My little sister is a sophomore at Ball State – so while Michigan was walking all over Delaware State I was attending Ball State’s family weekend and watching the winless Ball State Cardinals get smoked by Bowling Green in Muncie, IN. There simply is nothing like college football on a Saturday in the fall. Even though I was at what was really a terrible football game, I was happy to be in the presence of a couple teams laying it all out on the field. I was happily updating and tracking the game on my phone as Michigan mercilessly scored TD after TD in the first half. Later on Saturday night I fired up the DVR to catch a the highlights of the day – it’s interesting knowing how the box score played out and then watching the game.

Quick on Delaware State
Without getting into all the statistical ins and outs of what happened on Saturday – it was clear that this game is a positive thing for Michigan as a whole. It’s games like these that bring a team together and helps the unity of a 110+ man roster. To see players get actual game playing time in the Big House is something that their families will be talking about for the rest of their life. As Brian over on Mgoblog mentioned, this game moved Michigan up 35 spots in total offense and up 20 spots in total defense. So the game did wonders for Michigan statistically, but that’s about it. The depth chart essentially remains the same for Penn State as there were no serious injuries and no second or third stringer stood out enough to jump a current starter.

Penn State
Last year Michigan proved that they could run the ball in Happy Valley – well it was more Brandon Minor and MINOR RAGE than anything. Nevertheless, Michigan needs to duplicate that effort on the ground for a full 4 quarters this Saturday if they want to beat Penn State. Per RR in Monday’s press conference, Michigan’s starting center David Molk is going to practice and should see time on the field this week. Now, whether or not he will start – not sure yet.

PSU really hasn’t beaten anybody this year, but did control most of that game against Iowa and just completely dominated a decent offensive-minded Minnesota team. Their struggles with the ground game offensively were well documented after their extraordinarily perennially weak non-conference schedule. A few things that I am looking for this coming Saturday:

• When does Denard Robinson get his first snap? I’m guessing second quarter
• Is David Molk going to start? I’m guessing that he will
• Does Troy Woolfolk continue to play strong at the corner position? I’m guessing that he does as he showed he can hang in the Iowa game
• Can the Safeties bring it for an entire game? This could be an issue, I haven’t seen Mike Williams play a complete game yet
• How is time split in the backfield? I’m guessing Minor gets the start – and the remaining carries are split between Brown, Shaw and maybe even Smith
• How will the receivers be involved in the game plan? It seems as though Greg Matthews or Darryl Stonum is due for a big game

Should Michigan get a victory this weekend – they will inch up in the standings, but will need some help down the road from Iowa and Michigan State if they are thinking championship.

Week 7 Big 10 Standings

Each week Michigan fans seem to learn a little more about their 2009 squad. 4-0 at home and 0-2 on the road. Both road games came down to the wire and Michigan found themselves with the ball and a chance to win. Michigan isn’t many plays away from being 6-0. Now, playing the hypothetical game is fun but it goes both ways, you have to say that Michigan isn’t many plays away from being 2-4. The team is 2-2 in games that have came down to the final offensive possession. There is no doubt that this team brings an exciting brand of football. Simple plays that Forcier and Denard can make with their feet were impossible to even dream of last year. There are drastic improvements on both sides of the ball. Yes, oh yes, the defense has struggled at times. 3rd longs are a nightmare and long drives have killed even the possibility of Michigan gaining momentum at times. But, the defense has held strong in important times and is pretty darn good in the red zone. The offense shows signs of domination on certain drives, then looks weak on others.

So there have been 6 games so far – 6 chapters. Each game can be described in one word – Western Michigan – Relief; Notre Dame – Glory; Eastern Michigan – Reminder; Indiana – Escape; Michigan State – Agony; Iowa – Drop. Let’s just start from the beginning.

Denard Robinson / Det. News

Chapter 1: The Relief
A media-driven beat down of the Michigan program was in full swing before any game was even played. Free Press subscriptions were victims of fire, burn and newly found hatred. Rich Rodriguez basically got peed on when you consider the allegations and add the real estate lawsuit that went down that week. Then it came – all hail gameday! Michigan comes out and dominates what is supposed to be a decent MAC opponent in Western Michigan. Tate Forcier’s first touchdown pass was all that any Michigan fan needed to see in that entire game. Michigan had a quarterback and that meant – Michigan had a competent offense that would be able to either stay on the field or put points on the board. What a relief. WHAT A RELIEF for the Michigan program to start the season 1-0.

Chapter 2: The Glory
The media’s love affair with Notre Dame was all geared up to officially launch after a victory in the Big House. Na, nope, don’t think so and not so fast Jimmah! Michigan came out and made a statement and if you were there or even if you watched it from your living room – the day ended in pure glory. The little freshman with a huge heart and level of poise – brings Michigan one of its most memorable wins in recent history, most definitely in the Rich Rodriguez era with only the Florida bowl victory coming close if considering the past few years. The glory poured in for an entire week. Every sports writer in the country wanted some Rich Rodriguez and Tate Forcier tiempo. “Michigan’s back” was the general feeling across the nation that Saturday night and throughout the ensuing week. The GLORY of that day may last for quite some time and Michigan starts the season 2-0.

Tate & DRob / Det. News

Chapter 3: The Reminder
Notre Dame was last week and who really cares about it anymore as the nature of college football makes each next game matter more than the last – so a let down would tear down the greatness and glory of the ND victory. Eastern Michigan walks in and manages to play a game that forces Michigan fans to remember – this is a young, young team. Inexperience is on both sides of the ball and at the most important positions. Mistakes are going to be made this year – hopefully they are made at times where Michigan can recover or absorb the blows. This game also served as a reminder to Michigan fans why Rich Rodriguez was hired. When I see 45-17 on a scoreboard, I assume the game was relatively lopsided and the victorious team probably walked away happy. I’m gonna say – not this Michigan team. The game was close at half and the defense looked sloppy at best. The Michigan passing game was somewhat stale. But Rich Rodriguez exploits a defense by utilizing a scheme that forces a defense to get out of position. Rich Rodriguez exploits a defense by utilizing speed at critical offensive positions. Yes, it wasn’t pretty and thank you for the reminder that this team is going to struggle, goof, be ugly – but I’m taking it because the upside is enormous. Michigan starts the season 3-0.

Chapter 4: The Escape
The Reminder told us that this is still a very young team, but when playing well – they are so tough to beat (offensively speaking – now the defense is another thing). Indiana – yea sure come on in. Michigan fans were excited to see some extended playing time for the likes of Denard Robinson, Vincent Smith, Justin Turner, etc. Not quite the case. Damn, what a frustrating game to watch. The snaps – holy damn. Terrible. How can Michigan lose momentum and drop the Big Ten opener to Indiana? Tate Forcier stepped up once more and gave Michigan a great way to escape a game that they didn’t deserve to win. Brandon Minor again proved his worth late in the game by picking up some crucial yards and the ultimate game-winning first down. The defense wasn’t good, but hey, I’ll take field goals all day over touchdowns. Michigan starts the season 4-0.

Chapter 5: The Agony
To be outplayed for all but five minutes of the 4th quarter was pure agony and it flat out sucked booty hole. Every Michigan fan hates little brother and losing to them, while not as bad as losing to Ohio State, it’s still a hated, hated in-state rival. So, Tate Forcier again proved his worth and that Michigan can really never be counted out until the game is completely over. It simply wasn’t Michigan’s day on either side of the ball. While the D was ripped on hard throughout the game on message boards and forums – it gave up only 20 points in regulation. Michigan needs to be able to score more than 20 points to win games, especially on the road. The problem was that the D simply couldn’t get off the field – 1st and 2nd downs were typically played ok, but 3rd and long for the Spartans were not a problem to get against Michigan’s D. The game was downright agonizing to watch. Stonum doesn’t fumble the rock at the lil bro 10 with about ten minutes to go in the fourth and I think Michigan has a much better shot at winning that game. BUT, no more looking back. Michigan has to pick itself up and get on with Iowa City and the Hawkeyes. A challenge it will be, but I trust that the team is going to be up to that challenge and put up one hell of a fight and maybe walk out of that stadium with a dubya. The season is kicking in now – and Michigan finds themselves sitting at 4-1 with a huge opportunity coming up.

Chapter 6: The Drop
This game was a huge opportunity for Michigan to get back on track in the Big Ten race and even jump back into the national rankings. But it wasn’t to be. You just knew the game was going to get close, quickly, after Donovan Warren picked off Stanzi on the first offensive play of the game. Sure enough, it did. But this game wasn’t about Iowa’s offensive execution or what Iowa did. Michigan shot themselves in the foot with 5 freakin’ turnovers. Michigan gave the ball to Iowa deep in Michigan’s territory and Michigan gave the ball away when they were in scoring position. Michigan battled and found a way to have a chance to win the 4th quarter winding down. Denard Robinson came in to lead the offense much too late in my opinion. I would have like to see Denard get a possession early in the third quarter. (Ir)Regardless, it was a battle that made this group a better football team. But there’s no doubt, Michigan could and probably should have won that football game. Literally, Michigan dropped the ball. This week comes another opportunity for this team. The team can get healthy and play some different guys against a dismal I-AA team in Delaware State. Halfway through the season, Michigan strolls in at 4-2. This makes me smile in August, but after going 4-0 in September it’s tough to take these last two losses. The key is to stay positive because this team truly has some great things happening and an extraordinarily bright future. Michigan is 4-2.

NEXT – Chapter 7 – ?

B Minor / Det. News

Per RR – Tate will be practicing today and preparing to play this weekend against Delaware State. Covered by ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg here.

Other notes from today’s pre-practice presser

• Both Carlos Brown and Brandon Minor should be close to 100% – should both be healthy – Minor will be the starter
• RR hoping to be able to get Mike Shaw and Vincent Smith more carries as well
• Troy Woolfolk will stay at Cornerback for the time being, and could possibly go back to safety in the future
• Kelvin Grady hasn’t seen the field as much recently as the coaching staff has opted to play guys with more experience in the bigger games