Michigan released its official depth chart today for the UConn game, and there are a few surprises on the two-deep for Saturday. The entire depth chart can be found at the Football Depth Chart page. Let’s start by breaking down the offense:
No surprise at quarterback, as Rich Rodriguez has said we won’t know who the starter is until kickoff; for the second straight season, we get three players all tied at the top. Devin Gardner, in Rodriguez’s words, will “probably not” redshirt this season — it looks like he has done enough in the coaches’ eyes to see the field this season and help the team. I still expect Denard Robinson to be the starter on Saturday, but we’ll probably see all three quarterbacks at some point.
Vincent Smith and Michael Shaw head up what should be a rotation of at least 3-4 running backs. Note that Teric Jones, who was recruited at running back but played in the secondary for the past year, is back at his natural position.
This is where things get a little interesting. Your starting wideouts are Darryl Stonum/Junior Hemingway and Martavious Odoms on the outside and Roy Roundtree/Kelvin Grady in the slot. This is probably a product of the depth and talent at slot receiver, especially with Grady having a breakout fall camp, and Rich Rodriguez’s subsequent attempt to get the best players on the field. The only true freshman on the depth chart, interestingly, is Jeremy Jackson — I suspect this is because he has by far the best hands out of the group, and he should be a reliable possession receiver if the team needs to use him.
The depth chart at tight ends looks exactly the same as it did last year. It will be very interesting to see how much this position factors into the offense with all the talent at receiver.
It appears that the veterans have held off the talented youngsters at tackle, as redshirt junior Mark Huyge and senior Perry Dorrestein get the nod at tackle over redshirt freshmen Taylor Lewan and Michael Schofield, at least for now. They will be joined by what should be a very good interior line in left guard Stephen Schilling, center David Molk, and right guard Patrick Omameh. The depth across the board is very strong, and this should be by far the best offensive line Rich Rodriguez has had at Michigan.
I’ll have a breakdown of the defense either later today or tomorrow afternoon, and my game previews for the season will begin on Wednesday as we rapidly approach game day in Ann Arbor.
Thanks to a generous friend with an extra ticket, I was able to attend Michigan’s scrimmage today. No pictures or video were allowed in the stadium, and I won’t comment on specific schemes or formations, but here are a few player-specific notes from my view in the box seats — please keep in mind that these are one person’s observations of one scrimmage from high up in the stadium:
Unless something crazy happens between now and September 4, Denard Robinson is your clear starter at quarterback. The quarterbacks weren’t live today, but Robinson still managed to carve up the second-team defense (running the first-team offense, of course) with his legs and his arm. His made good decisions with the ball and his passes were on the money, and he took a QB draw 40+ yards to the house — only Denard makes that play, and he made it look easy.
Devin Gardner, running mostly with the twos, looked at times like a seasoned veteran, but he had a couple throws — including an ugly interception to Marvin Robinson — that reminded everyone he is just a freshman. His natural ability could lead to him seeing the field this year, but I think it’s safe to say he’s probably a year away from really pushing for the starting job. Really like his poise in the pocked and running ability, however, and it would have been interesting to see what he could have done if the quarterbacks were live. Tate Forcier started with the threes but saw snaps with the ones and twos as well — he looked solid throwing the ball, but made a couple poor reads on zone running plays.
It was great to see Vincent Smith out there running with the first-team offense, and he looks 100% healthy — the coaching staff even put him back to return a kickoff, which has to be a good sign about both Smith’s and the coaching staff’s confidence in his knee being back to normal. He did fumble after getting cracked on a reception (didn’t see who made the hit, but it was a good one). The most impressive back, however, may have been Stephen Hopkins, who has dropped some weight since the spring and looked much quicker while still running through tackles. I didn’t think he’d be more than a situational back this fall, but after seeing him today I think he has a real shot at not only being in the rotation, but starting.
Kelvin Grady had a very impressive day, making some great catches on seam routes from the slot, getting a lot of yards after the catch on screen plays, and scoring a touchdown on an end-around. He should have an impact this fall from a number of positions on the field. On the flip side of that coin, Terrence Robinson struggled with drops all day — I’d be surprised if he sees much time at receiver or punt returner if those issues continue. Jerald Robinson showed the most promise of the freshmen wideouts, and Je’Ron Stokes had a couple nice catches as well.
On defense, I was most impressed with the play of Mark Moundros, who showed good instincts in the run game and had a couple really nice hits — he was playing alongside Obi Ezeh with the ones, with Jonas Mouton sitting out in a green jersey. Interestingly, it was Moundros playing in the middle with Ezeh at WLB. Still not sure how I feel about a converted fullback sliding into the starting lineup, but if Moundros beats out Ezeh at MLB, it’s because he earned it. Jibreel Black also made some nice plays — he could be a guy who contributes right away as a pass rusher. Also, his physical resemblance to Brandon Graham when he’s in a uniform and pads is eerie.
J.T. Floyd and James Rogers were the cornerbacks on the first-team defense. Floyd looked solid, but Rogers got picked on a couple times and got hit with a pass interference flag after getting beat deep by Jerald Robinson. The secondary in general looked very suspect — they were playing a lot of soft zones and gave up too much underneath and up the middle. The good news is they didn’t give up any bombs if you exclude the flag on Rogers, but the offense moved the ball pretty easily through the air.
From the few kicks we were able to see, Brendan Gibbons looked like the best kicker, but he still has to get more consistent from inside 40 yards — just can’t afford to miss those kicks. Will Hagerup had an up-and-down day punting the ball — had a couple that traveled around 50 yards in the air, but also had some 30-yard kicks. The kicking game could be an adventure this season.
One last note: Take this for what it’s worth, but I didn’t see Austin White out there in uniform today, and he definitely didn’t see any playing time. Not sure what his status is with the team, and I’ll have updates when there’s some news to report there.
For more, make sure to follow me on Twitter, where I posted my initial thoughts on the scrimmage, and make sure to check back to the blog for more season preview content as we get closer to kickoff. Your thoughts and questions, as always, are welcome in the comments.
Leading up to the start of the 2010 season, I’ll be taking a look at Michigan’s team position-by-position and looking at each player with a chance to compete for playing time. Yesterday I kicked off the series with the quarterbacks; today, it’s time to examine the Wolverine running backs:
Returning Player Stats:
The Projected Starter: Sophomore Vincent Smith is back practicing with the team after tearing his ACL against Ohio State last year, and many have penciled him in as the likely starter in 2010. Smith appeared in eight games as a freshman and saw more consistent action as the season wore on, rushing for 166 yards and a touchdown against Delaware State and tallying a combined 10 catches for 82 yards and two touchdowns in the last two games against Wisconsin and OSU. At 5-6, 180 pounds, Smith is undersized for a feature back, but he is an elusive runner who is also a threat in the passing game — even if he doesn’t start, I’d expect to see Smith get a lot of playing time in third-down situations. Smith will have to prove he is fully healthy and has the running ability to hold off the bigger and more athletic guys competing behind him, but he showed flashes as a freshman that he could be a solid and versatile option at tailback for Michigan.
The Competition: Three backs — redshirt sophomore Michael Cox, junior Michael Shaw, and redshirt freshman Fitzgerald Toussaint — all have a solid shot at earning the starting job if they come through with a good fall camp, meaning Smith’s perch at the top of the depth chart is a tenuous one at best.
Michael Cox was a relative unknown out of high school, but he has shown he may be Michigan’s most athletically gifted running back in practice and during mop-up appearances against Eastern Michigan and Delaware State last season. The biggest obstacle standing between the 6-0, 210-pound back and the starting job may be between his ears — he has had some difficulties picking up the playbook, and a mental error led to a fumbled exchange with Devin Gardner in the spring game. If Cox can eliminate those issues, he could easily earn the starting job with his combination of speed and power — his downhill running style would be a great complement to Denard Robinson in the zone read.
The biggest question mark surrounding Michael Shaw has nothing to do with the football field — rumors have surfaced this summer that Shaw is very close to being ineligible, and while he is currently practicing with the team, the summer classes that could determine his eligibility have not yet ended. If he can sort out his academic issues, Shaw is Michigan’s most experienced and fastest back, but after battling through injuries in his first two seasons he will have to show he can handle the pounding of Division I football if he wants to see an expanded role. At his best, Shaw is a game-breaking talent who is liable to score from anywhere on the field. We will need to see that side of him on a much more consistent basis if he is going to live up to his recruiting hype.
Fitzgerald Toussaint may be the most complete back on the roster, and he is just two years removed from a 2,239-yard, 28 touchdown season as a high school senior at Youngstown (OH) Liberty. Toussaint did suffer a shoulder injury last year that kept him from seeing game action, but he impressed when healthy on the scout team and has seen some practice time with the first team this year in the early days of fall camp. If Toussaint can translate his practice exploits to the real games, he should see the field as a redshirt freshman and could possibly become Michigan’s next four-year starter at running back — he certainly has the talent to do so.
Others: True freshman Stephen Hopkins is probably not in the mix to start, but the 6-0, 227-pound Texas prospect should carve out a role as the team’s goal-line and short-yardage back. Hopkins clearly has a nose for the end zone after amassing 5,010 yards and 61 touchdowns in his final three high school seasons, and he could very well lead the team in rushing touchdowns despite seeing limited playing time.
Michigan’s other three-star freshman, Livonia native Austin White, is almost certainly ticketed for a redshirt year. If he does find his way onto the field, it will likely be because of his ability in the passing game — he has great hands and lined up almost everywhere on the field for Livonia Stevenson.
Slot receivers Terrence Robinson and Kelvin Grady — both of whom played in the backfield in high school — have also practiced in at running back, but this is likely a situational strategy that will come into play on obvious passing downs. Both players have the shiftiness and speed to be very dangerous in open space, so we could see Rich Rodriguez try to utilize them with screens and swing passes to take advantage of their strengths.
Redshirt junior walk-on John McColgan will see the field when Michigan needs a fullback after senior Mark Moundros moved to middle linebacker in the spring, although Moundros could potentially play both ways in the fall. Either way, the Wolverines seldom utilize the fullback position, and the 6-1, 238-pound McColgan will likely only be called upon as a blocking back.
Outlook: Michigan has a lot of bodies competing at running back but no clear starter as of yet. With so little experience at the position (Shaw’s 400 career rushing yards are the most by any player on the roster), it’s very tough to project what type of production the team will get. I’m guessing we will see a running-back-by-committee approach early on until a clear leader emerges. As for who that leader will be, your guess is as good as mine, although I’m very intrigued by the potential of Toussaint and Cox. This is probably the toughest position to predict on the whole roster, and we might have to wait until several weeks into the season to see a true number one back if one gets established at all.
Yesterday I posted the five players with the most to gain in Michigan’s fall camp, which kicks off in just three days. Of course, when you have players potentially moving up the depth chart, others are faced with taking on a diminished role, so today the focus will be on the players who will have an eye on the rear-view mirror when fall practices begin Monday:
Tate Forcier, Soph. QB: Fellow sophomore quarterbackDenard Robinson topped yesterday’s list, so it is only fitting that last year’s starter leads off today’s. Robinson appeared to hold the edge in the QB race after a strong spring performance that ended with him running the first-team offense in the spring game, and the stark contrast in media day comments about the two quarterbacks leads one to believe Forcier has some work to do if he wants to keep his starting job. The task could be very difficult for Forcier as he not only has to show strides on the field, but also regain the trust of his teammates after less-than-stellar attendance at voluntary summer workouts. Forcier has shown the ability to be a very good collegiate quarterback — now he has to show the work ethic necessary to be good on a consistent basis and the leadership expected from the chief signal-caller.
Obi Ezeh, RS Sr. LB: The embattled three-year starter topped this list in the spring, and the pressure remains on Ezeh to prove he can be a solid starter at middle linebacker this fall. After falling well short of expectations the past two seasons, and with talented linebackers like Kenny Demens and J.B. Fitzgerald (who is practicing at OLB but has experience in the middle) each entering their third year in the program, Ezeh will have to perform if he wants to finish his career as a starter. The fact that senior Mark Moundros was moved from fullback to middle linebacker in the spring says a lot about the uncertainty at the position, and the coaches showed a willingness to shake things up when they benched Ezeh during the 2009 season because of ineffective play. This is his last shot, and he knows it — now it’s time to deliver or see if one of the other players can provide steady play in the middle.
Vlad Emilien, Soph. FS: The former four-star recruit was expected to make a strong push for the starting free safety spot after spending much of 2009 still recovering from a high school knee injury, but instead redshirt freshman Cameron Gordon moved from wideout to safety and was the breakout star of spring practice. After burning his redshirt on special teams last year, Emilien is faced with looking up the depth chart at a guy with more eligibility — he’ll have to prove he’s fully recovered from that torn ACL and comfortable knowing the defense if he wants to pass Gordon and see action on more than just special teams again in 2010.
Darryl Stonum, Jr. WR: Fans expected a breakout season from the former four-star prospect in 2009, and while he showed he could be an explosive kick returner, Stonum’s performance at receiver (13 catches, 199 yards, one TD) could only be described as a disappointment. While Michigan is very young at outside receiver, they do have a number of talented slots — if Stonum doesn’t display the game-breaking ability expected of him when he came to Ann Arbor, slot receiver Roy Roundtree could see an increased role on the outside, and underclassmen like sophomore Je’Ron Stokes and freshmen Jerald Robinson and Ricardo Miller could also push for playing time. This is likely a make-or-break year for Stonum as a receiver — if he can’t prove he can produce in his third season, he’ll likely have to move aside as the underclassmen get some experience under their belts.
Vincent Smith, Soph. RB: This isn’t as much a reflection on Smith as it is the situation at running back — with Smith still recovering from a torn ACL, Michael Shaw (if eligible), Michael Cox, and Fitzgerald Toussaint will battle in fall camp to prove that they deserve to be the guy at running back. Smith is expected to be 100% healthy for the season opener, but it’s impossible to tell how well a running back will bounce back from a major knee injury until he hits the field. Smith will have to show he’s fully back and ready to perform at a high level if he hopes to fend off the talented backs waiting behind him on the depth chart. It’s never fun to see a player lose his job because of an injury, but it’s a part of football (see: Tom Brady/Drew Bledsoe) — either Smith will prove he’s ready to build on a promising freshman season, or somebody else will get a their shot to prove they can start and excel.
That’s all for this week. Make sure to check back on Monday, when I’ll be taking a look at the true freshmen with the best chance to make an early impact in 2010.
Remember the Homeland Security Department’s biggest PR move, the terrorist threat level indicator? You know, this thing. Well, I decided — in a desperate attempt to figure out what type of content to post during the slow summer months — to apply these threat levels (minus the whole, you know, terrorist thing) to Michigan’s position groups. In other words, which groups are the Wolverines comfortably stocked at, and which ones have you buying mass quantities of bottled water and canned foods to prepare for the football apocalypse? Over the next week, I’ll be placing each of the position groups into one of the above categories. So far, I have covered the “Low” and “Guarded” threat categories, and Today, we move on to the positions that fall under the “Elevated” category:
Quarterback: One should expect the quarterback play to improve for Michigan regardless of who wins the starting job, if for no other reason than that the Wolverines won’t be rotating two true freshmen at the position in 2010. In the best case scenario, Michigan will have two much-improved options at the most important position on the field, two players who can complement each others skill sets and allow the team to show multiple looks and keep the defense guessing. That, or Tate Forcier becomes the next Drew Brees or Denard Robinson becomes Pat White with a better arm. But that’s dreaming. In the worst case, Forcier plays like he did over the latter half of his freshman season, Robinson still proves ineffective at reading defenses and making accurate throws, and Devin Gardner is forced into duty instead of spending a redshirt year learning the offense.
Right now, it’s anybody’s guess as to what end of the spectrum the quarterback play will be at come fall — I personally think Robinson will have a solid season as the starter, and provide a big-play threat on the ground while still posing enough of a threat to throw that teams can’t just stack eight men in the box. That’s just conjecture, however, and the uncertainty surrounding this position puts it squarely in the “Elevated” category.
Running Back: There are two ways to look at the running back position as we exit the spring season. On the one hand, fans should be worried that the running game looked generally unimpressive in the spring, and no back stepped up and took control of the job in the absence of the injured Vincent Smith. On the other hand, Michigan gets Smith back in the fall, and there are four talented runners also competing for major playing time in Michael Shaw, Mike Cox, Fitzgerald Toussaint, and Stephen Hopkins — out of those five guys, Michigan should be able to find at least one effective running back, right?
At this point, I’d say Smith is your likely opening-day starter, given his performance from last season and the lack of an outstanding spring from the other backs. There will be lots of other options, however. Shaw is the most experienced back in the group, and if he can stay healthy, he could be the type of home-run threat Carlos Brown was on his good (read: healthy) days at Michigan. Cox may be the best all-around athlete of the backs, and if he can get the mental part of the game down, his physical tools will make it hard to keep him off the field. Toussaint came in as a freshman last fall with a lot of hype after putting up ridiculous numbers in high school — at his best, he can be a powerful runner with breakaway speed. Finally, Hopkins will almost certainly see the field as a short-yardage and goal-line specialist, and if he can prove he can grind out four or five yards from anywhere on the field, that role could grow larger.
The tailback position is much like quarterback right now for Rich Rodriguez: he has options, and talented ones, but the team needs one guy (or two) to step up and prove he can be a game-changer. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait until the fall to see if we have one.
Tight End: Early on last season, it looked like this position would be a very productive one. Then, Kevin Koger developed a case of the dropsies, as did backup Martell Webb, and the tight ends were marginalized in the offense. Both players return, as does former four-star recruit Brandon Moore, but the Wolverines have no other scholarship tight ends on the roster — not exactly a sign that the position will be deployed heavily in Rich Rodriguez’s offense, especially with the mass quantities of slot receivers fighting for playing time.
There is a lot of talent here, however, and if Koger gets a fair shot at ample playing time he could be a big factor in the passing game. Yes, he had a few bad drops last year, but he is also capable of doing things like this:
Early last season, Michigan utilized Koger on a lot of drag routes on zone read fakes, and those proved very effective when teams keyed on the run. I was a bit surprised to see Rodriguez and Co. move away from that strategy as the season went on, and would like to see the tight ends used more — I think Koger has the talent to be a real impact player and a reliable safety valve for whoever starts at quarterback. Two things must happen for that to come to fruition, however: Koger has to catch the easy passes, and the team has to commit to utilizing the tight ends. If those two things happen, this position could be a real strength for the Wolverines.
Punter: If you watched the special teams portion of the spring game, you witnessed one of the most horrific punting exhibitions in collegiate football history (OK, that may be slight hyperbole, but it was bad). Michigan will certainly miss the departed Zoltan Mesko, Space Emperor of Space, and clearly nobody on the spring roster is ready to hit the field in the fall — in fact, if Michigan had to choose a punter from the guys on campus now, Tate Forcier would likely be playing double-duty.
The good news is this: Rich Rodriguez secured a commitment from Will Hagerup (left), Rivals.com’s #3 kicker in the country, who punted in the Army All-American Bowl. There is little doubt that Hagerup will be the starting punter from the moment he arrives in Ann Arbor — the special teams performance at the spring game dictates that much. The question will be if Hagerup is ready to perform at the collegiate level. Fortunately, there isn’t any difference between punting a football in a high school game and punting in the Super Bowl — the changes are in the personnel around you, and how dangerous the guy is fielding the punt. Unless Hagerup forgot how to punt a football, he should be fine stepping in and becoming a serviceable freshman punter with good potential. If he gets hurt, however, all bets are off. Take care of that leg, Will — no Michigan fan wants to see Forcier left exposed as the opposition brings heavy heat to block a punt, but from what we have seen of the guys on the roster, he is the only viable option if Hagerup were to go down.
Over the next couple weeks, I’ll be examining the foundation for the 2010 Michigan Wolverines: the five recruiting classes, from 2006 to 2010, that comprise the team. So far, I’ve examined the classes of 2006, 2007, and 2008. Today, I move on to this year’s sophomores and redshirt freshmen from the class of 2009:
Class of 2009 (Sorted by Rivals.com Rating):
The Upshot:
I’ve been doing “Who’s Left” and “Who’s Gone” for the last few classes, but in this case that seems unnecessary. So far the 2009 class has had just one loss: Adrian Witty, who couldn’t get academically qualified. So, let’s go straight to the analysis.
It goes without saying that it is far too early to evaluate a class that has all of one collegiate season under their belts, but the class of 2009 has already had a large impact on the field. That impact, of course, starts with the two quarterbacks, Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson — both saw the field last year as true freshmen, and both showed flashes of brilliance while experiencing the expected freshman growing pains. Craig Roh stepped onto campus in the fall and immediately took over the starting quick end position, and is making the transition to outside linebacker this year. He looks like an all-conference candidate, and should be a leader on the defense for the next few years. Vincent Smith, surprisingly, was the other true freshman to have a major impact, filling in admirably when Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown were injured and putting himself in position to start at tailback in 2010. Will Campbell, Je’Ron Stokes, Vlad Emilien, Brandin Hawthorne, Teric Jones, and Mike Jones all saw the field in some capacity last season as well — Campbell should start at nose tackle this season, and the other five will all battle for starting spots as well.
Several other players from this class will compete for snaps this fall after taking a redshirt year in 2009. Jeremy Gallon looked solid in the spring game and should have an impact in the slot and as a returner. Taylor Lewan has emerged as the leading candidate to take over the left tackle position, despite not playing on the offensive line until his senior year of high school — he could be a very special player with his huge frame and potential. Fitzgerald Toussaint is in the mix in a crowded offensive backfield, and Thomas Gordon has been a spring surprise at one of the strong safety positions in the new 3-3-5 defense — both could conceivably start, though Gordon has a better chance of doing so than Toussaint. Isaiah Bell has bulked up to 237 pounds and is fighting for playing time at linebacker, while Anthony LaLota is now a solid 263 pounds and could be in the rotation along the defensive line. Quinton Washington and Michael Schofield are both battling for playing time on the offensive line, but they’re each probably a year or two away from taking over a starting job. Brendan Gibbons will likely be the starting kicker in the fall, as he is the only scholarship kicker on the roster. Finally, Cameron Gordon has been the breakout player of the spring after moving over to the defense from wide receiver — he appears to have solidified himself as the starter at free safety, and could be the type of ball-hawking, hard-hitting player Michigan has sorely lacked at the position.
The jury is still out on one player in particular: Justin Turner, who has just as much recruiting hype as Will Campbell, didn’t see the field last year after arriving late and out of shape in the fall after struggling to qualify, and this spring has not been able to seize the open cornerback job over J.T. Floyd and James Rogers. Turner looks like he has outgrown the cornerback position, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him end up at safety when this year’s crop of freshmen, which includes several cornerback prospects, hits campus.
Overall, this class has been a very solid one — Forcier, Robinson, and Roh provided early impact, several players will see the field in major roles this fall, and there is great potential for the future in players like Campbell, Lewan, Cameron Gordon, Vincent Smith, and more. After a three-year run of disappointing recruiting classes, the class of 2009 should be the one to lead the turnaround this program desperately needs.
Back in February, I took an early stab at projecting the offensive and defensive depth charts for the fall. Now that spring practice is underway and the new roster has been released, there’s a lot more information available about how Michigan will line up and who will be lining up where. So, I’ve taken another opportunity to make myself look really foolish in the fall, and updated my projected depth chart to reflect these changes. Here are a few notes on the changes:
OFFENSE
One player who has a lot of buzz surrounding him so far in spring is running back Mike Cox, whose running skills seem to be catching up to his outstanding athleticism and frame. For now, I’ve moved Cox up to second on the depth chart with Michael Shaw, behind the injured Vincent Smith. With all the talented players the Wolverines have at running back, I expect to see a fair amount of running back by committee come fall, and Cox should be one of the backs in the mix for carries.
At receiver, Roy Roundtree has been practicing at outside receiver, but I expect him to move back into the slot when Junior Hemingway returns healthy in the fall. Word from practice is that Roundtree and Martavious Odoms have become a dangerous combination when both see the field at the same time, so it would not be a surprise to see Michigan start two slot receivers next season. We’ll have to wait and see if that has any effect on the tight end position, but for now I’m keeping Roundtree as the top slot in my depth chart along with Odoms — down the road, I may split the slots into two positions.
On the line, it sounds like Mark Huyge, Perry Dorrestein, Taylor Lewan, and Michael Schofield are the players battling for the two tackle positions, so I’ve changed the depth chart to reflect that competition. Patrick Omameh, who some (including myself) originally thought would move out to tackle this season, has been playing (and impressing) at guard. I have him projected as the starter at right guard, with the experienced Huyge and Dorrestein at tackle — I wouldn’t be surprised if Lewan grabs one of the tackle spots, but he’s a redshirt freshman who is still filling out his massive frame, so for now I have him backing up Huyge.
DEFENSE
The big change here is the alignment — I recommend checking out this helpful post from Touch the Banner to get more familiar with the slight move to more of a 4-2-5 look:
From left to right along the line should be Ryan Van Bergen, Will Campbell, Mike Martin (injured for spring practice, so Greg Banks is playing there right now), and Craig Roh. The two interior linebackers are Obi Ezeh and Jonas Mouton, if they hold on to their positions. The weak side safety in the above graph is what Michigan is calling the “spur” position — right now, Mike Williams and Brandin Hawthorne appear to be the most likely players to start there, with Mike Jones, Thomas Gordon and probably Josh Furman (when he arrives in the fall) also competing at the position. The strong safety — Touch the Banner calls it the “boundary” safety, but I’ll use the more common term to save confusion — appears to be Jordan Kovacs’ position to lose, although Marvin Robinson could compete for time there when he enrolls in the fall. Vlad Emilien has received the first-team reps so far at free — deep — safety, although Cameron Gordon impressed when Emilien sat out with a minor injury this week. If Troy Woolfolk were to move back to safety, this would likely be his spot.
At cornerback, Woolfolk is obviously holding down one spot, and I’ll place him there in the depth chart until he moves (if he moves) to safety. J.T. Floyd has been getting the first-team reps at the other corner spot, and has impressed so far, although J.T. Turner will make a strong push for that starting role. Of course, the competition at corner will not be fully settled until the fall, when Demar Dorsey, Cullen Christian, Terrence Talbott, and Courtney Avery arrive on campus.
For the full, updated depth chart, hit the “Football Depth Chart” tab at the top of the screen, or simply click here.
With spring practice kicking off this week, I went over the players with the most to gain from a good spring performance yesterday. Today, I take a look at the flip side of that coin: the players who, for one reason or another, will be fighting to hold on their role with this team. Here are the players who are at risk of seeing a diminished role if they don’t come through with a big spring performance:
Obi Ezeh, RS Sr. LB: Ezeh is listed first for a reason — no other established starter has come under as much fire as Ezeh because of a lack of performance, and the criticism that has followed Ezeh for the past couple years hasn’t been entirely undeserved. Simply put, this team expected a lot more from Ezeh in 2009, when he was entering his third year starting in the middle, and his disappointing season has opened the door for somebody like J.B. Fitzgerald to ascend to a starting role. By all accounts, Ezeh is a great person and tremendous leader on and off the field, but he will have to bring his on-field performance up to a higher standard if he doesn’t want to be unseated by the fall.
Kelvin Grady, RS Jr. Slot: Ironically enough, it was a big-time spring performance that earned Grady a big role to start out the 2009 season, but issues with route-running, knowledge of the offense, and the emergence of Roy Roundtree combined to decrease Grady’s playing time by the end of the season. Now Grady is fighting for playing time with a host of talented youngsters — including Jeremy Gallon, Terrence Robinson, and incoming freshmen Drew Dileo and D.J. Williamson — while Roundtree and Martavious Odoms eat up the lion’s share of the playing time in the slot. If Grady doesn’t make big strides with his football IQ (which is very possible — we forget he was playing basketball a little over a year ago), he could be caught in a logjam and surpassed by younger players.
Kevin Koger, Jr. TE: Koger was another player who saw his role diminish as the 2009 season progressed, and now he may be fighting for not only his survival in the starting lineup, but the survival of the tight end position under Rich Rodriguez. Unlike the other players listed here, Koger isn’t facing a ton of competition from his own position group — Martell Webb and Brandon Moore are the only other tight ends on the roster, and neither has shown enough to make me think they’ll unseat Koger — but instead he has to convince the coaches that it’s worth keeping a tight end on the field instead of moving to more four- and five-receiver sets. For Koger, the issue is simple: catch the ball, and it will be hard to keep such a big (6-4, 251 lbs.), skilled talent off the field. If he can’t cure his issues with dropping the ball, however, we could see Roundtree and Odoms both lining up as starters in the fall.
Michael Shaw, Jr. RB: It doesn’t seem like that long ago that Shaw was the “next big thing” at running back, but now he finds himself entering his junior season surrounded by questions about his durability and without much of a track record to show that he’s a better option than the plethora of younger backs on the roster. Shaw has to show that he can stay healthy this spring, or the coaching staff may never be willing to trust him as a back who can handle more than 10-15 touches a game. With Vincent Smith slated to return healthy in the fall, Michael Cox and Fitzgerald Toussaint both looking to grab starter’s touches, and two true freshmen already enrolled (Austin White and Stephen Hopkins), Shaw will have to prove that he can be the explosive, home-run threat that everyone expected him to be when he came to Ann Arbor as a freshman. Otherwise, he could find himself fighting an uphill battle against a host of younger players.
Darryl Stonum, Jr. WR: Michigan has received very disappointing production from its outside receivers under Rich Rodriguez, and part of the blame could certainly fall on Stonum, who hasn’t lived up to his blue-chip billing in his first two seasons despite getting ample opportunity to show off his talent. Even though Stonum will get the first crack to retain his starting spot, he will have to fend off competition from sophomore Je’Ron Stokes and early enrollees Ricardo Miller, Jeremy Jackson, and Jerald Robinson in the spring and fall. It’s time for Stonum to start producing like a top-100 high school prospect, and if he can’t do that, Michigan has several players waiting in the wings to prove that they can.
That’s all for this week. Enjoy the (already incredible) opening weekend of the NCAA tournament.
I had the privilege of attending Michigan’s first spring practice yesterday, along with Rich Rodriguez’s press conference. Before I get into my quick analysis of the presser and practice, I should make note of one thing: the media access to practice was limited to a 12-minute period when the team was split into position groups and doing drills. Between trying to get some decent photos and trying to decipher which drill I should be paying attention to (not to mention trying to figure out, with my complete lack of football-playing background, if players were actually doing the drills correctly), it was hard to glean much information of note from the actual practice. In fact, I really only took one thing away from the practice session itself, a point I’ll bring up later. I think I can speak for pretty much all the media in attendance when I say not to put a whole lot of stock into what you read about this spring practice — again, we saw 12 minutes of drills with the team split into position groups and spread across two football fields. Just making a note of that before I go into what I saw, and heard, yesterday.
With that out of the way, I’ll break down the one thing of note I saw and post some pictures, as well as give some highlights from the presser and new numbers/weights from the spankin’ new official spring roster.
THE THING OF NOTE
When I realized that I had no hope of seeing or understanding even 10% of what was happening in practice, I turned my focus to the quarterbacks and watched them go through a few drills. It didn’t take a Lombardian knowledge of football to see who will be the clear-cut starter for Michigan next season: Tate Forcier simply threw the best ball of any of the quarterbacks, and it wasn’t close. We all knew he would be the most accurate quarterback, but the zip he put on his throws also was very impressive — it’s safe to say his shoulder has healed up just fine.
Tell me something I don’t already know, you say. Well, for one, Devin Gardner’s mechanics have definitely improved since the end of his senior season at Inkster — he is releasing the ball at a much higher point than in any of his highlight videos from high school. Watching him throw, however, you can tell that he’s still really thinking about the mechanics of throwing, and his accuracy just isn’t at the level he’d need it to be to seriously challenge for playing time. Now, all of the drills we were able to see involved the quarterback throwing from the pocket, so we didn’t get to see Gardner show off his athleticism and ability to throw on the run, but after watching Gardner today I’d be very surprised if he got extended playing time unless Forcier goes down with an injury. It looks like he could really use a redshirt year to get his mechanics to the point where his throwing motion comes naturally to him, as well as to learn the offense.
As for Denard Robinson, he also had some struggles with accuracy, especially on deep passes. Rich Rodriguez was with the quarterbacks during the drills that we watched, and kept harping on the quarterbacks to “drop the ball in the bucket” — in other words, to put a lot of air under the ball so it “drops” into the receiver’s hands. Gardner and Robinson had their struggles with that concept, and both quarterbacks also missed a few intermediate throws that you’d hope they will hit once the spring game, and obviously the fall, comes around. The good news is that both quarterbacks, as well as Forcier, did well hitting tailbacks in stride when they practiced swing passes out of the backfield. That may seem trivial, but those passes are an important part of this offense, and hitting a running back in stride can be the difference between a big gain and a backwards lateral (think Notre Dame, 2008).
RICH ROD’S PRESSER
I’ll keep this rather brief, as Tim has already posted a very thorough rundown over at MGoBlog, but here are some of the highlights from Rodriguez’s pre-practice press conference:
Vincent Smith and David Molk are both out for the spring with knee injuries, but Rodriguez said they were progressing well in rehab and expected them to do “limited activities” by the end of spring ball.
Rodriguez said he expected to “do some different things with Denard,” since he thought a player with Robinson’s athletic and football abilities shouldn’t be spending too much time on the bench. He also clarified that Denard would likely be seeing those extra snaps at receiver, since the Wolverines already have a lot of bodies at running back.
Nick Sheridan will not be playing this season — he is finishing up school and preparing for a career in coaching. It sounds like he’ll be a graduate assistant at some point, but Sheridan can’t be a GA right now since he’s finishing up his undergraduate degree. He was hanging around practice in street clothes, however. Bryan Wright will also not be using his final season of eligibility, citing back problems as the reason to end his playing career.
There will be an emphasis on playing more people on defense this season, now that there is a healthy amount of competition at pretty much every position. Rodriguez said Greg Robinson will be working on keeping his schemes relatively simple so the plethora of freshmen competing for spots can contribute immediately.
Both Troy Woolfolk and Justin Turner are practicing at cornerback, but Rodriguez did say there was a possibility of either player also seeing time at safety.
When asked if any players stood out for their offseason condition, Rodriguez cited a trio of redshirt freshmen linemen: Quinton Washington, Taylor Lewan, and Michael Schofield. Washington dropped an impressive amount of weight, going from 325 down to 307, while Lewan (283, up from 268) and Schofield (281, also up from 268) each added some needed pounds. Washington slimming down should immediately put him in the running for a starting role, while Lewan and Schofield probably still need to add a couple pounds (certainly possible before the fall) before they’re in that same discussion.
There were gains pretty much across the board on both sides of the ball. Junior Hemingway is now a very robust 227 pounds — I’m not sure whether that’s a good thing or not until we see him running full speed. Forcier gained six pounds, up to 194, which hopefully will protect him a little bit more from injury. On defense, Will Campbell is now up to 324 pounds, and he certainly passed the eye test — the guy is a physical specimen now and is worlds away from how he looked when he enrolled as a freshman. Craig Roh also added weight, and at 249 pounds he is now in the discussion at defensive end, a spot he was far too light for last season (Rodriguez specifically stated that Roh could see snaps at DE in the presser).
Forcier still is wearing 5, even though I saw some rumors floating around that he would be switching to 4, his high school number. Instead, Cameron Gordon has taken that number, as he has switched officially over to safety. Teric Jones has also moved to safety, and Brandin Hawthorne is listed at the position as well — with Michigan slightly tweaking their defense, I’m pretty sure Stevie Brown’s position was reclassified from linebacker to safety, although I could be wrong there. If that is in fact true, it looks like that position battle will come down to Hawthorne, Mike Williams, and possibly Jordan Kovacs. Isaiah Bell is now up to 237 pounds and is listed at linebacker, as is Mike Jones, despite being only 207 right now.
FRESHMAN NUMBERS [end_columns]
PHOTOS
If you want to see more photos from today’s practice, I put up an album over on photobucket. They’re mostly of the quarterbacks, since that’s who I was watching for most of the time. If you want to see why Devin Gardner is such an intriguing prospect, check out the last photo: he just towers over everybody else.
That’s all I have for now. I’ll be updating the projected depth chart by the end of this weekend to reflect any changes in position or number. Enjoy your St. Patrick’s Day (in a safe but enjoyable fashion, I hope).
Spring practice starts this afternoon for Michigan football, and somehow the athletic department decided it’d be a good idea to let me in. Who knows what they were thinking, but I’ll be at this afternoon’s practice trying to absorb as much information as possible about next year’s team. Here are five players I’ll be keeping a close eye on throughout the spring:
Devin Gardner, QB: Okay, I’m not exactly going out on a limb here, but any Michigan fan who says they’re not interested in seeing what Gardner will bring to the table this year is lying to themselves. I still hope Gardner is afforded the luxury of a redshirt year, both for his sake (those mechanics need work) and Michigan’s (no more true freshman starters, please), but if Gardner can show the ability to contribute immediately it makes this team that much more stable: who knows how healthy Tate Forcier will be this season?
Justin Turner, DB: Turner, one of the top prospects in Michigan’s 2009 recruiting class, is a redshirt freshman who could hold the key to the secondary’s success this season. If he can show the type of ability that made him a can’t-miss prospect, and locks down one of the starting spots at either cornerback or safety, that’s one fewer question mark for Michigan’s struggling secondary in 2010. My hope is he’ll lock down one of the starting corner spots and allow Troy Woolfolk to play at safety come fall.
J.B. Fitzgerald, LB: If someone is going to unseat Obi Ezeh at middle linebacker, it’s Fitzgerald, who saw some playing time when Ezeh was benched in the latter half of the 2009 season. With a year of playing experience under his belt, Fitzgerald can now make a serious push for a starting role. Whether he gets one or not, the competition should help the inside linebackers improve after taking a big step back last season.
Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB: Another redshirt freshman, Toussaint was a standout on the scout team last year and could be in line for a lot of carries with Vincent Smith sitting out spring practice with a torn ACL. Toussaint put up ridiculous numbers in high school and has a ton of talent, and even when Smith returns he could be the guy getting the majority of the carries this fall. With the numbers of competing players at tailback, however, Toussaint could just as easily be sitting third- or fourth-string in 2010, so performing well in spring practice is as important to him as it is to anyone on this team. With Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown gone, the tailback position is there for the taking — someone just needs to step up and perform.
Taylor Lewan, OT: Yup, another redshirt freshman. Lewan has drawn comparisons to Jake Long since the four-star prospect signed with Michigan in 2009, and if he adds enough size and strength to his huge frame (he’s listed on the spring roster at 6-8, 283), he could follow in Long’s footsteps and have a starting tackle spot as a redshirt frosh. It may be a year or two too early for Lewan, who didn’t start playing on the offensive line until his senior year of high school, but the competition for both tackle spots will be wide open. If Lewan has the strength, he may be the most talented lineman on the roster, and he has “prototype left tackle” written all over him.
I’ll check back in after practice with my initial impressions, an update on the new spring roster, and hopefully some pictures from the first day of spring ball.
Alex on 
JL on 
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