Grit Pantheon

Submitted by Ezeh-E on

I got to thinking, we throw the term grit around a lot here, which is good.  I like my nouns to be portable just like the next man.  But what do we mean by grit?  Does it mean that you have to be a 2-3 star grinder, who is usually white?  Actually, I don't really care to define the term much.  Defining it reduces it to less than awesome. 

Instead, I thought of nominating players to join the Grit Pantheon and sit atop Mt. Schembechler and drink nectar, ambrosia, and buckeye tears. 

I can't do an all time team, since 1991 is as far back as I really remember, and I only got MGoStatus in 2009.  Here are my 2011 nominees for Grit Pantheon:

David Molk (Sugar Bowl Injury)

Van Bergen (Sugar Bowl Injury)

V. Smith (handguns, 5'6" of cut blocking cruise missle)

Odoms (injured, buried on depth chart, heart of a champion. see 2008 minnesota game)

Kovacs (you know the story)

D. Robinson (pats Gholston on the ass after Gholston tried to break his neck)

B. Mealer (you know the story)

2012 nominee:  Dennis Norfleet.  See the video from the 7on7 where he smacks concrete face first at full speed and bounces up for the next play.

Who do you nominate for grit?

 

clarkiefromcanada

February 12th, 2012 at 10:24 AM ^

 

Pos: S Pos Rank: #124 Pos Rating:   


Scout.com Player Evaluation:
STRENGTHS
 Anticipation
 Closing Speed
 Coverage Awareness
AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT
 Size
Smart, heady, confident player who consistently puts himself in position to make plays. Has good closing speed and takes good angles in pursuit. In coverage, he shows good awareness and solid ball skills. He does not yet have ideal size and strength but is an excellent form tackler. His enthusiasm for the game is contagious and he's a true leader to his team mates. - Allen Trieu

 

cozy200

February 11th, 2012 at 7:15 PM ^

Brandon Minor.  Kinda on the fence on that one but guy was hurt alot and stuck it out.

Mike Hart, more of an underdog but proved alot of people wrong

Im hoping Blake Bars or Ben Braden break out this year and grind to a starting role

DonAZ

February 11th, 2012 at 10:56 PM ^

+1 ... when he was healthy he was a hell of a runner.  Tough sumbitch. 

This past year ... Molk, hands down.  Not just for playing through the Sugar Bowl injury, but for just being ... hell, Molk.

trueblueintexas

February 11th, 2012 at 7:24 PM ^

Does Mike Griffen from the '89 Championship team automatically qualify? He was the only white guy who played on the team and he hardly ever scored, yet started every game.

Edit: adding the /s for those who don't get it.

snarling wolverine

February 11th, 2012 at 8:20 PM ^

On account of his low recruiting ranking, small stature, great performance and ability to drive rival fanbases nuts...

...I nominate Mike Hart.

Going back a decade further, the defensive captain of the '97 team is well-deserving:

To go from walking on to captaining a national champion, Eric Mayes was pretty darn gritty.

swan flu

February 11th, 2012 at 9:41 PM ^

i just relised "The Watchmen's" Rorschack's real name is Walter Kovacs.

 

Anyone else think we should start calling Kovacs "Rorschack?"

 

no im not drunk and watching The Watchmen.

ST3

February 29th, 2012 at 5:24 PM ^

Thad Garner was the grittiest McGritterson I remember from the old days. He was caught between eras, post Mike McGee/Phil Hubbard, pre-Glen Rice days. Check out his profile here and replace "Thad Garner" with "Zack Novak". They had practically the same career stats.

http://isportsweb.com/2009/10/09/michigan-basketball-all-time-10-best-p…

 

Garner scored 1,039 points in his career and he hauled down 602 rebounds. He was also a hustling, hard working defensive player...In 1982 Michigan established the Thad Garner Leadership Award which is given each year to the Michigan player who provides outstanding leadership to his teammates.