Hey all. Sorry I missed the Iowa analysis. Was in Europe and way too busy to get through with my analysis. I'm late this week on the Illinois analysis (jet-lag) but better late than never! Here's 11 defensive plays, primarily covering the hiccups during Illinois' 4 straight successful drives.

Main takeaways

• Metellus definitely missed some plays. He's generally been very solid this year, so was a bit of an outlier thus far.
• McGrone is squarely in extremely athletic young LB status.
• Gray got picked on a bit.

Below is the full vid and the notes for each play. Enjoy!

5.1.1 - Q1 4:58 - I31 - 1st & 10 - Zone Stretch - 15 yard gain

• Tempo forces Michigan to be set late. Hudson sets the edge well and Glasgow is flowing well to the play from backside. McGrone needs to do better to work to the outside of the OL. He goes inside, giving a lane for the RB.

5.1.2 - Q1 4:11 - I45 - 2nd & 10 - Crossing route - 12 yards

• Glasgow with pressure off the edge, but mesh concept works against Thomas, who's off by a couple steps on his man. Good throw by QB under pressure. Thomas does close the gap impressively to make the tackle.

5.1.3 - Q2 1:58 - I33 - 1st & 10 - Slant - 18 yards

• Metellus misses the switch on a slant / wheel route combo. This leaves the slant from the outside WR completely uncovered and an easy 18 yards. Ooof.

5.1.4 - Q2 1:04 - M23 - 2nd & 10 - Scramble - TD

• Poorly executed stunt leaves a lot of room for the QB to scramble left. Mesh concept routes thwarted by the zone coverage, but McGrone abandons WR in middle of field to rush QB, which leaves open guy for TD.

5.1.5 - Q3 12:18 - I44 - 3rd & 3 - Slant - 14 yards

• Both Hudson and Hawkins seem to be expecting this slant, getting in the path of the slant. Gray seemingly gives inside leverage away, knowing this. Neither Hudson nor Hawkins get a hand on the pass, though.

5.1.6 - Q3 11:25 - M35 - 3rd & 3 - QB Scramble - 9 yards

• DL action to get Uche 1-on-1 on the edge, plus Uche going outside of RB in pass pro leaves a clear path for QB to the right, which he takes advantage of for a first down.

5.1.7 - Q3 7:37 - I20 - 1st & 10 - Slant - 9 yards

• Alignment for Michigan gives a wide open slant on the inside. Hawkins could’ve done better reacting to the route but the alignment doomed this, regardless. Nice hit by Metellus.

5.1.8 - Q3 6:50 - I36 - 2nd & 6 - Power - 12 yards

• McGrone over-pursues this a bit. If he attacks the inside shoulder of the pulling RT, it forces the RB into Glasgow’s gap. Instead, he goes to the outside of the OT, leaving a gap up the middle for the RB.

5.1.9 - Q3 5:41 - I49 - 3rd & 9 - Fade - 36 yards

• Gray loses the battle on the fade, but the WR is legit. Metellus needs to do a better job getting in the way of that pass. He’s playing for an INT, and might have lost track of the ball in the sun.

5.1.10 - Q3 14:21 - M33 - 2nd & 8 - PA Go - 21 yards

• Clever play design. Gray gets beat and is a step behind. Metellus gets faked out by the PA keep, which eliminates any interior help on the Go route on the outside. Nicely thrown ball, as well.

5.1.11 - Q3 13:47 - M23 - 1st & 20 - Tunnel Screen - 19 yards

• Another well-designed play from Illinois, here. Hudson follows his WR (who is blocking) for far too long, which gives a huge lane inside. Gray could’ve kept this to an 8 yard gain, but misses.