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FORMATION NOTES: All gun or pistol until some goal line snaps on which Michigan went under center. Rutgers ran every front known to man.

That's definitely a thing! Whatever it is! I may have been less than diligent at sussing out what every front actually was.

Short yardage featured three tight ends and sometimes Erick All would motion back to fullback. All gets after it as a blocker but I mean… Michigan has fullbacks on the roster.

Michigan had the usual mix of 3 WR, 1 TE and 2 WR, 2 TE snaps. McKeon's injury meant it slid a little bit more towards the former. A couple of two-RB snaps saw Michigan with a slot guy in the backfield.

SUBSTITUTION NOTES: OL the usual Runyan/Bredeson/Ruiz/Onwenu/Mayfield. No Hayes rotation until very late. Spanellis got a few late snaps so he's most or all of the way back from injury.

QB went Patterson, Milton, Sessa with McCaffrey out. Slightly odd they didn't spend one of McNamara's games here.

RB was a near-even rotation between Turner, Charbonnet, Wilson, and Haskins. Turner and Charbonnet got almost all the early snaps; Haskins got in late and is probably going to be a backup option in more competitive games.

WR also a near even rotation with Bell, DPJ, Black, and Collins all getting about half the snaps. Jackson and Sainristil each had about 10, some of them with the first team but mostly on the second team. TE saw Eubanks get more snaps than any other skill guy; Erick All and Schoonmaker filled in for McKeon, mostly All. Muhammad got in late.

[After THE JUMP: an oasis in the desert! Possibly the mirage of one!]

Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M20	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	4-3 even	7	Run	Power O	Charbonnet	6
Jet fake, power the other way. No read, 6 v 7 in box. Rutgers then has a guy hanging outside of the force guy so M gets it back. Onwenu(+2) puts a DT on the ground, immediate pancake. Bredeson(+0.5) pulls and gets his kickout. Mayfield(+0.5) gets a free release to a LB and gets him. No one really shows for Eubanks; he should probably look for work before the LS, either the LB who screwed up and is coming back or the DT able to peel off Ruiz’s(-0.5) block.Those two guys tackle from the side at 3 yards, YAC.
M26	2	4	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel over	6.5	Pass	Waggle out	Bell	14
Stretch PA, rollout into a pretty standard waggle with a guy in the flat and some deeper routes. Bell (route+) draws man coverage vs a safety and breaks it back upfield, open by yards. Patterson makes no mistake. (CA, 3, protection N/A, RPS +1
M40	1	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 even SAM	7.5	Run	Down CG	Turner	2
Block down on the DL, pull two guys around. This a legitimate 6 v 8 box with a safety at six yards so even though all the blocks get made it doesn’t go anywhere. Eubanks(+0.5) and Mayfield(+0.5) get additional shoves on guys already slanting away. Onwenu(+0.5) gets a kick; Ruiz(+0.5) finds another LB. Turner makes a late decision right off Ruiz’s butt and still gets truck sticked by the safety. RPS –1.
M42	2	8	Pistol twins twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel even	6.5	Run	Zone stretch	Turner	10
Gap is largely because Onwenu(+1) and Ruiz(+1) end up doubling a DT and blowing him four yards downfield. Mayfield(+0.5) found and got a second level block; Turner(+0.5) slides through the gaps efficiently. Bredeson(-0.5) had some issues with the other DT but did have enough of an impact to prevent a tackle at the LOS.
O48	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide tight	1	1	3	Nickel even	6.5	Pass	Out	Collins	48
This is really just a five yard out that the DB is so far off on that he can’t tackle. His post throw angle is a lot of it, this could have been 12 yards. Instead a blown tackle attempt that’s not even a plus for Collins and gone. All(+0.5) with the cutoff on the S that he makes clear is not flag-worthy by pulling off enough. (CA, 3, protection 1/1) Collins route + I guess?
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 7-0, 12 min 1st Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M39	1	10	Pistol trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 even	7.5	Pass	Deep out	Bell	17
A million years for Patterson, who has patience and finds Bell as he goes from WR #3 to a 15-yard out. Ball is high and forces a leaping catch out of Bell; torn. There is a zone defender underneath sort of and this could be safety first. It does prevent a potential bunch of YAC. (MA, 2, protection 3/3)
O44	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 even SAM	7	Run	Inside zone	Charbonnet	8
Jet fake. IZ. Onwenu(+1) again puts his guy a couple yards from where he wants to be. M doubles an end with Mayfield(+1) releasing and getting a good, moving second level block. I think Eubanks(-1) messed up and is supposed to step around; both guys release and DE could be trouble if this doesn’t hit as quickly as it does. Charbonnet(+1) has a slick cut right off Mayfield and spins through a safety tackle that Collins(-1) was not assertive enough on with his block.
O36	2	2	Shotgun 4-wide tight	1	2	2	4-3 even SAM	7	Run	Inside zone	Charbonnet	4 (Pen -5)
First play on which a read is even threatened and ye gods this is a pull. I am assuming it is not a real read. It’s such a pull read (even though it is not a read) that Charbonnet’s(+0.5) best move is to cut all the way back since there’s a DE crashing hard on Eubanks. No gap as a result of the crash and then the DE is able to peel back and get in a tackle. Jackson(-1) is the guy I’m blaming for the illegal formation.
O41	2	7	Shotgun 2-back	1	1	3	Nickel over	6	Run	Outside zone	Charbonnet	4
Jackson in backfield, flare motion out. I’m rusty on my OZ, but: backside DT fires hard and I think Ruiz(-1) needs to feel that and give Onwenu help. Onwenu(+0.5) battles hard and does a pretty good job to stall this guy out after his first step got him into the backfield but he has to give ground to do so and Charbonnet has to bend around this. Mayfield(+1) gets a good backside cut; Bredeson(+0.5) initially stalled but gets some depth on the other DT eventually. Ruiz goes for a LB and that guy is headed to a gap outside; Charbonnet(+0.5) cuts back and just can’t quite get past the first level because of the bend.
O37	3	3	Shotgun trips tight bunch	1	1	3	4-3 over	7	Penalty	False start	Onwenu	-5
Onwenu -1.
O42	3	8	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	Okie one	6.5	Pass	Throwaway	N/A	Inc (Pen +10)
Very bad from Patterson, who appears to lock in on Bell the whole play. Rutgers drops a LB into that throwing lane. Patterson has forever and due to some yakety sax that knocks a Rutgers DB over, DPJ is wide open for a walk-in TD. Patterson never finds it. He bails the pocket after forever and boots it OOB. M gets lucky as refs(+3) throw a horrible holding flag on a Rutgers DB. (TAX, 0, protection 3/3)
O32	1	10	Shotgun 2-back	1	1	3	4-3 under	7	Pass	Dumpoff	Haskins	5 (Pen +10)
Mayfield(-2) beat pretty much clean around the corner. He pushes the DE to nine yards instead of eight and that is enough time for Patterson to get the ball out under duress. (CA+, 3, protection 0/2). Another holding call on Rutgers; no replay, dunno.
O22	1	10	Pistol 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	7	Run	Pin and pull	Turner	1
Eubanks(-2) loses his edge block against the DE. Can’t run PNP and lose the EMLOS block. Turner cuts back. Runyan’s guy is chasing but this always happens on PNP because you’re giving up backside blocking angles.
O21	2	9	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel even	7	Pass	Sack	N/A	-4
Hand clap induces a blitz tip from Rutgers. Runyan(-2) doesn’t read it and get out on it, instead blocking a guy that Bredeson has correctly targeted. Patterson has to bug out, can’t find anyone, runs OOB for a sack. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2, Patterson -1)
O25	3	13	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	6	Pass	Fade	DPJ	22
Yeah that’s an option with your guy who throws beautiful fades and your legion of giant NFL receivers. Patterson cannot place this better. DPJ gets a rake from the DB after and holds on. (DO, 2, protection 1/1)
O3	1	G	Shotgun 3TE	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	Down CG	Haskins	0
Schoonmaker(-2) zips past an OLB on the LOS he absolutely has to block down on. Onwenu(+1) gets this guy and is able to step around him and seal him inside. Ruiz(+0.5) gets around this to kick. Haskins in the clear, except that All(-2) targeted the wrong guy and could only abort with a late attempted shoulder shove that did nothing to prevent the S from coming in on Haskins.
O3	2	G	Pistol 3TE	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	Inside zone	Haskins	0
Schoonmaker(-2) again blows an assignment. OLB lines up inside of him. Presnap he moves outside. He flares to be force. All kicks him. Schoonmaker… also kicks him. Free hitter at three yards is a problem. No respect to QB boot on this play. Mayfield(+0.5) got some push on a guy and popped on a second so if Schoonmaker is blocking the LB who gets Haskins this could be a TD.
O3	3	G	Ace 3TE	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	QB naked boot	Patterson	3
Patterson has a route from Eubanks that is equally open, to boot. Filing this is a run anyway. RPS +1.
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 14-0, 5 min 1st Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M5	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6	Pass	Out	Collins	11
CB playing way off with inside leverage so this is easy. Runyan(-1) does get chucked away for some pressure. (CA,3, protection ½)
M16	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	3-4 over	7	Run	Power O	Charbonnet	-2
Ruiz(-2) airballs on the NT, who surges to the backfield and picks off All. Bredeson(-1) doesn’t read the slant from the DL and runs to a second level with no one; he should be picking up the Runyan(+1) downblock and making it count; Runyan shoves his guy and gets to the second level. Onwenu(+0.5) gets a kickout but no second puller means Charbonnet gets tattooed.
M14	2	12	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel over	7.5	Run	Pin and pull	Charbonnet	6
All(+0.5) gets decent push on a downblock; Bredeson(+0.5) and Ownenu(+0.5) pull around and get their blocks. Charbonnet(+1) has a free hitter who is a safety who started at eight; he breaks that tackle… mostly. he’s about to go get a chunk after breaking the tackle but it juuuuuust brings him down. RPS -1, free hitter S at 8.
M20	3	6	Shotgun 2TE tight	1	2	2	Nickel over	6.5	Pass	Deep out	Collins	Inc
Time. Nobody open. Patterson goes with Collins on an out route; Collins(Route -) stumbles and ends up out of the line of the throw, which looked okay. (MA, 0, protection 2/2). Gattis is furious at the refs after this.
Drive Notes: Punt, 14-0, 13 min 2nd Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M47	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel over	6.5	Pass	Waggle deep out	Black	22
Another big chunk on a waggle as Black(route+) gets open by two yards. Patterson squares his shoulders as he’s moving opposite his throwing arm and puts in a strike. (DO, 3, protection N/A)
O31	1	10	Shotgun 4-wide	1	1	3	30 nickel slide	6	Pass	Post	DPJ	28 (Pen -5)
Light box and off coverage from Rutgers. Three man rush converts to 4 with delayed blitzer; LBs don’t get depth, DPJ easily beats S to post. Patterson nails him. (DO, 3, protection 2/2). It comes back because both DPJ and Collins lined up on the LOS. Probably a DPJ issue since he was in the slot, but dunno.
O36	1	15	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	30 nickel slide	6	Pass	PA TE in	Eubanks	13
PA, pull sucks the LB level in hard, so a big window in the middle of the field. Patterson hits it but makes Eubanks go to a full stretch to bring it in. (MA, 2, protection 1/1, RPS +1)
O23	2	2	Pistol twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 even	7	Run	Zone stretch	Wilson	4
TEs clear the edge with Eubanks(+1) and All(+1) driving a DE and All pops out on an overhang DB. Onwenu wants to pass up the DT but he slants to him since there’s a blitz on behind him; Ruiz(+0.5) finds that and cuts it off. Onwenu(+0.5) does react to the DT and stop him on a not-quite reach block; want to see Wilson(-1) put his foot in the ground and cut because he might break an ankle tackle and get a big play.
O19	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	6.5	Pass	Hitch	Black	8
Soft coverage, hitch is easy. Patterson throws a wobbler and Black lets it get to his chest so this is a little ramshackle but charting is largely results-based. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
O11	2	2	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 over	7	Run	Power O	Wilson	1
Blocked up; Runyan(+0.5) gets a down block; Onwenu(+0.5) gets some push on a kickout. All(+1) comes around as the second man through and gets low to thunk a linebacker. Wilson(-0.5) gets a CB to him in a fairly small gap and can’t really do anything with him, minimal YAC. RPS -1; jet fake took away a potential blocker and didn’t get much done otherwise.
O10	3	1	Shotgun trips tight bunch	1	1	3	4-4 over	10	Run	Duo	Haskins	5
Orbit motion from DPJ, mesh but no real read with no unblocked end. IZ with mega-extended doubles is duo and I’ll try to call that out better this year. Ruiz(+0.5) and Onwenu(+0.5) move one DT; Bredeson(+0.5) and Runyan(+0.5) the other, and Haskins just burrows behind them to convert. LB ran around this and tried to get in an ankle tackle but not enough.
O5	1	G	Shotgun 3TE	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	Split zone	Haskins	0
RU pinches their line to prevent more doubles. Bubble over the TEs but split zone takes one of them away from the POA. Mayfield(-1) is doubling a DL with Onwenu(-0.5), nobody gets much push; Mayfield appears to be looking up a LB who is not coming and misses a safety who is until very late. Bredeson(-1) got shed on the backside and Haskins has nowhere to go.
O5	2	G	Shotgun 3TE tight	1	3	1	Goal line	11	Pass	Waggle scramble	Patterson	5
RU covers most of this but in part because a DB pulls the Watson draft on Schoonmaker (refs -2) and should really be flagged. RU has a DB run his ass off to get to Bell in the flat; they’ve also got a safety there and that leaves no one for the QB. (SCR, N/A, protection N/A)
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 21-0, 7 min 2nd Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M37	1	10	Pistol 3-wide	1	1	3	3-3 stack	7	Run	Zone stretch	Turner	10
Turner rescues this as Bredeson(-0.5) and Ruiz(-1) fail to do anything with the playside DE. Bredeson goes vertical on him and he’s able to swim over the top and get into the rushing lane; Ruiz isn’t stepping around and his pushing is counterproductive. Onwenu(-1) also loses a guy who ends up behind him. Runyan(+1) finds his guy and has an extended driving block on him; he doesn’t get enough push early for a +2 but not bad. Eubanks(+0.5) gets a kickout. Turner(+2) ends up in a pocket of space he should get nailed in but breaks three tackles and bursts for a nice gain.
M47	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 under	7	Run	Inside zone	Turner	4
Jet fake, mesh, no respect for either really. Mayfield(+1) and Schoonmaker(+0.5) double a DT and Mayfield shoves him down the line; All(-0.5) sees his guy dive inside of him; he’s never going to keep this guy out of the gap but he’s light and gets shoved back a bit. Turner(+0.5) is decisive and is able to crunch a solid number of yards out of this. RPS -1.
O49	2	6	Shotgun 3-wide	2	1	2	4-3 even	7	Run	Jet sweep	Turner	6
Turner at WR, jet action, and the give. Haskins(+0.5) leads out and gets a decent shove on a DL who was dropping into space on the snap; Mayfield(+0.5) makes decent downfield contact on a LB; Turner cuts up behind Haskins’s block. He’s at the sticks when Mayfield’s guy sticks him impressively.
O43	1	10	Shotgun 2-back	1	1	3	Nickel even	6	Run	Zone stretch	Jackson	2
Slant away from the play causes some hesitation and weird blocking. Runyan(+0.5) blocks down on a guy slanting away from him; he does recover to get a kickout block on the overhang guy coming down. Bredeson(+1) is able to step around and seal him. Usually good but because of the slant LBs are charging hard to fill this gap. Ruiz decides to pull around the Bredeson block a yard in the backfield and he gets to the POA; he is not in time to be helpful. Jackson(-0.5) could have more patience here to set up his blocks. RPS –1.
O41	2	8	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	Nickel even	6	Pass	In	Bell	9
Excellent pocket; RU screws up their blitz timing and that does help. Patterson stands in and fires a dart to Bell that’s a hair or two late; this allows a S to come over and hit the ball just as Bell catches it. It bounces off Bell’s chestplate and back into his hands. Probably more luck than anything, but okay here’s your 1. (MA, 1, protection 2/2)
O32	1	10	Shotgun 2TE	1	2	2	4-3 even	7.5	Run	Split zone	Wilson	4
Slant to this; Onwenu(+1) reads it, stalls out a DE diving inside, and then leaves to hit a linebacker. Mayfield leaves that guy as well because he sees a blitzer coming and goes to pick that up. M would be better off if he just stuck with the original guy but that’s a good kind of error, I guess. Ruiz(+1) seals and moves the NT so a decent hole for Wilson(-0.5); Wilson ends up running right into the LB Onwenu is blocking and going down with no YAC. Gotta at least bend away from him and let him hit you from the side; feel like Wilson’s feet aren’t as quick as Turner/Charbonnet.
O28	2	6	Shotgun 4-wide	1	1	3	3-3 stack	6	Pass	Deep out	Bell	10
Nice pocket, mostly. Mayfield does let his guy around the edge a little but pushes him past Patterson without incident. Patterson throws a nice looping ball to Bell to convert. (CA, 3, protection 2/2). Technical difficulties mean there’s some projection here.
O18	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6	Pass	TE out	Eubanks	3
This is a dumpdown option but seemingly the correct one; could try Collins on an in. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
O15	2	7	Shotgun trips tight bunch	1	1	3	Exotic	6	Pass	Corner	Bell	Inc
Bell has a little separation; not a ton. Patterson leaves it short and allows the DB to get a relatively easy PBU. MA/IN borderline. (MA, 0, protection 2/2)
O15	3	7	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6	Pass	Fade	Collins	Inc
Miscommunication between Collins(route -) and Patterson that I put on Collins, who’s looking over his inside shoulder on a fade that hits the ground at the lower left corner of the M and looks for all the world like a great back-shoulder fade. (MA, 0, protection 1/1)
Drive Notes: FG(32), 24-0, EOH. Rutgers fumbles kickoff to start second half.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
O15	1	10	Pistol twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 even	7.5	Run	Zone stretch	Turner	3
M gets RU to tip a blitz and then checks; they check to a stretch away from the blitz, which is fine I guess but they don’t execute very well. Ruiz(-1) doesn’t chip a DT slanting to him and Bredeson gets a very difficult task to try to slow this guy down. Turner doesn’t like it and moves outside. Understandable. All(-1) goes straight upfield and his guy easily pops outside of him. Eubanks(+1) has a DB to the outside; Mayfield has no angle on a LB once it bounces. Turner gets what he can on the edge.
O12	2	7	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6	Run	Belly	Turner	5
DE tucked inside of Eubanks(+1); Eubanks blocks down on him on IZ, which moves that guy some distance and opens up a cutback lane; safety coming down fills it after a reasonable distance.
O7	3	2	Shotgun 4-wide tight	1	2	2	30 nickel slide	7	Run	Inside zone	Turner	7
Mayfield(+1) fires out and drives a DT a little, then seals him outside. Eubanks(+1) makes a pretty tough block to get down and cut off an OLB trying to slant inside of him. Usually when a TE off the LOS tries this it goes badly. He manages to shut the door. Ruiz(+0.5) fires a NT down the line; Onwenu(+0.5) finds a second level guy to cut off. Turner(+1) zips up the gap, meeting a safety at the four. He’s able to keep his feet, keep his legs moving, and churn. A shove from Runyan(+0.5) breaks the plane.
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 31-0, 14 min 3rd Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M8	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6.5	Pass	RPO slant	Bell	Inc
RPO wipes the LB level, probably because Michigan has run the ball at all; Bell is open. Patterson’s throw is low, below the knees, and Bell can’t bring it in. (IN, 2, RPO)
M8	2	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel under	6.5	Pass	Waggle flat	DPJ	17
WR stack has a guy in press and a deeper guy. Guy in press runs with Bell vertically; off guy has DPJ and has to run with that. Easy open pitch and catch. (CA, 3, RPS +1) DPJ(+1) breaks a tackle to add some yards.
M25	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel even	6	Pass	TE Y Cross	Eubanks	26
PA, tons of time. Deep switch routes from the two WRs drag defenders deep and pop Eubanks open on the cross. Patterson hits him in stride. (DO, 3, protection 3/3)
O49	1	10	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	6	Pass	Comeback	Bell	11
Go threatened; Bell breaks it off and has a couple of yards of separation when Patterson puts it on him. Bell is able to dodge a tackle for a second and get a couple YAC. (CA, 3, protection 2/2, Bell route +)
O38	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 under	7.5	Run	Inside zone	Turner	3
Keep possible, should be made, not grading or RPSing this since it’s 31-0 but it does matter to the run structure. Backside is actually there but Turner starts frontside and there is an okay gap there he takes. Ruiz again leaves immediately; Bredeson(-0.5) has tough job and kind of doesn’t get there. Onwenu(+0.5) carves some space; Bredeson’s guy comes off to tackle as turner passes. All(+1) had a completely irrelevant block but does send a DB for a ride.
O35	2	7	Shotgun twin TE	1	2	2	Nickel even	6.5	Run	Inside zone	Turner	3
Man, Ruiz(-1) just keeps doing nothing on plays. Here he snaps and sees no one because the LB level is shifted so heavily weakside and never touches anyone. If he looks for work and hits the guy Bredeson is dealing with maybe they carve a frontside gap. Instead there’s not much of one despite Onwenu(+0.5) and Mayfield(+0.5) giving to to one DT; Turner cuts backside into the shifted LB level and gets an unblocked guy. Eubanks(+0.5) drove an OLB to open up what space there is.
O32	3	4	Shotgun 4-wide	1	1	3	Okie two	6	Pass	Fade	Collins	INT
I’m never going to criticize a decision to go at Collins on a go one on one; the throw… yeah. Patterson leaves this short an inside; nice play by the DB to come down with it. (IN, 1, protection 1/1)
Drive Notes: Interception, 31-0, 9 min 3rd Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
O40	1	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	Nickel over	6.5	Pass	Bubble screen	DPJ	17
Ain’t sayin’ nothin’. RU safety plays this horribly. Should be 7-8 yards, he goes vertical and makes it much more. Black(+0.5) and Collins(+0.5) both get adequate edge blocks. (CA, 3, screen, RPS +1)
O23	1	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 over	7	Pass	Wheel	DPJ	Inc
Looks like RU covers everything pretty well. Patterson could check down to Wilson but goes for DPJ, who is on a wheel against a LB. Patterson puts it a little too far outside and upfield as he tries for the perfect throw instead of the 50/50 ball. 50/50 would have been better; a LB in coverage against DPJ is a good bet. (IN, 0, protection 2/2)
O23	2	10	Shotgun twin TE	1	2	2	3-4 weak	7	Run	Power O	Turner	0
RU slants to the strong side as they inevitably must given their alignment. DT shaded between Onwenu(-1) and Ruiz(-1) shoots the gap. I sympathize with Onwenu, who gets a dude screaming upfield, and Ruiz is again blocking no one as he releases to no one. He should be able to read this, there is no LB level for him. NT blows through All and grabs the back.
O23	3	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 over	7	Pass	Hitch	Bell	22
Bell sits down against a zone and drifts away from the defender; Patterson has this out quick. Ball takes Bell back to the defender a step so he can use his momentum against a guy going the other way. Bell(+2) beats him, missed tackle. He then gets under a safety tackle and drives to the goal line. (CA, 3, protection 2/2)
O1	1	G	Ace 3-wide tight	1	1	3	Goal line	10	Run	QB sneak	Patterson	1
Michigan wins the rugby scrum.
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 38-0, 2 min 3rd Q. Milton comes in.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M49	1	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 even	7	Run	Counter	Wilson	4
IZ look with Runyan pulling all the way to the backside. Mayfield(-1) gets a downblock but loses his guy late; he’s only relevant after some yards but kind of want this seal to be permanent. Onwenu(+1) checks a DT and he’s gone so he extends to a LB and seals him. DPJ cracks down on a DB and Runyan goes and hits the same guy; kind of want Runyan to pop outside he DPJ block but that would be weird. Mayfield’s guy chases Wilson away from a vertical lane that is otherwise promising.
O47	2	6	Shotgun 3-wide	1	1	3	4-3 over	7	Pass	Drag	Black	Inc
Ball is turfed at the feet of a very covered Black. (IN, 0, protection 1/1)
O47	3	6	Shotgun trips	1	1	3	Okie one	7	Pass	Angle	DPJ	8
DPJ motions behind Eubanks, threatens out, cuts back in, open. Milton hums one that converts because DPJ is able to bring in a diving catch. (MA, 2, protection 1/1)
O39	1	10	Shotgun trips	1	1	3	Nickel even	6.5	Run	Inside zone	Haskins	12
QB might run indicator. LB flared wide, comes. Give clear. Runyan(+2) hammers a guy trying to slant inside of him and puts him yards downfield. With the crash gone and the LB gone Haskins gets a wide open backside lane. Ruiz(+0.5) and Bredeson(+0.5) got blocks that were not too tough.
O27	1	10	Shotgun 4-wide	1	1	3	30 nickel slide	6.5	Run	Inside zone	Haskins	10
DE pops outside of Mayfield(+1) and Mayfield handles it; guy is going for the QB; overhang LB also focused on QB. Onwenu(+0.5) gets a free release and gets to a LB; Ruiz(+1) had a read to make and did so; also getting to a LB. The overhang guy is able to chase and get Haskins from behind.
O17	1	10	Shotgun 4-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	6.5	Run	Inside zone	Haskins	15
Again a scrape; Runyan(+1) reads it and gets enough of the crash end to remove him and that’s 2 for 1 with the LB gone. Bredeson(+0.5) and Ruiz(+0.5) both get blocks and Haskins(+1) hits the hole hard.
O2	1	G	Shotgun 4-wide tight	1	1	3	Goal line	11	Run	Inside zone	Haskins	0
Tempo, RU sells out and gets underneath a couple of OL. Mayfield(-1) is one; kind of think Onwenu chose wrong but if he’s going duo here this is what he’s got to do. RPS -1.
O2	2	G	I-Form Big	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	Down G	Haskins	1
Schoonmaker(-1) blocks down on a DE and that guy back-jukes him; he runs by and that guy is probably the difference between a TD and not quite.
O1	3	G	I-Form Big	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	QB sneak	Milton	0
The Bush Push play; why is M having All do this instead of Mason? I have questions. Milton scores but just before they rule him down for progress. Meh.
O1	4	G	I-Form Big	1	3	1	Goal line	10	Run	QB naked boot	Milton	1
Ain’t nobody here but us chickens. RPS +1
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 45-0, 12 min 4th Q.
Ln	Dn	Ds	O Form	RB	TE	WR	D Form	Box	Type	Play	Player	Yards
M28	1	10	Shotgun trips TE	1	1	3	4-3 over	7	Run	Inside zone	BVS	0
RPS is off but this is RPS as M goes with a fake bubble on the handoff instead of a read; RU fires a LB down and crushes this run.
M28	2	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 over	7.5	Pass	Waggle TE flat	Schoonmaker	29 +15 pen
Waggle, Schoonmaker(+1) outruns a guy to the flat and Milton puts it on him so he doesn’t have to break stride; Schoonmaker then shows impressive athleticism down the sideline. (CA, 3, N/A) Schoonmaker targeted at the end of the paly.
O28	1	10	Shotgun twins twin TE	1	2	2	4-3 over	6.5	Run	Pin and pull	Capitinia	5
I’m just here for the next play.
O23	2	5	Shtogun 4-wide	1	1	3	Nickel even	6	Pass	Corner	Jackson	23
Jackson gets one on one with a safety; he looks inside; Milton puts it outside, throwing him open. Jackson adjusts for the TD. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 52-0, 9 min 4th Q. Sessa time for the remainder.

Rutgers!

Yes.

The salve to heal all wounds!

uh some wounds

Let's talk about why our ground game sucks!

really

YES REALLY

Opinion hasn't shifted much from the game column, which cited last year's Rutgers rushing output—also bleah—as a reason to not be super concerned about this year's output.

Seth already covered a big chunk of why Michigan struggled to get most of their running backs over 4 yards a carry. It was impossible not to notice how the Cable Subscriber seas veritably parted once Michigan started running zone read stuff with a quarterback who was not absolutely going to hand off every time. They started running exchanges, and Michigan much have spent a bunch of time on what to do against exchanges after the last couple weeks:

LT #75

The wide open spaces Haskins got were in marked contrast to the rest of the run game, which was a slog. And Milton didn't even have to keep. He just had to be expendable enough for Rutgers to run a defense that was trying to keep Michigan honest.

When Patterson was out there Michigan was often facing down free hitters in the box. Michigan got two yards on their second run of the day; I handed out a total of +2 for the blocking but there's only so much you can do when you have no one for a guy who started at six yards:

Let's look at that presnap again:

This is not a box you should be running into even if you have a functional QB read game that buys you one of those defenders back. Without it—and neither Michigan nor Rutgers even gave a thought to a potential Patterson keep—you're going to get a limited gain most of the time.

Another example: this is second and twelve and features a safety at eight yards moving up on the snap; he gets a tackle in at two yards downfield.

Charbonnet almost breaks it and gets six, so hooray for that. Unblocked safeties at two yards remain a problem. Notably this is a problem that goes back to Hoke; early Harbaugh offenses spent a lot of time screwing with safeties and the like due to their extreme diversity. You don't have to have a running QB if you are Wisconsin and can run 15 different gap and zone-blocked plays before repeating one. Otherwise… yeah.

So it was just the QB stuff?

Unfortunately, no. Michigan didn't hit our desired 2:1 positive/negative ratio on blocks. Chart:

Offensive Line
Player	+	-	Total	Notes
Runyan	7		7	A lot of his stuff right at the end.
Bredeson	4	3.5	0.5	Some off moments in zone.
Ruiz	6.5	7.5	-1	Extensive discussion but blocked no one too much.
Onwenu	12.5	3.5	9	Crunching, PFF grade very weird.
Mayfield	8	3	5	Pretty good outing.
McKeon				DNP
Eubanks	5.5	3	2.5	Dorf or two, some impressive blocks.
All	4	3.5	0.5	Not a good blocker yet, but wants to be.
Hayes				DNC
Schoonmaker	1.5	5	3.5	+1 for a run after catch not included in blocking total.
TOTAL	49	29	63%	missed the number against Rutgers
Backs
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Patterson				assumed 0 reads
McCaffrey
Charbonnet	3		3	cruises through gaps
Turner	4		4	Makes plays.
Wilson		2	-2	didn't look great in comparison to Turner/Charbonnet
Mason
Haskins	1.5		1.5	Mostly ran hard in a straight line.
TOTAL	8.5	2	6.5	no fumbles hooray
Receivers
Player	+	-	T	Notes
DPJ	1		1
Collins	0.5	1	-1	blocking beginning to be a bit of an issue
Black	0.5		0.5-
Bell	2		2	RAC on near TD
Johnson
Sainristil
Jackson		1.5	-1.5	Illegal formation.
TOTAL	4	2.5	1.5	eh
Metrics
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Protection	33	5	87%	Runyan –3, Mayfield -2
RPS	6	6	0	No reason to pull anything out here.

 

This is a little ominous.

Some stuff can be mostly written off. Short yardage issues in the three tight end package were often All and Schoonmaker having issues. Here Schoonmaker decides to block a guy presnap. Then that guy slides outside, where All should pick him up. Both tight ends go after the same force block and Haskins has to run into a pile:

TE #86 to bottom

This was Schoonmaker's first real playing time so that's to be expected to some extent. He made up for it with an impressive chunk of YAC on a flat route:

But he also picked up 5 blocking minuses in limited time. McKeon or possibly Mason will delete his snaps unless he improves.

Other issues were a little more bothersome.

Like Onwenu being bad?

uh

PFF gave him a 59.

uh

They gave Runyan a 55!

At least Runyan had some pass pro muck-ups. I have no idea how you come out of that game with a bad grade for Onwenu. Onwenu started off with a mauling pancake:

RG #50

And a few plays later he and Ruiz shoved a NT three yards downfield on a stretch play, which opened up a lane for Turner:

RG #50

(Also note here that the stretch helped combat Michigan's natural issues with too many guys in the box. They get to run away from the backside end and the slot blitzer. This is why Mike DeBord thought it was a solution to Michigan's ground game issues in the mid-aughts. It wasn't, really, because having a playbook that has "right" or "left" as your ground game isn't good no matter what the base play is.)

So that's a good start. I have no idea what the dings were. Here's a good spot for a Zone Heuristic Refresher. When I'm looking at a zone play that's gone wrong it is usually not the guy futilely trying to shove a dude from behind that screwed up. When a dude jets into the backfield and mucks something up, 80% of the time he's slanting one direction and the OL in the direction of the slant doesn't help. If you're zipping through a game in as few takes as possible so you can get to CMU-Old Dominion or whatever you might look at this backfield penetration and ding Onwenu:

RG #50, C #51

To me this is an impossible ask that Onwenu just about manages; without a significant chip from Ruiz this is the best case scenario for a DT who times up the snap surging inside of the right guard. Ruiz leaving immediately for the linebacker level turns out to be completely useless; the LB doesn't even end up in the same gap as Charbonnet.

That's the best I've got to explain why Onwenu got a zillion points from me and didn't crack 60 at PFF. Their OL grading this year coupled with "Mike Danna is an upgrade on Rashan Gary" have really soured me on how accurate their system is.

Anyway I have no idea how you give an OL who didn't allow a pressure a below average grade he also did most things right on the ground.

Like Ruiz picking up a negative?

Okay… yes. That one, yes. In addition to some of the zone bits above he had a couple of ugly plays. On this power a DT surges straight upfield to pick off All:

C #51

Other than that his minuses were usually more subtle. I think a fair chunk of this is Michigan being caught between things again. They ran all three of inside zone, outside zone, and power in this game. Particularly on the zone stuff things looked… odd. Here Ruiz ends up pulling around Bredeson; this appears to be a post-snap improvisation, and it doesn't come off.

Usually you'd see Bredeson attempt to pass the DL off to Ruiz; at that point he's in position to actually go get a second-level block.

In general I kind of hate what Michigan's trying to do on their zone plays, which are heavily focused on one on one blocking with very few doubles, even momentary. This was clear even when guys releasing had no one to block, and it was most often Ruiz. Here Rutgers comes out like this:

Lookit that LB level. Ruiz releases, checks the guy on Bredeson, and then goes to the LB level, which is not there. He barely touches anyone on this play. If you're going to take the the trouble to step to the DT, blast him and see what happens later:

Stuff like this happened a lot. The singular focus on getting releases and not comboing through DL has led to a lot of OL chasing linebackers they have no angle to, and weak or no holes on the LOS.

This even popped up on some power plays. Rutgers lines up heavy to the field so you should know something's up; a slant gets past Onwenu while Ruiz again doesn't touch anyone on the play. If you're an OL and you don't hit something I'm probably going to ding you.

I thought Ruiz was the bomb and the solution to all of life's problems?

He was really good last year. He's been mediocre this year. I have no explanation for it. Transition costs are one thing but even if you take those into account the life of being a C is finding out who's trying to slant to you and mess up your gaps; that's constant. Ruiz hasn't done well at IDing interior problems.

Mayfield did well, though?

On the ground, yes. As a pass protector, Mayfield is fine. Mostly, he's fine. Thus far in his career he's been only that. He got spun through a couple times last week and gave up a clean edge rush in this one:

#73 RT

Redshirt freshman, decent now, will improve. The offseason chatter made big things like Second Coming Of Taylor Lewan seem possible; it's time to revise expectations downward towards promising freshman starter who might sniff an All Big Ten team next year.

All right, feeling good. Got my crabbing in. Crab a crab crab crab.

Now can we talk about the other bit?

Oh, sure, fine.

Patterson took advantage of the 87% pass pro the line put up.

SHEA PATTERSON

	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr
Game	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	PFF
MTSU	2	14(3)	3		4	3(1)		1	2	4(2)*	2*		70%	-
Army	1	17(2)+++	1		1	3		-	6*	5	-		61%	-
Wisconsin	2	15(3)++	1		7	7		1*	2*	5	2*		63%	-
Rutgers	4	11(1)+	1		1	5		-	1*	3	-		79%	-

This was a different version of Patterson. Michigan moved him out of the pocket a bunch and he was comfortable with half-field reads on the move. Here he puts it on Black's number 20 yards downfield while rolling opposite his throwing arm:

Half field reads get rid of a lot of frustration and being on the move doesn't bother Patterson at all. They're necessarily a small slice of the playbook since overuse means a QB eating an edge player as soon as the mesh ends, but expect to see a healthy chunk of these going forward.

Patterson was allowed to sit in the pocket most of the day. For a change, he did. This out takes a while to develop and faith in your protection:

Not having the pocket pushed at all helps Patterson; he can step up in the pocket a bit to buy the extra bit of time he needs when Eubanks loses his edge block. This was a theme for the day. Rutgers occasionally got some pressure, but when they failed to they came nowhere near:

When Patterson had time he had buckets and buckets of it.

Can Patterson make similar reads and maximize time in pockets that are more claustrophobic? Thus far in his career the answer has been no. I don't think one game against Rutgers is enough evidence to overturn that. There was only one very bad event in this game but it was the kind of very bad event that recalls other issues in previous games. Patterson holds this ball forever and then boots it OOB on third and eight:

He appears to be staring down Bell the whole time. He doesn't throw, which is good because Rutgers put a guy right in the throwing lane. But I mean…

…that's press man coverage on which you have a switch route that's real good against press man coverage for exactly the reason the Rutgers DB above falls over, and DPJ is going to saunter into the endzone if you throw him a marshmallow of a ball. I don't know how you don't see that.

This is the BPONE talking.

It is! I did just pick the very worst play of the day for Patterson when he had 12 YPA. I just did that. I think it is relevant, because opportunities spurned against teams that don't issue them on every play are a major Patterson theme. Here he had a veritable acre in the pocket most of the time and didn't have to make tough decisions. It remains to be seen how well this translates.

How did Milton do?

Decently.

JOE MILTON

	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr
Game	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	PFF
Rutgers		2				1				1			-	-
-								-			-			-
-														-
-														-

Milton showed better than he had in previous outings, including a nicely placed TD on a corner route. This has some touch on it.

He remains a little wild, turfing a crossing route on his first throw and then giving DPJ blisters on a third and five conversion that was harder than it needed to be:

Progress is clear.

Speaking of progress…

uh

who haven't we talked about?

A… tight end?

Nick Eubanks improved a lot as a blocker and has been a frequent target in the passing game. He was able to bail Patterson out when he nearly airmailed a throw:

When I say things about throwing it in the #buttzone I don't usually mean crossing routes hummed in with maximum arm strength.

And this doesn't look like a ton but I can't tell you how many times I've seen a wing TE not manage to cut off an OLB slanting inside him:

TE #82 to bottom

That's a run that easily could have been sacrificed to the we-don't-pull gods but Eubanks is able to pull it off.

While we're talking tight ends, I might be coming around on leaving All there. He needs weight but his high school film has translated to college. This is a guy who likes contact.

TE #83 to top

He should be worse than he is at blocking now. When he's not a stick he'll probably be pretty good. Hopefully he maintains the flexibility to split out.

You keep handing out nothing but positives for the RB platoon. Have you been kidnapped? Blink twice if yes.

Both Turner and Charbonnet are good, full stop. I'm sure they'll dorf some cuts at some point this year. So far they've done a good job of maximizing their blocking. Both guys are inclined to cut, and both guys realize the second level is a place of subtle adjustments to maintain momentum.

Charbonnet didn't have a ton of opportunities but this subtle shift before the spin move is something that I've pointed out before and will hopefully have cause to point out in the future:

His ability to move a half-yard laterally without giving up momentum isn't something I've seen in a Michigan running back his size, and he does a great job at maximizing his blocking.

Wilson had a couple of similar opportunities and ran into tacklers I think Charbonnet shifts by. I was one of just a few guys on the Wilson bandwagon before the season, but after seeing a few dozen Charbonnet carries I'm ready to relegate Wilson to third-down duties whenever Charbonnet ceases working through things.

Both Turner and Charbonnet showed pretty good feel on stretch plays. Let's go back to that stretch that drew discussion the Onwenu section. This is almost a big play, with Charbonnet turning it up inside after clearing the uncomfortable Onwenu block and then pawing his way inside of Bredeson:

If he doesn't have to bend to get around Onwenu or Bredeson gets a little more push he's through to the secondary.

Turner, meanwhile, was able to pop through a pile of bodies. He remains extremely slippery in tight spaces:

Great contact balance and he has the proverbial churn. His legs never stop moving. He demonstrated this on his TD run, where he gets an unblocked S at the four yard line and is able to turn that into a rugby scrum and eventually a touchdown:

He's smallish so when you get a solid shot on him he goes down with a thunk, but that's a tall order.

They used the receivers. I liked that.

I did too.

[0 = uncatchable, 1 = circus catch, 2 = moderate difficulty, 3 = routine]

	THIS WEEK					SEASON
Player	0	1	2	3		0	1	2	3
DPJ	1		2/2	3/3		1		2/2	4/4
Collins	2	0/1		2/2		8	1/2	3/3	7/8
Black	1			2/2		5	1/2	1/2	10/11
Bell	1	1/1	1/2	4/4		7	2/4	3/6	12/12
Johnson						1	1/1	1/1
Sainristil						1
Jackson				1/1					1/1
McKeon						4	0/1	1/2	5/5
Eubanks			1/1	2/2		4	0/2	2/2	8/8
All
Schoonmaker				1/1					1/1
Charbonnet						2		0/1	5/5
Turner									2/2
Wilson
Haskins				1/1					1/1

Routes: Bell ++, Collins – + –, Black +

So they exist. Ronnie Bell appears to be your #1 four games into the season, which is okay I guess. He picked up a circus catch in this game, albeit one I think is more luck than anything:

This was pretty good, drifting away from a zone defender and then taking advantage of a Patterson throw that's a bit inside; he's now moving back as the DB moves out and he can zip past the dude:

The scrum at the end is a bonus.

There was even some speed in space.

Is it a little frustrating when this happens up a billion against Rutgers? Maybe. I choose to look at it as the diversification of the offense. That's what I choose.

Heroes?

Patterson. Onwenu, nevermind the haters. Turner and Charbonnet. The collective WR corps.

Maybe not so heroic?

Bredeson and Ruiz didn't do so hot because of targeting/decisiveness issues. Schoonmaker and All were iffy blockers.

What does it mean for Iowa and beyond?

Patterson will be very good if you keep him 90% clean and don't allow anyone to push the pocket. Also he's going to be on a lot of waggles. And throw more fades. What happens in murkier protection situations remains an open question.

Michigan is trying to do everything as an OL and isn't great at anything. Yes, this again. Michigan is hesitant making decision in zone and their power stuff is too susceptible to backside penetration. This is frustrating because they had it pretty well figured out last year; it almost has to be a transition cost, and I worry that better defensive fronts are going to smack Michigan in the teeth.

The wide receivers are good. Surprise!

It's hard to be any good running from the gun with no QB run game. Fourth straight week. If they keep Patterson from keeping against Iowa Michigan is in trouble.

Nick Eubanks is much improved. All-around guy this year.