CFB AM: Michigan QB clearly suffers concussion, Hoke leaves him in game

Published Sep. 28, 2014 5:30 a.m. ET

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Teddy Mitrosilis

Week 5 couldn’t have gone worse for Michigan coach Brady Hoke, and we’ll get to what will likely cost him his job.

But we need to start here, with something far more egregious than a bad loss to a mediocre team.

In the fourth quarter against Minnesota on Saturday, QB Shane Morris took a vicious hit that clearly dazed him. I’d say he clearly had a concussion, but if you need a doctor’s word before you can say that definitively, it’s more than fair to say Morris had “concussion-like symptoms” from the hit.

Just watch him get up, wobble around like he’s drunk, collapse into a lineman’s arms and then wave off the sideline like, “No, coach, I’m good. I’m your QB.”

Now here’s the kicker: Morris was ALLOWED TO STAY IN AND RUN THE NEXT PLAY. Then, thankfully, Devin Gardner was subbed in. Then, unfortunately, Gardner lost his helmet on a play, meaning he had to sit out the subsequent play, and Morris was SUBBED BACK INTO THE GAME. What?

When asked after the game why he didn’t take a clearly concussed Morris out immediately, Hoke offered this: “I don't know if he had a concussion or not, I don't know that. Shane's a pretty competitive, tough kid. And Shane wanted to be the quarterback, and so, believe me, if he didn't want to be he would've come to the sideline or stayed down.”

Hoke also said he didn’t see Morris stumble and nearly collapse on the field. Fine – I guess I believe that, only because it’s unfathomable any coach would see that and leave his player in. But Hoke’s above quote itself is so out of touch with the realities of football today it makes you wonder if that’s reason enough to just fire him now. Why wait?

We know where this is headed, and if that’s your explanation for leaving a kid with a head injury in a game – because, you know, a competitive kid who loves to play football would definitely be honest with you when he’s hurt – then it’s time to take a step back for a while.

Here’s the lasting image of what will officially be the game remembered for ending Hoke’s career at Michigan. I believe Hoke’s a genuinely decent guy and cares, and he’ll eventually land in another head job, but sadly there are no jokes to make about this like there are with half-empty stadiums and unhappy fans. This is just irresponsible.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. We need a Michigan breather for one quick second, so let’s head to Arlington where Texas A&M and Arkansas played in the most entertaining game of Week 5. No. 6 Texas A&M needed overtime to beat the Razorbacks, 35-28, which wasn’t necessarily surprising. If anything was surprising, it was that Arkansas’ defense for the most part kept the Aggies under wraps.

A&M managed only 14 points in the first half, and it wasn’t until two fourth-quarter TDs to tie it 28-28 and then Kenny Hill’s strike to Malcome Kennedy on the first play of overtime that the Aggies resembled that rapid-burst offensive weapon we’ve come to know. The Hogs, for three quarters, did a really good job on the Ags. They even pulled off a sweet fake punt that their punter took to the house for a TD:

Although the loss is Arkansas’ 14th straight in SEC play and leaves Bret Bielema still without a conference win in Fayetteville, it was another indicator that the Hogs are an improved team and can hang in the SEC West, by far college football’s toughest division. They’ll beat someone along the way. But Saturday was about Edward Pope’s 151 yards and two TDs receiving, Johnny Manziel paying a visit and the Aggies celebrating in Cowboys Stadium.

2. Back to Michigan – let’s run through this fast before we’re all depressed and don’t want to continue with the rest of another fun week in college football. The Wolverines lost in Ann Arbor to Minnesota, 30-14, and now we’re just counting down to Hoke’s dismissal. As Big Blue was coming apart at the seams, Twitter exploded with unhappy Michigan fans. What’s next? Who the hell knows.

Michigan was supposed to be improved on offense, and that hasn’t happened with new coordinator Doug Nussmeier (yes, he’s gotten only five games, which is unfair, but he knew this could be a one-year deal when he accepted the job). Hoke’s seat is hotter than ever, writes Mark Snyder.

3. Raleigh has given Florida State some serious trouble in recent years, and the No. 1 Seminoles almost found themselves in it again on Saturday. They didn’t get their first lead of the game until Jameis Winston hit Rashad Greene with a touchdown pass – Greene had 11 catches for 125 yards on the day – with 3:24 left in the third quarter. FSU ended up winning 56-41, but it wasn’t nearly that easy.

NC State QB Jacoby Brissett was really impressive, going 32-of-48 for 359 yards and three TDs with zero interceptions. He also had the one play of the game you don’t want to miss:

Brissett didn’t play a perfect game, though, as he lost two fumbles in the second half against a ramped-up Noles D. For the Pack, it was an upset bid that came up short, writes Joe Giglio. Florida State’s freshmen got some valuable experience, writes Brendan Sonnone.

Quick spin through other parts of the ACC: Clemson hung 50 on North Carolina, beating the Heels by 15, and it was another night of defensive breakdowns for UNC, writes Andrew Carter. Miami got a nice win over Duke, 22-10, and for some reason a fan brought a fire extinguisher to the game; could have used that in Ann Arbor. No. 8 Notre Dame improved to 4-0 by beating Syracuse 31-15; QB Everett Golson had his first mediocre night of the season, throwing two picks despite 362 yards and four TDs.

THREE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

1. Can anybody explain the SEC East? It’s like the bizarre cousin of the West. A week ago, Indiana went to Columbia, Missouri, and beat Mizzou. This week, that Mizzou team went to Columbia, South Carolina, and beat the No. 13 Gamecocks 21-20, giving Steve Spurrier’s team two losses on the season and officially eliminating them as a playoff contender. Because the division is so open though – Georgia remains the favorite, I suppose, while Florida could beat some people but only if they get more out of the QB spot – South Carolina remains in the SEC title race.

Want to really play games with the playoff committee? Send a two-loss South Carolina to Atlanta and have them beat an undefeated team from the West, say Alabama. Then have a one-loss SEC West team, say Auburn, get the playoff nod while Nick Saban lets America know how he and Butch Jones feel about that process:

As far as this Mizzou-South Carolina game, both quarterbacks (Mizzou’s Maty Mauk, South Carolina’s Dylan Thompson) were below-average, South Carolina RB Mike Davis had 104 yards and a TD and -- what you really came to see -- Mauk nearly killed Spurrier on the sideline:

2. Tennessee at No. 12 Georgia was an early kickoff and turned out to be one of Week 5’s most entertaining games. The Bulldogs won 35-32, but they had to overcome a visit from the all-mighty Peyton Manning and some despondent fans early on. Eventually they did, as Todd Gurley rushed for 208 yards and two TDs, hurdled defenders like it’s his damn day job and busted another 50-yard TD run, which he somehow has trained us to expect from him.

It’s a loss for the Vols, yes, but they had some really positive signs. QB Justin Worley, who no Tennessee fan was thrilled about having as the starting QB entering the season, went 23-of-35 for 264 yards and three TDs and made Vols fans utter things like, “Man, if Worley didn’t miss those three possessions in the second half with a hurt elbow, we totally would have won that game.” Hey, they might be right. Worley showed how valuable he is, writes David Climer. Freshman running back Jalen Hurd also starred again, with 119 yards and a TD on 245 carriers. The bad part for the Vols is not one other person contributed to the running game.

3. After losing on the road to Boston College in Week 3, No. 18 USC came back in Week 5 and beat Oregon State 35-10 at home. Cody Kessler was efficient, going 24-of-32 for 261 yards and two TDs (no picks), and RB Buck Allen had a nice game – 20 carries, 115 yards and one TD. The Trojans still have plenty of room for improvement, writes Gary Klein.

The best part of the game might have been the Hail Mary that USC caught for a TD at the end of the first half. Here’s the play:

Now here’s Oregon State defensive coordinator Mark Banter after it:

So good.

Elsewhere in the Pac-12: No. 16 Stanford won at Washington, 20-13, although you can’t say the Cardinal “played well.” They committed eight penalties and three turnovers and averaged 4.7 yards per rush. But, hey, it’s a W, and now Stanford can look forward to its trip to South Bend next weekend to take on Notre Dame.

THREE THINGS YOU MAY WANT TO KNOW

1. If there’s one “moment” you should see from Week 5, it’s this: Some dude ran on the field at Ohio State – during a game the Buckeyes would win 50-28 over Cincinnati – and former OSU linebacker and current strength coach Anthony Schlegel got to the guy before security could, which was unfortunate for the guy. Check out this body slam Schlegel put on him.

Here’s a superb action shot of Schlegel laying the smack down.

2. Penn State’s perfect season came to an end in Week 5, as the Nittany Lions lost at home to Northwestern, 29-6. QB Christian Hackenberg was awful, which is surprising because he’s proved to be one of the best young quarterbacks in the country. But we all have our days, and Hackenberg’s on Saturday was 22-of-45 for 216 yards, zero TDs and an interception. He short-hopped throws to open receivers and barked on the sidelines with senior running back Bill Belton. I’d be surprised if Hackenberg has another game quite that bad this season. The day for Penn State can be summed up by this.

3. You know how you know it was a slow week in the Big 12? Because this is the most interesting story: The Big 12 asked Kansas State coach Bill Snyder to stop wearing some of his old K-State windbreakers on the sidelines because they had patches of bowl games that no longer have the same sponsors. This feels like such a Snyder thing – he would be the guy making millions and yet doesn’t care enough about the non-essentials to even upgrade his windbreaker.

There was some football, too: Texas shut out Kansas, 23-0; No. 7 Baylor rolled over Iowa State on the road, 49-28; and TCU beat SMU 56-0 while acting like gentlemen:

LASTLY

* I leave you with this: Nebraska DE Randy Gregory, one of the top NFL Draft prospects for 2015, welcoming  Illinois freshman WR Malik Turner to the Big Ten. Please pray for Turner’s soul, as it has departed this earth (courtesy of SB Nation).

Have a great Sunday, all. Hope you enjoyed Week 5, and thanks as always for supporting CFB AM.

Teddy Mitrosilis is an editor and writer for FOXSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TMitrosilis and email him at tmitrosilis@gmail.com.

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