Spring Football Day 1 Update Thread
I like basketball, but I know there are others like me who are really stoked about football starting today. Please post any updates here; I'll start.
Tweet from Stonum:
First day of spring ball was good. I love our offense!! ;ack to the routes @OfficialBraylon and @SBreaston15 used to run.
TomVH RT @Michwolverine7 Man practice was great today.........really loving my defensive brothers
<br>6 minutes ago in reply to Michwolverine7
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<br>I don't know who Michwolverine7 is but I'm guessing B. Hawthorne?
Michwolverine7 is indeed Brandin Hawthorne.
I don't actually use twitter, just started stalking TomVH on his account, so I dont know who anyone is unless the name says so. Thanks again for clarifying
Full pads!
Man I am so pumped. Go Blue
A beloved offensive player is loving the new offense, and beloved TVH loving what he sees in the defense.
Gosh. Football. Is that why the sun is out?
Just to clarify things... Tom retweeted what brandon Hawthorne said about the defense. I understand twitter is confusing as hell
I thought Tom was replying to Brandin and confirming the defense looked good. Nevertheless, the positivity remains. Thanks.
I know RR did a few times but I havent heard about how Hoke runs things. By the way does Marrel Evans have to sit out this year since he transfered back?
Nope, Evans transferred from a non-FBS school so he doesn't have to sit out and this will be his final year of eligibility.
Evans will add some much needed depth.
is from two years ago against WMU. I kept wondering when they were going to get #9 off the field. So I guess as long as he is just depth I'm OK with him coming back.
FOOTBALL!
I agree!!!!
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It's actually pronounced FOOTBAW!, but that's semantics.
but this link to the mothership should provide some insight.
http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/031911aaa.html
Your link says that they will be airing on fox Detroit, i hope they re-air them on BTN like they do the Inside Michigan Football.
Insightful first tweet from Koger:
"Make em say ughhh ughhh na na na na!"
Clearly this means Hoke is using Master-P as inspiration for getting tougher.
Very telling...
Very telling...
very very telling.
Is a real game this year. Like the old days.
He wants to do a real style spring game but is concerned with the depth this year, which probably means we'll have to wait till next year. Boo. Health is more important though
Roundtree to Warren: @Dwarren They moving around that ball now homie! Looking Good bra!
this main ingredient, also to mention that there is talent with the experience, is why i believe that our offense will be excellent. there will be growing pains and some struggles but not enough to derail EXPERIENCE + Talent!
Go Blue stay healthy this spring!
actual football activity going on........
Thanks for the updates. Please keep them coming throughout spring practices for guys like me who aren't on the twitter.
Those throws from Denard were really good. Is it September yet?
A couple things:
1. Denard's first play was a sweep from the shotgun.
2. Devin throws a really good ball.
3. Toussaint looks faaaaaast. I hope he's healthy.
Fitz Tou is coming bitches!! 9.3.11
God I hope so. I remember being sooooo stoked for his recruiting highlights with the lateral movement and speed. Seeing his constant injuries has been aggravating.
Looks like Denard has a new helmet.
Thanks for waking me up guys ... that was one of the best sleeps iv had in awhile.. fell asleep around 9pm January 1st ... im hungry
From @Micah_J_D: How much better can Michigan's defense be with a new coach, but the same players?
I expect them to be considerably better than they were in 2010 under Greg Robinson. Of course, they can't possibly get much worse. Last fall, they were atrocious in almost every way. They ranked 108th in scoring defense, 110th in total defense, 112th against the pass, 95th against the run, 98th in sacks and 108th in turnover margin. Whether or not Rich Rodriguez returned, a change on defense needed to be made.
The issues were many: The 3-3-5 scheme they ran didn't seem to fit well against Big Ten personnel, and the Wolverines were also very thin on defense and took major injury hits in some key spots. Worst of all, they simply didn't have many playmakers or guys with the type of ability you expect to see at Michigan.
Near midseason, I spent about eight hours watching film of the Wolverines' D with a longtime former NFL guy. It was fascinating, because later that night Rodriguez popped into the room and watched along with us, answering some questions about what we were seeing.
There was only one player on the whole defense who really jumped out on the tape: nose tackle Mike Martin. He is a powerhouse with good feet, and a true difference-maker. The rest were, at best, just average guys, except for two other younger players who "flashed" some talent: then-sophomore linebacker Craig Roh (who seemed to be playing out of position) and freshman defensive end Jibreel Black. The NFL guy winced as he watched upperclassmen playing tentatively, taking bad angles and missing tackles.
The Wolverines' defense was just a bad mix. Some of the younger players who were forced into action were harder to get a read on, because developing players doesn't happen overnight and there were more growing pains than usual because the defense was so porous. The message being directed toward the players was obviously muddled, too.
I believe that all of this is going to change now. In new Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, you have a coach who knows exactly what it takes to shut people down in the Big Ten. He did it 15 years ago when he coached in Ann Arbor, and he did it when he was working with the Florida Gators' defense when the Gators thumped the Ohio State Buckeyes in the BCS title game. Mattison is committed to making run defense his No. 1 priority. He's going back to a four-man front.
It'll be interesting to see if he can develop some of the younger guys who quite frankly aren't all that young anymore, like former blue-chip defensive tackle William Campbell, who has been flipped back from offense to DT, and converted safety Cam Gordon, who is now a linebacker.
Another reason for optimism: They'll get experienced cornerback Troy Woolfolk back after the senior missed the entire season with a broken leg. Junior cornerback J.T. Floyd is also back after missing the last four games of the 2010 season with an ankle injury. That bodes well.
Also, the schedule breaks well for the Wolverines. They open with five consecutive home games, with the toughest test being Week 2 against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. At worst, Michigan should open 4-1 before going to play the Northwestern Wildcats. As colleague Chris Sprow points out, their schedule looks a lot like the Michigan State Spartans' did in 2010. The Wolverines do have to play both Michigan State and the Iowa Hawkeyes on the road before closing at home against the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Ohio State, but this is a team that very realistically could win nine games.
While I agree about the comments any naming of "NFL guy"?
That was a fun read, but this sounded stupid:
"... 3-3-5 scheme they ran didn't seem to fit well against Big Ten personnel ..."
There we go again. Not everyone has bothered to consider that Michigan had obvious personnel and administrative issues last year. The 3-3-5 would work fine with better players.
To be fair, the author did say the "3-3-5 scheme they ran." Since the 3-3-5 we ran was not really the way the 3-3-5 was designed to be run, he may not be saying that the 3-3-5 cannot work, but rather than what we ran it poorly, young personnel notwithstanding. I may, however, be giving the author too much credit.
Mattison is committed to making defense his #1 priority.
Well, duh. He's the defensive coordinator. Even Gerg made defense his #1 priority....we just wish he hadn't.
Way to kill the actual quote by totally missing a key point to it.
Mattison is committed to making run defense his No. 1 priority
My favorite part of that video was after it finished and it shows related videos that you may like. 4 of which were Iverson "Practice?!?!" and the 5th was this guy...
that there is a Warlock bitches! Srsly, there are some disturbed mfers in this world.
This reminds me of a time on the east side of Detroit. I was riding down a side street, when I saw a very short and fat guy dressed as a ninja in black. This was hilarious enough for me to pull over, but what made it better was the fact that he was standing there kicking a tree. I only wish this was in the modern cell phone era!!!
So that's the guy that's always kickin' my ass on World of Warcraft. Damn you and your ponytail!
I actually made it through the whole 6:29. For 6:28 I kept wondering, when are the sweats going to come down. Thank goodness they didn't.
looks like some new practice jerseys on the guys, tighter and have a big block M on the back of the blue and white
Yeah. Those look like the ones that they were going to get last year but the players didn't want because they were too tight, if I remember correctly.
March 19th, 2011 at 10:18 PM ^
Maybe, but I don't know how you could hope to fit pads under those sleeves. Or, lack of sleeves.