OSU Snowflakes - The Coaching
November 25th, 2018 at 10:58 AM ^
Disappointing game, really looking forward to the UFR. That said, anyone who thinks Harbaugh should be replaced is drunk: win the bowl and we're at .750 over the past 4 years, not an incredible record, but better than LSU (picked as an analogous team b/c they have to play Saban every year, just as we have to play Meyer). Wisconsin has a slightly better record in that time, but they benefit from not being in the weaker division. It's frustrating as hell that we keep losing to the same team, but I wouldn't trade places with USC, Texas, Notre Dame... Clemson's done better, but against chump competition. Georgia's done better, but is in a similar position to Wisconsin. And for those of us who lived through/remember the 3-9 season, I'd rather lose 1-2 games per year than have a losing record, even if we keep getting beaten by the same team.
Win the bowl game and it's a season not too far off from expectations (even positive ones): a top 10 team that handled its business in East Lansing and came up a little short against other teams in the top 10.
November 25th, 2018 at 11:30 AM ^
Brian does not do UFRs when Michigan loses to Ohio State.
November 25th, 2018 at 1:28 PM ^
Which is every year
November 25th, 2018 at 12:23 PM ^
You wouldnt trade places with Notre Dame? Going to the Big Ten playoff. Beat both its rivals. Has played in a National title game?
Otherwise you're right. Get comfortable with mediocrity ladies.
November 25th, 2018 at 4:29 PM ^
Since they went 4-8 in 2016, I would absolutely not trade their coach for ours... Brian Kelly went 9-4 in his fourth year in a year where they had the 30th-hardest strength of schedule. We've got 10 wins already with the 7th-hardest SOS in the country. Even over the last 4 years, they're 36-14, we're 38-13. Our best chance of getting a national (or conference) title is consistently having a higher chance of winning, not high-volatility. It just sucks emotionally that our top rival is a consistent source of losses, rather than having them spread out more randomly.
November 25th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
It’s interesting that Don Brown has had his worst two games against opposing coaches he once coached with. (Joe Moorhead) and (Ryan Day).
November 25th, 2018 at 9:53 PM ^
Love Don Brown, but he has a fault. "I play man defense and will never change" ... Moorhead and Day torched that stubbornness.
November 25th, 2018 at 12:11 PM ^
Ass. That is all.
November 25th, 2018 at 12:20 PM ^
I'm kinda finished with Harbaugh as well. He doesn't see like a real intelligent person when it comes to x's and o's.
November 25th, 2018 at 12:20 PM ^
I'm kinda finished with Harbaugh as well. He doesn't see like a real intelligent person when it comes to x's and o's.
November 25th, 2018 at 4:58 PM ^
If we were to fire Harbaugh who would we get?
Nebraska fired Solich for only getting double digit wins and landed Bill Callahan who bombed. Then they got Pelini who was also fired for only getting double digit wins. Mike Reilly came in and quickly turned them into a sub .500 team in terms of conference record.
It seems like the best thing to do is to make changes on the staff like have a clear cut Offensive Coordinator.
November 25th, 2018 at 7:41 PM ^
Nebraska is in the same boat we are in that they need to rely on importing talent from neighboring states to stock their roster. Upon joining the B1G, they effectively killed off their program for good. You're never going to get a top Texas or Oklahoma kid to play in Nebraska unless you can offer the opportunity of playing back home in front of friends and family multiple times over the course of your college career.
November 25th, 2018 at 12:43 PM ^
What a waste of talent.
Good coaches know what Harbaugh will do before he does it.
How can anyone be surprised that it only works against inferior talent ?
Domers won without Book or Williams, and Urbie won a week after getting pounded
by Maryland.
Did Harbaugh scheme to use speed or misdirection, a la Purdue and Maryland ?
Or did he do the same old same old and expect good results ?
November 25th, 2018 at 2:29 PM ^
It's coaching, but their talent advantage is not fully recognized here.
Look at the last 5 classes between the 2 schools, and yes, I realize some of the players off both teams are now gone, but Ohio State in the last 5 classes has landed 50 top 100 recruits, 10 a season. Top 100 are the elite kids. In the same time, Michigan has landed 15 top 100 recruits, 3 a season. That's a significant talent disparity. 50 elite kids on a squad vs 15.
And if you go down to top 200 recruits, it paints the same picture. OSU has landed 70 top 200 recruits the last 5 years, Michigan 34. So they have a squad of 50 top 100 guys and 20 100-200 guys where as we have a squad of 15 top 100 guys and 19 100-200 guys.
We have to start beating them head to head for some of these top 100 players.
November 25th, 2018 at 3:06 PM ^
How were Purdue and Maryland's last four classes?
November 25th, 2018 at 4:13 PM ^
Purdue and Maryland both have more team speed than we do. Recruiting stars be damned, but it's true. And OSU was not playing well or up for either of those games. Against us, OSU played a great game and their talent was maximized.
November 25th, 2018 at 6:41 PM ^
Don’t be fooled by OSU’s performance against lesser teams. This is the mistake so many people made this year. Sure hard work can overcome talent—but only when talent doesn’t work hard. This is what happens when lesser teams like Iowa, Purdue, Michigan State rise up and unexpectedly beat the Buckeyes. They simply don’t prepare for other teams the way they do for “The Game”. Michigan ALWAYS gets a prepared, motivated, focused opponent whenever they play OSU.
November 25th, 2018 at 2:59 PM ^
I don't mean to shit on Mccurrney - but am always suspect on players with limited experience in big games like that. He got called for that penalty also
November 25th, 2018 at 3:02 PM ^
Maybe I missed it but has harbaugh offered up any apologies to the University, Alumni, and fanbase for this embarrassing disaster yesterday? I mean ten wins is great but he really gets paid to do one thing and that's beat the Buckeyes. No shame in losing to the Buckeyes if it's a hard fought loss, but to be blown of the field in a laugher?
Or, has he been his normal obtuse self?
November 25th, 2018 at 4:19 PM ^
Good analysis here.
10 of the wildest numbers that defined Ohio State’s blowout of Michigan
https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/11/25/18110356/ohio-state-michigan-2018-stats
Another reason to show that the coaching staff is just too stubborn and not creative enough to explore other options.
Hard evaluation is needed across the board including Harbaugh.
Utter disappointment.
November 25th, 2018 at 5:24 PM ^
F on offense and defense. Not because of the score but because of the over confidence in sticking to “whats worked” and the lack of prepping and uwillingness to change schemes for what will obviously be coming, and for not anticipating the obvious in game situations.
November 26th, 2018 at 7:40 AM ^
Yep. Excellent example of doing something like this is LLLoyd Carr's last game. Completely changed up the offense, spread it out, and beat the Tebow Gators in the Capitol One Bowl. Showed more speed than they had all year. Henne (healthy) Hart, Breaston...
November 25th, 2018 at 10:01 PM ^
It’s just bizarre to me that 80-90% of the comments here focus criticism on the offense in a game that we lost 62-39. Didn’t anybody watch the Indiana game? Do we not have several all-American/all-B1G types on D? The defensive game plan was mind bogglingly deficient, to say the least. Maybe it was DB that had the flu all week
November 25th, 2018 at 10:09 PM ^
Offense creates momentum for the D in a game like yesterday. Players also see the piss poor play calling on both sides & deflates them.
Our coaches seem to passive on the sidelines in a game like that also. Show some anger & chew some ass ...like the wife beater enabler coaches were doing.
November 25th, 2018 at 11:07 PM ^
My questions for the staff (and any reporter who actually had the stones to ask petulant Harbaugh tough qs)
- Why abandon Shea sneaks after using them successfully all season
- Why use Tru Wilson
- Why run it up the middle two out of every three plays a drive
- Why design plays that develop before the first down mark
- Why not turn to heavy passing game after (a) seeing how Purdue won; (b) seeing how successful late drive in the second quarter was when we only threw the balL
November 25th, 2018 at 11:52 PM ^
The game means more to OSU than Michigan. It just does.
Haskins said it best afterwards...that OSU does not need revenge tour or guarantees. They want it 365 days a year and it is important to the program to win this game.
It does not mean as much to Michigan. It just doesn't.
November 26th, 2018 at 12:05 AM ^
It would not surprise me in the least to learn that OSU spent most the week of the Maryland game prepping for Michigan instead of Maryland. OSU looks like they work on beating Michigan every week of the season. Michigan looked like they didnt even bother to look at game film before they got to Columbus.
November 26th, 2018 at 6:37 AM ^
Are you kidding me? OSU looked nothing like they did against Michigan all damn season! They we're a different team against Michigan.
All season their defense looked inept. Their QB barely ran at all.
Our game plan sucked because our weakness was exploited on both sides of the ball.
November 26th, 2018 at 2:28 PM ^
0-5 against OSU has to get Harbaugh fired, I would not be upset about it happening now either. This coaching staff has to be arrogant or incompetent. Its nice to beat up on the scrubs of the Big Ten again with this ball control, man defense team, but we all know OSU has better athletes. Has the great Don Brown watched the same receivers from OSU that we have the past 4 years? Everyone knew they were faster than our dbs coming into the game, PLAY ZONE
November 26th, 2018 at 5:30 PM ^
JH better find a new OC, once that is innovative and can create some dynamic scoring or we will get left behind and out of the national picture for ever. We are already non competitive with the best in the country, and in reality we are averaging third best in our division. At the pace this program is moving, we won't beat OSU until Meyer is gone and they hire an idiot as a coach because we don't have the talent or the coaching to beat them. History over the last 14 years proves that.
November 27th, 2018 at 11:29 AM ^
2018 needs to be like 1968 insofar as the 50-14 from that year's loss sparked the change. I hope on November 30, 2019 we are the underdog and play like there is nothing to lose. We still talk about players from that game as legends more than 5 star recruits from the last 20 years. The reason is that they accomplished the impossible. The 2019 team must do the same because to be shattered like the 2018 team is right now and come back to greatness requires a huge spark.
Does anyone think the countdown clock needs to come back? Even if an inferior coach I think Hoke had his players mentally ready for a dog fight (or just a fight in general). it seemed like a year round priority to him.
The Game must now take on a different meaning for JH. Maybe it will become something like a white whale. The emotions I feel from last Saturday extend primarily to the players here; not the coaches.
Right now my hope is we are really not a broken program and winning truly big games (ND, OSU, and bowl game against another big program) is not out of our reach. Is this everyone's state of BPONE that we cannot win the big one?