Nebraska 17, Michigan 13
Drive Recap: Michigan 13 - Nebraska 10 // 4Q: 8:08 pic.twitter.com/o4rwtV0sjL
— Michigan Football (@umichfootball) November 9, 2013
This was the high point, both from a football and comedic standpoint.
If this isn't rock bottom, it's damn close. Michigan faced a Nebraska rush defense that's done this...
Opponent | Att | Yds | TD | YPC |
---|---|---|---|---|
Wyoming | 30 | 219 | 1 | 7.3 |
UCLA | 50 | 216 | 2 | 4.3 |
South Dakota State | 33 | 271 | 2 | 8.2 |
Illinois | 45 | 211 | 2 | 4.7 |
Purdue | 20 | 82 | 0 | 4.1 |
Minnesota | 53 | 272 | 3 | 5.1 |
Northwestern | 43 | 283 | 3 | 6.6 |
...and, with sacks removed, rushed for 22 yards on 29 attempts. Oh, and a combination of poor play-calling, poor line play, poor blitz pickup, and one understandably skittish quarterback allowed seven sacks that knocked the offense back 49 yards.
Brady Hoke's home winning streak is dead; that's not really the story. It wasn't hard to see this coming, not after the narrow escape against Akron, and certainly not after last week's debacle. When Drew Dileo dropped a fourth-down pass on Michigan's last-gasp drive, it felt depressingly fitting—of course the sure-handed receiver would let one slip through his grasp at precisely the wrong time, because that's just how this season has gone.
Bryan Fuller/MGoBlog
When Michigan attained a first down for the first time in the game, only three plays before the end of the first quarter, the Big House crowd erupted with the loudest Bronx cheer I've ever heard in this building. The sarcastic cheers turned to boos by the end of the first half, at which time the Wolverines, down 10-3, had 60 yards of offense on 29 plays.
Those boos only grew louder by the end of the game. Al Borges orchestrated a great drive to open the second half, featuring a big play for Fitz Toussaint on a slip screen, a slick pop-pass to Jake Butt against a heavy blitz, and a touchdown to a wide-open Devin Funchess on a post-curl-corner route combination.
Thus ended the offensive renaissance. That ten-play, 75-yard drive represented 43% of Michigan's total output on the afternoon, and Michigan resumed slamming their heads against stacked fronts and allowing wave after wave of pressure to hit home.
The defense did what they could, holding the Huskers to 273 yards—75 of which came on their game-winning drive—on just 4.1 yards per play despite two new starters at safety: Courtney Avery and Josh Furman, who replaced Jarrod Wilson and Thomas Gordon.* When Frank Clark lost contain and James Ross was late getting out on an option pitch (of sorts, since it went forwards) to Ameer Abdullah, who waltzed five yards into the end zone, there wasn't anger in Michigan Stadium—instead, apathy reigned, and a healthy number of fans streamed for the exits despite the Wolverines being down four with two minutes left and all their timeouts. Five plays later, those fans were proven—at least for today—to be justified in their actions.
"Well, we just didn't execute," said Brady Hoke after the game. That is 2013 Michigan Football's epitaph, and at some point it isn't going to be enough to save everyone's job.
-------------
*According to Hoke in the post-game presser, Gordon had an unspecified ankle injury, while Wilson's absense from the lineup was an attempt to shake things up.
November 10th, 2013 at 1:33 AM ^
there is a bowl for 6 & 6 teams in a weak ass conference ? maybe not go so we do not have a losing season. right now we shouid at least break even.
November 10th, 2013 at 6:41 AM ^
No real difference between 6-6 and 6-7 and we need the 15 practices.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:07 PM ^
Yes. Although I do also have your fear about Hoke's mindset on offense. Obviously it doesn't help to replace Borges with a Borges clone.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:23 PM ^
I do. Hoke obviously has a particular philosophy he wants to stick to, but there are good ways and bad ways of running that philosophy. Lots of teams are running it well (see Stanford, much of the SEC right now, Wisconsin for the last handful of years). There's no reason we can't. But our playcaller isn't doing a good job with it.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:32 PM ^
We saw nothing new today. The offensive performance was terrible, but it was in line with what we've already seen. I caution anyone not to be too worked up about the fact that we saw what we already knew was there, a very bad OL. There is no reason to view the future any differently than we did four hours ago. The problems we've seen all year were never going to be fixed in a week.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:42 PM ^
I've thought Borges needed to be fired for a whiel so I agree there's no change in my expectations. This game though was one more data point confirming that the offense is still on the same downward death spiral it's been on for a while.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:59 PM ^
What do we have coming back that says we will get better. The 3 offensive lineman that can't block? A quarter back that can't make proper reads? We lose our best reciever and our only two offensive lineman that can block. The future now looks poor again. We are a bottom Big Ten Team the last 6 years with no end in site. Recruits will start to fall soon and then on to a new coach again and the standard 3 to 4 years to give them a chance.
November 9th, 2013 at 9:34 PM ^
If you are dissatisfied with a QB who is 18/27 for 196 with 1 TD and no picks, you are being completely unrealistic. He would have been even better than that if Dileo hadn't dropped that last pass even though it was PERFECTLY thrown. The offensive linemen will be fine next year after another year of weight training and film watching. The scheming will never improve with Borges, though, and that is the problem. An OC has to use the strengths of his players, not constantly expose their weaknesses. Borges does not understand that or even seem to care.
November 10th, 2013 at 7:36 AM ^
"An OC has to use the strengths of his players, not constantly expose their weaknesses."
Spot on. Keeping Fitz in to bllitz pickup is crazy. Its not like him being in represents a meaningful run threat (really not on Fitz) such that he provides a meaningful decoy. So I see absolutely no upside to having him in blitz pickup. Either find someone who can or send him out into the flat and hope he takes a defender with him.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:07 PM ^
Every new failure to adjust is another set of data where we have failed to deal with the situation. Maybe it's more of the same, but as Hoke says it's another opportunity. And, when you fail to improve over another opportunity it shows further dis-trust with each failed attempt.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:44 PM ^
What do you do when your OL can't pass or run block? You can only run so many pop passes and screens. People are going to adjust pretty fast.
I don't mean to absolve the coaching staff of Michigan's failures, but right now Borges is like a baseball manager who has a bunch of pitchers who can't throw strikes. That manager can scheme all he wants, but he's not going to make outs fall from the sky.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:52 PM ^
THAT stuff worked. Then we stopped doing it even though Nebraska wasn't taking it away. Because of course we did.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:56 PM ^
You can only fool people so often. It's not a basis for an offense. Nebraska would have adjusted quickly, and they didn't need to blitz to stop the run. I don't think they did blitz much (if at all) on the last drive.
November 9th, 2013 at 9:22 PM ^
You do things that work until they stop working. When defenses adjust, other things open up. I'm oversimplifying, but you'll have a hard time convincing me that the 20-25 or so offensive players who see the field on Saturdays are really so inept that NOTHING works.
November 9th, 2013 at 10:10 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 10:22 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:33 PM ^
so why not do something other than fucking run right at it???
I have learned my lesson for this season- I watch all games on DVR, in fast forward. The pain would be over quicker anyway, but now I am just numb. Execute Borges.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:37 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:38 PM ^
I'm tired of Borges arrogant playcalling. Sounds as ignorant as the people who thought GA would work, and it's more of a cluster puck than ever.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:09 PM ^
Yes this is all a silent protest of GA by the OL.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:38 PM ^
I just hope Morris gets a fair chance at winning the QB job next year
I hope Hoke hire a QB coach, fergodsakes
I hope Hoke quits giving me excuses after losing 3 of last 4 games
I hope we don't see a bunch of players transfering, sitting Wilson, if I was him I'd be pissed off as fuck, he's not the problem, stupid decisions like that ain't helping, especially when Furman's PI was so bad, all he had to do was step in front of the WR, way to shake things up Hoke.
Hoke is becoming a joke and I'm not laughing
November 10th, 2013 at 5:01 AM ^
Josh Furman is probably a really nice kid.
However, he has done nothing in four years to warrant being in the starting lineup, so of course bench your most reliable safety and a guy who probably picks off a pass today for a player who just generally appears to be a step slow almost every play.
I don't get it.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:41 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:41 PM ^
Is that the 1 touchdown Michigan has scored in 18 quarters against MSU, Neb and OSU was built on quick and short passes which worked against the blitz. Why in the world did Borges go back to running into the stacked box and blitzes?
November 9th, 2013 at 7:50 PM ^
Has anyone asked this yet of any coach? Have they given any kind of defensible explanation? I'm starting to wonder if all UM has are plays designed for 2nd and long; if they get something like a 2nd and 7, they don't know what to do. That's the best explanation I have for what has to be close to a record for average distance to go on 2nd down.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:16 PM ^
But if someone did, I guaruntee the answer would be something about execution
November 9th, 2013 at 7:42 PM ^
I still have faith(a little) in Hoke. He needs to make some difficult choices in the offseason in regards to his coaching staff.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:27 PM ^
I totally agree
November 9th, 2013 at 8:38 PM ^
you've made the same mistake Herbstreit made earlier today. The word you want to use is regress. Digress is to move away from a subject in writing or oration. Regress is to move to a less developed state.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:59 PM ^
Now is not the time, professor.
November 9th, 2013 at 9:41 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:42 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:44 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:47 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:50 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:50 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:54 PM ^
They will win 7 next year ... book it.
November 9th, 2013 at 9:01 PM ^
Woo Hoo!
November 9th, 2013 at 7:54 PM ^
But Drunk Mary Sue Coleman would be a better OC than Borges.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:55 PM ^
How, after everything you have seen, did you not all understand that our line/playcalling/rushing offense is that bad that it didn't matter?
How is this a surprise?
Talk about overthinking things. You would take 10,000 words to describe something brown and displeasing in odor, instead of just realizing you are addressing a TURD.
Goodness.
November 9th, 2013 at 7:56 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:56 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 7:56 PM ^
Of Hoke constantly blaming the players for every loss. Even when it's true (and after weeks of these failings against sorry teams, that's pretty hard to believe), it's still not what a leader does. You put it on you and your coaches. That's why you get paid.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:04 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 8:17 PM ^
"I liked the plays that were called.....I liked the gameplan......We just didn't execute."
That is not putting it on the coaches. You can't say the play calls were good with one sentence and be somehow putting blame on the coaching staff as a whole. Constantly blaming execution is blaming the players. This is not difficult to understand.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:56 PM ^
November 9th, 2013 at 11:30 PM ^
Hoke won the lottery. His words are meaningless in the face of the teams actions.
November 9th, 2013 at 9:13 PM ^
The skill players have shown at times that they can be good. The issue is after fall camp and 8 games, why isnt the play more consistent. That is due to the coaches. I'm not sure if we should be getting rid of all 3 (Hoke, Borges & Mattison) or some combination of Borges, Funk and Mallory etc. I do give Mattison some blame when its 4th and 2 and our DBs are 6 - 8 off the ball. I also give Hoke and Mattison some blame for having a D line that cant get any penetration with 4. By now, you should be able to have coached a skilled but raw athlete how to get some pressure on a consistent basis.
November 9th, 2013 at 8:23 PM ^
This x 10000000. When he says, "We just didn't execute," it makes me want to jump throught the computer screen and choke him out.
Comments