Michael Spath source: coaches giving up on game plan
Legit or overreaction? I wonder the source...player, coach, staff? 97.1?
https://twitter.com/michaelspathith/status/1079753372738174976?s=21
January 1st, 2019 at 2:27 PM ^
If that's being said in public, I wonder what's being said in player only circles?
January 1st, 2019 at 2:58 PM ^
When you watch the wideouts, they're hungry and ready to make plays, but Michigan doesn't get them the ball a lot.
I know this has been mentioned by others, but it's this part that really worries me, especially in regards to recruiting. If you're a top-tier HS wideout, and you see how little Michigan involves its WRs, would you really consider going there?
January 1st, 2019 at 3:13 PM ^
You could have said that about OSU in 2017.
January 1st, 2019 at 9:30 PM ^
Once this Logjam of Juniors is gone, and if there's just one other one in the class, sure.
Taking 4 in one year was crazy, but couldn't turn away 4-stars. But then never quite made three identify ones that needed so many, either.
January 1st, 2019 at 5:10 PM ^
How the offense looks in the 3rd qtr after half time adjustments has been my biggest sore point with the current offensive coaching staff. Half time adjustments and how a team looks in the 3rd qtr tell everything about a coach.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:18 PM ^
Spath may have some kind of “source” but most of those tweets are subjective opinion. When Spath says what “seems” to happen it’s unclear if the source is guessing or Spath himself. In either case it’s not a solid piece of news it’s someone’s opinion. Same with his guesses as to what they were doing with Gary in his tweets further down. Unless Gary is his source how could anyone know what he’s thinking?
Lastly the transfer talk: if Spath (via “source”?) knows of players transferring then that info would be news but simply saying “it will make sense when you think about it” without reporting that something is actually happening is still just a guess and nowhere near journalism.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:33 PM ^
I have a source too... he will remain nameless. Journalistic integrity and all that non-sense.
In all seriousness, if you don't follow morons like this guy they whither away and die. Everyone just makes up things for attention and the dollars. Always about the dollars.
January 3rd, 2019 at 2:10 AM ^
Spath continuously has long interviews with ex players, seemingly arranged through Shelly Kovacs, so he has a long list of people he knows that have inside access and connections just from that alone so I don’t know why you’d doubt he could or does have inside sources, whether this particular thing is from a good source or not.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:18 PM ^
Offensive playcalling and just overall game management with playcalling is shitty. Not good. It’s frustrating as hell. Has to be as a player too. Weird shit happening in the coming weeks imo.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:32 PM ^
Harbaugh’s offenses were somewhat clunky in San Francisco. But his Stanford offense was something else. So to answer one of the questions Spath asks, this problem (if it’s real) probably isn’t all Harbaugh.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:38 PM ^
Losing is so annoying. I feel a little ripped off since the Stanford offenses were obviously awesome and were not really getting the same thing.
January 1st, 2019 at 4:09 PM ^
It is shocking that he can't reproduce what he did at Stanford with better recruiting here. I guess Andrew Luck was just that good?
January 1st, 2019 at 5:21 PM ^
I think we have to accept that the Stanford offenses were a fluke built on Andrew Luck and OL recruiting luck.
January 1st, 2019 at 6:22 PM ^
Harbaugh never really coached Luck. Luck redshirted his freshman year and then JH headed to the NFL. Shaw inherited a loaded roster and made the most of it. His recent teams have faired worse than UM under JH.
January 1st, 2019 at 7:10 PM ^
Wrong.
Harbaugh coached at Stanford 2007-2010 (through the end of the season). Luck was at Stanford 2008 (redshirt year) through 2011.
So I'd say Harbaugh actually did coach Luck from, you know, for THREE WHOLE YEARS.
January 1st, 2019 at 7:50 PM ^
Andrew Luck was Harbaugh's at Stanford all the way from recruiting on up.
https://www.cleveland.com/osu/2015/01/how_jim_harbaugh_recruited_and.html
January 1st, 2019 at 8:51 PM ^
Why just talk nonsensical shite?
January 1st, 2019 at 2:32 PM ^
To Spath's point, Harbaugh himself talked a lot about implementing RPO in the offensive playbook before the season. Yet we hardly saw any, and that would have been an excellent approach to OSU to attack their poor linebacking, instead they went with the standard approach that allowed their linebackers to make plays.
Why did Harbaugh abandon RPO concepts when he talked about it so much, especially when we have a QB that could run it? I don't think 'panic' is the right word, maybe Harbaugh has O'Korn-induced PTSD.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:15 PM ^
I agree, Harbaugh talked about it a lot this past off season and even insiders were saying we should expect to see RPOs implemented a lot more. However, I think I can count on one hand how many time we ran RPOs this year. Funny thing is that I think most of the RPOs ran were successful
January 1st, 2019 at 2:33 PM ^
Play calling not play design. It is very very simple. Shea will call what is on the sheet. Andrew Luck audibled and had the power to. The play design Harbaugh has is creative and unique. The play calling is subpar. Though Spath is just confirmational bias the reality that play calling is problematic is truth.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:39 PM ^
Why doesn't Shea audible more
January 1st, 2019 at 2:47 PM ^
Luck was one of the best pro-style college QBs of all time. Shea isn't.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:59 PM ^
uR so sMart
January 1st, 2019 at 3:13 PM ^
You're a pathetic follower on a college football message board, who amounts to everything you claim to hate about this place. I clearly can't compete with that.
January 2nd, 2019 at 9:12 AM ^
Why don't you go create another twenty accounts.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:58 PM ^
Now that, I actually agree with. So many people have to give their snarky responses, to get a few upvotes... "can't believe there's just one guy who can't see it", etc.
It's stupid, thoughtless venting. Your point has actual thought behind it, and is able to separate some nuance out of the situation. All the idiot "RABBLE FIRE JIM RABBLE" posts are just showing people's short sighted-ness.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:17 PM ^
pretty much this x10000
you can have the greatest playbook in the world, but you still need to call the game. Certain plays versus certain looks etc.... Does Shea even have the green light to audible? I don't think so
just look at how bad PSU became, despite the loss of Barkley, that offense was nowhere near as lethal when Moorhead left, even though the playbook was substantially unchanged...
the playcalling during games is an issue; anyone watching the game can see how disjointed the offense looked versus Florida.
This needs to change. Harbaugh needs to change. Or we'll see more of the same; beat the teams you should be beating and losing the big games at the end of the year.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:33 PM ^
I would hope this is true. Otherwise their plan for coming back down three scores is 35 seconds a play and WR screens.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:43 PM ^
Well I have given up on the offensive coaching staff so this works out nicely.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:44 PM ^
I think a bunch of knowledgeable, but angry Michigan fans need to go protest in front of Jim Harbaugh's house or in front of Schembechler Hall, till Harbaugh comes out and explains himself and why he does what he does coaching.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:48 PM ^
Nah bro submarine. Do you want other teams knowing our gameplan?
January 1st, 2019 at 2:45 PM ^
Makes sense to me. Talented QB, talented receivers, zero 300 yard passing games.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:00 PM ^
Ding, ding, ding. Winner winner chicken dinner.
January 1st, 2019 at 5:38 PM ^
"zero 300 yard passing games."
It feels like my hair is on fire I want to see Pep Hamilton fired so bad.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:55 PM ^
Garbage
January 1st, 2019 at 2:55 PM ^
January 1st, 2019 at 3:15 PM ^
Easy MCB people will tell you it isn’t their money so who cares. Funny part is if you buy gear, tickets and increase in ticket prices, Required donation, concessions, parking, etc it is your money.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:22 PM ^
Bottom line is Michigan has not beaten OSU under Harbaugh yet. They have had the better team every year except 2016. That will not be the case going forward, in my opinion, if Michigan sticks with Harbaugh.
January 1st, 2019 at 2:57 PM ^
If the plan was for Evans, Eubanks, Gentry to carry the load then I'm very afraid of the entire O coaching staff.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:24 PM ^
Every coach has a game plan.
When the plays and/or players don't execute,
should they stay with the game plan or change it?
If they change it up, then there is probably a disconnect between the pre-game and game.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:37 PM ^
This looks BAD, and is BAD if true. Pathetic. Wow
January 1st, 2019 at 3:38 PM ^
From where I sit, if there isn't major movement with the offensive coaching staff to a real OC with a track record, I have no reason to expect any improvement and we may have met our ceiling at 10 wins already.
No reason for optimism if Jim holds status quo.
January 1st, 2019 at 5:51 PM ^
I can't believe Jim Harbaugh will stay with things as they are. His drive to win that he showed when he was called "Captain Comeback," and the nightmares his wife has talked about that he has after a loss, tell me he wants to win. He sacrificed his relationship with Kevin Tolbert and Tim Drevno to make the team better. I think he's going to continue on the same path. Can a leopard change its spots? It's who he is.
January 1st, 2019 at 3:40 PM ^
I don't know who Harbaugh considers a friend or trustworthy but someone has to get to him and convince him of change. He doesn't have to give up on "manball", just throw it more. The offense doesn't need an overhaul.
He needs someone in place to tweak and re-design their passing concepts. He needs to trust and defer to this person in the passing game. They can still mash people late in games if they want, but only after they've lit them up through the air.
It's looking like if Pep can't find another gig, he'll be back. Basically, UM will be his fallback. So there isn't much hope for 2019 if that happens.
January 1st, 2019 at 4:34 PM ^
His father and brother have his ear.
January 1st, 2019 at 5:55 PM ^
I don't believe either Jack or John would even tell Jim to open up the playbook. Jack won a NC at Western Kentucky by running 95% of the time, previously coached in an era where passing was rare. Ravens have always been a tough defense/special teams outfit. It should be the Woodsons, Bradys, Woodleys, Longs that are encouraging change.
January 1st, 2019 at 4:45 PM ^
They don't need to throw it more, just throw it different. Instead of 20-25 yard passes to the sideline, throw more quick outs, slants, crossing patterns, meshes, etc. Get players in space to get some YAC. Don't know if anyone tracks it, or if they do where to find it, but Michigan has to have one of the lowest YAC numbers in the country.
January 1st, 2019 at 4:51 PM ^
F that. I love the - 1st and 10 run it up the gut for 2 yards approach even blind people know is coming.
Every
Fucking
Time
Body blows. Body blows. Yay. It'll pay off in the 7th qtr.
January 1st, 2019 at 4:57 PM ^
Don't need to throw it more? As someone pointed out in a different thread, UM seems loaded at wr but yet the only Big Ten teams that threw less passes then UM this year were Wisconsin and Maryland. When you add in the amount of targets the TE's get, the wide receivers were criminally under used.