Josh Metellus Orange Bowl Performance
In trying to find silver linings in yesterday's loss- it was encouraging to see next season's possible contributors showing promise.
Looking over the game's box score, I see that Metellus had 7 tackles. In this his first game with an expanded role (was he playing in place of Peppers?)- all things considered- I thought he performed quite well.
Looking forward to seeing Metellus playing more in the coming years.
Any other freshman or sophmores who played yesterday you feel could be major parts of the 2017 season?
December 31st, 2016 at 1:23 PM ^
CHRIS EVANS!!! It was a damn shame he didn't get more carries in the second half.
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December 31st, 2016 at 1:25 PM ^
Agreed. All he needs is a crease and his speed can do the rest.
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December 31st, 2016 at 1:40 PM ^
The counterpoint is there weren't many creases to be found and Smith is far more adept at grinding a few yards out of a would be tfl. The only thing I thought they used Smith for that I didn't like were the sweeps. By the time he got to the edge the entire defensive back field had already rallied there to meet him
December 31st, 2016 at 2:16 PM ^
Yes! Those sweeps were just a waste.
December 31st, 2016 at 2:20 PM ^
100%
It's 6 of one things or a half-dozen of the other.
Smith can grind nothing into something, but not hit a homerun, and Evans can hit a homerun, but can't break tackles like Smith can.
When you don't have a consistent O-Line, there isn't an obvious choice who to hand it off to.
And seeing the pass blocking, our O-Line got shown for what it is, workable against middling competition, but outplayed against the big boys.
The upside is they were seniors so either way the ceiling was reached and now we'll see what kind of O-Line recruiter and developer Harbaugh and Drevno are.
December 31st, 2016 at 3:12 PM ^
He was pretty much bottled up all day except when he broke long gains. That's why you want someone with home run potential getting lots of carries
December 31st, 2016 at 3:45 PM ^
Evans may also weigh 30-40 lbs less than Cook. The reason he broke those runs had quite a bit to do with the pounding Smith took. Smith can block better too, and with the game that the line had blocking was kinda needed wherever you could get it. If Evans had gotten the ball a lot early, he wouldn't have had nearly what he had that beat them.
December 31st, 2016 at 3:55 PM ^
He doesn't have to block if he's carrying the football
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December 31st, 2016 at 4:52 PM ^
But he has to be able to block or else it's completely obvious that he's running the ball every time he comes in.
December 31st, 2016 at 5:02 PM ^
This. Mobile +1
December 31st, 2016 at 5:32 PM ^
That's fine and he still had the 2 best runs of the game for us. So much for tipping off the defense.
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December 31st, 2016 at 7:14 PM ^
Mind. Blown.
December 31st, 2016 at 8:52 PM ^
Evans is listed at 5'11" 200 lbs and Cook is listed at 5'11" 213 lbs. Coming out of high school Cook was listed at 196 lbs, so essentially the same weight as Evans coming out of high school. At this point, Cook carries more muscle mass, but he's older. My guess is in another few years when Evans is Cook's age they weigh about the same. These two ahtletes are very similarly sized.
December 31st, 2016 at 9:58 PM ^
Wheatley said the other day Evans is 205.Cook is listed at 213. Those numbers might not be exactly true but 30-40LBS is way overboard!
December 31st, 2016 at 10:12 PM ^
I saw Evans at Schembechler Hall at the Penn State Game. I am afit 230. No Way Evans is over 200 lbs.
December 31st, 2016 at 11:56 PM ^
Athletes carry their weight differently. Weights are not easy to assess eyeballing it. I've been a strength coach at a number of colleges and worked with hundreds of athletes. I've seen 5'7" and 6'5" guys both weigh 200lbs. It would be hard to look at the two and say they are the same weight. Unless a guy is a similar height and weight to you and you can stand next to him in shorts and a t-shirt it's difficult to assess them by eye. I don't think I can accurately assess a guys weight within 20 lbs when he's wearing a football uniform and pads. Unless you stood next to him in warmups when he was wearing a t-shirt I find it hard to believe that simply seeing a guy in his uniform can be an accurate assessment.
December 31st, 2016 at 3:05 PM ^
Do Smith any service. He had 16 carries for 36 yards, Evans had 49 on 8 carries.
I get a little exhausted (not picking on you specifically) hearing about that "He can get you 2, 3 yards when you need it." Honestly, what running back can't? Sure, if it's 3rd and 1 or 2, he may be a slightly better option but Evans should have been the guy this whole season.
December 31st, 2016 at 4:51 PM ^
Smith's ability in pass protection is why he was the #1 back. Plain and simple. If Evans' pass pro was at Smith's level he'd have seen the bulk of the snaps. But he was just a true frosh, and he still got plenty of snaps to shine.
December 31st, 2016 at 6:45 PM ^
So why would Smith line up at WR on a passing down? That swing pass for Daveon was gross. Evans should have lined up at WR instead of Smith.
December 31st, 2016 at 7:38 PM ^
Dumb question, but what is Isaac's problem? He never sees the field.
December 31st, 2016 at 11:52 PM ^
Smith is what he is, an incredibly hard working and determined short yardage back. Some backs have the ability to make a mediocre offensive line look good, and others make mediocre offensive lines look worse. Smith isn't a "make a mediocre OL look good" type.
Evans is the kind of back who if things are clogged, can make a single cut and get outside and gain yards, which we did see against FSU. The problem is Evans doesn't break tackles all that well (as we saw throughout the season) so it's understandable why he wasn't made the feature back, though I'd have liked to have seen more of him in UM's 3 losses.
December 31st, 2016 at 1:25 PM ^
Agree 100% Evans was the best way to counter that defensive line and our lack of offensive line
December 31st, 2016 at 1:34 PM ^
I'm glad I won't have to see anymore toss plays to Deveon Smith. I'm not blaming Smith, he is what he is -- but I remember thinking "he's got a bunch of blockers, go!". Then by the time he got to the edge there were 5 defenders.
December 31st, 2016 at 2:03 PM ^
Totally agree Deveon is awesome and runs angry and I love that style. But like what you said he is what he is. And he just lacks that second gear to hit the hole as fast as we needed
December 31st, 2016 at 2:29 PM ^
Smith is a slim fullback playing running back.
December 31st, 2016 at 3:04 PM ^
It's kinda like using the pass to open up the run game. Smith started and guys like Evans were change of pace. But last night, Evans was the best back and Smith was truly the change of pace.
Did Isaac even get a snap? I didn't see him at all?
December 31st, 2016 at 4:48 PM ^
I don't recall seeing Isaac play at all last night, which seems a bit strange. I would've liked to have seen more Evans, with a few Isaac plays as well.
December 31st, 2016 at 4:51 PM ^
To not even enter the game is odd. Didn't see him on the sidelines. Was he injured?
December 31st, 2016 at 4:50 PM ^
Smith was supposed to be the tough, grinder in that class. Derrick Green was supposed to the five-star bell-cow running back. Smith stepped-up and became "The Man." Green did not live up to the expectations.
Like you, I am not disrespecting Smith. He exceeded expectations. However, I would have loved to have a senior, elite level back on this team. That role was supposed to have been Green's.
December 31st, 2016 at 1:23 PM ^
First, not to nitpick, but I believe you spelled his name two different ways....
Second, I was pleasantly surprised with his performance...All things considered. And do look forward to watching his growth as a player.
December 31st, 2016 at 1:42 PM ^
name corrected!
December 31st, 2016 at 5:37 PM ^
Tackle numbers don't validate if a guy played well. I saw him blow contain at least twice. I trust Brown though when he raved about him the other day, so even if he didn't play well last night that is encouraging for the future
December 31st, 2016 at 1:24 PM ^
I thought the guys who had the best game last night were mostly guys coming back...Mo Hurst, McCray, Evans, Bunting...Going to really miss Taco! He was a beast last night.
December 31st, 2016 at 1:32 PM ^
Taco was the best defensive player on the field last night. Cook offense
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December 31st, 2016 at 1:37 PM ^
Taco was our best defender last night. I think Walker probably had the best game overall on D.
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December 31st, 2016 at 2:48 PM ^
I for the most part agree, but I think that had a bit more to do with the commentating as well. Taco was all over the backfield against a 1st round offensive tackle while Walker was facing offensive linemen that weren't exactly to that caliber. Taco improved his draft stock if you ask me.
Taco - 5 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFL, 2 QB hurries
Walker - 4 tackles, 1 sack, 4 TFL, 0 QB hurries
I didn't see the QB hits stat, but Taco was destroying Francois all game long. Again, this against a 1st Rd OT. I think both were pretty equally dominant. Taco had the tougher task if you ask me.
December 31st, 2016 at 1:47 PM ^
I feel partially vindicated because I predicted before the season Charl ton to be All American.
December 31st, 2016 at 3:12 PM ^
Vindicated? For making a patently obvious prediction that faced little to no opposition? You've boasted about this nothingness in several threads late in the season. Do you want a cookie? Blowjob? It's extremely pathetic.
January 1st, 2017 at 12:21 AM ^
I love when people say "I've been saying for weeks now blah blah blah." Like, dude, you don't have a show. You're not a sports talking head. Nobody cared when you said it the first time. The fact that you keep saying it is annoying. Your sense of self worth with regards to your sports opinions are incredibly overestimated.
Not an apples to apples, but a similar situation nevertheless.
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December 31st, 2016 at 3:49 PM ^
Taco was great, for a long time though it seemed like Dymonte was the only guy making plays and that really showed up.
December 31st, 2016 at 2:09 PM ^
I'm torn on McCray. He is very big and hits hard. He generally makes good decisions against the run, but he is not very good at pass coverage. He is not fast enought to keep up with TEs or WRs.
On the other hand I was very impressed with Dymonte's speed on one long Cook run. He chased him down from a long way.
December 31st, 2016 at 2:32 PM ^
There are no MLBs fast enough to cover WRs.
December 31st, 2016 at 2:39 PM ^
Not that many LBs can stay with WRs but McCray makes big plays IMO and was a first year starter...with Harbaugh, every player will continue to improve and get better.
December 31st, 2016 at 4:01 PM ^
Having either McCray or Gedeon on Cook out of the backfield was a match up that FSU wanted to get all game. Honestly, both improved significantly through the season getting back into coverage.
Cook is on another level than any back Michigan faced this year in terms of ability.
December 31st, 2016 at 5:08 PM ^
The issue is that we never flip our D, so with McCray a true MLB, it's easy for an offense to line up, then motion into a highly favorable matchup against McCray. Either get and play all "hybrid" LBs, and give up meat against the run, or have the LBs switch, at least some of the time, when offenses motion in order to mitigate possible RPS damage
December 31st, 2016 at 7:38 PM ^
Was step for step with Cook on the deep pass
January 1st, 2017 at 1:19 AM ^
McCray drastically improved in this department throughout the season. Even last night, the long gain on the wheel route to Dalvin, McCray was right on him and it took a perfect throw to beat him. Even slightly underthrown and McCray breaks that up. I thought he performed admirably late in the season in coverage. I'm excited at his potential next season.
December 31st, 2016 at 4:53 PM ^
Bunting really stepped up when Butt went down. Looks very promising indeed.
December 31st, 2016 at 11:56 PM ^
He did indeed. Between him, Wheatley, and Asiasi, and with Speight looking pretty poor in his 3 game losing streak, I have to wonder if there's any buyer's remores either from him or the coaching staff in changing positions.
And if he does stick at WR, going to be tough with the more prototypical wideouts on the roster.
January 1st, 2017 at 1:39 AM ^
You must be thinking of Gentry. Bunting was always a TE. I think Peters will be a fine replacement for Speight, hopefully next season.