Vlad Emilien to Transfer
time for an update
Well-played, Angry Michigan Secondary-Hating God: Scout is reporting that Vlad Emilien is leaving Michigan. This is their Ohio recruiting analyst, FWIW, so it's not someone super-close to the program but he's not a random guy on the internet or bikini model. Details in the header:
Sophomore safety Vlad Emilien has left the Michigan football team, Scout.com learned Wednesday morning. Emilien, out of Plantation, Florida, requested, and was granted, his release Tuesday in a meeting with head coach Rich Rodriguez.
Emilien got some playing time against UConn on their final drive when Michigan went to a prevent package but did not play before that and may not have played at all if Jared Van Slyke had been healthy.
When you're on the depth chart behind a walk-on the writing is on the wall, I guess, but that walk-on is now out for the season, so the depth chart at free safety now reads
- Cam Gordon
- The Howling Nothingness of the Void
Realistically, it means any injury to a safety will see Marvin Robinson move into the starting lineup either at FS or bandit, with Kovacs moving to the deep safety spot that was not such a good idea a year ago. This may have already been the case, but losing Emilien just makes the secondary even flimsier than it is right now.
If I had to guess, this was just an injury/playing time washout. I'd heard persistent rumors that the knee injury never healed right and the Roundtree/Emilien/Jones sprint in the spring game was an eye opener. Hard to believe Michigan's secondary can suffer a PT transfer, but behind a walk-on and all that.
In addition: ARGH.
UPDATE: Tom confirms.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:26 PM ^
Sadly nothingness will howl when it feels angry mighigan secondary hating god's angry wrath, he/she/it is obviously very powerful.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^
will this do to our academic whatchmajigger score? Is there impending doom on that front as well?
September 8th, 2010 at 5:01 PM ^
lolkitteh fills the Howling Nothingness of the Void (only on teh interwebz tho).
September 8th, 2010 at 11:45 AM ^
If you havn't noticed, we're gonna break this thing. I've watched this for a long time, and I think we're finally gonna break this thing. You know what I mean. We're gonna be really, really good.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:41 AM ^
When is Ashton Kutcher going to come out and see we've all been punk'd? Seriously this is to the point where you can do nothing but laugh at what seems to be an unprecedented string of horrendous luck. I am absolutley at a loss for anything else.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:53 AM ^
that it is starting to look like more than luck. You are Vlad, the person on the front of you on the depth chart is injured, you are in your second year at a program that looks as if it is about the make a breakthrough. You are playing at ND this week in a huge game. WHY do you transfer? There has to be a reason for it. The attrition in the secondary can no longer be referred to as anything to do with luck. It is a pattern, and it has become a very alarming one.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:27 PM ^
Well as some posters above have said, maybe it's the DB's coach. If he is removed after the season we will know why. He could be driving our guys away. Other recruits would inevitably hear about this and make it harder to get new talent here as well.
I hope that's wrong.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:39 PM ^
I think we've left the Port of Bad Luck and sailed into some other kind of waters. Something is going on here. The only explanation that would make me feel even remotely at ease would be if his knee is just bothering him too much to make practicing worthwhile--- of course, why would it feel better anywhere else? It can't be PT. He's an Angry Michigan Secondary-Hating God sneeze from being the starting FS on one of the five highest-profile programs in the country.
What in Sam Hill is goin' on 'round here?
September 8th, 2010 at 12:42 PM ^
Is it at all possible that Vlad didn't make the travel squad? Seems a ridiculous proposition given our depth at FS, but the timing would make some sense and fill in some gaps. This week, RR has to whittle the current roster down to what, 65? less? If Vlad wasn't on that list for some reason...
September 8th, 2010 at 11:42 AM ^
Avery Walls, come on down.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:42 AM ^
Hopefully this report is 'ok, but innacurate'
September 8th, 2010 at 11:43 AM ^
2 words: "clearance sale"
September 8th, 2010 at 11:47 AM ^
I am sick and tired of these guys bailing on the program after so little time spent in it. Whether this transfer will hurt the team is not the point, every transfer adds fuel to the fire that the program is on fire and that Rich Rods house is not in order. After all he was a Rich Rod recruit. Brian's post makes the point that he may have transferred because he was on the depth chart behind a walk on, well so is Big Will. Is he next?
"The Team, the team, the team". Players need to remember why they chose Michigan in the first place.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:57 AM ^
I don't think I've ever heard of a DT transferring to another school. Big Will isn't behind a walk-on, he's behind a 5 year senior.
Emilien is crazy if he thinks he can get serious PT at Oregon or UCLA if he couldn't cut it at Michigan in which we have a highly inexperienced secondary. Both of those 2 schools have pretty deep secondaries.
Yeah, I'm starting to wonder about our DB coach. Everyone has good things to say about our other position coaches (Frey has done an excellent job with OL, Tall molded BG into a 1st round pick, GRob has revived the LB corp, and Rod Smith turned DRob into Pat White in one offseason) but no one has ever said anything good about our DBs or Gibson, and our secondary has become way underachieving the last few years. Connecting the dots...
September 8th, 2010 at 11:58 AM ^
Yeah, unfortunately one of the only ways this makes sense is "I can't stand playing for this guy one day longer, get me out of here." For everything about Turner being out of shape, and he probably was, this seems eerily similar.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:11 PM ^
Van Slyke goes out for the year, the coaching staff starts moving guys (Robinson seems likely) to back-up Cam Gordon and Vlad realizes he has zero chance of seeing meaningful minutes.
After seeing Roundtree (not exactly a speed burner) leave him in the dust in the spring game, I think there's a good chance the coaches wanted Vlad as far away from the field as possible with the game on the line and when he found out about it he decided to leave.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:29 PM ^
If Turner was 3rd string because he was out of shape and the coaches were riding him hard, then it seems the simpler solution rather than transferring is to just get in shape and show the 5-star talent you have.
If Vlad was 3rd string because his knee just wasn't going to get right again, that's a permanent problem, and the solution is to go somewhere with a better depth chart. Of course the problem with this theory is that he's looking to transfer from an unranked team to a top ten team.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:51 PM ^
Vlad saying, "I want to go to Oregon" doesn't mean they are interested in taking him. Nobody says, "I really want to go to East Kentucky State." I think when we see where Vlad actually ends up the theory will look a whole lot stronger.
And by your logic, Cissoko would have hit the books and become an all-american rather than leaving school, robbing people, and assaulting prison guards. Some times there is no accounting for poor judgment.
September 8th, 2010 at 1:16 PM ^
After seeing Roundtree (not exactly a speed burner) leave him in the dust in the spring game, I think there's a good chance the coaches wanted Vlad as far away from the field as possible
This doesn't make sense to me. If they think he's too slow for safety, you move him to LB. You don't just let him leave the squad or "Bury him in the depth chart"
September 8th, 2010 at 1:54 PM ^
If a kid wants to transfer because he doesn't see the possibility of playing, it would take a real dickhead of a coach not to let him leave. And if the concern is burying Vlad on the depth chart, how does moving him to linebacker (a position he has demonstrated zero proficiency for ever) make things better? At best he would be behind Ezeh, Mouton, Demens, Fitzgerald, and probably the safety/bandit/spur players he's already behind on the depth chart.
The coaches, for whatever reason, had no desire to play Vlad and because of it he decided to go elsewhere rather than watch as the staff scoured the campus for more guys they could put ahead of him on the depth chart. If it weren't for all the drama of the last few years this would not create any response at all. Let's just wish the kid well at his next stop and move on.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
Can someone with a better knowledge of recruiting please explain what this means for our next class? Are we likely to have a full 27 now that we have to fill the spots that were left by Turner, Austin White (I know he's not a DB) and now Vlad?
On a positive note: One game at a time. If the secondary can just come up big against Notre Dame, we have a fighting chance to keep Rodriguez around for one more year. I know it's a long season, but the first two games were obviously push games. We took one. If we can take two it might lead to better things. By next year the secondary will be better. We will have depth again and heck we will have two guys from the original two-deep back --- Woolfolk, and Van Slyke.
Okay back to the secondary for a moment.... is there anyone on the roster that played both ways in high school? Besides Gordon? Can Drew Dileo, or Jeremy Gallon play on D just for the sake of having 11 bodies out there? Maybe we can build a scarecrow and place him on the 20-yard line and put him in the No.2 jersey just to scare quarterbacks.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:57 AM ^
Regarding your first question, I would like to know this as well. As far as I know, I don't think we currently have enough scholarships open for us to sign a full 25 (or more), but each player who leaves opens up another spot for someone else. To sum up: as long as we have a successful season (7+ wins) this upcoming recruiting class should be larger than first anticipated, surely over 20 guys.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:37 PM ^
Remember when we were all worried about only having around 14 scholarships for this incoming class... remember? Man those were the days....
September 8th, 2010 at 1:13 PM ^
Yes, but if he really had no chance of seeing the playing field, as seems to be the case here, then it is better for our program to be able to the scholarship. It wouldn't seem to be good for him, but it is good for us.
September 8th, 2010 at 1:58 PM ^
Michigan's 2011 class should be about 18.
Dileo and Gallon don't need to play defense. We have plenty of safeties amongst the three positions. It's just that some of them will/would have to play prematurely.
September 8th, 2010 at 3:22 PM ^
Speaking of recruiting, is there a possibility that in the first 2 years of RR's tenure he was just trying to accumulate depth and talent on the roster so he took some kids that he knew weren't perfect fits for his system and personality?
I mean I just have a hard time understanding this, but I am also reluctant to start calling out coaches RR or Gibson for running these kids off.
I just wonder if we took some kids that we knew might not be able to cut it because we needed someone, anyone with talent to start filling out the roster?
Just a thought.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
September 8th, 2010 at 11:52 AM ^
Put Will Campbell back there...LOL. Well, at least we know that secondary will be the hot recruiting area for the next 3 years. Players can come in and compete for starting positions immediatly.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:53 AM ^
I hear the Angry Michigan Secondary-Hating God wears a sweatervest.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:53 AM ^
FFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUU
September 8th, 2010 at 11:54 AM ^
it's something to do with preserving elegibility down the road. If he's got a long rehab ahead, then. . . If that's the case, however, it's not a new blow to the defense, but one struck long ago.
September 8th, 2010 at 1:25 PM ^
I respect that.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:55 AM ^
Here's your chance, guys. You can be playing starting safety in no time.
http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/090810aaa.html
September 8th, 2010 at 11:56 AM ^
I hope someone in the AD sees that it might be a good idea to take this down from the site for today. How many times can one turn the other cheek?
September 8th, 2010 at 4:21 PM ^
I suspect that mgoblue.com cannot control the advertisements placed on their site but there's a picture of Krik Herbstreit grilling some brats when I went there. Something is f'd up about seeing Herbie on the Athletic Departments webpage.
September 8th, 2010 at 11:58 AM ^
with Kelvin Grady's success, there's only one answer:
September 8th, 2010 at 12:00 PM ^
If so, didn't he burn his second year of eligibility in game 1? Then he has two years left, not three?
September 8th, 2010 at 12:00 PM ^
If a guy in his second year in the defensive backfield can't outdo a freshman and walkon, his likelihood of playing is slim to none.
Emilien may have been in shape...but his knee never truly recovered. In high school he had really good speed...now, not so much.
After seeing some of the highlights of spring game, I think Kovacs may be FASTER than Emilien. That is a sad statement. And I think Hawthorne, who played a little there, is still a better option than Vlad.
I hate seeing him go, I really do..this was a kid I loved when he signed. But everybody needs to take a deep breath.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:01 PM ^
I tend to think that kids should exercise free will if they aren't happy at a place for whatever reason. They only get to do this once.
Rich demands a high level of work on the practice field, conditioning and in the classroom. It isn't for everyone. Losing guys in the process is part of establishing that culture.
With the injury to Carvin, and the exit of Vlad, it might be inevitable that we'll get the all AB team of Marvin and Josh into the mix.
This is where the program is on defense now. I'd rather play inexperienced talented guys and get them the experience now if they can help the team now. In 3 years all the studs we recruit will enter expecting to redshirt and they'll be feeling fortunate we saved them a spot on the train.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:30 PM ^
but this team needs to win NOW. Getting younger players experience is nice but If RR does not have a winning season he will be gone and there will be another ugly transition period/
September 8th, 2010 at 12:54 PM ^
Honestly, I haven't worried for one second on the job issue since Brandon addressed it a couple weeks ago. I trust Brandon on that one. He said he isn't fixated on a final record but will look at all aspects on and off the field.
You can bet he'll look deeply into this issue when making full assessment on Rich's job status. I don't believe he is looking for reasons to change coaches. Mostly because there is no evidence of that beyond speculation in the Detroit media. The lowest least reliable form of information there is.
If I were a betting man, Rich gets the benefit of the doubt with Brandon and he tends to lean towards keeping him no matter what. The guy has done wonders with the recruiting all ready, and the field performance is growing better toward something really good. Brandon understands the importance of continuity over the long haul having played for Bo.
We probably should embrace the young guys getting experience in the secondary, because the horses are out of the barn at this point.
September 8th, 2010 at 1:09 PM ^
September 8th, 2010 at 4:17 PM ^
Bo ran off a ton of players when he first started. Bo was lucky the internet wasn't around in the 60s.
RR is going to get 4 years regardless of his record this year. Dave Brandon knows Carr left the cupboard bare and the only thing that fixes that, unfortunately, is time. Even if Brandon doesn't like RR beyond closed doors, Brandon knows that changing regimes right now will set us back to 2008.
September 9th, 2010 at 9:43 AM ^
But more pertinent, he wasn't running off his OWN player.
But that's not surprising after you throw out two of the most tired meme's after that.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:02 PM ^
Maybe that will stem the bleeding.
September 8th, 2010 at 12:03 PM ^
So with the three players leaving ( Turner, White, and now Vlad) does this mean we have three more spots open for recruits next year? I’m not sure on the rules or how it works, but if so this could all be a blessing in disguise, add in that fact the Woolfolk will be back and next year is starting to look pretty good. Coaches don't just let players go without trying to convince them to stay ( and something tells me RR is a pretty smooth talker ), unless the coach really doesn't see a need for them on the team any more. None of these guys would have helped much this year ( if at all in their Michigan careers ) so my thoughts are that RR is looking toward next year, or beyond that to get better athletes. He also might be worried about losing a few scholarships when the NCAA ruling comes back and is making a backup plan. I’m not to worried about low prospects or busts who wont play, leaving, when we can turn around and find someone else (a new recruit) to replace them. Does this hurt our secondary a little this year? Sure, but its not the difference between a win or lose, just a lose or bigger lose. If Vlad has lost the speed then him being in the game isn't a good situation at all. Here’s hoping that Cam doesn’t get hurt, we can get through this year with RR, and finally have a defense ( more importantly a secondary ) that is respectable.
Oh and this is my first post, I’ve been on this site for a while now and love reading everyone’s posts. I just felt the need to point out the above, so go easy on the me ( if anyone actually responds to this).
September 8th, 2010 at 12:08 PM ^
Going to be very good. When they're both healthy, Vlad was never going to pass him. Kills us on depth, but why care if you're leaving. Another recruiting class would only have buried him deeper. I'll live w/ Kovacs FS, Robinson at Bandit if it comes to it
Nonetheless, Good luck kid
September 8th, 2010 at 12:07 PM ^
Well ain't that a bitch. I'm still holding out hope that he changes his mind, but sounds like a long shot. Good luck Vlad, hope it doesn't bite us in the ass.
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