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	<title>MGOFootball &#187; greg robinson</title>
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		<title>2009, and Looking Ahead to 2010</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/11/29/2009-and-looking-ahead-to-2010/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/11/29/2009-and-looking-ahead-to-2010/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:08:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spring / Offseason]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[2009]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[brandon graham]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brandon Minor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[brandon smith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[carig roh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[carlos brown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Denard Robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[donovan warren]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[justin turner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[roy roundtree]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tate Forcier]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vincent smith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[will campbell]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[worst defense ever]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=1344</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m cool. Real cool. It&#8217;s all good. Seriously. A fury of circumstances has turned me against writing anything for about an entire week. Most of all, I just needed a mental break from thinking about this football program and how this once promising season turned to dog poo. It sucks to be on the bottom [...]]]></description>
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<p><strong>I&#8217;m cool.  Real cool.  It&#8217;s all good.  Seriously.</strong><br />
A fury of circumstances has turned me against writing anything for about an entire week.  Most of all, I just needed a mental break from thinking about this football program and how this once promising season turned to dog poo.  It sucks to be on the bottom of the Big 11.  It sucks even worse to lose to rivals again.  But it&#8217;s cool, really.  This is something many elite programs have experienced, because they all go through transitions and most take time.  Faster would be nicer, but it will happen.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Thoughts on the Ohio State game</strong><br />
I watched this game at a bar near Dayton, OH and I can tell you that I was one of two Michigan fans out of at least 100 people, and they were worried as Michigan found ways to move the ball.  Unfortunately, Forcier found ways to make me drink more beer and not really threaten the OSU lead as the game was winding down.  Also, most OSU fans were on my side relative to the hideousness of those throwback uniforms.</p>
<p>Tate had several nice plays throughout this game.  The offense played relatively well throughout, and Vincent Smith showed signs of what a starter next year should look like.  Roy Roundtree again showed that he deserves to be a starter next year along with Tay Odoms and Darryl Stonum.  It was disappointing to see Brandon Minor unable to play in his final home game.  Carlos Brown, or not Carlos Brown, na &#8211; still can&#8217;t break a damn tackle.  Brandon Graham = freak, unreal dude.  I hope BG is a top draft pick and becomes the next Lamarr Woodley.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>About the whole fire Rich Rod thing.</strong><br />
At this point, we can all say that Rich Rodriguez has underachieved after two years as Michigan&#8217;s head coach.  You cannot be pleased with the alleged NCAA allegations either.  You can also scrape the news off of the Detroit Free Press, national media, Michael Wilbon, you name it; and think that Michigan needs to cut their losses with RR and bring in the next Michigan Man.</p>
<p>Or, you could take emotion out of it, spend the time to understand the dynamics of this roster in it&#8217;s current state, remember how bad you wanted a change after 2007, continue to remember how bad you wanted a change after 2007, and realize that year 2 was an improvement over year 1.  Not a huge improvement, but 5 > 3.  The offense improved by leaps and bounds, and somehow was the #1 scoring offense in the Big 11.  Any team should be able to win a ball game scoring 36, see Purdue.
</p>
<p>I see a coach that is resilient and not beaten down.  As RR tells the media, they don&#8217;t know what goes on in that locker room, film room, weight room, etc.  RR and his staff have created an environment where the players are very close to one another and believe in the system put in place.  I&#8217;ve been pleased with RR&#8217;s demeanor in post-game press conferences, he sticks to his guns and doesn&#8217;t let ill-placed questions get the best of him.  He often speaks of the bigger picture, the process, that he and his staff put their heart and soul in to &#8211; and it&#8217;s happening, just not as fast as an irrational fan wants it to.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Will Michigan be a better team in 2010?</strong><br />
Yes.  Thank you for asking.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Why will Michigan be better offensively?</strong><br />
A starting quarterback is coming back, yay!  And it&#8217;s a guy that is actually competent at times, yay!  Tate should improve with an entire offseason to pick up where he left off after the Ohio State game.  In general, Tate finished the season strong starting with the Purdue game.  He will improve as he spends time adding some padding to that frame and slowing the game down in his head.  Let&#8217;s just hope he&#8217;s got the work ethic to make all of that happen.</p>
<p>QB&#8217;s aside, the majority of the offense is back &#8211; and the unit should once again improve with another year under its belt.  The year 1 to year 2 jump is always big, but so is the year 2 to 3 jump.</p>
<p><strong>5 offensive players with 2010 expectations.</strong></p>
<ol>
<li><strong>Vincent Smith</strong><br />
Played lights out against Wisconsin and Ohio State, and shows the ability to break tackles and make something out of nothing.  Oh yea, he can catch too.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Roy Roundtree</strong><br />
Played lights out since the Purdue game.  He&#8217;s got sure hands and great acceleration &#8211; although his breakaway speed could be improved, see Illinois game.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Denard Robinson / Tate Forcier</strong><br />
Tate will start.  Denard will play QB and find his way into other formations as a back or receiver, a la Percy Harvin.  I know RR is keeping him at QB, but he&#8217;ll see time on field in other ways.  Tate is a natural, it seems as though he needs to mature a bit and stay more focused during games.  A lot will be expected from Tate.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Darryl Stonum</strong><br />
Stonum really created a name for himself returning kicks this year, so that will naturally be the talk on his behalf leading into the season.  Michigan needs a deep threat, and Stonum needs to be that guy.  Would like to see him get a little more established as a key part of the offense.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>David Molk</strong><br />
Many believe this was Michigan&#8217;s most impactful injury of 2009, and it may have been.  Once Molk was out, Michigan was out.  Regardless, his rehab will be a major story and Michigan will need him back in the starting line up.</li>
</ol>
<p><strong>Why will Michigan be better defensively?</strong><br />
Greg Robinson will be here.  That means this defense doesn&#8217;t have to start over with a new defensive coordinator, first time this has happened in four years.  This defense was not good, and simply having some consistency from a coaching standpoint gives the case for improvement credibility.  Brandon Graham is gone, and was nothing short of amazing in his senior season.  He was a game-changing beast, it&#8217;s too bad that he wasn&#8217;t complimented by a couple more playmakers in the back seven.  The general feel is that Donovan Warren will stick his foot in the NFL pool and decide that it&#8217;s a little too cold to jump in.  Losing only Stevie Brown and BG puts nine guys back in 2010, so the simple default of improvement from experience sets in here.  Woolfolk and Warren should lock down the corners if GROB finds two safeties that can play at an average to above average level of play.  </p>
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<p><strong>5 defensive players with 2010 expectations.</strong></p>
<ol>
<li><strong>Justin Turner</strong><br />
The 5 star from Ohio redshirted last year after much speculation that he would get his shot to prove himself on gameday</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Craig Roh</strong><br />
Roh has a hell of a motor and only stands to get a lot better.  He&#8217;s played relatively well and was very undersized as a true freshman.  Combine his experience with an entire offseason of bulking up and Roh should have a huge impact in 2010.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Brandon Smith</strong><br />
All Brandon&#8217;s that play at Michigan are good right?  Let&#8217;s hope some of Brandon Graham&#8217;s dominance rubbed off on Brandon Smith.  He&#8217;s always played well on special teams and saw some time in the final two games in the defensive backfield.  He&#8217;ll get his opportunity to be a starter and make an impact, whether it&#8217;s at safety or the quick position Stevie Brown was playing.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Will Campbell</strong><br />
Will got some decent experience as a true freshman, while he didn&#8217;t always play well, he should anchor that D-line in 2010 along with Mike Martin, Ryan Van Bergen, and Roh.</li>
<p></p>
<li><strong>Donovan Warren</strong><br />
I hesitated to include DW in this list, but he could stand to have an absolute breakthrough season if he comes back.  His play was solid at best as the season progressed.  If he comes back, he&#8217;ll be the spokesperson for the defense.</li>
</ol>
<p></p>
<p><strong>What do I do now?</strong><br />
Watch Michigan basketball have a decent season, hopefully better than last year.  Watch Michigan&#8217;s hockey team recover from a rough start.  Assume that the Michigan football program can stay out of the negative headline category this offseason.  Let time do its thing.  Then as next fall approaches, get psyched about a team that should give Michigan a winning season and a bowl game.  It&#8217;s fun being optimistic, because that means we&#8217;re talking 8 or 9 wins for this team next season.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Positive Thinking&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/10/29/positive-thinking/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/10/29/positive-thinking/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:56:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Recruiting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brandon Minor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rich rodriguez]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tate Forcier]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=1281</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As far as &#8220;interesting&#8221; goes &#8211; this season has been nothing short of interesting. Michigan fans have experienced some real nice highs &#8211; see Notre Dame win. And this team has given Michigan fans some September-provided-hope-ridden lows &#8211; see Penn State loss. There are plenty of reasons to be negative at this point in the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><div style="float:right; padding:8px;"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
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</script></div>As far as &#8220;interesting&#8221; goes &#8211; this season has been nothing short of interesting.  Michigan fans have experienced some real nice highs &#8211; see Notre Dame win.  And this team has given Michigan fans some September-provided-hope-ridden lows &#8211; see Penn State loss.  There are plenty of reasons to be negative at this point in the season.  Michigan&#8217;s D is outright bad.  Boubacar Cissoko was dismissed from the team this week.  1-3 in the last 4 games and the one win was essentially a scrimmage against a team that didn&#8217;t belong near the Big House.  Negative this shitty that RR what are you doing G. Rob your an idiot, etc.  I&#8217;m a positive thinker &#8211; and it&#8217;s an easy time to be a positive-thinking Michigan fan because there are actually a lot of positives to take away from where this program stands right now.  Check it.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>REASONS TO BE POSITIVE</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>This coaching staff has shown that they can keep a team focused and together through tough losses and time of adversity.  It hasn&#8217;t shown it&#8217;s impact on the field quite yet, but you wait &#8211; it will.</li>
<p></p>
<li>Michigan has truly only been beaten badly in one game out of 8.  Can&#8217;t quite say the same when considering last year.  A wonderful reason to be positive about the future.</li>
<p></p>
<li>There are 2 seniors on a decimated defense &#8211; ANY recruiting should help this.</li>
<p></p>
<li>Tate Forcier could very easily be one of Michigan&#8217;s greatest quarterbacks.  He has shown some incredible moxy and for some reason even when he plays bad it&#8217;s acceptable.</li>
<p></p>
<li>One of the best dual threat quarterback recruits in the country &#8211; Michigan&#8217;s own Devin Gardner has committed to don the maize and blue next year.</li>
<p></p>
<li>There are solid running backs to step in and take over for Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown next year.</li>
<p></p>
<li>Offensive perimeter guys are young and talented &#8211; and already have an adequate amount of game experience.</li>
</ul>
<p></p>
<p>This list is going to get longer.  And it&#8217;s going to be something I post every week.  Because losses happen &#8211; no way around it and negativity is all over the place.  If Michigan is ranked #1 in the country in two years &#8211; nobody is going to remember the loss to Iowa &#8211; or the beat down by Penn State.  Go Blue.  Beat Illinois this week.  </p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Thoughts on being 4-1</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/10/04/thoughts-on-being-4-1/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/10/04/thoughts-on-being-4-1/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2009 03:48:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Game Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big ten]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[defense]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iowa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[michigan state]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[offense]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tate Forcier]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=1168</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Lot of emotions and anger came out of watching Michigan fall to Michigan State in OT. A frustrating day of where the offense just couldn&#8217;t get into any kind of rhythm. The defense consistently put Michigan State in third and long situations but couldn&#8217;t get off the field. A remarkable comeback by possibly my favorite [...]]]></description>
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<p>Lot of emotions and anger came out of watching Michigan fall to Michigan State in OT.  A frustrating day of where the offense just couldn&#8217;t get into any kind of rhythm.  The defense consistently put Michigan State in third and long situations but couldn&#8217;t get off the field.  A remarkable comeback by possibly my favorite UM player to watch in recent history in Tate Forcier.  The kid is simply great when it&#8217;s crunch time and his back is against the wall.  To go 92 yards in a driving rain with no timeouts  after his offense struggled all day is a story we would have heard about for years to come should Michigan have pulled out that game in OT.  In the end, Michigan got outplayed badly by State, who appeared to have a gameplan that worked and UM had a tough time adjusting.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Should RR Have Abandoned the Run?</strong><br />It appears as though the loss of David Molk is more significant of an injury than anyone initially thought.  Michigan got pushed around up front and lost the battle.  Minor and Brown simply had no where to go, no room to run.  A game plan is a game plan and you try and get your offense into a rhythm when they haven&#8217;t had a chance to get on the field much.  I&#8217;m not a big time of possession guy, but it gets to a point where the offense simply doesn&#8217;t get a shot.  Michigan had the ball for 7:20 in the first half compared to MSU having it for 22:40.  That&#8217;s a HUGE difference and Michigan was doubled up on time of possession in the game.</p>
<p></p>
<p>All that being said, I don&#8217;t blame Rich Rodriguez for not abandoning the run sooner than the fourth quarter.  I&#8217;ve heard it over and over, MSU&#8217;s glaring weakness was there secondary and RR should have attempted to exploit that from the get-go.  You play to your opponent&#8217;s weakness, but you don&#8217;t change your identity to do so.  If Stonum doesn&#8217;t fumble that catch and run to MSU&#8217;s 10 yard line, Michigan may have been able to cut that lead to 7 with about 10 minutes to go in the final quarter.</p>
<p>  </p>
<div id="attachment_1172" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><img src="http://mgofootball.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/20091003182025_1003-dy-UMvMSUftbl1086-300x291.jpg" alt="Tate In the Rain / Det. News" title="20091003182025_1003-dy-UMvMSUftbl1086" width="300" height="291" class="size-medium wp-image-1172" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Tate In the Rain / Det. News</p></div>
<p><strong>Tate Forcier is Mad Clutch</strong><br />Was there much doubt when Tate had the ball 92 yards away, 2 minutes to go with no timeouts?  Well yea, but probably not in his mind.  He continues to prove that he&#8217;s got some serious poise, moxy, it, whatever you want to call it that all great quarterbacks possess.  Shit is this guy exciting and fun to watch.  It&#8217;s chaotic, madness, and successful.  I love watching the kid play and think he&#8217;s got some very bright days ahead of him at Michigan.  Look at the pic &#8211; in a driving rain with poor snaps &#8211; Tate gets it done on that last drive.</p>
<p><center><a target="_blank" href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=131185&u=367134&m=7124&urllink=&afftrack="><img src="http://www.shareasale.com/image/468x60FF100.jpg"  border="0"></a></center>
<p><strong>Why Can&#8217;t the Defense Get Off the Field?</strong><br />Frustrating is a light term for how I felt as I watched a three man front rush Kirk Cousins on 3rd and 15 &#8211; Cousins gets all day to decide whether he feels like running for the first or throwing underneath a zone for the first down.  Time and time again this happened.  FRUSTRATING.  I can&#8217;t imagine how frustrating Greg Robinson was watching this happen right in front of him.</p>
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<p>It&#8217;s really becoming clear that Michigan&#8217;s linebacker play is NOT good.  It&#8217;s G Damn terrible.  Obi Ezeh makes a lot of tackles against a power running game, but in other situations he is SLOW, very slow.  Did you see him try to attempt to catch cousins on one, or any, of his long third down scrambles?  I don&#8217;t know what has happened with Jonas Mouton, I expected better and quicker play from him this season as well.</p>
<p></p>
<p>All in all, the defense is young and inexperienced.  Brandon Graham had a huge, NFL caliber day.  Donovan Warren did his job.  It was the killer third down conversions that enabled Michigan State&#8217;s offense to stay on the field.  I think G. Robinson will do well at Michigan, he just needs some time and some additional talent to work with.</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>What&#8217;s It All Mean?</strong><br />Michigan is young and probably a bit ahead of schedule.  Most analysts and fans expected Tate Forcier to play like a freshman, not like a veteran that can bring his team back when his back is against the wall in yea &#8211; about every game.  As negative as the game was in several facets, Michigan found a way to cut the lead and eventually tie up the ball game.  Michigan&#8217;s inexperience and young talent is going to make for some exciting games this year.</p>
<p></p>
<p>As the week progresses, we&#8217;ll get more into the upcoming Iowa game, but I think this Michigan team views this loss as a learning experience and ultimately an opportunity.  Momentum will not be lost, in fact gained.  A win at Iowa would be huge &#8211; and it would put Michigan right back in the hunt for the Big Ten Championship.  </p>
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		</item>
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		<title>Media Day Today, Saturday Scrimmage Notes</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/23/media-day-today-saturday-scrimmage-notes/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/23/media-day-today-saturday-scrimmage-notes/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:18:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spring / Offseason]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Devin Gardner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[media day]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=766</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Today is media day and it should start in about five minutes at the time I am writing this. Wish I lived closer to AA so I could be there! Here are some notes for Sunday&#8230; ESPN&#8217;s Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg discusses how new defensive coordinator Greg Robinson is making sure every player knows [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><div style="float:left; padding:8px;"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
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</script></div>Today is media day and it should start in about five minutes at the time I am writing this.  Wish I lived closer to AA so I could be there!  Here are some notes for Sunday&#8230;</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://myespn.go.com/blogs/bigten/0-3-926/Robinson-broadens-communication-at-Michigan.html">ESPN&#8217;s Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg discusses how new defensive coordinator Greg Robinson</a> is making sure every player knows all 11 assignments on defense.  It sounds like the entire defensive unit, including the coaching staff is much more cohesive this season that last.  Michigan needs a defense that can hold opponents to under 20 points on a consistent basis.  Robinson is teaching the defense to understand that they have help if they need it.</li>
<p></p>
<li>From the Free Press, <a href="http://www.freep.com/article/20090823/HSS/908230517/1054/SPORTS06/Devin-Gardner-shows-he-s-capable-of-standing-out-on-national-level">Devin Gardner is showing signs of being a great player</a> on a national level.  This is the type of guy I want coming to play football at the University of Michigan.  He is very humble and just wants to get better at playing football.</li>
<p></p>
<li>Dave Birkett and Michael Rothstein from AnnArbor.com have provided a lot of quality coverage from practice so far this August and have decided to share their thoughts and concerns at the halfway point of camp.  <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/for-arguments-sake-two-weeks-until-the-opener/">Worth checking out&#8230;</a></li>
<p></p>
<li>Notes from yesterday&#8217;s scrimmage&#8230;<span id="more-766"></span><br />
<blockquote><p>• 400 family members of the players attended the team’s first full scale scrimmage of the preseason. The families took a group photo and had a picnic following practice. View the picture here.</p>
<p>• The Wolverines ran 125 plays during their situational scrimmage where the coaches worked from the sidelines in a game like situation.</p>
<p>• Teric Jones had the lone defensive turnover, picking off a pass and returning to the one-yard line.</p>
<p>• Defensive end Brandon Graham sacked quarterback Tate Forcier for a safety and J.B. Fitzgerald also added a quarterback sack.</p>
<p>• Running back Carlos Brown scored on a nine-yard touchdown run on the opening drive of the scrimmage following a pair of long plays from Martavious Odoms.</p>
<p>• The offense scored on three of its first four possessions during the 80-yard portion of the scrimmage but it leveled in the end as the defense won five of the final six series.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Denard Robinson tossed a three-yard touchdown pass to wideout Je’Ron Stokes on third-and-goal.</p>
<p>• On the scrimmage&#8217;s oddest play, Forcier completed a 20-yard pass to wide receiver Junior Hemingway who fumbled as he pushed forward for a few extra yards. Carlos Brown scooped up the loose ball and took it the remaining 23 yards for a touchdown.</p>
<p>• Michael Cox had the longest play of the scrimmage, ripping off a 56-yard run that ended with quarterback David Cone&#8217;s six-yard touchdown pass to a diving Brandon Moore.</p>
<p>• The offense scored on three of the four possessions starting at the 50-yard line, with Robinson, quarterback Nick Sheridan and Forcier each tossing touchdown passes.</p>
<p>• The Wolverines offense was perfect on four series starting at the 20-yard line.</p>
<p>• Former players Ron Bellamy, Courtney Morgan, Rudy Smith, P.J. Cwayna, Michael Taylor and Harlan Huckleby attended practice. Former U-M assistant Jerry Hanlon was also in attendance for the scrimmage.</p>
<p>• Current Central Michigan head coach Butch Jones, a former assistant for Rodriguez at West Virginia, attended the scrimmage during his team&#8217;s off day.</p>
<p>Friday, Aug. 21<br />
• Over 250 youth football players from all 24 organizations in Think Detroit PAL (Police Athletic League), a non-profit organization that builds character in young people, attended practice today. They had the opportunity to watch practice and meet the Wolverines.</p>
<p>• The defense won the last play of the game situation for the second straight day, stopping four of the six offensive possessions from the six-yard line.</p>
<p>• The two offensive TDs on the last play situations came on a Tate Forcier pass to wideout Roy Roundtree and a Denard Robinson run.</p>
<p>• Robinson scored on a 58-yard run around the left side of the offensive line.</p>
<p>• Cornerback J.T. Turner and safety Matt Cavanaugh picked up interceptions in the end zone during team drills.</p>
<p>• Safety Mike Williams corralled a pick in one-on-one drills.</p>
<p>• Former U-M quarterback Rich Hewlett attended practice this afternoon as well as current Athletic Bill Martin and his wife, Sally.</p>
<p>Thursday, Aug. 20<br />
• Defensive tackle Will Campbell and linebacker Obi Ezeh recovered fumbles in team drills.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Nick Sheridan tossed three touchdown passes to three different receivers in team drills, tossing scoring plays to wideout Greg Mathews and tight ends Brandon Moore and Kevin Koger.</p>
<p>• The defense stopped the offense on 5-of-6 final play of the game from the 11-yard line.</p>
<p>• The only score on the final play competition was an 11-yard TD pass from Sheridan to Koger.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Tate Foricer tossed a 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Greg Mathews, which he out jumped the defender, in the left corner of the end zone.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Denard Robinson hit wideout Kelvin Grady along the right side of the end zone for a 23-yard touchdown.</p>
<p>Wednesday, Aug. 19<br />
• Actor Jeff Daniels watched practice and talked with U-M head coach Rich Rodriguez.</p>
<p>• Former U-M head coach Gary Moeller attended practice today as well as Athletic Director Bill Martin.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Denard Robinson had a pair of plays over 40 yards, including a 45-yard TD pass to receiver Greg Mathews in the two minute drill.</p>
<p>• Kicker Brendan Gibbons converted a 45-yard field goal in the two-minute drill to tie the game.</p>
<p>• Safety Mike Williams collected an interception during one-on-one drills.</p>
<p>• The defense stopped four of the six offensive possessions in skelly.</p>
<p>• The defense stopped the offense on four of six possessions on end of game situations where the ball was spotted at the 12-yard line with 14 seconds left and the offense had to score a touchdown.</p>
<p>• The two scores on the end of game situations came on a Nick Sheridan pass to running back Vincent Smith and a Robinson run.</p>
<p>Tuesday, Aug. 18<br />
• Quarterback Denard Robinson scampered 68 yards on a broken play during third down drills.</p>
<p>• On a first-and-10 drill from their own two-yard line, running back Kevin Grady burst through a hole in the right side of the line for a 45-yard gain.</p>
<p>• During the team’s overtime drill, the offense scored three touchdowns with the defense collecting two stops. A third scoring chance was thwarted on a blocked field goal attempt.</p>
<p>• Quarterback Nick Sheridan tossed an 18-yard TD pass to wideout Greg Mathews on a third-down play during the first overtime series.</p>
<p>• On the second OT series, quarterback Tate Forcier tossed a pass to wideout LaTerryal Savoy on a receiver screen and Savoy followed his blockers to the end zone for a 25-yard score.</p>
<p>• The third and final overtime score came on an eight-yard run up the middle by back Michael Shaw.</p>
<p>• Converted cornerback Teric Jones collected a pass breakup on a fourth down play that ended an offensive possession during the extra session drill.</p>
<p>• During his press briefing today, Rich Rodriguez mentioned that he would be holding a student body walk-on tryout after the start of classes on Wednesday, Sept. 16.</p>
<p>• Rodriguez mentioned that Ricky Barnum, Thomas Gordon and Mark Moundros had minor injuries and would be day-to-day, while Fitzgerald Toussaint would miss a few weeks following a shoulder injury suffered last week.</p>
<p>• Rodriguez later added that cornerback Donovan Warren would sit out practice Tuesday and would be day-to-day after suffering an injury on Monday.</p>
<p>• Former Wolverines Jim Betts and Drew Henson attended practice.</p></blockquote>
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<li>Over on MGOBlue.com &#8211; you&#8217;ll find some <a href="http://www.mgoblue.com/football/page.aspx?id=182128">highlights of Saturday&#8217;s scrimmage</a>.  It&#8217;s difficult to make judgments on just a handful of plays, but the offense should be able to move the ball this year SO much better than last year.  Simply because there are options at quarterback and a year of experience everywhere else on that side of the ball.</li>
<p></p>
<li>A note from a post yesterday on how much stronger this team is now compared to last year.  Rich Rod spoke for about 20 minutes and was very personable and relaxed &#8211; where he said last year there was one player that could power clean 300 lbs.  This year?  There are about 30 &#8211; a huge difference.  <a href="http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/22/fan-day-the-defense-progresses-ap-poll-rich-rod-video/">Check it out here&#8230;</a></li>
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		<title>The Defense Progresses, AP Poll, Rich Rod Video</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/22/fan-day-the-defense-progresses-ap-poll-rich-rod-video/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/22/fan-day-the-defense-progresses-ap-poll-rich-rod-video/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 22 Aug 2009 19:28:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spring / Offseason]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Video]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[defense]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fan Day]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kelvin grady]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kevin grady]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[preseason poll]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=747</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Michael Rothstein of AnnArbor.com writes on progress coming from the defensive side of the ball according to Michigan&#8217;s 1st year defensive coordinator Greg Robinson. The Michigan fan base has high hopes for what Robinson can get done with a defense that lacks depth and is very inexperienced. Fundamentals have escaped Michigan defenders for years now, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<ul>
<li>Michael Rothstein of AnnArbor.com writes on <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/michigan-defensive-coordinator-greg-robinson-sees-progress-in-his-defense/">progress coming from the defensive side of the ball</a> according to Michigan&#8217;s 1st year defensive coordinator Greg Robinson.  The Michigan fan base has high hopes for what Robinson can get done with a defense that lacks depth and is very inexperienced.  Fundamentals have escaped Michigan defenders for years now, which has been a main focus this year in camp &#8211; tackling, shedding blockers, proper angles, etc.</li>
<p>
<img src="http://mgofootball.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/allintowel.jpg" alt="allintowel" title="allintowel" width="480" height="320" class="alignright size-full wp-image-749" /></p>
<li>Tomorrow is Media Day! &#8211; for more on the details check out a post over on <a href="http://www.mgoblog.com">MGOBlog.com</a></li>
<p></p>
<li>The <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/rankingsindex">Associated Press</a> rankings were released today &#8211; and as expected Michigan did not receive any votes.  It&#8217;d be nice to grab a few non-conference wins early in the season and crack that top 25.</li>
<p> </p>
<li><a href="http://www.freep.com/article/20090822/SPORTS06/908220368/1054/PG-turned-WR-Kelvin-Grady-receiving-kudos-">Kelvin Grady</a> has generated a fair amount of buzz around practice and in the media with his playmaking ability, speed and soft hands.  Grady most likely will see more playing time this year than his older brother Kevin.  If you watched Kelvin on the basketball court, you know that he can fly and is extremely athletic.</li>
<p> </p>
<li>
<p>More of the same<span id="more-747"></span> from Rich Rodriguez relative to his quarterbacks and where Forcier, Robinson and Sheridan stand.  Here&#8217;s a quick video from AnnArbor.com&#8230;</p>
<p></p>
<p><center><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kSPDA3zztJo&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kSPDA3zztJo&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></center></li>
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<li>
<p>Here&#8217;s a quick video of Michigan&#8217;s offensive line running through some drills at practice last Thursday&#8230;</p>
<p>
<center><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tMW1__TrHDc&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tMW1__TrHDc&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></center></li>
<p></p>
<li>More talk on the defense from <a href="http://detnews.com/article/20090820/SPORTS0201/908200383/1131/sports0201/U-M-tackles-change-with-attention-to-details">The Detroit News</a> &#8211; a good article talking about the experience that Greg Robinson brings to the table and his focus on taking care of the fundamentals.</li>
<p></p>
<li>According to a statement made by Rich Rod &#8211; Troy Woolfolk will be one of the starting safeties.  The other starting spot is not yet filled.</li>
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<li>
<p>Here are some quality videos of Rich Rodriguez talking about the program&#8230;</p>
<p><center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oUslhaCMLHk&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oUslhaCMLHk&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center><br /><center><a target="_blank" href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=131185&u=367134&m=7124&urllink=&afftrack="><img src="http://www.shareasale.com/image/468x60FF100.jpg"  border="0"></a></center><br />
<center><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lPNjPBnYtX0&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lPNjPBnYtX0&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1&#038;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></center></li>
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		<title>Sunday Tidbits &#8211; G Robinson &amp; The D, 27 Days Until Sept. 5</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/09/sunday-tidbits-g-robinson-the-d-27-days-until-sept-5/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/09/sunday-tidbits-g-robinson-the-d-27-days-until-sept-5/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 09 Aug 2009 18:41:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spring / Offseason]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big ten network]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[western michigan]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=444</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[First &#8211; and most importantly &#8211; I&#8217;d like to remind you all that there are 27 more days until September 5th. 27 more days until, as Michigan fans, we are pleasantly surprised, extraordinarily disappointed, drunk stumbling around the house because we are 12 beers deep, breaking stuff around the living room, etc. 27 DAYS. Let&#8217;s [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><div style="float:left; padding:8px;"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
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</script></div>First &#8211; and most importantly &#8211; I&#8217;d like to remind you all that there are 27 more days until September 5th.  27 more days until, as Michigan fans, we are pleasantly surprised, extraordinarily disappointed, drunk stumbling around the house because we are 12 beers deep, breaking stuff around the living room, etc.  27 DAYS.  Let&#8217;s face it, on a different level, football is football and it excites me that I&#8217;m going to be able to start watching football early in that first week with some decent matchups.</p>
<p>So a few things going on as tomorrow marks the start of the first fall practice&#8230;</p>
<ul>
<li>Obviously, there are people around the country that feel Michigan is in for another long, potentially dreadful year of struggle and inexperience on both sides of the ball.  Not so fast, naysayers and most obnoxious people that live in and around Ohio.  I&#8217;m not promising anything &#8211; and I&#8217;m guilty of being a little over-optimistic at times (one look at my <a href="http://www.findinspirationtoday.com"about="_blank">other blog</a> and you&#8217;ll see why) &#8211; but lots of folks closer to the program and objective people that understand the dynamics of Rich Rodriguez&#8217;s offense have a gut feeling that the Wolverines could bounce back this year in a big way.  Even if Michigan goes 7-5 or 8-4 &#8211; I think you are going to see some flashes of what is to come in the near future.  An eight win season probably means that Michigan is a handful of players and maybe a year of experience away from contending for the Big Ten title.  The Big Ten Network football crew talk of a Michigan bounce back season <a href="http://www.freep.com/article/20090809/SPORTS06/908090537/1054/SPORTS06/Analyst--U-M-can-bounce-back-from--08-">here</a> and will be at Michigan this Friday.</li>
<p></p>
<li>In <a href="http://www.sportingnews.com/college-football/article/2009-08-08/five-questions-for-rich-rodriguez"about="_blank">Rich Rodriguez&#8217;s interview with The Sporting News</a>, RR talks of how he initially began developing the meat and potatoes of his spread attack from the Detroit Lions and Houston Oilers some time ago.  RR says&#8230;<br />
<blockquote><p>It was more born out of necessity and trying to be different. The staff and I had studied some run-and-shoot teams—Detroit and Houston were running it in the NFL. But we wanted to have our own version of it in the run game. The zone read, one of the staples of the spread nowadays, came about almost as an accident, a byproduct of practice.</p>
<p>Back then, nobody was running shotgun run plays other than maybe a quarterback draw. To run the zone out of the shotgun was simply just a handoff. I had a quarterback in practice where the exchange didn&#8217;t happen right, and the quarterback ended up keeping it around the end. I started to get on him, and he said, &#8220;I was reading the end.&#8221; I said, &#8220;Well, that one is going in next week.&#8221; I realized, hey, by putting the quarterback in the shotgun, he has time and distance to read that end. It&#8217;s almost like a reverse option.</p>
<p>Somebody may have been doing it somewhere out there, but I had never seen it. We kind of looked at each other as coaches and thought, Hey, we might have something going on here.</p></blockquote>
</li>
<p></p>
<li>In a story on AnnArbor.com <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/new-michigan-defensive-coordinator-greg-robinson-wants-the-best-tackling-team-in-america/">here</a> &#8211; New Michigan Defensive Coordinator Greg Robinson says it&#8217;s his goal for Michigan to be &#8220;the best tackling team in America&#8221;.  Really?  Wow, that would be quite the turnaround as Michigan has been about the worst tackling team that I have watched over the past few seasons.  So many missed opportunities for big stops because of broken tackles by guys that escaped simply because the Michigan defenders simply had poor technique and didn&#8217;t wrap up.  I can&#8217;t wait to see the changes on defense &#8211; I&#8217;ll be disappointed if there is not a noticeable difference.</li>
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		<title>Sunday Musings: Michigan&#8217;s crowd, Donovan Warren &amp; more</title>
		<link>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/02/sunday-musings-michigans-crowd-donovan-warren-more/</link>
		<comments>http://mgofootball.com/2009/08/02/sunday-musings-michigans-crowd-donovan-warren-more/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:38:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mike P.</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Previews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[donovan warren]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[greg robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lloyd carr]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stevie Brown]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://mgofootball.com/?p=386</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s no secret that Michigan&#8217;s secondary is going to be a bit inexperienced this coming season. With Donovan Warren being the only true starter coming back at cornerback. This spring Warren had to get some surgery on his ankle where he apparently had some out-of-place bone chips. Returning starter Stevie Brown is no longer playing [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<ul>
<li>
<div id="attachment_388" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 240px"><img src="http://mgofootball.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/warren.jpg" alt="Donovan Warren" title="Donovan Warren" width="230" height="200" class="size-full wp-image-388" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Donovan Warren</p></div>It&#8217;s no secret that <a href="http://www.freep.com/article/20090802/SPORTS06/908020553/1054/U-M-secondary-s-success-might-hinge-on-Donovan-Warren-s-ankle-">Michigan&#8217;s secondary</a> is going to be a bit inexperienced this coming season.  With Donovan Warren being the only true starter coming back at cornerback.  This spring Warren had to get some surgery on his ankle where he apparently had some out-of-place bone chips. Returning starter Stevie Brown is no longer playing back at the Safety position as got burned in plenty of games the last two seasons.  He&#8217;s a guy that everyone seems to always have high expectations for and this coming season is certainly no exception.  Brown will be playing new defensive coordinator Greg Robinson&#8217;s &#8220;quick&#8221; position &#8211; which is like a roaming linebacker providing more run support, blitz options, and the ability to cover man-to-man on a slot, end, back, etc.  Nevertheless, I&#8217;m looking for Warren to step it up this season and be a leader for a very young secondary.</li>
<p></p>
<li>Speaking of Stevie Brown &#8211; in an <a href="http://www.detnews.com/article/20090801/SPORTS0201/908010400/1131/rss17">article in The Detroit News</a> &#8211; he is out to find his identity this season and show the world that he is an asset to Michigan&#8217;s defensive unit.</li>
<p></p>
<li><a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/lloyd-carr-expecting-a-very-succesful-season/">Lloyd Carr sounded off</a> a bit at a question and answer session at the annual Motor City Bowl golf outing.  Good ol&#8217; Lloyd expects Michigan to have an exciting season and win some games in 2009&#8230;<br />
<blockquote><p>&#8220;I’m like everybody else, I’m hoping and expecting a very successful, exciting season.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
<p>And continues his stance on not interfering with what Rich Rodriguez is doing in his second year as head coach.  </p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;One of the decisions I made when I retired as the coach was that I was not going to be a guy that stuck my nose into the new coach’s job because there’s enough pressure on the coach at Michigan as there is in any sport,” Carr said. “And to have the former coach going to practice and commenting on all the questions that would be asked, just in my mind was not in the best interest of Michigan football. And my love is for Michigan. I want the best for our university and for our football program&#8221;</p></blockquote>
</li>
<p></p>
<li><a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/rich-rodriguez-craves-a-better-atmosphere-at-michigan-stadium/">Michigan&#8217;s crowd and stadium noise</a> always seems to be a topic of conversation at some point in time during every off-season.  What needs to happen to make Michigan Stadium louder?  Why aren&#8217;t there ever any night games?  Will the new stadium construction make it louder &#8211; won&#8217;t the sound bounce down from the angled press boxes and suites?  These are all questions that Michigan fans want addressed in some capacity.  Rich Rodriguez has been stirring up the pot a bit recently about changing some things in the Big House.  Rodriguez is going as far as working with Michigan&#8217;s marketing department to address some of these issues.  It shouldn&#8217;t be hard should it &#8211; I mean you&#8217;ve got 110,000 fans to work with! <br />
Here&#8217;s what Rodriguez had to say relative to why Michigan doesn&#8217;t have any home night games&#8230;.</p>
<blockquote><p>“I think ESPN would love us to do that,” Rodriguez said. “I think some of our fans would like it, not a lot of them. But I think some would like it. I think we’d entertain it more if we had &#8211; lights in the stadium is not an issue, but lights in the parking lots.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
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