My Favorite Things: UConn

I am trying to work out a number of regular features during the season, such as Coast to Coast, Midwest Madness, Key Possessions, and this post My Favorite things.  Having ideas of what to write will help me produce content.  If something is working well, or not working at all, please let me know.  With that said, on with the show.






I am a big fan of jazz music, so when it came for inspiration for this next piece of post-game retrospective, I turned to John Coltrane for inspiration.

There are a lot of positives to take away from this game.  Each week I'll try to pick my favorite three things from a win (and maybe my three least favorite things from a loss, that will depend on my mood).  Lets get to the list.



1. Denard Robinson.

Period.

Oh, you want me to explain this selection?  It is a no brainer for anyone who watched the game.  Twenty-nine rushes for 197 yards and another 186 yards in the air on 19 of 22 passing.  This is the most productive game a UM quarterback has played since Tate willed the team back against ND last year.  The story of the offensive production in this game is largely a story of Denard Robinson's progression from athlete playing quarterback to quarterback who...holy shit, did he just do that?  If Robinson can continue to progress and execute like he did on Saturday, this offense will be the dangerous big play threat we have been waiting for.

2. This play.


(Fast-forward to the 3:10 mark)

For anyone concerned over Denard Robinson's production throwing the ball the rest of the year, let me refer you to exhibit A.  This is a very simple play that sends the running back across the quarterback's face, but looks like a designed bubble screen.  Everybody breaks on the play hoping to blow it up, which allows Terrance Robinson to slip into a huge hole in the middle of the field.  Robinson does a great job of selling the pass fake to the flat and then standing tall and taking the hit just after he throws the ball.  He hits Robinson in stride and it is off the the races.

This play and others like it will absolutely murder opposing defenses this year.  Even after seeing it in the film room all week it will still have the opportunity to bust out for big yards.  An effective ground game is going to catch defenses overreacting in ways that we haven't seen in the last two years.  Get ready for some exciting quick strike touchdowns from plays just like this.

3. The Win.

After two years of ups and downs   and let's face it, they have been mostly downs   there was no better feeling Saturday than seeing that clock click to zero and the team run to the student section to celebrate.  This group of players has gone through a mountain of adversity these past two seasons, they have suffered through media witch-hunts, losing seasons, injuries, and contempt from a sizable portion of the fan base.  Some of the men who took the field Saturday are the same ones who were booed at halftime against Wisconsin in 2008.  Most of them lived through a seven game Big Ten losing streak.  They have never seen a victory over their most hated rival, and only the seniors can remember what it is like to beat MSU.

Yet they all showed up and played their hearts out.  While others transferred over the past two years or left the program early for the draft, these players stayed and committed themselves to getting better.  These coaches have lived through the media firestorm and the bad attitudes of fans who don't feel this coaching staff is good enough for Michigan.

Everybody on that sideline deserved a win on Saturday, and nothing makes me happier than to see them get it.  Bo was right when he said, "Those who stay will be champions."

Go Blue.

This is the last of my retrospectives on week one.  I promise.