Best and Worst: MSU

Submitted by bronxblue on

This isn’t for you, it’s for me. 

 

Best:  Hate

The maxim you always hear surrounding hate is that it stems from broken love, that the same fire necessary to burn with unbridled animosity emanates from the same spot in one’s heart that you once left open and accepting.  Great novels and a whole bunch of songs have been written about the debilitating power of love and respect as it turns to anger and betrayal, grinding salt and bile into the fresh fissures of the aorta.  It is poetic and divine, blind to race or creed, man or woman; the “ashes to ashes, dust to dust” of being.

And it’s all crap, at least when you apply it to sport.*

The reason most fans “hate” other teams is because they “hate” losing to people they know, whether personally or as archetypes.  I have never loved or particularly cared for most of UM’s rivals despite the fact I actually attended MSU for law school.  When some school like Wisconsin or Illinois talks up a budding rivalry and bad blood with the Wolverines, I could not care less because it’s all relative and irrelevant at the same time.  People don’t like losing, and if you keep losing to a team a bunch of times you come to hate that feeling.  Replace that team with another and the hatred remains the same even though the target has changed. 

UM fans hate to lose to Notre Dame because they represent the same blue-blooded traditions and faded glory, the same time-honored notions of scholar-athletes battling it out for school and pride and definitely not for financial gain.  Perhaps on some level, it is also because the academic standings of those schools attract individuals cognizant of somewhat-arbitrary scholastic rankings and the “prestige” that can be derived from them.  And, well, they’ve been around so long that at some point, you just get sick of seeing them year after year.

With Ohio State and Michigan State, the distaste comes from all of the regional, historical, and national implications found to varying degrees with the Fighting Irish, but also in part because of the cultural differences found at those schools.  Whole stadiums could be filled every Saturday by the strawmen we create about our opponents; as fans it is the most natural way to look at the opposition, incredibly shallow in depth but immensely wide in breadth.  With UM, the arrogance is the calling card; Buckeyes and Spartans call out UM fans for their “wine and cheese”, their haughty sense of superiority derived from endowments and famous alumni and the “Michigan Man” ideology that supposedly runs through the blood of every Wolverine.  They point out the sanctimony in questioning the intelligence and morality of players on the other teams despite the fact that UM was likely recruiting them at some point, and wonder how it is possible to whitewash away all those sins as soon as a player steps foot in Schembechler Hall.  And they point out that for all the stirs and echoes of past wins, it hasn’t been pretty recently.

OSU feels like the jock who broke the rules and got away with it largely unscathed, the guy who sweeps the leg even though he probably doesn’t need to.  Ohio State has the tradition and resources to stand amongst the giants in the sport, and yet they keep bringing in liars, cheaters, and hypocrites who tweak the rules just enough while winning in every way possible.  And perhaps most aggravating for UM, OSU appears to just be “better” than the Wolverines right now, and probably have been for nearly a decade.  As UM has undergone a series of painful, largely self-inflicted transitions, OSU just continues on with few hiccups despite far more serious upheaval. 

But at least with OSU, it feels like they’ve “earned” that right to be better than UM, given their prior accomplishments and their consistency.  In this tortured analogy, they are the dickish prep kid with the nice car who gets the girl; MSU was Ducky.  It’s a program with a losing bowl record, virtually no national profile, and a fanbase characterized as a mix of Juggalos and Ax body spray aficionados.  It is the very model of a mediocre program, with the status quo being that MSU cared way more about beating UM because they almost never did, and that all of the “little brother” comments were appropriate-if-sophomoric shots at a program and school that was always tugging on the coattails of UM, never able to keep pace.  It almost didn’t matter if you hailed from Novi or New York City, Charlevoix or Chicago; if you were a UM student you saw MSU as the collection of brosephs and meatheads (and whatever the female equivalents are) that you tried to escape while in high school.  You beat them in the classroom, in the boardroom, and on the football field, and with such regularity it was hard to drum up anything stronger than a slight snicker and faux outrage whenever asked about them.

But that’s changed recently, at least on the football field.  While I foresee this being a bit of an apogee for MSU given its so-so recruiting and significant turnover after this season, the fact remains that MSU has dominated this series the past 6 games (going 5-1 and losing that one game on a last-second FG).  It is MSU with the consistent identity, the staunch defense and opportunistic offense, the team that gets most of the breaks and tends to win going away.  It is the UM fans that yearn for those victories, who treat a game that used to be a semi-emotional speedbump into a major touchstone and measuring stick for the program.  And perhaps most surprisingly, the hatred that was once seemingly directed unilaterally now flows both ways, more full with vinegar and vitriol than most can remember.  It’s a bit sad in a way that the gap has closed this much between the two schools on the field, but at least now the animosity feels earned. 

* I’m sure there are soccer fans who’d argue about national and club rivalries that are born from turncoats, geographic proximity, and broken dreams, and hell Pakistan and India play cricket with missiles pointed at each other.  But I’d argue that animosity exists outside of sport; the field or pitch merely provides a sanctioned analog.

Worst:  You know, they cancelled the O.C. late as well

This point isn’t going to be sugar-coated: I’m done with this offensive staff.  I’m sure the UFR will point out areas where the right playcalls were made but failed because of execution issues (I remember at least two passes in the 3rd quarter where Gardner missed Funchess wide-open, even though at least once it was because he was under heavy pressure).  But at some time, the writing is on the wall even if it isn’t totally that Borges’s fault.  It has been nearly three years and the team is as schizophrenic and discordinate as ever on the offensive end, and I’m tired of the “wait until next year” refrains that grew stale under Rodriguez.  And at least with Rodriguez, you had a high-octane offense with a clear identity that has worked at every other stop. 

True, Borges got a bad hand when he showed up at UM, inheriting a playmaker and not a QB with Denard, a guy who couldn’t run his offense and who had few targets to throw at period.  He rode it out as best as possible, but it was a bad fit masked by the early success the team had in spite of it; that 11-2 season with memorable wins over ND and OSU gave people the false hope that the talent and coaches could make it work despite the mismatch.  Last year happened and everyone realized Borges and Robinson weren’t a good fit, but the expectation was that Gardner would be a better match at least in the short-term.  The offensive line, though, has betrayed them the past two years, and the progression and maturation people expected has been, at best, minimal across the board. 

Given the right talent, I’m sure Borges could field a productive offense, but that looks to be 2-3 years in the future.  In the meantime, this team loses its best WR as well as its best slot threat, its two best linemen, and its only seemingly competent RB.  There are some bright spots, but there doesn’t seem to be anything approximating a rainbow on the horizon.  What killed RR was his historically poor defenses; outside of the IU and ND games, this offense has been historically bad, and something needs to be done beyond max protect and stacked lines against Minnesota.  This is a bit morbid, but at some point you need to Marissa the situation before everyone gets hurt.

Al Borges isn’t a visionary, and there a dozens of coordinators out there who could score 60+ points against IU and, I hope, more than 28 against Akron and 24 against UConn with far less hassle and a bit more coherence.  With weeks to prepare, he called a listless game that featured slow-developing running plays, long passes despite heavy pressure, and a continued belief that he’ll make this work if he just keeps slamming his head against the wall.  Well, that wall isn’t going anywhere, and all we have is a headache.

I understand that loyalty in a program is hard to break, but this is also a competitive system in which under-performance can’t be allowed to remain unaddressed.  Players have been moved in and out of the starting lineup because they haven’t performed “up to the position” while in uniform; it’s time for the guys making those decisions to be held to the same standard.

Worst:  Downs and Distances

Here are some downs and distances from this game:

3rd and 20
4th and 21
3rd and 18
4th and 24
2nd and 30
3rd and 29
4th and 48
3rd and 24

They had three drives of more than 50 yards, two of which ended in FGs and the third in Gardner’s interception.  For every other drive combined, UM ended with –7(!!!) yards of total offense.  That’s right; with two weeks of preparation and countless promises to adapt, UM produced the worst offensive performance any of us will probably ever see out of the Wolverines.  They punted or turned the ball over on downs with 4 or fewer plays 8 times this game.  After Raymon Taylor’s interception of Cook late in the 3rd quarter, UM’s subsequent drive resulted in –21 yards of offense and, according to ESPN’s official boxscore, was the end of the game despite there being a whole quarter to go.  And honestly, I don’t think that was a misprint.

That isn't an implosion; that's f'ing Katamari on a football field.  And we've seen enough of that particular output the past couple of years for a lifetime.

Best:  I still have no idea about this defense

I know the numbers weren’t pretty in the end, but MSU gained 153 of their 394 total yards of offense on those two final drives when the game was effectively over.  They forced a punt or turnover on 6 other drives, and were victimized a bit by some fluky plays that could have ended drives.  It was a competent defensive performance and, if the offense had been able to do virtually anything, probably would have been enough to win the game. 

Mattison remains an enigma, and like Al Borges is working with a sub-optimal collection of players.  Still, his insistence on 3-man rushes was alternately appropriate and maddening; there were a half-dozen instances where MSU WRs were wide open despite dedicating 8 players to defend against the pass.  At the same time, it’s a unit that recorded 1 sack all game, and it came from a corner blitz where Ross and Avery met at the QB.  Frank Clark played pretty well in run defense, recording 2.5 TFLs among his 9 tackles, but only hit the QB once and was generally unable to generate much in the way of sustained pressure.  Black and Washington were quiet, and given Black’s abilities rushing the passer I would have liked to see him get a chance despite his obvious limitations against the run.  Jake Ryan is working his way back in, but this remains a unit of B+ players, and that doesn’t hold up throughout the game. 

Langford ended the day with 120 yards but 62 of those came on the last drive.  I thought the linebackers played reasonably well, though again it was an ugly game where guys were getting open but Cook just missed them sometimes, while at other times he was able to loft a ball over 4 guys into the only open spot on the field. 

Taylor had the lone interception on a nice read but was also the leading tackler with 12, which is okay if you are playing Indiana but not so good when Connor Cook is barely completing 50% of his passes.  The rest of the secondary was alternately in great coverage and allowing Bennie Fowler to beat them down the field only to be overthrown because, again, Connor Cook.  While some people will cry out for his removal as well, I’m willing to give him a bit more rope simply because I’ve seen strides made from this unit and, outside of IU, they have been above-average all year.  Furthermore, Mattison has a track record far more accomplished than others on this staff, and given the recruits coming in it is hard to argue that the defense will not improve as the younger players mature.

Worst:  Brotherhood

I hated it when Mike Hart brought up familiar relations between the two schools, and since then it has only gotten more juvenile and asinine.  I get poking fun at a rival, but one would hope that these two fanbases could have created something more creative, more thoughtful and meaningful than insults based on who got out of their metaphorical mother’s uterus first.  It all came to a crescendo toward the end of Saturday’s game, when the Spartan faithful began chanting “little sister” in a tone that can best be described a mix between Nelson Muntz and Law & Order: SVU.  In one sense it’s dumb to argue that fans have gone too far because of some chanting considering you could go about a billion times farther, but this also feels like a cycle that needs to be broken and not perpetuated by guys who weren’t even in HS when it started.  People complain about the ND rivalry taking a hiatus and how that might diminish hostilities needlessly; I’d be fine if UM and MSU skipped a year or two so that both fandoms could look in the mirror and figure out something, anything better than these infantile sayings.

Best:  MSU’s Defense is REALLY Good

I was a non-believer of sorts because I thought MSU hadn’t really played a good offense save ND and IU, but this is a terrifyingly-good defense that should pose major issues for OSU in the conference title game.  Though it lacks elite athleticism, it plays with the type of precision and consistency you expect from a well-coached squad, and outside of a couple of plays UM could do absolutely nothing against it.  It will look demonstrably different next year when many of its best players graduate and (I suspect) Narduzzi moves on, but it should remain a solid unit going forward as long as Dantonio is at the helm.  That said…

Worst:  Penalties were turned off, apparently

My gawd are those corners reliant on the referees not throwing flags.    I get there is some physicality expected on passing routes, but there was not a single pass interference call (sorry Brian, you were off by 1) made despite Funchess and Gallon carrying corners down the field like they were f’ing Ents.  I’m not saying the game would have been totally different with a couple of flags, but ND’s 4 PIs against MSU were a major reason they were able to move the ball semi-successfully down the field.  Even my wife, who is 19-and-a-half months pregnant (perhaps slight exaggeration) thought it was pretty egregious, and she has a parasite inside her trying to steal all of her iron.

Worst:  Poor Damn Devin and Fitz – The Duet

Gardner had a decent enough game when he wasn’t getting murdered by MSU’s pass rush, which recorded 7 sacks and 7 more hits.  He completed about 52% of his passes for 210 yards, averaging about 7.8 ypa and having a couple of drops by his receivers halting drives.  His rushing total was marred by losing 46 yards on sacks and that horrible snap, and the hits ultimately led to his removal with (one hopes) a relatively minor injury.  Seeing him be lifted off the field, mud caked on his jersey while clearly wincing in pain, and then running another play was a bit heartbreaking, even though he nearly blew a third-down conversion by pulling up early.  It wasn’t heroic, but anyone who questions whether or not this kid is trying his best out there needs to step away from the keyboard.

As for Fitz, what can you say?  MSU has the best rushing defense in the country by a mile, and they showed it again this game.  He only ran the ball 8 times, but limited the TFLs to one and generally took what the defense gave him.  In a different game perhaps he could have produced better results, but I kind of doubt it.  His senior year will likely be remembered for returning from a gruesome injury to play behind a young, under-performing line and getting beaten up in the process.  As noted, I could have done without the public comments, but he’s clearly soldiering on and at this point, I don’t think you can expect much else from him.

Worst:  What about Hoke?

I’ll keep this brief because this is totally speculative: he’s earned himself some leeway with the recruiting and the early wins, but there needs to be some changes made to this program going into next year.  As noted earlier, I think the offensive system needs to be overhauled with a new coordinator, and that includes hiring a dedicated QB coach and not being so tied to a single vision despite mounting evidence it isn’t going to happen with the players available.  The defense is a work in progress but one that feels like it has potential given continued recruiting and player maturation.  Mattison is not above reproach, but enough smart people swear by him that there has to be something there.  And outside of Ohio, this team still feels like the favorite against Iowa, NW, and Nebraska, and that’s 9 wins with a possible bowl win.  Let’s not throw a parade or anything, but given how this season has unfolded it isn’t horrible.  Plus, given what happened with RR, this program needs some stability even if it is somewhat mediocre. 

Best:  The Next Two Weeks

Looking at the schedule, what once looked like a hellish November now seems positively bearable.  Nebraska can’t stop anyone, and NW can’t stop the saddest song from playing in an infinite loop.  Neither is a gimme win, but I’d be a bit disappointed with even a split.  Much will rely on Gardner being healthy and the offense continuing its Jekyll and Hyde home/road split, but luckily UM won’t have to play a team like MSU again this year, and just typing that makes me a little sadder.  Ah well, I’ve gone this far.

Comments

snoopblue

November 3rd, 2013 at 12:21 PM ^

First I thought it was stubbornness, then I thought it was stupidity, THEN I thought it was a lack of creativity and ability to adjust. Now I know it is all those things. Fire Al Borges and anyone who tries to defend or stand by him can go too.

I Like Burgers

November 3rd, 2013 at 1:05 PM ^

Funk for sure needs to go.  I could go either way with Borges staying or going next season.  I think consistency is important, but I also think changes need to be made.  They could give him another year, and if he still sucks after that, then make a change.

But regardless, I think he needs to have the QB coaching duties stripped from him.  Gardner is still making the same mistakes (holding the ball too long, the dreaded spin move, etc), and with a raw QB in Morris and another in Speight coming in, they need someone dedicated to them to work out the kinks.

I Like Burgers

November 3rd, 2013 at 2:43 PM ^

Longtime coach here, his son is a senior and graduating...maybe he decides to retire.  RB isn't really a position that needs a coach as much as others, and it would allow them to bring in someone young and energetic to help with recruiting.

I don't think they should fire the guy, but it would be nice if the situation worked itself out.

I Like Burgers

November 3rd, 2013 at 4:32 PM ^

Yeah, I tend to agree with you.  Plus, I'd much rather replace Jackson with someone like Mike Hart as a coach.  Not sure what the answer is.  

Here's who they have:

Al Borges - OC/QB Coach

Dan Ferrigno - ST/Tight Ends

Jeff Hecklinski - WR

Darrell Funk - OL

Fred Jackon - RBs

 

Mattison - DC/DL

Curt Mallory - Secondary

Mark Smith - Inside LBs

Roy Manning - Outside LBs

 

Don't know anything about Mark Smith.  Do you need two coaches for linebackers?  Probably not wise to have six of your nine coaches on offense either.  Who knows... Too many position groups need a coach I guess.  Stupid NCAA rules.

MGoStrength

November 3rd, 2013 at 6:18 PM ^

I'd love to have Hart as a coach someday, but you have to think Wheatley has the experience edge as he is currently the RBs coach for the Bills and an almost equally successful UM player.

skegemogpoint

November 4th, 2013 at 1:39 PM ^

has anybody considered the following: 1) Hoke aspires to play like MSU, 2) MSU's balanced attack had been run by OC Don Treadwell from '07-'10, 3) Treadwell was recently fired as HC of Miami OH, 4) Treadwell is currently unemployed, and this is the good part 5) Hoke hired Treadwell to be his OC at Ball State in 2003 (Hoke became HC at Ball St in Dec, 2002).

So I can't say it would shock me to see Big Al get run if we don't finish strong and develop an dentity over the next 4 weeks.  You're welcome.

I Like Burgers

November 3rd, 2013 at 12:59 PM ^

The excuses on the offensive side of the ball need to stop.  First it was transitioning from the spread that was the excuse, then it was Denard's not really suited for Al's offense, and now its the OL is young or whatever.  What's it going to be next year when that OL gets even more inexperienced and two of our best offensive weapons leave?  How long do we have to keep saying "just wait until a year or two from now?"

The offense doens't have an identity, it doesn't seem to be getting any better in any aspect of the game, and we keep seeing the same mistakes from the OL, QB, and RB over and over and over again.  Bottom line, the coaches aren't doing enough and changes need to be made.  If you're going to set a goal for championsip or bust, then you need to step and make the changes to give your kids the best chance of reaching those goals.

Eye of the Tiger

November 3rd, 2013 at 1:46 PM ^

Several stops only came about because MSU's receivers have butterfingers. A team like Iowa, for example, that runs a very similar offense but with a moderately higher level of competency, would have scored more points yesterday. 

Our defense is, on balance, very average. Yes we are strong against the run, but we also have an apparent inability to cover the middle of the field, even when there are 8 dudes in coverage.  

...and "bend but don't break" doesn't work when you can't cover crossing patterns. Eventually, you break, like we did at the end of the first half and again in the 4th quarter. 

MSU is now the 4th straight-up not good offense that has moved the ball on us with too much ease (the others being Akron, UCONN and PSU). This is not good.

bronxblue

November 3rd, 2013 at 7:13 PM ^

I agree that a couple of bullets were missed because of MSU's drops, but at the same time Cook was bailed out by some crazy completions as well.  So overall, that felt a bit like a wash given the conditions.

I agree the defense has struggled, but "too much ease" is a bit unfair.  Akron had a couple of terrifying drives that are pretty inexcusable, but PSU had 15 functional drives in that game before OT to accumulate around 350 yards, and UConn only had 206 yards of total offense.  UM's defense is an above-average unit that plays best when the offense moves the ball.  It is also very young, and one that should improve given some time.  Also, until recently it was without its best player in Ryan, and even now he's just rounding into form.  The "bend but don't break" is probably the only style that works right now given the personnel, and while I'm not happy with it the other options aren't going to be better.  All I will say is that the defense has never cost the team a game, unless you think that PSU's final drive wasn't because the offense wasted downs and time with wasted plays for the first 3 quarters.

zander

November 3rd, 2013 at 2:02 PM ^

I often hear that sucessful offenses take what the defenses give. It seems to me to be axiomatic in college football to be sucessful you need to adjust your offensive philosophy to the personnel you have ( at least at the margins).  Borges doesn't do either particularly well. Could it be Weissian arrogance or being oblivious to feedback provided by the real world? Good Bye! Or maybe, God forbid, Brian was right and Hoke is in over his head.

TrppWlbrnID

November 3rd, 2013 at 2:20 PM ^

Um will win the national championship when all of the good coordinators and star players on our opponents teams decide to leave, all at once. Only then will the nation see the true virtue of the university of Michigan!

turtleboy

November 3rd, 2013 at 2:34 PM ^

I hate to say it but our secondary coach should probably go as well. 3 years on the job and even when we drop 8 into coverage receivers are still consistently wide open. Things will continue to improve with the talent we're bringing in but we shouldn't still be this bad in coverage.

bronxblue

November 3rd, 2013 at 7:15 PM ^

Meh, I'm okay with the defensive backfield.  True they struggled at times in this game, but when you can't generate much pass rush you are leaving guys out there.  Yes, this game had some head-scratchers, but overall I've been reasonably happy with the corners and safety play this season given the youth and inexperience.

charblue.

November 3rd, 2013 at 6:02 PM ^

Unless you count inconsistency as their identity. If you hate the gameplan and playcalls, and if you think the offense blows because the staff isn't using the players right, it doesn't matter what happens on any given Saturday, it will never be good enough. 

The fact is, Michigan had two major issues coming into the season, a questionable Oline and pass rush. Guess what Sparty took advantage yesterday? 

Now, I can't explain why Mattison has decided it's better to play a cautious game where you keep everything in front and don't gamble by getting gouged with big plays, but it's a pretty good strategy against most teams. Not a team like MSU that wants to papercut you to death until they wear you out defensively and their mediocre offense just finally breaks through. 

As for offensive strategy, this MSU defense just takes everything away if you don't execute. 

What I don't understand is, you play this team every year. You know its tendencies on offense and defense, why can't you break down this team in such a way well before the season starts that coming into game week, you have a special gameplan for them, based on longterm review. 

 

MGoStrength

November 3rd, 2013 at 6:23 PM ^

Although I'm not sure we will be significantly better next year as we will be pretty much the same team with another year of experience.  At least we can't blame youth on the defense...maybe still the o-line.  But, OSU's offensive line will be decimated.  MSU's defense will be as well.  Northwestern looses Mark & Colter.  I can't imagine thier offense will be much without them.  Nebraska looses Martinez.  Although Martinez has his weaknesses we are seeing what they are capable of withouth him.  The division and conference are wide open for us next year and we may be better by default of everyone else getting worse.

Zonereadstretch

November 5th, 2013 at 12:39 PM ^

MGoStrength;

I know you’re not really implying this, but I don’t want this team to be perceived as being better simply due to weaker competition. Who knows what the offseason will hold in terms of changes and/or retention in terms of our coaching staff, and while it’ll be difficult to compare apples to apples…you bring up an interesting point as I’m very curious to see how Warinner handles what’s assumed to be similar opportunities along OSU’s OL line come next season.  For me at least, it will reinforce or discount the youth and inexperience excuses we continue to hear. I’ll be hoping OSU faces the same setbacks…unfortunately I just don’t see it occurring to the extent we’ve seen along our lines.

schreibee

November 3rd, 2013 at 8:45 PM ^

Best & Worst is really one of the best features on this blog... even tho I can't take the time to open every link/video, which I'm sure are hilarious or at least very apropos, and therefore my loss.
Thanks, keep it up. I rarely disagree with much of anything you post, and for me that's sayin something!