27 For 27: A Document

[SITE NOTE: Due to a confluence of things including a long drive home, four overtimes, thrilling CONCACAF qualifier business, the Tigers, this post, and a desire to stab my eyeballs whenever I look at the tape, UFR is not quite done and will go up tomorrow.]

Fitzgerald Toussaint set a Michigan record for sustained futility on Saturday by running for 27 yards on 27 carries. Since 1949, no other back has gotten as many carries without gaining at least twice as many yards. Posterity demands that someone detail what happened.

A note: blame is apportioned. When things are designated playcall it's because I don't believe it's reasonable to expect Michigan to block player X, either because he's an extra guy in the box or he's tearing towards the line of scrimmage on the snap because he has no fear of a pass. You can adjust your personal indignation levels on this based on how reasonable you thought running into stacked boxes was vis a vis Devin Gardner's 13 YPA and constant turnover threat; I'm just trying to figure out how much of the run splat was preordained by playcalls.

Ready? No. I know you're not. But here we go anyway.

One

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Play: Power O
Formation: Tackle over I Form H
Yards: -3

Why it didn't work:

1. Graham Glasgow ignored the NT.
2. Predictable playcall sees PSU linebackers flow hard with effectively nine in the box.
3. Jake Butt gets beat badly by a PSU LB in the hole.

Blame: 80% OL, 10% playcall, %10 TE/FB

Two

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Play: Zone stretch.
Formation: Tackle over I Form big
Yards: -3

Why it didn't work:

1. PSU has straight up nine in the box.
2. Michigan tries to be clever by running at Williams and Bryant, both of whom get destroyed.
3. Schofield leaves immediately, so Lewan has no shot at the backside tackle.

Blame: 30% TE/FB, 30% OL, 40% playcall

Three

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Play: Power O
Formation: Tackle over Ace H
Yards: 12

Why it didn't work:

1. Actually it did work.
2. It works because Schofield gets nice push, giving Toussaint a crease. Glasgow gets movement on a DT and the eighth guy in the box for PSU tries to get over to the frontside when he should probably stack this up near the LOS.

Blame: Everyone is happy!

Four

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Play: Counter
Formation: Tackle over trips TE
Yards: 1

Why it didn't work:

1. Seven guys in the box against six blockers; extra guy makes the stop.
2. PSU WLB doesn't get suckered by the counter, gives Glasgow no shot to block him.
3. Kalis gets shed, falling to the ground.

Blame: 80% playcall, 20% OL.

[After THE JUMP: just don't click through. I'm sorry I even did this.]

Five

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Play: Tricky edge pitch
Formation: Tackle over I-Form
Yards: 1

Why it didn't work:

1. PSU has a DE flared out to the short side of the field who stays at the LOS and shuffles out to tackle.
2. Toussaint can't run through five PSU players.

Blame: 100% playcall.

Six

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Play: Inside zone read
Formation: Pistol 2TE twins
Yards: 1

Why it didn't work:

1. Gardner should pull.
2. Bryant doesn't come off a double and an aggressive PSU MLB shoots a gap.
3. Kalis gets no motion on a DT.

Blame: 50% Gardner, 50% OL. (Eight in the box is OK since they are trying to option one off.)

Seven

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Tackle over I-Form twins
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Glasgow and Kalis can't scoop the NT; seems like a Kalis issue.
2. Schofield gets driven back by other DT.
3. Penn State has 4 DTs and a DE on the field.

Blame: 50% playcall, 50% OL.

Eight

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Play: Iso
Formation: I-Form
Yards: 2

Why it didn't work:

1. Playside LBs are already at the LOS when the handoff is made.
2. Eighth guy in the box is unblocked and there to deal with a good-idea cutback from Toussaint.
3. Maybe Kalis doesn't get off his block fast enough but with LBs plunging down like this very difficult for him to do so.

Blame: 90% playcall, 10% OL.

Nine

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: WTF
Yards:–2

Why it didn't work:

1. Michigan runs a stretch into the boundary with an unbalanced line.
2. Six blockers against eight defenders.
3. LOL

Blame: 100% playcall

Ten

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Ace 3-wide
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Kalis, Bryant, and Funchess get obliterated.

Blame: 80% OL, 20% TE/FB

Eleven

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Play: Power O
Formation: Goal line
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. No OL movement.
2. Butt gets pancaked on a kickout block.

Blame: 50% OL, 50% TE/FB

(End of first half.)

Twelve

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Play: Power O
Formation: Tackle over twins H
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Eight in the box with three guys flowing to a hole that will have two blockers in it.
2. Butt runs past a LB to try and hit a DB, misses, but Bryant gets hit two yards in the backfield so it's not really relevant.
3. When Fitz cuts back that blows up Magnuson's blocking angle. (Michigan is still running tackle over with Lewan out.)

Blame: 100% playcall.

Thirteen

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Play: Power O
Formation: I-Form
Yards:–1

Why it didn't work:

1. Shane Morris is in after Gardner's helmet gets knocked off.
2. Williams loses a downblock against a DE.
3. Bryant doesn't block either of the two guys who show.
4. Kerridge picks off a DB instead of a LB.

Blame: 50% bloody fate, 30% TE/FB, 20% OL.

Fourteen

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Play: Inside zone
Formation: Ace twins
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. PSU has 4 DTs and a DE on the field.
2. They have nine in the box.
3. Kalis and Williams get destroyed.

Blame: 40% playcall, 30% OL, 30% TE

Fifteen

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Play: Iso
Formation: I-Form
Yards: 4

Why it didn't work:

1. We'll count this one as working. Woo!
2. PSU has two deep safeties.
3. Blocking's good.
4. Iso is generally not something that breaks for a lot of yards.

Blame: Ain't no blame on second and six. /highfive

Sixteen

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Ace twin TE twins
Yards: 8

Why it didn't work:

1. It did! Two in a row.
2. M gets lucky as their blocking is gross but when Toussaint cuts back the backside end is unable to close it down.

Blame: we're cookin' now

Seventeen

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Play: Power O
Formation: Ace twins H
Yards: 4

Why it didn't work:

1. It did again. Three in a row.
2. Da'Quan Jones trips on Kalis, falls.
3. Nice kicks from Williams and Butt open up a lane.
4. Safety makes contact two yards downfield.

Blame: this is almost like offense

Eighteen

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Ace twin TE
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Despite doubling a LB at the LOS, the two TEs neither kick nor seal him.
2. M has no angle to get a MLB
3. Williams then releases and blocks air.
4. Toussaint bounces into a free corner since Chesson cracked down on a safety who is guy 7.5 in the box.

Blame: 50% TE/FB, 50% OL

Nineteen

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Ace
Yards: 3

Why it didn't work:

1. Fitz finds a hole as Jones gets upfield and there's a big gap between him and the backside DT.
2. Glasgow helps create this hole with a shove and then blocks the MLB, which is probably wrong since that's Burzynski's guy.
3. SAM is headed outside as that momentarily looks dangerous and slips as he cuts back with Toussaint, tackling Toussaint in the actual gap.

Blame: 100% OL, but amplitude decreased since this almost kind of worked.

Twenty

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Play: Power O
Formation: Ace H twins
Yards: 1

Why it didn't work:

1. Butt gets rocked back by the LB in the hole.
2. Magnuson gets pushed back by Jones, Burzynski trips over him.
3. PSU is desperate to preserve clock and M kill it so they know it's a run.

Blame: 50% OL, 50% FB/TE

Twenty One

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Play: Inside zone
Formation: Ace
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. MLB shoots interior gap on the snap before anyone has a prayer of reacting.
2. Seriously, I don't know how you stop this.

Blame: 100% playcall

Twenty-Two

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: I-Form Big
Yards:–3

Why it didn't work:

1. PSU has all DTs in.
2. One of them beats up Williams.
3. Glasgow and Kalis can't execute a scoop.
4. Schofield gets good motion on playside DT with help from Burzynski but then peels off to shove a linebacker. This shove pushes him right past what would have been Kerridge's block and into Toussaint.

Blame: 40% OL, 30% FB/TE, 30% playcall.

Twenty Three

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Play: Zone stretch
Formation: Ace twins twin TE
Yards: 1

Why it didn't work:

1. Burzynski/Jones matchup doesn't go well(surprise!).
2. Schofield gets blown up by the WLB, who penetrates.

Blame: 100% OL.

Twenty Four

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Play: Iso.
Formation: I-Form
Yards: 2

Why it didn't work:

1. PSU aligns two LBs basically holding hands and shoots both of them into the A gap. There is one blocker in there, Kerridge.

Blame: 100% playcall.

Twenty Five

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Play: Inside zone
Formation: Pistol 3-wide
Yards: 3

Why it didn't work:

1. Glasgow gets beat by the NT but because of the nature of the play there's a cutback lane; PSU LBs much more hesitant here.
2. Burzynski gets thrown away by the WLB.
3. Toussaint is trying to cut and it looks like he slips, so he does not get any YAC.

Blame: 50% OL, 50% Toussaint.

Twenty Six

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Play: Iso
Formation: I-Form
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Eight in the box, with every linebacker shooting forward on the snap.
2. PSU stuffs up the hole, but M actually gets decent motion and there will be a cutback for Toussaint.
3. Except the eighth guy roars in unblocked from behind and ends it.

Blame: 100% playcall

Twenty Seven

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Play: Down G
Formation: Goal line
Yards: 0

Why it didn't work:

1. Burzynski gets shot back into the hole by Jones.
2. Magnuson gets pushed back.

Blame: 100% OL

Final Tally

Ten points per play were awarded.

1. PLAYCALLING: 94
2. OL: 91
3. FB/TE: 30
4. FATE: 5
5. TOUSSAINT: 5
6. GARDNER: 5

I'm impressed you got to the end of this. Hang in there, man.