Les Miles (image via NFL.com)
LSU fired head coach Les Miles after a tough loss to Auburn. The LSU Tigers are now 2-2 with wins over Jacksonville State and Mississippi State, while the losses have been to Wisconsin and the aforementioned Auburn.
Here’s a look at if and how the situation in Baton Rouge might affect Michigan:
It was nice to see Jourdan Lewis back in action (image via MLive)
I’m still not sold on Wilton Speight. His numbers weren’t bad (21/34, 189 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT), but he’s the epitome of a game manager right now. He’s 4-0 as a starter and doesn’t turn the ball over much, while his offense is scoring 50 points a game. He missed a lot of open throws, though. He airmailed a few passes and threw a couple others into the ground. Even a wide open deep throw to Jehu Chesson turned into a duck that Chesson had to slow down and fall to the ground just to reel in, and a wide open flat route by Khalid Hill required a shoe-top grab by Hill. I’m reminded of Denard Robinson in 2010 when he put up decent passing numbers (62.5% completions, 18 TDs, 11 INTs) but a lot of his throws prevented receivers from running after the catch. Some of these issues plagued Jake Rudock early in the 2015 season, so there’s a precedent for improvement. I think Michigan is somewhat lucky that Penn State’s offense and linebackers weren’t better, because if this game came down to being put on Speight’s shoulders, I don’t know if he could win it with his arm. He and the wide receivers just don’t seem to have great timing right now.
Hit the jump for more.
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech WR Donovan Peoples-Jones (image via 247 Sports)
Toryque Bateman – OT – Gadsden (AL) Gadsden City: Bateman is a 6’8″, 305 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Miami, Michigan, and Tennessee, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #43 offensive tackle, and #408 overall. Bateman was close to committing to Michigan at one point and the Crystal Ball is still 62% in favor of the Wolverines, but there have been rumors that Michigan might back off due to questions about whether he’ll qualify or not. UPDATE: Bateman did not make it to town.
Markquese Bell – WR – Bridgeton (NJ) Bridgeton: Bell is a 6’3″, 194 lb. prospect with offers from Clemson, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, and Rutgers, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #6 athlete, and #179 overall. I did a scouting report on him back in April (LINK). He said several weeks ago that distance would no longer be a factor in his recruitment, which led some to believe that he was leaning away from Rutgers and perhaps toward the Wolverines. UPDATE: Bell is now visiting for the Wisconsin game on October 1.
Ellis Brooks – LB – Richmond (VA) Benedictine:
Nico Collins – WR – Pinson (AL) Clay-Chalkville: Collins is a 6’5″, 195 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia, and Michigan, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #13 wide receiver, and #86 overall. Alabama was thought to be the early leader, then Michigan jumped to the front, and now there are rumors that Georgia is in the driver’s seat. This will be his third visit to Michigan in the last few months. The Crystal Ball is 62% in favor of the Wolverines. UPDATE: Collins did not make it to town.
Hit the jump for several more visitors.
This is Zoe Pugh, who is supposedly a PSU student (image via 10worthy)
RUSH OFFENSE vs. PENN STATE RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is averaging 198 yards/game on the ground, which is #52 in the country, and they’re doing it at 4.9 yards/carry, which is 49th. The Wolverines have also scored 9 rushing touchdowns, which is good enough to be tied for 19th. The team’s leading rusher is still backup Chris Evans, boosted by his 8-carry, 112-yard performance against Hawaii in the opener; he has added 19 carries for just 45 yards since. Starter De’Veon Smith had his best game of the year last week when he carried 11 times for 87 yards. Michigan ran 7 variations of jet sweeps last week, getting the ball to the likes of Jehu Chesson, Eddie McDoom, and Jabrill Peppers. It’s actually rather impressive that they have so many jet sweeps in their repertoire. The Nittany Lions are a little weak on the edge, and Michigan has struggled to create a push up front, so I imagine the Wolverines will continue to use the jet sweep this week; Chesson had a 20-yarder against PSU last year. Penn State is #92 against the run (176 yards allowed/game) and tied for #84 in yards allowed/carry (4.23). Those aren’t impressive stats, considering two of the first three opponents were Kent State and Temple (the other is Pitt, a pretty decent team). The two leading tacklers are safeties Marcus Allen (21) and Malik Golden (18), while the next two on the list are linebackers who are now injured. In fact, PSU runs a 4-3 defense but all three starting linebackers are hurt. Defensive tackle Parker Cothren and defensive end Torrence Brown are the leading active TFL guys with 3.0 each.
Advantage: Michigan
Hit the jump for more of a preview of Penn State.
If you have any other pictures of good looking girls in Michigan gear, drop me an e-mail. Go Blue!