Various thoughts about the week that was:
1. The Freep was officially wrong.
The NCAA agreed with Michigan's appeal of the charge of "Failure to maintain an atmosphere of compliance," lowering the charge to "Failure to monitor." This was the big one as far as Rich Rodriguez is concerned. Speaking of atmosphere, the one around the program suddenly "did a 180." Finally, after all of the negativity involving the program, they got positive news from the NCAA.
Of course, the Freep didn't see it that way, but pretty much everyone else in the media did. That constitutes a major victory, not only for the school, but for RR. Many hold his job security in question, but I don't, and I think the decision handed down this week "iced" it for RR being able to stay and finish what he has started at Michigan.
More on RR later, but the best part of the whole thing was when Dave Brandon spoke of the need for an apology from the Freep. He may not have named them, but it was obvious who he was talking about. Brandon knows that the Freep fabricated much of their "evidence," and that Rosenpuke's hatchet job was just that: a hatchet job.
2. A Big Win at the Big House.
If there was ever a time for Michigan to pull off a big win, it was this week. Fresh off of the good news from the NCAA, the team won a wild one against Illinois in a game that had a higher score than each of the last three basketball games between the two schools. This game had everything that ESPN Classic likes: lots of points, lead changes, big plays, and a thrilling OT finish. We may see this game on ESPN-C for a long time if we are lucky (and Illinois isn't).
This was a game of vindication. The team proved that it wasn't going to have the same record as last year. Tate Forcier came off the bench to lead his team to victory against a team that trounced him last year. Most of all, the defense came up with a big stop when it really, really needed one. And it "only" allowed 14 points to Illinois in the last half of regulation: seven of them resulting from a Tate Forcier turnover deep in his own territory.
If the school gave game balls to everyone who deserved one, the Freep would probably call it a major NCAA violation.
3. RR does the right thing: again.
Last year against Iowa, RR pulled quarterback Tate Forcier in the fourth quarter. There was no information available during the game, but RR was roundly criticized for it after the game. It turned out that Forcier had sustained a concussion, but some so-called "fans" still ragged about it for the rest of the year.
Fast forward to yesterday: RR pulled quarterback Denard Robinson from the game in the fourth quarter. There was no information available during the game. Unlike last year, Michigan pulled this game out, and RR won't be criticized for it. But the reason was the same: Robinson was exhibiting concussion symptoms, and RR held him out for his own safety.
RR has been a lightning rod for criticism since he arrived in Ann Arbor. One of the most common criticisms both the media and the fanbase like to level at him is that he is a "win at all costs coach." For them, I have one question:
Is there any other coach in America who would have made the same decision in crucial games where his job status could be on the line not once, but twice?
AFAIC, most coaches would have found a way to get the star QB back into the game with some bogus question to "prove" that he was OK.
Other coaches talk about family atmosphere, and how the health and safety of their players is paramount, but RR walks the talk. RR wants to win as much as anyone on the planet, but he won't compromise the well-being of his players to do so. I can only hope that the same "fans" and media that have trashed him for almost three years will finally give him credit for being the kind of man and coach that he is.
4. About that job status...
I think it can be safely said that the "RR hot seat" rumors can officially be put to rest. Michigan has shown improvement this year despite the woeful lack of age and experience on defense. He has built the offense into a potential video game, and has rebuilt the team in his own image, laying the foundation for Michigan to truly arrive in the currrent millenium.
Hopefully, the so-called "fans" who have been bitching and whining about RR ever since it became evident that he couldn't snap his fingers and turn Threet or Sheridan into bona fide D-1 QB's in 2008 will finally give it a rest and stop their chronic complaining. RR is here to stay, and the school will be much better off for it, possibly as early as next season.
5. What: me defense?
Defense is a question that will be answered during the off-season. GERG's days at Michigan may be numbered, or he may get a pass for having to play so many new players this year. At any rate, they played a lot better when they were allowed to be more aggressive yesterday. The play that saved the game was the old "jailbreak" (at least that's what they call it at MSU) blitz. Almost everyone rushed the QB, and someone got to him before he could hit a wide-open reciever in the end zone.
While most fans, even the most loyal and learned, seem to think that GERG's dismissal is a fait accompli, I am not so sure yet. The defense does have four games left to improve enough to justify keeping him. "Only" allowing Illinois fourteen points in the second half and making the key stop in OT indicate some improvement to me. We will see how it plays out.
6. David Brandon is THE MAN.
During the season, and especially this week, David Brandon has shown the strong leadership skills that got him the AD job at Michigan. He has come out with strong statements regarding RR, the NCAA investigation, and the Freep this week. I have no idea what he is going to do in the offseason, but I do trust that he will make the right decision. It seems like the athletic department is finally in good hands again.
It is about time.
Showing posts with label Denard Robinson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denard Robinson. Show all posts
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Week four thoughts...
1. Ho-hum: another 189 yards of total offense in less than a quarter for Denard Robinson...
Denard was at it again on Saturday, showing what the spread option can do against a weak defense when running at optimum speed. We all know that he went out with a minor and temporary knee injury, but that he will be ready for Indiana. Denard is rapidly becoming the prototypical Spread Option Quarterback. Taylor Martinez of Nebraska is also becoming a force and Trey Burton of Florida may follow in his footsteps soon.
2. Tate is still Great...
Tate Forcier showed that rumors of his demise are somewhat premature. His 12-for-12 performance said a lot about how he has responded to his benching. If MSU and OSU fans get their way, and Denard is indisposed for a few games, Forcier showed that he is more than capable of leading the Michigan offense and has, to all appearances, taken the number two slot on the depth chart back from Devin Gardner.
Forcier can't run as fast as Denard, but he is a very good distributor, and can run just fast enough to "move the sticks" if needed. It is easy to forget how good Forcier was before his myriad injuries last season; the BGSU game was a reminder that he can still play on an elite level. And rememer, he is only a sophomore.
3. Potential...
Devin Gardner showed that he isn't quite as good as the other two QB's yet, but that he does indeed have a very high upside. As the game "slows down" for DG, he will get better. He isn't as quick as Denard, but does appear to have pretty good "top end" speed once he gets going. DG will get a lot better as he gets to know the offense better and makes decisions sooner. He will realize that he doesn't have enough speed to run laterally, but has plenty to run "downhill," and will make the adjustments with experience.
His height helps him see over the line better, and he does have very nice touch on his passes. Potentially, he is the most gifted passer on the team. It should take a year or two for that potential to emerge, though.
4. Let's whine about the defense...
Instead of celebrating a blowout win in which Michigan was able to give their "depth players" invaluable experinece, and were still able to score pretty much at will, the Chicken Little segment of the Michigan fanbase chose instead to bemoan the "deficiencies" of the defense.
Really, though, except for a couple of bad plays, Michigan's defense was servicable against BGSU. And a servicable defense, combined with a state of the art offense, will be enough to win the number of games to which Michigan fans are accustomed. They only gave up 21 points. Many will say that this was to a MAC school, but it's not like they had to win in a shootout.
As I have posted before, the offenses have the advantage in this era of college football. Everyone struggles on defense except maybe five teams. Nobody is really stopping the spread at this point, and Michigan's version appears to be nearly unstoppable with Robinson at the helm.
This defense has a lot of young players, and will consequently have a faster learning/improvement curve than an older defense would. They are big enough up front that they no longer get pushed around, and the mistakes being made by the younger secondary are errors of commission, not omission.
Iowa could be a pretty bad "learning experince" game, as could PSU, but by the time Michigan plays Wiscy and OSU, the players will have had ten games of major college experience. I think we will see a much-improved team the last two games of the year.
5. Ryan Mallett loses his poise...
Ryan Mallett had it all in his hands: a chance to beat defending National Champion Alabama on national TV and thus increase his leverage in the Heisman Trophy race. So, what did he do? He whined and cried like a baby the first time he got hit in the mouth and every time thereafter.
As he showed at Michigan, Ryan Mallett is the bully who is full of confidence and poise until someone stands up to him and hits him back. Mallett looked great until Alabama started hitting him, and he started complaining to the refs after every hit. Soon, he was so busy complaining to refs and thinking about getting hit that he threw two fourth quarter interceptions.
Ryan Mallett didn't leave Michigan because he didn't fit into the offense. Ryan Mallet left Michigan because he didn't fit into the RR/Barwis mold of player. RR and Barwis want a team-first attitude and stress responsibility for one's own actions. They want players who have poise in the fouth quarter. They want players who "tune out" all of the outside influences that keep a team from winning.
Comparing Mallett's fourth quarter performance to that of Denard Robinson against Notre Dame, it is obvoius that Mallett was right: he didn't fit in. But not for the reasons he thinks.
Denard was at it again on Saturday, showing what the spread option can do against a weak defense when running at optimum speed. We all know that he went out with a minor and temporary knee injury, but that he will be ready for Indiana. Denard is rapidly becoming the prototypical Spread Option Quarterback. Taylor Martinez of Nebraska is also becoming a force and Trey Burton of Florida may follow in his footsteps soon.
2. Tate is still Great...
Tate Forcier showed that rumors of his demise are somewhat premature. His 12-for-12 performance said a lot about how he has responded to his benching. If MSU and OSU fans get their way, and Denard is indisposed for a few games, Forcier showed that he is more than capable of leading the Michigan offense and has, to all appearances, taken the number two slot on the depth chart back from Devin Gardner.
Forcier can't run as fast as Denard, but he is a very good distributor, and can run just fast enough to "move the sticks" if needed. It is easy to forget how good Forcier was before his myriad injuries last season; the BGSU game was a reminder that he can still play on an elite level. And rememer, he is only a sophomore.
3. Potential...
Devin Gardner showed that he isn't quite as good as the other two QB's yet, but that he does indeed have a very high upside. As the game "slows down" for DG, he will get better. He isn't as quick as Denard, but does appear to have pretty good "top end" speed once he gets going. DG will get a lot better as he gets to know the offense better and makes decisions sooner. He will realize that he doesn't have enough speed to run laterally, but has plenty to run "downhill," and will make the adjustments with experience.
His height helps him see over the line better, and he does have very nice touch on his passes. Potentially, he is the most gifted passer on the team. It should take a year or two for that potential to emerge, though.
4. Let's whine about the defense...
Instead of celebrating a blowout win in which Michigan was able to give their "depth players" invaluable experinece, and were still able to score pretty much at will, the Chicken Little segment of the Michigan fanbase chose instead to bemoan the "deficiencies" of the defense.
Really, though, except for a couple of bad plays, Michigan's defense was servicable against BGSU. And a servicable defense, combined with a state of the art offense, will be enough to win the number of games to which Michigan fans are accustomed. They only gave up 21 points. Many will say that this was to a MAC school, but it's not like they had to win in a shootout.
As I have posted before, the offenses have the advantage in this era of college football. Everyone struggles on defense except maybe five teams. Nobody is really stopping the spread at this point, and Michigan's version appears to be nearly unstoppable with Robinson at the helm.
This defense has a lot of young players, and will consequently have a faster learning/improvement curve than an older defense would. They are big enough up front that they no longer get pushed around, and the mistakes being made by the younger secondary are errors of commission, not omission.
Iowa could be a pretty bad "learning experince" game, as could PSU, but by the time Michigan plays Wiscy and OSU, the players will have had ten games of major college experience. I think we will see a much-improved team the last two games of the year.
5. Ryan Mallett loses his poise...
Ryan Mallett had it all in his hands: a chance to beat defending National Champion Alabama on national TV and thus increase his leverage in the Heisman Trophy race. So, what did he do? He whined and cried like a baby the first time he got hit in the mouth and every time thereafter.
As he showed at Michigan, Ryan Mallett is the bully who is full of confidence and poise until someone stands up to him and hits him back. Mallett looked great until Alabama started hitting him, and he started complaining to the refs after every hit. Soon, he was so busy complaining to refs and thinking about getting hit that he threw two fourth quarter interceptions.
Ryan Mallett didn't leave Michigan because he didn't fit into the offense. Ryan Mallet left Michigan because he didn't fit into the RR/Barwis mold of player. RR and Barwis want a team-first attitude and stress responsibility for one's own actions. They want players who have poise in the fouth quarter. They want players who "tune out" all of the outside influences that keep a team from winning.
Comparing Mallett's fourth quarter performance to that of Denard Robinson against Notre Dame, it is obvoius that Mallett was right: he didn't fit in. But not for the reasons he thinks.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Rich Rodriguez: Twice a Pioneer?
It is well-documented that Rich Rodriguez is the pioneer, or "Godfather," of the spread option. The last two weeks, it appears as if he is pioneering "Spread Option v.2:" this time with an elite athlete behind center.
For years, conventional "wisdom" has held that quarterbacks have to be big. Big enough to stand in the pocket and see passing lanes. Big enough to absorb punishment. Even in college football, at least on an elite level, quarterbacks under 6-2 have been the exception and not the rule, and the preference has been at least 6-4, with 6-5 or 6-6 being "ideal." It's almost as though there has been a de facto "rule" against using a QB under six feet tall since the demise of the triple option attack.
Quarterbacks have been used to distribute the ball, whether through the air, or by simply handing it to a running back, but they have not been encouraged to run the ball for fear of injury. This has made it easier for defenses because the QB is no longer a threat to run, so they don't really have to account for him. This has given defenses a numerical advantage over offenses.
When Rich Rodriguez invented the spread option, he basically combined the old triple option offense with the run and shoot. For fans, such as myself, who used to wonder what would happen if option QB's actually passed once in awhile, it has been very refreshing. For those who remember how much space the run and shoot gave Barry Sanders, it has also been great to watch.
RR's use of Pat White was an eye-opener. He didn't have the best arm when he started, but developed into a servicable passer by his junior year. As his recent failure to crack an NFL rotation showed, White doesn't have an NFL arm and his athleticism isn't considered to be so elite as to force them to give him an opportunity at another position, but he was able to pass for 6,051 yards and 56 touchdowns in four seasons while rushing for 4,480 yards and 47 touchdowns. This works out to 10,531 yards of total offense and 103 touchdowns in four years.
White was very close to what RR has today; he is a close-to-elite athlete with a decent arm and above-average speed. White, even though he was seen by most schools primarily as a safety, could be better described as a bridge between a conventional QB and what RR has now at Michigan. Enter Denard Robinson.
Denard has world class speed, and is a truly elite athlete. He was recruited by most schools as a CB or reciever, but was promised by RR a chance to compete at QB. Denard is generously listed as six feet tall, and doesn't fit into what scouts or coaches usually seek as "prototypical QB's," but was given the opportunity promised by RR: he was allowed to compete for the QB position.
As we have all seen the first two games, Denard has been successful. He has rushed for 455 yards and passed for 430 for 885 yards of total offense against two D-1 opponents projected to play in bowls this season. He has rushed for three TD's, including one for 87 yards against Notre Dame, and passed for two.
I know that projections based on a sample like this one are regression fallacies, but I will do it anyway for the fun of it. If Denard were to somehow sustain this level of performance, it would work out to 2,730 yards rushing with 18 touchdowns, and 2,580 yards passing with 12 touchdowns, for a total offense of 5,210 yards and 30 touchdowns. The most amazing feature of Denard's stats so far is that he has gotten all of them within the flow of RR's offense. There hasn't been any "gimmickry" such as Tim Tebow's status as main option in the goal line offense.
I'm not in any way predicting that Denard will actually amass these kind of statistics over twelve games, but I am pretty sure that he will look quite good by the end of the season. Most of all, the team will look a lot better at the end of the season than it has the last three.
Denard has earned all of this with his own work ethic, talent, speed, ability to grasp the offense, ability to manage a game, and ability to put it all together on gameday, but it was RR who gave him a chance when no other elite team would. RR has challanged a lot of "conventional wisdom with Denard." If RR were part of the herd instead of a pioneer, he may have listened to "pearls of wisdom" such as these:
A player as fast as Denard should be a CB, RB, or reciever.
A QB under six feet won't get the job done.
QB's are fragile, and should carry the ball as seldom as possible to prevent injuries.
Instead, RR has given Denard the "green light" to make his own decisions once the play has started. So far, the results are staggering. This version of the spread option may be RR's most successful version yet.
What are possible future implications if what could be known in retrospect as "The Denard Experiment" yields a National Championship and a Heisman? I will cover that tomorrow.
For years, conventional "wisdom" has held that quarterbacks have to be big. Big enough to stand in the pocket and see passing lanes. Big enough to absorb punishment. Even in college football, at least on an elite level, quarterbacks under 6-2 have been the exception and not the rule, and the preference has been at least 6-4, with 6-5 or 6-6 being "ideal." It's almost as though there has been a de facto "rule" against using a QB under six feet tall since the demise of the triple option attack.
Quarterbacks have been used to distribute the ball, whether through the air, or by simply handing it to a running back, but they have not been encouraged to run the ball for fear of injury. This has made it easier for defenses because the QB is no longer a threat to run, so they don't really have to account for him. This has given defenses a numerical advantage over offenses.
When Rich Rodriguez invented the spread option, he basically combined the old triple option offense with the run and shoot. For fans, such as myself, who used to wonder what would happen if option QB's actually passed once in awhile, it has been very refreshing. For those who remember how much space the run and shoot gave Barry Sanders, it has also been great to watch.
RR's use of Pat White was an eye-opener. He didn't have the best arm when he started, but developed into a servicable passer by his junior year. As his recent failure to crack an NFL rotation showed, White doesn't have an NFL arm and his athleticism isn't considered to be so elite as to force them to give him an opportunity at another position, but he was able to pass for 6,051 yards and 56 touchdowns in four seasons while rushing for 4,480 yards and 47 touchdowns. This works out to 10,531 yards of total offense and 103 touchdowns in four years.
White was very close to what RR has today; he is a close-to-elite athlete with a decent arm and above-average speed. White, even though he was seen by most schools primarily as a safety, could be better described as a bridge between a conventional QB and what RR has now at Michigan. Enter Denard Robinson.
Denard has world class speed, and is a truly elite athlete. He was recruited by most schools as a CB or reciever, but was promised by RR a chance to compete at QB. Denard is generously listed as six feet tall, and doesn't fit into what scouts or coaches usually seek as "prototypical QB's," but was given the opportunity promised by RR: he was allowed to compete for the QB position.
As we have all seen the first two games, Denard has been successful. He has rushed for 455 yards and passed for 430 for 885 yards of total offense against two D-1 opponents projected to play in bowls this season. He has rushed for three TD's, including one for 87 yards against Notre Dame, and passed for two.
I know that projections based on a sample like this one are regression fallacies, but I will do it anyway for the fun of it. If Denard were to somehow sustain this level of performance, it would work out to 2,730 yards rushing with 18 touchdowns, and 2,580 yards passing with 12 touchdowns, for a total offense of 5,210 yards and 30 touchdowns. The most amazing feature of Denard's stats so far is that he has gotten all of them within the flow of RR's offense. There hasn't been any "gimmickry" such as Tim Tebow's status as main option in the goal line offense.
I'm not in any way predicting that Denard will actually amass these kind of statistics over twelve games, but I am pretty sure that he will look quite good by the end of the season. Most of all, the team will look a lot better at the end of the season than it has the last three.
Denard has earned all of this with his own work ethic, talent, speed, ability to grasp the offense, ability to manage a game, and ability to put it all together on gameday, but it was RR who gave him a chance when no other elite team would. RR has challanged a lot of "conventional wisdom with Denard." If RR were part of the herd instead of a pioneer, he may have listened to "pearls of wisdom" such as these:
A player as fast as Denard should be a CB, RB, or reciever.
A QB under six feet won't get the job done.
QB's are fragile, and should carry the ball as seldom as possible to prevent injuries.
Instead, RR has given Denard the "green light" to make his own decisions once the play has started. So far, the results are staggering. This version of the spread option may be RR's most successful version yet.
What are possible future implications if what could be known in retrospect as "The Denard Experiment" yields a National Championship and a Heisman? I will cover that tomorrow.
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