SB Nation - Greg Mathews

Michigan preview

BoilerTMill — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:59:54 -0000

It has come to this. All of the dreams we have of playing in a bowl this football season come down to winning in Ann Arbor. Doing so would be the first such victory since Griese was at quarterback. I don't mean Brian in the late 90's for the Wolverines either. Our favorite taco-loving announcer was Purdue's quarterback on October 15, 1966 when we won 22-21 in Ann Arbor.

It is a difficult position to be in, but I wouldn't have it any other way. When I was in school, I always tackled the hardest projects first. I knew if I could finish them, everything else would be easy. That is what we face now. Winning at Michigan is the most difficult of our remaining three games. Win, and we have a better chance to win the final two games. Lose, and it is all about building for next year.

Before the season, this was the only loss I had put in sharpie, as the Boiled Sports guys say. I even gave us a chance against Ohio State at home because we play the Buckeyes well and we were at home. Michigan is quite different. In the three victories over Michigan I have personally witnessed (1996, 2000, 2008) we have had to hang on until the final play in each one. Don't even get me started on our visits to Ann Arbor, which have gone as follows:

1969: L 20-31

1972: L 6-9

1974: L 0-51

1975: L 0-28

1978: L 6-24

1980: L 0-26 (This loss cost us the Big Ten title and Rose Bowl that season)

1982: L 21-52

1983: L 10-42

1985: L 0-47

1989: L 27-42

1991: L 0-42

1993: L 10-25

1995: L 0-5

1999: L 12-38 (Our other four losses that season were by a touchdown or less)

2001: L 10-24

2003: L 3-31 (This also cost us the Big Ten title and Rose Bowl)

2007: L 21-48

That is 17 straight losses at the Big House. In six of those games we didn't even score a single point. Kyle Orton, Drew Brees, Mark Herrman, and Jim Everett never even came close to a win. Shoot, Rick Trefzger in 1995 came closer than any of them. This is what we have to look forward to on Saturday. There is good news though: Joey Elliott led a pair of touchdown drives in the last two minutes during our last visit, so he had a better game in half a quarter than most Purdue quarterbacks.

A rare close game by Purdue at the Big House.

2009 Record: 5-4, 1-4 Big Ten

2008 Record: 3-9, 2-6 Big Ten

Bowl Result: none

Blog Representation: MGoBlog, MVictors, Varsity Blue, Michigan Sports Center, iBlog for Cookies, Maize'n'Brew, Maize & Blue Nation

Series with Purdue: Michigan leads 41-13-0

Last Purdue win: 11/1/2008 at Purdue 48-42

Last Michigan win: 10/13/2007 at Michigan 48-21

It is hard to believe that Michigan started 4-0, but their one win since came in a D-1AA exhibition against Delaware State. Even more unbelievably, they got drilled by an awful Illinois team last week. I can't figure this team out right now. They haven't even been competitive the last two weeks against two teams (Penn State and Illinois) they have historically dominated.

Michigan offense:

The key to any victory this time around will be stopping the Wolverines in the first quarter. Michigan has scored 111 points this season it the first quarter of their nine games. By comparison, they have just 28 third quarter points in that time. If we can prevent them from jumping on us early we have a chance. I am also encouraged that they run a similar offensive style to Oregon. Our defense did a good job of stopping the Ducks (remember, 17 of the 38 points given up were because of turnovers) and Oregon has better personnel running it.

We will definitely see two quarterbacks. Tate Forcier (107-193-5) has nine touchdowns and 1,429 yards passing. He is by far the bigger passing threat. Denard Robinson (11-22-4) has two touchdowns and 179 yards passing. With four interceptions in 22 attempts we want him to throw. Make no mistake. This is by far a run first team. Robinson has rushed for 287 yards and five touchdowns while Forcier has 214 and two scores.

Even though we won last year, we couldn't stop an offense that had struggled all year. They have been more successful this season, so we had better hope we have improved in that area. Brandon Minor (332-5) had a field day against us, going for a career high 155 yards and three scores, but he has been battling injuries of late. Carlos Brown (465-4) leads the team in rushing, but Michigan is at its best when it is spreading the ball around in the running game. Vincent Smith (208-1) and Michael Shaw (181-2) have been known to get in on the action too.

While Michigan's passing game isn't highly productive, it is balanced. Martavious Odoms (22-272-1) is the leading receiver, but Greg Mathews (18-204-1), Kevin Koger (15-211-2), Junior Hemingway (13-233-2), and Darryl Stonum (12-189-1) provide balance across the board. Roy Roundtree, yes that Roy Roundtree, has produced 6 catches for 136 yards and a score.

Michigan has had some issues of late with the offensive line. The unit has given up 19 sacks on the season, and has had some trouble opening holes for the running game. This is not a hulking line like Wisconsin's last week. Four of five starters are under 300 pounds, while Stephen Schilling is the biggest guy at 304 pounds. We should have some room to operate and be disruptive with our defensive line this week.

Michigan Defense:

This is where Purdue has struggled historically. They have been unable to generate any points against the Wolverines. In the four games in which Purdue topped 20 points during this streak most of them came after game was well decided. It is not so much that Michigan has had a lights out defense in that time. It has just been that Purdue has been unable to do anything against it.

Our offensive line could have its hands full with Brandon Graham at the end position., Graham has 6.5 sacks on the season, 17.5 tackles for loss, and is generally a disruptive force in the defensive backfield. Defensive tackle Ryan Van Bergen (32 tackles, four sacks) can also cause some problems. Michigan typically goes with a 3-4 set as opposed to the 4-3's we have seen most of the year. That means faster linebackers will be on the field, but there could be more room to run.

Obi Ezeh is the most active of those linebackers, leading the team with 63 tackles. Stevie Brown (55 tackles), Jonas Mouton (53 tackles) and Craig Roh the the remaining linebackers. It is an interesting mix of youth and experience as Ezeh, Mouton, and Brown are seniors while Roh is a true freshman.

Michigan has had some problems in the secondary. Donovan Warren is a solid cornerback with three interceptions, but they are hurting from the loss of Boubacar Cissoko, who was dismissed form the team before last week's game against Illinois. Troy Woolfolk and Michael Williams man the safety positions, but neither has an interception this season.

Michigan should be more vulnerable to the running game than Wisconsin. Illinois went nuts on the ground last week, and they had no discernable running game until two weeks ago. Their pass defense has been suspect as well. If we can limit turnovers and get back to moving the ball we might have a chance.

Michigan Special Teams:

Behold Zoltan, destroyer of worlds! Zoltan Mesko, aside from having the coolest name in the Big Ten, is a pretty good punter averaging almost 45 yards per kick. It's not like we have a punt return game anyway, so we should get ready to field deep kicks.

Jason Olesnavage is a decent kicker, hitting on 8 of 9 field goals with a long of 44. Bryan Wright is actually a kickoff specialist apart from Olesnavage and Mesko. He is holding teams to about 22 yards per return. Michigan's return game itself is pretty dangerous. We all know what Odoms did to us last year. Stonum has a kickoff return for a touchdown. Also of note, Graham has a blocked punt returned for a score, but it was against Delaware State.

Intangibles:

Do I really need to point it out? The Boiled Sports guys and I discussed how a new coaching staff and new players can make a difference. They do not have the history of the 17 game losing streak on them. The truth is that it hasn't mattered. Every team we have taken up there, with different players, coaches, and philosophies, has gotten drilled for the past 43 years. I gave up two years ago when I went to the game and saw us fall behind 48-7 to a team that got worked by a 1-AA squad. This team has reached a rare level for me. I won't believe we can win there until I see it happen. I held the same attitude toward Notre Dame Stadium until 2004, but even then we had a series of close losses leading up to that win. There is no such history here.

Michigan has ownership over us on their home field rarely seen in college football. It is not that they have won 17 straight. They have done it with just two games being remotely close. Yes we have had some bad teams in this streak, but we have had some very good teams (1999, 2001, and 2003 were all in the top 15 at kickoff) get drilled in Ann Arbor. Technically in 2007 we were ranked at game time, so we have taken a ranked team in our last four trips to the Big House and been outscored 141-46. That is even with two meaningless touchdowns late in our last game.

The numbers are just not there to make me believe we can suddenly turn it around. Right now, I feel more confident about winning in any other venue in the Big Ten, maybe even the country, than I do about winning in Ann Arbor.

Keys to the Game for Purdue:

Catch the football
Limit turnovers
Limit special teams mistakes
Play against the run like we did against Oregon
Don't crap ourselves like we always do in Ann Arbor.

Agony of Defeat: Michigan fails to show up in East Lansing until the very end, nearly gets away with it

SCM — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 16:18:47 -0000

Sonofa.....

First off congratulations to Michigan State on winning the football game. Frankly, I'm not sure if our football team has any feet left after we shot them all off yesterday, what more can you say? In a game that featured approximately 54 minutes of woeful offensive ineptness coupled with periods of alternating defensive brilliance and stoutness-resembling-that-of-a-wet-noodle, it's difficult to imagine that we forced it to overtime. Consider that after the first quarter, State had tallied somewhere around 150 yards of offense to our none and you'll get an idea of how things were going for the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday. Yet, despite all of the missed opportunities, the turnover on State's 10 yardline, the failure to punch our first possession forward in any way from their 14, and Zoltan's mind-bending decision to take off from inside our own 20, and our rage-inducing ability to let a team convert on 3rd and long time and again, there we were with a chance to walk out of East Lansing at 5-0. Arg indeed.

Miscellaneous

- If anyone can explain Mark Dantonio's in-game decisions yesterday, you go ahead and let me know. Between his insistence on switching his QBs on a whim and going into super-shell mode at the end of the football game that gave us those opportunities to come back I was continually thinking to myself "what the @#%@ is he doing?" Sure he's going to be an insufferable imbecile for the next year, but who cares?

- Going for two at the end of regulation never entered my mind. Why would you when you have all of the momentum in the football game?

- If an Irish fan ever complains about the refs again, they should have their face caved in by all bystanders. What happened to Washington in that game was criminal.

Offense

- Carlos Brown and Brandon Minor combined for ten carries.... TEN @#%@#% CARRIES! Of my "um, excuse me coaching staff, would you mind addressing this?" questions from this football game, this is at the top of the list. That Carlos Brown touched the football eight times total is CRIMINAL. I mean, I have no explanation for it, none. Brown deserves to touch the football 20 times a game, period. He's the most explosive player on the field, feed him the ball.

- The offensive line had its worst performance of the year, I haven't re-watched the game (and to be honest I won't) but we had absolutely no movement off the line and more often than not they were blown off the ball. State dominated the line of scrimmage. Though it does at least appear that we've worked out the snap issue.

- I hate being one of those people who questions play-calling, but you pick off State to start the game and have the ball inside their 15 yardline... very next play should be taking a shot at the end-zone. That was an eerily similar start to last year's OSU game, except this time we at least managed 3 points...

- If Michigan had come out on top of this thing, we'd be talking about that 92 yard drive in the rain with no timeouts for many moons to come. Angry though I am about the loss, I'll take our football team and this quarterback every day of the week and twice on Saturdays thanks. That Michigan played approximately 5 minutes of offensive football and nearly won this thing... well it's just ridiculous is what it is.

- Tate Forcier also got away with MURDER on two throws during that drive... the first one to Junior Hemingway that Junior essentially just took away from the Spartan DB and then the second to last play into the endzone where he appeared to shoot a free-throw towards the back line and miraculously did not have it picked. Moxy? Boatloads. Living on the edge? Yes. He made a poor decision that bit us in the very end, but you take the bad with the good at this point, if it weren't for Tate picking the team up on his shoulders we don't even make it to OT. Not letting him off for the pick, but let's realize that without him this wasn't even a contest yesterday. I'll flat out take him over every QB in the league without even blinking... and he's a true freshman.

- I want us to let Denard Robinson throw the football. I had no problem with him coming in the game, we had done NOTHING on offense up to that juncture so why not? But if you're going to put him in, you have to let him throw. Make the plays really easy one sided reads with a quick check down for God's sake, but let him throw it!

- Another quietly solid football game from Martavious Odoms, I really really like how he plays the game. Roy Roundtree! Welcome Sir! Junior Hemingway, where have you gone?! Daryl Stonum had me thinking all kinds of poor thoughts prior to his outstanding 60 yard touchdown... that, however, does not preclude me from saying this: HOLD ON TO THE FREAKIN' FOOTBALL. I'm surprised we didn't try more down-field passing early in the game, I know there was lots of pressure, but that matchup favors our receivers every single time. Greg Mathews was pretty much unheard of the whole day.

- I can't be the only person who thought at halftime, "we're going to make a couple of adjustments and pop the clutch on the offense here to start the 3rd quarter." If anyone noticed any offensive adjustments, please point them out to me.

- I'm not naming names on this one, but blatant drops are like white-hot fire pokers to the soul.

Defense

- I don't really know what to say... to give up 20 points based on all of that yardage and time of possession was a great effort. BUT, to give up all of that yardage and time of possession was agonizingly awful considering how many 3rd and a million's we gave up. If the D managed to get off the field even half of the time it had the chances to, we win this thing going away. That sounds overly critical, but it gets back to the whole argument of "number of trials", the offense needed more plays, and the D didn't deliver in that area enough.

- Hey, pressure on the QB!!! Alright!

- Hey, rushing three on 3rd and 17.... hide the sharp objects. My cat vomited right after that play, possibly due to noise level in the house, but I prefer to think that even he was able to recognize just how stupid that was and was made physically ill by it.

- Brandon Graham must've finally decided that despite being held blatantly on every play that he was just going to get to the QB regardless. A couple of outstanding plays by him yesterday. He also broke that felon Winston in half on 3rd and goal after our "fake punt", nicely done.

- We held their passing game in check, something I don't think many of us would've ever predicted heading into the game. We also reverted even further in our tackling... which is enraging. Way too many freakin' missed tackles, including the final one. Those are also like white hot fire pokers to the soul.

- Stevie Brown continues to be the most consistent player in the LB corps, which, awesome. This is just based upon what I saw during the game again, but Jonas Mouton continues to be out of position more often than not and on big plays too.... I don't have a fix for this, but the coaches really, REALLY need to figure one out. I thought Ezeh played better, but again I wasn't paying attention to where he was on every play.

- Did Cissoko even see the field? I thought JT Floyd played pretty well, better than his debut performance without a doubt.

- Several of our safeties have a terrible habit of simply running into people rather than, you know, tackling them.

- Holding that team to 20 points should've been more than enough.

Special Teams

- Jason Olesnavage, good job man, has been more than reliable thus far.

- Zoltan Zoltan Zoltan Zoltan Zoltan... even Space Emperors aren't immune from momentary lapses of reason apparently.... Jesus Tapdancing Christ what were you thinking? Yeah we held them to three... which uh, would've been a nice three to have back with 2 seconds to go in the game no? By the way, the spot on Forcier's scramble that lead to that "punt" was criminally bad, but that's beside the point.

- Stonum is unbelievably lucky that guy was out of bounds when he recovered his fumble... young man, this is not 2008, hold on to the football (again).

- I think we're going to block a punt next week, we've been oh-so-close quite a few times this year, so I'll go out on a limb and call for it here.

Summary

- 4-1 after 5 games would've had a lot of people thrilled back in August... After seeing how we lost that "1" though, I'm disappointed. Not in a stupid way, just disappointed. 5-0 was well within our grasp.

- Our perfect OT record is now ruined, arg.

- This week's game is enormously important now, which, duh.

- GIVE CARLOS BROWN THE FOOTBALL, PLEASE, I'M BEGGING YOU.

GO BLUE!

Unit by Unit: Breaking Down Michigan Football's Offense After Its Win Over Indiana

Maize n Brew Dave — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:21:17 -0000

Hey! Lookit this, we're not running hopelessly behind, so it's time to get started with the Michigan Indiana Unit by Unit breakdown. We'll take a hard look at the players and the coaches for each particular unit on the team, and bring them in for a pat on the back or a wag of the finger. After we've looked at each position, we'll give you a final wrap on the team's play on Offense and Defense (Special Teams too!). If you're looking for more detail, game bullets are here, the wrap up is here, the boxscore is here, and the general AP recap is here. If you're looking to peruse the Michigan Official photos from the game, check out this. There are the links, so now let's take a good hard look at....

The Offense

David Guralnick via Detroit News.com

It's funny to think that when our offense puts up 36 points we're sitting here, at least initially, thinking it was a rough day. But the numbers bear this out. Michigan was outgained by Indiana 467 to 372. Forcier looked like he was pressured the whole day and the offense stagnated for large stretches of time. In hindsight however, I am nowhere near as concerned about the offense's performance after rewatching the game. The offensive line did a more than passable job. The receivers had three drops but were dependable and picked up crucial yardage when we needed it. The run game was nearly unstoppable, even when Tate or Denard took off. A handful of bad snaps killed some drives and two turnovers (one just a horrid horrid play by Forcier, the other a fluke hit on Robinson) did the rest. Despite those issues, Michigan had the lead in the fourth and still rallied to win even after the Defense gave up it's first truly big mistake of the season. You can have some gripes about personnel, play calling, execution; but they're all minor after a second glance. All in all, the offense performed pretty well when it didn't shoot itself in the foot with bad snaps. Take away the bad snaps and Michigan is easily over 400 yards for the game and they're still averaging over 35 points a game.

The Offensive Line

David Guralnick via Detroit News.com

My initial reaction to the game was that the O-Line had it's worst performance of the year. After review, I actually think they had a decent game. Quite a turn around, eh? How's that happen? The answer is in the blocking. Despite David Moosman's issues with snapping the ball in the second half, the line did an excellent job opening up running lanes for Carlos Brown, Brandon Minor, and Denard Robinson. A lot of the penetration I saw was on blitzes by the outside LB's that the Tight Ends probably should've picked up. The biggest issue the line faced all day was that there was a new center. There were numerous instances where two to three guys moved early. One play in the second both Ortmann and Schilling left early when Michigan was trying to pooch punt. These types of procedure penalties didn't happen with Molk in, and I'm guessing there's still a little communication problem on assignments and snap counts that Moosman will need to resolve as the Center going forward.

Regarding the illegal formation penalty, the first one was legit, IMO. The second is a 50/50 call, but could've been made. Michigan's formations were arcing badly as they tried to ward off Jamie Kirlew and Indiana's outside pass rushers. And don't sleep on Indiana's pass rush. There were two instances where Michigan tried to block Kirlew with Koger or Brown, one ended in disaster (Forcier INT) the other almost did (Forcier's last second pitch to Brown on the last drive).

(more after the jump......)

Indiana got pressure with it's blitz or when Michigan tried to get cute with one of the Conference's best pass rushers. Otherwise, the Line generally got a good push and opened up some mammoth holes. Had Minor been at 100%, some of those TFLs never would've happened. Better communication and better snaps will eliminate most of the issues the line had on Saturday. And if you look past the bad snaps and procedure penalties, the Line actually had a decent day. Michigan's linemen were consisently clearing space and getting to the second level on run plays and were standing their ground on passing downs. Perry Dorrestein was more than passable at left Tackle. Michigan spent most of the day running left behind Mark Ortmann and Steve Schilling, successfully. Mark Huyge had a great block second level block on Minor's TD run.

You can't give it more than a C grade because of the mistakes, but there are a lot of positives to take away.

The Running Backs

David Guralnick via Detroit News.com

Carlos Brown should never, ever, ever leave the field. Ever. He is by far Michigan's best and most effective back right now. He's showing us a cut back ability I never knew he had. He's running with authority, carrying tacklers for an extra five yards. He's breaking away from everyone. He's our best pass catcher out of the backfield. Never take him out. Ever. If I'm right, and I think I am, after Brown's second touchdown (in just the second series of the game) he didn't get another carry for the next NINE SERIES with his next carry coming a couple of plays into the tenth series after his second touchdown! That's insane. He's the hottest player on the team. You have to feed him the ball, and that's a big mistake by the coaching staff. Maybe they want to protect him, but in a close game getting away from him almost cost us. 146 yards on just 12 total touches. Seriously. Give him the ball. I'm begging you.

Whew. I needed to get that off my chest.

Outside of Brown, I thought Brandon Minor had a good game though it's clear he's still not 100%. Minor had some very good straight ahead runs, but I can count only one play where he was forced to make a cut (or the play called for it) where he was able to move laterally as quickly as we're used to. Straight ahead though, man, he was awesome. He plowed Indiana like a cornfield, picking up 51 yards on 12 carries. Honestly, if he was 100% I think he'd probably have been in the 70-80 yard range. The ankle's healing, he was great in pass protect, but I think he still needs another week to two weeks to be totally healthy and the Brandon Minor we all expect to see.

A special shout out to Kevin Grady who is becoming one of my favorite role players on the team. Kevin was huge in run blocking and showed great hands, shiftiness, and determination picking up two first downs on two catches. I think we're going to start to see more of him in this offense as a Tatenard safety valve. Also, give Grady massive props for his blocking on Tate's dive to the endzone touchdown. I really want to see Grady score a TD this year after all he's been through. One more note, Michael Shaw saw some limited action but largely watched this game, getting only two touches.

When the running backs got the ball, I thought they were great. I'll get into why they didn't get as many touches when I talk about the Quarterbacks. Overall, the Running Backs turned in an outstanding game in all aspects.

The Receivers

Couldn't be any other photo, courtesy David Guralnick via Detroit News.com

Martavious Odoms is the man. I wasn't sold on him going into the year, but now I'm a believer. He just keeps getting better and better. It's not just the great route running and TD catch, it's the little things. His blocking on Carlos Brown's TD run, was the reason Brown went in clean. On the two point conversion, he saw Tate sprint for the endzone and closed off the safety. Sure he had a drop of a poorly thrown ball, but the kid truly is something special. Like Odoms, Kelvin Grady had a busy day. He did have drop on a questionable screen pass by Forcier, but still managed three catches including a crucial 19 yard pickup on Michigan's final drive. Watching him, I get the feeling he's still getting his bearings on the field, but the fact that he's contributing in such a meaningful way so quickly is amazing to me.

The rest of the receiver corps had an okay, not great, day. It's hard to stand out when you throw the ball 24 times, 3-4 are throw aways, 3-4 are drops, 3-4 are bad passes, and the ball spread around to 8 different receivers. Greg Mathews deserves some praise for his run blocking and drawing a flag for PI that got (even though it shouldn't have) picked up. But overall, like Junior Hemingway, Michigan's bigger receivers were largely shut out of the boxscore (one catch between them). Regardless, Hemingway had a great game run blocking and helped clear the way for a lot of yards on the ground, including Brown's first TD and Forcier's 10 yard scramble on Michigan's second to last scoring drive. Roy Roundtree made and appearance and notched a 35 yard catch at the end of the first half, but nothing more.

The Tight Ends had a decent day. The highlight was Kevin Koger's outstanding 36 yard grab that set up Minor's TD run, which Koger also added a good block on. Martell Webb's day was a little rougher, in that the only ball thrown his way was dropped and he didn't see a lot of playing time.

Overall, the receivers were great in run support, good in passing game, and came through when it mattered.

The Quarterbacks

David Guralnick via Detroit News.com

Well, if you were expecting a game where Tate truly played like a freshman, this was it. Even so, he played like a senior leading two critical scoring drives in the fourth quarter. You take the bad with the good sometimes, and dammit, the good keeps prevailing. Prior to the fourth quarter, Tate was not having a good day. Early in the game he was gunning everything at 100 mph. His first throw was rifled to Tacopants, and his second throw to Brown required the back to make a much harder than necessary catch before sprinting to the endzone. Tate was victimized by some drops, but only one throw was material (Webb's drop). The drops by Odoms and Grady weren't good throws or good decisions. Tate chucked one ball over junior Heminway's head that should've been picked, then scrambled around like a fool before throwing a "I'm getting tackled THROW IT!" pick that he should've just eaten. He also picked up an intentional grounding penalty and could've been called for another that ended up just being a sack. In the run game, I think he's got the Notre Dame game stuck in his head. Six legit rushes (sacks and bad snaps excluded): three scrambles and three really bad decisions on the zone read. He misread the DE on some, didn't see the late blitzer on another. He needs to keep handing that off for the time being, especially when the runningbacks are picking up 5 a carry on the opposition.

Now all that criticism aside, damn, what a fourth quarter. Forcier was on target whereas earlier he hadn't been. He showed some great athleticism scrambling for some first downs, and his pass to Odoms and TD runs were things of beauty. The Kid isn't perfect, but he is really, really good. One thing that I especially liked is that he used his safety valve when the home run wasn't available. The biggest thing he's gotta work on is realizing he's not the most athletic guy on the field anymore, and getting rid of the ball rather than running around like a chicken with his head cut off. It'll come with time, but overall, even though the middle of the game was kinda meh, a good start and finish for Forcier.

While Forcier took a minor step sideways, Denard Robinson took a HUGE step forward on Saturday. The kid is just electric on the ground. I know he fumbled before the half, but the fumble was a helmet on football occurrence. There's not a lot you can do when that happens. Robinson's rushing numbers are distorted by two bad snaps and a couple of dropped snaps, but when he actually got the ball off the hike, he was dangerous and picked up some tough yards. Where he impressed me the most was in the passing game. His pass the Koger was absolutely beautiful and perfectly thrown. He had one bad pass to Grady that was behind Kelvin, but he's showing he can handle the full offense and make the team vertical in the air. Right now he's light years ahead of anyone under center last season and a solid number two quarterback. While he's clearly the number two guy, he played like 1A when called in on Saturday. Great game from Denard.

Hail to the Victors! Michigan takes care of Eastern

SCM — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:32:04 -0000

On what can only be described as a gorgeous fall Saturday, this Michigan football team probably got a little more than they were expecting from EMU in the first half, but managed to overcome some difficulties to put 45 on the board and take care of business heading into the conference schedule. Oh and Carlos Brown had his "I'm FINALLY healthy" game that we've all been waiting a long time for. Congrats sir, congrats indeed.

Photo by John T Greilick, Detroit News via multimedia.detnews.com

Miscellaneous

- The 28 point margin of victory is the largest over a MAC team since Michigan rung up EMU to the tune of 55-0 back on 9/17/05. It's also the largest margin of victory period since shutting out Notre Dame 38-0 in 2007.

- I'm not going to join in on the whole "BTN ANNOUNCERS BLER BLER BLER!" nonsense mainly because I didn't think it was that terrible. Yeah they missed a few calls by misidentifying players (for example, Renaldo Sagesse is not Brandon Graham), but not enough to detract from the watching experience a la Mike Patrick. That said... it'd be wonderful if you could, you know, manage to get the cameras on the action on the field. I think we missed at least four plays Saturday, and apparently nobody realized that Roh intercepted that tipped pass.

- I didn't comment on this prior to the game, but a big ol' wag of the finger to the Big 10 for suspending Jonas Mouton for this football game. That was complete garbage. Watch the "play in question" and you tell me where he's deserving of any punishment at all, and nevermind the completely dirty play by the ND guy the entire time either. That was flat out horseshit and caving to the muffled cries of Charlie Weis is even worse. Furthermore, the conference has gone ahead and set an awesome precedent for themselves now, which Coach Rodriguez seems angry enough to bring up at every possible opportunity. Delany and crew can start here (Manny Harris agrees with me on this one):

- SPARTY NO! I still cannot believe the two play sequence of events that sealed MSU's doom down in South Bend on Saturday. That guy could not have been more wide open in the endzone, and then to follow it up Cousins makes perhaps one of the most ill-advised throws of all time, seriously, it's right alongside Stanley Jackson's toss back in '97. It's too bad too because the spleen coming from South Bend would've reached new highs had State pulled that game out. Also, if an opposing player takes a planned dive into your marching band, can you bitch about it endlessly to get that guy suspended for the next game?

- Florida... yawn. I thought they were supposed to beat Tennessee by eight billion? The fact that they only won by 10 against a team that clearly had no aspirations of, you know, throwing the football downfield should probably concern some of the Gator faithful, but hey, that's just my take.

- Penn State and Iowa... who knows anything about either of these teams? Nobody? Ok!!!

Offense

- I'm mentioning this first because its something that was so sorely missing last year and has made all the difference in the world this year: BLOCKING. Our blocking at the LOS and downfield has improved immeasurably since last season. The reason these guys are springing these huge plays now is because we've got guys doing all of the little things right without the football... just awesome.

- 380 rushing yards!!! 3rd longest run in school history!!! Nearly a 10 ypc average for the entire game!!!

- It was downright fun to watch Carlos Brown run the ball, not only did he display the legendary Spring Game top-end speed around which he has built a small legend, but on top of that he displayed a level of vision that I had not seen from him before. He ran hard, through tackles, picked his cut back lanes and really set up his blocks. Awesome performance. He could've named his yardage on Saturday, awfully proud of him and how well he's stuck this whole thing out.

- Would've liked to have seen just a little more of Mike Shaw and Vincent Smith since it's apparent that Brandon Minor just isn't that healthy yet. Speaking of that... Minor sure doesn't look "hobbled" out there, but if he's touch and go, why play him at all?

- I don't quite understand the "Tate Forcier played like a true freshman" drum-beat that I've seen since this game. No he didn't rack up a ton of yardage (we didn't have to throw), but the only two decisions that I have any problem with on his behalf at all were with ball security. He seemed to get a little lax on a few of his scrambles holding the ball out, and we were fortunate to recover when it was knocked loose. Throwing wise he looked absolutely fine. He and his receivers weren't helped at all by the non-PI calls either. He is going to have to learn that sometimes you just take the sack and live to fight again the next down. Also, please don't cause my heart to stop again, thanks.

- I really appreciate that we put that game away, 21 second half points to push it to 45-17 was great to see. I'm not advocating running up the score, just put the game away when you have the opportunity, thanks.

- I know we were going to get the ball to start the 3rd, but was anyone else stunned when we didn't go for it on 4th and 1 at the end of the first half??

- Denard is the man, he just brings so much to the table. Some people have taken a huge issue with his two picks. Nevermind that he threw an absolute strike on an out to Odoms who may or may not have bobbled the ball while going out of bounds. I don't question his ability to throw the ball at all. He needs those kinds of reps in games and should continue to receive them. He has an arm, let's just all remember that he's RIDICULOUSLY young and his decision making will improve.

- Not too much Koger Saturday (well not too much of any receiver really) but he made an absolutely fantastic block that wasn't highlighted by the BTN on Brown's first run from scrimmage.

- Webb needs to remember to run his routes to the sticks.

Defense

- Ok, going back and watching this, there are just a few issues I have...

- Tackling was noticeably sloppy... Troy Woolfolk, wrap people up please.

- Defensive line penetration was awesome at times and non-existant at others... we need to be more consistent here moving forward, although it would help if every once in a while the refs actually threw a flag for holding.

- Some CLEAR over-pursuit, many guilty parties here, but it sure seemed to me that people were forgetting what their roles were and losing contain on the outside a LOT in the first half. We bit so hard on that play-fake bootleg for a TD that it wasn't even funny.

- Did Eastern seriously run like 7 straight counter plays to score on that one drive? We were getting blown off the ball and sealed out of the lanes like we were playing a major power rushing attack there... did nothing for my defensive concerns about stopping the run. Yeek.

- Glad Mike Martin wasn't seriously injured, that EMU center did more than his share of chop blocking, of course it wasn't called once.

- Perhaps the worst pass-interference call I've ever seen against Cissoko... his coverage was better for the most part, but he was also completely bailed out on that 4th and goal where the EMU guy just dropped a perfect throw. The TV coverage even went back to point out how Boubacar turned the complete wrong way when the ball was thrown.

- Roh!!! Couldn't be more thrilled with the job he's done so far.

- I think the players are downplaying the adjustments at halftime. I have been thrilled with our 2nd half D thus far this year, tip o the cap to you Mr. Robinson... Now let's start doing it for 60 minutes eh?

- Mouton's absence likely had a larger effect than I would've anticipated. Speaking of LBs, Ezeh makes two plays a game that demonstrate what he could be at the LB spot, and about 6 plays a game that just don't make a whole lot of sense.

- I'm still a little surprised that we haven't seen any of Vlad at Safety... Kovacs has done a fine job don't get me wrong, but I'm surprised we haven't seen other guys get some time given our lack of depth.

Special Teams

- Olesnavage, keep drillin' em down the middle man, good on ya.

- Someone got a finger on that first punt and we had good pressure on their punts all day, I think we might get to one outright at some point this year.

- Dear Greg Mathews and/or coaching staff... MOVE UP AND CATCH THE BALL! What was going on Saturday?!?! It was pretty evident that their punter wasn't going to get the ball anywhere near where Mathews would line up before the play and yet did he move up even once? Nope. Cost us some serious field position on multiple occasions...

Final Thoughts

- Hard to find a whole lot to get worked up about in 45 - 17 win, yes the D didn't look dominant at times, but they clamped down big time in the second half. Yes we only threw for a meager amount of yards, but we didn't exactly have to throw, well ever. Again, it was nice to just come out and take care of business, especially once a few breaks put Eastern within shouting distance. Continue taking 'em one at a time and GO BLUE!

One For The Ages, Hail To The Victors!

SCM — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 20:40:56 -0000

More photos » by Bill Fundaro - AP

3 months ago: Michigan slot receiver Martavious Odoms (9) and Notre Dame cornerback Raeshon McNeil (8) watch Michigan quarterback Tate Forcier (5) score a touchdown in the fourth quarter of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009, in Ann Arbor. Michigan upset No. 18 Notre Dame 38-34. (AP Photo/Bill Fundaro)

Browse more photos »

Ok, so a great number of months ago I wrote a post lamenting the fact that we had signed a long term deal to play Notre Dame. I was short-sighted and wrong. Yesterday was a perfect example of just why we play Notre Dame and why this is one of the great rivalries in the sport. Once again on the national stage (for all the right reasons this time) on a perfect day for football with an absolutely tremendous atmosphere, and the game that played out like that? Wooooo (!!!!) indeed.

Onto the collection of thoughts:

General what-have-you:

- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- That was far and away the best Notre Dame team I have seen in a long long time, beyond a shadow of a doubt. I would not hesitate one bit to say that will be the best offense we see this season.

- Notre Dame played a darn solid football game, in fact they played extremely well and got beat. They came back from down 11 not once but twice.

- The crowd was awesome, the 110,278 were thunderous throughout and it sure seemed like there were fewer ND fans there than in prior years, which was a pleasant surprise. Student section was awesome. All the questions about whether or not the structures would make a difference have been answered with a resounding yes.

- Speaking of the structures, the shadow from the Western building covers the entire field by the time the second half rolls around, a few more lights might be called for on these 3:30 starts.

- I know they specifically built those seats in the student section for the band, but they need to move them, you simply cannot hear them if you're anywhere South of the 50 yardline.

- Clausen was more accurate, but he still really rushes throws when he is pressured in any way (which was infrequent at best yesterday) and the majority of the passing game is predicated on chucking it deep, this strategy works entirely because of Tate and Floyd, more on that later.

- The ND kick return guy touched the ball on our "squibb" kick, hence why the clock ran, if I can see it 40 rows up it shouldn't be that hard for people watching in HD to determine it too.

- WOO coaching adjustments, WOO clock managment, WOO play calling, WOOO!

- I'm going to preface this one; I was/am a big Lloyd Carr fan. But you CANNOT tell me that any time over the past 15 years we would've gone for it on 4th and 3 like we did on Forcier's lightning bolt TD. We punt that ball 100 times out of 100 with the old regime.

Offense

- Tate Forcier, I mean what can you say? An epic performance. The play before the winning TD was one of the greatest individual efforts I have ever seen, for him to avoid the sack and get the ball to Savoy in the corner of the endzone was nothing short of ridiculous. The ensuing drop was soul-crushing for approximately 5 seconds, and yes it was tipped.

- Savoy's catches got us into that position in the first place, don't forget that.

- So much for that shutout of Nevada eh? You cannot put into words how much better this offense is, you just can't.

- Brandon Minor averaged 10 YPC on his first 9 touches of the day and ended up with 106 yards on 16 touches and 1 TD. It is an appreciable difference when he is in there in terms of how he hits the hole and accelerates, welcome back sir.

- Did not see Shaw even once yesterday, which surprised me. Carlos looked great on a few screens, although he made a few catches a little more dramatic than they probably needed to be.

- Lost Moosman late in the game, which last year would've been DOOM, and this year we put in Dorrestein and didn't miss a beat... awesome. I thought the offensive line did a GREAT job against a much faster opponent this week.

- 1st and goal on the 1 and no points... ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! That was one of my few criticisms of the play-calling yesterday. I'd rather us stay in the shotgun and keep the D spread out, let Minor see the blocking and pick his spot rather than just barreling into the line from the I-form and let the D put everyone in the box.

- Kevin Koger, Greg Mathews, LaTerryal Savoy, and Darryl Stonum all stepped up big-time. Tate's one poor throw of the day was to Koger when there wasn't a defender within 20 yards of him on our second to last drive... I just can't say enough about how well the offense has done getting our receivers into space thus far.

- Absolutely nothing but praise for the playcalling and clock management on that final drive, awesome job Coach, awesome job.

More after the jump...

Defense

- Wellllllllllllllllll we held on didn't we? Yeegads.

- Hardly any pressure on Clausen at all, this was due to a combination of very quick drops/throws, max protect, relatively little blitzing, a solid ND O-line, and yes, the occasional BLATANT hold on whomever was assigned to block Graham and Roh.

- Not one deep ball given up, yes ND moved through the air very well, but considering how much of an island we put Warren and Cissoko on out there, to not give up the one play drive was really encouraging.

- Warren's coverage of Tate on ND's final possession was PERFECT, Warren ran the route for him and had position the whole time, nevermind Tate hugging him to keep him from picking it off. I've seen loads of whining about this (shock!) from ND fans who can promptly stick it where the sun don't shine for all I care.

- Halftime adjustments! The third quarter performance on D was huge. The perfect screens from the first half were suddenly being snuffed for no gain. We gave up something like 308 yards in the first half and then somewhere around 35 in the 3rd quarter? Phew.

- Would've never guessed we would've let them gash us on the ground like they did... it was hard to tell if we were caught out of position or if there were some poor pursuit angles taken by the safeties coming up in run support, but there were some enormous holes out there. Overall the ND O-line turned in a fantastic performance when they weren't holding the bejeezus out of our defenders.

- No Vlad Emelien... Beauford brought this up when we talked after the game, the guy who came on when Williams was hurt (whom I can't even find on the roster) played well, but I was under the impression Vlad was contending for a starting spot, anything going on with him? EDIT: The safety who came in was Jordan Kovacs who is #22 on the official roster but I believe was sporting #32 yesterday, and again, nice job sir.

- Floyd is the real deal.

Special teams

- WOOOOOO SHADES OF STEVE BREASTON WOOOOO! What a bolt from above that was.

- Zoltan needs to just settle down, he's misfiring more often than he's hitting moon shots.

- Tate's pooch punt was a thing of beauty and a great call

- Could've done without the missed chipshot FG, but Olesnavage again looked solid on the one at the end of the first half.

- Kick coverage looked less solid this week, the big one we let go right up the gut was particularly frustrating.

The takeaway

- Enormous win for this team and the program, just enormous.

GO BLUE!!!

Unit by Unit: Breaking Down Michigan Football's Defense Following Its Win Over Western Michigan

Maize n Brew Dave — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:26:27 -0000

A new weekly post game feature here at Maize n Brew will be what we like to Unit by Unit. We'll take a hard look at the players and the coaches for each particular unit on the team, and bring them in for a pat on the back or a wag of the finger. After we've looked at each position, we'll give you a final wrap on the team's play on Offense and Defense (Special Teams too!). If you're looking for more detail, game bullets are here, the wrap up is here, the boxscore is here, and the general AP recap is here. There are the links, we've already broken down the Offense, so now let's take a good hard look at....

The Defense

Michigan's defense deserves some significant praise for an outstanding game on Saturday. Save a garbage time touchdown pass, the Defense played outstanding football. Despite being advertised as a 3-4 defense, Robinson's boys showed a lot of 4-3 alignments, hammering Western at the point of attack. Even when the Wolverines switched back to a 3-4, they were just as dangerous, getting penetration and thumping Hiller. What was the most impressive thing was the improvement in tackling. No more one arm whiffs. Michigan wrapped up and drove through its tackles. Sure there will be a few misses that show up in MGoBlog’s UFR, but over all it was night and day from 2008. Just nine months removed from looking slow and confused the Wolverine Defense was fast and furious. Hat’s off to Greg Robinson and the coaching staff for an excellent game plan and some great fall coaching.

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick Detnews.com

The Defensive Line

With just one returning starter on the line, Michigan fans were rightfully petrified of what would happen when their defense saw the field. Last year was, after all, the worst defense in school history and Michigan is now breaking in its third defensive coordinator in three years.

Only thing is, the Defensive Line was really, really good. The Wolverines terrorized Tim Hiller all game. Brandon Graham didn't register a sack, but spent his entire afternoon introducing Mr. Hiller to the field turf, face first. Mike Martin was even better than advertised, clogging the middle of the line, penetrating into the pocket and disrupting plays. At one point Martin blew through the line and pancaked poor Tim Hiller before he had a chance to realize that an angry 300 pound man was approaching him. Both veterans were awesome. Want a kick ass stat? At halftime Western had just 2 rushing yards on 11 attempts. That’s a 0.2 YPC. How awesome is that? Overall, the line limited Western and its 2008 1000 yard rusher to just 38 total yards on the ground.

(More breakdown of the Michigan Defense after the jump.....)

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick Detnews.com

Surprisingly, it wasn’t just the veteran linemen getting into the act. Brandon Herron, Ryan Van Bergen and Craig Roh were all over the offensive backfield, tallying 11 tackles and 2 TFL between them. A minor surprise amidst all the bigger ones was that Craig Roh (#88 at left) earned the start at the "hybrid" linebacker/DL position. Frankly, the kid was just as good as advertised in the pass rush. I was stunned to see him bull rush and flatten just about everyone who got in his way to the quarterback. What also surprised me is his discipline. He wasn’t just rushing the passer, he was stopping the run. It’s hard to get too excited about any player after a single game, but when he gets a full season in a college weight program he could really be something special. Even though he lost the starting nod to Roh, Brandon Herron looked fairly capable in the hybrid role. Herron got good penetration and was adequate manning his gaps. I didn’t see him out of position that often, and seemed to take on blockers without too much difficulty. Van Bergen looked pretty good as well, even if he was overshadowed a tad by Roh and Herron. Lining up as a hybrid DT/DE Van Bergen ate up two lineman at a time and still managed to get pressure on Hiller, meeting Roh at Hiller’s ribcage to split a sack.

I thought it was a great game from the Defense against a good offensive unit.

The Line Backers

Like the Defensive Line, the linebacking corps was a pleasant surprise on Saturday. The surprise being they actually looked like they knew what they were doing. Put bluntly, these guys couldn't find their ass with a flashlight and a GPS last year. Saturday was an entirely different story.

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick Detnews.com

On Saturday they were flying around the field. Stevie Brown looked like an entirely different player on Saturday. Good in coverage, good at the line of scrimmage. Obi Ezeh and Jonas Mouton were flying to the gaps, and unlike last year, they were the right gaps. Any over pursuit was limited. Assignments weren't blown. I thought Ezeh, in particular, shed blocks very, very well, and tackled in space better than I’ve ever seen this group do. They actually looked like they knew what they were doing. Compare this to ANY point last season. It's night and day. 20 tackles 1.5 TFL and a pick. And what a pick.

If you’re looking to nit pick, and I’m sure you are, you can say that Ezeh and Mouton aren’t aggressively filling some of their gaps. You can say that Brown is still undersized and will have some problems when larger, faster linemen get up on him. Even if you say all of that, it was still a pretty good game from the Linebackers.

As an added bonus, Michigan was able to play J.B. Fitzgerald a bit. Greg Robinson may not be a miracle worker. He may not be a savior. Hell, this could all fall apart tomorrow. But for one day, we saw the Michigan defense, and in particular, the linebacking play we expect out of Michigan. And Robinson deserves a lot of credit for that.

The Secondary

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilic Detnews.com

With the exception of a 73 yard screw up, the secondary played very well. Because Western couldn’t move the ball at all, Tim Hiller was left to chuck the ball all over the field. As best he could. 39 times. That’s a lot of passes in comparison to 24 rushing attempts. But when you look at the boxscore at the end of the game and see 263 yards in the air, you really don’t get a true picture of just how dominant the pass defense was.

At halftime Michigan had limited Western to 81 passing yards on 24 attempts and 13 completions. One of those incompletions was a pick. That’s less than 4 yards an attempt and less than 7 yards a completion. So the halftime stats tell a better, more accurate account of how the group fared.

Individually, I thought Boo Boo played the best game out of the corners. Granted my view was obscured by the TV and all the Kentucky fans stumbling into the hotel lobby from the Kentucky/Miami of Ohio game (I was at a hotel in Cincinnati directly across from Paul Brown Stadium [Kentucky won 49-0, BTW]), but Boo Boo looked gooooood. He was good in tight coverage, pressing the receivers and dropping back into zone. His pick, while simply being in the right place at the right time, was impressive because of how he handled it. He caught it awkwardly, but kept his balance and actually shifted the ball away from the contact side as if he was a running back. The kid is impressive. If he can stay healthy, I think we’ve got a great player back there. Thankfully, it also looks like he’s going to be healthy to play against Notre Dame.

On the other side, it’s not like Donovan Warren had a bad game. He was pretty impressive as well, generally matching up against Western’s best WR, Juan Nunez, and shutting him down. You’ve gotta knock him down to a B+ because of one legit PI call, one bad PI call, and losing his cool. Warren was great in coverage for the most part. But he’s going to have play under control against the Irish to be successful.

As for the safeties, I didn’t really notice them that much. After a year of saying "Oh my god, the safeties," this was a welcome change. Troy Woolfolk and Mike Williams only combined for 7 tackles, but the fact they didn’t have to make that many stops is a welcome change. The lone screwup was a fourth quarter 73 yard TD pass. Williams and Woolfolk got sucked up into the box on play action and JT Floyd (subbing in for the injured Cissoko) let Nunez get away from him. Play action was a bit of a bugaboo for Michigan last season, so I have to admit the fact that it worked to the tune of a long touchdown concerns me a little bit. But overall, the safeties were very good.

If there’s a "meh" aspect of the secondary’s game, it was Floyd giving up the long touchdown. Once J.T. Turner is ready, I have to imagine he’ll take over the nickel job/first corner off the bench job.

Special Teams

With the exception of Zoltan Mesko, Space Emperor, Special Teams was a total question mark. Who was going to return punts and kick offs? Who’s going to kick field goals? Can anyone hold onto the damn ball?

Those questions were answered, and answered well. Jason Olesnavage booted a 44 yard field goal on his first opportunity ever. That’s going to be huge going into the Notre Dame game. Special props to Greg Mathews for fielding punts and not dropping them. I thought Mathews actually showed some shiftiness in the return game when given a chance, but most importantly, he didn’t fumble. Finally, I thought the kick coverage was fairly good.

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick Detnews.com

Overall, a great game all around from the Wolverines.

Unit by Unit: Breaking Down Michigan Football's Offense Following Its Win Over Western Michigan

Maize n Brew Dave — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:47:35 -0000

The Offensive Line

The Offensive Play in a Photo, Tate untouched. Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick

The Offensive Line always goes first, good or bad, because they're going to determine how this season pans out. Frankly, the line was excellent. In particular I thought Mark Ortmann played outstanding football. Say what you will about it being "just Western Michigan," but Michigan lost at home to 3-9 Toledo last year and the line got pushed around by a bad Toledo defense. This year it was an entirely different story. I thought the ends actually outplayed the middle of the line. David Molk had a good, but not great game and missed a few blocks. On the other hand, David Moosman and Steve Schilling played fairly well. On the right side, Mark Huyge was excellent. IIRC, he simply dominated the Western DEs on Saturday, much like Ortmann. They didn't give up a sack. Michigan averaged 4.8 yards a carry. The boys on the line deserve a game ball a piece.

Overall, Michigan was outstanding up front. They controlled the line of scrimmage, buying time for Tate Forcier, Denard Robinson, and Nick Sheridan to throw without pressure and lanes for the quarterbacks and running backs to run through. Protection outside the pocket was excellent too, as the lineman set up their blocks very well. Carlos Brown averaged 5.4 yards a carry for 54 yards and Michael Shaw racked up 37 yards for a 4.9 a carry average. Not bad for a run offense that couldn't get past two yards a carry for its first four games. What was also impressive was the fact that Michigan was able to play it's second string in the second half. Elliot Mealer, Perrry Dorrestein, Rocko Khoury, Patrick Omameh, and Justin Ferrara all saw playing time. That's going to pay dividends down the line should anyone get injured.

(More awesomeness after the jump....)

The Running Backs

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick

Judging the Running Backs on a day like Saturday is a little difficult. While they played a crucial role in balancing the offense, there was nothing spectacular to hang your hat on. Carlos Brown was good on the ground. 5.4 a carry is nothing to sneeze at. Brown also deserves a little praise for his pass catching out of the backfield, which I thought was a great addition to his overall game. He does deserve a little fisking, however, for meekly putting the ball on the turf at the start of the second half. That was not a play where the ball should've come out. But Carlos gets some serious props for his pass blocking. Watching him flip a DE was one of the highlights of my day.

I would've liked to have seen a little more of Michael Shaw. Shaw did get seven carries and looked fairly good, but I don't think he or Brown really ever got in a rhythm. I'd say it may have been better to go a little more two back on Saturday, but I think Rodriguez started hiding cards after he saw the game was in the bag. It was nice to see Kevin Grady and Vincent Smith get some carries. Grady, hopefully, will be a good backup this season and I'm really pulling for him personally. Smith had some happy feet, but he's a freshman in his first game, in mop up time. 6 carries and 23 yards isn't too bad. Overall a good, workman like day for Michigan's ball carriers.

The Receivers

Junior Hemingway, Kevin Koger, Kelvin Grady, Marativous Odoms, and Greg Mathews were absolutely outstanding. Route running. Improvisation. Blocking. Everything. Hemingway just stole the show. It's been more than a year since a receiver caught more than one touchdown pass in a game (Adrian Arrington - Citrus Bowl). I think it's fair to say the Hemingway came close to matching Arrington's performance on New Year's day 2008. Reeling in five catches for 103 yards and two TDs, Hemingway was solid in every aspect of the game. He ran the short routes. Caught in traffic. Worked with his quarterback. And he just flew past the WMU secondary for his second score. Hemingway gave us a glimpse of his talent on Saturday, so all we can hope is that he stays healthy and keeps reminding us of another #21.

Awesome Photo via John T. Greilick

From New Math to Old School. That's how we're rolling. And that's how the new 86 rolls. Kevin Koger also flashed a large amount of his considerable talent on Saturday notching a TD, three catches and a highlight reel one hander he'll be talking about for the next month. If there was one pass that Forcier threw to Tacopants, it was Koger's one-handed catch. Making his cross, Koger leaped and stretched out his right hand for a catch he had no business making. Yet, he did, cradled it into his body as he hit the turf, and popped out of his barrel roll like nothing special had happened. Anyone still have questions about how Rodriguez uses his tight ends?

Then there were the slot receivers. Though Odoms got the start, Grady got his number called the most. In his first football game in three years, Kelvin pulled in two catches for 13 yards and took an end around for 11. While the numbers aren't crazy, he looked natural out there. Frankly, I was in shock that he was able to haul in Denard Robinson’s first throw, which appeared to be going close to the speed of sound. Grady’s got great hands, and combined with what appeared to be some tremendous wheels, it was like the passage of time meant nothing. Kelvin's really going to help us this year. Odoms didn't see a lot of balls thrown his way, but made his presence felt in other ways. On Denard Robinson's TD scamper, the tiny slot receiver was slated to take an end around, but once he realized the play was broken immediately found someone to block. Watch Odoms come from nowhere and block the closest man to Robinson after the first guy misses. I may not have been sold on Odoms before Saturday, but that play sold me. He never took his foot off the gas when the play went haywire and made the crucial block to spring his quarterback (@ 0:37 below). Maratavious, when you're old enough and the NCAA allows it, the first beverage is on me

Also making appearances were Greg Mathews and LaTerral Savoy. Mathews was fairly quiet, notching only two catches, but was extremely effective after the catch. If Hemingway can become the deep threat, I think Mathews is going to have an outstanding season as our possession receiver. Savoy tallied a catch early, but was a not so innocent bystander to Nick Sheridan's interception.

Overall, this was the best regular season game out of Michigan's receiving corps since the 2006 Ohio State game.

The Quarterback(s)

Tate Forcier is your starter from here out. No question about this. While Robinson’s run was amazing, it was off of a broken play. He just improvised that whole thing with the aid of some great blocking. Tate looks light years more polished and in control. His pass to Hemingway for the opening score was something you don’t see out of freshmen. Frankly it’s something you don’t see out of a lot of seniors. When he rolled left, he clearly knew where the LOS was, got the corner to bite on the scramble, and lofted a damn near perfect pass the Hemingway who read his quarterback like a book. That was as good as it gets.

You really couldn’t ask for a better start to a college career. Forcier went 13-20 for 177 yards, 3 TDs and no picks. Notsobad, eh? Tate’s arm was excellent in all aspects of the passing game. The deep ball to Hemingway was Henne-esque. But what what most impressive was his ability to throw on the run, with accuracy and steam. Michigan moved Forcier out of the pocket numerous times, and 95% of those instances resulted in positive throws. If there’s room for improvement, I will say that there were a few moments where his ball protection was less than ideal and he danced around too much. He’s not going to have the same type of time against Notre Dame, and he’s certainly not going to be able to evade the Irish the way he did the Broncos. Just ask Colin Kaepernick. Forcier gunned a few passes in the second half and got a little outside of the offense, but I’m willing to be forgiving because most of that happened when Michigan was up 31 points. All things considered, that game was as good as I’ve ever seen out of a freshman, especially when you considered the youth around him.

Denard Robinson’s feet were just as good as advertised. His arm was as "live" as advertised. However, he’s not the level of passer that we were hoping to see. Robinson attempted only four passes on the day compared to 11 rushing attempts. The reason for this is obvious. He’s a much better runner at this stage than he is a passer. While Denard showed a live arm and can throw decently on the run, he doesn’t look as comfortable pulling the ball back to look downfield. You could tell he’s still a scramble first player who takes off when his first or second read isn’t there. Frankly, with only a month under his belt, I’d be surprised if he’s getting past his second read. The long and short of it is that Robinson doesn't know the system or himself well enough to hang in there and let the play develop. But that will come and it really doesn’t matter right now, does it? The kid is blazingly fast. He’s going to be an excellent change of pace in the Notre Dame game, but he’s no where near being a starting quarterback based on what we saw from his arm and reads. The keys for him moving forward will be playing a bit more under control, and rolling him out of the pocket to allow him to use his legs and allow him to throw or tuck it under without large men in his face. All in all, a great and electric start for Robinson.

Nick Sheridan looked like a new person and the same guy all at once. Sheridan is noticeably bigger and stronger. He moves better than last year. He’s definitely got a great grasp of the system. But he’s still not a D1 quarterback. Sure a penalty wiped out a near TD, but a veteran doesn’t force a throw into tight coverage. Especially a throw that far inside. Nick’s a nice insurance policy to have, but he and Robinson appear to be about equal in the passing game (Nick more experienced/Denard much better arm) so I’ve gotta go with Robinson’s legs. As I said in my QB preview, if Sheridan’s on the field for any extended period of time, we’re in trouble.

The Offense Overall

Sure you can nitpick and find things to complain about, but the bottom line is at no point last year did our offense look this good. Penn State? Nope. One trick pony. Purdue? Not so much. Bad tackling let that happen. No. This was a complete offense on the field. If you can't be excited about this then I've got nothing for you.

On a micro level, the Offense performed much, much better with Forcier under center than either Robinson or Sheridan. He's just a better passer right now and frankly he's got pretty good wheels. I don't think he'll have nearly as much time against Notre Dame's defense as he did against Western, but his ability to scramble will force the Linebackers to play a little further off the LOS.

Macro, the play of Michigan's wideouts was incredibly encouraging. If Junior Hemingway can stay healthy, Michigan has a legitimate No. 1 receiver. The emergence of Kelvin Grady as a threat will also start to take some of the pressure off of Mathews and Odoms, both of whom had good games.

It was clear that Michigan had a game plan for Western and they executed it to a tee. I'm looking forward to seeing more of that as the Wolverines take on an excellent Notre Dame squad.

All In: Michigan Football Thumps Western Michigan 31-7

Maize n Brew Dave — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:04:16 -0000

by TONY DING - AP

3 months ago: Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez receives a hug from running back Brandon Minor, right, after an NCAA college football game with Western Michigan, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009, in Ann Arbor, Mich. Michigan won 31-7. (AP Photo/Tony Ding)

View full size photo »

When you don't know what to expect out of a team, the story lines are easy. You just ask a bunch of rhetorical questions. When there are more questions than answers that's all you can do. Three days later I've got more answers than I know what to do with. There are so many people deserving of praise. Who do you write about first? Forcier? Hemingway? Rodriguez? Robinson? Denard? The whole bleeping defense? When a team manufactures a win, there isn't a "hero" per se. It's a group of heroes that need to be recognized, because they all contributed. These kids shook off or simply ignored every outside distraction and steamrolled Western Michigan on Saturday 31-7. It wasn't just a game where a better team walked onto the field and won because they were supposed to. If there's such a thing as a statement game on day one, this was it. They were all in.

Whether you've been looking ahead to this game for a month or a week, Western Michigan was a scary opener. Seven returning starters including an NFL-rated Quarterback in Tim Hiller, a senior 1000 yard rusher in Brandon West, and four returning starting Offensive Linemen. It was a 28 PPG offense matching up against a Wolverine defense that gave up 33.5 a game last season (in conference). On the other side of the ball, while you weren't scared of Western's defense, you were scared of Michigan's offense. It was explosive last year. Explosive in the wrong sense. All of 2008 Michigan players seemed be clutching the grenade a little too long or playing hop-scotch in a minefield. Now, with a true freshman under center, irrespective of his spring and fall practices, it was enough to make even the diehards queasy. Mix that in with your starting tailback being out, a slew of untested receivers, and the season from hell in 2008... well... you've got yourself a recipe for a long afternoon.

And this wasn't just a season opener. No way. This was a must win for this coach and this program. After a 3-9 season, all the nonsense from the Free Press, and the national media skewing what the Free Press' report actually claimed to report, Michigan needed this win. Rich Rodriguez needed, nay, deserved this win, just as he has deserved so much better from some of the people who have been assigned to cover him. More importantly, the players knew how important this game was. After months of practice and devotion to the program, their commitment was being called illegal. Their coach and their program were being called into question. They knew the only way to silence the critics was to perform. To go all in.

Oh baby... did they ever.

Michigan was the Michigan we want to remember. They were absolutely dominant on Saturday. The offense clicked. The defense was nasty. Open receivers were hit in stride. The Defensive Line controlled the line of scrimmage and took away yards on third downs. It was a opener that we can look back on fondly with a smile, rather than grimacing and shaking our heads.

Michigan fans finally saw what Bill Martin hired Rich Rodriguez to do. They finally saw what his teams are capable of. Most importantly, they saw just how hard Rodriguez players are willing to play for their coach. Make no mistake, had Michigan lost this game or had it been uncomfortably close, the media would've immediately began harping on how the locker room was divided and how Rodriguez was close to losing his team.

During the pre-game on ESPN we were left with speculation that the locker room was divided. Desmond openly pondered what was going on. Corso and Herbstreit commented that it sounded like trouble. Then, oddly, Craig James came on the air to say none of that speculation was correct. This team was united... and pissed off that people were speculating about this sort of thing. The Game Day crew immediately downplayed James' comments and started talking about the divide between underclassmen and upperclassmen, and how the young guys just want to play and the seniors were more of a barometer.

You're right fellas. They are. All those seniors played with intensity, heart, and determination. The seniors on the offensive line played their best games. Mark Ortmann, save a false start, played as well as he ever has. Greg Mathews was excellent on the return game. Stevie Brown and Obi Ezeh were outstanding, totally eclipsing their performances from last year in a single game. Brandon Graham bull rushed and terrorized Tim Hiller the entire game, even if the stat sheet only says one tackle. Brandon Minor didn't play, but could have, and he was one of the first people to hug Rodriguez after the game was over. Want proof? It's the photo at the top. Those are your seniors, ESPN. Ask them how they feel about Coach Rodriguez. Their play speaks for them. But just in case you actually want to ask a question before speculating, they're available for comment. But then again, I don't think you'll like what they have to say. It doesn't fit your story.

Frankly, our story is better. It's one of redemption, one game at a time. A story about 115 kids who believe in a coach who really does care about them. It talks about two freshmen quarterbacks taking a stadium of 110,000 plus by storm. One with his guile and arm. Another with his feet. There's a subplot about Junior Hemingway coming back from injury to dominate the passing game. Chapters about a defense left for dead in 2008 that, for a game anyway, was as dominant as we've seen since 2006. Let's talk about that story, rather than the one that's supported by a house of cards.

What you saw on Saturday was a group of young men who wanted to prove something. After a week of telling anyone within earshot that they were committed to Michigan Football and Coach Rodriguez, they were tired of no one listening to them. So they decided to let their play do the talking. Guided by two freshman under center and a grizzled old defensive coordinator who everyone thought left his chops in Austin, Michigan made a resounding statement on Saturday.

We're all in.

10 Freshman and Unknowns to be Excited About for the 2009 Michigan Football Season: Part II

Maize n Brew Dave — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:42:01 -0000

(You can find Part I here)

Ah. The 80's. Anyone who tells you there was a better genre for music is lying. Journey. Toto. Pat Benatar. Flock of Seagulls. Movies were better then, too. There weren't all these damn special effects, so you actually had to write something to keep people in the theater. The glorious apex of these two art forms was the 1985 cinematic classic, Rocky IV. Balboa. Drago. Incredibly hot, nine foot tall Soviet chick with a high top fade. Apollo Creed (which will be the name of my first born son).

Apollo Creed Brew. Got a nice ring, don't it? Mrs. Brew won't care. I've arranged for a Volkswagon sized epidural to be delivered, so she won't realize what's going on until long after the paper work is filed. But I digress.

What does Rocky IV have to do with Michigan Football? Everything. I give you Survivor's Opus "In the Burning Heart"

In the warriors code
There's no surrender
Though his body says stop
His spirit cries - never!

That's fall practice right there folks. You are Rocky. Exhaustion, pain, weakness... they are Drago. You must overcome Drago. Yesterday, along with Kenny Loggins, I gave you the first five freshmen and unknowns that will make a difference for Michigan in 2009. From the Danger Zone we move into the Burning Heart. The next five players aren't really Rocky-esque underdogs, but they're not prohibitive favorites in anything either. They're guys that have talent, motors, wheels, but have to put it all together to be successful.

Deep in our soul
A quiet ember
Know it's you against you
It's the paradox that drives us on

Hell yeah.

So without further ado, here are Five more Freshmen and Unknowns to Be Excited About for the 2009 Michigan Football Season:

via www.mikedesimone.com

5. Junior Hemingway - Redshirt Sophomore - Wide Receiver - A 6'1" burner from South Carolina, Hemingway taunted us a bit last year. Flashing brilliance against Utah before tearing up his shoulder in that same game, following it up with a nasty case of mono, and missing the remainder of the season. A year and a medical redshirt later, Hemingway is being counted on to be Michigan's deep threat. The presence of a down field receiver is crucial in this offense, not just to provide quick strike ability, but to keep opposing safeties off the line of scrimmage or the slot receivers. Hemingway is kind of a Manningham type receiver, not the fastest guy with a stop watch but seems to have that extra gear in pads. He may not be the tallest guy on the field, but he can jump out of the stadium for those corner of the endzone jump balls. Hemingway has the services split on his upside, with Scout ranking him at 4 stars and Rivals at 3. But if you saw him against Utah, you know the potential is there. And now the expectation is that he's going to realize it on the field.

"Junior’s in probably the best shape he’s been in, but he’s still not ready where I think he’s going to be," Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez said. "We need him to be - he and Greg Mathews in particular got to be two guys that we can count on as far as making plays and being able to do all the things we ask our wideouts to do. Those are kind of two of the upperclassmen that their time is kind of now."

Speed. Hands. Hops. Junior's our man.

The Rest of the Countdown, Links, YouTubes, and other Fun Stuff after the Jump.....

4. Troy Woolfolk - Junior - Safety - There's a fair amount of understandable trepidation about Michigan's safety situation. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't at the top of my 2009 Michigan Football "OMG!!1!!!1!!" list. But the more I look into things, the more confident I become that things are going to be okay. If not okay, then at least measurably better than last year. One of those reasons is Troy Woolfolk. Woolfolk played corner and safety in high school with success at both positions. In fact, Woolfolk's senior year was spent at safety and the 6'0" burner turned in a hell of a year:

Defensive back Troy Woolfolk was the first to commit to Michigan and followed up his verbal with superb play. The 6-0 defensive back excelled at safety, picking off six passes.

"Moving Troy to free safety made all the difference," Dulles coach Jim Creech said. "No one could break the long one on us because of his speed and he really helped us on defense with his physical play. I really believe he's a safety."

That comes from Woolfolk's high school coach, courtesy of MGoBlog's archives. Keep looking at my favorite word: "speed." People mention that a lot when they talk about Woolfolk. The kids ran the 100 meter in 10.28 seconds. Jesus that's fast. Faster than Denard Robinson's 10.3. ESPN says some nice things as well

He plays in a soft cover-two scheme or uses a soft shuffle technique with his back to the sideline always keeping the ball to his inside. He has quick feet and shows good overall quickness. Change-of-direction skills are adequate. He has decent short-area man-to-man coverage skills and shows good burst to make plays on the ball when in proper position. He has good ball skills.

The constant knock I see on Woolfolk is that he needs to work on positioning and technique. That seems to be a microcosm of Michigan circa 2008. But where safety depth is thin, where speed is at a premium, and a player has experience at a position, it means you're a little less concerned. The kid is confident. The kid is fast. The kid feels "natural" at the position.

"It seems like the position is more natural for me, because I actually played it in high school a little bit," Woolfolk said. "I started off at corner and toward my senior year, they stopped throwing it my way, so I moved to safety, and it just feels natural. It doesn't feel like I switched to a new position. It feels like I'm going back to an old position."

I think he's going to have a great year.

3. J.B. Fitzgerald - Sophomore - Linebacker - Part of Michigan's initially impressive linebacker haul of 2008, Fitzgerald and Kenny Demens are the only ones left on campus. But, clearly, the best two stayed. At this point Fitzgerald has begun to separate himself from the pack and is emerging as one of the first players off the bench to step in at Linebacker in 2009. Fitzgerald was a consensus four star recruit and appears ready to step into the primary backup role as a redshirt freshman, if not challenge for a starting job. ESPN loves him:

Fitzgerald blends great size and speed at his linebacker position. He possesses a tall, thickly-built frame that should allow him to play at 240 pounds in college while maintaining athleticism and range. He is very strong and physical stacking the inside run. He is best playing downhill and attacking vertically with his good short-area closing speed. Those vertical attacking skills could slide him down to defensive end in the right college scheme. Moves adequately well through the trash. He occasionally shows good agility and athleticism sliding under blocks and hitting the small inside run seams. Possesses the flat-out speed to turn and chase down backs to the sideline, rare and very impressive for size. He doesn't always look smooth in coverage but consistently positions himself correctly with good recovery speed and fluid hips and turns. Flashes the man skills to stick with backs and tight ends and possesses good range in the middle hook area.

This combined with a strong showing in Spring practice and the Spring Game, put Fitzgerald in a position to see significant playing time this year. Fitzgerald took a little bit of a pundit lashing for over pursuit, but that's something good coaching sorts out (at least, God, I hope so). Depending on the package Greg Robinson decides to run, Fitzgerald could see plenty of time at SAM or Will, if Brown moves to the Quick position on any given play. Another theory, proposed by MGoBlog, is that Fitzgerald could move to MIKE if Obi Ezeh transitions to Deathbacker/Quick.

I don't think that's going to happen. Ezeh seems to have locked down the MIKE position, and at this point teaching him the new assignments with less than three weeks before kickoff seems like asking for trouble. As a result, Fitzgerald should be the first guy off the bench and will likely be groomed for the MIKE position when Ezeh graduates. The upshot is we've got a quick, hard hitting LB coming off the bench who was actually a LB in high school. Because we've got three upperclassmen returning to starting positions, we don't have to throw the kid into the fire. As a result, I think we're going to see some great things from Fitzgerald as a situational substitution and even better things from him down the road.

2. Mark Huyge - Redshirt Sophomore - Offensive Tackle - The Big Uglies never get enough love in the press, but they sure as hell do here. Huyge was another guy who's fall practice and Spring Game results were good enough to get him named by Gerry DiNardo as an unknown who will help Michigan this year during the BTN's college road show. There's good reason for this. Huyge is pegged to be our starting right guard at this point, if you're looking for a demonstration of his work, watch him at right tackle in the Spring Game (unless you like Fat Boy Slim, turn off your sound):

Like most linemen, Huyge wasn't a highly hyped prospect out of high school. But he was big, mean, and possessed a great frame to grow into. He's just one bige 'loe corn fed white boy who seems destined to play tackle. 6'6", now well over 300 bills, and fully recovered from a ankle injury that knocked him out of last year. It's worth noting that before the injury, Huyge was battling for a starting spot as a true freshman.

In 2009, however, Huyge is two years into Barwis' training program and seems to be filling out his considerable frame. Not just that, the kid really seems to move well for his size. Quick feet, active hands. ESPN didn't love him as a high school junior, but said the thing we all want to hear about Linemen at that level:

Huyge is a prospect who has some upside, but looks to need some time to continue to grow as a player. He would greatly benefit from a red-shirt and possibly more. He has a good frame and looks to be able to add more bulk which he will need. He makes good initial contact and is capable of getting push off the line of scrimmage in the run game. When he stays low and gets placement with his hands he can drive a defender. He needs to work on his pad level and stay low. He also needs to be more consistent with his hand placement as he will let defender's get into him. He has an adequate motor, but needs to work on moving his feet after contact and maintaining position. He tends to slip off blocks a little too soon. He moves well and looks comfortable when asked to pull. He does an adequate job of getting up to the second level, but needs to work on the angles he takes. He is adequate in pass protection and does a solid job of initially getting set. If he can get position he is solid and can mirror, but may struggle trying to shadow quicker more explosive defensive ends. Huyge has ability, but needs to keep improving. To play tackle he will fit best as a right tackle at the college level.

Everything ESPN said needed to happen for him to be a next level player happened. If you watch the Spring game footage, the thing that stands out to me the most is Huyge's movement. He slides well, doesn't get tangled up, has good blocking angles, and drives his blocks. Seriously, watch him drive the DE into the linebacker. That's not so good for our defense but oh so good for our offense. The peeps I've heard out of camp and over the interwebz say he's having a great fall and looks like he'll be the man on the right side. Remember last year when we didn't have a clue how this would all pan out? This year we do, and it looks like Huyge's going to be a huyge part of that.

via www.mgoblue.com

1. Ryan Van Bergen - Redshirt Sophomore - Defensive End - You've gotta love this kid. Rivals sure did:

VanBergen's film is one of the most impressive of any player up on the Rivals.com network. He can't be blocked at defensive end and on offense at tight end he's often seen running downfield and away from would-be tacklers.

A consensus four star recruit at DE, Van Bergen is basically a very, very large Tasmanian Devil. He doesn't stop until he eats you. Ever. In high school, at only 250 lbs, Van Bergen terrorized Michigan HS football blowing past or bowling over everyone/thing in his path. One on one he was literally impossible to stop, polishing off every challenger at Michigan's camp in 2007. That kind of drive makes him one of the most important players on Michigan's young defensive line. Ryan won't let up, and in listening to his teammates, he won't let up on them either. A leader by example and effort, in just two years in the program, Van Bergen is already a team leader.

The upshot of this is he's got the real chance to be a difference maker on defense. Van Bergen will create a lot of problems for opposing offenses as Mike Martin requires two guys to keep him at bay, and anyone sending a single Tackle up against Brandon Graham is asking for quarterback puree. With two veterans to his left or right, Van Bergen's going to see a lot of single blocks. If he can show that same motor he displayed in high school, he's going to free up more and more opportunities for Graham and Martin as defenses learn to account for him. Maybe it'll be bringing in a TE to help with blocking. Maybe that'll take a receiver off the field. Van Bergen's as critical a piece to Michigan's season as just about any other player not playing quarterback.

For Michigan to meet or even exceed expectations, Van Bergen's going to have to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks and use his speed and motor to control the end of the LoS. So far this off season, he seems to be living up to the considerable hype that surrounded his high school recruitment. But as a Wolverine, he's still a bit of an unknown, making only 13 stops last year as a red shirt freshman, contributing mostly on special teams. But, after two years on the bench and in the weight room, Van Bergen is No. 1 on my list of 10 Freshman and Unknowns who will make a difference in 2009.

(If you're looking for the remaining Five Players, here's Part I.)

Know thy Opponent 2009: Michigan Wolverines

BoilerTMill — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 13:03:17 -0000

I will go on record before even starting this preview that we will lose the Michigan game. It does not matter how good we are or how bad Michigan is. We have proven over the last 40 years that we simply cannot play good football at Michigan Stadium. We have had great quarterbacks like Drew Brees, Mark Phipps, Kyle Orton, and Mark Herrmann go winless there. Some of our best teams in school history, such as our 9-4 team in 2003 that was very close to being 12-1, have gotten blown out there. Even when we have a miracle and a Jim Colletto coached team holds the Wolverines to five points in 1995 we couldn't get one damn touchdown to win the game.

Since Bob Griese and company went in and won at the Big House 22-21 on October 15, 1966, Purdue is 0-17 in Ann Arbor. The closest games were a 5-0 loss in 1995 and a 9-6 loss in 1972. In six of those losses we haven't even managed to score a single point. All but the 1995 and 1972 game were at least two touchdown defeats. We don't just lose there, we get blown out.

Theoretically, this should be the year we're at least competitive. Then again, in theory, communism works. Michigan won't be "Michigan" this season or, in my opinion, as long as Rich Rodriguez is their head coach. There is absolutely no excuse that with the talent Michigan recruits without even trying they should ever have a 3-9 season. Still, that doesn't mean we're going to win there this year. The Michigan game at Michigan officially reached the "until I see it happen" stage as far as predicting a win goes. After we rolled over and died against a team that couldn't stop a 1-AA team two years ago I no longer have any hope for ever seeing a win up there.

This is your typical Purdue-Michigan score in Ann Arbor, though we usually don't get 21 points. Thanks, Joey Elliott, for the meaningless touchdowns in the last two minutes.

2008 Record: 3-9, (2-6 Big Ten)

Bowl Result: none

Blog Representation: MGoBlog, MVictors, Varsity Blue, Michigan Sports Center, iBlog for Cookies, Maize'n'Brew, Maize & Blue Nation

Series with Purdue: Michigan leads 41-13-0

Last Purdue win: 11/1/2008 at Purdue 48-42

Last Michigan win: 10/13/2007 at Michigan 48-21

Last Season for the Wolverines:

Rich Rodriguez is very lucky I am not Michigan's athletic director, because I would have fired him after last year's 3-9 debacle. Michigan was very lucky to win the three games it did win. Michigan probably played its best in a 25-23 loss to undefeated Utah in the season opener. In that game, a missed 2-point conversion in the final minutes cost the Wolverines the tie. It got worse from there. Home losses to Illinois, Toledo, Michigan State, and Northwestern meant just a 2-5 home record. On the road, the Wolverines managed just a 29-6 win at Minnesota to go unbeaten in the Metrodome. It was bad, but it was made even worse by the fact that this is a team filled with more raw talent than 110 other teams every year. Like Notre Dame in 2007, there was absolutely no excuse to be that bad.

This year's schedule does not guarantee a return to a bowl, either. Western Michigan is a very good MAC team that could win the season opener. They are certainly better than Toledo was last year. Though we will be cheering for the Wolverines, a victory in game 2 over Notre Dame is far from a guarantee. It is never a good sign when Indiana thinks they can beat Michigan. Road trips to Michigan State, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin in conference play are not easy, while Penn State and Ohio State come to Ann Arbor as conference favorites. Michigan should be better in year #2 of RichRod simply because of more experience, but making a bowl game could be a stretch.

Michigan offense:

Michigan did not have consistent quarterback play last season, but that was blamed on Steven Threet and nick Sheridan not being the right guys for the system. Threet is gone and Sheridan has been relegated to backup for true freshman Tate Forcier. With Forcier, the Wolverines may now have an edge in the cocky quarterback who hasn't accomplished anything of note department over 2-year defending champ Jimmy Clausen. At least Clausen didn't open a website to flaunt his recruiting and high school championships.

Seriously though, Forcier is expected to be the savior of Michigan football. He is a great passer while on the run and he has the ability to make something out of nothing with his legs. While his high school numbers were good, he doesn't have an overwhelming amount of size at 6'1" 187. He will be an exciting player to watch, but I am encouraged that we see many of quarterbacks of his style (Jeremiah Moseli, Chandler Harnish, , mike Kafka, Terrelle Pryor, and Juice Williams) before we see Forcier. He will be the least experienced of that group, so if our defense handles those before him well we should be able to handle Forcier.

One player that does scare me is running back Brandon Minor. Simply put, Minor owns us. He had just 553 yards rushing and nine scores last season, but against Purdue he went for 155 yards and three scores. If not for an injury after three carries in the 2007 game he would have even more yards. As it was in that game, we allowed Mike Hart to run for 102 yards and two scores in a half, followed by third string Carlos Brown's 66 yards and two scores. Both Brown and Minor are back as the top two running backs. We have proven that we cannot stop any Michigan running backs based on our last three games with them, so I have little hope we will start now.

With as bad as Michigan's quarterbacks were last year, the receivers were non-factors in most games. Martavious Odoms had the biggest impact as a receiver in last year's game, and that came on a 73-yar punt return for a score in the first quarter. It was his only touchdown last season, though he did lead Michigan in receiving with 49 catches for 443 yards. Greg Mathews (35-409-2) ranked second on the team, and tied Minor for first in touchdown receptions. Michigan only generated 11 passing touchdowns last season, but two of them came against Purdue. Junior Hemingway should emerge as a solid third receiver after missing most of the year with an ankle injury. Roy Roundtree, the four-star recruit that spurned Purdue for Michigan before last season, redshirted and is still busy getting splinters out of his rear end. He is not on the two deeps at receiver.

The offensive line wasn't great, but wasn't awful last year despite losing three starters. While it was a weakness last year, it should be a strength as this season all five projected starters have starting experience. Right guard David Moosman and center David Molk are the anchors as they started every game at their respective positions last year. Mark Ortmann also has plenty of experience at left tackle, leaving Stephen Schilling and Mark Huyge to start at left guard and right tackle, respectively. Their biggest problem last season was learning a new blocking scheme as the offense drastically changed. They took some blame, but they are not the reason Michigan quarterbacks threw 12 interceptions and completed less than 50% of their passes.

Michigan defense:

It is hard to argue what was worse in 2008. The Michigan offense averaged barely 20 points per game and scored more than 20% of its season total against Purdue alone. The defense gave up 29 per game and got burned by a third string quarterback making his first career start. That game was a microcosm of Michigan's season. Just as the offense finally figured some things out the defense turned in an even worse performance. It doesn't matter how much better the offense gets this year unless there is marked improvement on the defense.

A rare positive moment for Purdue against Michigan.

The defensive line could be a huge liability this season. Only Brandon Graham (46 tackles, 10 sacks) is a proven performer up front. Michigan will probably play quite a bit of 3-4, meaning Mike Martin at nose tackle and Ryan Van Bergen at the other end position will have to play well as starters. True freshman William Campbell at 6'5" 330 pounds will likely see time in the rotation at tackle as well. This was supposed to be the best part of the defense last year, but it was a disaster with all its experience. Now they will have to improve without much proven experience.

Linebacker Obi Ezeh had a good year, leading Michigan with 98 tackles. It was a good freshman season for him on the outside, but more will be expected from him. Jonas Mouton started every game except the Utah game and was second on the team with 76 tackles. There is a question of when he will be ready after missing spring practice with shoulder surgery. Brandon Herron and Steve Brown will provide speed at the other two linebacker positions, with Brown being a hybrid safety/linebacker

Safety is the one position on defense where Michigan appears to be totally set. Troy Woolfolk, Steve Brown, and Michael Williams will all start the season, but much is expected from incoming freshman Vladimir Emilien. Emilien is expected to make a huge impact, and could be starting by the time the Purdue game rolls around. At cornerback, Michigan has plenty of good tacklers, but there isn't a true shutdown corner. Donovan Warren had 52 tackles and an interception last year. He will be joined on the other side by Boubacar Cissoko. Cissiko is a bit undersized at 5'9", but we lack a big receiver to take advantage of that.

Michigan Special Teams:

I love the guys over at Maize N' Brew. Not only was I able to meet Dave after last season's Purdue game, they have developed a cult following around Michigan's punter. Zoltan Mesko, whom I would call Destroyer of Worlds with a name like that, has been dubbed the Space Emperor by the staff at Maize N' Brew. It may be because he had so much practice due to Michigan's awful offense, but Mesko may be the nation's best punter at 43 yards per boot. He pinned opponents inside the 20 24 times last year and opponents only averaged 7.9 yards per return.

Odoms will likely handle punt return duties, but his best day by far was against us. He and Cissoko will likely handle kick return duties as Michigan averaged 21.4 yards per return there.

Michigan must find a new placekicker this season after the departure of K.C. Lopata. Bryan Wright, who was a kickoff specialist last season, and freshman Brendan Gibbons will battle for that job.

Intangibles:

On paper I have a hard time seeing how Michigan is going to be much better than last year. The only guaranteed wins are Eastern Michigan and Delaware State. Still, this game is at Michigan. Their dominance of us is perplexing because there have been many different factors, but the result has always been the same. They blow us out nearly every time. If this game were at Purdue, where I have been personal witness to three of our all-time 13 wins against them (all since 1996), I would give us a major advantage. If they were winless and we were undefeated I would still pick Michigan by two touchdowns because of our baffling inability to play good football up there.

Game Outlook:

I expect this to unfold like every other Purdue Michigan game in Ann Arbor since 1966. The Wolverines will dominate in the running game. Brandon Minor will have a he day by running for close to 200 yards and a couple scores. No matter how well we are playing, we will have stupid turnovers and be unable to capitalize on the few mistakes that Michigan makes.

It doesn't have to be this way, either. This is absolutely a game we should, on paper, be able to win easily. Tate Forcier is at least a year away from running that offense with precision. The Michigan defense looks to be extremely vulnerable against the run. All we should have to do is run the ball, make a few pass completions, and stop them from running the ball. We should have a better chance at winning here than we do at Minnesota or Wisconsin, but because of our history in Ann Arbor I fully expect to get rolled.

Prediction:

If it doesn't happen this year, I doubt it will ever happen. We have got to break our long drought at Michigan Stadium. If Toledo and Appalachian State can do it, why can't we? It is because we are Purdue, and we leave all football playing ability at the Ann Arbor city limit. Michigan 24, Purdue 6