Why We Are Where We Are
Someone had asked me if we could look at the past recruits, compared to Rich Rods class. I took a look at the past, and figured out a big part of the reason why we're here. When I use the word "good" here it's pretty loose, basically if they start or contribute in some way, to give an idea of what our recruiting since 2005 has gotten us. If they're not mentioned on here, it's because they suck, don't play, aren't very good yet, or are transfers.
2005: 23 Total Recruits
NFL - Mario Manningham
Good - Terrance Taylor (4 Star), Brandon Harrison (4 Star), David Moosman (4 Star), Zoltan Mesko (3 Star)
Bust - Kevin Grady (5 Star), Antonio Bass (4 Star), Carson Butler (3 Star)
2006: 19 Total Recruits
Benedict Arnold - Justin Boren (4 Star)
Good - Stephen Schilling (5 Star), Brandon Graham (5 Star), Greg Matthews (4 Star), Brandon Minor (4 Star), Obi Ezeh (3 Star, Running Back)
Bust - Jason Kates? (4 star DT), Steve Brown ( I couldn't decide where to put him)
2007: 20 Total Recruits
Narcissist - Ryan Mallett (5 Star)
Good - Donovan Warren (5 Star), Toney Clemons (4 Star), Michael Williams (4 Star), Junior Hemmingway (3 Star), David Molk (3 Star)
So, since 2005, we basically have 14 people really contributing to the team. Morgan Trent is really the only notable, besides Charles Stewart still around from 2004. We currently have 8 true freshman that have contributed in some way. This is 8 players from one year, compared to 14 since 2005. You can draw your own conclusions from this, but it makes me very encouraged for our future recruiting.
November 8th, 2008 at 4:31 PM ^
yeah, there's a reason why the majority of guys on offense are either freshmen or redshirt freshmen. we can only get better. and as bad as our record is i really don't think we're THAT bad. we barely lost to Utah, spotted ND a quick 21 points and mad a respectable comeback, was up early vs. ILL, PSU, state, and Purdue (lets not talk about Toledo, that should've been a win). But looking at that if we had executed throughout the entire game our record would've been much better.
so as bad as our record is i dont' think were actually 3-7 bad. we just havent been consistent and most of our guys were playing HS ball this time last year. we'll be fine.
GO BLUE!
November 8th, 2008 at 4:36 PM ^
the outcome could have been different given some on-field leadership. Those are the games that teams really need it, and it is just the way it is that it naturally comes from the older guys.
Michigan has few upperclassmen on the field, and even fewer who distinguish themselves there. That naturally leads to a void in leadership, which could have made a difference in a game or two.
November 8th, 2008 at 4:59 PM ^
i don't know how much not having captains affects this or not. But i think we should have set captains on offense and defense, not just a new batch of captains every week.
November 8th, 2008 at 5:18 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 5:33 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 5:37 PM ^
Just given the youth of the players on the field, some consistency in leadership might be beneficial.
But perhaps I am overrating the effect of leadership on the field in general.
November 8th, 2008 at 6:28 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 6:46 PM ^
arguing about them.
A lot of books on leadership out there (from self help to bios and comparative bios).
November 8th, 2008 at 5:39 PM ^
Moosman
BG
Zoltan!
November 8th, 2008 at 4:34 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:47 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:37 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:43 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:50 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:54 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:55 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 5:54 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 7:41 PM ^
November 10th, 2008 at 10:19 AM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 4:56 PM ^
Easy to see how we got so thin when it is laid out like that.
Other info - Are 40 yard dash and/or shuttle times available for the past few classes and the kids that are committed? It would be interesting to see if RR is coming through with the promise of speed.
November 8th, 2008 at 5:35 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 5:36 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 5:39 PM ^
how highly touted was he coming out of high school, and how has he helped our program? Injuries are part of the game, out of their control, but we can't speculate that his scholarship or commitment didn't affect us from getting someone else. The bottom line is he hasn't played, or helped the team so I put him there.
November 8th, 2008 at 5:58 PM ^
November 8th, 2008 at 7:12 PM ^
November 9th, 2008 at 2:22 AM ^
November 10th, 2008 at 10:21 AM ^
November 9th, 2008 at 2:02 PM ^
We barely lost to Utah, spotted ND a quick 21 points and mad a respectable comeback, was up early vs. ILL, PSU, state, and Purdue (lets not talk about Toledo, that should've been a win).
I think we're a little better than our record indicates, but let's not get too carried away. We're not very good. Utah outplayed us pretty clearly and it was their own mistakes, really, that allowed us to come back. ND, Illinois and Purdue are 5-4, 5-5 and 3-7, respectively, and we lost to all three. (Honestly, that 25-point home loss to Illinois is looking pretty embarassing right now.) PSU and MSU are quality teams, but in the 4th quarter of both games we were completely owned. Those two have had a lot of unimpressive wins, so I don't know how much we can pat ourselves on the back for losing by 29 and 14, respectively.
I basically see us as a team that could be 5-5 right now if everything had broken right. That's not that bad given our youth, but it's still well below our norm, and shows that we've got a lot of work to do this offseason.
November 10th, 2008 at 9:07 AM ^
November 10th, 2008 at 10:59 AM ^
November 10th, 2008 at 11:38 AM ^
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