“It happened to be a big turnover when we first got down into the red zone, that kind of killed us. After that, we just kept dwelling on that. It kind of sent us downhill.”- Eubanks
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:47 PM ^
It looked just like that. At 7:50 in the first quarter the Mason experiment was the end of the game. After that all UM had was the Shea arm punt into double coverage.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:36 PM ^
It definitely looked like that. Then they stopped Wisconsin and had a bit of confidence. And then they got a big play by Bell with the diving catch but after that got overturned they just laid down and gave up.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:49 PM ^
Admitting you have a problem is the first step.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:50 PM ^
Mental toughness is maybe the biggest factor. Last few games - going back to last season as well - just seems like when something goes wrong, it’s very difficult for us to recover from it. Was super stoked after that first play to Bell. Was thinking, “alright here we go. Let’s see if we can win a shootout.” And then the fumble and nothing good happened after that.
We are just so bad about taking advantage of circumstances. At the end of the first half, we had the ball with a couple timeouts. Score a TD there and then come out of halftime and score another TD and all of the sudden the game changes. Instead, we go three and out, losing yardage. Give Wisconsin the ball back inside our own territory and instead of 21-7 it’s 28-0. Gotta have the mental toughness to take advantage of what’s given to you
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:02 PM ^
To quit in the first quarter, assuming the quote to be true, represents something about the culture that needs to be changed and that may only be accomplished by a coaching change.
Does Harbaugh push these kids to the point of losing them? Usually that happens at the end of the year. If it is already happening, that's a major problem.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:15 PM ^
Taken at face value the quote is disappointing. But considering we have fumbled on our opening drive in all three games maybe it was a “here we go again” situation. If I was suited up I would definitely have a snakebit thought process running through my mind.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:27 PM ^
That’s it. Here we go again.... Hoke’s teams seemed to have that problem. It’s infectious to dwell on it, but hard not to understand the reaction. They need to focus on an opening drive this Saturday that is clean and scores points. It will do a lot to help get them out of their funk. They have to see some success and build some good vibes.
September 22nd, 2019 at 6:37 PM ^
^ this was one of the complaints from the 49er players at the end of his era there.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:51 PM ^
Saw a quote supposedly from Hutchinson stating he felt they were unprepared.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:54 PM ^
I saw at least 3 players say they were unprepared but I know I saw a clip of Aiden saying they were prepared. It stuck out to me because he was the only one making that claim.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:10 PM ^
They felt unprepared with an extra week to prepare? That's sad.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:30 PM ^
Sad is not the word that comes to my mind. How about UNACCEPTABLE?
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:16 PM ^
We've been unprepared for many games under Harbaugh despite winning records. Anyone who has played competitive sports, either high level HS or college, can see it. I played for a college hoops coach who had a great record. After my first practice, I thought, "Well, this is going to be interesting." No attention to detail, fundamentals ignored, no prep, no tape, little to no scouting reports. My high school had harder and longer practices, detailed scouting reports, and tape. We knew exactly what the other team would do.
The results under the college coach? We beat every team we should've because we had talent (20 win seasons against nobody). Lost most games to similar teams with shit coaches (sometimes saved by an individual career game by someone), and always got ROUTED by teams with same talent, but a great coach. Why? No discipline. No fundamentals. No team. No leadership from the top. It's what I see with Harbaugh.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:52 PM ^
UM wasn’t like this his first two seasons.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:55 PM ^
Something died in Iowa City in 2016.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:06 PM ^
It really feels that way doesn't it. It just feels like if that game breaks a little different early on it would have set so many other things in motion. Wilton doesn't get banged up trying to salvage a stupid game. He's healthy and just a hair better in the next game. And the rest would be history.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:15 PM ^
How can that be? They nearly beat OSU the next game, didn't they? In fact, it was a Peppers overrunning theplay and losing contain on Hyde, allowing him to get back nearly to the line of scrimmage and of course the Bad Spot, and of course the referees who WERE really, really bad in that game.
I'm not a big fan of Harbaugh, but the team rallied nicely after that game and don't forget Speight was injured as well in the Iowa game.
No--something is missing NOW. Not enough "Guts and Glue of the Maize and Blue" too much over thinking (Mason handoff) and an offensive line that can't block.
In a word--coaching. Hoke left a TON of talent that overcame Harbaugh's coaching.
September 22nd, 2019 at 3:00 PM ^
I guess we're all expressing the fact that it feels like some kind of curse/crunch time yips were acquired against Iowa, and it feels like it set off a cascade of woulda coulda shoulda, including the OSU game the next week.
Wilton was hurt on one of the final two drives of the Iowa game trying to scramble because they desperately needed some yardage. If they had just taken care of business earlier in the game he would not have been in that situation.
Also, I don't agree with Hoke's talent being the difference between the early Harbaugh years and now. There were big holes on the roster and there is plenty of talent now. The bigger issue in my mind is that the team is starting to feel like the late Hoke teams that didn't have a plan and the moment was always too big for them.
September 22nd, 2019 at 5:29 PM ^
You need mental toughness to pick yourself up and keep going after those games.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:52 PM ^
As soon as we turned it over there I suspected it was over. Just takes all the wind out of the sails.
The fact is our offense sucks.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:27 PM ^
At least we know what the deal is with the offense! It's a possibly hurt QB with his 4th O-line coach in 5 years, trying to implement a new offense. I want to know what is up with the defense. They could not stop Wisconsin and always seem to be out of place in the big games. Don Brown would go before Harbaugh, no? Clearly a guy who can coach a team to a Super Bowl and turn around every college program he coaches will have to make a chance at some point soon, no?
September 22nd, 2019 at 3:19 PM ^
At this point I'm wondering if Harbaugh rode the backs of those other players at those places vs him leading them to success. there is a strong case to be made for it. Whether his system worked with the right players ( which means we aren't recruiting at the right level) or his coordinators were so good then that they didn't rely on him to help plan. I really believe that to be the case at San Fran and to a slightly lesser extent at Stanford.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:52 PM ^
As soon as we turned it over there I suspected it was over. Just takes all the wind out of the sails.
The fact is our offense sucks.
ed: sorry for the double post
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:53 PM ^
The fumbles are driving everybody crazy.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:42 PM ^
I think typically most football people consider fumbles to be statistically random, so either we're getting EXTREMELY unlucky or there is legit issues with ball security that we need to solve somehow
September 22nd, 2019 at 3:17 PM ^
Not playing a DT as your RB would be a good start.
September 22nd, 2019 at 4:13 PM ^
A DT who is too undersized to be a DT because he was a FB (who lined up at HB at times) last year. It obviously didn't work out but come on now, not like they gave it to Dwumfour.
September 22nd, 2019 at 5:27 PM ^
Oh fuck off, Mason has more than enough experience at RB to execute that play. The fumble is 100% his fault; nobody else's.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:53 PM ^
Without a doubt. I watched the one hour version of the game on the Big Ten Network a little while ago. It was as though THAT play right there ended it for M. From that point on you saw a lot of heads hung low and a coaching staff that also, seemingly, gave up. And from that point on you could just sense W smelled blood and went in for the kill. Which they did.
For me, this was worse than the OSU game last fall. Very, very tough to take/watch.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:54 PM ^
Saw a quote from Hutch saying they weren’t prepared. I’m telling you that if players are getting the courage to talk - not good- not good at all.
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:54 PM ^
It's incredible to me they can't bounce back any time something bad happens. Not even Hoke's teams were like that. They were bad, but they didn't just look like they gave up (until Notre Dame in 2014).
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:57 PM ^
If that quote is true, we have a gigantic problem on our hands.
You need to be able to move on from stuff like that pretty damn fast if you're going to be successful, in life and in sports.
People that dwell on past mistakes never move forward.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:10 PM ^
Quote is true. It’s from Austin Meeks Athletic article this morning
September 22nd, 2019 at 1:57 PM ^
Maybe that feels better than saying we got our ass kicked all day and the fumble didn’t help
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:00 PM ^
After game.....Wisconsim players had beer and brats. Michigan players had wine and cheese.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:00 PM ^
Really? One turnover caused you and the team to Collapse???? This is the very definition of soft and snowflake...GOOD GRIEF
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:13 PM ^
Complaining about what one of a group of 18-22 year olds said after a hard loss is much more snowflakey than anything else.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:27 PM ^
The turnover immediately followed a paving by the Wisconsin offense on their very first drive. That drive was the statement of the game. It was Wisconsin telling Michigan "we know you can't stop us."
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:03 PM ^
If this team doesn't get up early on Rutgers, the season could end next Saturday.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:03 PM ^
Yep...Harbaugh era is done..not because of the outcome of this one game, but because he has lost the team.
2016 OSU broke him, when we were screwed out of a fair shake. He lost the fire or was put on meds or something neutered his spirit.
He went from JMFH to Jim Harbaugh. Sad, but true.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:08 PM ^
If I remember right, I believe someone did say he was on new/different meds after the 2016 season. I'm sad to agree that I think Harbaugh as we knew him 2016 and prior is gone.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:14 PM ^
That's all just speculation. It fits the facts, but no one knows if it's true.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:20 PM ^
I agree, it's just speculation as far we fans know. But, he's not been the same, it's like he's a shell of his former self. Whatever the cause, it sucks.
September 22nd, 2019 at 5:37 PM ^
If I remember correctly there was an article out there that insinuated that it was his dad who stepped in and took the fire out of him. His dad had a long talk with him about how he should coach and how he should act on the sidelines. He hasn't been the same since. Could you see Bo ever sitting a coach or player down and telling them that they were too animated. Unfortunately it was out of respect for his dad that he turned into the docile human being that roams the sidelines these days.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:06 PM ^
Maybe the offense gave up at that point. The defense gave up before kickoff. This team and coaching staff are bunch of peacocking paper tigers who got hype blown up their asses all offseason and believed it.
September 22nd, 2019 at 3:18 PM ^
Did you see the intro to the game coverage that showed a Michigan coach firing up the the team? The team looked like they were just told they had a five page paper due Monday. Single spaced.
I thought then the team looked like the last place they wanted to be was on the football field.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:07 PM ^
Calling mental toughness into question is kinda ridiculous when we showed boatloads of it against Army. We could not have played worse and we kept fighting and pulled it out.
Wisconsin had a bye week to prepare and they took advantage. We also had one and did not. That seemed like the biggest issue. That and J MF Taylor.
We have bushwhacked plenty of good teams at home. To me the biggest issue was preparedness to do something different when we started fucking up whatever our game plan was. Not the nebulous notion of mental toughness.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:07 PM ^
I was irate when they took the timeout after the Bell catch. I knew what was coming. They were literally not familiar with what you do after a big gainer. Sad when you think about it.
Just line up and run plays. Three fades to Black or Collins. They are coming down with one of them.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:20 PM ^
They HAD to call timeout because there was only 5 seconds left and we were about to get penalized for a delay of game.
I think the clock operator screwed up. But yeah, I was pissed.
September 22nd, 2019 at 2:40 PM ^
I was at the game. Harbaugh was yelling at the refs during timeout about the clock. But the issue I noticed was we were running a ton of personnel on and off he field. I remember thinking as it was going down we must have screwed up our script by gaining too much and it was causing confusion on what to call. But FFS either run what you prepped or go straight to your red zone play sheet.