Marell Evans' contribution this year
I haven't heard much about him other than "wow, hes back at michigan." However, from what I saw at the spring game he looks like he could be an instant contributer on defense, especially given the lack of depth, and his experience. I would actually expect him to be a starter on day 1, unless a freshman contributes more than expected.
What do you think, mgoblog?
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I think we are in trouble if he starts. Oh, and beer tastes good.
I think he is going to be a huge contributor this year. Showed lots of promise in the spring game. GO BLUE!
He will be a contributor this year but I think the odds are you see Poole at some point. If he is a fast learner, then possibly right away.
When was the last time that you saw a 2nd year LB get play time, let alone a 1st year one? I honestly can't remember a single starting LB that started before their 3rd year.
Obi Ezeh started as a RS Frosh
It is not good to start a RS Frosh at LB.
Manti Teo at ND.
i actually liked ezeh as a freshman... mostly because i accepted the false premise that he would improve as he got older.
I agree it's rare and wouldn't even suggest such a thing under normal circumstances. Looking at our depth chart, I don't see how either a 1st year or 2nd year LB doesn't get playing time.
I checked out season stats since about 1990 at http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php, & the following list of LB's all showed PT - sometimes significant - in their 2nd (sometimes their 1st) years:
Erick Anderson, Steve Morrison, Jarrett Irons, Sam Sword, Rob Swett (a lot of PT his 2nd year, not as much later), Clint Copenhaver (a lot of PT his 2nd year, not as much later), Ian Gold, Dhani Jones, Victor Hobson, Larry Foote, Carl Diggs, Scott McClintock, David Harris, Pierre Woods, Chris Graham, Prescott Burgess, Shawn Crable, Obi Ezeh, John Thompson, Jonas Mouton
Some of the early ones on this list got significant 1st year PT. Most received significant PT in their 2nd years.
It's not typical, but it happens. Sometimes true freshman LBs play at high high level. Chris Borlandand and James Laurinaitis are a couple of good Big 10 examples, both major contributors as true freshmen. Max Bullough played significant minutes for MSU last year.
It's not ideal, obviously, to have kids that young playing LB in a major conference, but if they're talented enough, they'll get on the field.
Based on nothing other than my personal opinion, I say the starters at LB on Sept. 3 are Demens, Cam Gordon, and Mike Jones. I'd imagine Evans will contribute, but probably on special teams more than anything.
Ryan starts over Jones at this point.
Antonio poole starts before marell evans
is passing trendy and heading towards mainstream. Not really helping one's mgoequivalent of indie-cred at this point.
is too much of a tossup. Demens will start as the Mike, other than that I think the coaches will simply put the best players on the field. Jake Ryan, and Cam Gordon will get a big chunk of the playtime, Herron, Fitzgerald, and Evans will get time as seniors and Jones could get playtime too, and Desmond Morgan and Antonio Poole will likely jump in early. The problem with projecting a LB depth chart is even with 3 seniors graduating this year we will still have roughly 14-15 LBs on scholarship (depending on where they're counted) competing for 3 spots in 2012.
I was wondering if Fitzgerald would get the nod at weak side. He looked a little better in a similar role last year than early on, much in the same way Ezeh did better in that role. Plus, Fitzgerald is bigger and we know how Hoke likes him the bigguns. I think Evans gets time to spell Demens.
...the anus is really on Fitz to redeem that which to this point has been an underwhelming Michigan career.
interesting...you earn some banus points for this post.
Q: Why do women have legs?
A: So that they don't leave a snail trail.
Think about it.
"the anus is really on the fritz." I felt so bad for you. That cannot be comfortable.
I remember seeing an interview with him this spring in which he talked about knowing how lucky he was to be at Michigan. I don't think you can measure that kind of maturity in recruiting stars. He looked good this spring, and I think he'll be a nice addition to the team on and off the field.
You make an excellent point. Marell knows what it means to play at Michigan, and he is going to give everything that he has on every play. He really will make the most of this opportunity. If he doesn't get play time, it won't be due to lack of effort.
maturity? didn't he quit on his teammates and leave after losing his starting spot?
With Demens in the middle and Gordon primarily at SLB (potentially sharing time with Ryan), WLB will be the best of Evans, Jones, Fitzgerald and Ryan.
My guess is Evans starts game 1 with the others subbing in, but Ryan starts by the end of the year.
I think Cam is more likely than Ryan to switch from SAM to WILL as size is less important on the weak side. That said, this thread shows how unsettled we are at both of those positions and to get back to the OP I think Evans will be mostly used as a much needed back-up for Demens.
Your answer to this question probably has something to do with a guy who moved his family to Naples and will be quoting the Lion King and Groban during MWC games this year.
Circle of Life, Simba. Circle of Life.
evans transferred because he lost his spot due to poor play and couldn't handle it. he quit on his teammates. nothing to do with coach rod.
Right, nothing of this nature that had anything to do with RR. He was a passive recipient of all those who were out to get him. His actions had no consequences, only others' actions resulted in consequences. The other coaches, dump luck, nefarious nattering nabobs of negativity, climate change, unrest in the middle east, and so on, were the reasons for UM's losses in the past 3 years. RR being here, and you know, running the whole football program, was just weird coincidence. Just ask Section 1, he will tell you all about it.
I think he'll be the starter at WILL.
That settles that then!