Kal

October 24th, 2010 at 12:35 PM ^

Consider that we were sitting around #26ish and that Texas lost to Iowa State and WVU lost to Syracuse.

Edit: Not sure why I got negged for stating that the reason we moved into the polls was because teams at the bottom end of it lost, but alright.

Joined: 07/10/2008

MGoPoints: 4608

jmblue

October 24th, 2010 at 12:30 PM ^

Huh.  I'll take it.  The nice thing is that we have a reasonable chance of staying in the polls from here on out.  We're better than our next three opponents.

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 102802

NathanFromMCounty

October 24th, 2010 at 2:26 PM ^

...this forum needs to get over this somewhat unhealthy obsession with the idea that yards are all that much of an indicator of anything.  Indiana outgained Illinois because Illinois is more of a ball control team *and* Indiana was playing from behind so they had to press harder while Illinois was probably playing to kill the clock.  Its the same reason the Lions have gotten some of the passing yardage they have this season. 

Joined: 10/10/2010

MGoPoints: 97

lilpenny1316

October 24th, 2010 at 2:43 PM ^

...especially in close games.  IU gaining all those yards on us was a result of something, but what.  Looking into the numbers reveals a boatload of 3rd down conversions.  Looking at the tape reveals our less than stellar performance.  Stopping those 3rd down conversions takes yards and points off the board for IU, and our time of possession goes up.  So I agree that yards don't always indicate the outcome of a game, it can be a starting point to the real root of the problem.

Joined: 11/19/2009

MGoPoints: 61833

jmblue

October 24th, 2010 at 3:17 PM ^

Yes, yards don't tell the whole story, but when a team gains only 289 yards of offense, would you normally expect it to score 43 points?  In fact, their offense wasn't responsible for a lot of those.  Fourteen of their points were actually scored by their defense (two INT returns), and another seven came after a blocked punt.  You can call it a complete team effort by Illinois, but three of those scores were pretty irreproduceable. 

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 102802

Muttley

October 24th, 2010 at 5:30 PM ^

in single games, but I would expect that some form of yards per play or per possession is fairly predictive of success over a course of a season.

In fact, yards per pass attempt is a fairly well known success predictor in the NFL.  Five or less, rutt roh.  Ten or more = Scooby Snacks.

Joined: 07/07/2009

MGoPoints: -73245

NJWolverine

October 24th, 2010 at 5:57 PM ^

Having two pick 6s against a veteran QB suggests to me that they have a good defense. Watching them, I am particularly impressed with their pass rush. They get off the edge real well, and that creates turnovers. Having a solid pass rush can really mask a deficient secondary as long as you get those turnovers. However, this could be deadly against Denard. Pass rushers who overpursue could lead to big gains for Denard and long pass plays.

Joined: 08/31/2008

MGoPoints: 840

biakabutuka ex…

October 24th, 2010 at 3:10 PM ^

I think it's useless to compare common opponents with Michigan because their offensive and defensive situations are so unique.

First of all, Michigan's offense > Indiana's offense. So forget about 13 points. And then Illinois, led by a freshman QB, has got to have a point ceiling against any defense and it's got to be somewhere around 43 points.

Joined: 04/17/2009

MGoPoints: 2849

jmblue

October 25th, 2010 at 2:10 AM ^

Weis wasn't quite the John Cooper clone people make him out to be.  We went 3-2 against him.  He's the only ND coach in the last 15 years to win in Ann Arbor (in 2005).

As for Kelly, I was worried about him earlier, but I don't know now.  Getting blown out by Navy (not even a particularly strong Navy team) is stunning.   

Joined: 11/07/2008

MGoPoints: 102802

markusr2007

October 24th, 2010 at 1:30 PM ^

Michigan is coming off two straight losses to MSU and Iowa, has verifiably one of the worst defenses in the nation, and yet moves up in the polls while taking a weekend siesta.

You know what's next, don't you? The way this season is going, Michigan proves the Coaches completely right and blasts PSU into the bleachers during a White Out game next Saturday.

 

Joined: 10/21/2008

MGoPoints: 19372