Even in the first quarter, when Michigan was winning or the game was at least close, the fan noise was pathetic. The Ducks, used to the mayhem of Autzen, must have been laughing at the poor effort.

Ryan Mallett looked OK in his time in action, about as expected for a true freshman. Hopefully, when he is pressed into starting action next week, he will be able to step up his game, outplay Jimmy Clausen, and beat the Irish.

Pressed into starting action, you ask? Chad Henne suffered a lower leg injury in the second half, and, for he first time in his Michigan career, will not play a game.

The defense again stiffened up in the second half, but they need to come together before that to not let games get out of hand.

The defensive line is adequate but not great, the linebackers are a notch below that, and the secondary, aside from Morgan Trent (pleasant surprise of the year so far), and to a lesser degree the safeties, is pathetic.

The offense is able to move the ball, but too many mistakes, including penalties, prevent them from finishing.

Playing Oregon exposed the lack of creativity in the Michigan coaching staff. The Ducks ran reverses, Statue of Liberty plays, and even a fake statue to QB Draw.

Why the hell was halftime so long? The marching band finished in about 10 minutes, and nothing happened for another 10. A blowout like this game shouldn’t have lasted nearly 4 hours.

Posted under Personnel

O.M.F.G.

This actually happened. At least for the rest of this year, the scourge of having lost to a 1-AA team will be hanging over the ehads of Michigan Wolverine players and fans. For players, it may provide the extra motivation they so clearly lacked yesterday. For fans, there is no recourse but to take the abuse from others, and hope to run the table the rest of the way.

Observations on the game:

• Chad Henne had his worst day (by far) that I’ve observed. He was missing deep balls, making bad reads, throwing across his body, etc.
• Mike Hart carried the team, despite being out for most of the game. Brandon Minor has yet to learn how to find a hole.
• The defensive line was bad. The inside zone handoff was a guaranteed three yards for App St. the entire first half, and was still moderately effective in the second. Brandon Graham was in the doghouse and played limited snaps.
• As expected, the secondary sucked. Stevie Brown and Johnny Sears were major liabilities. Morgan Trent was much improved over last year.
• The coaching was bad. Sure, Brandon Minor isn’t cut out for the zone game unless there is a gaping hole, but you have one of the biggest offensive lines in the country, and you’re playing a bunch of guys who don’t breach 300 pounds. Just pound the ball all game.
• We are back to not being able to stop a mobile quarterback. Scary, considering we’re playing Dennis Dixon next week.
• The fans were pathetic except during the late 3rd and early 4th quarters.
• I was interning for the Big Ten network. It is a poorly run organization at every level. Don’t expect it to last longer than a year.

Halfway through, I switch to the royal “we.” I’m too depressed to go back and fix it. I hope to god that this year isn’t 2005 redux.

Posted under Analysis, Coaching

J.B. Fitzgerald, as expected, pledged his commitment to become a Michigan Wolverine. Fitzgerald is the second linebacker recruit in the 2008 class, joining fellow New Jerseyan (Jerseyite? Jersish?) Marcus Witherspoon.

Fitzgerald, while only a four-star prospect, was the main focus of Steve Szabo’s recruiting push of late (Szabo is the linebacker coach, as well as Michigan’s recruiter for New Jersey). Fitagerald is the player for whom Michigan eased recruiting on such players as Steve Filer (ND) and Jon Major (still uncommitted).

At 6-3, 225, Fitzgerald is a Strongside or Middle Linebacker. More on Fitzgerald to come.

Posted under Recruiting

New Jersey Linebacker J.B. Fitzgerald has set his college pledge announcement for tomorrow night. Fitzgerald will announce at a press conference at his school, set to air during halftime of ESPN’s Thursday Night Football game, LSU at Mississippi.

Fitzgerald, considered a four-star player by both recruiting services, has reportedly narrowed his choices to Michigan and Rutgers. All reports indicate that Michigan will be receiving good news.

Posted under Recruiting

This will be a rebuilding year for the special teams, as Michigan graduated the most prolific kicker and the most prolific kick returner in its history, in Garrett Rivas and Steve Breaston.

Kicks will be taken over (for now) by walkon Jason Gingell, with scholarship kicker Bryan Wright and fellow walkon K.C. Lopata still challenging behind him. Wright might step in to take care of extra-length field goals, as he has the largest leg of the group. He will also handle kickoff duties.

Punting will be handled by Zoltan the Magnificent, and I assume Bryan Wright would step in shall some form of kryptonite strike Mesko.

Returns will be handled by a bevy of the speedy players that Michigan employs. Johnny Sears will be the starter for punts, and Brandon Harrison will presumably team up alongside Brandon Minor (or it will be Minor and Sears) on kickoff return.

No proven talent here, probably the scariest position group for Michigan. 4/10

Posted under Personnel

Tennessee OT Preston Bailey removed, as he will announce for Tennessee tomorrow. Christian Wilson moved to committed. MI LB Kenny Demens is tentatively set to announce next Tuesday.

Posted under Recruiting

The safeties look to be the strength of this unit, and certainly are in terms of depth. Jamar Adams has all-conference potential in his senior year at the SS position. Charles Stewart, a former conerback, will back him up, and Anton Campbell has thus far been a special teams player and little else. At the free safety position, Sophomore Stevie Brown is expected to step up and take the starting job away from Brandent Englemon, who earned starts last year. The loss of Ryan Mundy to WVU will probably be addition by subtraction. Freshman Artis Chambers enrolled in the spring, and despite looking a little stiff, impressed observers. He may not redshirt this year, but instead get spot duty in addition to special teams playing time. Freshman James Rogers is tiny, and will need to be in a year of strength training before he is ready to contribute.

The corner position is still a little scary for fans who weren’t impressed by Morgan Trent or Johnny Sears last year, because those two will be the starters in 2007, at least at the beginning of the year. Trent is a fast guy who is still learning the position after spending his redshirt year as a wideout. Sears looks the part, but hasn’t been able to put the mental part of the game together yet. He worked this summer with some alumni of his high school, powerhouse Fresno Edison. Doug Dutch moved to the position in the spring to provide some depth, but will likely still be learning it. Freshman Troy Woolfolk is a speedster, but small for the position. He will probably not redshirt his freshman year. The other freshman, Donovan Warren, will be thrust into action, and some experts expect him to be starting by the end of the year. He was a top-top recruit, and is considered the heir apparent to the lockdown corner crown that has been worn at UM by the likes of Ty Law and Charles Woodson.

The weak link of the defense, strong at safety, but weak on the corners without players stepping up 5/10.

Posted under Personnel

This is a definite rebuilding year for a linebacker corps losing two of three starters. Shawn Crable is the lone returning starter, and is expected to turn in an All-conference season. He is backed up by redshirt freshmen Jonas Mouton and Obi Ezeh at the SAM position. Freshman Brandon Herron also plays the SAM, and will probably redshirt.

Middle linebacker will be manned by both Johnny Thompson and Obi Ezeh. Thompson is a stronger player against the run, Ezeh against the pass. Junior College transfer Austin Panter does not yet have the strength to play against the run, but will likely earn some playing time this year. Thompson was a monster in the 2005 Iowa game in David Harris’s absence, but has not shown a whole lot in his other game experience. The other two players are relative unknowns.

At the weakside position, Chris Graham is expected to be the starter. Former safety Jonas Mouton, a redshirt freshman, is considered the stronger player in coverage, and may take over the starting role by the end of the year. Graham is a little guy at only 5-11, which may hold him back. Brandon Logan provides depth, and true freshman Marrell Evans will probably redshirt. In fall camp, he has looked impressive at the position, but needs a year of weight training to get up to playing size.

My completely arbitrary and meaningless rating: 5/10

Posted under Personnel

Enjoy.

Posted under Photo Album

At Defensive end, Brandon Graham will hope to follow a less circuitous version of the Lamarr Woodley career path. The high school linebacker will likely never play that position in college, instead staying at defensive end his whole career. Graham has lost weight in the offseason, helping him maintain his speed, though he has battled minor injuries in training camp. The other side will be manned by Tim Jamison, a speedy penetrator who has been injured much of his career, which has kept him out of the starting lineup until now. He was widely considered the starter opposite Woodley last year until a freak ankle injury forced him to sit out and then take a backup role. The redshirt junior looks to finally put together a healthy season.

Backing up those two are a slew of unknowns in redshirt freshmen Greg Banks and Adam Patterson, after the dismissal of James McKinney. They will both be counted on to provide rest for the starters, as there will likely be more rotation this year to give experience to a wider range of players. True freshman Ryan Van Bergen is talented, but may sit out a year to get ready for the college game. LB Shawn Crable will step in on some passing downs.

Defensive tackle Terrance Taylor is the only returner along the defensive line, but he is a good one. Playing the nose position, he is a space-eater rather than a penetrator. He is a likely all-conference candidate. Next to him will be Will Johnson, who steps into a starting role after being a key reserve the past two years. In action last year, he impressed, and was only kept off the field by the exceptional players ahead of him.

Johnny Ferrara will back up the DTs, though he needs to work on his game fitness to be a true factor. The story is similar with Jason Kates. Freshman Marques Slocum will also factor in, as he is ineligible to redshirt after his bizarre academic sojourn to become a Wolverine (Slocum has been dinged up in fall camp with a shoulder injury, but he shouldn’t be sidelined too long). There is also a chance that he could be moved to offense down the road, as he was a VHT offensive tackle as a recruit. Slocum is in good shape, and is a strong player, in the style of a shorter Alan Branch. True freshman Renaldo Sagesse will almost definitely redshirt, as Canadian recruits typically do as he will need to assimilate into the culture a bit, and learn the game as it is played here. Brett Gallimore has been shuffled around during his career, and won’t likely be a factor anywhere.

With depth lacking on the edges, but strong in the middle, this unit earns a 7.5/10

Posted under Personnel