Let's Be Fans and Praise Our Team

Took less than 2 minutes! I had forgotten what it looked like to run a 2-minute offense in less than 5 minutes!

While I was/am bummed out, we had opportunities that could have played out differently. a couple key plays made, or routes run more cleanly, and the outcome could have been different. as trite as it is, Utah is a very good team, with experience, talent, continuity and playing at home. it was a huge task to go in and beat them, and we didnt. I am bummed we lost, but am completely confident we are on the right track. This team will be fine and will make big, meaningful strides over the next week and throughout the season. GO BLUE!

Defense was good and thank god we don't have too many mobile QB's left (not as worried about Taysom Hill just because they don't have a RB so we can key on him all game).

Offense was better than expected, except for Rudock's INTs and deep balls.  WRs were better than expected and they got open.  RB did the best they could given the lack of holes.  OL was good in pass protection, but needs more aggressiveness in run blocking (not sure what to make of it given the stout Utah front seven, but hopefully it was more because they were good instead of we were bad).

I really hate these posts.

They imply that a large portion of the Michigan fanbase is NOT supporting the team and therefore those few loyalists that do remain must "stay the course" in the face of negativism and that's simply not the case.

I read the following valid criticisms last night and again this morning to the board as well as the front page:

1. OL needs work for running game to be successful

2. Ruddock had an uncommonly poor day but was hurt by poor route running in at least one if not two of the picks

3. RBs missed some open holes

4. Rome (or in this case our offense) wasn't built in a day

But I also read the following:

1. Team looked better prepared and focused

2. Ruddock is unlikely to repeat that performance

3. OL did well in pass protection

4. We lost last night but the future looks bright

What do you see is untrue and what do you read that is overtly critical and not being said right now in the coaches meeting?

Peppers is good. Darboh is good. Butt is good (HA). If Smith finds a pair of eyes that work then he'll be really good. We're still young for the most part. Defense didn't let the ball carrier slip out of tackles (however there were times when the ball carrier juked out of any contact at all).

Edit: Forgot Wormley. He looked good too.

Pass blocking was great last night.  Run blocking was not great, but RBs vision was an issue too.  

We have 1 lockdown corner, but that 2nd spot is a real weak spot.  

Rudock needs time to work with his WR, so they can figure each other out.  All three interceptions were when he targeted a true FR WR.  

that the offense is only partially installed still. I didn't notice nearly as much motion as I expected, and I think as everyone gets more comfortable as the season goes the offense will improve.

 

Pass protection was a huge upgrade against a pretty stout front 7. Jake Butt is a monster. Nice to see Chesson get open deep, and hopefully this year he is able to adjust while the ball is in the air.

 

Molly Mcgrath.

Actually, you know, winning something would be nice every now and then.

It's unrealistic - silly, really - to think that the problems we've had for the past four years would magically disappear in game one. I feel so confident in our staff to work through the issues. And it might be two or three years before we see this team really clicking. But I see us getting there. I used to dread watching the games last year, but this year feels different to me. I'm psyched for this team and I can't wait for next week. Do I really have to wait 8 days?

We just lost a game by seven points on the road to a decent team, in a game where almost every big break went against us. The interceptions alone were probably a two-TD swing (the pick-six is obvious, but we were in or near scoring range for the first two). And the misses on the bombs to Chesson and Darboh were worth another TD or two.  The only big breaks that went in our favor were Utah's two missed FGs.

The running game was bad, but Utah is one of the best front sevens we'll face this year. Rudock has great pocket presence, and although his misses were obvious, his ability to stand tall in the face of pressure, like he did on the TD to Darboh, will be incredibly valuable. 

There was a lot to like ... and don't forget how good Utah is. If it's true that a football team learns more between games one and two than at any other time, we should be okay. Now JH really knows what he has and will get to work. And Jourdan Lewis ... that there is a football player.

Saw definite signs of progress. We looked like we were actually organized on offense. Our WRs look legit, Butt was amazing. 

I think a couple glaring mistakes late overshadowed Smith's performance. He runs so damn hard, always going forwards, and consistenly got yards when there was nothing there. I expect him to continue to improve, especially with improved Oline and QB play. 

Peppers made some huge plays in open space, where his athleticism allowed him to do stuff most people can't. 

Need to keep reminding myself that this team as a whole unit has had less than a month of practice together.

The passing game will definetly come together. Hopefully some bad habits in the run game will be fixed, and/or Drake Johnson is available soon.

I absolutely will be watching Utah/Oregon in a few weeks to see just how good Utah's defense is.

This defense a month from now should be fun to watch.  I love when Durkin would dial up the blitz.  It's hard against a no-huddle team in the first game of the season.  Hopefully we'll get more blitzes going forward.

You could see some of those runs in the 3rd/4th quarter get bigger.  If we bounce some of those runs outside, we probably have more success.  That's okay.  They'll study the film and improve.  I don't think our O-line was terrible.  Utah was daring us to beat them in the air and we were unable to hit on our passes.  I think if this is still the plan in B1G season, we'll make teams pay.  

It's obvious that Rudock is the guy unless he throws three more picks next week and those are all his fault.  Let him settle down, build the relationship with his receivers, and he'll be okay.  If I'm not mistaken, he's only had about a month of practice with the team.

If the qb play is even average we win. Missing the two easy passes to chesson cost us the game. We're gonna be fine.

This Utah loss wasn't as bad as last year's Utah loss.  Baby steps.

Utah played nearly flawless football minus a few late hits, two missed field goals, and a hail mary interception at the end of the first half. Other than that, there weren't many mistakes on their part. It's tough to beat a better than average major conference team that doesn't turn the ball over and we only lost by seven. It doesn't make it any easier to swallow the loss, but the team didn't quit, they didn't give up any big plays on defense (when is the last time this happened against a better than average team?), and they shut down a vaunted run game. If Rudock connects on any of those long balls, we probably win the game or at least force overtime. One other element that's overlooked in the game is the importance of special teams. Utah had an outstanding punter and punt game. Without this, who knows what kind of damage Peppers could've inflicted. We got a glimpse of it on his kick return. Not every team will have a great punter, so this part of our game will not always be neutralized.

I don't know how to feel right now.  They seemed improved and better and I think we will see some good football teams in a few years.  That said, it is still frustrating for sure.  Other teams have turned it around in a year or have immediate success.  Why is it always such a process with Michigan?  We always have to explain away all the flaws and weaknesses because the players are young, or its a new coach, or it takes time to develop etc.  It seems like there should occasionally be things like "Hey! Wow, that guy was good right away!" and guys over perform or we are occasionally pleasantly suprised by things that exceed our expectations.  I think I'm just tired of Michiagn being bad.  Koalas don't live long and I want them to be good before I die in 5 to 10 years. I fear that maybe there are some factors that I can't see or won't accept bc of my fan bias and that Michigan will be good, but never be elite like OSU or other teams.  I haz a sad.

I think that all of our expectations are sky high for Harbaugh and Michigan. To me, it makes the loss last night feel a little worse. I have to remind myself that we went on the road, played a very well coached team, and hung in the game the entire night. This was a winnable ball game and the team WILL learn from it going forward.

I don't think the players read mgoblog bro, so any "support" you give them here won't be received. 

He had trouble getting separation last year, so that's improvement.  We might have a deep threat which we need.

Rudock didn't get sacked.  He bought time to make a throw, kept his eyes focused down the field and ran as a last resort.  He also hung tough a couple of times he knew he was going to be hit.

We ran a 2 minute offense that actually looked like a 2 minute offense.

We took the plays the defense was giving us and adjusted along the way.

Wide receiver screens that actually worked thanks to blocking the right guys.

Defensive line looked pretty good especially Wormley.

Peppers is off to a great start.  Looks like we have a good kick return guy.

We brought a blitz or two and they got home instead of "close but no cigar".

Defense looked pretty good, but they still give up a score after we scored.  Got to stop that.

Just wish we had opened with UNLV as the first game instead of opening vs. a good Utah team on the road.

Some random positive thoughts:

o No sacks given up ... when was the last game we had that?

o Walk-on kicker Allen boomed kickoffs out of endzone, and even his missed FG had distance. 

o O'Neill only punted three times, and he looked really good each time.  (ST play on that punt that pinned Utah deep was a damn thing of beauty ... even fooled the cameraman.)

o I think Peppers came to a point in 2H last night where he relaxed and said, "Fuck it, I'm just going to play football."  Jabrill playing loose is going to be quite something to watch.

o I love the fact Jourdan Lewis is out there quietly being superb.

o After the pick-6 Michigan didn't quit.  That's a testament to the team, and to the coaches. 

o I have no doubt whatsoever that Harbaugh and staff know what to do, and we'll see some really good improvement game 1 to game 2.