More Than An Ugly Win
Sometimes a win is a win. Sometimes a win is more than just a win.
A coach's first win, is more than just a win. Even if it's only over a MAC opponent. Coach Rodriguez has his first W wearing the Maize and Blue. Rod admitted it wasn't pretty. And, normally, I would have a lot of complaining to do only beating relatively poor Miami, Ohio but not today. This win is also more than just a win because:
--Rodriguez avoided losing Michigan's first game ever to a MAC team;
--Michigan avoided going 0-2 for the second straight year;
--Without this win, 32 straight bowl seasons was in serious jeopardy (could still be);
--In the words of the greatest crime fighter of all time:
Austin: [the guard has just fallen in molten lava] What a... burn?
[laughs]
Austin: That sort of thing could get a man... fired?
[laughs]
Austin: I think he was... hot... for... you?
[laughs]
Felicity Shagwell: That's enough.
Austin: Yeah.
--And more heat, Rodriguez needs not.
Postgame video:
| 09-06-08: U-M vs. Miami of Ohio postgame press conference |
Celebrate Young Man:
And deservedly so. Aside from a couple of potential big passes that were just missed by Miami, (only one of which was a blown coverage) the defense played pretty well and gave up only two field goals. The front looks pretty good, and TT, Brandon Graham, and Obi Ezah played well today. If they can keep up the pressure from the last 3 halves, and the secondary can turn it up small notch, they should really hold Weis U to less than 250 yards on offense. Barring an offensive meltdown (which is no gimme) we've got a reasonable shot to win next week against whale boy.
Quarterback Found.
Steven Threet was erratic at times. But, he had far better command of the offense than did Nick Sheridan. Sheridan was supposed to be the runner. After today, Not So Much. Whether Threet knows the offense better, fakes better, or what, its pretty clear we have a #1. We'll see if Rod sticks with him, or continues to juggle. Please, no more juggling, unless it's in the bag, or Threet completes more than 5 straight passes to Tacopants. At one point, Threet had a couple of long completions to Tacopants on the sideline. Despite that, it's hard to remove the better passer, when he's also the better runner, in command, and moving the offense.
Running Backs.
Honestly, did anyone ever think that Steven Threet would outrush Brandon Minor in any game? Threet 5 for 26; Minor 1 for 15. Better question: Why did Brandon Minor carry only once?
I like the use of many backs. One thing about the 2nd half of Lloyd's tenure that bugged me was his propensity to lean on one back excessively (Anthony Thomas, Chris Perry, Mike Hart) when there were other backs very capable who could have contributed. But, Brandon Minor had the best run of the day, clearly. Shaw and McGuffie also looked good, but why not get the senior the ball more than once? I was also glad to see Grady get the short yardage carries, this makes mucho sense.
More Confirmation That Andre Ware Stinks:
Miami qb pitches left, the ball is fumbled, but the ref blows the whistle thinking it's a forward pass. Andre keeps rambles through the play and the referee discussion following a replay. Had he listened to the explanation by the ref, he and his partner would have known that "by rule, repeat 3rd down". Instead, Andre wonders aloud with his partner whether Miami would go for it on 4th down, and why isn't the Michigan staff yelling that the refs have missed changing the down markers.
Team Comparisons.
Weis U. barely beat San Diego State, who was blasted by Cal Poly; OSU had a similar game to Michigan's against a worse opponent Ohio U; Wisconsin struggled in the first half against MAC opponent Marshall. While there is a lot of work to do on offense, Michigan wasn't the only team to horribly struggle today -- and with the learning curve of a new offense, it could be worse.
SuperCrazy Stats of the Day:
Pat White:
20 rushes for 97 yards
4.9/carry
0 td
11/18 passing
72 yards
0 td
0 int
Steven Threet
5 rushes for 26 yards
5.2/carry
1 td
6/13 passing
63 yards
0 td
0 int
This is Scary.
Miami linebacker Clayton Mullins says we're pretty similar to CMU, and that after a few adjustments, they handled what Michigan was doing. I don't necessarily agree. I think there was more to Michigan's lackluster last 3 quarters than Miami's D, but still:
"They did a few things that we weren't expecting to start off with. With Butch Jones being on [Rich Rodriguez's] staff and now at Central Michigan, I'm pretty sure some of that stuff is exactly what Central Michigan is doing. We adjusted to it. I felt like we played pretty well after that first drive until the last drive. We felt like we could make it happen and that we would be able to stop them. We made the adjustments that we needed to make. After we did that, the defense came together, and we wanted to get back on the field. We just felt like we had everything starting to click, but then we had a few breakdowns at the end."
Couches Are Igniting In A World Of Shit.
in Morganstown (you thought I meant east lansing, and it's probably 50/50 they are after crushing the little emu; but I'm strictly talking mountaineers here. And rightfully so:
Why is it when you try to be honest about Gomer Pyle, I mean Bill Stewart, people say you're not a real fan. I''m 35 and have been rooting for them as long as I can remember. If 7-5 is good with you, waht kind of fan are you. RR created an expectation level of greatness. We didn't always reach it, but we cam close. Stewart is overmatched, and this will become more evident as the year goes on. Is it possible the Oklahoma win is the worst win in WVU history? There's a reason he wasn't a candidate before that game.
Oh, how true that is. Both as to unexpected expectations Rod brought, as well as the cluster**** the wva administration made of the whole mess and Gomer's hire. Nice guy, that Gomer. But, West Virgina Fans: You Are In a World of Shit:
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