Junior Michael Shaw will be part of a heated competition to start at tailback.

With the recruiting class of 2010 signed, Michigan football fans can officially turn their attention to spring practice, and ultimately how the team will look come fall. With some assistance from MGoBlog’s depth chart by class and the resources available at The Wolverine (including Michael Spath’s very early look at the 2011 depth chart and Matt Pargoff’s in-depth look at this year’s recruiting class), I’ve done my best to project how the depth chart will look like this fall. Today, I’ll break down my outlook on the offense, and tomorrow I’ll do the same for the defense.

I’ve tried to include every notable scholarship player, including all the true freshmen. Because of this, and the uncertainty of many player’s positions heading into spring practice, I recommend taking the positions listed below with a grain of salt, especially along the offensive line and defensive secondary — at this point, it’s far too early to know who will be playing where. Instead, I wanted to do this to get a feel for the talent and depth of the team, and also be able to use this as a reference for player eligibility. For player eligibility, I’m using what MGoBlog has listed, and for player heights and weights I’m referring to last year’s official roster or Rivals’ recruiting data — I’ll do my best to note if a player has made reported weight gains or losses where applicable. Without further ado, let’s check out the depth chart:

Quarterback: No surprises here — Tate Forcier should head into the fall as the team’s starting quarterback, and I expect Rich Rodriguez and his staff will do their best to keep true freshman Devin Gardner on track to redshirt. Denard Robinson will remain the backup quarterback, and true freshman Conelius Jones will only see the field if the quarterback apocalypse occurs (nothing against Jones, but I don’t think anyone wants to see our second-choice true freshman athlete get forced into action).

Running Backs: The most interesting position battle on offense will be for the starting tailback spot, but with sophomore Vincent Smith sidelined for spring practice with a torn ACL, Michigan fans will have to wait for the fall to see how that one turns out. Smith appeared to be the probable 2010 starter until tearing that ACL against Ohio State, but by no means was he a shoe-in for the spot — junior speedster Michael Shaw, 2009 scout team standout (and former Rivals four-star) Fitzgerald Toussaint and athletic redshirt sophomore Michael Cox will all compete for snaps with the first team in the spring. Freshman Austin White is a solid pass-catching threat who could see situational time in the fall as well.

[UPDATE: Thanks to JC for bringing to my attention that Kelvin Grady is moving over to running back for the spring. That change is now reflected in the depth chart, as well as Teric Jones moving back to offense. For now, I've put Jones in the slot, but he may also see snaps at running back as well.]

At fullback, Mark Moundros returns, although he saw his playing time diminish as Michigan further implemented Rich Rodriguez’s offense last season. A player to watch will be true freshman Stephen Hopkins, a 6-0, 235-pound bulldozer who could see time at both tailback and fullback — the coaching staff has expressed interest in using him like West Virginia used Owen “Runaway Beer Truck” Schmitt, who lined up both as a traditional fullback and as the only back in single-back sets. Hopkins could be called upon in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

Wide Receiver: This would be one of those instances where you can basically ignore my guesses at position — I didn’t make much differentiation between X and Y, so treat all these players as simply outside receivers if you want to make things more simple. Darryl Stonum and Junior Hemingway both started at times (read: when healthy) last season, and should reprise their roles in 2010. Sophomore Je’Ron Stokes saw intermittent playing time as a true freshman, and should have a much larger role with the departures of Greg Mathews and LaTerryal Savoy. Of the incoming crop of freshmen receivers, I think Ricardo Miller has the best chance of seeing early playing time — both Robinson and Williamson could use a redshirt year to develop physically, while Jeremy Jackson could have a difficult time earning a role over more athletic receivers on the roster. If Cameron Gordon stays on the offensive side of the ball, he could be a guy to watch next season — he has great physical tools for a receiver.

Slot Receiver: Michigan has an abundance of talent at the slot, including arguably the two best receivers on the roster in Roy Roundtree and Martavious Odoms. Both players will see the field plenty in 2010, and I expect to see Michigan go to more four-receiver sets in order to get their best players on the field as much as possible. Kelvin Grady should show improvement after spending last season struggling with the offense, but he will be pushed for time by promising redshirt freshman Jeremy Gallon, a player who many thought would contribute immediately after stepping on campus. That didn’t happen, but the talent is still there — the only question is whether there is enough playing time at the slot to go around. Terrence Robinson appears to be the odd man out at slot receiver at this point — unless he shows better hands and a great deal more comfort with the knee injury he suffered as a freshman, he’ll have a hard time cracking the lineup. Drew Dileo could contribute on special teams, but expect him to redshirt unless he wins a job as a returner.

Tight End: It will be interesting to see how much the tight end position gets utilized in 2010 — starter Kevin Koger’s role diminished as the season wore on last year, and Rich Rodriguez hasn’t taken a recruit at the position since he took over at Michigan. Still, Koger finished fifth on the team in receptions last year, and early in the season appeared to be Tate Forcier’s go-to guy in the red zone, so I’d be surprised if the tight end position was phased out completely. That’s good news for Koger, but Martell Webb and Brandon Moore may have a tough time seeing the field in the fall, as I’m guessing Rodriguez would prefer playing one of his talented slot receivers instead of a backup tight end. This position group could be one of the keys to Michigan’s offense in 2010 or completely gone from the depth chart by 2011.

Offensive Line: Please, please don’t take these position groupings too seriously — there are several players on the line who could start at multiple positions, especially Patrick Omameh and Mark Huyge, who both could start at either tackle or guard. The wild cards along the line are Ricky Barnum and Quinton Washington, who could easily challenge for a starting guard spot over Huyge/Omameh. I expect Omameh, who showed a lot of promise at guard last season, to start somewhere along the line, but more experienced linemen like Huyge and Perry Dorrestein could be bumped from the lineup in favor of younger (but more highly-touted) linemen.  I don’t think the coaching staff would be very comfortable with a line full of freshmen, sophomores and Molk, but they’ve been steadfast in their assertions that the best players will see the field regardless of age. Other than Molk at center and Schilling at left guard, I wouldn’t be surprised to see any combination of players along the line in 2010.

Kicker: Redshirt freshman Brendan Gibbons has the inside track for the placekicker position, but he was supposed to win the position last fall before giving way to walk-on Jason Olesnavage. Olesnavage has graduated, but don’t rule out the possibility of walk-on Scott Schrimscher winning the job. Redshirt senior Bryan Wright has lost multiple battles for the placekicker position, and likely will be relegated to kickoff duties again in the fall.

Similar Posts:

• How Much Can We Expect Tate Forcier To Improve?
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• The Denard Conundrum
• Wolverines on the Web is All Manny, All the Time
• Recruiting Update: Part I (Early Enrollees)

Manny Harris has reacted well to being disciplined in the past.

Even with a huge game against rival Michigan State looming tonight, much of the blogosphere’s attention is still on Manny Harris’ suspension, what it means for the team, and the apparent lack of leadership on this Michigan squad. Reactions to Harris’ suspension covered the spectrum of negative emotions, from anger and disgust to disappointment and resignation. Here are a few of the reactions (some coming before the suspension was lifted yesterday, for the record).

UMHoops:

Putting aside whether the suspension was warranted or not, there is a bigger issue here. The fact that Harris did something in practice that warranted suspension.

It’s been a tough couple weeks for Harris. He has been struggled for long stretches, played poor defense, and has just looked lost and out of sorts at times. Some pointed to his lingering hamstring injury but I think it was more the effects of frustrating season, personally and for this team. His struggles peaked versus Wisconsin in what was easily one of his worst games this season.

Harris’s frustration likely reached its boiling point during whatever incident occurred in Friday’s practice. At this point, the key is to figure out how to move on post-incident.

Dylan also points out that Manny has played very well after being disciplined in the past, scoring 28 points, grabbing seven rebounds, and dishing six assists against Penn State after being ejected from the Purdue game and posting 27, 7 and 6 after being benched against Iowa last year.

Burgeoning Wolverine Star:

Beilein is going to have a press conference in about 20 minutes and will likely answer all of the speculation I’m about to throw into the Internet, but man, this sounds like an open insubordination/”I’m the star” kind of suspension to me. From the sound of it, he did something that attacked the team, rather than punching someone or personally attacking one player/coach.

This is another reason I’ve been kind of down on Harris this year: He just doesn’t look like he cares. He seems to be biding his time before he declares for the NBA (which will be at the end of this year). But with his performance this year, and this suspension now on the national radar, dude is seriously hurting his NBA stock.

Maize n Brew:

That’s why this whole thing makes so little sense to me. Michigan wasn’t a top 20 team going into this season. But they were a tournament bubble team. Their wins over Ohio State and Penn State, as well as their dominating until the last five minutes performances against Wisconsin and Northwestern show that this is a capable team. There’s plenty of talent, just not a lot of size. Irrespective of either, Michigan just hasn’t played as a team this season. No one’s stepped up to lead the squad. No one has shouldered the responsibility of being the guy. Not just early in the game, but late when discipline and control matter. Harris may be Michigan’s best player, but he’s made more mental mistakes at critical times already this season than he made all of last year. The biggest by far, was the mistake that got him suspended. Leaders don’t make mistakes like that.

Now that we’ve gotten the latest depressing basketball development out of the way, let’s move on to football (hooray!). The Wolverine has posted their best early guess for the spring depth chart, which is worth checking out for curiosity’s sake. Interesting note: the coaches have changed the depth chart to show two starting slot receivers, with no starting tight ends. I expect Michigan fans will be very split on this. I like any move that gets Martavious Odoms and Roy Roundtree on the field at the same time, as they’re two of our best weapons on offense. However, I also think Kevin Koger has a lot of talent, and would like to see him continue to get ample playing time, and I think there’s a definite place for the tight end position in the spread offense. Keep an eye on this situation as we head into spring ball.

Michigan secured another commitment for the class of 2010, snake-oiling DE/DT Jibreel Black (3* Rivals, 4* Scout) from Cincinnati. Black is a great pickup for Michigan, and a guy who projects to either the three-technique DT spot (Ryan Van Bergen’s position) or defensive end. MGoBlog has your full rundown on Black.

The Other Brian, over at Genuinely Sarcastic, picks up on the ESPN story on Elliott Mealer and his family, who have developed a special connection with Rich Rodriguez and his staff in the wake of the tragic car accident involving the Mealers on Christmas Eve, 2007. It’s great to see the video of Elliott’s brother Brock learning to walk again with Mike Barwis at his side. A great story, and one that hasn’t received enough attention with all the negative press surrounding Rodriguez and Michigan.

Finally, MVictors gives us another Bo story that shows just how awesome and well-respected he was, stemming from a case involving ex-Wolverine Garland Rivers and illegal contact with an agent. Just click over there, since to give context I’d have to block-quote the whole story. Moral of the story: Don’t ever cross Bo.

On that note, make sure to tune in to the game tonight, whether live at Crisler or on TV. Go Blue!

Similar Posts:

• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Offense
• Ugly? I’ll take it.
• Shorthanded Wolverines Never Had a Chance
• Harris Reinstated; Grady Back With Hoops Squad
• A Closer Look: Michigan Basketball, 2010-11

Bennie Joppru set the single-season school record for receptions by a tight end in 2002.

With Michigan’s 2009 season wrapped up, and the decade coming to a close, I thought I would steal an idea from Dr. Saturday and have my readers vote on a Team of the Decade. So, I’ve come up with a list of nominees for every position, and I’ll be posting two position groups every day for the next week, leaving it up to you to vote for who should make the team. At the end of the month, I’ll tally up the votes and reveal the team of the decade. Next up are the tight ends and fullbacks:

Okay, I’m cheating a little and lumping in the tight end post with the fullback post — both came up a little short in excitement and number of nominees to warrant their own post. First, the tight end nominees:

Bennie Joppru (1999-2002): Joppru broke out as a senior after three years of backup duty at tight end, setting the single-season school record for catches by a tight end in 2002 with 53, going for 579 yards and five touchdowns. The sure-handed option was a first down machine, and earned AP All-America third-team honors for his record-setting performance. Joppru is fourth in career receptions for a tight end at Michigan, and ninth in career receiving yards.

Tyler Ecker (2003-2006): Ecker never had a season that compared with Joppru’s senior campaign, but over the last three years of his career he was a consistent threat — when healthy — going over the middle for Michigan. His finest season came as a junior, when he registered 21 catches for 285 yards and two touchdowns. Ecker sits ninth all-time for career tight end receptions at Michigan.

Tim Massaquoi (2002-2005): The talented Massaquoi started games at tight end in each of his final three seasons at Michigan, but was never quite able to consistently contribute, and split time with the more sure-handed Ecker and Andy Mignery during that time. His best season came in 2003, when he recorded 15 catches for 199 yards and two touchdowns.

Kevin Koger (2008-present): The four-star talent has showed flashes of brilliance and a penchant for the big play in his first two years at Michigan. Koger snagged six catches for 92 yards and a touchdown as a freshman and finished 2009 with 16 catches for 220 yards and two touchdowns. Although he struggled some with drops as his sophomore season wore on, Koger also exhibited a flair for the spectacular with a Sportscenter-quality grab in the opener against Western Michigan:

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Now, the fullback nominees — I don’t think you could come up with two more different players at the same position.

B.J. Askew (1999-2002): Askew started his career as a tailback, splitting carries with Chris Perry in his junior season before Perry proved himself capable of being a feature back in 2002. With Perry getting the lion’s share of the carries, Askew moved to fullback, where he became a dangerous option as both a runner and receiver. Askew’s best season statistically was 2001, when he rushed for over 900 yards as a tailback, but as a fullback in 2002 still managed to rush for 568 yards and six touchdowns while adding 36 catches for 280 yards and a touchdown through the air.

Kevin Dudley (2001-2004): Dudley — unlike the converted tailback Askew — was a classic fullback, standing 6-1 and weighing 237 pounds. Dudley put his frame to good use, starting 19 games in his junior and senior seasons and acting as a punishing lead blocker. Stats can’t show Dudley’s contribution — he only had three career rushes and eight catches — but he paved the way for Chris Perry’s Doak Walker-winning season in 2003 and Mike Hart’s tremendous freshman campaign in 2004. Dudley, who seemed to thrive from contact, was always good for a spine-crushing block or two per game, and for me you can’t ask for much more out of the fullback position.

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Similar Posts:

• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Quarterback
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Running Backs
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Wide Receivers
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Interior Linemen
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Offense

Roy Roundtree looks like he will be an integral part of the 2010 offense.

There’s not much left to say about the 2009 season, so I’m going to go ahead and take a look at what the 2010 team will look like. First up is the offense, which should see little turnover from a very young unit. Just a note: I’ll be referring to players by what class they will be in for 2010 (for instance, I’ll be calling Tate Forcier a sophomore).

Quarterback: There will be a lot of speculation about the quarterback position, especially with the way Tate Forcier finished his freshman campaign. Forcier obviously has the inside track at the starting position in 2010, with a full season as the starter in Rich Rodriguez’s system under his belt. Denard Robinson has shown value as a situational quarterback, but hasn’t shown the passing ability to be a full-time solution at the position. The wild card will be the presence of incoming freshman Devin Gardner, Rivals.com’s #1 quarterback in the Class of 2010 and a threat to start from the moment he steps on campus. Unfortunately, Gardner will not be able to enroll early, and will have a tough time learning the offense quickly enough to unseat Forcier. In all likelihood, we’ll see the same quarterback rotation that we saw in 2009 — I doubt Rich Rodriguez wants to put his job on the line with another true freshman starting at the most important position on the field. Forcier should be an improved player when we see him next fall, and hopefully the rookie mistakes that marred the Ohio State game will be largely absent from his game a year from now.

Running Back: Michigan loses two talented (but oft-injured) tailbacks in Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown, but there is still a lot of talent returning at the position. Junior Michael Shaw and sophomore Vincent Smith should provide a solid one-two punch similar to how Michigan rotated Minor and Brown when they were healthy. They could be pushed for playing time by redshirt freshman Fitzgerald Toussaint (a highly-regarded four-star who put up very impressive numbers in high school) and redshirt sophomore Mike Cox, who at the very least will provide some depth at the position. Smith showed flashes of real promise in the second half of the season, and scored Michigan’s only touchdown against Ohio State on a nice 18-yard reception — he has showed an ability to run between the tackles despite his small stature, and could turn into a workhorse-type back. Shaw is more in the Carlos Brown mold (right down to the consistent nagging injuries), a guy with track-star speed who is a threat to take any run the distance. The Wolverines will also add Livonia Stevenson running back Austin White, a three-star tailback who is a very good receiver out of the backfield, and the large (6-0, 235 lbs.) Stephen Hopkins in the freshman class, although both will have an uphill climb for playing time. Despite losing two senior backs, Michigan looks to be in good shape at running back in 2010.

Outside Receiver: Michigan only loses two players, Greg Mathews and LaTerryal Savoy, from a unit that couldn’t consistently produce in 2009. Juniors Darryl Stonum and Junior Hemingway are your likely starters for 2010, and have the potential to provide Forcier with two solid deep threats if they continue to develop as players. Michigan will also return sophomore Je’Ron Stokes and redshirt freshman Cameron Gordon, a couple of four-star players from the Class of 2009, and will add some young talent in incoming freshmen Ricardo Miller, Jerald Robinson, D.J. Williamson, and Jeremy Jackson. Miller, an early commit who moved to Ann Arbor after playing his first three high school seasons at Dr. Phillips (FL), has the best chance to see the field early, although Jerald Robinson is the highest-rated player (Rivals.com four-star, #45 wide receiver) of the true freshmen and could also have an impact early on. The issue with the outside receivers isn’t talent — Stonum, Stokes, and Gordon were all four-star recruits, and Hemingway has been impressive when healthy — but consistency. Expect to see a lot of rotation at receiver until somebody steps up and establishes themselves as a consistent threat.

Slot Receivers: An injury to Martavious Odoms gave Roy Roundtree an opportunity to show his ability at slot receiver, and Roundtree may have edged out Odoms as the starter with his performance over the latter half of 2009. Both players should see ample playing time in 2010, and Roundtree’s emergence as Forcier’s go-to guy could mean Michigan shows more four-receiver sets next fall. Before his injury, Odoms had established himself as Michigan’s most consistent receiver under Rich Rodriguez, and also garnered praise for his downfield blocking and knowledge of the offense. Each player brings a different set of skills to the table, and Michigan will likely utilize both with regularity in 2010. There is a lot of depth at this position, with junior Kelvin Grady, sophomore Terrence Robinson, and redshirt freshman Jeremy Gallon all returning, to be joined by incoming freshmen Drew Dileo and Tony Drake. Grady, who saw his playing time decrease as Roundtree’s role expanded, could see more playing time as his transition from basketball to football continues. Many thought Gallon would contribute this season, but a late start because of academic clearinghouse issues forced him to redshirt — he’s a dark horse guy who could have a breakout season if he gets the opportunity. Overall, there’s a lot of talent in the slot, and Michigan should once again see the majority of their receiving production come from the position.

Tight Ends: Big things were expected from the tight end position, especially junior Kevin Koger, in 2009, but a strong start from Koger was followed by a disappointing string of drops as the position became more of a non-factor as the season wore on. However, there is still a lot of talent at tight end, with Koger joined by senior Martell Webb and redshirt sophomore Brandon Moore. The position will be one to watch in 2010 — Rich Rodriguez rarely utilized tight ends at West Virginia, but Koger has shown the potential to be a huge weapon in the spread. Along with Webb, who also struggled with drops this season, Koger may just be playing for the survival of the tight end position at Michigan next season. If he can catch the ball, Koger could be an All-Big Ten player next year, and a great safety valve for Forcier.

Offensive Line: The unit with the most turnover is the offensive line, which loses starters Mark Ortmann and David Moosman, as well as backup Tim McAvoy. However, Michigan returns five players who earned starts in 2009 in Steve Schilling, David Molk, Mark Huyge, Perry Dorrestein, and Patrick Omameh. Schilling (right guard) and Molk (center) will likely hold down their current positions, but the other three spots on the line are up for grabs, with a bevy of talented linemen all competing for playing time. Omameh performed well at right guard in the last few games of the season, and will likely earn a starting spot somewhere on the line. Huyge is another player that can play multiple positions, and should compete with Dorrestein and redshirt freshmen Taylor Lewan and Michael Schofield for a shot at one of the tackle positions. On the interior of the line, redshirt sophomores Ricky Barnum, Rocko Khoury, and Elliott Mealer, as well as redshirt freshman Quinton Washington, will provide depth and push for playing time. Regardless of who earns starting spots on the line, the experience and talent at every position should mean an improved unit for 2010.

2010 Outlook: The 2009 offense improved drastically from a disastrous unit in Rich Rodriguez’s first year at Michigan. With Tate Forcier having a full year at Michigan under his belt — and hopefully with a greater appreciation for holding on to the football — the Wolverines should once again have an improved offense in 2010. Forcier will be the key — the offensive line should be better with experience, and there is a lot of talent and depth at all the skill positions. If Michigan can get more efficiency from the quarterback position — and they should — we could be seeing one of the nation’s most potent offenses next season.

Similar Posts:

• How Much Can We Expect Tate Forcier To Improve?
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Tight Ends & Fullbacks
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Offense
• The Denard Conundrum
• Recruiting Update: Part I (Early Enrollees)

Unlike most of this season, Michigan did a very good job in the trenches on both sides of the ball.

Well, yeah, we lost this game, but there was actually a lot of good that came out of the 30-28 loss to Iowa. Here a some obsvervations from the game:

• Everybody else seems to have weighed in, so here’s my two cents on Rodriguez’s call to put Denard Robinson back in the game on the final drive: At the time, I couldn’t believe it, and on a final drive I don’t think a team should trot a player out there who causes heart attacks every time he throws downfield. It’s not just that Robinson isn’t very accurate yet; he’s never played in that situation, and he doesn’t have the arm to make up for poor decisions the way Forcier does. Yes, it turns out Forcier was concussed, and the point is moot now, but I just had a bad feeling from the moment Denard took the field. Again, just my opinion.
• The defense put in one hell of an effort, given the five (five!) Michigan turnovers on the day. The Wolverines held Iowa to just 5.1 yards per play, allowed just 34 rushing yards, scored a touchdown (albeit a gift from Ricky Stanzi, but still), AND managed a goal-line stand in the fourth quarter. If you told me they would play that well before the game, I’d have a hard time not picking Michigan to win.
• The offense, on the other hand, was somewhat of a disaster. Seven of the team’s 13 drives stalled after picking up ten yards or less, and the turnovers were so killer because almost all of them were completely unforced.
• Donovan Warren and Brandon Graham simply had monster games. I’ll never understand why Stanzi threw at Warren’s side of the field so much — he was just blanketing the Iowa receivers — but at least Stanzi had a choice to stay away from Warren. BG was blowing plays up, whether they were runs or passes, and basically lived in the Hawkeye backfield all night. These two guys are what is holding this defense together.
• Troy Woolfolk was a pleasant surprise at cornerback. He appeared to play quite well, and possesses the feel for the game that Boubacar Cissoko is lacking right now and the athleticism that J.T. Floyd just doesn’t have. Unfortunately, Mike Williams totally blew his assignment on a couple of Iowa’s touchdowns, and now we’ll have to see if the secondary gets realigned again or if the coaches will simply try to bang it into Williams’ head that he has to be the last man back at all times.
• The linebackers finally put together a complete game (at least until Brian puts out his UFR and anything I have to say here is completely mitigated). Stevie Brown clearly should have been a linebacker since day one — he made a huge play on the goal-line stand, has been a really solid tackler, and gets to plays very quickly. Ezeh and Mouton both raised their play from earlier this season — you simply don’t hold a team to 34 yards rushing if your linebackers aren’t having good games. Hopefully they can keep it up for the rest of the season.
• Huge day for the offensive line. They were opening up huge holes for the run game (which netted 195 yards on 4.3 yards per carry) and protected Forcier and Robinson very well when they dropped back (no sacks given up). Even though I think Iowa’s defense is a little overrated, that was still a big performance against a very tough defensive front. Also, nice to see Moosman snapping the ball much better — I don’t recall a single bad snap.
• It’s tough to really comment too much on the offense. Tate had a rough, rough game. He’s still a freshman, and we have to expect those kind of performances to happen every once in a while. He’s still one of the best true freshmen quarterbacks in recent memory. Denard got thrown into a really tough spot, had one great drive, and then threw a killer pick. He’ll learn from that as well. Minor’s fumble was the one turnover that shocked me — as a senior, you have to protect the ball in that situation, especially when the run was going nowhere to begin with.
• OK, I lied. Mathews’ turnover was also a stunner — he’s back there for one reason, and that’s to catch the ball. If you have to go to your knees to field a punt inside the ten, just let it go.
• Is any outside receiver going to step up on this team? Martavious Odoms and Kevin Koger continue to deliver week-in and week-out, and the outside guys continue to pull disappearing acts. This week, Stonum, Mathews, Hemingway (and Savoy, if you want to count him, since he saw a few snaps) combined for two catches and 16 yards. I realize Forcier often looks to his underneath guys first, but that’s still paltry production from a group of guys with too much talent and experience to be invisible like that.

Similar Posts:

• How Much Can We Expect Tate Forcier To Improve?
• Michigan’s Team of the Decade: Tight Ends & Fullbacks
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Offense
• The Denard Conundrum

Odds are, Ricky Stanzi will throw a pick. Michigan has to capitalize.

It’s Thursday, so again it’s time for “Five Things…”. First, a look back at last week (unfortunately):

1. Continue the success of the return game — Stonum returned three kicks for 60 yards, a far cry from the 218 return yards (albeit on seven returns) he had against Indiana. He didn’t really come close to breaking one, and Michigan could really have used the field position they enjoyed against the Hoosiers. Oh well.
2. Limit the freshmen mistakes — Up until his last pass of the game, Forcier managed to pull this one off despite teetering on the edge of disaster several times in the late stages of the game. However, you can’t really pin this on on Tate: the guy was doing everything he possibly could to will the offense down the field. Even with the pick in overtime, Tate did a tremendous job of not making a disastrous play until it reached a point where he finally tried to do too much.
3. Get to the quarterback — The defense, outside of the mammoth 17-play drive in the first quarter, played a very solid game. The D recorded two sacks and had several other hurries (Brandon Graham, especially, had a MONSTER game). This is one area that was tough to criticize last weekend.
4. Seriously, re-establish the deep threat — Michigan did have two 40+ yard completions, one to Koger and the late catch-and-run by Stonum. However, there really still isn’t a guy that Michigan can just send on a fly route and put the ball up there. Where art thou, Junior Hemingway?
5. Stay tough in the red zone — The Wolverines alternating between bending and breaking: the first State TD was a break, to say the least, and not in a good way, and the 15-yard touchdown run by Winston met little to no resistance. However, Michigan also held State to two short field goals, including one on the drive that ensued directly after the rollout punt FAIL. And Brandon Graham did this:

Which was awesome. Half-credit, maybe?

All in all, this could go anywhere from a 1/5 to a 4/5, depending on how you look at it. Let’s just say 2.5/5 and move on to the keys for Iowa before the vein in my forehead explodes.

1. Capitalize on scoring chances — When looked at from a pure points allowed perspective, Iowa’s defense is daunting, to say the least. They’ve given up a mere 13.4 points per game, good for 10th in the country (and only third in the conference, which is ridiculous). However, Iowa drops down to 32nd in the country in total yards allowed (302.6 per game) and 50th in the country in rush defense (122.2 yards per game). Now, I’m no Smart Football (seriously, check out that site), but that looks to me like a defense that has gotten a little bit lucky in the turnover department (anyone who watched the Penn State game probably has the same impression) and is due to give up some points. Michigan has to take points when they are available.
2. Force Ricky Stanzi to beat you with his arm — I must say, I have no clue why people are so high on Stanzi. He is currently 70th in the country in passing efficiency, and coincidentally just one spot ahead of Western’s Tim Hiller and three ahead of Indiana’s Ben Chappell. In five games this season, he’s thrown eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. I realize that pass defense is the weakness of this Michigan team, but the defense actually did a solid job against State’s previously-productive passing game, and Stanzi is prone to mistakes. Semi-bold prediction: Donovan Warren comes up with a pick. Mark it down.
3. Get Brandon Minor at least 25 touches — It sounds more and more like Carlos Brown will not be available on Saturday (rumor is he suffered a concussion in practice, FWIW), which means lots of Brandon Minor and some Michael Shaw sprinkled in. As noted earlier, Iowa is actually somewhat susceptible to the run. Against a defense as strong as the Hawkeyes’, having some success on the ground would be huge. Minor only had four touches against MSU (for 2 yards), and that cannot happen again if Michigan wants to be in this game.
4. Jonas Mouton, please stop being an idiot — I don’t know what else to say on this one. Mouton, more than any other Wolverine (besides, maybe, whoever is playing corner opposite Warren) has been responsible for big plays by the opponent. He is insanely athletic, but gets himself out of position and gives up the edge far too often. If Mouton can regain his form from the end of last year, and stay in the game mentally, he could be a real force on defense. Michigan needs somebody besides Warren and Graham to step up and make plays; Mouton could (and should) be that guy.
5. Make a statement — A lot of people will be tuning in to this game to see if Michigan is for real. So far, we have beaten three crappy teams and a Notre Dame squad that looks to be borderline top-25 and lost to a crappy Michigan State team. Heading into the meat of the Big Ten schedule, this team still doesn’t really have an identity. Some how, some way, forge an identity against Iowa, and the momentum from a night win against a top-15 team could carry this team through the season.

I’m really torn on this game. On one hand, I think Michigan is a far better team than we showed last week, and Iowa has really played down to their competition in every game and looks ripe for an upset. On the other hand, this is a night game (and homecoming, and a “blackout” game) in Iowa, and we have a very young team that has yet to really prove themselves. I think this will be close, but home field gives the edge to the Hawkeyes … Iowa 27, Michigan 18.

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Does Michigan have two All-Big Ten backs? Carlos Brown is making a strong case.

I still haven’t had a chance to re-watch the game (torrent is still downloading) but I have a few thoughts after a closer-than-expected victory over Indiana:

• If Tate Forcier is the agreed-upon MVP of this team, Donovan Warren is a damn close second. The overlooked fact about the controversial game-sealing pick was that Warren was playing unbelievable man coverage and Chappell should never have thrown that pass in the first place. Michigan fans should be pulling out every voodoo trick in the book to ensure Warren stays healthy; I don’t even want to entertain the thought of a Cissoko-Floyd starting cornerback tandem.
• Let’s hope Forcier got his egregiously horrendous pick out of his system early, and we won’t see anything like that again. I’m not that optimistic about this — freshmen will be freshmen, after all — but man, was that ugly.
• As Brian already noted over at MGoBlog, special teams played a huge factor in the victory. Darryl Stonum was constantly one block or juke or broken tackle away from taking a kickoff the distance, and Zoltan Mesko averaged 48.1 yards per punt, downed Indiana inside their 20 twice, and crushed a 59-yard punt in the fourth quarter that completely swung field position in Michigan’s favor. I doubt this could be seen on TV, but that 59-yarder had movement that I wouldn’t believe unless I saw it with my own eyes: from my vantage point (in line with the sideline in the north end zone, about 35 rows up), the punt started a few yards outside the right hashmark before hooking all the way to the left hash … the returner had no choice but to let it go. Great effort out of the special teams Saturday.
• Can we please get Kevin Koger more involved in the offense? He made a great catch up the seam for 36 yards on a pass from Denard Robinson, but that was his only reception of the game. The guy snags anything thrown near him, is great at finding open space, and I would much rather see him on the field than a backup receiver when we go four-wide.
• Carlos Brown is making a very strong case to split carries with Brandon Minor, even when Minor becomes fully-healthy. With Junior Hemingway going almost completely silent since the opener, Michigan is in need of a home run threat, and Carlos Brown is that threat. He was really effective on the ground, averaging 7.5 yards per carry, and took his only catch (a very well set-up screen) 61 yards to the house. However, he only got one touch in the second and third quarters combined while Michigan’s offense mostly stalled. I’m not saying he’s better than Minor (only Minor gets that tough 3rd and 1 to ice the game by bowling over some poor safety), but he certainly brings something to the table that only he can provide right now.

I’ll have more on this game once I have a chance to watch it again. For now, enjoy WolverineHistorian’s highlights:

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Don't let this happen, please.

It’s Thursday, which means another edition of “Five Things…”. First, a look back at last week’s game:

1. Establish Denard Robinson as a passing threat — 0-4, 2 interceptions. Bad. Two rushing touchdowns? Good. Still, Denard needs to show he can throw downfield with some accuracy if he is going to have consistent success running the ball.
2. Establish dominance up front — I should have clarified that this was pointed towards the defense. Well, the defense didn’t exactly dominate, and EMU had a fair amount of success running the ball in the first half. However, the defensive line (especially, of course, Brandon Graham) played fairly well against both the run and the pass. The linebackers, unfortunately, remain a point of major concern.
3. Obi Ezeh bounces back — Ezeh showed flashes against Eastern, making a few nice plays when he recognized a play early and attacked with confidence. However, there are still too many plays where he gets caught hesitating and gets taken out of the play. He took a step forward against EMU, but will have to take a few more to be the player we expect three-year starters to become.
4. One of the young tailbacks shows starting potential — Michael Shaw is a young Carlos Brown, if Carlos Brown managed to stay healthy. So yes, starting potential.
5. A cornerback besides Donovan Warren actually plays well — Eastern did not pass a whole lot, but Boubacar Cissoko looked much improved in the limited opportunities he was given to play the pass. That pass interference was just about the worst call I’ve ever seen made on a football field, and Cissoko had tremendous coverage on that play, so I was actually encouraged by a penalty. Yes, it has come to this.

At best, I can give Michigan a 2.5/5 for last week’s effort. Hopefully they’ll come out this week and show more improvement. Here are my keys to the Indiana game:

1. Contain Jammie Kirlew and Greg Middleton — The Hoosiers are by no means a good team, but they do boast two NFL-quality defensive ends in Kirlew and Middleton. Wolverine fans got a huge scare last week when Tate Forcier was slammed onto his back and stayed down on the field after the play; I’d rather not have to go through that again. The last thing Michigan needs is for Forcier to be uncomfortable in his own pocket. If Mark Ortmann and Mark Huyge (and Kevin Koger, to a lesser extent) can keep Forcier’s jersey (and bill of health) clean, Michigan should be able to pick apart the Hoosier defense.
2. Gel on the offensive line — With David Molk out and David Moosman returning (and moving over to center), Michigan will have to deal with a realigned offensive line for the second straight week. They responded well last week when dealing with Moosman’s absence, and hopefully will adapt just as well this week. Losing the center is tough, however, since he is the man tasked with making the calls up front, as well as shouldering the responsibility of making sure the ball gets safely to the quarterback. Moosman and Forcier will hopefully have built a solid rapport in practice this week, as Michigan has already dealt with a few fumbled snaps this season.
3. Re-establish a deep threat — Michigan eased Junior Hemingway back into the lineup last week, and he is now 100% according to Rich Rodriguez. It’d be nice to see Hemingway or Darryl Stonum stretch the field vertically a few times this game and keep Indiana from selling out against the run. If opponents are forced to respect Michigan’s ability to go deep, they’ll have a tough time stopping the run and not allowing a big play.
4. Shore up the run defense — Getting Jonas Mouton back into the lineup will help, but Michigan still has to prove that they can hold at the point of attack and stop the run consistently. The Hoosiers’ rushing attack is currently in the middle of the pack in the country (65th overall with 146.7 yards per game) despite playing a very easy schedule (Eastern Kentucky, Western Michigan, @Akron). The Wolverines should be able to limit Indiana on the ground, but will have to play better than what they’ve done so far this year.
5. Keep Brandon Minor healthy — Minor is again a game-time decision because of a high-ankle sprain. These are the kind of injuries that can linger throughout a whole season (or, in Minor’s case, seemingly an eternity). I don’t think the dropoff between Minor and Carlos Brown is enough to warrant risking Minor’s health if he is not close to 100%, while a fully-healthy Minor will provide a big-time weapon when the meat of the Big Ten season comes around. Minor was held out of practice yesterday, so I really doubt he’s close to 100% healthy. If Michigan can get away with sitting Minor and letting Brown carry the load Saturday, I think that would be the best course of action, especially with a trip to East Lansing just one week away.

It’s amazing how many question marks still surround this team (especially the defense) three weeks into the season. The D showed signs of improvement against EMU, and get a key cog back in Jonas Mouton. On offense, Michigan has established themselves as potentially one of the premier rushing teams in the country. I think that trend continues Saturday: Michigan 38, Indiana 20.

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The crowd came decked out in maize, and the block M looked great.

I just finished re-watching the whole game, and have a few thoughts:

• The defense did not get enough pressure on Jimmy Clausen, but I don’t think you can blame Brandon Graham for that. When there was pressure on Clausen, chances were BG was involved. After a third quarter pressure on Clausen that forced a throw away, Graham can be seen on the sidelines yelling: “They don’t want to f— with me.” No, they don’t, BG. I doubt there’s a player in the country more deserving of a sack right now than #55.
• I could not have been more wrong about Greg Mathews: the guy really came to play, and he was busting his ass on every snap. His first-quarter one-handed catch was tremendous, he came up with several clutch grabs (including the winning touchdown, of course), and if you want to question his effort, take one more look at Forcier’s interception. Mathews goes from being the targeted wideout to chasing down Kyle McCarthy 20 yards downfield and making a very solid effort to strip the ball.
• Speaking of outside receivers, how about Darryl Stonum? There’s another guy who put it all on the line, and he did it all Saturday: The electrifying kickoff return, four big catches for 54 yards, and batting Forcier’s pooch punt to make sure it didn’t go into the end zone. Stonum really showed his athleticism off on the kickoff return TD; not a lot of guys could make a cut like that and get back to full speed in a split second. This might be the game people look back on as Stonum’s coming out party.
• The crowd was a huge factor. By my count, Clausen used three timeouts with the play clock nearing zero (including ND’s second timeout of the second half with 13:04 left in the fourth quarter) and was guilty of two delay of games as a direct result of the noise level. It was LOUD.
• The tackling is much-improved from where it was last year. Despite Notre Dame gashing Michigan with the run and the pass, when Wolverine defenders got their hands on Irish players, they tended to go down. There were only a couple critical missed tackles (Boubacar Cissoko’s missed tackle on Golden Tate’s late TD comes to mind), and there were several tough takedowns in the open field that saved big gains or scores.
• Two guys on offense really stood out to me for their receiving and blocking: Kevin Koger and Martavious Odoms. Koger had a crushing block on Brandon Minor’s run down to the one-yard line in the third quarter (where Michigan’s drive eventually stalled), make a great play hauling in a touchdown pass, and was wide open when Forcier missed him on third down late in the fourth quarter. Odoms had two critical catches on the final drive, and looked good blocking downfield.
• Stevie Brown sure has been a pleasant surprise, hasn’t he? Brown helped cause the fumble by Jonas Grey that really swung momentum back to Michigan after Olesnavage missed the short field goal, and his speed is really a factor on defense now that he doesn’t have to keep the entire offense in front of him.
• Finally, nothing summed up the Charlie Weis era at Notre Dame better than this: after the game, as the officials were running up the tunnel, Weis tried to chase them down to start complaining about the clock. He made it three steps before giving up, then pointed towards the tunnel and sent a couple assistants scurrying after the officials. I don’t even need to crack a joke after that.

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