Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Mario Manningham

Tag: LaMarr Woodley

12Jan 2012
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Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Mario Manningham

It’s been a rough year for Mario Manningham, especially when considering his lofty preseason expectations. Manningham appeared in only 12 games and battled through a concussion and a lingering knee injury while putting up his worst statistical performance since his 2008 rookie season. But that now seems like the distant past after the Giants’ 24-2 NFC Wild Card game victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Manningham caught four passes for 68 yards in the contest, including a game-clinching touchdown grab midway through the fourth quarter. Super Mario looked impressive on the play (watch it here), beating two defensive backs for the 27 yard catch up the middle.
“The fact that Mario made plays was big,” said coach Tom Coughlin. That was something that we needed to have happen and I am certainly glad it did. When you look at tape of some of these games and you look at previous games of the teams that we are playing, you see [number] 82 making catches and running behind guys, and that’s a good thing”

Honorable Mention: Steelers’ starting free safety Ryan Clark nearly died due to a blood condition the last time he played at Mile High Stadium, so being an upstanding guy, Ryan Mundy kindly stepped into his role. Mundy played 60 minutes of good football, recording five tackles and forcing two fumbles, one of which was recovered by LaMarr Woodley. But unfortunately for Mundy, the game lasted 60 minutes and 11 seconds, and he was caught out of position on the first play of overtime, resulting in an 80-yard touchdown and the quickest end to overtime in NFL history. To be fair, it seemed as if the defensive game plan called for Mundy to stay close to the line of scrimmage, essentially daring Tebow to throw the ball, and Tebow surprisingly rose to the challenge. But still . . .
Miscellaneous: Donovan Warren joins former teammate, Perry Dorrestein, and tight ends coach Mike DeBord in Chicago with the Bears. Travelin’ man Martell Webb signed with the Arizona Cardinals. Adrian Arrington caught his third pass of the season in the Saints’ victory over…well, you know.
5Jan 2012
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Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Tom Brady

Sexy. And Gisele Bundchen ain’t too bad, either.
Tom Brady threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday in the Patriots’ 49-21 victory over the Buffalo Bills to secure home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. Brady finished the regular season with 5,235 passing yards, good for second most in NFL history behind Drew Brees’ 2011 total of 5,486. After a first-round bye, Brady and the Patriots will face the winner of the Texans-Bengals game; his chances of getting another Super Bowl ring currently stand at 4/1 according to Vegas.
Honorable Mention: Jay Feely hit another game winning field goal as the Cardinals defeated the Seahawks, 23-20, in overtime. Feely had a rough start to the season, going 6-for-11 on field goal attempts before getting on track and finishing 19-for-24 (79.2%).
Miscellaneous: Ryan Mundy will step in as the starting free safety and LaMarr Woodly will likely return to the starting lineup when the Steelers visit Denver during Sunday’s wild-card game. Jake Long and Steve Hutchinson were placed on the Injured Reserve. New Jaguar Morgan Trent picked off a pass for the second straight week.
26Oct 2011
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Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Charles Woodson

A commenter on the Packers’ official website thinks that “Charles Woodson is a stud.” I tend to agree. During Sunday’s contest between the Packers and the Vikings, the 35-year-old Woodson intercepted two passes in the third quarter, which resulted in two Green Bay field goals. Those six points ended up being the difference in the game as the Packers downed the Vikings by a score of 33-27 to remain the undefeated leaders of the NFC North. Woodson also had four tackles and 3 pass defenses in the Victory.
The Packers played “99% man coverage” against rookie QB Christian Ponder, but Woodson was still able to use his understanding of the game to undercut passes. “You have your back to the ball a lot, your back to the quarterback a lot, and you just try to put yourself in position and get your head around when you think the ball is coming and make a play on it…I really feel like I should have had four today,” said Woodson. The only two active players who have more picks than Woodson (52) are Darren Sharper (63) and Ed Reed (56).
Perhaps most impressive, Woodson taught children all across America the valuable lesson that no one is perfect when he gave up a 24 yard touchdown pass to WR Jenkins mid-way through the fourth quarter. Wow, he plays football like a badass and cares about Children, too.
Honorable Mention: LaMarr Woodley recorded seven tackles, 2 TFLs and 2 sacks—one of which led to a safety—as his team the Pittsburgh Steelers won a 32-20 contest over Arizona.
12Oct 2011
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Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Steve Breaston


Fifteen days ago, I selected Steve Breaston as the week 3 Former Michigan Athlete of the Week; however, I also made it clear that he was chosen mostly by default, saying “I hope Breaston’s numbers are a bit more impressive the next time he wins….”
Two weeks later, it is exceedingly apparent that Breaston reads this blog and is highly motivated by my powerful words. Breaston caught two touchdown passes on Sunday, one of which was an 11 yard grab that gave his team a four point lead with only 5:15 remaining in the game. The Chiefs held on for the 28-24 victory, and Breaston finished with four catches for 50 yards as well as the aforementioned 2 touchdowns. He is also playing a “bigger part in [the] Chiefs’ offense,” which should earn him a reprieve from Coach Haley’s constant screaming and terrible temper. Breaston has played both in the slot and on the outside at his wide receiver position this year.
Honorable Mention: LaMarr Woodley terrorized the Tennessee Titans to the tune of 2 sacks, 3 tackles, an interception and a deflected pass as his team the Pittsburgh Steelers went on to win by a score of 38-17. The interception was the fourth of LaMarr’s career, which is alright for a 265 lb. 26 year-old outside linebacker.
Also worth mentioning, Philadelphia Eagle Jason Avant snared 9 catches for 139 yards but with 0 touchdowns in a 31-24 loss to the Bills.
19Jul 2011
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2003 Offer Board

94 total offers

QUARTERBACK (6)
Clayton Richard – Lafayette, IN (Michigan)
Sam Keller – San Ramon, CA (Arizona State)
Marcus Stone – Harrisburg, PA (North Carolina State)
Brady Quinn – Dublin, OH (Notre Dame)
John David Booty – Shreveport, LA (USC)
Kevin McCabe – Wexford, PA (Virginia)

RUNNING BACK (12)
Anton Campbell – O’Fallon, MO (Michigan)
Jerome Jackson – Saginaw, MI (Michigan)
Ervin Battle-Baldwin – Richmond, VA
Carl Stewart – Maryville, TN (Auburn)
Lennox Whitworth – Milton, MA (Boston College)
Terry Arnold – Tallahassee, FL (Cincinnati)
Kregg Lumpkin – Stone Mountain, GA (Georgia)
Michael Bush – Louisville, KY (Louisville)
Barrington Edwards – Bowie, MD (LSU)
Lynell Hamilton – Stockton, CA (San Diego State)
Erik Hardeman – Pflugerville, TX (Texas)
LenDale White – Littleton, CO (USC)

WIDE RECEIVER (13)
Antowan Bell – Baltimore, MD
Genoa Dill – Compton, CA
Dorien Bryant – Swedesboro, NJ (Boston College)
John Logan – Lexington, KY (Kentucky)
Greg Bracey – Milwaukee, WI (Missouri)
Jesse Holley – Roselle, NJ (North Carolina)
Chris Hawkins – Henderson, NC (North Carolina State)
Tristen Ross – Shreveport, LA (Oklahoma)
Jayson Swain – Huntsville, AL (Tennessee)
Brandon Allen – Atlanta, GA (Troy)
Steve Smith – Woodland Hills, CA (USC)
Shannon Lane – Virginia Beach, VA (Virginia)
Charles Smith – San Diego, CA (Washington)

TIGHT END (7)
Will Paul – St. Louis, MO (Michigan)
Vernon Davis – Washington, DC (Maryland)
Greg Olsen – Wayne Hills, NJ (Miami)
Marcel Frost – Lyndhurst, OH (Ohio State)
Louis Irizarry – Youngstown, OH (Ohio State)
Chris Barrett – Tustin, CA (USC)
Danny Kaye – New Berlin, WI (Wisconsin)

OFFENSIVE TACKLE (4)
Adam Kraus – New Orleans, LA (Michigan)
Jake Long – Lapeer, MI (Michigan)
Mike Jones – Oak Lawn, IL (Iowa)
Ryan Harris – St. Paul, MN (Notre Dame)

OFFENSIVE GUARD (3)
Pat Sharrow – Monroe, MI (Michigan)
Jeff Zuttah – Princeton, NJ (Michigan)
Martin O’Donnell – Downers Grove, IL (Illinois)

CENTER (1)
John Sullivan – Greenwich, CT (Notre Dame)

DEFENSIVE END (9)
LaMarr Woodley – Saginaw, MI (Michigan)
Joe Cohen – Palm Bay, FL (Florida)
Tim Washington – Sugar Land, TX (LSU)
Victor Abiamiri – Baltimore, MD (Notre Dame)
Doug Van Dyke – Marshall, MI (Purdue)
Claude McBride – Camden, NJ (Tennessee)
Lawrence Jackson – Inglewood, CA (USC)
Allen Billyk – New Castle, PA (Virginia)
Jermaine Dias – Hackensack, NJ (Virginia)

DEFENSIVE TACKLE (7)
Luis Hernandez – Metarie, LA (Indiana)
Carnell Stewart – River Ridge, LA (LSU)
Conrad Bolston – Washington, DC (Maryland)
Isaiah Thomas – Winston-Salem, NC (North Carolina State)
Trevor Laws – Apple Valley, MN (Notre Dame)
David Patterson – Warrensville Heights, OH (Ohio State)
Lawrence Dampeer – Decatur, IL (Oklahoma)

LINEBACKER (13)
Prescott Burgess – Warren, OH (Michigan)
Shawn Crable – Massillon, OH (Michigan)
Jim Presley – Highland, MI (Michigan)
Anthony Rogers – Saginaw, MI (Central Michigan)
Ernie Sims – Tallahassee, FL (Florida State)
Kirston Pittman – Reserve, LA (LSU)
Wesley Jefferson – Brandywine, MD (Maryland)
Fred Sparkman – Columbia, TN (North Carolina)
Joe Brockington – Palmyra, PA (Notre Dame)
Victor DeGrate, Jr. – DeSoto, TX (Oklahoma State)
H.B. Blades – Plantation, FL (Pittsburgh)
Marcus Lawrence – El Dorado, KS (South Carolina)
Mike Brown – Palm Beach Gardens, FL (Virginia Tech)

CORNERBACK (9)
Leon Hall – Vista, CA (Michigan)
Antonio Cromartie – Tallahassee, FL (Florida State)
Paul Oliver – Kennesaw, GA (Georgia)
William Cooper – Flint, MI (Michigan State)
Jeramie Johnson – Atlanta, GA (Mississippi State)
Isaiah Gardner – Salem, VA (Notre Dame)
Freddie Parish – Long Beach, CA (Notre Dame)
Dareus Hiley – Cleveland, OH (Ohio State)
Donte Whitner – Cleveland, OH (Ohio State)

SAFETY (9)
Brandent Englemon – Covington, KY (Michigan)
Quinton McCoy – Waterford, MI (Michigan)
Ryan Mundy – Pittsburgh, PA (Michigan)
Ryan Patterson – Tucson, AZ (Arizona)
Avery Roberson – Atlanta, GA (Georgia Tech)
Alan Ball – Detroit, MI (Illinois)
Ashton Youboty – Klein, TX (Ohio State)
Bernard Pollard – Fort Wayne, IN (Purdue)
Robbie Catterton – Virginia Beach, VA (Virginia)

KICKER (1)
Garrett Rivas – Tampa, FL (Michigan)