Minnesota 30, Michigan 14
Bryan Fuller/MGoBlog
“We’re not going to talk about injuries and I might as well bring that out now. And some of that is because you can say something about something and then you’re wrong. Everybody heals a little differently, and the other thing is for our kids. I want to make sure we’re doing a good job protecting them.” — Brady Hoke, 9/17/14
Regardless of how you felt about the on-field performance, what Brady Hoke did in putting an almost certainly concussed Shane Morris back on the field was reprehensible and, if you believe the first job of a head coach is to protect his own players, worthy of a firing. The fact that Hoke let Morris stay on the field as long as he did in the first place—when Morris, at one point, waved at the sideline while needing a lineman's support to stand—was awful enough; to ask Morris to re-enter that game was beyond the pale.
A national television audience just saw every reason why they shouldn't send their football players to Michigan.
An ornery crowd filtered in slowly, with the "attendance" of 102,926 such an obvious farce much of the crowd booed when it was announced. Booing, in fact, was a theme on the day. It started early, when a couple inside running plays netted little. When Minnesota entered the tunnel with a 10-7 halftime lead, the boos rained down again.
By the time Morris lost a third-quarter fumble when he simply dropped the ball in the pocket—the press box announcer flatly stated "fumble not forced by anyone on Minnesota," afterward—the student section had moved on from boos to chants of "Fire Brandon." For the uninitiated, that would be in reference to Dave Brandon, Michigan's embattled athletic director.
Fuller
The first half proved competitive, at least, if not at all interesting. Michigan punted on their first three drives, Minnesota on their opening four; provided stellar field position by the defense, the Wolverine offense tallied their first red zone trip and touchdown against a Power 5 team this season on a nifty ten-yard scamper by De'Veon Smith. The Gophers answered just two minutes later, however, with a ten-yard scoring run of their own when quarterback Mitch Leidner ran untouched around the corner off an inside run fake.
Minnesota added greatly to the fan unrest when they marched 92 yards in 2:17 to end the half with a Ryan Santoso field goal. Then the floodgates opened in the third quarter. Minnesota forced Michigan to punt from deep in their own territory, allowing the Gophers to "drive" eight yards in seven plays for another Santoso field goal, putting them up 13-10. Two plays later, Theiran Cockran tipped a Morris pass to the flat, and it fluttered right to Gopher LB De'Vondre Campbell, who brought it back 30 yards for an easy touchdown.
After the Morris fumble on the very next drive, Leidner ended a five-play drive with a little flip-pass to Maxx Williams for a one-yard score. What had been a 10-7 game just 4:32 earlier morphed into an ugly 27-7 blowout. When Morris was finally pulled, Devin Gardner entered the game and immediately engineered a touchdown drive, capping it off with a three-yard run, defiantly standing as two defenders collided with him upon entering the end zone. During that drive, Gardner lost his helmet for a play, necessitating either a timeout be called or a backup enter. While Russell Bellomy also grabbed his helmet, Morris went in.
On what would ultimately be Michigan's last drive, another woeful three-and-out (their seventh of the game) from the shadow of their own end zone, Devin Funchess also went down injured, and left the field with a noticeable limp. When the game mercifully ended shortly after Michigan punted, still technically down just two scores on the scoreboard, Funchess and his teammates limped to the locker room; Morris left the field on the back of a cart.
"I didn't see that. I can only answer for me," said Hoke, when asked if he noticed Morris looking wobbly on his feet.
If that's the best you've got, Brady, it's best if you let someone else protect the players.
September 27th, 2014 at 9:40 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 9:52 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 10:05 PM ^
When Shane Morris left the field, there were boos. They were loud and noticable. That could, possibly yet unlikely, be directed at the coaches. When Devin Gardner entered the game in his stead, it was met with cheering. Again possibly yet unlikely, those cheers were directed toward, and in support of, the team's fifth year senior. However, more likely, they were directed at any person entering the game at the quarterback position not named Shane Morris. When Devin lost his helmet, I reached out and touched my dad's shoulder. With a frightened look on my face, I said, "They're going to boo if Shane reenters the game!" In horror, the boos rained down on him as Shane Morris jogged to the huddle.
In short, these boos were not directed at the coaching staff. They were directed specifically at Shane.
If you are a fan of the Michigan football program, that means you are here to support the team. If you find that you're incapable of doing that, then get the fuck out. I would rather hear silence than boos and heckling from the crowd. I would rather have a half empty stadium than a stadium that is half occupied by people who choose to kick players while their down, players that they claim to support. Take your maize and blue shit and burn it. Go buy a Spartan green t-shirt and cap, and cheer for the team in East Lansing, because we don't need you, and I don't want you. Get the fuck out and never come back.
The only thing more dissipointing than the coaching staff, and the play on the field, was the behavior that I witnessed from the fanbase. What I saw was a selfish group of people so wrapped up in their own emotional reactions to the poor performance, that they were incapable and unwilling to consider the physical and mental states of the students who are actually involved, on the field. Get the fuck out, all of you.
September 27th, 2014 at 10:13 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 10:36 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:05 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:27 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 11:50 PM ^
When he game back I yelled about Brady putting that poor kid back.
So you are wrong.
September 28th, 2014 at 5:36 AM ^
You must have been at a different game than the rest of the world... because that is not what happened.
So you are wrong.
September 27th, 2014 at 10:01 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:36 PM ^
It was "Fire Brandon". I was in front of the two-three guys who got it going early.
September 28th, 2014 at 3:49 AM ^
If it was Hoke, they would have said "Fire Hoke".
September 27th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
Richrod beats oregon again and I'm changing my mgoblog name to TrollPhilIWillFindYou . I will hunt you uh "not so smart about football and how teams come together to win" , pejorative, "fans" down ...one by one... (i have russian hacker friends...), and personally visit you to yell at you about NOT supporting "the team, the team, the team" but instead being entitled, uh... not so brainy, arrogant with no reason (eg 2007 rosebowl chant "over rated...", uh cabesa de cacas. If one of footballs best coaches does not win, well i hate your guts anyway and I'm sure thats more than most of you, including many of my close friends whom i now only love/hate..
September 27th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
Richrod beats oregon again and I'm changing my mgoblog name to TrollPhilIWillFindYou . I will hunt you uh "not so smart about football and how teams come together to win" , pejorative, "fans" down ...one by one... (i have russian hacker friends...), and personally visit you to yell at you about NOT supporting "the team, the team, the team" but instead being entitled, uh... not so brainy, arrogant with no reason (eg 2007 rosebowl chant "over rated...", uh cabesa de cacas. If one of footballs best coaches does not win, well i hate your guts anyway and I'm sure thats more than most of you, including many of my close friends whom i now only love/hate..
September 27th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
Richrod beats oregon again and I'm changing my mgoblog name to TrollPhilIWillFindYou . I will hunt you uh "not so smart about football and how teams come together to win" , pejorative, "fans" down ...one by one... (i have russian hacker friends...), and personally visit you to yell at you about NOT supporting "the team, the team, the team" but instead being entitled, uh... not so brainy, arrogant with no reason (eg 2007 rosebowl chant "over rated...", uh cabesa de cacas. If one of footballs best coaches does not win, well i hate your guts anyway and I'm sure thats more than most of you, including many of my close friends whom i now only love/hate..
September 27th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
Richrod beats oregon again and I'm changing my mgoblog name to TrollPhilIWillFindYou . I will hunt you uh "not so smart about football and how teams come together to win" , pejorative, "fans" down ...one by one... (i have russian hacker friends...), and personally visit you to yell at you about NOT supporting "the team, the team, the team" but instead being entitled, uh... not so brainy, arrogant with no reason (eg 2007 rosebowl chant "over rated...", uh cabesa de cacas. If one of footballs best coaches does not win, well i hate your guts anyway and I'm sure thats more than most of you, including many of my close friends whom i now only love/hate..
September 27th, 2014 at 10:27 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 10:34 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 10:35 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:06 PM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 12:05 AM ^
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September 28th, 2014 at 5:42 AM ^
Are you fucking kidding me?!
September 27th, 2014 at 11:16 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:47 PM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 2:15 AM ^
If true, then wow.
September 28th, 2014 at 12:35 AM ^
This breaks my fucking heart. I'm sorry for the language but I can only imagine how this kid feels.
September 27th, 2014 at 11:20 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 11:40 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:41 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 11:48 PM ^
I always felt this is exactly what went down in leading to this hire.
September 27th, 2014 at 11:59 PM ^
I can't argue with this. DB loves to play soldier and pretend he's a big tough Michigan football coach and found a willing patsy in Hoke.
September 28th, 2014 at 7:25 AM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 9:55 AM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:56 PM ^
I felt bad for Shane Morris even before- when he obviously came up limping on his left foot, also the foot he drives off when throwing- that they didn't at least bring him over and take a look. Then he takes a killshot from a Minnesota player who should've been ejected for targeting. Then Shane gets up and it is clear to anyone who can see that he's not right. Doesn't Brady Hoke keep the headset off JUST SO he can keep an eye on stuff like this without being distracted? As the game wore on I thought it was Dave Brandon who should be fired, but after watching that I think the coaches have it coming too.
September 27th, 2014 at 11:56 PM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 5:45 AM ^
Did you just refer to Brady Hoke as an abortion? What is wrong with you?
September 28th, 2014 at 8:21 AM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 11:56 PM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 12:03 AM ^
No. Burn some sparklers instead.
September 28th, 2014 at 1:46 AM ^
I'm absolutely astonished by what I saw at the stadium today. There was the general chaos of the RR years, but then there's this. From the tailgate to the game to the postgame, it's like a giant fog of apathy, incompetence, confusion, and "hold me, because there's nothing else I can think of that might help" (for lack of better adjective) has completely immersed this program.
I always thought I liked Brady Hoke as a person. What I saw in terms of his actions towards Shane Morris today, I'm not so sure anymore. Inexcusable, reckless, out of touch, the list could go on. Our AD is a buffoon. Our stadiums operations people are buffoons. Turns out our coaches and training staff are, too.
These people cannot be in charge of 18-22 year olds anymore, both from a wins-and-losses perspective and, apparently, a brain cells perspective. From Brandon on down to the trained medical professional who came on the field to help Shane, then decided a punch-drunk 19 year old knew more about what was going on in his blacked-out, concussed head than a trained medical professional could from looking at him barely able to stand. And the coach who brushed shoulders with said punch drunk, concussed 19 year old, who didn't seem to notice the kid was a blown out space cadet.
Shut it down.
September 28th, 2014 at 1:58 AM ^
Look at the video when Morris finally exits the game. The trainer is not giving him a standard concussion screening. They're quietly chatting, the trainer at Shane's side. Unbelievable.
September 28th, 2014 at 5:49 AM ^
According to your testimony, you went to the game and then came home and rewatched it again? Wow... so are you just throwing yourself a pity party then?
September 28th, 2014 at 6:23 AM ^
Ace, this is two in a row. You are better than this. There are a lot of reasons to criticize Hoke, especially right now. But caring for his players is not one of those areas. There is nothing Hoke has ever done to indicate he does not care for his players first. The hit on Morris took place inside the 20 and on the opposite side of the field from the Michigan bench, it is unlikely that the Michigan coaching staff got a good look at the hit. And when he fell against the lineman, there is absolutely no way Hoke saw that from where it took place on the field.
You can rightfully rip Hoke apart for how the team is performing on the field, but lets not let that bleed into unreasonable assessments of everything the man says and does.
September 28th, 2014 at 9:25 AM ^
80,000 fans could see it, but hoke nor any one of his assistants or personnel could see shane was hurt? complete negligence and incompetence for the entire sideline.
September 28th, 2014 at 8:15 AM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 8:18 AM ^
He said it. It's true.
September 28th, 2014 at 8:40 AM ^
September 28th, 2014 at 9:15 AM ^
I grew up in Ann Arbor and have been a Michigan fan for my whole life. I've never felt this bad about the program. Losing a lot of football games is one thing, but putting a kid's health at risk is another. To the people saying Ace went too far, I can only assume you weren't at the game or didn't see what happened. I was sitting fairly close to where Shane got hit. The defender launched himself at his head after he released the ball. Shane was slow to get up and appeared shaky as he walked towards the Michigan sideline. After a few steps, he collapsed against an offensive lineman. He was between the Michigan sideline and midfield. I can't say for sure what Hoke saw or didn't see, but I can't imagine what else he would have been watching. His quarterback just took a vicious late hit that drew a penalty flag and was stumbling towards the sideline. In the stands around me, anger turned to disbelief as it became clear that Morris was staying in for the next play. Many people were screaming at Hoke to take him out. Then to put him in again several plays later...it's inexcusable. Hoke shouldn't get the rest of the year, he should be out immediately. At the end of the day losing games isn't the worst thing in the world, but it's gotten to the point where the kids aren't safe on the field. This has to end.
September 28th, 2014 at 10:11 AM ^
The program is an aesthetic and achievement disaster. Boring and bumbling.
Not much more need be said than that.
This is the future that Dave Brandon created. This.
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