At what point do we...

[LoftonPack80]

Get Morris a shot with the rock?

 

[Coach_Ed_LPW]

crazy talk

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

Well, you certainly can't have a starter basically spotting the other team a 7 point score every single game. Though, I suspect, Morris wouldn't do much better. It's not a very good idea to take your senior QB out in place of a true freshman. The grass isn't always greener on the other side; especially when 50% of our run game come from Gardner.

 

[Coach_Ed_LPW]

Agreed, DG's turnovers are hurting bad no doubt. But I see several other problems that are far more troubling to me.

#1 The front 4 on D...can't get pressure on Akron?? Come on.
#2 Ross...he sucks. We need Ryan back ASAP.
#3 The defensive playcalling. It's hard to second guess one of the best DC's in football...but vs Akron we rarely blitzed, and we didnt show blitz unless we were blitzing, basically giving it away.
#4 We should be scoring at will and we aren't.
#5 The receivers not named Gallon. Chessun slowed down on a sure TD last night. He looks very freshmenish.
#6 Too many freshmen playing.

Gardner certainly has some growing to do but he is not to blame for these debacles, and Morris is not the solution.

 

[jdwills126]

Gardner is sloppy with the football! And at best is inconsistent with his accuracy.

These issues will only be magnified when UofM actually plays a decent team. I would definitely start giving Morris reps with the first team if for no other reason than to put Gardner on notice his lack of care with the football will not be tolerated.

No it's not all Gardner's fault. I would also be giving Green reps as UofM line blocking has been poor and a stronger RB may produce better results. IMO Fitz is better suited to 3rd down type situations.

 

[FL_Wolverine]

All lot of this does start up front. I mean a 3 man UCONN rush putting the pressure on! That deserves the good old "c'mon man".

 

[LoftonPack80]

You need go be held accountable. Not saying lets scrap Gardener but maybe light a fire under his ass.

 

[GoBlueNavyNuke]

You need go be held accountable. Not saying lets scrap Gardener but maybe light a fire under his ass.

I could go with the carrot and a stick approach here. Have Morris get some first team snaps over the next two weeks, as a warning that no one is irreplaceable. But also someone needs to sit down and have a chat with him, Gardner has lost some confidence for whatever reason and is playing timid. When he is on, he is freaking on, and has shown that he can step up in big situations.

 

[themuzzer]

I could go with the carrot and a stick approach here. Have Morris get some first team snaps over the next two weeks, as a warning that no one is irreplaceable. But also someone needs to sit down and have a chat with him, Gardner has lost some confidence for whatever reason and is playing timid. When he is on, he is freaking on, and has shown that he can step up in big situations.

I'm torn on this one.....Morris could very well come in and make some completions but the Defenses won't be afraid of his running ability.......So The grass ins't always greener......I say stick with Gardner and coach him up.

 

[hockeydad55]

This is a tough one. Certainly Gardner has lost confidence in his passing. He's playing confused and timid right now. Yet, his feet have been our most valuable offensive weapon.

In sports it is common for the back-up QB or back-up goalie to be the fans favorite. Morris is in a bad spot here. Keep in mind that he barely played his last year of HS ball. And that was last year. In the master plan he was supposed to get reps vs Akron and UConn once the games were put away so that he could gain experience and they could see his progress in game action. Obviously they didn't have that luxury.

I agree that something needs to change. Unfortunately, we have very few options at QB. Don't be too quick to say that Morris couldn't be worse. Unfortunately, he can.

Right now, Devin looks like Denard v2.0.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

This is a tough one. Certainly Gardner has lost confidence in his passing. He's playing confused and timid right now. Yet, his feet have been our most valuable offensive weapon.

In sports it is common for the back-up QB or back-up goalie to be the fans favorite. Morris is in a bad spot here. Keep in mind that he barely played his last year of HS ball. And that was last year. In the master plan he was supposed to get reps vs Akron and UConn once the games were put away so that he could gain experience and they could see his progress in game action. Obviously they didn't have that luxury.

I agree that something needs to change. Unfortunately, we have very few options at QB. Don't be too quick to say that Morris couldn't be worse. Unfortunately, he can.

Right now, Devin looks like Denard v2.0.

That's what scares me the most, it scares me how much we are reliant on Devin. We live or die by him. If Henne was having a bad game, Hart could usually pick up the slack by taking 30 snaps in the game and plow his way down field if need be. That's something we don't have.

But, unlike Denard, Devin has shown in some pretty big games that he has a much better arm. His problem seems to be entirely mental at this point, where as Denard was limited by his physical abilities when it came to throwing. While our offense has looked a lot like it did with Denard during the last two games, I'm hoping Devin can work out of this funk.

I'm also hoping we have someone else to try on the offensive line. If the line was getting a good push, we probably wouldn't be starting every drive 2nd and 12.

 

[MI Nightmare]

The only time I want to see Sugar Shane out there this season is when/if we have a 3 TD lead late in the game.

Gardner can regain that confidence/poise just as fast as he lost it. The OLine needs to give him a stable pocket to throw from first (though not entirely at fault. DG needs to secure the ball, check down, and hit his receivers in stride better). I also wouldn't mind seeing De'Veon Smith and Justice Hayes get a few touches out there either. I think Hayes in the slot would give DG a bigger, more athletic target than what he's had thus far.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

The only time I want to see Sugar Shane out there this season is when/if we have a 3 TD lead late in the game.

Gardner can regain that confidence/poise just as fast as he lost it. The OLine needs to give him a stable pocket to throw from first (though not entirely at fault. DG needs to secure the ball, check down, and hit his receivers in stride better). I also wouldn't mind seeing De'Veon Smith and Justice Hayes get a few touches out there either. I think Hayes in the slot would give DG a bigger, more athletic target than what he's had thus far.

I think Hayes for Dileo would be a bad idea, mostly because Dileo catches pretty much anything thrown in his area. His hands are what make him valuable. I'm guessing Hayes doesn't have nearly the catching talent, or he'd probably be out there because, as you said, he'd be a bigger target.

 

[MI Nightmare]

I think Hayes for Dileo would be a bad idea, mostly because Dileo catches pretty much anything thrown in his area. His hands are what make him valuable. I'm guessing Hayes doesn't have nearly the catching talent, or he'd probably be out there because, as you said, he'd be a bigger target.

I like Dileo, and he does catch everything but he's become a non-factor, fast. Hayes is bigger, faster and more athletic. I'd like to see what he could do if thrown the ball. I think his YAC production would be decent. Maybe even give Hayes an opportunity to return a punt. It's not like our return game has been stellar (though I still think Norfleet takes one to the house sooner than later).

 

[MI Nightmare]

I'm not sure why my post was edited.... At any rate I should have added that Hayes catches the ball very well. With his ability i.e. speed and hands, lining up in the slot wouldn't be much of a jump.

 

[MI Nightmare]

Hayes is a tweener but he's probably got the least amount of power/strength of the entire stable of RBs. I'd find another way to utilize his talent.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

I'm not sure why my post was edited.... At any rate I should have added that Hayes catches the ball very well. With his ability i.e. speed and hands, lining up in the slot wouldn't be much of a jump.

Damn, sorry. I still do that. I click edit instead of quote because they are right next to each other. I'll fix it.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

I like Dileo, and he does catch everything but he's become a non-factor, fast. Hayes is bigger, faster and more athletic. I'd like to see what he could do if thrown the ball. I think his YAC production would be decent. Maybe even give Hayes an opportunity to return a punt. It's not like our return game has been stellar (though I still think Norfleet takes one to the house sooner than later).

Things you want in a WR:

1. The ability to catch
2. The ability to run routes
3. The ability to make plays after the catch

I think you're thinking too much about the importance of #3. You have to run the route and catch the ball before you can think about going beyond that.