Rivals View on Donovan leaving early

Submitted by Smitty D on

CB Donovan Warren
The buzz: Warren was one of the few players in Michigan's back seven on defense who played well this past season. His decision to turn pro leaves Michigan painfully thin at cornerback. Troy Woolfolk began last season at strong safety, then was moved to corner. Woolfolk's best position is strong safety. If he moves back to that spot, it seems likely that sophomores J.T. Turner and J.T. Floyd will be the leading candidates at corner. Turner played in one game this past season; Floyd played in nine games and started two. Depth is nonexistent, and a position change or two could be coming for that reason. It's likely two or three freshman corners play this fall. There are rumblings that former starting corner Boubacar Cissoko, who was booted from the team in midseason, could work his way back onto the roster. His return would be big.

The bottom line: Warren's departure is huge -- maybe as big as anyone's on this list. Michigan is in deep trouble at corner.

Sweet......

No idea why he thinks Boo Boo has a chance to get back on?

QuarterbackU

January 28th, 2010 at 9:43 AM ^

Or why he thinks Cissoko would make such a huge difference, were he to come back...from watching him for 1.5 seasons, I never saw a ton of indication that he would be a reasonably productive corner at the college level

Tater

January 28th, 2010 at 9:48 AM ^

Maybe this was written before Boo-Boo's latest boo-boo. It seems like reporters and bloggers often write a few stories ahead of time for when they need a day off but still have to produce something. Plus, they have to be writing about a few hundred kids; it would be pretty difficult to finish all in one day.

It's sorta like you can cram for an exam, but starting a twenty-page term paper the night before it is due usually doesn't work out very well.

WanderingWolve

January 28th, 2010 at 9:50 AM ^

Man, the internet really increases accountability for people. A guy doesn't do his homework and quite a few people know it. I'm not defending this guy, my thought is it would make people more careful in what they write. I don't think we'll be as thin in '10 as we were in '09.

madtadder

January 28th, 2010 at 9:56 AM ^

Turner definitely redshirted last year. I seem to recall a game where Turner got miscredited for a tackle or something when he hadn't played, and that lead to a lot of confusion. It was later corrected though.

edit: It was against MSU. The tackle was later given to Mouton.

Magnus

January 28th, 2010 at 10:09 AM ^

This was probably written before Cissoko got arrested again, or else the writer didn't know about that. Anyway, the arrest probably sealed Cissoko's fate as far as a possible return.

The Original Seth

January 28th, 2010 at 10:24 AM ^

Furthermore, the idea that DEPTH is going to be an issue is patently untrue. There are going to be something on the order of 10 scholarship defensive backs on the roster (Kovacs, Woolfolk, Williams, Turner, Christian, Robinson, Talbott, Parker (?), Johnson, Avery, Vinopal), of whom 5 will be freshman but 5 will be older with a year of learning and scout team reps under their belts.

Inexperience? Sure.
Depth? Not an issue like it was, anymore.

As I understand it, one of the issues last year was that there literally were no scholarship players of any kind behind the guys on the field. We didn't have a two-deep. Even worse, we put Kovacs in, and then STILL had to rob Peter to pay Paul. That won't happen this year.

edited with respect to correction by Blue in Yarmouth

Magnus

January 28th, 2010 at 10:50 AM ^

Kovacs doesn't really count as a scholarship player. He's a former walk-on. While he does have a scholarship, he probably shouldn't be used as an example of our depth.

Also, normally when people talk about depth, they're talking about not only the number of players, but the talent as well. It doesn't really matter if you have 20 defensive backs if they're all freshmen and/or they suck - there would still be a lack of depth. It's just implied that there's the word "talented" in front of "depth."

The Original Seth

January 28th, 2010 at 11:12 AM ^

Take Kovacs off, then.

And regarding depth -- whether or not the experience and effective playmaking are their (they likely won't be, at first) isn't it a better situation to have guys who practice at their positions, and who have played those positions in high school, on the roster than it is to have literally nobody at all on scholarship who has practiced at or played the position EVER?

Obviously talent, experience, and skills will still be an issue. But bodies are better than no bodies, right?

Because it seemed to me last year like NOT ONLY were there people on the field who'd never played a game at their positions, but there also weren't even enough dudes on the roster period who had PRACTICED at the positions of need.

Six Zero

January 28th, 2010 at 11:55 AM ^

Depth is not necessarily an immediate cause for celebration... it's not directly indicative to talent in any way.

Delaware State had 15 defensive backs on their roster last season, and I don't think that automatically made 'em good? At best it means they have 'depth,' in the context that if someone gets hurt there's hypothetically 13 other players that could step in. At worst, it means that they have 15 kids who are trying to learn one of the defensive back positions.

Depth does not equate to successful on-field product.

Stewart52

January 28th, 2010 at 11:53 AM ^

I know this is hearsay, so if you don't want to believe it you don't have to, but I know a guy who went to Cass Tech and is a good friend of Boubacar's, and Boubacar told him that he's going to transfer to Missouri State (A pretty random school, I guess immediate playing time was the #1 thing he was looking for). I don't think Boo-boo had a shot of rejoining the team anyway.

Magnus

January 28th, 2010 at 11:54 AM ^

"isn't it a better situation to have guys who practice at their positions, and who have played those positions in high school, on the roster than it is to have literally nobody at all on scholarship who has practiced at or played the position EVER?"

Ummmmm...yes? I'm not sure why you phrased this as a question.

Magnus

January 28th, 2010 at 11:56 AM ^

I think Jared Van Slyke transferred from Missouri State. That damn Van Slyke kid must have been getting in his ear about how great their football program is.

Magnus

January 28th, 2010 at 12:17 PM ^

I didn't say that depth wouldn't be better this year than last. Depth will almost certainly improve.

What I was pointing out is that you said it wouldn't be "an issue," and I would argue that it still will be. We could very well have redshirt freshman Justin Turner and redshirt sophomore JT Floyd starting at corner, both of whom would be backed up by true freshmen. That's generally not what people consider to be "depth." That's all I was saying.

The Original Seth

January 28th, 2010 at 12:20 PM ^

That, I would agree with. I was just trying to say it wasn't going to be the SAME issue (no kids at all to field), but rather both less of an issue and a different one (few kids with experience to field). I probably wasn't very clear.