October 13th, 2014 at 8:52 AM ^
That, and with Devin you still have the threat of a pass. With Bellomy, PSU knows it will be a hand-off. I think making PSU play the last series honestly gave us the opportunity to run for the clinching first down.
October 13th, 2014 at 11:01 AM ^
OK, fair enough, but I still don't agree on the grounds that if you don't trust your backup QB even to take a basic snap, that just opens up a whole host of other issues.
October 13th, 2014 at 2:54 PM ^
I really hate this way of framing the question, turning what's essentially a game-theory problem into an emotional decision.
You need a hit with two outs in the bottom of the ninth; you have a .330 hitter on your bench. When you send him up to pinch-hit for a guy that hits .280, is it because you "don't trust the .280 hitter to get a hit"?
The first-team QB gets more reps with the first-team center; breaking up the more-practiced combination is likely to increase the chance of a botched snap. It doesn't matter if the increase is only from .1% to .3%--if the increased risk, plus the liability of tipping your hand that you're going to run, offsets the increased risk of a bad handoff because of Gardner's ankle, Gardner stays in. "Trust" doesn't enter into it at all.
October 12th, 2014 at 8:40 PM ^
If DG had a concussion then it is the coach's job to protect him against himself. That wasn't the case here. DG knew had more on the line than a win and I really saw him step up as a leader. He knew he was playing for his coaches, his teammates, the students, the alumni, and the brand. He was setting a new tone for the team. I commend him for being tough and playing through the pain. I hope the rest of the team steps up and follows his lead.
October 12th, 2014 at 7:34 PM ^
It has now become a meme to critidize the coach every time a Michigan player plays hurt. Gilmore sounds too much like Sally Struthers saving the children for my taste.
October 12th, 2014 at 7:47 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 7:27 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 8:40 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 7:34 PM ^
October 13th, 2014 at 11:29 AM ^
The difference between leaving Gardner in this game vs Morris in vs Minnesota (before the concussion) are worlds different in my mind.
1) This was a close game. In the Minnesota game, we were getting blown out. You generally don't want to risk further injury to a player in a game that is already out of reach.
2) Morris was completely ineffective. Gardner was not. Why continue to play an injured player who is not making any plays? Gardner showed when he came back in that he could still do something on his injury.
3) There was a viable backup to put in the game (Gardner) against Minnesota. There clearly wasn't last night. Bellomy was so atrocious that I think you could have put me into the game and it wouldn't have been any worse.
When you are deciding to play a guy on an ankle injury like that you have to decide the risk/reward of it. There was NO reward for continuing to play Morris hurt (pre-concussion) against Minnesota. It was just all risk to him, and it was STUPID. Last night there was actually reward involved, as we could still win the game, and that is why you saw Gardner so passionately lobbying to get back in there. I think it is worth the risk if your QB can still make plays and there is no viable alternative. Against Minnesota, not only could Morris not make plays, but we had a viable alternative AND almost no chance of winning. So leaving Morris out there to get pummelled was just stupid.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:56 PM ^
Agreed. And can we also talk about how hopelessly lost Bellomy looked again? What was that? In my section we were yelling for the offense to punt on 2nd down while he was out there and I was terrified they were going to burn Speight's redshirt.
October 12th, 2014 at 9:14 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 10:07 PM ^
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October 12th, 2014 at 10:07 PM ^
Gardner is one tough man, but unless our O-Line can channel its inner Bama sometime in the next 2 weeks, he's going to have to fight just to stay upright in East Lansing.
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October 12th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
Gardner is just a freak of nature warrior. He made throws where he flat out gets laid out and was a one-legged sitting duck to boot. Damn. You knew he was getting beat up watching the game live, watching it again on the DVR was almost sick at times. If there was a 1 in 1000 chance that booing a coach could accidentally be taken as personal by Gardner, that would be too much to risk for me. That guy has put it all out there.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:02 AM ^
All I will say is that I am glad he - and really this whole team - gets the bye to heal up and hopefully get a moment to sit down. Devin Gardner in particular has shown that he really is willing to give until he can't anymore repeatedly throughout the last year or more, so hopefully he is full steam when we face Michigan State.
October 13th, 2014 at 6:23 AM ^
October 13th, 2014 at 9:02 AM ^
Once again, the kid showed allot of guts...
October 13th, 2014 at 12:12 PM ^
has demonstrated that over and over. Mistakes aside, no one can question his grit over the past two seasons. Bellomy looked unprepared and lost. I expect to see UM run alot of sets with two TE's and single back. I expect to see more Hayes, and with a second or two more for Gardner (I hope), we may see some verticals. Go Blue!
October 13th, 2014 at 2:53 PM ^
Because it took *forever* to snap the ball and PSU had plenty of time to get aligned and matched up with Michigan.
So then there's naturally a huge pileup and Gardner trying to ram the back of the pile gets hit first on the ankles and then folded back from up top. Sketchy.
There has to be some kind of variant to this, I see its effective if the offense runs immediately to the ball and snaps it for a QB dive but the lengthy time element screwed this one. Especially by not getting the yardage and getting our main QB hurt. I can see something like a naked bootleg or a sprint to the edge, etc, with someone fast on the end of the line able to run out and get a block on whoever is trying to tackle or funnel on the defense's side. Going mano y mano without a dominant offensive line in short yardage is a really low percentage play....and not just Michigan...all over CFB.
Bellomy I saw throw the ball 1 time and that was into a lineman's raised arm. So I didn't see much. I expected him to do better this time rather than Lincoln, expecting fewer big angry guys chasing him all over the pocket...
October 13th, 2014 at 4:40 PM ^
Bellomy threw it twice. One was batted down and one was very nearly intercepted by Hull, and likely would have been a pick-6, and the loss of the game.