These two schools always play hard against each other and Saturday’s contest between Michigan and Michigan State was no different.
Some good defenders were on full display – here are our thoughts.
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#99 Jerel Worthy, DL, Michigan State
-Lining up as 3-technique DT, both weak and strong side.
-Draws double team on first two plays.
-Third double team pancakes him.
-Sheds blocker, forces runner back in.
-Lightning quick off the snap, pushes OL back.
-Knifes through gap, just late on play.
-Fights off blocker, lights up QB with big hit.
-Sitting some plays out – mainly 3rd and long.
-Gets a lot of initial push, but straightens up and loses power.
-Nice swim move gains him some penetration, can’t make play on WR reverse.
-Quick off the snap, unblocked, pressures the QB.
-Offside penalty.
-Knocked off-balance by Molk in combo block.
-Turns RB back inside, taking on two blockers.
-Quick inside move, but takes himself out of the play.
-Pushes OL back 5 yards into pocket.
-Another super-quick penetrating move.
-Slips through the gap with a swim move again and makes the tackle at the line of scrimmage.
-Lined up as a 7-tech, pursues down the line with decent speed.
-Holds the POA against double team.
-Incredible potential due to size/speed/power, but has some correctable technique issues that will need corrected.
#10 Chris Norman, OLB, Michigan State
-Holds receiver, gets the flag.
-Just misses deflection – read the route well.
-Pursued well down the field, caught Hemingway.
-Good contain, tackle on Robinson.
-Has earned a look for our 2013 scouting coverage.
#39 Trenton Robinson, S, Michigan State
-Closes fast on WR, shoves him out of bounds.
-Step for step with WR down the field.
-Fights off block, assists on tackle.
-Great open-field tackle on Robinson – showed some strength.
-Fantastic deflection down the field, stuck hand in with perfect timing.
-Thought Robinson had a great game, will be looking at him again. Could be a Top-10 safety.
#8 Kirk Cousins, QB, Michigan State
-Throws WR screen route five feet over target’s head.
-Places perfect touch pass down the field in the face of pressure, ball dropped.
-Hits first read in stride for the 1st.
-Good play-action, throws a bit of a wobbly strike – ball dropped again.
-Hits third read for three yards on 3rd and four.
-Patient in the pocket, leads WR perfectly for 3rd down conversion.
-Throws off his back foot running from pressure, misses open check-down.
-Takes a bad delay-of-game penalty.
-Makes a nice 10-yard out throw – showed some decent zip and good placement.
-Pump fake buys him some time in the pocket, poor throwaway.
-Makes another back-foot throw for a 1st down.
-Poor touch on deep throw – overthrew by 10 yards, though wind is a factor.
-Developmental QB prospect – projects as a career backup to us.
#16 Denard Robinson, ATH, Michigan
-Making some easy throws initially.
-Incredibly elusive – very tough to wrap up.
-Throws deep ball up for grabs, nobody there.
-Good completion with Worthy getting pressure on him.
-Overthrows deep receiver.
-Tosses an absolute duck
-NOT an NFL quarterback at all.
-Robinson needs to run well and show some receiving skills at the combine to prove he has an NFL future.
#68 Mike Martin, DL, Michigan
-Lining up as a 1-technique, 3-technique, 5-technique or nose.
-Drawing double teams on every play at the start.
-Looks like he knows how to use his leverage.
-Blows up right tackle, play goes away from him.
-Shows a decent inside-rush move.
-Pancaked, couldn’t disengage and didn’t have his feet under him.
-Good use of hands to get off block.
-Pushed back a bit by LG, but makes good tackle on RB.
-Pursues well down the line after getting some push on center.
-Fights off two blockers and makes the tackle.
-Plays very low – tough to get under him and root him out.
-Big push on OL, just misses tackle, then chases RB down 10 yards later.
-Very impressive motor – works hard each play.
-Martin is going to be a good pro – love him as a late day two pickup.
#50 David Molk, OC, Michigan
-Picks up two blocks, helps on DL, then picks up linebacker.
-Effective early in pass-protection.
-Gets beat on run-block, batted away by DL.
-Fights Worthy to a stalemate.
-Good movement on pull, locates and evaluates targets well.
-Misses 2nd-level block, looked tentative rather than aggressive.
-Whiffs on block, leads to TFL.
-Loses man in pass protection, QB sacked.
-Wasn’t very effective today, not sure he has starting ability in the NFL.
Tags: Film Room, Jerel Worthy, Mike Martin