Minor Rage
I may have missed this, but has anyone heard anything about why Brown was in ahead of Minor today? Brown certainly made the most of it, but it sure seems like Minor is still the starter. That is certainly a tougher call after Brown's performance today, although it seemed that any running back that got the ball today did well.
September 20th, 2009 at 10:52 AM ^
Minor tweaked his ankle early in the game I believe.
September 20th, 2009 at 10:55 AM ^
There's various articles on the web this morning on this.....he has a sore ankle and supposedly he was feeling some pain, so RR decided to keep him out. 3 rushes for I think 21 yards, then he sat.
September 20th, 2009 at 10:58 AM ^
(edit, meant for a new board item)
September 20th, 2009 at 11:19 AM ^
Rod said in a post game interview that he had some pain after a couple plays. Coaches decision to keep him out for the rest of the day with the Big Ten schedule starting next week.
September 20th, 2009 at 11:20 AM ^
Smart to keep him healthy. We'll need him to be 100% once the Big Ten season starts. CB did a more than adequate job filling in for him too.
September 20th, 2009 at 11:50 AM ^
Save his health for when it contributes to wins, not just padding stats.
September 20th, 2009 at 12:26 PM ^
If Denard filled in at RB against eastern he'd have 500yds. rushing by himself. 25 carries for an avg. of 20yds. =500.
September 20th, 2009 at 12:38 PM ^
I love a 90 yard TD from Carlos just as much as anyone else, but let's be honest here, he only seems to show up against EMUs and the likes. I only recall him having 2 other big games, 1 vs Minnesota last year(once again a cupcake), and vs Illinois a few years back. If he could stay healthy it might be a different story, but when it matters most, Minor is clearly our best RB, no questions asked.
September 20th, 2009 at 2:21 PM ^
They're both good backs. I don't understand why people feel the need to tear one of them down to build the other up.
Let's not forget that during his first two seasons, a guy named Mike Hart was playing tailback, hogging most of the non-garbage time carries. There weren't many critical carries available for Brown or Minor those two years. When Brown did have a chance to see significant PT, against Illinois and Minnesota, he recorded two 100-yard games.
As for last year, Brown wasn't healthy most of the year. Are you going to knock him for being injured? If so, you should find "fault" with Minor for missing most of the first half of last season and parts of this season already.
This was Brown's fourth 100-yard game. His first three came against Illinois, Minnesota and Northwestern - all Big Ten defenses. If they're "cupcakes," then most of our schedule consists of them.
September 20th, 2009 at 2:26 PM ^
The fact of the matter is that Carlos needs space to operate, he can't "create the space for himself", in contrast, Minor can absorb the hit and continue for an additional burst. He doesn't have the speed that Brown has, but he's a better every down back in the Big 10. Carlos is a good back, but I just think Minor is better.
September 20th, 2009 at 3:01 PM ^
Yes, but while Brown has four 100 yard games against the likes of Illinois, Minnesota, EMU, and Northwestern (none of which would be considered powerhouses), Minor has 100 yard games against the likes of Penn State and Notre Dame.
September 20th, 2009 at 6:37 PM ^
The Illinois team that Brown topped 100 yards against went 9-4, beat OSU in Columbus, and went to the Rose Bowl. The Northwestern team he topped 100 yards against went 9-4 last year. If these are "cupcakes," then basically almost every team we face is one.
Again: they're both good backs. I don't understand why people feel the need to tear one of them down to build the other up. I'm happy we have both, along with Shaw.
September 20th, 2009 at 6:57 PM ^
I didn't say they were cupcakes. I'm saying PSU and ND are probably better than Northwestern and Illinois (and Minnesota and Eastern Michigan).
Nobody's tearing Brown down. You're going overboard. I haven't seen one person on here "tearing down" Carlos Brown. I've seen people saying they'd take Minor over Brown. If I say I think Barry Sanders was a better back than Emmitt Smith, does that mean I'm tearing down Emmitt Smith?
September 20th, 2009 at 6:43 PM ^
Or look at it like this - every game he's started he's gotten big numbers.
September 20th, 2009 at 1:00 PM ^
Yeah, i like the combo of speed (brown) and power (minor) it is really nice to pound defenses with minor and once in a while offset it with brown with speed. they combine to make a sweet 1-2 punch.