I sat, on my floor, with my thousand mile stare, and watched through the TV.  I wasn't really watching the TV, per se, I was literally staring through the defocused images of white, and red, and yellow that seemed to be bouncing off one another in random, chaotic spurts.  I wondered, amongst desperate pleas from the girlfriend to come back to reality, whether Michigan would ever beat Ohio State again, and where, when I chose my collegiate alliance so many years ago, I had screwed up.  I also pondered the inevitability of it all; if I could quit Michigan football, I would have - probably sometime around the Notre Dame game.  I would have just quit, said I didn't care anymore, and lived my fall Saturdays the way they were meant to be lived instead of standing at home with high blood pressure and hurling various swears at a television.  At some point in my life, Michigan football had become important enough to voluntarily go through the pain of this season.  It's sick, really.

Then, I think:

Like Mike Hart before him, Brandon Minor stayed on the field and witnessed through what I imagine to be tears of anger the Ohio State players celebrate with the student section.  My pain is not his pain.  His pain is best left to be endured by men such as him.

Brandon Graham guaranteed a win over Michigan State, and then did everything that could have been possibly asked of him to back that up.  His teammates did not live up to his expectations.  He has recently stated that he intends to return, to make amends for this, the lost season.  My pain is not his pain.  His pain is best left to be endured by men such as him.

Remember, as you sit at your keyboards, that this product, this drug that we've all become addicted to called Michigan football does not come free.  Sure, it's free to you, the benefactor, sitting on your couch, but it is paid in full by the clanking of weights at 5 AM, the soft sound of rubber meeting cement as stairs are climbed in the July heat, and the darkness of a film room.  It is most assuredly paid for by young men who are asked to do what many of us cannot.  Before we criticize, let's not forget that we are not the ones paying for this drug; it is paid by the players doing the work. 

I will be out of town, eating turkey, sleeping, or otherwise incapacitated for the remainder of this week.  Please, enjoy the holiday, and be safe.

You'd think that in the midst of a 2-5 season and coming off a 29 point loss to Penn State in Happy Valley, the members of Michigan's football team might be a tad bit humbled. Maybe even quiet.

You'd be wrong.

Confidence has never been a problem at Michigan. Even during the Fallow Years, Michigan's always managed to keep it's head high and it's sights set on success rather than merely competing. Hell, even after an 0-2 start last year, Mike Hart was predicting victories and turn arounds to anyone who hold a microphone within a mile of his mouth. Confidence. Brashness. Arrogance. Success. These are all trademarks of Michigan football. If you think Michigan was happy just hanging around for the first half against a much better Penn State squad, again, you'd be wrong.

But one of the things that was also a trademark of Michigan football was keeping your mouth shut. For all that confidence, brashness, arrogance, and success, Michigan's players were generally careful enough to keep from putting their quotes on the opposing team's bulletin board. Unfortunately, over the past two decades or so, this annoying habit of spouting off to the press has become more prevalent.  

My favorite/least favorite in this little trend was Walter Smith announcing to the World that they were playing Ohio State with the intention of getting John Cooper fired. (HT: The Realest)

"We want to get (Ohio State coach) John Cooper fired. That's what I want to do. I want to keep on beating that team until he's no longer there."
-- Former Michigan wide receiver Walter Smith before the 1992 Ohio State-Michigan game which Ohio State won, 22-6

A few guys have made good on their guarantees, like Jim Harbaugh or Mike Hart. But it doesn't make them right for doing it. Hart and Harbaugh were electrifying players in their own right who were basically soundbites with two legs and a pulse. Like moths drawn to bright light, they couldn't avoid a camera or a microphone and sometimes the things that came out of their mouths landed them on the front page of a sports section or the lead-in for College Football Live. As nice as it was to see Michigan the front and center story, more often than not the question becomes "will this team be able to back that statement up?"

Personally, the idea of guaranteeing anything where sports are involved is plain, oldfashioned stupid. There are too many intangibles. Too many things the guarantor can't control. And when a team is 2-5 the only thing you should be guaranteeing is that you'll tackle better.

But sometimes you've gotta say what's on you mind.

During post game interviews following Michigan's 29 point loss to Penn State, Junior defensive end Brandon Graham was quoted as saying the following:

"We are not going to lose to State. That's just, we're not going to lose to State. We're going to work hard. We're going to win."

That's a bold prediction from a guy that didn't notch a sack and managed only 3 tackles against PSU. But it's out there. And his teammates are backing him up, whether they want to or not.

In some ways you can argue it's truly Graham's prediction to make. He's arguably the most talented guy on the defensive line. He's the sack machine. He's the guy who's stats are a direct indicator of whether Michigan won or lost the football game. When you consider that Michigan will face a non-spread team, a relatively statue-esque quarterback, and a traditional pro-style offense, everything kind of reminds you of the Wisconsin game. So maybe Graham's thinking about all those factors before making his prediction.

But I doubt it.

This is a kid who's sick of losing. He's tired of coming close yet coming up short. He's tired of the mistakes. He's tired of everyone offering condolences on the season. He's trying to ignite his team, and if that's the way he thinks they'll respond, then I'm all for it. At least I think so.

Sometimes confidence is just a mask for any number of other emotions. This Michigan team is a prideful bunch, and in a season of inexplicable losses and too few wins, that pride has taken a beating. He probably subconsciously thinks, and I don't blame him, that the best way to regain some of that swagger is to show it on the outside, even if you don't feel it after a loss to Penn State. To be a leader. To lead by example, voice, and effort. Maybe Graham knows that the way to be a leader is to be confident, even when you're not, and show that confidence to you teammates. Get them to believe. And then push them to turn that confidence into execution.

Regardless of Graham's intentions, deep thoughts, or impulses, his quote is out there in the ether. Floating around. Pinned up in the MSU weight room right next to Mike Hart's little brother quote and right next to the piece of paper reminding the Spartans they haven't beaten Michigan in 6 years. And come Saturday he's going to have to make good on that promise.

It's all a confidence game. And in some ways it is heartening to know that despite the season from hell, the team's confidence hasn't flagged.

Sure, it's Wednesday, time to move on. But there are still things to discuss. Like what we can take away from the game and the things we need to work on. With that in mind I dish out a few Celebratory Brews and a couple of Wags of my finger!

Celebratory Brews:

The Defense:  There aren't enough superlatives to do justice to the job they did on Saturday. Aside from a few missed tackles (more on that later), one of the best defensive performances the Big House has seen in quite some time. Taylor, Johnson and Max Martin get massive props for Standing up Wisconsin's massive line, and winning. Also, while Taylor and Johnson were great, I hope everyone is paying attention to just how good Mike Martin has been (as opposed to Max Martin, who's name I erroneously used before). And he's a freshman. But a freshman who shed a double block on the failed two point conversion to smash Evridge as he threw on the game's final, and most important play. If he continues to play like this we're going to be memorializing his name in song very shortly.

Halftime Adjustments:  Until this year I'd only heard of them. When the coaching staff realized the horizontal game plan wasn't working, they changed it. I back sets. Some traditional power game. The deep ball. The offensive coaching staff should be commended for an excellent second half.

Jonas Mouton:  Just an outstanding game by the young linebacker. Mouton was all over the field from my vantage point; in a good way. He seems like a hybrid DE/LB in the Shawn Crable mold, except without the constant penalties that make you want to break things. Mouton routinely shed his blockers to make a play, blitzed his way into Evridge's helmet, and took down backs in space when he was the only thing between them and 30 yards. That added up to 8 tackles, a sack, and a boatload of props. Monster game.

Brandon Graham:  Defensive POW in the Big Ten. I still maintain my prediction that he's going to break someone in half by midseason. He saved the game sacking Evridge at the six. Leads the Big Ten in TFL.

Brandon Harrison:  Quickly becoming my favorite player on the 2008 squad. I've never seen someone his size hit like that. Cus D'amato once said of Mike Tyson, "He hits with bad intentions." So does Harrison. Harrison laid a hit on PJ Hill halfway through the second quarter that made my teeth rattle, and it should be noted that Hill sat out the rest of that series. Harrison also lit up Wisconsin's receivers whenever they touched the ball. At five foot nothin' he plays like the biggest guy in the defensive backfield.

All your conciousness are belong to Brandon Harrison. via mikedesimone.com

Donovan Warren:  Served notice that the left side of the field is his, and his alone. Throw there at your peril. Best corner in the Big Ten at this point in the season. Warren also showed he can play some run defense, as he took down a handful of stretches to his side and made a touchdown saving tackle on Clay when he busted contain in the second.

Minor/McGuffie/Grady/Brown:  All of them chipped in something big. Minor busted the "holy crap we can win this" run. Grady gave us hope with the "this is our season" 4&1 conversion. Brown gave Threet his first passing first down and seemed to settle Threet with that effort. McGuffie capped the comeback with a ballsy, 3& goal cut to the endzone. Sure some longer runs would've been nice, but these guys provided consistent effort and great pass blocking all day. They also provided 14  points.

Steven Threet, Version 2.0:  Not to be confused with the Version 1.0 that spent the majority of the first half flailing about the backfield like a trout on dry land. While V2.0 wasn't perfect, he was pretty damn good and showed himself to be an above average college level quarterback on Saturday. He showed some touch, threw a couple of outstanding deep passes, and made the proper decisions at crucial times in the comeback. Plus, that pass to Koger was beautiful. His intermediate, middle of the field passes still need work but the majority of what he showed us from the 30 minute mark onward was outstanding.

The Offensive Line:  While this group wasn't terrific during the opening half, they were more than serviceable. The fact Michigan couldn't run the ball had more to do with 9 man fronts more than anything else. Even on the rare occasion someone got to Threet in the backfield, it was usually on a broken play or that infamous late hit. Face it, they controlled the line of scrimage the second half of the game. Threet may have been hit from time to time, but the line didn't give up a sack. Not bad for a bunch guys the media called no-names, back-ups and underachievers at the beginning of the year. Steve Schilling, at least from where I was sitting, looked pretty impressive.

Wags of the Finger:

First Half Offensive Play Calling:  When your wife is describing the the play calling as Weis-esque, you know something is wrong. She alos mockingly asked when we hired Bob Davie to run our offense. That may have cut to the bone, but, damn son, I married a good woman. While I will grant you Threet V1.0 was terrible, even that shouldn't have handcuffed the Michigan offense to the extent we saw. Wisconsin was stacking the line, over pursuing, and locking in on the totally obvious screens we were running. A little misdirection, mabye even a single deep ball in the first half would've helped to keep the defense honest. It wasn't pretty.

Throwing to the Shortest Guy on the Field in the Middle of the Zone:  I may be in the minority on this, but the continued attempts to get Martavious Odoms the ball on these little run to the hole in the zone pass plays are driving me crazy. Yes, Threet was inaccurate on a majority of those throws, but if there's a linebacker anywhere between Threet and Odoms that's a tough throw. It's also going to be a throw where an extra 6 inches in height and arm span come in handy. If the backer's in there, there's got to be height on the throw, and its got to be a hard throw because otherwise the safety will knock it away or intercept it. We tried it at least four times and got one completion. Two bad passes, one drop, and one completion. Those numbers scream "Don't Ever Use Me Again," at least until Threet proves he can make the throw and Odoms proves he can catch it.

Martavious Odoms:  I'll be honest, this is a stretch, but Odoms looked a little lost. He failed to turn around for the ball twice on passes to him. He dropped a ball or two that should've been caught, and looked a little tentative. He's here because of the misunderstandings on the pass plays. We're lucky those didn't get intercepted and run back.

Morgan Trent:  Maybe I'm being too harsh, but Trent had a rough day. The fumble on the kick off was just maddening. On the second quarter Clay near-touchdown run, Trent blew the tackle that allowed Clay to scamper an extra 20 yards before Warren pushed him out of bounds. On the game's last touchdown, he got beat, stumbling on his own two feet, on a single move to the middle of the field. Sure Brown had the inside of that play, but Trent's stumble allowed the free release before Brown could get there. In his defense, one of the bright spots was an absolutely wicked hit he put on Jefferson. Even so, I'm sure this is a day #14 would like to have back.

Steven Threet Version 1.0: Horrid. Bad decision making. Bad option release. Bad arm mechanics. Bad throws. I think he'd agree with me on this.

Officiating: These guys were terrible. Failure to review plays that warranted it (Mathews fumble). They missed, at a minimum two blantant Pass interference calls in one series, a dozen obvious holds, and blew at least on call on replay (the completion on UW's final drive).

Hi, I'm Bobo, and I'll be the lead Big Ten Official for your game! 

Special Teams:  Two more fumbles and an anemic return game. WHY?WHY?WHY?WHY?WHY?WHY?WHY?WHY?

All Things Inbetween:

The Linebackers: Great game from Ezi and Thompson. Under normal circumstances they'd be at the top of the Celebratory Brews list, but I ran out of space. One thing that deserves special note is Thompson's individual effort to string out a stretch play while being blocked by a fullback and tackle, and still make the stop during UW's second possession of the Second half. He was the only thing between UW and a big gain, and he made things happen. Quietly, these guys played great.

The Booing:  Meh. Everyone's chimed in on this. Brian hates it. Varsity Blue's annoyed. M Victors didn't like. Maize and Blue Nation had an anurysm over it. On the other hand, Michigan Sports Center and I have owned up to being among those who voiced their displeasure. To each their own. In hindsight I wish I'd kept my emotions a little better in check and not done it, but I don't blame people who did. That was the worst played half of football Michigan's ever played in the Big House, and to paraphrase Chris Rock, "I'm not saying you should've done it, but I understand."

Block M in the Student Section: Wooooooo!

via mvictors.com

Kevin Koger:  Welcome to the show kid. From the looks of things Koger will be Michigan's starting tight end for the foreseeable future. Mike Massey tries, God bless him, but unfortunately isn't as good as the effort he puts forth. Carson Butler, much to my reget, can't stay out of anyone's doghouse and was benched for the game, despite suiting up. Blocking wise Butler is probably the best tightend on the team and he certainly adds an offensive deminision you love, but if Koger can get open like he did Saturday Butler's playing time may go out the window until he proves he can stay out of trouble and in the good graces of his coach.

Greg Mathews: Good and bad day for #13. Bad fumble on his punt return. Great and crucial catches throughout the second half.

Stevie Brown and Charles Stewart: Good game boys. Keep it up.

via mikedesimone.com

Maturity is something that, by definition, comes with age. It's something you get as you go through life's little challenges and emerge from them with a little scar to remind you of the things you're really not supposed to do. Maturity takes time. I mean it's not like you can learn what to do and what not to do in an afternoon. You grow into things. You take your knocks. You eventually emerge from it stronger, and sometimes victorious.  But it doesn't happen in an afternoon, does it?

Saturday afternoon started the same way the last three have. Fumbles. Mistakes. Fumbles. Mental errors. Fumbles. Poor play calling. Fumbles. So, as Michigan left the field at the end of the first quarter, the Michigan faithful, men and women, rose to their feet and voiced their displeasure. Could you blame them? Five turnovers. One first down. Negative seven yards passing. And the fifth turnover was an end of the half interception that nearly found its way back into Michigan's endzone. And as the chorus of boos rained down on the field, much to my surprise, I found myself riding this wave of frustration and anger and let loose a good hearty "Boo!" 

It was a first for me. I'd seen worse beatings inflicted on Michigan during an opening half, last year's Oregon game for instance. 2002's Iowa/Brad Banks' delivered butt-whuppin'. This year's Yackety Sax in South Bend. But as I glanced back through my treo at my thoughts on the first half, I'd used more expletives than a longshoreman's convention and used the word "criminal" in describing the play calling more than once. I wasn't mad at the kids on the field. I was mad at the situation they'd been put in. And, well, honestly, I was a little mad at the kids who kept fumbling. Human nature being what it is, right? How could we spend two weeks "getting better" and do the same damn thing we'd done against Notre Dame? Why was our offense so damn inept?

Seriously? The offense was a disaster. Wisconsin stacked the line, keying on any movement by McGuffie or anyone else in the backfield. It was as if the two coaches were in a staring match and Michigan kept blinking, determined to not blink first and run the ball until it found success. Student body left. Student body right. Those were Michigan's two plays for the first half. That and the 15 yard scamper by Stephen Threet that resulted in him both getting plastered by Wisconsin's safety and losing the ball. Michigan's passing game was strictly horizontal, even more so after Threet sailed every down field pass into geostationary orbit. The running game was predictable. The line was getting beat. Nothing was going right. It was as if DeBord never left. And what the hell was with the constant fumbling?

via mikedesimone.com

Buried in the specactular, steaming turd the offense left on the field was a diamond of a performance by the defense. Despite spending the entire first half on the field the defense held Wisconsin to just 19 points. 19 points when three Wisconsin drives started inside the Michigan 40, and their own touchdown drive of the first started at the Wisconsin 40 yard line. For the first time this season Stevie Brown and Charles Stewart weren't just serviceable, they were actually pretty good. Even more important, Jonas Mouton was a force at Linebacker. Making plays in the backfield, pressuring the quarterback, tackling and wrapping up. And the line, oooh boy, the line, was just awesome. Both Jamison and Graham were in Evridge's face the entire day and the Taylor/Martin/Johnson rotation was simply dominant against a line that they were giving up an average of 30 pounds to. More on this later.

But defense wins championships and offense wins games, and without any signs of life from the offense when Michigan went into the locker room everyone in my section looked as though they'd just seen Seven Bells not only euthanized but thrown on the barbeque.

Unbeknowst to those of us in the stands or at home, the defense not only controlled the first half, but the locker room as well. At halftime, apparently before the coaches reached the locker room, Terrance Taylor went off. Not-fit-for-print went off. He teed off on everyone, challenging them. In my head I imagine it went something like this:

Reggie Dunlop: Goddamn lard-ass Barkley Donaldson, I'm tellin' you he jumped us!
Steve Hanson: [nodding head] Mm huh.
Reggie Dunlop: Gloves off, stick down, no warning, he challenged the Chiefs!
Steve Hanson: Called us names!
Reggie Dunlop: Called us names! But Dave was there.
Steve Hanson: Dave's a killer!
Johnny Upton: Dave's a mess.
Reggie Dunlop: But Dave's out. Who's gonna take his place?
Ned Braden: Is the answer Jesus?
Reggie Dunlop: [looks at the Hanson brothers] Ok guys. Show us what you got.

via mikedesimone.com

Whatever he did, it worked. Michigan's offense was entirely different in the second half. Maybe it was effort. Maybe it was emotion. Maybe it was the fact Michigan had to throw the ball vertically. But things were different out of the locker room.

The most notable difference was Stephen Threet. After his first half performance I was fairly certain we'd see Nick Sheridan in the game. In hindsight there's no way in hell Sheridan would've been put in, but it's difficult to describe the level of despair that settled in following his first half performance. But there he was. And he looked pretty good.

His passes were where they were supposed to be. His deep balls were Henne-esque (and I mean that when I say it), and he managed the game within himself rather than trying to win it with every throw. A couple of quick sideline passes to Mathews and Brown and Threet had finally found his rhythm. And then, after a bulldozer performance by Kevin Grady on 4&1 picked up five, Threet lofted the perfect 20 yard pass to a streaking Kevin Koger over two linebackers right down the middle on his third read. It was an incredible thing to watch, really. Even from the other side of the field I could see his head turn from read to read, finally settling on Koger. It may be hyperbole to say you saw a quarterback grow up before your eyes, but that may be what we saw.

Then the defense stepped up again, forcing two punts in quick succession and giving the offense the opportunity to make something happen. They did. If there's one thing the Michigan coaching staff isn't calling enough of, it's the deep pass. Threet has an amazing ability to put the ball into a bucket 40 yards downfield. On the same series he launched to moon scrapers that found the hands of his receivers 30 plus yards away only to have one dropped on a circus catch and the other batted away by excellent coverage. Even though they fell incomplete, they left Wisconsin just enough time to do something stupid, like nail Threet two seconds after his throw and pick up a personal foul for roughing the passer. After that, it was Threet making things happen, even when things went wrong. A couple of drops and a third and long later, Threet scrambled for a first down on an obviously broken play. It was his show now.

The next two plays were all Threet. On a quick read he found Minor to his right on a short pass that went for 11. And then, obviously arguing with the play calling, Threet gave the sideline the bird (though it had to be a signal or something, but it sure looked like the ole' eff you), caught Wisconsin in an obvious blitz, checked off to a run, and Brandon Minor did the rest, sprinting 36 yards to paydirt right before my eyes.

via mikedesimone.com

Minor's run was beautiful to watch. Sitting in the corner of the endzone has tremendous advantages. For one, it gives you and excellent vantage point to observe the whole field, including the holds, gaps and lateral issues you can't really see on TV or at a direct or perpendicular view. Second, when Minor blew threw the gap in the line and broke right for the endzone, he was running right at us. Legs churning, eyes darting for the safety he knew he could beat, showing us why we got so excited about him as a freshman/sophomore, and why we expect so much from him today. When he crossed the goal line, highsteping away from a diving safety, all of a sudden it was real. Michigan could run this spread thing we'd heard so much about. Michigan could win this game. Some how, some way, despite the half from hell, Michigan was the better team and they were playing like they spotted Wisconsin 19 points just to make it fair.

A play later this suspicion was confirmed. For some reason offensive coordinators feel like it's a good idea to keep challenging Donovan Warren. I haven't figured out why. Even on a three step drop, when Warren is in tight coverage throwing at him is simply asking for trouble. Seemingly oblivious to this, on Wisconsin's first play after the Minor touchdown, Evridge took the snap at UW 20, took three steps back and fired a bullet to his left. It was a good pass. Really. It sure looked it. the only problem was Warren read the play and got the the ball and the reciever at the same time, deflecting the ball skyward and eventually into the happy hands of Johnny Thompson.

All of a sudden, there was Thompson, surrounded by a sea of blue jerseys running right at the same spot Brandon Minor had recently christened as comeback corner. In front of him was the entire Michigan defensive line, looking for someone to block and/or inflict pain on. It was like the whole thing was in slow motion. As Thompson dodged the first defender, Taylor lined up an offensive lineman and drove him halfway to Philadelphia. Behind this wall of Thompson rumbled into the front right corner of the endzone, setting off jubilation in the stands.

Good lord, we're winning.

The next possession for Wisconsin ended nearly as quickly. Three short plays and a punt to the Michigan 23. Everyone was thinking the same thing. We're up a point 20-19. We're running the ball.

A year ago this would've meant Hart running into a line stacked with Badgers three times before punting the ball away. Maybe after the first half when Michigan showed no ability to disguise its runs or any ability to move the ball in an unconventional way, Wisconsin thought they'd figured things out. That's when Threet showed us he's more than capable of making the other team pay for underestimating him and his offense. On the first play following the punt, Rodriguez sent in Minor, seemingly signifying that Michigan was going to run the ball down Wisconsin's throat and chew up the clock. You could see the linebackers key on Minor as Threet went into his cadence and lock onto him as he darted to the right following the snap, taking a quick step toward and away from Threet behind a wall of blockers.

Only Minor didn't have the ball.

via mikedesimone.com

Reading the over aggressiveness of the defense, faking the hand off to Minor, Threet tucked the ball under his right arm and darted through the open gap vacated by the linebackers and weakside DE. This type of manuever you expect to gain 10 or 15 yards with a guy like Threet in the ball game. But just like with the passing game, Threet showed everyone he's got a lot more in his system than measureables. With a quick first step, Threet seemed to be at full speed by his second stride, he blasted through the linebacker contain before the LB even completed his dive at Threet's feet, and simply outran the Wisconsin safety for a 58 yard gain before he was finally hauled down by a cornerback. Describing the visual of a 6'6" quarterback, whose pre-season mobility was likened to office furniture, outrun Wisconsin's hyped linebackers and safeties is as difficult as it was remarkable. Threet may not be Pat White, but goddammit he is one competitive sonofabitch who is full of surprises. 

Five plays later Sam McGuffie, who'd been kept in check all game, rumbled into the endzone behind increasingly impressive roadgrader Mark Moundros. All of a sudden it's 27-19 and everyone, coaches, players, fans, and more importantly, Wisconsin, knew Michigan was a legitimate football team. 27 unanswered points will do that to you.

Then it was time for the refs to try to screw Michigan out of a victory and for the Defense to say to Hell with it and win it anyway. Despite the referees awarding a first down on a juggled, trapped first down catch and finding Wisconsin on 6 yard line, Brandon Graham and his buddies stiffened and knocked the holy hell out of Evridge forcing a fumble that Taylor recovered.

To Wisconsin's credit, they forced a punt, then caught Michigan off guard on several plays, before beating Morgan Trent to pull within 2 points. On the two point conversion somehow Brandon Harrison got matched up on Travis Beckum, and Wisconsin seemingly tied the game with 14 seconds to go. But this time the officials got one right. Bekum lined up improperly, negating his game tying catch. The next play, negative five yards later, saw Michigan in a three man rush and Max Martin beat a double team to smash Evridge just as he released the ball, forcing it high and harmlessly into the stands.

Then, it was over.

A kneel down by Threet followed by a jumping chest bump with Mathews, and Michigan's greatest home comeback was complete.

Everyone in our section stayed. Shaking. Unbelieving but believing at the same time. No one could believe the turnaround. No one could believe that the team we saw during the first period was the same team we saw in the second. But we'd seen it with our own eyes. We'd seen the comeback. We'd seen a young team mature in 30 minutes and dominate the 9th or 8th ranked team in the country. Hell, we'd seen them post 27 points in 18 minutes.

From a todler to a full grown team in 30 minutes. That doesn't happen, does it? We'll know for sure next week when Illinois comes calling. But for a day, we saw a team grow up before our eyes and pull off the greatest comeback in Michigan Stadium history.

via mikedesimone.com

All photos courtesy the Detroit Free Press, Detroit News, Wolverine Photo, the Associated Press and Mike Desimone, who put all these together.

One of the hard things about a coaching change is managing your expectations.

Logically, going into this season I knew Michigan would likely be a 6-6 team. Not good. Not terrible. Emotionally, it’s not quite so simple. This is Michigan. You have no choice but to have high expectations. It’s a God given right that we should win every game, regardless of whether that is true or not. And as the start of this season drew nearer and nearer, my expectations ballooned, my confidence doubled and logic was invited to take a running jump onto a freeway.

As a result of Michigan's first game of the season, I must admit, my emotions got the better of me. Yelling. Screaming. Generally acting like an idiot as Michigan flailed helplessly at a team they normally should have beaten. But it’s tough to keep those emotions in check when what you’re watching on the field is so much different than what you’ve seen before, but at the same time sadly too familiar. Weren't the days of bungled running plays supposed to be in the past? Wasn't this supposed to be a run first pass second offense? Wasn't the defense supposed to be better than that? Didn't I ask these questions after game one last year?

While there are more than enough positives to take away from the Utah game to buoy me until Michigan’s match up with Miami, the negatives displayed by this young team are more than enough to dampen my overly optimistic mood coming into this past Saturday. The tough thing is, how do you express these concerns without being oblivious to the fact most of the starters are quite literally high school kids, playing in their first game? Or how do discuss the positives without ignoring the glaring mistakes committed by both players and coaching staff? No matter how you list these thoughts you will be perceived a certain way by those both inside and out of the program. A Kool-Aid drinker, a blind optimist, an overly negative jackass, or someone who wanted Les Miles over Rodriguez.

So, before I get into the game, let me say this. I have faith in Coach Rodriguez. I believe Michigan will improve as this season goes on, but I do not think this is going to be a particularly pretty season to watch. Is this an eight win team? After Saturday’s display, not a chance. I said going into this season six wins were realistic, only to get swept up into Barwismania and the overly optimistic spring chatter surrounding the defense. Coach Rodriguez will get this turned around. However, it’s going to be just as tough as we originally feared.

And one of those initial fears, the one that always docks good team 2 games in a preview and a bad team 6 games, the quarterback, was just as bad as we could've imagined. Michigan's improvement or stagnation will be determined by the play of two quarterbacks whom we know next to nothing about, what what we do know, ain't pretty.  

This was supposed to be a two player race. They were a hair's breath apart. Hell a starter wasn't announced until game time, though it was clear the coaching staff favored Sheridan.  Unfortunately, it was clear on Saturday the coaching staff bet on the wrong pony. Redshirt sophomore Nick Sheridan looked every bit the over matched former walk-on we originally thought he would be. His passes were wobbly, his command of the offense shaky, and his ability to move the offense down the field was non-existent. While Sheridan was not good, and by no means should be under center against Miami, a healthy helping of the blame for his performance must be laid at the feet of Rodriguez and OC Calvin McGee.

Prior to Saturday Rodriguez and McGee sang Sheridan’s praises as the quarterback better suited to run the offense. Quicker feet. Good reads. Arm not made out of Jell-O. But let's be clear, Sheridan’s main advantage over 6’6” Steven Threet was mobility. He had it, Threet didn’t. At least that's what we heard or saw from the limited film available. But it was clear Sheridan wasn't going to beat you with his arm. He was supposed to be a caretaker, someone who could run, pick up a first down with wits and feet. Someone who could throw a fade to the far sideline, but wasn't going to scare you down the field. In short, a run first quarterback.

But when the game arrived McGee and Rodriguez devised an offensive game plan that failed to play to any of his strengths and exploited his deficiencies. Sheridan threw 19 passes compared to just 5 runs, one of which was a sack. Though Sheridan had just one pass picked off, he easily could’ve left the game with 3 picks, including an INT just before Michigan’s first touchdown that was luckily called back due to Utah’s incredible knack for committing penalties at inopportune times. Even though the play calling at the end of the first half called for a downfield pas, Sheridan should've had the sense to throw the ball away rather than into triple coverage. And if he was going to throw it downfield at least not to put it in the air long enough for the cornerback to leave the stadium, grab a hot dog, and return in time for the pick.

But I can't blame Sheridan for that. He did what he was called upon to do, and that in and of itself is admirable. However, the game plan employed by rodriguez and McGee was far better suited to a pure passer like Threet than a mobile yet underarmed Sheridan. Intead of zone reads, Sheridan was called upon to air out post routes and screens. Neither of which he threw well. His running ability was equally suspect, showing all escapability of the statuesque Threet while managing only 2 yards net rushing on those 5 carries. Quite simply it was apparent that the coaching staff was enamoured more with what they felt Sheridan should be able to do rather than what he could. 

While the offensive line was not particularly effective, it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. The run blocking was suspect at best, but the line was adequate enough to allow Sheridan, and later Threet, time to throw. Further, there were some lanes available for the runningbacks. One of the day's best runs came from a Brandon Minor up-the-gut dash that resulted in more than a twenty yard gain. It was shocking that Michigan chose to challenge Utah's ends, the veteran part of its defense, rather than its raw interior more often. But it didn't, and instead attempted to move the ball through the air with a quarterback ill suited to do it, or to pressure Utah's veterans on the outside than its neophytes up the gut.

This is not to say that blame for the loss is strictly confined to the offense. A healthy helping must also be placed on the plate of DC Scot Shafer and the Michigan defense. Whatever 4-3 zone he employed in the first half simply did not work, and allowed Brian Johnson free reign over Michigan's secondary as it floundered in a zone better suited to Jim Herrmann's or Ron English's defensive confusion. I spent a majority of the first half scratching my head, throwing things, and yelling "Get out of that ---ing zone, you jackass!" The defense was passive. Slow. Reactionary rather than the proactive style we'd been promised.

Whether Stevie Brown, Donovan Warren or Morgan Trent were blowing angles on the same slant pattern that torched them the year before, or hopelessly boxed back by the called zone coverage, the first half was hideous. Giving up a first and goal on the 3-19 from the Utah 44 was simply inexcuseable (see first half, 2007 v. Appalachian State). More frustrating, the line got no penetration in the first half. There were no effective blitzes. The linebackers, with the notable exception of Ezeh who is awesome, looked lost. It was brutal.

While the offense took until the instertion of Steven Threet midway through the third quarter to show life, thankfully the defense awoke, showed the ability to adapt, and gave its offense the chance to win the game. Key to this second half rennassiance was Brandon Graham, who spent his entire second half terrorizing the Utah backfield. He and Will Johnson deserve ample credit for an outstanding second half effort that nearly turned the game around. But while Shafer was culpible for Michigan's poor first half scheming, he also deserves credit for adapting and stifling Utah the second half. Switching to a nickle package and bringing as many players as possible in the second half, Michigan looked every bit the defense we expected it to be. As a result, I have faith Shafer will engineer a commanding defense by season's end.

It remains to be how the offense will respond after a horrific showing at home. It wasn't until the 10 minute mark of the 3rd quarter that Sheridan was finally pulled in favor of Threet, and while the offense didn't respond immediately, it was only under Threet's watch that it showed any signs of life. With the legitimat threat of a downfield pass finally in Michigan's backfield, Utah's safeties backed off enough to allow Brandon Minor some running room. The threat of an accurate pass also allowed Sam McGuffie enough space to waltz into the endzone untouched. Threet's touchdown bomb to Junior Hemmingway was a thing a beauty. Even though Threet Henne'd the two point conversion, rifling the ball to high and too hard for Toney Clemons to pull in, it did hit Clemons in the hands and more often than not, Michigan ties the game on that play.

What Threet brought to the game was life. Energy. A presence. The thoguht that something might damn well happen to shake you out of your seat and cheer. And while he didn't deliver the comback win we all hoped he would, he was pretty good and most importantly, didn't turn the ball over. For a quarter and a half, he made his case to be Michigan's starter against Miami. I think he earned it.

Despite the loss, Michigan found five things that will carry it the rest of the year:

1. It's defense - Shafer now knows this group is better when the switch is turned to "kill" rather than "watch."

2. A quarterback - Mobile or not, and he's more mobile than I thought he was, Threet should be Michigan's starter. He has a better command of the offense, and if this is going to be a Tulane style Rodriguez offense with a passing emphasis to alleviate the deficiencies in the line and the running game, he's the only player on the roster that can do it.

3. Brandon Minor should be starting - Blocking. Running. Having a positive impact outside of one play. Minor was the best of the backs. While I'm going to carry a grudge about his fumble until he makes it through a full game without coughing up the ball, he's still our best back based on what he can do now versus what he will do in the future.

4. Obi Ezeh is for real, son - 15 tackles, a pick, 1.5 TFL. Best player on defense all day. He's just going to get better.

5. The line - I thought they were going to be horrid. 9 sacks horrid. They weren't. this is a passable unit that if it stays healthy will get Michigan through this year with a smidgeon of diginity. I'll wait till I see Brian's UFR of the offense, but I thought they were decent.

I know we'd all have preferred a win. But Michigan was what we thought it would be. Young. Inexperienced. Mistake prone. It will get better. They will compete hard the entire game. The defense will be very good. They just need time, which is fortunately a luxury they have with Miami of Ohio coming to town. This team should win that game based on their second half performance. But past that game, well, I can't say. We'll make that call after September 6th.

For right now we must take it all in. Think about it. And find ways to manage our expectations based on what we have seen.