So Michigan is fresh off it's close loss to Duke and there is still one question left for the 2011 class. That person in question is Max Bielfeldt a 6'8 220 pound forward that is averaging 24 points a game, 5 blocks, and 12 boards. Max is down to Michigan and Illinois. Mentioned here last week, there are some questions remaining whether Illinois has a scholarship left for the young man, but he has a lot of family legacy there and might not need one anyway. Max is planning to announce his school of choice this week. I think it's a toss up for Max at this point, he probably has dreamed of playing for Illinois but Michigan is a "hot" young team that gives him a great shot at a ton of early playing time. I would say he probably understands that Michigan has an unlimited future with this young squad. I hope he goes Blue!
I mentioned yesterday that Michigan is lacking a big man and back up point guard for next year. Michigan has a PG coming in next year named Trey Burke from Columbus and a shooting guard from Southfield Carlton Brundidge. If Max would join this class, I think it would be a pretty nice group to fill some of Michigan holes.
Football
We all know Michigan had it's first practice of the Spring on Saturday. Many of the recruits in attendance were impressed on how smoothly the practice went for the first time with a new coaching staff. TomVH does another great job of running down the guys there were there.
The In-State Big 3: Royce Jenkins-Stone, James "Biggs" Ross, and Terry Richardson with their families were all at practice and got to visit with the coaches. It seems all were impressed in their discussions with the coaches: RJS: Yeah, this visit helped Michigan a lot. I didn't think it was that family centered up there. Everyone felt like they were at home, and I know for a fact that none of those coaches are leaving. If I go there none of them are leaving for the three or four years I'm there. I know Terry [Richardson] and James [Ross] felt the same way. I don't know where they're at with everything, but I know they liked it.
All three of these guys are national recruits and will have a number of big time offers. Michigan has and will continue to make these guys a priority to stay at home and come to Ann Arbor.
Other visitors in this weekend:
2012 DE Pharaoh Brown, 6'6, 220 lbs.from Lyndhurst, Ohio
2012 OT Kyle Dodson, 6'6, 315 lbs. from Cleveland, Ohio
2012 LB Camren Williams 6'2, 215 lbs. from Massachusetts
2012 OL Caleb Stacey 6'4, 275 lbs. from Ohio visited and got offered
Next weekend Michigan could have close to 20 recruits at practice. RJS might come back to see the Wolverines in pads.
After two years of staying home for the holidays and no Bowl gear in Big House Bob's stocking, Michigan will be heading to a bowl game. If you want to be negative, there is still plenty to be negative about like: bowl games should not be the goal of the season - championships should be, 65 points? are you kidding me, and 3 years of probation is 3 years longer then Bo ever had. I know and understand it, but I would much rather enjoy this win, ponder who we might play, and think about how 15 more practices that will advance this young team.
Pete from AnnArbor.com beat me to this but here is where some of the experts believe Michigan will end up:
CBS Sports.com says: Insight Bowl against Oklahoma. Really Oklahoma? I doubt it.
Rivals: Texas Bowl against Texas. Would love it! Rather have the game in Florida then Texas.
College Football News.com: Says Texas Bowl vs Baylor.
I would rather have Michigan playing in Florida but being in the first Dallas Football Classic on January 1 would be pretty cool as well. Michigan will be highly regarded and selected for any Bowl since they are a Big Name that travels well.
Can a Defense Play Better and still give up 65 points? The answer is Yes. Stay with me. Michigan turned the ball over 5 times and it seemed there were improvements and some good plays by some young players. I thought Courtney Avery played much better, he had a couple of good tackles and was right with the WR on the long touchdown pass. Ray Vinopal had a huge tackle on 3rd down, Cam Gordon was always around the football, Kenny Demens made a play on pass break up and seemed to attack the running plays, it's 100% clear Roh is a better DE then LB and was a regular in the backfield, and Mouton made the last play of the game by getting by the RB trying to block him. Sure there were 100 mistakes as well, but this is a positive post today, remember!
DeAnthony Arnett: For those that don't know, Arnett is a 4 star highly rated instate WR in the 2011 class. He has been listing a number of schools including MSU, Tenn, USC, and others. Reportedly, he was somewhat down on the Wolverines becuase they don't pass enough and he wouldn't get enough looks in RR's offense. DeAnthony was a visitor for the Michigan game on Saturday. Do you think he changed his mind after the days Roundtree and Hemingway had? He could be planning an announcement this week. Could he be Blue? He might. He visited USC the weekend before.
Question from a Big House Reader: Ricky Asks: Would this defense been different had Donovan Warren not declared for the NFL draft and Troy Woolfolk didn't suffered a season ending injury. Do you think they could've at least help us get 1 or 2 more wins?
Also, am I crazy or is it the case that the Michigan offense is more prolific with Tate Forcier as QB?
Let me answer the first question first. The answer is Yes. Having two senior CB's in the secondary could have made a huge difference in Michigan's wins total this year. All of Michigan losses could have been wins, when you have two healthy seniors at each corner, Michigan could have done some other things to protect the defensive line and linebacker play to stop the run. Sure, Michigan would still have issues at safety and LB, but this team would easily be in the top 25 with those guys in the lineup. The MSU game would have been different and the Penn State experiment that went way wrong would have never happened. So let's say, Michigan takes 1 out of 2 from either MSU and/or Iowa and beats Penn State.
To your second question. The answer is yes and no. Michigan is much more dynamic and hard to plan for if Denard is the QB. His run/pass option is a defensive coordinators nightmare. The safeties, CB, and LB's don't know if they should chase Denard or cover the Michigan WR's. That type of indecision can cause long runs or open WR's. As you can tell, Michigan's opponents are trying to take away the run and have Denard beat them with his arm.
So why is Tate a better option? If Michigan gets down by more then two touchdowns, I believe Tate is the better option. Michigan's offense is built to be in the lead or near the lead. If Michigan turns the ball over and gets down by say 17 points, Tate is the better option for a comeback. His passing skills (all though his reads are sometimes too risky) are a couple levels above Denard's and he has more experience reading defenses. When Tate is in the game the defense adjusts to play more pass, which opens up running lanes for him or the RB's. As you could tell on Saturday, he made a couple of good first downs with his feet.
I would like to see Tate throw the shorter pass to the tight end or the WR. He sometimes looks for the bigger play/TD instead of getting the first down.
Since the last 3 weeks we have been Sad Panda, I thought I would give you a little Touchdown Panda today!
Random Thoughts:
I was just kidding about scoring 70 points in yesterdays post
Can a Defense play better then the week before after giving up 65 points this week?
I had a strange feeling that Tate Forcier would win a game for Michigan this year.
I really hope Denard is ok. He seemed pretty good jumping around after the sack on the last play.
I really think Taylor Lewan is the next Jake Long, but his two penalties and specially the last one almost cost Michigan the game.
More Mike Shaw please.
Weird things that go through your mind after a win like that while watching LSU and Alabama: What if LSU fired Les Miles and he came to Ann Arbor as Michigan's new DC? I know it's a crazy thought, but talk about the best of both worlds.
I was not happy that Michigan went for the field goal in the 3rd when they were up a touchdown.
I thought Ray Vinopal and Courtney Avery played pretty well at times.
Bowl Game Baby! Bowl Game!
Enjoy the rest of your night with an adult beverage!
Time: High Noon Location: Big House TV: ESPN Line: Illinois +3 Weather: 43/30 Partly Cloudy
Sometime Vegas lines make you scratch your head and say, "are you kidding me!" It's like an invitation for a non-gambler to find a sports book on-line and put down this months mortgage on the game. The Michigan - Illinois game seems like the one game to jump on. Michigan is favored by 3 points. This line reminds me of when Oregon came to town and Mike Hart had a bad ankle after the App. State disaster and Michigan was favored. We all remember what happened in that game.
Let's take a quick look at some common opponents:
Both Teams Lost to MSU. Michigan lost 34-17, Illinois lost 26-6
Both teams beat IU: Michigan 42-35, Illinois 43-13
Illinois beat Penn State (in Happy Valley) 33-13, Michigan lost in Happy Valley 41-31
What does that tell us? Michigan sure does have a way of making offenses look good. Zook and company held IU to 13 points, Michigan couldn't hold them under 30. Illinois beat Penn State on the road when their 1st string QB was playing, Michigan got lit up by their back up. Those are terrible signs for this game.
Tale of the Tape:
Michigan Offense vs Illinois D = Advantage Blue. Michigan should be able to score points against this improving defense.
Illinois Offensive vs Michigan D = Sad Panda. Michigan's defense showed up in Ann Arbor last Saturday Night for a game in Happy Valley. It was maybe the worst showing of a Michigan defense since before Fritz Crisler roamed the sideline. Now, Michigan's only experienced corner is out for the year after hurting his ankle in practice this week. That means former HS QB Courtney Avery will be filling his shoes and hopefully covering WR's and not looking to pass to them.
Special Teams = Advantage Zook. Michigan seemed to have worked out the kickoff issues but their last decent return was in 2009. Michigan's field goal kicking is very suspect, but he did make one last game! If Michigan can catch the ball, not fumble, make a field goal and all the extra points, then that is a small win for the Maize and Blue.
Intangibles = Push. There isn't a team that needs a victory more then Michigan and Illinois is improving every week. This is a classic match up of Hot vs Cold. How desperate are the Wolverines? is the question of the day.
Illinois is not afraid of this Michigan team at all. Two years ago they won in the Big House. Last year, with me in the stands Roy Roundtree looks to have scored on a long slant play but was called down on the 1. Michigan couldn't get it in end zone and Illinois took over the game. Those plays cost Michigan the game and a trip to a bowl game.
Sing Hail to the Victors if..........
Denard is healthy the entire game
Michigan mixes the run and pass to keep Illinois off balance
Michigan doesn't turn the ball over on offense
The Michigan D can get a handful of stops (maybe some field goals?)
The Michigan D can pick up a fumble or pick (haven't had one since IU game)
Michigan doesn't spot Zook 30 points before they decided to play
Say, I thought it was supposed to be Zook's year to get fired if...............
Michigan's Defense is well Michigan Defense from the PSU game
Michigan doesn't grab a quick lead in the shoot out
Illinois scores touchdowns instead of field goals
Michigan only has 9 offensive possessions.
Courtney Avery looks like a QB playing corner
Michigan hasn't kept a Big Ten team under 30 points this entire year. IU 35, MSU 34, Iowa 38, PSU 41 what makes you think they will keep Illinois under 30? Nothing. Illinois has a young mobile QB and they will attack Michigan's defense in a similar way that Michigan will attack Illinois. There will be a number of QB read draws, hand offs to the running backs and 7-15 yard throws. This is the exact formula that has been beating Michigan the last 3 games. The only difference is this QB is mobile and we have a true freshman starting at corner that was a QB last year.
Can Michigan win this game? Sure if they get some stops on defense. Which in my mind means turnovers, punts, and field goals. This team needs to play desperate football because their season is at stake. RR can't waste offensive possessions and there needs to be some 4th down gambles. Michigan has to pretty much be able to score on every drive. The Michigan offense just needs to protect the ball and score points in both half's. No more slow starts. As for the defense, who the hell knows? Maybe a blind squirrel will find a nut in this game. Or maybe Illinois is just the better all around team right now. Illinois 34 Michigan 28
Dear Karma, Thank you for the relief this week with the NCAA. Us Michigan fans needed some good news. I appreciate you throwing us a bone after the JT Floyd injury. That really helped round off a not so good week.
I don't want to sound un-grateful but I need a favor. Michigan has 5 wins right now and needs at least 1 more win to be bowl eligible. As you might understand, I'm not asking for a holiday trip to Texas, Florida or even Downtown Detroit. I'm asking because the kids on this team deserve it. I'm asking for Denard and the hours he put in over the summer to get better, I am asking for David Molk who would rather walk on broken glass then take another loss, I am asking for Troy Woolfolk who hurt his ankle in the pre-season and has never seen the field this year. These kids have worked hard for a couple of years and the most exciting place they have visited is Iowa City and as you might have imagined Karma, that's not very exciting city. Not only do they deserve a reward but they also need two more weeks of practice. They have lost a months worth of practices the last two years and really need the time to help them learn the positions and just to be a better football team.
So here is the ask: Can we please have two wins the next two weeks? Yes, I know about Greg Robinson and the defense. Yes, I understand how hard that will be but if you remember you granted a similar wish a couple years ago against Minnesota for the Little Brown Jug. That is the request I put forward to you.
Thank you for listening and I will look for your answer on Saturday at about 3:30.
Hope to have Mike Martin in practice today. He was limited last week in practice and that is why they held him out in the game after hurting his other ankle.
Denard is sore but should practice today. Fell on his hip on the sideline, his knee bruise and his shoulder has been bothering him the past couple of weeks.
Will be sending in the personal penalty on the kick off to the Big Ten office this week.
Will try to help scheme with the defense this week. Trying to simplify the defense so they can play faster.
On offense they can add a new play a week, can't do that on defense.
Need faster and more athletic guys on defense.
Illinois is one of the most athletic teams in the Big Ten. They are playing their best football right now.
No changes on the defensive staff. Just met with the defensive staff for 3 hours. Heard about the rumor, which was un-true.
It's not the scheme on defense it's the execution.
Need to try to get Craig Roh more involved.
Greg Banks:
Spirit still seems to be high
Need to have upperclassmen step up
Defense needs to make plays and play together as a unit
Haven't looked at Illinois much yet. Will look at film today
Need to improve tackling and 3rd down stops.
Going to hit practice hard this week
Kovacs
Trying to improve this week
Hadn't heard about the Robinson rumor
Thought Ray Vinopal was a little wide eyed but had a good week in practice last week
Has moved past the Penn State game, now focusing on Illinois
Tries to avoid ESPN, SI and the Blogs. (what?)
This group fights and hungry
Practicing agaist Denard will help preparing for a similar offense in Illinois
Playing a lot of freshman, which are improving daily and will continue to get better
David Molk
Attitude adjustment can't be half assed
Losing isn't good and looks bad. We have worked to hard and come to far.
I am going to do everything I can do (to show leadership)
We have the ability, effort is no problem, it's the mental aspect.
The mental part can come in days or weeks. It's an acquired talent
We are moving toward the place we want to be, were just not there yet.
We are a team and we won't point fingers
Practices are intense
He doesn't pay any attention to the Coach Rod Hot seat talk. Doesn't read or watch the media and will do anything for this team. "This is my team!".
On a side note: David Molk is a man who is clearly frustrated and pissed off. Michigan needs a 100 more David Molks.
I still don't understand what I saw on Saturday. It doesn't compute.
How does Michigan have one of the worst defenses in the country?
How did Michigan give up nearly 500 yards of offense to team that basically rolled out Nick Sheridan out there?
How is it that Penn State only punted twice?
That terrible effort might have sealed RR's fate at Michigan (he knows it too, you can see it on his face). It most definitely has sealed Greg Robinson's fate. There was rumors floating around on Sunday that he resigned, of course those were probably wishful thinking from the message boards.
I know Greg Robinson has a long resume in football but Saturday's effort was one of the worst things I have seen in football since the Lions quit on Steve Mariucci on Thanksgiving a few years ago. I mentioned this on Saturday night but if your roll out 11 true freshman at Michigan they should be an average defense. This defense is terrible, awful, one of the worst defenses in the country. They don't do anything right: they don't cover, they don't get sacks, they don't tackle (how about that 4th down and 1 effort? - awful), they don' read screens, they don't cover deep, they can't stop the run, they can't stop a 3rd & long, they get penalties, and the list goes on.
I was talking to a neighbor at Halloween last night and he asked what was Greg's resume. Here it is:
1975–1976 Pacific (assistant coach 1977–1979 Cal State Fullerton (assistant) 1980-1981 North Carolina State (assistant) 1982–1988 UCLA (DL) 1989 UCLA (OC) 1990-1993 New York Jets (DL) 1994 New York Jets (DC) 1995-2000 Denver Broncos (DC) 2001–2003 Kansas City Chiefs (DC) 2004 Texas (DC) 2005–2008 Syracuse (HC) 2009–present Michigan (DC)
I don't know Greg personally, so I suspect he knows a lot of football with 35 years coaching experience. He has Super Bowl Rings and a pretty impressive resume. I know football coaches are hired to be fired but the above resume also shows me he has failed in pretty much every "leadership" position that he has held outside of his 5 year run as the Broncos DC. 1 year at the OC at UCLA, 1 year as the Jets DC, 2 years at the Chiefs DC, 1 year at Texas (which he didn't get fired from), and 3 years as Syracuse head coach.
Rich Rod hired Greg to be a leader on defense. To basically be him on defense. Rich knew when he got here he had work to do on both sides of the ball. His speciality is the offense and knew that unit needed most of his attention, he needed a head coach on defense and he hired Greg. When Greg was hired, there were mixed reviews. The Syracuse fans laughed and quickly hired Michigan's one year DC, Scott Shafer. Texas Head Coach called Greg the best Defensive Coordinator in the country.
One a side note, Scott Shafer is finding success at Syracuse. Their defense is ranked 14th in the nation in Points Against giving up 17 points a game. (Michigan gives up 17 points by the middle of the 1st quarter for example Michigan is 89th in that same stat) They just beat Cincinnati 31-7 on Saturday.
I'm not sure what Greg's Robinson's defensive philosophy is (I'm guessing it's a low pressure - bend but don't break one) but whatever he put on the field Saturday was just garbage. I would rather see Michigan blitz everyone and cover the WR's man to man then do what the Michigan D did on Saturday. Penn State had a back up walk on QB and they for sure wouldn't be putting him in a high risk situations. Which means running the ball and throwing short passes and screens. Greg decided to play the corners 7-10 yards off the ball, not blitz, and play back. Penn State beat Michigan with screens and running the ball all night. RR also shouldn't have to go crazy in a defensive huddle to get these guys to get a stop. That was the last sign in my book that Greg is failing in his job.
Youth is an excuse and this program is out of excuses on defense. There is a reason Greg has been "run out of town" for every DC job he has had. It's time for him to move out of another town. RR's decisions with his defensive coordinator hires may cost him his high profile job.
Just found this on Mgoblog's message board: This is your DC everyone.
Don't be fooled Illinois is a football team that is getting better week to week. They are playing a team on Saturday that is going in the opposite direction.
BTW: 2011 Cincinnati Linebacker Sean Duggan committed to Boston College over the weekend.
