Penn State Snowflakes: The Coaching
October 15th, 2022 at 3:36 PM ^
Everyone should remember that they were talking about how great PSU is, and how this was our first real test. Every first real test (Iowa, MD, PSU) keeps ending up looking like a cupcake in the rearview. But we MADE them into cupcakes.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:01 PM ^
The way the Iowa game in Kinnick (!) was downgraded in everyone's eyes after the fact still amazes me. No matter how bad Iowa's offense is, they have an excellent defense and that is a tough place to play.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:03 PM ^
Penn State had a good run defense. HAD. 418 yards ago.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:12 PM ^
PSU had only 3 plays in the whole game that were worth anything and 2 of them were pretty damned lucky.
- the 62 yard run by Clifford
- the stupid batted pass for a pick 6, are you fucking kidding me?
- the 52 yd pass by Clifford was the only one that was not luck, it was a great pass and the coverage was pretty damned good.
Other than those 3 plays, they didn't do shit the whole game.
That final could easily have been 55-3, Penn St was lucky to only lose by 24.
Great coaching job today and a great effort by the whole team!
October 15th, 2022 at 8:31 PM ^
That stupid batted pass was McCarthy throwing right into the defender. He should have thrown it away.
October 16th, 2022 at 12:30 AM ^
Even then, the ball bounced off someone's helmet which enabled the PSU defender to catch it. That was a fortuitous bounce, for sure. At any rate, I do agree that there was absolutely nothing open at the moment of the throw. Learn from it, get better and move on.
October 16th, 2022 at 9:27 AM ^
It bounced off two helmets, and a third guy plucked the ball out of the air. Yes, that's freaky, but it's also an indicator of how crowded the point of attack was.
This game felt a lot like the Washington game from a year ago, only instead of a completely ineffective horizontal passing game, there was a mostly mediocre horizontal passing game with a really bad interception. Of course in both the lead story is the glorious paving of an opponent that looked like a bad MAC team.
October 16th, 2022 at 11:08 AM ^
Clifford’s run wasn’t luck anymore than Corum’s and Edwards’ long runs were luck.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:56 PM ^
Was there a real FRAMES moment in this game? I can't think of one.
That makes it all the more impressive tbh. When PSU doesn't really blow the coaching decisions, and we decisively destroy them anyway.
October 15th, 2022 at 5:37 PM ^
Kind of.
There was that long Clifford run that set up fourth and short. It was like a 17 yard across the field run. He got blasted. They proceed to run Clifford right back out for fourth and six and they end up taking a timeout because of formation or play clock (I couldn't tell). They didn't call it because Clifford gassed himself running 40 yards desperately trying for the sticks and getting clocked.
I like the timeout there for a lot of reasons, mostly to settle the qb going into a crucial 4th down and call the right play, but it seemed like Frames called a well timed timeout by dumb luck.
October 15th, 2022 at 9:41 PM ^
Going for it on 4th and 6 was a frames moment. The game was still in reach. The stuff and ensuing TD put it out of reach.
October 15th, 2022 at 9:50 PM ^
Yes, but Frames was watching us ham last. He should have known we would do noting but run and that they could sell out.
October 16th, 2022 at 10:17 AM ^
Actually thought that was a good call as well as an admonition. Normally you punt there and live to fight on, but Franklin knew damn well that his team was getting trucked all day and this was their last chance to keep the game close. He was down to his last five bucks and the odds were really long.
October 16th, 2022 at 11:21 PM ^
It was after the 4th down in the 3rd Quarter that Harbaugh's phone started to blow up.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:38 PM ^
Just stick with the ground game. Save JJ's arm for Columbus.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:38 PM ^
Minter is that guy!
October 15th, 2022 at 3:38 PM ^
To the 38% of this blog that wanted to replace Harbaugh with Matt fucking Campbell… how are we doing?
Michigan just committed prison sex on Penn State.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:04 PM ^
SSSSSOOOOOUUUUUUUUPPPPPPP
\s
October 15th, 2022 at 4:44 PM ^
To the 38% of this blog that wanted to replace Harbaugh with Matt fucking Campbell
Generous to those who were opining for Tom Allen
October 15th, 2022 at 9:05 PM ^
Eat it, Ace
October 16th, 2022 at 12:39 AM ^
Yeah, I’ll eat crow. But it did take 7 years to win the conference. I think we were pretty patient.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:39 PM ^
I am absolutely triggered that we did not have 2 RBs run for 200+ yards today.
The blame of that falls squarely on the shoulders of James Joseph Harbaugh.
October 16th, 2022 at 8:45 AM ^
It is extremely disappointing. This must be when the foundation begins crumbling for the season. I hope we’ll be able to beat Grand Valley State by the end of the year. SMH
/S
October 15th, 2022 at 3:39 PM ^
The coaches are smart. We are basically the Stanford team with Andrew Luck although JJ isn't at that level yet. We took their soul today. Football has been fun the last couple years. Credit to the coaches.
Minter had them figured out from play one. Just a great game all around.
October 16th, 2022 at 10:22 AM ^
Klatt was spot on as usual that the o-line carried the team on its back, but the d-line was pretty fucking fantastic. They gave few inches outside of letting Clifford slip the rush a couple times to scramble out of there, which the guy has been doing for the better part of the last decade.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:40 PM ^
Pay Sherron Moore $6000000000000. A year
October 15th, 2022 at 4:49 PM ^
After the game, I was wondering how long it'll be before he gets a look at a head coach job...
October 15th, 2022 at 6:13 PM ^
Tomorrow
October 16th, 2022 at 12:35 AM ^
It's his first year as co-oc. I think he may need a little more experience. Or did the Notre Dame fantastic hiring make no impression on you at all?
October 16th, 2022 at 12:42 AM ^
Forget the OC part. This may be the best OL Michigan has ever had. Moore is worth his weight in gold from my point of view.
October 16th, 2022 at 10:24 AM ^
Coach Moore has been excellent but I still think the run scheme has a lot of James Harbaugh in its DNA.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:40 PM ^
I really liked the 2nd half adjustments. Really, the past few games have been heart attacks in the 1st half and domination in the 2nd half.
October 15th, 2022 at 6:58 PM ^
They have been making Coach Bo and Mo halftime adjustments.
October 16th, 2022 at 5:22 PM ^
Adjustments? What adjustments?
We had this conversation at halftime yesterday? What do you tell them after a nearly flawless first half, other than keep it up? Do you tell the defense to not let Clifford get loose once in the 2nd half or JJ not to pinball a pass for a cheap pick-6, what do you tell them at halftime? Don't let them get ANY first downs in the 2nd half?
October 15th, 2022 at 3:40 PM ^
Major props to Sherrone Moore. This might be the most dominant O-Line I’ve ever seen at Michigan.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:40 PM ^
James Franklin had a real stinker today. As for our coaches, it's hard not to be satisfied
October 15th, 2022 at 4:13 PM ^
Pretty average by Frames standards to be honest.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:32 PM ^
He surrounds himself with talent on the field and on the sidelines, but he can't really seem to stay out of his own way.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:35 PM ^
He lives and dies by his coordinators. Not sure about their OC, but I think Manny Diaz as DC is a mistake. They’ve gotta miss Brent Pry. He wouldn’t have let the 2nd half get out of hand like that.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:42 PM ^
Too small on the Dline for Psu imo. Diaz is a good coordinator. But they were bulldozed. That’s a recruiting issue to me.
October 16th, 2022 at 9:11 AM ^
Klatt and Johnson spent a fair amount of time praising Diaz in the first quarter with lots of camera shots of him on the sideline, but didn't see or hear about the guy for the rest of the game. Huh.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:41 PM ^
We're good at football. That's why we win things.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:41 PM ^
so glad to have coach Mike Fuckin' Hart back.
October 15th, 2022 at 3:41 PM ^
So how close to complete meltdown was the GDT when Penn State took their two leads of the day?
October 15th, 2022 at 3:53 PM ^
There was a lot of frustration that we didn't call the Touchdown Play (TM) enough in the red zone earlier, to put the game out of reach.
I did think the 3rd and 2 call right before halftime was questionable. That was too predictable in that situation. But on the other two RZ trips that ended in FGs, I thought the calls were fine but we just didn't make the play (or PSU made a good play).
October 15th, 2022 at 4:00 PM ^
I don’t think hey maybe throw the ball into the end zone once on your three first half red zone FGs is quite the same as call the TD play.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:05 PM ^
It's not that easy to complete passes in a short field against that secondary. But the swing pass to Edwards on our first drive would have worked, if JJ hadn't overthrown it.
On the second drive, we had 2nd and goal at the 2. To complain about giving it to Corum there is hindsight bias.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:15 PM ^
I think it would have made since to try to throw the ball into the end zone at least once across those three drives.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:21 PM ^
Against Sparty, I'd agree with you. But the PSU DBs are legit and our WRs couldn't get much separation, even in longer-yardage situations.
The swing pass to Edwards and the screen to Bell (on the 2-pt) - those are the ways you pass against that D on the goal line.
October 15th, 2022 at 4:30 PM ^
This week is not the first time, so I don’t find well actually Penn State to be very compelling.