Michigan State Snowflakes: The Coaching
October 31st, 2021 at 10:30 AM ^
Remember that they had two weeks to prepare for us, were playing at home, had some very suspect officiating on their side, and were very lucky that they got a one year commitment from a very talented running back. Assuredly that does not make them a better program.
October 31st, 2021 at 12:32 PM ^
Does winning 10 of the last 14 against you make us a better program? How about the multiple recent B1G championships, Rose Bowl appearance/victory, and CFP appearance? Still no?
It seems there’s a legitimate argument that you just aren’t ready to even entertain, because there’s an existential need in your fan base to feel *superior* to MSU.
October 31st, 2021 at 6:47 PM ^
Yes. We are superior. Fuck off.
October 31st, 2021 at 12:07 PM ^
And if you're not the best at whatever you do, crg, you suck. Have it your way
October 31st, 2021 at 2:41 PM ^
Stay classy.
November 1st, 2021 at 9:59 AM ^
sparty is VERY good.
sparty is also going down to purdue this weekend. that's the matty blue five star book it lock of the week.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:10 PM ^
Harbaugh wins the FG battle, which ended up costing us the game. He lacks the killer instinct in these games and it cost us yet again. Let’s pray he gets an NFL job, because Warde isn’t firing him
McDonald had no answer for KWIII all game.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:39 PM ^
Moten and Hawkins took some horrendous angles that turned what should have been 8 yard gains into TDs.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:30 PM ^
Exactly. I don’t know if it’s youth/inexperience or talent but those bad angles probably gets Walker an invite to NYC in December.
October 30th, 2021 at 6:40 PM ^
Youth/inexperience --- can rule those out for Hawkins.
October 31st, 2021 at 10:26 AM ^
Hill wasn't much better, at least the other two were in the picture.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:01 PM ^
Yep, Field Goal Harbaugh strikes again. His entire offense is predicated on getting into field goal range. Teams like OSU try to get touchdowns on every play. That's the difference and why Jim should go.
Unfortunately this is a bad year to look for a new coach with USC and LSU (most likely Tucker) having openings. Warde will keep Harbaugh and he will get another new coordinator on offense. Rinse and repeat.
October 30th, 2021 at 7:51 PM ^
I know Harbaugh gets the blame because he is the head coach, but what about Josh Gattis? Still waiting on the speed in space.
October 30th, 2021 at 8:38 PM ^
Does it matter? How many many rounds of coordinator roulette does harbaugh get?
October 31st, 2021 at 12:14 AM ^
Where was the d? At least the offense scored enough to win most games
October 31st, 2021 at 11:55 AM ^
33 points in this era of football is rarely enough to win against top 10 teams.
It’s certainly not enough to win on the road against the the #1 team in the conference for explosive plays.
October 31st, 2021 at 1:40 AM ^
Ironically, OSU got 1 TD in 6 red zone trips tonight.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:02 PM ^
Yep, Field Goal Harbaugh strikes again. His entire offense is predicated on getting into field goal range. Teams like OSU try to get touchdowns on every play. That's the difference and why Jim should go.
Unfortunately this is a bad year to look for a new coach with USC and LSU (most likely Tucker) having openings. Warde will keep Harbaugh and he will get another new coordinator on offense. Rinse and repeat.
October 30th, 2021 at 6:51 PM ^
3 points is better than 0; going for the field goals in those situations was 100% correct in terms of long term strategy.
A larger issue is 1) brining in a DC with no experience in that role and isn't accustomed to stopping college offenses (all of the "frippery" and "college crap" that the NFL finds beneath them) and 2) the in-drive QB carousel that causes disruptions to our own offense.
October 31st, 2021 at 12:09 AM ^
No doubt. No team in the NFL uses the insane idea of going up tempo.
October 31st, 2021 at 9:54 AM ^
I mean Chip Kelly tried to and the NFL basically gave him the middle finger and said you're going to move as fast as we allow you to. Any NFL guy coming down to college with no previous experience is in for a world of hurt and McDonald learned the hard way last night
October 31st, 2021 at 1:36 PM ^
The problem is that Harbaugh views a 50 yard drive that ends with a 25 yard FG as winning football.
And that is why he builds an offense, chooses a game plan, and then selects in-game play calls (Gattis if OC but Jim wears the headset too) that too often leave Michigan in the spot where he is kicking FGs.
Once he gets into FG range the play selection is based on the premise that getting the FG counts as a win. But it is not a win. The way the game works has changed. Scoring is higher and erasing two score leads is much more common than in the past. Against a quality opponent (and in a rivalry game) if you selected your plays on the assumption that getting the FG is a win...you did it wrong.
October 31st, 2021 at 5:05 AM ^
I do think it's possible--and should be asked of him--whether going for the field goal is a model that continues to work in the NFL, but which is increasingly endangered in these days of fast-paced high-scoring offenses.
But I think we lost today because a) we were on the losing side of some reffing malpractice; b) we didn't trust Cade to play a game that he glowingly proved that he could; and c) their running back t'd off on a couple of very big runs. I'd stack the decisions to go for the FGs, none in itself hugely controversial, at the end of that list. We were ourselves scoring every time down the field, left the door open a crack, and then it yawned wide.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:10 PM ^
I never thought the day would come where I hate seeing Harbaugh on my television. That is sad.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:56 PM ^
I was done with him a couple of years ago. He came in and right away starting acting like a fool trying to pick fights and instigate everyone in the CF world. The problem is he can't back up his motor mouth. God help us against OSU this year after Motor Mouth went after Day in that B1G teleconference a year or so ago. Day is going to try and embarrass him bigtime in November
October 30th, 2021 at 7:12 PM ^
It was the MSU game last year that just ruined any goodwill that I had as a fan. I got negged to death this off-season for bitching about the extension.
October 31st, 2021 at 7:47 AM ^
Team got me back on the wagon after the Nebraska game. Nope. I’m off it. Beat OSU. Idc about anything else.
October 31st, 2021 at 10:38 AM ^
Yeah, I guess (I'm use to it now) I can understand losing to OSU but playing down to MSU's level ? GTFO ! And the a-hole fans bitching about the refs ? Uh, let this sink in - we had a 16 point lead in the 2nd half. Repeat, 16 point lead in the 2nd half. Thank you Captain Weirdo, another great job of coaching and classic example of throwing away a lead in another HUGE game.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:10 PM ^
Simple. Tucker and his coaches made adjustments. Michigan's weren't effective. Somewhere out there, Harbaugh and Gattis are calling another inside zone to Corum with no pull for a one or two yard gain. Someday...someday...
October 30th, 2021 at 4:11 PM ^
First and 10 near midfield up 3 with a chance to win the game. Cade had thrown over 300 yards up to that point and was able to move the ball all day. JJ just fumbled 3 plays earlier. Not a single Michigan fan wanted JJ in the game in that moment. Not a single one. Not even the biggest JJ supporter wanted him in the game in that moment. And Harbaugh puts him in. A Harbaugh team will always collapse. Either the punter will fumble it with 10 seconds left or the backup quarterback will.
I want the entire coaching staff gone. Harbaugh's teams collapse. Gattis doesn't know how to score a touchdown inside the 20 yard line. Macdonald is the most inept coordinator of all time. How was he not ready for MSU to go tempo? Did Michigan not practice on defense at all? Had 2nd and 18 after JJ's fumble and a chance to get the ball back and State just easily moved the ball right down the field.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:59 PM ^
Cade was in the injury tent.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:19 PM ^
Is this true? Can anyone confirm?
October 30th, 2021 at 5:47 PM ^
Per Michigan Football network, Cade McNamara is in the Michigan sideline tent.
— Matt Missler (@TheMizOnAir) October 30, 2021
McNamara emerged from the medical tent and keeps jogging laterally on sideline
— angelique (@chengelis) October 30, 2021
October 30th, 2021 at 5:14 PM ^
Harbaugh is now to blame for playing JJ. You need to put down the booze and find something else to do.
October 30th, 2021 at 8:22 PM ^
Harbaugh made plenty of poor decisions today. Hindsight shows us that this decision wasn’t one of them.
October 30th, 2021 at 7:03 PM ^
At that time JJ came in Cade was in the recovery tent.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:12 PM ^
So to recap:
- Totally unprepared for tempo use yet again and we never seem to use it as a basic offensive concept like every decent offense does
- Not ideal weather conditions to throw, MSU’s 2nd best receiver gets banged up and we let Walker run wild
- QB is having the game of his life, we rotate him out in crunch time and JJ fumbles twice
Regarding the first point, I don’t really care what Harbaugh’s floor is versus some unknown - you cannot employ a coach in 2021 and beyond that is baffled when it comes to defending and implementing tempo into your game plan. You simply can’t.
Edit - And to all you slappies that blame bag men, admissions, or the tAlEnT gAp: Michigan loses big game year after year because of Michigan. Period.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:13 PM ^
They blew a 16 point lead. You can’t blame the refs, talent gap, or anything else for that. Horrible coaching and no killer instinct.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:12 PM ^
Everyone said Harbaugh "took back the state". Well now MSU has a coach everyone mocked when he was hired because of his 5-7 record, now has them 8-0 in year two and is now 2-0 against us after inheriting a worse situation than Harbaugh inherited here. What's the excuse gonna be now? MSU once again playing OSU for the division while we once again fight for 3rd place.
Not to mention you have idiots like Lewan who year after year continue to bring out the little brother comments no matter how many times we lose. It's fucking embarrassing how this program never learns about MSU.
We literally Drew Henson'd this game away putting McCarthy back in after fumbling once already...the program never learns.
We play for field goals instead of touchdowns...the. Program. Never. Learns.
3-4 against MSU
Will probably be 0-6 against OSU
2-13 against top ten teams
Do you enjoy this? I do not.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:05 PM ^
I've been saying since day one the, "Little Brother," comments are nothing more than the perfect rage fuel for MSU.
They are an incredibly effective motivational tool for Sparty, as we have seen once again.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:53 PM ^
It's essentially a microcosm to the whole Michigan arrogance thing as a whole and the biggest problem with this Michigan as a whole. It's cringey when I see or hear it said. It's not like We've been blowing out MSU for a long time, the win / loss is pretty close.
After the game, MSU players were thanking Lewan for opening his mouth.
October 30th, 2021 at 8:11 PM ^
I was listening to Gameday on SiriusXM and did not know which fool was talking like that, but then I thought it through and figured out it was Lewan.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:23 PM ^
"We literally Drew Henson'd this game away putting McCarthy back in after fumbling once already...the program never learns."
Harbaugh had no choice but to put in JJ McCarthy because McNamara was in the medical tent going through concussion protocol. It sucks that he fumbled--maybe even the coaches' fault they players weren't in sync on that play--but not on Harbaugh for putting in McCarthy.
October 30th, 2021 at 9:33 PM ^
Well they didn’t need to put him in a read option situation when he had just fumbled in a similar situation.
October 30th, 2021 at 5:49 PM ^
Everyone DVd me over this week because I thought MSU was going to win. Everyone said "why assume a negative before it happens." I said 2015, 2017, and 2020. It has happened. While this team is significantly improved from last year, they still have significant weaknesses. Now, one close loss later and everyone wants to fire JH. Can our desire to have him as our coach really come down to 6 points?
I wanted a different coach already because of JH's flaws we already knew about. But, they thought he magically turned it around this year and were excited about the future. I thought it was the same old shit, just a better team than last year, but one that will continue to struggle with Wiscy, MSU, & PSU and never beat OSU. I'd prefer to take my chances with someone else.
One 5 point loss later and they agree. I find that odd. It's 5 points. If they were confident in JH this 5 point loss shouldn't change anything. He had the same issue's he's had all year with busts in the run game, bad red zone offense, conservative play calling, etc. He just played a team that was good enough to take advantage of them. But, it certainly didn't prove he could finally get this program beyond the 8-10 win range. I'd be fine with that win total if we were competitive with OSU and beat MSU & Wiscy more. I'm fine being 3-3 vs PSU who has similar talent. But, being 3-4 vs MSU and 0-5 vs OSU is not OK unless you literally win every other game every year.
October 30th, 2021 at 6:33 PM ^
Yeah, I noticed some folks in the “a win will cause me to” thread we’re just a chompin at the bit to get into the snowflake threads and show the “haters” what for. Now they’ll have to shift to hyping up a two loss Penn State team as some kind of monster play off contender in the hopes that a win there will move the needle.
October 30th, 2021 at 8:53 PM ^
Everyone said Harbaugh took back the state? I haven’t heard that once.
October 30th, 2021 at 11:29 PM ^
Everyone was saying it after the 2018 and 2019 wins when it looked like Mark and MSU was dead.
October 30th, 2021 at 4:13 PM ^
I found myself a bit jealous that their coaches were willing to be aggressive in that 4th and short they used to throw downfield to set up a TD. Oh well... we're conservative, I would have gotten over it.
But when they kept putting McCarthy in and breaking Cade's rhythm, even after the first fumble, I was screaming. As soon as I saw #9 in for the first play of the drive I was howling "NOOOOOOO WHYYYYY???"
Inexplicable. Just terrible. We were outcoached. Yes, we were on the wrong side of every officiating mistake, but we were still outcoached.