I'm REALLY Scared About Our Offense!

Submitted by lincboe on

Having listened to the press conference, and having looked up and read info on Al Borges, I have to say that I am REALLY scared about our offense next year. Overlooking the elephant in the room question about whether Denard will be here or not - how do we know that he will be used properly if he does stay? I really wish we had gotten a new offensive coordinator, or at least some reassurance from Brady Hoke about his ability to change his offensive schemes to fit the personnel he has. All he said was that he likes to change the players to fit the system which is the opposite of what I was hoping to hear. My gut feeling is that Denard is going to stay, but will he be used properly?... Dear God I hope so.

AAB

January 12th, 2011 at 4:18 PM ^

and people are supposed to be excited, but how is this not blind optimism? 

Whether people want to admit it or not, we're bringing in a coach and an offensive coordinator who have no experience running the spread option and who don't seem to be too fond of the zone blocking schemes that our guys spent 3 years figuring out.  

Either the coaches are going to have to adapt massively to run a system they don't really know, or the players are going to have to adapt massively to run a system they don't really know.  

I'm not sure why people are so confident that we're going to be fine just because Brady Hoke refused to use Ohio State's name in a press conference.  

AAB

January 12th, 2011 at 4:27 PM ^

none of our players have run a passing spread offense, and probably don't have a very good idea how to run a passing spread offense.  The reads are completely different, the focus of the offense is different, the blocking assignments are probably different.  

This isn't a trivial transition we're talking about here, unless Hoke intends to leave the basic structure of the offense unchanged -- but there isn't really an indication yet that he intends to do that.  

dennisblundon

January 12th, 2011 at 5:24 PM ^

All offenses use some form of zone blocking. Also offensive lineman are usually some of the smartest guys on the team. They will pick up any changes pretty quickly. The biggest pro/con for an offensive line is continuity which we have. We will still have a good offense returning next year. Why I am I so certain you ask?

Players make plays and we have them. Schemes are for fans to debate over. Denard's abilities will factor in heavily what ever type of offense we ultimately run.

AAB

January 12th, 2011 at 4:34 PM ^

God kills a kitten.  

When Rodriguez had Shaun King, he threw the ball 60+% of the time.  When he had Pat White, he ran the ball like 70% of the time.  When he had Denard Robinson, the team was actually fairly balanced between passing and throwing.  Rodriguez was really, really good at adapting his scheme to his players -- which just serves to illustrate how difficult transitions from one system to the other can be.  

joeyb

January 12th, 2011 at 5:28 PM ^

He didn't adapt at all. He walked into a team built to pound the ball and throw the ball over the defense's head. He tried running the spread with that even though his line wasn't agile enough and his QB wasn't mobile. Adapting is using the players how they are meant to be used until you get your players.

FWIW, I don't think he should have adapted because no matter what you are going to have a down year during the transition and if you try to transition over a multi-year period, you will never transition completely. But, just because I don't think he should have tried to run I-Form doesn't mean I'm willing to pretend that he did try to adapt.

bringthewood

January 12th, 2011 at 6:47 PM ^

Hoke has not shown anything except similarities to RR.

1.  Fire everyone (even from a pretty high performance offense)

Think of what RR might have done if he had simply kept the entire defensive staff intact when he was hired?

So Hoke come in and plans no transition (aka the hiring of dead music comedian Victor Borges as DC) and will shoehorn spread personal to the i formation.  I was willing to give Hoke a pass until he decided to junk the current offense completely.  Isn't this the same decision RR made that pissed everyone off?

Also why fire Barwis?  He seems like an top notch strength coach.  Because you need to sweep out all of the old for your system.  Don't football coaches understand the concept of transition?

coastal blue

January 12th, 2011 at 7:15 PM ^

He came into a team that had 1 real starter back on offense, a nearly new offensive line and huge drop-offs from the year before at the skill positions.

It is absurd when people use 2008 as an argument that RR "didn't adapt". So do you mean to tell me that if he'd taken over after 2005, Chad Henne would have been running the ball 15-20 times a game? If he'd come into a team with talent, you would have seen an offense that looked a lot like the one we beat Florida with in LC's last game.

No amount of "adapting" would have saved the 2008 offense.

CalifExile

January 12th, 2011 at 6:42 PM ^

without a QB who can execute, linemen who can block effectively and RBs who are continually injured.

I think our offense improved significantly once RR had an opportunity to bring in players who can block and pass. I have tremendous respect for Threet but he needed to throw to Stonum, not Tacopants.

FGB

January 12th, 2011 at 4:49 PM ^

RR is gone.  He didn't adapt his offense when he was here, and look how well it worked out....EXTREMELY WELL.  A completely revamped offense was at the top tier of the conference in just 3 years and produced the Offensive POY.

Every hopeful remark about Hoke doesn't have to be a snide shot at Rodriguez, and especially in this case where it's a stupid comment.

The RR bashers won, he's gone, let it go and move on.

teldar

January 12th, 2011 at 6:44 PM ^

7 points against osu, 14 in the bowl game, lots of points in garbage time after we were blown out.

I will admit the team racked up yards, but the inability to score against an even decent defense most days did NOT indicate a completely dominant offense. It was the Denard Robinson show and a bunch of rb's who could not get it done. And when Denard was off, it was the hand off to v smith and watch him get 1 yard show.

Maize and Blue…

January 12th, 2011 at 4:52 PM ^

Hoke is a good coach yet has a losing record overall.  RR had nationally ranked teams and won BCS games, but couldn't adapt?  This isn't HS you can recruit players for a system and when RR started out he didn't have players and was brought in to change things because we wanted to win NCs not Big Ten titles.

We'll see if Hoke can adapt quickly because he doen't have the talent to run the offense he wants.  This team was zone blocking when LC was here and Hoke wants to do away with and try to line up mano-a-mano.  That hasn't work so good us on short yardage situations when we went to the I.  Molk is a prime example of someone not built to block one on one.  He's mean and nasty, has a quick step and can get to the next level but he's not going to be pushing 320lb guys around head up.

His OC basically uses the West Coast offense which is probably best suited to Tate who is no longer here.  Short, quick accurate throws is the base and neither Denard or Devin has been in this type of offense.  The WRs and QBs need to be on the same page as every route has various options depending on what the D is doing.  Wrong reads by either can lead to disaster.

Y0ST

January 12th, 2011 at 5:40 PM ^

Rich Rod was brought in to change a program, and to update Michigan to be competitive nationally and against the Buckeyes.  If you are changing a program you don't adapt to the old ways, you teach your new ways.  

However, the bosses changed and old way is now the new way again.

bringthewood

January 12th, 2011 at 6:54 PM ^

Fuck!  Now we're down to comparing performances in crappy bowl like this?  Hoke may be fine but he does not have the upside (or downside) of RR.  He will be a good solid coach and we will compete with Wis, MSU and Iowa for 2-4th place in the Big ten at 8-4 with 9-3 in good years.

To paraphrase an earlier post we've settled for the fat girl, and while she may be enthusiastic, she ain't getting any prettier.

Bluegoose

January 12th, 2011 at 6:00 PM ^

The problems RR"s teams have had in his words are "execution." Hoke will bring true fundamentals back into M.

Does anyone really care how we score as long as we score? I mean 7 points  counts for 7 points no matter how you you get there. The play of RR's teams against actual defenses has been abysmal.

Relax. The Marines have landed.