Michigan - 2, North Dakota - 0

wow, Wow, WOW!

Shawn Hunwick - a former walk-on whose story will go down as one of the great Michigan sports stories of all time in any sport - stops 40 shots as Meeeeechigan advances to the NCAA hockey championship game against Minnesota-Duluth on Saturday.

What a game!  What a team!

GO BLUE!

Hail Hunwick!

Oh, and to this jackhole...

Your team lost and you have to go back to North Dakota. Ouch.

Bottom pic HT: @EDSBS

Vada Wallpaper

God Bless Vada Murray and his family. Rest in Peace.

If you have not already viewed the Vada Murray tribute video by WolverineHistorian, you should do so. I was a young 2nd Lieutenant stationed at Camp Pendleton in the fall of 1989 when the Michigan Wolverines came into the Rose Bowl to play UCLA. I made the drive with my new Marine buddies who both went to small schools and had never attended a big college football game. The one play that sticks out in my mind was the perfect onside kick (recovered by none other than Vada Murray) that kept Michigan's comeback hopes alive. We won 24-23 in one of the most exciting games I have ever watched. There was no band (they didn't make the trip) so, when it was over, we sang "The Victors" without assistance and it echoed throughout the stadium. To this day, after 6 attempts, it is the only time I have ever walked out of the Rose Bowl stadium a happy man.

Edit: Here is a link to the first Vada Murray wallpaper I did in 2008. After I posted it, I got a nice email from his wife (Sarah) telling me how much they all loved it.

RIP Vada Murray

Sad news to report:

Former Michigan free safety Vada Murray passed away Wednesday after a long battle with cancer.  He was 43 years old.

Murray played for the Wolverines from 1988-1990 and then became an Ann Arbor police officer.  He is survived by his wife and three children.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

UPDATE:  Great article on Vada by Michael Rosenberg in the Freep.

Is Tressel staff member now voting on hoops, too?

Remember the story of the "miscommunication" between Tosu coach Jim Tressel and some assistant who allegedly took it upon himself to change The Vest's USA TODAY Coaches' Poll ballot?

To recap: at his media luncheon leading up to the September 2006 showdown between top ranked Texas and second ranked Ohio State, The Vest told reporters he had voted Texas #1 on his USA TODAY ballot.  But he was exposed as being, shall we say, "less than accurate with the facts" when USA TODAY revealed Tressel's ballot actually had the Buckeye's #1, not Texas.  That's when Tosu's Director of Player Development came forward and said he took it upon himself to change his boss' ballot and put Ohio State in the top slot.  You know, because that's what Directors of Player Development do.

Well, lo and behold, the Buckeyes again find themselves in a controversial Coaches' Poll balloting situation, this time on the hoops side.  But apparently no Tosu coaches were involved, or so we're to believe.

As you all know, Monday night UConn won the NCAA basketball title in a contest even uglier and more deserving of mass walkouts than a Charlie Sheen one man show in Motown.  But when the final USA TODAY Coaches' Poll ballot was released on Tuesday, UConn only garnered 30 of the 31 possible first place votes.

So who got the lone non-UConn first place vote?  You guessed it: THE Ohio State Ugottabekiddingme.  The same OSU team that lost not in the championship game, not in the Final Four, not in the Elite Eight, but in the Sweet 16 - a number slightly larger than, well, 1.

But this time Tressel and his staff have an alibi: Northern Arizona's coach, Mike Adras, claimed he voted the Bucks #1 on his ballot "based on their entire body of work during the season."  As of press time, the MZone is checking into Adras' medical condition and looking into whether or not he has any tattoos.

HT: SiC

Creating DE Conflict

Dubber just had a great post here on this subject that you need to read if you haven't already. He says, "In football terms, keeping a defense 'off rhythm' is the name of the game."  He is correct.  This post will focus solely on the Defensive End position and how to put the DE in conflict in order to keep him off-rhythm. 

Urban Meyer talked about how much of what they did with their Spread offense at Florida was designed to control the DEs, because they are such tremendous athletes that they can take over a game by themselves.  These freaks of nature can really wreak havoc on an offense if allowed to get into a rhythm.  DEs that are strong and can run as fast as most RBs are a nightmare for an OT to try to block.  An Offensive Coordinator must  have plays designed to confuse and slow down the DE in order for the offense to have a chance and for his QB to survive.

Brophy said it well in this Manny Diaz Fire Zone post:  "Throughout the 90s by the way of Miami, defenses transitioned to the mantra of speed, with the defensive ends becoming the most disruptive players on the field. The more offenses game planned and tried to deal with these athletes, the more they realized they just couldn’t block those guys. This is what has brought us to the current flavor of offense, where they don’t even block the defensive ends (read game)."

Florida co-Defensive Coordinators Charlie Strong and Greg Mattison unleashed the speed and athleticism of DEs Jarvis Moss and Derrick Harvey, who completely took over the 2006 National Championship game vs. Ohio State; holding Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith to 35 yards passing and 82 yards total offense.

The pics and video below are from a clinic done by current Florida RB Coach Brian White.  They show all of the ways to use the running game in the Spread offense to create conflict and slow the DE down.  The last slide also shows how Jet Sweep action (Bash or Flash tag) affects the LBs as well. 

Creating DE conflict is not limited to the Spread offense.  Other offenses can put the DE in conflict with draw plays, outside runs that utilize a WR crack block on the DE, having the OT arc release outside the DE, Orbit sweep motion off the Inside Zone play, and Reverses.  These are all tools that offenses must use to break the rhythm of the DE and slow him down.

It is important to use the passing game to slow down the DE in the same way.  Dubber talked about using Quick Screens to keep a defense off-rhythm.  Air Raid guys like to use this play to fatigue and wear the defense down.  The cut block by the OT on the Quick Screen is a great way to frustrate and slow down the DE's aggressiveness.  

The launch point of the QB must be also be varied.  This is done by using quick 3-step drops, waggles, bootlegs, and sprint-out to go along with the 5-step drop-back and play-action passing game that sets up deep in the pocket.  If all the DE sees is 5-step and play-action, he will kill the QB, plain and simple.  Protecting the QB must be the top priority in designing a passing offense.  If the QB is allowed to get hit too many times, his fundamentals will deteriorate and the passing game will suffer tremendously.

Using all of these tools will not guarantee success, but they will provide the offense its best chance for success by slowing down the DEs and keeping them from wrecking the offense and taking over the game by themselves.

Creating DE Conflict with the Spread Offense - Brian White - Florida from Barry Hoover on Vimeo.

Links:
Coach Allam with Oklahoma St. Practice Observations and Coaching Clinic Do's and Don'ts (the cliches are pretty funny).

Good article on what really makes QBs successful (from Football Coach Academy):  here.

My buddy, Coach Chastain, is looking for cut-ups/info on the Oregon passing game and cut-ups on the Diamond Formation below. Contact him at coachchastain@gmailcom.

Panthers to hold Golfing Fundraiser

June 4th...That is the date for the first ever Black Hats Golf Classic. Serving the football team as a fundraiser, this one day fun filled event will provide the Panthers football program with monies that could be put to many uses. Equipment purchases alone are an expensive endeavor, and as budgets are tightening, this outing will be very important in enhancing the football program for the fans as well as the players.

Here is some information about the tournament:

The tournament will be held at the

Botetourt Golf and Swim Club
2414 Country Club Road
Troutville, VA 24195



Black Hats Golf Classic

Entry Fee: $300 Per Team
($75 per player)
Registration Open
Range Balls Available
Tournament Lunch
Team Meeting Rules
Shotgun Start
TEAM ENTRY INCLUDES:
18 holes of golf with cart, unlimited range balls, and a golf towel.
A tournament raffle as well as individual and team prizes will be awarded.
On-course beverages will be available.
FORMAT:
The format of the tournament is a
four player team, traditional Captain’s Choice. Players who enter as an individual will be placed with others to create 4-man teams.

Other than the golf, there will be a couple of other surprises thrown in as well.

George Rogers

The 1980 Heisman Trophy winner will be on hand with his Heisman Trophy for photo opportunities. Rogers is one of the greatest to play the game, and in his Senior year at South Carolina , led the nation in rushing with 1781 yards. For more information on George Rogers, visit the link below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Rogers_(American_football)



Chris Warren '89


A star in every sense of the word, Chris Warren is one of the greatest to ever wear the Black and Gold. Below is an excerpt from the Ferrum Hall of Fame Bio:

Chris played football while attending Ferrum College. He led the Ferrum College Panthers to consecutive Division III South Region Championships. In 1988 and 1989 he was named an All-American. He set numerous season and career Ferrum College records including scoring, total touchdowns, rushing touchdowns, all purpose yards, punt return yards and punt returns. He also set the record for the longest run from scrimmage in a game versus Emory & Henry College in 1989. He was a member of the 1988 football team that recorded the longest winning streak of 11 games. He holds the record of five for most returned touchdowns in a single season, set in 1989. He participated in the 1990 Senior Bowl. He was named ECAC Division III South Player of the Year in 1989 and VASID State College Division Player of the Year in 1988 and 1989. He was the first player in Ferrum College history to be selected in the National Football League draft.



Chris played professionally for the Seattle Seahawks, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Philadelphia Eagles.


Hank Norton


If you know anything about Ferrum football, you know this name well. Serving as Head Coach from 1960-1993, Coach Norton amassed a record of 244-77-11, with four national championships, and one national runner up.His list of accomplishments is long, but some are listed below:

Thirty-four years as head football coach of the Ferrum Panthers. Ferrum coaching career record of 244-77-11. Four National Junior College Championships. Runner-up in 1966. National Junior College Coach of the Year in 1965, 1968, and 1974. Four consecutive NCAA Division III playoff berths from 1987 to 1990 and Division III South Region titles in 1988 and 1989. Coached 46 All-Americans and 42 players who went on to play in the professional ranks. Began his coaching career at Powhatan High School in 1954. Renowned fly fisherman, hunter, and conservationist. Honorary member of the 1994 Alumni Sports Hall of Fame in its inaugural year. 


Coach Norton will be giving fly fishing tips at ponds on the course, and likely telling stories of Panther football.




This will be a fun event, so dust off your clubs, and make plans to participate on June the 4th! 


To register, call Coach David Harper at 540-365-4478, or email him at dharper@ferrum.edu

This is no April Fools Joke

Check out the urban camouflage designed helmet Ohio State is wearing for spring football. The official word from the Athletic Department is they want to honor "the military".

According to the press release: Ohio State players will be wearing the specially commissioned helmets throughout their 2011 spring practices. Following the Spring Game, all but 25 helmets will be sent away to be repainted in the traditional Buckeye silver. Each of the 25 remaining "camo" helmets will be individually numbered, autographed by Ohio State head football coach Jim Tressel and then sold, with the sale benefiting the Ohio National Guard Family Readiness and Warrior Support Program, LiFE (Learning in Fitness & Education) through Sports Program and the Ruth and Jesse Owens Scholars Fund. These helmets will be sold off-line on a first-come, first-served basis for $1,000.00/helmet (limit one per an individual). Each helmet will come with a special Certificate of Authenticity, which will include the purchaser's name, helmet number and OSUDA signature authenticating the item of purchase.

There is no truth to the rumor the school is taking a proactive "on the offensive" approach by selling their gear before the players can get their hands on it and trade it for new ink.

As someone who actually served in "the military" -- I'd like to make a suggestion to the fans and administrator's of THE Ohio State University. One of the best ways to honor the military might be to require integrity and honor from the leaders of the organization.