Official Snowflake Thread: Offense
Per statements last week, this will be the official snowflake thread for thoughts regarding the offensive playcalling / coaching. There will also be a similar thread for defense. Special teams and coaching snowflake threads can be created as needed by volume, but this thread will be primarily for thoughts on the offensive performance.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:38 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:37 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:37 PM ^
Michigan may not be a top 15 team, but honestly what does rankings matter if your not going to go undefeated. I don't think they will win all of their games, but I still think they will win enough to go to Indy and play for a chance to go to Rose Bowl.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:37 PM ^
I'm here for the rain thread.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:37 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:41 PM ^
They need to get healthy (if that's what is wrong) or they need to shuffle it up. Bye week and then Minny at home to get ready for White Out at Happy Valley. Their effort the last 2 weeks will not get it done.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:47 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:43 PM ^
He looks pretty banged up too.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:38 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:44 PM ^
good snowflake or bad snowflake?
September 21st, 2013 at 11:48 PM ^
You saw him against ND. Very, very good.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:43 PM ^
We lost to what turned out to be an undefeated Utah team by 2. In retrospect, it might have been the most impressive performance that year considering the opponent.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:45 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
The defense got better. The offense is a smoldering pile of question mark. I don't see how we fix this in two weeks.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
I wish gigantic kidney stones on 90% of mgoblogers.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:44 PM ^
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:01 AM ^
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:08 AM ^
Keep it classy dude...
September 22nd, 2013 at 2:05 AM ^
DAVID FROM WYOMING, you are the most insufferable poster on this board. You never express an opinion of your own, only mock and make snide remarks about the opinions of others. Please go away.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:45 PM ^
This team is not playing good ball right now but they made some plays when they got down 21-7 and could have just bagged it.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
I'm not looking forward to going up against State's defense. Also, is the general concensus that Bryant comes in as LG next game?
September 21st, 2013 at 11:39 PM ^
Lewis blocked a guy in the back behind the dileo punt returner
Devin inexplicably turns his back to throwing pockets and hold the ball like a loaf of bread
We have a punt cover guy have a ball hit off his leg.
Taylor Lewan (who I love) gets a holding call to negate a long Gardner run and literally tackles Gardner on another play
Gardner looks horrified and inaccurate
Gallon is dropping balls
Chess on cant get a ball from a guy who picks it off and is about a foot shorter.
Green did not get a carry a dileo remains underused.
Fun chess and butt are underused
All in all, it was a good colonoscopy.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:42 PM ^
September 22nd, 2013 at 10:52 AM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:53 PM ^
Pretty tough to blame that pick on Chesson, and he had that great catch on a 3rd and long.
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:07 AM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:40 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:42 PM ^
OH NO. 8 and 4?!?!?
September 21st, 2013 at 11:43 PM ^
Again, the only sane person in this place.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:48 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:53 PM ^
Oh, I agree. We have the (young) talent to do better than that. But, "bitch-please" if going 8-4 is worse than death. Look back to the RR years and 8-4 seems just fine.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:54 PM ^
AMIRITE?
September 21st, 2013 at 11:49 PM ^
Based on the game I just saw, 8-4 would be awesome.
September 22nd, 2013 at 2:05 AM ^
DAVID FROM WYOMING, you are the most insufferable poster on this board. You never express an opinion of your own, only mock and make snide remarks about the opinions of others. Please go away.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:47 PM ^
That'd seriously be awesome now that we know what we've got. I'd take 8-4 in a heartbeat if it were on the table right now.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:53 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:40 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:40 PM ^
Oline was blerg again. This one's on Devin though, he's got to get his head straight again. The guy's nerves are just shot. Turn overs are one thing, but when your QB doesn't trust anything or anyone, especially himself, you aren't going to win many games. I wouldn't be surprised to hear he's been dinged up or something beyond just mental. The two 3rd down conversion throws to Jehu and then Gallon were huge to build his confidence back up. Hopefully a week off will be beneficial for everyone.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:49 PM ^
September 22nd, 2013 at 1:40 AM ^
I didn't notice anything physical until the 4th quarter when, oddly enough, he started playing better. His turnovers were really unfortunate for him. I thought both the INTs were decent reads, just not great throws. Gallon got his hands on the first one and just couldn't bring it in, and Chesson was 1 on 1 and had a step. Both were a few inches from turning out well. The fumble is on him though, gotta protect the football, even from your own guys in a QB sneak scenario with so many bodies flying all over.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:50 PM ^
Devin was a mess tonight, but this is definitely on the OL. You have to give your QB time to get in a rhythym against a team whose DL got shut down by Towson. Devin had a man in his face almost every time he dropped back until late in the 3rd quarter. Our OL is unbelievably bad for a program with our resources and talent. It's really unbelievable. Our walkons and true freshmen should be far better than whatever Towson rolls out there on the OL, and yet we gave up at least three sacks tonight and god knows how many QB hurries. Towson gave up no sacks.
Devin needs to remember that he can still throw it out of bounds when he's going to get sacked. Just because of that one asinine play against ND, it doesn't mean you still can't ever throw the ball away.
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:01 AM ^
The scheme we have and the play calls don't help much IMO. Great coaches usually have a way of coming up with SOMETHING to overcome weaknesses - that is why they get the big bucks.
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:07 AM ^
But our scheme/playcalls dropped 41 points on ND, too. ND's other three opponents have scored a combined total of 43 points. When Devin is confident and making good decisions, this offense can hum. But he hasn't been the last two weeks.
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:34 AM ^
Our OL was completely overcome in the ND game, too. Devin just player other-worldly. After a few more data points, I'm thinking his performance that game was well into the right tail of the normal distribution.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:40 PM ^
September 21st, 2013 at 11:44 PM ^
But for all that predictability, DEvin diving forward or throwing earlier gets them first downs and/or TDs. I'm not saying Borges didn't have a bad game, but it was a failure in implementation as much as gameplan today.
September 21st, 2013 at 11:55 PM ^
I actually don't have a huge problem with the late playcalling. Here's why:
Gardner was not handling regular passing routes well. He was holding the ball extra long, scrambling, and getting sacked. He was making turnovers.
Borges decided to adjust to what is quarterback could offer rather than hard-headedly keep doing the same thing. Gardner was able to run the football, and so Borges called runs.
Mr. Yost, you probably forgot (as is easy to do) the first plays called, which were all short drops and quick passes. Devin started out throwing well running the Borges script. Then things broke down, and he couldn't make a throw.
Now, I think there are some structural problems with Borges; his scheme has a low margin for error, and some of his "counter" plays are easier to mess up than, say, a quick bubble-screen. I also question his ability to develop players.
But this gameplan wasn't the worst thing in the world, and the playcalling in the second half was specifically designed to win the game exactly the way it did.
September 22nd, 2013 at 12:00 AM ^
I didn't think Borges called that bad of a game. He stuck with the run to take pressure off Gardner and while it took awhile to pay off, it did in the 4th quarter. When your QB is a bundle of nerves and your OL can't protect him at all, your hand is pretty limited.