Dominant...Great defense, great run game, room for improvement.
Give Drevno and Jay credit, the running game has come around very well with the young team. Now we need to do the same with the pass protection moving forward.
Hudson was outstanding...everybody saw that.
Spencer Tillman is a complete moron. Saying Kinnell provoked a punch with a little push to the shoulder (in response to the OT hitting a defender after the whistle, btw) and sticking to that opinion replay after replay was asinine.
A very solid effort, but we still shot ourselves in the foot a few times and again, we are not gonna get any favors from the men in stripes.
Without further ado....
Penalties: 9/85. I thought there were 10. Hate to beat a dead horse, but officials are calling some BS. If you think it’s not the case, re-watch the game and take a closer look. Of the 9 penalties, only 3 were definite penalties.
1. JBB illegal man downfield that negated a nice 13 yard pitch and catch from Peters to McDoom
2. JBB false start in the fourth quarter resulting in a seat on the bench.
3. Kinnell PI, which was a good penalty to take when he was beat. Still, if he turns his head...
The other 7 were highly questionable, at best.
1. Mike McCray, offsides...hmmm. He might have had a toe in the neutral zone. I didn’t think so.
2. St-Juste, holding during kick. Replay showed Woods after the kick with a very ticky tack call. Questionable at best. IF it was on woods, it should have been spotted at the 25 for a “hold” during the return at the 35. Maybe St-juste was holding out of camera view, but....
3. Kugler illegal block below waist. Just a bad call. A) It wasn’t below the waist...Kugler initiates contact above the waist (in fact, he hits the defenders arm/elbow at waist level. B) it wasn’t downfield...you can block below the waist at the line as long as they are not engaged above the waist with another blocker).
4. Gary Personal Foul hands to the face. Gary and the TE are literally pushing each other with both arms extended. Gary has better leverage and the TE buckles back a tad initially before fighting back to neutral. The backfield official throws the flag from 15 yards away, assuming it was hands to face due to the buckle. I watched it 5 times and never saw hands to the face...only the buckle backwards by the TE.
5. Metellus Unsportsmanlike Conduct...Are you kidding? The Minnesota OT is pushing after the play and Kinnell pushes him lightly (definitely not a football act) to clean up the pile after the whistle. They guy takes a swing and Metellus gets in his face. I don’t know what was said, obviously, but there is nothing physical to deserve a flag or an ejection. Ridiculous call..
6. Rueben Jones offsides. Lined up in neutral zone? Again, he might have had a knuckle over the line. Usually in that situation an official will mention that you are a bit over the line, but these officials can’t wait to give a free play to the opposition.
7. Kinnell holding on punt return. They said it was during the kick on this one. A) I didn’t see Kinnell in the replay. B) Watson makes a nice block and his guy rolls on the ground.
The horse has been beaten and dead all season. And on many of these plays, you could make an argument that they are illegal. But they’re the same action that occur on 90% of football plays and the calls aren’t going against Minnesota (who, btw, had at least 3 very obvious holds on QB scrambles).
QB Play...
Peters was excellent to start the game. But after a few hits, he regressed a tad. He ended the day 8/13 with one TD and 56 yards. There was only one drop, but 3 sacks allowed.
Here are the 17 passing plays...
1. DPJ on a simple out route for 8 yards on first offensive play. Well blocked and thrown.
2. McKeon on a checkdown for 5 yards (McKeon almost stepped OOB before pass).
3. Nullified 13 yard pass to McDoom (JBB illegally downfield).
4. McKeon throwback TE screen well executed for a 20 yard TD.
5. DPJ deeper out that he dropped. Could have been thrown better. Should have been caught.
6. Peters sacked when Higdon gets caught inside on playaction and blitzing corner gets the edge.
7. Incomplete to McDoom across the middle on a third down. LB/DE drops into coverage and TEs are blocking downfield...Definite pick play/offensive PI if complete. I can’t tell if McDoom is supposed to be at the LOS (allowing TEs to block downfield) or if its just poorly timed.
8. McKeon +4 on a naked bootleg that Peters does a good job of throwing quickly with pressure from unblocked LB.
9. Incomplete to Schoenle under pressure (JBB a little slow, lets DE inside and Ruiz is doubling on DT)
10. Schoenle +8 on 3rd and 23 under pressure between JBB/Ruiz.
11. Peters sacked on LB/NT stunt between Kugler (engaged with NT) and Bredeson (drifts left and doesn’t see LB coming up middle).
12. Peters sacked/creamed when Ruiz is lulled to sleep by a semi-delaying DT (who does not engage Ruiz and fools him into taking a step inside to help Kugler). Definite mistake by Ruiz that could have ruined Peters season. It was a freshman mistake and a big reason why you are cautious playing freshmen.
13. Incomplete to Hill in flat on a well designed play that probably gets at least 10 yard. first pass post near-death experience...
14. DPJ back should throw for 10 in the red zone for a first down. Well thrown ball.
15. Ways quick pass for nada...
16. Screen to Evans for -2. Blown up when Runyan whiffs with 4 Michigan vs. 1 Minnesota player.
17. Incomplete to McDoom on an out route that was poorly thrown.
To summarize...17 pass plays, 8 completions (6 for positive yards), 3 sacks, two bad throws, two regular incompletions, one drop and one play nullified. Lots of room for improvement. But the offense scored 5 TDs and missed a FG (that should have been another TD opportunity if not for the bad Kugler call). No turnovers and 5 punts. Statistically, Minnesota is a very good defense and got pretty good pressure on a half dozen of the 17 dropbacks.
Turnovers 1-0 for the good guys. I don’t think we put the ball on the ground at all (excluding the DPJ dropped pass). Solid effort.
Missed Tackles...I didn’t note any true missed tackles. We didn’t get off blocks (holds) on QB scrambles very well, though.
Blown coverages...none to speak of. We did give up a few pass plays with soft coverage (Metellus and Hudson early, Watson later), but no huge breakdowns.
Chunk plays...just to be nit picky, anything over 5 yards.
1. Metellus soft coverage gets beat on a slant on third and 8, going for 21 yards.
2. Well executed rub play on McCray gets 8 yards
3. Hudson plays way too deep and gives up 16 yards. He also missed a blocked punt in an otherwise phenomenal day. He had at least 3 sacks (depending on how Intentional grounding counts).
4. Scramble for 8 yards (McCray, the spy, falls for pump fake opening up a running lane for the QB)
5. Jet Sweep for 12...the ends (Winovich and Gary) have to get upfield a little quicker vs. this play.
6. Scramble for 12 yards.
7. Quick pitch for 7 yards.
8. Quick pitch other way for 10 yards and a TD.
Minnesota had 104 of their 164 yards in the first two drives. Decent gameplan that was thwarted after the TD drive.
9. Scramble for 6.
10. Jet sweep for 7
11. A regular old TB power for 14
That covers the first half.
12. Inside sweep +9 after halftime adjustment of their best play.
4th quarter...
13. Draw for 21 on 3rd and 10.
14. Completion over Watson for 30.
15. Scramble for 5
16. Scramble for 6
Summary: 3 plays over 20, 5 plays for over 10, 8 for 5-10 yards. We might have had more TFLs/Sacks and tackles for no gain than they had plays greater than 5 yards.
Other observations:
Punting game looks bad, but is actually pretty good. 2 of Robbins punts were near 50 yards with no returns inside the 16 yard line. He also had 2 short punts (34 yards) that were unreturnable and a decent net. DPJ had a decent day (sans the “penalties”). He was able to return 5 for 39 yards that could’ve been 7 for 85 or so without the help from the zebras.
Can’t say enough about Hudson’s play yesterday. Absolutely dominant. He is very fast for a LB with great body control and incredibly strong hands.
Peters play after the hit suffered a bit. But it was still much better than Speight or JOK. He’s gotta be the guy even if Speight returns...unless it’s the Speight pre-Iowa 2016. BUT...the weakness of this offense is the pass protection and Speight is a play away from getting his job back.
We get another scrimmage before taking on Wisconsin, who is a mirror image of the current Wolverines. Strong run game, good defense, try not to have to pass the ball. And Ohio State is very vulnerable right now. They took an absolute beating against Iowa. I expect them to play better vs. MSU for the win at home, but it will be physical.
That loss to MSU is still sooooo disappointing because I think we beat them with a healthy Speight OR an emerging Peters. I can see why JOK was given the nod (basically saving Peters from bad OL play), but that loss is potentially keeping us out of the playoffs.
Give Drevno and Jay credit, the running game has come around very well with the young team. Now we need to do the same with the pass protection moving forward.
Hudson was outstanding...everybody saw that.
Spencer Tillman is a complete moron. Saying Kinnell provoked a punch with a little push to the shoulder (in response to the OT hitting a defender after the whistle, btw) and sticking to that opinion replay after replay was asinine.
A very solid effort, but we still shot ourselves in the foot a few times and again, we are not gonna get any favors from the men in stripes.
Without further ado....
Penalties: 9/85. I thought there were 10. Hate to beat a dead horse, but officials are calling some BS. If you think it’s not the case, re-watch the game and take a closer look. Of the 9 penalties, only 3 were definite penalties.
1. JBB illegal man downfield that negated a nice 13 yard pitch and catch from Peters to McDoom
2. JBB false start in the fourth quarter resulting in a seat on the bench.
3. Kinnell PI, which was a good penalty to take when he was beat. Still, if he turns his head...
The other 7 were highly questionable, at best.
1. Mike McCray, offsides...hmmm. He might have had a toe in the neutral zone. I didn’t think so.
2. St-Juste, holding during kick. Replay showed Woods after the kick with a very ticky tack call. Questionable at best. IF it was on woods, it should have been spotted at the 25 for a “hold” during the return at the 35. Maybe St-juste was holding out of camera view, but....
3. Kugler illegal block below waist. Just a bad call. A) It wasn’t below the waist...Kugler initiates contact above the waist (in fact, he hits the defenders arm/elbow at waist level. B) it wasn’t downfield...you can block below the waist at the line as long as they are not engaged above the waist with another blocker).
4. Gary Personal Foul hands to the face. Gary and the TE are literally pushing each other with both arms extended. Gary has better leverage and the TE buckles back a tad initially before fighting back to neutral. The backfield official throws the flag from 15 yards away, assuming it was hands to face due to the buckle. I watched it 5 times and never saw hands to the face...only the buckle backwards by the TE.
5. Metellus Unsportsmanlike Conduct...Are you kidding? The Minnesota OT is pushing after the play and Kinnell pushes him lightly (definitely not a football act) to clean up the pile after the whistle. They guy takes a swing and Metellus gets in his face. I don’t know what was said, obviously, but there is nothing physical to deserve a flag or an ejection. Ridiculous call..
6. Rueben Jones offsides. Lined up in neutral zone? Again, he might have had a knuckle over the line. Usually in that situation an official will mention that you are a bit over the line, but these officials can’t wait to give a free play to the opposition.
7. Kinnell holding on punt return. They said it was during the kick on this one. A) I didn’t see Kinnell in the replay. B) Watson makes a nice block and his guy rolls on the ground.
The horse has been beaten and dead all season. And on many of these plays, you could make an argument that they are illegal. But they’re the same action that occur on 90% of football plays and the calls aren’t going against Minnesota (who, btw, had at least 3 very obvious holds on QB scrambles).
QB Play...
Peters was excellent to start the game. But after a few hits, he regressed a tad. He ended the day 8/13 with one TD and 56 yards. There was only one drop, but 3 sacks allowed.
Here are the 17 passing plays...
1. DPJ on a simple out route for 8 yards on first offensive play. Well blocked and thrown.
2. McKeon on a checkdown for 5 yards (McKeon almost stepped OOB before pass).
3. Nullified 13 yard pass to McDoom (JBB illegally downfield).
4. McKeon throwback TE screen well executed for a 20 yard TD.
5. DPJ deeper out that he dropped. Could have been thrown better. Should have been caught.
6. Peters sacked when Higdon gets caught inside on playaction and blitzing corner gets the edge.
7. Incomplete to McDoom across the middle on a third down. LB/DE drops into coverage and TEs are blocking downfield...Definite pick play/offensive PI if complete. I can’t tell if McDoom is supposed to be at the LOS (allowing TEs to block downfield) or if its just poorly timed.
8. McKeon +4 on a naked bootleg that Peters does a good job of throwing quickly with pressure from unblocked LB.
9. Incomplete to Schoenle under pressure (JBB a little slow, lets DE inside and Ruiz is doubling on DT)
10. Schoenle +8 on 3rd and 23 under pressure between JBB/Ruiz.
11. Peters sacked on LB/NT stunt between Kugler (engaged with NT) and Bredeson (drifts left and doesn’t see LB coming up middle).
12. Peters sacked/creamed when Ruiz is lulled to sleep by a semi-delaying DT (who does not engage Ruiz and fools him into taking a step inside to help Kugler). Definite mistake by Ruiz that could have ruined Peters season. It was a freshman mistake and a big reason why you are cautious playing freshmen.
13. Incomplete to Hill in flat on a well designed play that probably gets at least 10 yard. first pass post near-death experience...
14. DPJ back should throw for 10 in the red zone for a first down. Well thrown ball.
15. Ways quick pass for nada...
16. Screen to Evans for -2. Blown up when Runyan whiffs with 4 Michigan vs. 1 Minnesota player.
17. Incomplete to McDoom on an out route that was poorly thrown.
To summarize...17 pass plays, 8 completions (6 for positive yards), 3 sacks, two bad throws, two regular incompletions, one drop and one play nullified. Lots of room for improvement. But the offense scored 5 TDs and missed a FG (that should have been another TD opportunity if not for the bad Kugler call). No turnovers and 5 punts. Statistically, Minnesota is a very good defense and got pretty good pressure on a half dozen of the 17 dropbacks.
Turnovers 1-0 for the good guys. I don’t think we put the ball on the ground at all (excluding the DPJ dropped pass). Solid effort.
Missed Tackles...I didn’t note any true missed tackles. We didn’t get off blocks (holds) on QB scrambles very well, though.
Blown coverages...none to speak of. We did give up a few pass plays with soft coverage (Metellus and Hudson early, Watson later), but no huge breakdowns.
Chunk plays...just to be nit picky, anything over 5 yards.
1. Metellus soft coverage gets beat on a slant on third and 8, going for 21 yards.
2. Well executed rub play on McCray gets 8 yards
3. Hudson plays way too deep and gives up 16 yards. He also missed a blocked punt in an otherwise phenomenal day. He had at least 3 sacks (depending on how Intentional grounding counts).
4. Scramble for 8 yards (McCray, the spy, falls for pump fake opening up a running lane for the QB)
5. Jet Sweep for 12...the ends (Winovich and Gary) have to get upfield a little quicker vs. this play.
6. Scramble for 12 yards.
7. Quick pitch for 7 yards.
8. Quick pitch other way for 10 yards and a TD.
Minnesota had 104 of their 164 yards in the first two drives. Decent gameplan that was thwarted after the TD drive.
9. Scramble for 6.
10. Jet sweep for 7
11. A regular old TB power for 14
That covers the first half.
12. Inside sweep +9 after halftime adjustment of their best play.
4th quarter...
13. Draw for 21 on 3rd and 10.
14. Completion over Watson for 30.
15. Scramble for 5
16. Scramble for 6
Summary: 3 plays over 20, 5 plays for over 10, 8 for 5-10 yards. We might have had more TFLs/Sacks and tackles for no gain than they had plays greater than 5 yards.
Other observations:
Punting game looks bad, but is actually pretty good. 2 of Robbins punts were near 50 yards with no returns inside the 16 yard line. He also had 2 short punts (34 yards) that were unreturnable and a decent net. DPJ had a decent day (sans the “penalties”). He was able to return 5 for 39 yards that could’ve been 7 for 85 or so without the help from the zebras.
Can’t say enough about Hudson’s play yesterday. Absolutely dominant. He is very fast for a LB with great body control and incredibly strong hands.
Peters play after the hit suffered a bit. But it was still much better than Speight or JOK. He’s gotta be the guy even if Speight returns...unless it’s the Speight pre-Iowa 2016. BUT...the weakness of this offense is the pass protection and Speight is a play away from getting his job back.
We get another scrimmage before taking on Wisconsin, who is a mirror image of the current Wolverines. Strong run game, good defense, try not to have to pass the ball. And Ohio State is very vulnerable right now. They took an absolute beating against Iowa. I expect them to play better vs. MSU for the win at home, but it will be physical.
That loss to MSU is still sooooo disappointing because I think we beat them with a healthy Speight OR an emerging Peters. I can see why JOK was given the nod (basically saving Peters from bad OL play), but that loss is potentially keeping us out of the playoffs.
