Glossary: Is Here. Reminder that a parenthetical is a covered receiver.

Formation Notes: Let's get funky! UNLV's weird offense likes to overload a side with two RBs and a covered TE. I called the one closer to the QB the "S" and the further the "R". I called this GoGo Right.

When UNLV went to a diamond Michigan sometimes put their DE all the way out with the covered TE (see #5 on the bottom). I called this 404 Spread.

When not covering receivers they are putting them as far from the formation as possible.

 And look at this: a real Delaware Wing-T!

Haven't seen one of those since the Bethel Threshers took on the old Pitchbots of Hannigan's Wake back in 'dickety-two. I also had to cut way more of these because they're probably not going to be relevant unless the Go-Go sweeps the nation.

[After THE JUMP: The Go-Go is getting Brumfield Dead-Dead]

Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O25	1st	10	Gun 2RB Twins (Y)	4-2-5	4-3 Even	1 off	PRO		Rollout Hitch/OZ	Harris	10	0.84
Run action gets Sabb(-0.5) caught in no man's land--need to find work. This leaves Sainristil(-0.5) in the cov3 c/f zone with the slot he has to carry to the 40 before he can get to the hitch. Harris can't play it tighter because Q-Jo(-1) is passive getting over the slot. WR gets the ball at 9 and muscles through Mikey for the first. RPS-1.
O35	1st	10	GoGo Right (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Split	1 off	RPO		SZ/Bubble	Jenkins	2	-0.49
Sainristil read as they shoot the S backside. Jenkins(+2) stands up the G, two-gaps, and makes the tackle with some late assistance from Harris(+0.5).
O37	2nd	8	Gun 2RB Bdy	4-2-5	Nk Wide	2 off	Pass	5	RB Flat	Barrett	2	-0.63
Graham(+2, PR+2) hops over two gaps and rips through the C for immediate pressure. Dumpoff to the RB that Barrett(+1, tackling) wrangles down immediately. RT is lined up well in the backfield here fyi.
O39	3rd	6	Offset Str	4-2-5	Nk Over	2 fld	Pass	5	H Hitch	Q.Johnson	7	2.18
Late MLB blitz gets Jenkins running free up the middle and this could be a sack (PR+1) since Sainristil called a "kick" with Harris before the snap, which means Q-Jo(-2, cov-1, tackling-1) should be hammering down on the hitch. He's hesitant and set up four yards past the sticks and makes it easy, then whiffs the tackle against a squirrely customer to give up the first. Do I RPS the kick if the S doesn't get the message? No, but I can miss Rod Moore.
O46	1st	10	Gun Diamond RB (Y)	4-2-5	404 Spread	1 off	RPO		OZ/Flash	McGregor	-4	-1.97
McGregor(+3) with his best Hutch impersonation splits the B gap and ropes the RB down deep in the backfield.
O42	2nd	14	GoGo Wk	4-2-5	Nk Over	2 fld	Run		3-O Split Flow give	Grant	2	-0.41
Sorry to be clipping this whole drive but D-Mo(+2) plants the RT 2 yards in the backfield which forces a cutback where Grant(+1) shucked a double that thought it was scooping him. Benny(+1) got in the backfield too and helps. Tackling-1 as the RB churns a 1-yard loss into a 4-yard gain. refs+1 blow the whistle early so he only gets half of those.
O44	3rd	12	Gun 2x2	4-2-5	Nk Split	2 fld	Pass	4	Deep Out	Harris	Inc	-0.45
Both Ts are way in the backfield (refs-1 for giving me Chiefs-Lions flashbacks) which matters because Stewart(+1, PR+2) is around at 6 yards that would have been 5 if the Rebs weren't cheaters. Grant(+1) is also abusing a G trying to single-block him so Brumfield chucks it OOB near the sticks.
Drive Notes: Punt. 0-0. 11:51 1st Q. Next KO goes OOB so this drive starts at the M35.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O35	1st	10	GoGo Left	5-2-4	5-2 Odd	1 off	Run		3O Split Flow give	Grant	-3	-1.44
Oh dearies. M puts out 5 DL vs 21 personnel; UNLV has both WRs at the opposite sideline and the TE flexed to the numbers and runs their triple-option thing which draws a LB backside and leaves a 5-1. M twists Grant(+1) behind Graham(+1) who blasts the C back 2 yards. D-Mo(+1) plants his T just as deep and stands him up to cut off the edge. Grant is free and swallows (RPS+1).
O32	2nd	13	Gun Str	4-2-5	Nk Wide	2 off	Pass	5	Mesh	Harris	Inc	-0.39
Ts in the backfield again, Amoeba drops Stewart and brings Nk+MLB which overloads the left side (RPS+1, PR+1). D-Mo(+1) also slanted through a G and gets a hand up. Ball is accurate to a short crosser Stewart could light up but it goes off his hands, gets tipped by Hausmann(+1, cov+1) and into the hands of a diving Harris(+2). Refs emphatically claim it dropped, Replay(-3) doesn't look at it. Neither CBS view is definitive but it looked like a clean pick and both refs who called it incomplete were behind Harris. WTF? You're gonna make someone mad.
O32	3rd	13	Gun Wk Flex	4-2-5	5-1 Odd	2 off	Pass	5	Thundersack	D.Moore	-6	-0.28
Oh no you made D-Mo(+3, PR+3) mad. He's off like a flash, around the LT at 5 yards despite that guy setting up in the backfield and rips Brumfield down with authoritah.
Drive Notes: Punt. 7-0. 6 min 1st Q. Shoulda given Harris his replay.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O25	1st	10	GoGo Left (Y)	5-2-4	5-2 Odd	2 fld	PRO	2	H-Out/IZ	Wallace	15	1.32
M blitzes Sabb and they're reading him (RPS-1). Wallace(-1, tackling-1, cov-2) is out in space and comes up way outside, giving up a ton of room for the WR to turn it up. Not a -2 because he does funnel to help.
O40	1st	10	GoGo Right (Y)	5-2-4	5-2 Over	1 off	PRO	2	3-O Split Flow Sack	Q.Johnson	-6	-2.02
Q-Jo(+1) sneaks in and Brumfield reads this as a keep. It's a trap as they cover the 3 receiving options and bring two unblocked backside. Harrell(+1) redirects and collects as the QB dodges Quinten. RPS+2, PR+3.
O34	2nd	16	GoGo Right (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Over	1 off	RPO		IZ/Slant	Jenkins	3	-0.15
Will Johnson in. Again they RPS+2 an RPO as M scrape exchanges the backside with Q-Jo(+0.5) cutting off the outlet pass. Colson(-1, tackling-1) should have this lined up back came in a bit high and whiffs. Graham(+1) swims through a double, Jenkins(+2) teleports around a G so it doesn't matter. Johnson(+0.5) flies down and helps prevent YAC.
O37	3rd	13	Offset 3x1	4-2-5	Nk Split!	2 fld	Pass	4	Sack	Harrell	-7	-0.41
RT is now a good 2 yards in the backfield. Amoeba with D-Mo dropping catches protection set the wrong way (RPS+2, PR+3). Barrett(+1) flies through and soaks up the RB. Harrell(+1, tackling+1) is unblocked, collects the sack. Nowhere to escape because Graham(+1) held up a triple-team.
Drive Notes: Punt. 14-0. 13 min 2nd Q.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O17	1st	10	Gun Trips TTE	4-2-5	404 Tite	1 off	PRO	2	Scramble/OZ	Sabb	12	0.76
Another slot safety blitz vs this RPO should have a sack (RPS+2, PR+2) but Sabb(-2, tackling-3) gets whooped. Harrell(+1) forced it back inside, could have drawn a hold. D-Mo(-1) has him after a short gain and also whiffs.
O29	1st	10	Gun Trips TTE	5-2-4	5-2 Under	1 off	Play-Action	5	Sack	Grant	-4	-1.22
The Almost Goode(+1, tackling-1, PR+3) play is an RPS+2 as M only has three DL slide with five OL and the RB. While D-Mo(+1) turns a TE into his personal sled to hem the QB in Goode stays home then lines up what was about to be an insane hit, but Brumfield manages to spin out of it. Now he's in survival mode, but Grant(+2) is loose from the fakery, breaks down like a LB, and ropes the QB down.
O25	2nd	14	Gun 3x1 Bunch	4-2-5	Nk Split	2 fld	Pass	5	Whip	Hausmann	11	0.76
Cheatin Ts matter (refs-1) as D-Mo(+1, PR+1) is collapsing the pocket. Ball has to be out quickly to an underneath route but Hausmann(-1, cov-1) overplays a bit and gives up some YAC before bringing DeJesus (Hat+1) down. Dude is squirrelly.
O36	3rd	3	Gun Trips TTE RB	4-2-5	Nk Over	1 press	Pass	5	RB Flare	Barrett	5	1.58
RT is now literally next to a TE in the "backfield." RPS-2 as M blitzes the slot again and they throw at the pressure. RB was lined up playside while Barrett(+1) is the WLB, he gets through traffic in a hurry but they got the natural pick, a big head start, and DeJesus is too quick.
O41	1st	10	Gun Diamond RB (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Over	2 off	Pass		Flash Screen	Hausmann	8	1.00
Tempo(28) catches M a man short (RPS-1) on the quick screen. Hausmann(-0.5) wasn't blocked but took a bad angle. Harris(-1) wiped out by Ricky White. Sainristil(+1) doubled and fights through it to bottle it up short of the sticks.
O49	2nd	2	GoGo Left (Y)	5-2-4	5-2 Odd	2 fld	PRO	2	30 Split Flow Sack	Jenkins	-7	-2.80
Same thing as the Almost Goode play except Jenkins(+1) grabs the ball and spin the QB into and Grant(+2) who made the RT feel useless and cleaned up again. RPS+2, PR+2.
O42	3rd	9	Gun Str	4-2-5	Nk Wide	1 fld	Pass	4.5	Back Shoulder	Sainristil	Inc	-0.46
Cheatin T matters, or would but the TE hauled down McGregor (refs-1). RB upended Stewart but two DEs at QB's feet means ball has to get out. Squirrel has the catch until Sainristil(+2, cov+1) thunks him and DeJesus doesn’t survive contact with the ground.
Drive Notes: Punt. 14-0. 4 min 2nd Q. Next drive is just the one run before the half but I'll chart it.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O25	1st	10	GoGo Right (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Over	1 bdy	Run		Split Zone	Graham	2	-0.54
Graham(+2) is two-gapping the LG, sets him up at the LOS, crosses, tackles for a nothing gain. Barrett(-0.5) and Colson(-0.5) buried themselves unproductively in the line so this could have gotten ugly. Anyways.
Drive Notes: EoH. 21-0. Five sacks on 24 plays so far.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O15	1st	10	Gun Str RB	4-2-5	5-1 Odd	2 off	Pass	5	Curls	Barrett	4	-0.07
Max Protect catches a late blitz from the Nk. Tons of holding (refs-2), McGregor is looking for a call as the QB breaks contain past him then gets thrown down after the play. Barrett(+0.5) and Colson(+0.5) chase this down after a small gain.
O19	2nd	6	Gun Trips TTE RB	4-2-5	Nk Split	2 off	RPO		Curls/IZ	Harrell	2	-0.26
Tempo(24). Harrell(+1) has both sides of the TE because Q-Jo(-1) is late to the party but manages to keep the RB inside and initiate contact. Graham(+1) stood up a double to create a pile that the RB climbs on top of for 2.
O21	3rd	4	Empy 2x3	4-2-5	Eagle A	2 bdy	Pass	4	Spiritual Sack	Graham	2	-0.17
Barrett(+2) has to tell Sabb(-1) to line up over the slot then plays ideal zone coverage (cov+2) passing off the slot and getting under the Z. Brumfield is clean (PR-1, McGregor(-0.5), Harrell(-0.5)) but has had enough. Graham(+1) sheds his G and collects the QB but only after another step carries him over the LOS so it's not a sack.
Drive Notes: Punt. 21-0. 12 min 3rd Q. Michigan scores on the first drive of the second half so it's 28-0 and backups are rotating in from here. Also yardage is 351 to 50 at this point.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O25	1st	10	Gun Twins	4-2-5	4-3 Split	1 off	PRO	1	Smash/SZ	Sabb	Inc	-0.70
McBurrows in for Sainristil. Grant(+1, refs-1) breaks through after the run action and gets his shirt practically yanked off. Brumfield is spooked and throws an inaccurate duck (Hat-2) that White can't bring in. Harris(-2, cov-2) was carrying him but drove on the under after the throw.
O25	2nd	10	Gun TTE	4-2-5	Nk Even	2 off	Play-Action	2	PA Smash	Sabb	Inc	-0.35
McBurrows(+1, PR+1) is blitzing from the hash and D-Mo is the babysitter but throw is out faster to Ricky White underneath, who drops it (Hat-1). Sabb was there to tackle for a 3rd & 5 so cov-push.
O25	3rd	10	Gun Str RB	4-2-5	5-1 Odd	2 pres	Pass	5	Fly	Harris	Inc(+15)	2.37
Lol RT two yards in the backfield when the TE next to him is on the LOS. This is also a giveaway that the TE isn't blocking so RPS+1 because I love it when cheap geniuses screw themselves. Also refs-1 because Stewart(+1, PR+2) got a good bull rush on cheapo that might have been a sack. Stunt also got Benny(-2(+1/-3)) free up the gut so this has to go out at a fly at White that Harris(+2, cov+2) is running for him. Flag is for roughing the passer and it's legit; you can argue Benny wasn't going to avoid contact, but he took a step after the ball was out and shoved, and Brumfield got a moment to watch the ball sail before he was contacted, and I always expect that to be flagged.
O40	1st	10	GoGo Left (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Split	1 off	Run		Triple-Option Pitch	Sainristil	21	1.62
Sainristil(-2) buys the dive so there's nobody home for the pitch. RPS-1 this fools the LBs and Q-Jo(-1), who's so slow getting over Sainristil has to run it down. M territory seal broken.
M39	1st	10	Pistol GoGo Left (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Split	2 fld	RPO		Triple-Option Dive	Harrell	3	-0.26
Underappreciated Harrell(+2) play. Slant/CB blitz creates a belly lane but he stands up the RT and drives him across the LOS to pinch the lane shut next to where Jenkins(+1) has the C stood up and Graham(+1) has stalemated a play-long double. Hausmann(-1) was supposed to be in that gap but was slow to react to a releasing G and got stuck on him. Pile lurches for a few. RPS-1: M was overloading the other side and Harrell had a do a job.
M36	2nd	7	GoGo Left (Y)	4-2-5	Nk Over	2 off	PRO	3	Whip/SZ	Q.Johnson	4	-0.10
Adjustment to how M was getting all the sacks on this RPO: instead of a smash White runs a whip. Could have been more but Brumfield throws it inside and White has go down for it. RPS-2, Hat-1, cov-2.
M32	3rd	3	GoGo Left (Y) RBs	4-2-5	Nk Split!	1 fld	Run		Inverted Veer Give	Hausmann	-2	-1.40
Threat of RPO has Harrell way outside and M was having Jenkins come inside to blow back the the C so M is dished (RPS-2). RPO look also holds Hausmann(-1), who's late to react to the handoff and lets the LT get an angle on him. McGregor(+1) crossed under RT; he trips over the G (wasn't pulled down) but this might have contributed to the turfmonster that takes down the RB (Luck+2).
M34	4th	5	Pistol GoGo Right (Y)	4-2-5	404 Tite	1 fld	Run		Triple-Option Keep	Jenkins	1	0.05
I have never seen the like. Both Graham(+2) and Jenkins(+2) teleport two gaps over and put their OL on their knees. Graham takes the dive so Jenkins can swallow the QB. RPS+1--M hopped into an eagle look and had Hausmann free to end this before the sticks if his DTs hadn't made two Rebels bow down to Michiganders like South Carolinians at the Battle of Haw's Shop.
Drive Notes: Turnover on Downs. 28-0. 8 min 3rd Q. The surprising thing is it took this war dad this long to make a Civil War reference.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O39	1st	10	Gun 2x2	4-2-5	Nk Split	1 off	Run		Power Read	McGregor	0	-1.11
The old Urban Meyer staple gets obliterated by McGregor(+3) who comes around the edge, induces a pull, and ropes Brumfield down behind the LOS. RPS-1 they saved this for a deep cov1 look and had one more hat than M at the PoA.
O39	2nd	10	Gun Wk Tight	4-2-5	Nk Even	2 off	Pass	4	TE Curl	Kolesar	Inc	-0.73
Not on the tape but RT finally gets a warning and moves to a legal position, eliciting fan clapping. Secondary config has Sainristil at CB, McBurrows at Nk, Kolesar in for Q-Jo. Bring Hausmann(-1, PR-1) who's probably supposed to make McGregor right but ends up outside with him instead of taking the free shot inside the LT. Brumfield throws an ill-advised duck at his TE that Kolesar(+2, cov+2) is stepping in front of but McBurrows(+2) gets his hand on it first. PBUs are +2 so full points to both of them, hypothetical BRx to Brumfield.
O39	3rd	10	Empty 2x3	4-2-5	Nk Even	1 off	Pass	5	Curl	Grant	Inc	-0.39
Illegal Ts again, but LT is worse than RT now so message received? Amoeba drops McGregor, brings McBurrows and Barrett. Maybe RT needed to cheat more because Harrell(+2, PR+2) whips his ass at 7 yards. Ball has to be out now or Brumfield's getting thundersacked, Grant(+2) gets his hand up and bats it down. Ball was going to tiny Z under Harris; squirrel was open underneath and matched with McGregor--this is a lot iffier against a well-coached QB who isn't just staring down his outlet the whole time, but then again not reading his WRs probably saved him a sack: RPS-1, Hat-1.
Drive Notes: Punt. 28-0. 5 min 3rd Q. This is that punt sequence with the running into the kicker and personal foul and Semaj is lucky they didn't call it roughing refs+2 though he gets the worst of it. Next drive it's 35-0 and backups are in so we're just doing this for fun now, and RPS is off.
Ln	Dn	Dst	OForm	DPack	Front	Hi	Type	Rush	Play	Player	Yds	EPA
O25	1st	10	Wing T	4-2-5	Nk Split	2 off	Play-Action	1	Bootleg Deep Cross	Barrett	27	2.39
Yes a real Wing T! Fake pitch takes out everyone (RPS-2). Wallace has his back turned and is following a fade that Sabb is on top of, which means nobody's there to hammer down on the deep crosser. I put this before three different coaches and got four different guys responsible but I think it's Barrett(-2, cov-2) and they're just out-leveraged. He does pick up the deep crosser eventually and runs it down.
M48	1st	10	GoGo Right (Y)	4-2-5	4-3 Over	1 off	RPO		3-O Split Flow Give	Graham	-11	-2.83
D-Mo(+1) sets a hard edge. Graham(+3) won't get scooped and then gets his hand on the ball, causing a fumble (Hat-3) the RB is super lucky bounces back into his hands when he runs back to it, but now he can only go down for a big loss.
O43	2nd	19	GoGo Left	4-2-5	Nk Over	2 off	Pass	5	Out	Hill	Inc	-0.47
Graham(+2) through the G and RB, and D-Mo(+1) through the other G so fast the latter looks back suspecting a screen. Brumfield looks forward to living another day and chucks an out at White that’s 11 yards short of the first down, and just low enough that White can't catch it before his knee's out of bounds. Push cov because Hill may play a better thrown pass, and 3rd & 11 is fine.
O43	3rd	19	Gun 3x1 Bunch	4-2-5	Eagle C	2 off	Pass	4	H Curl	Q.Johnson	11	0.68
Ts back to illegality and it matters (refs-1) since Guy dipped under the RT but then got pushed past. Jenkins(+1, PR+1) is clear of the RG so Brumfield dumps it down. Q-Jo(-1, tackling-1) whiffs the Barrett(+1) emphatically does not.
M46	4th	8	Gun 3x1 RB	4-2-5	Okie Zero	2 fld	Pass	4	Slip Screen	Jenkins	Inc	-3.52
Super illegal RT but whatever it's a screen that Jenkins(+1) saw and Wallace(+1) had lined up in the backfield but Guy(+1, PR+1) got in the backfield so fast with his arms up that Brumfield couldn't even complete it.
Drive Notes: Turnover on Downs. 35-0. 1 min 3rd Q. Bromfield is lifted after this so charting is over except this was McGregor+1/Goode+1, this was McGregor+2/Goode+1, McBurrows got -2 for getting whipped, and they tried Jyaire Hill(+2) down the sideline. Kody Jones had a rough 4th Q at nickel but the TD was on Boivin, with a bad angle from Hillman.

Omigod the defensive line.

So you read it this time.

Just the defensive line parts.

They're involved in literally every play.

That's the glory of the thing.

Indeed. You can make up the most incredible offensive scheme that nobody's ever seen before—and the GoGo Offense really is a nifty synthesis of modern ideas with some old Wing-T concepts—and it will lose to a pair of tackles.

Which we have?

Well there's these two.

And also this one.

Don't even wait just give me the ch—

Chart!

Defensive Line
Player	Snaps	+	-	T	Notes
Kris Jenkins	28	10	0	+10	Kill the quarterback.
Mason Graham	26	17	0	+17	Hit the left guard so hard his girlfriend dies.
Kenneth Grant	19	10	0	+10	Kill everyone.
Cam Goode	21	3	0	+3	That sack would have been magnificent.
Rayshaun Benny	15	1	2	-1	Got -3 for roughing the passer.
Jaylen Harrell	24	8	0.5	+7.5	So good at edge he can take B gaps in his spare time.
Braiden McGregor	25	10	0.5	+9.5	You cannot option this man.
Derrick Moore	24	11	1	+10	May be the most opponent-invariant.
Josaiah Stewart	15	2	0	+2	Other guys got to be pass rush heroes.
TJ Guy	19	1	0	+1	Interesting bend, needs strength.
TOTAL	242	73	4	+69	GAME OVER.
Linebacker
Player	Snaps	+	-	T	Notes
Junior Colson	32	0.5	1.5	-1	Probably could have sold his seat on TicketIQ.
Michael Barrett	27	6.5	2.5	+4	Show the kids how you zone covered there.
Ernest Hausmann	31	1	4.5	-3.5	Three late negatives when he was falling asleep.
Jaydon Hood	17	0	0	-	DNC
Jimmy Rolder	0	0	0	-	DNP
TOTAL	112	8	8.5	-0.5	Barely existed.
Secondary
Player	Snaps	+	-	T	Notes
Rod Moore	0	0	0	-	DNP
Makari Paige	0	0	0	-	DNP
Keon Sabb	49	0	3.5	-3.5	Tough assignment, got lots of snaps, lost a few times.
Quinten Johnson	38	1.5	6	-4.5	Please don't call Q-Jo this year's Taylor Upshaw.
Zeke Berry	0	0	0	-	DNP
Caden Kolesar	20	2	0	+2	I would like to explore this further.
Mike Sainristil	39	3	2.5	+0.5	They got him with that triple-option one time.
Will Johnson	8	0.5	0	+0.5	One good stick then they sat him.
Josh Wallace	24	1	1	-	The one issue in space.
Keshaun Harris	28	4.5	3	+1.5	Played off, had his INT stolen, PFF hated his tackling?
Ja'Den McBurrows	21	3	2	+1	Got whipped, fine.
Amorion Walker	0	0	0	-	DNP
Jyaire Hill	14	2	0	+2	They tried to run a fly at him. It didn't work out for them.
DJ Waller Jr.	15	0	0	-	DNC
TOTAL	280	17.5	18	-0.5	Banged up secondary kept everything in front of them.
Metrics
Player	+	-	T	Notes
Pressure	30	2	28/25	Sack city.
Coverage	8	10	-2	Super passive, got got a couple of times.
Tackling	1	8	-7	DeJesus caused a lot of this.
RPS	16	15	+1	UNLV brought funny stuff but slow to adapt to M responses.
Hat Tip	1	8	-7	Ricky White wasn't really that scary.

GAME OVER.

Fun, wasn't it?

Have you ever charted a +69 for the DL before?

Brian used to get +25 days from Hurst alone so I'm sure it happened in the Glasgow/Gary/Wormley/Winovich days. This was in a lot fewer plays, but the Hutchinson/Ojabo line put up a +72.5 against Nebraska and a +62.5 vs Iowa. Those were also accompanied by high scores for the secondary and high volume for the linebackers.

What made this game stand out from any other I've gone over is how much of it was played in the trenches. The secondary was only relevant on ~20 plays, and the linebackers barely existed. The story of this game is the DL won emphatically, and everyone else was mostly insignificant.

Was that just UNLV's system?

More like Michigan's response to that system. The Go-Go Offense is all about unbalancing your defense's responses—they start with a ton of threats all on the same side as the ball and get them moving in all kinds of directions to get your linebackers and safeties going the wrong way. Minter's answer: just stack guys on the line of scrimmage and keep the ball contained. Wherever they go they have to pass the line of scrimmage, so we'll just let the frippery frip and make our stand there.

Take this sack, one of several on UNLV "passing plays" that were really RPOs where the defense forced a keep read.

They've got more people lined up at the blue line than the 1995 New Jersey Devils.

It's a Trap!

Indeed. The option orientation of that offense played into Minter's hands; when you're just reacting to the defense, the defense gets to pick which reaction they give you. Michigan accepted the proposition and said "Give me the reaction where you have to beat our linemen." The above play is a more dramatic example, but I think over the course of the game Michigan decided the Go-Go 212 personnel was basically a Mad Magicians single-wing that let you choose run or pass, and found different ways of playing the wide front defenses that ultimately killed the mid-20th Century's favorite attack. As they grew more comfortable with the RPOs that UNLV had in their toolbox Michigan was responding to the Go-Go's base look with 5-2 personnel and blitzing a safety through the RPO read to be a 6th guy at the line of scrimmage.

The real bloodshed took place when Michigan could leave their response in place and UNLV couldn't get to halftime to adapt. Minter could force a pull by overloading the run side with defenders, sit over the limited Rebel passing targets, and leave a babysitter or two home on the backside to pressure the QB, whether that was a blitzer (like above) or just a fifth defensive lineman.

The play where Goode came in like a wrecking ball was the exact same response to the same setup.

Why do those points go to the DL. Shouldn't that be RPS?

Because the DL had to win their battles to make it work. The reason this response was so effective was Michigan's linemen were nightmares who refused to stay blocked if given one-on-one opportunities. Here's a split zone from early in the game where you can see both Michigan's "overload the line of scrimmage" strategy and why it was working so well. They're going to have both linebackers activate against the RB who's coming to kick out the backside edge, and blitzing the same backside edge with a safety. They're also giving UNLV a great big gap on the frontside. It's a trap of course, but a trap with Kris Jenkins beating a double without a safety net.

Mason Graham was even more of a terror. You saw the one up top where he and Jenkins teleported around their linemen to stop a 4th down but that was only one of several drives Graham killed. Remember the fumble the RB went back to that bounced back into his hands? That was knocked out by Graham when he got out in front of both OL trying to scoop him:

When runs went away from Graham he affected them by denting the line and removing any opportunities to cut back.

Graham was also Michigan's second-most effective pass-rusher, consistently ripping through to force the ball out of the pocket or into a sack without giving up contain. I can't tell you how many times last year I was frustrated with him or Smith when they gave up an escape lane. Getting off those blocks when he faces the longer arms of the Big Ten might be a different thing, but mostly it's about timing and awareness, and that part of Graham's game seems to be coming along well.

And then there's Kenneth Grant.

Oh lawd! The contrast between the true sophomore Grant and the 6th year senior Cam Goode could not be made better than their combined sack. Goode takes the first shot, has some pretty nice get-off, and mostly ruins the play even if he didn't get Brumfield down. Then it's Grant's turn.

Look at how he stopped—how that knee took all the force of his movement—so he could approach under control. That's linebacker-movement, not 340-pound dude movement. And look how quickly he steps past these blockers who think they just scooped him.

#78 the DT on the bottom

Brian suggested since Grant's their third DT they don't have to worry overmuch about whether he gets tired because they can just send out more tackles. I offered they can also send out the punt team. UNLV's Go-Go offense had 50 yards by the time this game was put away, but it's not like they solved the offense. UNLV asked Michigan to pick whether to play a man down in the run or the pass, and Michigan chose the one where their guys could defeat any two Nevada Confederates.

Was it just the tackles?

Oh no, a big reason they had to deal with Graham-Jenkins-Grant in the first place was the defensive ends were walling off the outside. Watch the video above again but this time keep your eye on #8 the DE at the bottom. Remember this play started on the hash; Derrick Moore set that TE up more than two yards in the backfield, in the middle of the field, and then also came inside that guy once they were too backed up for the RB to have a chance to bounce around them. All that space he's condensed is space the DTs don't have to worry about as the RB is redirected to the grinder.

As for pass-rushing, this from Derrick Moore should translate no matter which tackles they're going against.That is some serious get-off that gets him around a LT set up illegally to prevent just such an attack. And then Moore is so quick the blocker can't even get a hand on him. Brumfield was lucky he's left-handed and could see it coming. If this was a blindside attack he might not have had the time to protect himself, let alone the football. Moore lost 30 pounds in the offseason without losing any of the strength—at least not that I've seen—that made him pop as a true freshman. Moore played an elite schedule at St. Frances and is a year older than most in his grade—his birthday's actually weeks from McCarthy's—so he's more of a junior on the development curve than a true sophomore. That just means we get the senior edition of him next year.

We got similar production from Jaylen Harrell, though with more technique than raw violence. Here he's got a tough job to set the backside edge so Sainristil can crash inside, but also take away the belly lane right down the hash. Harrell didn't destroy two blockers to get this done; he let one of them release onto Hausmann and then closed the gap himself.

#32 the DE on the bottom

This got a +2 and appreciation, but it's probably more opponent-variant than Moore's method of disassembling blockers and letting the paramedics sort it out. Also appreciated were Harrell's two sacks, though neither of them were really created by him. The first one (embedded above) was generated by Quinten Johnson's blitz off the edge.

That still took awareness and agility to finish with authority, but he was still just the second of two unblocked rushers to get to the quarterback. Harrell played a larger role in his second sack by participating in a dance to get the LT blocking nobody, but again this is a sack created by getting a blitzer into the backfield immediately followed by an unblocked Harrell.

That's not to say Harrell never got the edge on one of these tackles, because he absolutely did right here:

#32 on the bottom

It doesn't change the paradigm, however. The acceleration is good, but the dip isn't enough to shed the RT, and once that guy reengages Harrell is too small to avoid getting pushed past. I did like his approach better here than last week. Harrell's limitations mean he's had to invent ways of being a problem for quarterbacks as he goes along. Previous iterations of that were trying to spin off, trying to grab a piece of the QB while being pushed by, and even falling backwards to preserve his position before he loses it. Here he just digs the upfield foot into the turf and tries to run at the QB. He's probably going to fall down doing this, but on the ground in the pocket is enough to make the QB move around, and there are interesting possibilities that aren't available if you get pushed past or stymied outside.

And then there was Braiden McGregor.

He really does a magnificent Hutchinson impression doesn't he. UNLV went to stretch and spent a couple of guys on McGregor to maybe get away from the DTs. I mean, it didn't work—Graham still broke into the backfield and sent the chickens in a ruckus—but it was a swipe at the Achilles by a rampaging McGregor that really cost them yards.

#17 DE at the top

Other than that ridiculous play, McGregor's combination of length and agility made him a nightmare from the backside. He can get across the formation so quickly when crashing that Michigan could afford to expend a linebacker on a scrape exchange behind him. I call him ol' Twitter because if you leave him unblocked he's going to hop in your mentions and both-sides everything, including this Urban Meyer staple:

#17 DE at the top

That read is supposed to get the DE checking the RB as the QB turns inside of him. It's probably nasty versus the usual UNLV competition. For McGregor, it's just a chance to show off his Hutchinsonian build.

What I didn't get from McGregor was the pass rush. It's not like there were a ton of opportunities, but the strength and explosion that makes Hutch impossible to deal with—and which was a major part of McGregor's recruiting profile—doesn't seem to be back from the double-knee injury that destroyed McGregor's early career. Last year I was saying his lower body was that of a freshman. Now it's that of a sophomore. He's a smart player and that length makes it impossible for OL to get a handle on him, so I'm still holding out hope that his curve is sharper than his age would suggest.

Anything from Stewart and Guy?

Stewart's playing time decreased some as Michigan went with more 5-2 looks and Harrell's limitations were less exploitable. There were a couple of pass rushes that might have been sacks if the refs weren't letting the UNLV tackles line up two yards in the backfield—one was a speed rush when Stewart got around at 6 yards and another was a bull rush that went just a bit too high. A +2 in 15 snaps is fine.

Guy took over for Harrell late and I probably didn't chart a few positives for him. The one thing I did chart was the lowest shoulder dip since Ojabo left. Guy was rushing from the backside on a 4th down screen that was going the opposite direction so it didn't matter, but dip is dip; I maintain that Don Brown found us another one, but it's probably another year before we get to see it fully weaponized.

One encouraging thought: Across the defensive line the "starters" graded out well, but I didn't get the same from the backups. Even Rayshaun Benny and Cam Goode were only decent, and when the deep backups got in the murder ceased. That's not great news for the deep backups (which include a recent OL flip and a true freshman at tackle), but it's encouraging for this year because it says this wasn't just about the UNLV line being ass. They're bad, don't get me wrong, but not so bad that you can discount what was going on.

Did the linebackers exist?

They were out there on the field, but didn't get to do very much. RPOs are mostly designed to make linebackers wrong, and Michigan's strategy of using UNLV's RPO game to dictate battle location meant both teams were actively pushing the the ball to wherever the LBs weren't. For Colson, Barrett, and Hausmann this mean stepping back into RPO passing lanes to induce handoffs, or stepping down to overloaded backsides so Brumfield would pull up to pass only to find a blitzing nickel or a couple of linemen babysitting the backside.

Colson's only scoring event was when he came in too high on a scrape exchange and whiffed, but Michael Barrett got a chance to put out some teach tape on zone coverage, starting with some actual instruction to Keon Sabb behind him.

#23 the LB on the upper hash under the 'B' of 'B1G'

I can hear a LB coach in my head while I watch this: "Step in one lane on your way to another, pass off, look up, set up to drive on the next thing, A-B-A: always be anticipating." Except if we're being fair the LB coach probably has this all down to an acronym power word like A-C-T-I-V-A-T-E. When an LB coach puts his dude on the projector it's not that surprising it's a senior, but Barrett's only been middle linebacking as long as Ernest Hausmann, and starting at it for less time than Junior Colson. His transformation over the last couple of years is remarkable.

Seeing him get a few chances to blitz off the edge again like a Don Brown Viper was also delightful. I figured this would be his kind of game since he's exactly the kind of hybrid defender schools were recruiting in they spread-to-run era to force a read then shoot up the edge to cut it off. I even wondered if Michigan might go to a 4-3 with Barrett back in his old hybrid spot, since that's worked well against UNLV-ish attacks. But to Michigan Barrett is just a middle linebacker. Probably their best one.

And then there was Ernest Hausmann.

I thought this was a bad game for judging Hausmann, since the one thing the RPO games took away was opportunities for ILBs to fire into the frontside of run plays. Unfortunately he got a little bit lulled into hanging back by the carnage going on in front of him, and I detected a few times when that got him stuck on a releasing lineman.

Hausmann also showed his youth by not rerouting inside on this edge rush:

#15 the WLB blitzing late

Neither of these events wound up hurting Michigan. I wouldn't read much into this performance except the low sample size made some nothing events—the above, falling asleep on an edge run, failing to tackle UNLV's squirrelly slot receiver in space—add up to a negative. Hausmann also volleyball-tipped the pass that Keshaun Harris intercepted (and didn't get reviewed).

It was an interception?

The tape is awful, and neither of the refs who waived it off had a better view of it than the camera.

But the photo evidence is clear that his hands were under the ball at the key moment.

[Barron]

…and I Zapruder'd the hell out of the replay from behind. All you see are Harris's elbows on the ground close together, meaning the ball would have had to squeeze itself pretty thin to touch grass.

Now I am mad.

Michigan should have called for a review, but then the next play was Derrick Moore's thundersack, so I'm sanguine about it. Here:

Feel better?

I do actually. So we are fans of Keshaun Harris? Because PFF was not.

They have him for two catches on four targets this game and unless that was in backups hour I don't know where they got it. I gave him a -2 for driving on the under of a smash route, which would have given up a long pass if Ricky White had dropped it. There was one rollout hitch that took advantage of Cover 3 but I charged that to Keon Sabb because Harris can't leave his receiver until the safety moves to pick him up.

I balanced that against the "Where were you in 2020?!?" play where Harris ran 2020 nemesis Ricky White's fly route for him.

Vincent Gray is hereby avenged.

...and decided he was a net positive. Harris played a bit conservatively last week but this one was more of a mixed bag. I defended him for being too conservative on a play underneath that didn't really change UNLV's game state, and knocked him for trying to make a play on a pass that ended up incomplete. Seems like a pretty okay day at cornerback to me.

Harris joined the football program in 2019 off the track team, which means he doesn't come with the "probably slow" tag of most walk-ons, and means he's had years to work on his technique. He also has another year of eligibility, and people were talking about him during the two-year period that cornerback wasn't our main concern going into the season. He seems to be figuring it out.

I didn't get enough tape on Wallace to add anything, except he set up WAAAAAY outside when UNLV changed up their RPO to attack underneath him. This too was on the UMass Twitter scouting report: bad tackler in space, good at funneling to help. Wallace didn't come close to touching the squirrelly slot receiver, but he funneled to help.

Okay well Keon Sabb had more snaps than anybody in this game. Did we learn anything about him?

Uh, not really. He got to blitz off the edge a few times but by then the ball was getting out before he arrived. One of those he made to Brumfield and got whooped for a good scramble. Other than that he stayed high in case something escaped. Sometimes an older guy had to tell Sabb where to be. This was another "let's get him some experience" game that doesn't mean much other than four of Michigan's top-five safeties are either injured or Quinten Johnson.

Quinton Johnson just out here catching strays. And on the Friday podcast you called him this year's Taylor Upshaw. Are you starting to turn into circa 2007-2009 Brian who hates all safeties who are not Rod Moore?

I am definitely spoiled by charting Moore the two years I've been doing this for the team I love (I was pretty pro-safety when I was doing it for Foe Film). When I said that on the radio I meant that as Q-Jo's fine but you want him to get passed because his floor is his ceiling and everyone else's ceiling is higher.

I know what you meant. Did that bear out?

I think it's an unfair comparison…to Upshaw. Taylor was a competent backup who rotated equally with five other guys with higher ceilings because he was the least likely to have a major botch of some kind. Johnson is an injury starter who seems to be playing because Rod Moore, Makari Paige, and now Zeke Berry are all too injured to be on the field in UNLV circumstances. The only other scholarship option is a true freshman who was playing quarterback in Norfolk.

Q-Jo was boring in Week 1 I thought he was bad in this game, and this was with me checking myself that I didn't grade him too harshly. His +1 was for helping to set up Harrell's first sack, but really Q-Jo didn't do much besides blitz unblocked and miss the tackle on Brumfield in a way that set up Harrell's finishing move. As +1s go that was pretty generous.

He's getting a lot more time out there, but whenever he's on screen he's just kind of standing around as things happen around him. The one that really frustrated me was the "kick" play. I called it that because before the snap Sainristil gave a kicking motion to Wallace that appeared to flip their Coverage jobs—Wallace went high and Sainristil drifted under the outside receiver. If that's the coverage Quinten Johnson becomes the hole defender—basically a linebacker. Michigan used kicks last year to frustrate Ohio State and give Rod Moore opportunities for PBUs and picks, because a safety should be able to do more with a linebacker zone than normal. Johnson comes down to his zone then just…hangs.

#28 the safety on the right

When he finally reacts two beats later, he whiffs the tackle. It's not a huge deal since he's delayed and Barrett/Sainristil can rally. But if Johnson wants to be a boring safety he has to be a good tackler, and twice in this game he missed after giving up a catch when the coverage gave him an opportunity to make a play.

It's not hard to explain why he's playing though. He's a program guy who's been here a long time, they've already got one young player in Keon Sabb on the field, and want to pair him with a veteran, and the next scholarship option was a high school quarterback in Norfolk last year.

What about a non-scholarship option?

He has a name.

He does?

Kolesar.

That is a Name.

It's also a vibe. Kolesar's been an Impact Special Teamer™ for years. He came back despite an injury that would end the careers of most guys in his situation. And the second they put him on the field he made a play.

If Moore and Paige are back it's probably moot, but I do wonder what's happening in practice to keeping Johnson ahead of Kolesar. I hope it's only because Kolesar's injury set him back down the depth chart while Johnson was playing. But I suspect it has something to do with the brace on Caden's right knee, and it's not like he had his dad's speed to begin with. That will matter against opponents later in the schedule, but Kolesar's instincts are so good that he can't do worse than Q-Jo. Since we've also heard the coaches asked Kolesar to be a player-coach (and I think he turned them down because he'd rather go to med school) you know he's got the defense down. Worth a shot.

Anything else this week?

You were going on about their illegal tackles?

This could have been literally any pass play.

The rule is the guy on the line has to have any part of his body cross the midline of the snapper. Refs are notoriously lenient about this with offensive tackles on obvious passing downs, but when a team goes full Scott Frost/Steve Spurrier/Mike Locksley I point it out to shame them. UNLV's right tackle was literally lining up next to a tight end in the backfield, and two yards behind the same tight end when that guy was inline—which by the way was a dead giveaway that said tight end was running a pattern. The refs did finally give the RT a warning, he fixed it for one play, and then drifted right back. I can only imagine this was pity.

Michigan does this less than most teams because they like to run more than most teams, even on passing downs. I think they should set up in a super-ridiculous illegal formation one time early, force the ref to give them a warning, and then browbeat the ref into calling illegal formations on their opponents. Harrell at least could use the extra foot or two.

Heroes?

The defensive line: Mason Graham, Kris Jenkins, Kenneth Grant, Derrick Moore, Jaylen Harrell, and Braiden McGregor. Jesse Minter for a gameplan that put everything on them.

Maybe not so heroic?

Quinten Johnson was just kind of bad. The deep deep backups who gave up a touchdown drive to UNLV, particularly Kody Jones who got beat badly twice.

What does this mean for Bowling Green and beyond?

The defensive tackles are 2021 Georgia against MWC OL. A lot of this is going to translate to better competition, though probably not to this extreme. Michigan came in betting Graham, Jenkins, and Grant could come out ahead even if UNLV had numbers and that gamble was 100% correct.

Derrick Moore is going to Michigan's best edge in a minute. That get-off is 100% opponent-invariant. It's going to cause a lot of trouble as he harnesses it.

Michael Barrett is their best coverage linebacker. Not a huge surprise, but his two-year transformation from new linebacker to the kind of guy LB coaches put on teach tape has been kind of incredible.

Get well soon safeties. I have very much enjoyed being spoiled by Rod Moore, and to a lesser degree Makari Paige. I very much want to be spoiled in the future by Zeke Berry. I very much don't want to be the guy advocating walk-on legacies.

The Go-Go isn't going to change college football. We probably didn't see all the frippery, but we saw the concept and how it can be defeated: players. Also Minter wasn't fooled by a newfangled offense that usually trips up young DCs who overreact to it with their own fancy stuff.

Your Moment of Zen: