I. Bell, F. Toussaint
hopefully someone can help me. i've been reading several posts talking about our future depth and the contributions of incoming freshman and R freshman. so far i havn't seen any mention of Bell or Toussaint. i had heard the Toussaint broke his collar bone and was done for the season. does anyone have any word on them? i love Toussaints listed size 5'10" 185lbs, he will only get bigger. Bell was in one of the high school all-star games and have heard nothing on him all year. hope someone has info.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:15 PM ^
From what I heard, Toussaint got buried on the depth chart when Vincent Smith blew up in preseason. While many people aren't happy (myself included) with the linebacker play this year, we have ALOT of young linebackers. My guess is he just lost any opportunity for forward advancement when he broke his collar bone.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:46 PM ^
That is why he was redshirted.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:15 AM ^
First of all, who are you talking about? You start off talking about how Toussaint lost his chance to play because of Vincent Smith, then you mumble about linebackers and mention someone having a broken collarbone.
Second, Toussaint broke his collarbone.
Bell was healthy and playing linebacker (WILL, from what I heard) but since it's a new position for him, it might take him a while to learn. He played FS in high school, so he wasn't worried about run fits and shedding blockers. He was worried about the deep middle and filling alleys.
November 26th, 2009 at 11:05 AM ^
The linebackers comment was directed towards Bell. Toussaint, if healthy, would not have passed Smith.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:15 PM ^
There's not much info out there but I always considered Toussaint to be the dark horse and suprise people next year cause he was a stud in high school
November 25th, 2009 at 8:34 PM ^
I second that opinion. Considering our depth at RB this year it was only logical to give Fitz a RS after he was injured. I look forward to seeing him play next year.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:32 PM ^
I also saw a post earlier this year that suggested Toussaint was now a linebacker? No depth charts I can find are deep enough to support this. If he stayed at RB, he could very well be in competition for the third back spot next year (which as we saw this year, could get him some serious snaps).
November 25th, 2009 at 8:38 PM ^
Are you thinking of J.B. Fitzgerald? This would be a major surprise.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:17 AM ^
No, you didn't.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:39 PM ^
Toussaint was hurt earlier in the season, but apparently was performing very well for the scout team. The only problem was, Rodriguez stopped letting people into practice at that point, so nobody knows.
Bell is playing middle linebacker. He's bulked up a bit and hopefully will contribute somewhere down the line. But very little has been said of him.
November 26th, 2009 at 12:19 AM ^
I've had high hopes for Interception Big Playmaker. Hopefully he lives up to his name.
November 25th, 2009 at 8:39 PM ^
Article on AnnArbor.com says, Toussaint is a player to expect a lot from at RB next season.
http://www.annarbor.com/sports/michigan-needs-big-things-from-these-5-p…
November 25th, 2009 at 8:45 PM ^
It was in a blog, goes to show you MGoBlog is one of the only reliable ones. Point is he could definitely get to third on the depth chart next year.
November 25th, 2009 at 9:29 PM ^
thanks for all the posts and help on these 2. Bell seemed like a stud during the all-star game and Toussaint seems to have nice size for a solid big 10 back. i just found it curious that nothing is really being said of these 2. Toussaint i kinda understand with his injury, but bell doesn't even seem to be in the discussions at all(ie: he wasn't good at all definitive RS, or looking good but not quite ready, etc:).
November 25th, 2009 at 9:44 PM ^
With Toussaint I think he was just subject to being behind a lot of good players. You knew coming in Minor and Brown were good (albeit when healthy), but Shaw was also there and V. Smith was a pleasant surprise.
Bell was a high school safety who switched positions and bulked up some, so of course a learning curve was expected. I think both of these players will have a significant impact on the team in coming years, maybe as soon as next year for Toussaint.
November 25th, 2009 at 9:42 PM ^
I'm sure there was a learning curve for him and also needed to bulk up. Sounds like a natural to compete for the S/LB hybrid spot.
From Rivals in their "Under Armour AA Top 10 Players: Black Team
8) S ISAIAH BELL
6-1/209, Youngstown (Ohio) Liberty
After struggling through the first practice and temporarily moving to linebacker, Bell found his rhythm starting on Day Two. A big safety, he was able to come up to the line of scrimmage and stop the run as well as cover the inside receivers. Though he could add some bulk and be a very good outside linebacker at Michigan, he has the instincts of a safety in the passing game. Sunday's game proved that as he finished second on the team with five tackles and also added a pass breakup. He has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.
http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=898126
November 25th, 2009 at 11:22 PM ^
Being in the right place at the right time is a quality that we could desperately use in our middle linebacker corps right now.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:11 AM ^
So with that in mind, is Bell perhaps looking at some playing time at the SAM linebacker position?
November 26th, 2009 at 8:18 AM ^
No. He's an ILB unless they switch him this offseason.
November 26th, 2009 at 11:13 AM ^
WTF people?
November 25th, 2009 at 9:47 PM ^
"Toussaint, a freshman, has a fractured shoulder and could miss the rest of camp. If he does, he'll likely redshirt.
"We got a lot of backs, and if you miss three weeks of camp it does set you far (back), particularly as a freshman," Rodriguez said. "But if he comes back before the end of camp and he can learn quickly, he can get back in the mix."
http://www.annarbor.com/sports/michigan-dealing-with-minor-injuries/
November 25th, 2009 at 9:51 PM ^
thanks again guys for all the info!
November 25th, 2009 at 9:54 PM ^
All this talk about running backs & such, offense isn't something we should be worried about. We will have the best offense in the big 11 next year. Defense linebackers & safety is the only problem we should be worried about. I say put kovacs in sb3 old position & let him loose. Kovacs is probably my 2nd favorite player, but him in the secondary scares me.
November 25th, 2009 at 9:57 PM ^
you sound like sean beligian(sp)
November 25th, 2009 at 10:02 PM ^
That's why he asked about bell since he's a linebacker
November 26th, 2009 at 7:47 AM ^
but Kovacs being on the field anywhere is a concern to me. He is a walk-on safety and the fact that we had to play him at all this year just goes to show what a dire situation our defense is in.
November 26th, 2009 at 8:12 AM ^
I think it's really scary that a walk-on has gained so much popularity as one of the top playmakers on our team.
November 25th, 2009 at 10:06 PM ^
bell has really bulked up and he's listed at 220lbs now. he could potentially push mouton/leach/ezeh/fits at inside backer next season
fitz was a smart red shirt. id guess he goes into next season as our third back. but hes got loads and loads of talent. he could really blow up. we used 4 backs this season. no reason to believe we wont use 3 next year.
November 25th, 2009 at 11:14 PM ^
Toussaint is up to 205
"Fitzgerald Toussaint - Vincent Smith should enter spring practice as the starter, but Rich Rodriguez has always relied on multiple running backs. Mike Shaw gets first crack as Smith’s sidekick, but Toussaint is a better changeup. He’s a physical runner who’s up to 205 pounds, and he would have played this year if not for the shoulder injury he sustained in camp. Bruising Brandon Minor will be missed, but Toussaint can fill his void and may have a better career if he stays healthy."
http://www.annarbor.com/sports/michigan-needs-big-things-from-these-5-p…
November 26th, 2009 at 2:23 AM ^
i just saw that, excellent news. he could give us a little bit of a power compliment, couldnt he?
November 26th, 2009 at 7:50 AM ^
He also has excellent speed as well. He was also a track star in HS, so he will have much better breakaway speed than Minor.
November 26th, 2009 at 7:55 AM ^
Bell is one of the players I had really high hopes for coming into the season but I guess it didn't pan out for him this year. That isn't really saying much since he is a freshman and most players don't see the field for significant playing time until their junior year but given our LB situation I was kind of hoping he was good enough to take over one of the spots. I'll keep my fingers crossed that either:
A) Ezeh and Mouton improve enough in their second year under Gerg to be legit big ten LB's or B) Bell shows enough promise that he insures we no longer have to see walk-ons playing LB.
Edit: No walk-ons playing anywhere would be nice also.
November 26th, 2009 at 11:54 AM ^
Wouldn't Bell have to pass such guys as Fitzgerald and Leach to get in the lineup though?