What Went Wrong?
Simply, what went wrong? Was it the playcalling? The execution? The refs? The wind? Dirty plays? The 88% full moon (Waning Gibbous)? What are your thoughts? And before I get negged, the purpose of this post isn't to rag on anyone, I'm genuinely curious about your thoughts. And please, keep it sane. No personal attacks or any thing of the sort.
Personally, I think the defense played as well as it could have. They got the turnovers, they put the offense in positions to make something happen. The offense just couldn't get it done. Why the offense couldn't get it done? I think it had more to do with the play calling than the execution, although the execution wasn't pretty. We were able to move the ball running and then we suddenly switched to a passing offense. It made no sense. MSU was timing the snaps, yet we continued using the same snap counts. And that 4th down play call....deep breath.... I don't care how wide open the receivers would have been if Denard had time to throw. We needed a first down and MSU was giving it to us. We have Denard and an easy first down. WHY DO YOU PASS IT??? If someone has a legitimate answer, please tell me. The execution wasn't pretty at all, but I felt like the players were put into tough spots.
We could've/should've won that game. What went wrong?
October 15th, 2011 at 4:34 PM ^
Last week Michigan couldn't "shove it down the throats" of Northwestern. Michigan's O-line canNOT power block. If they tried to power it for one, MSU would've crushed it.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:59 PM ^
They couldn't have gotten a few inches. Give me a break.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:53 PM ^
I wasn't in love with that call, either . . . but remember Desmond against ND? That play is part of Michigan lore. If it works, Borges is a hero and the game is tied.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:40 PM ^
Um, I guess, but that's a stupid risk to take with a QB that seems to have forgotten how to throw the football.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:30 PM ^
Against a superior D-line with 8 in the box?
Borges isn't an idiot. 4th and 1 is a long yard against superior talent.
If he was going to go for it at all though, I would've gone with a zone read. Have them key on Denard and he hands it off to Touissant. The running backs couldn't break loose, but they were good for a yard or two.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
Better team won. The Spartan overcame turnovers and penalties -stupid and personal, mostly- to beat us. Even with good field position, we struggled to play our game. The Spartans imposed their will upon us; we were playing uphill all game. Say what you want about the Spartans but they have the potential to be a good club. If they play that well -minus the turnovers- against the Wisconsin, they have a good chance to beat them.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
October 15th, 2011 at 4:37 PM ^
And yet the game was 21-14 with several minutes remaining. Borge's insistance on making Denard throw from the pocket, which is the one thing he is not good at, cost this team.
Why no screens? Where was the diamond formation? Where was the counter draw? All the flexible plays we saw over the past few weeks evaporated.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:50 PM ^
Misdirection only works when the O-line can hold off the attack long enough for the play to develop. The formations Borges has been experimenting with were primarily designed to break open the game against a defense that's comparable in talent and discipline. He was allowed to tinker because in earlier games the O-line wasn't getting overwhelmed.
Scheme really only matters when there's parity at talent and discipline. Our discipline was superior, but MSU's talent transcended that. They held Michigan to 250 yards for eff's sake.
The only type of offense that can succeed against a superior D-line is West Coast. While other schemes need time to develop and/or execution at the line, West Coast specializes in rapid execution into space. 3-step drops and shotgun to quick flat, drag, slant, hitch and out routes. To do that you need a QB with excellent footwork, quick decision-making, computer-like timing and NFL-level accuracy. Does Denard have any of those? He throws off his back foot into double-covered receivers for crying out loud. That's a Tom Brady we needed out there, not Denard, and Borges knew it. He tries to turn Denard into a WCO QB in the heat of a game and you're looking at 7 MSU picks by halftime.
The coaches did what they could to help the team win. You know damn well they'd lose sleep if they didn't, and probably won't sleep after this anyway.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
got punked.
I will say MSU has more speed on D than they get credit for. UM had no answers for anything they did and that was most disappointing.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
we were right in there with a shout with 6 minutes to go.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:38 PM ^
All the talk was about how bad the MSU O-Line was. Today it was Michigan's O-Line that was the story. They were awful. Denard got killed back there.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
It all staretd w/ the Ronald mcDonald unis we were sporting today. The rest was Al Borges' pathetic play calling. A game to forget...
October 15th, 2011 at 4:24 PM ^
You know, Michigan will lose a football game every now and then. Lets discuss over the internet why our fanhood is crushed by such events.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:25 PM ^
Notre Dame fans act the same way.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:25 PM ^
I think the playcalling in the 2nd half was kinda weird. If State is blitzing and/or getting pressure every play, why not throw a couple screens and maybe run some draws? Having Denard sit in the pocket and get pressured every play wasn't working but they kept going back to it over and over.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:30 PM ^
I don't understand why we didn't seem to run any screens whatsoever. Also, I didn't like throwing Devin out for 1 play and then re-inserting Denard. Why bother? If you like one's skill set over another, just use them instead of subbing in every play at QB. That really messes an entire offense up.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:25 PM ^
October 15th, 2011 at 4:35 PM ^
The lines and the QBs, mostly. The linebackers kept losing contain but that's not a new symptom. Bubble screens are still a weakness.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:35 PM ^
It's a vastly inferior MSU O Line kicking the crap out of the Wolverine front four. So, there's that.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:26 PM ^
We lost outside containment a few times but we were out flanked each time. Counter Tre left and right and our backers were still being blocked. We were out coached today. we needed better play from our QB(s) too.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:38 PM ^
I'm sure that this will provoke some people but our QB play is just not good. Denard is a wonderful athlete....great playmaker....but he lacks fundamental quarterback skills. People will talk about the wind and MSU's defense but a decent throwing QB would have made State pay on multiple occassions. HOWEVA, the lack of quality down field throws and the ability to progress through your reads can be mitigated by the ability to tuck the ball and run. Denard can have tucked the ball and ran for several first downs. He opted not to. It is as though he is stuck between trying to be a disciplined quarterback and the school yard razzle dazzle guy that he truly is.
In addition, there were no moments during the game where I noticed that our OC was making great calls or adjustments. But, then again, the play was so bad that it was hard to tell. There were some terrible angles on contain assignments and I noticed Gordon took some bad angle from the safety position. And, once again, our defensive end was cut, blocked, and blown up too often. And, perhaps the single worse feeling, was that MSU was more physical and played with the necessary hatred that must be present in a rivalry series.
That being said....let's turn the page and prepare for Purdue.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:48 PM ^
Everybody loves Denard but at some point, there has to be better consistency at the position. By not having an effective passing game allows for teams to play us for the run and largely shut down the running game. A reasonably effective passing game changes what opposing D's can do. It seems like there were numerous instances where someone was wide open and Denard picked the wrong guy.
Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:39 PM ^
In all that talk about how bye weeks don't seem to help teams the next week.... I wondered whether it's the case that most teams spend bye weeks preparing for several of their remaining opponents. Which is why it doesn't necessarily help. I'll bet MSU, however, did nothing but UM prep.
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<br>I'm still in the GD boondocks and haven't seen a single play from the game--but I was thinking about that all week.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:40 PM ^
Denard went wrong. Dude is just not a good quarterback in this offense. We are facing a repaeat of the last two years now that the secret is out for everyone to see.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:40 PM ^
Coaches have to calls plays that coincide with the aunts strengths. Vertical passing is not DR's strength. DR's passing overall is suspect however when does pass they have to call more screen. TE drag routes, bubble screens, and quick slants. If you build some confidence in DR with the short passing game then his vertical passing game might improve.
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<br>Let's be realistic, DR is not a passing QB. He is not completing easy passes in the flats. Move him to another position. Put Devin Gardner in the game at QB. It can't get any worse. Give DR his touches like Percy Harvin had at Florida. BCS schools need to pass the ball. If you can't pass you are destined for the bottom of your conference. I don't want to be looking there and see Michigan.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:40 PM ^
I haven't taken topology or complex analysis, and it's been too long since linear algebra. oh. sorry. thought you were talking about the GRE math subject test that made me miss the first quarter, and left me sure as hell nothing could well today. FML.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:41 PM ^
....with last year's defense, that's not a 28-14 loss.
I think the offense was too conservative. I would have loved to see some creativity from Gorgeous Borges that we knew the Spartans could not have prepared for.
The lines....*gah*. We were outmanned on both sides for most of the game. Better blocking, pinpoint tackling...those are some good starting points for the bye week.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:41 PM ^
I think on offense it was the perfect storm of wind, Denard's inability to throw, and the new system. MSU was bringing pressure and for the most part Denard looked lost about where to dump it off, what the hot reads were, and I dont know if he even has the ability to check out of plays. MSU's D lived up to the billing and teed off on us.
On the defensive side, yeah there were contain issues, but we played MSU pretty good for about 3 quarters. The pick 6 really sealed the game, and until that point we had only yielded 14 points.
I really feel this was on the offense. The line was a sieve, we didn't have the abilty to throw passes, and the ones we did throw were sailing in the wind.
On the bright side I think this is the best defense we will play all year, and I dont think we'll see wind this bad either. We'll bounce back.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:44 PM ^
We were manhandled in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The way that MSU's mediocre O-line controlled the LOS was shocking.
I firmly believe that this staff will recruit and develop dominant, physical linemen. But it won't happen overnight. You can't blame this loss on anyone. There were a couple of questionable playcalls, but I can't find fault with the game plan. We're just not yet as physical as a Big Ten team should be. That will take time. Simple as that.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:47 PM ^
I thought it was obvious what went wrong.
1) The M Oline was the worst unit out there, by a long shot. Lewan was hurt off & on and the MSU D blitzed a lot... but man they were D- bad at everything but pass pro, which was C-.
2) The M LBers were the 2nd worst unit, as they were practically invisible.
3) Denard, if nothing is there after 4 seconds, just run.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:49 PM ^
October 15th, 2011 at 4:49 PM ^
October 15th, 2011 at 4:53 PM ^
where the one guy couldn't put the football anywhere near where the other guys were at and were hoping to catch said ball.
That seems to be a recurring theme this year.
October 15th, 2011 at 4:59 PM ^
They got beat by a better team.
MSU's defense is about as good (and dirty) as I've seen all season.
They weren't going undefeated, unfortunately. They've got a coaching staff wired for different personnel. I think a major difference from last year is that you won't see them lose 4 out of their last 6 games. Michigan's defense is far superior to last year's defense in a number of ways.
This is probably an 8-9 win team.
Just got beat by a better one today, unfortunately.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:03 PM ^
DR appears to be hesitating on two crucial aspects when passing the ball. First, he obviously is struggling with deciding which receiver to throw to. He throws into coverage on most passing plays. It also does not help that the only receiver that is consistent is Junior Hemingway. Second, and most important, when the passing play breaks down he still tries to throw the ball instead of scramble. Last year he ran the ball when the passing play broke down and he gashed people. I hate to say this but the reason the school in Ohio has owned us is because their quarterbacks, Troy Smith and TP, scrambled and ran the ball on nearly every passing play that broke down.
October 15th, 2011 at 6:22 PM ^
+1 on this post. Denard looks like he he doesn't want to take off. We really need to get in him in more of a rhythm like last year. Screens an quick throws. It seems we throw deep a before we establish anything on the ground. Its really hard to see what the O is trying to establish. It seems were running plays not an offense.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:08 PM ^
October 15th, 2011 at 5:13 PM ^
sneak the GD ball. I love Al, but it was not a good idea to subject ourselves to that rush any more than necessary.
Dantonio is a skinnier Huggins. Thugs on his team and all.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:22 PM ^
1) We did not finish tackles. We hit a guy and he and the he gets 2-4 more yards. Sure we are hitting and wrapping but we weren't hitting, wrapping and driving through the player. 2) the corner blitz. Dude! Really!!! 3) Gholston or should I say anyone coming off of our RT. I don't like calling our players out but C'mon Man! 4) Play calling. You are killing me here. What happened to Man Ball? 4 inches and you call play action? 5) denard did not look like Denard the whole game. He looked not as fast, not as quick and hesitant to run...on a windy day. Whomever is in his ear....GET OUT OF IT!. Ya killing me Smalls. Lil Bro is becoming Peyton Manning while we are sitting here like Cooper.
October 15th, 2011 at 5:32 PM ^
For any team to win when its starting quarterback is having a bad passing game, and Denard had a really tough day. There are a number of plays that can beat the blitz, but we did not go down that path at all. Will Denard even learn to set his feet to get into the correct passing position?
Our offensive line was really manhandled. Lewan looked lonely at times as the Spaties rushed by him. He should be pissed after the game, but not at taunting.
The defense was okay to hold MSU to 21 points, but once again there was a lot of very poor tackling. I rarely heard the names of any linebackers making plays.
On the other hand, Cousins played a good game and was consistent without making mistakes (unlike our quarterbacks). Edwin Baker is a horse and showed us the type of running back that we should be recruiting.
The bottom line is that the better team and the better coached team won today, even though their coach is a dufus prick who cannot control his thug players and they gave us more than 100 yards in penalties due to their lack of emotional discipline.
October 15th, 2011 at 7:27 PM ^
Running Game:
With all of the inside pressure, where was Shaw to catch the edge? Where was the bubble screen. Where was a rollout with pass-run option? All of our runs were into the teeth of their defense with the exception of the jet sweep with Denard which was very effective. They could have run jet sweeps with Grady or Gallon with Denard at QB. Getting to the edge quickly worked every time.
Passing Game:
All of our passes were in a pocket the OL struggle to keep. Where was an inside screen? Where was an inside shovel pass? It seems we did not do enough to spread the field or make them pay for their aggressive pass rush. We played right into their hands. Why so many first down passes in the third quarter when we were going into the wind? With Denard's and the OL's struggles, we were pretty much 2nd and 10 every series. Where was the power back for the inside power game? 2 carries for Fitz?
Other:
Why were we going into the wind in the third quarter anyways? Shouldn't we have taken the wind and attempted to build a lead going into the 4th? MSU got the wind and the ball and did exactly that to us.
October 15th, 2011 at 7:28 PM ^
Running Game:
With all of the inside pressure, where was Shaw to catch the edge? Where was the bubble screen. Where was a rollout with pass-run option? All of our runs were into the teeth of their defense with the exception of the jet sweep with Denard which was very effective. They could have run jet sweeps with Grady or Gallon with Denard at QB. Getting to the edge quickly worked every time.
Passing Game:
All of our passes were in a pocket the OL struggle to keep. Where was an inside screen? Where was an inside shovel pass? It seems we did not do enough to spread the field or make them pay for their aggressive pass rush. We played right into their hands. Why so many first down passes in the third quarter when we were going into the wind? With Denard's and the OL's struggles, we were pretty much 2nd and 10 every series. Where was the power back for the inside power game? 2 carries for Fitz?
Other:
Why were we going into the wind in the third quarter anyways? Shouldn't we have taken the wind and attempted to build a lead going into the 4th? MSU got the wind and the ball and did exactly that to us.
October 15th, 2011 at 7:28 PM ^
Running Game:
With all of the inside pressure, where was Shaw to catch the edge? Where was the bubble screen. Where was a rollout with pass-run option? All of our runs were into the teeth of their defense with the exception of the jet sweep with Denard which was very effective. They could have run jet sweeps with Grady or Gallon with Denard at QB. Getting to the edge quickly worked every time.
Passing Game:
All of our passes were in a pocket the OL struggle to keep. Where was an inside screen? Where was an inside shovel pass? It seems we did not do enough to spread the field or make them pay for their aggressive pass rush. We played right into their hands. Why so many first down passes in the third quarter when we were going into the wind? With Denard's and the OL's struggles, we were pretty much 2nd and 10 every series. Where was the power back for the inside power game? 2 carries for Fitz?
Other:
Why were we going into the wind in the third quarter anyways? Shouldn't we have taken the wind and attempted to build a lead going into the 4th? MSU got the wind and the ball and did exactly that to us.
October 15th, 2011 at 8:18 PM ^
They ran into a good team, at their home, after a week off and poor conditions. MSU plays this game like it is their superbowl, and even if they get smoked the next two weeks - Wiscy is going to be out for blood after last year, and Nebraska seems to have turned it around a bit after that loss to Wiscy - they'll consider this season a victory because of this game and squeaking by OSU. MSU played pretty well on defense, Denard was off, and they couldn't run the ball to save their lives or stop Baker from having a great game. It happens, and hopefully this team will learn from it and move forward.
October 16th, 2011 at 6:20 AM ^