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Date	Title	Body
2 years 32 weeks ago	The negativity is understandable...	...after a close game in which we had a good chance at the end. But Brian's reaction is a little surprising to me, given that his own prediction in the game preview was for a 3-point Iowa win. He underestimated the point totals, but just about nailed the outcome. So why all the angst? Hey, we're 4-2 right now with a legitimate shot at going 3-3 or better the rest of the way. Sounds to me like we're on track for hitting the center of the realistic expectations for this turnaround season.
2 years 32 weeks ago	Tate's game	The strong impression I got while watching the game is that Tate was fighting an internal battle between what he's been told to do by the coaches and what he's most apt to do on his own. I don't say that to fault either Tate or the coaches. He just looked to me like a guy who has been taking golf lessons, and during his swing, he's now suddenly conscious of his hips, his knees, his elbows, and his grip all at the same time. And of course, playing QB in the Big 10, and especially in this offense, is a bit more complicated than a golf swing. I'm sure the coaches have told Tate a hundred times that they want him carrying the ball fewer times per game, dancing around less in the pocket, etc, etc, which is to say nothing of making the right reads, checking down to the right receiver, and everything else. It's understandable that this could lead to a young man's "thinking too much." Midway through the season now, I would guess the coaches are taking a harder line with Tate, whereas in the first few games he was given more latitude to just be himself and follow instinct. Brian talked about "the leap" having been made in offensive production, in an article a few weeks ago. I think this is the second leap that we can look for -- that Tate and also Denard develop the maturity and consistency that is needed at this level. Pure speed and escapability can make some plays and even win some games, but this second leap will be needed to compete for championships.
2 years 32 weeks ago	Thanks gs	You've got your priorities straight.
2 years 33 weeks ago	I just take it as...	evidence of how much yardage our D was giving up on 1st and 2nd down, on several of their scoring drives. More than 5 yards per play, consistently. I am also glad Bill Lynch didn't get more aggressive on the handful of opportunities where he had 4th-and-5 (or less) in the red zone during that first half. He went for the field goal each time. Hard to say whether Indiana would have ended up with more points or fewer overall with that approach, but I'm guessing they could have gotten one more TD in place of a FG. Lynch's risk profile in this game was interesting. Lots of trick plays and formations and wildcat stuff, which were by-and-large successful against us, but they really tended to play it safe on 4th down in the red zone.
2 years 33 weeks ago	Stevie Brown	Stevie Brown should always have been a linebacker. But I for one am glad to see him still contributing on special teams too, where he has consistently excelled since his earliest games at UM. He made a difference in that area against IU. I think it has been advanced before, but who's for "Special Teams UFR?" As Brian has already explained elsewhere, STs were a big part of the story on Saturday, for field position and hidden yardage.
2 years 33 weeks ago	First Half	23 points allowed on ZERO successful third down conversions in the first half. (OK, so IU converted a fourth and short.) That is a bit... unsettling. Maybe the source of a new "getting gashed" metric?!
2 years 34 weeks ago	D = Casey at the Bat	It seems to be either a TFL or a 7+ yard gain -- home run or strikeout, and not much in between. Way too many strikeouts on Saturday. Indiana put up 23 first-half points without converting a single third-down opportunity.
2 years 34 weeks ago	This sounds right	On that play, notice our front four shifting before the snap with B-Graham changing sides. Indiana appeared to counter by moving their H-back to the short side and running that way.
2 years 34 weeks ago	A win is a win is a win	But yeah, lots of echoes of 2008 in this one. Negative turnover margin, yakkety sax snaps, two quarters of ineffective offense, and a mostly porous defense. I think UFR or Steve Sharik will show that the 85-yd touchdown run was again due to a bad angle by our walk-on safety. Last year it would have been a loss. But many good things happened as well. Tate obviously played with enormous heart and courage, putting mistakes behind him and directing the winning drive with a shoulder stinger or partial sep or whatever it ends up being. Among guys who don't get much press, Van Bergen and Kevin Grady had moments where they stepped up with fire and determination. This game was like the old cliche about a good movie: it put you through every emotion from pure rage to pure joy, and in the end you were glad for the experience. The team will continue to gel through stuff like this.
2 years 34 weeks ago	Haven't seen the x-rays, but...	Molk's injury sounds exactly like the one I suffered playing basketball as an 8th grader (close to 30 yrs ago). It was a stress fracture of the bone along the outside edge of the foot, about midway between the little toe and the heel. For me it happened as I was playing defense, shuffling to my right, and the offensive player started to drive in that same direction. He stepped on my foot/ankle just as I planted, causing my foot to roll under with his weight and mine on it. I was able to finish practice just as Molk was able to finish the game, but it was hurting pretty bad within a couple hours, and definitely affected weight-bearing ability and lateral movement. I was out 4-6 weeks and missed most of the season. There was a well-known college hoops player in the Grand Rapids area who had the same injury and was seeing the same podiatrist I was at the time. FWIW. Not saying this is Molk's exact problem, but I can identify.

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