Some random thoughts after a fun game to watch. Feel free to post yours.
-Great atmosphere,and a great win. This was a big shot in the arm for this program, and great to see. From all accounts, the atmosphere was loud, energetic, etc. Michigan hasn't won a game of this caliber in a bit.
-I'm not a Wisconsin expert, but it sure seems like we beat them at their own game. Strong defense, run heavy offense and wear them down in the 2nd half. It was great to see us execute well in the 2nd half and close this thing out in such strong fashion.
-Alex Hornibrook is very symbolic of Wisconsin, IMO. He plays well against inferior opponents, and piles up the stats in those type of games. Like Wisconsin, when they actually play a team with a defense, things are much different. As we know, it's quite rare that Wisconsin faces a tough defense/opponent.
-Michigan's defense, specifically pass defense, was ridiculous. Hornibrook didn't play well, but this defense gave him nothing. The pressure was strong, and the coverage was even better. He was so uncomfortable back there, and it was great to see that.
-I love watching Chase Winovich. His motor is unmatched. It's just crazy. What he's done here is nearly unbelievable. In addition to Chase, I'm really enjoying watching Uche and Kwity Paye. What is the ceiling for these 2?
-Kudos to Don Brown for going to a zone look on the 1st INT. I was really hoping Don would do this, in an effort to complicate things for Hornibrook. Great call from DB.
-The zone read QB keep looked like a wrinkle that was added - and resulted in Shea's huge run and Dylan's TD run. I haven't seen this yet, so perhaps I missed it, but regardless it was a great scheme. Suck the defense in with the Higdon action, and pull McKeon out in front of the QB to seal the edge. Fantastic design.
-If I were a Wisconsin fan, I'd be really frustrated with Chryst. The play calling left a lot to be desired. Wisconsin had consistent success on the ground, as evidenced by Taylor running for 6 yards per carry. However, he only had 17 carries. IMO, Chryst should have been running the ball every 3rd and 4 or less. Instead, he threw on many of those occasions, which was a train wreck.
-Facing Wisconsin, prior to MSU, is a bonus for us IMO - along with MSU needing to win against PSU the week before we face them. Wisconsin had some success with the jet sweep action with the WR, and that is something that MSU uses as well. Also, MSU had to pull out some tricks (nicely executed fake punt, for example) that are now on tape. They will have more tricks up their sleeve, but I like the timing of everything here as we lead up to that game.
-There are some things that we need to improve on, of course. Better execution/play calling (scoring TD's, not FG's) inside the opponents 30 yard line would really help the ceiling of this team. I like seeing some innovation on offense with the Milton play, Ambry, Dylan etc - but it seemed lazy overall. Hopefully they have other wrinkles in mind, which I'm sure they do.
We've all been waiting for this stretch of games. I'm becoming more and more confident about this team - every game is there for the taking. Must beat MSU!
Go Blue!
-Great atmosphere,and a great win. This was a big shot in the arm for this program, and great to see. From all accounts, the atmosphere was loud, energetic, etc. Michigan hasn't won a game of this caliber in a bit.
-I'm not a Wisconsin expert, but it sure seems like we beat them at their own game. Strong defense, run heavy offense and wear them down in the 2nd half. It was great to see us execute well in the 2nd half and close this thing out in such strong fashion.
-Alex Hornibrook is very symbolic of Wisconsin, IMO. He plays well against inferior opponents, and piles up the stats in those type of games. Like Wisconsin, when they actually play a team with a defense, things are much different. As we know, it's quite rare that Wisconsin faces a tough defense/opponent.
-Michigan's defense, specifically pass defense, was ridiculous. Hornibrook didn't play well, but this defense gave him nothing. The pressure was strong, and the coverage was even better. He was so uncomfortable back there, and it was great to see that.
-I love watching Chase Winovich. His motor is unmatched. It's just crazy. What he's done here is nearly unbelievable. In addition to Chase, I'm really enjoying watching Uche and Kwity Paye. What is the ceiling for these 2?
-Kudos to Don Brown for going to a zone look on the 1st INT. I was really hoping Don would do this, in an effort to complicate things for Hornibrook. Great call from DB.
-The zone read QB keep looked like a wrinkle that was added - and resulted in Shea's huge run and Dylan's TD run. I haven't seen this yet, so perhaps I missed it, but regardless it was a great scheme. Suck the defense in with the Higdon action, and pull McKeon out in front of the QB to seal the edge. Fantastic design.
-If I were a Wisconsin fan, I'd be really frustrated with Chryst. The play calling left a lot to be desired. Wisconsin had consistent success on the ground, as evidenced by Taylor running for 6 yards per carry. However, he only had 17 carries. IMO, Chryst should have been running the ball every 3rd and 4 or less. Instead, he threw on many of those occasions, which was a train wreck.
-Facing Wisconsin, prior to MSU, is a bonus for us IMO - along with MSU needing to win against PSU the week before we face them. Wisconsin had some success with the jet sweep action with the WR, and that is something that MSU uses as well. Also, MSU had to pull out some tricks (nicely executed fake punt, for example) that are now on tape. They will have more tricks up their sleeve, but I like the timing of everything here as we lead up to that game.
-There are some things that we need to improve on, of course. Better execution/play calling (scoring TD's, not FG's) inside the opponents 30 yard line would really help the ceiling of this team. I like seeing some innovation on offense with the Milton play, Ambry, Dylan etc - but it seemed lazy overall. Hopefully they have other wrinkles in mind, which I'm sure they do.
We've all been waiting for this stretch of games. I'm becoming more and more confident about this team - every game is there for the taking. Must beat MSU!
Go Blue!
