Trending: the good.

It’s a…. It’s a Michigan Defense!!!  How can you not continue to celebrate what is an absolutely jaw-dropping and stunning turn-around by the Michigan defense.  This is now two weeks in a row where MZone said it all:

Are you getting tired of praising this defense yet?  Me neither.  Nebraska didn’t convert a third down until the third quarter.  Sit back for a moment and try to wrap your head around that.  Last year, U-M had the 110th ranked defense in the country (out of 120, in case you’re wondering).  Last year, this defense gave up 35.2 points per game, 107th in the country.  This year, Michigan has the #14 ranked defense in all the land and is giving up 15.6 per game, 6th best in the country!

Want a little more perspective?  In its 13 games last year, Michigan gave up 458 points.  Through 11 this season, they’ve surrendered 172.  In other words, to equal the punchline that was 2010, Michigan would have to give up 144 points — in EACH of its remaining two games (OSU and the bowl).

Folks, that’s not improvement, it’s mind boggling.   Because this wasn’t some talent-laden group coming back.  It was, well, the 110th ranked unit in the nation.

Oh how great it is.  Can’t believe it.  But I love it.  And I know you do too.

JG.  Jeremy Gallon is quite alright.  Gallon has been so consistent this season, that it’s a story that nobody really talks about anymore.  Jeremy Gallon was not a fan favorite after his efforts on the field in 2010.  Now?  Now, Gallon is an effective punt returner, solid as a perimeter player, and uses his okay speed to gain good yards in the open field.  This is what I’m sayin’ yo (via TTB):

Gallon isn’t exactly DeSean Jackson with the football in his hands, but he sure does have a way of gaining extra yards in the open field.  Whenever he catches the ball, I expect at least a couple people to miss tackles.

I hear Gallon is top jokester on the team as well.

Michigan is so back, so back.  Brady Hoke and that staff that he put together upon his hiring – have done a remarkable job with this team.  Who in the hell would have thought that Michigan would be playing for a potential BCS at-large bid in it’s final game versus Ohio. From our friends at maizeandgoblue:

This year is different.  While they still have a ways to go, Michigan has a talented team on both sides of the ball and last time I checked, Michigan has the #2 ranked recruiting class coming in for 2012.  The fact that the Wolverines are 9-2 going into Ohio week is also exciting.  This is the best record that Michigan has had going in to this game since 2006!  Not only that, but Michigan also has an excellent chance of finishing the regular season with double-digit wins.

But seriously, what a great trend to have towards the end of the season.  A Michigan team that is actually improving and not going backwards.  Losing at Iowa led to a nerve racking mentally in pushing on to the final three games of the season.  With two solid and rather dominant performances – there is no doubt this Michigan team is peaking in all three phases of the game. Michigan has an opportunity to improve it’s record to 8-0 at home.

Fitz Toussaint continues to be the bomb.  I believe I’ve said this for three straight weeks now, or rather since the Purdue game.  Toussaint is probably Michigan’s best back in a decade.  Not to slight the production of Mike Hart, but Fitz has talent that Michigan hasn’t seen in a decade.  This, from BWS:

Fitz Toussaint looks more and more like an NFL running back the more carries he gets. His lateral movement is incredible. There are only a few running backs in the country with a more effective cut than his. So long as he doesn’t fall in love with it and maintains it as a tool to run vertically, Toussaint is going to be the best Michigan running back in a long time.

After witnessing this guy of late, how could you disagree!?

Denard Robinson is … back?  I hate to say it that way, because I know he never was gone.  But, I say that Denard is back because he finally played against a worthy opponent and looked comfortable in the pocket, running the offense, and making decent to solid decisions.  Denard played good enough to net himself his sixth career B1G player of the week honor.  There were a couple plays, specifically on the 1st half-ending drive, where I thought Denard totally missed the running lane thus negating potential gains and points.

Trending: the not-so-good.

Memo to all Michigan fans worldwide:

Parts of my brain have gone into a deep freeze as of this past Saturday and I have zero input into this section.  Michigan turned over a new leaf.  Michigan has turned the pages, burnt the book, and is re-writing the pages in a new book.  This a week that Michigan fans are to enjoy – as it’s absence has been annoying and shitty.  A week that is full of hype.  A week that is full of positive discussion in regards to coaching football, playing football, and team #132 at Michigan. 

So, Michigan fans, I suppose some of you might want to talk about losing contain and allowing Nebraska to chunk out a 23 yarder, but I’m leaving it with the good.  A good that Michigan fans haven’t had the fortune of enjoying for several years.  A good that reflects forward and translates into a period of success and promise. 

Hail.  Go Blue.  F%#&in’ beat Ohio.

Around the B1G

Unfortunately, Michigan State celebrates winning the division at the hands of the hapless Indiana Hoosiers by a score of 55-3.  I had better programs to watch elsewhere – so I didn’t see any of this game, but it obviously wasn’t very close at any point in time.  Indiana spotted Michigan State 17 points in the first quarter, where therein the game is over.

Penn State win in Columbus, 20-14.  Ohio State was at one point, 3 and 3 on the season.  Ohio then proceeded to win it’s next three B1G games, two of which came at the hands of a ranked Illinois team and the vaunted Wisconsin team.  People were begrudgingly talking about the potential looming division title for the once-maligned Buckeye team.  After Ohio reached a 6-3 mark, they have proceeded to toss in a clunker at Purdue and lost a close one at home to Penn State.  Penn State’s performance is going to show Al Borges what he needs to do.  Eleven Warriors indirectly elaborates:

Penn State rushed for 239 yards yesterday on 39 attempts. That’s 6.1 per carry. That’s gross.

Penn State rushed for 188 yards in the first half averaging 9.0 yards per carry. That’s like parachute didn’t open gross.

The most agonizing thing about PSU’s ground success was that it came in such large chunks and with no frills. The Lions ran right at the Buckeyes and too often holes five yards wide opened, the RB got to the 2nd level then easily outran the members of the back seven.

Beat Ohio.  Do it already.

Wisconsin makes Illinois more miserable than they already were in a 28-17 ball game.  Illinois continues it’s slide from a once promising season that started with six straight wins.  From the AP:

Illinois outgained Wisconsin 301-285, but the turnovers — a fumble and three interceptions — combined with special teams mistakes doomed the Illini.

The Badgers scored on drives of 44, 39, 30 and 2 yards. Their first 14 points were set up by an Illinois turnover and a badly botched punt.

Not hard to see why Illinois lost and held a lighter to a golden opportunity at home.

Iowa beat Purdue 31-21.  If you are a Michigan fan – this was a game that was the furthest thing from interesting.  All I know is that Marvin McNutt had another huge day for Iowa and that’s about it for two of the B1G’s mediocre at best bowl teams.  Check that – Purdue has five wins and will be shooting for bowl eligibility next week against Indiana.

Northwestern continues to turn it around in beating Minnesota on their home turf by a score of 28-13.  Again, for Michigan fans, talk about a sleeper of a game.  Nice to see Northwestern turn around their season and get to bowl eligibility.

Trending: the good.

It’s a Michigan Defense!  It’s like celebrating a birth, or re-birth.  From MZone:

How improved is Michigan’s defense this year?  Well…

In order to give up as many points as they did last year, Michigan would have to average 101 points against them in its remaining three games (the two regular season contests and then the bowl game).

Yes, read that again: Michigan would have to give up over 300 HUNDRED POINTS to equal the carnage of 2010.  Even last year’s defense might not be able to do that.

Seriously, damn. Michigan now has the nation’s 5th best scoring defense – allowing 15.5 points per 60 minute outing and has is ranked 16th IN THE NATION in total defense.  Simply amazing.

Ryan Van Bergen is doing work, son.  So is the entire defensive line.  I’m talking about you, too, Mike Martin.  The senior defensive tackle is making his presence felt on the reg.  RVB had three sacks and seven tackles in his latest outing earning him B1G Co-Defensive POW honors.  Said the front was barking at the freshman Illinois had in for a series:

“We were barking at the freshman (quarterback) when he came in because he was looking kind of wide-eyed.”

Mike Martin led the team in tackles and is the main reason Michigan seems to stop every 3rd or 4th down and short conversion.

Martavious Odoms gets to the promise land of orange field turf.  It was a pleasure watching Tae O grab a couple receptions and netting a score on his latter reception.  Odoms is one dude that you feel proud of as a Michigan fan.  Look at all that he has gone through: the 2008 debacle; all that is bad as a result of RR; injured in 2009; injured in 2010; injured and not played much in 2011.  This from Hoke in Monday’s press conference:

Brady Hoke: On Martavious Odums getting more playing time lately. “One thing Tave’s done is he’s come to work every day.” Also said the limitations of a hairline fracture to forearm suffered in fall camp set him back at the beginning of the year.

From Touch the Banner:

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Martavious Odoms.  Odoms was struggling to see the field earlier in the year, partly because he was recovering from a broken bone in his forearm.  It was frustrating to see a key player from the past few seasons end his career by barely seeing the field.  Luckily, that trend appears to be ending.  He got what seemed to be the most playing time of the season against the Illini, when he had 2 receptions for 46 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown reception from Devin Gardner to go up 24-7.  Odoms was also wide open in the endzone early in the game, but Denard Robinson overthrew him.

Not surprised Denard over threw Odoms in the end zone when he was wide open, as Denard was rolling out and running toward the line of scrimmage by the time he released the ball.

JT Floyd was in…beast mode?  I went back and watch some of JT’s afternoon and he was right there all day long and if you paid attention to JT throughout the course of the game – his interception wouldn’t have been a surprise.  This is from yours truly in the Game Recap:

JT gets verbally abused by most Michigan fans – as his tackling has been poor and he is most known for giving receivers ginormous 10-15 yard cushions prior to the snap.  Floyd played a hell of a game.  JT showed two things yesterday, (1) that he, at this point in the season and his career, can run and not get beat deep and (2) that he has the speed and quickness to break on the ball and make a big play.  His interception was crucial as Illinois had an opportunity around mid field to pull within either three or seven points of Michigan.

TEAM, TEAM, TEAM.  Football games are won and lost by a TEAM, not a single unit on the football field.  Hence, Michigan’s monstrous struggles for three years with one to one-and-a-half out of three units of the team playing with any level of competency.  So here we be, ten games under the new direction of Brady Hoke and Michigan won a road game because they are much more of a complete TEAM.  When the offense eats a bad peanut, the defense is there to turn things around.

Trending: the not-so-good.

Denard’s inability to find open space with his legarooskies.  This is unfortunate for college football fans, specifically those with feelings involving emotions towards Michigan, as Denard is a joy to watch when he is healthy and running in space.

Devin Gardner’s knack for running horizontal, not vertical.  It’s frustrating watching Devin carry the football.  Does he not just want to bounce everything outside?  I’m sure that worked in high school and he was able to turn the corner with success – well this ain’t high school anymore and he’s not going to have any success doing that.  I have two beefs with Gardner when he’s running (1) is that his first instinct is to bounce it outside and (2) when it’s time for contact, he typically turns his shoulder and does this little side jump thing in to the defender.  If you’ve watched Michigan all year – you know what I am talking about.  However, Devin did his part in managing the game and putting 14 points on the board (really 7, the other TD was all Toussaint).  My beef on display (that reads funny, please keep that in context):

Devin should have cut this up field when he was at about the eight or nine yard line.  Since it was 3rd and goal – Michigan was forced to line up for three instead of potentially six if Gardner is the aggressor.  In the 4th, there was a play (video link) where Devin shows some nice ability to quickly react and get out of the pocket / up field.  So, that was nice to see.

With Michigan’s defense and special teams playing key roles in the victory – the shocker isn’t that the two negative points in the trends are in regards to Michigan’s two quarterbacks.  You have to complain about somethings, it’s mandatory you know.

Around the B1G

Ohio State mystified by Purdue, loses 26-23 in OT.  Seriously, Danny Hope is 3-0 against the Buckeyes?!  Damn.  So, Ohio State put together three conference wins in a row – two of which came at the hands of Illinois (who has now Ron Zooked it’s way into an average at best season) and Wisconsin.  Ohio State a la one week prior vs. Indiana spots their next Indiana foe a 10 spot.  Towards the end of the game, Ohio State was on the fortunate end of an improbable touchdown late in the 4th quarter.  Oh but wait, the extra point was blocked.  From Eleven Warriors:

Six and four. That’s where the Buckeyes stand after inexcusably starting the game in a daze for the second straight week allowing the opponent to jump out to a 10-0 lead, putting extra pressure on an offense  that struggles to get first downs let alone score points.

Of course, that problem was magnified by a defense that despite holding Purdue to three points in the 2nd half, simply couldn’t make the big plays when needed especially on third down in what is becoming an all too familiar trend.

It wasn’t pretty for the Buckeyes.

Nebraska slides by Penn State 17-14, but who watched?  Seriously, Penn State games are brutal to watch this season – and Nebraska isn’t too far behind.  The two teams combined for fifteen freaking punts in a battle of punts.  Nebraska did jump out to the 17-0 lead, so Penn State made it somewhat exciting towards the end.  No doubt, it was a different game given all of the scandal related issues Penn State experienced last week.  From Corn Nation:

I thought Nebraska came out and played fairly well in a difficult situation.  Not perfect, mind you. A blown coverage in the secondary led to Penn State’s first touchdown and a seemingly blown officiating call led to the second. It’s hard to say what the game would have been like if the horrific allegations hadn’t blown up in the past week.  But it’s a win against another top 20 foe on the road; note that Husker critics don’t bring that stat up anymore.

Should be a fun watch this Saturday in the Big House.

Michigan State avenges last season’s throttling in Iowa City 37-21.  Iowa kinda sorta handed this one to the Spartans via giving them the ball via turnovers.  Not that I’m taking away credit from Michigan State, but Michigan State didn’t have to do a whole lot to earn those points off turnovers.  From BHGP:

It’s hard to take a whole lot away from a game where Iowa craps the bed on a grander scale than at any other point in the season. Sure, it was going to be a tall task to beat Michigan State, and I don’t want to give the impression that the Spartans didn’t earn the victory; clearly, they did.  It’s just… what’s there to take from a game where Iowa’s -3 in turnovers and all three had a major effect on the scoreboard? That the Hawkeyes shouldn’t turn the ball over three times? Of course they shouldn’t. That the Hawkeye defense needs to do a better job at keeping the opposing team out of the end zone with a short field? Clearly, yes, but good luck making demands like that, you know? The point is, the turnover margin was both Michigan State’s best and Iowa’s worst of the year, and every now and then, those games are going to happen.

Damn you, Michigan State.  I’ll be rooting against you, forever.

I think Northwestern played, I think.  Yes, Northwestern in fact played Rice.  In a game that is essentially meaningless in the B1G – and sans a strength of schedule argument this game was meaningless to Michigan’s outlook.  So, Northwestern won 28-6.

Wisconsin does what it’s supposed to do against Minnesota, winning 42-13.  Obviously, this was expected.  Wisconsin is getting back on track, but the sting of those two heartbreaking losses has to sit with this team and fan base.

OUT (0% chance of playing)

• S Mike Williams, head
• WR Martavious Odoms, foot
• RB Fitgerald Toussaint, shoulder

OUT (out for entire season)

• S, Jared Van Slyke, clavicle
• CB Troy Woolfolk, leg
• LB Mike Jones, leg

That was fun. Stressful as Michigan’s defense was once again exposed, but that was fun. After years of getting beat by the team with the fast, elusive quarterback that could also toss the rock – Michigan has one of their own. Denard is the guy that the college football world is talking about. “Most electrifying”, “…would win the Heisman if the season ended today”, “best player in college football”, etc., etc. It’s a lot of fun watching this Michigan team after two games. Michigan is only 2-0, and a year ago Michigan was ironically in almost the same situation. An unbelievable performance by their young QB beats Notre Dame in the waning seconds of the 4th quarter. There was Heisman talk for Tate, Michigan jumped in to the Top 25, message boards buzzed with talk of how nice of a record they could turn in at the end of the season. Then it crashed, slowly but surely it crashed. It’s only reasonable and rational to think that the same thing could happen to this team this year.

This is different. Michigan in 2010 is not going to win only 1 Big Ten game. This Michigan team is already different by stealing a win on the road, something only Rich Rod’s 2008 squad could accomplish in Minnesota. This Michigan team is full of guys that understand that they are playing every down, every possession and every game for – the team. To an outsider, how can you not appreciate the demeanor the Michigan players. Check what Craig Roh said after Saturday’s win…

“The character of this team is so great,” U-M defensive lineman/linebacker Craig Roh said after Michigan’s 28-24 win at Notre Dame. “We have this saying, ‘Hoka Hey.’ It means great day to die, a great day to die for the teammates. It’s every guy in this team would take a bullet for me. That’s how much I trust these guys. It just binds us closer together going through a game like that.”

Denard is great in interviews – he wants nothing to do with the credit and the media attention that he is getting and his teammates love him for it. Have you seen the David Molk MGoBlue interview? If not, I suggest you click this here link and check it out – it’s awesome. Those are the guys I want on my team. So far, it’s been a fun couple games to watch.

Rodriguez has to be thrilled with how these first two games have transpired. Are there problems? Of course – in all reality there are big problems with this team. Notre Dame exposed Michigan’s secondary. Michigan kicking game is barely breathing. Denard Robinson is a one man wrecking crew – and even though the two guys behind him are competent as far as we know – if Denard goes down there is reason for all to worry. So now it looks like Michigan’s first real test will be in 4 weeks when Michigan State comes to Ann Arbor. Pending a Notre Dame visit to East Lansing next week, there’s a good chance MSU and Michigan will go into that game ranked and undefeated. At the end of the day, Michigan has only won two games and are relatively fortunate to have beat ND. It’s been a hell of a ride and it just seems like Michigan can’t do anything, good or bad, flying under the radar. The whole country wants to talk about this Michigan team any way you slice it.

On Offense…

You can typically win a ball game when you do all of the following:

• Average 7 yards per carry on 41 rushing attempts with none of those attempts resulting in negative yardage.
• Commit zero turnovers.
• Your QB has a line that looks like this: Rushing – 28 times for 258 yards; Passing – 24 of 40 for 244 yards, one TD no INTs.

Not nearly as convincing as last week, but Robinson’s performance was one for the ages. After 2 games, Denard leads the nation in rushing by 41 yards and has 62 pass attempts under his belt without an interception.

Stonum, Roundtree, Odoms…
Mad props to these guys. With Denard experiencing so much success on the ground – I think the solid play of these guys is being overlooked. Not only are they converting and executing when they get opportunities with the ball, but they are blocking their asses off for primarily Denard, but Vincent Smith and Michael Shaw as well. All three guys played fabulous yesterday, Odoms makes the difficult catches time after time. Stonum is becoming a threat to get yards after the catch – he seems to wiggle his way out of the first tackler almost every time he touches the ball. Then there’s Roy Roundtree – something about the way this guy runs that makes him look extremely light on his feet and fast. His catch on the 2 yard line with less than a minute to go in the game might have been the best and biggest catch of the day.

Tate Forcier…
This is really not worth mentioning, but hey, I am still a fan of Tate Forcier. Bad attitude and summer indifference towards the team aside (the kid is what – 19 years old?) – I don’t want him to transfer and I think that his number is going to be called in a critical situation at some point this year. I think Rodriguez realizes that and so does the entire team. To see Tate hug Rodriguez before the game, fix someones shoulder pad as they rushed back onto the field, and root on Denard as he brought his team to victory – was awesome to see and a complete 180 from what was seen a week ago. Someone said the right words to Tate and he seems to be turning into a team player – at least he was for the entire game as he watched from the sidelines yesterday.

On Defense…

Yikes. Bend, don’t break. Michigan broke against Notre Dame. Notable statistics aren’t so much on the positive side for Greg Robinson’s boys…the bad…

• Gave up 535 yards of total offense.
• Gave up touchdowns of 95 and 53 yards.
• Zero sacks.

Michigan did manage to get three interceptions from ND, but two came against back-up QB’s that were clearly not ready to play on a big stage. Michigan continues to only rush three guys up front and at times, notably towards the end of the game, Dayne Crist had all the time he wanted to throw. Michigan is fortunate that he put the ball out of play on Notre Dame’s last play of the game.

Cam Gordon…
I like the physical nature of his play. Cam will smack a guy, and before this season is through, he is going to cause a couple fumbles or interceptions because he hits guys going full speed with some serious force. On the other hand, his pass coverage skills need some work and I think that will come with experience. He let guys behind him on two plays that resulted in Notre Dame touchdowns.

Jonas Mouton…
Jonas Mouton is quickly becoming a feared hitter and perhaps one of the best players on Michigan’s less than stellar defensive unit. Jonas straight stuck Armando Allen as he hit the hole on a play that I’ll later highlight with a video. Mouton seems to be quicker this season and has led the team in tackles for the first two games. He seems to have improved more than Obi Ezeh over the course of the offseason.

On Special Teams…

Well, ouch. Brendan Gibbons goes 0-2 on field goals of 39 and 40 yards. If Rodriguez was put in a fourth down situation there on the final drive of the game – it wouldn’t have surprised me to see him opt not to give his kickers a shot to tie the game. GIbbons missed on both in the 3rd and 4th quarter – right when Notre Dame needed and thus got some momentum back on their side. Will Hagerup wasn’t bad punting, but my no means was Zoltan out there – he did punt 9 times for an average of just over 38 yards per.

EXTRAS: Dr. Saturday’s take on Denard / Michigan, AP votes for Michigan by voter, Really cool observations from Greg at MVictors.

To the game…

On Offense…

You are almost guaranteed to win a college football game when your offense does the following…

• 28 first downs
• 1 penalty
• 0 turnovers
• Nearly 37 minutes of possession
• 14-19 on 3rd down conversions
• 4-4 in the red zone, 3 touchdowns
• Drives of 14, 19, 11, and 15 plays

Do these things and you are winning that ball game every single time. The ability of Denard Robinson to throw the ball completely handcuffed UConn’s defensive unit, see every third down and 7+ that Denard converted on.

Thoughts on the QB Depth Chart
I don’t doubt that Denard can continue to play extremely well. I also still believe that, based on the comments from Tate Forcier’s father, that Rodriguez wasn’t done disciplining Tate. There’s no way Devin Gardner has passed up Tate on the depth chart. Michigan is going to be in games where Denard’s legs for one reason or another, can’t convert over 50% of third downs. Coach Rod knows that Denard’s 29 carries is probably too many – and the scare when Denard went down at the end of the 3rd quarter is what happens when you have a guy like Denard. Denard’s fearlessness is fantastic, but it may get him injured at some point. Bottom line, it’s my presumption that Tate’s influencers around him are echoing these same things and letting him know that he is going to be critical to this team’s success at some point this season.

Denard Robinson…
Because the Denard media binge and love-fest is already outta control – briefly…Denard has learned to read the defense and do what the coaches are teaching. In turn, defense exhibit A could not contain him and he effortlessly converted 2nd and long, 3rd and long and got 7+ yards time after time on first down. I’d be willing to bet that Denard is the only QB in the country accelerating through defenders as he does in the clip below. Now that he’s proven he can throw effectively, tiny running lanes are all Denard needs to convert.

Mike Shaw…
I thought Mike Shaw had a great game carrying the ball, despite any lacking in the box score. He seems stronger this year and he ran with authority on Saturday. More than once, he easily could have been tackled behind the line of scrimmage, but busted a move and managed to churn out something positive…like the below… On the touchdown, Mike showed that he can run with authority and hit the hole going full speed while keeping his balance. He showed that he’s going to be an asset out as a receiver out of the backfield as well. Was impressed with this guy on Saturday.

Vincent Smith…
I dig what Vincent Smith brings to the table. He’s a grinder and much more often than not he is pushing the defender back for an extra yard or three. He’s short, but powerful, and it can’t be easy for opposing defenders to find him as he is patiently picking his way through the zone blocking in front of him. On his first touchdown, Vincent got lost in the shuffle, was patient and broke a tackle to get in to the end zone.

The Offensive Line…
Ton of credit to these guys. They opened up holes for Shaw, Smith and Denard all day long. Definitely a scare when Molk went down, but he looked more tired than anything. He came back in almost immediately, much like Denard after he went down with an apparent injury in the 3rd quarter. If these guys can stay healthy, Michigan’s offense should continue to have lots of success on the ground and through the air all season long.

Receivers / Slots…
Give these guys a lot of credit as well. While most of the yards came on the ground, they converted when given the opportunity. Not all games will play out like this one – the passing game will be more prevalent as the season gets under way. Finally, Terrance Robinson got into the action on a beautiful bubble screen fake from Denard that forced the safety out of position – opening up the entire middle of the field. I thought Grady did okay with his opportunities, but I think he needs to show more if he wants to keep getting as many touches. Odoms and Stonum were both solid and these two guys look to be the most consistent, well-rounded of the bunch.

On Defense…

Defense came out and played well – holding UConn to 10 points was not expected by anyone. The consensus was a thirty something to thirty something ball game. Some stats worthy of noting…

• UConn completion rate held to 47%
• Forced 1 turnover
• UConn 4 – 15 on 3rd down conversions
• 1 blocked kick
• 10 POINTS

Obviously, only allowing 10 points is key. Forcing a turnover in the red zone and blocking a field goal – both extremely critical in Michigan’s general comfort level that grew as the game pushed on in the 3rd and 4th quarters. All in all, based on what happened last season, I don’t envision this defense getting full of themselves at any point this season. The degree of last season’s defensive collapse was so severe that there’s no way it escapes the minds of the coaches or returning players.

J.T. Floyd & James Rogers
Both these guys had solid games – and I was pleasantly surprised by the play of James Rogers. He was extremely active and seems to be a ball hawk. Makes me wonder where he’s been his whole career. J.T. was solid as well, especially in run D support and he may have had the biggest play of the entire day…below my friends…

Linebackers…
Obi Ezeh and James Mouton both lead the team in tackles with 9 and 8 respectively. Mouton laid the wood on some UConn guys on a few plays. Craig Roh lead the team with 2 tackles for loss. Based on the eye test, I would have to say that both Roh and Mouton outplayed Ezeh. I noticed Obi was out of position or seemed to over-pursue on a few plays. Overall speed was good and they were out to hit someone. Moundros looked good out there and definitely looks the part.

On Special Teams…

Michigan only punted one time for 51 yards – not bad for young Will Hagerup. The kicking game had some issues – it was to be expected in light of the youth and also the swirling winds. Gibbons missed from 43 yards out and made from 24. Gibbons also missed an extra point – and it sounds like Drew Dileo had some issues getting the ball down as the holder. A must fix before heading to South Bend this week. Kick coverages weren’t bad.

Some extra… Andy Staples CNNSI, Forcier – don’t be foolish stay at Michigan, Denard love @ Dr. Saturday, UConn happy it’s over.

1) Junior Hemingway—Hemingway showed one brief but exciting flash against Utah last fall, catching a 33 yard touchdown late in the game to draw it within a score. Hemingway received a medical redshirt because he contracted mono, but at 6’1″ 220 lbs. he could become a serious redzone target, and possibly a dangerous deep threat.

It’s tough to call Hemingway Michigan’s best deep threat without seeing a consistent performance on Saturday. I look for Hemingway to compliment Matthews and share that deep threat role. It’d be great if one of those two turn out to be a consistent deep threat.

2) Darryl Stonum—Stonum got off to an extremely slow start as a true freshman last year, but emerged late in the year displaying the skill set that made him such a highly coveted recruit. Stonum had a 51 yard touchdown reception at Purdue, and a 33 yard catch at Ohio State in what was otherwise an abysmal passing game.

Stonum is another guy that really hasn’t shown much on Saturdays, but he’s had a few flashed to give the fanbase some hope that he’ll be a productive player.

Martavious Odoms

3) Martavious Odoms—He may be small, but don’t underestimate his ball skills even if just a little bit. Odoms was most often used on bubble screens, but his actual strength is downfield against zone coverage. Odoms was open on several intermediate and even deep routes last year but Wolverine quarterbacks failed to connect with him. His speed, quickness and route running have definitely improved this off-season so expect him to be a vertical threat.

Odoms doesn’t have great speed or size, but he gets the job done. I expect Odoms to leverage his experience this season and have a very productive season. Chances are that Odoms will catch most of his balls shy of 15 yards downfield.

4) Roy Roundtree—If the Spring Game this year was any indication, Roundtree is a sleeper in the making that is if you still don’t know about him. He had two touchdowns catches in the scrimmage, one of which was a 50 yard grab from Tate Forcier. Roundtree is fourth on this list, but could jump higher after September 5th with his smooth route running.

As mentioned, Roundtree was the star receiver in the spring game. Roundtree may emerge as a better deep threat than anybody else on this list. I’m looking for a semi-productive year from Roy Roundtree.

5) Je’Ron Stokes—Stokes is the newcomer to the fold. A true freshman, Stokes reminds many of Mario Manningham, and if he can provide that type of impact the Wolverines receiving corps could be very strong. Whoever is throwing the ball his way is going to have a serious vertical option.

Je’Ron’s high school highlight videos show that he’s got some skills, it will be a matter of seeing how those skills translate to the collegiate level and Michigan football.