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Obviously JJ needs to put…

Obviously JJ needs to put some air under the longball. Let his receivers run under it or if needed high point it like WR's have done to us in the last couple games. (No one high points a bullet.) My guess is he does it during practice but he gets too amped up during games and reverts to what he knows, throwing bullets.

Hunter never attempts the…

Hunter never attempts the same shot twice - it's all some unique flip or jump hook or runner/jumper hybrid. Next year (where ever he is) he needs to figure out a repetitive shot that the smaller players can't cover. I think he respects the defense too much, always trying to surprise them. Take it to them with a couple impossible to miss post up moves and challenge the defense (many times shorter defense) to stop you.

Last year I thought Juwan…

Last year I thought Juwan didn't play Chaundee enough and got the feeling he was unaware of just how good he was - especially shooting. This year I never understood why Caleb would get the 2nd most minutes on the team. He was young and showed flashes of brilliance in some home games, but come on it was so obvious he didn't belong out there. Probably was anointed because his 5 star status, but do we think for a moment that TWill, Bufkin and Frankie didn't notice? Today when the wheels had fallen off and Caleb/Jones/Eli/Diabate were all panicking, Collins should have gotten some minutes at guard and TWill should have replaced Caleb, and Bufkin should have been inserted to see if he could handle the pressure.

Excellent write up Alex,…

Excellent write up Alex, thanks for the "objective optimism".

When you anoint someone and…

When you anoint someone and not make them earn it, things often turn out poorly. Shea Patterson, Drew Henson and now Caleb Houstan. All 5 stars handed starting rolls. Nothing against them as individuals - if coach wants to anoint you, how could you decline it? From Little League to the corporate boardroom and the halls of congress, it happens everywhere. Houstan is averaging 31 minutes per game - more than anyone other than Eli. More than even Hunter. Now Caleb may some day be an NBA HOFer but right now he's not good at basketball. I known this may be a little harsh, but when he's on the court UM is playing 4 on 5. Put him in a rotation with Williams and Bufkin, playing the hot hand of the three the most minutes - problem solved. Sorry I'm bashing a player I hope to some day soon be a huge fan of - but that's what I'm seeing.

Liked seeing Kobe/Collins…

Liked seeing Kobe/Collins/Zeb get quality minutes. The split between Bufkin/Houstan of 18/22 minutes works much better than the 2/38 we've seen previously. Bufkin brought some quickness and energy. It looks like he might be decent on the boards especially for his size. 

When I bought my B1G…

When I bought my B1G championship tickets I had to:

1. Spent hours looking at 8-9 sites

2. I decided on Stubhub - had to find my password

3. Discovered the processing fee was $80 per ticket - started process over

4. Other sites had similar fees

5. Back to Stubhub - ordered tix paid the money

6. Waited for an email from unknown person

7. Email (that I missed originally) said ticket master.

8. Set up Ticket Master app - needed to find very old password 

9. Needed to find Apple password to set up app

10. Tix magically appears on Ticketmaster app

11. Learned from daughter how to send tix to Apple Wallet

12. Although it didn't look like much - no bar code etc. tix on Apple Wallet on phone worked at gate

VERY STRESSFUL FOR AN OLD GUY!!

$350 after fee 

$350 after fee 

I'm sorry for a negative…

I'm sorry for a negative comment on a freshman who is high school age but I would guess that was the worst game Houstan has ever played in his life. I think there's evidence he's going to be really good and may never have a game that bad ever again. He played 39 minutes - just way too much given his production. On the other hand Bufkin only played 9 minutes and flashed some brilliance - looks exciting too, that extra pump fake at the rim around the shot blocker was awesome - get 20-25 minutes I think he'll make a difference.

2 points - 1st isn't the…

2 points - 1st isn't the replay intended to get the call right? If we looked at the video replays during UM games since it's inception in a very high percentage of plays the plays are reversed to the WRONG call. I can understand missing a hold or PI in real time - but if you're looking at a video you should be able to bat 1000 not maybe 195. How was that not a fumble on the strip sack? 

2nd - I'm tired of Sparty coming up with some fluke reason each year to beat us. Bad call, freak play, bad weather, wet grass - this year ridiculous good fortune on the transfer portal. Guess what next year and the year after that and after that etc. they are going to come up with something - we need to do what it takes to win this game - just like they do.

The running game has been…

The running game has been great in part due to the best one/two combination at RB in the country and possibly ever at UM. We're elite - no reason to be humble. I really believe they will succeed as the schedule gets tougher.

Sorry to do this, but I'm a…

Sorry to do this, but I'm a masochist when it comes to UM losses and I feel I need to do this for closure. This was a great team and a fun team and we had a great year, but here is a recap of UM's last 7 shots:

2.03 Hunter gets left side position down low and is short on left hand layup. Score was 48-47

1:32 Mike makes a nice drive from the left side, sneaks a right hand layup past defense - comes up short. Score was 48-47

.44 Franz drives through middle, veers off to the left (instead of right hand) gets fouled. Misses left hand layup long. Made both foul shots. Score after play 50-49

.12 Franz 3 pointer short. Hunter's pick worked to perfection, gets Franz open and Hunter gets position for rebound. 50-49

.09 Eli flips rebound up short, Hunter had position for anything long. 50-49

.035 Mike gets open look for 3, shot is very, very close

.005 Somehow there's time for a catch and shoot and Franz gets off decent shot - had a chance to bank in.

Sorry for negativity but I needed to get that off my chest.

I'm actually a fan of Zeb…

I'm actually a fan of Zeb Jackson, he seems to have good handles, a nice looking left hand stroke and some quickness. It looks like he currently has little confidence. He's going in looking to play "hero ball" and hit some difficult shot to prove himself. He needs minutes playing as roll player to gain confidence. 

 

The announcers ignored it…

The announcers ignored it and I don't see a lot of mentions anywhere, but Dickenson's between the legs pass under the basket in a crowd was just brilliant. I know it basically was after the whistle - hence it was ignored, but it would have lead to an easy layup by the UM player (forget who it was) who was cleanly catching the pass in space under the basket.

Good shooters shoot poorly…

Good shooters shoot poorly when their legs are tired. Is coach pushing them too hard in practice the day before games?

I mean this as a criticism…

I mean this as a criticism of the coaching staff and not the player, but Shea never really earned his starting role - he was anointed. Like other 5 stars like Henson and Greene, not only was he handed the job he may have been promised it. Hopefully next year the job goes to the player that earns it in a true merit based competition.

I hope we're not looking at…

I hope we're not looking at it's either Johns or Teske on the floor. In the long run that's only going to hurt Johns. Isn't Johns the perfect 4? 

What we should have done today was platoon Teske in after stoppage of play when we were on defense. When Pritchard blew by Simpson, Teske help out defense would have been nice. Keep Johns in (although his missed free throws was fatigue) I would have platooned a smaller player back in when possible on offense. Basically Johns would be the 4 on D and the 5 on offense. Obviously can't do it every time but OMG now that they replay so many plays there's a stoppage on a very high percentage of possessions.

Johns had 5 offensive…

Johns had 5 offensive rebounds, next closest only 2. I recall he rebounded like a beast last year against Indiana. If he gets the playing time looks like he could be a weapon on the boards. 

Thanks

Thanks

The sideline reporter…

The sideline reporter mentioned Shea thinks if we run the table we could make the playoffs. This was mocked by the announcers. Is it possible? Obviously it would include a victory over THEosu. But 2 loses and no B1G title. 

Also (since I'm typing), why did Maryland start at the 30 after a touchback kickoff? (At 14-0) No one said anything. Did I miss something?

Could someone in attendance…

Could someone in attendance discuss the wind. Was it part of the reason UM and especially Shea struggled in the 3rd quarter?

When Mason came into the…

When Mason came into the game, he was so obviously confused that UM had to call a timeout. Before the missed pass to Collins he seemed uncertain on that play also. His body language continued to scream confusion before the very predictable fumble play. Any coach calling for that play or involved in getting Mason prepared for offense is incompetent. It reminds me of the play in the Outback Bowl where we put in a TE (maybe McKeon) to take the handoff. Don't have to be a football expert to see incompetence in both cases.

Matthews twisted ankle…

Matthews twisted ankle against Sparty in the 1st game seemed so benign at the time unlike the terrible gruesome twisted ankle today, which to me looked similar. (I'm not a doctor) Unfortunately I believe it lead to all 3 losses. First game we play 4 on 5 for most of the game because of it. 2nd game obviously missed his leadership, rebounding and toughness and his ability to create during the droughts. Today he was limited again. He covered McQuaid for 30 seconds or so and McQuaid had trouble dribbling. Wish we could have had a healthy Charles checking him for all 40. 

I'd love to hear a more…

I'd love to hear a more detailed discussion on whether Livers should get more minutes and be a more go to option on offense. He leads the team in 3 point percentage, even his misses are close. He's way more consistent than the 3 starters at the 2,3,4. His points, rebounds, and assists per minutes played are impressive. He averages 21 minutes a game, I think the obvious answer going forward is he gets 30 minutes a game with an expectation he plays a key role in the offense. 

Athletes are entitled to a…

Athletes are entitled to a post game meal at the expense of the institution. May as well go somewhere nice. 

Mathews had 4 points and…

Matthews had 4 points and ZERO rebounds. Obviously he was playing injured. Didn't have his normal quickness to get his shot. If he was healthy we could have used him on Winston more. Hopefully he's healthy in 13 days.

When Josh Ross jammed the…

When Josh Ross jammed the receiver Davis at the line of scrimmage before the ball was thrown on the huge 3rd and 3 - is that a penalty?? On NDC the hit is obscured by the score graphic. Flutie and Terico laugh about him "being tackled" and comment what a good explanation the ref's "ball crossed the line" was. NDC didn't show a replay. Ross gets up looking confused. As am I. I'm not an expert but if a receiver has not gone one yard past the line of scrimmage before the ball is in the air - can't the defender hit him? Maybe not grab him? Shouldn't this play be a little controversial?

That move reminds me of when…

That move reminds me of when the Pistons hired Dick Vitale away from U of D. The Titans were never the same and the Pistons fired him a year or two later.

Izzo Scheme

tOSU crashed the offensive boards with several heavy set dudes - one listed at 270 lbs. Lot's of forearms and elbows. Seems they went out and hired a coach, Holtmann, with the same basketball philosophy as Izzo. We'll be shouting "box out" for years to come.

Fade Route

I think we'll see more success with the fade route in future years than we did this last year.

Why is there even a fake "flopping" narrative??

Ok, the video evidence is he was OBVIOUSLY pulled down - you can see the back of his jersey move. Whoever did it should be banished from ever being allowed on the sidelines. When Herbstreit screws up and brings up "flopping" - how stupid. How can we get that idiot off UM games??

So Tarik Black would be eligible for a medical redshirt?

With less than 30% of the season completed and pre-midpoint of the season, my understanding is Black would be eligible for a redshirt, but I'm not an expert. Any experts out there?

When the evidence is on UM's side why side with OSU?

So Preacher Mike - are you looking at the SB Nation video? Answer what is the relationship of Barretts left hand, which he is instinctively reaching out to the 15 yard line, and the ball. Do you think the ball is over his left hand?? (which I can see in the video no need to say it's in his facemask again.) Also in the video - I will grant you it looks close - he actually gets near the yellow line you love so much. Do you not realize the angle makes it looks like he gets a little further than he actually does?

http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2016/11/26/13753594/ohio-state-...

Preacher Mike's Deceptive Picture

Hey "Big Fan" Preacher Mike, look at the SB Nation's video. Look at Barrett's left hand when Wormley's right hand is near the ball. Barrett reached out to the white line - since he probably knew that's where he needed to go. In the video, because of the angle, it's looks like his left hand is several inches past the white line. However your picture indicates his left hand just touches over the white line. As the video shows the ball is 18" or so short of where his left hand is when he reached out to the line. It's not right above his left hand at all. Actually your deceptive picture in concert with the video proves he was short. (Which we knew all along any how.) 

hey dummy the yellow line is meaningless

Who are these clowns (Preacher Mike) that claim to be UM fans and say "gee guys, sorry but I think he made the 1st down". THE YELLOW LINE IS MEANINGLESS!!!!!! Check out the video below and think about the angle it's from. He doesn't make it - it's indisputable.

 

http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2016/11/26/13753594/ohio-state…

Since when is the yellow line official?

All this discussion on whether he gets to the yellow line is wrong. They started on the 25 and he needs to get to the 15, the white line. And in spite of 88's holding, Wormley, while kneeling on the line, reaches out with his right arm and stops the ball short of the white line. That damn yellow line is a distraction.

Can we keep Herbstreit off UM vs. OSU games?

Watching some of the old classics on BTN I noticed for years now it's a Buckeye alum announcing the game, either Herbstreit or previously Chris Speilman. Herbstreit is very clever in his subtle Buckeye bias. Is there any way of pressuring the broadcast to keeping OSU out of the booth? Next week KH will tell the world who should be in the tournament. He'll be all sincere and logical as he tells us how deserving the Buckeyes are.

Paul Bunyan Trophy not on Field but in Locker Room??????????????

I read where UM wasn't able to celebrate with the trophy on the field, but rather the trophy was retrieved by the equipment manager from the locker room. Sounds like another jerk move by Dantonio. Hope this doesn't go unnoticed, I don't even see it mentioned here anywhere.

Irvin at 4?

Thanks for response to my post. I don't disagree in that we will continue to see Irvin at the 4 - but I think the roster numbers should force some revision of that strategy - otherwise is Beilein using 7 scholarships on 1 position? Plus if you've been playing a 4 guard offense and you're the worst in the country - that's worst in the country (based on shooting percentage in paint) in interior defense, you may want to go to two bigs. Sure they may not be Teske and Donnal at the same time, but ideally I think Wagner has the quickness for the 4. If Davis and Teske pan out and play as freshmen, Wagner/Chatman/Wilson will need to be 4's. 

Doesn't the idea of Irvin playing the 4 again worry you? I don't want to bash him - he's clearly a decent 3.

Some Optimism for next year

1. 100% return - that's huge in college hoops. Guys get better, more confident and decent coaches learn how to use them better. MAAR will be used better, Donnal's confidence will improve, Wagner will get better, gain confidence and be used better. Same for Robinson.

2. We are really underrating our recruiting class, especially Xavier Simpson. He looks to be a tremendous player, if he were a couple inches taller he would be a "one and done" talent. He was the best player in the state of Ohio. He will be the real deal from day one and make it possible for Walton to play proper minutes. Austin Davis had a double double in 23 out of 24 games. He had 46 pts, 13 rebs, and 9 blocks in a regional class B tournament game. (42/19/6 in district finals) He's 6' 10" and shot 77% from the line. Teske is over 7'.

3. Without any transfers or redshirting that puts UM at 7 bigs. Wagner/Donnal/Davis/Chatman/Teske/Wilson/Doyle (in order of my opinion of them) Can we possibly be the worst interior defense in the country again? There is no way that Zak Irvin (or Robinson) plays at the 4 - add those two to the wing depth and rotate the 7 bigs into 2 spots the center and a real power forward. 

Anything less than mid 20 wins, top 4 in B1G and #4 or better seed in Big Dance, will be a disappointment.

How about some optimism

I know it's a cliche but "wait till next year". That will be the year to judge coach Beilein by - no excuses, but the ceiling is very very high.

At the 1. Walton is going to be extremely experienced, and lets face it he is good. Instead of Dakich providing minutes when Walton needs a rest it will Xavier Simpson (see video at bottom) Mr. Basketball Ohio, 30 pt average, at 5'11" was the best player in the state, dominating for the D1 state runner-up. UM should have the best point gaurd minutes in the country.

At the 2. MAAR who came on as UM's best dribble drive guy in years. He will be big time experienced next year, and hopefully coach B better uses his unique skills. Walton/MAAR/Simpson should be the best backcourt in B1G. If Dawkins played minutes he would be a better than average B1G shooting guard too.

At the 3. A super experienced Zak Irvin should be a much better than average shooting small forward. Seems to have discovered he's at his best shooting 2 pointers with unique shooting form. Robinson should be a 3 but may get minutes at the 4 - he showed he's more than a shooter and should actually shoot better next year. 3 star Ibi Watson probably redshirts.

At the 4. We have the volume with some experience. I'd like to see Wagner get minutes there - that's the highest upside. Chatman and or D.J. could contribute with the additional experience - both, but especially Chatman, flashed upside. Coach B may want to play an actual second big at the 4 given the roster and the fact everyone else in the country does.

At the 5. I'm probably higher on 3 star 6' 10" Davis than most anyone. Given his senior year stats I see him immediately starting. (23 out of 24 double doubles)

http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/austin-davis/u-EVYBkPEeS00gAmVebEWg/gen…

If not Davis then there's at least an improving, experienced Donnal. Big men get better with experience and he is trending up. I see him making more 3's, and maybe just maybe dunking rather than the finesse finger tip rolls. 4 Star Teske at 7'1" or 7'2" is still growing. If he doesn't redshirt and plays well enough to demand minutes then we are in the unprecedented situation of too many bigs. Doyle with all his experience will not see a lot of minutes.

Not sure there's enough scholarships but Spike could request another year - he might want to be part of what may happen next year - Walton/Spike/Xavier what point guard play that would be!! Walton won't have the bad minutes due to tired legs.

Simpson is #5 on Lima in the following video:

https://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A2KLqIO2nvBWJlwAYx00nIlQ…--?p=Lima+Senior+Vs.+Westerville+High+School&vid=86488d691955696fcde84f7ee30c66f5&turl=http%3A%2F%2Ftse2.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DVS.421542694253%26pid%3D15.1%26h%3D168%26w%3D300%26c%3D7%26rs%3D1&rurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPkeOt3FTT9I&tit=HS+Basketball+%7C+Lima+Se…

The interior defense is absurdly bad

As a fan, watching this game was a lot like when your football team can't stop the run. SMU was gaining 15 yards a play off tackle all night long. How many dunks did they have? One guy alone had 9. This isn't "meeting the eye test". 

What to do: 

1. I like the idea above - use the bench and press the hell out these types of teams. (Since they end up scoring with dunks anyhow.) I don't think we scored once off the fast break last night. This is where LeVert would shine.

2. Move LeVert back on defense to a 3 maybe 4.

3. Let's face it the answer is going to have to come from Donnal / Wilson / Wagner / Chatman. These are the role players that need to rebound and play interior defense. Last night in the few minutes they played the 4 of them combined for 1 foul. They ALL should have 3 or 4 the way that game went. An earlier comment mentioned Chatman had 2 rebounds in minimal time and everyone responded his offensive game is weak. So what! - If he has ANY natural rebounding skills who cares if he never scores. I also think Wilson obviously needed to see the floor sooner last night too.

4. Rebounding and interior defense does not require a 5 star McGary. U of D, Oakland, Eastern, Toledo - basically everybody is doing it better than us right now with 6'7" 2 stars. There actually may be a creative way of finding a walkon that can rebound better than everyone mentioned in #3.

5. Coach needs to focus more on this - this is not the 1st year of this problem.

Sorry for the long post - thanks for reading this far.

ESPNU Announcers

Never noticed an all female announcing crew for a men's game - not that there's anything wrong with it. At least it wasn't Millen.

Bring in spread defensive guru

I can never understand how every year Urban runs a two man offense with one play (with wrinkles) - and it works every time against everybody except lucky Sparty in a monsoon. Is there any more helpless feeling than this 98% running offense just running down your throat? Urban isn't going anywhere - they will be running this same spread against us next year in Columbus. I trust Coach Harbaugh against any pro style offense, but somewhere on this staff we need a spread geek that understands all the nuances and possibilities on how to stop it.

No Questions about Drake Johnson??

Was there even any comments about the RB position? Really would have liked to hear what JH thinks about what kind of production we could see from Drake J.

Was there ever any explanation????

Last December Cowherd claimed he knew who UM was hiring and it would be a total and welcomed surprise to UM fans. It was like he wasn't aware we were all hoping for Harbaugh and there really weren't any surprises by that point that would be welcomed. Did he ever say a name? Did he admit it was a hoax? To my recollection there was never any follow up. As bad as the national media covered the story wasn't Cowherd the Brian Williams of the coverage?

Conservative to the point of giving it away

I'm no softball expert, and obviously in an attempted double play a runner on third scores 100% of the time (at least in baseball), but with runners on 3rd and 1st with no out (and 1 out and 2 out) - why not have the runner at 1st attempt to steal? The pitcher is throwing "rise balls" six, seven feet high and the catcher has already sent one into center field. If she's out you still have the tying run at third. If she's safe - winning run in scoring position. And in THE MOST LIKELY CASE the defense screws it up the tying run scores and the winning run is at least at second.

Constructive Criticism

First, stop having Spike take it out. Need to be throwing TO him, not from him, when the other team is fouling to catch up and we're in the 1 and 1 bonus. In addition he's not tall enough. (Zak's foul shooting down the stretch last night couldn't last - and it didn't)

Second, when up by 3 and only seconds left, foul and put them on the line. Maybe it's been mentioned that there is some risk the other team may try to get into the act of shooting but there was plenty of opportunity to foul before that last night.

And lastly, Bielfeldt's bad pass was partially due to Northwestern having a guy on the inbounds pass. With 2.4 seconds left and the other team taking it out under their own basket - put a guy on the inbounder - best case scenario the guy throws it out of bounds without it being touched.

 

291 Days and 333 Days

In case Coach Harbaugh needs this information for any reason, next years game (at home) against the Sparty's is in 291 days (from Tuesday Dec 30) and the game against OSU (also at home) is in 333 days from Tuesday. (If someone wants to check my math - please do.)

What game wasn't he "terribly effective"?

He gained 28 yards on 3 carries against App State and then didn't have a carry vs. ND, Miami, Utah, Minny, Rutgers, PSU ZERO carries. Which game wasn't he effective?