Category: Football

Posted on

Michigan Wolverine Football Podcast — Cool Being Villains – Game 10 Penn State Preview

Support the Podcast, Get Gear

Phil @pcallihan and Clint @Clint_Derringer preview Michigan’s game vs Penn State – SP+ analysis, commentary, and prediction. With QB JJ McCarthy, RB Blake Corum, OL Zak Zinter, EDGE Jaylen Harrell, and Coach Jim Harbaugh.

Subscribe:
Apple Podcasts | YouTube | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | Stitcher | Email | RSS |


Podcast Archive

Podcast Summary

  • Michigan Wolverines football with Phil Callihan and Clint Derringer0:00
    • Phil Callihan and Clint Derringer discuss the upcoming game against Penn State.
  • Michigan vs. Penn State football game.1:33
    • Clint Derringer and Phil Callihan discuss Penn State’s ranking in SP plus, with Derringer highlighting their strong defense (#4 in SP plus rankings) and offense (#21 in SP plus rankings), leading to a #5 overall ranking.
    • Michigan is favored to win by about 5.5 points on a neutral field, according to SP plus, despite Penn State’s one loss and high ranking.
    • Clint Derringer notes that Penn State’s defense has been tested against strong offenses, but Michigan’s offense is the best unit they’ve faced to date.
    • Phil Callihan wonders if Penn State will stack the box to stop the run, opening up opportunities for JJ McCarthy to shine.
  • JJ’s potential as a Heisman Trophy candidate.8:55
    • Jim Harbaugh praises JJ as a unique blend of competitiveness and empathy, a potential Heisman candidate.
  • Penn State vs. Michigan football game predictions.11:35
    • Clint Derringer predicts Michigan will win due to strong defense and QB JJ McCarthy’s ability to make plays in high-leverage situations.
  • Michigan football’s “villain” image and distractions.13:20
    • Phil Callihan and Zak Zinter discuss Michigan’s dominant performance on the field and their embracing of the “villain” role, with Zinter stating he’s fine with being the villain.
    • Jim Harbaugh refers to Michigan as a superhero, praising their ability to absorb and spit back attacks, while also addressing off-field distractions and allegations of espionage and vacuum gate.
    • Blake Corum and Phil Callihan discuss the impact of distractions on the Michigan football team, with Callihan highlighting the team’s ability to brush aside distractions and focus on their game.
    • Clint Derringer adds that the team has become better prepared to play road games in recent seasons, embracing the role of the villain and using the crowd’s energy to their advantage.
    • Phil Callihan discusses how the Michigan football team is using negative experiences as fuel for growth, rather than letting them break the team’s culture.
    • The team’s resilience is evident in how they’ve bounced back from losses and setbacks, with players using them as motivation for improvement.
  • Football team’s mindset and preparation for upcoming game.21:58
    • Clint Derringer and J.J. McCarthy discuss the team’s mindset in the face of distractions, with McCarthy emphasizing the importance of keeping the main thing the main thing and staying in the present moment.
    • McCarthy attributes the team’s success in this area to their ability to keep things simple and focus on what they can control, despite outside distractions and allegations.
    • Clint Derringer expects Michigan to win by double digits against Penn State, citing their advantage on both sides of the ball.
  • Michigan Football’s culture and goals.25:46
    • Players and coaches emphasize “the main thing” and “one track mind” to stay focused on winning.
    • Michigan football players and coaches have been committed to their goals for months, leading to their current success.
  • Personal growth and distractions in college football.29:38
    • Blake Corum reflects on his time at the University of Michigan, expressing gratitude for the growth he’s experienced and the relationships he’s built.
    • Corum advises his team to focus on their goals and block out distractions, citing his own ability to do so as a key to success.
  • Michigan football’s offensive performance and potential breakout game for Blake Corum.33:56
    • Clint Derringer highlights Blake Corum’s impact on Michigan’s offense through both words and actions.
    • Michigan’s offense may see a breakout game with JJ McCarthy as a run threat and Blake Corum having his best yardage game.
    • Jim Harbaugh emphasizes the importance of work ethic and finding clarity in personal and football-related stresses.

Posted on

Michigan Football Podcast — Michigan vs Everybody – Game 9 Michigan 41 Purdue 13

Support the Podcast, Get Gear

Phil @pcallihan and Clint @Clint_Derringer discuss Michigan’s 41-13 victory over Purdue. With QB J.J. McCarthy, WR Roman Wilson, LB Michael Barrett, RB Donovan Edwards, and Head Coach Jim Harbaugh.

Subscribe:
Apple Podcasts | YouTube | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | Stitcher | Email | RSS |


Podcast Archive

Podcast Summary

  • Michigan Wolverines’ victory and areas for improvement.0:00
    • Phil Callihan and Clint Derringer discuss Michigan’s victory over Purdue.
  • Michigan Wolverines football team’s performance in a game against Purdue.3:19
    • Clint Derringer compares Michigan’s current offense to last year’s, noting that they have shown the ability to score in bunches but are struggling to maintain consistency.
    • Clint Derringer analyzes Michigan Wolverines’ offense, noting a shift from run to pass plays and an increase in passing yards per game.
    • Derringer suggests that while the run game has decreased in efficiency, the passing game has improved, leading to a higher success rate and more yards per play.
  • Michigan Wolverines football team’s performance.9:24
    • Michigan’s offense relies on JJ McCarthy.
    • Clint Derringer highlights the defense’s solid performance, with dominant interior defensive line.
    • Derringer notes the defense’s execution of a great plan, creating turnovers and disrupting the opponent’s offense, but also identifies areas for improvement against outside zone runs.
  • Michigan Wolverines’ inconsistent running game.16:27
    • Michigan’s rushing attack is slow and steady, with little explosiveness.
    • Clint Derringer notes that Michigan’s running game has not been as explosive as expected, despite having talented running backs and an improved offensive line.
    • Phil Callihan highlights the defensive performance.
  • Michigan Wolverines football team’s defense and quarterback JJ McCarthy.20:57
    • Michigan defense is dominant, with multiple players contributing, rather than relying on a few stars.
    • Defense dominates with physical linebackers and disruptive secondary.
    • Jim Harbaugh and Phil Callihan praise JJ McCarthy’s exceptional leadership and performance as Michigan Quarterback.
  • QB J.J. McCarthy’s performance and the team’s support for President Santa Ono.27:37
    • Clint Derringer highlights JJ’s ability to make plays despite pressure, but notes that the pocket collapsing in this game made it harder for him to escape and make big plays on the run.
    • Phil Callihan adds that JJ hit Donovan Edwards on a nice pass that could have been a touchdown, showcasing his accuracy despite an up-and-down performance.
    • Phil Callihan and J.J. McCarthy discuss Michigan Wolverines football team’s recent win and their appreciation for university president Santa Ono, who has shown support for the team despite the storm surrounding them.
    • Coach Jim Harbaugh addresses questions from the press conference, often answering different questions than the ones asked, and the room becomes humorous as people swarm around athletic director War Manuel and he repeatedly says “no comment.”
  • Michigan football team’s resilience in the face of off-field distractions.32:34
    • Jim Harbaugh and players downplay off-field drama, view it as just another distraction.
    • Media and fans try to seize on drama, but team doesn’t pay attention or care much.
    • Donovan Edwards emphasizes the importance of focusing on the team’s internal dynamics rather than external distractions.
    • Phil Callihan is impressed by Edwards’ ability to balance his happiness with a new puppy with his commitment to breaking down plays during a press conference.
  • Michigan Wolverines football team’s performance and their focus on the field.37:15
    • Clint Derringer expresses relief that Michigan’s defense has not improved despite losing their starting science dealer.
    • Phil Callihan and Michael Barrett agree that the team is using the media attention and public scrutiny as motivation, with Barrett saying it’s “us against the world every single day.”
    • Callihan believes that the team has been holding back and is ready to unleash their full potential against Penn State.
    • Jim Harbaugh emphasizes the talent and potential of Michigan football players.

Posted on

Michigan 41 Purdue 13 – Game 9 Recap

GAME 9 PROJECTION vs. RESULTS

Final Score: 41-13, Michigan by 28 over Purdue
SP+ Projection: Michigan by 36.1 (-8.1)
CD Projection: Michigan by 30 (-2)

FIVE FACTORS

GAME 9 RECAP vs. Purdue

The Wolverines didn’t have their best night on offense. Actually, it could have been their worst of the season by some metrics. It was the lowest success rate of 2023 (44%), and their lowest yards/play (6.4). However, they still managed to put 41 points on the board, scored on 7 of their 13 drives, and converted 5.4 points per scoring opportunity. While JJ was admittedly a bit off target (2nd worst performance of the year by my eye), he still completed 65% of his passes for 335 yards. If this is the floor in terms of execution for this offense, that is absolutely good enough to win the remainder of their B1G Ten games.

For most of the second half, Purdue had 6 points on the board that came off two turnovers in Michigan’s end. While the Wolverines weren’t playing in the Purdue backfield the way I expected, they still held the Boilermakers to 24% success rate and just 3.0 points per scoring opportunity. However, the last touchdown leaves a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth. The game situation (4th & 3 with :20 on the clock) told me Purdue would go for the end zone on that play if the offense took the field. Sure enough, the corner got beat on a double move and gave up a touchdown. It was just one bad snap during garbage time, but it’s not the first time that lack of focus hurt this defense. On the positive side, big hat tip to tonight’s leading tackler: Makari Paige. He is becoming a player whose presence you can feel from snap-to-snap.

On special teams, I feel a bit let down as I started to get comfortable with Tyler Morris back on punt return. His error was not easy to spot on the muffed punt. It looks somewhat random that a blocker gets hit with the ball. The key is, though, Morris has to be more aggressive getting to that spot, and also communicating to the rest of his guys to clear the way. Jake Thaw took over from that point forward and did a fine job, including a big return of 32 yards. James Turner looked great on his FG attempts and extra points.

In the context of purely football and season objectives, this is another dominant performance for a 9-0 team that has a great chance to compete for a national title. Looking at the schedule, I wasn’t surprised to see a little discontinuity the week before playing Penn State. And, given the media firestorm around Signgate, I think this team did a fine job keeping the main thing the main thing. Hopefully they can keep their heads down and keep grinding, while conference and school leaders can hash out the rest of this drama without undercutting this team. Onward!

Posted on

By the Numbers: Game 9 vs. Purdue

LAST WEEK RECAP

The Wolverines managed to continue increasing their level of dominance by steamrolling the Spartans in East Lansing 49-0.  That was followed by the least restful bye week in history as Michigan is embroiled in a massive media storm and investigation centered on the Connor Stalions’ scouting and recording scandal, nicknamed Signgate.

NEXT UP: vs. Purdue: SP+ 82nd, -4.4

PREGAME SP+: Michigan by 36.1, Michigan Win Probability 98%

Michigan remained atop the SP+ rankings while idle.  Purdue is kicking off a rebuild after Jeff Brohm left for Louisville. Ryan Walters, the former defensive coordinator for Illinois, has taken over as head coach.  

Michigan Offense (7th) vs. Purdue Defense (65th) 

Walters has a defensive scheme that was highly effective for Illinois in his last job in Champaign.  The main challenge of installing the system during this rebuild at Purdue is the heavy reliance on man-to-man coverage by the secondary.  The Boilermakers think they have found talented players who can thrive on an island in coverage, but they are freshmen for this season.  I expect JJ McCarthy to have plenty of opportunities to exploit various 1-on-1 matchups for more big pass plays.

Perhaps the run game is more interesting as the calendar turns to November.  The Michian ground attack has been good with a 52% success rate so far this season. But, there is still untapped potential as the best defenses on the schedule are waiting this month.  Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards have yet to shake loose consistently once reaching the second level.  If we’re going to see the increased explosiveness in November, we should start to see a few more long runs this week against the Boilermakers.

Michigan Defense (2nd) vs. Purdue Offense (86th)

Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but Michigan’s strength in the trenches lines up against a significant weakness for Purdue.  The Boilers have some injury problems on the offensive line.  The Wolverines will look to exploit those backups and create pressure that requires QB Hudson Card to make immediate decisions and quick throws.  

While the bye week brought many headaches for the program, the defensive unit needed the recovery time more than any other group.  We’ll see if Mason Graham is still wearing the club on his hand as he lines up at nose guard.  Also, we can get a better sense for who will be rotating into the secondary.  Reports are that Will Johnson and Rod Moore are much closer to fully healthy, but I am interested to see who gets early snaps at the other corner & safety positions.

PREDICTION: Football teams have to be able to bounce back and respond in the face of adversity.  We discuss this dynamic all the time, and the assumption is that the adversity presents itself on the field.  For the 2023 Michigan Wolverines, it seems that the primary challenge for the final stretch of the season will come from off the field.  The players have consistently modeled the right attitude and approach, summarized best by JJ McCarthy: they focus on “keeping the main thing the main thing”.  The Wolverines have to avoid trying to press and doing too much to answer critics and skeptics from outside the program. I think Michigan might face some early rhythm & timing issues coming out of the bye, but once they click we will see more of the same: dominance.
Michigan 40 Purdue 10 (PRESEASON Michigan 30 Purdue 17)

MICHIGAN RESUME UPDATE 11/1/23, 8-0

  • SP+ Overall: 1st (same), 29.2
    • SP+ Offense: 7th (↓1), 39.5
    • SP+ Defense: 2nd (same), 10.6
    • SP+ Special Teams: 7th (↓1), 0.4
  • AP Poll: 2nd (same), 1494
  • Coaches’ Poll: 2nd (same), 1520
  • CFP Rank: 3rd