Wilton Speight has proven throughout the first eight games of this season that he has the tools both mentally and physical that are needed to win at the highest level of college football. Wilton Speight has shown three tools that some of the best NFL QB's possess and what scouts look for in a QB at the highest level.
Yesterday against MSU Speight worked the pocket in three ways that NFL QB's like Tom Brady, Big Ben, and Andrew Luck do on a regular basis. One of the three is pocket awareness. Speight has a good feel for the pressure around him and how to sidestep that pressure. This is all about the coaching both Harbaugh, and Fisch has provided over the last two years with both Speight and Rudock.
In the embedded video below Speight shows his pocket awareness as well as one of the other two intangibles to be discussed, deep accuracy.
The play Michigan calls displays a lot of backfield action with pre-snap jet action from Mcdoom. Michigan lines up in a double tight, one back set (12 personnel). They call a jet motion from Mcdoom and fake the jet action and a quick fake to Evans on the counter. This action freezes the linebackers and allows for Speight to roll out of the pocket. MSU is bringing six on this play including the weakside (will) backer who was picked up nicely by #95? The corner who did not follow Mcdoom on the action blitzed uncovered and had a perfect angle on Speight. Speight slides and rolls to the right of the pressure before setting up to launch a bomb. I would bet a paycheck that most quarterbacks (including the three MSU QB's that played yesterday), could have eluded an unblocked corner like Wilton Speight.
Speights ability to keep his eyes downfield as he avoids the oncoming pressure, sliding outside of the blitzing corner, setting his feet and throwing a bomb over the top of a cover two look is as impressive as it gets. The play itself had both Safeties peeking in at the backfield action allowing Darboh to get behind the two frozen safeties and the man coverage. Speight puts the ball right on target showing that he was completely aware of Darboh downfield even after he was under pressure. Speight never lost his downfield focus.
Here is an example of why the above play worked so well. Michigans first TD of the game was set up by this play.
If you cannot view the embed click the Dooooooooooom below.
Dooooooooooooooom on the jet sweep. Doomed if you do, doomed if you don't.
The next play we are going to take a look at involves Wilton Speights deep ball accuracy. Speight has been deadly accurate this season. In the next embed, he displays this accuracy by putting the ball only where Jake Butt can get it.
The play is a 12 personnel look (one back 2 TE). This is also another 1st and 10 like the play above. The play shows twins left. MSU rushes four and brings the left side backer on a delayed blitz. Michigan sends both WR's deep toward the middle to draw the safeties attention, while Butt runs a deep post corner toward the void over top of the MSU DB playing zone and underneath the deep safeties.
I cannot recognize fully what the MSU coverage is, I would like to guess they are running Quarters coverage with the two safeties occupying the deep middle between the hashes and the two corners covering deep outside the hashes. Regardless the play call was perfect and this kind of a call only works if you have an accurate deep ball.
Michigan also runs play action off of this and speight (two years now under Harbaugh) knows exactly where he is going with the ball on the pre-snap. Speight could have taken the easy way out and threw to his open outlet Deveon Smith in the flat for a nice gain, but his confidence throwing the deep ball allows for him to put the ball only where Butt can catch it. This is another display of Speights great deep ball accuracy.
Link below for those who cannot see the embed.
The result of this play is Michigans second consecutive scoring drive.
The last play I want to review involves Speights ability to drive the pocket. He can get back quickly into his 3, 5 step drops and drive into the pocket while keeping his eyes upfield.
This play shows the confidence Harbaugh and Fisch have in Speights ability in the one-minute offense. Michigan lines up on first and ten at the MSU 40 with 13 seconds left in half. Michigan lines up in 11 personnel (one back, one TE with Butt in the H-back position).
The play is out of the Gun. MSU is in a Nickel (5 DB) defense. MSU looks like they are playing cover one Man with a safety playing over the top on the wide field side. MSU disguises coverage and pressure on this play. From what I can recognize, I see #9 getting deep on the wide left hash at safety, with Man coverage everywhere else. I also noticed they have a robber underneath. Speight has to recognize this at the snap. Msu pressures with six including a delayed A-gap blitz through the middle of the pocket. Darboh runs a deep-in route at the top of the screen on the left hash. Speight delivers a rocket on the money to Darboh.
The key is Speight drives the pocket off of a 4, 5 step drop with pressure on the way. His two steps back into the pocket with pressure shows his ability to keep his eyes up the field and not down at the line of scrimmage. The offensive line also does a fantastic job, and the blitz pickup by Deveon Smith was A+.
Speight has shown all three of the above-reviewed intangibles throughout the first eight weeks. Pocket awareness, deep ball accuracy, driving the pocket. Speight has only gotten better as the year has progressed and I expect to see more improvement as the season progresses.
Now for an example of what not to do.
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