Can we win with our shoes untied?
As we have all been recently informed, it seems like Tate's bruised shoulder is more than just a bruised shoulder. If he is not healthy enough to play v. Sparty, can we win with Shoelace playing the majority of the game? He had a pretty solid drive v. Indiana, but its still pretty evident that his passing skills aren't quite as polished as Tate's. In the few plays where he actually attempted a pass, he has made numerous bad reads and bad decisions. Is this just a premature evaluation based on a small sample size? Can we win with Shoelace if Tate is down?
September 27th, 2009 at 11:25 PM ^
But ONLY if the defense steps up. I'm not sure we can win these kinds of unmitigated shootouts with Denard.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:26 PM ^
I don't know. Like you said, Tate is way ahead mentally. If Denard can settle down and be patient, I think we will win.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:29 PM ^
Wait, who doesn't tie his shoes? Denard, you say? You crazy!
September 28th, 2009 at 12:33 PM ^
Oh no he didn't! Bitch is crazy!
September 27th, 2009 at 11:30 PM ^
I'd rather see a raw D-Rob than Sheridan. If Sheridan plays,
we will lose. Keep the ball on the ground, we have plenty of
talent at RB, DRob should not have to air it out too much.
Hopefully they'll be practicing that this week, along with
getting Mooseman better at the shotgun snaps.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:33 PM ^
I think everyone may be underestimating Robinson a bit. Yes, he had those two picks in the Eastern game. Yes, he is nowhere near as accurate as Tate. And yes, the ball he throws is not nearly as polished as you'd want for a starting QB. But, he is very capable of making the safe passes and the occasional big play. If we put him in the position to make safe offensive plays for 4-5 yards and don't shoot for the Forcier to Odoms type play, we could still have a significant offensive output.
This of course presumes Moosman stops snapping the ball 40 yards down field.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:34 PM ^
Shoelace will be a player that Sparty hates
I hope the coaches have saved some nice pass packages that will set up so runs later and vice versa.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:39 PM ^
Denard can throw fine and he can run amazing, but he is still having a lot of trouble reading defenses and making quick decisions. RR should spend all week working on Denard's ability to run the read-option. If Denard can execute that reasonably well with Carlos Brown, Brandon Minor and all the fast slot receivers we have, we will be ok. If not, it will be a long, long day with many three and outs (aka Michigan 2008).
P.S. Denard will get most of the snaps this week, which should help. I doubt Tate will throw at all unless very late in the week.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:42 PM ^
Man if Robinson plays the whole or most of the game and we win (which I think is possible) I will laugh my ass of at sparty. Not that Robinson is not good, but beating them with our backup would be priceless.
September 28th, 2009 at 12:14 AM ^
I wonder how much of the downside of D-Rob's play is because he is in for a play, then out, then in for two, then out. Just like anyone else, sometimes you gotta get in a rhythm out on the field. I bet he plays better with some extended playing time.
That being said - get well Tate.
September 28th, 2009 at 12:19 AM ^
Q) Could Denard have made that laser pass that Tate did to Odoms to win the game on Sat? Or any of the ones vs. ND in that final drive to win the game?
doubtful...
Im not saying it couldnt happen...but IMO with Denard in there, Michigan stands a good chance to lose vs. MSU. He just isnt ready as a passer yet, and not really that accurate of a passer in general.
September 28th, 2009 at 12:51 AM ^
I get the general impression from the board that most think that this game would be easy even if Tate was healthy, and I disagree whole-heartedly with that sentiment. State is not terrible, despite getting waxed at Camp Randall, and they will be a tough team to play in EL. Keep in mind that Sparty was one pass away from beating ND in South Bend, a team that took us 59:50 to beat at home. I don't doubt that they will be much better than they were on Saturday.
That being said, I don't know if we can win with D-Rob most of the game. If it is true that he's having significant trouble with his reads, then its going to be incredibly difficult to get the hang of that in a hostile environment. If I were RR, I would give MSU a steady dose of Brown and Minor, with some easy passes to the slot guys (psychomatt, I agree completely).
Here's to hoping I'm wrong, and that D-Rob has a dominating breakout performance.
September 28th, 2009 at 1:01 AM ^
i don't mean to come off as saying that we would win easily with Tate. I definitely do not believe that. I was really just trying to see what everyone thought of our chances with Denard, not so much asking if were now the underdogs with him.
September 28th, 2009 at 3:20 AM ^
i don't think we have a great chance of victory w/ Robinson leading us next week. unless our o-line becomes dominant and Minor/Brown/Shaw are picking up 10 yards a carry against 7 or 8 in the box, it's not going to happen. When tate's in there, yes, running is still the preferred option for Richrod, but if it's not happening, we can go to the pass and have some success. W/ Robinson, there's no adjustment to be made. Denard simply can not throw the ball w/ accuracy all over the field at this point. yeah, he made one downfield throw to Koger (which, to be honest, required a nice adjustment by KK), but he's a one-trick pony at this point. he'll probably have some excellent runs, maybe even for touchdowns, but i think he'll have an equal number of turnovers.
if tate can't go, mark my words that we'll see just as much Sherideath as D-Rob. I'm not saying that i necessarily want this or think Sheridan is able to lead us to victory in that game, BUTi think that's what Rich Rod will do...