are treated like they don't have any value.
Let them get it out now. [Patrick Barron] |
The one thing that's going exactly as predicted is a nation of football idiots are finding narratives in an 8-4 season that was expected to be 9-3/8-4 before two quarterbacks were hospitalized. Here's Bill Connelly last July:
You can’t take a “wait ‘til next year” approach when you’re still projected as a top-10 team, but if Michigan does lose a couple of late games and keep the “Never better than third in the Big Ten East!” meme alive, you should get your laughs in while you can. Because this program is probably a year away from ignition.
I expected every SECist and rival to take Bill's advice, and put that preview as a calendar reminder to myself for after the Wisconsin game to remind me not to take them seriously. I don't understand why Michigan people would join them. Last year the whole defense left except Hurst and McCray; next year the whole defense returns except Hurst and McCray (and maybe Winovich). Next year Peters is hitting DPJ and Black, and nobody wants to face Onwenu and Ruiz and Bredeson. This year every Michigan preview said "next year" barring some breaks--as you've no doubt observed, those all go against Michigan except against Indiana or Northwestern.
Speight's regression was concerning, and probably due to the unavoidable pass protection issues that also featured in every 2017 Michigan preview. Michigan's plan to deal with that was the same that Urban Meyer's been using to get around his own crappy pass pro: make your offense heavily QB dependent. That plan exploded when Speight did. At this point in Hoke's trajectory they turned to gimmick offenses: tackle over, that one RPO. Harbaugh's decision was to move forward with Operation Stanfordization, and that was in good shape until Peters went down.
What's off track is wide receiver development. Freshmen will be freshmen; Crawford and McDoom are just a year older but should be further along. I strongly suspect Pep Hamilton was brought in for the Speight-to-Five-Targets plan, and they were all set to bring in an excellent receivers coach (remember the one that got Pete Finebaum bawling because the coach's kid was a 2018 dual threat QB?) when the NCAA passed that 8th assistant rule that got tabled at the last minute. If the current staff stays intact I would like them to find a spot for Erik “Soup” Campbell next year. Otherwise, full speed ahead.
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Ace: I tried Brian’s season preview exercise with next year’s offense. It came out like this.
BETTER
- healthy third-year Peters/fifth-year Speight >>> Speight/O’Korn/Peters
- Higdon/Evans/Walker/Samuels > year younger versions + Isaac
- Black/DPJ/Collins/Martin >> freshman versions and/or injured versions
- McKeon/Gentry/Wheatley/Eubanks > year younger versions
- Onwenu/Bredeson > year younger versions
- sophomore Ruiz >> Kugler
- JBB/Spanellis/Stueber/Filiaga >> this year’s RT situation
- year two of Pep/Drevno > year one of Pep/Drevno
- year two of Frey > year one of Frey
PUSH
- Perry/Crawford/McDoom = Perry/Crawford/McDoom
WORSE
- Mason < Panda/Poggi
- Newsome off two year rehab or ??? << Cole
The direction is apparent.
I’d do one for the defense but the short version is easier: everyone should (does ancient early entry decision anti-jinx dance) come back save for Mo Hurst, whose loss will be acutely felt even though his replacements should be decent, and Mike McCray, who should be equivalently replaced by one of the horde of talented linebackers waiting behind him.
This year hasn’t been very fun. Next year will be.
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BiSB: Can we revisit how insane it was that national media people were saying last year that Michigan was "a year away," and that 2017 was going to be the year because Year Three Magic? Anyone with a depth chart and an abacus could see that 2017 was going to be, at best, a "reloading year," and more likely a rebuilding year. The roster had some big ol' donut holes that nothing but time would heal.
Yo, just a sophomore. [Bryan Fuller] |
This is where people get upset. If you draw a straight line, it does not go up. It goes down. And if you define that as "the track," you're going to fear a Hoke-style reversion to a terrible, disappointing gumbo of 27 For 27 and M00N and Great Weeks Of Practice. But Michigan was inches from a likely Big Ten Title in year two, and year four looks primed to be fantastic. Patience is hard, especially because sometimes it isn't rewarded. But I'm confident that it will be this time.
Just please learn to pass block, k thx.
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David:
"On track? Yeah, tied to the train tracks! Amirite, @mgoblog @aceanbender??"
The defense is surely on track. The coaching hires have been phenomenal. The recruiting and depth are both reaching very high levels. Michigan had a good defense under Hoke and Harbaugh's decisions have turned it into a potential perennial Top 5 unit. Just look at the turnover and results in the secondary. The safeties dropped a bit from seniors to sophomores (Kinnel is a junior), but they were above average. The cornerback drop-off is almost negligible. There are first and second year players looking very good and contributing at almost every position.
The QB play is not on track.The bar was set so high for this position that it was almost unfair. This fact has also been hurt by the comparison as fans look around college football and see Baker Mayfield, Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold slinging the ball all over the field. Even KJ Costello -Harbaugh's first choice for the 2016 class- has broken into the starting lineup for a successful Stanford team. Harbaugh has been coined the "QB Whisperer," so expectations for mediocre-to-good quarterbacks might have been too high. This was not helped by the turn around of Jake Rudock in 2015. Speight was mostly pretty good in 2016. Then, breaking in new starters all over the offense never really gave the quarterback position a truly fair chance. The times when the pass pro was good enough were the times the receivers dropped the ball. When the tight ends broke open, the passes would be rushed.
Find the Gentryzone, find your power. [Fuller] |
I still trust Harbaugh to maximize a QB's potential as much as I could any football coach.
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Brian: I'd say it's mostly on track but the coaching turnover has to slow down starting now, mostly on offense. Replacing DJ Durkin was little issue because Michigan had Zordich and Mattison in place and was able to bump Chris Patridge up from an analyst spot; they had continuity, and Brian Smith's addition gave Don Brown a guy who was familiar with his schemes. The results are apparent. Not only is Michigan a very, very good defense but they're one that managed to take 10 bullets this season and still keep lurching forward towards opposing quarterbacks. It's Don Brown's defense. The end.
The situation on offense is much more confused, and this is a major reason Michigan has suffered. They entered the year running a bunch of inside zone and eschewing gap schemes, because Greg Frey. They had a ton of empty formations and far less manball jumbo sets, because Pep Hamilton. Harbaugh saw the results and undoubtedly wrested control of the offense back, whereupon they looked a lot like Stanford. Michigan lost Ty Wheatley and Jedd Fisch not to head coaching spots but more or less lateral moves, Fisch's at an unstable spot. They moved Jay Harbaugh to RB, they went with two OL coaches, it's unclear if Tim Drevno is an actual OC or if Pep Hamilton has say over the passing game, etc.
It became a Jim Harbaugh offense, minus a passing game. It started out as a series of question marks and a lot of bad inside zone blocking. To some extent that's acceptable during a year when Michigan probably wasn't going to do a ton no matter what, but the rapid turnover needs to stop for a couple years so that Michigan can find an identity. Michigan will keep bleeding guys to promotions elsewhere, that's inevitable. But only after they've done well and the departures seem inevitable.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:14 PM ^
At least some of the youth on defense was around and played a bit last year. Going into the season, the defense was expected to take a step back from last year, but was still expected to be good because of what we already saw last year. On offense, Michigan has sent out a QB (Peters), a few receivers, and a couple of OL that saw zero or near-zero playing time before this year.
November 21st, 2017 at 12:50 PM ^
love too *competitively* lose every game against biggest rivals
November 21st, 2017 at 12:51 PM ^
Of course the team is on track to be really good. It's very young and has dealt with injuries and the after-effects of poor recruiting at key spots. It will get better, but probably not in the next week. Just don't tell the couple of people around here who like to scream their heads off every chance they get.
November 21st, 2017 at 12:51 PM ^
You can only say "next year" so many times before that prediction starts to ring hollow. 8-4 this year looks a lot less impressive when you consider that 0 of those wins came against bowl eligible teams. The MSU game was an absolute debacle, as we got thoroughly outplayed until MSU decided to shut it down with the impending monsoon. PSU simply outclassed us. Wisconsin I'm not as mad about as we had a legit chance at that one until Peters went down, but then again Harbaugh and co. have been unable to develop a competent OL in 3 years here and that killed us again last game and ended our chances at a quality win this year.
The defense is ahead of schedule, but it's ok to be disappointed in what we've gotten from the offense. Harbaugh came in with a reputation of developing great QBs and great OLs, and so far all we've gotten is half a year of good Rudock, like 6 games where Speight lit up terrible competition, and a running game that can't get anything going against defenses with a pulse. That is very disappointing. Either way, next year better actually come next year, otherwise the shine will be off Harbaugh.
November 21st, 2017 at 12:57 PM ^
Oh no. Not . . . the shine!
November 21st, 2017 at 12:58 PM ^
And the three losses are all of the 2016 varity...
at Iowa - by one on a FG as time expired
at Ohio State - by three on the final play of 2OT
at-ish FSU - by one on a TD with 40-ish seconds left
Will you be disappointed? Or is that just "shrug emoji football?"
November 21st, 2017 at 1:01 PM ^
10-3 is not good enough next year, plain and simple. Don't care how close the losses are. It's time to win the conference and get to the playoffs.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:08 PM ^
I don't disagree with your assessment that, with all the factors going for us like year 2 of offensive scheme / developing o-line talent / almost entire returning defense, we should be better than 10-3. The BS is when you spill that over to this year when all of those things were against us.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:20 PM ^
Or else what? Fire Jim Harbaugh? Who's going to want the job after you've done that? Then, you sacrifice 2019 and probably 2020 as well, and hope to be competitive in 2021 or else the seat gets hot in 2022?
This isn't the way to build a program. It's the way to ensure decades of mediocrity interspersed with an occasional good season, à la Notre Dame.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:30 PM ^
Or else we come down to earth on Jim Harbaugh.
Bo wasn't Bear Bryant or Barry Switzer. Jim might not ever reach Saban or even Meyer level success.
November 21st, 2017 at 2:02 PM ^
In my eyes, Jim already has reached that success. Saban will probably go down as the best of all time, if not 2nd.
The reality is Jim Harbaugh changed how the world viewed Stanford.
4 Years before Harbaugh: 10-31, 0 Bowl Games; Avg. # wins/year: 2.5
4 Years of Harbaugh: 29-21, 2 Bowl Games- 1-1; Avg. # wins/year: 7.25
7 Years since Harbaugh: 64-20, 6(+) Bowl Games- 4-2; Avg. # wins/year: 9.14
I have no problem waiting out the 'Jim Harbaugh' timeline, Michigan is relevant. They will stay relevant as long as he's there. We can't expect him (not saying you were) to have a national chapionship in year three if we are to compare the 7 year experiment before he came back to Michigan. Those Who Stay...
November 27th, 2017 at 11:53 AM ^
You are a poster child for my biggest gripe with Michigan fans. Jim Harbaugh isn't anywhere close to Nick Saban.
Yes he has improved Michigan drastically from the depths of the RRod and Hoke woes, but any competent coach would be an improvement over those two.
Harbaugh has all the time in the world to get this program right, but at some point he needs to start beating rivals. John Cooper was 2-10-1 against Michigan so I'll judge Harbaugh on that timeline, Harbaugh has to be better than cooper when it comes to the OSU rivalry.
Cooper had a 6 year run where he won 11 games three times, 10 games twice, and 9 games once. While winning 3 big ten titles. If Harbaugh can deliver that kind of a 6 year period I'll be thrilled, even if Harbaugh only goes 2-4 against OSU during that span.
November 21st, 2017 at 3:15 PM ^
I think it's pretty absurd to compare coaches like Harbaugh and Saban. So much of their relative success depends on circumstances.
Harbaugh did way better with the 49ers (three NFC title game appearances, one NFC championship) than Saban did with the Dolphins (15-17 overall, no playoff appearances). Does that mean JH is the better coach, or did JH have better talent to work with at SF than Saban had at Miami?
Saban did better overall in his five years at LSU than Harbaugh has done so far at M (though in fairness, Harbaugh's first three years at M are pretty comparable to Saban's first three years at LSU (8-4, 10-3, 8-5)). Saban won the MNC in his fourth year at LSU, and went on to build a long-term dynasty at Alabama. Harbaugh hasn't won any college football national championships, or even a Pac-12 or B1G title. Does that mean Saban is the better coach, or has Saban had better opportunities at LSU and Alabama than JH has had so far? Remember that Saban is 12 years older.
Harbaugh did way better at Stanford than Saban did at MSU. Does that mean JH is better?
Saban went 9-2 twice in two seasons at Toledo. But JH went 29-6 with two league titles at the University of San Diego. Which of those is more impressive?
JH also played QB in the NFL (where Harbaugh started 140 games and threw for over 26,000 yards). Saban played defensive back for Kent State. Which of those says more about a coach's ability?
Both are great coaches. Which one is better? Who knows. But if M ever gets to the point where it has comparable talent to Alabama and they meet on the field, I won't feel like M is at a disadvantage because of the coaching.
November 27th, 2017 at 11:44 AM ^
At this point championships matter. Harbaugh needs to deliver some meaningful trophies to Ann Arbor.
Saban has a decade head start, but I don't expect Harbuagh to become Saban at Alabama. All I want is to start beating MSU 2/3 and beating OSU 1/2 and winning a conference title every third year or so. That kind of success is my expectation for the program.
November 21st, 2017 at 4:29 PM ^
That scenario could very well play out, given our relative lack of "good breaks" - and we'll take it even if we don't like it...
What are you suggesting the alternatives are, String?
November 21st, 2017 at 4:25 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:08 PM ^
There's one more problem looming with "next year" that the writers didnt address. The schedule.
We're playing MSU, OSU and fucking Notre Dame all on the road next year and I dont know if anybody has noticed this or not but we've kinda SUCKED on the road the past decade or so - Harbaugh era included. It pissed me off to no end when the Notre Dame game was added playing on the road first and it pisses me off even more now. I'm sorry but putting a third tough road game on the schedule in the same year is Dave Brandon-esq stupid.
So yes, we might be all kinds of better next year with the exact same record staring us in the face when we head into Columbus. Cause I sure as hell dont have any faith whatsoever that we're going to magically turn the corner playing on the road.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:14 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:55 PM ^
That's a good point. The schedule is brutal, and we also get Wisconsin at home in addition to all those road games. However, if this team is truly gonna be a playoff contender as so many on here think they will be, they should be able to get through the schedule with only 1 loss.
November 21st, 2017 at 2:20 PM ^
Yea, everyone conveniently leaves out the woodchipper behind the cabin we have in 2018.
@ ND
@ NW (not a snoozer)
@ MSU
@ OSU
Oh, and don't sleep cause we're bringing in PSU and Wisky.
Guys, this will be a top 10 schedule next year.
November 21st, 2017 at 2:44 PM ^
Michigan also hosts Nebraska, which may be coached by Scott Frost. That could be yet another tough game.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:12 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:17 PM ^
Don't worry. We are guaranteed to beat a bowl team. 5-6 Indiana plays 5-6 Purdue this weekend. QUALITY WIN!
November 21st, 2017 at 12:57 PM ^
It seriously reduces my intellect reading the pointless drivel on this site, from both the posters and the admins. If I could, I would take ownership of this site and introduce a new wave of 'smart poster' that only posts at my level.
November 21st, 2017 at 12:59 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 12:59 PM ^
We will have played 4 decent to good teams in 2017 and unless a huge upset occurs will most likely be 0-4 to those teams.
A quick look at the 2018 schedule has us facing 6 decent teams (*based on 2017 results) with four of those games on the road. If we were to go .500 against those teams we'd be looking at 9-3, a one game improvement. Will 2018 see enough of jump from not beating any teams with a pulse to beating three? I sure as hell hope so.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:06 PM ^
gotta beat some good teams and soon
a loss to o$u this week makes UM 9-7 in the last 16. next years schedule is beyond tough. a great improvement might occur without an increase in wins.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:00 PM ^
Man, this quote from Seth:
"It's natural for your human brain to try to replace randomness with patterns that don't exist, and favor whichever pattern best serves your interests. If you haven't learned to keep those instincts in check this deep into adulthood, don't be surprised when your contributions to the marketplace of ideas are treated like they don't have any value."
This about sums up everything that I feel is wrong these days. Not just with sports commentary, but practically everything online (especially Twitter) and in politics. ("Fake news" is the ultimate pattern that doesn't exist.)
What is left off the end is the bitterness that results from his last sentence, which all leads to us electing a less charming and irredeemable Professor Harold Hill as president.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:36 PM ^
Idk if you noticed but 2018’s schedule features all road games against ND OSU and ND. Harbaugh’s teams don’t fare that well on the road. He very well could be 1-6 against rivals after week 1 2018 and 8-3 again by season’s end looking to Columbus with a theoretically “better” team.
What’s the excuse then? Wait until 2019?
Michigan will have broken it’s all time B1G title drought record if Harbaugh does not win it in 2018. National media are jumping off the bandwagon with the narratives already if you read ESPN today.
2018 has to yield some hardware. Hopefully we get some good luck.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:47 PM ^
Harbaugh is 9-5 on the road at Michigan.
Why are you already trying to shoot down excuses for next year when 1) the current season isn't over, and 2) not one person has made any excuse for a season that hasn't started?
And why are you concerned with what ESPN says? Really, why are you concerned?
November 21st, 2017 at 2:08 PM ^
Recruits take notice. Espn might be garbage but they got clout when it comes to building up hype and tearing it down.
Harbaugh notices it hence why his antics to get this program in the headlines. Those same headlines can undo it unless he starts winning big games.
November 21st, 2017 at 2:18 PM ^
No.
And, . . . just no.
November 21st, 2017 at 2:28 PM ^
Thought so judging by your trolling in this thread.
Good day.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:02 PM ^
IMO mccaffrey needs to be in the QB equation. A year in a college S&C program, learning the offense and the obvious talent pushes him even with the speight/peters combo.
I also think mason is at least the equal of poggi/hill. Might be an issue with depth though.
I'd love to see the collection of highly paid offensive coaches earn that $$$$$$$$$$$
November 21st, 2017 at 1:03 PM ^
I for one am encouraged for the future by the clear improvements of players over the course of the season including (but not limited to) Hill, Long, Higdon, Onwenu, Bredeson, DPJ, Peters, Mason, McKeon, Gentry, JBB, Chase, Solomon, Gary, Bush, Hudson, Paye, Thomas and Metellus.
They're getting great recruits and those dudes are developing. This team is gonna be real good real soon.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:07 PM ^
I'd say we are on or ahead of schedule everywhere but Offensive Line, where we are way behind schedule. It is enough to offset the good, fix the OL and we'll be ahead of schedule.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:08 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:12 PM ^
In this day and age it's very difficult to get a program fully up and rolling, and even when that is acheived there are going to a few less than stellar seasons mixed in. Last time we experienced that was about three and a half decades of sustained excellence, really culminating with Bo's death and the subsequent #1 v #2 near miss where we lost on a very questionable late hit in Columbus that cost us a shot at the title. We all know what happened since then, and I believe Harbaugh is about 75% of the way toward getting us to full speed ahead again. This season was in a big way about crappy recruiting the last two years under Hoke, especially on offense and especially offensive tackle.
The people who don't see that we are "on track" are the ones who can only accept what they had during the height of the glory years. They see Ohio State experiencing full operational mode and they neglect the fact that OSU never really experienced a "lost decade" like we did. Their Tresselgate left them bumbling right into Urban Meyer with one hiccup season. Even when they were going through 1-11-1 against Michigan, they were winning almost everything else. When fans of other schools or people who just want to troll say "derp Harbaugh can't beat his rivals he's on the hot seat" I just tell them Nope, we love Harbaugh. We're ecstatic to have him and we know he is going to get the program fully up and rolling year after year after year and even then I'm not going to talk smack. We expect it to happen, and we know what it takes to get there.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:14 PM ^
I'll grant that the Newsome/QB injuries and lack of help from Hoke recruiting classes made the challenge on offense harder than on defense. My concerns, however, echo Brian's. When Harbaugh was hired, what position groups did we have the most confidence he would "fix" from past eras? QB and OL. Those two groups have been largely the weakness of our teams. Add in WR if you like.
While we haven't reached the depths of Hoke offense shenanigans, there are still signs this season of ample disfunction:
- Ulizio at RT to start the season.
- Never trying Bredeson at either OT
- Alternating blocking schemes
- Planning a spread pass offense without the OL, WR, or QB to run it
- Having little creativity in the play calling in general
- Picking JOK over Peters for a third of the season
- Trying the wildcat with it lacking any benefit that 11v11 football brings
- Being unable to pass block this year after being unable to run block last year
- Running play action on 3rd & long
Fixing the OT position would go a long way to painting over those sins, but is that even possible next year? The list of concerns is growing in the area where Harbaugh should have the most control and confidence. But I'm 100% all-in that 2018 is going to be a lot like 2016 where we are a contender. If we aren't, then we'll talk.....
November 21st, 2017 at 7:45 PM ^
Very well put...except the last sentence. I think it takes until year 5 for all the pieces to be in place.
November 22nd, 2017 at 5:04 AM ^
November 22nd, 2017 at 8:20 AM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:15 PM ^
So PSU lost like 500 linebackers last year and still won the Big 10 with a middling QB. Injuries happen. Resilient teams win anyway. This team isn't resilient.
Anyone who thinks "one more year" Speight is going to be better than "this year" Speight is probably the most blindly optimistic person I know. Ceiling=reached on this one, I think. Anyone who seriously remembers him resembling anything close to "on track" this year really needs to go back and watch the early games.
"Stabilizing" at RT isn't really saying much, if other staff evals here of "unable to pick up a stunt" are to be believed: Stabilizing at bad isn't helpful. Stabilizing with your starter out and a freshman center playing there...sorry, it just doesn't meet any definition of that word.
I think that anyone who dared post three years ago that QB would be a season-long problem in year three would have been neg-banged to Bolivia. And yet we've had controversy and underperformance most of last year and all of this year...even before Speight went down.
So yes, the offense is on *a* track, I just don't think it's one with good trajectory or what the vast majority here expected.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:27 PM ^
So you're saying expectations can change over the course of three years as new facts come to light and new factors emerge?
November 21st, 2017 at 2:00 PM ^
So if results suck, adjust expectations? Is that where we are as a fan base now?
November 21st, 2017 at 1:19 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 1:31 PM ^
That's a very good point. Even Alabama has trouble living up to their fans expectations and they're one of the greatest dynasties that modern college football has ever seen.
November 21st, 2017 at 1:36 PM ^
November 21st, 2017 at 2:00 PM ^
This football team would be good enough to luck into a 9-win Big Ten East championship or drop to 7-5 with bad luck. I don't consider 2015 Michigan State to be "good"--that's just football randomness creating a peak result. The same could have happened to this Michigan team this year--it doesn't mean it was likely to.
"Good" is where Ohio State is at this year. They've had two bad games but they're #1 to S&P+. "Good" is where Michigan was last year, when some bad breaks against Iowa and Ohio State and Florida State marred a team that could have stood in there against Alabama and Clemson.
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