Brady Hoke announces new coaching responsibilities

Tag: Doug Nussmeier


21Feb 2014
Uncategorized 9 comments

Brady Hoke announces new coaching responsibilities

The football program announced new coaching responsibilities yesterday, and most of the changes come on defense, where nobody has the same responsibility he had last year. The only change on offense is the hiring of Doug Nussmeier to replace Al Borges’s duties.

Head coach: Brady Hoke
Offensive coordinator, Quarterbacks: Doug Nussmeier
Running backs: Fred Jackson
Wide receivers: Jeff Hecklinski
Tight ends, Special teams: Dan Ferrigno
Offensive line: Darrell Funk
Defensive coordinator, Linebackers: Greg Mattison
Defensive line: Mark Smith
Cornerbacks: Roy Manning
Safeties: Curt Mallory
Offensive grad assistant (tight ends): Kevin Koger
Offensive grad assistant (offensive line): Michael Switzer
Defensive grad assistant (defensive line): Ernie Lawson
Defensive grad assistant (linebackers): Jerry Milling

23Jan 2014
Uncategorized 8 comments

Mailbag: How important is each position coach?

Doug Nussmer works with A.J. McCarron at Alabama

Hello, 


Thank you for the great content on your site. I was thinking recently about position coaches, especially with the happenings at Michigan regarding our new OC/QB coach and speculation about the OL coach and how long Fred Jackson may stay on.

There’s always a grass is greener attitude among fanbases, and Michigan is no exception. Your honesty is probably the least susceptible to this way of thinking, which is refreshing. In this regard, I was thinking it might be a good piece for your blog to discuss the relative importance of each position coach. For instance, on average which is better to have for developing players–a good RB coach or a good OL coach? Is the RB position naturally more about athleticism and instinct, and so only so much can be taught? Is it the opposite? A rank-order list of all position coaches (+ coordinators maybe?) with explanations would be interesting. 


This might help frame the discussion about hiring/firing coaches, helping to give a sense of the net gain/loss of a particular staff member. I would assume this would be based mostly on your experience in coaching, and thus subjective, but I still think it would be a valuable piece.

Just my 2 cents, keep up the good work! 


Thanks,
Matt

 First of all, thanks for the compliments, and thanks for reading. I wish I could you a more definitive answer, but unfortunately, your question dips its toes into a bit of a gray area. As with any work place or administrative team, I think it’s good to mix and match personalities and strengths. For example, a bunch of screamers and drill sergeants might not get the best out of the guys who take to more positive feedback. Having a group of 10 “players coaches” leaves room for the guys on the team to take advantage of the men who are their leaders. By the same token, some guys who are brilliant tacticians might not be great teachers. Personally, I work with one guy who’s inexperienced and doesn’t understand a whole lot about football concepts, but he’s a motivator who gets his players excited and competitive. Obviously, almost every guy who coaches at the FBS level is going to have a good grasp of football, although they’re clearly not all geniuses. You also have to be concerned about their ability to recruit, their ability to set a good example, etc. So there’s a lot that goes into coaching besides X’s and O’s.

As for your specific question about whether a good developer of talent is more necessary at offensive line or running back, I think the offensive line coach is clearly more important. Not only is he responsible for five guys up front (and the backups), but a poor offensive line can submarine an offense and consequently a team. There are some finer points of teaching running backs that a lot of people don’t realize, but a running back can get by on a fair number of plays with sheer talent. That’s why freshman running backs step in frequently and have success. For example, a running back on an outside zone play has some minor footwork assignments and is told to aim two yards outside the tight end or tackle; after that it’s all about eluding the guys in the opposite colored jersey. Meanwhile, his offensive linemen have the same footwork assignments, but they have pre-snap reads, angles, hand placements, combo blocks, etc. throughout the outside zone play. Aside from the quarterback position, I believe offensive line is the toughest position to coach and learn.

I’ll take a stab at ranking the importance of each coach, although I’m going to operate by ranking the coordinators as separate entities from position coaches:

  1. Head coach: Everything comes downhill, good or bad. He’s the one who’s the face of the program and sets the tone for his coaches and players. This is probably obvious.
  2. Defensive coordinator: A shoddy defense can really take the wind out of any team’s sails. Although we’ve seen each side let down the other in recent years (Rodriguez’s defense let down the offense, Borges’s offense let down the defense), I think it’s demoralizing for the team and the fans in the stadium when your defenders can’t get off the field. If your defense gets the job done, a big play or two might help win a game even when the offense is stumbling.
  3. Offensive coordinator: The biggest thing for an offensive coordinator, in my opinion, is to utilize his personnel properly. In Michigan’s case, I don’t think Al Borges got the best out of Denard Robinson or Devin Gardner, even though the latter set some passing and total offense records. I also don’t think Borges’s offense was coherent enough to fit Michigan’s offensive line. Teams can be successful with simplified offenses, as long as they know how to execute against any front, coverage, blitz, etc.
  4. Quarterback coach: Quarterback is the most important position on the field. Therefore, the guy needs the best tutelage he can possibly receive. Turnovers, incompletions, miscommunication, etc. can all undermine an offense’s goal and a team’s confidence. Conversely, good quarterback play can elevate and inspire a team.
  5. Offensive line coach: As mentioned above, I believe the offensive line is the second-most difficult position group to coach. Along with having to coach five positions, each player has his own unique strengths, weaknesses, footwork, stance, reads, etc. Even if you have great skill players, you can’t win if you can’t block up front, because the ball can’t get distribute properly.
  6. Linebacker coach: This is a very difficult choice here between the linebackers and defensive linemen, but linebacker is a very technical position, and one false step or bad read can be the difference between no gain or a huge gain. Linebackers also have the somewhat unique responsibility of being involved in the run and the pass. One of the linebackers (usually the MIKE) is typically the captain or field general of the defense, and he has to make sure that all the guys in the front seven are on the same page.
  7. Defensive line coach: Going along with what I said about the defensive coordinator, a poor defense can spell disaster for the team. I don’t think you have to have a ton of playmakers on the defensive line, but you have to have guys who can do their job adequately so the linebackers and defensive backs can do their own thing without having to cover up for the line’s deficiencies. Much like the offensive line, you can win or lose an individual battle with a slightly different hand placement, stepping two inches shorter or farther, stepping at a 45′ angle instead of a 90′ angle, etc.
  8. Defensive back coach: Some guys in the secondary can get by on pure athleticism, but a lot of guys have to understand route combinations, splits, formations, etc. I think technique with cornerbacks can be pretty easy to teach because those guys are so coordinated and fluid in the first place, but the mental aspect can give those guys the edge they need to make a difference between a short completion and a pass breakup, a pass breakup and a pick, etc.
  9. Running back coach: While the running back position seems easy to play, there are a lot of things that good running backs do to help out a quarterback and an offense. Awareness of the blitz, knowing how the linebackers are going to flow, etc. can help in the passing game. 
  10. Wide receiver coach: The wide receiver position is so much about athleticism that I don’t think they need a lot of deep thought from a coach. There are lots of little techniques that can be taught (stance, release, body positioning, etc.), but much like cornerbacks, they’re typically smooth and coordinated enough to pick up on those things easily. I also think drills and such are easier to watch and correct in one-on-one or skelly situations during practice, whereas on the offensive line, the whole unit needs to be cohesive.
  11. Tight end coach: I think tight end is probably the easiest position to play or coach at a high level, provided you have the size, athleticism, strength, speed, etc. to do so. Just due to their alignment on the field, they either block down or arc release in the run game or they run pretty simple routes in the passing game (hitch, drag, seam, etc.). There are some finer nuances, like in the zone run game or if they split out wide, but generally, there are a finite number of techniques and a small number of guys to coach.
I hope this helps answer your questions. I’ve never really thought about the topic before, so it’s a fresh idea to me, too.
19Jan 2014
Uncategorized 22 comments

Poll results: What grade would you give the hiring of offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier?

New Michigan offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier

This post doesn’t really need much commentary on my end. I asked readers what grade they would give Michigan’s hiring of Doug Nussmeier, and the vast majority give the hire an “A.” For what it’s worth, there were zero votes for “D” and then four votes for “F,” so I have to imagine that a few Buckeye or Spartan trolls stumbled across the site. If those votes were from legitimate Michigan fans, I would be curious to know the reasoning.

A: 79%


B: 18%


C: 1%


D: 0%


F: 0%

12Jan 2014
Uncategorized 28 comments

An Average Season Under Doug Nussmeier

Devin Gardner has gone from catching touchdown passes against Alabama to likely throwing them
for Alabama’s offensive coordinator.

Every team is different, but I wanted to take a stab at what kind of production we can expect from new offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier while he’s here in Ann Arbor. I looked at his last five years, which he spent with Washington (2009-2011) and then Alabama (2012-2013). I then averaged those seasons together to come up with a rough estimate of what types of numbers the Wolverines will put up. The player listed with the projection is my early guess at the depth chart for this upcoming fall.

Quarterback (Jake Locker, Keith Price, AJ McCarron):
230/395, 2800 yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions
184/332, 2265 yards, 17 touchdowns, 9 interceptions
242/362, 3063 yards, 33 touchdowns, 11 interceptions
211/314, 2933 yards, 30 touchdowns, 3 interceptions
226/336, 3063 yards, 28 touchdowns, 7 interceptions
——————————————————–
2014 Devin Gardner projection: 219/348, 62.9%, 2825 yards, 26 touchdowns, 8 interceptions
2013 Devin Gardner stats: 208/345, 60.3%, 2960 yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions

Running Back #1 (Chris Polk, Eddie Lacy, T.J. Yeldon):
226 carries, 1113 yards, 5 touchdowns
260 carries, 1415 yards, 9 touchdowns
293 carries, 1488 yards, 12 touchdowns
204 carries, 1322 yards, 17 touchdowns
207 carries, 1235 yards, 14 touchdowns
——————————————————–
2014 Derrick Green projection: 238 carries, 1315 yards, 11 touchdowns
2013 Fitzgerald Toussaint stats: 185 carries, 648 yards, 13 touchdowns

Running Back #2 (Demitrius Bronson, Jesse Callier, T.J. Yeldon, Kenyan Drake):
19 carries, 89 yards, 0 touchdowns
77 carries, 433 yards, 0 touchdowns
47 carries, 260 yards, 1 touchdown
175 carries, 1108 yards, 12 touchdowns
92 carries, 694 yards, 8 touchdowns
——————————————————–
2014 De’Veon Smith projection: 82 carries, 517 yards, 4 touchdowns
2013 Derrick Green stats: 83 carries, 270 yards, 2 touchdowns

Wide Receiver #1 (Jermaine Kearse, Amari Cooper):
50 catches, 866 yards, 8 touchdowns
63 catches, 1005 yards, 12 touchdowns
47 catches, 699 yards, 7 touchdowns
58 catches, 999 yards, 11 touchdowns
45 catches, 736 yards, 4 touchdowns
——————————————————–
2014 Devin Funchess projection: 53 catches, 861 yards, 8 touchdowns
2013 Jeremy Gallon stats: 89 catches, 1373 yards, 9 touchdowns

Wide Receiver #2 (Devin Aguilar, D’Andre Goodwin, Kevin Norwood):
42 catches, 593 yards, 5 touchdowns
44 catches, 530 yards, 4 touchdowns
41 catches, 611 yards, 6 touchdowns
29 catches, 469 yards, 4 touchdowns
38 catches, 568 yards, 7 touchdowns
——————————————————–
2014 Jehu Chesson projection: 39 catches, 554 yards, 5 touchdowns
2013 Devin Funchess stats: 49 catches, 748 yards, 6 touchdowns

Wide Receiver #3 (James Johnson, Devin Aguilar, Kasen Williams, Kenny Bell, DeAndrew White):
39 catches, 422 yards, 3 touchdowns
28 catches, 352 yards, 2 touchdowns
36 catches, 427 yards, 6 touchdowns
17 catches, 431 yards, 3 touchdowns
32 catches, 534 yards, 4 touchdowns
———————————————————-
2014 Amara Darboh projection: 30 catches, 433 yards, 4 touchdowns
2013 Jehu Chesson stats: 15 catches, 221 yards, 1 touchdown

Tight End #1 (Kavario Middleton, Marlion Barnett, Austin Sefarian-Jenkins, Michael Williams, O.J. Howard):
26 catches, 257 yards, 3 touchdowns
4 catches, 31 yards, 0 touchdowns
41 catches, 538 yards, 6 touchdowns
24 catches, 183 yards, 4 touchdowns
14 catches, 269 yards, 2 touchdowns
———————————————————-
2014 Jake Butt projection: 22 catches, 256 yards, 3 touchdowns
2013 Jake Butt stats: 17 catches, 235 yards, 2 touchdowns

Tight End #2 (Chris Izbicki, Michael Hartvigson, Kelly Johnson, Brian Vogler):
3 catches, 7 yards, 1 touchdown
2 catches, 16 yards, 1 touchdown
8 catches, 30 yards, 1 touchdown
5 catches, 39 yards, 0 touchdowns
8 catches, 71 yards, 1 touchdown
———————————————————–
2014 A.J. Williams projection: 5 catches, 33 yards, 1 touchdown
2013 A.J. Williams stats: 1 catch, 2 yards, 1 touchdown

9Jan 2014
Uncategorized 27 comments

Who should be happy/sad about the Doug Nussmeier hire?

Could Shane Morris be the next A.J. McCarron?

THIS HIRE IS GOOD FOR . . . 
Fifth year senior quarterback Devin Gardner. Gardner has one final chance to show his stuff at quarterback, and I think Nussmeier will bring a more cohesive offense to Ann Arbor. Gardner can run out of the shotgun and pistol, and he’s not bad throwing from under center. I expect Nussmeier to simplify Michigan’s blocking schemes, which should help out the young linemen and the quarterback. The new offensive coordinator also likes to push the ball down the field (as did Al Borges), which suits Gardner well because he has a strong arm and throws a nice deep ball.

The offensive line. Michigan’s young offensive line was terrible this past season, and it appears that Nussmeier may bring in a new offensive line coach to help him out. Whether coach Darrell Funk remains or not, I expect that Nussmeier will want a little more beef up front, and his coaching pedigree at Alabama suggests that he can help those guys achieve a new level of success.

Sophomore running backs Derrick Green and De’Veon Smith. Nussmeier utilized the inside zone game and zone sweeps to great effect at Alabama, which recruited Green out of high school. Both Green and Smith fit the role of good inside zone runners, because both of them are north-south runners capable of running through tackles. Green has the better speed of the two and would likely be more effective on the zone sweeps.

Sophomore quarterback Shane Morris and freshman quarterback Wilton Speight. Nussmeier has tutored numerous successful college quarterbacks (A.J. McCarron, Jake Locker, Drew Stanton, Jeff Smoker) and spent time with the St. Louis Rams under passing game guru Mike Martz. I can see Morris as a McCarron-like Game Manager Plus, a guy who can not only take care of the football and keep his team in the game, but make some downfield throws to really stress defenses.

Redshirt freshman H-backs Khalid Hill and Wyatt Shallman. Nussmeier likes to use his H-backs as lead blockers, wings, slot receivers, etc. Hill and Shallman appear to be good fits for this role, more so than the fullbacks who have been playing the past couple seasons.

THIS HIRE IS BAD FOR . . . 
Redshirt junior running back Justice Hayes. Nussmeier does not appear to be a fan of scatback types, at least not for featured roles. Hayes was reported to be moving to slot receiver, although he started Michigan’s bowl game at running back. His chances of winning the running back job next year likely took a hit with this hire.

Junior fullback Sione Houma and redshirt junior fullback Joe Kerridge. Nussmeier is a proponent of a one-back offense and doesn’t have a whole lot of use for true fullback types. The hire will almost certainly diminish their role in the offense, which was already more significant than it should have been based on Michigan’s personnel and abilities.