Derrick Green and the running game.

People keep qualifying it as "in the second half" or "for a couple quarters." He was over 5 ypc at halftime. Smith struggled in the first half, not Green.

Green made some cuts in yesterdays game that I've never seen him make before.  He made a couple jump cuts and showed some patience on other runs.  I genuinely believe our O-line and running game are showing a lot more cohesiveness this season.  We couldn't run against anyone last year.  That being said, I am really worried about Gardner.  I think teams are going to dare us to throw and blitz constantly which leads to those negative yard gains that just kill our offense.  The Big Ten is so bad we easily could do some damage if we just improve a little bit.

Green definitely looked better. There was one run where he broke an ankle tackle to get extra yards. I think that was his longest run. I also noticed that he only went down when they were wrapping him around his hip. May be the dude is getting better and they have to wrap him up high. Hope this continues. He needs to add stiff arm to his arsenal. Couple of long runs he could have gotten extra yards if he stiff armed the guy. That hole at the TD run was big. He almost went in untouched. Loved it. He definitely looked like Smith on some short yardage situations. Hope he improves each week. Wouldn't it be awesome if we actually have a running game and the opponents have to plan for it. let us see what he does next week. I cannot wait for the UFR. I want to see how well he found the holes and his pass protection. Will be huge against next week and thereafter.

The line and Arabs (autocorrect for RBs. I'm leaving it because it's funny. No political reasons implied) have improved. They aren't great yet but I get the feeling they are close to turning the corner and becoming an asset to the offense in the B1G season. Utah will be a good barometer.

Also I noted the seeming fatigue factor setting in on Miami in the 4th Q.  That's where having Smith and Green is a huge advantage.  Bring in Smith when its time to burn out the clock and he's dragging already tired guys around down the field.

I feel like the OL has made a medium leap from last year and I have the gut feeling that they will continue to study film and improve their play.  With obvious asterisk for competition level of Miami, but I also feel like they were serviceable in run blocking vs Notre Dame.  The tests are going to get much larger.  I scouted Rutgers and they look more dangerous than Penn State from a defensive standpoint.

I also like what I've seen from Amara Darboh.  Despite his foot issue I can see he hasn't missed many strength training sessions.  I think he has the body of an NFL guy from this vantage point.  Really nice to see him step in and fill the hole where Funchess would be as I think he's nearly the size & strength mismatch in blocking CBs.

From the stands, I saw one run that looked great despite not being a homerun. He was flowing left with the blocks, saw a lane, planted his foot, made a decisive cut, and got upfield for a few yards. If he went with the flow he would have had no gain most likely. It made me think, "that's what a RB looks like." It was encouraging.

Sorry, but no serious judgement can be made from playing Miami of Ohio at home period

After next game see if you feel the same. Believe me, I sure hope so.

Akron was 64th nationally in rushing defense last year.  Miami(NTM) was 113th.  We probably rushed better yesterday because Miami is miserable at stopping the rush.  Akron is actually somewhat decent.  So basically yesterday tells us nothing, except that we can rush pretty okay against the (almost) worst team in the nation versus the rush.

Clearly those seems seemed open.

I also thought Justice looked pretty good.  I would like to see him get some more carries.  With his speed, he could really do some damage when our line opens up a hole. 

I'm liking what I see from Green, much improved and o-line seems to be improving their zone assignments each week. I hope Green is watching Alfred Morris on sundays. No better zone running back in America right now. He could learn from guys like him. (Shameless Redskins fan plug)

An outsize zone in the first half and a couple IZ runs in the first and second halves. Needs a stiff arm and just a little wiggle when he reaches the second level. The former should be very teachable and natural as he gets to the 2nd level regularly. High upside and excited for him.

The running game is improved over last year.  Last year we couldn't run the ball at all - against anyone on the schedule.  Most plays were rushes for -1/-2 yards.  At least this year, it seems even poor running plays are +1/+2 yards.  Yeah, we haven't played anyone great yet, but still we seem to be falling forward instead of getting knocked backward.  Considering how young the OL is I think its positive improvement.  Green improved yesterday as well.  Vision improved - he saw and hit holes.  And a few times, he had some YAC which was non-existant before.  Overall, I felt some positive mojo coming from the running game and we're going to need it to continue improving this season.