Let's forget the incoming recruits for a moment..

Submitted by ATLalumni on
Because 90% of these guys are not going to make MAJOR contributions for us next year. I am excited to see the strides made by LAST years crop, especially those who didn't see the field much or were redshirted. We all know Roh's going to be a player, Stokes will be a good wideout, V. Smith a good back. But I'm excited to see the others. I cant wait to see Isaiah Bell, Mike Jones, and Brandin Hawthorne at linebacker. Can't wait to see the difference a year makes on Lolata and Campbell. Schofield, Lewan, and Washington will all be starters one day, and make Oline one of our strengths now. Is Brendan Gibbons the next Jay Feely/Remy Hamilton? Don't forget Cam Gordon and Fitz Toussaint. I think last years crop will be the BACKBONE of this team for the years to come. GO BLUE 2010!!!
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cjm

January 20th, 2010 at 9:55 AM ^

I had to put down the binoculars I was using to stalk Parker when I saw your post. I was worried that clicking on this would open up a black hole. "Forget the incoming recruits..." I didn't think that was allowed. I like the post though and am really excited to think about year 3 with RR.

Joined: 11/17/2008

MGoPoints: 5611

turbo cool

January 20th, 2010 at 10:00 AM ^

I have high hopes that Campbell and Roh will really build on their first year and become great contributors this year. But guys that didn't necessarily contribute much that i'm looking forward to are Fitz Toussaint, JT Turner, and Stokes. I was real excited to see these guys sign with us back in '09 and still think that they will be big-time players for us.

Joined: 07/10/2008

MGoPoints: 977

Rbigdog222

January 20th, 2010 at 10:12 AM ^

Everyone seems to be forgetting how Gallon tore up the Army AA game last year, that's who i can't wait to see hit the field. JT Turner runs a close second though.

Joined: 10/23/2009

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CRex

January 20th, 2010 at 10:17 AM ^

I'm excited to see Je'Ron Stokes come out this year. 4 Star Recruit, top 20 for WRs in his class, 6' 1" and considered an excellent route runner. Couple that with Tate's healthy shoulder... Or did he not pan out in practices? I never hear anything about this kid.

Joined: 09/28/2009

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aaamichfan

January 20th, 2010 at 10:26 AM ^

I wish Campbell would have redshirted last season, because he was learning a new position and needed time to get in shape. I also think Gallon will eventually be a large contributor to the offense. Any way you slice it, if the team is going to be successful in 2010, the 2009 class will be a very important component of it.

Joined: 10/23/2009

MGoPoints: 14362

evenyoubrutus

January 20th, 2010 at 10:18 AM ^

I am starting to see now what RichRod has in mind for this team; he is recruiting guys who are raw, and have a lot of work to do- work that most teams don't want to have to deal with like physical conditioning and intense, long-term fundamental development. But it will pay off down the road because he's getting guys like Omameh who was by far the LOWEST rated player in his recruiting class but will likely end up being one of the best at the end of the day. Not all of them are going to be NFL superstars but many of them will be outstanding college football players. I'm also excited to see what happens next year with a lot of the redshirted players.

Joined: 11/04/2008

MGoPoints: 178243

tjyoung

January 20th, 2010 at 5:00 PM ^

this is very insightful. i never thought of RR's recruiting this way, but you are right. a lot of the kids seem to be "out of shape" or are said to have "sub-par work ethics". Hence, the need for barwis! looking forward to these overlooked recruits becoming big players.

Joined: 08/23/2009

MGoPoints: 532

michzilla

January 20th, 2010 at 8:27 PM ^

i disagree. i think it's true that RR is open to recruiting players that might not be a great fit for a specific position or that are raw in technique, but he has consistently gone after players that in fact do have good work ethic. a good example is Hankins, who did not become an option until very late in the process.

Joined: 01/11/2010

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JC3

January 20th, 2010 at 10:25 AM ^

Can't wait to see Gallon in the return game personally.. that's where I think he can make his mark. Stokes, by all accounts, was solid in practice, he was just a freshman behind a lot of older players on the outside. This year should start to show the signs of the 2009 class paying off. Bell, Turner, Hawthorne, Jones, Lalota, Roh, could all be seeing time on the defense.. and offensively, we've got some very good prospects starting to emerge. Spring ball will be fun to watch eh?

Joined: 07/17/2009

MGoPoints: 1351

SWFlaBlue

January 20th, 2010 at 11:07 AM ^

with all of the above mentioned, but I'm more excited to see the damage that Martin and Sagesse will bring and how Molk and the completely forgotten Junior Hemingway respond once healthy.

Joined: 09/14/2009

MGoPoints: 675

pullin4blue

January 20th, 2010 at 11:37 AM ^

It was interesting to see in this month's Wolverine magazine that the outgoing senior players felt that the bigges contributor to the team next year will be Turner. Anyone else see this article?

Joined: 08/14/2009

MGoPoints: 1597

Greenwood_Slumdog

January 20th, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^

I know that the Coner is off 'paying his Dewes like Tony' in the rap world, but does anyone have an idea about what will happen to Nick Sheridan next year? I honestly cant think of a scenario where he stays on scholarship when we now have Gardner enrolled and as a 3rd option. I personally want to see how my life coach and hero, Jordan Kovacs, improves over last year.

Joined: 08/25/2009

MGoPoints: 354

markusr2007

January 20th, 2010 at 12:53 PM ^

It's great to see RR and staff focusing on recruiting more and better defensive players. When we look at the 2010 projected defensive starting lineup and set it next to Michigan's 2009 defensive showing that INCLUDED the likes of Brandon Graham, Donovan Warren and Stevie Brown, it becomes painfully obvious just how far away Michigan really is from winning another Big Ten title. I think the offense will continue to gradually improve again in 2010, but the defense took a step backward last year. If people are seriously expecting improvement in UM's defense in 2010, I'd like to better understand why they believe this. I don't see it.

Joined: 10/21/2008

MGoPoints: 19372

Frank Drebin

January 20th, 2010 at 1:03 PM ^

The belief that the D will improve in '10 is due to the fact that we finally have some consistency in the defensive coaching. Last year, as everyone knows, was our 3rd d coordinator in 3 years. Just allowing the players to run the same defense again this year should help them out as they will not have to think as much, but just be able to react to the play as they will hopefully not be out of position as much as they were a year ago.

Joined: 07/01/2008

MGoPoints: 1514

mstier

January 20th, 2010 at 1:35 PM ^

Contrary to popular belief, Brandom Graham wasn't always BRANDON GRAHAM, Donovan Warren wasn't always DONOVAN WARREN, and Stevie Brown sure as heck wasn't STEVIE BROWN! Improvement happens year in and year out, and I think overall the defense will be a more experienced, cohesive unit this year. That in my mind will offset the losses of a few stars who for the most part were neutralized a good portion of the year anyway. I mean, Brandon Graham played huge every single down, but how many times did he ALMOST have a sack but came up short because a receiver was wide open down field. Other than Stanzi, did anyone ever throw to Donovan Warren's side? Overall I expect an improvement.

Joined: 09/18/2008

MGoPoints: 258

WanderingWolve

January 20th, 2010 at 1:48 PM ^

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I feel like we forgot there were highly rated players from the '09 class that didn't see the field for a variety of reasons. I'm hoping we see very few true freshmen playing this year and it'd be great if there are only a handful of RS freshmen. We get so excited about some of these guys (and some of them will be studs) but let's hope upperclassmen are better than them because they'll be bigger, faster, and stronger. Our D will be young but I think, along with many of you, that we'll actually be better. Just because our RS freshmen LB's didn't beat out Leach, Ezeh or Mouton doesn't mean they're a bust. IIRC, David Harris wasn't a real contributor until his senior year.

Joined: 01/03/2009

MGoPoints: 94

Fresh Meat

January 20th, 2010 at 2:32 PM ^

No one talks about Bell at LB. Even on the front page yesterday it was talking about baking up Leach and J.B. with no mention of Bell. I am optimistic about Bell. I am hoping that with a year or two of putting on some weight and learning the position that he can be a big time player, and Leach won't need to be listed as a starter with !!!!! after his name each time he is.

Joined: 09/07/2009

MGoPoints: 1758