The BIG HOUSE Blog

Wolverine Wednesday: Veterans Day Special: The Legend of Tom Harmon

2009-11-11T07:00:00.002-05:00

Most Wolverine fans know that Tom Harmon was Michigan's first Heisman Trophy winner but after winning that trophy Tom Harmon became a war hero. Today is Veterans Day and took a break from the normal Wednesday post to back at WWII hero and the Michigan legend, Tom Harmon

Tom Harmon wore #98 at Michigan and I think that number stood for the number of positions he played for the Wolverines. Tom played for the Wolverines from 1938 -1940 and finished with 33 touchdowns (at the time a record). He also rushed for 2,134 yards, threw for 1,304 yards, kicked 33 extra points and two fields in his time at Michigan. Fitz Crisler his head coach must of had a rule: that if you score a touchdown, you had to kick the extra point!

Tom was pretty well known during his time as a Wolverine. He was on the cover of Time in 1939 and Life magazine in 1940. I never saw Tom play but it seems he was the Barry Sanders of his time. Opponents would have a hard time tackling the allusive Harmon who would go through a number of tear-away jerseys each game.

Two of Tom's best games came when the spotlight was the brightest. Michigan opened the 1940 season at California and those days teams used trains for travel but for this trip Michigan took a historic cross country flight. Michigan was the first college football team to travel cross country via an airplane . The plane had to stop three times (Des Moines, Denver, and Salt Lake City) and it took two days to get there. Michigan won the game 41-0 and Tom returned the opening kick 94 yards for a touchdown, returned a punt 72 yards for another TD, had an 86 and 8 yard touchdown runs, and threw for another score.

Of course Tom's last game as a Wolverine came against Ohio State. In Columbus, Tom ran for 3 touchdowns, threw for 2 more, and kicked 4 extra points for a 40-0 win. A couple weeks later he won the Heisman trophy which he finished as the runner up the year before. Tom lead the NCAA in scoring in both 1939 and in 1940 and also won the Maxwell Award in 1940. Tom's #98 jersey was retired when he graduated in 1940.

Tom wasn't done dominating the opposition after his time at Michigan. Tom decided to enlist in the Army Air Corps on November 8th, 1941. Planes he piloted went down twice during the war and both times Tom parachuted out to safety. His most famous flight that went down happened in early 1943 when Tom's plane flew into a tropical storm and he parachuted out into a South American Jungle. When his plane was reported missing the Army sent out a large search partybut the team was not able to find the Heisman trophy winner. Four days later he walked out jungle into Dutch Guiana.

Tom was later awarded a Purple Heart and a Silver Star for his actions with the 449th Fighter Squadron. Legend has it that Tom saved the silk material from his parachute so that his wife could use it for her wedding dress.

As you know, Tom married Elyse Knox and is the father of actor Mark Harmon and actress Kelly Harmon. After football and the Army Tom had a nice career in sports broadcasting. He passed away at the age of 70 in 1990.

So on this day, when we are thinking about the state of our beloved Wolverines. It's good to think back about a Michigan legend that beat the Buckeyes single handily and then enlisted in the Army to fight in the Great World War.

Michigan could use a few guys like Tom Harmon these days.

Good Night and God Bless.

*portions of this post came from the book: 100 Things Michigan Fans Should Know Before They Die by Angelique Chengels

Michigan Tuesday: Recruiting Tidbits and News and Notes

2009-11-10T08:34:00.004-05:00

Munchie Legaux a 2010 QB from New Orleans who continued to have Michigan in his top 5 after Gardner and Jones had committed to the Wolverines picked Colorado on Monday. There was zero chance Munchie was coming to Michigan with Tate, Denard and Devin in the mix. I also watched him at the Disney 7 on 7 last summer and his QB skills seemed very raw.

Bill Martin pushed a couple of students working in the Regents area of the Press Box on two separate occasions. Bill was trying to get in with out a pass.

2010 recruit Drew Dileo says Michigan is interested in him returning punts.

If you haven't noticed Morgan Trent has been getting some time for the first place Cincinnati Bengals and has been playing pretty well in Nickel situations. The problem is the TV announcers keep calling him Trent Morgan.

2010 Safety recruit Bobby Swigert picked Boston College over Michigan and Stanford.

Here comes the Michigan should have hired other coaches articles: Jim Harbaugh and Brian Kelly. Those are two good coaches and both might have done a fine job at Michigan, but I'm not sure even those guys could of worked a miracle with the talent that was left on the team after Lloyd Carr rode into the sunset. Jim never would have gotten the job after throwing Michigan under the bus a number of times and there is a reason why Brian Kelly doesn't keep getting these jobs at big time programs (I just don't know what it is?).

Think RR is going to be fired if/when they miss a bowl game for the second straight year? Bill Martin, says no. "He's not going anyplace," Martin said of Rodriguez, who replaced Lloyd Carr, who retired after the 2007 season following 13 years as head coach.

"Rich is an outstanding coach. There is no question he's got my total support. I think the world of that guy. Is he perfect in every respect? Nobody is. But he works hard. He'll get it right."

Martin and Rodriguez shared an emotional moment together after Saturday's 38-36 loss to Purdue, which won at Michigan Stadium for the first time since 1966.

"It was a very emotion-filled time for Rich and myself after the game," said Martin, who said the Purdue loss was particularly hard to bear. "He helped me, I helped him (after the game). I think this loss was hard on all of us. It was hard on Rich, it was hard on me.

"But this guy is a winner. This guy's not used to losing."

Ohio State Game Time and TV

2009-11-09T12:23:00.002-05:00

12:00 - ABC

Purdue Head Coaches's Lack Class

2009-11-09T11:20:00.006-05:00

I'm not sure whats in the water in West Lafayette, but it seems to make grown men grow mustaches and lose their mind every once in awhile (mostly when it comes to Michigan).

I understand being competitive, I understand the heat of the moment, but the Purdue current and former head coaches have always seemed to have a problem with the former and current Michigan coaches.

Joe Tiller the former Purdue head coach never had a nice word for Lloyd Carr. There really isn't any evidence of the rift between the two but Joe always made it know he was not a fan of the Wolverines and the coaching staff. Two years ago after LC retired, Joe got upset that Roy Roundtree a WR changed his mind from Purdue to Michigan on signing day. Joe during his press conference, laid the famous "snake oil salesman" on Coach Rod for convincing Roy to change his mind. Roy had his best game of the year against Purdue on Saturday going for 10 catches for 176 yards. He also said today at RR's press conference that the Purdue DB's were in his ear the entire game talking smack saying they were going to hit him hard, he was going to drop the next ball, etc.

Then after Purdue beat Michigan this weekend, Danny Hope went to shake Rich Rodriguez hand and introduced him to Purdue offensive lineman Zach Reckman who was suspended by the Big Ten for a late hit earlier in the year. Danny's "thinking" was that Rich Rod played a role in Zach's suspension by this comment RR made earlier in the year: "We will watch every Big Ten game very closely, and any non-football act -- whether it's a 6-inch jab or anything that's not called for the game of football -- we're going to ask that person get the same type of punishment Jonas Mouton got."

So my understanding of Danny's way of thinking is that, Coach Rodriguez had mystic powers to make Zach make the penalty and then convinced the Big Ten to punish him. Makes sense to me. If RR really has that type of power look for the entire Wisconsin offense and defense to be suspended this week.

Danny I understand this is your first year as a head coach and you had some nice wins this year. A couple of pointers moving forward:

1) Act like you have been there before
2) Show class after you get a win or a loss
3) Don't alienate fellow head coaches (you never know who you might be working for in a few years)
4) Don't give teams any more reasons to beat you next year

Good luck with the rest of your season and stay "classy" my friend.

Michigan - Purdue Review: Sad for the Seniors

2009-11-08T08:50:00.004-05:00

I'm sad for Brandon Graham, Brandon Minor, Carlos Brown, Zoltan Mesko and all of Michigan's seniors. When they came to Michigan they never thought they would not be going to bowl games. That was a given right being a Wolverine. Anything from the Rose to the Alamo was an option. Well, not in 2008 and for all intense in purposes not in 2009 either. Michigan had two good chances to get to 6 wins by beating Illinois and Purdue teams near the bottom of the Big Ten. They now have to face Wisconsin on the road and Ohio State in the Big House, two teams at the top of the Big Ten.

In a day where the Michigan offense showed some life, the defense flat lined. Purdue was shutout by Wisconsin last week and looked liked New Orleans Saints on Saturday. What cures the offensive blues? The Michigan defense does. Look at Illinois, they beat Minnesota on Saturday.

If the next two weeks play out like most of us think, Michigan will have started 4-0 and finished 1-7 with their only win coming against a D1A school Delaware State. That is just pure disappointing all around. Nobody thought Michigan was heading for a New Years Day Bowl after 4-0 but most people thought they could find 2 more wins on the schedule.

Is the team better then last year? Yes, on the offense side of the ball. The defense no.

What about next year? I don't see a lot of improvements coming next year either. Brandon Graham will be heading to the NFL and Warren may join him if he thinks he will be drafted in the first couple of rounds.

Cheers:

The Brandon Brothers - Minor and Graham both had good days.
The offensive line showed some improvement
Roy Roundtree played well in the slot

Jeers:

The entire defense is terrible
Greg Robinson
Rich Rodriguez (please stop getting out coached by Danny Hope)
Jason Olesnavage a missed extra point and the missed field goal in the 4th

Teams are going to pull out the stops to be the Wolverines, Michigan first better understand that and second start playing that way too. They just don't have enough talent to beat teams straight up.

Thank goodness Michigan Basketball starts next week. Michigan is ranked #15 in the nation and will have the dynamic duo of Manny Harris and DeShawn Simms coming back.

Michigan - Purdue Preview

2009-11-06T10:02:00.007-05:00

Time: 12:00
Location: Big House
TV: Big Ten Network
Line: Michigan -6
Weather: 58 and Partly Cloudy

I was at Illinois last week to see the 3rd quarter collapse live and I'm here to tell you that Michigan went from blowing out Zook and Company to getting blown out with 2-3 questionable calls by the Big Ten crew of officials. Illinois was about to lay down after the Roundtree/Brown/Minor touchdown but that stop gave them life and they ran away with the game.

Purdue on the other hand got shutout at Wisconsin where they were dropping balls and making only a hand full off first downs.

Both team are young across the board and going through coaching changes. Purdue's is a little less "disruptive" since Danny Hope was on board under Joe Tiller. Danny did change the offense from a open/spread style to a power run game.

The Numbers Game:
Purdue is very consistent on both sides of the ball when it comes to national rankings. They are 65th and 7th in the Big Ten in both Total Offense and Total Defense. Their defense gives up 363 total yards per game and they will be facing the #1 run offense in the Big Ten.

The Michigan defense is the real story here. Currently, Michigan is giving up 382 yards per game which equals 176th in the country.

I will let that sentence stand on it's own, since it pretty much speaks for itself.

Keys to the game:

Can Michigan stop Purdue's offense? Juice got healthy last week, will Purdue's offense get back on track this week?

Can Michigan run the ball with long drives?

Can Michigan score touchdowns in the red zone?

Has Michigan's Pass Protection improved at all?

This game won't get the eyeballs that a Bama vs LSU or Penn State vs Ohio State will this weekend but this will be a very interesting game. This is a must win for both teams with biggest "must" going to the Wolverines who need one more win to be bowl eligible.

Call in sick for the next three weeks if:

Michigan isn't playing like this is the most important game of the year

Purdue's offense is moving the ball

Michigan gets over powered on both sides of the ball

Michigan continues to fumble away their bowl lives

Sing "Hail to the Victors" if:

Michigan opens up the offense and shows run but completes passes

Tate has a bunch of roll out passes

Minor is healthy and goes for 200

Roundtree finds his next gear

The defense bends but doesn't break

This game will go, one of two ways, Michigan either loses a close one or wins in a blow out. If this team plays with confidence they can move the ball on offense and even score if Purdue takes a lead. The coaches need a much better game plan then they have had the last two weeks on both sides of the ball. Hopefully, JT Floyd can get some snaps at corner and Woolfolk can play some safety. The safety spot has killed the Michigan defense all year and they need some competent play out of that position or they will lose he next three games.

Michigan's first goal this year was to go to a bowl game. That goal could become a reality if Michigan can beat Purdue on Saturday. The weather should be sunny and warm for November in Ann Arbor. Michigan 34 Purdue 14

G0 Blue!

Michigan MASH Report

2009-11-06T09:02:00.003-05:00

Out:
Molk
Odoms

Questionable (50%)
Greg Banks

Probable (75%)
Zac Johnson

The bad news here is Michigan's best slot WR is for sure out for the Purdue game. Odoms had a pretty good day against Purdue last year that included a punt return for a touchdown. Michigan will need Roy Roundtree and Kelvin Grady to set up big in the offense.

Game Captains: linebacker Stevie Brown, defensive end Tim North, left tackle Mark Ortmann and slot receiver Ricky Reyes.

Big Ten Picks and Predicitions Week 10

2009-11-05T10:32:00.005-05:00

So it seems to be a three horse race for the Big Ten crown: Iowa, OSU, and PSU. After this weekend, it most likely will be a two horse race. Some interesting match up and must win games this week.

Now on to the show............

Big 10 Game of the Week

OSU at PSU: Many thought this game would decide the Big Ten champion back in August. Both teams have struggled at times and looked pretty powerful at times. JoPa's only loss came against Iowa and The Vest has lost to USC and Purdue. This is going to be a close game since both teams play very well on the defensive side of the ball. Which ever team protects the ball the best will win this game. I expect TP to be nervous and make a few mistakes in his homecoming. Penn State is favored by 4 at home. Penn State 20 OSU 17

Northwestern at Iowa: The Hawkeyes were asleep for 3 quarters against IU last week and woke up to find themselves down 14 points. They decided they better step up and scored like 300 4th quarter points. I have a feeling the Iowa coaches have been coaching against a similar let down all week in practice. This one will not be close. Iowa is favored by 16.5. Iowa 42 NW 14

Illinois at Minnesota: Both teams enjoyed wins over the Big Ten teams from Michigan last week. Minnesota is a different team playing at home and will handle Illinois new found confidence that they always seem to gain when they play the Michigan Defense. The Golden Gophers are a 6.5 favorite. Minn 31 Ill 20

Wisconsin at IU: Indiana has played well in spurts this year but always seem to lose it at the end. Wisconsin on the other hand is just playing power football and winning games just like the Badger Nation expects. I'm sort of thinking this might be a letdown game for Wisky and might be a Purdue - OSU type of situation. Wisconsin is favored by 10.5 .This is my upset alert special of the week! IU 28 Wisky 24

Western Michigan at MSU: Western is not as good as many people expected this year and Sparty believe it or not is not even playing .500 ball yet. The Spartans keep their bowl hopes alive after beating a down WMU. Sparty is favored by 20.5. MSU 38 WMU 10

The Michigan - Purdue game will be previewed on Friday.....................

Ortmann Cleared by Big Ten

2009-11-04T20:02:00.004-05:00

Left Tackle Mark Ortmann will not be suspended by the Big Ten for the alleged unsportsmanlike conduct in the Illinois game.

“They agreed with our assessment that there would be no penalties,” Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez said Wednesday.

Wolverine Wednesday: News and Notes

2009-11-04T14:14:00.005-05:00

Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman is a Guns & Roses fan: She is saying "all you need is a little patience" with Coach Rod and the football team. "I don't think it's fair to coaches to bring them in and say, 'We're going to give you three years,' " Coleman told the WSJ. "When Tommy Amaker came in, we stuck with him for six years. It just wasn't going to work; it wasn't the right fit. But it wasn't a rushed decision." No word from U of M if this an example of a Coleman family outing :

Local Man at the Final Table in the WS of Poker: Joe Cada could score over a cool $8M. Joe maybe getting a luxury box email from AD Bill Martin soon.

No word from the Big Ten on Ortmann's status. Last time it took until late on Thursday, which is really very late for a change in the game plan.

Mgoblog lists the high profile recruits coming in for the OSU game: DT Michael Thornton and team-mate LB Tyrone Cornelius, CB Cullen Christian, S Tony Jefferson (changed from this week to OSU), WR Kenny Stills, and maybe CB Josh Shaw. I'm sure this list will grow and that we don't have every visitor listed.

The Wisconsin game will be at 12:00 EST on the Big Ten Network.

Wolverine Wednesday: A Memo to RR

2009-11-04T09:33:00.010-05:00

November 4, 2009

To: Coach Rich Rodriguez
From: BHB

Dear Coach,
How are things? That 4-0 start seems like a long time ago, doesn't it? Your team is sitting here today with a 5-4 record with three games left. You need at least one win to go to a bowl game (even if it's in downtown Detroit - btw: would you leave two weeks early to go to Detroit? never mind).

I know things have been difficult this week after getting blown out by Penn State at home and then losing on the road to the worst team in the Big Ten. Heck, even Charles Woodson said yesterday that the Wolverines are hard to watch. He is right.

I know you focus on the future and not the past like that monkey in the Lion King, but I have a feeling the pressure is getting to you and your players. They seem to be playing tight and not as loose as were at the beginning of the year. Sure injuries and cold weather might come it play for those guys from San Diego or Florida but the competition really hasn't gotten any better and the team has regressed on both sides of the ball.

So enough of that negative talk, I have a solution to all your problems. Win the last 3 remaining games. I know it will be difficult/next to impossible but stay with me here and I will walk you through it.

Step 1: Beat Purdue on Saturday. I know they beat The Vest, but you can beat these guys if you play a little defense and get a bit more consistent on offense. If you do this, you will have reached one of the season's goals which is a bowl game. That should be enough motivation for you and the team.

Step 2: Ok, hopefully step 1 was successful. Now you have to head to Wisconsin for a cold difficult game against a physical team that plays a traditional offense and defense. This is where you bring out that "special sauce" that you used last year for the Minnesota game. The spread could work against these guys if you can stop their run game. (side note: before the game go up to the press box and check the eye sight of the old geezer in the replay booth, if he thinks your Tony Orlando, take him to the local Lenscrafters and get him fitted for a new pair of eye glasses. It only takes an hour and worth the $150). Win this game by a point or two and then get on the bus and get the heck out of there.

Step 3: This is going to be a hard one isn't it. Pryor's first trip to the Big House and the young Michigan offense against a very good Ohio State defense. The boys will be ready to play in this one and we know Michigan can stay in the game if they play sound football. (side note: Fly John Cooper up for this game and give him a field pass - it couldn't hurt right? :))

What do you think? Do we have a plan here? Everyone will forget about Illinois if you can win out and be 8-4. 9 out 10 Michigan fans would have taken that record if it was offered to them in August. You will have beaten ND, OSU and had a better overall record that MSU. Your team would have started 4-0 and finished 3-0. You might even find yourself in Orlando at the "Champs Bowl". Not too bad right?

Enjoy practice this week and btw: please don't finish 5-7 that would be really really bad.

P.S. Getting Seantrel Henderson to come to Michigan would also help.

Thank you,
Your friends at Big House Blog

Michigan Welcomes it's 20th Commitment for 2010

2009-11-04T08:29:00.007-05:00

Mgoblog and Michigan's Rivals site is reporting that Carvin Johnson a safety from New Orleans has committed to the Wolverines. Carvin is 6"1, 195 pounds and runs a reported 4.68 forty, he is not rated on any of the major recruiting services.

The Freep weighs in a couple of weeks ago on Carvin's visit: Michigan was one of the first to recognize Johnson’s talents. “It was early on in the spring that they offered me,” Johnson reported. “They say I fit pretty well in their defense. If I were to go there, I would get a chance to play early on..." Besides U-M, Johnson has received scholarship offers from Minnesota, Utah, Tulane and Tulsa. The Times Picayune is also reporting that he also had offers from Colorado and SMU and that he is fully qualified academically. He was recruited my Fred Jackson on Michigan's staff.

He is rated #48 player in the state on NewOrleans.com. His high school coach also give us some information on Carvin: Rummel coach Jay Roth said Johnson is a player who is effective in both pass coverage and run support.“He’s a 6-1, 195-pound safety who is very aggressive and physical,” Roth said.Carvin Johnson has done everything we could possibly ask for--help at wide receiver on offense, stars at defensive back and has returned three punts for touchdowns.--“First of all,’’ Roth said, “everybody who knows Carvin or who has been around him knows that he’s as good of a person as he is a football player. That’s a compliment to him and his momma. Football-wise, he’s a ballhawk. He’s always around the football making plays.’’

So if your a Michigan fan your probably in one of two camps:

Camp 1: Why are we taking non ranked players and the #48 player in the state of Louisiana?
Camp 2: Michigan needs all the help we can get at safety and Carvin is a welcome addition to the class of 2010.

BHB Take: I'm more in Camp #2. Sure I would love Carvin to be a 4 star prospect and one of the top 10 safeties in the class, but Michigan needs all the help they can get in the defensive backfield. I also wonder how Rivals, Scouts, and ESPN can cover all the top athletes playing high school football in the nation? I don't believe they can. I'm also pretty sure colleges don't use those services and have their own recruiting database services. If he was such an "unknown" how did Utah, Minnesota, Colorado and Tulsa find out about him? If it's true that Michigan offered him back in the Spring they must have known of him for sometime. I expect Carvin to end up with a 3 star rating with the number of offers he had.

This leaves 5 spots at the most for the 2010 class. Michigan needs all those spots for defensive help. Linebackers, Safeties, and Corner backs come on down!

Michigan Tuesday: Troubles with the Schembechler's

2009-11-03T07:42:00.006-05:00

Shemy is suing Bo's 3rd wife: Glen "Shemy" Schembechler III Bo's son is suing Kathryn Schembechler, his father's third wife, in federal court Monday in Columbus, Ohio. The lawsuit alleges that Kathryn Schembechler, of Boca Grande, Fla., is not providing Glenn Schembechler with quarterly statements about the trust that he's entitled to. The lawsuit says at least $75,000 is involved.

Someone might need a pound of grandma's nut butter! Michigan offensive lineman Mark Ortmann is seen during the Illinois game taking some type of action in the lower region of Illinois defender Corey Liuget. RR had this to say at his presser on Monday: "Yeah, I did," Rodriguez said. "I wasn't aware of that until last night, and I watched all the angles that we had, and you couldn't see anything on the football copy. And then I watched the Internet thing. I met with Mark this morning. He was upset that a lot of folks were telling him that it was a cheap shot, or what have you. And then he explained to me: 'Coach, I just had an open hand. He was leaning up against me. Their players were even saying, telling him to get off me.' And he just kind of shoved him away real quick. "Mark, he's a great young man. I'm sure when the guy was leaning on him or something, he just wanted him to get off him at the time. I don't think that should be an issue there." The Big Ten is looking into it and could suspend Mark. I hope they also looking into the officiating during the game as well.

There are some rumblings that former Michigan recruit, Florida Commit then Tennessee signee, Nu'Keese Richardson might be looking to transfer. He was not at practice on Sunday.

Seems Purdue is having a hard time catching the ball. Purdue's Head Coach Danny Hope: "There were nine (drops), which is a lot,” Hope said. “I believe there were eight or nine drops on Joey’s 23 throws, so 35 or 40 percent of the balls he threw. That’s tough to establish an offense that way.”

The forecast on Saturday is a high of 55 degrees and partly cloudy. Michigan is favored by 3.5 points.

Things I Just Don't Understand.................

2009-11-03T06:00:00.001-05:00

After Saturday, after App. State, after the 2008 season, you get tired and sort of used to losing. Which is really sad and not the norm for Wolverines fans. With that said, there are some things I just don't understand. Like:

Why is Mike Williams still the starting safety? How many big plays does it take to be taken off the field?
Why did Michigan have 2 walk on's starting on defense for the Illinois game? I would rather see 4* freshman making mistakes then walk on's.
Why hasn't Michigan developed more depth at linebacker and in the defensive backfield? I know recruiting is an issue, but there has to be "fast" players elsewhere that could learn the position and contribute.
Why aren't they calling more roll outs for Tate? He likes to throw on the run and the O line is having serious trouble pass protecting.
Why is the Freep running articles like this?: Where might MSU go bowling? State is 4-5. Get to .500 before you start talking bowl games for goodness sake.

Also: I re-watched the goal line stand by Illinois and those Big Ten officials should be suspended. I think Carlos might have scored on 1st and 3rd downs and you can't tell that Minors elbow hit outside the goal line (there was a leg in the way of the video) that play should be called 10 out of 10 times a touchdown. They didn't have any evidence to overturn that call, none.

I'm not saying Michigan wins the game with that touchdown but if your going to review the Roundtree and Minor play, they needed to review at least one of Brown's run. Terrible Big Ten, Terrible. If your going to suspend players you better look in your own house as well.

Buckeye Monday: New Mexico State Review

2009-11-02T17:00:00.000-05:00

Buckeyes take New Mexico State to the Woodshead

I was at the Shoe for the game on Saturday afternoon. It’s always fun taking my two young boys to the games. The threat of rain never really left the Columbus area but we managed to watch 55 minutes of football without getting wet. The sun even came out for a few series in the 4th quarter.

What did I see?

Well, I saw more attempts to establish the vertical passing game. In previous posts, I noted that Pryor never throws the ball downfield. For the last two weeks the opposite has been the case. Not only has Terrelle thrown the ball down the field, we even got Devier Posey into the act throwing a touchdown pass off a double reverse. On the particular play Posey looked off his primary receiver (Pryor running the wheel route) and threw it to a secondary option in the end zone. Replays on the jumbo screen clearly showed Posey going through his progressions prompting the guy sitting next to me to say “Why can our flanker check off options before throwing a pass but Pryor still locks in on his intended receiver before throwing?” I told him that was a fair question. Back to the passing game - throwing the ball down the field should, in theory make the running game a little more productive. I saw Pryor throw at least 4 passes over 35 yards in the first half. He completed one and the other three weren’t close. He just throws it up and hopes his receivers can make a play. I will say that each of his long throws was to the receiver with single coverage…so I guess he’s making progress on those types of reads.

I also saw another dominating performance by the Silver Bullet Defense. At halftime OSU lead New Mexico State in total yards 305 to 58. I think the final totals were 550 to 68. I like the way Heacock got his defense refocused after the Purdue game. They have looked great the last two weeks.

New Mexico State was bad so the overall performance was expected. I thought Jordan Hall and Dane Sanzanbacher looked good on offense. I also give credit to the offensive line who I think avoided a false start penalty for the first time all year. Jermale Hines and John Simon looked good on defense.

What worked?

Pretty much everything. Holding an opponent under 80 yards of total offense was fun to watch. The defense was flying all over the field. Even the third team got some meaningful minutes in the second half. For the second week in a row, the running and passing games were fairly balanced. We also won the turnover battle again.

What didn’t work?

Much to everyone’s surprise on Saturday, Ohio State was 1 of 5 on field goal attempts. To be fair, two of the attempts were from 50+ yards into a pretty stiff breeze. To make matters worse, Aaron Pettrey left the game in the first half after getting hurt covering a kick. We got to see a replacement named Devin Barclay kick in the second half. He missed on two attempts but made one and also converted all of his extra points. I haven’t heard a report a Pettrey’s health. I hope he’s ok. Additionally, Pryor came out of the locker room after halftime without pads on. He spent the entire second half on the sideline helping signal in plays, talking with coaches and players and generally acting like one of the leaders on the team. Tressel mentioned in his press conference that Pryor got dinged up in the first half. I heard “hamstring” in Sunday but nothing since then. Not sure if there is a story here or not.

What’s next?

The trip to Happy Valley is never fun and next Saturday starts a three week stretch of games that will determine who’s going to the Rose Bowl. At the beginning of the year I predicted that Ohio State would lose this game. The only time I’ve watched Penn State play this year was their terrible performance against Iowa a few weeks ago. They seemed to have bounced back….playing better on both sides of the ball. The two teams played a close game last year in Columbus. The difference was a late fumble from Pryor that lead to the winning score for Penn State. This will be the most difficult environment Pryor will play in during his four years at Ohio State. He’s made some progress in some areas this year while regressing in other areas. I don’t see him making enough plays to win this game. I have it Penn State 17 and Ohio State 13.

Go Bucks!!!

Buckeye John

The State of Football in Michigan

2009-11-02T10:04:00.009-05:00

Michigan is a proud hard working State that loves it's football. You are either Maize and Blue or Green and White and still root for the Lions on Sunday. A home weekend could see 100,000+ in Ann Arbor, 60,000+ in East Lansing, and another 60,000 at Ford Field on Sunday.

But just like the economy and the auto industry, the football in the Great Lakes State has taken a turn for the worse. The State has 5 division 1 college teams and of course one professional football team. Their combined record this year is 21-30 with only two teams over .500.

So whose the best college football team in the State? This list may surprise a few:

Central Michigan: 7-2 Lost to BC this weekend 31-10

Michigan State: 4-5 Lost to Minnesota this weekend 42-34

University of Michigan: 5-4 Lost to Illinois 38-13

Western Michigan: 4-5 Lost to Kent State 26-14

Eastern Michigan: 0-8 Lost to Arkansas 63-27

Detroit Lions are 1-6 and lost to the Rams 17-10

The state's teams went 0-6 this weekend and gave up a combined 217 points. Where's the defense? What is going on with football in this state? There's only one team that is bowl eligible and they maybe the only one representing the State of Michigan this year in a post season game.

To be fair the Wolverines and Spartans are not holding up their end of the bargain. They both had embarrassing loses this weekend to inferior opponents. Both programs are heading for a 6-6 year. Michigan will have to beat Purdue on Saturday to get to 6 wins and State has Western Michigan, Purdue, and Penn State left on their schedule.

This state needs a pick me up and it doesn't look like the Lions, Pistons or Red Wings are going to do it this year. Michigan and MSU need to start playing with some pride and tradition. This weekend was embarrassing all around.

Michigan Football Can't.............

2009-11-01T14:20:00.006-05:00

So I was in attendance for that monstrosity on Saturday. In my preview, I was worried about this game being like the Purdue game last year, I was right except for the fact Michigan laid down after the double touchdown video reversals. (I haven't seen the video but being at the game and seeing both on the big screen, I thought both calls were Horse Sh*t).

Michigan will be lucky to be 6-6 this year and after going 4-0 that will be a nice 2-6 finish. Talk about a "hot" team, huh? Even if Michigan does beat Purdue and gets to 6 wins, I'm not sure they deserve an invite to a bowl game.

After walking out of the stadium a Michigan fan who was walking in front of us was asked by a guy smoking where he was going? He said, "both teams suck and mine sucks worse". So I have been going back and forth on what to write and that statement starting me thinking about all the things these Wolverines lack to do. So here is my list of what the current 2009 Wolverines Can't D0:

Michigan Football Can't:

Win on the road
Play in the rain
Play in the cold
Game plan on either side of the ball
Keep a lead
Catch a break from the video referee
Beat teams worse then them in the Big Ten (mostly on the road)
Play consistent offense after the 1st drive
Stop giving up big plays on defense
Tackle from the safety position
Stop fumbling from the QB position
Pass protect
Catch the ball to keep a drive going
Find anyone on scholarship to play safety

How is any football team able to win with all those "cant's"? It's not possible. I blame Lloyd Carr for his past recruiting classes and I blame Rich Rodriguez and Greg Robinson. Michigan needs to win these type of games. Nobody is expecting a 11 win year but we do expect to beat a team that would have trouble scoring 38 points by themselves in practice.

The state of the Wolverines is not very good and Brandon Graham, Carlos Brown, Brandon Minor, and Zoltan Mesko deserve better. Michigan has 3 games to save this season and really only 1 is winnable. This story hasn't ended but the fat lady is moving towards the microphone.

Michigan - Illinois Preview

2009-10-30T14:11:00.006-04:00

Time: 3:30 EST
Location: Champlain, IL
TV: ABC
Line: Illinois +7.5
Weather: 52 degrees and mostly sunny

I am going to take a different approach to this weeks preview. I usually talk about Michigan's offense vs Team X's ranked defense or how Michigan has struggled with turn overs, etc.

Today, I am going to talk about gut feel.

Ron Zook vs Rich Rodriguez. (that's a lot of R's and Z's for two head coaches and the last two years a lot of L's)

Both teams are struggling and both teams are fighting for their Big Ten lives. Illinois has been shutout in the Big Ten this year and Michigan has 1 win.

I am torn on this game.

On one hand, even though Illinois is struggling they match up very well against Michigan. They have an athletic QB that tore up the Big House last year and then dropped a game against Western Michigan. Michigan for some reason struggles against running QB's (don't they see them in practice every day?). This game also reminds me of a similar game last year during the same Halloween weekend against Purdue. Purdue had lost all it's QB's and had a running back run the offense. They threw everything at the Wolverines that day (fake punts, hook and laterals) and beat the Wolverines in a shoot out. Rich Rod has 1 road win in his entire Wolverines career.

On the other hand, Michigan is the much better football team. They have a good running game and can move the ball when they pass protect. Both of it's top running backs Minor and Brown seem healthy and ready to gain big yards against a poor defensive line for Illinois.

Michigan is favored by over a touchdown but how do you pick this one? Beating Michigan still means something for the Illinois's of the world and they are going to have their own two QB system going. This could be their entire season.

Michigan is coming off it's worst performance of the year and we will see on Saturday what type of coach Rich Rod really is. If he can pick these guys up this week, move the ball on offense, play sound defense, and take out the mental mistake/turnovers. Michigan should win easily.

Remember how drunk you were after the PSU game last weekend if:

Michigan can't hold on to the ball (passing games or fumbles)
The Juice is loose the entire game
The 3rd string QB starts throwing deep against Michigan Safeties
Michigan's offense makes the Illinois defense look like a solid unit

Sing "Hail to the Victors" at a Bowl Game if:

Michigan plays hard to get that 6th win
The memory of last week is long gone
Michigan moves the ball with ease on the ground
Tate looks sharp and so does the TE's and WR's
Denard doesn't throw
Michigan rushes for 350 yards

I expect Michigan to run the ball as much as they can. Minor, Brown, and Shaw might we be worn out if they don't fumble (and please don't!). Tate will mix in a few pass plays to keep them honest and if Denard is allowed behind center, please don't fumble or pass to anyone that doesn't have a white jersey on. Weather shouldn't be an issue this week. Besides my score prediction, I have another one for you: watch for Carlos Brown in the Wildcat this weekend. Michigan 31 Illinois 21

GO BLUE!

Week 9 Michigan MASH Report & News and Notes

2009-10-30T09:36:00.003-04:00

OUT
CB Zac Johnson, shoulder
C David Molk, knee (out for season)

PROBABLE (75 percent chance of playing)
WR Martavious Odoms, knee

This is a pretty good list for the Wolverines. No Warren,Hemingway, or Minor on the list. Odoms would be a loss, since he has stepped up as the top Slot WR. The game captains are: running back Kevin Grady, wide receiver Greg Mathews and guard Tim McAvoy.

News and Notes:

Witty still wants to be a Wolverine: Former teammate of Denard Robinson's Adrain Witty is still working hard to become academically eligible and join the Wolverines. His High School coach: “I stay in contact with Witty all the time and he’s excited about trying to get back up to Michigan,” former Deerfield Beach (Fla.) coach Art Taylor said. “And that’s someone that I think Michigan misses right now because Adrian can fly. He was the only kid that could beat Shoelace in a race.”

The Michigan Basketball Team is ranked #15 in both pre-season polls.

Big Ten Week 9 Preview and Predictions

2009-10-29T13:43:00.005-04:00

As we know the Big Ten has a national perception problem. Iowa is a top 5 team but put them on the field with a top SEC or PAC 10 team and many believe they would get blown out. We all know about Ohio State's issues and Penn State sort of came back from the dead last week to blow out a Michigan team that was every one's darling after starting 4-0.

So now what? A set of big games that will have the country on the edge of their seats? Nope. A very down week for match ups. There really isn't even a Big Ten Game of the Week.

A great week for the Big Ten Channel.

Now on to the show.................

New Mexico State at OSU: Holly lines Batman! Ohio State is favored by 43.5 points on Saturday. This should be a close one! Pryor's Backup 61 NMS 7

Indiana at Iowa: Remember when we though IU was pretty good after their performance at Michigan? Well, it turns out that Michigan wasn't as good as we thought. Same goes for Hoosiers who are fighting for a Bowl Game but won't get out of Iowa City with a win on Saturday. Classic let down game for Iowa but I still think they will win. Iowa is a 17.5 favorite. Iowa 24 IU 14

Purdue at Wisconsin: I think the Boilermakers would have a decent shot of winning this game if it was played at home. But they have to travel to Madison for this one. After losing 5 in a row, Purdue beat the #7 ranked Buckeyes and Illinois last weekend. Wisconsin is favored by a touchdown and will have to keep a close eye on the Boilermakers who are playing with nothing to lose. Wisconsin 20 Purdue 17

Michigan State at Minnesota: If this was week 3 or 4 I would have picked The Golden Gophers in this one easy. Michigan State's defense is getting better by the week (BTW: I thought it was a terrible call to run a blitz with one second left on the clock against Iowa, fill up the end zone with people and make it difficult for Iowa to find a throwing lane) and was one second away from beating a top 5 Iowa team last week. It will be cold in The Gophers new outdoor stadium and they would have a considerable home field advantage after dropping two straight games on the road to ranked Big Ten teams bu they have lost their top WR Eric Decker to an injury. The Spartans -3.5. MSU 27 Minnesota 21

Penn State at Northwestern: Penn State comes off maybe it's best performance in the Big House ever last week and Northwestern beat Indiana by one point. Penn State is clearly the better team but might find itself in a let down situation against the Wildcats. If JoPa and the boys come ready to play like they did last week, this game will be over at half time. PSU is favored by 14.5. Penn State 38 NW 10

The Michigan - Illinois game will be previewed tomorrow.

RR Video on Boubacar

2009-10-28T18:01:00.003-04:00

In what seems to be ironic timing: Boubacar's Disorderly Conduct Charge from last Summer was dismissed today in a Detroit court room.

Wolverine Wednesday: Bye Bye Boubacar

2009-10-28T09:42:00.008-04:00

Rich Rodriguez has removed Boubacar Cissoko from the Michigan Football Team. He recently had been suspended but got back on the field against Penn State last Saturday. Michigan was playing him at corner and moving Troy Woolfolk back to Safety in certain formations.

As you might expect, this is a difficult loss for a secondary that is already very thin. At this point, I'm sure there are conversations about blowing Justin's Turners redshirt this year. Look for JT Floyd to get most of Boubacar's snaps but even he has been out for a couple weeks with the flu.

Boubacar was the starting right cornerback against Western Michigan but had trouble matching up with taller wide receivers and was often beat deep. He was a 5 star cornerback out of Cass Tech Detroit just two years ago.

So why did he get thrown off the team? Boubacar's High School Coach weighs in:

Cissoko's high school coach, Thomas Wilcher of Detroit Cass Tech, said Cissoko was dismissed from the team for missing class, missing workouts and missing study table.

"That's what he was suspended for in the first place," Wilcher told The Detroit News. "He's upset. He's going to transfer as long as he can meet the requirements."

Wilcher said Cissoko had a difficult time handling the "social structure" at Michigan.

"He couldn't handle it," Wilcher said. "He's always been a quiet kid. (But) he needs to do what needs to be done as a student-athlete. Nobody is bigger than the program."

Don't forget he also got into trouble this summer in Detroit when he was ridding in a car with a bunch of his friends and got pulled over.

Seems like Boubacar was a square peg in a round hole. It has to be difficult on kids that come from a urban setting like Detroit and find themselves in Ann Arbor. It must a big change on the academic and social side of life. I hope he finds a program that is a good fit for him as a person.

BTW: This doesn't look good for current 2010 recruit Dior Mathis to come to Michigan now. Dior is similar in size and ability to Boubacar. My guess is Boubacar's experience will sour him on the Wolverines. For what it's worth, I think Michigan needs taller corners anyway.

To flip this around, this could be just the news a top 2010 CB recurit like Cullen Christian needs to become a Wolveine.

Michigan Football Recruiting Blitz

2009-10-27T09:08:00.008-04:00

It's been pretty quiet on the recruiting front lately so, I thought I would give everyone a quick update. As of today, Michigan has 19 verbal commitments for the 2010 class and one for the 2011 class. There remains some open questions (who won't be asked back for a 5th year, injuries, juniors in the NFL draft, etc) about how many kids Michigan can take in 2010 but a full class would be 25.

Michigan focused early on the offense side of the ball and now will look for the remaining 5-6 spots on defense. Below is the recent depth chart on some key positions. The walk-on's are in red. (pretty easy to see where Michigan needs help)

As of October 26th:

SS
Jordan Kovacs
Jared Van Slyke

WLB
Jonas Mouton
Kevin Leach
Brandon Smith (red shirt freshman, recruited as a safety)

FS
Mike Williams
Vladimir Emilien (true freshman)

LCB
Donovan Warren
Teric Jones (true freshman)
Justin Turner (true freshman and will redshirt)

RCB
Troy Woolfolk
Boubacar Cissoko
J.T. Floyd (redshirt freshman)

A couple of notes on the depth chart: Michigan has 3 walk on's on the above two deeps, Warren may take an early exit to the NFL next year, Teric Jones started spring ball as a running back, Mike Williams has struggled this year but Vlad has seen little time outside of DSU.

If your a top defensive back or safety recruit in the class of 2010 Michigan sure has a great opportunity for you to see the field very early as a freshman.

So with that out of the way. What is going on in the recruiting arena?

Cullen Christian a top DB out of Pittsburgh has had Michigan as his leader most of the year. After a trip to WVU this past weekend he feels everyone is pretty equal. He is planning to announce a couple days after his visit to A2 for the Ohio State game. The schools in the running with Michigan include: Pitt, WVU, and UCLA. This is a very high priority recruit for the Wolverines.

Tony Jefferson a 4 star saftety recruit out of California and current UCLA commit will take a visit to Ann Arbor for the Purdue game. Mgoblog's TomVH recently interviewed him: The coaches (from Michigan) have been talking to me for awhile now, and they've really turned up the intensity. That's part of why I'm taking a visit. I've been talking to coach Singletary and Rich Rodriguez. They've basically been telling me that I'm a priority for them, and they really want me."
"I've been watching their games, and I really like the way they've been playing defense. I know at Michigan I could get a really good education, and always be fighting to play in a bowl game; I like that."
"I have a really strong feeling towards Michigan. I get along really well with their staff, and Tate Forcier has been talking to me alot. He's a San Diego boy, and he's been telling me about how much he loves it." This would be a great win on the recruiting trail if Michigan could land Tony, but it still remains a stretch with UCLA and Florida probably his top 2.

Carvin Johnson a safety out of New Orleans visited Ann Arbor last Saturday and liked what he saw: “I just really enjoyed the people there. Coach Rod (Rich Rodriguez) and his staff were great,” Johnson said. “They are high up there because I enjoyed myself and feel like I fit in that environment with those people. I can see myself as a Wolverine.” Calvin is not ranked by either service and is considered a "sleeper". He does have offers from Minnesota, Utah, Tulane, and Tulsa.

Running Back from Texas, Stephen Hopkins took his second visit to Ann Arbor this weekend and confirmed his commitment: “I liked everything again and am pretty happy with my decision,” Hopkins said following his visit. “I’m even more excited to get there now.”

Other News and Notes:

The Michigan - Purdue game start time on 11/7 is a noon kick on the Big Ten Network.
Michigan is a 7.5 favorite this weekend over Illinois.

Breaking News: Michigan Manic Monday: Troubled Waters

2009-10-26T15:27:00.004-04:00

So my grandmother always said, "trouble comes in 3's".

Today Grandma was right.

#1: Michigan 10 Penn State 35
#2: Molk out for the season with a torn ACL
#3: The NCAA is officially investigating "Work Out Gate"

They hope to have it completed by the end of the year. I guess Michigan wasn't fast enough on it's own investigation/finding and reporting it back to the NCAA.

I just love that NCAA and U of M are going to spend thousands of dollars researching if kids wanted to or were forced to work out. Thank you Detroit Free Press, if there are no violations found the Free Press should have to pick up all the costs of the investigation.

If anyone has any good news I would love to hear it!

Buckeye Monday: Golden Gophers Review

2009-10-26T15:13:00.001-04:00

Buckeyes Blast the Gophers……

What a difference one week makes!!! Coming off one of the poorest performances in years the Buckeyes proved that they can make plays on offense and the defense can still dominate games. I’m glad that Terrelle Pryor didn’t let all the negative press get him in a mental hole that he wouldn’t be able to run and pass his way out of. When he ran, he ran with conviction and when he threw the ball it was with better vision and mechanics. He still has a ways to go but this was a very important week for him and the team. Showing progress after last week was huge. Here’s hoping he and the coaching staff can build on this performance in the last four weeks of the season.

What worked?

#1 The play calling was much better this week. 509 yards of offense was pretty evenly split between running and passing….230 yards in the air and 279 on the ground. I was happy to see Tressel stick with the running game even after Saine left the game with what is being reported as a concussion. Jordon Hall is proving to be a capable back and Jermil Martin looked great when he got his chances in the second half. With Herron and Saine injured (for how long I don’t know), having capable backs to rely on will be huge to take some of the pressure off Pryor. In addition, I was thrilled to see Pryor throw the ball downfield on several plays. I think showing off the vertical passing game will give Penn State, Iowa and Michigan something to think about as the prep for the upcoming games.

#2 Welcome back to the Silver Bullets on defense. The third string gave up a late touchdown that blew a chance for a third shutout this season. That was a small price to pay given that the new players got a chance to see meaningful minutes. Thad Gibson is a monster. Is anyone playing better defense in the Big Ten than him? He showed once again that he can take over a game when he wants to.

#3 Special mention goes to Posey, Hall and Martin. Heck…I’ll even give a shout out to Pryor here.

What didn’t work?

#1 What’s up with the fans? The Shoe seemed quite today. I know it was cold and a bit wet in Columbus but come on.

#2 The kicking game is seems to be lacking this year. Tressel says the punt is the most important play in football. Thoma is not producing the types of kicks that can change field position that we have come to expect in the Tressel era. In addition, Pettrey’s kick-offs never came close to reaching the goal line and he missed another chip shot. I hope these issues are addressed for the last four games.

#3 Where has Duron Carter gone? He showed some pretty good hands earlier in the year and I thought he deserved an expanded role in the offense. I wonder if he’s in someone’s doghouse.

What’s next?
The mighty Aggies of New Mexico State come to Columbus next weekend. I hope this turns out to be a game much like the UM – Delaware State game last week. I don’t know anything about this team but I don’t think they will provide much of a challenge. I’ll be in attendance looking for continued improvement from Pryor, more domination from the defense and a lopsided score at the end of the game. I have it 45-6 Buckeyes.

Go Bucks!!!

Buckeye John