Let's have a football discussion: Can we get Cam McGrone and Josh Ross on the field at the same time.
If this defense is gonna take another step forward we need these 2 playing together instead of rotating. Glasgow is a great kid and a very hard worker, but is a step slower than Ross and maybe 2 steps slower than Cam. I think he should probably be rotating with Hudson. I realize Ross was on the sideline in a boot, so it might not even be an option currently, but when the time comes, we need that speed we've been hearing about all off season.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:27 AM ^
McGrone did look really damn good. It made me wonder if the best guys aren't always seeing the field for whatever reason.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:41 AM ^
Reminiscent of Bolden over Gedeon which we saw a few years back
September 30th, 2019 at 10:52 AM ^
McGrone is not as quick to read and react as Glasgow. There are positives and negatives for each player. It's quite possible that McGrone has been behind, but is catching up in regard to his knowledge and awareness of the game.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:32 AM ^
They aren't playing the same position. The comparison should be Ross and Glasgow. Glasgow is not very good in coverage. Great kid, athletically limited.
September 30th, 2019 at 1:27 PM ^
I don't know why the comparison "should" be Ross and Glasgow. You can compare whoever you want. That's not who I'm comparing.
I'm comparing McGrone to Glasgow. They both played WILL in week one. Glasgow started, and McGrone came in at WILL late in the game.
September 30th, 2019 at 1:58 PM ^
Actually McGrone has practiced A LOT at WILL...not just MLB. As has Jordan Anthony. As did Ross last year.
If Glasgow went down you'd probably see Gil, but I wouldn't be surprised if McGrone stepped in.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:35 AM ^
If we don’t play Mcgrone and Ross at the same time against OSU, then I can only imagine the beat down Glasgow will get chasing around their fleet of foot receivers.
It’ll be coaching malpractice 2.0 like last year if he’s on the field against OSU like Watson especially since Don Brown refuses to address the crossing routes problem that beats his “scheme” 24/7.
September 30th, 2019 at 12:18 PM ^
Regarding these cross routes that kill us...
I've noticed that when someone reaches the QB, its never one, but two guys coming from the same spot... and it doesn't seem like we run a ton of stunts... so... why not drop back one of the DL, and rush one less? Have that DL guard on the cross routes.... in other words, rush one less.
September 30th, 2019 at 3:30 PM ^
Agreed. And have all DL get hands up on every quick pass. It seemed like Mattison didn't coach that - maybe because he felt DL were better off continuing to push toward the QB. I was hoping with Nua that we'd emphasize this more.
Some of the easiest passes to knock down are short crossing routes. If we aren't going to get pressure up the middle, especially on quick passes, at least we can get our hands up.
October 1st, 2019 at 12:20 AM ^
I mean, that’s great if you know they are running a quick passing play. But this place is going to melt down if Michigan starts rushing three and quarterbacks have all day to throw. Gerg was maligned for his tendency to play lot’s of coverage.
You can drop a DL there as part of various zone blitzes, but those have costs too.
September 30th, 2019 at 9:17 PM ^
Also the previous Gil situation....
September 30th, 2019 at 10:51 AM ^
I think it is really easy to see the pure athletic ability of a McGrone and say that "the best kids are not playing," but in the modern game knowing where to be, not just the ability to get there in a hurry, has to be a huge part of the equation. We often have difficulty assessing this without knowing the specific assignments each player has on any given play. If players are not sure of assignments/reads, even 1 player being in the wrong place on a defense can kill a team. It is possible that Glasgow just knows the defense better and is more likely to be where he needs to be and as McGrone continues to improve and learn the MLB position, Ross will slide over to the position he played last year, displacing Glasgow.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:58 AM ^
I sometimes wonder if I’m watching a different McGrone than most of the board. Yes, he’s clearly a big fast 5* athlete but he has looked completely lost most of the first glimpses we have had. Per Magnus’ comment I think he is getting up to speed mentally and will hopefully become the dominant player he can be. None of Ross, Anthony, or McGrone looked as instinctive or mentally prepared as Devin Bush and even he struggled at times his first year.
McGrone’s PI penalty Saturday looked to me like a momentary lapse to his earlier snaps where he just panicked and grabbed a guy instead of playing football. The fact that we saw many good plays Saturday in addition to that was more of a revelation compared to earlier.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:10 AM ^
I don't doubt that you're both right about him not being up to speed or as familiar with the playbook as the older guys are, that's to be expected.
But he moved like a missile when he knew where he was going. And that's what we're going to need to stop OSU.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:29 AM ^
Not sure what you saw, but he just hit the guy as he was coming in his crossing route. He didn't grab him. I just thought he was gonna bump a receiver crossing his face and didn't realize the ball was in the air. I believe the crossing routes caused this. If you look at 21:43 (pick route) 1:14 (pick route) It affected him on the PI. He doesn't even realize the ball was thrown.
September 30th, 2019 at 1:39 PM ^
Surely hope that the NCAA sooner rather than later makes picks a point of emphasis. During the broadcast the announcers joked about calling them rub routes until they get called for a penalty then they are picks. OSU and in a lot of cases MSU run an extensive amount of picks. Not sure that we shouldn't join the crowd because they sure as hell don't seem to ever call these picks even when they are blatant.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:06 AM ^
Hate to bring up Urban Meyer again on this board, but I remember him breaking down film a few weeks back and he said something to the extent of "first thing we did each week was make a list of the 11 best players on offense and defense, then it was our job to make sure that those 11 saw the field (i.e. if we had 2 tight ends in that list then we would figure out a way to play them"
College football is a game where more and more it seems like you need to get your elite talent on the field and just let them ball. Definitely seems like we let some of our talent ride the bench for too long.
September 30th, 2019 at 12:57 PM ^
best is short for "best chance to win";
an amazing athlete with incredible speed heading away from his assignment is worse than a clod in the proper position.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:28 AM ^
Yes, please. Not sure why they both have to play the same position. I'd like to see one of them moved to WLB, with Anthony, Hudson, Gil, and Wangler providing the other LB position and the rotations when needed. And find a way to get Uche on the field for every snap, also...
GET YOUR BEST PLAYERS ON THE FIELD!!!!
September 30th, 2019 at 10:37 AM ^
Dude...it's Glasgow, not Wangler.
GLASGOW!
September 30th, 2019 at 11:14 AM ^
GOT DAMMIT!!!!
Three times now! Three times I've confused them. I swear it isn't intentional, or personal. It's just dumb! Eff me, I gotta get this straight!
September 30th, 2019 at 10:28 AM ^
Ross should spend the entire time he is out watching film and learning Glasglow’s position (WLB).
September 30th, 2019 at 10:33 AM ^
Ross already knows the position. He played WLB last year with Bush at MLB!
September 30th, 2019 at 10:50 AM ^
wow duh (brain fart from me), then it should be an easy transition back for him.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:53 AM ^
...or he could just come back and play MIKE.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:58 AM ^
Magnus I always respect your opinion, are you suggesting brining Ross back at MIKE and moving McGrone to WILL?
September 30th, 2019 at 11:36 AM ^
I'm not really talking about moving McGrone to WILL. He has already been playing WILL at times. Those inside linebacker positions are largely interchangeable. People get cross trained all the time. Michigan typically has two starters, and the third guy comes in at either spot.
So far this year the third guy has been Jordan Anthony. I think Anthony's performance opened the door for McGrone to get an opportunity to play.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:39 AM ^
I'll answer for him. Likely, no. He sees concerns with McGrone's ability to read and less about his ability to react. Glasgow, in totality, has a better combination of the two.
I would love to see a combo of McGrone and D. Hill on the starting rotation. I'm just a nitwit keyboard coach so luckily, I have no say.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:30 AM ^
OK, as long as the discussion isn't some bullshit a troll posted or another thread about Urban Meyer ...
*checks OP and re-reads thread title*
Yes. Also, isn't there a way to mix and match the LBs to get Anthony or Gil out there instead of Glasgow?
Ross, Cam and Gil? Ross, Cam and Anthony?
September 30th, 2019 at 10:39 AM ^
1) No thanks on Gil, or to a lesser extent - Anthony, I don't think they are an upgrade over Glasgow
2) Not really - before this year we would typically have 3 LBs on the field and they would be a combination of 4 LB type positions - MLB, WLB, SAM and Viper. With this defense - it has expanded to all 4 because we are only playing 3 lineman and SAM (Uche) has been on the field for most downs
With this defense I would like to see all 4 LB type positions on the field for most standard downs with the following depth / rotation:
MLB - Ross, McGrone, Anthony
WLB - McGrone, Anthony, Gil
SAM - Uche, Uche, Uche
Viper - Hudson, Glasgow, Barrett
September 30th, 2019 at 10:55 AM ^
Gotcha. Wonder if Gil is hurt or if fatherhood is taking to much away (mentally) from the game or if he's just plateau'd.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
I couldn’t understand why Gil was playing ahead of Ross last year, I don’t recall ever seeing a game where he jumped off the screen the way McGrone did in a few plays on Saturday. I suspect Gil is what he is, and some of the more talented guys have just passed him on the depth chart.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:40 AM ^
I wonder if Anthony just isn't ready yet, but I agree wholeheartedly with this sentiment. Although it looks like Gill is having trouble, unless he is injured, getting any playing time.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:32 AM ^
I think we're a lot faster with Dwumfor, Uche, McGrone, & Dax all in the game together than their counterparts.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:43 AM ^
Glasgow had a bad game. Don't forget he had a very good game against Army (as did Jordan Anthony) and played his ass off against Wisconsin. McGrone's ceiling is high. He's young and he's going to have bad games too. It's going to depend on who is most consistent. That's not the first time McGrone has played LB for Michigan. It's just the first time you've noticed him. Go easy.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:53 AM ^
Glasgow is a good player, but when it comes to teams that have speed across the board he is going to struggle. The thing that helps him against teams like Army and Wisconsin is his high IQ and discipline. He has those tools and uses them well, but that will only get you so far.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:44 AM ^
This is spot on. Glasgow obviously has it together mentally, but is behind physically. McGrone the opposite. Given where they are in their careers, that makes sense.
1 guess where OSU falls on the speed spectrum. Glad to see McGrone getting reps and learning, because he'll need to know what he is doing the last Saturday of November.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:43 AM ^
Also Hill.
They both are young and will probably bust on a play occasionally but the upside is worth it. Their athleticism pops out on TV.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:45 AM ^
Find a way to get Hill, McGrone and Uche on the field at all times. Hill may be slim, but that dude is a heat seeking missle when he is let loose. The same can be said for McGrone.
September 30th, 2019 at 10:59 AM ^
Play all the fast guys. Even if they miss an occasional assignment, at least they have the speed to recover.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
And they learn by playing. There is only one game that means anything now this year, let's get them ready for it.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:01 AM ^
Glasgow didn't have a great game against Rutger, but without him vs Army, we probably didn't make it to OT. He led the team in tackles and sacks after 2 games, was probably the defensive MVP of both.
Maybe he just had a bad game. I'm going to trust that the coaches know better who to play and when.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:04 AM ^
This guy gets it.
anthony is at least a year away, but if you can get Cam and Ross on the field together, that’s a scary second level
edit: was supposed to be in response to ThisGuyFawkes
September 30th, 2019 at 11:09 AM ^
No!
I'd rather talk about Harbaugh needing to show more fire than Wisconsin, but less fire than Rutgers relative to the opponent (too much fire for just Rutgers). He has my permission to do his podcast this week, though.
Keys to Victory against Iowa: We win if Harbaugh isn't wearing his transition lenses
September 30th, 2019 at 11:26 AM ^
Yes, Glasgow is the kind of “tough”, “gritty”, “hustling”, “hardworking” guy that this fan base loves to gush over, but you just don’t win big with his level of athleticism.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:52 AM ^
Him and Gil both. Love those guys. They've done more with less than 75% of the other recruits at that position so far.
But they are limited athletes. You would hope a team like Michigan wouldn't need two of them to start at the same time.
September 30th, 2019 at 9:23 PM ^
Glasgow is the kind of guy that this head coach loves to gush over.
FIFY.
September 30th, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
When Ross gets back, I'm thinking he plays Mike and we shift McGrone to Will.
September 30th, 2019 at 1:28 PM ^
McGrone has already been playing WILL...
September 30th, 2019 at 12:14 PM ^
Not against Iowa since JH just said Ross is doubtful.