Spotlight on TB Ty Isaac

Submitted by UMProud on

"Isaac, 6-3, 228 pounds, said he was surprised that he got the call on a play designed for a "speed back" but was pleased to hear his number called.

"Everybody got to their assignments and did their jobs," said Isaac, "and it opened up. Just as far as contributing, it felt good. I'd been here for a year without playing and did a lot of practice squad stuff. I know that stuff helps the team, but it feels a lot better when you can put it on the scoreboard and help your team win."

He sat out last season after transferring to Michigan from Southern Cal.

Isaac, who finished with eight carries for 114 yards Saturday, has great potential. He was a five-star recruit, and USA Today named him the second-team tailback on its All-America team."

Source:  mgoblue.com, 9/19/2015, Steve Kornacki

http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/091915aad.html

 

MGoBoard

O S Who

September 20th, 2015 at 2:05 PM ^

I'm guessing Isaac was just being modest. Every running back that has a good game gives credit to their blocking if they have a hint of humility. What do you expect him to say? "The oline blocked the play like shit but since I'm such a beast I threw Glasgow into two guys opening up a hole and then ran through two guys before turning on the burners to the end zone."

Joined: 01/02/2011

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Farnn

September 20th, 2015 at 11:17 AM ^

Isaac needs to get down the blocking aspect of RB before he can be the starter and so far he hasn't showed he's great at that.  There's a reason Smith has been the RB on 3rd downs or the one who stays in to block before slipping out to make a reception even though Isaac is the better reciever.  He has great potential but things like that will limit his snaps until he gets them corrected.

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The Dude

September 20th, 2015 at 11:43 AM ^

he has worse vision and foot speed than Smith and close to no balance. Somebody of his size should be running people over, but that rarely, if ever, happens. He's the #4 RB, Outside of injuries and or a blow out, I don't expect to see a lot of him. 

Joined: 09/13/2014

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BroadneckBlue21

September 20th, 2015 at 12:08 PM ^

To you, he has worse vision and speed, and to others, he does not. Green has no leg drive, but he has much better vision. He cuts, perhaps, a little too much. He has change of direction skills, but less balance, as you state. He's not as good at blocking, and perhaps he is down on the depth chart because he doesn't have the personal, day to day effort that Harbaugh expects. 

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BroadneckBlue21

September 20th, 2015 at 12:08 PM ^

To you, he has worst vision and speed, and to others, he does not. Green has no leg drive, but he has much better vision. He cuts, perhaps, a little too much. He has change of direction skills, but less balance, as you state. He's not as good at blocking, and perhaps he is down on the depth chart because he doesn't have the personal, day to day effort that Harbaugh expects. 

Joined: 01/12/2015

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goblue16

September 20th, 2015 at 12:16 PM ^

Still think johnson and isaac are the best we have. Smith has a great game agianst the beavers but hes still having trouble finding the holes to run through. We should discuss this again in 4 weeks

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Coach Carr Camp

September 20th, 2015 at 12:44 PM ^

When Smith does hit the hole, gets to second level, makes contact at 5-6 yards and drags it into an 8-9 yard game, it's a thing of beauty, and I can see why Harbaugh is partial to him. But I think the burst Drake and Ty have gives us a better chance if breaking a few 15-20 yard plays.

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Qmatic

September 20th, 2015 at 12:21 PM ^

By B1G play I see Isaac and Johnson being our guys (I can see them being a dangerous 1-2 because of their contrasting styles) and Smith being our 3rd down back.

I know this post is about Isaac who looked real good, but man the burst Drake shows is unmatched. I'm cautiously optimistic about our run game going forward

Joined: 01/09/2013

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Jackhammer

September 21st, 2015 at 9:02 AM ^

I agree with this after being at the game Saturday. Drake Johnson in his limited role so far just looks incredibly fast and decisive compared to Smith. It visually just stood out (real scientific) so much to me. Isaac probably split the difference between these backs in those categories.

Joined: 01/06/2015

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MadtownMaize

September 20th, 2015 at 12:42 PM ^

I was impressed with Isaac's speed after the great stiff arm on his TD run. Hopefully that will help when we get him more involved in the passing game. Let's face it, our passing game is going to be centered around short passes, so we need guys who can break tackles and gain chunks of yards after the catch.

 

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mgoBobbo

September 20th, 2015 at 10:16 PM ^

A few complained that he's slow (I think someone said "slowest 70+ yard run ever" in the game thread), but I think it just looks that way because he's so big - no one was catching him.  He might not be a 4.4 burner, but neither are a lot of the big backs.  But they can still get plenty of yards.

Joined: 09/14/2010

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Blueinsconsin

September 20th, 2015 at 1:13 PM ^

and I probably am, but I would love to see Ty switched to H-back, so we can have him and Smith on the field at the same time.  With Drake Johnson getting healthier and healthier, maybe we can see that move?

Joined: 08/24/2011

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Blueinsconsin

September 21st, 2015 at 10:36 AM ^

35 more carries and there's a reason why he's the starter.  Don't get me wrong, Isaac had an awesome game and I'm not discounting that he may be better than Smith, but if we can use both of them on the field at the same time? That's where the upside is.  There's so many things you can do with both Ty and Deveon on the field at the same time, it would just add another wrinkle, and a highly impactful one, that teams have to prepare for.

Joined: 08/24/2011

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Magnus

September 21st, 2015 at 11:24 AM ^

I wouldn't be opposed to seeing certain packages where they're on the field at the same time, but Isaac shouldn't "move" (a.k.a. change positions) to H-back. That would be silly. And I would rather see Smith lead blocking for Isaac than the other way around.

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MGoUberBlue

September 20th, 2015 at 2:52 PM ^

And I think that we can see some big numbers for yards gained.

Rotate him with Drake for a different 1 - 2 punch.

Green or Smith to H-back as I think their time is dwindling as feature running back.

Joined: 06/06/2011

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UofM626

September 20th, 2015 at 9:14 PM ^

And I'm gonna say that Green is better then Smith as well. Both Isaac and Green have far superior vision then Smith. Isaac makes people miss because he anticipates the holes closing. Green as well sees the field better then Smith. I wouldn't be surprised if Isaac and Green end up splitting carries by the end of the year. Smith is good but he's not as talented as the other 2 and does not see the holes and hit the holes as fast as Isaac or Green. Isaac needs 15 carries a game min and Green needs at least 10 and we will win a lot of games:

Joined: 01/02/2012

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Honk if Ufer M…

September 20th, 2015 at 11:20 PM ^

I haven't been able to watch the game yet but I've seen Ty's run and a few other plays. Ty didn't look fast to me on the big run and he hasn't looked fast to me in the previous games. I don't understand people calling him fast and he agrees with me and said so in a very matter of fact way.

I haven't had the chance to see any of Drake's runs yet, but if some of you are right that he has all his speed, burst & moves back then there's no contest between him and the other 3 in my book other than in certain situations when you want a Smith battering ram.

Smith is probably better suited at fullback/H back. However Sione might be better there than Smith because he can probably batter as ram-ishly but also has a quick side step/shift to allow him to keep running sometimes.

But the reality is probably that none of those guys is the best running back on this team. That would probably be Jabrill Peppers.

I saw his punt return, and his kick return last week, and the other guys just don't have what he has. I know what most of you will say, but I think his addition to the offense would far outweigh his contributions to the defense at this point.

The offense desperately needs his game breaking, game changing ability and would see it's effects on every play. On defense, his coverage isn't that solid yet and his big play ability has only shown a couple or three times so far.

The defense is deep and good & would still be good without him. Of course he can still play both ways anyway and if you want to keep him full time on D he can still play some offense too but not full time.

I think between the extra yards, the extra 1st downs and extra TD's I believe he would provide over whatever other back or receiver would be in his place, and how much attention would be paid to him by the defense opening up everything else, it would have a dramatic effect on our point production and time of possession. Those things will help the defense as well.

The dropoff if he wasn't playing D or wasn't playing it full time, wouldn't be as great as the benefits of him on offense, as the offense is currently made up and playing anyway.

It could be the difference in being able to win these next few games. He can always go back to defense when the O is ready to play well enough without him.

 

Joined: 02/22/2015

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NuckyT

September 21st, 2015 at 9:57 AM ^

Initial burst v. Top speed

At least that's what the eyes tell me. Isaac is also one of those guys that just doesn't "look" fast.
Green and D Johnson have good bursts; drake also with top speed. Mike Hart was a good burst guy w/o great top speed.



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John Harbaugh

September 21st, 2015 at 9:11 AM ^

It seemed like Isaac tried to avoid contact at the start of the season at Utah but is now transitioning into imposing his strength and size on the defense. The team keeps improving week to week and its something we haven't seen in quite some time.

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