SB Nation - Justin Feagin

2009 Michigan Football Season Preview, Part III: The Quarterback Position

Maize n Brew Dave — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:38:14 -0000

Part I: The Offensive Line, can be found here. Part II: The Running Backs, can be found here.

Three days till the 2009 Michigan Football season kicks off. If you're not bursting from the seams with excitement you should probably see a doctor. Or a mortician. It's almost kickoff time, baby. We'll get to the Western Michigan preview in good time. But for right now, we need to figure out what we've got on our side of the football. Now if you can't wait until the season starts to know how it's going to turn out, we got you covered there as well. Here are Beauford's, MnB Dave's, and SCM's 2009 Michigan Football season predictions. There's your quick fix if you need a baseline.

But this is the time of year when we break it all down. Position by position. So we're splitting things up in to a couple of separate posts to give you all the information you can handle on what to expect out of Michigan this season. The Depth Chart is out, so we'll break it down. Since we know what to expect out of the Offensive Line, and Running Backs (mostly, now that Brandon Minor is out with a plethora of injuries), lets move on to a position with a lot of expectations, and talent, but not a lot of experience.

2009 Michigan Football Season Preview, Part III: The Quarterback Position

Michigan's 2008 Quarterback Play in a Single Picture. via Mlive.com

To say Michigan's quarterback play was rancid last season wouldn't do justice to the word "rancid". Rancid as compared to Michigan's quarterback play would make rancid seem like your were in a field of blooming roses and strawberries. I've honestly never seen two young kids so overmatched by what they assigned to carry out in my life. It was like handing a six year old a pile of metal and telling him to build a nuclear reactor. Almost. You'd have to have the six year old running for his life from 300 lbs men while trying to build said reactor for the analogy to be apt.

Rodriguez spent the entirety of last year trying to run his spread offense with two kids, while upstanding, nice young men, were totally and completely ill suited for the task. This didn't stop me from predicted they'd be fine, by the way. Especially Steven Threet. Sigh....

Steven Threet is a *4 QB (in both services) with an Elite 11 camp pedigree. He's a bright guy, with a cannon for an arm. Hell, Shaun King excelled in Rodriguez system so there's no reason Threet can't.

I didn't stop there:

However, Steven Threet or Nick Sheridan or Justin Feagin all ran the Spread in high school, so each of them has some knowledge of what the system entails and their better suited to run whatever version of the Spread Rodriguez installs than anyone who’s taken the snaps at Michigan for the last decade. So while the signal caller may not be Rodriguez prototypical player, whomever he names the starter will be more than capable for running the offense.

Oh God. Make it stop!

Obviously, there is peril in this. Reality loves nothing more than overblown expectations and denial. Hopes were made to be crushed, hearts made to be broken. Some might say such bravado is reminiscent of Icarus, overcome by his dreams and thoughts to the extent he failed to heed to the reality of the warming Sun....

I say if Icarus used a stronger glue, he'd still be flying.

/tears, sobbing/

Alright... (sniff... sob....)... I'm back.

(2009 Michigan Quarterback Preview after the Jump!)

I was horribly, horribly wrong about Threet's abilities. I was even more wrong about Sheridan's, if that's possible. I thought Nick could run. No. No, he can't. He runs like wood. You (desk bound, flabby you) have a better chance of escaping from a hungry bear than Sheridan had escaping the rush or getting to the line of scrimmage on a QB keeper. The numbers were horrific. Last year Michigan quarterbacks combined to go an abysmal 165/338 for 1718 yards, 11TD/12INT and a miserable combined QB rating of 95.2.

Sheridan	Passing
YEAR	CMP	ATT	YDS	CMP%	YPA	LNG	TD	INT	SACK	RAT
2008	63	137	613	46.0	4.47	45	2	5	6	81.08

Threet	Passing
YEAR	CMP	ATT	YDS	CMP%	YPA	LNG	TD	INT	SACK	RAT
2008	102	200	1105	51.0	5.53	51	9	7	15	105.26

So, yes. It was as bad as you remember. Now maybe you're better at repressing memories than I am and have convinced yourself you were at Disney World all last season, but I can't get over how bad it really was. My Domer wife asking me, "Are these two bozos really your best options at quarterback?" My responding "yes" followed by her laughing at me and pointing to every barn we passed on the way back from South Bend and asking whether Threet or Sheridan could hit the side of it. Gentlemen. You have earned a place in my personal hell for that car ride. Well, Steven Threet is gone, transferring (again) to Arizona State. Justin Feagin is gone to who knows where, but sadly and most likely, on his way to jail. That leaves us with two freshman. A senior backup with mad flow. And Sheridan.

/tears welling in eyes... looking down... grabbing podium..../

Too soon for that joke? Anyway, hope springs eternal. So now that we've had our hearts ripped out it's time to rebuild. We can do it. We have the technology.

Starter(s)

Yes. That is plural. As of today, Rich Rodriguez still maintains that we're going to see all three quarterbacks against Western Michigan. He just hasn't said how much of each and how often he's going to make a switch. The three options are Senior Nick Sheridan, and True Freshmen Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson. You know about Sheridan. If not. Don't ask. Dammit. I told you not to ask. Fine.

Yes, that did just happen. via Mlive.com

Sheridan was and is a non-rated recruit out of high school who blew his knee out his senior year. As a result, any recruiting buzz disappeared and Sheridan walked-on to Lloyd Carr's program. It wasn't until everyone and their mother pulled up stakes following Lloyd's departure and Michigan was left with two scholarship QBs (Threet and David Cone), that Sheridan was brought out of the practice squad pads and put in as a scholarship QB. The result of which is captioned above. I will say that Sheridan looks very, very different this year. He A LOT stronger. His passes in practice have more zip. He seems confident. Not like the lost little puppy we saw last year. But he's still Nick Sheridan. As Rodriguez says, he's the "safe" starter. And if by "safe" you mean "not a freshman" or "player most likely to fan the fan base scream at throw things if he's under center." Sorry folks. He's a good kid. But unless he's undergone surgery and had Tom Brady surgically placed under his skin, I just can't see him as a legitimate D1 quarterback. But I'd love to be wrong on that.

via imageshack.us

The player with the second most experience (that will actually play) is Tate Forcier. Forcier was in for Spring Practice and started the Spring Game. Anyone who's followed the site or Michigan football knows all about the show he put on. I've covered Forcier in depth before, so I'll try not to rehash it too much. Forcier comes from a family of quarterbacks. His oldest brother Jason played at Michigan and Stanford. His younger-older brother was at UCLA before transferring, not so subtly. Tate, well, he's the culmination of all that breeding and labwork in the Forcier family labs. And, dammit, he showed it as a starter in High School. Last year Forcier's numbers are a shiny beacon of hope for this year. 208/326 for 3424 yards, 23/15 TD/INT ratio, 783 yards rushing on 92 attempts, and 12 rushing TDs.

Forcier is a solid, young QB. He throws an excellent deep ball. He's got great scrambling ability and actually possesses a "feel" for the pocket. He's a good improviser. He throws really well on the run (a staple of the Rodriguez system). He's a natural leader. Several TV commentators have said, he has "it" when they talk about his presence. A certain j'ne sais quoi, that makes him seem like the quarterback of the future at Michigan. Tate's been in the weight room all summer with Barwis. He's learned the playbook. He's been throwing and running just like what Rodriguez would want. He played every snap with the Spring #1 offense! With all this hype why isn't he the unquestioned starter?

Because of this guy.

via Detroit News

Denard Robinson: Lightning bolt. Hands down the fastest player on Michigan's roster. There was talk about a show down between Troy Woolfolk and Robinson for fastest player on the team, but that talk seems to have died down when Robinson started busting off touchdown runs of 58, 68 and 72 yards in practice. My man's got speed. You can't teach speed. You're just blessed with it. The knock on Robinson, or at least the expectation was that he couldn't throw particularly well. His high school passing numbers were really suspect and his rushing number completely overshadowed anything he did throwing the ball. Come on. The kid ran a 100 meter race in 10.3 seconds. How can you not be excited about this and completely ignore his ability to throw the ball? Woo!

Well, it turns out the kid can throw the ball. Pretty well actually. During the close of practice a week or two ago he hit Mathews in stride for a 40+ touchdown pass. Reports out of camp say he's got the short passing game down pat and is advancing on the intermediate stuff quite nicely. He apparently throws well on the run. And he's only been practicing for real, for less than a month! Gerry DiNardo on the Big Ten Network put it best, (paraphrasing) "the fact that we're discussing whether Forcier or Robinson should start, especially when Forcier's been there longer, should tell you something."

Yeah, something wonderful. Michigan's got two kids who can and should start. While MGoBlog believes Tate Forcier is going to end up your eventual starting QB, I'm not so sure anymore. While going into camp I really believed that Forcier would grab hold of the starting job, a lot of that was based on my prior belief that Robinson was a non-arm. What's readily apparent is that by working with Coach Rod Smith, Robinson's really progressed quite nicely. And Robinson has something that Forcier doesn't have as much of, speed and elusiveness. Robinson is as close to Pat White as we've got right now. Quirky developing throwing mechanics, but space warping speed that actually sees him gain a ton and a half as he approaches light speed. That's right. I just dropped science on your ass.

Projections

Honestly, you can't go wrong with either Forcier or Robinson at this point. They're still freshmen. They're still learning. They're both going to make horrid mistakes. But they're also going to get better. My money has Forcier starting the Western game and being the better passer. Robinson rips off some huge runs against the depleted Broncos Defense and nothing is solved. What it'll come down to is Tate and Denard battling it out against Notre Dame. Against the Tenuta Blitz, I'm betting Robinson's elusiveness wins him the second half start against ND. You've got to be able to make the first guy miss in this offense. Based on what I've heard, Robinson's just a little better at that than Tate, and when they miss it's all over.

This is a good problem to have, people. After last year's lying to myself about the position and trying to ignore just how bad it was going to be, I'm not filled with the same dread. These two are light years ahead of where Michigan was at the end of last year. They have a decent returning line, lots of talent in the backfield, and a couple of players to throw to. Either one of these kids, by themselves, would be our opening day starter by a mile. Because they're both here, we get the benefit of their best every day in practice because they both want to start.

My prediction must be caveated on the assumption that Robinson can throw. What I've seem on video and the stuff I've gotten through sources says he can. But if Robinson's arm isn't as reputed, then it's Forcier all the way. Howeva, if Robinson can throw, I think Tate starts against Western Michigan but that it's the Denard Robinson show from thereon with Tate playing consistently as the second guy in the rest of the season. We'll see. But either way, it'll be better than last year. My guess? Combined the two go for 2,300 passing yards, 700 rushing yards, 15/9 TD/INT, 6 Rushing TDs. It's optimistic but reasonable at the same time. maybe the passing yards are lower. Maybe there are more rushing yards. But we're back to being excited about the quarterback position.

Friday Happy Hour Hopes its Mustache for Michigan is Foot Race Friendly

Maize n Brew Dave — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:09:35 -0000

Maize n Brew gives you your daily (or semi-daily) rundown of all the Michigan Football, Michigan Basketball, College Football, and College Basketball news you need to get through the tedium of your boring desk job. For good measure we'll throw in a little irreverent information, comedy and commentary to help you salt away the time until the clock strikes 5pm. Want it in 140 characters or less, follow us on Twitter! Or you can find us on Facebook! Here's what's ON TAP:

Stuff You Should Read Right Now

Mustaches For Michigan - Just glorious. Screw that "All in for Michigan" BS. Grow a 'stache to support the team. As an Irishman I've been trying to grow one for 32 years. Think I'm finally getting some stubble. You can also follow these guys on Facebook. Do it. For Michigan.

The Daily Gopher celebrates one year of Brewster Blogging. They've also spent a little time blogging about the Varmint Cong in general. Congrats guys.

If Michigan Had USC’s Problems we'd have to decide whether to sit on the beach or start one of our other five star quarterbacks.

MVictors chronicles the trouble the reinstatement of MSU football player Glenn Winston is causing as does MGoBlog, both are excellent reads. The hockey player he beat the hell out of, A.J. Sturges, is not happy about this and issued a statement on Winston's reinstatement. And the statement is not a nice one.

Last October, I was assaulted by Glenn Winston. This was not a fight, or a disagreement. I was in bed in my room and came downstairs after hearing the commotion caused by three cars pulling up filled with screaming and violent people. I was standing in my front yard trying to figure out what was going on when Glenn Winston punched me in the head from the side. I never saw him. I did not have any chance to protect myself at all. Neither did his other victims.

That night, I received a fractured skull, five stitches inside my mouth, and a subdural hematoma, or bleeding on the brain. I was not involved in a college fight, as this story is perceived. After having nothing to do with any events that occurred earlier that night, I was attacked in my own house...

Me and the other victims have not received any form of apology from Glenn Winston. Nothing. He has not acknowledged to us in any way the damage he caused. While this fact remains ignored, I cannot allow myself to believe that his debts have been paid, or even understood. While the victims of his actions still recover from what he did, Winston’s obligations have been deemed fulfilled by the football program and athletic department. I think his immediate reinstatement after a shortened jail sentence in my opinion is the wrong decision by our athletic program.

While I hope what happened to me will never happen again, I am afraid the precedent set by this decision will only enable similar incidents in the future. With no formal athletic standards or means to deal with student athletes convicted of a violent crime, this cycle will continue.

Beyond legal and team issues, there is a simple human obligation of respect and character that still remains unfulfilled. Until that occurs, I question what has been learned.

God, I feel for this kid. Please read his statement in it's entirety. We'll have to see if this causes for friction within the MSU athletic department or any kind of buzz in the local press. On the Michigan end? When Mike Milano put Steve Kampfer in the hospital he was thrown off the team. I just can't see how Winston's reinstatement is anything other than bad. This just confirms it:

P.S. AT 11:30 P.M.: Here's MSU's reaction to Sturges' press release, via associate AD John Lewandowski: "Our reaction is, there is no new information provided in the Sturges statement that wasn’t already taken into consideration before the Winston reinstatement," Lewandowski said. "We’re moving forward and there will be no additional statements on this matter."

Sparty No!

Dr. Saturday provides five loosely related explanations for the curious fall of Wisconsin. One thing that will surprise the hell out of you is just how good Wisconsin played with Joe Stocco under center. They were 31-7 with Stocco as their QB with 3 NYD bowl appearances. Bet you didn't remember that. Also, take a look at the downfall of the Wisconsin defense. It's shocking.

Lake The Posts got it's feathers ruffled by Joe Montana's recent assertion that Notre Dame has to lower its academic standards to compete in modern college football. LTP's not happy when you say you have to be dumb to play football...

Montana’s assumption that Notre Dame must relax academic standards or lower expectations is a joke. This is classic rationalization inherent in an any organization that wants to ignore the true issues that are at stake. Why do we all feel so strongly about this? Well, as Northwestern fans, we live through the exact same challenges.

Cosign, homie.

(Michigan Football Updates and Other News After the Jump!)

Michigan Football

JT Turner was cleared and will begin practice immediately.

Running back Michael Cox (15) takes a handoff from true freshman quarterback Denard Robinson (16). John T. Greilick / The Detroit News via multimedia.detnews.com

Is Denard Robinson U-M's fastest player? Dunno, but apparently the title will be determined in a footrace between Denard Robinson and Troy Woolfolk.

Schilling 'really impressed' with U-M's three freshman o-linemen. Per Mark Snyder's Blog, Quinton Washington has made the biggest impression.

"He’s huge, you can’t move him," Schilling said of the player out of South Carolina. "I don’t know (how much) he’s lifting, but you try to push him and he won’t move. He’s one of those guys that’s really heavy-set in the ground and you can’t move him but he can move so that’s a good thing."

Donovan Warren heals, warns U-M doubters that he's comintagetcha.

2009 CFN All-Americans & Top Players at DE - BG got honorable mention:

Brandon Graham, Sr., Michigan

On a very thin and a very questionable Michigan defensive front, the 6-2, 268-pound Graham needs to play like the NFL prospect he’s supposed to be. A freak of nature with all the measurables, he ran a 10.9 100-meter dash in high school, he earned second-team All-Big Ten honors after making 46 tackles, ten sacks, and 20 tackles for loss. His sacks came in bunches, destroying Wisconsin with three and playing well against Michigan State with three sacks. Now he’ll be a marked man as the lone star on the defensive front, so he’ll have to get used to more double and triple teams and will have to be patient. The consistent stats won’t be there, but his presence should make everyone around him better.

Michigan comes in 28th in CFN's 2009 Offensive Unit Rankings.

Marell Evans, Vince Helmuth to Transfer (via Michigan Sports Center) - Linebacker Marell Evans and Defensive Tackle Vince Helmuth are planning on transferring. No destinations are named, but both kids are leaving with class and dignity. I wish them both success in their future endeavors.

The NYT Quad Blog takes a look at the fallout from the dismissal of Justin Feagin. No new ground contained therein, just equal time between MGoBlog and the Detroit Free Press. The fact that I can write that sentence shows you just how far blogs, especially blogs like Brian's, have come in the last four years. Kudos to the Times for knowing where the actual information comes from.

Michigan Football Recruiting

Delaware running back Jamaal Jackson says he's down to three schools – Michigan, East Carolina and Rutgers. That is the strangest list I've ever seen. I honestly don't know anything about this kid.

4* LB Christian Jones has Michigan in his top six.

Michigan in top group for 3* MD LB Troy Gloster. Yet another guy bailing on a Stanford commit.

Random Michigan Tidbits

Former U-M guard David Merritt's clothing line launches. Good luck Dave.

Yost Built brings us up to speed on incoming recruits Mac Bennett and Chris Brown.

College Football

Dr. Saturday takes a look at Michigan State's Kirk Cousins versus Keith Nichols QB battle and is left shaking his head. I've got no clue who's going to start at this point and neither does he (though the smart money is on Nichols grabbing the reigns eventually).

The BBC has an indepth look, I mean really indepth look, at tOSU's linebackers for 2009.

Eleven Warriors hits up Ohio State Media Days. Various tid bits from Columbus including word that WR Ray Small should be back on the practice field this week.

Penn State OL J.B. Walton leaves program - Walton was slated to be a backup guard this season. Reportedly left the program to concentrate on his grades. Good luck kid.

PSU cornerback A.J. Wallace suspended for the start of the Season - Joe Pa caught him ditching class. That's no-no son.

More Joe Pa Fun curtesy of EDSBS

"What excites me? Nothing excites me yet," Paterno replied. "I’ll be honest with you: We’re lousy. I have nothing to be excited about right now. "We have too many things we got to get accomplished. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us to be a good football team. I’m excited to be alive, that’s all."

Smart Football: How to beat press man coverage - Ever wonder how Mannigham got those great releases off the line or why Michigan had so much trouble last year? It's all here. Chris Brown explains beating bump and run press coverage.

Shtoopin' in a Restaraunt

What’s Next for Rick Pitino? Man. This story is funny and not funny at the same time. Extortion. Baby makin'. Baby... er... not makin'. Hirin'. Firin'. It's like days of our lives. I'm betting Louisville doesn't can him.

Around the SB Nation: the disappointment of Michigan's Justin Feagin

Joel — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:00:17 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - AP

Browse more photos »

Maize N Brew on how to cope with the departure of Justin Feagin, who was kicked off the team for his participation in a failed drug deal.
And the Valley Shook revises the standard QB rating formula to more properly account for a QB's true success.
The Rivalry, Esq. has some helpful tips to coaches on how to game the BCS.

It Hurts a Bit When Your Self Made Illusions are Shattered

Maize n Brew Dave — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:50:07 -0000

I haven't said much about the the Justin Feagin situation since the news of his dismissal broke. What are you supposed to say when a kid on Michigan's football team, your Michigan Football team, gets himself booted off the team for a failed coke deal? I haven't been able to figure that out. But the long and short of it is the whole thing sucks. It's difficult to pen anything on the subject because there truly is no middle ground. If you write some "emo" post about lost dreams and innocence, well, you're rightfully labeled as an apologist. If you come down hard on the kid and coach for fueling the drug war and not being accountable, you're probably frothing at the mouth and should see a doctor. But the middle ground is generally where I exist, and it's the only ground to occupy that's appropriate on this subject.

The facts of the matter are simple. Lightly rated QB recruit gets his dream shot to play college football at Michigan when basically no one else is recruiting him. Kid makes it to school, fades into the background, plays a little bit, nothing more is heard from him other than "He's been moved to slot receiver." Then the news breaks. He's been dismissed from the team for a violation of team rules. What kind Coach? A violation of team rules. Rumors fly. The kind that say "drugs" in that "he's baked out of his mind" kind of way. Nothing I heard indicated the severity of what "drugs" really meant.

Because fans don't have a lot of interaction with college football players, we develop our own impressions of these kids based on what little information we have. Quotes. Press clippings. Coach speak. But Feagin gave us a little more than that when he committed. Actually he gave us a lot. Mgoblog's "Feagin Dénouement" pretty much sums up how I felt about Feagin before the news of his transgressions became public.

You know, I liked Justin Feagin. As a guy thousands of miles away from the man in question and limited to assembling things other people wrote about him, I had just more than zero to go on, but I liked him anyway. He played both ways at a tiny school and smiled big and innocent on signing day and said things that seemed different and bouncier than your average bouncy, meaningless quote from a guy on or around the greatest day of his life.

He seemed like the type of kid you wanted on your team. Happy. Energetic. Committed. Unafraid. At least that's what we gleefully interpreted from his quotes. So we wondered aloud "why isn't this kid on the field more" when the Michigan quarterback situation spiraled out of control and he seemed for afar as the only player capable of actually running the offense. "Why isn't he getting a shot!?"

(more after the jump.....)

Unfortunately, now we know. Feagin wasn't the young man he presented himself to be. Worse, he wasn't the young man we'd all built him up in our heads to be. Feagin was, to a lot of us, the ultimate underdog. The long shot. We all wanted him to succeed, especially after his early quotes. He told anyone who'd listen we didn't care who the other recruited QBs were, he was going to beat them out. We all wanted that because there's a part of everyone who wishes they could be that brash, and have that opportunity. The unfortunate result was a nice little illusion we crafted for ourselves being shattered into a million pieces. Additionally, it gives a little more ammunition to those who inexplicably loathe Rodriguez to fire at him.

But does it change anything on the field? Not much. Feagin was a fringe recruit who showed it. He would've been lucky to see the field as a special teams player. There was no chance he was going to see time at quarterback. Feagin's departure will have no effect on Michigan's ability to play football games.

On the player and coaching side, Feagin's "activities" are going to raise some questions. Whether they're fair or not. I'm of the school of thought that a coach can't be everywhere, even though he tries to be. So long as a player is complying with his academic requirements, showing up to practice, and not appearing on the Police blotter, it's easy to say the coaching staff is doing all right.

You can make an argument that the Coaching staff had a greater responsibility. If Feagin's reported substance abuse problem was as "extensive" as reported, someone on the coaching staff should've noticed. Burnouts aren't that difficult to spot., right? But then again, maybe he showed up sober to practice and games. Maybe there was no way for the coaching staff to know during their time with him that he had a problem. It's not just possible, it's fairly commonplace in our society for addictions/bad habits to be masked or hidden up to the point of total collapse. I can't fault them for that.

People have suggested Michigan didn't do their research on him. To the contrary, they did. Rodriguez talked with Feagin's high school coach who told him Feagin was a good kid. In fact, Bueno told the Palm Beach Post he had no idea Feagin had any legal problems while he was in high school. Further, the PBP dug a little deeper into Feagin's record and did a search of the,

Florida Department of Law Enforcement records showed that Feagin has received two traffic tickets in Broward County, one in Palm Beach County and was charged with a misdemeanor in Palm Beach that was later dropped. Details regarding the misdemeanor charge are unclear.

That's the extent of it. I can't see how Michigan didn't do it's due diligence on this kid. There's nothing on him. He's a high school kid with two traffic tickets and a dropped misdemeanor on his record. It doesn't say "selling drugs" or "felony." Could the coaching staff have done more before or after Feagin arrived? Sure. But you can always do more. At a certain point the cost of all this "something more" out weights the benefit. Feagin's nose was clean (if you'll pardon the pun) until we learned of the deal gone south. All the information seems to clear the coaching staff on this one.

Honestly, the people I'm most disappointed with (other than Feagin) are the players that knew about Feagin's problems. They should've been the first to let the coach know there was an issue. But they didn't. Perhaps they perceived themselves as looking out for a friend. Hopefully this experience will dissuade them of that misconception.

There is plenty of blame to go around, but the majority of it should be directed at Feagin for some very poor life choices. We all make mistakes, so all we can do is forgive and pray that he makes peace with whatever demons brought him to this point. For me, there is more disappointment than anger over this. You're better off trying to stop the moon from rising than asking 19 year-old kids not to do stupid things. I'm disappointed that a kid at Michigan threw that opportunity away so freely when I know scores of people would trade organs for it. I'm disappointed that this reflects so poorly on a Coach who is honestly doing a really good job at Michigan.

But I guess what I'm most disappointed about it he loss of the little illusion I'd built myself about Feagin. He's not the nice kid I'd hoped he'd be. He's not the ultimate underdog I wanted him to become. He just a kid. And a dumb kid at that.

Golden Nuggz 8.12.2009

Buck Bravo — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 08:00:35 -0000

If you're going to drink before entering TCF Bank Stadium, make sure that you're legal. USA Today is reporting that there will be breathalyzer tests administered to students. Such a policy could help ensure that the crowd is not offensively loud or obnoxious, which would create an unfair advantage for the home team and leave visiting teams with the impression that Minnesota is not a gracious host.
Justin Feagin was apparently dismissed from the Michigan football team for a failed cocaine deal. In 2005, Feagin commented on his future:

"Hopefully, I'll be in the NFL," Feagin said. "That's where I want to go. If that doesn't work out, then I'll go into business. Something with my uncle doing drug testing. He runs a drug testing business."

It turns out that the fox was looking to guard the hen house. Feagin admits that he has been a drug dealer for some time:

Police reports obtained by the Free Press include an interview in which Feagin, 20, tells investigators that he was arrested for trespass and battery "on two different occasions" while adding, "I have admitted to people I know that I used to sell drugs in Florida."

At Michigan, too:

Police spoke to Feagin in the aftermath of a fire outside his dorm room. T.J. Burke, a Michigan student, admitted to setting the fire after Feagin failed to produce an ounce cocaine he had promised to obtain from a Florida connection referred to as "Tragic."

And there's more:

Feagin told police that he arranged the deal and accepted $600 as a partial payment.

"I told (Burke) that I knew someone who could get him some cocaine," Feagin said in his police interview. "A few days later, he asked me if I had talked to the person yet. I called right then and set up the deal."

Although Feagin said he did not sell drugs in Michigan, Burke told police that it was "common knowledge" that Feagin peddled marijuana.

$600.00

Tragic.

Rodriguez told reporters in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Monday that he also did not know of any trouble in Feagin's past.

According to this sports betting blog, Minnesota is currently favored over Syracuse by 6.5 points.
Apparently Ted Roof is still trying to recruit in Minnesota. Offensive tackle Chase Nelson of Edina was visiting Auburn this week.
The Star Tribune features an article that asks five critical questions for the Gopher football team this season. Click here for details.

Nitt Picks is Slow Out of the Gate This Morning

BSD — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 14:46:44 -0000

Ok lots of stuff for you today. Let's just get to it without the sugar coating.

Cory Giger points out in the Altoona Mirror that Evan Royster has an outside chance of setting two distinctions this season.

Evan Royster is on pace to leave Penn State holding two noteworthy distinctions, one relating to the other.

Royster has a chance to not just set, but to blow away the Nittany Lions' career rushing record. The redshirt junior tailback has gained 1,749 yards his first two seasons and needs only 1,650 yards over the next two years to surpass Curt Warner's mark of 3,398.

The other distinction? Royster might end up owning one of the school's most prestigious records yet may go down as one of the most underrated players in program history.

As I pointed out in the running back breakdown in We Are Penn State 2009, Royster has an outside chance of breaking the school's career rushing mark if he can top 1,650 yards this season. And if he doesn't pass the mark this year he will certainly pass it next year. Giger is correct that it's unbelievable Royster hasn't gotten more publicity than he has to date. A big reason for that is the fact Royster was overshadowed last season by players like Beanie Wells, P.J. Hill, and Shonn Greene. The other problem was the talent that surrounded him in the Spread HD and the bumps and bruises that limited his carries. When you only carry the ball 12-15 times per game it's hard to dominate the highlight reel of the game.

Giger also pointed out this weekend that there may be some changes on the offensive line.

Starters: Sr. Dennis Landolt (6-4, 303) said he moved to LT this summer; that means So. DeOn'tae Pannell (6-5, 313), the projected starter there, would move to RT; nothing is finalized, however, though it would make sense to have the more experienced Landolt protecting QB Daryll Clark's blindside.

This is something to keep an eye on, but don't take it too seriously at this point. Coaches often juggle positions in the offseason to cross train players and see what they have to work with. The important thing is they settle on a lineup when camp starts and stick with it to develop the right chemistry. If we see a different starting lineup against Syracuse than we see against Akron, it might be time to hit the panic button in regards to the offensive line.

More Evidence Mark Dantonio is a Jerk

If you recall, around the time Robert Bolden committed to Penn State there was a lot of commotion about Michigan State shutting the door on him a week or two before then. Nobody really had a good explanation at the time, but MSU blog Jolly Green Giants offers one now.

In reality, Robert Bolden was looking to wear the #1 jersey at Michigan State. Now, there would usually be no issue with a pretty simple request. However, Mark Dantonio’s policy would state that a player has to earn the #1 jersey with All-Big Ten selection.

I don't know. I find it hard to believe even Dantonio could turn his back on a top ten quarterback over a jersey number issue. Doesn't really affect anything, but it's a curious piece of information to discuss.

This Week In Schadenfreude

Ohio State kicked off their fall camp this weekend, but as opening days go it was pretty much a downer. This from Eleven Warriors.

Unfortunately, all anyone wanted to talk about were the players not at camp. Rumored academic casualties Ray Small and Robert Rose did not report, but the biggest news of the day was the surprise announcement that Tyler Moeller was in the hospital.

Moeller and Small are expected to be major contributors this fall. Small may not make the grade in the class room while Moeller is is dealing with a potential season or career ending head injury.

And our friends in Ann Arbor are quick to point out it is they who dump their girlfriends and not the other way around. MGoBlog offers this commentary on the information released about the departure of quarterback Justin Feagin.

Feagin was a last-minute addition to Michigan's first class under Rodriguez when it became clear that Rodriguez wasn't likely to acquire a higher-rated quarterback recruit. He did not work out, obviously. The Freep article dryly notes that Feagin "struggled to learn the playbook" mere paragraphs after describing Feagin's extensive marijuana habit.
The onfield impact of Feagin's departure remains nil; the off-field stuff… well, at least when a Michigan player violates team rules he actually violates them. Woo spin!

In Scores of Other Games

The Courier Post has an article on Jack Crawford
Several Penn State players are thankful for a second (or third) chance. Some of them even put on a carnival for charity this weekend.
Jay Paterno's blog is becoming just as popular as his twitter account. Here is a must read for any Nittany Lion fan on the pride of playing for Penn State.
Coquese Washington picked up a major commitment for the womens basketball team with Ariel Edwards from New York.
Finally, a preseason camp kickoff article from the Post Gazette. Nothing earth shattering or anything.

Monday Kickoff

Beauford — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:06:15 -0000

Another weekend, another week closer to kick off as we trudge our way through the longest part of the off season. If you're like us - and I know you are you sick bastards - you're probably sitting at work this morning wondering why, why oh God, did you choose a career path that has you sitting in an office at this ungodly hour. If you do not have a job or are currently on anything resembling a "summer vacation" I'd like to offer a hearty screw you. To get you through this morning, I offer the following:

The Good

The good is that Maize n Brew Dave is flying the flag at the Big Ten media days. He'll update as much as possible, or as much as internet access allows him to. Follow along on Twitter if you're inclined.

The Bad

Justin Feagin; dismissed. This isn't likely to be something that will hurt on the field, but as pointed out in the original article, it does provide those who are inclined to do so more ammo for the "rabble-rabble-Rodriguez" meme. The offense is something called "violation of team rules" which could mean any number of things. No formal charges against Feagin yet - at least, none public - so no inclusion into the Fulmer Cup yet. There are a couple things disappointing about this:

1) Again, as the original article states, this was/is a Rodriguez recruit among the first to get into any significant trouble. He is not an inherited Carson Butler.

2) Feagin committed to Michigan to try to play quarterback at the height of the "will he won't he" Terrelle Pryor mashup. His response to whether Terrelle's decision would influence his own mindset as to the viability of the QB position, his response amounted to "I ain't scared." I loved it at the time, and while his dismissal doesn't really hurt on field, it kind of hurts that a player everyone kind of liked gets booted.

3) Another APR hit. Sigh.

The Ugly

via images.stltoday.com

Half time score: 0-0. Full time score: 5-0. This was a young squad the U.S. put out on the field, buy dayyuum. That's an asswhipping even you, you "they don't score enough" soccer hating fan, can relate to.

Something to talk about

Frequent commenter Jeepnut is going to Iowa and Illinois for a game. Any recommendations about either place?

Bucknotes would probably die choking

Sam @ WWAHT — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:00:20 -0000

Ed. note: this morning, the width parameters on the youtube embeds were messed up; they should be fixed now. The reason for this is that when SBN's space-age blog technology previews stories for us, it's previews them in the "wide view' format, which you can change to at any time over on the left panel. Apologies all around. I probably should actually check the site sometime before my lunch break.

Oh yeah? Oh yeah?! Well I scored a hat trick in floor hockey in my middle school gym class! Beat that, Duron Carter!

Bucknuts.com - Lichter: ‘Pryor Is The Fastest Player On The Team’ ($)
Ha. No. Pryor did not, I repeat, not run a 4.33. He is a physical freak, but ya gotta understand, that puts him in the Taylor Mays range of athleticism going into his sophomore year. If he really did this, and his throwing motion is genuinely better, then you won't be able to quantify his unstoppable-ness by the end of the year

Michigan WR Justin Feagin dismissed from team | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
Another player bolts from Michigan, but this time not of his own volition. Dismissed for the ever-so-vague "violation of team rules", scuttlebutt on the Michigan rivals board says he was stealing from a teammate's locker. Again, it's scuttlebutt, and it's Rivals, so take it with many grains of salt. Feagin was considered an emergency quarterback this year, and was getting his time in at slot receiver (which Michigan has like 87 of, apparently).

Big Ten media days primer - Big Ten - ESPN
Of course, what we're all excited for this week is the Big Ten's annual media hurly-burly in Chicago, starting on Monday. The coaches will address the media starting at 11, and Tuesday will be the time for one-on-one interviews, in which hopefully enough fluff piece material will be gathered to last us until exactly noon on September 5th. I will, of course, not be there. I mean, Fallout 3 won't beat itself for the sixth time, people. Gotta keep my priorities in order, after all.

Deaf fan sues Ohio State to get captions at games
Okay, I'm all for equal rights and accommodating the needs of the disabled, but does this strike anyone else as a money-grab? I mean, Ohio State's PR guy said this in response:

"The bottom line is, had the individual called us, we would have taken action."

However, in the Litigation Nation, someone smelled cheddar to be made, and now the university has to deal with this. Hopefully a settlement can reached, the fairly simple changes can be made, and it'll be forgotten about in a year.

Is commitment 10 right around the corner? (Blogging the Buckeyes)
Chad Hagan, a linebacker/safety hybrid-type guy person I discussed in the last recruiting update, will probably commit to Ohio State soon; K/P Will Hagerup will probably be deciding shortly thereafter. Question: do we really need another kicker, with Ben Buchanan already in the fold, and Drew Basil in the same class as Hagerup?

BuckeyeXtra - Overseas tour touches Tressel
.... in the naughty bits! Alright, seriously: it's fluff, but it's also a nice read about Tress's experience on the Coaches' Tour of the Middle East with Mack Brown, Neuheisel, Nutt, Grobe, Tubbs and Crockett. Fine, Tubberville was there, but Sonny Crockett wasn't. He was in my heart:

If you're wondering where I fit into all of this, I'm not Tubbs or Crockett, I'm the creepy balding dude (Jan Hammer) grooving on my keytar in a dark room, wishing he actually was on Miami Vice and not making bad techno music.

Hey, Doug: Doug Lesmerises answers your Ohio State questions - cleveland.com

Of interest:

Can you assure us OSU fans that Jim Tressel is every bit as good a coach as Florida's Urban Meyer, Alabama's Nick Saban, Oklahoma's Bob Stoops, USC's Pete Carroll and Notre Dame's Charlie Weis? -- Tom O'Malley, Cleveland

For this, Tom O'Malley from Cleveland, you're on notice. Enjoy the company.

Three of the coaches listed have exactly as many BCS titles as Tressel; Saban, Carroll and Stoops each have one - and Stoops won his in 2000, Saban won it all in 2003, and then Carroll did it in 2004. In other words, everyone but Urban Meyer - in my mind, the college football's reigning tyrannical madman - won their last title within two years of Tressel's last. Stoops is the second most egregious guy on this list; he's lost five straight BCS bowl games, and three national titles in that span. That however, is a distant second to the dumbfounding Charlie Weis name-drop. Ahem:

The bitcheraciousness of Charlie Weis' "gameplanning" (and I use that term loosely) knows no bounds

Inside-Outside is Sick of The Tebow - Black Shoe Diaries
The guys at BSD are rather humble about their team next year, but this caught my eye:

People will argue that I’m overlooking the losses on the o-line, which is fair, but you can never tell how good an o-line is going to be anyway. Ohio State’s completely let them down last year despite returning what I think was the entire unit [...]

That was not technically the entire unit; Kirk Barton headed up a fairly solid unit in 2007, and many have pointed to the loss of his leadership and charisma as part of the line's struggles in 2008. He was a solid right tackle for years at Ohio State, but I never thought he'd be quite that important to us. Did you? If you're looking for leadership of Barton's caliber on this year's line, look to the surnames that begin with B's: Brewster and Boren both have similar levels of fire and tenacity, and Brewster has a good year of experience under his belt - and the growing respect of his teammates that naturally comes with it . Have I mentioned that I'm particularly excited to see those two mowing down opposing interiors this fall? Because I am.

Four Star Quarterbacks, Success, Failure, and What Michigan Football can Expect out of Tate Forcier

Maize n Brew Dave — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:33:59 -0000

As a general rule, highly rated quarterback recruits are the crown jewel of any school's recruiting class. Sure you can bring in a #1 Linebacker or a #1 Offensive Tackle, but those guys don't score points and their faces aren't plastered all over ABC or CBS every fall Saturday. Offenses simply don't work without an able bodied/minded signal caller under center.

But high school kids rarely turn out to be the person we thought they'd be coming out of high school. While Dr. Saturday has pointed out on numerous occasions (link no longer available) that a 5* player is far more likely than a 4* or 3* player to make the NFL, for some reason a 5* is far more likely to get himself arrested than a 4* or 3* (from the 2005 class at least). You get your five star flame outs (Ryan Perrilloux) far more often than your #1DC's like Matt Stafford, and you're just as likely to be starting a three star quarterback that you recruited as "insurance" than your four/five star savior.

For Michigan, this is not welcome news. Since the departure of five star rated Chad Henne, Michigan has gone from five star rated Ryan Mallett to no star rated Nick Sheridan to four star rated Steven Threet, back to Sheridan, then to two star Justin Feagin, to Threet, to Sheridan, and now, finally, to four star rated Tate Forcier. Looking at the preceding list, it's easy to disillusioned by the rankings process. Mallett transferred, Threet transferred (again), Sheridan was basically useless, and Feagin is being switched to receiver. As a result, Michigan will be starting a first year quarterback for the second straight year.

Despite Michigan's string of bad luck under center last year, it has failed to temper the enthusiasm of the Wolverine faithful when talking about Tate Forcier's first snaps. While (thankfully) this enthusiasm hasn't gone all Beano Cook, it is palpable when you talk to a Michigan fan. And to his credit, Forcier has done something to stoke that fire. Four passing touchdowns and one running touchdown in your spring game, your first anything against college competition, will get people excited.

Oddly, in watching that video the first thing that jumps out at me is not, OMG Savior!, it's "our defense is going to be baaaaaaaaaaad." But I digress. Watching this video is incredibly reassuring for any Michigan fan who had to sit through or pour over bad video of last year's spring practice. Combined, IIRC, Threet and Sheridan combined for 6 turnovers and no touchdowns via the air in 2008. And that performance was turned in against what proved to be the worst Michigan defense in Michigan history. I'm just saying.

So it's kind of hard to truly judge what we can expect out of Forcier against live competition, you know, the kind that will actually try to tackle him. Last year's quarterback play set the bar very low. But, Forcier seems to have the unique abilities required to run Rodriguez system. Tate showed the ability to throw on the run. Go deep. Scramble out of a sack. Not spike himself. These are good things.

Last year Michigan quarterbacks combined to go an abysmal 165/338 for 1718 yards, 11TD/12INT and a miserable combined QB rating of 95.2. Nick Sheridan's numbers alone make you cringe, a QB rating of 81.1 and a 2/5 TD/INT ratio despite starting a handful of games. If you just threw up a little in your mouth, you're not alone. Say what you want about changing systems, these guys were not and are not good quarterbacks in any system with numbers like that. Last year Forcier's numbers look like a shiny beacon in comparison. 208/326 for 3424 yards, 23/15 TD/INT ratio, 783 yards rushing on 92 attempts, and 12 rushing TDs. But lets break this down a bit.

For context on the competition, Forcier's High School, Scripps Ranch, is a Division II South school in California. Scripps is in the middle tier high school division for California schools with enrollment between 2400 and 1100 kids. The bigger Division I schools have enrollment from 2400 and up [some almost reaching 5000 enrollment]. Scripps is one of the larger Division II schools with enrollment around 2100. So he definitely facing decent competition, he's just not facing a Long Beach Poly kind of talent pool (4600+ kids).

Now, onto the numbers. One thing that jumps out at me is the 2 to 1 TD/INT ratio in 2008. Forcier, if you look at his numbers, had his best season as a HS junior where he was 21/5 TD/INT. But that's two years ago, with different personnel. Last year in 12 games, Forcier had just three games without an INT, and threw 2 picks or more in five games. Tate's playoff numbers were a mixed bag, throwing for over 300 yards in one game, but tossing a combined 5 picks in both play off games he played in. The glass half empty kind of person can take that as Tate wilting under pressure.

But the reality is that's far from the case. Scripps was a good, but not great team last year going 8-4. Their second round bow-out from the DII playoffs was against 12-0-1 Oceanside, the defending state champs, who won their fifth consecutive Division II section title in 2008. Forcier scored both TDs in the loss for Scripps, and a look at the boxscore shows there's not a lot you can do when you give up 28 points in the 4th quarter. Looking at the results, you'll note a couple of games where Scripps gave up 40+ points, including 70(!) to the eventual state champs, Cathedral. FWIW, Forcier was 21/36 for 295 yards, 4TDs and 1INT in the Cathedral game.

What all this means is Michigan is getting a kid who has taken his lumps, knows what it's like to get planted, and has played well against higher levels of competition. Is he the Rich Rod savior we've been hoping for? Chances are we're not going to know for a while. After the jump you'll find the Rivals rankings for every quarterback receiving four stars or higher since 2005, and a few three stars of note. Of this group, over five years, you're only going to find five or six quarterbacks that jump off the page at you. Three of those page jumpers are: Tebow, Bradford, and McCoy. Surprisingly, Bradford and McCoy were three star recruits.

If it seems like things are a little off moving towards 2005, you're right. In '05 Rivals handed out only thirteen four star plus ratings to quarterbacks. In 2009, Rivals handed out twenty five four star plus ratings, nearly double the 2005 amount. In my opinion, this might have something to do with the precipitous drop in production from 4* plus players. When you're handing out high ratings like candy, eventually you degrade the overall effect of that rating. It also explains why I'm nervous about anointing a four star quarterback, even a good one, as a program savior or more modestly as an offensive savior.

So what do these numbers mean for Michigan and Tate? It means we should all cool our jets a tad. Given the number of four and five star flameouts over the last five years, a four star QB is statistically more likely to be a bust than a success. Further, regardless of pedigree, even the best of the best get hammered in year one. Everyone remembers the lumps Chad Henne took as a first year starter, the bad throws, the bailouts by Braylon. And Chad was one of the highest ranked QB recruits in the country at the time. Sam Bradford's been a starter since day one but he got beaten down fairly regularly too. What helped Braford, and what is a major question mark for Forcier, is Bradford's OU defense was AWESOME that year and Bradford often had the opportunity to fix things when he messed up.

Tate's in that middle ground between OMG SHIRTLESS and good, solid prospect. On the negative side, he's shorter than we'd like. He's got good, but not great arm strength. He's shown a propensity, at least at the High School level to throw some picks. On the positive, he has shown great escapability. Great instincts. Good decision making. Has a resume jam packed with awards and MVPS. And an arm that is more than capable of delivering the ball down field and into tight pockets mid field. But all this is conjecture before he plays a single game. So before we all start bringing offerings to his temple, let's allow the kid to show us what he can do in a real game environment.

But here's where the realistic fan in me comes out; it's really hard not to get excited about what he's shown so far. On the basis of his high school career, spring performance, and Rodriguez offense, 2,300 passing yards, 700 rushing yards, 15/9 TD/INT, 6 Rushing TD seems like a reasonable expectation. Juice Williams threw for 3,000 plus last year while running for 700 yards on a bad team. Having seen both players throw, I like Forcier considerably more than Williams as a passer. The rushing numbers will be comparable just because of the nature of the offense. Forcier's going to run the ball. It's a necessity in this offense. So he'll have every opportunity to gain rushing yards.

I may be underselling the passing a tad, but I don't know how well our receivers are going to play this year. They should be a solid group, but there were a lot of dropped and misplayed balls last year. If the receivers play better, I think Tate can get them the ball and my projection would go up from there.

Thoughts?

Here's the list of ranked quaterbacks from 2005 forward. Help me fill in the blanks on these guys if you can.

Rivals.com dual-threat quarterbacks 2009

1Russell Shepard 5* LSU

2Tyrik Rollison 4* Auburn

3Eugene Smith 4* West Virginia

4Kevin Newsome 4* Penn State

5Tate Forcier 4* Michigan

6Cody Green 4* Nebraska

7Nathan Scheelhaase 4* Illinois

8Shavodrick Beaver 4* Tulsa

9Casey Pachall 4* TCU

10Jordan Reed 4* Florida

11Raymond Cotton 4* Ole Miss

Not included – 14 Denard Robinson 4* ATH - Michigan

Rivals.com pro-style quarterbacks 2009

1Matt Barkley 5* USC

2Garrett Gilbert 5* Texas

3Aaron Murray 4* Georgia

4Tajh Boyd 4* Clemson

5Bryn Renner 4* North Carolina

6Richard Brehaut 4* UCLA

7AJ McCarron 4* Alabama

8Tom Savage 4* Rutgers

9Andrew Maxwell 4* Michigan State

10Allan Bridgford 4* California

11Zach Mettenberger 4* Georgia

12Tyler Russell 4* Mississippi State

13Josh Nunes 4* Stanford

14Ryan Mossakowski 4* Kentucky

Rivals.com dual-threat quarterbacks 2008

1Terrelle Pryor 5* OSU – You may have heard of him

2E.J. Manuel 4* Florida State

3MarQueis Gray 4* Minnesota - eligibility issues

4Robert Griffin 4* Baylor - Starter

5Matt Scott 4* Arizona

6Darron Thomas 4* Oregon - Bench

7Curt Phillips 4* Wisconsin

8B.J. Daniels 4* South Florida

9Kody Spano 3* Nebraska

10Jaybo Shaw 3* Georgia Tech - Included for awesome name

Rivals.com pro-style quarterbacks 2008

1Blaine Gabbert 5* Missouri - sorta starter

2Dayne Crist 5* Notre Dame - Bench

3Mike Glennon 4* N.C. State - starter

4Andrew Luck 4* Stanford

5Star Jackson 4* Alabama

6Landry Jones 4* Oklahoma

7Jacory Harris 4* Miami - Starter

8Jordan Jefferson 4* LSU

9Tyler Wilson 4* Arkansas

10Kyle Parker 4* Clemson

Rivals.com dual-threat quarterbacks 2007

1Tyrod Taylor 5* VTech – Starter

2Cameron Newton 5* Florida

3Aaron Corp 4* Southern Cal - Starter

4Stephen Garcia 4* South Carolina - washout?

5Willy Korn 4* Clemson - Starter

6Keith Nichol 4* Oklahoma - Bench/transfer?

7Chris Forcier 4* UCLA - Washout/transfer

8Kodi Burns 4*Auburn

9Josh Nesbitt 4* Georgia Tech - starter

10Logan Gray 4* Georgia

11Kellen Kiilsgaard 4* Stanford

12Bradley Starks 4* West Virginia

Rivals.com pro-style quarterbacks 2007

1Jimmy Clausen 5* Notre Dame - Starter

2Ryan Mallett 5* Michigan – Transfer/Starter

3John Brantley 4* Florida

4Mike Paulus 4* North Carolina

5Peter Lalich 4*Virginia

6Pat Bostick 4*Pittsburgh - Bench

7Jarrett Lee 4* LSU - sorta starter

8Robert Marve 4* Miami-FL - washout/transfer

9Steven Threet 4* Georgia Tech – Sadly, washout/Transfer x2.

10BJ Coleman 4* Tennessee - nothing

Rivals.com: Dual-threat quarterbacks 2006

1Tim Tebow 5* Florida (Football Jesus)

2Demetrius Jones 4* Notre Dame Washout/Transfer – Now a linebacker at NIU

3Jevan Snead 4* Texas – Transfer/Starter at Ole Miss

4Jake Locker 4* Washington – Punching bag/Starter

5Jeremy Ricker 4* Maryland

6Austen Arnaud 4* Iowa State

7Garrett Green 4* Southern Cal - bench

8Sherrod Harris 4* Texas - bench

9Antonio Henton 4* Ohio State – Who?

11Rick Stanzi 3* Iowa – Starter/Manzi

14Adam Weber 3* Minnesota - Starter

15Nate Davis 3* Ball State - NFL

16Todd Reesing 3* Kansas – Marky M says Balla.

Rivals.com Pro-style quarterbacks 2006

1Matthew Stafford 5* Georgia 1DC

2Mitch Mustain 5* Arkansas Washout

3Isiah Williams 4* Illinois Starter

4Josh Freeman 4* Kansas State Starter/washout/NFL?

5Pat Devlin 4* Penn State washout/transfer

6Kevin Riley 4* California sorta starter

7Neil Caudle 4* Auburn bench

8Chris Smelley 4* South Carolina sorta starter/washout

9Zach Frazer 4* Notre Dame washout

10Tyler Lyon 3* Arizona Bench

11Greg McElroy 3* Alabama – Starter (sorta)

12Sam Bradford 3* Oklahoma (Heisman winner)

Rivals.com Pro-style quarterbacks 2005

1Mark Sanchez 5* Southern Cal - NFL

2Jonathan Crompton 4* Tennessee - sorta starter

3Harrison Beck 4* Nebraska

4Derek Shaw 4* Arizona State

5Willie Tuitama 4* Arizona - One Time Stater/washout

6Rob Schoenhoft 4* Ohio State - bench

7Joe Cox 4* Georgia - bench?

8Arkelon Hall 3* Washington St.

9Domenic Natale 3* Michigan State

10Sean Canfield 3* Oregon State

11Bill Stull 3* Pittsburgh - starter

12Evan Sharpley 3* Notre Dame - Graduated

14Dustin Sherer 3* Wisconsin - sorta starter

15Colt McCoy 3* Texas - Starter Heisman Candidate

Rivals.com: Dual-threat quarterbacks 2005

1Ryan Perrilloux 5* LSU - Washout of spectacular fashion

2Jake Christensen 4* Iowa - Washout

3Ike Whitaker 4* Virginia Tech - Washout

4Josh Portis 4* Florida - ?

5Kyle Reed 4* California - ?

6Chase Daniel 4* Missouri - NFL?

7Jimmy Johns 3* Alabama - Proveyor of Fine Powdered Products

10Zac Robinson 3* Oklahoma State - Starter

McGuffie Back in the Fold?

Beauford — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 16:22:00 -0000

Some news, updates, etc. on the PANIC OMG PANIC moment of the week, via Scout($) and ESPN:

Wide Receiver Zion Babb was kicked off the team for violating rules. This is not a transfer, it's a dismissal. I can't find the exact rules that were violated, but suffice to say he is no longer with the team.

Sam McGuffie is EXPECTED TO PLAY this Saturday against Ohio State after attending a funeral in Texas. I fully expect him to be staring ice-daggers from his helmet at anyone who so much as talks to him this weekend, friend or foe. Welcome back, Sam. We'd all love to get ice-daggered for the next 3 years if you don't mind.
Now go kick some Ohio State ass.

Steve Schilling, arguably the most talented and certainly most experienced offensive linemen has injured his knee and is questionable for Ohio State. More Arg.

Steven Threet is practicing, but in a backup roll to Nick Sheridan who continues to get the first team snaps. I also expect to see Feagin in an expanded roll because, really, what do we have to lose?

Finally, defensive tackle Jason Kates has left the team voluntarily after not playing much this year. With Mike Martin expirimenting with various levels of awesome this year as a true freshman, and with a whole slew of very talented DT's coming in next year's recruiting class, the transfer is probably not unexpected. I wish Kates the best as he continues to pursue life, wherever it takes him.

Also of note, Orson Swindle of EDSBS had a dream last night that Michigan beat Ohio State. Why is this of note? Because of this statement:

Remember, though: someone’s getting their head kicked in on Saturday. It’s probably [Michigan], but sometimes, people are wrong about those foot-to-head roles.

Keep. Hope. Alive.

Keep. Hope. Alive. Indeed.