Doom and Gloomers, Don't rush to judge O'korn

Submitted by Hard-Baughlls on

I know we all want Speight to to play as he gives us the best shot of winning in C-bus next week, but stop burying O'korn based on that game.  The weather was absolute shit in just his first start ant it's not as if Barret was lighting it up in similar conditions in East Lansing.

Of course Barret is a much bigger threat to run, but he is also a 3rd year starter that looked very average yesterday against a mediocre team.  Sure, we're not sending Joe Montana or Tom Brady out there next week, but neither are they.

If we win the battle on both lines of scrimmage we will win the game.  Not much separating these two stat lines from this past weekend for the two teams.

Michigan Passing
  C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT QBR
John O'Korn 7/16 59 3.7 0 0 28.6
TEAM 7/16 59 3.7 0 0 --

 

Ohio State Passing
  C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT QBR
J.T. Barrett 10/22 86 3.9 1 0 37.3
TEAM 10/22 86 3.9 1 0 --

 

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natesezgoblue

November 20th, 2016 at 4:57 PM ^

JOK played better than we think. Zero turnovers! IMO for him to be successful he needs to be on the run. Boots, waggles sprint outs. I think if he's the starter we'll see that adjustment. He in not a pocket passer..he seriously lacks pocket presence and can't step up like Speight can.



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Dizzy

November 20th, 2016 at 6:08 PM ^

the game this morning, I came away feeling a lot better about this. During the game I was screaming for him to step up into the pocket, but the pocket didn't exist. If he doesn't bail out he's eating a sack instead. O-line was having some trouble in pass protection. Overall O'Korn looked okay and didn't do anything to lose us the game. We'll see if the coaches open things up more for him next week if Speight can't go.

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turtleboy

November 20th, 2016 at 5:01 PM ^

I'm reserving judgment on OKorn. Crazy swirling wind, sleet, and having to run for his life much more than he should've on his first start doesn't provide a very accurate sample size, IMHO.

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WMU81

November 20th, 2016 at 5:02 PM ^

Okorn need to have confidence in himself and trust the receivers... He held on to the ball to long and that cannot happen against Ohio St, or its gonna be a long night... Know the plays and get rid of the ball before the receivers break on their routes.



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Wolvie3758

November 20th, 2016 at 5:02 PM ^

us Gloom and Doomers but weve been here before..ALOT..until we beat OSU we are NOT back....Worst case scenario is the Orange Bowl against Louisville ..Best case Final 4 then Rose Bowl...win or lose we are definitely in the right trajectory and back to natonal stage but until we beat OSU we are not totally back.

 

Our defense will have to win this game if its going to happen...When was the last time we won in Columbus? I cant even remember 

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Muttley

November 20th, 2016 at 8:24 PM ^

Sorry, but #3 at 10-1 IS back.  With wins over AP #5, #8, and OOC #9.

Ohio State is just a lot better now than the days to which you harken back.

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Lampuki22

November 20th, 2016 at 5:05 PM ^

It's a random and irrelevant stat. He didn't go through progressions and panicked. He's understandably rusty. At least he didn't chuck the ball into coverage like TOC.



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Soulfire21

November 20th, 2016 at 5:28 PM ^

I was thoroughly discouraged and I don't see us going into Columbus with O'korn and winning. It can happen (MSU did it last year) but that is the exception not the rule.

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Dutch-USMC

November 20th, 2016 at 5:32 PM ^

I think all of the QBs start off slow trying to grasp a Harbaugh Offense.  Remember how slow Rudock started (admitted he only had fall camp) being an experienced player.  How long Speight took to really get his feed under him.  Okorn is definitely rusty, and similar to Speight after getting beat up, has reverted back to his bad tendencies while under pressure.  Speight didn't get his feet back under him until the bye week when he could work on everything Harbaugh taught him.   

I think Okorn would have been good had he played earlier and more often.  However, if Harbaugh wanted Speight to make that Rudock progression, he needed all of that playing time too, right?  I can't fault Harbaugh for keeping Speight in as long as he could when he was planning on needing him for this OSU game in the most hostile of stadiums.

With all of that rambling, I also don't think Harbaugh is going to pull anything new out this week.  I think he is in the mindset of play everything you have to force them to prepare for everything you have.  I don't think we'll see any fancy new RPOs added to the playbook if it wasn't in there to begin with.  I think OKorn will continue to run, but still in the confines of what they already have run the last 11 weeks.

I'm definitely a doom and gloomer, so thanks to those in this blog that help shine positive spins.  I've lurked since the RichRod coaching search, but often find myself too negative to let myself log in and post.

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M-Dog

November 20th, 2016 at 5:38 PM ^

It's the combination of O'Korn and our leaky O-Line that gives me the jitters in Columbus.

I hope we can get some kind of running game going against them like MSU was able to do.  They almost won with O'Conner at QB fergodsake, so there is some hope.

But whatever happens, you can't put O'Korn in 3rd and longs all day.

 

 

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taistreetsmyhero

November 20th, 2016 at 5:44 PM ^

It wasn't the poor passing that worried me. But Okorn looked like late stage Devin Gardner with his happy feet. He made the Oline look bad because he was bailing the pocket before they could even try to block anybody. If he plays and OSU stays aggressive it's gonna be a long day. I'm still holding out for another nasty weather day because that will neutralize Barret as well.



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Carcajou

November 20th, 2016 at 8:24 PM ^

I feel differently.

Sloppy weather does favor the underdog generally. But sloppy weather in this case will mean fewer passes and more runs, including QB runs, where I think the Buckeyes have the advantage. They might be better on runs between the tackles, too. A dry day means more deep shots to WRs, and I think that is better for Michigan than Ohio State.

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