Michigan vs. Ohio State Awards

Tag: Denard Robinson


30Nov 2011
Uncategorized 13 comments

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.

29Nov 2011
Uncategorized 11 comments

All-Big Ten Teams Announced

David Molk (#50) is the conference’s best lineman

On Monday night the All-Big Ten teams were announced.

Michigan center David Molk was named the league’s best offensive lineman, so congratulations to him.

Other notable Michigan honorees:

SELECTIONS BY COACHES
First team: David Molk, C
Second team: Taylor Lewan, OT; Mike Martin, DT
Honorable mention: Kenny Demens, LB; J.T. Floyd, CB; Kevin Koger, TE; Junior Hemingway, WR; Denard Robinson, QB; Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB; Ryan Van Bergen, DT
Sportsmanship Award: Jordan Kovacs, S

SELECTIONS BY MEDIA
First team: None
Second team: Denard Robinson, QB; David Molk, C; Mike Martin, DT
Honorable mention: Kenny Demens, LB; J.T. Floyd, CB; Kevin Koger, TE; Jordan Kovacs, S; Taylor Lewan, OT; Craig Roh, DE; Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB; Ryan Van Bergen, DT

I find it a little strange that a team with a 10-2 record could have zero first team selections by the media and then only three on the second team, especially when David Molk was named Offensive Lineman of the Year.

Michigan State defensive tackle Jerel Worthy was named first team by both parties, but his season stats (23 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks) are less impressive than those of Mike Martin (54 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks) and Ryan Van Bergen (41 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 5 sacks), not to mention several of the second team selections from other schools.  Worthy’s inclusion on the first unit is kind of a joke.

And I understand Russell Wilson being chosen as the best quarterback in the league due to his great statistics, but Kirk Cousins was the second team quarterback, according to the coaches?  Cousins beat Denard Robinson in the turnover category (Cousins threw only 6 interceptions), but Cousins also only accounted for 21 total touchdowns (all passing) while Robinson had a total of 34 (18 passing, 16 rushing).  Cousins also accounted for only 2,670 yards, whereas Robinson had 3,219.  So Denard Robinson had 13 more touchdowns, 549 more yards, and produced the same overall record . . . and somehow Cousins is the better player?

Oh well.  There’s always next year.  Congratulations to Michigan’s outstanding football players!

27Nov 2011
Uncategorized 23 comments

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!

20Nov 2011
Uncategorized 31 comments

Michigan 45, Nebraska 17

“Your chances of tackling me are slim.” – Fitzgerald Toussaint
(image via MGoBlue.com)



Thank goodness for Fitzgerald Toussaint.  Michigan’s offensive line didn’t really run block worth a damn, but Toussaint consistently created a few yards – or more – out of absolutely nothing.  Chris Spielman said the words “Barry Sanders” in reference to Toussaint.  Don’t get me wrong – Chris Spielman is kind of a moron – but he might know a thing or two about Barry Sanders.  Sanders was the best running back in the history of football, in my opinion, and Toussaint does have a similar ability to stop and start suddenly.  Channeling my inner Fred Jackson, Toussaint has the cutting ability and mindset of Mike Hart . . . but he’s faster.  I love the way he’s running the ball.

Nebraska looked awful.  Part of the reason the Cornhuskers looked awful on offense and special teams was due to Michigan’s improved defense, but for the most part, they just didn’t play very well.  Taylor Martinez throws like a girl and is careless with the football.  Their kick returners couldn’t hold onto the football.  Seriously, two fumbled kickoff returns in the same game?  It looked like Nebraska had their returners study film of Boubacar Cissoko and Martavious Odoms circa 2008.  And it might have been an entirely different game if anyone but Nebraska’s defensive tackles could catch the ball, because the receivers dropped several passes and so did their defensive backs.

Obligatory discussion of Denard Robinson.  This might have been Denard Robinson’s most complete game of the year, and yet . . . it still left me wanting.  Robinson is more effective running the offense out of a spread look, and it’s about time Al Borges relies mostly on the spread and only a little on his pro-style offense.  Robinson ran the ball a little better and seemed to be more  decisive, but he’s still not hitting the holes as quickly as he should.  Altogether, Robinson probably left 30 or 40 yards on the field because he was trying to get out of bounds, he was tentative, etc.  As far as passing the ball goes, it was all or nothing once again.  He threw some nice passes (an out route to Hemingway, a post to Odoms for a TD, a crossing route to Gallon for a TD) and he threw a bunch of questionable ones, too (the interception to defensive tackle Terrence Moore, a post to Roy Roundtree into double coverage that was dropped by Stafford, a bomb to Roundtree that was played horribly by Dennard and should have been picked, a crossing route to Kelvin Grady that should have been picked, etc.).  He finished with 23 carries for 83 yards and 1 touchdown, which is too many carries for such little return; he also finished 11-for-18 for 180 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception.  Also, I really wish Robinson would learn how to pitch  the ball on the option.  Seriously, dude.  Pitch it.  I don’t think you’ve pitched it once all year.

Obligatory discussion of J.T. Floyd.  Nebraska’s one huge play was a 54-yard touchdown bomb to Brandon Kinnie, who torched Floyd so badly that all Floyd could do was grab onto Kinnie and hope for a pass interference flag.  Prior to that play, Kinnie had 19 catches for 192 yards and 0 touchdowns on the season.

William Campbell wheeeeeeeee!  It was pretty awesome to see him hustle downfield on a Taylor Martinez run and then turn Martinez into roadkill.  Campbell had a sack on Martinez, too.  Mike Martin is certainly a more disruptive force on the interior and will be missed next year, but Campbell has things going in the right direction with this coaching staff.

The commentators sucked.  I really, really hate when Chris Spielman does Michigan games.  Any commentator who openly talks trash about one of the teams on the field should be banned from commenting on the game.  I tuned in to the game to enjoy Michigan football, not hear a former Buckeye repeatedly mention how long it’s been since the Wolverines beat his alma mater.  I actually like Urban Meyer’s offensive philosophy and coaching decisions; he’s oodles smarter than Spielman.  However, I thought he showed some ignorance when discussing Denard Robinson’s strengths and weaknesses.  Especially early in the game, Meyer was touting Robinson as being excellent at the zone read play.  Robinson makes more bad reads in the option game than good ones.  Last season it looked like Robinson didn’t even have the option most of the time – it seemed as if there were predetermined playcalls for whether he would hand off or keep the ball.  This year it looks like Al Borges has given Robinson more freedom to pull or keep the ball, but Robinson frequently makes the wrong choice.  I agree with Meyer that the quarterback power run bogs down the offense at times, but that’s mainly because Borges and Robinson do a poor job of disguising the play.

I did not expect a 45-17 victory.  That was kind of embarrassing for Nebraska and a pleasant surprise for Michigan fans.  If Michigan’s offense were clicking on all cylinders (i.e. if the offensive line could get a push), it could have easily been 59-17.  And Nebraska got a little bit lucky that Jeremy Gallon didn’t field that long punt at the end of the third quarter.  Gallon could have grabbed it on the bounce but chose to let it die at the 4-yard line.  That somewhat limited Borges’s playcalling and Michigan went three-and-out, giving Nebraska a chance to punch it in for their 17th point.  I’m not even being a homer when I say that blowout score of 45-17 was closer than the game actually was.  Michigan held onto the ball for over 41 minutes, while Nebraska had the ball for just over 18 minutes.  The Cornhuskers were just 3-for-13 on third down conversions and 0-for-2 on fourth down attempts.

14Nov 2011
Uncategorized 48 comments

Michigan vs. Illinois Awards

Ryan Van Bergen (#53) was a force to be reckoned with all night.
(image via MGoBlue.com)



Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Martavious Odoms.  Odoms was struggling to see the field earlier in the year, partly because he was recovering from a broken bone in his forearm.  It was frustrating to see a key player from the past few seasons end his career by barely seeing the field.  Luckily, that trend appears to be ending.  He got what seemed to be the most playing time of the season against the Illini, when he had 2 receptions for 46 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown reception from Devin Gardner to go up 24-7.  Odoms was also wide open in the endzone early in the game, but Denard Robinson overthrew him.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . umm . . . Denard Robinson at quarterback.  Bring on the anger.  Robinson has clearly regressed this season, and I’m not going to blame it entirely on offensive coordinator Al Borges.  Borges hasn’t made the same playcalls that allowed Robinson to put up good numbers last season, but much of that is on Robinson’s shoulders, too.  He was unable to hit wide open receivers early in the year, and his inability to hit the deep ball has been extremely maddening.  I described Robinson last year as “wildly accurate” because of his throws that would be catchable but wouldn’t allow receivers to run after the catch.  There was another fine example on Saturday evening when Robinson hit tight end Kevin Koger down the left sideline, and Koger was so wide open that he had time to stop, catch the ball, get started again . . . and get dragged down at the 2-yard line.  If that’s even a decent throw, it’s an easy touchdown.  Devin Gardner at least deserves a prolonged look if Robinson isn’t getting it done, because Robinson is turnover-prone and his rushing has been disappointing for the last several weeks.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Thomas Gordon.  Gordon has been a turnover machine with 1 interception, 4 fumble recoveries, and 2 forced fumbles on the season.  He’s also the team’s second-leading tackler, despite coming off the bench for the past two games.  Meanwhile, senior Troy Woolfolk has been inserted at safety despite clearly being unhealthy; Woolfolk has yet to create a turnover in his career.

Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . Troy Woolfolk.  This is obvious, considering the above paragraph.  Woolfolk is hurting the team by playing such significant minutes.  I wish he would have been allowed to get healthier earlier in the season, but he wasn’t.  It’s pretty apparent that he won’t be healthy during the regular season, although hopefully he can get his body right by the bowl game.

Play of the game . . . Jordan Kovacs’ forced fumble and Gordon’s recovery.  Illinois had just stopped Michigan on the goal line and had some emotional momentum.  Running back Jason Ford popped free for 8 yards up the middle when Kovacs put his facemask on the ball, which fell to the ground while Gordon jumped on it.  If it hadn’t been obvious previously, it seemed to me right there that this day just wasn’t going to go well for the Illini.

MVP of the game . . . Ryan Van Bergen.  The defensive tackle/end had 7 tackles, 3 tackles for loss (for 28 yards), and 2.5 sacks.  Mike Martin (9 tackles, 1/2 a sack) would be a decent choice, and so would Fitzgerald Toussaint (27 carries, 192 yards, 1 touchdown).  But on a night when Illinois couldn’t do anything consistently on defense, in large part because quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase was under pressure, I have to give it to the guy who took him to the ground a few times.