Monday Presser Transcript 11-4-13: Brady Hoke Comment Count

Heiko

Offense bullets: 

  • Devin Gardner is still "beat up." He'll probably practice tomorrow, though. 
  • The offensive line is young. Reacted poorly to the environment and didn't play their technique well in pass protection.
  • Running back needed to protect better, too. Fitz is the best pass protector on the team, so it looks like they're out of options. This-may-or-may-not-be-significant-alert: De'Veon Smith was removed from the travel squad for vague reasons.
  • AJ Williams will be back Saturday. Drew Dileo should be back as well.
  • Hoke doesn't think Taylor Lewan should be suspended for the facemask thing. Says it's "unacceptable" but if it were suspension-worthy he'd have suspended him already. 

Defense bullets:

  • Keith Heitzman injured his hand last week in practice, so he didn't travel. He may take a while to come back.
  • Willie Henry played a good game. He'll probably get more playing time moving forward.
  • The last two long busts were because of a mismatch in personnel, which got them run over.

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Podium

Opening remarks:

“You know, coming off not the way you want to start the five-game stretch, the meat of your schedule, Saturday is something we’re all disappointed with and everything that we have to do from a coaching standpoint and a playing standpoint. Obviously it was evaluated and we all need to do a better job, and that’s just a part of it. We had some opportunities we didn’t take advantage of during the course of the football game, and that’s a credit to them. We’ve got to do a better job. Offensively, we have to get Devin a little more of an opportunity because there were plenty of them down the field. Execution’s a part of that. Always is. When you’re sliding protections or whatever it might be. Defensively, I think our defense kept us in the football game for a long time with bad field position. Needed to make some stops more in the second half. Didn’t get that accomplished. Some third downs. The score right before the half is never a good score. And then them taking the ball for six minutes or five minutes to start the second half even though they got the field goal. Again, it’s posessions. Trying to get possessions. We had a really good day yesterday, which is a really good thing. The attitude of our team, they came in and worked like heck on the evaluation part of it, and we’ll work like heck out in practice. That being said … ”

Seemed like you had success giving Funchess the ball. In hindsight, do you wish you would have made more quick drops to get him the ball?

“There were some quick throws in there, but there were plenty of opportunities I wished we would have given Devin [Gardner] another half a click to step up and throw. Because there were a lot of opportunities down the field.”

How do you fix the issues on the offensive line?

“It’s a youth problem as much as anything. The only fix is the experience. I wouldn’t trade [Kyle] Bosch or [Erik] Magnuson or Graham [Glasgow] for anybody. Or the guys they’re competing with.”

You only got Fitz eight carries. None of the other running backs were mixed in …

“Well Derrick [Green] got a couple snaps. And when you got into a protection game, for a young guy, it’s not a great time [to put him in].”

Did you plan on avoiding running back carries?

“I don’t think so. From a plan part of it, I really thought it was a very good plan. Would we have liked to have run the ball better? More? That’s kind of dumb. Yeah. We’d like to. We’d all like to do stuff better. As far as getting him more touches, it would have been great to.”

How is Devin’s heatlh?

“He’s good. He’s fine. He’s beat up. Just like Andrew Luck is today. Beat up.”

Drew Dileo?

“Drew is coming along. He’s healthier every day.”

Will he play on Saturday?

“Yeah. I think so. I haven’t gotten full word, but knowing Drew and how he’s progressed, yeah.”

You mentioned a good day yesterday. To whom does it fall to make sure that you don’t have that carryover psychologically to the next game?

“Number one, it falls on me. That’s why our Sunday was a little different in how we did some things. The leadership, coaches, captains, seniors, Desmond Morgan, guys who have played a lot of snaps. But it starts with me first.”

You said part of the problem was the youth on offensive line. You can’t do anything about it.

“Yeah, you just have to keep every day grinding. That’s all, and showing them the looks and doing everything you can. At times there’s a comfort level. Sometimes guys in an environment may want to try and set – and I’m talking pass-protection wise – a little further out than they should or a little too fast. They over set. I’m just using that as an example. If they just fundamentally keep to what they’ve been doing, there’s an excitement that I think guys get. And you see it in different guys. But we just have to keep grinding.”

After the game, you said the pass protection was about more than just the offensive line. What were some of the other issues?

“The back’s got to be able to pick them up a little better. I think there’s probably one or two where the quarterback needs to step up and feel it a little better. There’s sometimes the timing of a route. It’s hit or miss. You got ten guys good, one guy bad, it’s like anything else. That’s why it’s a great team sport. You have to have them all on the same [page].”

The first day you were hired, you said the goal was always the Big Ten championship.

“Yes.”

Four games left, it looks like that’s no longer a possibility.

“Is it possible though?”

Yes. But how do you get these guys to get motivated for the rest of the season even though it’s out of your hands?

“I don’t think you know our team very well. How they feel about each other and how they feel about Michigan and how they feel about the personal pride that they have.”

What was different about Sunday?

“We just did some things differently that were good for us.”

Seems like a couple times this game you were pushed around.

“I don’t know if it was pushed around. I don’t agree with that. We got ran over once. Twice. With a mismatch. But other than that, there was just not being in the right place a couple times.”

In hindsight, was that one of the more demoralizing moments you’ve ever had as a head coach?

“No. I didn’t feel demoralized at all. Disappointed. But demoralized? That’s kind of … I didn’t feel that.”

In pass protection, was there anything else you could have done to take the pressure off the offensive line?

“I think running the ball helps you. Any time. I think that helps you in a lot of different ways from your play-action game and all that. I think there were enough guys to protect.”

Is this a defining moment for your captains? In 2011 you were in the same place but you finished pretty well partially because of the leadership.

“Well not just the captains but the whole group of seniors because of what we ask of them. Yeah. There’s no question this is a time when your leadership always either steps forward or stays the same or steps back.”

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Roundtable

Fitz had a rough time in pass protection. Have you considered any of the other backs?

“They’re still in the mix. Fitz is our best pass protector. Has been. Derrick and some of the other young guys, it’s pretty difficult.”

What’s the status of De’Veon Smith and Keith Heitzman? Neither traveled.

“De’Veon didn’t travel because I took him off the travel team. Heitzman has a little bit of a hand issue.”

Is it because Smith didn’t earn a spot?

“Yeah.”

Will Heitzman play on Saturday?

“I don’t think so. It’s kind of day to day. He practiced a little Thursday, but he wasn’t as effective as we’d like. We’d love to have him, believe me.”

Is Funchess being coached by Ferrigno or Hecklinski these days?

“Mostly Heck.”

Is it because he already knows the tight end stuff?

“Heck knows the tight end stuff, too. If there’s anything that’s dual a bit, it’s easier to have the guy in one room the whole time.”

The cameras caught Taylor with his hand in an MSU player’s facemask. What’s your assessment on that?

“My assessment was it’s not what we want to portray or be, and he and I have had a discussion regarding that. It’s not who we are … If I think he should have been suspended it would have been done.”

With Jake Ryan healthier and Brennen Beyer playing SDE, how nice is it to have both on the field at the same time?

“Well Cam Gordon played a really good football game the other day, too, at the SAM. Having him and Jake in the sub packages, both those guys, I think it’s really good for us. I think Brennen has always been a guy that can wear a lot of hats. Smart, tough, good technician.”

What does he give you there that you may have been missing otherwise?

“I think number one it’s the quality of the football player.”

What’s it like to have an Athletic Director who’s so involved with your football program?

“I think it’s always nice to have people to work with that are positive.”

AJ Williams? Is he back this week?

“He’s back.”

Was his absence noticeable? Would it have made a difference?

“Well we changed a little bit. We used six offensive linemen in there a lot.”

Is the youth on the offensive line an anomaly? Will it be different going forward?

“Yes. Should it be? Yes. When we got here, we had eight scholarship offensive linemen. That number is usually 14.”

How much would that make a difference?

“I think I’d be wrong if I didn’t say it takes a little developing physically and mentally because of the position. I’d also be wrong if I didn’t say there’s guys who have done it and guys who have done it at a quicker pace. Kyle [Bosch] has been here since January. I think he’s coming along pretty good in some instances. Did we all have our best moments Saturday? No. Coaches included.”

How many scholarship linemen do you have now?

“15? Isn’t it 15? Yeah. 15.”

Did you guys perceive this being an issue against Michigan State? Or is this not acceptable no matter what?

“Number one it’s never acceptable no matter who it is. The expectation is for the position, and it always has been this way and it will always be this way. Do we need to do a better job? Yeah. The coaches do. I think that’s always something that we look at. We have to be able to push forward. The kids have responded well. Was it representative? No. You get seven sacks and you snap the ball 20 yards [behind you], it doesn’t help your positive yardage.”

Did you tell your staff you need to coach these guys better?

“Yeah. We all have to.”

What do you have to do defensively in a game like this?

“Well you need to steal some possessions, which means we have to create some turnovers. You have to give your offense more opportunities. That’s part of it. Getting off the field. Third downs, we weren’t great. Especially in the second half and the last drive of the first one. Getting off the field again creates more opportunities for your offense.”

What jumps out at you about Nebraska?

“Ameer Abdullah is a really good back. They’ve play two or three good quarterbacks since [Taylor] Martinez has been out. The two that I’ve seen are very capable of running their offense and do a good job of it. Physical offensive line, and that’s part of their trademark. Defensively, especially up front, Willie Henry had a very good football game the other day. Willie’s gotten better as the year has gone on.”

You said you would have suspended Lewan already if you thought he should be. He pushed the line a bit, though, with the twisting of the helmet.

“It’s not acceptable.”

Was it the heat of the moment?

“Trying in some ways to get our quarterback out of harm’s way in the pile. Some of it was he got overtaken with his emotion. He’s kind of one of those guys, as you all well know, who is a very good teammate.”

Do you think what he did was just as bad as what Will Gholston did two years ago?

“I’m not going to judge that. That’s for somebody else to judge. You guys will write about it.”

You said having the bye week was overrated. Why?

“Here’s the thing about having two weeks: they get to rest. How you approach it is getting them some rest and at the same time doing some things for the next opponent. But you want a fresher team.”

So it wasn’t about making adjustments.

“Well we did the first bye week. We adjusted the offensive line. Did some things we needed to do. It’s the first thing we talked about. Where are we at the next five games with personnel? Do we have the right personnel on the field? Do we have the right guys in the kicking game?”

Devin’s beat up. Does he need a couple days to recover?

“He’ll probably need yesterday and today.”

Do you expect him to practice tomorrow?

“Oh yeah.”

What was he like yesterday?

“Like any quarterback who gets seven sacks and a lot of helmets in different parts of your body.”

Was it your decision to take him out of the game or Devin’s?

“No. It wasn’t his decision.”

So it was yours.

“Yeah. Now he was a warrior. Did he do everything perfectly? No.”

Where is Jehu Chesson now compared with the beginning of the season?

“He’s come a long way. Look at the special teams part of it and what he’s done. As a gunner on the punt and the kickoff. He’s made a significant amount of plays. As he’s grown into a guy who’s a receiver who’s very good for us. He can stretch the field. Went up and made a nice play on the ball. One thing he wanted to do, he said yesterday, ‘I wanted to finish.’ ”

Comments

buddha

November 4th, 2013 at 9:16 PM ^

Our best starter next year does not need to be a two-time All-American who is a lock for the first round in the NFL draft. Being discriminating in my taste, I'll take maybe one or two second-team B1G players (if we can msuter that with our four- and five-star recruits) and a generally average level of competence. No world beating...not even good. Just average. Unfortunately, I'm not even sure we'll get that because I have seen literally no improvement in our lines the past two seasons.

Blue in Yarmouth

November 5th, 2013 at 8:04 AM ^

I have tried to maintain a level head about the whole thing, but themore I think about it the more I think our o-line coaching is just subpar....way subpar.

The fact that we have a young oline in unquestionable but shouldn't we have seen some improvement by now? I mean, you said yourself that they are talented guys, not just a bunch of walk-ons (though one is, but he beat out scholarship players).

When I look at this team I don't see many position groups that have improved since this staff arrived. Three that I think really have are WR's, LB's and DB's. Now I don't know if that is due mainly to an upgrade in talent, an upgrade in coaching or a combination of both(I suspect it is a combination). 

The other position groups seem to have each regressed over the last 3 years despite the increase in talent.That is worrisome to me. 

Again, I know that youth plays a role and we have lots of it, but Magnum P.I. did a little research to find other teams who have similar numbers of underclassmen playing and the ones he mentioned who are either playing the same amount  or more underclssmen on the o-line than us were numerous. Stanford and LSU and two examples, but he had many more. 

The point, I believe, is that lots of teams deal with similar issues and still manage to put a viable product on the field. I don't think anyone (at least I don't) think we should have our three interior linemen playing at an all big level this early in their careers, but what we are seeing is absolute chaos once the ball is snapped.

I want to be clear that I'm not trying to start a fight or anything. I'm not mad or pulling my hair out screaming for someone to be fired. I'm just trying to figure out why we are having so much more trouble developing the talent we have in contrast to just about every other FBS out there. 

A lot of people think that Borges deserves a pass and since I don't know a hell of a lot about the X's and O's I don't argue that point, they very well may be right. I can, however, see just fine and what I see from various position groups is a complete lack of improvement, and that falls squarely on the assistants lack of development IMHE. Given that and the fact that I have failed to see progress in many positions over the past three years, I can't say that I share the faith you have that next year will be better. I hope I'm wrong.

uncleFred

November 5th, 2013 at 2:04 PM ^

it's also number of snaps and how the experience is distributed across the line. Red shirt freshmen and true freshmen pretty much by definition come in with no in game snaps. That is generally not the case for sophmores or juniors (red shirt or not). This is part of the reason that people refer to our interior line as young and inexperienced, as opposed to just young. To actually compare this iine with that of other "young" lines you also need to look at the number of in game snaps and starts for each player. 

As far as I can remember, other than our senior tackles none of the other offensive linemen had a single in game snap prior to this season. Coaches will tell you that no matter what you do in practice you don't really know what you've got until the players get on the field.

I was thinking about something Lewan said in this week's press conference. He mentioned that the young guys had to learn to go 100% on every play and take each play as single maximum effort. That echoed something that one of the coaches (probably Borges) said about getting the guys to give 100% on each play in practice and that showing that was how they earned a starting slot. The mental discipline to focus solely and only on this play, forgetting the last play and not worrying about the next play and then going 100% on the snap. You have to take frustration, anger, fatigue, pain, triumph, defeat, and all the other things that well up in the heat of competition and channel them back into that singular focus over and over again two or three times a minute. 

That is hard for people to learn. You can explain it and reenforce it over and over. You can say it a dozen different ways, but until someone internalizes it, they aren't going to do it consistently. It's hard to teach adults, and much harder to teach 18 and 19 year olds. 

I'm not entirely sure that the offensive line actually got worse between PSU and MSU. They certainly took a much worse beating against MSU, but I have a hard time judging how much of that was a result of their regression and how much was just MSU being a very good defense who played very well in that game. The offensive line could have made modest progress and still have been destroyed (or made none).   We'll know a lot more after Nebraska and NW. 

My point is that youth is not an excuse. It is a valid reason for slow and or inconsistent progress. While I too am disappointed in the failure of the offensive line to make consistent improvement and I agree that it is the coach's responsibility to fix this, I am unable to define what amount of improvement is a reasonable expectation to measure the coaches and players against. It is my opinion that no one, other than the coaches themselves, has access to the necessary information to reasonably establish that expectation.

Ultimately decisions about coaching and player performance fall on Hoke's shoulders. He'll have to evaluate this and make decisions about his staff. For obvious reasons this will happen in the off season and the rest of us will have to measure the quality of that decision based on the team's performance next season.

MonkeyMan

November 4th, 2013 at 5:52 PM ^

Clearly Hoke believes the teams problems are due primarily to youth (and he could be right).  He will not reassess his staff most likely- Funk, Borges, et. al are safe so anyone asking for them to be fired will be dissappointed. It does not appear Hoke sees many flaws in the decisions he or his associates make. For better or for worse, there will be no major reassessment of the direction of  the program whatsoever- not even during the off season.

MonkeyMan

November 4th, 2013 at 7:27 PM ^

Yes- I did get a great deal from that press conference.  I know this is not an exact science, deducing a person's personality from their answers and choice of words, but I have enough past experience to tell me that people who talk like BH are very sure of themselves. I was struck by how abrupt BH's responses were, when he spoke of what he saw there was little in the way of hemming or hawing. He seemed not to even entertain views that contrasted with his.                                                                                                                                           Hoke actually has a very strong personality. He would be easy for an opposing coach to develop a psychological profile on- very predictable. In this sense, it is good that he gives full reins of the offesnse to the OC as Hoke would be even easier to scheme against.  I believe Hoke sees the answer to his problems in recruiting and experience- not coaching changes. Hoke's strong personality is a great asset in recruiting, kids feel they can trust him. I cannot see any coaching changes at all during the offseason due to dissatisfaction by BH. Hopefully, Hoke is right and recruiting will pay off- because he will not change otherwise.  It could be a long wait for results though.

buddha

November 4th, 2013 at 5:58 PM ^

I didn't really expect anything different, but - damn - just once I'd like to see him get pissed off. To better explain: I want him to show some passion and emotion and cascade that passion and emotion to the team. The team takes cues from emotional leaders and - sometimes - the coach needs to be that emotional leader. 

Now...I should also say that showing emotion and passion does NOT mean throwing players or coaches under the bus. I wouldn't want him to do that especially after the bar fight we just lost last week. Nevertheless, the schtick of "this is on the coaches," is getting old. And - if it is on the coaches - then act and / or do something differently. 

erald01

November 4th, 2013 at 6:57 PM ^

Carr always showed when he was pissed on these pressers and his face would always turn red cause he was sooo mad. A good coach can be tough and good at the same time, no need to be a complete douche but you need to get on the players face, maybe once in awhile grab them by the face mask and let them know they fucked up.

You need to strike some kind of fear to the players and show that we mean business, be a little rough on them, it never hurts..showing toughness benefits a lot down the road, not only the players but the program itself...if your a nice guy all the time then what are you really teaching here? I

Last time i checked we are still playing footbal correct?? It is still a sport for the tough SOBs not for the weak and whiners... This is a sport where bullying, tossing around and getting run over are part of the game.. Everytime i hear Hoke's interviewes it looks like i am watching the coach of womens volleyball, he is awlays calm and always smiling... Dude be serious for once and be more agressive... our players defenitly show a reflection of him also.

I guess i am old school where kicking your players ass and twisting their face masks was a norm. .

buddha

November 4th, 2013 at 9:23 PM ^

I was paying attention and thought the response was ridiculous. Moreover, again - using my eyes and ears - I watched Hoke's demeanor and listened to both his words and inflection. Conclusion: Not positive.

Nobody is saying the guy needs to turn into the UM version of Brian Kelly. But - sh*t - it pisses me off to see him so apathetic out there and on the podium. 

nickb

November 4th, 2013 at 6:03 PM ^

of a coach not seeing what is in front of his face. His team is poorly coached and can only win against vastly inferior opponents. He will use the youth excuse until he is fired.

Watching Saban on 60 minutes coaching up his players only served to remind me of the pathetic state of our coaching staff and football program. We should drop down to a lower division join the MAC where Hoke is comfortable and be done with this charade.

DonAZ

November 4th, 2013 at 6:13 PM ^

Watching Saban on 60 minutes coaching up his players only served to remind me of the pathetic state of our coaching staff and football program.

Really?  What exactly did you see on that 60 Minutes segment that was so inspirational?

I'm curious because I've seen several clips of Saban coaching and it's pretty much like footage of any coach.  I have tremendous respect for Nick Saban and his accomplishments, but I doubt very much 30 seconds of footage on 60 Minutes was really all that telling ... of either Saban and Alabama or Hoke and Michigan.

03 Blue 07

November 5th, 2013 at 1:30 AM ^

Funny that a lot of players bristled at that in-your-face approach when RR came in (Boren, among others). There's more than one way to skin a cat. WadePhillips had a good quote about this when his father passed (that I can't seem to find) but it was, essentially, that his father felt that although you could definitely win by the fear/intimidation route with your players, it wasn't the best way to go, and that it was always better to be a teacher and mentor first and not be all fire-and-brimstone with the players. Obviously, there are tons of counter-examples to that (Bear Bryant, Woody Hayes, etc). . . but the point is, you can be effective communicating via different styles, even as a head football coach in a rough and tumble game. 

UMFan95

November 4th, 2013 at 6:38 PM ^

I always though why cant michigan hire a coach like saban, who is really really good at something with our type of play.  Like a hard nosed defense coach like saban, or a really innovative pro-style coach, or a tough coach.  Someone special like saban.  But we get HOKE

WolvinLA2

November 4th, 2013 at 6:47 PM ^

You realize Saban might be the best college football coach of all time, right?  I'm sure almost every program wishes they had a Saban.  Whoever Alabama has next will not be Nick Saban.  

Saban was not an option for us.  Maybe let's not blame everything on Hoke just yet.  I know we're all unhappy with the result on Saturday, but let's chill the fuck out for a bit.  

UMFan95

November 4th, 2013 at 7:31 PM ^

I know there isn't another saban out there. I tried to be clear about what i was looking for in a coach.  Even PSU has a better coach than us.  I mean someon like that.  A guy that is really good at something and can put great strategies to beat teams with better talent than ours (not all the time but be respectful and win some) which is not happening right now and it doesn't look like it will happen any time soon.  Like a coach that is innovate with defense or a pro style offense or great a developing qbs.  Tressel was a great offensive strategic coach and took full advantage of his strenght and covered his weakness on offense.  A coach like that

Blue X2

November 4th, 2013 at 8:00 PM ^

Let's be honest.  Most of us had reservations when we hired a coach with a mediocre record at mediocre schools.  We are seeing the result now of that hire decision.  We are all kidding ourselves if we think these problems are the result of youth.  You cannot convince me that youth explains the incompetent game plan and execution against Akron.  Same with Uconn.  You cannot convince me that our 4 and 5 star line cannot block really mediocre players at Akron.  Come on.  Who are we kidding.  these are excuses and there are some fundamental problems here that we cannot run the ball on anyone but Indiana.  We have a mediocre coach incapable of coming up with any kind of creative or effective game plan.  We are destined for mediocrity unless we get lucky and one of our 5 star recruits wills the team to success.

WolvinLA2

November 4th, 2013 at 8:03 PM ^

Oh that's ridiculous.  Hoke turned bottom-dwellars Ball State and SDSU into one of the best teams in their conferences and was conference coach of the year at both places.  Say what you want about the programs, but he certainly had success at both places.  

03 Blue 07

November 5th, 2013 at 1:36 AM ^

He had moderate success. Not overwhelming success. Let's not act like he had the resume of, umm, well, RR in 2007, or Harbaugh in 2010, or, really, what you'd think would be the resume of the head coach at Michigan in the 21st century. I don't think you can throw the baby out with the bathwater and just out-of-hand say that it's "ridiculous" to say that the guy had some success at some smaller schools. But 47-53 pre-U of M isn't exactly making your point, either. Also, list of coaches who have led MAC teams to a great year but didn't do so hot when they went to Big Ten or other similar conference in last 10 years or so is a hell of a lot bigger than the list of guys named Urban Meyer who came out of the MAC in the last 10 years or so. Point being, it's absolutely valid to question Hoke's resume when he was hired. I know I did, and think it was a logical and legitimate thing to be concerned about. The only thing that made Hoke different than the Chuck Longs of the world (or insert whomever else you'd like who's had some good years in lesser conferences as a young coach), at least resume-wise, was that he loves Michigan. Guess what: So do a lot of people. 

Prince Lover

November 5th, 2013 at 1:42 AM ^

Winning his conference coach of the year award 3 out of 4 years in 3 different conferences, then yeah, he's had some success.
The man is not off the street corner, he knows a thing or two about football. Or maybe all those people that voted for him for those awards don't....wonder which way it is.

MGoStrength

November 4th, 2013 at 9:41 PM ^

As much as I am frustrated with the coaching staff and beleive we could be getting more out of what we got, I'm not ready to jump ship on Hoke.  To me Hoke is not the problem, and even if he is the problem right now, it's more because his skill set is not the best solution for our current situation.  That doesn't mean his skill set cannot or will not be successful once we get clear of the current problem.  BTW the current problem IMO is the lack of talent, experience, and depth on the lines.  Hoke has already recruited one of the best o-line classes at UM I can recall (2013).  If he gets Hand & McDowell, add to that Mone & Marshall, the same could be said on the d-line.  Those recruiting jobs alone are sufficient to keep Hoke around.  Now, if in 2-3 years we are still struggling we can reconsider.  But, just because Hoke is not good enough to overcome the shitty situation we are in right now does not mean he is not good enough to win with his guys, once they gain experience.  And lets face it, at least by recruiting profiles, his guys are way better.  FWIW Borges is another story alltogether, but Hoke is not in the same boat as Borges IMO.

Blue in Yarmouth

November 5th, 2013 at 8:22 AM ^

I am of the opinion that someone needs to go (in my opinion it would be several position coaches) but I don't think BH is the problem. You say you want a coach who is great at something,wel BH can recruit like no one I've seen at UM since I've been following the sport (20 years). 

The problem as I see it is he needs the assistants who are equal to the task of developing these kids into what their recruiting rankings suggested they'd be. If he can come to terms with firing someone and makes a decent hire on those positions I think the sky is the limit for BH.

I know what we have seenthus far suggests he just too loyal to do such a thing, but remember what he said when he got this job. He would have walked (or crawled maybe) to AA if he had to when accepting this position. That tells me his love of this position will win out over his desire to keep from hurting someones feelings.

I think that BH can be wildly successful as a head coach at UM if he just makes the right moves from a staff standpoint. Manball is fine, but find some coaches with experience developing players for the roles he wants them to take on. His defensive philosophy has been sound since his arrival and short of the d-line (which sadly is the position he and GM coach) each position group has improved since his arrival. I really think we can have success with Hoke and hope he can find it in himself to make some tough decisions that I believe need to be made in the offseason.

xxxxNateDaGreat

November 4th, 2013 at 7:00 PM ^

Barring any potential revealations of a monumental NCAA scandal*, Saban will go down as the greatest college coach of all time when he retires

*And I'm talking about a scandal where, at the very least, all anyone from Alabama can do is shrug and quietly say, "I guess it wasn't as bad as Penn State..." 

Mgodiscgolfer

November 4th, 2013 at 6:10 PM ^

seems like they got their questions from Dantonio himself. Was Lewans twisting of the helmet as bad as Gholstens?. If I didn't know any better I would say they are Spartans asking these questions. Was it Devins decision to come out of the game or yours? what the f*ck was he supposed to say yeah the kid took a beating the entire afternoon for the team and now I am gonna tell you guys that he quit at the end. Seems like a couple of times in this game you were pushed around? Why not ask him? seems like you guys were beat up most the afternoon? How does it feel to be bitch slapped by your little brother? Spare me and thank you coach Hoke for not going off on those guys the way other coaches do @ these pressers. I wish we could get the media to go after Congress the way they go after coaches.

EGD

November 4th, 2013 at 6:09 PM ^

I guess I just don't understand the idea behind people expecting to get their pound of flesh out of the coaches at these press conferences.

animalfarm84

November 4th, 2013 at 6:09 PM ^

I get the desire for a cathartic gnashing of teeth over a frustrating loss, but I'm actually not bothered by Hoke's presser demeanor.  I think we were right to praise him for his calm on field reactions a couple of years ago in comparison to Purple Faced Brian Kelly, and I'm willing to wait and see if the calm approach on a macro level works out.

I don't know enough about O-line play to say whether they are poorly coached, inexperienced, or a combination of both, but given the roster composition of our interior lineman, I think it's entirely possible that the issues will be fixed with more time to develop.  And I'm not convinced that if we had gotten a credible o-line performance yesterday, we wouldn't have won the game.  So it may be the case that with a reasonably experienced o-line depth chart (which should sort of happen next year, and likely will happen in 2015), the team will perform like we all hope it will.

If, however, we can't run the ball at all next year or in 2015 after the current youngsters become upper classmen and we add all the currently committed talent, then changes absolutely need to be made at the coaching staff level (whether that be OL coach, OC, or perhaps even HC).

blueinuk

November 4th, 2013 at 6:13 PM ^

Looks like we are in for a long wait to see if Hoke is right or not.  

To me this is as close as Hoke comes to transparency with the OL issue without totally making excuses...'we had about half as many OLineman in the fold as you need'.

As much as I hate to wait, it's where we are at.  Everyone on this board was screaming to not run it up the gut at State.  We didn't.  We still got the same result.  

 

Don

November 4th, 2013 at 6:35 PM ^

That's not the way he's wired, for better or worse. Whether the team reflects that outward lack of passion is a more important question.

uncleFred

November 4th, 2013 at 9:54 PM ^

one on one so that you have direct insight into "how he's wired". Now if you want to say that Hoke is not wired to show much anger in press conferences, I'd be forced to agree. The notion that he is that way one on one with his players, or in the locker room with his team, or on occasion in the face of an official on the field, well I guess I'd have wonder about the amount of experience you've had with Hoke in those circumstances.

I rather like the fact that, other than the occasional line in the sand when a reporter tries to set him up, Hoke is pretty much unflappable in his pressers. I think it shows a good deal of experience with the press and a level of composure that I think is appropriate for the head coach of Michigan football. I believe that Hoke has at least as much "passion" for Michigan, its football program, and his team as the most rabid fan on the planet and I have no doubt that his players experience his passion as Hoke feels appropriate. 

 

ccarna

November 4th, 2013 at 6:37 PM ^

Perhaps the Michigan Strengh and Conditioning program should be questioned when both the Oline and DLine get blown out by basically everyone.  Other teams seem to have freshmen and walkon's that do just fine.......Expecially against Michigan!!!

aiglick

November 4th, 2013 at 6:41 PM ^

I actually liked this presser more than usual. He actually took some responsibility and said the coaches have to do a better job. The next step is he has to do a critical analysis and figure out is the problem youth for the O Line or does Funk need to go. Is Al Borges the right person going forward. We do not need to have the best offense in the league because I do think the defense is going to be kick ass but it has to be top 40 closer to 30 for us to be elite or close to it.

At least it wasn't all execution this and execution that.

maizenbluenc

November 4th, 2013 at 8:01 PM ^

of laying out the oline problem without throwing anyone specific under the bus, and then supporting his guys as the guys once they get the experience.

Unfortunately that means we have to put the torches and pitchforks down and try to be patient, likely the rest of this season and at least part of next.

As for the S&C question above - maybe they were a little to lean on the pizza to chicken and salmon mix over the summer. I think another question is: should we have burned a redshirt or two last year so we had more experience this year?

I would really like this program to turn a corner and not have its ass handed to it once or twice a year any more.

So - this settled me a bit.

funkywolve

November 4th, 2013 at 8:36 PM ^

That's a good point about burning a redshirt last year since it seems the coaches at least had discussions about inserting Kalis into the starting line up.  Maybe it wouldn't have done anything to improve the oline last year but having 3-5 games under his belt and an off season to reflect on those games might have made a difference in how Kalis has performed this year.

maizenbluenc

November 5th, 2013 at 8:12 AM ^

Hind sight and all. At the time it made sense to redshirt Kalis. And we really don't know how the condition is impacting the equation versus youth. They appeared to have solid gains though, but maybe the body fat percentages Lewan was talking about was too low, and they didn't have enough in reserve coming into the season. (Nix and Shembo being the counter examples).

Either way we seem to have hit on an ineffective mix that cannot be fixed in season. Theoretically the line and Senior Shane and Green 4 years from now should be a fearsome thing.

Mr. Yost

November 4th, 2013 at 6:42 PM ^

Please explain what you want.

And then explain how any of that corresponds to winning on the field.

Who gives a fuck about what a coach says in a press conference, it has NO bearing on anything. Just because you don't get the energy, the passion or the answers that you want don't mean a thing. Lloyd Carr didn't give answers. Bill Belichick doesn't give answers. Tony Dungy was a quiet guy. You don't have to be demonstrative in front of a mic to be a good head coach.

Just win. I don't care if he sounds like Yogi Bear during press conferences.

If we win, none of you would be complaining about the answers that Hoke gives. So it's not the answers, it's the loss that is bothering you. Focus on that, not stupid answers/non-answers.