Michigan Must Move Forward

Well, that was just ugly.

For those that were able to summon the intestinal fortitude to watch the entirety of Michigan’s 41-14 beatdown at the hands of Alabama (and kudos to you, by the way), it’s easy to harken back on the game and lose all faith.  To feel like Michigan was completely exposed as a still-rebuilding, fairly mediocre team, and will be lucky to win even eight games this season.  To feel like Denard Robinson’s 2011 performances against Nebraska and Ohio were the aberrations, and his showings against Michigan State, Virginia Tech, and now Alabama, are more in line with his ceiling.

[caption id="attachment_3150" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="We saw a lot of this on Saturday"][/caption]

It would be easy to lose all faith.  It would also be a mistake.

Last Saturday’s game said a lot more than Alabama than it did Michigan, and if this week’s polls are any indication, it appears as if both the AP writers and the college coaches agree with me, for ‘Bama now reigns once again as the nation’s top-ranked team.  Their offensive line was every bit as dominant as advertised, opening up one gigantic hole after another, and their defense, despite losing half its starters to the NFL, seemed to get along just fine.   Maybe 'Bama just really is that good.

[caption id="attachment_3149" align="alignright" width="275" caption="Way too much"][/caption]

Ty Duffy of The Big Lead offers up an interesting juxtaposition of Saturday’s game with the 'Bama-Arkansas game in 2011.  Like Michigan, Arkansas was a two touchdown underdog, and like Michigan, Arkansas got blown out (38-14).  And lest we forget, Arkansas rebounded from that loss and was ranked as high as No. 3 in the country in late November.

It would also be a mistake to those legions of fans and pundits alike who are calling for offensive coordinator Al Borges’ head after he devised a game plan in which Denard Robinson only carried the ball twice in the first half.  As I stated in last week’s game preview, Alabama was always going to key on Denard and force him to throw, and unlike many of the teams Michigan will face, the Crimson Tide actually features enough ridiculous athletes to follow through on that gameplan. And while it can’t be deciphered from his statline, Denard actually threw the ball fairly well.  Yes, he tossed two interceptions, one of which was absolutely atrocious.  But the other came on a play unlike anything ever before seen by both myself and Borges, and quite possibly could/should have been called pass interference.  By and large, Denard was plagued by dropped passes and receivers who simply couldn’t get separation from Bama’s cornerbacks.

Had he been able to complete any of those early passes, the entire game may have played out differently.  But with Michigan’s receivers providing no reason for 'Bama to change anything schematically, 'Bama was free to keep its focus squarely on Denard, who as much as we like to pretend otherwise, is not a magician.  When good teams gear up to stop him from running, they’re typically successful (see: Michigan State and Virginia Tech, 2011); his terrific statistical games against Nebraska and Ohio involved him moving the ball successfully through the air as well.

And while I’m sure Al Borges and Brady Hoke would never admit it, there’s something to be said for making sure that Denard made it through that game alive and ready to fight another day, because as I mentioned a few weeks ago, Michigan has much bigger fish to fry than Alabama.  Had the game been closer through the first half, I believe Michigan’s coaches would have made a decision to unleash Denard a bit more.  But once it became clear that Michigan was not going to be able to stop Alabama’s offense, keeping Denard upright became priority No. 1, and for good reason.  The Big Ten season looms a few weeks away, and the conference title and trip to the Rose Bowl are still very much attainable.

So Michigan, and its fans, must move forward and look ahead.  The loss to Bama doesn’t mean that Michigan can’t beat Notre Dame, or won’t beat Michigan State (who incidentally, didn’t exactly look like world beaters against a Boise State team that returned exactly zero players of substance from its epic run over the last four seasons).  But Michigan must show steady improvement, must show growth (especially if they intend to continue giving extensive playing time to 17 freshmen), and must not, as the players and coaches have been stating all week, let Alabama beat them twice.

[caption id="attachment_3151" align="alignleft" width="275" caption="Gotta get up off the mat"][/caption]

A good showing in the home opener against a certain-to-be-pesky Air Force Academy is a good place to start.

Michigan, 38-17.