The BLACK PIT of NEGATIVE EXPECTATIONS
[Patrick Barron]
9/1/2018 – Michigan 17, Notre Dame 24 – 0-1
Ah so it's this bit again. The bit where some people pick up on a factoid and yell about it a lot and other people yell at them about it. The bit where everyone's mad and trying to take it out on someone.
I mean, I get it. Any properly scientific assessment of which football program it is the least fun to be a fan of will find a way to exclude Kansas for not actually being a football program and stick Michigan at the top. Nobody got into this to fight about the level of doomed we are every 3-4 years, never beat anyone of consequence, etc.
But I don't want to do it again. I've done this three times before, once per coaching era this blog has seen the end of, and I've done all the stuff already: preaching patience, gallows humor, being legitimately angry, calling for various heads, writing about mattresses. I don't really feel like doing it all over again. I don't care to evaluate the precise moment at which a person should be fired, or to point out that people are being ridiculous for wanting a person to be fired, or to create big lists of the next person to get fired. Neither do I want to sagely counsel the fanbase from the Tower Of Reasonability. This is not content it feels worthwhile to produce.
If you're mad, fine. If you're mad at the people who are mad, fine. I'm not going to argue with you.
---------------------------------------
Let's talk about the
BLACK PIT of NEGATIVE EXPECTATIONS
The BPONE is a state of mind in which no part of a football game is enjoyable because it is merely a prelude to some pratfall made more embarrassing and or painful by whatever minimal, temporary successes are experienced prior to the pratfall. Thus a kick return touchdown—that rarest butterfly, one the game is steadily trying to erase—during which your author's only reaction was internal and, I quote, "whoop-de-damn-do."
Going down 14-0 more or less immediately by blowing coverages on third down, getting beat over the top by battleship WRs, and having a shoulda-been interception ripped away by a 5'10" guy immediately puts you in the pit. The general shape of the offense provides a steady stream of pit reinforcement, to the point where my Twitter timeline's reaction to Michigan providing a vague sense of hope at the end of the game was "I hate myself for having this hope." This feeling of cynical dread was vindicated by the sack/strip that had to have been coming and did indeed come.
The more time one spends in the BPONE, the more permeable its membrane. Last year large swathes of the Michigan fanbase descended into it after Michigan had an extra point blocked. At the time Michigan led 20-14. Scoring the rest of the way was 17-0 Ohio State. When entering the BPONE is clearly a good choice, future opportunities to mitigate emotional harm by being miserable in the present are more likely to be taken.
The flaw in BPONE operations is of course the impossibility of mining any enjoyment out of your experience. BPONE sufferers assume a football game is a negative emotional event and spread those negative emotions out more broadly. Only if the team should actually come back and win will any regret be felt, and pffffffffft. I'm in the pit, baby! I know for a stone cold fact that a punt snap will somehow lodge itself in the facemask of the punter. I feel it in my bones that the one time we jump a route in this game the ensuing interception will bang off the defensive back's hands and lodge itself in the facemask of the opposition 50 yards downfield.
Tweeting from the BPONE is inadvisable and very, very difficult to avoid.
Sickens me that you went to u of m and you got the nerve to throw a tweet up like this. When they turn it around which they will. Don’t be the one trying to say you knew they would from the jump. IDGAF what you did a Michigan, these guys don’t deserve that neither does the team! pic.twitter.com/UNgWwHiLRf
— Khalid Hill (@Thatboylid80) September 2, 2018
Checking your mentions will significantly deepen the pit and is likely to lead to BPONE-influenced tweeting, which is inadvisable. In fact, communicating in any form from the BPONE is inadvisable.
Alcohol will not improve anything but will be consumed in quantity anyway.
At some point repeated defeats will create an OMINPRESENT BLACK PIT of NEGATIVE EXPECTATIONS. OBPONE is a severe condition with consequences such as writer's block, writer's block, and writer's block. The only cure for OBPONE is a new season, but yo-yo-ing in and out of OBPONE makes individual occurrences of BPONE more severe.
Escaping this cycle of cynicism and recrimination requires John Beilein, who is not available for football purposes.
[After THE JUMP: some stuff]
AWARDS
Known Friends And Trusted Agents Of The Week
![-2535ac8789d1b499[1]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/537fc4d56c20_9177/-2535ac8789d1b4991f1c37dee-a502-44d9-94ed-bee425f87474.jpg)
you're the man now, dog
#1 Chase Winovich. Winovich looked like Michigan was trying to block him for most of the day, picking up 3.5 TFLs and a sack. He also forced the errant throw on Brandon Watson's interception. His roughing the passer call was weak at best.
#2 Ambry Thomas. Touchdowns are precious.
#3 Devin Bush. Displayed his sideline to sideline ability with frequency and had another rabid squirrel sack. Maybe at fault on a Wimbush scramble.
Honorable mention: The receivers were pretty good.
KFaTAotW Standings.
Who's Got It Better Than Us Of The Week
Kickoff return was kind of sweet though.
Honorable mention: Uh. Winovich things?
MARCUS HALL EPIC DOUBLE BIRD OF THE WEEK.
Every pass blocking incident.
Honorable mention: Hawkins gets the ball yoinked; Hill gets beat over the top. Many incidents where the DEs got around the edge but the DTs did little to nothing. Dropped FG hold.
[After THE JUMP: why]
OFFENSE
[Fuller]
What were you doing in practice? Was it football? I feel like it couldn't have been football if Jon Runyan Jr told the media that he was able to win 8 of 10 times against Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich. Runyan won approximately 0 of 10 times against DEs against Notre Dame, once giving up a sack by letting a DL by him to the left when the line was sliding to the left.
I thought this was going to be bad—the tackles got a 1 in the season preview—but even I am shocked by how bad it was in the cold light of morning. Runyan looked so bad it boggles the mind that any amount of practice would not have turned up a better player more or less immediately. It boggles the mind that Michigan was so desperate to replace him last year that they played Nolan Ulizio and Juwann Bushell-Beatty over him and he was still the locked-in left tackle starter since the beginning of fall camp, and a locked-in starter at right tackle even before that. It boggles the mind that Michigan didn't even think of trying Ben Bredeson at tackle, that James Hudson didn't blow past Runyan in spring, that Jalen Mayfield didn't do so in fall.
Maybe Runyan just had the worst three hours of his life at the wrong time and it'll get better. I can't imagine that actually being the case. Runyan is a redshirt junior. He's done most of his developing already. That performance was the equivalent of John O'Korn's start against Indiana in 2016. He's got too far to go, no reason to expect he'll get there, and not enough time left for a fashion makeover.
He'll start next week. We'll see how long that lasts.
Under the circumstances. Patterson's first start went about as well as possible given his pass protection. I don't know where this stat comes from but it feels about right:
21 QB pressures on 42 pass plays. Runyan accounted for 8 pressures and all 3 sacks. Gotta bench him. JBB also accounted for 7 pressures, need to look at benching him too.
— nunya (@jacob_g2013) September 3, 2018
Patterson wasn't able to go deep except once, hit that, and completed two-thirds of his passes for 7.6 YPA. The interception wasn't great but we've seen enough assaulted QBs for one lifetime; in terms of bad decisions per angry person trying to kill you Patterson did well.
Dylan McCaffrey's cameo was fine. There was a palpable difference in arm strength between McCaffrey and Patterson, and one of that seemed like it would be relevant if McCaffrey needed to throw anything more than ten yards, which IIRC he did not. Harbaugh mentioned that he was still growing into his frame and needed time to build that velocity. That was apparent.
Where is Chris Evans? Apparently healthy but got two carries to Karan Higdon's 21. I thought Higdon did about as well as could be expected save for one cutback he made but not quite fast enough to escape the last linebacker before he hit the safety level; I still thought we'd see something closer to parity.
Wide receivers looked pretty good, at least. Nico Collins straight up went by one of ND's touted outside corners on his long reception; Grant Perry was his usual self when people remembered to throw it to him; DPJ was able to get open pretty frequently.
DEFENSE
[Fuller]
FFS. A shut-down second half brought the defense's performance up to acceptable-ish if you flip one event: Brad Hawkins losing out on an armpunt to a guy named "Finke," which has to be up there for least intimidating WR names in history. Even with that ND didn't get over 300 yards by much (they were at 339); what they did get was mostly Wimbush scrambling around and those deep thunks to tall guys.
Wimbush scrambling around. Michigan started this game with Lawrence Marshall and Bryan Mone, which set two solid years of Mike Dwumfour hype on fire. He and Solomon rotated in but it felt like the former two were starters in both name and snaps, and that's a whole different world. Specifically in this game it was a world where when one of Michigan's DEs came around the corner there was a big gap between said DE and the DT to his side of the line, allowing Wimbush to step up and either run or throw.
If the DEs were getting around at ten yards that's on the DEs. If they were getting around at 7 or 8 that's on the DTs. It felt like it was almost all on the DTs. You don't expect much pass rush from them; you do expect them to at least push the pocket closed so that those easy broken field plays don't occur.
Deep thunks to tall guys. There were only two, actually, chunks of 26 and 28 yards, one over Hill. Hill's was a little alarming. He was beaten clean in a way we didn't see all of last year and was interfering in a 15-is-better-than-TD way. It didn't happen again, at least.
[Bryan Fuller]
Why? The other deep thunk saw Noah Furbush in one on one coverage 30 yards downfield against a WR on third and nine. This is getting far too cute when you have the CB depth Michigan does and can expect organic pass rush from your ends.
Targeting roulette N/A. Not even targeting roulette could help Josh Metellus, who was deservedly booted for a helmet to helmet hit on a defenseless WR. Would he have made the Finke play? Probably not—BPODE—but maybe!
A genuine battle. Devin Gil and Josh Ross both played a bunch of snaps, so that was not balderdash about a tight position battle. Ross managed to out-tackle Gil 5-3, FWIW.
MISCELLANEOUS
Don't make me think about Hoke. Michigan's fourth quarter in this game was mostly spent down two touchdowns and mostly spent without any urgency whatsoever. The inability to get plays off with more than ten seconds on the playclock with under eight minutes left in the game is extremely disturbing and, yes, Hoke-ish. It speaks to a lack of organization.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:19 PM ^
I did not watch one second from this game and I’m fine.
I read a recap the following morning before shift and it went how I expected. I guess I’m in this pit Brian references.
The last 10 years have worn me down so much that I am trying to distance myself from any emotional investment. Family kept checking on me Sunday, and were shocked by my calmness and disconnect. I guess they expected me to sulk and stress about it like I always did. No more.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:23 PM ^
I'm overseas and asked my daughter to wake me up at 1:30 a.m. to watch. When she did I thought long and hard about it, decided to go back to bed and have a nice Sunday with the family. I had been threatening to do this for three or four years, and was glad I finally did.
I was wildly enthusiastic about Jimmy's arrival, but with the stubborn and uncreative playcalling being cited by knowledgeable posters here for several years--confirming what things looked like to this less knowledgeable observer, I begin to feel that's what we're stuck with. Given that our OT's are merry-go-rounds, it's even more disastrous.
0-16 is a hard wall to climb.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:20 PM ^
The person I feel worst for in all of this is Runyan. It's completely unfair that he's been forced into a highly visible position where there is virtually no chance of success. If any CEO of a Fortune 500 company put an employee in that position they would be fired.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:30 PM ^
I agree. He's a guard being thrown to the lions out on Left Tackle Island.
Basically, he's Battalion 5.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:34 PM ^
Well, Braylon stepped in it though he rather un-artfully articulated what many of us are thinking. He was always a bit of a punk but he was a competitor and his slip cost him his job.
JH has a lot of work to do and it appears that he may have a Siphyian task.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:41 PM ^
I don't think it even qualifies as Sisyphean. It never feels like it's all that close to getting the boulder up to the top... it just kinda stays near the bottom.
Right now I'd dream of getting far enough up the hill to qualify as Sisyphean.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:49 PM ^
maybe you can dream of:
2016 going undefeated into the last two games of the season.
was pretty far up the hill.
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:48 PM ^
The catch is if it wasn't Runyan, it would be someone else getting the heat. It didn't help that a good chunk of the oline talk from the Fort was how Runyan had locked down one of the tackle spots well in advance of the season.
September 3rd, 2018 at 9:47 PM ^
its not unfair...because of all the glory that goes with it... cannot have it both ways...
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:32 PM ^
tl;dr fuck it, I'm drinking.
After the last few decades of M football, OBPONE is a pretty apt description of where I am at in terms of expectations. I went INTO this game in that state, came out completely confirmed.
The expectation needle hovered.....in a quivering manner.....slightly above 50% at kickoff and by the end of the first quarter was buried at 1%. The one percent kept me watching. Similar reaction to the kickoff return. Elation?! Maybe they'll come back and make a game of it? Nope. I just turned and looked to my friends and said, "Huh, at least with that TD they can maybe make the game appear close and any poll voters who don't actually watch it won't slam us too hard and we can skate into a decent bowl on the fact that our fanbase travels so well." My name for BPOE was to call it, instead of the proverbial "Midnight to 6", "3:05 to 6", because there is no midnight for the program right now.
This season seems destined for mediocrity and thus I am conscripting multiple otters of ennui moving forward as a buffer to the inevitable dong punches to come. The details of which are unimportant.....a loss to Nebraska or Northwestern, probable losses to rivals and/or any quality team with the coaching chops and the few horses required to exploit the glaring and seemingly unfixable weaknesses of this year's team (a few of them will be achingly close as our players somehow remain within striking distance until the 4th quarter), a bowl collapse to an inferior opponent. The punches will come, they'll be endured, and life will go on. I will still be a fan, because I am.
The hardest part is that I keep looking at a light at the end of the tunnel and listening to see if it is the end, or an oncoming train. This off-season there were many sounds pointing toward that light being a harbinger of fresh air and sunshine ahead, but on Saturday I realized too late, in true Wile-E-Coyote fashion, it was a train. Here is me holding up a tiny "HELP ME" sign at the impending doom. Yes, I rolled out a Wile-E-Coyote analogy, I make no claim at being original.
A tiny voice in me struggles to be heard and says this is just a step in the rebuilding process, that progress is being made, but watching the team against ND quickly silences that voice. The same glaring gaps on the offensive line, and no real solution in sight. The state of the depth chart and recruiting at tackle is dismal. How can we not be pulling in at least 4 tackles per cycle at minimum to shore that up? Nobody should be criticizing any players on this team that are being put in a position where they are doomed to fail. Stars-be-damned, they should have been playing a warm-bodies, numbers game in recruiting tackles over the last 3 years taking as many viable options as possible, but I don't see a roster that reflects that approach.
Most alarming, is the same lack of an offensive scheme that would mitigate weaknesses and maximize strengths. Same level of predictability. Same attempts at doing things the offense seems incapable of doing. The sad conclusion I have from Saturday is that Michigan was outcoached, on both the macro level in getting the right horses on the field, and the micro level in the schematic prep and on the field decisions. Anyone pointing to a close score or a few toss-up plays as evidence that the teams were closely matched is grasping at straws. To pretend that changing the outcome of two plays and then posit that the game would then subsequently play out the same way afterward with the score much closer is a fools errand. That game was determined in the first few quarters when ND came out and victimized the defense via a scheme that preyed upon their over aggressiveness and also when they realized their defense could have their way with our offensive line. Sure adjustments were made and the second half was better, but that is at least partly due to ND simply needing to run out the clock while watching our offense flail.
I'm always going to be a Michigan fan. I'm always going to support the team. But the reality right now is that we are not a playoff caliber program and we are not about to be. My expectations are calibrated as such for the time being.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:37 PM ^
M are the new Cubs. I guess we can finally get a mascot - a goat.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:40 PM ^
If this were an audio book I would have closed my eyes and been taken far away from BPONE.
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:46 PM ^
You and I are mind-melded, Spock.
September 3rd, 2018 at 9:51 PM ^
preyed upon overagressiveness is spot on.. I fear that with msu, because it feels that Brown only tones it down in second half... I like the aggressiveness when strategized, but not full bore on every play... 3rd and 18 and he runs up gut all he has to do is beat an out of position Bush...
that is when they should have sent 4 rushers only..
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:33 PM ^
I'm reaching, but work with me here. Michigan was hit with a combination of factors that made them look as helpless as possible, but are not necessarily replicable by future opponents.
First, just like the Wisconsin game, an inaccurate QB picked the Michigan game to have his Tom Brady moment. A dude with a 49% career completion average was dropping dimes to covered receivers. Plus, his running ability is pure kryptonite for Michigan aggressive defenses. Which leads to the second point...
Second, the defense picked the worst possible moment to make mistakes/get unlucky. Michigan ended last season with three disappointing losses, and we fans have had 8 months to ruminate on that. We all know damn well that the defense will have to earn whatever success Michigan sees this year, with the offense and special teams merely being serviceable enough not to blow it. And in the first quarter of the first game in 8 months, the one unit we thought would be solid gives up two TDs in two drives. I can't imagine anything more likely to trigger BPONE in us all. Which leads to the third point...
Third, the offense had no chance to use a game plan emphasizing the running game. They were down 14 points before the had their second possession. Now I don't know what their game plan was, but if they figured to mitigate pass protection issues by feeding Higdon and Evans ball, sacrificing first half drives to wear down the defense, that game plan got lit on fire before the second quarter started. Which leads to...
The offense being in a position where they had to do all the things that elude them, and the defense being in a position where they had to honor all the things we were told Wimbush does poorly.
So, will all the games this season that we expect to be challenging start the same way? I don't think so.
But, I can't account for every issue that points to a problem with coaching. The fact that AGAIN the coaching staff had more than a week to prepare, and fielded a team that looked totally unprepared is profoundly disturbing, and eerily reminiscent of the end of the last three coaching regimes. We come by our PTSD honestly.
Here's my bottom line on Harbaugh's leadership: I'll stick with him regardless of record. If a 4th consecutive coach fails to win games to our expectations, it's not the coaches who are the problem; it's our expectations. My faith in Jim Harbaugh to "fix" the program is profoundly shaken, but if he can't do it, it's because college football has passed the University of Michigan by, and we better learn to love being Iowa.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:39 PM ^
The fact that AGAIN the coaching staff had more than a week to prepare, and fielded a team that looked totally unprepared is profoundly disturbing, and eerily reminiscent of the end of the last three coaching regimes. We come by our PTSD honestly.
Right on. The fundamental question is whether JH is building a ladder or digging with a shovel. We’ll see.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:44 PM ^
Iowa completely owned OSU last year so the sad thing is Michigan isn’t even close to being Iowa.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:25 PM ^
Iowa played OSU right after the OSU/PSU classic. Iowa took advantage of an OSU team emotionally and physically unprepared for that game. It's the same reason why MSU beat PSU.
Hopefully Michigan plays Iowa this year to prove who's better.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:45 PM ^
Except Trace McSorley has been replicating that Wimbush performace on everyone including us for a while. So when you have battleship huge WRs, it is replicable. And when you haven't been able to defend a slot fade for a year, it's hard to know if we've figured out those balls.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:35 PM ^
Harbaugh in his press conference said that the clock management was driven by conservative snap count due to road noise, new QB and line, and wanting to avoid pre-snap penalties. He resolved to get the issues fixed.
The stats re QB pressures come from Zach Shaw.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:45 PM ^
It’s almost like the dude who has been a good coach every where he’s been didn’t suddenly forget how to coach.
I posted this in a board topic, but Michigan put together legitimate drives in this game, something they didn’t really do against good teams last year. They had one three and out. The defense got beat on a couple of plays and had some mistakes and that was all it took.
This program and a majority of its fan base is broken. I understand why, but the idea that it’s no different than 2014 is completely wrong. We outgained ND. We didn’t need a goalline stand to beat Akron at home.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:51 PM ^
But like, being worried about a "new" line (which only includes two new starters anyway) and avoiding pre-snap penalties is precisely admitting you lack organization and practice. If your line which is actually pretty experienced can't avoid pre-snap penalties in a hurry-up, you have not properly prepared them.
Slight aside but related, if you're limited to 20 hours of practice, why wouldn't you run a no huddle like 90 percent of plays in practice? Gives you more plays to practice. Why waste limited practice time huddling up other than a few times a week just to be familiar with it?
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:38 PM ^
I mean, I get it...but it's week 1. No team is in top form in week 1. If they cannot do a hurry up when we go to MSU, then by all means blast the coaches.
Also, I want the offense to move the ball. I don't want them to hurry up to just go 3 and out. And by the way, for as cringey of a pace they had Saturday, it didn't matter (they got the ball left with 2 minutes to tie anyway). Not to mention, there were zero false start penalties. But I guess coach doesn't get credit for that, eh?
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:40 PM ^
Since talking about actual football is no fun, I wondered if we'd talk theory here. Specifically, the opportunity to do the smart thing and go for two when M scored to make it 16-24.
We of course didn't because we have lizard brain football coaches making decisions and they can't even conclude the huddling may not be a good idea with 3:30 to go in the game down two scores.
Thought that might get a mention here because it was the textbook time to go for two there.
September 3rd, 2018 at 7:42 PM ^
Why would that be a smart decision? Based on the "2 point conversions are a slightly favorable coin flip" theory? How was it a "textbook" situation relative to going for 2 on the Ambry TD when it was 21-9?
September 3rd, 2018 at 11:05 PM ^
Assume an XP is a 98% chance and a 2 pt conversion is 50%. Assume OT is a 50% win probability.
At 16-24, you either get the 2pt or don't.
If you get it, then you kick the XP after the next TD and go up 25-24
Odds = .5 of win (.49 + .01 from missing 2nd XP/OT)
If you don't, you go for 2 after the 2nd TD
Odds = .125 of win (.5 *.5 chance/OT)
So assuming you score 2 TDs, you have a 62.5% chance of winning.
If you kick 2 XPs
Odds = 0.48 of win (.96 + OT)
No football coach will do this, but those are the numbers.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:41 PM ^
Wow, does anyone else see the world class man-hand on the Russian girl in the "Singles Russia" ad on the right sidebar?
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:41 PM ^
I have said it before and will say it again: Harbaugh is an NFL coach. Interesting how David Shaw took over at Stanford and that train hasn’t stopped. Yes they have had some head scratching games along the way but they have had no trouble handling ND the past few years. Harbaugh looked clueless and was outcoached by that purple faced bastard. The only question now is how closely this season will mirror Hoke’s final season.
September 3rd, 2018 at 6:52 PM ^
I've been saying that Harbs is our John Cooper for 2 years... I was wrong. John Cooper would have beaten the brakes off of that ND team and every other team on the schedule until The Game, when he would promptly lose. I was bummed to think that Harbaugh would likely always struggle with OSU but was uplifted by the idea that he would beat everyone else. Neither seems to be happening and it's year 4.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:43 PM ^
I confess ... I've been in the BPONE for over a decade, although I never knew what to call it.
September 3rd, 2018 at 3:59 PM ^
"Don't make me think about Hoke. Michigan's fourth quarter in this game was mostly spent down two touchdowns and mostly spent without any urgency whatsoever. The inability to get plays off with more than ten seconds on the playclock with under eight minutes left in the game is extremely disturbing and, yes, Hoke-ish. It speaks to a lack of organization."
I suppose the thing worrying me the most is that this seems like a different team from the '15 and '16 teams. Those teams were known to be offensively unpredictable and efficient in offense. These teams just seem lost. What the hell happened? The only big thing I can point too is Jedd to Pep, but is that reasonable?
We have a worrying situation where we have alot of talent, and coaches with a great track record, but seem, Lions like, to have the whole never equal the sum of the parts. Having the defense play like it did was a serious soul dong punch.
As for the BPONE... man, I'm there. I didn't watch the second half because I knew nothing good would come of it. The only irrational thing in my mind is 'We looked good in Florida last year, then sucked, so maybe sucking this year we'll look good later....'. I know. Thin.
Honestly, this game kind of killed the season for me. I'm going to keep track of the games, and may watch one from time to time, but I'm almost to the point in the Hoke regime where I'd flip the game on, see we were down, then go take the kids to play somewhere because it isn't worth my time to get pissed.
I love Harbaugh. I think he'll turn it around. Braylon's tweat was, IMHO, unconscionable. These are kids. I just am not going to spend the time going down with the ship if it looks bad.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:02 PM ^
Money is obviously not a motivator. Why should it be ... They are paid highly for no results.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:07 PM ^
Why can’t i go back to a kid’s mindset? Just watch every game with excitement that Michigan is playing football and nothing else? It’s depressing knowing what I know: that the o-line still sucks in year 4 and that Harbaugh may very well be as overrated as many say he is. Unfortunately I see at least 2-3 more losses this season. Honestly the only thing that would get me out of this state will be wins at both MSU and OSU. I’d be ok with a loss to Wisconsin or even PSU (I assume PSU is losing a couple times). Win in east Lansing and Columbus...that’s what it takes. Unfortunately I see both of those as losses. I think 7-5 is on the table.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:09 PM ^
So, our OTs suck. We can cry and keep complaining We UM fans are pretty good at that. The issue is not that we have a personnel problem, but rather what the coaching staff and the team is going to do about it. Isn't that what coaches are for? We can coach up the OTs, put in kids that have not performed as well and get them experience, put in two fricking FBs for crissakes or something much more clever. I am not a football coach, clearly, but this is a solvable problem. Have faith. The season is not over.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:18 PM ^
I just don’t understand how it is still this bad. Am I not remembering Harbaughs first year correctly? I know OSU ball punched them but I remember good schemes and play calls all the while thinking shit was going to really get good when he got his QB and other players. I thought Patterson played well, but the offense just looks.....I don’t even know. It is just bizarre. I guess not having an OT that can block whatsoever jacks things up pretty quickly, but man, watching this offense is once again is like watching my 5 year old study for the ACT.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:19 PM ^
Thank you, Brian. You consistently are able to articulate, with physical evidence, what a lot of us are feeling after a game. I do try very hard to separate seasons and especially coaching eras, because people change, develop, mature, etc...
But I seriously question the preparation for this contest. Why not zone to befuddle Wimbush and negate their size advantages on the outside? Why not switch Bredeson and Runyan, at halftime at least? Why not play Evans more? It seemed like Higdon's off-season weight room work has turned him into DeVeon 2.0, only without the fearsome blitz pick-ups...
I'm not entirely sure where I fit in on the spectrum of BPONE to OBPONE, as I had figured another 8-5 year was a worst-case scenario but now I see a return to 10-3 as the best-case scenario for 2018. So I will try to enjoy the ride with my newly reset expectations and hope for a miracle win against either MSU or OSU and an opportunity to play somebody new in a bowl game, like Miami (YTM), LSU or TCU.
But if nothing else, I won't believe a word (positive or negative), coming out of camp ball going forward. Which is a good thing since 2019 most likely will feature a lot less talent.
And lastly, just for the record, I'm not one of those people in the Fire Harbaugh crowd. (I do believe there's nothing magically unique about him as a football coach, but that's a different conversation). By all accounts he's a good man and runs an honorable program, and if Warde and the Administration want to give him a lifetime contract, that's fine by me. But that shouldn't mean we as fans can't question his recruiting strategies or game management when called for.
At the end of the day, "MICHIGAN" football won't be back until we have an elite offensive line. And that is nowhere on the horizon.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:31 PM ^
Worst fanbase* in America.
Bar none.
*When dealing with football exclusively.
September 3rd, 2018 at 6:06 PM ^
Really? Do you subscribe to the blind squirrel theory because that’s how this program has produced for the last dozen + years now.
September 3rd, 2018 at 4:36 PM ^
Disappointed with the defense. Giving up a 96 yard drive wth ease was bad. They need to make some more 3 and outs get off the field and give the offense more possessions
thought secondary was out of position way too many times giving up big third down plays need to tighten things up more
tough to make a call on offense. Didn’t get enough possessions to really tell. Usually loved the ball then had a bone head play to stall a drive. OL was bad on pass pro though. Runyon looked good last year on interior just not a LT. Guessing other options are still a little too raw to put I there. Liked what I saw from Dylan in limited time. Came in and looked poised and moved the chains. Future is bright with him
Disappointed with game but trying to put things in perspective before season started felt we would go 10-2 loosing first and last game of season and still could go that way
September 3rd, 2018 at 6:27 PM ^
Thought the DL was not very good up the middle. No pass rush or contain on QB scrambles. All our guys were pushed around at will by a good ND interior OL.
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:09 PM ^
The thing that bothers me is the offensive approach. Every team in CFB has some weakness to work around. But it seems that we just ignore our weaknesses and game plan away.
I guess we’ll see in the UFR, but why not have any more screen plays, or sweeps, or any mis-direction, or anything to keep ND’s defense from just loading up and overwhelming our line? I thought it was a mistake to go to the 0-0, empty-backfield look the first time I saw it – and it didn’t even come close to working. But we still went back to it 3-4 more times during the game, all with zero success. At the very, very least, Runyan should have spent the whole game with a TE next to him.
I expected Harbaugh would be more creative than he’s shown himself to be. Hopefully they will be able to figure it out.
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:09 PM ^
Easiest job in the world.
A Critic.
Those in the fire know this.
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:11 PM ^
Defense on 3rd down was abysmal. Tackles were a tragedy. No more hype videos, trips to Europe Cool-aid or feel good propaganda for me. Rather pluck my eyebrows out...
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:33 PM ^
I don't care about 0-17 and I don't care about 9-9. I care about 0-1, why they are 0-1, and what are the coaches and players going to do about it.
The fact that Michigan lost to Ohio St on the road in 2008 is just as irrelevant as the fact they beat Wisconsin at home in 2008. 0-17 includes games that were played when this current group was in elementary school. It is just noise that makes the national media feel good and creates clippings in the sports page. The only good that comes from the sports page is it gives sparty fans something to burn in the trash cans to stay warm.
Please don't get bent out of shape by a bunch of dipshits that are chanting "Fuck Harbaugh" while Utah State is driving to tie the game. Or people from the armpit of the country that are proud their school protects spousal abusers.
Michigan loses games; outsiders go bananas because they are worried and threatened by the programs potential return to greatness. Michigan State struggles against cupcakes and Ohio State displays their lack of morals and nobody says a peep because it is expected. Think about it.
Be positive. It is going to suck to be Western Michigan this week.
September 3rd, 2018 at 7:28 PM ^
*alleged* spousal abuser. I don't like Zach Smith either but this is America and I will extend the presumption of innocence to everyone, including that douchebag. Imagine if Jaybaugh had a woman make similar accusations towards him but the police investigated and there were no charges brought. So Jim asks around and he hears from virtually everyone, including Jay that she's a vindictive liar. What do you think jim would do about that? Do you think he would fire his son even though all evidence points to false accusations? I think Meyer is a decent man who was caught in a bad situation. I personally know people who have had to deal with similar allegations and I also know a lady who bruised herself in order to make her claims seem more credible (she was caught on camera). Shit like that does happen.
September 3rd, 2018 at 10:28 PM ^
That is a fair point and makes a lot of sense. Crazy that people behave that way.
September 3rd, 2018 at 11:03 PM ^
You seriously believe that Meyer is a decent man? Interesting how you bring up a fanciful hypothetical to defend him starring Jim and Jay Harbaugh.
Hardcore OSU fans have no problem with Meyer being a scumbag, they only care about wins. While abhorrent, that take is at least credible.
Zach Smith has ZERO presumption of innocence, everyone knows who he is including Urban and Shelly. Spilled Milk let's say you get beaten up and you are going to press charges, but you are visited by your assailant's family and powerful employers and you are pressured to drop the charges. Does that mean you weren't beaten up?
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:37 PM ^
Maybe that's why I read the blog, that you articulate things I only faintly realized I was feeling. Specific examples, like the 3 I list here are only tips of dark brooding icebergs in dark and murky water.
• I went to California for Bo's first Rose Bowl: he got a heart attack, and fans got what felt like hours stewing in the loss and bus exhaust fumes for approximately 196 hours.
• I ventured to the Rose Bowl again in 2007. Bleak loss.
• That's okay. Stop on the way back from a Michigan vacation that fall for a fun afternoon in the Stadium with my family. At the hotel the morning of the game, the opposing fans were nice, sweet, just happy to be there. Even happier after App State won.
[EDIT, in the how-could-I-forget category] • AND I was in Columbus in 2016, sitting about 10 rows behind the Michigan team, when I saw Michigan beat tOSU, except that the refs saw it differently, presumably persuaded in that maelstrom of gloating and hate that they wanted to escape with their lives.
September 3rd, 2018 at 9:56 PM ^
Please don't ever go to a Michigan game again man ?
September 3rd, 2018 at 5:39 PM ^
Coaches failed.
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