Playing bad and winning
I think the most exciting part about this win is the fact that finally, we played badly and still managed to win. RR said that this team will win when they deserve to win. Fumbles, holding penalties, late hit penalties, blown coverages, missed tackles, not converting third downs, pathetic returns on special teams and missed field goals to name a few. Yet in spite of all of that, this team still won. That's pretty special. Our boys played a far from perfect game and still won. I think this above all else signifies that we are on the right track. Let's hope when we play good teams we don't have near this many mistakes, but for now it's exciting to know that we can make mistakes and still beat a decent team. Go Blue!
September 11th, 2010 at 9:27 PM ^
But after not being able to buy breaks the last 2 seasons, karma still owes us freaking huge!
September 11th, 2010 at 9:57 PM ^
Not sure if we win if he would have stayed in. Glad the guy was not hurt. If he had a head injury, should he have even gone back in? Another break was the recovery of our own fumble.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:29 PM ^
No turnovers, though. That's the biggest one.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:49 PM ^
no fumbles lost, no interceptions and only 1 FUMBLE (not lost) - not fumbles. Had a soso game but it was a great win and it feels good dang it.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:49 PM ^
No turnovers, and we collected 3 turnovers. None of them were great plays, but at least our guys were in position to take advantage of Irish mistakes. The secondary had some horrific breakdowns, but hopefully those will be less common as they gain experience. The defensive performance wasn't quite as bad as the 534 yards allowed suggest, as ND had 17 possessions.
The offense still blows hot and cold, but at least it doesn't spectacularly self-destruct with turnovers the way it used to. The worst thing D Robinson generally does is throw hopeless dumpoffs on 3rd and long. They just need to work on not stopping themselves with dumb penalties.
Hopefully either Broekhuizen will step up or Gibbons will turn it around so we don't keep leaving points on the table.
We were lucky to escape with a win, but ND is a tough place to play even when Crist plays barely half the game. They will probably win 8 or so games this year.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:29 PM ^
Must be someone that expected a 49-0 win. The 3rd quarter was poor, but the rest of the game was Pure Michigan.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:34 PM ^
There were errors at critical times throughout the game, especially penalties. Holding calls and personal fouls drive the coaches nuts. When a personal foul occurs after a significant play for yardage, it's about the worst thing that can happen other than a score. I cannot agree more with the OP on this. When you can play below your abilities that much and yet still win, it says you are on track.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:51 PM ^
Yeah...
If it weren't for penalties and the kicking game (FG's and poor field position) this game wouldn't have been close.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:53 PM ^
Yes, the team didn't play a great game. Let's all be happy with the big win, but not be fooled into thinking we're a powerhouse. Our offense really didn't take advantage of our D stopping their 2nd and 3rd string QBs early. We had 170 yards in penalties (most seeming pretty unnecessary). We had a QB play another beyond insane game, but our RBs combined for about 30 yards. We don't seem able to hit a downfield pass (in the air) even when they're wide open. Our defense (other than the front) is questionable...secondary, no question there...they are poor.
So, that's the bad news. The good news is that we're 2-0 heading into the weak patch and should be 5-0 against MSU (who drew a total of 17 people, a chicken and a three crickets to see their super weak performance against "Let's just quit" Southern Central Boca Raton High School Tech). Go Blue!
September 11th, 2010 at 9:30 PM ^
Gave up 220 yards on 4 plays, directly leading to 14 points and indirectly to another 3. I would feel much better about our secondary if they would keep the ball from going over their head on 3rd and long. Agree completely about not playing well and winning!!!! Feels Great to be a MICHIGAN WOLVERINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
September 11th, 2010 at 9:34 PM ^
Certainly there were plenty of mistakes, but there were also a lot of good and great plays (Denard's last pass, the reception, the 3 pics, pressure from Death Roh, etc.). But I get your point, we didn't play our best or play a great game and we still won. This team could really be good when they get a little more experience.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:36 PM ^
can UM consistently get better each week to where they don't need to play poorly yet still win.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:38 PM ^
We can play a lot better. I agree with the thread starter. This was about toughness, competing and making plays when it counted.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:38 PM ^
can UM consistently get better each week to where they don't need to play poorly yet still win.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
can the team stay HEALTHY?
September 11th, 2010 at 9:50 PM ^
Yeah giving up 500 yards on defense and miscues are not good for the team.
But hey, we got the W. No harm in that!
Health is a critical factor for this team.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
Thanks to Denard and the last drive I won't have nightmares of Gordon looking totally inept on that TD throw from #10 to #9.
For a second I thought he looked like a punt return waving for a fair catch and eaiting for th eball to come straight down to him.
September 11th, 2010 at 9:50 PM ^
Over 500 yards of offense is not playing well, heh?
Eat it, kids. Notre Dame was a tough team.
GO BLUE.
September 11th, 2010 at 10:26 PM ^
They also gave up 535 yards of offense, were gifted two picks by the backup QB, and had 99 yards in penalties. Robinson was amazing, and the defense kept everything in front of them (except one obvious exception).
If Crist was in the whole game, Michigan probably loses. That said, this might be the best win of RR's tenure. They gutted out a win on the road on a crappy field. Good on them, time to gear up for the Big 10 season.
September 12th, 2010 at 2:39 AM ^
"If Crist was in the whole game, Michigan probably loses."
I wouldn't be so sure of that.
Montana had similar stats for the time he was in (minus the TD's) ...
Montana-8/17 for an average of 6.1 and an INT (Rees threw the first INT). He rushed 4 times for 23 yards.
Crist-13/25 for an average of 11.1 (skewed some by the one looong TD pass) and an INT. He ran 4 times for 19 yards.
Crist was also sacked once and threw his share of bad passes. Both had one fly out of the back of the endzone costing a score. IIRC Crist's INT was actually the most "gift-like"... Wasn't Montana's on the tipped pass? Crist also seemed to benefit alot more from our penalties.
Montana actually played pretty well for the quarter-1/2 or so he was in (despite not getting on the board). He helped put together an 80 yard drive in the second quarter and probably would have scored if there had been more time.
September 11th, 2010 at 10:12 PM ^
This is exactly what I thought on the way home today. Hopefully we can cut down on the personal fouls, but it is awesome we pulled that win off.
September 11th, 2010 at 10:19 PM ^
I think that it is very important that this team found a way to win. I would like to see some of the running backs contribute more. However, really can't be too upset. The fact that this win was on the road is also important. The rest of the season will certainly be interesting. GO BLUE!!!
September 11th, 2010 at 10:19 PM ^
...is giving the other team credit when they play well. ND has a lot of team speed. AAMOF, I would go so far as to say that they have as much team speed as Michigan does. Except, of course, for one player. You know, that guy who would probably be playing at Florida if Urban Meyer hadn't pretty much told him he wasn't good enough to play QB there by only recruiting him for the other side of the ball.
I wonder what Urban thinks of him as a QB now?
September 12th, 2010 at 1:02 AM ^
You win as a team and you lose as a team but this was the closest thing i've ever seen to a one man show.
September 12th, 2010 at 1:08 AM ^
I would prefer to call it winning ughly, but i won't complain. D.Rob was amaizing out there.
September 12th, 2010 at 2:43 AM ^
We went 3-16 on third downs, a far cry from last week . . . and still gained 532 yards of offense. That is just amazing.