Taylor Lewan doesn't appreciate your talk about Bellomy
And you know who you are...there are enough who have downgraded the kid, to viciously attacking him. Online, of course. (Along with some constructive decision making criticism....but that's not the majority, for sure)
http://annarbor.com/mi/wolverines/2012/10/taylor_lewan_i_really_dont_ap…
"I have 100 percent faith in Russell," Lewan said Monday. "I think Russell is in a tough situation. Any person that thinks they could have done a better job -- they couldn't have. I mean, 90,000 fans in red shirts screaming at you, and you're a redshirt freshman, that's a tough situation. All the things being told about Russell, I don't appreciate it. "I really don't appreciate some of things I've heard."
October 30th, 2012 at 9:18 AM ^
He's right.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:59 AM ^
I'm sorry, but Lewan is wrong. I don't want to make Bellomy out as a scapegoat here, because we would have lost regardless once denard went down...
But to say that "nobody could have done better" is just insane. I could have have spiked the ball 16 times and had a better result.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:10 AM ^
You don't really understand the point, do you?
October 30th, 2012 at 10:10 AM ^
There's nothing wrong about a starting LT defending his QB.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:17 AM ^
No, but as a fan of the team, I don't see anything wrong with saying the quarterback had a game.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:33 AM ^
I think the problem with this whole situation is that expectations for Bellomy were fairly high. All we heard after the Spring Game and from coaches and many posters here over the past few weeks was how much promise Bellomy has and how he is a very servicable backup. Couple that with the fact that we fairly recently had two true freshman QBs (Denard and Tate) come into games and tear things up and I think the deflated hopes are somewhat valid from a fans standpoint. That said, its ridiculous for people to bash a teenager like many grown men are doing. What Lewan says is correct - not one of us a--holes could do any better.
The one criticism I have in these two situations of Bellomy coming into games is the team's failure to score from inside the 10 both times he first entered the games (last Saturday and again earlier in the season). Not getting points on those two drives were killers. Score in either one of them and Bellomy's confidence and the fans' confidence in him blast off. Fail to convert on both of them and we have what we have.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:39 AM ^
There's a difference between not playing up to the Michigan fans' high expectations and being the first quarterback since 2004 to have a negative passer rating with over 20 attempts
October 30th, 2012 at 10:46 AM ^
Agreed. But like you mentioned above, there is also a difference between making a simple comment about a kid not playing well verses statements about how the kid is no good or personally attacking him. People (not you in particular, just us in general) forget that things they post get read and are searchable for all to read. The computer is a very powerful veil between us personally and the rest of the world and many of us would do well to remember that there are other individuals with feelings on the other end that read comments and are affected.
/steping off soapbox
October 30th, 2012 at 12:56 PM ^
Brendan Gibbons two years ago versus today. I support Lewan's statement.
October 30th, 2012 at 3:31 PM ^
the kid had his first meaningful action at Nebraska, at night, from behind, in a clutch game as far as the division race is concerned. This is like when Molk went down in warm-ups at the Sugar Bowl. (I felt so bad for Rocko Khoury then when many people dumped on him.) Russell was taken off guard, and was totally flustered. The freak Smith turnover made it worse, and his fundamentals just left him.
Sure, he should have been better mentally prepared to step in, but remember the games against U Mass, Purdue, and Illinois, and how late into the game Denard played? Understood that Denard needed some game reps to get up to speed himself, but I would have given up one or two touchdowns in each of those games for six more series for Bellomy.
Then don't get me started on Gardner ... our game experienced back up QB that everyone thought should be a WR ...
The theme is that the player plays to the expectation for the position. Clearly Russell Bellomy did not. He was flustered, and I don't see that the coaching staff did enough to prepare him for it. They gambled on getting Denard more game experience and putting Devin at WR, and the chickens came home to roost.
October 30th, 2012 at 12:09 PM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 8:35 PM ^
...other than using some purple language to describe the game. Oh, and posting the pictures of GERG and Borges side-by-side. That's not much of a knock on Bellomy.
What I said was that it appeared that Bellomy was inexcusably poorly prepared to be the Plan B In The Event Of No Denard. Which is never so much of a stretch. I said "poorly prepared," and my criticism was mostly aimed at the offensive staff.
If Taylor Lewan is angry, that's okay with me. An angry Taylor Lewan is fine. Just no more personal fouls, please. And a highly-motivated Taylor Lewan, anxious to protect his QB no matter what his name, is also good.
You go, Taylor. Kick some ass. On Saturday.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:23 AM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 10:25 AM ^
Whether Lewan is wrong or not he's doing the right thing here. If Bellomy read half of the stuff on here his confidence would be at an all time low. Being a team leader Lewan has to keep this team together no matter what. I hope Lewan sticks around next year!
October 30th, 2012 at 1:30 PM ^
Is what you said going to help the team prepare, or help the fans support the team? Conclusin, was that comment necessary?
October 30th, 2012 at 8:27 PM ^
Was yours? Ought "unnecessary" to leave "unnecessary" alone when it's otherwise unnecessary? Or perhaps your "unnecessary" negates his, and both are therefore absolutely necessary?
Kind sir - you have unwittingly strangled up my mind; people are getting uglier and I'm feeling relatively uncertain about my sense of time.
October 30th, 2012 at 2:00 PM ^
sorry about the double post
October 30th, 2012 at 2:46 PM ^
Fans are critical of any player who doesn't perform well. They do it on all levels of sports in every sport. From pee-wee leagues to the pros and I'm sure if he had a bad game in high school he had a few articles wrote about that. It comes with being a visible public figure on a big stage. He should have been ready to play , he wasn't and he took some heat
October 30th, 2012 at 4:29 PM ^
He is right but for a different reason. He's right because the criticism should be on Borges for having nothing to counter the Nebraska blitz, and for having Russ so underprepared. Hostile environment has little to do with it. Borges is the one who should be taking all of the heat, with a minor frown going to receivers dropping balls.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:20 AM ^
Walmarts gonna Walmart.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:20 AM ^
Glad to see Lewan is sticking up for his teammates.
I just hope Bellomy doesn't get discouraged with what is posted out there regarding his performance this weekend.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:21 AM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 9:27 AM ^
Bellomy.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:29 AM ^
Apparently my autocorrect was not impressed with him either.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:22 AM ^
yesterday i saw someone try to coin the phrase "Bellomy'd"...
I know the kid didnt scramble 40 yards for a touchdown on his first play like denard did, but he got put in a very very tough spot and i dont know why everyone is placing all the blame on him when no one on offense could get anything going.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:31 AM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 12:42 PM ^
You're absolutely right. There's nothing wrong with saying a kid had a bad game, hell I'm sure Bellomy would be the first to say that. He definitely deserves some criticism.
However, ripping a kid relentlessly (a RS Freshman with limited game experience no less) should not be tolerated. There's no doubt in my mind that he can play much better than he showed on Saturday and that if he's given another chance he'll make some good plays.
October 31st, 2012 at 1:08 AM ^
you can have this opinion, for sure, but 9 out of 10 times, a freshman in that situation is going to suck, especially when the offense they run is geared around a once in a generation dual threat talent surrounded by a mishmash of mediocre talent. Fitz Toussaint can't manage 3 yards a carry with denard IN the game to draw defenders. How is that going to work when the QB is not a credible threat.
a lot of "fans" have this crazy expectation that players magically arrive ready to play at a "D-1" level. You don't become a star taking 10% of reps, if that, in an offense tailored to someone else. Sure, Russ does not show elite armstrength, but that's about all I really think I learned, along side "Bellomy is not a spread QB". The thing I DID learn about is that he hustled his ass off and made a fucking enormous tackle after throwing the interception. That shows me that he will work his ass off to get better.
You are living in a dream world where we have a backup Denard to come in and run his offense.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:53 AM ^
That was me. I'm not fully placing blame on him, but he was not competent. He had the same number of completions to Nebraska as he did to Michigan. There were lots of the 18 pass attempts that were not even close to the receiver as they skipped off the turf or flew high to our old friend Tacopants.
I was there on Saturday, and yes, it was loud, but it's not his first year in the program, nor has he shown to be a viable option even when playing at Michigan Stadium, as his numbers are just as bad.
I place more blame on the coaching staff for not having the kid ready to step in when needed. There has been more than once this season that Denard was still playing in the 4th quarter when the game is out of reach of the opponent. We all know that Denard has gone down in previous years and someone had to step in for an extended period of time. Hoke and Borges should have inserted Bellomy earlier to prepare the kid.
In short, Bellomy appears to not be ready and the coaching staff has made mistakes by not assuring that he is when Denard gets injured.
I fully hope for him to imporve and become a great player at Michigan, he just hasn't shown it yet.
October 31st, 2012 at 1:16 AM ^
no, your argument is horseshit.
are you fucking kidding me? I want Denard taking every possible rep in practice to get better so that we increase our chance of winning. Your backup gets 10% of reps, if that. It is an anomaly to have a Tate Forcier waiting with 13 starts under his belt to step in and not skip a beat. Coaches gamble with reps and preparation. Most of the time, they get burned if the starter goes down, unless you have a backup groomed for the same type of offense. Take Oregon, when Dennis Dixon went out with the knee. They were fucked. Texas, when McCoy went down in the NC game. Shit happens, but really, you won't learn anything about Bellomy until he's actually competing for meaningful reps next spring.
I will give you this: there have definitely been times earlier this season, where they could definitely have gotten Bellomy some reps in game situations.
October 30th, 2012 at 12:13 PM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 1:08 PM ^
Please don't call Borges' WCO a "spread." It isn't even a hybrid. This staff is going to need its full five years before we see what it is really capable of doing.
October 30th, 2012 at 1:19 PM ^
Regardless of what this offense is called right now, it is full of players brought in to run a RR spread, and so Borges has to give something. Whatever the Xs and Os of Borges' offense will be, the players that they are bringing in don't look anything like the players we have now (bigger bodied receivers, "pro-style" quarterback; massive linemen, etc.) So, I agree, because it will take some time to get "his" players in here, it will take some time to see what the offense will look like, how Bellomy or any other quarterback will perform in it, and whether it is ultimately successful.
October 30th, 2012 at 12:36 PM ^
I know that I had some unfair expectations. Prior to the Nebraska game, Hoke said that they have lots of faith and confidence in Bellomy. Because of that I thought he would be able to manage the game better. Stepping back from it, I know he tried his best in the situation he was placed in. It just so happens that it wasn't good enough that night and it wasn't all his fault.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:25 AM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 10:05 AM ^
October 30th, 2012 at 11:31 PM ^
I'm afraid we've swung too much in the other direction. Let's be objectively honest: It's not unreasonable to expect any quarterback, even a redshirt freshman with more than a year in the system, to throw fewer than 3 interceptions, complete more than 3 out of 16 passes, or average more than 2.4 yards per pass. In one half.
Look, nobody should personally attack any player for any reason. But to suggest that Bellomy's performance (emphasis on performance) was anthing other than terrible is, quite simply, untrue. Yes, it was at Nebraska. Yes, there were lights and much drunken debauchery in the stands. Yes, Denard, of dilithium, was unexpectedly hurt. But Nebraska isn't the '85 Bears (or insert your preferred impenetrable NFL defense)
It's ok to expect a modicum of mediocrity even under the circumstances. It just didn't happen. That doesn't mean hope is lost for Bellomy's future, and it doesn't mean that he was put in the absolute best position to succeed on Saturday.
He played poorly, and I'm sure he'd be the first to admit it. But in any event, I'm glad that Taylor Lewan is standing up for him. That's leadership.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:29 AM ^
Good for Taylor.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:29 AM ^
someone who is actively involved with the program, or our esteemed posters?
October 30th, 2012 at 9:32 AM ^
Did anyone else notice how fast Bellomy was? After he threw one of those interceptions, he chased down the dude from behind. Thought that was impressive. See... we can compliment, too, around here.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:02 AM ^
I agree. His closing speed on interception returns is what sets him apart from freshman Navarre.
October 30th, 2012 at 11:38 AM ^
on that one 12ish yard run he had for a first down where I think he was running for his life from Nebraska's umpteenth suicide blitz
October 31st, 2012 at 1:00 AM ^
It was 15 yards and Michigan's longest rush of the day.
October 30th, 2012 at 4:01 PM ^
If there was one game this second half reminded me of, it was the RS Freshman Navarre two-minute drill against UCLA in 2000. Henson was out, and Navarre was so atrocious that we were trying to engineer an end-of-game comeback without throwing the ball.
Of course, in that game we had like 250 yds rushing, so we still scored 20 points. So maybe it wasn't quite as similar as it seemed.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:34 AM ^
I'm upset with the coaches, not Bellomy. I think they did an inadequate job of preparing him and put him in a very difficult situation. With that said, If Denard ever goes down again, I really hope Gardner goes in. Bellomy proved he's far from ready which is typical of any redshirt freshman. Good for Lewan to step up for him.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:53 AM ^
We still know next to nothing about Gardner, though. Except he's older. I want to think he'd be ALOT better, but we really don't know. If Gardner starts at Minn, we still won't know because he'll face a different defense.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:53 AM ^
double post.
October 30th, 2012 at 10:07 AM ^
Part of me wants to say, "There's an expectation to play that position at Michigan", however, I can't reasonably expect Bellomy to match those expectations at this point in his career. On the same note, I can't reasonably expect the coaches to prepare him to match those expectations at this point. Heck, we haven't seen Denard meet those expectations in some games this season.
Which is why I am more disappointed in the coaching staff's inability to prepare a running game that doesn't rely on Denard after 8 games this season. Any resemblance of a grind-it-out type running game in the second half would have relieved the pressure off Bellomy and given them a chance to win the game.
October 30th, 2012 at 9:34 AM ^
the more dismayed I am by other grown a$s men who disparage these kids who are out there playing a game. I want to see Michigan win as much as the next guy (likely more, considering all the beatings I suffered at the hands of Buckeye fans as a child), but for the love of God, if these young men don't win, there is no reason to speak so poorly of them. It's not like they are actively trying to fail.
I suspect many of these critics have not overcome much adversity in their own lives.
October 30th, 2012 at 11:25 AM ^
Agreed. Not a grown a$s man here, but still mature enough to see this. On Sunday I woke up and was still very upset about the game, on the way to the cafeteria in South Quad I passed none other than Bellomy himself and that set me straight in a way. I felt bad, but just thinking about how hard this kid has worked and how bad he must feel was sobering. As fans we're allowed to be sad and upset (the emotional connection to the game is the point of being a fan), but in the end, A) you're just a fan, and B) it's just a game. I stand by my criticism of his game, and I still say that was one of the (if not the singular) worst QB performance I have seen in my life watching Michigan football, but personal attacks and slander take it way too far.