Tag: Blake Countess

Poll Results: Breakout Defender?

Blake Countess is the overwhelming choice for breakout defender of the year.

A couple weeks ago, I suggested that Desmond Morgan and Courtney Avery were both in the running for being breakout defenders.  Some readers disagreed with me, so I created a poll that received over 300 votes.  Which defensive player had the biggest breakout season in 2011?  Here are the results:

Blake Countess: 64%
Jake Ryan: 28%
Desmond Morgan: 4%
Thomas Gordon: 1%
Courtney Avery: 0% (2 votes)
Other: 0% (1 vote)

Freshman cornerback Blake Countess is your clear winner.  Countess started five games and played in eleven contests as a true freshman.  Midway through the season, he seemed to have usurped the starting cornerback job from fifth year senior Troy Woolfolk, who suffered from nagging injuries all year.  Countess finished the regular season with 36 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 forced fumble, and 6 pass breakups (second on the team).  Furthermore, Countess showed the promise to be a potential all-conference corner for the next two or three seasons.

Redshirt freshman linebacker Jake Ryan received the next most votes.  Ryan is a 6’3″, 230 lb. SAM ‘backer who started ten games.  He made several timely big plays throughout the year, including forcing a fumble against San Diego State and causing an interception against Western Michigan that was returned 94 yards for a touchdown by Brandon Herron.  Ryan has 30 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery on the year.

True freshman WILL ‘backer Desmond Morgan finished third, despite starting more games than Countess.  He led the team in tackles twice and finished the regular season with 53 tackles (fifth most on the team), 2.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 1 fumble recovery.  The 6’1″, 220-pounder likely suffered damage in the area of public perception when he was juked and outrun multiple times by Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller, but not many linebackers match up well with Miller in open space.

Redshirt sophomore free safety Thomas Gordon surprisingly finished fourth in the voting, despite having a largely forgettable 23-tackle performance in 2010.  Gordon started nine games at free safety and seemed to lose his job late in the season simply because the coaches didn’t want to relegate Woolfolk to the bench.  Gordon finished the regular season with 59 tackles (third on the team), 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 interception, 2 pass breakups, 4 fumble recoveries, and 2 forced fumbles.  His interception was one of the highlights of the season when he expertly read a double pass against Eastern Michigan and made a one-handed pick.  Gordon also has a knack for being around the ball, which is apparent with his 4 fumble recoveries.

Sophomore cornerback Courtney Avery is down at the bottom, receiving only two of the votes.  Avery started only two games at cornerback, but he made several big plays.  One was an 83-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Minnesota.  He also made two impressive interceptions – the game-clinching one against Ohio State and another nice one against Purdue – to finish tied for first on the team in that category.  Avery’s regular season stats include 24 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1/2 a sack, 2 interceptions, 2 fumble recoveries (1 for a touchdown), and 1 forced fumble.

There was one vote for “Other” but I’m not sure which player earned that vote.

In order, my ballot would be Desmond Morgan, Blake Countess, Thomas Gordon, Jake Ryan, and Courtney Avery.  Morgan earned the starting job over several contenders, including a senior (Herron), a junior (Brandin Hawthorne), and others.  There were some bumps along the way, but he acquitted himself well.  I already expected good things from Countess from when he was recruited, so his success wasn’t really a “breakout” to me; I also expected good things from Morgan, but not quite so soon.  Gordon had more experience than either of those freshmen, but he watched from the sideline for most of 2010 and still turned into a big-play guy who filled up the stat sheet.  Ryan made some big plays, but also has some chinks in the armor.  He will be good soon, but 30 total tackles is a little underwhelming for a linebacker.  You could make a case that Avery deserves to be higher, and I might not argue; Michigan is in decent shape if he’s the nickel corner.

Michigan vs. Ohio State Awards

Eat my dreads.

I’m going to take a slightly different tactic this week than other weeks.  Heading into the bowl game, there’s no real reason to suggest personnel changes other than just for the hell of it.  If a guy is a starter now, he’ll probably be starting in the bowl game.  Michigan just beat Ohio State, I’m happy, and these are all positive awards today.

Offensive MVP . . . Denard Robinson.  He was 14/17 for 167 yards and 3 touchdowns with 0 interceptions. He ran the ball 26 times for 170 yards and 2 touchdowns.  The kid was patient in the pocket, stepped up in crunch time, and seemed more decisive in the running game than he has for most of the year.  This was an easy pick.

Defensive MVP . . . Ryan Van Bergen.  Van Bergen had 7 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 pass breakup, and 1/2 a sack.  He was consistently causing trouble for quarterback Braxton Miller and running back Dan Herron, and he notched the tackle that pinned OSU to the goal line and allowed for a safety on the following play.

Offensive play of the game . . . Denard’s 41-yard touchdown run.  Not only did Denard make a good read in the running game, but he also looked quicker than he has in recent weeks and made Etienne Sabino look silly.  It was electrifying to see him have success against a defense that has smothered Michigan the past few seasons.  I think that play gave the players and the fans notice that the offense was going to be explosive the entire day.

Defensive play of the game #1 . . . Blake Countess’s pass breakup.  On 3rd-and-27 from their own 3-yard line, Braxton Miller launched a missile to DeVier Posey, who was streaking down the middle of the field.  Countess was trailing Posey and turned on the jets just in time to get a finger on the ball, knocking the pass down.  Even though a holding penalty in the endzone would have negated the gain, Countess didn’t know that when he was making the play.  That was a potential 97-yard touchdown pass that surely would have taken some of the wind out of Michigan’s sails.

Defensive play of the game #2 . . . Courtney Avery’s interception.  For a nickel corner to be tied for the team lead with 2 interceptions, that’s a pretty good job for Avery.  He could probably be starting for this team at one of the outside corner positions, but he’s aggressive and physical in the slot and that physicality paid off.  On a last-gasp pass for Ohio State, Avery knocked down wide receiver Devin Smith and then launched himself through the air to pick off the pass.  It was 4th-and-6 so the interception wasn’t much different than a simple incompletion, but it was a great play nonethelesss.

Michigan 40, Ohio State 34

Denard Robinson made people look silly on this 41-yard touchdown run. (image via CBS)

This was Denard’s best game.  Ever.  I take back all the negative things I ever said about Denard Robinson.  He’s spectacular.  I want to have his children.  In all seriousness, though, the guy was 14-for-17 for 167 yards and 3 touchdowns with zero interceptions; he also carried the ball 26 times for 170 yards and 2 touchdowns.  The only flaw in his game was the fumble (put the ball in your outside hand!), but he made throws in this game that he hasn’t made consistently in his entire career – his 28-yard pass to Drew Dileo was thrown perfectly.  That was a great way to cap the regular season.

The replay official was Woody Hayes, Jr.  There was no way in hell that Fitzgerald Toussaint’s touchdown run late in the fourth quarter should have been reversed.  It was called a touchdown on the field and, at worst, there was no good angle to reverse the call.  Officials are supposed to have “indisputable evidence” to overturn calls, and if it takes 10 minutes to review the play, then it’s obviously disputable.  That’s not the fault of the officials on the field – it’s the anonymous guy in the booth.  That guy needs to be reprimanded by the league.  Anyway, that play would have put Michigan up by 9 points (presumably 10 after the extra point) with about two minutes remaining, and Ohio State only had one timeout left.  It would have taken a miracle for OSU to score 10+ points in under two minutes; all it would have taken is a little bit of luck for them to overcome the six-point deficit that resulted.  Luckily, Courtney Avery saved the day.

What happened to Michigan’s defense?  I absolutely did not expect Ohio State to have that much success offensively.  I figured Braxton Miller would get a good chunk of yards by scrambling or on designed runs, and he did (16 carries, 100 yards, 1 touchdown).  Michigan shut down running back Dan Herron (15 carries, 37 yards, 1 touchdown).  But there were wide open receivers running all over the place, and Miller actually hit some of them nicely.  I can’t even just pick on one guy – Blake Countess, J.T. Floyd, Thomas Gordon, Jordan Kovacs, and Troy Woolfolk all got beat on deep passes.  Miller finished with 14 completions in 25 attempts for 2 touchdowns and just the 1 interception at the end of the game.  I was high on Miller when Rich Rodriguez was recruiting him out of Wayne High School in Huber Heights, OH, and he’s going to be tough to deal with for the next few seasons.

The game experience was awesome.  It was great weather for being the end of November.  The tailgaters and frat houses were partying hard.  (Thanks to the tailgaters who let me join them, by the way.)  I only saw one classless encounter between a Michigan fan and an Ohio State fan, and both of them were drunk and stumbling.  The only downer the entire day was that the Union hockey team was sitting near me and kept complaining that people in front of them were standing.  Usually “down in front!” is reserved for old people, but these 19- to 22-year-old kids were trying to rest their legs for this afternoon’s game against the Wolverines, I guess.

Fitzgerald Toussaint made dudes look silly.  If you are one-on-one with Toussaint in open space, you might as well lay down and take a nap.  He had 20 carries for 120 yards and 1 nullified touchdown, and that was a pretty solid defense he was up against.  Between Robinson and Toussaint, Michigan had 46 carries for 290 yards.  Yowzers.

Ten wins.  I expected the offense to be pretty good, and they’ve put some points on the board.  I expected the defense to be solid but unspectacular, and they’ve been on the verge of spectacular.  Aside from giving up 34 points to a mediocre Ohio State offense, the defense has been awesome this year.  I did not expect Michigan to end up with ten wins on the season, and they still have a chance for an eleventh.  The coaches and the players have done an excellent job overall and have played with a lot of hustle and intensity.  It’s been a great season, and Michigan seems to be on the upswing after a few down years.

Go Blue!

Michigan vs. Iowa Awards

Freshman cornerback Blake Countess tackles touted receiver Marvin McNutt (image via MGoBlue.com)

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Michael Shaw.  If Fitzgerald Toussaint’s apparent shoulder injury keeps him out next week, I would like to see Shaw get some playing time in lieu of Toussaint.  Vincent Smith has established himself as a capable third down back and receiver out of the backfield (although he dropped a key pass against the Hawkeyes), but he has also established himself as being incapable of playing the role of a lead back.  Shaw is averaging 6.4 yards a carry and has the ability to break big plays.  Smith hasn’t had double-digit carries all season, and it should probably stay that way.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . tentative Denard.  The coaches need to rethink their coaching of Robinson and tell him to go all out.  The current iteration of Denard Robinson has him avoiding contact at all costs and searching for the sideline.  For a unit that can’t create big plays down the field in the passing game now that Big Ten play has started, Robinson needs to be the player he was last year – the one that almost always looked for a few extra yards here or there, and the one who could look like he was running out of bounds and then turn up the sideline for a huge play.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Thomas Gordon.  Gordon has had a hand in twice as many turnovers as anyone else on the team (1 interception, 3 fumble recoveries, 2 forced fumbles), but he found himself watching from the bench as Troy Woolfolk started at safety on Saturday.  Woolfolk isn’t 100% healthy and should have sat out against a cupcake or two earlier in the season to get ready for the Big Ten, but the coaches sent him out there every week, anyway, and now we’re seeing the repercussions.  Gordon needs to be on the field, and Woolfolk ought to be subbing in at corner, safety, or both.

Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . Desmond Morgan.  I’m a big fan of Morgan and his potential, but the bottom line is that he’s a true freshman playing in the run-heavy Big Ten.  Iowa took advantage of him, and it seemed to be on purpose.  Whether the answer is Brandon Herron, Brandin Hawthorne, or Mike Jones, somebody with a little more experience ought to fill in.  What we’re seeing right now is exactly the reason I was hoping that Marell Evans would start at WILL, but unfortunately, Evans is in purgatory right now while the coaches try to sort out some issues with his transfer credits; Evans’ career might be done or he might be able to get a sixth year of eligibility.

Play of the game . . . Junior Hemingway’s jump-ball catch.  At one point in the fourth quarter (I think), Denard Robinson threw a laser to a well-covered Hemingway.  The receiver – who had dropped two easy passes earlier in the game – went over top of the Iowa defensive back to reel in the ill-advised pass.  It was a typical play for Hemingway, who has saved Robinson’s butt on several occasions in the past couple seasons.

MVP of the game . . . Blake Countess.  Perhaps I’m overstating the importance of Countess’ performance on Saturday, but he did an excellent job on a very good receiver in the form of Iowa’s Marvin McNutt.  Of course, it helps that nobody else had a standout game, but Countess is the team’s best corner, in my opinion.  McNutt could have had a huge day, but in large part due to Countess, McNutt either had the ball knocked away or was tackled immediately when Countess was on him.  The freshman cornerback stepped up to the challenge and continues to look like the next great corner in Ann Arbor.

Michigan vs. Purdue Awards

Mike Martin tore through Purdue’s offensive line all day Saturday

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Fitzgerald Toussaint.  Getting only two carries against Michigan State was a tad ridiculous, but Toussaint is clearly the best pure running back on the roster.  He can hit the homerun, he can run over people, and he can make people miss.  As long as he stays healthy, the job seems to be his.  The coaches keep saying that nobody has stood out from the rest of the pack, but maybe that’s because the whole group is pretty good.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . a backup lineman.  Things are starting to get a little hairy on the offensive line.  Both Ricky Barnum and Taylor Lewan are banged up, and with the bye week in the rearview mirror, they won’t get any significant amount of time to heal up before the end of the regular season.  Michael Schofield is the top backup at guard and tackle, but the thing about Schofield is that he can’t play both guard and  tackle at the same time.  Hopefully Lewan visits Miracle Max and gets a magical healing potion soon.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Blake Countess William Campbell.  I was going to make a case for Countess, but it turns out he’s going to be the starter against Iowa, at least if reality falls in line with the depth chart that was released on Monday.  So I’ll throw my hat in the ring for Campbell.  Campbell has done a nice job this year, and while he hasn’t been a consistent playmaker, guys like Will Heininger and Nathan Brink aren’t doing anything special, either.  My starting defensive line would be Ryan Van Bergen, Mike Martin, Campbell, and Craig Roh.

Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . J.T. Floyd.  I know some people think Floyd is playing at a high level, but I just don’t see it.  He’s a tentative tackler and doesn’t make enough plays for my tastes.  I will admit that Floyd has improved since last season, but that’s not saying much.  Countess and Courtney Avery have surpassed him, in my opinion.

Play of the game . . . Toussaint’s 59-yard touchdown run.  He took a pitch going left, made seven Boilermakers miss, and then turned on the jets to leave everyone in the dust.  It was the type of run that Michigan fans haven’t seen from a running back in years.  Carlos Brown never made that many people miss, Brandon Minor would have lowered his shoulder and run over a couple dudes, and Mike Hart probably would have been caught from behind.  Hopefully there’s more where that came from in the weeks ahead.

MVP of the game . . . Toussaint.  Mike Martin (7 tackles, 2 sacks) is a close second, but Toussaint’s output (20 carries, 170 yards, 2 touchdowns) was the highest for a running back since Hart back in 2007.