Many Non-Impactful Departures Comment Count

Brian

091909_UMFB vs EMU_MRM

no more really good runs at the end of MAC blowouts

Brady Hoke's kicking off spring practice with a press conference and has announced the following players are departing:

  • RB Mike Cox: we'll always have you dancing on the internet.
  • C Rocko Khoury: we'll always have that Iowa game you played decently well in last year.
  • WR Terrence Robinson: we'll always have Dream Shake and your sexy cocked eyebrow.



    terrence-robinson-manmeat



    I look forward to your Old Spice commercial.
  • LS George Morales: we'll always have mortified punter gif even if you had no involvement with it.

Cox never played and was never going to play even if Michigan was down to Paki O'Meara as an alternative; Khoury was the backup center you may remember not snapping it to Denard on the first drive against Virginia Tech; teeny tiny Robinson found a role as a punt gunner last but will will not reprise it. Morales is only notable as the walking embodiment of Late Carr Era recruiting failures; he was never actually on scholarship after the first year, IIRC.

Zero of these guys had eligibility for 2013, so this frees up no scholarships for that class. Hoke said all are graduating, so no need to fret about APR issues. As far as team issues: I'd rather have Khoury and Robinson around to contribute, even if slightly. Chopping down the center race from three guys to two is worrying, and we don't even get to expand our 2013 class projections. Boo to that.

Comments

lunchboxthegoat

March 16th, 2012 at 1:41 PM ^

Because he stated they were player decisions and 1) Khoury could have competed for center 2) Robinson was our punt returner last year (and otherwise good special teams player). 

 

This isn't Nick Saban axing 15 players to make room for his class, we had room for the class regardless. 

AZBlue

March 16th, 2012 at 1:57 PM ^

this won't open up a single scholarship for new recruits.  (reading IS fundamental)

I am sure the actual use of a degree would be unfamiliar turf to a MSU/OSU grad let alone a fan that has a HS education.

/Hate it when I feed the trolls

Hagen

March 16th, 2012 at 1:45 PM ^

And I'm glad they'll graduate too, it is what's most important for everyone not becoming pros, but the depth at center does concern me.

GoWings2008

March 16th, 2012 at 1:42 PM ^

I always liked Mike Cox as a player.  I remember seeing video of him during Spring ball last year and liking his running style.  But I'm sure there's a reason why he didn't get much playing time.  Ahhh well.  Best of luck to him, Khoury, and Robinson.

JCV16

March 16th, 2012 at 1:43 PM ^

We only have 2 centers now, and one of them is a guard! People get hurt! Khoury was kind of decent when he played, other than the last VT game.  Panic! Panic!!! I am panicking.

 

 

lbpeley

March 16th, 2012 at 2:15 PM ^

Hopkins. Not Cox. And the play he's talking about is the kickoff after the winning TD that ND fumbled and we almost ret'd for another TD.

 

Edit: Damn. I needs to be quicker on hitting reply.

BrokenRhino

March 16th, 2012 at 1:47 PM ^

Good bye, Mike Cox

 

Good bye, Rocko Khoury

 

Good bye, Terrence Robinson

 

Good bye, George Morales

 

I hope you guys success in life. Thanks for your time on the team.

 

imdeng

March 16th, 2012 at 2:19 PM ^

All three scholarship players are significant losses. We needed Khoury for depth at C, Robinson was contributing on special teams, Cox was providing depth at RB and as could have been useful on special teams. It would have been better for the team if they had stuck around - but they are graduating and since it is unlikely that they have a future in pro-football, it makes sense for them to start with their post-football lives.

Best of luck to all of them.

 

biakabutuka ex…

March 16th, 2012 at 2:48 PM ^

I don't put too much stock in Khoury's Va Tech performance. Given an off-season of preparation with the 1s instead of 15 minutes, I think he would have been a very respectable contributor this year.

Wolverine 73

March 16th, 2012 at 2:52 PM ^

Here is a guy who worked hard for four years and finally was about to get a real, legitimate chance to start, and he passes it up.  Hard to understand, even though he had to realize he had no future in pro ball.  Losing the other two guys doesn't seem especially significant.   I suspect someone else can do what Robinson was doing for the team, and Cox's career highlight was his run in last year's spring game.

Magnus

March 16th, 2012 at 4:49 PM ^

Cox had several career highlights.  A 57-yard touchdown run against DSU in 2009.  A 24-yard run against EMU.  A 35-yard run against BGSU.  The spring game last year was another highlight.  He played well every time he got a chance to touch the ball...except that one kick return, which he shouldn't have returned.

MaximumSam

March 16th, 2012 at 10:26 PM ^

Sorry, but this is total crap.  Obviously, these guys are being cut to make room for new players.  4(!) seniors decide to just walk away from the team and hey, that's totally their call, nothing the coach could do about it, business as usual, etc., etc.  Oh hey look Michigan just got a preferred walk on who now may get a scholarship.  Surprise, surprise.  

 

I really don't care that much except to point out that the "oh no you didn't posts" about other teams jettisoning poorly performing players really feel hollow now that Michigan seems intent on jettisoning poorly performing players.  

 

Really, it can be boiled down to "if Team that is not Michigan cuts a player, they are everything that is wrong with college football."  "If Team that is Michigan cuts a player, nothing wrong at all."  Welcome back to bigtime college football, I guess.

Feaster18

March 16th, 2012 at 10:43 PM ^

I will attempt to explain this to you one more time, since you obviously didn't understand the numerous posters who showed you the error of your argument.  As Brian points out, there is no benefit because we are already below the 85 scholarship limit, and have long passed the chance to add to the 2012 class.  A preferred walk-on is a walk on.   There is no benefit gained by having these players not return for a 5th year. 

MaximumSam

March 17th, 2012 at 8:52 AM ^

...that there is a benefit, because Hoke has more scholarships available this year for players he might wish to give a scholarship to this year.  Further, this is just the latest round of cuts, many of which were made so they could sign more players this year.   You may think that cutting players is fine if it doesn't free up scholarships for future players in future years, but that doesn't change the fact that this is clearly cutting players who aren't as good at the game of football, which is supposedly a terrible sin until Michigan starts doing it.

bluenyc

March 17th, 2012 at 11:40 AM ^

Why would he cut seniors that have been here?  Its not like he needs the room.  he has chollie's sitting there which arent used and only one year left.  its not like he can use those schollie's as extra for 2013.  what is the benefit of losing depth without some extra players.  if he did, this just antagonizes the remaining team members

MaximumSam

March 17th, 2012 at 8:58 AM ^

It's not like this is a horrible practice - all these guys will end up playing football somewhere else for at least a little while, probably.  None have futures in the NFL.  But don't call this something that it's not.  These guys aren't good enough to play for Michigan anymore so the coaching staff directed them to a new path off the Michigan team.  And don't tell me how evil other coaches are for doing the same thing.

DustomaticGXC

March 17th, 2012 at 11:29 AM ^

"there's no benefit" do you not understand?  What exactly can Hoke do without them on the roster next season that he could not if he had kept them?  He has more scholorships open for... who?  Just in case?

 

Oh, and then there's the little part about them graduating.  I don't think people would have near the issue with Nick Saban if he sent his roster cuts off with a degree from a great University.

Seth

March 18th, 2012 at 4:31 PM ^

Some trolls had to be put in the loony bin for crying "hypocrisy!" at any poo poo of attrition at Michigan when this site has been critical of teams that put themselves in a position to mandatorally slice players off the roster.

I confirmed that Cox, Khoury, Robinson and Morales are all on track to graduate either this May or this summer. By the time the football season starts they would have been 5th year seniors. Instead they will be people who have bachelor's degrees and may do whatever they want with those. There was no pressure put on by the coaches for them to leave the team.

When Spring came they were asked to return and said "sorry, gonna graduate." Only three were scholarship athletes, and those three all got four years of scholarships, which is the highest expectation of any school. And that doesn't matter because none of these guys wanted or needed a 5th year in college.

MaximumSam

March 19th, 2012 at 12:08 PM ^

I'm supposed to believe that Alabama is a horribly evil program because they have the audacity to put players on medical scholarship to free up more football scholarships.  That is a terrible thing, but when seniors decide to just up and leave the program en masse it is all due to their decision and all ok because they may graduate and that cures all ills. 

It's not hypocritical - it's educational.  When fans of team A see what is required for success, the justifications for that are much easier to come by.  The reasoning given by Alabama fans, LSU fans, and now Michigan fans has been almost identical, (i.e. it's a case by case basis and magically in every case there was this really important reason play X didn't want to play for Michigan anymore that had absolutely nothing to do with his play on the field).