Let's see more of this guy on offense . . . Denard Robinson. What? Yeah, you read that correctly. I hope that in years to come, Robinson can stay healthier than he did this year. Earlier in the year, I wanted Robinson to run the ball less. On Saturday, I wanted him to run the ball a lot. Well, he ran 18 times for 105 yards, but dislocated a couple fingers on his left hand and missed most of the second half. Sometimes that's the way the cookie crumbles, I guess.
Let's see less of this guy on offense . . . Butterfingers Roundtree. I'm not sure what happened to one of my favorite players on this year's team, Roy Roundtree. He was perhaps the most dependable receiver on the team over about the first nine games of the season, but dropped a couple passes in games 10 and 11, then dropped five passes (I think) against Ohio State. He had several chances to make critical catches and couldn't seem to keep his focus for some reason.
Let's see more of this guy on defense . . . Courtney Avery. The presence of Avery might allow Troy Woolfolk to return to free safety in 2011. I really like what I've seen from him in the second half of this season. He needs to get stronger and work on his tackling, but I look forward to seeing him develop over the next few years.
Let's see less of this guy on defense . . . Greg Robinson. Bye, Coach Robinson. I hope you land on your feet somewhere. A lot of people are mad at you, but I kind of feel sorry for you. Maybe at your next destination, the head coach won't force you to run a style of defense that you don't understand.
MVP of the Ohio State game . . . Jordan Kovacs. I know I mentioned yesterday that I wish Kovacs had tossed the ball to a more athletic teammate after he intercepted a pass at the end of the second quarter, but Kovacs played a solid game. He ended the day with 17 tackles and the interception. Good for him.
"The presence of Avery might allow Troy Woolfolk to return to free safety in 2011"
ReplyDeletePlease no. Is it too much to ask for not one but TWO reliable cornerbacks? Do we really want the other CB job in JT Floyd's hands? Christian or Talbott? Another true freshman?
No more shuffling people around. Just let Avery compete with other young CBs for the starter opposite Woolfok and the nickel/dime positions. Depth at the position would be nice.
I realize FS is a weakness but Vinopal and Johnson both played Safety in high school and will return as relatively experienced sophomores. Let them stick at one position, learn it well, and compete with whatever recruits sign on.
@ Lankownia 6:07 p.m.
ReplyDeleteLike it or not, the CB job or the FS job is going to be relatively weak in 2011, at least by Michigan standards. I'd rather have a weak CB than a weak FS. I know Cameron Gordon got moved to a new position and will likely stick there, but Gordon at FS hurt us more than Rogers/Floyd/Avery at CB.
So far we haven't seen Carvin Johnson at FS. Even after the "position change," he only played Spur. So the jury's still out on that move.
Whether it's Avery, Christian, Talbott, Crawford, or Hollowell...it would be nice to see a young guy (or two) break out between now and next season. I agree, Woolfolk at FS is preferable. JT Floyd might not be a great athlete, but he's experienced and confident and can hold his own.
ReplyDeleteMagnus, do you think if Bill Stewart retires, Jeff Casteel would be inclined to come to Ann Arbor? I'm not going to go ahead and put Casteel's nuts in my mouth immediately, but at the very least he's a guy who wouldn't be at odds with Rich Rod over the defense.
@ David 11:54 a.m.
ReplyDeleteI don't know a whole lot about Casteel personally. I do think that if he were not retained at WVU, he would seriously be interested in coming to Michigan. From the little I've read about the situation he and Rodriguez had at WVU, they got along pretty well.
But he is loyal to WVU, so it likely depends on whether the new head coach would want to retain Casteel or not.
Any chance the influx of young corners will allow us to shift JT Floyd to safety? I've read it in a few places (maybe you?) where they think his natural position is safety.
ReplyDelete@ Anonymous 1:39 p.m.
ReplyDeleteIt was probably me that suggested Floyd move to safety, although I'm probably not the only one to suggest that.
I don't think the coaches would move BOTH Woolfolk and Floyd to safety. And as I think I mentioned above, I think you put your better athlete (in this case, Woolfolk) at free safety. So as much as it pains me to say it, I think J.T. Floyd should probably be a starting corner again in 2011.
Casteel is arguably the most likely guy to be promoted to head coach IF Stewart is fired. Seems like a long shot to me.
ReplyDeleteI wish Johnson had never moved from free safety, but alas. Regardless, he showed a lot of ability. Vinopal, too, seemed competent, even promising, when he wasn't being asked to run blitz. The FS spot looks below average, but doesn't appear to be a disaster. I'd rather stick with these guys than assume a bunch of freshman, true sophomores, and JT freaking Floyd are going to make a leap in ability. The last couple years has shown us that inconsistency in roles and position switches come with a cost.
I have no clue if Floyd woulld make a better FS than a corner, but I'd be willing to throw him into the mix along with Vinopal, Johnson, and whatever true freshman comes. Competition and depth are good.
Lank,
ReplyDeleteFloyd has a decent football head on his shoulders, but he's not exactly a great athlete and safeties should be pretty good at tackling, which is probably Floyd's most glaring weakness. I know he's a vocal leader of the secondary, but I'd almost rather he not see the field at all (because other options present themselves).