Denard Robinson

[Patulski]

Denard Robinson scares the hell out of me and should every ND fan.

Anybody mistaking Alabama's secondary speed to ours is making a huge miscalculation. Robinson is going to get loose in our secondary and make plays. We're going to have to outscore them, because I think he's going to do a lot of damage again.

The other thing about Michigan, which I hope we've learned, is that they don't quit. We better be conditioned to play all four quarters. because they will be. And Robinson has the "I'm beat up and weary" act down pat. The next play he's just as likely to run 60 yards.

 

[arrowryan]

But Denard can't hit his receivers. Denard scares me but he is nothing more than he was last year, just throwing ducks in the air and praying his receivers catch it.

Also, he didn't run very much last night

 

[texbender]

Agree that Irish will have their hands full. I saw glimpses that scare the **** out of me. If he hits 2-3 passes, they have 3 more TDs. Irsh will be tested all night long...will need to score points for sure.

 

[t3hjc]

I was always under the impression we were going to have to outscore them to win.

 

[Irishnuke]

Denard Robinson scares the hell out of me and should every ND fan.

Anybody mistaking Alabama's secondary speed to ours is making a huge miscalculation. Robinson is going to get loose in our secondary and make plays. We're going to have to outscore them, because I think he's going to do a lot of damage again.

The other thing about Michigan, which I hope we've learned, is that they don't quit. We better be conditioned to play all four quarters. because they will be. And Robinson has the "I'm beat up and weary" act down pat. The next play he's just as likely to run 60 yards.

Solid game plan coach!

 

[returnofthemack]

He has gotten better at passing. He's still inaccurate but he had much better technique on his long throws. So if one of their WRs puts a double move on Keivarae, he'll be so wide open I could probably hit him, let alone a D-I QB. Who's gonna stop him, Zeke Motta? This game will be insanely hard, and we can't even use Bama's defensive gameplan because Flintstone will probably give Denard free rein to run against ND (and because our secondary blows). The front 7 will need to play a near-perfect game.

 

[arrowryan]

He has gotten better at passing. He's still inaccurate but he had much better technique on his long throws. So if one of their WRs puts a double move on Keivarae, he'll be so wide open I could probably hit him, let alone a D-I QB. Who's gonna stop him, Zeke Motta? This game will be insanely hard, and we can't even use Bama's defensive gameplan because Flintstone will probably give Denard free rein to run against ND (and because our secondary blows). The front 7 will need to play a near-perfect game.

Well don't take out front 7 out of the picture, they are one of the best in country. They will get pressure on Denard to make the secondary's job a little easier

 

[Irish Insanity]

He can hit his recievers alot better than last year. Hoke has made it a point to keep him in the pocket more and taken alot of time teaching him footwork and better throwing technique. I hate Denard, Hoke, and U of M, but Hoke has put a serious damper on their team forcing Denard into his system as opposed to shaping his game to his QB.

 

[N_D_Fighting_Irish]

He has gotten better at passing. He's still inaccurate but he had much better technique on his long throws. So if one of their WRs puts a double move on Keivarae, he'll be so wide open I could probably hit him, let alone a D-I QB. Who's gonna stop him, Zeke Motta? This game will be insanely hard, and we can't even use Bama's defensive gameplan because Flintstone will probably give Denard free rein to run against ND (and because our secondary blows). The front 7 will need to play a near-perfect game.

Good lord. He ain't Vince Young. Denard is an excellent football player, but he is just one man. Last night, Alabama made Denard scream uncle. Michigan and in particular Denard gave up after the first quarter. He didn't run the ball, because he knew he would be pay a huge price if he did. So he chucked up some Hail Marys like he did to us last year.

We were dominating them last year until we decided to give them mulligan after mulligan. Yes this year will be a bit more difficult without Floyd, but they are not that good. Our front seven doesn't need to play a perfect game...just a disciplined game.

The recipe to destroy Michigan is simple. Play a ball control don't beat yourself offense. Thereby, you limit the possessions Michigan has. Make Robinson a passer...and if he runs..beat the living **** out of him.

 

[elboricua]

Denard got much better. See both long passes he hit and stepped into and some others he threw which were very good. He won't need to be as good against ND because ND doesn't have a good or deep secondary and the linebackers aren't very fast or very good yet save for one.

 

[IrishLax]

What everyone is ignoring is how crappy Michigan's defense is. Their secondary isn't bad, but their front 7 is both not deep and not all that talented. The way we win this game is by out scoring them, not by stopping them. Going to need a big day from the OL and our RBs to set the tone... and then we just need Golson to hit a couple throws over the top. Alabama would've hung 50+ on Michigan if McCarron hadn't missed a couple throws by inches.

 

[Who'saWildManNow]

We just embarrassed Navy 50 - 10.. The GAMEPLAN was soft coverage to protect the deep ball..

I think we're in great shape against Denard and UM.. Alabama proved how weak that team is.

 

[magogian]

Solid game plan coach!

Wait a minute. You mean it is a simple as scoring more points than the other team? Why doesn't everyone do that?

 

[Irish Insanity]

He ain't Vince Young.

The funniest thing is the local radio show, and a lot of U of M fans around here, claimed they would beat Bama based on how comparable Robinson was to Cam Newton. I laughed every time I heard it. I agree he's better than last year at throwing, but seriously Cam Newton. Cam Newton was better in High School than Denard is as a Junior at U of M.

 

[no.1IrishFan]

Well don't take out front 7 out of the picture, they are one of the best in country. They will get pressure on Denard to make the secondary's job a little easier

This may sound really dumb, but I think this may actually work against us. I almost don't want to get pressure on Denard(it sounds crazy, I know). When the D-line gets penetration and makes him scramble, that's when he beats you. I want him in the pocket, throwing, not running! Our secondary is not very good, but, I would take our chances with him throwing against our secondary, rather than him scrambling all day.

He has shown he can beat us with his legs, I don't think he can do it with his arm.

 

[obi wan mahoney]

This may sound really dumb, but I think this may actually work against us. I almost don't want to get pressure on Denard(it sounds crazy, I know). When the D-line gets penetration and makes him scramble, that's when he beats you. I want him in the pocket, throwing, not running! Our secondary is not very good, but, I would take our chances with him throwing against our secondary, rather than him scrambling all day.

He has shown he can beat us with his legs, I don't think he can do it with his arm.

Right, he is scary when he scrambles; he's very athletic and lucky. Nonetheless, I think we need to push him around, which our front 7 should be able to do, the whole game, don't let up, and only have one turnover on offense.

 

[N_D_Fighting_Irish]

The funniest thing is the local radio show, and a lot of U of M fans around here, claimed they would beat Bama based on how comparable Robinson was to Cam Newton. I laughed every time I heard it. I agree he's better than last year at throwing, but seriously Cam Newton. Cam Newton was better in High School than Denard is as a Junior at U of M.

Never underestimate the ignorance of Michigan fans. We (and I in particular) may be delusional but we are far from ignorant.

I didn't see any improvement in his passing.

 

[rikkitikki08]

Its going to be a battle.....but ND can not lose to michigan again this season. I repeat CAN NOT LOSE TO THEM AGAIN!

 

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

All we have to do is take advantage of his mistakes this year. We need good safety play for once.

 

[Dizzyphil]

^^^+1^^^

Keep that ball off the mat and control the clock and we should have a great game against them!

Diz

 

[NDinL.A.]

Well don't take out front 7 out of the picture, they are one of the best in country. They will get pressure on Denard to make the secondary's job a little easier

We are not one of the best front 7's in the country. Very good, but tops? How? We have a GREAT LB, and then Fox, Shembo/Ishaq (unproven), and Councel (completely unproven). That's a very pedestrian 3 LBs outside of Manti.

Our front 7 has great run stoppers, but we lost our best pass rusher and haven't proven we can get after the QB like so many other great programs have. And the Navy game means nothing as far as rushing the passer (but he sure had all day to throw on the first possession of the 2nd half).

We can say that we have one of the best defenses at stopping the run, but rushing the passer is a MAJOR question mark. To say otherwise is simply homerism. If we give Denrad time, with our secondary, he'll still shew us up. Hopefully we can play like we did the first 3 quarters last year and stop him...

 

[china423]

 

[Anchorman]

While I thought Denard looked slightly improved, the bottom line is he doesn't have to have improved to be able to whip us. Our secondary took a rather sizeable step backwards from last year. Our pass rush will be nullified at least somehwat from trying to contain Denard, and as LA pointed out we still have yet to prove a real pass rushing ability, or that our other 3 LBs are ready to solidify the front 7. Michigan will also have Touissant back by the 15th.

 

[JadeBrecks]

Last year we did a decent job at containing him. Their running game was held enough that we could have won. What scares me and i think was bamas problem too is the secondary cheating up to stop the run leaves people open enough to go get those lame ducks.

 

[koonja]

The Michigan game will scare me until I see more of Golson passing the ball. We know what our running game will be, what to expect from our defense, and we know what Michigan is. We feel confident everywhere but the passing game is still an unknown until we see Purdue, MSU, IMO. If Golson proves he can read defenses and make the right plays, Michigan will not scare me. We know what they are.

 

[Onemanwolfpack]

A couple of things to note:

First - Toussant will be back by our game as Anchorman noted above. The running game will be much more dynamic with him back and he is another playmaker in their backfield. The backups that played against Alabama are much less dangerous.

Secondly - I do not understand the gameplan Michigan used. Most of the first half they tried using Denard as a decoy and dropping him back like he is Peyton Manning. He may be a better passer, but he still is really raw/stinks for much of the time. This was a same first half game plan they used against ND last year. Denard is at his best in open field and is also great at running through tackles like an additional RB. Did not see any of that last night.

Third - Alabama's defense is probably going to be best in country this year. I love ND's improving defense, but we are not near Alabama level (yet). They can take your best player away and play tough, aggressive, disciplined defense and have talent in seemingly every position. Our defense has notable weaknesses (corner) and unproven commodities (outside LB, pass rush, etc.)

I feel better about our chances against Michigan after yesterday, but this game is always tougher than it seems on paper.

 

[MJ12666]

While concerned I don't think it is time to panic yet regarding the play of the secondary. In the first half and the first drive of the 3rd quarter, both corners were playing mostly press coverage and safeties were primarily supporting the run. However after the first drive of the second half and Nary began committing to the pass, I thought the secondary played fine. Of course this is Navy and we will have a better idea our secondary after next week.I would not be surprised to see more zone coverage.

 

[Dizzyphil]

The Michigan game will scare me until I see more of Golson passing the ball. We know what our running game will be, what to expect from our defense, and we know what Michigan is. We feel confident everywhere but the passing game is still an unknown until we see Purdue, MSU, IMO. If Golson proves he can read defenses and make the right plays, Michigan will not scare me. We know what they are.

We hit 10 different receivers yesterday for 200 yards at 70% completion rate. I don't think you need to worry too much brother. I see where you're coming from but, considering the long travel, first-game jitters, and only 2 1/2 quarters of play, Golson should be just fine.

Diz

Go Irish

 

[koonja]

We hit 10 different receivers yesterday for 200 yards at 70% completion rate. I don't think you need to worry too much brother. I see where you're coming from but, considering the long travel, first-game jitters, and only 2 1/2 quarters of play, Golson should be just fine.

Diz

Go Irish

Agreed. Golson played near perfect. But given the small sample size, and it being against Navy, and the fact that the passing plays were simple and for the most part, not down the field/risky, I don't think we (or at least I) have seen enough to feel confident about it. He's the man for the job, I don't question that. If he is what we think he can be, even as a RS freshman, I will not worry about Michigan.

 

[Dizzyphil]

Agreed. Golson played near perfect. But given the small sample size, and it being against Navy, and the fact that the passing plays were simple and for the most part, not down the field/risky, I don't think we (or at least I) have seen enough to feel confident about it. He's the man for the job, I don't question that. If he is what we think he can be, even as a RS freshman, I will not worry about Michigan.

Of course time will tell, and I (like you) probably over-analyze and worry about too much as well. The true test will be game-time play and he seemed to be more poised in the pocket - and being a "dual-threat" QB, he either showed really good composure or listened to Coach Kelly real good by looking at the reads first before taking off. Anyway, good stuff my friend and let's get 'em next week against the Boilermakers!!

Go Irish,
Diz