Iowa Snowflakes: The Coaching / General Stuff

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MeanJoe07

November 12th, 2016 at 11:46 PM ^

2,3,4,8,9 all lost. I think we okay, but . . . Iowa. damn it. pussy footed around with fancy plays and then it was too late. Defense got beat up as well. it looks like the Iowa running backs are going full speed at the hand off. I don't see that from most teams.

Joined: 09/15/2013

MGoPoints: 73336

ThatTCGuy

November 13th, 2016 at 12:04 AM ^

We are okay. If we win out, we're still going to the Big Ten Championship and if we beat Wisconsin there, the playoffs. All this did was make it harder on Ohio State, who now need Penn State to lose to either Michigan State or Rutgers, which isn't happening, and the committee probably isn't taking a non-Big Ten Champion Ohio State.

Joined: 01/20/2015

MGoPoints: 3544

brad

November 12th, 2016 at 11:46 PM ^

Lost because of a stunning adherence to the plan to throw on 1st down when they're getting 4-8 yards running on the few 1st downs they did run on. The safety was totally unnecessary, but the 2nd down run play was inevitable after blowing up 1st down. Difference in the game.



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Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 15888

Krakhead

November 13th, 2016 at 12:12 AM ^

I feel like many drives had a point where we 2nd and about 4 then we thew incomplete, didn't convert on 3rd and had to punt. The run game was picking up yards, not much, but if we kept it on the ground more there we probably would have had a couple more 1st downs that would have been key.

Joined: 03/13/2011

MGoPoints: 261

UMAmaizinBlue

November 12th, 2016 at 11:48 PM ^

It'll be the best day ever in televised sports when someone invents a way to listen to FOOTBALL instead of Herbstreit's (or any other commentator's) awful "analysis" opinions, and downright "why the fuck are you still talking?!" droning on about nothing. Dead air is okay when the sounds of football are happening. I was raped in my ears and in my eyes tonight so thanks for that ESPN. Follow the fucking play with your camera work!

Joined: 09/23/2009

MGoPoints: 36345

tmzenn

November 12th, 2016 at 11:47 PM ^

I felt nervous about this game from the start just because it is a night game and these are young people. Our quarterback sucked bad tonight. He happened to have one of his worst throwing games of the season. If he makes those deep throws, this isn't even a game and Iowa gives up. They had everything go their way. With the shitty refs and the bad quarterback play. That gave Iowa just enough confidence to pull it out. I hope we can get our heads out of our asses for the next few games. We can be a really great team if we get out of our own way. I do wish Jim would have pulled Speight. He just wasn't himself tonight. Sucks.

Joined: 10/11/2008

MGoPoints: 311

ThatTCGuy

November 13th, 2016 at 12:01 AM ^

Chill out. Every coach (even the great ones) sometimes gets randomly outcoached by an obviously inferior dude. Urban lost to the current Michigan State coaching staff last year with a national championship on the line, and he nearly lost to James Franklin twice. Saban has struggled with Les Miles coached teams for almost a decade and lost to Hugh Freeze two years in a row. 

Harbaugh's still a top five coach, and we still control our own destiny. All we did was fuck Ohio State over. 

Joined: 01/20/2015

MGoPoints: 3544

WMUgoblue

November 12th, 2016 at 11:48 PM ^

Play calling was poor and so were the personnel packages, need more Evans and less Smith. That said Speight was dreadful today as Michigan had the deep ball schemed multiple times and we couldn't hit any of them.

Joined: 12/06/2009

MGoPoints: 12422

jmblue

November 12th, 2016 at 11:49 PM ^

I've never understood why this community seems to think Kirk Ferentz is a bum.  All he does is post winning records every year with no recruiting base to speak of.   Whenever we play them we seem to struggle to match their physicality.   We've now lost five of six to him.  Ugh.

 

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 103061

Blau

November 13th, 2016 at 12:56 AM ^

But he's generally perceived as a overachiever at times (last year's team) and a mediocre coach who gets paid a shit ton to win despite mostly sub-par seasons which goes back to the first point. Where the real delusion exists is that this game probably saves his season and many more to come when really it is our own coaching and playing, or lack thereof, that helped him the most.

Joined: 01/23/2014

MGoPoints: 35391

jmblue

November 13th, 2016 at 1:08 AM ^

Every time we lose to Ferentz - and it's now happened seven times - we swear that it was all us and not him.  But the man's now beaten Lloyd Carr, Rich Rodriguez, Brady Hoke and Jim Harbaugh.  His teams are boring to watch and not very talented, and their lack of talent usually gets them exposed now and then.  But he gets a lot out of what he has.  Every time we play them, our OL/DL have their hands full.

 

 

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 103061

BlueinLansing

November 13th, 2016 at 10:02 AM ^

They lost at Utah, many reasons to give Michigan a bit of a pass, first Harbaugh game, first Rudock game etc etc, but man the parrallels in how Michigan looked that night to last night are many.

They beat Maryland last year 28-0 in a game that many felt was a bit underachieving, yet still pretty solid performance

They beat Minnesota by the skin of their teeth and really if not for coaching butchery by Minnesota that was a loss

They beat a bad Penn State team by 12, but it took a strong 4th Q to do so

They beat chaos team Indiana in double OT, if not for some heroics a loss.

The beat Rutgers, demolished them really but Rutgers is one of the worst Big Ten teams of the last 40 years

They beat Michigan State by 9, but was anyone really truely satisfied with how Michigan performed in the whole picture

They lost at Iowa, probably looking worse than in any of Harbaughs previous true road games at Michigan.

 

This is Harbaugh's true road game resume at Michigan,  6-2, could have been 4-4

 

I think you can say Michigan's had 4 pretty sub par road games under Harbaugh,  Utah, Minnesota, Indiana and now Iowa.  Utah probably gets an asterisk, thats a tough ask for any program going through transition in their first game.

but how do you explain Michigan's poor road performances against 6-7 teams Minnesota and Indiana and this Iowa team that is sitting on 6-4.

Joined: 09/01/2009

MGoPoints: 23521

HollywoodHokeHogan

November 12th, 2016 at 11:52 PM ^

we play crazy aggressive for most of the game (flea flickers and deep bombs) and then play as conservative as possible to finish.  Pretty much shit the bed.  Special teams cost us the game.

 

Joined: 02/12/2011

MGoPoints: 20519

theytookourjobs

November 12th, 2016 at 11:54 PM ^

Play calling was not the problem.  If Speight hits Darboh one of the 30 times he's wide open, we win.  Also what is wrong with Chesson?  Horrible game by him and Speight.  Also, Deveon Smith should have never been a feature back.  So painfully obvious that Evans is the best option

Joined: 11/24/2008

MGoPoints: 10450

Boom Goes the …

November 12th, 2016 at 11:55 PM ^

that turned into an INT.  Herbie said it was a poor throw, but still could have been caught

we get that first down and at least 3 points it doesn't get nearly as dramatic

Joined: 02/24/2013

MGoPoints: 4292

AMazinBlue

November 12th, 2016 at 11:55 PM ^

Peppers played his worst game tonight, actually just about everyone did.  How did that Iowa team get smoked last week?  Are we that bad???  We'll be lucky to stay in the top 12.  Bama would destroy this team

Joined: 10/12/2008

MGoPoints: 7197

robpollard

November 12th, 2016 at 11:55 PM ^

Hasn't been working, really, for weeks b/c there are no wrinkles to it (unlike the jet sweep, which continues to get refined). To break Peppers out on 2nd and 8 on the last series was coaching malpractice. Shockingly dumb -- you're relying on a 10 on 11 play to win the game, keyed by a Jake Butt block? You think a single Iowa player was focused on Speight, esp with his bum shoulder?

That literally could be the dumbest play call I've seen under Harbuagh. Can anything top it?

Sure, Speight played poorly -- one deep ball would have changed a lot; but that's the hard part. Our play calling gets so conservative / uncreative at the end, and that didn't give the players a chance.

Would a play action pass on 1st or 2nd down kill you when they're stacking the line?

Man, what a bummer.

Joined: 06/03/2009

MGoPoints: 14013

ppudge

November 12th, 2016 at 11:56 PM ^

Hey look, we kept one of Hoke's traditions: playing like shit on the road against any team that isn't an absolute train wreck. That game on the road in Columbus should be fun!

Joined: 10/19/2008

MGoPoints: 11466

DanDiego1999

November 13th, 2016 at 12:48 AM ^

This is just unbelievable...  If that's the case and he's not able to play in Columbus, this would be yet another QB set-back in a series of such set-backs that negatively impacted us (eventually or immediately) for The Game...
 
2001 - Henson left and John Navarre started one season too early
2004 - redshirt soph. Matt Gutierrez being injured led to a true freshman Henne starting the season (Gutierrez as the season-long starter would've arguably given us a better chance against OSU than with Henne, as the former was presumed starter around which OC Terry Malone was implementing his "motion offense" during the entire off-season)
2007 - a senior Henne entered The Game with an injured throwing shoulder
2012 - a senior Denard entered The Game with an injured throwing elbow
2013 - Devin Gardner broke his foot in The Game which had an impact on the final play (otherwise could've run in for the score)
2016 - ???????
 
On the flip side, OSU seems to have the best of luck with QB's by the time they play us...
 
2001 - soph Craig Krenzel appears out of nowhere and plays his best game against us, defeats us for the first time in Ann Arbor in 14 years, then wins the national title in 2002
2004 - soph Troy Smith appears out of nowhere and owns us for 3 straight years... It can easily be argued that, if starter Justin Zwick never became injured in '04 (right before The Game) and started as planned against us, we would've defended him much more effectively than Smith...  In this case, their loss was their gain
2008 - OSU hits the jackpot with Pryor (same story)
2011 - Braxton Miller almost beats us, makes up for it the next 2 years
2014 - Miller, Barrett, Jones
2016 - Barrett runs the ball as much as Denard ever did, but stays healthy (so far)
 
Comparatively speaking, we just seem to be cursed this century when it comes to having the best QB in his best condition when it came to The Game, while OSU has the best possible fortune.  I just don't understand this!

Joined: 09/20/2013

MGoPoints: 141

In Baugh we trust

November 12th, 2016 at 11:57 PM ^

Can someone remind me why the 5 yard facemask was taken out of the rulebook?

If they call a 5 yard facemask it still protects the players without seriously affecting the game's outcome when there is a blown call.

Joined: 03/06/2016

MGoPoints: 755

Atrained

November 12th, 2016 at 11:58 PM ^

If Penn State wins out, OSU doesn't go to the Big Ten Championship even if they beat Michigan. This is all just Harbaugh preparing a masterful troll job in case they lose to Ohio State

 

Joined: 11/16/2013

MGoPoints: 243

uminks

November 13th, 2016 at 3:08 AM ^

OSU will still make the playoffs beating a number 5 Michigan.Urban will running up the score to make sure he can get into the playoffs. I think WI will crush PSU in the B1G championship game. I could see OSU #3 and WI #4. Alabama will take WI to the woodshed. I sure hope Michigan can bounce back but our OL is sub average and our Defense is getting worse as the season goes on.

Joined: 11/10/2009

MGoPoints: 32169

skurnie

November 12th, 2016 at 11:58 PM ^

Offensive play calling was atrocious tonight. Bizarre running plays and long developing passing sequences did not help things at all. Add to that Speight was off and his receivers didn't help him out at all.

Joined: 07/31/2013

MGoPoints: 20170