The offense sputtered when it mattered most

Coming into this season there was a lot of hype about the high powered Michigan offense and the senior leader at its controls, namely quarterback Chad Henne. There was even a fair amount of Heisman Trophy buzz surrounding Henne who had started all 37 games (27 wins-10 losses) during his three-year career as a Wolverine. However, yesterday Henne looked more like a rookie quarterback trying to find his way than an experienced signal caller who is contending for All-American honors. Henne was out-of-sync all game and the Wolverines relied almost exclusively on the run late in the contest despite being behind as Henne was so ineffective through the air.

On the day, Henne completed 19 of 37 throws for 233 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. However, that stat line does not tell the whole story. It should be noted that the offense failed to convert two 2-point conversion attempts and it was whistled for four costly penalties (two false starts; an illegal procedure; and a delay of game) in its last six offensive possessions. Although the offense did manage to scrape together fifteen (15) points in the second half, it could and should have scored many more. Following is a closer look at the offense's struggles beginning in the last 1/3rd of the Third Quarter through the end of the game.

Michigan was trailing 31-20 with about 4:30 left in the Third Quarter and possession of the ball on its own 28 yard line. Appalachian State had just missed a 46-yard field goal attempt when the kick hit the upright. Michigan desperately needed a score to cut into the Mountaineers 11 point lead and Henne came out throwing. However, Henne threw three straight incomplete passes and the Wolverines went three-and-out.

On Michigan's next offensive series, Henne threw an incomplete pass on first down but completed an eight-yard pass to Adrian Arrington on second down. After that, the Wolverines kept the ball on the ground as Offensive Coordinator Mike DeBord called four (4) running plays in a row which culminated in a four-yard touchdown run by Mike Hart. However, the Wolverines botched the two-point conversion attempt as a result of a poor exchange on the snap from center.

On Michigan's first possession of the Fourth Quarter and with the Wolverines still trailing 31-26, Mike Hart carried the ball for 7 yards on each of the first two plays of the drive. However, Michigan's momentum was stalled by a False Start penalty on Center Justin Boren. On the very next play, Henne was pressured and he rolled to his right where he threw an ill advised pass that was intercepted.

On Michigan's next drive, the Wolverines kept the ball on the ground despite the fact that it was still trailing by 5 points and the clock was winding down. The Wolverines ran four straight times before Henne threw a 6-yard pass to Greg Mathews. The drive was then slowed by an illegal procedure penalty. After one more running play the Wolverines incurred another False Start penalty. Now stuck in 2nd-and-14 on the opponent's 42, Henne threw an incomplete pass. On third down, Henne could not find an open receiver and lumbered for 9 yards but was five yards short of a first down. Michigan went for it on fourth down but Henne's pass to TE Mike Massey was incomplete and the Wolverines turned the ball over on downs. At this point, Henne was 2 for 8 passing for 14 yards over the course of Michigan's previous four possessions. Hardly, clutch play with Michigan trying to mount a comeback.

Michigan got the ball back with just under five minutes remaining in the game and with it still trailing by the score of 31-26. The Wolverines had excellent field position as it had the ball on its own 46 yard line. On the first play of the drive, Hart took the handoff and made an incredible, darting 54-yard touchdown run to give the Wolverines the lead. For the second time, however, the Wolverines failed on its two-point conversion attempt.

The offense returned to the field quickly as the Michigan defense came up with an interception on the first play of Appalachian State's next offensive series. Michigan's offense resumed possession on the Mountaineers' 43 yard line with just under 4:30 to go in the game. It was the offense's job to pick up a couple of first downs and ice the game as the Wolverines had a 32-31 lead. After rushing the ball four times (which included picking up a first down), the Wolverines were flagged for delay of game on 3rd-and-five. This made the play a 3rd-and-11 and Henne's pass to Greg Mathews only went for five yards. On fourth down from the 26 yard line with 1:37 remaining, Coach Carr elected to attempt the field goal to stretch the lead to four points. The kick, however, was blocked and the Wolverines tenuous lead remained at one.

The Wolverines got the ball back for the final time of the day with :26 remaining and trailing by two points as the Mountaineers had kicked a go-ahead field goal. After throwing an incompletion on first down, Henne completed a desperation bomb to Mario Manningham for 48 yards which put Michigan in position to attempt the fateful kick to end the game. The rest, as they say, is history.

In reviewing the last seven offensive possessions (punt after 3 & out; turn over on downs; interception; two touchdowns with two failed 2-pt. conversion attempts; and two missed field goals), Michigan's "high powered" offense performed miserably against Division I-FCS competition. In particular, it is evident from reviewing the above that the coaches had to gameplan away from relying on Henne as he was underperforming so badly in this game. Despite being behind the coaches relied extremely heavily on the run even though they had the #1 receiving tandem in the country (Mario Manningham and Adrian Arrington) at their disposal. Hopefully, Henne can shake this performance off and return to form. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of Chad Henne (7) by JOHN T. GREILICK/The Detroit News

Def. Coordinator's Ron English's "Donut Defense": Nothing in the middle

Appalachian State QB Armanti Edwards looked like Vince Young (Univ. of Texas) circa 2005. Through the air, Edwards was 17/23, 227 yds., 3 tds., and 2 interceptions. On the ground, Edwards shredded the defense for an additional 62 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown. Michigan did not have an answer for Edwards' scrambling which continually kept drives alive. Edwards seemed particularly devastating on third down conversions. The Mountaineers converted 7 of 13 third down plays which included two first-half touchdowns. On the Mountaineers first score of the day, Edwards connected with Dexter Jackson who was slashing through the middle on third and four and Jackson streaked into the end zone for a 68 yard touchdown (pictured above). In the second quarter, on third and goal from the six, Edwards found a hole in the middle of the Michigan defense and sprinted into the end zone to put the Mountaineers up 28-14. Additionally, the Mountaineers' scored a touchdown earlier in the second quarter on a second down play when Edwards hit Hans Batichon on a slant pattern through the, you guessed it, wide open middle of the field for a 9-yard touchdown play that was Appalachian State's second touchdown of the afternoon.

Defensive Coordinator Ron English had no answer for Appalachian State's spread offense. The Mountaineers exploited the "hole" in the middle of the Michigan defense throughout the game. The Wolverines "donut defense" was ineffective including on the Mountaineers final offensive drive of the game when Michigan was unable to get a stop and Appalachian State drove to the 5 yard line setting up a field goal with :30 seconds remaining. The 24-yard pass from Edwards to WR CoCo Hillary that put the ball on the 5 yard line and set up the game winning field goal was another play that exploited the void in the middle of Michigan's defense. Head Coach Lloyd Carr and Defensive Coordinator Ron English are going to have put their heads together and figure out how to fill the middle of Michigan's "donut defense" so that the Oregon Ducks will not be able to exploit openings in the middle of the field as the Mountaineers did this week. Otherwise, next week could also be ugly. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of Dexter Jackson (2) slashing through the middle of the field with the Michigan defense in his wake on his way to the end zone on a 68-yard TD play by JULIAN H. GONZALEZ/Detroit Free Press

Michigan's disappointing loss ends '07 National Championship title run

Michigan's run for the 2007 National Title ended before it got started as the Wolverines dropped their first game of the season in a stunning loss to two-time defending Division I-FCS (Football Championship Subdivsion f/k/a I-AA) champion Appalachian State. It is the first time that a Division I-AA team has ever beaten a ranked Division I-A team since the inception of subdivisions in Division I in 1978. Michigan was ranked #5 coming into this game but may drop completely out of the Top 25 rankings as a result of this loss.

Although there was a lot of pre-season hype touting that the Michigan offense was going to be high powered in 2007, the Wolverines struggled to move the ball at key junctures of the game. In particular, Senior quarterback Chad Henne (19/37, 233 yds., 1 int., 1 td.) appeared to be out-of-sync for much of the game. Henne often lacked touch on his passes as he was either under- or overthrowing his receivers all too often. Unfortunately, the Wolverines did not have any viable alternatives to which to turn as Henne's back-ups (Mallett and Cone) have never taken a snap during a college game. Ultimately, the Wolverines relied on the ground game (read: Mike Hart) to get them back into the game. Despite battling an injury suffered early in the game, Hart carried the ball 23 times for 188 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The Michigan defense was unable to secure the win for the Wolverines as the Mountaineers took possession of the ball with 1:22 remaining and the Wolverines leading 32-31. Appalachian State drove the length of the field (down to the Michigan 5 yard line) and then kicked the go-ahead field goal with :30 seconds remaining in the game. The inability of the defense to make a stop on the last drive to preserve the win was reminiscent of the problems that plagued the 2005 defense that ultimately led to then-defensive coordinator Jim Herrmann's departure.

After the game, Head Coach Lloyd Carr said the following, "Give Appalachian State credit. I thought they did a great job. I felt that we were not a well prepared football team. That is my job and I take full responsibility for that. We played much better defense in the second half but penalties killed us in this game. They stopped too many drives. In the second half we turned the football over twice and we had penalties that put us into bad down-and-distance situations. We had a bad snap on a two-point conversion. We didn't execute. We simply made too many mistakes and had too many missed opportunities. Now we have to fight back and we have to deal with some adversity to find out what we are made of."

Coach Carr went on to say, "As coaches and players we all have to search and take a look at ourselves, understanding that this is a disappointment. Not only in losing, but to play the way we did, is an even greater disappointment. When you have disappointment you can lay down and feel sorry for yourself, but in our case this schedule is about to get tougher. We will see how we respond."

Michigan fans agree that the loss is a disappointment. It is a bitter pill to swallow because all the hopes and dreams that fans had for a National Championship in 2007 are now up in smoke. (DP at MATW even had 2007 National Championship T-Shirts printed). Worse yet, Michigan is being ridiculed as a national laughingstock for becoming the first ranked team to ever lose to a Division I-AA team. Fans will circle the wagons, so to speak, and ultimately regroup but this loss hurts. It will go down in Michigan Football history as one of the most disappointing losses of all-time. Michigan fans do not like to be embarrassed and today they were served a big dose of humiliation. The fans will want to hold someone responsible and Coach Carr has said that the responsibility for the team not being ready rests with him. As he is considered a lame duck anyway, people will not hesitate to lambaste Coach Carr. This could get ugly quickly. This might be a long season unless the Wolverines can straighten out some of these deficiencies and beat Oregon next week. If not, fans will be calling for Coach Carr to hang it up. Last week people were talking National Championship. Now they are talking 6-6. What a difference a game makes. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of a dejected Terrance Taylor (67) and Will Johnson (97) by MANDI WRIGHT/Detroit Free Press

Appalachian State 34 Michigan 32

In an auspicious debut for Michigan playing against a Division I-AA level opponent, the Wolverines dropped their season opener to the Appalachian State Mountaineers in front of 109,218 stunned fans in Ann Arbor. Here is the game recap, boxscore, play-by-play chart (.pdf), player participation chart, postgame notes, photos, and quotes. Much analysis to follow when I stop crying. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo by JULIAN H. GONZALEZ/Detroit Free Press