You are viewing this article in the AnnArbor.com archives. For the latest breaking news and updates in Ann Arbor and the surrounding area, see MLive.com/ann-arbor
Posted on Sat, Aug 6, 2011 : 3:06 p.m.

One question stands above rest at start of Michigan's fall camp: How about that offense?

By Kyle Meinke

It’s too bad for Brady Hoke football games can’t be won or lost off the playing field.

He’d be a Hall of Famer if they were.

The new Michigan football coach has unified the Wolverines’ program, assembled the Big Ten’s premier recruiting class and galvanized the hopes of a fan base — all with his team not playing a single down since it was minting the worst defensive season in school history.

Stunning stuff, frankly.

BRADY-HOKE-WAVE.JPG

Brady Hoke's words have been on target since he took the stage as the Michigan football coach.

File photo

And on the eve of fall camp opening up, how has he been able to do this?

By preaching toughness, physicality and aggressiveness — and players and fans have bought in handsomely.

This is Hokespeak. That’s not to say they are empty cliches — but they are cliches, really. They’re words, and they’re words used by a lot of football coaches.

With the start of fall camp Monday, we’ll begin to collect snapshots of how Hokespeak can answer the questions surrounding the Wolverines.

Among them, though, one stands above the rest: How much spread will be interspersed with the pro-style sets Michigan will run on offense, and will the new scheme blight what junior quarterback Denard Robinson does so well with his feet?

Sure, there are other issues entering camp.

How fast can the Michigan defense pick up coordinator Greg Mattison’s new 4-3 scheme? And what are the realistic expectations for improvement from a unit that finished 108th last year in scoring defense?

Who’s going to be the lead back?

Who’s going to kick field goals? And will he actually make them?

We'll get these answers in time, and they'll help determine how many games Michigan wins this season.

The greatest variable on that bottom line, though, will be Hoke and offensive coordinator Al Borges' usage of Robinson.

The defense is a complete wreck and in need of repair, and Hoke knows this. But there’s only so much he and Mattison can do in one off-season. It’ll be improved this year, it’ll hold up better in Big Ten play, but it will not be the strength of this team.

So, the key to Michigan’s success then becomes a function of whether the offense can continue to carry this team.

Former coach Rich Rodriguez was excoriated by many during his first year for not adapting his spread-option offense to fit the talents of the quarterbacks he inherited: Ryan Mallett, Steven Threet and Nick Sheridan.

Nary a spread quarterback among them. Didn’t matter to Rodriguez.

He ditched the pro-sets entirely, ran only the spread-option, didn’t move the chains and finished 3-9 (2-6 Big Ten). There was logic to Rodriguez’s reasoning, but it never really panned out.

This time around, the new offense will be phased in. It must be.

Hoke and Borges know how much they need to win in Year 1 for several reasons, among them that absolutely treacherous schedule in Year 2. It will be one of the toughest in the country, with a nonleague date against Alabama in Texas and road tilts against Notre Dame, Nebraska and Ohio State. There’s also a tricky matchup against Air Force and the usual Big Ten gauntlet.

Michigan needs to win this year to sustain the momentum established in the off-season. If it doesn’t, it might be Year 3 before the Wolverines even have a shot at losing fewer than five games.

Remember the days when 8-4 used to be a bad season in Ann Arbor?

"I don’t think we’re rebuilding, period,” Hoke said last week. “I mean, we’re Michigan."

That was Hoke’s response to a question about recruiting, and the state of his program. It underscores his belief Michigan never left the nation’s elite.

It’s swagger. Fans love it, recruits love it, players love it.

More nice Hokespeak.

This week, we’ll get our first taste of Hokewalk, and it should be a lot more telling.

Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.

Comments

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 1:04 p.m.

I think the iratest unknown is how much improvement we will see on D this fall. The games we lost last year we lost on the defensive side of the ball. Improvement (or lack thereof) there will in large part determine our record. Good night and good luck

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 5:38 p.m.

Agree entirely, az! Good Night and Good Luck

missionbrazil

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 4:13 p.m.

Good points az about the offense making our D even worse last year. Besides the poor stats in terms of time of possession and turnovers, we also were one of the worst BT teams in red zone efficiency. Sure we racked up alot of yards, but look where that got us ... 3-5 in the BT and 7-6 overall.

azwolverine

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 3:10 p.m.

Ed...you're right that we lost on the defensive side of the ball. However, what a lot of people seem to miss is that we also lost on the offensive side of the ball. We had among the worst offenses in terms of time of posession and turnovers last season. When you can't control the ball and turn it over consistently, the defense is bound to be bad. In other words, our poor defense was made worse by our offense. Couple that with the fact UM couldn't gain yards in short yardage or score against top competition (MSU, OSU, Miss St), the offense was as much a part of the problem as the defense. The fact that Michigan willl be going back to a more punishing ground game/ball control offense that should be more disciplined and avoid constant turnovers will make an even moderately improved defense look greatly improved. The offense and defense go hand-in-hand.

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 1:05 p.m.

Greatest. Arrrrgh

Blu n Tpa

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 12:30 p.m.

I agree that so far Coach Hoke as "talked the talk". With the start of the games will see if his team can "walk the walk". As for the time in between, the coaches will be teaching the "walk" and the players will be learning the "walk" and there's not a lot of time so let's be prepared to see some mis-walks. Coach Hoke knows what he wants so it's a matter of the players figuring out where they need to be. Until then it's all "talk". TiM Go Blue!

Mick

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 8:36 a.m.

Kyle, I've enjoyed your work so far, but I gotta say, I find this article to be condescending and quite dismissive by you towards Hoke and his staff. 1st of all, this is a big time coaching staff, that matters, trust me. 2nd, that previous staff was downright garbage and relied on gimmickry. See how this staff talks about adjusting to the type of talent they have, this also matters, A LOT! You sounded like Brian Cook of MGOBLOG in this posting, stop that. I wrote him an email on January 5th to give him a piece of my mind cause he was so downright dismissive of Hoke himself. So far I'm right he was/is wrong. But I'll tell you what, when the season starts you and everyone else will see the difference between what we witnessed the last 3 years and what you will witness in the very near future. Being able to motivate people and come off compelling matters.

Mick

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 6 p.m.

Fair enough Kyle, sorry if I misinterpreted your tone.

Kyle Meinke

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 2:46 p.m.

Mick, this wasn't meant to sound dismissive. The point of my column was to show that, so far, Hoke's has been a home-run hire who has done, literally, everything right. Yet, we haven't seen him do anything on the football field, and this in the end is all that matters. With camp opening up, that's his first chance to show what he can really do. You say "When the season starts you and everyone else will see the difference ..." and, Mick, that is my point. When the season starts, we'll finally see what this "change in culture" the staff is selling is all about.

A2comments

Sun, Aug 7, 2011 : 12:43 p.m.

What article were you reading?

Hailmary

Sat, Aug 6, 2011 : 11:21 p.m.

In my opinion as a fan, we the fans and Brady and staff have talked the talk and then some, now it's time for the Michigan coaching staff and the team to walk the walk. I think it's time to slow down the rhetoric and put the noses to the grindstone "We are Michigan" and that my friends says all that needs to be said.

Terry Star21

Sat, Aug 6, 2011 : 8:59 p.m.

Terry Star21 "Michigan Football, Tough mental football, with no excuses and plenty off improvement". Brady Hoke, "preaching toughness, physicality and aggressiveness". Media and outsiders "It's too bad for Brady Hoke football games can't be won or lost off the playing field....He'd be a Hall of Famer if they were".

Blu-dogg97

Sat, Aug 6, 2011 : 8:51 p.m.

Good article Kyle.. Swagger !! Hoke does have swagger.. Kyle just an idea,and I've seen it done here before,but Al Borges was interviewed on the Huge radio show Friday , its was a great interview,you can get the link off they're website,and post it here so all of the AA.com fans can hear it !! It was rather informing,and Huge said that was his best interview he's done since being in sports radio..and he's had Brady on a bunch of times... I'd bet you would gain more fans by doing it ! GO Blue..

azwolverine

Sat, Aug 6, 2011 : 7:50 p.m.

No blame. No excuses. 100% aaccountability. It's the Michigan way...and it's what the fans, myself included, love. Go Blue!