AnnArbor.com story on J.T Turner, secondary
http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/jt-turner-could-be-a-big-con…
Cliffs:
-They were really tempted to burn his redshirt
-Turner will start at corner
-Woolfolk will play where he is needed
-Also sounds like J.T. Floyd will start at corner
It needs to be September already.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:23 PM ^
Queme las camisas rojas.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:45 PM ^
after i translated this at google translate, i found it funny.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:46 PM ^
I found it funny that there actually was a Google Translate, and that I went there to translate the phrase, that was also funny. wait, what?
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:24 PM ^
J.T. Turner practiced enough with the Michigan football team's first- and second-team defense last year that coaches thought about pulling his redshirt when injuries and poor play in the secondary began to mount. “It was very tempting,” defensive backs coach Tony Gibson said Sunday. “But I think the best thing that could have happened, happened - keeping that redshirt.”The best news I've heard all day.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:53 PM ^
is that this shows the coaching staff's patience and discipline. They are interested and focused on the long-term, not just the winning-right-here-right-now attitude. That is certainly the right mindset to be in when building a program.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:26 PM ^
Don't be too quick to bypass the spring game!
The season can come three weeks after that.
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:39 PM ^
IMO, the season should not start until the following happen:
1. Tate Forcier is healthy
2. Vince Smith is healthy
3. Anyone else with injury issues (Molk/Martin) are healthy.
if that happens 3 weeks after the spring game, so be it!
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:27 PM ^
not surprising that floyd is expected to start...woolfolk played deep safety against OSU and i doubt dorsey or christian are ready to start day 1
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:59 PM ^
Unless we see a Stevie Brown-like turnaround from Mike Williams, you're going to see Dorsey or Christian starting from day one.
My takeaways:
- Turner is the man and will start
- Woolfolk is good and will start
- Floyd is at worst a nickel, with a decent shot at starting
- We have two studs coming in (Dorsey, Christian), one of whom should start
That makes a pretty good starting lineup there, if Floyd can in fact build on the OSU game (didn't look back to the UFR from this game, but I assume AnnArbor.com is correct).
And I'm not even mentioning Vlad (who seems confident), Kovie, or any of our other true frosh. I think CB should be significantly better this year.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:05 PM ^
I really wish I could agree with you but I'm still very nervous about the youth of our secondary. I agree that Woolfolk will play well, but for the rest of the guys I'm not so sure they'll succeed right out of the gate. It just seems to me that playing well as a true or RS frosh is asking alot at this level.
I do believe in a few years our No Fly Zone is going to be downright scary, but I hope it happens quicker than I anticipate.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:12 PM ^
im not sure what your trying to get at here...idk what mike williams has to do with dorsey or cullen starting since they play completely different positions...
you even said you expect turner to start and floyd to be a nickel at worst, in response to me saying i expect floyd to start the season...so thats 2 CB spots right there and that means neither dorsey nor cullen would start...you cant have turner, floyd, woolfolk, and cullen/dorsey starting since none of them play box safety
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:20 PM ^
Dorsey is an athlete. He could play either S or CB.
Also in that article it makes it pretty clear that based on Turner's size, he could play S too.
The four best players are going to be out there. Expand your mind.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:22 PM ^
yes but if and when dorsey does play safety, he will be at deep safety....our box safety is much like our spinner position...a safety thats lined up in the box for run support...our spinner position is a S/LB hybrid type position, but our box safety is very similar...
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:12 PM ^
You mean like Marvin Robinson?
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:21 PM ^
The secondary will be worse than last year
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:41 PM ^
Are you basing this on? The fact that Floyd played well against Ohio State, or the fact that he will improve from last year?
February 22nd, 2010 at 10:28 PM ^
OSU didn't burn us through the air. Part of that certainly has to do with accuracy issues from Terrelle Pryor. He missed a couple of open receivers on what would have been huge gains/TD passes.
Floyd also got burned during the Indiana game, and his problems were not instinctive problems but physical issues. He does not have great footspeed. If that improves DRAMATICALLY (which is not what you said), maybe.
But going from Warren/Woolfolk to Turner/Floyd would certainly be anything but optimal, although I guess having Troy at deep safety could be good. Still, if you want to act as if the OSU game means Floyd is ready to be a good corner, that's fine. I personally don't think he played that well and I think a more accurate quarterback could have made that secondary look a lot worse. Having Brandon Graham rushing and Warren on the other side didn't hurt.
Negbang me all you want, but I have nothing against Floyd. He seems to be a high level guy but if he starts at corner I don't think it would be a good sign.
February 22nd, 2010 at 10:41 PM ^
Didn't mean it would have been a good sign to see him starting the year afterward
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:30 PM ^
I wish. But I love the fact that they didn't throw Turner to the wolves just to stop the bleeding.
There's gonna be some tough expectations for this kid to fill, but on the other hand it's gonna be sweet to see that #2 lining up outside again.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:33 PM ^
“It was very tempting,” defensive backs coach Tony Gibson said Sunday. “But I think the best thing that could have happened, happened - keeping that redshirt.”
I think that the best thing that could have happened is that we could have won another game and made a bowl game. But that's just me.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:37 PM ^
im not so sure the best thing to do was put in a true freshmen CB on the hope that would be enough to win one more game over saving his RS and giving him a full year as a 5th year senior instead
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:41 PM ^
D Warren was here for three years; if Turner lives up to expectations, I doubt that he will stay for 5.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:58 PM ^
but my point remains the same...whether its a full 5th year senior year, 4th year junior, or 3rd year sophmore...its an extra full year with a few years in the system compared to a few games as a true freshmen when the defense would still have huge holes in it..
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:02 PM ^
Not really. He can stay for 4 years and leave as a RS Junior just like he could have stayed 4 years and left as a Senior without a redshirt.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:08 PM ^
but your assuming that he will leave after his RS junior year...and thats along with assuming that him playing for the first time in a college football game as a true freshmen would be good enough to win us another game...
i will definitely take the potential for a full year with 4 years experience behind him over a few games playing for the first time every time its offered to me
February 22nd, 2010 at 6:11 PM ^
I didn't make the assumption that Michigan would have won another game with him. The quote said "the best thing that could have happened." That is what I was responding to; that isn't an assumption.
Also, I do think that he would be unlikely to stay 5 years if he lives up to expectations. It would be awesome if he does, but it isn't likley. If he plays well, he will start for the next 4 years, and probably won't have much else to prove at that point.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:03 PM ^
Warren came to Michigan because of our track record of producing NFL CB's. Turner came to Michigan because he has always been a huge Michigan fan.
It's possible Turner leaves early if he is a shutdown CB after his third year, but the fact that he is a true "Michigan Man" increases the likelihood of him staying until graduation.
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:45 PM ^
"It's possible Turner leaves early if he is a shutdown CB after his third year, but the fact that he is a true "Michigan Man" increases the likelihood of him staying until graduation."
This seems highly idealistic to me. Woodson was a "MichMan" yet he left after his Junya year. Also, this comment could be used to insinuate that you do not believe Long Beach (Warren) is a "MichMan" since he left after his junior year. The fact is if a player feels he is ready to play in the NFL, he will.
February 22nd, 2010 at 5:20 PM ^
Woodson left because he was the "Fuckin Man". Turner can redshirt, win the Heisman, a national championship and leave early. That would be just fine.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:11 PM ^
If they thought he could have made the differnce between a win and a loss, they should have played him. If he's that good, he's not staying here five years anyway.
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:27 PM ^
and dont see why it was negged. i dont know if one can simplify the wins or losses to a specific player (especially a CB) but if he could produce he should have played IME.
we're not talking about a three win season vs four win; this was the chance to play in a bowl game and probably takes a lot of heat off rr, gives the young guys extra practice, and shuts up people like me (for a little bit).
February 22nd, 2010 at 5:23 PM ^
yes if he can produce he should play...but when your dealing with burning a redshirt you have to consider how much he would produce for you in the extra year he is getting vs. the few games as a true freshmen...
lets say he was really good for a true freshmen like roh was...the most we could realistic hope for in that case was for him to be a decent to pretty good player...would that have been enough to fix our defense? our LBs were really bad that let teams run at will on us, and we would still have one more huge liability at one safety position...im not sure turner would be THAT much better as a true freshmen than our other option as to enable us to win another game on that alone...as a matter of fact i wouldnt expect turner to play much better if better at all than floyd played against OSU
now lets take a look at what he could potentially do for us in a full season with 3 or 4 years of experience...he has potential to be one of the top corners in the country and i would damn sure think that someone would want potentially one of the top corners in the country for a full season rather than a true freshmen playing for the first time for 4 games...
13 games vs. 4 MAYBE 5 games
4 years experience vs. true freshmen
even if i was guaranteed that we would win 1 more game and go to a bowl if we burned his redshirt, i still wouldnt want them to do it...turner has the makings of being a HUGE part of a defense that could potentially help s to the rose bowl or NCG...in 2 years we arent going to eb thinking about how we didnt go to a bowl or how we went to the pizza crust bowl...would it have been nice to go to a bowl? sure, but i dont think the hope of maybe going to a low bowl is worth a full season in which we could compete for a BCS bowl
February 22nd, 2010 at 7:37 PM ^
If Turner lives up to his hype and expectations there is no way he is here for a fifth year. Thus the redshirt was an absolute waste. Fact of the matter is he can now leave after his RS sophomore year which is three years after his HS class graduated and would be expected if he lives up to your expectations (one of the top CBs in the country).
IMHO, getting to a bowl last year would have been much more valuable then saving JTs RS. It would have given a extremely young team 15 more practices and gave them a taste of what the bowl experience is like leaving them hungry for more.
February 22nd, 2010 at 8:07 PM ^
all of you keep saying.."if he lives up to his hype there is no way he stays for a fifth year"
i think its VERY likely he stays for a fifth year...every player thats good doesnt leave early...he would probably have to be a top 3 or maybe 4 CB as a junior for him to be prjected high enough for it to be a smart decision...even then he would be a late 1st or 2nd round pick, i would certainly expect him to come back to try and move up his stock...not to mention by then we might be at the point where we could be a NC contender the next season...you dont think he would stay if that were the case?
just because he's expected to be really good doesnt mean its a lock he'll leave early if he is...
and you dont think its worth giving up AT BEST a low bowl appearance for even the potential of having him as a 5th year senior and being a HUGE impact player on what could be a NC caliber defense?
i dont see whats so hard for you to understand about that...like i said earlier, we arent going to be sitting here 2 years from now thinking how great it was to get a 6th win and go to the pizza crust bowl...i think it would have been a waste to burn his redshirt as much as it would as to keep it on him and him leave early...because at most last year we would have been 6-6 and made a bad bowl appearance which is still bad by michigan standards..when RR would have at least taken a chance at getting what would have been one of the best defensive players in the country for a 5th year
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:34 PM ^
There's no guarantee he would have been the difference against Illinois or Purdue, and the last two games were against Wisconsin and Ohio State, so the schedule got rough there at the end. He could have easily played, played okay, and we'd still have the same record. That could have happened, but for the future, moving forward, I'll take what we have. That's just me.
February 22nd, 2010 at 6:20 PM ^
I think that the best thing that could have happened is that we could have won another game and made a bowl game.
It's very likely that three years from now, you'll be singing a different tune.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:34 PM ^
I wonder how definitive JT Floyd starting is at this point because I'm curious to see how the competition between Dorsey/Christian/Floyd goes during fall practice. It's still a relief to know that Turner was competitive enough in practice to have played last year. Hopefully with all this new depth (I'm scared to use that word this early on) we can keep all the DBs happy in the long run.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:06 PM ^
I didn't read that as he will "start" at corner so much as he will "start out" at corner. He will play corner initially bit a move to safety is possible.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:47 PM ^
Avery either. Kid has been "the man" leading his H.S. team since his Freshmen year at QB / CB. 4.0 student. Can't wait to see him in action..... He is my sleeper pick for the DB race coming up for 2010/2011.... ;-)
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:40 PM ^
corners. He won't make us forget Woodson, but he will be the best we've had since, IMO.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:44 PM ^
What is your opinion based one?! We've had some really good corners since Woodson. If Turner reminds you of Marlin Jackson in a few years, is he a failure in your eyes?
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:54 PM ^
As long as he doesn't remind us of Morgan Trent, then it's all good to me.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:58 PM ^
Morgan Trent made the Bengals as a 6th round draft pick and got a bunch of time his rookie season in a pretty good defensive backfield. I would say Morgan ended up being pretty good.
I would agree he did struggle his first couple of years at DB at Michigan.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:17 PM ^
I thought he did a decent job here, and the Bengals seem to think he is pretty good.
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:17 PM ^
It was almost trendy to hate on Morgan Trent early in his career; by his senior year, if you go through the UFR's, he was a solid corner, and has done well at the next level given his draft position and his youth. He is a player that steadily improved year-to-year at Michigan. . . like I wish Obi and Jonas had from '08 to '09. Here's hoping for '10.
February 22nd, 2010 at 5:28 PM ^
Dude RAN DOWN Percy freakin Harvin! Kicked SEC speed in the teeth, and cured children's cancers.
February 23rd, 2010 at 2:04 AM ^
Still, Morgan Trent is no Todd Howard.
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:45 PM ^
Have you ever heard of a player named Leon Hall?
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:56 PM ^
Honestly leon hall was overrated. He was good but no shutdown corner or am i the only one who remembers him getting tooled on in the rose bowl.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:00 PM ^
First of all, I don't think that you define a career by one game. Second, I think a lot of players got "tooled" by Dewayne Jarrett, Mike Williams, and Kerry Colbert.