Hawaii Snowflakes - The Coaching
September 11th, 2022 at 12:21 AM ^
Better than Scott Frost! Nebraska lost again!!!!
September 11th, 2022 at 12:22 AM ^
Can we all just be nice to Cade and congratulate JJ. There's no need to rub it in. Cade had a great year last year.
We all saw what happened. No need to break down every play and debate. Let's just get on with the season.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:24 AM ^
Harbaugh is a better coach than Frost. Or Ferentz. Or Fitzgerald. Or Chryst.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:24 AM ^
I will never understand why Harbaugh plays starters as long as he does in games like these. Got twitchy looking at Ronnie Bell's knee chasing balls with a four-score lead.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:39 AM ^
20 minutes?
September 11th, 2022 at 1:42 AM ^
I can’t tell if you’re serious or not. I don’t know many teams that play their 5th string QB’s and running backs and MI does in blowouts multiple times a year.
September 11th, 2022 at 9:59 AM ^
Says the band nerd.
September 11th, 2022 at 10:30 AM ^
Helpful Hint: If you unclench, your balls may drop.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:24 AM ^
Great coaching allows the players to show who is best. Hats off to Harbaugh and staff.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:26 AM ^
Big challenge this week and next: Keeping the team focused. UConn is awful. The team will have to re-center when the tough games against teams like Maryland come rolling around.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:48 AM ^
I cannot, in my wildest dream, believe there is anything to be concerned about here. These are young men who are competing at a very high level. This is only an issue within a fan's imagination.
September 11th, 2022 at 5:03 PM ^
Very good point. Maryland is no doormat like the first 3 opponents. So, Michigan will need to be really ready for that game.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:31 AM ^
Stephen - I think we need a schedule snowflake. This is an all-time 🧁
Dickie V would go crazy describing our schedule
September 11th, 2022 at 3:44 AM ^
Just kinda bad luck that we hit the cupcakes in their year zeros after disastrous coaching changes.
And we were supposed to have UCLA in there which would have made it more interesting.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:32 AM ^
Hart has got some really nice RBs. Gash looked like Hart when he pushed through to get that TD. RB room looks strong.
Defense in 1st half was suffocating. Really fast and some coverage pressure. Exotic blitz are great. Can't wait to see how they do against MD.
JJ just made our OC look great. He is a gift and can't wait to see what our offensive coaches can do with this skill set.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:35 AM ^
Coaching. You had a tough decision and you let it play out and let the guys determine it on the field. Hats off to how Harbaugh handled this situation.
Now he's got his starter and a very capable backup.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:09 AM ^
Exactly.
What for some was a controversial move...Harbaugh let it play out and gave both guys respect and a chance. Think that was important for the locker room. The best in games, not just practice, plays...period.
September 11th, 2022 at 4:56 PM ^
It worked fine. But I’d bet this was a planned runway to let JJ start. He’s that much better. This wasn’t really a competition; it was diplomatic theater.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:37 AM ^
Not a snowflake but more of a question -- why did Bowman/Orji get in last week and Warren this week? Is there a QB3 week-to-week competition as well?
September 11th, 2022 at 1:08 AM ^
Comparing Bowman and Orji last week to Warren this week, it's tough to buy that the former two are better than Warren. Bowman was pretty good, make no mistake. Orji was fine, hey he scored a TD with the end zone orgy. But Warren commanded the offense better tonight than both of them did last week. I think Warren is solid #3, or #2b if I may be so bold.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:27 AM ^
I might be way off the trail here, but I'm wondering if Warren might be a better suited backup for JJ. Not because he's necessarily better than Cade, but because he looks to have enough in the mobility department to where you can start scheming more to JJ's strengths, and then not have to throw that whole part of the playbook out when JJ isn't in. Harbaugh loves to get the QB on the move, run his read plays, line up in that pistol formation from his SF days -- but Cade really isn't a fit for most of that.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:38 AM ^
Warren has some wheels. He showed them tonight. Orji does too but he doesn't have the passing chops that Warren does. Bowman seems more of a statue. I like my QB to have some speed. Seems like running ability and "escapability" is a prerequisite for a successful modern day QB.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:54 AM ^
This is an excellent post-for the very reason you give. If JJ gets injured or needs a break for any reason he fits rather seamlessly into the game-plan that is already in place.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:56 AM ^
I'm not sure about their specific eligibility status, but it seems like giving guys alternative weeks as third stringers might avoid burning redshirts unnecessarily. The transfer portal adds another variable to factor in, but if you are fully expecting a few games with significant garbage time, maybe it's best to a guy ten minutes of game time one week and zero the other, rather than two weeks with five minutes of playing time.
Looking at Michigan's schedule,there looks like high potential for more than four games were third stringers can get some decent playing time.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:49 PM ^
Getting everybody reps and game film.
Harbaugh loves to play a lot of guys in blowouts. I don't doubt he genuinely likes that for the players but there's an evaluation aspect as well.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:39 AM ^
I give credit to JH for pulling all starters and not piling on. After 42 points, and the way the starters were playing, it shows wisdom not to get your starters injured, give guys who don't see the field much time to get out there, and avoid completely humiliating Hawaii. It was a good coaching decision.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:52 AM ^
Agree. Couple of bettors we're not happy I am sure. But no need to pile on. Got a TD from 3rd string? That is good.
Edit: Didn't see the comment right below this ;l
September 11th, 2022 at 1:12 AM ^
Yes, no need to pile on. The oddsmakers and Michigan bettors will hopefully adjust accordingly and not handicap Michigan so much in the weeks to come. I was hopeful at halftime but fully expected to lose my -51 bet because of the mutual respect factor.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:18 AM ^
Durham didnt you give me a kudos on calling the 31 pt first half spread? Was your bet already placed?
September 11th, 2022 at 1:41 AM ^
Rice, I did not see your M -31 first half call. But my short term memory sucks. So there's that aspect. Next time put it in bold or all caps. Thank you in advance. Good on you. I hope you won buckets of dolla bills.
Now I need to remember what the hell I was gonna do before I typed this post.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:00 AM ^
EDIT: (not going to argue this)
September 11th, 2022 at 10:20 AM ^
Compare Utah in its 73-3 win over So. Utah (FCS?). From the box score, it appears the Utes had QB1 (Rising) play the entire first half, in which they scored 45. Then it appears they played their QB2 (Barnes) in all of 3d qtr and into 4th quarter. Cant tell who was taking their snaps for their last two drives of game bc it was all handoffs.
So at least in terms of QB, we went deep into bench well ahead of the other total mismatches yesterday (ND-Marshall, TAMU-Appy and Neb-GaSou excepted) (oh wait…).
September 11th, 2022 at 10:20 AM ^
Good coaching, rotating lots of players in.
I worried at halftime that Michigan would score 77, which would be fun but not help Michigan and would humilate Hawaii.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:56 AM ^
September 11th, 2022 at 12:39 AM ^
I'm a little salty that we decided to start our dicking around so early and thus didn't cover the spread. Doesn't really matter but I always prefer less dicking around
September 11th, 2022 at 12:53 AM ^
I didn't see anyone dicking around. They were playing hard, full playbook was open, it was just 3rd and 4th string guys on the field.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:51 PM ^
and that is of course a much better use of the 2nd half of a completely lopsided game. That's valuable game experience for the guys who will be the next few years 1st and 2nd stringers. Covering the spread or further prettying the score is pointless
September 11th, 2022 at 1:06 AM ^
You need to look into getting help for that gambling addiction.
September 11th, 2022 at 7:38 AM ^
I'm not gonna tell anyone not to gamble. But I feel zero sympathy for any grumbling about not beating the spread. Neither Michigan nor Harbaugh owe any gambler anything in terms of how badly they beat another team. Choosing to throw a game (1919 Chicago Black Sox) is one thing. Choosing to reward guys who might never see the field again, choosing to give starters the half off, choosing to familiarize backups with what it is to play in real games, and to understand the playbook better, that's another thing altogether. That's just good strategy.
September 11th, 2022 at 9:44 AM ^
Great points, and there is also the fact that 1st/2nd team are more focused on executing as they know they will likely only get 1H play. Rolling into a cupcake without this approach gets you those ugly walking games where nobody is focused.
Harbaugh and staff do a great job of getting the team focused on execution, and avoiding the old problem of playing down to competition.
September 11th, 2022 at 11:46 AM ^
When there is a 50+ point spread, you take the points. Too many ways for a back door cover to happen.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:00 PM ^
This is over-simplifying things. Michigan was well on its way to covering at halftime. And Michigan would've covered if Cade simply drove the team to the end zone on just one of his four drives. How many people were expecting Cade to play poorly, again, against THAT defense? Come on, hindsight is always 20-20. The line started at -46/-47 and the public pushed it to -51/-52 because of this same confidence that I am talking about here.
And speaking of hindsight, the best play would've been a 6 point teaser with the over or the under (take your pick). However, most books were not accepting any parlays or teasers on this game. So you either bet the line and O/U as is, or not.
September 11th, 2022 at 12:50 AM ^
Michigan is really good.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:34 AM ^
Harbaugh is pretty clever. He had a mature leader in Cade but knew JJ was the way to go. So he derived a way to make it happen, while allowing the team to buy in and fans to buy in. I'd say, that's good coaching.
September 11th, 2022 at 1:49 AM ^
Just remember that our opponents would love more film on McCarthy. One reason I think McNamara is having a tough time is the defensive schemes change when he come in the game. They know his tendencies and the play calling tendencies. Warren does not have much film to prepare from.
September 11th, 2022 at 4:08 AM ^
I'm getting less "reserved optimistic" to outright hyped about our staff
September 11th, 2022 at 12:01 PM ^
Good for you-seriously. Otherwise, this is an elite staff-they have passed OSU...approaching the "Big Two". Oh, lucked into a catchy little phrase there :)
September 11th, 2022 at 8:19 AM ^
Ninetysome guys played. Hats off to Coach Elston and Coach Hart. Both are outstanding and have done amazing job imho.
September 11th, 2022 at 8:34 AM ^
Looking back over the last year, Harbaugh has handled the QB situation really well. Cade was good enough to win the Big Ten last year and beat Ohio State. With Haskins and that offensive line, that team needed an excellent game manager that made few mistakes. But Harbaugh kept JJ engaged by playing him in every game and giving him the valuable experience of playing meaningful snaps in big games. Not throwing your freshman QB to the wolves was wise given the makeup of last year's team. And last year's approach did not seem to affect Cade's play in any way.
This year, Harbaugh takes the unusual approach of designating different starters for the first two games. JJ has ascended and looks great, putting aside the poor competition. He looks great in how he stands in the pocket, delivers the ball, making his reads, where he throws to, how he runs, etc. This approach, however, seems to have seriously affected Cade's performance, but that is on him. Given the talent at WR, TE, and speedier, more elusive RBs this year, this team needs more of a gun-slinging QB that can push the ball down field more while threatening the field horizontally with his feet. JJ now has a year in the offense, valuable experience in games, confidence in what he is doing, and can let it rip. And no reasonable person can question the unusual decision of naming different starters in back-to-back games now because that open competition has removed any lingering doubt about who should be starting. The other smart part is that JJ is not starting his first game against a good opponent. He will have at least two games under his belt as a starter heading into conference play to acclimate to that.
September 11th, 2022 at 8:51 AM ^
Play calling was excellent on offense as well as defense. The staff kept the players focused during the entire game. A good time was had by all, well, except Cade.
Overall: A+.