Michigan won an absolute thriller yesterday defeating Illinois 67-65 in three overtimes and became bowl eligible for the first time in three years in the process. It was a big win for Michigan and Rich Rodriguez and should definitely give this young football team a much needed shot of confidence heading into a very winnable road game against Purdue. There were positives and negatives on both sides of the ball yesterday and I break them down below.
Michigan Defense
I do not care that the Michigan defense gave up 65 points yesterday because the unit that played yesterday was clearly better than the unit that did not even show up to play in Happy Valley last weekend. After an absolutely disastrous second quarter (25 points allowed), the defense stepped up in the second half when the offense started to finally sputter. In the second half, the defense gave up only 14 points including 7 of which came off a Tate Forcier fumble deep within the Michigan zone.
The defense could have had a much better game yesterday if not for the great starting field position that the Illini had throughout yesterday’s game. The Illini’s average starting position was their 44-yard line. 5 turnovers, combined with terrible kick coverage, constantly had the Illini starting in field position where just one or two first downs would put them in field goal range.
The defensive staff made some minor tweaks that showed up in yesterday’s game. Early in the game, it was very clear that the much-rumored Craig Roh to defensive end switch had happened. Roh played nearly the entire game with his hand in the dirt and it is absolutely clear that he is an above average force at the defensive end spot. However, I would strongly argue that the four-man front that the staff made use of yesterday made virtually no difference when compared to the three man front we’ve seen all season. Greg Robinson did bring a bit more pressure than usual yesterday and in the rare instances it was used it did seem to have a positive effect on the defense.
One schematic fail yesterday by Greg Robinson and his staff was the failure to adjust to the fullback wheel route play that Illinois could have used much more often than the two times that it was thrown for touchdowns. The first time, understandable I guess, but the second time is absolutely inexcusable. In both cases it was impossible to even determine who was responsible for coverage on this route. Any defensive coordinator who is mildly competent would not allow his defense to get beat by the same gimmick play twice but I think we all know at this point that Greg Robinson does not have a prayer of returning in 2011. Also, it appeared to me that Greg Robinson had never ever seen the triple option prior to this weekend and I was absolutely stunned that Illinois didn’t continue to run this every series as I thought they could have had even more success with it than they did.
One huge step forward yesterday for the defense was the emergence of some younger players who are going to be big factors in rebuilding this defense going forward. Kenny Demens is turning into a very good middle linebacker. Demens has always been stout against the run, but yesterday he showed improved awareness in pass coverage and even had a crucial pass breakup on a key third down play to force an Illinois punt.
Courtney Avery, after getting beat once on a deep touchdown where he had good coverage, stepped up and played a heck of a game in place of J.T. Floyd. Avery has improved leaps and bounds over the past few weeks and it was never more noticeable than when he made a perfect open field tackle on Nathan Scheelhaase to prevent an Illinois first down. A few weeks ago against Iowa, Avery missed this same type of tackle. Avery has a bright future at Michigan and it was nice to see him turn in a solid effort yesterday.
Ray Vinopal, who clearly isn’t quite physically ready to be playing Big Ten football at this point, also had one huge play down the stretch as he blitzed the run gap and absolutely stood up Leshoure on a crucial third down play that allowed the Michigan offense to get back on the field to tie the game at 45. Vinopal, like Avery, could be a solid answer to the free safety spot in 2011 after an offseason to get stronger and faster.
Finally, Cam Gordon finally looked comfortable in his new role and was stout in run support. He even made some plays against the passing game and frequently shut down a lot of the flat routes that had plagued Michigan to date. Cam has found his spot and is going to be a stud at the LB/S spot as he gets more experience.
Yes, the defense was poor overall, but they made some steps forward this week and I’m anxious to see what they can do next week if special teams and the offense can put them in a better position to succeed.
Michigan Offense
Michigan, minus four offensive turnovers, might have just put together the best Big Ten offensive performance that will ever be seen in the Big House. The Michigan offense put up 686 yards against a team that had previously only been giving up around 300 yards per game. Michigan also scored 67 points against a defense that had given up just 16 points per game. Illinois’ defense came into the nation top-20 in nearly every statistical category and Michigan ran by them like they weren’t even on the field.
The first thing that stood out to me yesterday was the increased variety in the play calling that the staff used yesterday. Calvin Magee deserves a ton of credit for going deeper into the playbook and showing a variety of different looks that Illinois was obviously not prepared for heading into this weekend. Magee opened the game with a fake-zone read, fake-bubble screen, slot seam route that caught the Illini with their pants down. It really seems like Magee is starting to hit his groove with Robinson at the helm and that he is really putting the offense in great positions to be successful.
Denard Robinson is simply amazing. Yes, his downfield accuracy isn’t all the way there yet but it is nearly unheard of to see a player go over 300 yards passing on only 10 completions! Robinson showed amazing patience in the pocket yesterday and his offensive line gave him plenty of time to scan the field and find the open receiver. I loved the way that Robinson shook off two early interceptions and didn’t allow these mistakes to affect his play over the course of the game. My only complaint with Robinson’s play yesterday is that he sometimes needs to bail on the big play when he clearly has the ability to run for the first down. Robinson must learn that it is sometimes much more valuable to just keep a drive alive than go for the home run. However, all in all, it was another step forward for Denard Robinson as a quarterback this weekend.
Having a backup quarterback with Tate’s experience is an invaluable commodity for the Michigan football team. Tate, in his typical roller-coaster type ways, committed two turnovers to go along with two touchdowns. Tate, similar to Denard, drove me crazy by not simply checking down to wide-open tight ends in the flat and trying to force the issue further down the field. Overall though, you have to give Tate a ton of credit for coming in to the game in a difficult situation and helping Michigan get a much-needed victory.
The running backs played their best game of the season yesterday. Vincent Smith broke off several nice runs and ran hard throughout the game. Hopkins mixed in a couple nice runs and with a full offseason to improve I see no reason why he can’t be the primary power back in the offense next year. And finally, a big time welcome back to Michael Shaw who found his way back into the lineup and had a huge impact in the final quarter and extra time. Shaw provided a much-needed spark to the running game and I’m hoping that he can get back on track in the final three games.
The wide receivers, simply put, might have just put together one of the best games by an entire wide receiving unit in the history of Michigan football. Yes, we have seen great individual performances (e.g. Braylon vs. MSU), but I’ve personally never seen anything like the contributions that Michigan got from all of their wide receivers yesterday. Roy Roundtree, if this is even possible, quietly broke the single game yardage record for a Michigan receiver by amassing 246 yards receiving on the day. This is an amazing record when you consider the slew of talented receivers that have made their way through Ann Arbor over the past few decades. Junior Hemingway again provided a big day and showed great playmaking ability on both of his touchdowns. After the way he broke out of being boxed in on the sideline to score his first touchdown, I think it is pretty clear that Hemingway is vastly underrated with the ball in his hands after the catch. He isn’t the fastest guy, but he sure can make people miss. Even Daryl Stonum made some key grabs yesterday, including the game-tying touchdown towards the end of regulation. If the receivers continue to play at this level, Michigan’s offense becomes nearly impossible to stop.
Upshot
This was an extremely impressive performance by the offense and anyone who thought this offense couldn’t get it done against a legitimate Big Ten defense can go eat a big slice of humble pie. Against the two best statistical defenses Michigan has faced (Iowa and Illinois) they have now put up over 1200 total yards of offense and a whopping 95 points. This offense is one playmaker at running back away from being the best offense in the country. By the end of 2011, I think that this offense will be the most feared unit in the nation.
The defense took steps forward yesterday and it was nice to see that there is some young talent in place that could definitely fill some holes moving forward.
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