No love for JR Hemingway?

Submitted by jswavel34 on

IMO a healthy Hemingway could be a much-needed deep threat for this offense. We all remember the 08 and 09 openers where he shined. In the 2008 opener against Utah he caught a TD pass and looked to have a breakout season. A couple weeks later he got mono and missed the rest of the season. In the 2009 opener JR toasted WMU for 100 yards on 5 catches and 2 TDs. Hemingway was again injured and never really was a factor the rest of the year and he has been gimpy throughout spring.

Anybody agree with me that IF Junior can stay healthy he can be a real threat this year?

jg2112

April 20th, 2010 at 9:36 AM ^

IF the stock market didn't implode in late 2008, I'd be retired by now.

Junior Hemingway might go down as one of the better "opening game" wide receivers in Michigan history. And, based on his previous performance, we can expect him to catch 3 TD passes versus UConn.

However, I think while yes, he does have potential, he'll have to prove it before "love" gets thrown his way.

michiganfanforlife

April 20th, 2010 at 9:40 AM ^

This is too big of an IF for me to give any creedence to. It's like saying, "If Brandon Minor could stay healthy for an entire season he would be the best back in the B10." My favorite quote from Tony Dungy is, "The most important ability of any football player is their avail-ability."

Blue boy johnson

April 20th, 2010 at 9:42 AM ^

If Hemingway can get and stay healthy he will be very good. Hemingway still has 2 years eligibility left, so there is plenty of time to shine. I hope young Hemingway is MVP of our bowl victory this season.

Space Coyote

April 20th, 2010 at 11:26 AM ^

Yes, the torrents of spring are rife with Ernest Hemingway references, perhaps even the old man could sea what he did there…

Maybe I’m trying to hard here, but really, for whom the injury tolls is the point I think gordie bell is attempting to make. Or for whom the gordie bell tolls with his knowledge?

Either way, I’m pretty sure Hemingway is ernest in his desire for fall to arrive because the sun always rises on him then.

Now I’ve done it, I’ve gone too far…

WichitanWolverine

April 20th, 2010 at 10:18 AM ^

I think our QBs are still too locked in to our slot guys for Hemingway (or Stonum for that matter) to have huge impacts. If the QBs can garner the patience to let the downfield routes develop then I think they can both have big seasons. But as of right now, I don't see it in the cards.

michgoblue

April 20th, 2010 at 10:01 AM ^

I don't think that you can extrapolate from opening day performances and assume that he will be a star over the course of the season. Why? Because the teams that we open against generally are not that good. His performance in 2009 was against WMU. If I recall, Tate looked pretty impressive in that game as well. As the season went on, not as much (not a slight to Tate, just a fact). And, while the 2008 opener was against a pretty damn good Utah team, that team's strength was its offense. They were not exactly a strong defense.

Not saying that JR is NOT going to be a stud, but I think that the sample size of games in which he has been healthy and played well is too small and too suspect, by consisting almost exclusively of games against MAC-ish talent.

Plegerize

April 20th, 2010 at 10:02 AM ^

It's so unfortunate that he has had the injury bug throughout his Michigan career.

He's got real big play potential, he's a big guy with a burner and I hope he can stay healthy just not to be a contributor, but also for the added depth. We need to keep Roundtree and Odoms at slot and with Hemingway out we've had to play them at the outside receiver spot, but hopefully that will change this fall.

Magnus

April 20th, 2010 at 10:04 AM ^

Hemingway isn't a great deep threat. He's got behind a couple defenses (Utah, WMU), but he's not great at getting separation. Besides, Utah and WMU aren't exactly brimming with talent in the defensive backfield. It took a diving catch against Utah to pull in that TD, and even the Forcier-to-Hemingway bomb against WMU last year was caught with very little separation between him and the cornerback.

All that counts is the result. Whether Hemingway catches TD passes by an inch or 15 yards, they're still worth 6 points. But I don't think he's really a consistent deep threat. Even Greg Mathews beat a couple cornerbacks deep, and I don't think anyone ever called him a deep threat.

jswavel34

April 20th, 2010 at 10:18 AM ^

While he may not be a "blow-by deep threat", he has the capability to catch the long ball in traffic or with little separation. Thus stretching the field and making the mid/short range passing game more effective for the slots. The point is that the threat is there for opposing defenses.

tk47

April 20th, 2010 at 10:11 AM ^

Sorry, couldnt resist dropping that one.

I guess it just seems like such a foregone conclusion that Hemingway will get hurt somehow that it's easy to forget about him in conversations about the offense. He just seems to be injury-prone for one reason or another -- which does seriously suck, because he seems to be the best outside WR we have (excluding Roundtree, since he's mainly a slot guy).

jamiemac

April 20th, 2010 at 10:09 AM ^

I like him. And I think he'll have a nice year.

He only missed three games last year. And, with better QB play, I think he can be a bigger, more consistent factor this season.

He has a 15.7 yards per catch average in his career catches.

Its easy to discount guys like Hemingway and Stonum because folks believe they havent lived up to recruiting hype, so lets focus on the hot shot new guys.

The problem is most WRs, except for the cant miss prospects, take a couple of years to develop. Hemingway and Stunum's upperclassmen years have finally arrived. After their underclassmen yers were marred by health issues, roster attrition, the worst QB situation ever followed by raw true frosh QBs, I think the time is ripe for them both to make their biggest impact on the program yet.

TheLastHarbaugh

April 20th, 2010 at 10:54 AM ^

Talented =/= Best

We can disagree on who is the most talented. I think it's Hemingway, you may think it's someone else, but until he puts it together for an entire season, rather than just a few games, it amounts to nothing.

Tay and Roundtree have been BETTER because they've played, but I think that Hemingway has more TALENT because again:

TALENT =/= PRODUCTION OR BEST

Way to come across as a dick for no reason though.

Magnus

April 20th, 2010 at 12:14 PM ^

Due to therapy, I'm finally coming to terms with the fact that I was molested by Tiffany Amber-Thiessen when I was younger. I had been trying to repress those memories, but now I can finally admit it. It's like a giant weight has been lifted off my chest!

The book is due to hit shelves in October.

jg2112

April 20th, 2010 at 11:21 AM ^

This is the question I ask myself when I analyze football players:

(1) Do they produce on the field for the team I support?

I do not disagree with you one bit with the proposition that Junior Hemingway MIGHT be the most talented wide receiver on the Michigan football team.

Ultimately that doesn't matter to me one bit. If Hemingway isn't on the field producing then he and #85 (Reynolds?) are interchangeable.

If Baquer Sayed starts this fall and has 10 TDs (and how cool would THAT be?), it's not going to concern me that Hemingway might be more talented than Sayed.

That's what I'm getting at. Odoms, Roundtree and Stonum are better than Hemingway because they play and they produce way more than Hemingway does. Potential talent is great for Scout and Rivals star rankings and NFL Combines. Michigan needs players that produce on the field and we've got three that have done it more than JRH.

These are words that I WANT to choke on, mind you. I WANT Hemingway to have a monstrous season. But past performance indicates he'll tear a toenail walking the ramp to the locker room after a 3 TD game against UConn.

Magnus

April 20th, 2010 at 11:28 AM ^

So to summarize, you're saying to Last Prophet:

I'm arguing a completely different thing than you are.

If you want my opinion on the topic, I think that "Seinfeld" is the most overrated television show in TV history. I also think that KFC is better than Popeye's.

Magnus

April 20th, 2010 at 12:04 PM ^

Miranda Kerr is a saint. You keep her name out of your dirty mouth, dammit!

No, but seriously, though...

You and Last Prophet are arguing different things, and you were kind of being a dingaling about it.

P.S. I've won way more arguments than that.

maizenbluenc

April 20th, 2010 at 1:31 PM ^

That's if Odoms could hold on to the damned ball. How many has he dropped in his career here? Seems like every other pass that comes his way.

Speed and separation are wonderful things, but catching or "receiving" the pass seems to be a key ability for the position.

maizenbluenc

April 21st, 2010 at 9:20 AM ^

I'll admit, he looked much improved before he was injured last year.

However, I know I have cursed at that young man many, many times over the past two seasons (more in 2008) for dropping passes and punts -- enough, that when the ball goes in his direction I hold my breath.

I know 2008, youth and inexperience, etc. But he wasn't helping poor Nick and Steve any. (McGruff seemed a much more reliable target.)

Maybe Martavious should switch to defense ...

Of course Arrington dropped his share in 2006, and did much better in 2007 - so hopefully experience starts to kick in.

SarahGoBlue

April 20th, 2010 at 10:14 AM ^

I don't think he has the speed to be considered a deep threat. Stonum is the guy I look at when I think of our deep threat receiver. Hopefully someone can step up this year and secure that role along with Stonum.

Ezeh-E

April 20th, 2010 at 10:16 AM ^

a 2 TD performance against UCONN, even if the rest of the year isn't that great. We beat UCONN and then other receivers can step up. Works for me.

jamiemac

April 20th, 2010 at 10:27 AM ^

He has 22 career catches

After 16 catches in 2009.

I think this year he exceeds his career total in one year.

Not a huge leap in production, but I think he flirts with 30 catches this season. Given the other receiving threats on the team, its going to be hard for anyone to put up a single season with eye popping stats.

He had a lot of games with just one catch last year. I think a lot of those turn into multi catch games with better QB play, a healthier season out of Hemingway and better overall chemsitry in the passing game now that everyone has even more time to work with one another.

Hannibal.

April 20th, 2010 at 10:33 AM ^

I haven't heard definitively if he was still hurt after the ND game. Did his production basically disappear because of the injury or because he just isn't that good?