Vincent Smith vs. Illinois
This was the first time all season that I have seen Vincent Smith look anything like (edit) the running back we all thought he could be . He still wasn't a game breaker with 9 YPC or anything, but multiple times, instead of running into the back of the OL and falling down, he bounced off the line and through the outside hole, hit the cover guy and got extra yards a plenty. He looked springy and fast and powrful and really.... good.
Did anyone else notice this? Does this signal a change? Is he finally able to trust his ACL again? Perhaps this is why Rodriguez keeps playing him as starter? Because he sees this in practice every week?
November 6th, 2010 at 9:39 PM ^
"look anything like a worthwhile running back." Easy killer. Lets not bash players.
Chris Perry didn't look like a Doak Walker award winner for 3 years...and then along came his senior year.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:42 PM ^
I wasn't meaning to bash on him... I meant more like the running back we thought he could be.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:40 PM ^
I think he's been looking a tad better as the games go by. He had a few really nice runs today, especially the one where he spun off the would be tackler. I think he'll mature into a really nice running back.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:54 PM ^
That spin was video game-esque...sweet!
November 6th, 2010 at 9:40 PM ^
He looked a lot more agile than he has. I don't know if it's a healing thing or just Vincent trusting the knee, but I thought he looked better against PSU, and even better this week.
I'm excited to see him next year.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:41 PM ^
He ran hard and made some nice quick-cuts on several of his runs. Overall, the backs played pretty good today. Hopkins is going to be a beast.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:41 PM ^
Looks like they ran some new/different plays than the usual right up the middle junk. It worked!
November 6th, 2010 at 9:41 PM ^
I think Vincent gets better every game and we are fortunate to have him on our team.
November 6th, 2010 at 11:30 PM ^
aww that was sweet!
but seriously, he did look good today. and i have to admit, i was one of the guys begging for anyone not named vincent smith to get the carries.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:42 PM ^
..He had huuuuge holes today.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:58 PM ^
No doubt, but he was breaking a lot more tackles and bouncing off more people than is usual. I thought he played great today.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:42 PM ^
He was our leading ground gainer today, which is saying something when you remember we have DILITHIUM. On one of his first couple runs, it looked like he was wearing a ski mask under his helmet. He pulled up a little on a 9 yard run, and I swear I could see ice forming on his legs. Those Florida kids take a little time adjusting to our cold weather. The other nice thing about Smith: 0 fumbles. When you're making 5 TOs, it's nice to have someone you can depend on to hold onto the ball.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:42 PM ^
It looked like he had more burst and some of that shiftiness that he has been missing. I'm hoping we see more of that moving forward. The Beefmachine Hopkins all looked pretty good back there.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:43 PM ^
I was following the game on my phone (you think it was stressful watching the game, imagine following it while standing in H&M in SoHo for an hour...), and noticed he kept getting 5+ yards a pop and some crucial runs.
People maybe forget that he tore up his knee rather badly last year, and it takes time to heal. Beyond that, it takes you even longer to become confident again on it, to get the power and coordination back that used to be instinct. I'm not saying he's ever going to be a Doak Walker winner or anything, but Smith looked like a dynamic playmaker before his injury, and I agree that maybe we are starting to see that ability return.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:05 PM ^
i dont know what h&m is, but i -1'd you for standing in it during the m game
edit- i don't know what soho is either. but i hope you are ashamed.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:45 PM ^
H&M is a mystical land where women find mountains of clothes for low prices, these low prices inciting the primal urge to try said clothing on in copious amounts while their husbands scramble around in vain looking for a 3G connection sweet spot.
Also, SoHo is an acronym for that part of NY that looks like every other picture of New York you see, but with an H&M on the street.
November 7th, 2010 at 12:32 AM ^
you did what you could today sir. and should not be ashamed.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:44 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
He had a great run early in the game where he went one-on-one with a linebacker about 5-6 yards downfield. Smith spun off the tackle easily and turned a nice little run into a big gain (the thing that has sort of been missing from his game so far this year).
November 6th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
November 6th, 2010 at 9:57 PM ^
Have to agree with this. Hopkins plays like he's a senior every game and has impressed me to no end. The kid is legit.
And not Luiget. Which, like, dude, that is not how your pronounce Liuget. I don't care where you are from, that is simply not correct.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:11 PM ^
I sure was hoping to see Hopkins there as well. I was having some sreiously bad flashbacks.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
I've always been a big supporter of Vincent and when he tore his knee up against Ohio State it was a big downer. But today he did show an extra burst and was putting his head down as he ran through the holes. Very excited to see how he finishes down the stretch.
Go Blue.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:46 PM ^
Wait until Barwis is finished with him, he will be as big as Big Will, with no loss of speed or quickness.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:58 PM ^
Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Fred Jackson.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
Illinois' game plan was simple - take away Denard on the ground and make him beat us through the air. Of course, Denard was more than happy to do this, but it also opened up nice lanes for the RBs on the zone read.
I also smiled when the 3rd and 1 Smith up the middle run went for 9-10 yards. Where were all the Smith haters then?
November 6th, 2010 at 9:49 PM ^
that the reason the coaches kept putting him out there, while lots of folks where questioning why he was getting more time than others, was that he was dependable, understood the plays and was the best blocker. Obviously he couldn't block for himself, so maybe the other guys are blocking better now? And maybe he simply IS getting more confidence in his leg. And maybe that's because his leg actually IS getting better.
Short answer: Yes, I noticed it too.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:54 PM ^
I don't think Smith, at least to my knowledge, fumbles much, which is nice.
November 6th, 2010 at 9:57 PM ^
All season long, theres been no statistically significant difference between Michigan running backs in meaningful situations. Toss out UMass, second string defenses, or prevent situations, and all the running backs have been equally effective. The whole anti-Smith meme is a farce. It started in the UMass game and refused to go away since, despite no real evidence that Smith should be pulled. Glad to see more people are coming around on the guy. He never deserved the negativitiy...
November 6th, 2010 at 10:17 PM ^
statistically, you're right, but the fact that so many of us feel that we saw something different today, even versus the wins earlier in the season, not just the three losses, should say that there must be SOMETHING to it all.
November 6th, 2010 at 11:46 PM ^
over the alternatives says theres nothing to it at all. Smith had a nicer day, but so did the other RBs. This is a consistent pattern. When Smith is effective, so are the other backs, when he isn't, neither are the other backs.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:00 PM ^
I have been questioning why Smith has received so much playing time. Today I did notice a difference in his play. He was running very hard and did a great job picking up yards. Still not a huge fan of seeing Smith run the ball on 3rd and 1. Howeva, I thought Smith played noticeably better and I hope he keeps it up.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:13 PM ^
I tend to believe that he is finally starting to feel like he can trust his knee as he plants, turns, bursts, etc.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:14 PM ^
I have always thought he was one of the smartest running backs in the game. Finally, his body is starting to allow him to do what he wants to with it. I still don't think we will see him at full speed until next year, but this 90-percent version is really fun to watch.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:36 PM ^
Young guys all showed big improvement. Can you imagine how good this team will be when this D gets older? They played with heart today and they will get better. only 3 seniors start I think and OSU has 7. We start 2-3 freshman too no other B-10 has more than 1 start. The other thing I kep thinking today imagine how many point this offense will score when we have D that puts teams 3 and out? That means we will get 3-6 more posessions per game got to be worth another 21 points per game.
November 6th, 2010 at 10:40 PM ^
saw the V-Smith truck stick a couple times today. I was impressed.
November 6th, 2010 at 11:17 PM ^
he is still not the same guy as far as quickness goes since his knee injury in the ohio state game last year.
he played well but i still like shaw and hopkins more when they are out there
November 7th, 2010 at 1:42 AM ^
Are you sure you're not imagining him being quicker then than he really was? Last year, aside from the Delaware State game, he averaged like 3.5 a carry. Personally, I thought he ran as well today as he ever has.