Excellent summary of Illinois game by Dr Saturday
Read it here. The highlights:
If for some reason you were kidnapped by maniac who forced you at gunpoint to make sense of Michigan's roller-coaster season in 12 words or less, you'd probably settle for something like this: The offense is unstoppable. The defense is horrible. Denard Robinson got hurt.
...
The afternoon played out like a four-hour circus grotesquerie of everything Michigan fans have seen, heard, felt, smelt, cheered or swore at over the last two months. The only real difference was that this show had a happy ending, which has the potential to change everything.
For starters, the 12-game conference losing streak to teams that aren't Indiana is over. With that, the Wolverines hit six wins for the year, which virtually guarantees Rich Rodriguez's third season in Ann Arbor is going to end with his first bowl game. And with one more victory – next week's trip to Purdue has been circled in red as a must-win for weeks – Michigan will secure its first winning season since 2007, likely securing Rodriguez's return for 2011 in the process.
It doesn't change the fact that defensive coordinator Greg Robinson is a dead coach walking. The seal on GERG's upcoming pink slip should read "65 points to Illinois." But the odds that Rodriguez will be delivered one of his own just plummeted, and may approach zero next week if he can just figure out how to make sure his offense touches the ball last against the Boilermakers.
November 6th, 2010 at 6:52 PM ^
Hes a doctor.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:04 PM ^
Lou Holtz is a doctor but I don't trust him.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:07 PM ^
Lou has had so much head trauma that he thinks he's a doctor and that ND is still in the running for the national championship
November 6th, 2010 at 6:53 PM ^
great summary
November 6th, 2010 at 6:56 PM ^
Is the time to replace GERG after the OSU game, or do you wait until after the bowl? My guess is sooner rather than later to save recruiting...
November 6th, 2010 at 7:01 PM ^
I mean given that people want the entire side of the ball blown up, I don't think we can get ready for a bowl game with no defensive coaches. I think keep him through the bowl game.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:19 PM ^
It's iffy. Ideally, I'd like to get the new DC in place before the bowl, so the players can get in extra work with him in the pre-bowl practices, but I'm not sure how realistic that is. We may have to wait until after the bowl.
November 6th, 2010 at 8:39 PM ^
When is the time to HIRE GERG's replacement is the better question? If its true that Casteel is going to shake loose after the season, then GERG will be replaced within 24 hours of Casteel being fired.
Otherwise, it will probably be after bowl season when the rest of the country is making coaching decisions.
November 6th, 2010 at 6:58 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 7:01 PM ^
It must be a mistake. Here's the Michigan drive chart for the game:
| Start Time | Time Poss | Drive Begin | # of Plays | Yards Gained | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 | 0:14 | MICH 25 | 1 | 75 | Touchdown |
| 8:56 | 2:47 | MICH 18 | 9 | 52 | Intercepted Pass |
| 5:05 | 0:04 | MICH 15 | 1 | 18 | Intercepted Pass |
| 14:57 | 2:21 | MICH 22 | 7 | 78 | Touchdown |
| 11:55 | 2:25 | MICH 36 | 8 | 39 | Downs |
| 7:40 | 0:44 | MICH 20 | 3 | 80 | Touchdown |
| 5:27 | 2:26 | MICH 27 | 6 | 73 | Touchdown |
| 1:11 | 0:34 | ILL 26 | 4 | 8 | Field Goal |
| 12:54 | 1:16 | MICH 11 | 3 | -7 | Punt |
| 10:10 | 2:34 | MICH 22 | 7 | 63 | Touchdown |
| 6:28 | 3:23 | MICH 20 | 9 | 43 | Missed FG |
| 14:55 | 0:10 | MICH 35 | 1 | -7 | Fumble |
| 11:35 | 2:07 | MICH 37 | 6 | 27 | Punt |
| 5:46 | 3:59 | MICH 20 | 12 | 75 | Touchdown |
| 0:47 | 0:33 | MICH 31 | 3 | 28 | Intercepted Pass |
| 0:00 | 0:00 | ILL 25 | 5 | 25 | Touchdown |
November 6th, 2010 at 7:03 PM ^
Yeah, I don't remember them either but the drive chart concurs
http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/boxscore?gid=201011060029&page=dr…
November 6th, 2010 at 7:07 PM ^
that records touchbacks as drives starting on the 1 yard line.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:29 PM ^
watched the game, much as I like the guy's writing.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:00 PM ^
I don't think
The seal on GERG's upcoming pink slip should read "65 points to Illinois."
is fair. Did it not seem like the D played better this week than last. And I think Illinois offense is better than PSU.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:04 PM ^
of reality. The actual decision will be far more complex and reasoned than Hinton suggests it will be, of course.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:05 PM ^
Illinois' starting field position was their own 47 at one point in this game. The offense/kicking games gave them some 60 yard fields. The last 21 points came on 25 yard drives. I'm sure they also had the TOP edge. Now consider the better play of some freshman (including Avery in his first start and Vinopal in his second) and the fact that Illinois was held scoreless in the 3rd quarter and I'd say the defense definitely played better today.
His pink slip should say "37 points to UMass" or instead
November 6th, 2010 at 7:06 PM ^
18 points came off turnovers, and 20 points came in overtime (not including the game-winning missed 2-point conversion). The defense was asked to do more than usual to win this game, and it responded. Not to say the defense is good or even average, but they showed vast improvement over their performance against Penn State.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:05 PM ^
...if we score on even 1 of the 3 turnovers that let to those 18 points the final is 55-30.
Given the god awful turnovers thanx to the offense, I also saw vast improvements. Particularly, Vinopal had a better game (open-field tackles, wrapping up, etc.), Avery did good (considering), Roh (amazing what playing your natural position can do), and the D overall played with more intensity.
What I didnt like was the LB play. Particularly Mouton wiffing on the receiver at the sideline early in the game, and no LB's in sight on the 2 wheel routes turned wide-open TD's.
Mind you, GRob still goes (his fault or not)
November 6th, 2010 at 7:13 PM ^
in fairness to Robinson... overtime points should not count in the discussion.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:13 PM ^
in fairness to Robinson... overtime points should not count in the discussion.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:17 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 7:24 PM ^
IMHO, I think we should see how GERG does for the rest of the year. All those stats are bad and watching the D is frustrating, but like Brandon said it's not always about wins and losses. I haven't made up my mind about keeping GERG, but I think he is getting more blame than he should. I like that the players believe in him.
I am sick and tired of hearing all these analyst make fun of the D and the score today. The score was not reflective of the effort on D. Robert Smith just mentioned that the D was better than the score.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:29 PM ^
I don't think that anyone involved in the decision-making will make a hasty decision on what to do about the coaching situation(s).
November 6th, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
I keep thinking about my friend who coachs D-1 Track & Field who tells parents of nice kids all the time, "Potential gets me fired." Well, the kids might like him, but...whoo, the defense is getting killed, statiscally at least! I loved the effort today, and even at times in the past few weeks, but clearly, somethings gotta give.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:31 PM ^
was when Ill scored in OT the 2nd time on the wheel route, the first play we ran on the next possession, we run the same play with Vincent Smith and get some big yards..... That is Magee in the booth give a big FU to Ill with that play call.....loved it.....
November 6th, 2010 at 7:37 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 7:17 PM ^
Grr. The overtime points do not count if you want to fairly evaluate a defensive performance. I really don't like it when people keep doing that.
I still don't want GERG around after this year though.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:27 PM ^
I agree that the D played better this week than last, but it still had a brutal day. GERG is far from the sole problem but he isn't likely to be the long-term solution, either. His track record over the past decade strongly argues against that.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:30 PM ^
As I said, I will wait for the end of the season and I hope coach and Brandon will too. I think you are probably right, it's just too bad, because I would love to see what GERG can do with some experience and freedom to do what he wants.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:38 PM ^
Honestly, if you've followed the man's career over the past decade, you probably wouldn't. I'm sure he's a great guy, but I don't think he's a very good DC.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:09 PM ^
I think it tells you something if we're seriously trying to have a discussion about defensive progress after giving up 65 points at home to Illinois.
Did the D make some critical plays? Yeah, definitely, but it's still clear that this is a horrible defense that needs an overhaul.
we're currently giving up 42.6 points/game in the Big Ten schedule. That's 6 TDs/game. That is an unmitigated disaster. The fact that we have 2 wins in that time is a miracle, and says wonderful things about our offense. It says enough good things, IMO, that retaining Rich Rodriguez for a 4th year makes total sense. There does not appear to be a valid reason to retain anyone on the defensive side. Coaching consistency... eh. I'm pretty sure it could not be worse than what we've seen. Give someone else a fresh shot to form a defensive identity.
The one upshot is that next year w/ T-Wolf back, there will be quite the experienced group of corners back there (if they aren't totally shell-shocked by that point).
November 6th, 2010 at 7:01 PM ^
He calls him GERG. Awesome.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:31 PM ^
as do (apparently) most college football afficionados, so his posts are to a large extent reflections on what we all read here.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:35 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 11:15 PM ^
I'm pretty sure they're all friends, and all hate Deadspin.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:09 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 7:25 PM ^
Great breakdown. And as bad as it sounds, I don't think you can totally blame GERG for the scoring binges. I mean, the offense put up 67 points itself, and just look at the some of the names that lined up on defense. He can't work miracles out there. He's still gone, but this game wasn't the one that sealed his fate; last week's game against PSU was far more egregious.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:40 PM ^
Did you not hear Griese and Compadre saying many times during the game that it is unheard of at how many freshman are starting / playing on out Defense! No other team in the Country is even close! You cannot drop GERG when his play calling and scheme's are not carried out appropriately, he just doesn't have the experienced players yet! Do you not remember our offense that past couple years!?! Is it that difficult to figure this out?!? Seriously, I am blown away with how ignorant some of these so-called fans are?! WTF?! Great victory today, the D came through at the end when they needed to and had a few three and outs today, something to build on! Go Blue, Hail, Hail. ... Beat Purd'ont!
November 6th, 2010 at 7:51 PM ^
If I were ignorant about Greg Robinson's career, I might give him the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, I know from following his career that he isn't the answer. He should not have been hired in the first place, and should not be retained.
November 6th, 2010 at 8:14 PM ^
My issue with Greg is that today was the first time this season when I could see that the defense improved from the previous week. It shouldn't take more than half a season to figure out who your best players are and to demonstrate improvement.
November 6th, 2010 at 8:41 PM ^
Griese say that all we need is a new D coordinator that can come in and fix the D and we would then be unstoppable.
The writing is on the wall and I would be surprised if GERG wasn't scapegoated at the end of the season.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:15 PM ^
42.6 points per game given up in Big Ten play. that's all you need to know. Someone's head has to roll, and I'd rather it be Greg Robinson's than the guy who's offensive scheme is one of the best in the country and just put up 67 points to win by 2.
Bad because of inexperience/youth would be, like, giving up 25.7/game. This is about as bad as it could possibly be for a team that is 6-3 and bowl-bound. it's truly mystifying.
60+ points is what you do to Baby Seal U. Our defense is about at that level. Seriously.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:40 PM ^
Seriously, the score was 45-45 at the end of the game.. We gave up 18-19 pts off T/O, in great field position..
If we end the game with no turnovers we win this game comfortably.. I dont think it should be all put on Greg Robinson.. This was the most stops our D has made all year, other than OT.
2nd half we held them scoreless on 5-7 drives.. Our offense is as much to blame for letting them score as our Defense..
It is all washed out cause the final score was 65-67 and everyone pts to the defense..
Let's see how well our D plays on the road against an Abysmal offense in Purdue next wk.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:01 PM ^
...is very well said. Co-signed.
November 6th, 2010 at 7:57 PM ^
i am neutral on robison. he didn't get to pick his staff and as several people pointed out the defensive is really young. i do really hope that brandon tells rich to tony gibson has to go. i know he and rich are good friends but the db play over last few years has been atrocious. special teams has taken a step backwards as well...
November 6th, 2010 at 8:02 PM ^
On this topic....I'm tired of hearing about the youth, injuries, etc. for the reason's why this defense is the worst ever in the History of Michigan Football. Excuses are like...you know what and at this time in juncture that is not what we need for this football program to excel. I'm a casual fan and season ticket holder, not only are the guys out of place, take terrible angles, but they have trouble just tackling. But even more telling is that I haven't seen any improvement in the defense since GERG has been here. As I discussed in other threads this may be on Rodriguez as well if he has not allowed GERG to run the defense as he wants, but at the end of the day the this is a results only business and GERG has failed. If the defense were only average this year what do you predict our record would be? I think GERG will be made a scapegoat as well, maybe it's not fair, but the on the field results have been poor. Brandon will address this after the season regardless of what Rich thinks or not.
November 6th, 2010 at 8:13 PM ^
I'm very excited about the win (everything tasted better at dinner), but there is a whole lot for this coaching staff to fix and improve with time. I would retain RR, but not Robinson, for the sole fact that his defense lacks good basic fundamentals. We can't fix the fact that there young on defense, experience and the addition of some more talent will help. But poor tackling and confusion in the player responsibilities is a coaches job to straighten out. Dido for special teams fundamentals.