Indiana Snowflakes: The Defense
November 6th, 2021 at 10:59 PM ^
They held Indiana to 7 points and under 200 yards. Good effort.
Gene Upshaw had a great game.
edit: Taylor Upshaw. The game was so boring I slipped into a funk.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:05 PM ^
TAYLOR Upshaw had a great game. I noticed that Ojabo didn’t get quite as much run as previous weeks - hope that was a blip and not the first step in the Uchefication* process.
*pretty sure that’s a word
November 6th, 2021 at 11:44 PM ^
A 7:30pm start on a chilly November night for a matchup against 2-6 Indiana is just silly. I feel like this game would've had a lot more "punch" and energy if it kicked off at noon.
November 7th, 2021 at 9:38 AM ^
Same, while watching I thought, what a shame this wasn't a classic, autumn day, noon start, there was no point for it to be a night game.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:00 PM ^
Pretty darn good tonight. Hutch made some nice plays. Good pass rush. Held Indy to 7 points and very few yards. Dax made some good tackles. Taylor Upshaw had a nice night. Hope G. Green is ok and back next week.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:47 PM ^
I hope Green is OK but his body language as he walked off did not look good. He was really favoring his arm or shoulder.
November 7th, 2021 at 7:27 AM ^
Seemed like there was some improved discipline pass rushing a mobile QB. There were multiple instances where a blitzer in the backfield slowed up, got a hand up, and let the QB commit to a spot where either the blitzer or his help could contain the play. Fewer instances of a DL lunging for the tackle and missing, leading to a chunk gain.
November 7th, 2021 at 10:50 AM ^
Upvote for your username!
November 6th, 2021 at 11:01 PM ^
Will be interested in seeing UFR and what changed so Barrett played pretty much the whole game.
November 7th, 2021 at 9:45 AM ^
Harbaugh explained he wanted to limit substitutions when their offense was going up tempo due to past issues.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:04 PM ^
Good stuff.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:04 PM ^
Good stuff.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:06 PM ^
Didn't like the injury to Gemon Green. Barrett seemed to play well.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:07 PM ^
Played lights out.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:08 PM ^
This was one of the first times that McDonalds defense looked better after halftime so kudos to him. The legend of Aiden Hutchinson continues to grow. He is everywhere on the field.
November 7th, 2021 at 4:56 PM ^
He had a good PBU in coverage
November 6th, 2021 at 11:16 PM ^
I certainly bitched all game long about the offense...... but the Defense was solid tonight. Good pressure and coverage.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:20 PM ^
Defensive was everywhere and dominate, very solid effort against a young offense. Hopefully it keeps translating as we hit the home stretch.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:42 PM ^
What a difference not playing Kenneth Walker makes.
Indiana is a bit of a walking mash unit and talent depleted on offense so it's hard to know exactly where the UM defense stands. I just hope Gemon Green is ok. Just when our CBs are settling in, you hate to have an injury disrupt a unit that has been playing way above preseason expectations.
Also, if I were an opposing QB I would be shitting myself at the prospect of Hutchinson and Ojabo coming for me. Those dudes are playing some incredible football!
Anyone else notice a lot more Michael Barrett than usual tonight?
November 7th, 2021 at 9:28 AM ^
I'd take Haskins over Walker any day. And not speaking like a slappy. I don't think the fanbase appreciates Haskins enough because it's gonna suck when he's gone.
November 7th, 2021 at 10:40 AM ^
Tackling Hassan Haskins takes an average of 8 months of your lifespan.
November 6th, 2021 at 11:46 PM ^
Not much to say. Bad offense playing scrubs, and except for one drive (with one horrible double-missed-tackle) it locked them down.
Gemon Green's injury looked pretty rough. He isn't our only good corner anymore, but we need everyone we can get later this season.
I will say that I have been very down on Vincent Gray. But he absolutely jailed that last sideline route, destroyed it, had a good receiver completely blanketed. Very promising.
November 7th, 2021 at 12:31 AM ^
Not sure if it's an overall improvement or the quality of QBs we've faced, but Gray, Green and Turner have been remarkably serviceable throughout the season. Probably a mix of both, along with Hutchinson and Ojabo menacing guys on basically every snap.
Feels like McDonald/Clinkscale have gotten far more from this group than Brown/Zordich. I worry about depth if Green is out though. I think I saw McBurrows on the field late? On one hand, we've had a couple of really impressive true freshmen (Colson, Anthony jump to mind), but I'm curious of where the guys in the class ahead stand.
Regardless, defense was more or less on point, so no major complaints. Feels like they were less caught out rotating guys on and off, which was the pain point uncovered last week, though it's possible Indiana didn't test McDonald on that fully.
November 7th, 2021 at 1:01 AM ^
I agree, the CBs have been fine. MSU did lose one of its two dangerous receivers, but they still had real guys there and Michigan wasn't getting *consistently* burned outside. Gave up less than 200 yards to a big play passing offense, and the biggest chunks were on fourth downs where the coverages were exploited by surprise as much as anything.
Zordich struck me as a good DB coach, but Clinkscale seems like the best case at DB coach in part because of his recruiting chops. I am confident that incorporating proper zone concepts, with some use of softer coverages, has helped. And there's enough variety that there has yet to be any one specific weakness to exploit consistently, very much unlike Don Brown defenses, which were often airtight but if there was a flaw to be found it was basically open for an entire game.
November 7th, 2021 at 1:27 AM ^
Pretty much on point. My point of mentioning McDonald/Clinkscale > Brown/Zordich is largely on the point of being able to run zone, which seemingly suits our current guys (Gray in particular) much better. As you mention, Brown's defense really needed man CBs who could survive on an island (David Long, Ambry Thomas, LeVert Hill) and even with those guys, his scheme got exposed against OSU's crossing route attack featuring talented WRs. I think Brown/Zordich are solid coaches overall, but Michigan needed a serious defensive refresh following last year.
McDonald's defense thus far has been pretty good so far, outside of the hurry up/substitution issues against MSU, which I'm willing to chalk up to the NFL vs College differences he's adapting to. Obviously we'll see how he fairs against PSU and OSU, but the early returns are good and I think should get cleaner in year 2 once he's able to further establish his system.
November 7th, 2021 at 1:08 AM ^
Can I have a few more MGoPonts to I can upvote this comment?
November 7th, 2021 at 8:50 AM ^
Gray had an easy INT there if he wanted it but recognized it was 4th down and just batted it down as he should. Not all CBs would do that.
November 7th, 2021 at 12:31 AM ^
Shout out from the mountain tops for David Ojabo. I could do the same for Hutch but he is so wildly consistent that it becomes redundant. David Ojabo has ratcheted his game up as the games become more important. We are going to see more and more game altering plays from that young man through the final three games. Watch it happen! I feel like Ojabo and Hutch are going to wreck PSU and then OSU.
November 7th, 2021 at 1:32 AM ^
Indiana presented very few challenges with a Fr QB and basically no backup available. I think IU did really welll to get what they did.
Nick Sheridan was cautious with him, even to a fault maybe, still managed to throw in 3 tricky plays that were nice and good changeups but clearly something IU didn't get enough work doing with QB #3.
Shut them down after and really before halftime, meaning the coaches and players had them pretty well figured out by the break. The chess match was pretty much over at halftime.
November 7th, 2021 at 7:53 AM ^
This was a real comeback effort. They were lights out in the 2nd half. Given the unknowns of facing a new QB vs Indiana, they adjusted well to the QB keepers in the 2 nd half.
I slept better know the defense is solid. They'll need that effort against Penn State on Saturday.