MSU Postgame

[FightingIrishLover7]

I truly think Denbrock is running some practice reps out there right now.
He's better than this and is pushing hard as shit into the weaknesses
I want to believe

 

[MacIrish75]

Completely agree.

We have the best qb on this team in 15+ years and Denbrock wants to go 12 personnel, bunch formations and run into the teeth of the defense.

Run some 10 or 0 personnel. I’m way more confident in our 4th and 5th wr right now than i am our starting RB.

I sometimes wonder if that’s dictated by what Marcus wants to do?

 

[FOTY977]

Completely agree.

We have the best qb on this team in 15+ years and Denbrock wants to go 12 personnel, bunch formations and run into the teeth of the defense.

Run some 10 personnel. I’m way more confident in our 4th and 5th wr right now than i am our starting RB.

Have to imagine some of that is Freeman influenced. He’s been vocal his whole tenure including the presser tonight he wants to have a team that can run the ball well. Shouldn’t be surprising they’re using games like tonight that are still in doubt but have an advantage to get rushing reps.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

I sometimes wonder if that’s dictated by what Marcus wants to do?

WWJD
What would Jim (Tressel) do

 

[SDIrishFan]

I sometimes wonder if that’s dictated by what Marcus wants to do?

Probably, but maybe Denbrock needs to be like, coach you hired me to run the O, let me do my job.

Insert Tommy Rees gif here.

 

[Dale]

I question Denbrock on the personnel but on the run/pass split, we ran out the clock at the end and CJ checks into a notable amount of runs. That’s your run majority right there

 

[stlnd01]

It's also weird how - after some progress spreading it around last week - we basically went back to the two WR offense tonight. We attempted 24 passes, completed 18. Gilbert and Faison had 13 catches. Graham had one. RBs had four. TEs, Greathouse and every other WR had none.

I get shortening the game when you're ahead and trust your defense, and I get taking what the defense gives you, but our very conservative offense could come back to bite us when we play a team that wants to fling it all over the yard.

 

[ACamp1900]

What I learned tonight,… apparently a lot more of IE than I was prepared for are fans of keeping things ‘all white’……….

Ok I’ll see myself out as we move to PurDont

 

[NDPhilly]

I feel like this is one of those wins we’d be much happier with before we were sentient to the spread on every game.

 

[FOTY977]

It's also weird how - after some progress spreading it around last week - we basically went back to the two WR offense tonight. We attempted 24 passes, completed 18. Gilbert and Faison had 13 catches. Graham had one. RBs had four. TEs, Greathouse and every other WR had none.

I get shortening the game when you're ahead and trust your defense, and I get taking what the defense gives you, but our very conservative offense could come back to bite us when we play a team that wants to fling it all over the yard.

I trust the back end of the D to enjoy that

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Sparty/Wisconsin should be interesting in two weeks. Prior to tn my money would've been on Badgers but that Sparty front was pretty darn good. Jordan Hall was nasty tn. Sincerely hope Edwards is OK, stud back. If he is, I think Sparty takes them.

 

[Dale]

Nobody is going to give ND the time of day credit wise for it but they’ve given up 193 yards/game through 3 games. 16% of that came on 2 plays.

They legit are holding teams close to 160 yards per game and zero TDs WITHOUT TWO PLAYS

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

I feel like this is one of those wins we’d be much happier with before we were sentient to the spread on every game.

Thought Freeman was spot on in the post-game interview. Knew it would be a physical battle, happy to win by 17, but lot left out there tn.

 

[stlnd01]

Nobody is going to give ND the time of day credit wise for it but they’ve given up 193 yards/game through 3 games. 16% of that came on 2 plays.

They legit are holding teams close to 160 yards per game and zero TDs WITHOUT TWO PLAYS

We have given up 23 points in three games and if you take one busted coverage against Wisconsin and a great throw-and-catch tonight out of it, we have given up 9.

 

[Dale]

Will Black got spanked today. Something to monitor

One pressure allowed

 

[Dale]

Insane decision

 

[NDPhilly]

View attachment 3064838

Insane decision

Convinced we win by 40 if he picks this up.

 

[Dale]

These are tendencies and wasted snaps that cannot happen:

Flanigan + Flanagan are at 0.55 Yards per Route Run

They’ve been targeted 5 times in 3 games

James Flanigan has 69 snaps and has run a route 9 times

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

View attachment 3064838

Insane decision

Even live on TV, most of us viewers saw and knew. Chalk it up to nerves, true freshman getting his first touch

 

[ACamp1900]

View attachment 3064838

Insane decision

It changed the entire flow,… make that and score and yeah

 

[ACamp1900]

Even live on TV, most of us viewers saw and knew. Chalk it up to nerves, true freshman getting his first touch

I was saying as it happened, ‘outside outside! What!?!?’

 

[MacIrish75]

View attachment 3064838

Insane decision

“And when Rockne said we were gonna ‘inside ‘em and outside ‘em’,” I took the first part of that LITERALLY.”

 

[pumpdog20]

I turned it to the stupid freshwater bowl and immediately cannot believe how much louder it is,… for all the ND stadium regulars,… is it NBC or does our environment just lag behind that much?

Stadium was lame as hell tonight minus some moments late on the 4th with all the sacks.

 

[Bane]

That play feels irrelevant when they followed it up with running it into the pile 3 times and kicking a field goal. They had MSU on their heels - go for the jugular with your incredibly talented and accurate QB. Just let CJ build a rhythm for god's sake, feels like they refuse to let him cook

Although I'm curious how often it's a straight run call vs CJ adjusting to a run at the line. Feels like the clock ran down really far way too often today because of his adjustments

My only thought is something along the lines of: Denbrock I feel calls the game for how he wants the team to be, instead of calling the game for the team that we are. And he needs to figure out who we are way faster than week 3/4/5.

This is the best phrasing I have seen and I think it is spot on.

I have no idea why we aren't just going 4 wide and chucking it all over the yard as the "standard." We finished the game with 36 RB runs to 24 pass attempts and I just don't know why that's the offense. Probably could create more explosive runs by going throw-throw-throw-RUN into a light box and maybe you make one guy miss.

I agree with these takes. I tend to find the criticism of Denbrock way out of proportion, but I will agree with the above. Denbrock seems to want to run to establish the pass, which was fine last year and the year prior. This year, we're gonna have to pass to establish the run.

 

[Dale]

Wisconsin and Michigan State both were in 2 high most of the game. State more in two high man tonight.

Spoiler: they are gonna have to run the ball. And CJ is checking into a lot of these runs.

Change the personnel.

 

[FWIrish4]

This is the best phrasing I have seen and I think it is spot on.

I have no idea why we aren't just going 4 wide and chucking it all over the yard as the "standard." We finished the game with 36 RB runs to 24 pass attempts and I just don't know why that's the offense. Probably could create more explosive runs by going throw-throw-throw-RUN into a light box and maybe you make one guy miss.

The best example of this was the long drive in the 3rd quarter. 17 play, 10 minute drive that ends a field goal. 17 plays and they tried to push the ball downfield exactly once, when they threw to the endzone to Faison from the 20 (absolute dime by CJ that hit him in the face with great coverage by the DB).

The drive ends with a 3rd and 12 throw behind the line of scrimmage to our running back? Act like you have one of the best QBs in the country. You’re in the red zone and you’re kicking a field goal regardless. Let your stud QB throw to the end zone and try to score a touchdown.

 

[ACamp1900]

If we can’t run against Purdue we have legit issues,… ucla is chucking them to death on the ground

 

[Redbar]

My only thought is something along the lines of: Denbrock I feel calls the game for how he wants the team to be, instead of calling the game for the team that we are. And he needs to figure out who we are way faster than week 3/4/5.

He can’t wash all the BK off of him.

 

[BrianWalsh]

-Coming out of the 2024 NCG run, I thought Williams and Greathouse were going to be dudes. I wanted to see ND highlight them (as much as they could have with Williams) both more in 2025. There is a reason they didn’t. Hate to say it but it seems like those ships just are not coming to port.
-Carr is a dude. I think Denbrock might need to get plays in more quickly and sometimes tell CJ to just run the play called. Sometimes it seems like the—I assume—audibles don’t work out well.
-ND has good tight ends. Where are they? 12 personnel is failing because ND is not making treams respect TEs. I realize you are going to run out of 12 most of the time but at least make the TEs a threat.
-It is great to feel like a game in which they won by three scores was a let down. Also, never in doubt. In the Kelly era and early in the Freeman era, coming out of HT, it would just seem inevitable that MSU would have scored a TD to tie it up and turn it into a nail chewing rock fight: never felt like that was going to happen tonight, even if MSU would have scored.
-Defense is incredibly athletic, big and strong. No more having one elite position group, one sufficient and one that is a liability. That used to be a staple of ND defenses. This defense is just good all over. Really awesome.
-Back to Carr: as others have said, he needs to be let loose. Love and Price are gone: Denbrock needs to embrace that while ND still has fine RBs, the skill position strengths on this team are QB and WR.
-Kind of wondering if the offensive philosophy is not more Freeman driven with the thinking that if they don’t turn the ball over and have negative plays, they will score plenty for this defense to create convincing wins.

 

[T-Boone]

-Back to Carr: as others have said, he needs to be let loose. Love and Pride are gone: Denbrock needs to embrace that while ND still has fine RBs, the skill position strengths on this team are QB and WR.

2017 called and wants its CBs back.