The Good:
- The O-line. They made holes so the running game could be established. The pass protection was notable so Speight had time in the pocket to make some great deep ball throws.
- We had a very balanced offensive game plan that was well executed. We had 198 passing yards and 215 rushing yards, for a total of 413. Not too shabby.
- The receivers, they lived up to the hype coming out of spring ball and fall camp. They were GOOD. I think at one point I said, "He could catch a feral kitten," when speaking of Tarik Black. Nick Eubanks and Grant Perry got in on the action, too.
- The backs played an equally important role in the offensive success. The thing that stood out to me, was the yards after contact. Thumbs up to Ty Issac, Karan Higdon, and my favorite Urkle look-a-like/mechanic/custodian, Chris Evans. You guys get a B+.
- Quinn Nordin----I'm glad our coach spent the night with you and stole you from Penn State. Welcome to Michigan "Wild Thang" and thanks for having a leg like a cannon.
Here comes the tough part....
The Bad:
Ahem, Nolan Ulizio I'm looking at you, listen up!!..... I know, you're young, don't have a ton of game experience, yadda, yadda, yadda, but dude, you gotta be better. There were many times I saw the back of your horrendous maize jersey chasing your guy down and then stopping the pursuit. You. Can't. Do. That. Our QB is gonna get hurt. Step up your game, please!
Speaking of the maize jersey and equally awful pants.....I saw them earlier in the week. I didn't like them then, but was hopeful that I'd be so happy and excited to see the team on the field, that they'd grow on me. They didn't. They were just as terrible at the end of the game as they were when I first laid eyes on them. Please don't mess with our iconic uniforms again. They're beautiful in the their original state. Don't try to put your spin on them Jumpman, leave them alone.
When this blog was named, I was hopful to talk more about the opponent's Pick 6s than our own, but that is not the case this week. The first one falls on the receiver, that's you're fault Kekoa Crawford. If you can't bring it down, you have to knock it down so no one else can get it. That will come with experience and practice....I hope. The second one, that came on the very next play, and was surely the nail in our coffin, was Speight's fault. He overthrew the receiver and right into the hands of the defender. Heartbreaker. His face said it all.
And now for the way I like to end my parent meetings, amazement.....
The Defense:
All the talking heads could discuss this off-season was how many players we lost on defense to the draft, and what was the "new" defense going to look like. Would they be good? How could they ever live up to last year's defense? No one can recover from the loss of experience and upperclassmen that quickly, right? WRONG!!!!!! Coming out of fall camp, I'd read rumblings that this defense was going to be better than last year's. Wait, how could that be? Last year's defense was astounding! No way, that's just hype. WRONG again. They are going to better than last year, and very soon. I think it's safe to say, everyone was shocked at how good they actually were. Guys were flying around the field (Devin Bush), swarming the ball, sacking the quarterback (Chase Winovich) and knocking the ball loose. I have goosebumps as I type this, because I'm just so amazed at how good they were. And the really amazing thing is........they're only going to get better.
The season is upon us and I can't wait to watch this team develop.
~Go Blue
Bekki
Pick 6 Pivotal moments from Saturday:
1. Pulling Speight
2. The 55 yarder
3. The run D
4. Tarik Black TD reception
5. Ty Isaac rushing
6. The win
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