Formation Notes: Michigan used this balanced formation that I called “Gun Wk Demis”, where the TE and H are both demi-flexed:

Iowa had a Tite shift when they expected a counter run where they lined up in a 4-3 with the NT head up on the center. I called it “4-3 Odd” but it’s Tite vs 2TEs really.

Iowa also had a quasi 3-3-5 passing downs package that defies conventional labeling, where they pull a DT and an ILB for two hybrid DE/OLBs, a “Rush DE” who’s 6-2/248 and a “Leo” who’s 6-4/236, plus their normal hybrid hybrid space player who’s 6-1/205:

I called this package “Rush.” One time they were all standing around not getting set before it and I called that “Rush Amoeba.” Finally, this didn’t need a title but I called it “4-7 Over” anyways.

…not to be confused with the 8-1.

Who’s having fun yet? We having fun?

WCIDDIS. Last game I kept having to throw points at OSU’s WR’s doing insane shit. This week my excuse for the numbers not lining up is Well-Coached Iowa Defenders Doing Insane Shit, or “Wakiddis,” which put a serious hamper on Corum’s day especially, and also accounted for a lot of the pressure that McNamara faced for the first time all year. It’s very jarring after a month of teams coached by former Ralph Friedgen assistants and Ryan Day to chart against such fundamentally sound defensive players.

[After THE JUMP: Fun with tight ends]

Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M25	1st	10	Gun Wk Unbal (H) Z Orbit	4-2-5	Nk Even	2	RPO	6	Flare Screen/F Fold	Wilson	7	0.60
MLB stays in so McNamara(RPO+) throws to Wilson. Sainristil(+2) takes out his OLB with a great cut block but CJ(-1) can't get anything on the S.
M32	2nd	3	Pistol Ace H Return	4-3-4	4-3 Over	2	Run	8	Counter Trey	Haskins	0	-0.99
Jones(-2) in and he loses the DE who impacts both pullers. Hayes(+1) wrecked the DT but Keegan(-1) couldn't get control of him as Hayes comes off to get a LB. Kick ruined and free DT means this is dead. Also RPS-1 as Iowa slanted it and brought the safety down.
M32	3rd	3	Gun Wk Tight	4-2-5	4-3 Over	1	Run	8,5	End Around	Sainristil	1	-0.43
Blocked okay but Iowa CB takes a gamble by going high on Hayes then diving. Uh, CBDIS-3? Hayes(-1) I guess for gambling this couldn't win and Sainristil(-1) for going down to it but that's just a great defensive play honestly.
Drive Notes: Punt. 0-0. 13 min 1st Q. Iowa's plan: Maximum Iowa.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M20	1st	10	Pistol FB Z Tight	4-3-4	4-3 Over	2	RPO	7	Iso/Curl-Flat	Haskins	6	0.29
Wilson and Schoonmaker run a two-man pattern that pulls the OLB outside so McNamara(RPO+) pulls. Blocker for a blocker but Zinter(-0.5) lost his inside before he drove him a bit. All(+0.5) and Vastardis(+0.5) begin to drive theirs and Haskins(+1) churns it out behind them instead of bouncing into RPO guy.
M26	2nd	4	Pistol Wk H Jet	4-2-5	4-3 Under	2	Penalty	7	False Start	Schoonmaker	(-5)	-0.76
It's actually illegal procedure since Sainristil's in motion and Schoonmaker(-1) is in the backfield.
M21	2nd	9	Gun Trips	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	6	Dumpoff	Corum	6	0.16
Clear out one side to run this and when Corum gets it you're like Here we go! Then the OLB gets him down by the leg: WCIDDIS-2. (CA, 3, Prot 1/1, McNamara+1)
M27	3rd	3	Gun Wk Demis	4-2-5	4-3 Over	2	Pass	7	Angle	Edwards	6	1.26
Works exactly how they draw it up. ILBs take Sainristil and All, and Edwards slips out with all the leverage inside the HSP (RPS+1). (CA, 3, Prot 1/1, McNamara+1)
M33	1st	10	Pistol Wk H Jet	4-2-5	4-3 Over	2	Run	6.5	Zone Read	Corum	67	5.38
The game-winner in three acts. Act 1: Iowa DE flies upfield and thinks Sainristil is going to kick him out he turns sharply downfield as McCarthy(read+) hands off. Zinter(+1) and Stueber(+1) blow out their side, Schoonmaker(+0.5) hops out and gets enough of a LB who widened when he saw Sainristil arc blocking (RPS+1). Huge gap. Act 2: Corum(+3) has a S at 12 yards and a CB at 10 funneling him there. He jukes the CB out of his shoes and reaccelerates without the pursuit arriving. Wilson(+0.5) gets a pop on the S but nothing permanent and this should die about 20 yards. Then help arrives. Act 3: Corum slows for Sainristil(+2) who passes by the S and takes out the other S. Also out of nowhere a wild McCarthy(+2) has appeared like a Looney Tune along a train. "How can I help?" he asks and Corum nods to the S who's still giving chase. McCarthy puts both arms out like a shield between Corum and the safeties (Mr. Worldwide right here).
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 7-0. 6 min 1st Q. I wasn't trying to have that be the longest single-play writeup in UFR history but for posterity I would like it to be.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M25	1st	10	Pistol FB Str	4-3-4	4-3 Under	2	Pass	6.5	RB Pass	Wilson	75	6.03
Hahaha. Backwards pass to Edwards, All(+1) pops a LB on the edge to keep him clean, Wilson(+1) faked a block and scooted open by 10 yards. Edwards steps up and throws this from the Michigan 19, and the spiral arrives at the Iowa 34 with the CB still on the 42. RPS+3. Edwards also takes a shot that could have been a late hit and/or targeting. (DO, 3, Prot n/a, Edwards(+2))
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 14-0. 5 min 1st Q. That’s how an RB pass is done, Kirk.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M25	1st	10	Gun Wk Demis Z-Orbit	4-2-5	4-3 Over	2	Run	7	Arc H Counter	Henning	29	2.53
Right out of Scott Frost's playbook. Orbit motion with Anthony pulls the WLB inside the NFL hash and fake handoff to Haskins helps Zinter(+0.5) and Vastardis(+0.5) seal their DTs inside while Keegan arcs under the unblocked DE who's also inside the hash before he realizes he's going the wrong way. RPS+2. All(+1) cuts off the MLB and seals him inside, Haskins(+1) as lead takes out the CB, Keegan(+1) stops a S, Stueber(+1) hopped out to the WLB and rode him until Henning(+1) could jet by. Other S finally runs him out.
O46	1st	10	Pistol FB Twins (Y)	4-3-4	4-4 Under	1	Run	8	Arc Read Keeper	McCarthy	3	-0.34
CB is blitzing at this as Iowa slants; McCarthy(-2, read-) should give as the CB sets up outside where All(+2) has to kick out. He does that, and then picks off a LB. CB spins off, sets an edge, and McCarthy slips for a few. RPS+1: give here is a Corum vs an Iowa safety for a 46-yard TD.
O43	2nd	7	Gun Wk Z Tight	4-2-5	4-3 Under	2	Pass	7	TE Leak	All	INT	-4.69
McNamara has all day against a four-man rush and finally All releases and gets free of the HSP on him. Throw is a little behind All(-1c) and off his hands, then pops right into those of the LB coming down to tackle him after a gain of 10. So very Iowa. Luck-3. (MA, 2, Prot 2/2, McNamara-1)
Drive Notes: Interception. 14-3. <1 min 1st Q. How different are you feeling most of this game if it's 21-3?
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M8	1st	10	Gun Str	4-2-5	Nk Over	1	Run	6.5	F Insert	Haskins	4	-0.04
FYI a coach told me there is a pass read on this but it's only if the defense does something truly unsound, IE not a real RPO. Zinter(-1) lost his DT here after Vastardis left, Keegan(+0.5) held up on his and Haskins(+0.5) got his 2 extra.
M12	2nd	6	Offset Ace Twins	4-3-4	4-3 Odd	2	Run	7	Counter Trey	Haskins	1	-0.25
Iowa shifts their 4-3 into a Tite look plus a rolled up CB. That ruins Schoonmaker(-1, RPS-2)'s angle on the critical down block as the DE gets outside and they send both ILBs into the gap and replace with the S. He should leave that guy and get the first LB. Instead that guy whacks All in the backfield and Haskins has to follow Keegan(+0.5) outside. Keegan gets the CB but there's a S and an LB left at the LOS.
M13	3rd	5	Gun Trips	3-3-5	Rush Even	1	Pass	7	Deep comeback	Sainristil	Inc	-0.16
Coverage bust on the left side as the CB and LB#31 let Wilson and Sainristil loose with just a S back there and he should be able to stand in and get the ball to Sainristil across the middle. Instead he bails despite his OL having a stunt perfectly corralled, then tries to hit Sainristil down the sideline. By now the S has gotten over this and should intercept at the sideline but drops it. (BRx, 0, Prot 2/2, McNamara-3)
Drive Notes: Punt. 14-3. 11 min 2nd Q. If Cade didn't deserve the last INT, he did this one. Next drive starts at the 3 because Henning signaled fair catch then drifted back and didn't realize how far.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M3	1st	10	Pistol Twins	4-3-4	4-3 Over	1	Run	8.5	Split Zone	Haskins	2	-0.12
Time to set a down on fire with a fake read play. Iowa slanting at this and M just wants to run a goal line into goal line to get some room, but there's a chance for it after Keegan(+1) pops the DT Vastardis(-1) was struggling with then got to the HSP and Hayes(+0.5) turned out the edge. Vastardis gets moved back again though and Haskins runs into bodies.
M5	2nd	8	Gun Str	4-2-5	Nk Split	2	Pass	6	Dumpoff	Corum	0	-0.21
Again credit to Iowa's D. Corum(-2) can't get a good read on his option route and sits, probably should stay put and gather the throw for a 5-yard gain, but instead he orbit steps back to the LOS to make some guys miss and the first guy gets him down. Don't mess with Iowa's tacklers man. (CA, 3, Prot 2/2, McNamara+1)
M5	3rd	8	Gun Trips Bunch	4-3-4	5-1 Over	1	Pass	7.5	Throwaway	Edwards	Inc	-0.07
LB hesitates to stop a throw then blitzes in a six-man pressure. Cade has to roll away from that and all he has is Edwards(-1route) looking inside instead of playing his leverage vs a DE who dropped back. Cade dumps it. (PR, 0, Prot 1/3, TEAM-2)
Drive Notes: Punt. 14-3. 7 min 2nd Q. The Iowa is growing.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M9	1st	10	Pistol Twins TE (Y)	4-3-4	4-3 Over	1	Pass	8.5	Flare Screen	Edwards	11	0.44
Overload the right side. Iowa doesn't bite; Michigan just blocks their asses off. Stueber(+1) turns in his edge, Sainristil(+1) gets outside a LB and arms him then puts his back in the way of the WLB. All(+1) escorts another LB OOB, Schoonmaker(+0.5) got a play-long stalk block, and Edwards is gently escorted to a 1st down.
M20	1st	10	Gun Ace Twins	4-3-4	4-3 Over	2	Run	7	Counter Trey	Edwards	-2	-0.70
Stueber(-1) doesn't check the DE slanting (RPS-1). He's right where they don't want him to be now and the best Keegan and All can do is try to combo around him. Edwards(-1) neither lets that happen nor does he try to cut back behind this and get what he can; instead he tries to go around it and meets the CB in the backfield.
M18	2nd	12	Gun Ace	4-3-4	4-3 Under	2	Pass	7.5	Deep Hitch	Johnson	Inc	-0.18
Klatt blames Cade but I think CJ(-1route) is to blame as well since he doesn't seem to find the ball as he's settling underneath and then has to lay out for it. It still goes off his hands, wasting beautiful protection vs a six-man pressure. RPS+1. (MA, 1, Prot 3/3, McNamara-1).
M18	3rd	12	Gun Str Y-Flex	3-3-5	Rush Odd	2	Run	6	QB Draw	McNamara	15	1.84
Edwards motions out and that draws the ILB threatening blitz and both overhangs. McNamara(+1, RPS+3) gets to run for a free 15 yards.
M33	1st	10	Gun Trips	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	7	Angle	Haskins	13	1.24
Same blitz that ended last drive, and can't fool Cade twice as he rolls away from the pressure and gets the ball to Haskins(+2) who set up the dropping DE then dusts him, meets two safeties, and carries one for another 5 yards. (DO+, 3, Prot 2/3, McNamara+3, TEAM-1)
M46	1st	10	Gun Ace Twins Bunch	4-3-4	4-3 Over	2	Pass	8	RB Flare	Edwards	Inc	-1.16
Iowa looping an ILB around from the backside that Keegan(-1p) doesn't see, but Cade has time before that guy arrives. He waits an extra ball-pat then puts it behind Edwards before getting lit up. Putting that on the QB for waiting a beat too long but Edwards also has a chance to catch it for at least 4-5 yards. (IN, 2, Prot 1/2, Keegan-1, McNamara-1)
M46	2nd	10	Gun Wk Y Demi	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	6.5	RB Flare	Edwards	3	-0.38
Iowa drops a DE again, doubles All, and brings both ILBs. RPS-1 since Cade's first read is the flat and there's no time to get to the open square in. He compounds it by throwing behind Edwards, who gathers it but now the HSP and CB in Cov2 can close in. (IN, 2, Prot 1/2, McNamara-1, TEAM-1)
M49	3rd	7	Empty X Tight	4-2-5	Nk Under	2	Pass	6	Sack	McNamara	-9	-1.48
M makes a protection change with 6 seconds on the clock and Iowa quickly checks into a different blitz. Hats off Iowa prep, RPS-1, WCIDDIS. Vastardis(-1) doubles a guy Zinter's getting which leaves Keegan(-1) blocking two and he chooses the inside on that Vastardis could still get to, leaving the LB free to attack the B gap. Hayes tries in vain to rescue it. Cade has a moment to save it with a throw to Schoonmaker, who's his first read and open, but decides not to risk a bat. Minus a point but still earns the PR grade. (PR, n/a, Prot 0/2, TEAM-1, McNamara-1)
Drive Notes: Punt. 14-3. 2 min 2nd Q. Iowa's got good blitzes. They've also got no offense so M back on the field with 0:51 and no TOs.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M33	1st	10	Gun Wk Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	6	Quick Out	Anthony	6	0.39
0:51, 0 TOs. Cushion, pitch and catch. (CA, 3, Prot 1/1, McNamara+1)
M39	2nd	4	Gun Wk Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Under	2	Pass	6	Dumpoff	Haskins	6	0.76
0:47. Nice that we can trust Haskins(+1) to pick up a first when this happens. (CA, 3, Prot 1/1)
M45	1st	10	Gun Str	4-2-5	Nk Wide	2	Pass	6	RB Flat	Haskins	3	-0.42
0:36. I think Anthony(-1route) is the issue here since he doesn't carry his hitch to the 1st down marker so the CB on him has time to get to Haskins(-1) who tries to sneak through the CB for his 2 yards when he needs to just race OOB. CJ was wide open on the backside but Cade is thinking high-low or throwaway, and here our labeling is dumb because "TA" is what we call a bad dumpdown. (TA, 3, Prot 1/1, McNamara-1)
M48	2nd	7	Gun Wk	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	6	Throwaway	Johnson	Inc	-1.11
0:17. Run the same play but Anthony goes downfield and Cade came off that read too fast to see that was going to get him open. Cade then leaves the pocket and chucks it OOB near CJ to live another down. (TA, 0, Prot 1/1, McNamara-2)
M48	3rd	7	Gun Str Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Pass	6	Dig	Henning	Inc	-0.78
Iowa brings the LBs and drops the SDE into a shallow zone. Blitz picked up but Hayes(-1p) is losing the looping ILB as Cade fires down the middle--can't lead him because of the DE so this is threaded perfect. Henning(-2c) drops it. Close to calling that "3" but being nice since 1st down at the 40 is still probably a Hail Mary. (DO+, 2, Prot 1/2, Hayes-1, McNamara+2)
M48	4th	7	Gun Str Y-Flex	4-2-5	Rush Odd	2	Pass	6	Hail Mary	All	INT	-0.42
Blitz is picked up so McCarthy has time to heave. He puts it too shallow and it's intercepted. Whatever. (Not charted, n/a, Prot 2/2)
Drive Notes: Interception. 14-3. EOH.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M18	1st	10	Offset Str	4-2-5	Nk Even	2	Run	6	Counter Trey	Haskins	2	-0.25
Same issue as before with the DT slanting in (RPS-1) and compounded because Stueber(-1) can't get to the MLB. This time Keegan(+0.5) does a better job to rescue and turn but it still disrupts Schoonmaker's pull and forces Haskins upfield. Baldwin(-1) also gets beat by the CB, so when Schoonmaker(+1) does make his block and turn in the first LB, Stueber's LB and the CB are waiting. Haskins(+0.5) gets his two.
M20	2nd	8	Gun Str Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Even	2	Pass	6	Skinny Post	Johnson	15	1.50
Don't want to be too hard on a 15-yard completion but CJ(+2c) has to dig this off the turf after a lot of bouncing in a clean pocket. Cade feels sped up here. May have bounced off the turf--and M hurries to the line in case--but no review, refs+1. (MA, 1, Prot 2/2, McNamara-1)
M35	1st	10	Offset Wk Y-Cross	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Run	6.5	Split Zone	Haskins	8	1.23
Ah, the counter to what Iowa was doing to their Counter series (RPS+1). Schoonmaker(+1) kicks the DE who crashes in and up again, Hayes(+1) locks out a LB, Vastardis(-1) is late (held a bit but they never call that) to get to the other LB but Haskins(+1) Katamari Damacy for the last 5 yards.
M45	2nd	2	Gun Wk Y-Cross	4-2-5	Nk Even	2	Run	6	Split Zone	Haskins	2(+8)	0.54
Same play but Haskins tries frontside when Iowa is slanting that way because Zinter(+1) and Stueber(+1) pried open a big B gap. That’s filled by a clean LB that Vastardis couldn't get to because he was held again and this time they actually call it.
O45	1st	10	Offset Wk Y-Cross	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Run	6	Split Zone	Corum	2	-0.41
Iowa slants the playside DT hard inside and has the DE hop upfield, which opens up a big lane after Hayes(+0.5) pops the DE and Keegan(+1) passes off the DT to Vastardis to the LBs in. Also Sainristil(+1) got to the HSP and locked him out. We're about to have some #CorumInSpace except the SS flies down and makes the best tackle I've seen all year after 2 yards. WCIDDIS-2. RPS-1 I guess since this is kind of a trap set up by clearing out that gap, but usually if your "trap" is a safety vs a Michigan RB that's a matchup that usually goes for more than 2 yards. Tip of the cap to the safety, who came in hot and under control.
O43	2nd	8	Gun Str Y-Cross	4-2-5	Nk Under	2	Run	6	Counter Trey	Corum	6	0.17
DE shuffles (RPS+1) this time instead of shooting up and Keegan has a moment of surprise like "Okay, this is nice." Turned, edge, All(-1) becomes Corum(+1)'s shield but gets moved so much by the LB that they make it all the way outside to CJ vs the CB, whom All (refs+1) trips as he's getting thrown down. That springs Corum to scoot down the sideline and bring up 3rd and short.
O37	3rd	2	Offset Heavy	4-4-3	Goal Line	1	Run	9	Tight Zone	Haskins	5	0.85
Zinter(+1) got a DT crossing him and pancakes, Hayes(+1) and Keegan(+1) put a DT on skates, and Vastardis(+0.5) hopped over the Zinter mess to pick off a LB. Haskins(+0.5) picks up the first then dives through the pile for his extra 2.
O32	1st	10	Offset Str Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Run	6	Power O	Haskins	1	-0.46
This has a backside read of the WLB I want Cade to explore. Anyway the unblocked DE shoots up and Keegan(-1) can't get him turned and there's an extra LB there anyways because they're running this without the second puller. RPS-2. Haskins(+0.5) met in the backfield and gets his 2.
O31	2nd	9	Offset Wk F Flex	4-2-5	Nk Over	1	Pass	6	TE Deep Seam	Schoonmaker	27	1.65
Cade sees something pre-snap and checks into this. Iowa sends six but Hayes(-1p) doesn't see the LB coming in and starts checking the HSP that Haskins has handled, so the LB can pressure. Cade puts it in the #ButtZone before the FS can arrive and Schoonmaker(+2c) pulls it in and stretches for extra while going down. (CA+, 1, Prot 2/3, Hayes-1, McNamara+2)
O4	1st	Goal	Offset 2TE F-In	4-4-3	4-4 Odd	0	Run	8.5	Pin & Pull	Haskins	4	1.64
Motion the F in and that gets the Iowa LBs stepping the wrong way (RPS+1). McNamara(read+) holds HSP back there even if the read is probably fake, DE hesitates and gets caught behind the DT Vastardis(+1) escorted here. On the frontside Honigford(+2) knocks over the DE who affects the extra LB's path All(+1) locks a DE inside, Zinter(+1) gets one of the free LBs. The other dives uselessly at Haskins's feet when he's already gone by.
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 21-3. 8 min 3rd Q. Uh oh, they unleashed the Michigan running game.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M15	1st	10	Gun Wk Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	RPO	6	Power/Slants	Corum	-6	-0.67
McNamara(RPO+) holds the HSP and FS but it don't matter. DE crashes hard and M is trying to kick with their backside G from a shotgun mesh, which means the unblocked DE has all day to shoot into Corum. RPS-3. No chance for Corum to cut inside or Zinter to kick--asking a lot for your RB to break this tackle but I guess it's possible.
M9	2nd	16	Offset Wk Z Tight	4-2-5	Nk Over	2	Run	7	F Insert	Haskins	1	-0.06
HSP blitzes, Sainristil calls it out but Cade ignores. That presages a pinch where the opposite DE crashes inside of Hayes(-1), who gets crossed but should also leave that guy when All hits him because this play can succeed if the LBs are handled or if Haskins(-1) bounces into the area McNamara(-1, read-) could have run into if his ZR was live. RPS-1. I really hate this part of our offense.
M10	3rd	15	Offset Str	4-2-5	Rush Amoeba	0	Run	7	Counter Trey	Haskins	3	-0.02
GUAP. Crashing DE (RPS-1) blows up Zinter(-1) on a pull for the first time all year. All squeezes through to get one LB but the DE hops back to get the ballcarrier's legs as the other free LB from the stunt comes to try to prevent Haskins(+0.5) from getting his two, does not.
Drive Notes: Punt. 21-3. 14 min 4th Q. That was a three-play, RPS-5 drive. Brad Robbins, the defense, and Cornelius Johnson then move Michigan 51 yards downfield. Let's go win the B10.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
O36	1st	10	Gun Wk	4-2-5	Nk Under	2	Run	6	Zone Read Keeper	McCarthy	8	0.58
DE chases Corum, McCarthy(read+) keeps, and Stueber(+1) cuts a DT who was trying to get Corum-side to cut off all pursuit. MLB also chases Corum (RPS+1) and HSP follows him. A safety ends it after 8 yards.
O28	2nd	2	Pistol Wk	4-2-5	4-3 Over	1	Run	8	Arc Read Keeper	McCarthy	5	-0.23
Again DE crashes and takes out Haskins as McCarthy(read+) keeps. LB makes a good play to set up in the backfield though All(+0.5) gets outside him, Sainristil(+0.5) gets a good block on the S and lets go before it's holding, and that's enough for McCarthy(+0.5) to hop through the slim space between these blocks and get knocked OOB after 5 yards.
O23	1st	10	Pistol 12 FB	4-3-4	4-4 Under	1	Pass	8	TE Wheel	Schoonmaker	22	1.73
Iowa brings six and drops a DE. Haskins(+1) picks up a safety and escorts him out of danger, Zinter(+1) blasts a DT engaged with Vastardis. TEs release and a pair of DEs tag them, Schoonmaker quickly outpacing the "Leo". Throw is a long but Schoonmaker(+2c) stabs it with one hand then collects, but can't run through the last safety to collect his TD. (MA, 1, Prot 3/3)
O1	1st	Goal	Offset Bone	4-3-4	Goal Line	NA	Run	NA	Dive	Haskins	1	0.89
Tempo(28). Keegan(+0.5) and Hayes(+0.5) plow a crease and Haskins(+1) leaps over it for the school record.
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 28-3. 11 min 4th Q. It's over but the starters are still in and the season isn't, so we can keep going.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
M19	1st	10	Pistol FB (Y)	4-3-4	4-3 Over	1	Run	7	Power Lead	Haskins	1	-0.45
Stueber(-2) misses the slanter then gets dumped. All(-0.5) doesn't turn a crashing OLB, and Keegan(-1) heads outside where Haskins can't follow. He tries to cut inside the unblocked DE this left but that guy doesn't miss.
M20	2nd	9	Pistol FB (Y)	4-3-4	4-3 Over	1	Pass	8	Flea Flicker FB Wheel	All	38	3.59
The funny thing is this is their star CB that All(+1c) outruns (RPS+2). Cade lays it in perfectly in stride. (DO, 2, Prot 2/2, McNamara+2)
O42	1st	10	Pistol Str Bunch	4-2-5	4-3 Under	2	Run	7.5	Stretch	Haskins	11	0.45
Iowa slants, Keegan(+1) gets enough of a guy lined up 2 gaps from him that Haskins(+1) can shrug off the guy's arm tackle. Zinter(+1) and Vastardis(+1) scoop a DT so Zinter can take out a LB. That gets us to 9 yards, Haskins lowers his head and gets two more.
O31	1st	10	Pistol Ace Twins	4-3-4	Nk Over	2	Run	7	Stretch	Haskins	4	-0.05
Jones(-0.5) leaves early and Hayes(-0.5) gets driven back by the DE but manages to turn him in the process to keep the train rolling. Vastardis(-1) can't reach his DT and gets put in the backfield and discarded. Haskins(+2) sees he's about to get swallowed for a loss, plants his foot in the ground, puts his head down, and rams forward for a four-yard gain. Dude.
O27	2nd	6	Pistol Bone	4-3-4	4-3 Under	2	Run	9	End Around	Johnson	17	0.38
Crashing DE huh? Schoonmaker(+2) thunks that guy inside and keeps going to block more shit, finding a CB that Honigford(-1) didn't hit. Hayes(+1) picks up a LB and drives him behind the play. Vastardis(+1) got another LB to hit him then "win" around him only to end up sealed. Last LB arrives at the 1st down marker but CJ(+1y) scoots by that guy to add another 7.
O10	1st	Goal	Offset Y-Flex	4-2-5	Nk Under	2	RPO	5.5	IZ/Bubble	Corum	5	0.08
Zinter(+2) puts the DT Vastardis is engaging on the ground then bends a LB into a S so Corum can get a few extra.
O5	2nd	Goal	Gun Str	4-2-5	4-7 Over	0	Pass	8	Throwaway	Baldwin	Inc	-0.32
DL hops into the neutral zone and Vastardis snaps it but they get no flag (refs-2). Realizing this Cade just throws it out the back of the EZ. (Not charted, 0, Prot n/a)
O5	3rd	Goal	Pistol FB Heavy	4-5-2	Goal Line	0	Play-Action	10	Fade	All	5	2.71
Cade floats it, CB is grabbing All(+2c)'s right hand so he catches it with his left. (CA, 1, Prot 1/1, McNamara+1)
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 35-3. 5 min 4th Q. But if we continue we get to start on the Iowa 36 again because of Caden Kolesar's INT, and we can get Carter Selzer in the UFR charting. Turning RPS and protection off.
Ln	Dn	Ds	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Box	Play	Player	Yards	EPA
O36	1st	10	Gun Str	4-2-5	4-3 Over	2	Run	7	F Insert	Franklin	5	0.08
Two WR and the TE to the boundary side. Filiaga(+0.5) clears out a DT and Selzer(+0.5) thunks a LB. Franklin(+0.5) churns behind them.
O31	2nd	5	Gun Str	4-2-5	4-3 Over	2	Run	7	Arc Keeper	McCarthy	7	0.25
Same and here's why. Crashing DE has no respect for McCarthy(read+) keep, RPS hypothetical+1. Selzer(+1) stalks the HSP and they get the 1st down.
O24	1st	10	Pistol FB	4-3-4	4-3 Even	2	Play-Action	7	Deep comeback	Selzer	Inc	-0.43
JJ waits forever and doesn't step up into a clean pocket so eventually the LB activates and he's under pressure. He throws it low to Selzer and the CB is all over him and knocks it down. (IN, 1, Prot 1/1, McCarthy-2)
O24	2nd	10	Empty 11	4-2-5	Nk Even	1	Pass	6	TE Out	Selzer	6	0.15
There it is! Quick pitch and catch. (CA, 3, Prot 1/1, McCarthy+1)
O18	3rd	4	Empty 11	4-2-5	Nk Wide	1	Pass	6	JJ Adventure Time	Selzer	Inc(+15)	1.50
JJ Adventure time. Iowa brings six, JJ rolls out instantly toward one of the edge blitzers, runs all the way back to the 38 to edge this guy, then runs back to the LOS and has Selzer in the endzone so Iowa interferes and gets flagged. Fun! (CA, 0, Prot n/a, McCarthy+2 I guess)
O3	1st	Goal	Offset Ace	5-3-3	Goal Line	NA	Run	9	Dive	Edwards	2	-0.44
Filiaga(+1) blew up a DT and that gets 2/3rds of what they need
O1	2nd	Goal	Offset Ace	5-3-3	Goal Line	NA	Run	9	Dive	Edwards	1	1.85
Edwards(+1) over the pile with the ball extended.
Drive Notes: Touchdown. 42-3. 1 min 4th Q. End of Big Ten season. Champions: the University of Michigan.

Broyles!

Josh Gattis had a good day. Iowa’s defense gave teams fits all year, and kept them in games they had no business winning until the opponent got frustrated and did something stupid. In that context, big field-flipping plays and an early two-touchdown lead changed the shape of the contest, and Michigan got those by drawing them up. The first was the Corum run that we’re going to bring up a few times before the end.

There are a lot of things going on here but the main pieces are Michigan running a version of their arc read with McCarthy in and Sainristil providing the arc action; and Iowa bringing down their safety on arc action to overload that edge, flipping their ILBs in hopes of messing up Michigan’s blocking.

Let's try to unpack it. For one, Stueber crushed the DT which wasn’t a coaching thing. The rest is: Iowa’s using their well-practiced veterans to run some complicated fits. Michigan wins that by playing up a man because of the option, and then their blockers adjusting on the fly.

On the extra guy: I can’t guarantee McCarthy’s presence is what caused the playside end to shoot upfield to play the QB keep like he did, but I somehow doubt McNamara gets the same reaction. The WLB, #31, also shot outside, following Sainristil until Schoonmaker could just seal the LB outside. Kudos to Schoonmaker for picking up that block and reversing it when Iowa flipped their LBs, but the way the WLB is flying after the backfield motion is a reaction to what Michigan’s put on tape before.

The RB pass on Michigan’s next play from scrimmage also played into tendency. The last two games established Donovan Edwards as a flare threat, and doubly one if that becomes a flare screen with a flexed tight end out there blocking. Iowa’s secondary pointed at All flexed out there with Edwards on the field, and correspondingly overreacted to Edwards getting the ball in the flat. They didn’t go back and check the West Bloomfield film though.

Bam: 14-0. And lest we forget, the first play of Michigan’s next drive was a big gainer as well. Where did it hit? Outside, where Iowa just overplayed twice, after orbit motion to draw them the other direction and what looks like a counter run. The moment Haskins and Keegan fly by the DE heading for McNamara is [chef’s kiss].

These were all big rock/paper/scissors victories set up by some masterful self-scouting. The scouting says McCarthy in plus Sainristil on arc motion means Michigan wants to run McCarthy outside; McCarthy takes the easy give read, and Schoonmaker blocks for the handoff up the gut. Scouting says Edwards in the flat means the outside receiver wants to block the CB; the CB flings Wilson out of the way, and then realizes too late that he just left the Hawai’ian Rocket unguarded. And buried in all the motion to either direction was standard pulling guard who looked like the kickout block Michigan’s always trying to get there. The DE dodged Keegan, and Keegan’s like “See ya!”

The McNamara draw was yet another self-scout that beat Iowa’s response to the thing Michigan likes to do. Watch the middle of the defense disappear after Edwards.

With the base stuff not working, McNamara struggling against LB pressure in the first half, and some dead drives that tried to do little more than get out of their goal post’s shadow to set up a punt, the BTC could have felt a lot more like Yet Another Iowa Game. Instead Michigan was a freak interception away from a 21-3 first quarter, most of it on stuff Gattis set up.

And then…Broyles?The other side of that X’s and O’s discussion is Iowa did a great job of shutting off Michigan’s Counter Trey game, which has been the source of their power since they scrapped split zone as the base of their offense during the bye week. Remember: 'Trey' purposely leaves the playside edge unblocked until a puller from the other side—usually a guard—thwacks in to him. Iowa's response was to have that playside DE crash inside AND hop upfield. This meant the key collision was taking place right in front of the handoff, well too far inside for the RB to have access to edge this is supposed to crack open. Watch the DE on the far right:

The way Michigan wants to option that guy is to have Keegan kick him out if he goes up and out, and turn him inside if he shuffles in. If he crashes in then shoots up, he screws up that turn. Keegan got around him but not before that guy slowed Schoonmaker.

The reason Iowa can get away with this behavior is their cornerbacks are safety-caliber run defenders and their linebackers are well-versed in their keys. Here the CB beats Baldwin and the WLB beats Stueber even after the other blocks are made. But those guys are also planning on this alley being the gap, because if this ball escapes the backfield that’s where it has to go. And Gattis used that planning against them.

You’ll never guess with what (watch the DE on the bottom):

Ha! Split Zone! We’re right back where we started, except if the edge defender is going to come up into the tight end’s path he just gets to eat a tight end. Of course as soon as split zone was working again Michigan Gattis went on a split zone bender. It’s a good counter to this one way of attacking Michigan’s power runs, but giving that man his favorite play back after it took us most of the season to ween him off it might not be the best development.

Was that why the middle of the game was a slog?

The slog was happening more out of circumstance I thought. The split zone bender came on a drive that ultimately broke the stalemate, and finally broke it by Michigan once again playing off its own tendencies. Here they line up the TE flexed to the right side the motion him in. Iowa’s defense has seen a Michigan TE in motion and know what that signifies: an attack on the other side. Except it’s not, and the LBs go “bonk”:

One of them irresponsibly shoots into the backfield to try to rectify their collective error, turning a string-out into a walk-in. Given Iowa’s struggles on offense, once this game was 21-3 it was over. They got there because of Josh Gattis’s gameplan and playcalling. Broyles.

So you’re just going to ignore that he set a drive on fire by having McNamara read nothing.

The play you’re referencing was on the 3 yard line and they burrowed for 2 yards. I can ignore it. The tactical blunder that I really didn’t like was trying to run Counter without a lead blocker. I called it “Power G” in the charting. Michigan checked into it both times they ran it. One time a safety came down and blew it up, the next the DE just took a path directly to the RB:

That play has to be run from an offset or Pistol so the RB can run inside the kickout: If you’re coming from a shotgun and then adding a backside RPO, your running back’s angle won’t let him get to those gaps, meaning your only opportunity of it working is for the DE to form up when the QB isn’t looking at him, for if your RB breaks a tackle six yards in the backfield. I’m not counting on Iowa to screw that up.

It was frustrating in the moment because it came on 1st down at the end of the 3rd quarter, after the defense had survived a 7-minute drive and booted Iowa off the field on 4th down in the redzone. The only chance of Iowa climbing back into this game is if you go three-and-out here, and now we’re in a 2nd and 16 on the ten. Fortunately Brad Robbins boomed the Hawkeyes back to the 23, the defense stood again, and Cornelius Johnson blocked a punt, cueing the rout. But yes, they’re still nunning no-read zone reads. That’s something I’d like us to work on before next offseason.

If Hunter Dickinson can hit three-pointers we can teach Cade McNamara to read a crashing DE.

You’ve mentioned like one good play (Stueber’s) by a player in a 42-3 drubbing of a very good defense. Surely the eleven guys on the field did more than that?

Oh, to be sure!

And perhaps you could quantify that performance in some form of aggregated representation?

You mean a chart.

A chart.

And what did you do with the last chart I gave you?

…

Okay well the OL isn’t going to be +50 on this one like last time but it’s pretty good.

Offensive Line
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Hayes	5.5	4.5	+1	Agility kept pace with the funny looks the LBs were giving him.
Keegan	7	5	+2	More physical game this time, Iowa blitzes were a new challenge.
Vastardis	4.5	4	+0.5	Some of that TEAM-5 pass pro was on him.
Filiaga	1.5	0	+1.5	Impact on the garbage time drive.
Stueber	5	4	+1	Key block on the Corum long TD.
Zinter	8.5	2.5	+6	Mashed face.
Barnhart	0	0	0	DNC
Jones	0	2.5	-2.5	Extra OL not effective this game.
Atteberry	0	0	0	DNC
Crippen	0	0	0	DNC
All	10	2.5	+7.5	Even with the drop was the best TE on the field.
Schoonmaker	9	2	+7	And that's saying something because Schoon balled out.
Honigford	2	1	+1	One excellent block, one whiff
Selzer	1.5	0	+1.5	Welcome to the receiver chart, sir.
Hibner	0	0	0	DNP
TOTAL	54.5	28	+26.5	Thumpin good time against a tough customer.
Backs
Player	+	-	T	Notes
McNamara	1	1	0	One bad read, one great draw.
McCarthy	2.5	2	+0.5	Adventures ahoy!
Villari	0	0	0	DNP
Haskins	13.5	2	+11.5	Did not hurdle a fool. Just dominated again.
Corum	4	2	+2	Healthy version would like another shot at Iowa's superb tackling.
Edwards	3	2	+1	Fifth best returning QB in the Big Ten? Is that fair?
Dunlap	0	0	0	DNP
TOTAL	24	9	+15	Edwards is a great decoy but rode Haskins to the BTC.
Receivers
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Johnson	3	2	+1	The usual: one bad play early, one great one late.
Sainristil	6.5	1	+5.5	Welcome back mountain goat blocking.
Henning	1	2	-1	One drop and and one Henning around.
Wilson	1.5	0	+1.5	Of all the guys to let get behind you, Iowa
Baldwin	0	1	-1	Mad the refs missed offsides so he could get a fade opportunity.
Anthony	0	1	-1	People with all-22 report he was open a few times.
TOTAL	12	7	+5	Mostly Sainristil. Blocking WR's kind of day.
Metrics
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Protection	33	42	79%	Hayes-2, Keegan-1, TEAM-5
RPS	18	15	+3	Gattis got his points then sat on it, Iowa checked into great blitzes.

Hellooooo Luke Schoonmaker!

Oh man, I talked about taking the punts as the Iowa representative of Michigan’s kleptological revenge tour this season, but it easily could have been killing you with tight ends. If it holds through the playoffs and into next year, we’re going to remember the BTC as the moment Luke Schoonmaker turned lethal.

NFL teams burn draft picks on Hawkeye tight ends all the time* to get a guy who can make this play with regularity, because it’s the easiest matchup to get against an NFL defense.

I want that ball out earlier so it hits between the levels instead between the safeties, but if your tight end has that catch in his arsenal you don’t need him to be open. And then with his speed and catch radius, you can’t leave him with a simple OLB or else he’s going to be open.

And lest we think the converted quarterback some under-coached, lily-livered Penn State jumbo receiver, here’s our Schoonmaker blocking two guys in one play:

Iowa’s tight end did some impressive things too, but Schoonmaker was the position’s dude of the day.

* [One debatably NFL team recently used a 1st round pick on this!].

This is Erick All slander I never would have thought from you. What of your favorite viking?

All was not to be outdone; his blocking was again spectacular, and points-wise he matched Schoonmaker in the passing game. Michigan has been reticent this year to throw at covered mismatches—Gattis definitely prefers to scheme guys open to trying to throw them open, and I share this preference. But if you’re looking for evidence that they can get away with a little more isolation “500” ball, here’s All versus Iowa’s excellent hybrid safety:

They also ran a flea flickers to him…on a fullback wheel no less:

Look, I’m not saying Josh Gattis takes playcalling ideas from Seth and Brian’s hobbyhorses on the MGoPodcast. I’m just saying that we are smart enough to anticipate a couple of Josh Gattis ideas.

Of course there was that one moment that brought us back to the bad old days when All was having hands issues. I thought the ball was thrown behind him but it’s certainly catchable enough to expect All to bring it in and keep the drive marching.

That it fell into the arms of a linebacker trying to hit All after the catch was just dumb luck, one of those plays that invariably end up given pride of place in recruiting highlight reels, and which we always ignore.

So the OL did not keep up their Ohio State Destruction pace?

No, Michigan did not match the greatest Michigan OL performance since the 313 game. They were very very good in the ways that the individual OL usually are. Zinter was the star, including two plays that tend to get pointed out by former OL on twitter. Let’s go back to the Schoonmaker wheelie and watch #65 the right guard this time:

They ran stretch once so Vastardis could stretch, and he and Zinter ran a perfect scoop on the DT lined up playside of the center.

Stretch zone expert in residence Brian Cook was consulted and declared that a “you’re dead” block, as in if the center gets a reach block on a stretch play, the defense is in huge trouble. Most of the rest of the OL’s day was dealing with weird looks that Iowa gave them. The line metrics came out pretty even if you don’t count the tight ends. It was a comedown from the ultimate high, but probably one of the better days against this front all year, at least that I saw.

Did Haskins hurdle a fool or anything?

No, he just hit his gaps, powered through tackles, and tacked on two yards to the end of every run.

You know: ho hum, just one of the greatest backs in Michigan history carrying his team to their first championship after a dry spell. Nothing you haven’t seen in this space all year.

Corum had the big run early but his day was nerfed by Iowa defenders pulling off great tackles.

Hopefully Kirby Smart hasn’t drilled the fundamentals into his players as deeply as Phil Parker. Donovan Edwards spent the day as mostly a receiving threat, or a passing threat.

Ah yes, quite the conundrum Michigan has with their quarterback situation now, eh?

No, not really:

CADE MCNAMARA

	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr			Reads
Game	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	GRADE!		RPOs	ZRs
W. Michigan	3+	3(3)-						2			1		67%	+5		4/5	2/7
Washington	1	3(2)-			2	(1)			3	1(1)	2		40%	-8		5/5	4/9
NIU	2	7+ -			1	1							100%	+11		1/2	1/2
Rutgers	3+	5-			1	1				5xx	1		57%	+2.5		2/2	1/6
Wisconsin	6	13	1		1	2		1	1	4x	2x		71%	+10.5		2/3	1/2
Nebraska	3+	13(2)-			3	6		3	3	6	1x		55%	-1.5		1/3	2/2
Northwestern	2	11(5)+			2	2		1	3	4xx	1		59%	-1		5/7	5/8
Michigan St	9++	19(1)+ -	1		1	1		2	5	5	4		64%	+20.5		1/2	1/1
Indiana	4	8(1)	1		4				1	1	1		81%	+10		0/0	3/6
Penn State	4+	8+++(2)			2	4		3	3	3			57%	+0		0/0	0/1
Maryland	5	14++(1)	1			2		2	3	1	1		74%	+14.5		0/3	5/9
Ohio State	3	7++(2)	1		3	3			1	1	1x		79%	+14		3/3	-
Iowa	3++	7+(2)			2	4			2	2	1x		67%	+2		3/3	1/3

(reminder: you can hover over the letters in the headers if you forget what they mean, or there’s an explainer in the glossary)

JJ MCCARTHY

	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr			Reads
Game	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	GRADE!		RPOs	ZRs
W. Michigan	1+++	2				3		1x		1			60%	-2		0/0
NIU		4+							1		1		67%	+4		2/2	3/3
Wisconsin	1												100%	+2		2/2	4/6
Nebraska		1											100%	-		1/1	2/2
Northwestern	1	(2)								2	1		25%	+2		0/1	1/2
Michigan St.		2(1)											100%	+2		1/1	4/4
Indiana	1	1			1	1			3x	3	2x		20%	-6		2/3	1/2
Maryland	1	1(2)				1							100%	+3		2/2	1/1
Ohio State	1+													+2		0/0	3/3
Iowa		2								1			67%	+1		0/0	4/5

Ahem. You’re short a chart.

Light forbid.

DONOVAN EDWARDS

	Good				Neutral			Bad					Ovr			Reads
Game	DO	CA	SCR		PR	MA		BA	TA	IN	BR		DSR	GRADE!		RPOs	ZRs
Iowa	1												100%	+2

Thank you. This was a comedown for Cade.

Sure, but after the charting I think we even undersold him in the podcast; this was a comedown to his Penn State level, not a return to his pre-bye week baseline. You’ll also note a lot of DO+ events happened in this one. With all due (read: absolutely zero) respect to Ohio State’s secondary, Iowa was a big step up from last game in competition level, especially on the tactical level. If OSU was the German Army of the late 1930s—access to the most wonderous new technology but directed by systemically promoted idiots—Iowa was the German Army of the 1910s. These guys may have been outgunned, but they were vets, well-trained, dug in, excellent at adjusting on the fly, and focused from the get-go on knocking McNamara out of the war.

Watch this sequence before the sack that ended Michigan’s best shot at a three-score lead before the half:

Michigan went empty, a strategy that’s been money for them this year because McNamara is so good at reading coverages pre-snap, and his OL has been excellent at identifying blitzes and getting in the right protection sets. Iowa was a challenge too far: As soon as Michigan has their plan in place, Iowa’s MLB pats his head and just like that the Hawkeyes are in a new blitz. With just four seconds to snap, the Wolverines have to either burn a timeout or hope their protection is still good. It is not:

There are two ways Michigan could have beaten this. One would be for the protection to sort itself out on the fly, with Vastardis coming off the looping DE from the right to get the looping DE on the left, freeing Keegan to take the blitzing MLB. The other way was for McNamara to recognize the MLB blitz meant he had Schoonmaker coming open across the curl/flat safety and put it over the ref’s head.

I think a more confident McNamara does that, but here he’s watching an unblocked LB come through and hesitates in the one beat he had to get this ball out. That’s a mark against him, but also a sign that Iowa’s blitzes are doing their job. McNamara also hesitated on the “BRx” I gave him, when his first read was breaking open across the middle but Cade bailed from a clean pocket then threw a should-have-been-INT at the same player along the sideline. One bad read a game the last two games would hardly be remarkable except Cade went most of the season without one.

I think McNamara was not used to this kind of pressure, and was concerned about Iowa’s coverages. Here they left Schoonmaker open, and Johnson had the hitch as well, but here we see Iowa playing off their own tendencies. All year they’ve been generating these kinds of situations, then replacing the blitzer with a robber to generate interceptions. I can’t guarantee that’s what McNamara was checking for, but I think it’s an acceptable explanation if that’s what it was.

The problem with Iowa’s games against McNamara is he’s too smart to keep running the same things. Earlier in the 2nd quarter they got to him on an AB blitz where they dropped a DE and brought both ILBs to either side of Keegan:

The protection as called has no chance against this with Edwards going into a pattern, so it’s up to the quarterback to throw into the area the LBs just abandoned. He looks there but the SS, #26 is hanging out in the middle so a throw to Wilson at best ends up short of the sticks and might also be a pick. Cade rolls away from the pressure and dumps it:

Next time they tried it however Cade knew where to go with the ball: his RB versus a DE (#13) trying to cover him.

The pass that Henning dropped was the same blitz moved over a gap (so Double-A), and flipped. McNamara figured he could get more than an RB dump-off by picking on the DE dropping into coverage, and was prepared to take a hit to get his team in to field goal range. These sorts of plays disappear down the memory hole, but when I talk about McNamara as the kind of quarterback who can generate victories for his team, this is the sort of play I’m talking about.

I think Iowa knew that Cade was going to carve them up if they stayed in their normal coverages, and put their game-planning energy into makings sure they got unblocked blitzers into the backfield to speed him up. It was a sound strategy until he adapted. That NFL catch on a seam by Schoonmaker came after Iowa showed blitz and McNamara audibled.

McNamara’s 2nd half statline was 5/6 for 17.8 YPA and a TD, the lone incompletion being the throwaway when they thought they caught Iowa jumping offsides and didn’t get the flag. Iowa put their preparation into multiple blitzes that they could check into late in the playclock, and that won them a few drives in the 1st half and give McNamara a rougher go than he’s used to. Once he adapted, however, McNamara laid into them like a defense teeing off in the 2nd half against Rich Rod’s Threet-Sheridan outfit after the one cool idea for that game had been exhausted. That’s how a quarterback leads his team to a Big Ten championship.

What was JJ doing on the long Corum run?

So this was something out of a cartoon.

I spent an entire Disney movie this week watching this play and texting my friend with silly captions for it. Now, Corum did slow down to let his blocking develop, but Iowa’s defense sure as hell did not, and still watched helplessly as the quarterback appeared next to the guy he’s just handed the ball to. This absolutely affected the play, as #26 had an angle until McCarthy blocked his path.

The other thing about this play is it was caused in the first place by Iowa freaking out about McCarthy’s legs. Remember this DE was crashing in and up when McNamara was in the game, but he wasn’t going to risk getting edged by McCarthy, and then the gap this goes into is actually the responsibility of WLB #31 who was desperate to get *outside* of Schoonmaker.

Michigan had an opportunity to do that again but McCarthy kept on the same read:

But you can’t help but be excited for where this is going. You also have to mentally push that final form out a ways because JJ still does this:

…and that’s going to result in a 3rd down and 40 eventually, unless it doesn’t.

How did the receivers fare?

Not as well as the tight ends I’m afraid but there was a higher difficulty level this game than usual.

	THIS WEEK					THIS YEAR
Player	Uncb	Circus	Tough	Routine		Uncb	Circus	Tough	Routine
Johnson	1	1/2				16	3/14	11/15	22/25
Baldwin	1					5	0/6	7/9	8/10
Sainristil	1					4	3/9	4/5	13/13
Henning			0/1			3	1/2	1/3	4/4
Wilson				2/2		4	2/5	6/7	17/18
Anthony				1/1		3	3/7	2/3	8/8
Dixon						1	0/1		1/1
x Bell x							1/2	1/1
All		1/1	1/2			2	1/5	6/9	25/25
Schoonmaker		2/2				4	2/6	1/2	14/14
Honigford						2		0/1	1/1
Selzer	1	0/1		1/1		1	0/3	0/1	1/1
Hibner
Corum				2/2		2	1/1	1/1	20/23
Haskins				3/3		2		3/3	11/11
Edwards	1		1/2	2/2		3	1/3	2/3	13/13

For the record I thought the ball that Johnson dug off the turf was a catch:

Routes: Johnson-1, Anthony-1, Edwards-1

I wish he would not drop a “tough” pass early every game before redeeming himself but that seems to be his pattern. As a team Michigan was 2/5 on the blue squares (intermediate) of passes, 4/6 on the black diamonds (hard), and perfect on their green cirlces (easy). I’ll take it.

What does it mean for Georgia and beyond?

Cade adapted to pressure. Good bet that Georgia took notes and has bowl practices to invent some new attacks that take advantage of their special skills up front. As it should be, the semi-final is going to be Cade’s biggest test of the season. They gave the Heisman to the last guy who could break apart UGA’s coverages and get the ball to his athletes.

Mental note: Only try to screw with the fundamentals of teams not named Iowa. I think we’ve grown a little high on our running back supply that the moment Corum gets the ball underneath we expect him to break a tackle or six. Sometimes other guys win one-on-one battles too.

Tight end passing game? Schoonmaker is coming; let’s see how he builds on this game. Really these guys have been getting these opportunities all season, but McNamara doesn’t like to throw across the middle. Popping these guys off on seams and wheel routes opens up a lot more yards in the passing game.

The OL are not the 2019 pass protection wizards. They are good, but Vastardis and Keegan and Zinter are still relatively inexperienced, and got put through the ringer on this one.

The OL can maul. Zinter versus the good Iowa run-stopping DEs was the most noticeable development. Their DTs are quasi-DEs and were deemphasized in this game by design.

Split Zone is acceptable in cases where they’re overplaying Counter Trey: It’s annoying that an opponent put a good way to turn off Michigan’s counter runs on film. Michigan can use Split Zone to counter that, but there are also traps that can do the same thing and look more like the power run game.

Your Moment of Zen: