One Frame At A Time: UConn
"I just dropped back and did what I was coached to do, kind of read off his eyes and lo and behold he threw it that way so I was just trying to jump up and make the play on it." — Desmond Morgan
He made a play on it, to say the least.
[Hit THE JUMP for the best GIFs (from a very Michigan-biased perspective) from the UConn game, and make sure to vote for your favorite.]
As always, click the stills/links to open each GIF in a lightbox.
HONORABLE MENTION
Weird ABC Eminem intro includes dancing Jeremy Gallon, really meta smashing television. Taylor and Black combine for a sack (a sack, a sack, they combine for a sack). Ojemudia and Wormley combine for a sack, but not a Seussian rhyme. Dancin' Dennis Norfleet returns.
10. Punt Return Threat
A really dumb Jourdan Lewis personal foul wiped out most of this return, otherwise Drew Dileo breaking out the spin move to put Michigan deep in UConn territory would rank way higher.
9. Touchdown, Home Team
Notable for UConn's outside linebacker going full Bad Mouton and the crowd appearing to be entirely comprised of Michigan fans.
8. Devin Gardner Still Does Certain Things Quite Well
Getting your face smashed by the other team's quarterback as he runs into the end zone is not ideal, #29, even if that quarterback is wearing a really weird number.
7. Celebration Fakeout
Thoroughly enjoyed this celebration combo from Gardner, especially bluffing the jump with Funchess—given their reactions, I assume this was planned, but very much hope it was entirely impromptu.
6. Thank You For Pitching
As it turns out, speed options work quite well when the quarterback actually pitches to the wide open running back. Bonus devastated UConn fan behind the end zone on this one.
5. Resistance Is Futile, Albeit Hilarious
Frank Clark is the world's most intimidating treadmill.
4. Jehu Chesson Killed Someone Again
Yeah, UConn's return man was already fumbling the ball when Jehu Chesson creamed him; I'm pretty sure the latter had something to do with the former.
3. Brady Hoke, Player's Coach
Awwwwww.
2. Desmond Morgan's Interception, Zone Drop Edition
The catch is remarkable; I'm more impressed by the depth Morgan got on his drop, however. This play is so good (and the rest of the game so... not) that it deserves...
FRAMES OF THE GAME
...the top two spots on this list. Here's Desmond Morgan's Interception, I Read Your Face Edition:
I mean, wow.
VOTE
September 24th, 2013 at 2:40 PM ^
I'm reasonably confident Countess would have picked that pass off too. Wilson also had a good shot.
September 24th, 2013 at 2:51 PM ^
Its actually Ross trailing the receiver on that play, not Countess. I think Ross has a pretty tough time picking it off, might get a hnad on the ball (if well thrown) but a tough pick. I think Wilson hits the man on that play and breaks up any completion, but he too would have a hard time getting in front for the int.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:00 PM ^
You're right, it was Ross. That also recalibrates my notion of closing speed.
September 24th, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
An excellent INT by Desmond of course; play of the game without a doubt.
September 24th, 2013 at 2:54 PM ^
I think Gardner fooled Funchess because he points at him right after like ahhhh! Gotcha!
September 24th, 2013 at 2:55 PM ^
I feel like that was a terrible decision by UConn's QB... any one of the 3(!) defenders in the area could've picked that off. What a good, Woodsonian play by Morgan there. The highlight of an otherwise (mostly) dull game.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:29 PM ^
Call this game a number of other things -- sad panda-inducing, bile-tasteworthy, crushingly disappointing, etc. -- but "dull" can hardly be used here, right?
"Dull" describes a game where we win 63-10, not one that comes almost right down to the BITTER END. Thankfully, it wasn't a bitter end.
September 24th, 2013 at 2:56 PM ^
You knew this would be a landslide so you broke it up into two.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:08 PM ^
Not to get all religious, but all I can think about when I see Jehu Chesson kill people is the Biblical character Jehu was a guy who was called by God to kill an evil king.... and kill he did.
II Kings 9v6-7
"...I annoint you king over the LORD's people Israel. You are to destroy the house of Ahab your master, and I will avenge the blood of my servants the prophets and the blood of all the LORD's servants shed by Jezebel.
a little foreshadowing for Jehu Chesson.
[in no way do i support the killing of anybody, unless its Jehu crushing people between the white lines of the gridiron, of course]
September 24th, 2013 at 3:19 PM ^
I like to compare Jehu Chesson's tackling/blocking to 2 Kings 9:20.
"And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the non of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously."
I would say that poor punt returner got driven into the ground quite furiously!
September 24th, 2013 at 4:05 PM ^
awesome! Jehu this season has been by far my favorite player...he seems to be the only one on offense who is really looking to be physical every play (maybe kerridge too). I have no idea how he has been technique wise, but he just plays with a motor even if he does make a mistake every once in a while.
Once he sures up his route running and overall receiving confidence he should be a hell of a player and a physical nightmare for corners. I think if Devin continues to target him more, that his confidence for adjusting to the ball and catching could go sky high.
Imagine if AJ Williams, Devin Funchess, Fitz, Derrick Green, or hell, even any of the 3 interior linemen played with Jehu's tenacity and confidence every play. Our running game would at least puch the defense around a bit even if it wasn't executed perfectly. Seems to be too much in-game thinking between all those guys and not enough of just playing the game and looking to be physical. Keep repping in practice and make the assigments muscle memory, but when on the game-field, just play fast and physical, the repetition will sure up the assignments with a little time and will become second nature....that's how Jehu plays.
At the end of the day, the team that brings the most pain tends to win even it gets a little ugly, and UCONN was surely bringing the pain in the first half, and UM brought it in the last 1.5 quarters. Luckily we had just enough talent to keep the team that was playing harder most of the game in check. Our team is too young to go out there and panic about assignments every play (which im pretty sure Devin and the interior Oline are doing consistenly) when they first and foremost need to play physical like they did against CMU (think Kalis' pancake or the D-line pressure) every game.
CMU was bad, but no worse than Akron or Uconn, and we can play with that tenasity again, Jehu does. The execution will come with reps and the talent is there mostly, but tenacity and toughness can't be taught, you just play with it or you don't.
Sorry the mention of Jehu's name made me go on this tangent, but I think everyone playnig with toughness and confidence like the way he does would be one way to mull over some of the team's execution issues. I feel like it works to keep MSU in games.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:19 PM ^
Struggling with the concept of a college-age kid using the term "lo and behold" unless that is a term that is still used more commonly in the mid-west.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:36 PM ^
Would it make you feel better knowing that 9 out of 10* college-aged kids would spell it "low"?
* Statistic pulled out of my arse.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:56 PM ^
Maybe he's saying "Lewan Behold" and he mispronounces Lewan's name because of the MGoPodcast.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:57 PM ^
Why can't the balls bounce our way this year? Seems like '11 they did, '12 and so far this year not too much. Gardner's fumble it convientely bounces out where three UCONN guys are. A Punt graizes our guys foot, their returner drops a ball, bounces past NORTHFLEET and into a UCONN guy.
God, so unlucky!
/whining
Morgan's play was sweet, need MOAR stud linebackers from Ohio.
September 24th, 2013 at 4:10 PM ^
MOAR stud linebackers from Holland, Michigan right?
September 24th, 2013 at 4:19 PM ^
Confused with Joe Bolden, Dang it!!!
September 24th, 2013 at 4:22 PM ^
The sentiment was dead on even if the reference was not quite.
September 24th, 2013 at 3:59 PM ^
Not only was Morgan's int an awesome play, it came at a very critical time. That is two weeks in a row the D got a huge pick when they needed to provide a spark. Now if only we didn't have 4 turnovers before then...
September 24th, 2013 at 4:18 PM ^
September 24th, 2013 at 10:18 PM ^
hear the music that Norfleet is dancing to in the gif
September 24th, 2013 at 11:22 PM ^
Is this some weekly occurance that some team in the big ten will have have a one handed interception? First Sparty, then Iowa, now this. When is our turn....
Nice grab Desmond. Ugg that name.
September 25th, 2013 at 10:15 AM ^
The last Uconn offensive play, where it was 4th and 29, the receiver (frighteningly) caught the ball for a 26 yard gain. A full 3 yards short of the marker, the receiver pops up and signales first down. Pretty sweet fail. I saw it live, so I’m not sure if there was good video of the move, but I saw it later again on SC highlights too.
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