Tag: Central Florida

Michigan vs. Central Florida Awards

Eddie McDoom (image via Twitter)

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Eddie McDoom. I’m not calling for anyone to get benched here. I just really like what I’ve seen out of McDoom so far. He’s shown speed, agility, willingness to fight for extra yardage, an ability to catch the ball in traffic, etc. He needs to get in the weight room this off-season, but there’s a lot of potential here.

Hit the jump for the rest of this week’s awards.

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Snapshots: Adrian Killins’s 87-yard TD run vs. Michigan

Adrian Killins (in blue, image via Ormond Beach Observer)

For Michigan fans, maybe the most disheartening play of the 51-14 win over Central Florida was freshman running back Adrian Killins breaking off an 87-yard touchdown run against a defense that’s deemed one of the best in the country. Here’s how it happened:

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Michigan 51, Central Florida 14

(image via PCH)

Wilton Speight is the real deal? I still don’t know. Speight went 25/37 for 312 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions while taking 2 sacks. He spent much of the day hitting crossing routes or checkdowns; his deep balls included a couple misses, a 35-yard gainer to Jehu Chesson, and a touchdown to Amara Darboh. Central Florida got more of a pass rush than they should have and made things tough at times. Perhaps Speight’s best play of the day was when he was in the hands of a blitzing UCF safety, but the 6’6″, 243 lb. QB spun around to find wide-open fullback Henry Poggi in the flat, who then rumbled through a couple tackles for an 8-yard gain. Speight was also more efficient than the numbers suggest, because normally sure-handed tight end Jake Butt dropped a couple passes. It was a very good day for Speight, but I thought Jedd Fisch’s passing game created some nice windows to throw the ball.

Hit the jump for more thoughts on Michigan vs. Central Florida.

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Preview: Michigan vs. Central Florida

RUSH OFFENSE vs. UCF RUSH DEFENSE

After one week, Michigan is #14 in the country with 306 rushing yards/game. The biggest chunk of that yardage came from freshman third-stringer Chris Evans, who had 112 yards on just 8 carries. Primary backup Ty Isaac had 9 carries for 52 yards. The starter hasn’t been mentioned yet, because De’Veon Smith had a ho-hum day (6 carries, 27 yards) before leaving with a rib injury. Those three players represent speed (Evans), power (Smith), and a nice mix of the two (Isaac). Fifth year senior Drake Johnson did not play, and sophomore Karan Higdon provides depth. Up front, Michigan has a mix of experience and talent. Fifth year senior left guard Ben Braden missed the Hawaii game but should come back this week, but even if he doesn’t, redshirt junior Pat Kugler filled in fairly well for him last week. Jim Harbaugh said fifth year senior right tackle Erik Magnuson graded out the best. Elsewhere, Michigan has mammoth sophomore left tackle Grant Newsome, junior Mason Cole at center, and fifth year senior Kyle Kalis at right guard. Central Florida is #32 in rushing yards allowed (85.0) and #38 in rushing average against (2.66), though those numbers came against FCS team South Dakota State. UCF employs a 3-4 defense. The top seven tacklers last week were linebackers, and the next three were defensive backs. You have to go all the way down to 11th before finding a defensive lineman. Leading tackler Mark Rucker, a fifth year senior inside linebacker, is 5’9″, 217 lbs. Freshman starting defensive end Trysten Hill (6’1″, 295 lbs.), nose tackle Jamiyus Pittman (6’0″, 295 lbs.), and defensive end Tony Guerad (6’3″, 275 lbs.) make up the starting line. One guy to watch is redshirt junior outside linebacker Shaquern Griffin (6’1″, 213 lbs.). The biggest linebacker is 230 lbs. and the biggest lineman in the rotation is 295, so it’s not a very big front seven. Michigan should be able to run the ball with some regularity.
Advantage: Michigan

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