Cade's performance (Utah St. at Iowa)
Here is what I saw watching Cade in his first start for Iowa:
- Looked like 2020 Cade- very good placement on short throws
- QBR 35.9 his receivers had 3 or 4 drops
- Deep ball placement was ok- overthrew 3 balls, made 4 DO throws
- First touchdown his receiver was open by 15 yards, defender fell down. I was surprised it was ruled a catch because receiver trapped it against ground without his hand underneath
- Cade looked less mobile or maybe I'm forgetting how mobile he was
- Iowa's offensive line is bad- Cade took a lot of hits - I'll be surprised if he makes it through the season if they continue this level of play
- Erick All only had 1 catch for 7 yards - three targets, Lachey seems to be the preferred target
September 5th, 2023 at 10:26 AM ^
Not to be that guy, but being that guy. It looks like Erick All had 3 receptions for 15 yards, long of 7 yards and 1 TD.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:28 AM ^
Cade is somewhat mobile, but with a shitty o-line he's in for a long season. I wonder if he has any lingering issues from his non-contact preseason "injury"?
September 5th, 2023 at 10:52 AM ^
Yes- my error All had 3 catches, 1 TD
September 5th, 2023 at 10:30 AM ^
I think the general sense is that despite airing out on that first play, the Iowa offense was still the Iowa offense. I'm sure Cade is an upgrade from the last couple years of Petras, but if the OL still isn't good and the rest of the team isn't well coached, and play calling is still unimaginitive/predictable, there's only so much a new QB can do
September 5th, 2023 at 11:03 AM ^
Yeah, I only saw the highlights and nothing in depth but scoring 24 points on the #113 team in SP+ doesn't scream that the problem is fixed. Cade will definitely be an upgrade over Petras, but if the OL and run game still stink, it's not gonna make a huge difference. Looks like the backs had 33 carries for 99 yards including a long of 21. That's like 2.5 ypa outside of the long run
September 5th, 2023 at 11:37 AM ^
Right. I think Cade still has upside relative to his 2021 campaign - you can expect reasonable improvement out of an older QB. But he’s not going to immediately turn into CJ Stroud or whatever. He’s still who he is, and who he is is a competent, above average P5 QB who will make good plays within the context of a good offense, but is not a game breaker.
Iowa won’t lose games because of Cade, but he’s not good enough (or maybe more fairly, he’s just not the right kind of player) to overcome Brian Ferentz and a crappy OL.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:44 PM ^
but he’s not good enough (or maybe more fairly, he’s just not the right kind of player) to overcome Brian Ferentz and a crappy OL.
I don’t think anyone is. Look what Hoke did to poor Denard Robinson and Devin Gardner. All the talent, speed, and athleticism in the world won’t make up for a bad OLine.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:30 AM ^
A QB who’s dead on the money for short throws needs to be taking advantage of RBs and TEs. I haven’t been shy about my absolute love of running backs catching passes, but that was Cade’s MO.
If he tries standard dropback passing with long developing routes, I agree, he’s going to die. Every ball should be out in 2.5 seconds or faster, even if it’s a 4 yard dumpoff to the RB. Cade is legit GOOD at that sort of thing.
I also wouldn’t be surprised if he tries to force things a bit and struggles. 17/30 for less than 200 yards isn’t going to get it done.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:45 AM ^
Agree 90%. Still need to take a few deep shots, specifically early, just so corners aren't sitting on those short routes all game. Unless you have 2 great TE's and slots, the short passing game can also just bring more LB's and safeties into the box and clog up the running game.
Need to at least flash a vertical threat to keep things from getting too stacked near the box.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:00 PM ^
If he tries standard dropback passing with long developing routes
At the end of the day, I suppose it's really a question of the playcalling and how much flexibility Cade has within that framework to make his own reads.
September 5th, 2023 at 3:53 PM ^
That’s a big reason Ive said he would have been better off transferring to somewhere with an air raid offense that’s built around quick passing. Iowa wasn’t a great fit simply based on not having a good OL, run game, or adequate weapons on the outside.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:33 AM ^
Cade is what he is. A nice QB here at Michigan who was better than anyone else before him but not nearly as good as JJ. He was good enough to lead us to a long overdue win over OSU and an equally overdue B1G championship. For those things alone I salute him.
He's probably the best QB Iowa has had in many years so his tenure there should look a lot like his time with us. He'll elevate the roster and the overall offensive because he's competent, not exceptional.
He was also bitter at having to compete for the starting job in 22 (allegedly) and made life less than fun for JJ (allegedly), probably because he more than anyone knew McCarthy was exponentially more talented at QB than he was. He, and All, also took more than a few shots at Michigan on the way out for those things I have a big problem rooting for them now.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:47 AM ^
Is McNamara really any better than CJ Beathard or Nate Stanley? If he is, it's marginal.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:56 AM ^
Yeah, I think some are letting the past three seasons of abominable play from Spencer Petras and Alex Padilla cloud their memory of other recent Iowa QBs. CJ Beathard basically put up Cade-at-Michigan numbers in '15 and '16 and Nate Stanley threw 26 TDs two years in a row ('17 and '18) -- that's more than any Michigan QB has ever thrown!
That said and despite the time I spent looking up stats for Beathard and Stanely to compare, I don't give a shit about Cade or Erick All anymore. I wish them no ill will but I also do not wish them any good fortune. I just don't care.
September 5th, 2023 at 4:29 PM ^
CJ Beathard was a pretty good QB but he had accuracy issues (his career completion percentage was barely 58%) and it wasn't like he played decades ago; in 2016 he was 9th in the conference, basically tied with Mitch Leidner from Minnesota. And Stanley was similarly below 60% and in both of these guys' cases they were mostly throwing to big TEs like Noah Fant, TJ Hockenson, and Sam LaPorta and decent WRs. Cade's a more accurate passer and while not much of a runner he can move in the pocket.
He's not light-years ahead of any of them but I'd say he's a step above the usual Iowa QB.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:22 AM ^
in actuality Cade, if Michigan is playing to historical expectations, would traditionally be a career backup at Michigan with a chance at starting his senior year."Traditionally" Michigan has a pretty highly rated QB as a starter with a solid 4 star backup, which would normally describe Cade.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:26 PM ^
If not for Covid, he may not have started here. Dylan McCaffrey most likely would have been the starter in 2020 and probably would have had the edge going into '21.
September 5th, 2023 at 4:30 PM ^
I didn't believe at the time that nMcCaffrey got beaten out by Joe Milton but apparently he did and their careers since that switch sort of bear that out. I think McNamara would have beaten out McCaffrey, though it would have probably taken a couple of games to do so.
September 5th, 2023 at 4:50 PM ^
McCaffery definitely did not set the world on fire at Northern Colorado. 6-16 record in two years.
September 5th, 2023 at 1:35 PM ^
He's better than Petras (hard not to be) but I think a lot of fans overrate him due to the halo effect of the 2021 B1G title. In 14 games that year, he had just four 200-yard performances, and threw only 15 TD passes. He made some timely throws in the PSU and OSU games but overall, we really didn't ask that much of him ... and there was a reason we kept subbing JJ in every game.
September 5th, 2023 at 3:57 PM ^
A nice QB here at Michigan who was better than anyone else before him but not nearly as good as JJ.
Cade gets a lot of bonus points in the eyes of fans because we beat OSU and won the B1G with him at QB, but I have a real hard time arguing he was actually better than Rudock/Speight/Shea.
September 5th, 2023 at 4:20 PM ^
In 2021, I kept expecting to see the Cade from the 2020 Rutgers game and quite frankly, I never did.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:35 AM ^
Thanks for providing this. Hoping Iowa wins all their games and we play them in the championship. That will be must watch TV.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:38 AM ^
An average performance by an average QB. Can't really say that I wish him "well" because of his bitterness(entitlement?) in having to compete with JJ at M, but I don't wish him failure, either.
Either way, M chose correctly. We got our guy.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:40 AM ^
I think this is OT at this point. All posts regarding McNamara end the same way, people kind of bashing him and other people bashing people for bashing him.
He plays for Iowa now and hasn't been relevant to Michigan in quite some time. Personally I watched college football all weekend and did not have occasion to think of Cade once because watching Iowa is miserable. Let's move on.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:43 AM ^
This should be the gold standard for Cade-at-Iowa hawt takes this upcoming season. The least interesting offense Cade could’ve ended up at across the country was Iowa and now that he’s there, I’m not sure what the desire is to follow him? His exit was anything but cordial and he took his shots on the way out.
I don’t wish ill upon him but I really hope we don’t have to get weekly updates on his season stats or Iowa’s for that matter. If we want to look back after the season is done, fine by me but I doubt Cade cares about what’s going on at Michigan and the feeling should be mutual.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:45 AM ^
There is a tracker following Brian Ferentz attaining his contract clause of averaging at least 25 ppg. So far, he is in the red.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:46 AM ^
Shutdown Fullcast's take on that saga is objectively hilarious.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:34 AM ^
Here's the tracker:
https://twitter.com/SickosCommittee/status/1698148954997772329?s=20
It is even better with the sound up.
According to Sickos Committee, Brian's contract states that the whole team needs to get to 325 points for the season, so Ferentz can use defensive and special teams points to reach his target. Props to his agent for getting that into the fine print.
September 5th, 2023 at 3:33 PM ^
Wow, and he's still behind the chains after Game 1.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:45 AM ^
I'm gonna be that jerk and say this is OT.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:46 AM ^
I don't think that is jerk-y. It is OT.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:03 PM ^
My thought too but I think it technically is not OT. I wish Cade well and farewell. No need to dwell on his every pass.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:07 PM ^
Technically, any big ten news or posts about a current or former player are on topic. That said, doesn't mean it's of particularly great interest. I'll be tangentially following Cade's progress (in the form of box scores or a few minutes of games here and there if it's on during a Michigan game commercial or something), but I'm honestly more interested in Brian Ferentz's progress against the 325 point bogey.
September 5th, 2023 at 3:13 PM ^
It’s on topic. People that care can click on the topic. People that don’t can not click on the topic. Problem solved.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:48 AM ^
In terms of most teams, this is bad to average.
For Iowa, this is Heisman material.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:10 AM ^
I watched the game on YouTube (thanks Wheels). It looked entertaining* and Cade looked pretty good. He even scrambled for some yards and looked more agile than I remember him. I had to Google "Iowa Offensive Coordinator" just to be sure it was still Brian calling the plays. They weren't really any more imaginative, and I'm not an Iowa fan, so I don't have more to compare to than the weekly box scores last year, but it felt like "Iowa air raid" to me. That was...passable...even enjoyable football.
*for Iowa Football. It's better if you just put an asterix on this whole comment.
September 5th, 2023 at 10:51 AM ^
I'm tired of the Cade watch. I'm not mad at you for posting, but just tired of him and All and anyone else who left being relevant to anything we're doing here.
The biggest story to me was how inept the B10 overall looked... Relative to expectations, I'm not sure any team looked "better" and very few looked as good as advertised. Iowa and Wisky didn't look great. OSU, UM, and PSU were underwhelming in victory - again, compared to expectations and for different reasons.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:42 AM ^
I am not sure what your expectations were to be underwhelmed.
It was week one. Preseason expectations are even less reliable with the portal.
M took care of business relatively easily (would have beat the spread without the missed kicks and being stubborn trying to get Edwards a TD). Plus ECU could be ok?
PSU looked fine against a P5 team and beat the spread** -- Offense looked a bit better than (I) expected and the defense maybe a bit worse. (**last minute TD in a game that was over already)
OSU Offense looked "human" but still handled a B1G team. This was largely expected with the QB and OT uncertainty coming out of camp --- though maybe not to the extent that Harrison gets only 2 catches. IU defense maybe good? (IU offense still awful)
MSU looked better than I expected against a possibly horrible CMU team and Rutgers looked decent(?)
The West was going to be a crapshoot with all the new coaches and ongoing talent deficit compared to the East. Biggest surprise for me was how bad the Minnesota OL/running game looked.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:08 PM ^
Wisconsin and Iowa did not look great.
Michigan took care of business, but did not look like the #2 team in the country. Again, relative to expectations.
OSU's offense sputtered a lot. Indiana is not supposed to be a good team.
Did you watch the Penn State game? In that atmosphere, with all the hype to prove they belong, they thoroughly underwhelmed. Bad special teams, a few big plays.. but WVU was right there most of the game. PSU piled on at the end to make it look good, because franklin is a douche.
Nebraska and Purdue looked bad. I thought Minnesota was supposed to be good - that didn't show through. 3 points until the final minutes against Nebraska?
We know NU sucks. Rutgers did their job - i didnt watch.
MSU didn't look all that impressive - not a pile of dogshit - but they sputtered along.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:44 AM ^
Not a great showing by the conference. I did think that PSU looked pretty good, though. Of all the opponents faced in Week 1 by B10 teams, WVU is probably the strongest and the game wasn't all that competitive.
Hearing Brian and the guys talk about Drew Allar, I was expecting him to fall on his face. He looked pretty good.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:09 PM ^
I think PSU showed potential, but no consistency. WVU was okay, but not very impressive. I have buddies who are WVU fans and feel their coach is a dead man walking. They thought they'd score more points, but... weren't thrilled
September 5th, 2023 at 10:52 AM ^
Unpopular opinion:
I thank Cade for all his contributions when he was on the team.
But he's no longer a part of the UM team, so can we stop having individual threads about him (or Erick All)?
I don't care, and don't understand why anyone else does either.
September 5th, 2023 at 7:27 PM ^
Deleted
September 5th, 2023 at 10:56 AM ^
I hope Cade beats msu this year. Other than that, I hope they lose every game. Iowa is 4th on my list of hated teams behind osu, msu, and notre dame.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:11 AM ^
Really? Don't forget Tennessee and Nebraska, going back to '97. They have to rank ahead of Iowa for any Michigan fan.
September 5th, 2023 at 11:29 AM ^
iowa is just annoying. If you beat them you get no credit. If you lose to them, the sky is falling. They suck all year only to throw everything they have at Michigan/Ohio state. They never play anyone in the nonconference because they have that terrible irrelevant rivalry with iowa state. They get fat and sassy loading up on the terrible Big Ten west.
They go 8-4 every year yet they beat their chest that they've only had two coaches for the last 50 years. They produce all-pro tight ends and lineman regularly while never winning anything on the field. No one celebrates mediocrity like iowa fans. The "punting is winning" schtick isnt cute. They play a horrible brand of football.
The only thing they have is the Kinnick at night voodoo magic where they try to pull a huge upset. Why is everything always such a big upset with iowa? Why are you never ranked higher? Because you're an ass program.
Not to mention the rampant racism allegations in the program from a few years back.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:18 PM ^
You're not wrong, but it's also (likely) true that many teams in the B1G would pay BIG $$$ for Iowa's level of success (Rutgers, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, Northwestern and maybe Minnesota to name 5-6). So if Iowa is 'annoying' then let's be honest that half the conference mostly stinks with just enough variability year to year to seems like it doesn't. And when the College Football 'Premier League' happens in ~8-12 years I'll bet Iowa makes the cut and those other schools won't.
September 5th, 2023 at 12:55 PM ^
They go 8-4 every year yet they beat their chest that they've only had two coaches for the last 50 years.
I don't really follow you here ... for a school with basically no recruiting base, they've done pretty well for themselves.