Chengelis Tweets on Borges
Michigan OC Al Borges said 7on7 drills started earlier than he thought they would. Doesn't expect to add a lot to playbook this fall.
Michigan OC Borges is not a fan of RB by committee. wants a back to emerge to carry 20-plus a game
Wanted to point this out for discussion. Does the 7on7 drills starting sooner than Borges thought imply that our offensive players are picking up the playbook quicker than expected?
Also, interesting quote on the RBs, given that he led an Auburn team to a 13-0 record with both Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams. I guess Denard gets to play one of them in this system, and the "winner" at RB gets to play the other.
Ronnie Brown and Cadillac were too good to not split carries. Would rather have one RB be 'the guy' than have a bunch of okay RBs splitting carries
Point one: or he could be going with a whole lot of last year (or slightly modified last year). That would make sense given his statement as well.
Point two: good point. I honestly think that's really insightful.
Unique situation there. Given just how good both Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams were, it only made sense to play them both. I definitely do see the benefit of having that one go-to guy, though.
Ok, so maybe not unique when you also consider the case of Arkansas a few years ago, with both Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. You find a way to get the ball to both guys.
But Denard is also an elite runner. I know he's not going to be running 20+ times a game, but he could still be that second "running back".
He could be Bizarro Darren McFadden, and I'd be happy with that.
That Denard will be that far off from 20 carries a game. Especially if you include scramble/breakdowns.
I think that the biggest surprise coming to many is that our offense will be running alot of what they've learned the last 3yrs. I just dont see the sense in any coach simply junking well choreographed plays that the players already know how to execute on instinct.
Borges has probably watched a ton of film. When he see's stuff that worked I believe he will add it to the playbook and work it in camp this summer. Why not? What will be truely interesting is IF they do run a fair share of the old system thoughout the season and those prove to be our go-to plays in must situations. Then folks will really be scratching their heads and dreaming about RR + Mattison.
Mattison would of never coached under RR though is the problem, I think thats why we had GERG, no DC in there right mind would want to be in the situation we were in.
I think we'll see alot of spread with west coast elements thrown in, I hope Al Keeps spread elements even after a few years when they have "there guys" because you need to be able to go to different styles of play in different situations.
If Borges does anything spread-related it will be the WCO out of spread formations. Luckily, there are as many different WCO's as there are spread attacks. Hoke says Borges is a "football junkie" and knows tons about offense. I hope he is correct.
Borges could turn this roster into an opportunity to create a hybrid that works so well it gets imitated and named after him, or he could turn it into three more years of rebuilding. I hope he makes the right decision, because the next five years of Michigan football is in the balance. The answer probably ends up somewhere in between.
Was that they practiced the things that needed practicing, and the best players competed against the best players.
Al Borges specifically said after the spring game, "I started of calling a QB Run because having Denard succeed at something we know he can do would settle him down"
Hoke during one of the TV shows with Brandstatter said that the plays that would be called in the spring game would be, "the stuff we haven't gotten on tape yet". In other words, the latest plays that we've installed and want to get taped so that everyone has something to study during the off season when they can't be coached.
while the end product looks a lot more dreary and sub par, it actually is what you need to do to get ready to perform.
If you watched Yo-Yo Ma during his practice sessions, you'd say, "dang that sucked and was pretty boring, why didn't he pracftice the things he already does really well"
What I'm hoping to see is that Denard comes into the season having improved his "touch" on the vertical throw. But if not, I expect that Al Borges will continue to work on it with Denard, and during the game we'll see a lot of scrambles and throws to the flats out of 4 receiver sets.
Cause, if a running back doesn't emerge who can make consistent gains in the 4+ yards range, then we're going to be passing a lot more.
Out of the few things I think will end up determining the offense next season, I think one of the biggest things is going to be Denard learning to scamble. Hopefully, like you said, he'll be averaging close to 100+yds/game including scrambles.
I bet you'll see Denard throwing the ball 20 times a game, running it 15 times (between designed runs and scrambles), RB1 running it 20 times a game and the rest of the backs running ir 5-10 times a game.
That's 60-65 offensive plays per game. I think that's a realistic breakdown.
What will be truely interesting is IF they do run a fair share of the old system thoughout the season and those prove to be our go-to plays in must situations. Then folks will really be scratching their heads and dreaming about RR + Mattison.
I don't follow. If we retain the most successful aspects of the previous regime, why would it make people pine for RR? Wouldn't it do just the opposite - suggest that RR wasn't irreplaceable on offense, so that with Hoke around (and thus Mattison), we would have the best of both worlds? Especially given how well we're recruiting.
Dont forget that team had Madden cover boy Peyton Hillis as well playing a large role. When your qb is headcase Mitch Mustain, playing those 3 backs simultaneuously was definitely the better option.
I've wondered quite a bit just how much of a head case Mustain would have been if Gus Malzahn had been allowed to run the offense. Gus really didn't become a true convert to the run game until he spent a season with Herb Hand at Tulsa. At Springdale HS Gus started throwing the moment the kids stepped off the bus.
Someday Gus will go back to a pass-dominated attack. Just depends on the parts he has to play with.
We don't know much yet about how Borges operates with the press. Let's assume a good level of craftiness.
The "We're not going to add much to the playbook" could be sandbagging for public consumption, since opposing teams have film of the spring game.
Saying he isn't a fan of RB by committee could potentially be a motivational ploy. If his tailbacks hear this, they know they've got to bust their butts this summer if they want to be that one guy.
this is a big deal and it might be speaking to Rawls as much as Cox and co.
Borges is well spoken. He crafts the talk without repetition, hyperbole or excessive cliche.
Or Bri'onte Dunn. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Dunn won't be on campus until about 480 days from now.
to emerge in winged & striped maize and blue helmet.
I think that guy is going to probably be Michael Shaw or Fitz.
Unless Toussaint can improve on his 2 YPC self from the spring game, it really won't be him.
Everyone has been waiting for this guy to break out, but other than one long run, he hasn't shown anything over the course of his career so far to suggest it's actually going to happen.
First, I have doubts about his ability to stay healthy - unfortunately, some kids are just injury prone, and I fear that he may be one of them.
Second, I know that many on this board have high hopes for Fitz, but what is this based on?
By the way, I don't expect that Shaw will be the feature back. He has had 2 years to really show what he can do, and he hasn't been all that impressive. Sure, he has had a share of good runs, but he just cannot regularly grind out 3+ yards unless there is a hole for him.
If it is not Rawls, my greatest hope is Hopkins.
Who isn't 'well thought of" by the older Jackson? I've been told that Rawls was like Tyrone Wheatley, only faster/stronger/andcanflylikesupermanwhoosh. I love Fred Jackson and wouldn't change him for the world. He's reminds me of Lombardi, only a better coach...and black.
If you read the full quote from Borges . . .
. . . it looks as if he feels that none of our backs has really emerged as being much better than any of the others. Sadly, this is what we saw for most of 2010 - we have a large number of backs, but none of them are particularly impressive, such that they stood out as the "feature back."
This worries me, since much of our offense's success will be the ability to pound the ball on the ground. Otherwise, we will be back in a situation where Denard has to do everything.
Here's hoping that either Hayes or Rawls can come in and have an instant impact. Also, this really underscores our need to get a feature RB in this coming recruiting class.
Mike Cox anyone?