Cade Throws Brian Ferentz Under the Bus
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/cade-mcnamara-defers-lack-wr-114537548.html
While what he said is probably true. Just not a good look and so many better ways to answer the question.
They should be able to turn it around this week vs. a lifeless MSU
September 27th, 2023 at 8:51 AM ^
I'm not sure you can say anyone is throwing Brian Ferentz under the bus, the man positioned himself under those wheels long ago and anyone pointing out now that he's down there and the bus is coming is just making an objectively true observation.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:33 AM ^
It's clear that whatever Brian understands about Xs and Os, he doesn't understand how to fit the Jimmys and Joes into them.
Cade is a clear strength on the team and him looking as bad as he has is almost 90% on the playcalling, IMO.
You could say "what about audibles" but Cade has never been great at anything other than pre-snap reads.
Brian is a nepo baby and Kirk is gonna be rocketed out of a cannon alongside with him without a midseason change, IMO.
September 27th, 2023 at 11:11 AM ^
By what metric is Cade a “clear strength on the team”?
September 27th, 2023 at 6:33 PM ^
My exact thought. The play calling may be poor but from what I have seen Cade’s execution and just over all play in general has been bad
September 27th, 2023 at 11:11 AM ^
If MSU beats them, then yes. If they beat MSU, it buys them well past mid season.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:55 PM ^
He's knows his Xs and Os.
Which means he's good at Bingo. Almost never loses that. Doesn't win but doesn't lose either.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:37 AM ^
I give Cade credit- he thought he could be a difference maker for Iowa and so he made his move.
What we've found out is:
1) The offensive problems at Iowa go much deeper than a QB and 2nd tight end
2) Harbaugh, Michigan's O-line & running backs made the QB job pretty easy
September 27th, 2023 at 1:06 PM ^
Brian Ferentz is a weenie for not resigning from his job after last season. By staying on, he's putting his Dad in a terrible position of having to fire him or possibly lose his own job. That's worse than just plain nepotism.
September 27th, 2023 at 1:28 PM ^
putting his Dad in a terrible position of having to fire him or possibly lose his own job.
I know most normal people laugh at Iowa and their offensive ineptitude, but is there any desire within Iowa or the Iowa fan base that seriously things Kirk's job is at risk? I know they have a new AD but I haven't read anything about his seat even being warm, let alone hot
September 27th, 2023 at 1:39 PM ^
How many people would resign on their own? His dad should have had the stones to at least reassign him. Don't hire your son if you aren't prepared to do that.
September 27th, 2023 at 2:41 PM ^
This is the correct take.
Never hire someone you can't fire.
September 27th, 2023 at 8:21 PM ^
Are you implying that Cade is a game manager? I was assured he wasn't.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:52 AM ^
Cades response here sounds like a lack of ownership. He’s a senior leader on the team and his response does nothing to help the team. It rather passes the buck to someone else as he puts his hands in the air and says not me. Not a great look for him as a leader.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:59 AM ^
Meh... if I were Cade I'd be kinda pissed being sold on changes to the offense only to find out it's the same guy under the scooby doo mask.
That being said, I would have known better and avoided Iowa if I were in his shoes.
And that^ being said, we don't exactly know for sure that Cade had any other options.
September 27th, 2023 at 10:59 AM ^
I kinda agree with this, but I also don't know what Cade can say. He can't throw the ball downfield because the OL sucks so bad he doesn't get a minute to think once the ball is snapped. Watch the PSU game - that LT was blown by on every. single. snap! And it wasn't close... Cade literally gets less than 3 seconds to let anyone get downfield before he has to get rid of it, scramble, or eat the sack.
I believe his response was correct - throw it back to the coaches rather than throw his OL under the bus. Honestly, I'm a bit surprised that Cade hasn't been knocked out of a game yet. That LT wouldn't make Michigan's team...
September 27th, 2023 at 12:40 PM ^
100% disagree. Had he started to list all of the things he would do different (but BF won't), that's not leadership. That's throwing the OC under the bus.
Reporters asking a QB questions that only the OC can answer should get answers like Cade is giving.
September 27th, 2023 at 2:00 PM ^
What should he have said in response to the question about why the receivers haven't been more involved?
September 27th, 2023 at 4:40 PM ^
Cade shouldn’t have sulked and hit the portal when it became obvious that JJ was the man for the job. Leadership qualities are most evident when times get hard. We could have used him as a backup both last year and this.
September 28th, 2023 at 3:24 PM ^
Easy to say when you're not a D1 athlete.
September 29th, 2023 at 5:10 AM ^
Running for the door is as likely to work out as not. Joe Milton is probably pretty happy with his decision.
In Cade's case however, picking a team that consistently and strategically has offensive struggles to showcase these same skills probably isn't the best choice.
September 27th, 2023 at 11:00 AM ^
FIFY:
"positioned himself under those wheels long ago in one of those dedicated bus-only lanes where bus travel is frequent and predictable"
September 27th, 2023 at 11:22 AM ^
This was obvious before Cade transferred. No one to blame but himself for the result.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:22 PM ^
Such a cowardly answer by Cade....
He knows Brian Ferentz (deservedly so) is under the microscope so it's easy to just pile on the weakest link. It wouldn't have even been that bad if he said..."we're working to fix it, but that's a better question for the coaches"
But he's just straight out riding the B. Ferentz is a shit coordinator narrative to avoid scrutiny. Even if clearly true that Ferntz sucks, there are so many better ways to handle that question. Also, many things can potentially be true here.... B. Ferentz can suck, the Iowa offensive line can suck, and Cade is a middling QB.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:41 PM ^
Your proposed answer for Cade is the answer Cade gave, and you criticized the answer he gave!
September 27th, 2023 at 1:12 PM ^
Can you provide the example of a different way to respond to this question? I am curious.
September 27th, 2023 at 3:30 PM ^
I'm assuming the question was how to get the receivers more involved?
A leader takes it on his shoulders and says something like, "I need to do a better job of giving my receivers the time they need to get into their routes and get open. That's definitely going to be a focus for me in practice going forward."
In my field (science tutoring), I say, "I need to come up with a better way of explaining / illustrating X" an awful lot.
September 28th, 2023 at 3:38 PM ^
Fair enough.
September 27th, 2023 at 8:52 AM ^
They witnessed his exit from Michigan, they got exactly what they bargained for.
September 27th, 2023 at 8:57 AM ^
I actually like this about McNamara. He says what’s on his mind and doesn’t mince words.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:00 AM ^
So do reporters
September 27th, 2023 at 9:04 AM ^
Says what's on his mind
Evidently not to JJ.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:07 AM ^
Look, I don’t believe everything a read, and I don’t put a ton of stock in “my best friend’s uncle’s girlfriend said that…” type of stuff.
I like Cade. I always have. I know there has been a big shift toward hating him here but I don’t buy into it and I think it is kind of ugly group-think.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:13 AM ^
He should be remembered first and foremost for beating OSU for the first time in a decade and winning the Big Ten for the first time in seventeen years.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:28 AM ^
One can remember and appreciate him for that while still noting he seems to now have an established track record of passive-aggressive swipes, complaints to journalists that could have been kept in the locker room, and other "maybe not the greatest team player" red flags.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:29 AM ^
Agreed 100%.
And then secondly I'll think about how he did nothing to help the team in 2022 after he got injured, and then told his butthurt story for clicks.
September 27th, 2023 at 3:43 PM ^
Flash / UMA,
My feelings summed up well. I am thankful for his steady play and leadership in 2021, and I always will admire that. How he acted in 2022, not so much. Both feelings can co-exist, and for me, they do.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:34 AM ^
Here's where people are split on this. Cade happened to be the QB when Michigan beat osu. He had 0 TDs and an interception with a few nice passes throughout the game. JJ would have won that day too as much as they ran the ball. Haskins and that defense was the difference.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:31 PM ^
Given how green JJ was in 2021, not sure if we beat OSU with him as the #1 QB. We’ve seen poor QB play sabotage us against OSU in the past (think of Tate in 2009, or O’Korn in 2017).
September 27th, 2023 at 2:57 PM ^
Or (an injured) Speight in 2016.
September 27th, 2023 at 4:23 PM ^
Don't put 2017 on O'Korn. The vast majority of his career is best forgotten, but that 2017 Ohio State game he gave Michigan a chance to win. Had J. T. Barrett not been injured, O'Korn wins that game. That 2017 game was lost because Ryan Day easily figured out Don Brown's defense and had a QB in Haskins who could operate that offense.
September 27th, 2023 at 5:50 PM ^
Josh mettellus dropped the pick 6 that would’ve put us up 21-0
September 27th, 2023 at 10:50 PM ^
Wait, what? Our gameplan for 2017 OSU was superb but O'Korn was anything but.
September 27th, 2023 at 9:48 AM ^
He should be remembered first and foremost for saving Harbaugh's job by beating Rutgers in 2020.
September 27th, 2023 at 10:16 AM ^
This. It is his primary and enduring value to the program.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:05 PM ^
Honestly, what actual program changing impact did the Rutgers game have? Maybe it avoided a bit of short-term program embarrassment that’ll be lost. You could also argue a loss would’ve made 2021 even more sweet. 2020 was an asterisk year and Rutgers was the best game of his career. I’ll die on this hill, but Rutgers was his version of O’korns win against Purdue or even Steven Threet against a ranked Wisconsin in 2008 in an otherwise embarrassing season. The difference was the talent level and the opportunity to start the following season.
he put the team on his back for one game… against Rutgers. It’s not like Denard where he almost single-handily kept the program afloat for 3 years or Devin Gardner where he single-handily came within a single play of beating an undefeated Ohio state team on a broken foot. Hell, even Tate forcier did more, individually, for the program.
September 27th, 2023 at 12:53 PM ^
Come on, dude, Cade definitely had his limitations, but he was a way better QB than O’Korn or Threet. Those guys were just flat out bad .
September 27th, 2023 at 2:03 PM ^
My main point is that he gets a lot of credit for 'saving the program' by beating Rutgers, but that game was a one off from an individual standpoint and there have been worse Michigan quarterbacks with performances that rivaled his.
I just looked at the stats real quick to see how much worse they were than Cade.
Cade 2022-2023:
57 -110 (51.8%) 682 yards. 5 tds 4 ints. 6.2 yard per attempt
Cade OSU to present:
97-172 (56.4%) 1116 yards. 7 tds 8 ints. 6.5 yards per attempt
O'Korn 2017:
84-157 (53.5%) 973 yards. 2 tds 6 ints. 6.19 yards per attempt
Threet 2008:
102-200 (51%) 1105 yards. 9 tds 7 ints. 5.53 yards per attempt
Joe Milton 2022-2023:
133-213 (62.44%) 1896 yards. 18 tds 1 int. 8.9 yards per attempt
The eye test is one thing, but the stat sheet puts cade in the same zip code as O'korn and Threet. O'Korn's int to td ratio is the clear outlier in the group. Three of those ints came against michigan st in the monsoon game where we were playing from behind.
I threw Joe Milton in there for perspective because people hail cade as the savior from Joe's failures (i.e. Rutgers). Cade was the steady and accurate leader whereas Joe was the big strong armed raw qb.
To me, it highlights the impact that The TEAM had on cade's success. cade has faced only two power 5 teams since 2022 (Iowa st. and Penn St.) whereas only two of Threets ten games were against non-P5 teams and O'Korn didn't play against any P5 teams.
September 27th, 2023 at 3:41 PM ^
Why not include Cade’s 2020 or 2021 stats? You are just cherry picking data to make your point.
September 27th, 2023 at 4:17 PM ^
2020 stats are somewhat pointless because of sample size and my point was that overall the Rutgers game was a one off, like Threet vs a ranked Wisconsin team (2008) and O'Korn vs Purdue (2017). cade's sample size is small for 2020. I did 2022 and 2023 is because it's most recent. People credit him with the TEAM's success, but his individual numbers don't back it up.
I did from the OSU game forward because the number of attempts is closest to the others samples I used.
But, I'll humor you. Cade's performances were about average in 2021 when you compare his stats to the opponent averages. The Maryland game best illustrates him versus what the team brings to the table. His numbers were propped up significantly by him checking down to Donovan and Donovan racking up the yac.
2020:
Rutgers: 27/36 (75%) 260 yards. 4 tds 0 ints. 7.22 yards per attempt
Non-rutgers opponents: 16/35 ( 45%) 165 yards. 1 td 0 ints. 4.71 yards per attempt
The best game of his career statistically was against sparty in 2021. Our only regular season loss. Threw the game losing interception.
Cade vs MSU 2021:
28-44 (63.6%) 383 yards. 2 tds and 1 int. 8.7 yards per attempt.
MSU pass defense avg 2021:
29.2 - 44.5 (65.6%) 325 yards per game. 2.1 tds and 0.8 ints. 7.29 yards per attempt.
95 of those yards came off a 5 yard slant to Andrel Anthony.
His next best game statistically was against Maryland. Again, average.
Cade vs Maryland 2021:
21-28 (75%) 259 yards. 2 tds 0 ints. 9.25 yards per attempt.
Let's not pretend like Donovan didn't do the heavy lifting with 10 catches for 170 and a td. Checkdown cade earned that nickname.
Take away Donovan and his yac propping the numbers up cade's stat line is
11-18 (61%) 129 yards. 1 td 0 ints. 7.29 yards per attempt. which is well below average.
Maryland pass defense avg 2021:
19-32 (59.4%) 249.5 yards. 1.7 tds 0.5 ints. 7.81 yards per attempt.
His statline for the MSU game looks impressive, but it was around the average for what their pass defense gave up. Cade's best was still average.
September 27th, 2023 at 4:04 PM ^
Yeah, I'm not sure why you're excluding most of Cade's 2021 stats from this analysis (or for that matter, Joe Milton's stats from 2020-21.) I think the view of most intelligent Michigan fans is that he was a good, not great, QB who gave the team enough of what it needed to beat OSU and win the Big 10 in 2021 but did not have the upside of a developed JJ.
BTW, as for Joe Milton, I'm glad that he's appeared to finally turn things around at UT, but there is no way Michigan has the success it does in 2021 if Joe hadn't transferred & remained the starting QB. Remember that he was initially named the starter at UT in 2021 over Hooker but was so bad that "Joe Milton Overthrows" became a trending topic on Twitter....