Northwestern Snowflakes - The Coaching
September 29th, 2018 at 8:51 PM ^
Okay, as long as you try not to get offended when someone responds to your hot take, Leroy.
September 29th, 2018 at 10:11 PM ^
“Oh, okay now I feel better.” Sorry but that doesn’t erase your stupid childish first reaction. Bunch of pathetic children that can’t take anyone saying anything the least bit critical of mommy and daddy.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:53 PM ^
Agreed. Seen so many games where we come out in the first quarter, without any motivation and get punched in the mouth by opposing teams. The playbook is out on Michigan...run scripted plays the first quarter, get a few TDs and rock them back on their heels.
Our coaching staff does NOT get this team up and we come out flat in these fuckin games it's ridiculous. Not to mention the sloppy and stupid mistakes we constantly make.
Also our offense has sparks of brilliance but is mainly unimaginative and predictable. Neg away but I'm really fuckin underwhelmed with this coaching staff.
September 29th, 2018 at 9:32 PM ^
Especially agree with the part about the coaching staff not getting the team up for some games. I posted this in the game thread and think it needs repeating:
Would really like to know what type of tone is set by the coaches during the week. Too many stretches where it seems like everyone on the field is just looking at each other hoping that someone makes a play. Where's the steel rod spine iron jock mentality before shit goes bad?
Bo's teams had it's fair share of clunker games, but intensity was always stressed and you never saw his teams flat with any regularity.
September 29th, 2018 at 11:51 PM ^
Hard to evaluate "motivation." Was Mckeon not feeling up to it when he dropped the pass, or did he just not make the play? We have no idea what the "tone" is.
The only real data we get is when guys are too hyped and make mistakes due to being too wound up, like Rashan Gary's error flying too far upfield on that first Barkley TD last year. Turns out there's more to winning than to being motivated.
September 30th, 2018 at 5:57 PM ^
Huh, where did you get the word "motivation" from genius? Focus and intensity are a couple of factors that can go hand in hand and do lead to success on the field. These are preferably established by senior leaders, or if need be, the coaching staff. Simply asked what the tone is like in practice. Seems these traits are missing in some games.
Edit: Nevermind, I can't tell who you're responding to.
September 29th, 2018 at 9:00 PM ^
We outgained them 376 to 202.
I’d hardly call that “stole”.
Need to find discipline ASAP. Only 1 week of screwing around left before it will hurt.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:16 PM ^
I think Harbaugh did an outstanding job in the second half. However, to end the game, less halfback up the middle would have been nice. Mason could have gotten a first down there at the end to finish the game. Overall, we won. What a shitty game. But what a great second half!
September 29th, 2018 at 8:16 PM ^
Never any doubt.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:20 PM ^
Not looking prepared early is infuriating. The lack of discipline is irritating. But this type game can give a big boost to team building. Lets hope so because the talent seems to be there.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:20 PM ^
Proud of the comeback. Not impressed with the sloppiness, lathargic start and penalties (minus the Higdon ‘thing’).
September 29th, 2018 at 8:21 PM ^
Didn't feel great in the first half. A lot of that was probably Northwestern playing out of their minds - you could tell they came out with more fire than Michigan. Some of that may be on Michigan's coaches, but probably moreso Northwestern's.
It means something that Michigan was able to fight through the adversity and come out with a win. A late-game touchdown drive for the win is a meaningful accomplishment and should help build strength for this team going forward.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:21 PM ^
When a team is stacking the box and have safeties flying to the LOS at the snap, we really need to figure out something to crack some big plays. Maybe more RPO, or maybe you throw some balls up in 1-on-1 coverage
September 29th, 2018 at 8:29 PM ^
I think we had some nice deep balls. Tough to say without seeing the WRs downfield on the TV but it does seem like Shea could throw a few more arm punts when those plays don't break free
September 29th, 2018 at 8:22 PM ^
We won the game, That is all that counts.
At the end of tonight, there will only be one team in the B1G with fewer losses.
D gave up 202 yards and shut NW down for three quarters.
So get off the coaches.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:23 PM ^
Terrible game
Coverage the worse
Commercials, penalties
Even M football is unwatchable.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:52 PM ^
Then don't watch it.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:24 PM ^
Here's a thought: Coach to stop a simple slant would you please. What in the bloody hell. Every team we play has that one dialed up on us.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:30 PM ^
It's funny.. in the preview of the game, Brian states to beware of Gaz and slants. Seriously think the coaches need to start reading mgoblog vs. running towards Gaz literally all game.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:35 PM ^
Held them to 200 yards - what else can you do?
September 29th, 2018 at 8:46 PM ^
Maybe don't come out flat and give up a quick 17 points??? Just spitballing here.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:24 PM ^
You don't win many games after falling behind 17-0, especially on the road. Happy to have a win and it really feels like we stole one. Good teams find a way to win facing adversity, but good teams also don't come out so sluggish.
And clean up the penalties, for crying out loud...
September 29th, 2018 at 9:35 PM ^
Coming from behind is good, but everyone does that against NW. Akron came back from 14 down in the second half.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:25 PM ^
Came out terrible, flat, uninspired.
Shit the bed to a 17 point deficit, but came back to get an ugly road win.
Defense dominated the 2nd half. Big Delaney refs sucked...still clawed their way back to win.
Neg me to death...dont give 2 shits. Won the game.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:25 PM ^
We got lucky that Fitzgerald didn’t know what the fuck he was doing once they got up 17-0
September 29th, 2018 at 8:26 PM ^
The play calling on offense is our achilles heel.
September 29th, 2018 at 9:44 PM ^
Play calling didn't make McKeon drop an uncontested pass. Play calling didn't cause Patterson to have a bad passing game. And play calling didn't cause eight of the legitimate penalties. Granted, play calling wasn't terribly inspired, but horrible execution and penalties were a far graver problem.
September 30th, 2018 at 9:22 AM ^
Here's the thing: The players are going to have games where they don't play to their absolute potential. McKeon drop. Patterson missed a couple of throws.
But the play calling is not just a 'well sometimes there are bad games' situation. It is sort of a regular feature of JH's offensive game plans.
There are a few critical junctures where JH chose a really smart wrinkle, such as the diamond 4 wide formation on Higdon's short TD run.
OTOH, uber predictable 'Hidgon between the tackles' over and over on the last drive to drain the clock was...not good. The play calling on the two goal-to-go situations that ended in FGs...also bad.
September 30th, 2018 at 12:24 PM ^
How was the playcalling that got them to goal-to-go in the first place?
September 30th, 2018 at 4:58 PM ^
Good enough to get into the red zone against the no. 59 team in the nation, per S&P+
Big deal.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:26 PM ^
Happy the team won.. but holy cow that game was awful to watch. I just do not understand Harbaugh sometimes.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:29 PM ^
I know right? Why did he tell McKeon to drop that pass?
Why did he tell Runyan to hold?
Why did he tell Nico Collins not to get his feet down?
Why did he tell Shea Patterson to overthrow Grant Perry?
He really needs to stop calling plays that call for his players to fail on purpose.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:42 PM ^
Don't be a homer, this team coming out flat is on Harbaugh. Period.
Mental mistakes? Coaching. Penalties? Coaching. Overthrows happen. Most of the penalty calls were legit. Why is Michigan one of the most penalized teams in the country? Stop this tired narrative that the refs are out to get the team.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:44 PM ^
His job is to put the team in a position to win. It’s also his job to insert some creativity into a stubborn offense that ran inside the tackles on first down probably 70% if the time for little to no gain. If this offensive staff doesn’t add some creativity we just won’t win against big teams
September 29th, 2018 at 9:34 PM ^
I mean, to be fair, they did call about 10 first down runs up the cut that netted about 15 total yards.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:27 PM ^
Harbaugh's play calling blows.
Oh yeah his discipline blows too obviously.
and yes the refs are out to get us. The holding call on Higdon, WTF??? That official should be taken out back and shot.
September 29th, 2018 at 9:07 PM ^
There was a false start on NW's first TD. Not called, of course.
Dear Michigan defense: kickoff was at 4:30, not 5:00.
Dear Michigan offense: just because the defense only plays 3 out of 4 quarters, doesn't mean you have to throw away 1 out of every 4 downs.
September 29th, 2018 at 9:24 PM ^
Actually it was at 4:50 instead of the advertised 4:30 time so Fox could show 50 more commercials.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:27 PM ^
For the most part, I thought the offensive playcalling was fine. Guys simply did not complete the plays that were set up for them. Collins not understanding where he was on the field, McKeon dropping the ball, Runyan holding on a Patterson run, Patterson missing open guys in the end zone, etc.
Defense...I dunno. The start was so bad. I can't tell if the defense adjusted or Northwestern just came out so on fire that there was no way they could keep it up.
But the penalties. The fucking penalties. I mean yeah, there were a couple terrible calls by the refs, but for the most part Michigan just takes so many dumb fucking penalties. Is that coaching? I think so. It has to change.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:28 PM ^
I really had no issues with playcalling. I thought those two bunched formation runs that led to a Higdon TD and a Shea keeper for first were very clever.
The penalties, however, were a shit show.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:28 PM ^
Listen, we can say that it was a terrible first half because it clearly was. We can complain about the play calling because it wasn’t good, especially the first half. Yet, Harbaugh and Don Brown orchestrate a win. I’m so confused as to why Michigan fans complain so much.
Lets think about this, northwestern comes off a bye week, has a star player retire early in the week, and is at home in what amounts to their Super Bowl. This clearly is an excuse, but it did play a role in the game. We escaped with a win, the coaches now have a moment to say “this is what happens when you don’t come out sharp”. Why don’t we just give some credit to the coaches and players? Be happy with the win and bitch tomorrow about how ugly it was. If there is such a thing as a ugly win, I believe every win is important.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:29 PM ^
Northwestern defense is supposed to be pretty good, so I am not too mad about the offense struggling. At least the Oline was good in pass protection.
Insert comment about Habaugh and 7 million, make terrible record prediction
September 29th, 2018 at 8:29 PM ^
So disappointed with all those predictable runs up the middle on 1st down. All that does is tell the D exactly what's coming on 1st, and puts unnecessary pressure on the QB to throw when the D knows you have to. Very, very stubborn and damaging play calling, putting Patterson behind the 8-ball every 2nd/3rd and long. So fucking tired of seeing this. You should throw on 1st down like 30-40% of the time to keep the D honest.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:29 PM ^
I really can't stand how we come out flat in road games, and when we were down 17-7, I was ready to go off on the staff for the lethargic and self-damaging play. They deserve criticism for that, but that said, I liked that we somehow managed to come out and play the game that we probably should have play for all four quarters in the second half. I'll take the "never quit" and I'll take the determination, but we're going to need that for the entire game later in the season, not just in the second half.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:57 PM ^
Absolutely!
September 29th, 2018 at 8:32 PM ^
If our offense wasn't still a bit of a muddled mess...we'd have won this game like 35-17 even after giving them 17 points in the 1st quarter. Northwestern aren't that bad a team, and they came in with a good plan after a bye week. Our guys were likely a bit overconfident and seemed to be uncomfortable with the environment (some of the guys looked like they've never played on a soaked deep grass field i.e. the kind you'd encounter every week back in the day in the Big Ten).
I'm disappointed by the lack of positivity in our offense. I'm disappointed that the team came in sloppy. And that is on the coaching staff. I think we have a chance in most of the remaining games, but I'd also have to say that 7-5 looks distinctly possible, too.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:44 PM ^
The plays were there for that game to happen.
McKeon's drop. Nico Collins not turning up field on two third downs. Nico Collins not getting his feet down on third down. Runyan holding on a Patterson run. Patterson missing open guys on two trips to the red zone.
Coaches have to have the players more ready next time. Gotta shore this stuff up.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:32 PM ^
I have to hand it to the team for winning that game - they showed some grit. Northwestern played us tough. Would have crushed our season if we lost.
Not sure why Harbaugh teams seem to struggle on the road. Even when we win, it is always close. Looking back, 2015 had the close scare to Minn and 2OT win over Indiana. 2017 had dogfights with Purdue and Indiana (OT again). The only impressive road win was 2015 against PSU 28-16 (no I am not counting 2016 Rutgers). 2016 MSU was even closer than expected.
Only 3 road games left (and Rutgers doesn't really count) but it would be nice to figure this out before MSU.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:35 PM ^
We also need to fix the penalties - especially the soul crushing drive extending PI penalties.
September 29th, 2018 at 8:32 PM ^
On the offensive side, refs killed a couple promising drives. The holding call on Higdon was egregious. Give NW credit, they came out sharp, and early completions were not due to poor coverage. They were dead on. And then they ran out of stuff to do and Michigan's D took over.