Week 9 Notes and Predictions

Wow, there's only 5 weeks left of regular season college football. It always seems like the season passes by so much faster than we all want it to. No. 20 Michigan is traveling to Lincoln, Nebraska for the first time since 1911 (They've played each other bowls, but not in Lincoln since then). What makes the game even more tricky is the fact that it's going to be a night game. I have no issue with it being at night and it wasn't possible to foresee, but the Tigers will be hosting the Giants in Game 3 of the World Series in Detroit. How am I supposed to watch both games at the same time? The Tigers are down 2-0, but still...the momentum can still swing in Detroit's favor.

Anyway, undefeated Ohio State and banged up Braxton Miller are going to State College to play the surprisingly decent Penn State. Indiana is going to Illinois in a match-up of the Leaders Division Toilet Bowl. Michigan State will try to right the ship against Wisconsin--which will be no easy task...Wisconsin's offense is on a roll again. All of the Big Ten teams are playing this week, but not all of the teams have had their bye week yet. Northwestern will have theirs next week, and then OSU and MSU will have theirs the week after that with two games to go. Onto what this week will bring us:

Week 4: Biggest Performers And Underperformers

What an ugly game. I think that's the best way to put it. It was one of those nights where the $500 consequence of throwing a remote through the TV would have been worth it. And in a game where you really do beat yourself, there are a lot of individual performances that amounted to a weak team performance.

On the other hand, I think we learned a couple positive things about this team, even in such a mess of a game. As always, we start with the bright first.

1. Jordan Kovacs - S

Jordan Kovacs was just one part of an over all impressive defensive performance from the Wolverines on Saturday night. Notre Dame doesn't have the strongest offense in the land, but they have just enough talent and play making ability to give a defense a lot to worry about.

Week 1: Biggest Performers And Underperformers

While Michigan did not walk away with a Week One win, there were still some notable performances from both sides of the ball. Some were good; others bad.  It will be interesting to watch how these players rebound against Air Force and going forward.




Top Performers


1. Jeremy Gallon - WR

Jeremy Gallon was very impressive throughout the course of the game on Saturday, leading both teams in receiving yards with 107. Gallon looked very comfortable within the offense, which is a great sign this early in the season, and Robinson definitely needs a go-to receiver.

I was most impressed with Gallon's consistency, and he looked to be running very clean routes. Hopefully, this is an early sign that Gallon will become a big part of the Wolverines offense and can make an impact on the outside with his hands and speed.

Week 1 Notes With Updates on Fitz Toussaint And Frank Clark

I have waited as long as I could to post this column, waiting to find out the final decision on Fitzgerald Toussaint and Frank Clark.
Now I have learned that Toussaint and Clark are both continuing their respective suspensions thru the Alabama game. "The decision was not easy, but I feel it is in the best interest of this program and for these kids, and those always will be my priorities," Hoke said in a statement. "We have choices every day, and you have to be accountable to this program, your teammates, your family and the University of Michigan." I don't like Hoke's decision. I think Fitz gives Michigan a better chance of winning. Yet, while I don't like his decision, I do respect it. Hoke has rarely made a decision so far that I don't like, and he absolutely has not made one decision that has been detrimental towards the team. I applaud Hoke for making what is one of the toughest decisions so far this early in the season.


The eighth-ranked Wolverines will likely use running backs Thomas Rawls, Vincent Smith, Justice Hayes perhaps along with newcomers Dennis Norfleet and Drake Johnson against the defending national champion Crimson Tide.

2012 Positional Breakdown: Special Teams

Entering the 2011 season, there were some major questions revolving around Michigan's team and specifically, the special teams.  Following last year, many of those questions have been answered and some have even started viewing the special teams as an advantage for the team.  With Michigan's top three kickers/punters returning and both of its specialist returners coming back, there is a lot to be excited about in terms of special teams.  Granted, they don't win the game alone (in most cases), but Michigan fans know as well as anybody from their experiences in 2009 and 2010, that they can be extremely important for a team.

Brendan Gibbons (RS Junior)
The story of the Sugar Bowl and the redemption of Team 132 could almost be an autobiography for Brendan Gibbons.  During Michigan's 2010 campaign, Gibbons appeared in 5 games and started 4 of them.  Not bad for a redshirt freshman.  The problem is that he made just 1 of 5 field goals with his longest being from just 24 yards in the first game of the season.  His play that followed was erratic, unreliable, and scattered throughout the season and in the biggest games of the year.  Few thought he stood a chance in 2011.

However, the year that followed was simply astounding.  Not just because of the massive improvement, but because he did it after undergoing the down 2010 year.  Kickers recovering from those types of performances are mixed.  Kicking takes a lot of mental preparation and taking that big of a mental hit and recovering is quite an accomplishment.  Not only did he play in and start every game for Michigan's Sugar Bowl run, but he also posted career highs in several games including 7 made PAT's against Minnesota and a 43 yard field goal against Ohio State.  Despite this, his most impressive moment was when he made all 3 field goal attempts against Virginia Tech including a 37 yard overtime kick to seal the game.  Gibbons will be back and should be the most reliable kicker Michigan has had in quite awhile.

Recapping 2012 Commit Dennis Norfleet

Next up on the list is Michigan's signing day surprise, touted running back Dennis Norfleet.  The highly touted back was committed so the University of Cincinnati, but on signing day he pulled the switcheroo and decommited from Cincinnati and pledged his allegiance to Michigan.  Dennis was a huge get for Coach Hoke because he brings many talents to the team that no other individual in the 2012 recruiting does for the future.

Dennis is definitely a smaller guy, but I would go as far as comparing him to Darren Sproles.  Dennis is from Michigan and went to Detroit King high school.  He was the key playmaker on offense for his high school team and for good reason.  He's a smaller guy, as I said, but he carried for 292 times for 2,552 yards in his senior season, showing that he can "grind it out".  He also played defense and ran kick returns.  Dennis was also a major basketball star for the school.  He's a major athlete and looking just at his size would be a mistake.  I used the Sproles comparison because I feel that it's a pretty just comparison.  They are both smaller backs and has the ability to make a difference in other ways, such as a receiver.  Norfleet has this ability and it's a major advantage for Michigan.

Dennis Norfleet Commits To Michigan

And Michigan has it's signing day "surprise".  Most in the recruiting world didn't expect any action for Michigan on signing day until late last night when rumors began circling that a secret commit was going to come around in the final minutes.  That recruit came early this morning in the form of Dennis Norfleet.  Norfleet, a runningback from Detroit, is rated as a 4* recruit by Rivals and Scout.

This is a big pick-up for Michigan not only because it takes this class from the great to the "elite" level in many categories, but the team finally has an elite runningback in the class.  Earlier in the year the Wolverines gained commitments from Drake Johnson and Sione Houma, but never had that "elite" runningback in the class.  Certainly all three are going to bring some great talent to Ann Arbor and with Norfleet being one of the best runningbacks in the entire country, this is a HUGE pickup.

Norfleet is listed as 5'7" and weighing 165 lbs.  He like many other recruits is listed as needing to work on his "size".  As I said earlier with Willie Henry's commitment, this should be music to fans and coaches ears alike.  There's a good chance Norfleet will redshirt so size is not going to be an issue.  He'll have well over a year to "bulk up" because he sees the field potentially in 2013.

Along with this, Norfleet could do some great stuff in the pass game.  Scout says he will be dangerous in the pass game and I think this is one of the major things that has him so highly rated.  Try to think a little bit of Vincent Smith and you'll probably get a feel of what Norfleet can bring to the pass game.  He should be one of those wildcards that can bring the offense to another level.

I don't expect Norfleet to make significant contributions right away, primarily because he's on the smaller side and Michigan has some solid depth at runningback, but he will surely be used often in the coming seasons, especially on third down.  Either way this is a great addition for Michigan and takes this signing class to the next level.  This is one of the better ones in recent memory and should bring a lot of excitement coming into 2012.

Photo Credit: Rivals