The Home Opener. What Do We know about Uconn This Year?
I know I have been posting a lot of "off topic" threads this month with the Stanley Cup playoffs and all but now since the spring game has been over and we are going into the 2010 season at Michigan I figured it is time to get back on track and discuss Michigan football. After all it is the main purpose of mgoblog is it not? Anyways to make a long story short, for Michigan to have a good start to a successful season it must start with beating Uconn in the opener. Now in the past few years the Huskies have actually been somewhat decent (despite being known for basketball) Who are their big weapons, their stand out players and play-makers? Plus what is their preview against us in September. I also formally apologize to geaux_blue or anyone else that I have lashed out at. I take Red Wings hockey (especially in the playoffs) very religiously so I can be a little pissy about it when they get beat bad or lose at home. (Trust me it's worse when I'm away from here lol) Anyways I just wanted to get some background on Uconn's matchup against us.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:28 PM ^
We know that Rich Rod went 4-0 against Randy Edsall in the Big East.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:30 PM ^
They'll be previewed extensively over the summer.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:32 PM ^
during their spring game. So, apparently they have the best passing game in the history of football.
Love: Witty comments
I just go down and pos-bang the shit out of everyone
Hate: MGoPoint differential
Due to my obsessive pos-banging, everyones points are in the 1000's and I'm still stuck at 450 something
I think people are using "posbang" and "negbang" incorrectly. I don't think one person can posbang/negbang; it's a group effort.
You've obviously never been to a one man gang-bang. Sure you need to be a little flexible but the payoff is worth it.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:33 PM ^
Hey OP -
Do you not have access to the University of Connecticut official football site?
ESPN Archives?
April 26th, 2010 at 12:34 PM ^
We know there will be 722 Threads like this before game day so earl bird gets the dong punch.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:36 PM ^
Do apologize. That was an awesome lash out. If the Wings lose and are eliminated I will be looking for your posts.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:45 PM ^
Once Detroit's out the season is pretty much done for me (playoff wise) and I don't watch it as much. As long as Pittsburgh does not touch that trophy again this year, I'll be happy.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:58 PM ^
Whoops, I meant don't. I am with you on Pittsburgh winning the cup. I threw up so much last year from them winning I got the dry heaves.
I'm a huge red wings fan myself actually I was at game six but what u just said makes me wonder what kind of fan u really are. Game 1 they had a bad game and game 2 they took care of business. Pheonix didn't beat us Sunday we beat ourselves. Game 7 is our game. I'm a little afrai of vancuver tho
April 26th, 2010 at 12:39 PM ^
Here's what I know about UConn.
1) They play in the Big East conference.
2) Their official colors are blue and white
3) Before Dan Orlovsky ran out of the back of the endzone in Minnesota he played for UConn
4) We beat their basketball team in Ann Arbor.
... re your #3.
It wasn't just that he ran out of the back of the endzone. It's that he KEPT RUNNING.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:40 PM ^
I read somewhere that UConn does not have the ability to stop Denard Robinson. I also read that neither does anyone else.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:41 PM ^
Their quarterback threw for 1461 yds and had a completion percentage of 53.2%. 10 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Their leading rusher had 1188 yds and 235 carries and averaged 5.1 yds a carry. 14 touchdowns but he also tied his backup in touchdowns as well.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:43 PM ^
I saw this preview a little while back. Although it fails to factor in dilithium as a key in our upcoming victory.
http://www.maizenbrew.com/2010/3/12/1369274/never-too-early-for-a-michi…
April 26th, 2010 at 12:48 PM ^
Off the top of my head:
They have 2 QB's who play, one is Zach Frazier (transfer from ND). He gets a lot of yardage, but with a low completion percentage and throws lots of picks - sounds like they throw the deep ball a lot. They lost their best receiver, but return everyone else. They had 2 backs, one big back and one small back, with very similar stats - the big back graduated and the small back did not. No other RB's on the team got squat for PT. I think they only lose 1 OL starter.
On D, their line is OK, their LB's are pretty solid, and their secondary blows. Basically, if we get a hat on their linebackers, we should be able to run or pass with relative ease. Our guards against their LB's will be a key match-up for the game. As will our DB's against their deep ball, or their OT's ability to give Frazier enough time to throw the deep ball.
Frazier was a 4star to scout ranked the 9th best qb in his class. He's not made of dilithium but still...better than what I expected from UConn
Uconn has a big, beefy, experienced Oline.
4 starters return. Across the board they average 316 a person.
They churned out a 2,000 yard rusher in 2008 and a pair of thousand yard rushers last year.
Toddman has a 5.5 ypc average in 300 career carries.
They've scored 57 rushing TDs the last two years.
I'll have a bit more on UConn and some of the other key positional matchups from the first half of our schedule in a Diary later this week. But one matchup highlighted will be the Husky OL vs the Wolverine DL.
The Huskies will try to win this game the old fashioned way: Throwing rock 40 times a game and controlling the clock.
Also: Thankfully they dont have Marcus Easley anymore at WR. We dont have anyone who could have covered that dude. But, he is in the NFL now.
total offense so they weren't that horrible but they weren't that bad either. I am very excited to see how we will matchup with them on the field, I'm just hoping our defense has become tighter and fixed the gaps from last year. Frazer's numbers weren't that great either.
Mostly because they are very good at pounding the rock all day long.
Want to see bad QB numbers? Check out their 2008 numbers. Yet, they still were able to churn out a 2,000 yard rusher despite being defecient at QB and one dimensional.
Most of their OL starters have been playing the whole time the last 2 years. This will be one of the biggest, experienced and most effective OLs we'll see all season. It will be a chore to see how our DL in their first game without BG55 holds up at the point of attack.
So, if we handle UConn's rushing offense, that means good things for Iowa and Wisconsin?
EDIT: to clarify, good things for us against Iowa and Wisconsin
If they like going with the long ball a lot, then hopefully Gerg blitzes the holy hell out of them. I'd love to see Roh sneak though a gap and just own someone's universe.
breaking through the OL and punishing a qb to the turf. I'm really going to miss that guy.
With this being the 1st game at the revamped big house we know the players will be ready to go. Can't wait for things to get started. Let's go Blue!
Brock Mealer leading the team out of the tunnel will definitely get the Big House fired up.
Here:
I've seen a ton of spring game footage the past week or so, and it seems like they're almost all the same: offense looks legit, passes all over the field, etc. Except for Notre Dame, I thought theirs just looked plain awful.
but I question their ability to deal with our speed on passing downs.
"Anyways to make a long story short,"
I question this comment.
they're going to be starting the season 0-1
Well, at least that's my opinion.
This was going to be my post - verbatim.
You sir- are a genius!
Quick, someone imagine the winning lotto numbers!
So here's the question. If their secondary sucks so hard does that give Tate an edge for opening day starter? Even if you think that DRob has progressed a lot I don't think he is as accurate or have as good of touch as Tate. Therefore, the most prudent strategy might be to do less zone reads and more passes, which may mean edge Tate even if it doesn't mean edge Tate for the rest of the season.
but yes, it looks like whoever is the best passer at that time will probably see the most success against them.
I missed you this weekend(not in a creepy way)with all the trolls and meltdowns, your snarky responses usually make me LOLZ.
That Uconn, after having watched extensive Utube videos of Dilithium Robinson, might not even show up. If you hadn't heard that rumor,it is because I started it only yesterday. Rumors aren't as fast as D. Robinson.
We know a lot. For example, there was a gold rush there in the late 1800's and early 1900's, and it is very cold there in the winter. It has great hunting and fishing if you're an outdoors-type. And the capital is Whitehorse.
I can keep going...
Ouch... I hurt my brain just TRYING to type that. My soul hates me now.
On that note, UConn Cornelius?
I just know their defense is going to have a problem with all our speed.
62nd best defense in the nation last year.. 88th against the pass. If we get the ball to the slots and throw it deep to Stonum.. running lanes will be open. They're at their weakest early in the year; they typically build up strongly towards the end of the season.
I was researching a diary that I won't be writing now but here's what notes I have so far:
It looks to me like Cody Endres is their best QB. Of course, I'd defer to their coaches but Endres put up better numbers last year in about as many starts (6 vs. 7). Endres had a better completion percentage and threw for more yards on fewer attempts. Frazer started last year, played poorly, then got hurt (knee). Endres stepped in, played fairly well, then got hurt (shoulder). It seems as though Frazer only got the job back because Endres got hurt and there was much consternation amongst the fans at the time. From the looks of the Spring game, I don't think Frazer has gotten any more accurate than he was last year. Don't forget, Threet was a 4 star and was the 9th ranked QB in his class, too. I'll take actual college playing time over recruiting rankings every time.
They have a relatively new OC (2nd season will be 2010) who runs a self described "multiple set, no huddle, tempo spread offense". I've heard a lot of people say that UCONN is a ball control team but those words all came out of Joe Moorehead's mouth. There's an interview with him that was part of their spring football video series (like the one on mgoblue). Sorry, can't figure out how to directly link to the video.
Their Defense was pretty bad last year, IMO. They gave up 450+ yards to the following teams: Pittsburgh, Louisville, Notre Dame, and Syracuse. They gave up over 700 yards (!!!) to Cincinnati. Yowza. I'd venture to say their D was as bad or worse than ours was last year.
I say we stack the box against their RB (who is pretty good) and make Frazer throw to move the ball.
When you compared the two QB's stats, the thing you forgot to touch on is who they were playing against. Endres' only good games were against Rhode Island and Louisville, he played decently against WV (but also threw 3 picks) and didn't really have another game where he looked good. Frazier and Endres split snaps against Rutgers and UNC, and in those two games Frazier's stats were better. Endres also didn't play against Cinci, ND, or South Carolina, three of UConn's toughest games, so the stats are a little skewed.
I think the other big thing to look at is wins. Under Endres, they really didn't beat anybody good (Baylor was the best team that they beat, and it was not because of the passing game). All of the team's quality wins, of which there admittedly aren't many - Notre Dame, South Carolina, South Florida (maybe) - were with Frazier at the helm.
I still think Endres would have kept the job if he had stayed healthy. Can't prove that so I'll just move on.
As for Cinci and ND, toughest games? Maybe. Toughest defenses? No sir. Both of those defenses were garbage. South Carolina's D was solid but Frazer stunk it up against them, too (9-22, 107 yds, 1 TD).
Check out that video of their spring game in this thread. About 20 seconds in, Frazer throws to his right. Not much pressure. Tacopants makes the catch. Not good dude, not good.
The reason why people think UConn is a ball control offense is because they don't have a QB to do what Moorehead wants to do...so they run like crazy. Both of their RBs last year had over 230 carries!
My prescription is still to dare them to beat us deep. They lost their best receiver, though they have a couple of guys that did OK last year.
My opinion of Frazer, which is worth nothing, is that he's a not a great - QB. If you want to tell me that Endres isn't great either, I won't fight you. I'm cool with UConn not having any good QBs on their roster right now.
He actually went to High School a mile from where I live and he comes home every year for a "celebrity golf tournament" to raise money for his old High School. His older brother actually refs college basketball, and he has done a few final fours and brings his rings to show off. They are two stand up guys who are a lot of fun to hang out with. I got to chill with both of them at the local bar after one of the golf tournaments. I talked to Randy a couple hours about Michigan football and Rich Rodriguez, so I am praying that we can hang out again this year and I can get some sweet deal for the game. I highly doubt it since I won't wear Uconn gear, and he has only hung out with me twice, but hey im giving it a shot.