ESPN Postulates 3 big changes coming for Wolverines
http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/travis-haney/post/_/id/3557/big-changes…
I'm a believer that the more you see this stuff, the more likely it is to become real. The court of media is very convincing (Just ask Winston) no matter if it is how it should be or not. It's one thing to have blogs and sidebar sports sites saying Hoke has a hot seat. When ESPN starts pushing the "It's a done deal" line things tend to sprial out of control.
MOD EDIT - the entire article plus what was behind the Insider link was posted in here. Let's try to leave some value for the authors themselves, please. - LSA
September 21st, 2014 at 1:35 PM ^
We've needed a change since 2007
September 21st, 2014 at 1:46 PM ^
We were not dominated by Utah.
We outgained them and the reasons we lost, or at least the reasons the game wasn't far closer, were special teams and turnovers.
Utah and ND are both headed for really good seasons and I believe we'll look at these losses in a less harsh light over time, particularly if we can finish in good fashion.
September 21st, 2014 at 1:47 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 3:26 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 5:44 PM ^
and old enough to still hold a grudge about Woodson winning the Heisman over Peyton Manning. So there, lets get that out in the open, its easy peasy to come up with a nasty storyline here to satisfy your deep rooted hatred of Michigan.
Its an ESPN writer yes, but I don't think anyone with a shred of authority at ESPN really backs this. Obviously a struggling coach/team is the easiest story to write outside of a fall camp "quarterback controversy"
September 21st, 2014 at 1:50 PM ^
Every week, I really wonder if you watched the same game as the rest of the board.
September 22nd, 2014 at 11:50 AM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 1:51 PM ^
lol we lost 26-10 and didn't get into the redzone.
that is domination if i've ever seen one.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:12 PM ^
26-10, a TD was scored on a kick return, and you see domination, based on the score?
September 21st, 2014 at 2:13 PM ^
Serious question: Did you even watch this game?
September 21st, 2014 at 2:17 PM ^
why are you and alot of other people fixated on stats? the last time i checked the score is what matters.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:20 PM ^
Well, special teams count for 1/3 of the game. I'd say we got dominated on special teams, offense, and defense when their quarterback came back.
So yeah, it was dominating. To a middling Pac-12 team. At home. On National Television.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:21 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 2:23 PM ^
If you are going to take an arbitrary TD away from Utah lets do the same for Michigan. Utah can sit there and say if it wasn't for some lucky interception by a 300 lb defensive lineman they would have won 26 to 3.
If we take both "lucky" TD's away (even though I believe Michigan's was luckier, seeing as how Michigan's punt formation is just asking for a team to house one) Utah won 19 to 3. That still pretty much looks like domination to me.
The stats are never going to be outlandish against Michigan because their defense is really good. If you think 0 redzone trips and a total of 3 points from your offense in 2 games vs. teams with a pulse isn't being dominated good for you, for most of us here, that is domination.
September 21st, 2014 at 8:25 PM ^
Let's also not forget the two illegal blocks on INT returns. Utah should've had more easy points after 2 INT's with very good field position that was wiped out by illegal blocks. This game could've been a lot worse than 26-10.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:27 PM ^
on the first drive of the game and the D scored our only TD. Idaho State and Fresno State both scored more points against Utah than we did and those teams played at Utah. Not only did those teams outscore us against Utah they also out gained us.
September 21st, 2014 at 7:28 PM ^
Now that's a depressing stat.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:11 PM ^
I don't know whether or not it has been discussed here yet, but what we had was a TD scored on a return during which we only had ten men on the field.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:41 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 8:30 PM ^
Was I making an argument?
September 22nd, 2014 at 12:12 PM ^
not. I may have just wanted to complain again about all of the dumb mistakes that keep happening.
September 21st, 2014 at 1:53 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 2:02 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 5:38 PM ^
our rushing D is likely as good as any in the country. so there is that...and probably only that. so that's one thing.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:02 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 1:57 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 4:00 PM ^
How can you watch that game and come away with we were not dominated. We outgained ND as well. WTF.
Toadally.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:02 PM ^
That sounds like the usual broken record refrain from Hoke supporters...
Every week, were not dominated by the opponent, but fell due to X, Y, Z, etc reasons. The excuses for not executing are getting old. Hoke is a nice guy, but it is time for this relationship to end. Michigan and its athletes deserve better.
We were dominated. Everytime we broke the 50, we somehow fucked up the next couple of plays. We have yet to score an offensive TD against a power 5 conference team. Last night, the team absolutely quit when Gardner was pulled.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:01 PM ^
I didn't see anything special about them. They look like a mediocre Pac12 team to me.
The defense did it's job for the most part. Our offense had recievers open, but Gardner didn't hit them, and when he did the receivers had to do way more work than needed to catch it. And yes, our blocking sucks.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:06 PM ^
Sorry, but Utah is not a good team. Look at their schedule seriously - they are a fringe bowl team.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:38 PM ^
then what does that make Michigan? A shitty team?
September 21st, 2014 at 7:33 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 2:09 PM ^
you said the exact same thing after the ND debacle. I get it that you are all in on Hoke. I suspect there will never come a moment that you will believe a changing of the guard is appropriate--or that Hoke is responsible for where we are at ( and no longer Rich Rod).
September 21st, 2014 at 2:22 PM ^
I'm trying to be measured and may go too far the other way. But helmet to helmet this team hasn't been dominated yet breakdowns or bonehead plays make scores more maddening or embarassing than they should be.
I see an o-line, rbs, and defense that show progess since last season.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:30 PM ^
You're correct in that all three of those things have verifiably improved. This is true. However, it has nothing to do with us getting dominated. We were just crushed by a team that will be lucky to reach a mid tier bowl, if not be postseason eligible in the first place. We were dominated in every sense of the word. Just because we would have been crushed even worse last year, it doesn't mean that we don't suck now.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:44 PM ^
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September 21st, 2014 at 2:56 PM ^
See, you used terms like "crushed" and "dominated in every sense of the word". Emotionally, it felt like that. But that's an over the top description of what happened.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:43 PM ^
Yards and time of posession are by far the most overrated offensive stat. What do you call our team failing to score an offensive TD in 8 quarters against power 5 conference teams (and one team that will finish as a mid-tier pac12 team). This team was dominated by Utah's vaunted defense...
September 21st, 2014 at 2:31 PM ^
We weren't domintated by Utah and we still couldn't get in the red zone. Our defense played stout; if it wasn't for them this would have been an unmitigated disaster. Maybe it was and I really don't now what 'unmitigated' means.
September 21st, 2014 at 3:20 PM ^
I think it means "not mitigated"
September 21st, 2014 at 2:48 PM ^
Funny how outgaining opponents but not scoring was the sign of utter and complete failure under Rich Rod but now it's being touted as a sign that things aren't really all that bad under Hoke.
There is something really wrong with our program and I include the fans as part of that statement.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:38 PM ^
Under Rodriguez, there was both offensive futility (lots of yards, not enough scores) and defensive futility (obvious). That's not the case with Hoke. The offense is producing a fair amount of yardage (but not enough scores) and the defense is pretty stout. The Wolverines are #8 in total defense and #1 in the Big Ten.
September 21st, 2014 at 6:04 PM ^
Bullshit. According to FEI we had one of the best offenses in the country and that was with mostly mid ranked underclassmen with only 2 full years in the system running the damn thing. Hoke has highly ranked upper classmen (except for OL which is still not THAT young) and we can't do shit on offense.
We basically flipped flopped - took a team with great O and lousy D and now have a great D and record setting incompetence on O.
September 21st, 2014 at 9:06 PM ^
2010: #2 offense, #109 defense
2013: #42 offense, #37 defense
I wouldn't call that a flip-flop. 2010 might possibly have been the best offense and worst defense in school history, at the same time. 2013 was meh on both sides of the ball (with some pretty wide fluctuations around the meh on offense, to be sure).
Fremeau hasn't posted schedule-adjusted numbers for 2014 yet but the unadjusted numbers have Michigan's offense at #42 and the defense at #25.
September 22nd, 2014 at 1:52 AM ^
Again, that #2 offense was very young and filled with 3* talent. Now, we have the #42 offense with 5th yr QB (5* recruit) with veteran talent that were all 4*'s when recruited.
That is a flip flop in my mind.
September 21st, 2014 at 2:48 PM ^
September 21st, 2014 at 2:49 PM ^
Really? Meaningless yards and not sniffing the Red Zone = Domination, just like the ND game was.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:22 PM ^
Cue the 'shakes head in disgust' gif.
September 21st, 2014 at 4:41 PM ^
You said the same thing after the Notre Dame loss. Give it up.
September 21st, 2014 at 5:03 PM ^
Utah is going to have a fight on their hands just to get to a bowl game. They will be lucky to win 4 more games all season playing in the PAC12 South and the teams they have from the North.
Here is their remaining brutal schedule and my opnion of their win/loss:
Washington St.
@UCLA (L)
@ Oregon St. (W)
USC (L)
@ASU (L)
Oregon (L)
@Stanford (L)
Arizona (L)
@Colorado (W)
So far they've only beaten FCS Idaho St., an awful Fresno St. team and Michigan.