Michigan Mailbag Question: Horn and Feagin

Great website guys.

I like your honest evaluations of things, whether they go with popular opinion or not, you still tell it the way you think it is.

Anyway, to my question: I have not seen Avery Horn or Justin Feagin mentioned by anyone this year. Both are “slot/wide receivers”, but when people talk about the depth at these positions, these two are left out.

What has happened to them? I know…
Continue reading at Bleacher Report – Big Ten Football

Reviewing my preseason Top 25 (things to watch)

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

It’s always fun at this time of year to look back at preseason thoughts and predictions. In August, I outlined 25 items I wanted to see during the Big Ten season. Several of them came true, others didn’t and some materialized in different ways.

Here’s a look back at the list to see what worked out and what didn’t. 

	AP Photo/Carlos Osorio
	Terrelle Pryor earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors.

1. Terrelle Pryor lead an offensive drive — He might be a Tim Tebow-like weapon near the goal line, but I’m more interested in how the Ohio State freshman quarterback handles a real offensive series. Pryor’s athleticism is undeniable, but it will be important to monitor his passing accuracy and the way he leads older teammates.

The verdict: We had plenty of opportunities to see Pryor lead drives after he was named Ohio State’s starter in Week 4. Despite a few growing pains, Pryor held his own and displayed remarkable athleticism in winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. He also came up big in the clutch to lead Ohio State’s game-winning touchdown drive Oct. 4 at Wisconsin. 

2. Michigan’s quarterbacks — Rich Rodriguez has ushered in a new era in Ann Arbor and will turn to unproven players like Steven Threet, Nick Sheridan and possibly Justin Feagin to lead his spread offense. There will undoubtedly be growing pains, but if one of those three takes control, the Wolverines will surge.

The verdict: Oh, there were growing pains. Big ones. Threet and Sheridan struggled to fit into Rodriguez’s system, and Michigan finished the season ranked 109th nationally in total offense. Feagin likely will move to slot receiver in 2009, and incoming freshmen Shavodrick Beaver and Tate Forcier will compete for the starting quarterback spot. 

3. Jump Around at night — Camp Randall Stadium is intimidating enough during daylight hours, but the electricity will reach new levels this fall with back-to-back night games against Ohio State and Penn State. The Badgers haven’t lost at home under coach Bret Bielema, and they should have a tremendous home-field edge this fall.

The verdict: It was pretty cool to see Ohio State players jump in lockstep with the Wisconsin students on Oct. 4, but Camp Randall certainly lost its edge this fall. Wisconsin saw its home win streak fade against Ohio State and then suffered its worst home defeat since 1989 the next week against Penn State. Plus, the Badgers band was suspended from performing Oct. 4 after allegations of hazing surfaced. 

Read more

Revisiting my Big Ten preseason predictions

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

As I told you back when the blog launched in July, please address e-mails to Mr. Idiot. I’m happy to claim that title today as I look back at some of the Big Ten preseason predictions I made this summer.

At least there was some truth to what I wrote: I predict I’ll regret some of these in November.

OK, let’s begin.

Prediction No. 1: Ohio State will make history

Really going out on a limb here, but Ohio State will become the first program to win outright Big Ten titles in three consecutive seasons. The Buckeyes are easily the most complete team in the league, with a Heisman Trophy candidate in the backfield (Beanie Wells) and multiple All-Americans returning on defense (James Laurinaitis, Malcolm Jenkins).

I wasn’t completely off base, as Ohio State came away with a share of the Big Ten championship — I hate sharing, by the way — for the fourth consecutive season. But Penn State clearly was the best team in the league, while Ohio State went nine games before discovering its identity on offense. Chris Wells‘ Heisman campaign essentially ended in the season opener with a right toe injury, but Laurinaitis, Jenkins and the defense performed well for most of the fall.

Prediction No. 2: At least three quarterbacks will start for Michigan

No team in the country returns less experience at quarterback than the Wolverines, who have only one player (David Cone) with a collegiate pass attempt (1) to his credit, and he isn’t really in the mix. The competition between Steven Threet and Nick Sheridan will stretch well beyond the opener against Utah, with both players getting a shot to start. Whether out of necessity or curiosity, coach Rich Rodriguez also will take a look at true freshman Justin Feagin, whose skills best fit the spread offense.

Rodriguez waffled with whether to play Feagin, who clearly wasn’t ready yet, and ended up using the freshman toward the end of the season. But my forecast of three different starters nearly came true because of injuries and poor performances. The good news for Michigan fans is the quarterback situation probably will never be this bad again. On the other hand, the Wolverines could see multiple starters next year with freshmen Shavodrick Beaver and Tate Forcier entering the mix.

Prediction No. 3: Joe Paterno will win nine games and then sign a 10-year contract extension

OK, the second part is a joke (sort of). But Penn State has two of the better lines in the league and can complement its new starting quarterback with veteran wide receivers (Derrick Williams, Deon Butler, Jordan Norwood) and dynamic newcomers (Stephfon Green). Road games against Wisconsin and Ohio State look like trouble, but the Lions won’t lose in Happy Valley and Paterno will return for a 44th season.

This one worked out pretty well. Penn State won two more games (11) than I predicted, but the Lions ended up having the Big Ten’s top offensive line and one of the top defensive fronts. The three senior wideouts all turned in solid seasons, but Evan Royster eclipsed Green at running back and likely will enter 2009 as the Big Ten’s top rusher. I foolishly didn’t include Iowa on the list of tough road games for Penn State, but all signs point to Paterno returning for 2009.

Prediction No. 4: Michigan State will be a top 20 team when Ohio State comes to town

I don’t see the Spartans winning their opener at Cal, but six straight victories following the trip to Berkeley would put them at 6-1 for the Oct. 18 showdown with the Buckeyes. Senior quarterback Brian Hoyer will win a game or two in crunch time and running back Javon Ringer will eclipse 1,500 rushing yards. If safety Otis Wiley facilitates improvement in the secondary, a January bowl game is certainly within reach.

Forget Mr. Idiot. Just call me Nostradamus. Michigan State lost at Cal but was 6-1 and ranked No. 20 in the AP Poll when Ohio State visited East Lansing on Oct. 18. Hoyer stepped up big to break Michigan State’s losing streak to Michigan, and Ringer finished the regular season with 1,590 rushing yards. Wiley earned All-Big Ten honors as a safety, and Michigan State reached its first Jan. 1 bowl game since the 2000 Citrus Bowl.

Prediction No. 5: The Big Ten will send nine teams to bowls

Like it or not, mediocrity is rewarded in college football, and the Big Ten has plenty of teams who fall under that label. Michigan will figure it out by mid-October and keep its streak of postseason appearances alive. Indiana has an extremely favorable schedule and enough talent to win seven or eight games. Northwestern should have made a bowl last year and will take the next step behind C.J. Bacher and Tyrell Sutton. Purdue, Iowa and Minnesota are the wild cards, but one of them will go bowling. I’ll go with Iowa, which will keep Kirk Ferentz employed.

OK, forget what I just wrote about being smart. The Big Ten fell two teams shy of my bowl projection. Michigan wished it was mediocre, and Indiana slipped back into obscurity after a breakthrough season in 2007. Northwestern not only made a bowl but posted its highest victories total since 1996, but it got there behind a new-look defense. And it turned out two of my three “wild cards,” Iowa and Minnesota, reached the postseason, and the Hawkeyes definitely nudged Ferentz off the hot seat. Illinois turned out to be the league’s biggest bust, failing to reach a bowl a year after heading to Pasadena.

Go to Source

A Look at How the 2008 Michigan Recruiting Class Fared

Michigan had the 10th ranked recruiting class in 2008 according to Rivals, and I was thinking, why not check their progress?

Especially since a lot of them saw quite a bit of playing time throughout their freshman campaigns.

Besides, I haven’t touched on recruiting yet this year on this blog or any other website. It’s something I normally like to avoid until after the season and the next year’s class is more concrete.

I’ll really start getting into it after the Army All-American game when I can see one of these guys in action.

But for now let’s take a look at how last year’s class did.

This was mostly a split class of guys that Lloyd Carr had already recruited and decided to stick with the program after Rich Rodriguez came on board.

Michigan pulled in 24 recruits comprised of 17 four-star recruits and six three-star guys. I go by Rivals so if you want to argue, hey, to each his own.

Two players have already left the team and 12 players took redshirts. Then 10 remaining saw quite a bit of playing time as far as freshmen are concerned.

Sam McGuffie

“Crime Dog” McGuffie (that nickname is just natural) got the start at running back from the first snap against Utah but saw his carries become more and more limited as the season went on.

His best game was against Notre Dame where at one point he was tiptoeing down the sideline for a 29-yard run and finished with 131 yards, catching four balls for 47 yards and a touchdown.

McGuffie ended the season with 486 yards and rumors were swirling that he would be leaving the team after a death in the family took him back to his home state of Texas.

A four-star recruited by Lloyd Carr, McGuffie was a big factor in Fred Jackson staying on as running backs coach. Maybe due to his high profile recruitment after becoming a youtube star.

Analysis: McGuffie went down too often on first contact but maybe he just hit a freshman wall as the season went on. If he really wants to go back home I say go. Running back is one area where Michigan is deep.

Still, he can be explosive and with another year under Mike Barwis he could become a Justin Fargas type, as long as he doesn’t transfer like Fargas.

Michael Shaw

A four-star player out of Trotwood, Ohio Shaw saw a lot of playing time although some Michigan fans, including myself, would’ve liked to see more of him.

The picture above is Shaw’s lone touchdown of the season which was also the first one Michigan scored in the season-opening loss to Utah.

He averaged more than five yards a carry but only got 42 carries for 215 yards leaving Michigan fans wanting more.

Analysis: Remember Clarence Williams? Yeah, that’s what Shaw reminds me off. He’ll be really serviceable but he’ll be in the shadow of others and we’ll be deprived of ever really seeing him as a feature back.

Martavious Odoms

This little three-star wide receiver from Florida that came on late through RichRod caused quite a few headaches this year.

Somehow he managed to lead the Wolverines with 49 catches for 443 yards and he did score a 73-yard punt return against Purdue.

Which was quite a surprise since never at any point did he seem capable of even catching a punt or kickoff.

Analysis: I think you get my tone about Odoms by now. However, he does have a lot of explosiveness if he can hold on to the ball. Plus, he seems to be providing a good pipeline to his teammates in Florida.

When he did play well he reminded me of Marquis Walker, that was until it got colder and Odoms couldn’t grip the ball.

Mike Martin

Novi Catholic Central’s own four-star defensive tackle saw playing time in all 12 games this season.

Martin registered 20 tackles, 4.5 for loss and two sacks as the primary backup to Terrance Taylor and Will Johnson.

He brought a lot of energy to the pass rush but needs to brush up on his run stuffing as well.

Analysis: I like this guy and the enthusiasm he brings to the game. Hope Barwis just gets after him a little more and he can become a force playing next to Brandon Graham.

Boubacar Cissoko

Perhaps one of the great names ever, Cissoko came to the Wolverines out of Cass Tech in Detroit as a four-star defensive back.

As the season went one he saw more and more time in the nickle and dime packages and collected three decent pass breakups, one of which was amazing in the Purdue game.

Gifted with a lot of speed, Cissoko saw a lot of punt and kickoff return duty but like Odoms, he needs to get better hands.

Analysis: Boubacar is Morgan Trent’s replacement, I just hope he doesn’t follow in Trent’s footsteps and ends of getting burned all the time.

Cissoko has the speed to not get burned but I thought the same of Trent. College defensive backs take some time to develop so we’ll see.

Kevin Koger

Four-star tight end out of Toledo saw playing time in eight games catching one touchdown and 93 yards on six grabs.

He replaced the worthless Carson Butler and was respectful enough to request that Mike Massey get the majority of playing time in the Northwestern game on senior day.

His mere presence I think showed that Rich Rodriguez might be adding a new dimension to his spread offense which usually doesn’t feature a tight end.

Analysis: I haven’t like a Michigan tight end since Bennie Joppru left the team. Tim Massaquoi and Carson Butler have been killing me lately.

Koger on the other hand has been pleasant to watch and I think he has ability to emerge as a top tight end in the Big Ten.

Darryl Stonum

Stonum came in touted as a the next best deep threat at Michigan and had high expectations.

And it was warranted. The four-star wideout from Texas ran a 4.4 40 yard dash coming out of high school. He’s 6-2 and 180. That’s a great frame for a high schooler.

But Stonum only had 14 catches for 176 yards and one score. He consistently ran bad routes and was arrested for a DUI midway through the season. From what I hear he’s also still driving around Ann Arbor despite having a suspended license.

Analysis: I’ll admit, I drank the kool-aid on Stonum early on in the recruitment period and thought the guy was going to be great without realizing that freshmen wide receivers are never that good.

He could still turn into something great but only time will tell if he steps up and pulls his head out of his backside by giving someone else the keys.

Justin Feagin

RichRod brought Feagin in near the end of recruiting last year as a back up plan in the event Terrelle Pryor didn’t come to Michigan.

Now the Wolverines are stuck with a three-star recruit who RichRod doesn’t trust enough yet to attempt a handoff let alone pass the ball and probably never will.

Feagin rushed for 52 yards in four games with 34 yards coming off of one run against Minnesota.

Analysis: Feagin will move to slot receiver next year after Tate Forcier and Shavrodick Beaver enroll and might be listed as an emergency fourth string quarterback or something.

I can’t really tell anything about him though as I never got to see him throw so who knows what he’s capable of. He did show how fast he could be in that one run though.

J.B. Fitzgerald

A four-star linebacker out of New Jersey, Fitzgerald played in all 12 games collecting eight tackles on special teams.

Analysis: Fitzgerald did make a couple bone crushing hits on kickoff returns that I remember seeing. He could see more playing time on defense as a sophomore an emerge like Jonas Mouton.

Kenny Demens

Rich Rodriguez burned Demens’ redshirt chances so he could appear in three games and assist on one tackle on special teams.

Demens was a four-star linebacker from Country Day in Detroit.

Analysis: What do you honestly expect me to say on this? I have no idea ever seeing this guy on the field.

Redshirted

Terrence Robinson, four-star WR from Texas

Ricky Barnum, four-star OL from Florida

Rocko Khoury, three-star OL from Traverse City, MI

Elliot Mealer, four-star OL from Wauseon, OH

Brandon Moore, four-star TE from Trotwood, OH

Dann O’Neill, four-star OL from Grand Haven, MI

Patrick Omameh, two-star DE (who I hear is converting to OL) from Columbus, OH

Roy Roundtree (snake oil incident), four-star WR from Trotwood, OH

Brandon Smith, four-star DB from New Jersey

Kurt Wermers, three-star OL from Indiana

Mike Cox, three-star RB from Connecicut

J.T. Floyd, three-star ATH (safety from what I hear) from South Carolina

Left Team

Taylor Hill, four-star LB from Youngstown, OH (left for reasons unknown)

Transfered

Marcus Witherspoon, four-star LB from New Jersey (academically ineligible at Michigan, transferred to Rutgers)

Final Thoughts

Losing Hill and Witherspoon hurt especially looking at Michigans depth at linebacker, it’s not too promising.

I love that most of the offensive lineman redshirted and have a whole year under RichRod’s and Barwis’ tutelage.

Omameh I hear is going to be really good on the O-Line as will Barnum and O’Neill.

J.T. Floyd is the one who almost got the number one jersey till Braylon stepped in and told RichRod what’s up. But I think that just speaks to Floyd’s ability so we have that to look forward to.

All in all, it’s been a pretty decent class but things will be clearer after their sophomore years.

Go to Source

Rodriguez looks ahead to 2009 season

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez held his post-mortem news conference Monday and addressed many of the issues on his growing to-do list for the 2009 season. He does expect more attrition on the roster but not a dramatic amount of departures. So far wide receiver Zion Babb, defensive tackle Jason Kates and safety Artis Chambers have left.

Still, he admitted not everyone has committed to the plan and the direction.

“As far as buying in, I think the majority of them have,” Rodrgiuez said. “But there is a handful that still maybe question things themselves, maybe their confidence, their role, how they can contribute. And I think that’s typical everywhere in a transition year. But it wasn’t as much as maybe I thought. But, again, until it’s a hundred percent, then you don’t know what you have.

“Everybody, as we move forward, will be guys that play for Michigan first and foremost and believe in this program and this university, and if not, then they won’t be playing for Michigan. It’s as simple as that.”

After his “get a life” comment was overblown in the days leading up to the Ohio State game, Rodriguez was asked whether he’d be more tight-lipped in the future. Thankfully, he doesn’t plan to become Lloyd Carr Part II.

“It’s a big boy world,” he said. “So I understand that. I’ve been there for a little bit. It does make you I guess want to be a little more reserved at times. That’s not my personality. I want to be open and honest and transparent I guess is the proper word. We’ll be that. I’ll continue to be that. Doesn’t mean I don’t get ticked off when somebody writes something that ain’t true. That’s what happens.”

Hallelujah.

Other notable items from the news conference included:

Read more

Exactly how bad was Michigan this year?

As the Wolverine faithful scamper away towards irrelevancy for the remainder of the year, they take with them a ton of excuses and the too-frequently-heard (from UM at least) “wait til’ next year”.

They have fallen back on the argument of RichRod’s first-season record at WVU, and they cling to faith that they will someday again be good, pehaps even in the BCS as early as next year.  It’s comical at this point, and a little bit sad at the same time.  Michigan, at this point, has very little to look forward to.

• Their quarterbacks (Steven Threet and Nick Sheridan) are downright awful and still very inexperienced despite a full season of snaps.  Their best QB potentially (Justin Feagin)) wasted a redshirt season on a kick return and six measly snaps from center in a blowout game.
• Their best RB (Sam McGuffie) suffers from severe depression and has asked for a transfer.  Their second-best RB is Brandon Minor.  Nuff said.
• Their best WRs (Martavius Odoms and Greg Mathews) are the lone source of hope on offense.  But who the hell will complete a pass to them?
• The offensive line is shattered and showing signs of more transfers like Justin Boren did last season.

Defensively, it gets worse.  This was supposed to be their strong suit in 2008, and they allowed 5 teams to gain over 400 yards each, twice topping the 500-yard mark.

• They lose three of their starters on the line to graduation.
• One-third of their two-deep linebackers graduate, and odds are pretty good that nobody would know any of the rest if asked in a quiz.  Obinna Ezeh is the only player left worth anything.
• In the defensive backfield, they lose Morgan Trent and Brandon Harrison to graduation.

On special teams, punter Zoltan Mesko and kicker K.C Lopata have placed their foot on the ball for the final time at UM.  I’m not sure losing Lopata is a bad thing for Wolverine fans, but Mesko was the team MVP and that one does hurt.  No longer will he be pinning the opposing team inside the 20.  But then again, doing that meant watching the defense give up an 80-yard TD drive instead of a 70-yard TD drive.

That’s how bad it WILL be next year.  But how bad was it in 2008?  Let’s look back.

Their three wins came against Miami of Ohio, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.  Not too pretty of a resume there.  But how did each game go?

Week 1 – Nobody knew how good Utah was heading into the season, and they escaped the Big House with a 2-point win after a late 2-point conversion attempt failed.  The Utes are still undefeated, and it’s strange to say, but that may have been the best game Michigan played all season.  For all of the Michigan fans calling for patience and “steady improvement”, take a look at how you went from a near-miss of a Top 10 team to an implosion on national TV to a Top 10 team.

Week 2 – Miami of Ohio came into Michigan Stadium, and it was one of those games that everybody knew would be a Michigan win.  And it nearly wasn’t.  The Redhawks are 2-9 right now, and they were within 4 points of the Wolverines in the 4th quarter.  That game gave a LOT of UM fans pause about their season and it was great foreshadowing into the troubles they would face against the most basic teams.

Week 3 – As bad as it was against Miami, it was 10 times worse against Notre Dame.  Most fans expected these two teams to put on a great battle, and it ended up being YouTube comedy.  Michigan turned the ball over 6 times and wore their asses home as hats.  Hope turned to hysterics on Michigan blogs worldwide, and the fear of a losing season began to set in.  Notre Dame, as it turns out, isn’t at all a good team, having dropped a game to Syracuse, and will probably be thrilled with a pre-Christmas bowl game.

Week 4 – Hope returns to Ann Arbor, as a second half rally beats Wisconsin 27-25.  A last-second defensive stop keeps the game from going into OT and gives Michigan a 2-2 record.  At the time, nobody knew that it was a win against a reallllly bad Wisconsin team.  The Badgers barely made bowl eligibility, and it took a missed XP in OT to beat Cal Poly.  Seriously.

Week 5 – Doubt returns to the faithful fans of Ann Arbor, as Illinois’ offense lights up the scoreboard to the tune of 45 points.  Michigan allows over 500 yards of offense to Illinois, and gives up a 38-6 scoring spurt over the final three quarters.  Juice Willimas looks like a Heisman winner in the game, and the failures of the Illini after playing UM only makes this loss look worse and worse.  Illinois loses 5 of their final 7 games, and end up failing to make a bowl game.  Their blowout of Michigan becomes their signature win in a season of failures.

Week 6 – When Appalachian State can be explained away by their winning the 1-AA championship, there is no excuse for losing to Toledo at home.  The Rockets sit at 3-8 and will probably fall to 3-9 for the year.  A bad MAC school went into the Big House and beat Michigan.  It can’t get much worse than that, unless they were to follow it up by losing badly to a team they have owned.

Week 7 – A team that Michigan has owned for a decade humiliates the Blue on national TV.  Penn State explodes during the second half, racking up nearly 500 yards of offense in a 46-17 blowout.  32 consecutive Lion points leave Michigan blogs with their heads hung low.  It can only get worse if another team they have owned beats them badly.

Week 8 – A team that Michigan has owned comes into Ann Arbor and badly beats Michigan.  Michigan State shakes off the label of “little brother” and punches UM fans in the gut with a 2-TD victory.  The score is closer than the game actually was, as MSU racks up nearly 500 yards of offense, and Brian Hoyer flings the ball around at will.  With the loss, Michigan falls to 2-6 and is one failure away from missing out on a bowl game for the first time in three decades.

Week 9 – The Michigan offense shows signs of life by scoring 42 points against Purdue.  But the defense allows 522 yards and 48 points, ending Michigan bowl streak.  Purdue, who finished the season at 4-8, finds their own signature win in a failed season.

Week 10 – With nothing left to play for, Michigan finds their rhythm and crushes Minnesota.  The Gophers had started the season at 7-1, but fall into a funk that UM takes full advantage of.  Minnesota ends up dropping their final four games, including a 55-0 pasting to end the season and give worry back to Gopher fans feeling confident again.

Week 11 – The era of Michigan dominance over Northwestern comes to a screeching halt, as the Wildcats snuff out their nemesis 21-14.  Northwestern ends up clinching fourth place in the Big Ten and leaves Ann Arbor with their second victory ever in the Big House.

Week 12 – In a game completely dominated by Ohio State, everything seemingly falls apart for Michigan.  Long TDs allowed, wide-open receivers on multiple occasions, fumbles, poor execution, coaches fighting with players on the sidelines.  You name it, it went wrong.  Ohio State actually puts the brakes on and settles for a 42-7 win.  Three 4th-quarter drives inside Michigan territory are cut short by merciful play-calling from Ohio State.  Michigan leaves Columbus with their worst record ever and a thousand unanswered questions.

How bad was it?  Could it have been any worse?

The answers are going to be found over the next two seasons.  If the turmoil can settle down over the next few weeks, and Michigan can right the ship before recruiting season ends, they have a chance at returning to the bowl picture in 2009.  But like Charlie Weis at Notre Dame, fans need to stop making excuses for the Titanic-proportion disaster that 2008 was.  And if that sideline fight was any indication of what it’s like to be on the Michigan football team, 2009 could get even worse.

Go to Source

Full review – The Game

I’ve just finished watching The Game on DVR and it’s amazing how much different it was watching The Game in person and watching it at home. Part two of this review will go into greater detail about the weekend and the surrounding hoopla, but now, here’s my full look-back at The Game itself.

• Prior to kickoff, I spent a lot of time looking for Sam McGuffie.  Word was that he had asked for a transfer, so I was shocked to see him in uniform.  But his warm-up ritual was quite different than the rest of the team.  He kept going to the UM bench, didn’t particpate in a few of the drills, and didn’t look particularly useful.  I texted a friend and said that he would not be a part of the main action today (and he wasn’t).  I don’t think his lack of play was due to injury….you don’t let injured guys return kicks, which McGuffie did (and got whacked for his effort).  Rumor has it this kid lost his will to play, and it showed heavily.
• A mere 5 or 6 minutes into the game, there was a big dust-up on the Michigan sideline.  TV cameras caught some of it, but they didn’t focus in on the drag-down fight that happened just behind the coaches.  I don’t know who it was, but a player and a coach were literally shoving each other for a few seconds before others broke it up.  Between that and the screaming match with Rodriquez, I saw a team that ripped apart at the seams.  Expect mass transfers and finger-pointing in the next few months leading through recruiting season.
• After Ohio State’s first TD, the ball kept blowing off the kicking tee, despite a lack of wind in the stadium (5 MPH at worst).  ABC’s announcers questioned why it kept falling off, but nobody had the real answer…it wasn’t windy, it’s just that Michigan sucks.
• McGuffie getting sandwiched on that kick return was one of the most brutal hits I’ve seen in The Game since Chris Spielman had 71 tackles and 13 sacks in the 1986 game alone.  Late in the 4th quarter of that game, Spielman went into the stands and beat up the QBs family.
• LeBron in Cleats threw a perfect pass to Brian Hartline for our second score.  The guy next to me wondered if he was watching a replay of Smith-to-Gonzo.  I have to agree.  These two could be a very dangerous combo next season.
• On the kickoff return with a 14-0 lead, Ohio State players were imposing their will on blockers.  You could literally see the desire leave Wolverine players, getting shoved away from the pile, leaving the field with their heads down.
• Early in the second quarter, Beanie Wells took a hit to his leg on a near-hurdle of a Michigan defender.  We’re used to seeing Wells get up slowly, much like Jim Brown used to do, but this time looked scarier.  He stood up and waved off Boom Herron, entering the game as a replacement.  The crowd went nuts.  Wells took the next snap and picked up 6 yards and a first down.  It was that exact moment that I knew Wells will not return for his senior season.  That play showed me that he knew it was his final game in the Shoe.  He wanted it badly and refused to come out.
• Was it just me, or did our defense reduce Michigan to running the same two plays over and over again?  Sometimes Sheridan kept the ball, sometimes it went to the RB, but it almost always was the same two plays.
• I really wanted us to go for it on 4th-and-2 from the 35, and I’m glad Tressel tried it…but unfortunately, it gave Michigan something they never saw much of.  Decent field position.  Brian Robiskie almost pulled it in, despite getting interfered with by Morgan Trent.
• Speaking of Trent, did he only play that one down, because he was invisible all day?  Maybe he played, we just couldn’t see him because he’s just too fast for the human eye to see.  MGoBlog says he can run the 40 in 2.08 seconds or something like that.  Yeah.  Right.
• Midway through the second quarter, Michigan finally gets their first 1st-down.  When the other team has 14 more points than you have first downs, things ain’t goin’ your way.
• Brandon Minor sprints towards the end zone, and Bob Griese has a hissy fit that the ball was at the 1-yard line when his foot slips out at the 2.  It was close, but Griese overplays his hand and kinda over-discusses it.  Three plays later, Minor gets hit at the two and goes out of bounds.  Watch that play again, when his body goes out of bounds, the ball is in his outside hand, and goes out at the 2.  Griese doesn’t complain when they spot it at the 1.
• I was really impressed with the defense all day.  Michigan had eight plays in the red zone on the afternoon, and only scored 7 points on a 4th-and-1 squeaker.
• Going into halftime, Brad Nessler actually said the following;
  

  “If you take away Beanie Wells’ TD run and you take away Terrelle Pryor’s TD pass, Ohio State hasn’t done anything.”

You know, Brad, if you take away all the plays Ohio State scored on, then they wouldn’t score.  Dammit, Michigan was only 6 plays away from a complete shutout!

• Heading into halftime, Tressel second-guessed himself on the 4th-down call.  It wasn’t about execution for this guy, instead it was his own fault.  The guy is pure class through-and-through
• During halftime, K.C. Lopata came out to practice FG kicking while the OSU Marching Band was still performing.  He set the ball down at the 15, and had to quickly move out of the way while part of the brass section maneuvered into the spot where he wanted to kick from.  Immediate jeers poured down on him for his encroachment.  He got a kick off shortly after that, and missed it wide left.  Fans refused to return the ball, and he was left standing there for a few extra minutes.  The rest of halftime became a comedy of Lopata being mocked while missing more than 50% of his kicks, all from short range.  He gave up after shanking a 30-yarder and the north stands howled with laughter.  I wonder which was worse for Lopata, that severe humiliation during practice, missing a tying kick against Toledo, or being blocked twice against Appalachian State.  It doesn’t matter to me, as I’m happy enough to be bringing all three up again.
• After just four plays in the third quarter, Bob Griese announced that “Rich Rodriquez did a goob job at halftime of firing these guys up for the second half.”  I’ll let you ponder the wisdom of that remark, as you have already seen what happened for the rest of the game.
• Chimdi Chekwa made an outstanding tackle at the 38-yard-line on a second-and-8 play.  Griese proclaimed that Chekwa “saved a 40-yard run” with the tackle, because he just knew that Michigan would have taken it down the field without it.  No mention of how the Michigan receiver would have gone for 40 yards from only 38 yards out, but Griese never lets logic get in the way of some Wolverine lovin’.
• To start the third quarter, Rodriquez called 5 straight rushing plays that gained 37 yards.  Seeing the success of the running game, he decided to change it.  Then he had Nick Sheridan throw it twice in a row for 1 total yard.  From my vantage point, Rich Rod is the most underpaid coach ever.  Give him a raise an a contract extension NOW!
• Two plays, 91 yards, and neither ball carrier got touched by a single Michigan defender (Beanie ran out of bounds, Boom ran into the end zone).  Tell me again who had a better halftime adjustment?
• After each point scored, proud members of the United States military has a tradition of doing pushups near the north end zone, one for each point.  For the whole day, our soldiers each did 147 pushups.  Somewhere in an Army recruiting station, a kid is hoping to be stationed in Ann Arbor so he doesn’t have to work so hard on Saturdays.
• We didn’t notice it at the stadium, but it is now interesting to see how Sheridan literally crawled to the sideline after getting smacked once again.  And here I was thinking that Mike Barwis made these guys the strongest team in the history of the planet.  Sheridan CRAWLED off the field.  Yeah, that’s gonna be on his highlight reel for The Rivalry.
• Was that Ray Small on the punt return, or did Ted Ginn Jr return from Miami for the day?  Damn, that was impressive.  After years of seeing Troy Smith do it, why does Michigan still think our ball carrier will run out of bounds and wind up making a feeble attempt to stop a juke move back to the inside?
• First play on the ensuing drive, I LOVED watching Tressel send in a pass play.  He was going for the jugular, and he got it.  That play sealed the win with 4 minutes to play in the third quarter.
• That catch was vintage Robiskie.  The DB was pulling on his uniform on the way down, and Robo went and got a reception that nobody else could have grabbed.
• I know that Steven Threet didn’t make the trip and Sheridan needed a wheelbarrow to get off the field, but I was shocked to see Justin Feagin on the field.  Somebody help me with this one, but did he just blow his chance at calling this a redshirt year by taking snaps in a game that was already won?  Feagin’s another 3-and-out victim and looked just as lost as the rest of the backfield for Michigan this day.
• Holy crap, did Tressel just call a deep pass play with a 21-point lead?  Robo was one-half step away from hauling in another bomb.
• Pryor dodges three tacklers (well, two tacklers, but one of them missed twice), runs right, then left, and lofts a pass to a wide-open Dane Sanzenbacher, and all Griese says about it is “he threw a duck”.  Unbelieveable.
• 1st and goal from the 2, Pryor throws to the inside of Rory Nicol instead of the outside.  It nearly gets picked off on a bounce, and Jake Ballard also has a shot at grabbing the deflection.  Speaking of that play, when was the last time we had two tight ends in the same area on the same pass play….and the pass got THROWN that way?
• Ohio State scores to go up 34-7 with the extra point coming, and Brad Nessler says Ohio State is “starting to pull away”.  Starting?
• Bravo to Todd Boeckman.  That was a storybook ending to a kid’s career at Ohio State.  he handled it all with dignity and grace that is rarely seen in sports these days.  He deserved that final TD pass, and I hope he got the game ball for his effort.
• Unfortunately, Griese couldn’t handle Boeckman’s benching with the same dignity and grace.  Griese spent the better part of 20 minutes bitching about how TB got benched in favor of Pryor.  At one point, he complained about Boeckman getting pulled for having “one bad game against USC”, but then went on to say that we would have beaten PSU if Boeckman was the QB.  Never mind that Pryor threw for 225 yards that day…that one fumble was clearly the deciding point.  If Boeckman got the shaft for “one bad game”, then why does Pryor deserve to get benched for one bad play in Bobo’s brain?
• If you have the game on tape, watch it again at 8:42 of the 4th quarter….did Griese just groan and say “ohhhhh Jesus” under his breath after Saine got tackled?
• I don’t think I’ll ever be convinced otherwise…that was a safety in the south end zone with 7 minutes left.  he got stopped before he crossed the plane.  Oh, well.  I’ll take the 35-point win.
• For the record, yes we were screaming for Ohio State to go for two points on the conversion following Boeckman’s TD.

One final thought on The Game, Version 2008…..look back to where these two teams were two years ago.  #1 vs. #2.  The most epic battle in the history of The Game, won by Ohio State.  The final score that day?

Ohio State 42
Michigan 39

The final score this year?

Ohio State 42
Michigan 7

We’re just as good as we were then. Michigan is 32 points worse than they were.

Go to Source

3Q update: Ohio State 28, Michigan 7

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Coaches always talk about the 5-10 plays that decide a football game. It doesn’t take a genius to pick out the ones that decided this contest.

Ohio State’s ability to generate big plays on both offense and special teams blew the game open in the third quarter. This hasn’t been a game of methodical offense and sustained drives for the Buckeyes. They sputter at times, but when they strike, they strike for big yards.

Michigan appeared to carry over some momentum from the second quarter, notching three first downs before pinning Ohio State at its own 9-yard line. But “Beanie” and “Boom” — also known as Chris Wells and Dan Herron — responded with runs of 40-plus yards on back-to-back plays. Wells surged for a 42-yard gain, and Herron followed with a 49-yard touchdown. The most amazing thing? Neither man was touched. So much for that Michigan defensive line.

Though Michigan continues to have some success moving the ball, it can’t get into scoring position and has missed several chances to attack the Buckeyes down the field. Special teams continue to haunt the Wolverines, and recently suspended Ohio State wide receiver Ray Small broke off an incredible 80-yard return down the sideline to set up a Terrelle Pryor touchdown pass. Welcome back, Ray.

There was more bad news for Michigan at the end of the quarter, as quarterback Nick Sheridan left the game with a sprained ankle. Freshman Justin Feagin is now taking snaps for Michigan.

Go to Source

Michigan injury updates

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

COLUMBUS, Ohio — I just got back from the field after watching pregame warmups. It’s pretty cold but not too windy.

Michigan sophomore quarterback Nick Sheridan was taking the first snaps, followed by Justin Feagin. Steven Threet did not make the trip because of a shoulder injury. Right tackle Stephen Schilling also will miss the game with a knee injury. Sophomore Perry Dorrestein will start in his place.

Freshman running back Sam McGuffie, the subject of much speculation this week, was on the field, in uniform and looked ready to go.

Go to Source

Ohio State-Michigan Position Preview: Quarterback

In a tireless tradition of neglecting our friends, family, and jobs during Michigan Week, Buckeye Commentary is breaking down the impactful positions and aspects of the game. We start with the most important position on the field. Stay tuned for the rest of the goodness.

 

Quarterback

It’s a good thing quarterbacks don’t go head to head, because this could be the biggest mismatch in this year’s Ohio State-Michigan game. With Steven Threet supposedly out with a shoulder injury, backup/sometimes starter Nick Sheridan will be starting for the Wolverines. Nick Sheridan. Nick Sheridan.

In all honesty, he might as well be going up against Tom Brady, because he doesn’t have [censored] on Terrelle Pryor.

Starters: Pryor vs. Sheridan

Name one facet of the game where you would take Sheridan over Pryor. Sheridan’s mom wouldn’t even have an answer. We know that Terrelle Pryor is bigger, faster, stronger, smarter, more experienced, more accurate, and the list goes on. Nick Sheridan is the anti-Terrelle Pryor, and that’s not a good thing.

Every time Rich Rodriguez blinks, he’s picturing Terrelle Pryor running his offense and how his first season would have been much different.

While it may seem like all you have to do is play under Jim Tressel and you have the top passer rating in the Big Ten, Terrelle has been good in tough environments and has only one loss under his belt as a starter.

Backups: Todd Boeckman vs. uh, Carlos Brown, Justin Feagin, any running back?

For as goofy and unproductive as Steven Threet has been this season, he’s the best (or shall I say least worst) option Michigan has. He’s out. Shoulder injuries make it hard for QBs.

We all know Rich Rodriguez would rather have a running back as QB anyway, so how about Carlos Brown or QB recruit turned running back Justin Feagin? Feagin has yet to throw a pass in collegiate football, which doesn’t bode well if you are wearing yellow (!) and blue. Even Colt McCoy couldn’t overcome the Buckeyes in 2006.

Todd Boeckman easily gives you an easy advantage because he can throw the ball downfield. While he may make Michigan-level mistakes, Boeckman coming in the game would spark an even stronger fire in the seniors.

Go to Source

Next Page »