So... feeling better about things?
Not a perfect game, but a FAR better one.
Shea looked good. I think Gattis on the sideline had a lot to do with this.
Shutout against Rutgers. Not the best D performance we've had, but it clicked when it needed to.
Credit where credit is due. I still think we need to be tempered and see what happens next week, but this looked a lot better than either of our first two games.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:33 PM ^
Good win, enjoy it.
On to Iowa!
September 28th, 2019 at 4:58 PM ^
Just a spoonfull of Rutger makes the season go down in the most delightful way!
September 29th, 2019 at 12:31 AM ^
Yeah, never thought I'd say this, but thank you Jim Delaney.
We needed that one.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:33 PM ^
It's an Henri, Otter of Ennui, game. I'll figure out how I feel after Iowa.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:43 PM ^
I have no idea what beating Rutgers soundly means, other than they are a really bad team and we beat a really bad team badly.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:53 PM ^
This seems reasonable.
What seems unreasonable is half the MGoblogosphere losing their shit when Maryland or Penn State run it up against FBS competition and are suddenly unbeatable juggernauts.
Once they play teams with a pulse (Temple for Maryland, Pitt for PSU) their flaws are evident.
This Michigan team is who most people pre-season thought they were. High ceiling talent on offense running a new system and a personnel/youth limited defensive line. It's going to take time for this team to gel and if it does they could be solid. We'll see.
Nice to see angry Harbaugh re-emerge periodically.
September 28th, 2019 at 4:10 PM ^
Yeah, but Pedo st just beat the Terps by 59....
September 28th, 2019 at 4:31 PM ^
Ha Maryland and juggernaut
September 28th, 2019 at 5:29 PM ^
Please take a poll how many people predicted being 35 down at Madison?
Nobody? Ok shut up
September 28th, 2019 at 6:06 PM ^
Now take a poll on how many people thought Purdue would beat OSU by 29 last year.
Nobody? Yeah, football scores can be weird. Now shut up.
September 28th, 2019 at 6:55 PM ^
How about being blown out 3 of your last 5 games? So you shut up too.
September 29th, 2019 at 3:40 AM ^
"So you shut up too." Even The Bard would be in awe of that level of eloquence.
September 28th, 2019 at 9:51 PM ^
Michigan has 0 credibility when it comes to bouncing back and winning trophies. OSU has that. PSU has that.
Until we actually pull a 2016 PSU and win the fucking conference everyone needs to stfu and take it one game at a time.
September 28th, 2019 at 10:55 PM ^
Agreed. It feels kinda dirty. Like i went to the club and didn’t go home with the hottie. I still ended up pulling but they are out of shape and have a lazy eye. Should I feel good about that?
September 28th, 2019 at 3:33 PM ^
No, but I am feeling better about stuff..
September 28th, 2019 at 3:34 PM ^
Lack of self-inflicted setbacks was a big step.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:35 PM ^
Iowa is a good team and a legit top 25 squad who will have a shot in the west division until the end. Next week will tell us a TON.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:46 PM ^
Only if we lose. If we win, "Illinois will tell us a TON."
September 28th, 2019 at 4:16 PM ^
I assume we can learn as much from Illinois as we did from Rutgers... so, pretty much nothing.
September 29th, 2019 at 4:39 PM ^
No, I'm pretty sure if we beat Iowa we will also beat Illinois, Maryland, Indiana, and MSU. If we lose to Iowa, 6-6 might be possible.
Iowa is a pivotal game this season and will tell us whether we are dealing with a team that wins eight games with a shot at 9 or team that is going to be bowl eligible hopefully
September 28th, 2019 at 4:15 PM ^
Agree ! Can't base much on the Rutgers win but a big win next week will be huge. That's a very good Iowa team.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:35 PM ^
What happens next week will have a lot more value, but it was nice to see the team looking prepared and the offense looking coherent.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:35 PM ^
Not one single bit. Nothing changed. It will change for me if we look good against Iowa.
EDIT: The main reason was the running game. Under four yards a carry against an awful team.
September 28th, 2019 at 5:27 PM ^
If you back out the yards/carries of the backups it's not nearly that bad. Surprisingly, Shea really brings the ratio down. Turner, Haskins and Charbonnet averaged 4.6 yards/carry.
September 28th, 2019 at 6:04 PM ^
Yes but I'm guessing much of that average came from the one garbage time possession where Haskins popped off a couple longer runs. Watching live there were not many holes or push
September 29th, 2019 at 9:53 AM ^
I mean if you know football, you’d know the yards per carry gets skewed by a number of goal line type plays. Our top four running backs averaged 4.4 yards per carry.
Our QBs having 6 carries for 5 yards (and 4 rushing TDs) probably has a bit more to do with lower yards per carry.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:35 PM ^
Come on, it's just Rutger
September 28th, 2019 at 3:35 PM ^
Rutgers. I never judge the performance based on playing Rutgers.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:36 PM ^
No , not really. But if it gives the team confidence, that is a good thing going forward .
September 28th, 2019 at 3:37 PM ^
No. We ran for 3.4 YPC against a bad team. The running game still scares the hell out of me and it doesn’t seem to be improving at all.
September 28th, 2019 at 4:15 PM ^
The OL is weak, still. That is the issue
September 29th, 2019 at 12:08 PM ^
How the hell is the O AND D line THIS WEAK after 5 years?
Before you crucify me on the D line, they cant generate pressure or stop the run without bringing a blitz package.
September 28th, 2019 at 4:17 PM ^
We refuse to pull the ball. I think the lack of ever pulling the ball on zone read is a lot of the reason our run game never goes anywhere.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:37 PM ^
Solid today, but rutger. Next week is key.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:37 PM ^
We looked like we are supposed to look against Rutgers except we still don’t run the ball well. Will let you know how I feel next week.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:37 PM ^
I don't know. Went fishing with my boys instead. Ran into another Michigan fan that had the same idea. Don't know if I was surprised by that or not.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:41 PM ^
how'd you do fishing? how much dynamite did you go through?
September 28th, 2019 at 3:50 PM ^
Caught some beautiful small browns that we released. Decided to pack it in when my oldest saw a rainbow near a boat ramp and just snatched it up with his bare hands. Very cool. And now I get to look forward to watching the game on dvr later. Win win. Didn't have to use the TNT.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:38 PM ^
September 28th, 2019 at 4:01 PM ^
We’ve seen them win home games vs mid tier top 25 teams. Won’t feel better until we beat potentially undefeated and top 7 penn state.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:38 PM ^
One thing that watching football over six different decades has taught me . . . bad teams have a way of making merely good teams look like great teams.
Rutgers is so bad they made us look great.
Remember how great Maryland looked in its first two games? When they played non-bad teams, the mirage faded away.
But still, I'm happy to see a solid win for Michigan. We will know a little more next week.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:42 PM ^
Felt good. Should always do that to teams like Rutgers. Next week is shaping up to be a big one. Likely #14 Iowa at #18 Michigan.
A chance for Harbaugh to get a big ranked win and boost the resume. Hopefully the crowd is much better than today.
September 29th, 2019 at 6:58 AM ^
Agree with all your points, except beating the #14 team is not a "big ranked win." It is a 'ranked win,' but that's about it.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:42 PM ^
After watching Iowa dominate mtsu and northwestern hang with wisconsin I think I might be a bit more worried.
September 28th, 2019 at 7:29 PM ^
True. But we did beat Rutgers far worse than Iowa did for what it’s worth.
September 28th, 2019 at 9:06 PM ^
As you should be.
September 29th, 2019 at 1:35 AM ^
I was at the UW-NW game today. NW’s defense was stout — far better against the run than we were — but Wisconsin (both the team and their fans) wasn’t nearly as hyped for NW as they were for us. Makes me realize what Michigan’s up against: everyone wants to take down a historical Goliath, especially one not at its full strength. Tough to sneak up on people in that scenario. A lot easier to lose games you should win or struggle in games you should dominate. But that’s the task at hand.....
September 28th, 2019 at 3:42 PM ^
Its going to be relatively pointless to have any threads until after Iowa. Before the game ever started it was going to be hell if Michigan didnt blow them out and was going to be whatever if they did by most posters on here.
September 28th, 2019 at 3:43 PM ^
Great game for Michigan. Just what was needed. We finished off all the Kool Aid at our house today. Feeling better about our planned family trip to Husky stadium to see Michigan play opener next year as Washington only beat Rutgers at Rutgers 30-16 earlier this year. Allowing 7 points per home field advantage, I was hoping for something better than a 28 point win vs. Rutgers and got an all points scored by Michigan blowout. Go Blue and beat Iowa !