Expect The Excuses
Every week, expect the media to talk about what Michigan will be in the future.
Every week, expect to genuflect at the mention of Rich Rodriguez and his offense.
Every week, expect pundits to mention either Shaun King or Pat White.
Then, expect Michigan to look terrible on the field and struggle to eke out a win.
Here is what is not being said…These struggles are unnecessary and actually self-imposed.
Michigan might have posted a 10-2 or 9-3 (at worst) record this year. It was possible and even likely if Rodriguez had simply incorporated the talent already on the squad with that which was incoming. In fact, had he worked toward an inclusive approach with Lloyd Carr players, I think Michigan might have even been a dark horse national championship candidate.
Instead, from all reports, Rodriguez took the hard butt approach. He ran out anyone who had the slightest doubts about the new system. He did not encourage them to jump ship; he dared them to leave by making Patton look like a softie.
While he might have entered the program and immediately worked on ‘re-recruiting’ his offensive line, he lost them all – including Justin Boren. While Boren may have handled the situation in a less than stellar manner, he is essentially a kid. College football players are physically impressive, but they are still young enough that a coach with Rodriguez’s age and experience level might have helped him through the transition with a word of encouragement and a little parental advice.
Granted, these players were not ‘his style’, but then again, few coaches have that luxury when they walk into a new position. In 2001, a new coach was hired at Ohio State. He entered a program where the culture and talent were not truly suited to his style of play and his ethos. This isn’t a slam on John Cooper; it is simply a recognition these two coaches are different in their expectations and mode of operation. What happened? The Buckeyes lost a few players, but on the whole the loss was minimal. They retained their stars, even those who appear to have fought Tressel’s changes tooth and nail (see Derek Ross).
Why? Tressel did not run players off; he reached out to them. He incorporated any who were even slightly willing into his vision. They bought into the possibilities and a year later they were not rebuilding, they were winning a national title.
Then there is the constant Shaun King refrain.
Let’s face a little reality. When Rodriguez served as a lowly offensive coordinator, he did what his boss wanted. If Tommy Bowden told him he wanted a balanced offense, then he created a balance offense no matter his personal desire. If Bowden said jump, Rodriguez replied ‘How high?’ Therefore, with a quarterback like King, he developed both the passing and rushing skills.
However, Rodriguez soon moved to his own gig at West Virginia. There, as his own boss, he essentially squashed the passing game. His quarterbacks have been (and likely will be) athletes who will not play that position at the next level. They run first and as an option to keep the defense off balance, they pass. Most of these passes are high percentage throws close to the line of scrimmage, but they do throw the bomb occasionally to keep the safeties and cornerbacks from creeping up into the line of scrimmage. The tight end isn’t simply an afterthought; they are about as useful for the Rodriguez passing game as a third eyebrow in the middle of the forehead or your aunt’s mustache.
Rodriguez will probably win at Michigan, but here is the problem – he could have won this year. He might have played for a Big Ten title.
The pieces were there, but he ran them off.
Rodriguez will now have to hope he can recruit his players and mature them quickly enough to create his type of team. If he does not, then he will be out of Ann Arbor and will have failed on one of the largest stages of the sport.
When I watch Michigan, this season and next, I will ask simply, ‘What might have been?’
What I liked – Ohio State vs. Ohio University
Enough attention will be focused on what went wrong yesterday for the Buckeyes, so why not ask what went well?
Brandon Smith – Ohio State has needed a player on their roster to step up and play the fullback position. Smith chose to help the team, move, and earn almost immediate starter status. He made a difference for Mo Wells, particularly on his 12 yard scamper early in the second quarter. He isn’t perfect and is no Jamar Martin, but he is willing to stick his head in there and rattle some helmets.
Lawrence Wilson – He forced the issue most of the day. Without Vernon Gholston, the Buckeyes need someone to bring pressure off of the edge, and Wilson looks like that player. His interception was fantastic but actually was not the best part of the play. First there was penetration; penetration by a defensive line collapses an offense like a 98 pound weakling trying to catch Rueben Studdard as he leaps from a third story window. Then there was Wilson’s recognition; he knew it was far too easy to reach the quarterback and immediately slowed, leaped, and tipped the ball. It was the tip which (for me at least) was the most important aspect of this play. He did not simply bat the ball down. He didn’t swat it as if he were rejecting a shot attempt near the rim in basketball. No, Wilson tipped it to himself. He was judicious in his use of the freakish strength possessed by players of his stature, and then he plucked the ball out of the air like a frog with a fly. He secured it and charged down the field for a serious swing of momentum and at the end, as the Bobcats sought to chop him down at the ankles, he pulled up his feet to avoid injury.
Ray Small – Small is not the player he might have been at this point in his career, but he is showing signs of developing into the player he can be. He still needs to stop looking at the referee for a flag and fight through defensive backs, but he clearly was the best receiver on the field for the Buckeyes. He gained separation, caught tough balls, and he even broke tackles. Not only that, but his punt return was obviously the back breaker for the Bobcats. In some respects it is the kind of play turned in by Ted Ginn, Jr. against Michigan in 2004 or Will Allen in 2003 against San Diego State. He and Lane (below) shouldn’t have to carry their books around campus for a long, long time. Their teammates should work out a schedule and volunteer to be their pack mules.
Shaun Lane – Seniors play large under coach Tressel and typically two or three will have a particularly memorable season. Lane is showing this type of potential. Last week, he put on his best Antoine Winfield impression, and this week his heady fumble recovery turned the tide of the contest. Had he reached out an inch further or not tucked the ball to his body, it would have been Bobcat ball with no harm done. Instead, he clutched it to him, kept his elbow in bounds, cradled it like an infant, and put new life in his entire team. Here is a young man many would have said (at least before today) was simply a legacy scholarship. Question, how much would a loss today have cost Ohio State? I’m not talking about just wins and losses and national respect. I’m talking about actual dollars. If Ohio State would have lost today and then were to lose to USC, they would have to go virtually undefeated to play in a BCS at large bowl. Lane’s play today could actually be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to the program. Yeah, I would say if he hadn’t already earned it, then he earned that scholarship this afternoon, but then again – this staff doesn’t offer young men who can’t make a contribution. Remember Lane the next time you hear someone say a player is a ‘legacy’ because there is no such thing on a Tressel team.
Frank Solich – He is proving he can coach (as if this were a secret). Here is a man who didn’t get a fair shake at Nebraska. The fans out there are among the best in the nation, but they became used to the incredible success of Tom Osborne – when even Osborne didn’t average that kind of success for the bulk of his career. The administration panicked and fired him too quickly when grumbling started. They compounded their mistake with the hiring of Bill Callahan who butchered Cornhusker tradition. Finally, the Huskers have hired another Ohio coach, former Buckeye Bo Pelini, to right the wrong, but even so Solich was left out in the cold until wisely hired by the Bobcats. Watch for him to turn them into a MAC power unless a larger program lures him away.
Turnovers – Somewhat lost in the discussions of this game is the number of turnovers forced by the Buckeye defense. In contrast to last season when defensive backs and linebackers displayed hands which would make brick layers turn green with envy, Ohio State’s defense made several great plays on the football. Malcolm Jenkins’ backpedaling leap was anything but easy no matter what commentators claimed. Laurinaitis’ dive and ability to get his arms underneath the ball was critical to holding off Ohio University. Wilson’s pick has already been lauded above, and Anderson Russell’s interception should get more play. His receiver was open, and the ball was fairly close to being on time. If it were just 3 feet further to lead the receiver it was a touchdown, but Russell flashed in front of the ball and took it back the other way.
No Major Injuries – Youngstown State was one of the costliest wins for Ohio State in a long, long, long time. Losing Beanie Wells is no joke. Yesterday, there were no major injuries, and if Ohio State returns Wells for USC, then two wins in the bag without a season ending injury is no small feat.
The World is about to discover…
· Paul Johnson is a whale of a coach. He was overlooked for far too long at Navy, and administrators at Georgia Tech should take a bow for recognizing his genius.
· Just how much the new 40 second rule destroys the media’s attempts to pimp their programming. Watch the cheesy updates and promotions for upcoming games be cut off in mid sentence or even cut entirely as the offensive unit quickly gathers at the line. Where in previous seasons media broadcasts might have 50 seconds, now they have less than 30. Producers will adjust but for now, it is mildly humorous. So, maybe television should be careful what they wish for in the future since they just might get it. They wanted a faster game; wish granted. Now good luck with those commercials you keep cluttering the contest with to pimp your product.
· Houston Nutt is a better coach than many believed. Arkansas is a difficult place to coach when you consider the SEC. Fayetteville and the surrounding area are growing rapidly, but the region is not highly populated, nor is it noted for its high school football. Traditionally the Razorbacks try to maintain a presence in Little Rock which helps them tie into the rest of the state, but let’s face it – the state has less high school football talent than any other in their league. On the flip side, Mississippi has as much talent per capita as virtually any state in the nation…and Nutt is now going to have access to better players. He lost by an eyelash today, but give him some time and he will have the Rebels bowling every year.
· Penn State, despite their seemingly out of control off the field antics, is a solid team and could give the Buckeyes a true test when they come to town in October. Call me master of the obvious with this statement, but I’ll toss out something else for consideration – the last time Penn State faced Ohio State with a redshirt senior quarterback was 2005. I would say most Buckeyes don’t have many happy memories of that occasion.
· Players coaches rarely make great head coaches. How many times do we have to suffer through these ‘feel good’ stories only to realize they are popular for a reason? Bobby Williams was supposed to be a breath of fresh air after Nick Saban. Larry Coker was beloved by his players when Butch Davis departed. Will West Virginia’s Stewart be next? My early vote is yes.
· As down as the Big Ten might be, they are still not in the lower echelons of the football world like the Big East and ACC. How terrible are these two this year? In a winner take all world bowl game against weaker competition, they have fared not too shabbily, but the proof is in the rest of the pudding. Right now the pudding looks lumpy and curdled – as it has virtually every season.
