CB Coach Candidate: Jesse Minter
I don't subscribe to any premium services, but there sure is a lot of noise on Twitter tonight about Michigan hiring Jesse Minter as one of the defensive coaches (probably CB). His face is also front and center of Balas's ITF tweet. Minter is a 37-year-old and is currently the DB coach for the Baltimore Ravens, who had the #2 passing defense in the NFL this year (#1 overall defense in terms of yards per game). This was Minter's first year as the DB coach after he worked as a defensive assistant for four years. Before that, he was an extremely young defensive coordinator for Georgia State in their initial years as an FBS team. His defenses from 2013-2016 had the following FEI rankings: 119, 128, 57, 52. Their defensive rankings plummeted in the years after he left. Before Georgia State, he was a really young DC at Indiana State, where his defense was 3rd in the FCS in scoring and 6th overall in his final year.
January 14th, 2021 at 7:34 AM ^
Is Tom Herman anything more than a pipe dream at this point? Success at OSU, Texas recruiting, hates OSU, seems a logical fit on the Michigan staff.
Is he holding out for a HC job somewhere? Are there any openings in the college ranks he might be pursuing? NFL jump?
Unrelated, article on CBS Sports about Wink Martindale, at the bottom has a list of other topics, among them Fickell garnering NFL interest (mentions Eagles). Might Freeman’s departure to ND be b/c of a HC making a jump to the NFL and a DC who wants to remain a college coach for now?
January 14th, 2021 at 7:35 AM ^
Fanboy/hottake/slappy take time: maybe part of Harbaugh's problem is that he got away from his identity trying to adjust to college game. Perhaps, at least for him personally, he wants to get back to his identity, which is more of a pro approach. Stanford was built like a pro team, at least in terms of Xs and Os and the type of personnel to fit that scheme. Maybe he wants to get back to his roots.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:25 AM ^
I'd be okay with this, if he can get back to being a coach that - you can readily see - actually cares about the game. The last few years has lacked that from him, he's been more of a zombie on the sidelines than anything else. And his team has played that way.
I don't necessarily care whether the offense is all RPO, or includes some FB dives. I do care that players are used appropriately in their wheelhouse, and that the play calls are coherent and build off each other. That hasn't been a consistent thing since 2016. Can he just get back to that?
January 14th, 2021 at 8:37 AM ^
Anything that can get the players to execute execute execute. The execution has been so poor the past few years, first on offense and now on defense.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:47 AM ^
A good point. It seems like a lot of Juwan's success comes from adapting more sophisticated NBA sets and plays to college. We've seen how that works out ...
January 14th, 2021 at 11:40 AM ^
That is not the NFL game anymore though, for the most part. Offenses have evolved at all levels. Look at the best teams in the NFL. They don't run FB dives and 3 TE sets as their base offense. They spread it out, use a lot of quick game stuff, run RPO's, and have QB's who can move.
January 14th, 2021 at 1:51 PM ^
There are a lot of teams employing fullbacks in the NFL I think more so than 5-10 years ago. Multiple TE sets too, the NFL seems to be playing the matchup game and those pieces can move around.
January 14th, 2021 at 2:59 PM ^
The other plus side to this is Michigan then wouldn't be in competition for the same recruits as all the speed in space guys.
January 14th, 2021 at 12:01 PM ^
We desperately need a a good DL coach.
January 14th, 2021 at 1:52 PM ^
This^
January 14th, 2021 at 4:50 AM ^
After reading the comments so far, especially from you guys doing your homework I'm excited about the potential hirings/hirings.
Hopefully this puts some life back into the program.
January 14th, 2021 at 6:09 AM ^
Minter once earned sun belt recruiter of the year as well. Seems like a well rounded coach.
January 14th, 2021 at 7:12 AM ^
Does big brother just feel bad for little brother and trying to help him out since no one else will?
January 14th, 2021 at 7:19 AM ^
NFL targets for Co-OC with Gattis?
Can’t be Greg Roman. Why would he leave Baltimore and L. Jackson unless it’s to be a HC somewhere else?
Who was recently let go as part of a staff firing?
Hey, what about Pep Hamilton? (Heh)
January 14th, 2021 at 7:39 AM ^
We laugh at Pep but he did a helluva good job with Herbert this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if he kept his job with a new coach in LA.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:13 AM ^
A former UM player raved to me about Pep Hamilton, his knowledge of the game, ability to teach, etc. When I countered with a comment about why UCF can snap the ball with 32 seconds left on the play clock in the 1st quarter and Michigan takes 32 seconds in a hurry up offense, I got a sly smile. That criticism extends all the way back to his days with the Colts.
Pep Hamilton’s strengths and deficiencies are well known.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:54 AM ^
Herbert could also be so good that it doesn't really matter who coaches him.
January 14th, 2021 at 7:40 AM ^
Given the Domani Jackson and Will Johnson recruiting timelines, would you rather the Ravens lose this weekend so that these hires from the Ravens can be officially confirmed and they can get to work on those recruitments (and others) or would you rather them win the Super Bowl on the back of their top ranked defense (while risking letting both those guys slip away), further boosting their resumes and giving more ammunition to get recruits in the future?
January 14th, 2021 at 9:02 AM ^
Easy answer. You absolutely want them to win a Super Bowl. These kids can "commit" wherever they want right now...until they actually sign Michigan will have a chance, and that chance will increase if they know they will be coached by somebody who just won a Super Bowl.
January 14th, 2021 at 10:29 PM ^
I want them walking around with Super Bowl rings in players living rooms.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:02 AM ^
This guy could be a lead guitar in a high school garage band.
I love it.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:40 AM ^
I like your take better. I look at this and think serial killer.
January 14th, 2021 at 10:27 AM ^
I'm pretty sure that guy tried to sell me an eighth of shrooms at a concert once . . .
January 14th, 2021 at 11:22 AM ^
Ding, Ding!
His opening line:
"Hey, you like Phish?
January 14th, 2021 at 11:22 AM ^
Either that or a medieval larper who just defeated Greyson the Wanderer in a nerf sword fight for the very first time.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:26 AM ^
Conspiracy theory: John and Jim are switching jobs this next year, as a friendly brotherly competition to see who could do better in their current circumstances.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:34 AM ^
Any chance Lamar Jackson also wants to switch teams?
January 14th, 2021 at 8:30 AM ^
I'm all for bringing more Madden experts to the program to coach and recruit tbh
January 14th, 2021 at 8:34 AM ^
So people are just automatically buying the notion we’re going to get two assistants from the Ravens? Not even a tiny amount of skepticism?
January 14th, 2021 at 9:08 AM ^
Nope. Pretty sure John is coming as well to be an ST coordinator again.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:42 AM ^
Given the information included in this thread about MacDonald's promotable ability and Minter's work as a DB coach, I'm pretty happy with how things seem to be going. I will admit to some surprise that these NFL defensive guys, who are attracting NFL interest, are going to head back to college. Happy they are, though!
What I'm not surprised about is that Harbaugh is hiring bright defensive minds that can run the show on that side all by themselves. Harbaugh is an offense only guy, he wants nothing to do with overseeing defense. Neither Durkin nor Brown needed (or wanted) any assistance from the head coach, save for a closer visit with a 'croot every now and then. The DC has complete autonomy under Harbaugh, so it's not really a surprise that he gets top candidates so easily on that side.
Michigan will once again have a really good defense. The big question is... Can Harbaugh's offense do anything with it, or are we still stuck with the sputtering, misfiring 6-cylinder we've seen the last 4 years?
Wouldn't it be nice to race against the finely tuned V8's that Bama, OSU, and Clemson run with something other than a wonky 6-banger? You know that sound a slipping belt makes when you start the engine? That's like Michigan's offense - it still works okay, but you know you can't run it hard because it needs repairs.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:53 AM ^
I will admit to some surprise that these NFL defensive guys, who are attracting NFL interest, are going to head back to college.
As usual around here, somebody can post something without any hard verification or sourcing but it's accepted as a done deal by a significant portion of the MGoBlogosphere anyhow.
January 14th, 2021 at 8:59 AM ^
Well la-tee-daa... Aren't you the special guy this morning? MacDonald is, more or less, a done deal according to multiple insiders - all of whom have proven their insiderness on multiple occasions. Minter also billowing a shitload of smoke from a couple of them. We can be forgiven for rolling with that while lacking anything substantive from the program itself - which still hasn't confirmed Harbaugh's signing!
Take it all with a grain of salt, and get off your rocking horse.
January 14th, 2021 at 1:48 PM ^
"while lacking anything substantive from the program itself - which still hasn't confirmed Harbaugh's signing!"
What do you call this?
January 14th, 2021 at 9:53 AM ^
My concern is, if they are both up-and-coming coaches then do they leave UM after a couple years? Will it matter if Harbaugh gets fired after next season?
And it’s one thing to coach starting DBs in the NFL, it’s another to coach middle of the pack 3-stars.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:57 AM ^
given the current structure, a 6 cylinder may be fine. It will never be a v-8, but add in a couple turbos to a well-built V-6 and you can go to battle and have a good chance. see Raptor, GT, etc. But will the driver allow the car to put its cylinders to work, or will it continue to drive in first and second gear only?
January 14th, 2021 at 12:46 PM ^
I would love a grand National!
January 14th, 2021 at 9:08 AM ^
Sounds like a good prospect.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:46 AM ^
All this talk just makes me think that John Harbaugh is better at finding coaches then Jim.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:53 AM ^
If a person wants a reason to be upset, they’ll find one.
January 14th, 2021 at 9:58 AM ^
This would be an amazing hire. It will be interesting to see how this defense turns out.
January 14th, 2021 at 10:12 AM ^
What's been a common theme with some of these hires?
Mike Hart - 34
Mike MacDonald - 33
Jessie Minter - 37
It looks like Jim is making a concerted effort to get younger coaches on the staff, probably will help with relating to players better.
January 14th, 2021 at 10:24 AM ^
Yes --- THIS 100%
January 14th, 2021 at 10:22 AM ^
THAT would be a slam dunk but. Why would John let both go ?
January 14th, 2021 at 10:27 AM ^
1) they may be ready to progress their careers
2) John may not be 'letting' them go as much as Michigan and other places have jobs open and these coaches are seeking to better their career.
3) Considering 1 and 2, John may be giving solid recommendations in working for Jim
January 14th, 2021 at 12:47 PM ^
He's going to be our oc
January 14th, 2021 at 10:40 AM ^
Honestly, pulling both the assistants from the Ravens appear to be great moves given where the program is. Young, energetic and more relatable coaches that have something to prove should help with recruiting and general energy.
Adding Hart, MacDonald and Minter would be three more younger guys to the staff which in my opinion can only be better for recruiting efforts. I also think that people are overblowing the idea that someone needs 20 yrs of experience to teach athletes the necessary techniques...having cohesion, a common vision for the philosophy and a ton of energy goes a long ways towards motivating this age group.
I think it is more important that the coaches can work together and inspire and engage with the bonus being the fact they can also tout the NFL experience and understanding.
January 14th, 2021 at 11:07 AM ^
Co-DC? Since he has experience at it and seemed to be successful?
January 14th, 2021 at 11:32 AM ^
We need a DL coach.
January 14th, 2021 at 1:57 PM ^
Again this 100%