Maryland @ Michigan, Saturday, October 6th, Noon EDT, ABC National/espn3 video

[WingsFan]

[Detroit Dan]

Wow. Knocked 2 guys completely over to spring Shea for a good gain. Nice!

[Tslisher]

Playcalling is sometimes an issue, but I think that a bigger issue is scheme. Ultimately, a sucessful offense has to be able to run the ball frequently on first down and successfully on obvious running downs. We can't do this. We don't have a working bread and butter. We need to set two or three series on fire in order to set up one 25 yard pass. This problem is magnified against good competition. It's a 1990s arrangement -- your running game is garbage against decent defenses and it all comes down to the QB making plays throwing the ball.

I think it is possible that Harbaugh is doing some of this to put these plays on tape, and then be able to run different plays out of the same formations with the same keys when it counts. I think that might account for some of the 'run into the line' plays. Harbaugh loves to show you a look, and then run a sneaky counter off the same look. It seems that these coaches really like to try to mess with opposing defenses keys. Look at the Down G play that they used earlier against Nebraska and SMU. That play is all about messing with the defenses keys an punishing linebackers who think they know where a play is going. At least this is what I hope he is doing rather than stupidly running into the line and trying to play manball.

[iam416]

I saw that Maryland was called for at least 1 holding penalty. OMG! However, it was declined so I'm sure it won't make it into the M Fan Grievance Database.

More importantly:

38-6 and an easy cover? I don't think so. I used this ranking system that predicts win margins last season in AA's pick contests. It didn't work particularly well but the math behind it is pretty substantial. It predicts M will win v. an average opponent (and that can be a problem) by 13.5 points. Maryland is probably an average opponent so fine. What the model also does is use regression analysis to incorporate the previous season. Less and less weight is assigned to this data point as the season progresses. That it's still a farily large factor only 5 games in would tend to underestimate M's margin of victory. So, talent might be right at 17.

Yeah, I didn't see the KO return coming -- I don't bake ST into my assessment -- and I should have been a little cautious with bullshit end of game score. But, yeah, you can go ahead and say I nailed the fuck out of this game and that, perhaps, you may want to through your ranking system into the shitter and just ask me what will happen. I'm happy to oblige.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Yeah, sure ..... I doubled up on your bet on Washington, fucker.

I'll be certain to NOT follow any of your pics or worthless betting advice in the future.

[AlabamAlum]

TALENT IS UP, UP, UP!

[iam416]

YES!!!!

[AlabamAlum]

Speaking of gambling. The o/u on the Bama-Mizzou game is 74. Take the over. Easy money. Mizzou will gash us. We have some real holes in the secondary. Arkansas showed the world the gameplan.

Fuckin Chad Morris...

[Jeff Buchanan]

I really like Tony Gerdeman who writes the Michigan Monday column for the Buckeye's OZone website

Here are two interesting comments:



And here's why the buckeyes have so much passing yardage .......



I don't know if osu can change this conundrum. It seems that it is what it is. It's somewhat surprising actually in that meyer, traditionally, is a power spread guy and his osu offense, anyway, relies on the run game. JTB was a great fit in that ufm offense. But now Haskins is so good as a passer and his receivers, esp. Campbell, are so talented that maybe this is a purposeful turn of events. Not sure it's a good one if it plays out that that is the scheme he runs v. M when that time comes. You stop Haskins and without a run game being fine tuned either by necessity or on purpose, "debacled" is a good way to describe the outcome of The Game from an osu perspective.

[iam416]

Yeah, I'm not so sure on Gerd as any sort of real analyst. His write-ups are entertaining and such, but...hmmm. So, IU was loading the box and playing zone. It was a stupid easy day to pass. Ohio State probably could have passed every down. IU got to Haskins twice and, through good fortune, created turnovers both times (hit him twice while he was throwing and the fluttering ball found an IU DB both times).

That said, Ohio State averages 201 ypg RUNNING. M averages 199.8. M has a higher YPA (5.1 to 4.7). But, what OSU is seeing every game is defenses dead set on taking away IZ. There's been a variance in approaches to limiting the passing attack, but the most successful has been to bring as much pressure as you can.

Finally, Indiana always gives OSU this kind of game. And in fancystats and real stats, they're marginally better than NW.

[hack]

I love getting the outside perspective. Brian's site has become too tethered to its predictions and gut instincts. Those instincts served the site very well under Hoke; not so much here. And it's too numbers driven. Seems like more than half of the basketball predictions were cocksure nonsense based on the stats. You can do that once or twice but at some point you have to learn not to.

[iam416]

Mgo operated under the correct assumption they could do much better than Hoke and were duly critical because it advanced an appropriate agenda. Mgo operates, I think, under the assumption that HARBAUGH!!!! is the best they can do so being too critical serves no real end other journalistic/blogistic integrity.

[Jeff Buchanan]

........ Mgo operates, I think, under the assumption that HARBAUGH!!!! is the best they can do so being too critical serves no real end other journalistic/blogistic integrity.

While that may be correct, my take is that Brian is appropriately critical when criticism is warranted. In that regard, he sets the standard for the remaining writers who seem to be a bit more technical and objective anyway. Brian's best take after Maryland was the observation that M had a shit-ton of 30 and 40 yard drives that got no points, hence the oddity associated with 200 to 20 yardage split between M and the Terps and the score 7-3 bad guys. I think that's a trend, it's schematic and not a good one.

Brian is, if anything an entertaining sports writer ..... when he's not spending time in the BPONE. He was there in the second half of 2017 and it was hard to read anything he wrote.

[hack]

Well neither of us are in Brian's head, so we don't know why they were duly critical. Their treatment of both Hoke and Beilein speaks to a willingness to look at the evidence and decide. Their treatment of Harbaugh does not. That said, they're stating to bitch about some key things, so it could be that there's a maturation underway. Certainly he's had an education in publishing on the fly.

[Detroit Dan]

Originally posted by iam416:
Mgo operates, I think, under the assumption that HARBAUGH!!!! is the best they can do so being too critical serves no real end

That's the right approach, IMO. This whole business is entertainment, and the essence of sports entertainment is fandom. It's fine to question the details, but it would be counterproductive (for mgoblog business and fan enjoyment) to call for a coaching change or for unrealistic change. The end of last year was dismal and change was needed. mgoblog did a good job of making that clear without panicking.

May of the sportswriters in the Detroit daily papers, on the other hand, seem to feel the need to pander to the worst instincts of the fans.

Mark Dantonio has failed to adapt. It's costing Michigan State. by Shawn Windsor:
In my humble opinion, this is repetitive, boring, not very informative or insightful, and certainly no fun to read. At least Wojo usually injects some humor.

If Michigan football's familiar hiccups continue, losses will follow, by Nick Baumgardner

But, maybe this is who Michigan is? A team with a vanilla offense and a defense that, save for about 15 plays in critical situations, is lights out. A team that plays with familiar inconsistent mental focus early away from home. What's that going to mean for this group's final record at the end of the season?

Boring, obvious tripe, IMO.

You would never find any such bullshit in my writings over the years (c;