Going for Two
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:24 PM ^
I'd rather not. Forgot what losing felt like. I don't like it one bit.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:24 PM ^
my only question is why did denard get that possession wit 8 minutes left down 14....thats my only complaint.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
Probably because the offense stalled out every single time before that with Tate in the game. Whether that was on him or not, I have no problem with RR trying to mix things up.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
My only question is why the fake punt on 4th and inches? Don't really get it..
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:38 PM ^
Is what shifted the momentum. HORROR-IBLE play call....
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:51 PM ^
In the post-game press conference RRod said it was supposed to be a kick, but Zoltan made a read and decided to keep it
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:52 PM ^
I for one, blame this loss on the coaches completely. With our offense sputtering we get to 4th and inches twice and punt it both times in the first half. What is the deal with the roll out punt on 4th and inches? I know we did this last year but not much this year. Too many bad calls in the first half and denard coming in cold down 14? Just a shoot yourself in the foot performance that I would love to forget. Can we get a muligan on that interception? I call REDO!
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:24 PM ^
THe problem is that we weren't able to run the ball all game long..so now you got about 8 yds to find a tight window in a driving rain..right call was made.
Going for the endzone on 3rd down in OT was a Freshman mistake, you either try for the first or you make sure you give yourself a chance for 3!
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:25 PM ^
I really wanted them to do it. That's easy to say now, but I was kind of hoping we did. However, there really were a few things going against us. Tate was dead tired and it was pouring, so I wouldn't want to put our whole game on those chances.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:25 PM ^
you have one chance. Overtime gives you more opportunity. Amazing job they did just to get to overtime.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:29 PM ^
This hurts. Yet, it hurts less that we made it to OT, than it would have if they had continued to kick our butt. Until the last of the 4th, they were kicking our butt. RR always says "we will win when we deserve to win." We didn't deserve to win for most of the game. This doesn't mean we shouldn't have won, but we didn't do what was necessary to do so. They had 3 turnovers and tons of penalty yardage. Whatever, lets move to Iowa.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
Yep. They need to play like it's the fourth quarter every quarter to win games right now. Not good enough to start slow and come from behind every week.
October 4th, 2009 at 2:10 AM ^
Agreed...
also.. Dantonio had a chance to take the game away by making it a 3 score game with a field goal.. however, he decided to go for it on fourth down, and that really gave us a huge chance. Had we won that game, Dantonio gets crucified for that decision...
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:25 PM ^
I was worried about the rain and making the conversion; I also wanted to go for 2. But -- I think Forcier was completely spent, and they had no time outs, and it wouldn't make sense for Robinson to have tried to go for 2.
Michigan was also set up well in OT; either Michigan defends first and can try to hold Sparty to a FG, or the tired Spartan defense comes out again. MSU got the plays, UM didn't.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:26 PM ^
If Tate wasn't completely gassed, I would agree.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:28 PM ^
your D is playing excellent, your Qb is clutch. you go go for the tie and force overtime and hope you can pull it off.
if we had lost by one because of a failed conversion, everyone would have been excoriating RR for his bad decision. As is, we pulled an overtime loss out of what should have been a blowout.
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:26 PM ^
Right. In retrospect, it was a lose-lose situation for RR. We had tons of momentum. All the momentum. Our D was clicking. Tate was transcendent (did anyone notice how the clouds opened up and the sun shone on him right before the Stonum TD?). You had to trust the team to keep it rolling, just one bad throw and one horrendously missed tackle. That's it. I would have liked to keep the ball in the air on every play during OT, given our rythym; I think the 3rd and long kind of forced a tough pass.
Overall, heartbreaking loss, but good toughness for M down the stretch.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
If he would have completed that pass it would have been a great pass but it gets tipped and its a freshman mistake? He saw an oportunity and took it. I've seen a lot of upper-classmen make that same "freshman mistake"
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:31 PM ^
The only thing I can say against Tate's last pass was that perhaps it had too much zip. A loft there might've gotten it over the defender and scored a TD.
But, seriously, not a complaint. The kid has played his heart out every week.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
You'd be an idiot if you went for two there. The only play we should be second guessing is the Zoltan run. But we played like crap until the 4th so we didnt deserve to win. If we played like we were capable of, we could have won by double digits.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:30 PM ^
Take a chance with overtime. MSU hadn't stopped UM in the 4th quarter, so I rather take a chance with multiple overtime downs versus a 1-shot from the 8 yard line.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:31 PM ^
The 8? 2pt conversions start at the 3.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:36 PM ^
been at the 8...we weren't going to run it in there at all.
The window I still think would have been too tight in a driving rain though!
October 3rd, 2009 at 10:03 PM ^
Yeah, thanks for the clarification. True, the ball is lined up at the 3, but the actual run would be nearly from the 10.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:32 PM ^
I am heartbroken over the loss just like all of you but we got outplayed for the majority of the game and for them to fight back with 8 mins left says a lot to me. I am in no way gonna let this one loss define the season that is yet to come and for anyone else to would be a mistake!
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:36 PM ^
10 out of 10 coaches kick the PAT.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:39 PM ^
Not true.
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:03 PM ^
Butch Jones?
October 3rd, 2009 at 6:11 PM ^
They won, but only because they had a little more time on the clock and they made a perfect onside kick.
October 3rd, 2009 at 10:49 PM ^
They won
October 4th, 2009 at 11:04 AM ^
I was just pointing out that 10 out of 10 coaches do not kick the PAT.
October 3rd, 2009 at 8:23 PM ^
Lesticles.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:39 PM ^
We should have gone for two, regardless of how gassed Tate was. If he was gassed, that's precisely WHY we should have gone for two - we could have ended the game right there.
Michigan's offense was finally moving the ball, and MSU had no answer for it. If you have momentum, go with it.
I have questioned the play calling several times this year, but in my opinion, some of today's calls were ridiculous. The fake punt inside our own 20, the insistence on throwing the ball, the insertion of Denard Robinson who can/will only throw the ball, the extra point at the end instead of going for two.
Regardless, I didn't think we'd be 4-0 going into this game, so I'm not all that disappointed that we're 4-1 now.
October 4th, 2009 at 2:11 AM ^
hindsight is 20/20
had we failed to convert 2 points.. you'd be saying it was a retarded decision
October 4th, 2009 at 10:23 AM ^
No, I wouldn't.
We should have gone for two. I said it when I was watching the game. You have no idea what I was thinking at the time, so please don't speak so definitively about my thought process.
Thanks.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:40 PM ^
I'd call that momentum in Michigan's favor.
2 pt conversions are successful about 40% of the time. The odds were better kicking the PAT.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:47 PM ^
I will be completely honest. I wasn't sure how good our chances were to make the PAT. With as wet as it was and a kicker that I don't have a whole lot of confidence in, I was a little worried.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:45 PM ^
if he went for 2 pts and failed, we'd have an army of people coming here saying "Why the F did he go for two!??? Horrible call."
It is what it is.
MSU lost 2 close games. UM won two close games.
MSU is not that bad.
UM is not that good.
But for my money, Michigan is a far more interesting team to pay attention to in the coming weeks of Big Ten play.
Hawkeyes better have long fingernails.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:46 PM ^
The conventional wisdom is clear.kick the PAT.
Football is also a game of emotion and mental toughness. The Spartans were in the Same Old Spartan mindset.
I think they were ripe for the kill then, and think the "two" would have had a great chance to work.
If they didn't make it Coach Rod would be bombarded with "that's not Michigan football"
If they made it, The team would have an amazing swagger, and Tate's legend would be beyond belief. I think the team earned that opportunity with the comeback.
Great effort in the fourth by the team.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:47 PM ^
People would be whining a lot more if we went for 2 and missed it, which is more likely than making it.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:53 PM ^
I'm more annoyed by the shitty tackling at the end than I would have been if they failed at converting the two-point.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:55 PM ^
Most people would be way more pissed about missing a 2pt though. We were dominating and RR thought we would win in OT.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:57 PM ^
This is why it would be so hard to be a coach. The logical choice was to just kick the field goal and keep the momentum going. But it's so tempting to end it right there, you really have to be able to keep your emotions in check and do what is smart in the long run.
If I am the coach, I would have gone for two, probably would have missed and the team would be heartbroken.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:55 PM ^
Very true
If they missed on two the whining would have been through the roof.
The focus will be on the fake punt play now.
All fun to discuss and wonder what may or may not have happened.
Glad that we are still on schedule for a bowl appearance this year and on to greater things in the years to come.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:51 PM ^
this is a come down to earth loss. we snuck one out last week, and MSU game planned for us this week. the team showed some huge balls by making that come back in the forth quarter. the fake punt no matter who called it was just stupid!!! but the team came back from that. as for going for 2 after the last TD, i think they made the right call by going for the tie. as for tates pick in the end zone, i'd much rather see him throw it away so we can kick the FG.
October 3rd, 2009 at 3:58 PM ^
Flip a coin - I don't think that going for 2 or kicking is neccesarily "wrong".
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:16 PM ^
except there's a slight advantage for going for two on the road and playing for overtime at home.
October 3rd, 2009 at 5:15 PM ^
that they should go for 2. The stun factor was in play -- MSU didn't know what had just hit them. If Forcier was tired, think how tired MSU's D was. Also, if I'm not mistaken, MSU had no timeouts left so Michigan would have surprised them by sending out the offense. Finally -- and I think this is important -- MSU had the better field goal kicker. The way Olsenavage was kicking there was every possibility he'd miss the 3 pointer. Indeed, his extra point was far from clean.
One other note: I believe this was Michigan's first OT loss -- the odds were pretty good that we'd eventually lose one.
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:06 PM ^
The moment the TD was scored, I yelled "go for two!" at my TV, my kids, and my dogs. I really didn't like M's chances in OT. In any event, amazing performance at the end of the game. MSU played inspired ball on defense, and with serious desperation on offense.
October 3rd, 2009 at 4:18 PM ^
I told my wifey after the Stonum TD...that if the Wolverines get this game tied up I would go for Two...why not...nothing to lose..why tie it up with the All american Kicker at MSU and if we are so good to score getting the ball at the 25...why not score at the 3yard line with a spread formation and "Little Man" Tate may the Forcier be with us all!!