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Back away from the ledge...

Since we've been in this conference, when haven't we been the red haired, freckle faced stepchild to OSU and Michigan? Will any of us live long enought to see this change?
Not sure where you get that. Michigan hasn’t been anything in a decade. Maybe coming together this year but we’ll see. OSU has clearly been better.
 
Not sure where you get that. Michigan hasn’t been anything in a decade. Maybe coming together this year but we’ll see. OSU has clearly been better.
We have 3 B10 titles since the last time Michigan won one - it’s been 15 years since an outright title.
 
If anyone thinks MSU was a good football team today, cmon. They were garbage too. Their coach out coached ours when it mattered most (what coach doesn't) and they literally got a lot of luck tbh. Thorpe's dumb ass penalty on goal line stop, their WR bobbling than catching ball on sidelines, PSU dropping 3-4 interceptions, MSU fumbling 4 times and PSU not getting one, fake punt, running back throws, PSU players slipping constantly at huge moments.
All those things and none of them were coaching or outcoaching your opponent. One team made more plays than the other, period.
 
After reading some of these type of posts I always wonder how some will say prior to the game that we're going to destroy a certain team, but then after we lose (again), that team is suddenly very, very good, far more experienced, etc., etc. Too many excuses. Hey, we've lost two straight home games in the conference, one to a team that was riddled with injuries. Sorry, there is nothing positive to take away from this.
 
MSU beat us with basic power football taking advantage of our lack of D- line depth. LB's were ok yesterday, but a carbon copy of our secondary last year, the long ball and dropped int's killed us.
MSU played us and Trace especially the same way as last year crowding the line, spying Trace and not giving him time to set for the long ball. We need more play action, not a knock on TM but i would have put Tommy or Sean in just to mix it up a series or 2.
I like Ricky Slade but if he can't block then recruit backs who can, most Big 10 Teams use that method,
Personally i think the whole offense is F'D up since the Ohio State game too close to winning and losing the same way, they got to get that out of their heads.
 
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Certainly I’m disappointed, but not so much by the loss, but by how shitty they looked. They didn’t look like they could even beat Kent yesterday. At least they looked like they belonged on the same field with Ohio State, the strange last play call not withstanding.

The most disappointing player all season has been Johnson. In my mind, it all starts with him. I wonder if TMS has confidence in his receivers (not including Hamler) overall.

Also, I don’t think PSU was particularly lucky yesterday — the MSU fumbles that were all recovered by them, the couple of officiating calls, etc. But as someone else pointed out, PSU was lucky that some MSU passes were not completed for whatever reason.

Still, they looked shitty. But, as Joe Paterno used to say: you’re never as bad as you look when you lose and you’re never as good as you look when you win.

So, hopefully, the offense will be back to its old self vs. Indiana and for that matter the rest of the way.
 
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Certainly I’m disappointed, but not so much by the loss, but by how shitty they looked. They didn’t look like they could even beat Kent yesterday. At least they looked like they belonged on the same field with Ohio State, the strange last play call not withstanding.

The most disappointing player all season has been Johnson. In my mind, it all starts with him. I wonder if TMS has confidence in his receivers (not including Hamler) overall.

A bad comparison between two big receivers

Juwan Johnson 2 catches 19 yards
Felton Davis 8 catches 100 yards 2 TDs
 
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A bad comparison between two big receivers

Juwan Johnson 2 catches 19 yards
Felton Davis 8 catches 100 yards 2 TDs

Johnson has come up small all season. It feels like he read his own press clippings.
 
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You mean the one that should have lost to a winless Nebraska team at home yesterday.
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) -- Facing a large early deficit on the road and struggling on both sides of the ball, Michigan appeared headed for a frustrating loss.

The players, though, said they never doubted they would rally.

Karan Higdon ran for 115 yards and two touchdowns, Shea Patterson threw 196 yards and No. 14 Michigan overcame a 17-point deficit to beat Northwestern 20-17 in Saturday night.

Higdon gave the Wolverines (4-1, 2-0 Big Ten) the lead with a 5-yard run with 4:06 remaining. Higdon averaged 3.8 yards on 30 carries, and Patterson completed 15 of 24 passes to help Michigan win its fourth straight.

Michigan held Northwestern to 97 yards of total offense in the final three quarters and had six sacks for the game. Defensive end Chase Winovich had a team-high eight solo tackles and a sack.

''The way we saw things, it was always our game,'' Winovich said. ''We just had to do what we had to do.''

It was Michigan's biggest comeback since 2011 against Notre Dame (also 17 points) and Jim Harbaugh's largest comeback as a college coach.

''I talked about it at halftime. We are being tested and it's time to find out what we're made of,''' Harbaugh said. ''Our guys really responded.''

Clayton Thorson completed 16 of 27 passes for 174 yards for Northwestern (1-3, 1-1) in the Wildcats' third straight loss.

John Moten IV had 36 yards on 13 rushes and a touchdown in his first start for Northwestern. He took over for Jeremy Larkin after Larkin retired this week because of a spinal condition.

Michigan has won seven straight games at Ryan Field.

A 14 1/2-point underdog, Northwestern jumped out to a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter on short TD runs by Thorson and Moten and a career-high 45-yard field goal by Charlie Kuhbander.

Michigan, which had minus-2 yards on its first two possessions, pulled to 17-7 on Higdon's 4-yard run in the second quarter. The Wolverines made it 17-13 in the third on Quinn Nordin's two field goals.

Neither team could generate much offense in the fourth until Hidgon's second TD capped an 11-play, 67-yard drive. The key play in the drive was a 22-yard pass from Patterson to Zach Gentry for first-and-goal at the 6.

''Offensively, it just seemed like the plays we made in the first half, we went 0-fer in the second half,'' Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald said. ''I thought Michigan's front dominated the second half, and that was the difference in the game.''

STRANGE CALL

The Wolverines might have grabbed the lead earlier, but a 28-yard run by Patterson on the previous possession was called back because of a holding penalty on Higdon. After Patterson faked the handoff on a run-pass option, Higdon ran straight ahead into the line and was wrapped up by a Northwestern player.

''The whole stadium saw that the linebacker tackled our running back,'' Harbaugh said. ''Phantom call.''

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

The sellout crowd of 47,330 featured as many fans cheering for Michigan as the home team.

''That was great to see coming in and out of our tunnel,'' Harbaugh said. ''They were showing their support.''

THE TAKEAWAY

Michigan: It certainly wasn't pretty - particularly on the offensive side - but the defense stepped up to shut down the Wildcats following a fast start. With a pair of home games in the next two weeks, the Wolverines will have an opportunity to extend its winning streak and maintain momentum.

Northwestern: After being on a pitch count in the first three games, Thorson went the distance and eliminated the mistakes that led to the loss against Akron two weeks ago. But again, the offense bogged down after a fast start and struggled in the second half. ''We're up 17-0, and we didn't finish the job,'' Thorson said. ''The past few weeks, that's been the story. We're up, and then in the second half, we don't finish the job.''
 
Nothing wrong with your optimism. I'm still in Franklin's corner, but the verdict on him is not yet in. A couple of troubling trends.
 
The most discouraging issue for me is the fact that MSU beat us in the 4th qtr basically using the same plays OSU used; and worse yet, the same receiver who beat us last year, Davis, I believe (long hair), beat us again this year. I hope the coaching staff noticed that and plans for it next year. I HOPE DAVIS GRADUATES. The convenient, consecutive receiver injuries on the final drive extending the time outs did not hurt MSU's offense at all. Matter of fact it may have helped. Bottom line, if we would have made two make-able field goals, or not dropped two in your hands interceptions, or not committed critical penalties, or made a couple of first downs at the end of the game, everyone would be doing their happy dance right now. But do not despair. We will be bowl eligible...thank you Rutgers and anybody else, please.
 
We weren’t as good as tOSU but Trace almost willed us to victory. We were better than MSU, but everything fell in MSUs favor. Yes, the team needs to improve, but we have been ahead of schedule the last couple years. I think we will be a better team next year, and likely improving the year after. The players are here now and others are coming. The coaches are all accomplished and haven’t taken “stupid pills” all of a sudden. They will get things worked out and CJF will see that they do.

So we are ahead of schedule.. Going from 10-11 win seasons to 7-9 Is being ahead of schedule.

This year MSU was suppose to be downing add the injuries. Beatable.

If PSU is ever going to be the team in the conference these are the games they need to win. CJF I believe is now 3-11 vs the Big Ten Big 3. Not very acceptable in year 5.

It’s not fair to cite 3-11. 2015 is a toss-out year. How are we 2016-2018? Here’s a hint, it’s much better.
 
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