So what happened in the way of actual news when I was gone?

• Yeah, this would have been nice, but in no way feasible, as a rumor that Michigan might open 2010 against Georgia was floated, then debunked just as quickly.
• Dr. Saturday’s “All Up-and-Coming” teams include two Michigan Wolverines, but on defense. Defensive tackle Mike Martin and cornerback Boubacar Cissoko are among those he expects to have breakout years in 2009. Offensively, I noted the absence of Kevin Koger at tight end (in favor of a player who I predict will probably have as many catches as Michigan’s 2nd or 3rd tight end this year), and Brian did the same.
• This may belong in a more recruiting-y post, but the Daily Gopher is all set to provide your breathless Seantrel Henderson updates.
• Zoltan named to the Playboy All-American team. Such a shame: it comes just as being on the team gets a lot less cool.
• Adam Rittenberg updates Michigan’s summer schedule for getting started on the season:

Players report: Aug. 9
First practice: Aug. 10
First practice in pads: Aug. 14

Most players, obviously, either haven’t left town in the first place (spring/summer semesters), or have already reported to town, in the case of the freshmen. The official reporting day is for coach-run activities.

• Speaking of which, Jeremy Gallon has qualified, which, like, yay. As soon as he can get on campus, Michigan’s talent pool at the slot position (already booming this spring) will increase greatly. Justin Turner is the only 2009 player remaining with any potential academic hurdles to clear.
• Hail to the Victors 2009 is out. Yrs truly teamed up with Tom Van Haaren to write a chapter on Tate Forcier, who I guess is a Michigan football player?

Anything else I missed? A recruiting update is likely going to be delayed slightly, because I have mounds of information to catch up on.

Posted under Football

Mike Martin burst onto the scene as a true freshman, getting significant playing time in the defentive tackle rotation alongside Terrance Taylor and Will Johnson. Now, he’ll be the main man in the middle. If he can progress from what he accomplished last year, his increased playing time should give him the opportunity to make a lot of plays for the Michigan defense. The Wolverines will need him to perform if they want to have a competent defense.

When Rich Rodriguez came to Michigan, there was fear that he wouldn’t know how to use the tight end position, since he hadn’t in his years at West Virginia. Kevin Koger, however, managed to be too much of a weapon to keep off the field, and Koger caught a touchdown for the Wolverines against Wisconsin. The Michigan staff collaborated with Oklahoma’s in the offseason, and looks to use the tight end much more this year. With Koger the main man at the position, he could see a lot more action come his way in 2009.

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The poll will remain open for 7 days, closing at 5PM next Tuesday. Have your heart set on a particular candidate? Try to sway others in the comments. The full bracket is visible here.

Other Open Polls:
Forcier v. Patterson.
Stonum v. Roundtree.
Graham v. Banks.
Robinson v. Woolfolk.
Odoms v. Shaw.

Completed 1st Round Poll:
Minor defeats Sheridan, 952-53.
Van Bergen defeats Gibbons, 516-201.
Warren defeats Stokes, 646-113.
Schilling v. Emilien, 487-248.
Mesko defeats Ortmann, 634-85.
Cissoko defeats Toussaint, appx. 460-270.

Posted under Football, Personnel

The Situation
There are 2 minutes and 28 seconds left in the third quarter, and Michigan’s offense is like, kinda sucking. And by “kinda sucking” I mean “had 31 yards in the entire game prior to this drive.” However, with 54 yards already racked up in this one drive, a touchdown would be the perfect thing to break the offensive funk. It would also put Michigan down by only 12 points, despite Wisconsin dominating most of the first three quarters. They might just be able to get back into the game…

The Personnel and Formation
Michigan is on the right hash in a basic spread set. Brandon Minor is the running back to Steven Threet’s left. Greg Mathews and Junior Hemingway are the wideouts to the left and right, respectively. In the left slot is Martavious Odoms. At slot on the right side is tight end Kevin Koger, appearing in a game for the first time this year. Wisconsin counters with a 3-2-6 dime package. The four CB/Nickel players are head up over the receivers. The linebackers are head up over Threet and Minor. The two safeties are deep.

The PlayAt the snap, Threet takes a 3-step drop. Minor sets as though he’s pass blocking, though Wisconsin only comes on a three-man rush. Free of the duty of protecting Threet, Minor runs a short circle route out of the backfield. Odoms runs a 10-yard stop route. The other three receivers all run vertical routes, with Mathews and Hemingway on fly routes down the sideline, and Koger running a seam down the middle. 

Wisconsin rushes the three linemen, runs man coverage on the receivers (and backs, including a spy on Threet), and has two safeties taking deep halves over the top. Threet goes deep to Koger, who is behind his defender. Koger makes the catch at the 6, and isn’t hit by a safety until after he’s in the endzone. 

Why it Worked
First things first, if your receivers are able to get open against man coverage, this is an effective play call against 2-man-under defense. Considering Wisconsin had a nickel corner lined up in press coverage against a TE, Koger should be able to get open, the question is whether he’ll be able to maintain that separation. With his athleticism, Koger is able to defeat the defender down the field. 

The wideouts on the outside are able to force the safeties to stay wide, so they aren’t leaving their corners on an island (which they don’t want to do in 2-man-under coverage – their duty is to defend anything over the top). That horizontal stretch allows Koger to catch the ball in the middle of the field in the seam between the deep men. Allow me to point out here that this is the point of Michigan’s “look over to the sideline” no-huddle offense. The coaches in the booth saw two safeties high, and knew that a deep seam route would likely be effective. They told the coaches down on the field, who then relayed the read to Threet. One must assume that as he gets more comfortable with the offense (probably not until future years), Steve will be able to make these reads himself.

The protection on this play was also good. Michigan’s dynamic offense forces the defense to account for every player, including the quarterback (though keep in mind that Michigan’s offense had been anything but stellar at this point in the game). Because of that, Wisconsin had to rush only three men in order to man up on everyone and keep two safeties high. Michigan’s offensive line, for all their difficulty run-blocking, has actually performed fairly well in protection so far this year, and the five blockers (which would have been four with Minor if the LB had blitzed) were easily able to corral the pass rush. Threet had enough time in the pocket to let Koger go deep, and the timing was perfect.

Now you know what it was like Inside the Play.

Posted under Analysis, Coaching

The Board. A few guys on the board attended the Tuscaloosa Nike Combine.

Added:
FL S Vladimir Emilien. He has received a Michigan offer, but he is another of those guys Ohio State fans are supremely confident about.
LA OL Chris Faulk. Michigan offer. Have to assume LSU is leading. He also plays discus in track.
GA LB Devekeyan Lattimore. He has received a Michigan offer.

New Information:
VA RB Tavon Austin. Link to about 30,000 videos.
FL S Jonathan Scott high jumps.
OH DE Davon Custis. He is fast for a DE.
TN OL Alex Bullard. He is going to cut to 5 schools soon, with the first 3 being ND, Tenn, and Florida. Can UM be one of the last two?
LA WR Rueben Randle. Spring fluff.
PA CB Corey Brown. If he gets an OSU offer, expect them to be the favorite.

Etc.: 2008’s Kevin Koger is pretty fast for a guy his size. Barwis fluff from Detroit News.

Posted under Recruiting