Wisconsin 49, Michigan 11
If the season's going to be a blazing disaster, might as well see how high the flames can go.
The score somehow understates how humiliating a loss this was for a program that finds itself 1-3 for the first time since 1967. After the first quarter, Wisconsin held a 129-1 edge in total yardage; Michigan had twice as many turnovers as yards. On the opening play of the second quarter, Wisconsin's fullback plunged in for his second touchdown of the evening to make the score 21-0.
The ensuing possession ended when M running back Zach Charbonnet ran for three yards off tackle on third-and-eight. Only a pandemic prevented Jim Harbaugh from being subjected to a chorus of boos. The Badgers covered 74 yards in six plays to extend the lead to 28, which in most video game households means it's time to hand the controller to someone else. If only.
The Wolverines embarked on their best drive of the half—not a high bar, considering their first four went for two interceptions and two three-and-outs. After Chris Evans was ruled down just short of the goal line upon review, Joe Milton lined up in a shotgun formation that tipped a quarterback run. Wisconsin called timeout. Michigan came back out showing the same look and Milton got stuffed on a keeper.
At that point, the program seemed dead-set on becoming a meme, and not in a good way. A play initially ruled a Danny Davis catch and fumble looked suspect on first glance, which didn't stop the official team account from tweeting their ready-made turnover graphic, then having to issue an update:
The play was overturned. After losing the chance to put points on the board before the half, Michigan went into the tunnel down a historic number of points:
Michigan's 28-point halftime deficit is Michigan's largest halftime deficit at home since Michigan Stadium opened in 1927.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 15, 2020
The 28-point deficit is tied for the largest by a CFB or NFL team coached by Jim Harbaugh. pic.twitter.com/qhLbEmyRrT
The official tweet was brief.
Half. pic.twitter.com/jGFGqX1PLc
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) November 15, 2020
Getting the ball to start the second half, Michigan stalled out in Wisconsin territory, then seized the opportunity to be meme'd again:
On the board. pic.twitter.com/yh1iM71NrN
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) November 15, 2020
Huzzah.
Michigan eventually saved some face with an impressive diving touchdown grab by Mike Sainristil, though he caught it from backup Cade McNamara after Joe Milton was benched with 98 yards and two picks on 19 attempts. Milton looked overwhelmed, though he didn't have much help; five Wisconsin ballcarriers finished with more yards than M's leading rusher, Charbonnet, who had 21 on three carries.
In fact, because the defense never figured out how to stop UW runs to the edge all night, the Wolverines finished on the wrong side of a Rushing Rutger: 49 Wisconsin points, 47 Michigan rushing yards.
A fourth-quarter fullback trap when Wisconsin was killing clock went for 43 yards to set up a touchdown. This is Rutgers-level football from a program that has no business playing that way. Start the search, please. There's nothing left to explore here anymore except the depths.
[Hit THE JUMP for the box score.]
November 14th, 2020 at 11:31 PM ^
This can't be stated enough. His 5 to 6 throws a game that are blatantly inaccurate are killing the offense. It's get overshadowed in UFR because it's only a few plays, but it's taking points off the scoreboard and requiring a mediocre (at best) offense to make up for his errors--something neither the playcallers or players can do.
Everyone bitched at that 4th and goal call. Blame Milton for missing a wide open Corum 6 or 7 plays before that.
I have zero idea if McNamara is the guy. I feel very confident that Milton is NOT the guy.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:19 AM ^
None of this explains why UM doesn't have a ground game to keep the ball for a while, maybe set up the play action pass... who knows, maybe even carry the team for stretches. Everyone seems to just accept it, as if it's something that randomly happened to the program. The running game is a debacle, and while Milton playing better would no doubt help, football teams have successfully run the ball to set up the pass for over 100 years; it's not like it's some Herculean task.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:25 AM ^
We can't run because defenses are teeing off on it. They can stack the box with impunity. We need our QB to punish them for that by hitting throws downfield, but he isn't.
November 15th, 2020 at 8:12 AM ^
Does anyone still believe that JM beat out DM? The facts are that Harbaugh is a bag of dicks that no one can stand and that's why DM bolted.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:26 PM ^
START THE SEARCH!!! YES!!!!
November 14th, 2020 at 11:26 PM ^
COVID only goes so far. This program is nearing all-time embarrassment levels and while I understand the “season doesn’t matter” argument to a point this just not excusable. Recruiting is lacking. Game plan makes no sense for years on end. Harbaugh can’t fucking wear his mic outside his mask. This is worse than Hoke. How can this be?
November 15th, 2020 at 1:01 AM ^
"Season doesn't matter"? I say it matters a whole hell of a lot. Every team is going through the same stuff. Wisconsin got the worst of it. Didn't scare them out of playing football. Michigan needs to nut up or shut up.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:41 PM ^
Wow, brilliant insight.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:27 PM ^
Humiliated once again on national television.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:57 PM ^
It's the 21st century, every game is on national television
November 14th, 2020 at 11:27 PM ^
I am against rushing to conclusions. I am against jumping too soon. I'm not a fan of mid-season coaching changes in college.
There is a reasonable argument that we're facing down Ohio State at the peak of its powers and that we're not going to be OSU-Alabama-Clemson level elite right now. Ok, fine.
It's not unreasonable to expect us to be as good as Wisconsin or Notre Dame. And we are not as good as either of those programs. Paul Chryst is nobody's idea of a program savior but his program is at a higher level than ours.
"Who else can we get?" We might not be able to get the next Saban, but I bet there's a Chryst out there.
I dislike midseason coaching changes. But this is becoming an existential problem: Recruits were in the stands and saw the bottom absolutely fall out of this team in the first minutes. Eubanks dropped that pass and the team just fell apart. People are griping about Milton but it's no wonder he had a rough time with the whole team falling apart right away.
It's Harbaugh. He's the one responsible for the abominable roster management. He is the one that has ruined every quarterback that he has had for more than a year. He is the one responsible for the staff.
If they fired him tomorrow, I'd be sad for what might have been, but I would understand it. Gattis might not be the guy, but why not put the headset on him and give him four games to show what he's got without Harbaugh's shackles on him?
It's worth a try.
You know what's a great sport? Hockey.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:32 PM ^
Losing your patience is as sure a sign it’s over as when Walter Cronkite said the Vietnam War was lost on CBS
November 14th, 2020 at 11:32 PM ^
Sad for what might have been?
That ship has sailed. Jim should get some self awareness and resign from the university he loves. It’s hard to feel sorry for someone that got paid $48 million dollars and leave this end result.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:33 PM ^
You make Don Brown the HC--he has the experience--and then you let everybody go at the end of the year. You don't want anyone "winning" the job as an audition in a COVID season.
More importantly the new HC should be able to hire a completely fresh staff.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:41 PM ^
Brown or Warinner have more experience for this sort of thing. But there is still a chance, small but real, that Gattis has the potential to be inventive and special. We speculate that Harbaugh may remain a negative influence on the offense (this was always my concern going back to the Pep days). No better way to find out what Gattis is really made of than to put him out front. He's young, he's energetic, he's coaching for a job: he can be as aggressive as he wants, use the players that he wants to use, and show us what he's made of.
It is, indeed, hard to find good coaches. But it would be worth at least checking to see if we have a good one right now. Unlikely but not impossible. You don't want to be the Cleveland Browns axing Bill Belichek too early.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:09 AM ^
There is nothing in Gattis that says he's ready to be the HC at Michigan. The offense is a tire fire. Are the players playing hard for him? His position group hasn't covered itself in glory.
And even if he is an ace at coordinating the offense without Harbaugh, how can you determine if he is head coaching material in 4 games? Can he hire good coordinators, recruiters, position coaches, support staff? The last thing you want is the players making the decision based on salvaging a few wins in a season going nowhere. Remember Bill Stewart and West Virginia?
This program needs a complete and utter overhaul. I'd fire everyone they would let me fire, keep some GA or lower level position coach for background information and start from scratch.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:29 AM ^
I remember Bill Stewart. I also remember guys like Lincoln Riley and Ryan Day. Sometimes the guy on the staff is the one you need to keep.
We're talking about an interim situation here, so the season is a lost cause and people are probably getting fired. The issues we see on offense are hauntingly similar to issues we've seen on offense for years under Harbaugh, predating the arrival of Gattis, so given the situation it wouldn't hurt to see what he's got. If he can rally the players and display some genuine offensive skill, it's not a mistake to consider that when making a decision.
November 15th, 2020 at 1:26 AM ^
Bob Stoops and Urban Meyer weren't presiding over tire fires at the end of their tenures. It was a more natural transition. This is the complete opposite of that.
I generally like your comments as they are much more thoughtful than just about anybody else's on the site, but I don't get the love for Gattis. But all anybody knows there would be a placebo effect with Harbaugh gone meaning very little for the long-term.
Would you interview Gattis for the head job if Harbaugh left after the season?
November 15th, 2020 at 1:45 AM ^
It’s not love. It’s utility. I consider the probability that Gattis has the potential to be an elite HC to be low. Let’s make up a number and say < 20%.
But if the season is in the trash anyway, may as well take him for a test drive. The dream for any team in a coaching search is to strike gold on a young, charismatic, brilliant guy who can recruit, scheme, and lead. Michigan has a young, smart guy at OC right now, and while current returns are mixed, there is also a real chance that his HC is part of the reason for his tepid success.
What I’m saying is that we aren’t playing for this year anymore. We know what Brown and Warinner bring. They each have a 0% chance of being the next HC. Gattis may be a longshot, but as long as we’re playing out the string and looking to the future, we have a chance to see what he’s made of. Take the shot. Probably he keeps baffling us with weird holes in his gameplan and the team continues to look bad.
But if the team is rejuvenated and they finish 3-1 and the offense puts 38 on OSU (in a loss, obviously) and recruits show renewed interest in the program, you have someone worth interviewing.
Might as well take the shot.
November 15th, 2020 at 10:04 AM ^
I would define elite head coach as Saban, Meyer, and Swinney right now. The chance Gattis is in that group is probably less than 1%.
Again, there's a potential placebo effect where you get results unrelated to the ability of the interim head coach.
November 15th, 2020 at 11:22 AM ^
I agree. Make Warriner the interim HC. He is the most seasoned coach and well-respected. Give Gattis the opportunity to be in complete control of the offense without being second-guessed or over-ruled by JH. Then we can make a better judgment on Gattis as a HC candidate.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:11 AM ^
It's one small data point, but running out of the shotgun on 4th and goal from inside the 1 certainly seemed like Gattis's call, because that's certainly not what you'd expect from Harbaugh. You have a 6'5" QB, not to mention a reliable short-yardage back in Mason, and yet on 4th down, when you need to convert, you have your QB line up five yards in the backfield? That's not great situational awareness. It's one thing to primarily operate out of the gun, but it shouldn't be 100% of the time.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:25 AM ^
I wasn't fond of the repeated playcall. As I said, the chances are slim, but they aren't zero. Is Harbaugh the one asking for that PA package turning Milton's back to the line against Indiana, or did Milton cook that up himself? Is Harbaugh the one insisting on a short yardage package where Ben Mason is a lead blocker, shoehorning Gattis into that kind of playcall? Did they talk over the headset and Harbaugh say something like "it's time to man up, we're punching this in," encouraging Gattis to keep with the call after the TO?
We don't know. Coming out in the same play, a predictable play, after a TO is bad. If Gattis just did that, that's a big negative.
But, as I said before Pep was let go, the people who figure that all the offensive problem lies at the feet of the OC ignore that Harbaugh considers himself an offensive guy and a QB guy. That is... actually a potential problem. When you know just enough to meddle, you can keep the people who know more from doing their jobs.
Is Gattis the one who wants the TEs so involved in the passing game? Is Gattis the one who wants lots of Mason plays? Is Gattis the one who seems to hit the delete key on QB running packages for whole games?
Or is Harbaugh "helping" with these decisions?
I can think of a good way to find out for sure: Put Gattis in charge for a few games.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:33 AM ^
I'm not saying Harbaugh's vision for the offense is awesome either, to be clear. Just that it seemed that it was Gattis's call there and it was worrisome - especially that we apparently didn't change the call after the timeout.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:43 AM ^
I think we can all agree that the look presented and play called were inexcusable given that they never bothered to change it. There are only so many things you can do with Mason being the sole RB: Run up the middle with Mason? Run up the middle with Milton? Given Milton's accuracy, you sell out to stop the run even if, for some reason, Michigan were to run some kind of play action there, because there's a good chance that a pass there is missed.
There's a good likelihood that Gattis just stuck with the same call he had before, but it's unclear how much influence Harbaugh has both on gamedays and in particular in gameplanning, when the plays for the week are developed. If he says he wants a short yardage play with Mason blocking, and Gattis puts that play in the plan, and when it gets down to 4th and goal it's clear that Harbaugh wants to punch it in on the ground and that's the play they've got for that situation...
I don't know. You don't know. Only the people in the room know. We do know that Harbaugh meddles, and that his influence has a deleterious effect on the function of the offenses under his command over time. That effect has been demonstrated at Michigan and also, frankly, at San Francisco (though it's worth noting that Greg Roman is increasingly visible as the architect of those good Kaepernick offenses, seeing the same success and then decline with Lamar Jackson now).
So we have four games left. If Warde waffles and Michigan loses to Rutgers, three games left and an ever more dire roster situation. Why not see if Gattis has the goods?
Maybe the offense looks the same. Probably, even. Then Gattis is looking for a job with everyone else.
But there's a chance, however remote, that with the handcuffs off, Michigan comes out in the offense that Gattis wanted to run. Maybe there aren't as many TEs, and maybe Mason barely sees the field. Or maybe the packages stay the same but there are more RPOs or zone reads. Maybe Michigan runs almost not at all.
We need to see if such an offense is there, and if Gattis can succeed with it. Why not? It's not like we're going anywhere anyway.
November 15th, 2020 at 1:28 AM ^
I don’t understand, if Harbaugh gets let’s go or steps down, wouldn’t the handcuffs be taken off Gattis anyways? Why do we need to make him HC too?
I agree above that Warinner or even Brown should be HC and more so, “game manager.” Now that the handcuffs are off of Gattis regardless, he can run the offense as he likes. I highly doubt that Ed W or Don Brown (being a defensive coach) would change things on the offensive side of the ball...
November 15th, 2020 at 9:30 AM ^
So, reading down through here-I have liked and agreed with pretty much every point you have made...including making Gattis the interim. It has long been obvious that something is amiss here. This three game debacle after a nice start has demonstrated the breadth and depth of the issues with this coaching staff. The roster is not the most glaring problem-plenty of talent here.
November 15th, 2020 at 2:33 AM ^
Gattis didn't even want Mason on offense last year so no I wouldn't say that looked like a Gattis play. Looked like Harbaugh Gattis shit fusion sandwich.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:18 AM ^
Exactly. We don't need to win a national championship. But, we can do better than a laughing stock. This is Wies at Notre Dame. This is only not Hoke because Harbaugh hasn't nearly killed a kid through his idiocy, and we've still got games left for that.
November 15th, 2020 at 11:45 AM ^
I completely agree, 100% with not rushing to conclusions but holding Harbaugh accountable for staff and player attrition and lack of player development. I also think the lack of an offensive identity is a big problem, although at this point not THE problem. Time to move on and FWIW I like the idea of cutting Harbaugh loose now, letting Gattis take over on an interim basis just to see what happens, and getting a head start on finding a new head coach. Watching last night's game reminded me of an idea I had before...how about hiring Jim Leonhard?!? I've long admired him as a player from a small town who embodied the Wisconsin can-do spirit, he succeeded in college and in the pros, and is now coaching up younger players as Wisconsin's DC. He's obviously got midwest ties and while some might say he's a 'reach' at this point, I'd certainly 'vote' for hiring him before going after Luke Fickell. Let's get some young energy behind this program!
November 14th, 2020 at 11:28 PM ^
Honestly, if that first pass isn't tipped for the INT, this game could have turned out very differently. Changed all of the momentum. And the horrible overturned fumble on Danny Davis - that was a game changer in its own right. Hard to assess the coaching when we continue to get hosed by unlucky bounces and horrible calls.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:31 PM ^
Ah, fuck it. Someone else will respond to tell you how dumb this comment is
November 14th, 2020 at 11:44 PM ^
I think, hope, that he was trying to be sarcastic. Certainly hope so for his sake.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:58 PM ^
His avatar says BPONE. I think there's a chance.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:31 PM ^
lol Michigan got their ass kicked regardless. They can't move the ball and even if they could, they'll just shoot themselves in the foot. Wisconsin moved the ball at will against a helpless defense
November 14th, 2020 at 11:33 PM ^
Honestly, if you actually watched the game and had a fully functioning brain during that time, it was pretty fucking easy to assess our coaching, or obvious lack thereof.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:33 PM ^
My ass.... unlucky and bad bounces for 5 years?
November 14th, 2020 at 11:37 PM ^
If you honestly believe this game was decided by "unlucky bounces and horrible calls" I don't know what to say.
France put up a better effort in WWII than we did tonight.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:45 PM ^
Reading a lot tonight, this is one of the best. Kudos.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:45 PM ^
Hate to be the guy who meets with the recruits after the game.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:56 PM ^
Wisky also eased up on the gas pedal in the 4th. It could have been worse.
November 15th, 2020 at 2:30 PM ^
Day has already threatened to put up 100 against us, I'm not sure what he would do in the 2nd half.
November 15th, 2020 at 12:29 AM ^
Maybe we can name an airport after Jim and wait for real leadership to arrive like the French did with de Gaulle.
November 17th, 2020 at 9:16 PM ^
Bro they didn't even build CDG until after de Gaulle died.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:41 PM ^
If, if, if doesn’t cover a 38 point loss
November 15th, 2020 at 12:02 AM ^
You can’t be serious, right?
November 15th, 2020 at 12:08 AM ^
In the past I would've been outraged by that bad call to overturn the fumble. But we all know if it hadn't been overturned, M would likely have gone 3-and-out, punted back to Wiscy, which would've just gone on another drive.
C'mon, just admit it and join us. Nothing to be gained staying on the Harbaugh train, it's already run off the rails.
November 14th, 2020 at 11:31 PM ^
I want to be mad that the Surrender Cobra cut-out was in the stands, but it seems appropriate that he was there to witness this debacle
November 14th, 2020 at 11:32 PM ^
It’s Michigan where all we care about is the bottom line. That cutout put $50 into someone’s pocket.
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