I am about to begin my annual countdown to the beginning of the season, so let me take a moment to explain what will happen over the next few months. Nearly every day, I will count down the vast majority of the players on the roster from least important to most important. I'm going to leave myself a few days' leeway in case something comes up in the intervening months, but generally, there will be a post each day from mid-May until late August profiling a different player.
"Importance" is defined by me as "How much would the team be hurt by losing this particular player?" For example, Blake Countess is a very good player but Michigan also has other good cornerbacks in Jourdan Lewis, Raymon Taylor, and potentially Jabrill Pappers, not to mention veteran Delonte Hollowell and sophomore Channing Stribling. That means Michigan's season isn't riding on Countess. On the flip side, Devin Funchess is Michigan's only proven receiver, so losing him could mean bad things for a very green receiving corps overall.
If you want to glance back at how this played out last year, check out the 2013 Season Countdown.
Leave your thoughts, guesses, predictions, etc. in the comments!
Looking forward to your posts!
ReplyDeleteGood!
DeleteFavorite part of reading your site, keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteFavorite part of the site, keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteThanks...for both comments!
Delete>> Leave your thoughts, guesses, predictions, etc. in the comments!
ReplyDeleteThe most pressing question is who will be #1 most important? Last year it was Gardner, for obvious reasons. We had no viable backup QB. But this year we do (kinda-sorta) ... so it'll be interesting to see if Gardner once again takes the top slot. I would think so ... but I say that mostly because I don't know who could reasonably be considered more important than the QB.
If we had a David Molk at center as a RS-SR with only a true freshman backup I might be tempted to name that position. But we don't have a RS-SR center named 'Molk' so it doesn't apply.
Our RBs are an unsettled mix, so there's no true #1 for whole team there.
I'm inclined to think by default we back into Gardner as the #1 most important.
Which means the *real* debate becomes #2 through about #5 or #6. :-)
Nope, the most pressing question is which inevitably Red-shirting freshman OLmen Thunder put lowest on his list. I can't wait to argue about that.
DeleteBut seriously, let's not spoil the fun. #1 is a long ways off [and it will obviously be Gardner.]
I think Gardner is the clear cut #1. This season rides on his shoulders no matter how many fans believe that Morris should be the starter. Funchess should also be up there as the only proven returning WR. After that I think it gets tough because of the unproven players at a lot of positions. A player like Countess could be up there but CB depth seems really good so he won't be as important. I would put Wilson in the top 5 as there is no other experienced safety on the team. Butt could be up there as the only viable TE but he's coming off an ACL injury. The LBs are good but there is also good depth there and a lot of rotation. I guess Ryan could be in the top 5 except that he's playing a new position so it's unknown how good he will be this year. There should be some good players on the DL, and maybe Clark should be top 5 but there aren't any real stars on the line yet.
ReplyDeleteOverall, it seems like there is a lot of potential but so little is proven now. The team could be good if everything falls into place but it's a lot of development that needs to happen between the new LB positions, the entire OL, the RBs, additional WRs, finding a second safety and shoring up the middle of the DL. Not to mention Gardner improving at making progressions and cutting down on the INTs.
not the gif i was hoping for
ReplyDeleteSorry...I'll keep trying.
DeleteYes! I've been counting down to the Countdown all spring.
ReplyDeleteYou should start your own website that counts down to the countdown.
DeleteSorry for the spoil: 1. Devin Gardner, 2. Frank Clark, 3. Devin Funchess, 4. Derrick Green, 5. Jake Ryan
ReplyDeleteMy predictions:
ReplyDeleteGardner, F. Clark, Magnuson, Morris, Lewis, Darboh, Ryan, G. Glasgow, Chesson, Countess, Kalis, Hurst, Canteen, Jenkins-Stone, Funchess, Braden, Ross, Bolden, Bosch, Peppers, Henry, Beyer, Gedeon, J. Wilson, D. Morgan, D. Smith, R. Taylor, D. Hill, Ojemudia, Butt, Green, Wile, Hayes, Godin, D. Thomas, Stribling, Charlton, J. Clark, Cole, Pipkins, Wormley, Kugler, R. Glasgow, Williams, Strobel, McCray, Norfleet, Heitzman, Sypniewski, Hollowell, Speight, J. Miller, D. Johnson, Houma, Hagerup, Allen, Richardson, D. Jones, Gant, Douglas, Bellomy, D. Dawson, Marshall, Kerridge, Bars, Tuley-Tillman, York, Poggi, R. Dawson, Mone, K. Hill, Ways, Burzynski, Watson, Bunting, Drake Harris, Seychel, Fox, Shallman, Dever, Dukes, Jack Wangler, Cleary, Winovich, Samuelson, Henderson, Jocz, Moores, Ferns, Dalimonte, Furbush, Liesman, A. Robinson, Pearson, Jared Wangler, Capatina, Pallante, Benda, Bushell-Beatty, Swieca, Pliska, Austin, Mitropoulos-Rundus, Wroblewski, Froelich, G. Miller, Whitfield, Keizer, Hewlett, Montbrun
Butt and Pipkins are far lower than they would be without their injuries. Magnuson is elevated because of lack of depth at LT, even if not 100 percent healthy.
Well, no way Magnuson and Morris are 3 and 4. Don't you think Funchess and RB are more important than them?
Delete