Maryland Snowflakes: The Coaching
November 20th, 2021 at 7:58 PM ^
I have hope for next week. Harbaugh, Gattis & Moore will have an offensive gameplan prepared specifically for osu. M has players. They should be able to score a reasonable amount against the buckeye defense.
Can Michigan's defense get enough stops to give M a chance?
A couple turnovers, a couple fortuitous bounces. God knows we deserve it. Going into The Game 10-1 with hope. That's all I can say.
November 21st, 2021 at 6:31 AM ^
Hope? And not expect? That’s the issue at hand. The Game being so dominated by OSU over the past 20 years has become more of a mental game than X’s and O’s. OSU players ‘expect’ to make plays, OSU fans ‘expect’ victory. While UM talks of ‘hope.
Living in Columbus since 1977 the Game up until Tressel were great. The past 20 years, not so much. I’m tired of ‘hope’. I ‘expect’ UM to win.
November 20th, 2021 at 8:09 PM ^
Jim Harbaugh's success this season doesn't negate his failures and shortcomings of the past. But the success we've enjoyed this season, especially considering all of the promising young talent on the roster, suggests he may have learned some lessons. Harbaugh moving forward does not automatically equal Harbaugh of the past.
Michigan State is a very good team and they went down 49-0 before halftime against Ohio State. Hopefully the game next week will be competitive with Michigan coming out with a W but either way, the Harbaugh haters have probably been proven wrong.
November 20th, 2021 at 10:47 PM ^
I agree with your take here. What I'm excited about is that I think Harbaugh/the team have taken a different direction. In some ways it feels like a first-year scenario. Half the coaching staff is new, the defensive scheme is different, and the attitude seems different. So I think and hope that this program is going to keep on building off this season, as opposed to regressing like it felt like they did after 2015-2016. Coming away with a W next week would really accelerate that process, obviously.
November 20th, 2021 at 8:13 PM ^
They gave Ohio a lot to look at and think about.
November 20th, 2021 at 8:14 PM ^
Nothing but praise from me. Things I liked:
- Most importantly, team was READY. Didn't look past Maryland, and well prepared.
- Liked the run/pass mix. Loved taking advantage of Edwards' obvious pass receiving chops.
- ST brilliant. I will have fond dreams of the blocking caravan set up in front of Henning. Beautiful, beautiful play.
- Great vibe on the team. So much positive energy. Of course, winning helps with that.
- Smart football. So few turnovers, so few penalties, so few huge busts. Everyone predicted the new system would cause tons of busts - didn't happen.
- Time to acknowledge player development. Schoonmaker and All are SOOOOO much improved. OL, while not perfect, has become really solid. DJ Turner has become a dynamic playmaker. Haskins and Barrett have developed from odd pieces to important contributors. Cade is maximizing his talent.
Well done, Michigan! Beat Ohio!
November 20th, 2021 at 8:14 PM ^
Fuck Ohio State, and the state of Ohio!
That is all!
November 20th, 2021 at 8:27 PM ^
To all the naysayer crass assholes who ripped me for saying we would win double digits, and ripped Harbaugh good at the same time,. EAT SHIT AND IDENTIFY YOURSELF.
November 20th, 2021 at 8:34 PM ^
Don't hold your breath.
November 21st, 2021 at 7:29 AM ^
I appreciate you saying this. I called for a 10 win season this year after last year’s PSU loss (on a different message board) and took a ton of crap and “Fire Harbaugh hire Soup” for it.
I’m not an I told you so type guy but those people who failed to stick with the team through adversity deserve to be called to the mat.
November 20th, 2021 at 9:07 PM ^
I honestly can't remember the last time we looked this damn good the week before The Game.
We are going to beat OSU.
November 20th, 2021 at 9:11 PM ^
I've been saying this all year. We are winning next week.
November 20th, 2021 at 10:09 PM ^
Somebody pointed it out but it was either 2015 or 2016 where we killed Maryland the week before the game and then that was the year of the JT Barrett spot. We came very close that year. I think Harbaugh has to be prepared for the offense to engage in a shootout. It’s possible we get pressure and force them to punt but more likely our offense is going to have to put up points whatever way possible. Have to hope Aiden and Ojabo have the game of their lives.
November 20th, 2021 at 10:51 PM ^
And when was the last time we had a team this good going into The Game in Ann Arbor? 2003? It seems like all the really good teams since then have been in even years, thus having to play in that dump in Columbus.
November 21st, 2021 at 7:32 AM ^
I would argue the 2003 team was definitively better talented, but your point absolutely holds. Best team for a home game in a while, especially when you account for injuries (2019, 2007).
November 21st, 2021 at 8:05 AM ^
Had a great chance to win in 2017
November 20th, 2021 at 10:18 PM ^
The one big issue I had with the coaching was the use of the challenge. The receiver for Maryland clearly trapped the ball right in front of our sideline yet no challenge and they went in to score a td. Then we challenge a meaningless illegal man down field when the back ups are in. We can't make mistakes like that in tight ballgames.
November 20th, 2021 at 11:41 PM ^
Was it a clear trap? The only angle that they showed at the stadium was the end zone camera, and it was absolutely unclear. Maybe it was a trap -- the players on the sideline certainly thought so -- but I couldn't tell.
That said, the illegal man downfield challenge wasn't meaningless at all: it would have been Villari's first career completion and Selzer's first career catch. Who knows if they'd ever have another opportunity? Coach Harbaugh was trying to get his players something they'd remember for the rest of their lives.
Will that help beat OSU? It certainly can't hurt to know that your coach cares.
November 21st, 2021 at 1:28 PM ^
I think the challenge on the Selzer catch was because it was his first catch in a game.
His previous 1st catch in a game was almost a great one, and everyone was excited for him, but on replay, refs saw that the ball just touched the ground, so it was overturned.
This one was a good catch and a great run afterwards. Then was negated by the penalty.
I think Harbaugh contested it just in case, as it was close, and Michigan didn't need any more time outs given the hugely lopsided score.
That's a coach who has a lot of thought for players, including guys down in the depth chart who work hard every day.
November 20th, 2021 at 11:04 PM ^
Meh. They did their job today. Scored TD's instead of FG's. Not enough to give me a fuzzy feeling about next week.
November 20th, 2021 at 11:06 PM ^
For me this season is a success no matter the outcome of the next games. We've won at least 10 games. We're going to have maximum 3 losses and a rose bowl appearance. We're going to have attained a top 5 ranking for at least a week.
I personally don't think you have to measure every season on whether we beat OSU. Basketball still counts successful seasons if we make the elite eight. I think the team deserves to have fun and enjoy themselves like they did tonight without constant "but what about ohio" nagging. The coaches looked to be enjoying themselves and they coached loose and the team played loose. Everybody loves to make fun of UM because we take ourselves way too seriously. Congrats Harbaugh and the players on an awesome and fun season.
November 21st, 2021 at 6:25 AM ^
Everyone loves to make fun of U of M because we lose to Ohio State every year.
I don't really disagree with anything else you said but I suspect everyone (players and coaches included) would be a lot more satisfied if we didn't, you know, do that this year. Just this once.
Let's all have nice things for Christmas.
November 20th, 2021 at 11:29 PM ^
Win the “Game”
November 21st, 2021 at 9:58 AM ^
Maryland may have been down some key players but it wouldn't have made much difference with Taulia having one of his down days. He was 19/33, 178, 5.4ypa, 1 INT, 1TD and a QBR of 45.2. That the Terps run a flat out, pass first, up-tempo, spread offense and Taulia performing like that predicts a Maryland loss with a large share of the contribution to it by a confused and inaccurate QB. M's defense contributed to that as well.
I can't help but think that Taulia scrambling as much as he did (and then only putting up 30y with a long of 17 with his legs is a a sign of both good pressure and good contain of a dual threat QB by the scheme MacDonald deployed - looked like 3-3-5 and 4-2-5 Nickle predominated and worked as expected (awaiting UFR).
A defense like that is going to give up some run plays so, I'm reluctant to get on board with criticizing M's DTs. The back end (hard to see on TV) was probably Cover-2 where M tends to play one of the Ss closer to the LOS. See Taulia stats to assess how good it was or just go with ....it was very good.
Maryland ranks #50 in total offense with an average of 425ypg. M's D held them to well under that at 356 (noteworthy only 178 passing for a pass heavy offense and 3/14 on 3rd down). Objectively, I'd give M's defense a B+. There were some missed tackles at the LOS and 2nd level that turned a couple of what should have been 2y gains into 8+ but that's nit picking
November 21st, 2021 at 1:46 PM ^
Satisfactory, with a gold star for Jay Harbaugh.
November 21st, 2021 at 3:37 PM ^
A couple things noticed:
-- on one of our short-yardage getting-stuffed plays, we lined up in that long line overloaded to right side formation, their D was overloaded to our left side. We ran into that overloaded left side again. (Could hear Seth's eyes roll from here in Texas where I am this weekend.) The interesting thing, though, was broadcast panned over to Harbaugh and you could clearly read his lips and expression: "What was that?! Run it right!" Interesting. That's something apparently coaches expecting the players to see and change on the field?
-- I cannot understand why coaches didn't call TO to force the review of the non-catch that got MD out of 3rd and 18 deep in own end into plus territory, and eventually a TD (and 2 point, because: have we stopped a single one this year? or scored a single one?). Has anyone heard an explanation for why they didn't TO to force that review?