Luckiest Man

(HT: Mike DeSimone)

Michigan 31, Illinois 14

To derp or not to derp...that is the question. Or is it the answer? Ron Zook isn't sure and he's been thinking about it real hard for a long time so you know that this is a quandary of such immense existential weight that it would boggle and possibly even crush the most powerful of minds. In reality, Ron Zook is not a football coach but a water ski enthusiast that happens to coach football on the side. Ron Zook's interests in life: being completely oblivious, running on third and 10, having blustery hair, and taking the wave runner out onto the streets of Champaign. In Ron Zook's world, this is perfectly normal. At any given time, Ron Zook coaches like it's six minutes into the first quarter and the repercussions of the accretion of derpitude stemming from his choices has not already torpedoed his team's chances. No matter what happens, Ron Zook is this on one never-ending loop of lobotomized bliss: 

Should I keep going? The fact that he has survived to see a seventh season at Illinois is a testament to man's ability to ratchet up primordial self-preservation instincts in order to procure enough food to survive the day and/or barely beat Western Michigan and Northwestern. 

With that out of the way, despite Zook's constitutional devotional to being terrible, Michigan was actually doing things to make the end result what it was. It didn't look great at times, but when you can muster up the bravado to complain about a first half performance that saw Michigan completely stifle Illinois's offense, you know things are probably pretty good. Winningly ugly certainly is more fun than losing really really ugly, and this statement will be included in a book of obvious statements written by Chad Henne and obviously titled "Excellence Is Good." 

The Offense 

My first impression was one of doom and gloom, but, the more I think about it, maybe it's not so bad. Michigan put up 31 against a formidable defense, more than any other Illinois opponent save Northwestern (qualifier: yeah, those are some bad offenses on their schedule, but it's all relative at this point). This is of course not even mentioning the inopportune turnovers and the Illini's general inability to move the ball, additional reasons to not feel so bad about things. Obviously you can't just take turnovers out, but Michigan could have very easily scored in the 40s, on the road, against a pretty good defense. These aforementioned things in and of themselves aren't enough to assuage any feelings of discomfort, but together they make a convincing case. 

It's hard to give the quarterback play a true grade given the paucity of data, but overall it's difficult to be too critical. Denard went 6/9 passing (excising the meaningless end of the first half Hail Mary), and he good on the few opportunities he did get, which including multiple lasers between the hashes and one laudable (if underthrown) touch pass to Koger down the field. As far as the playcalling goes, I think it's obvious that the coaches saw how well we ran the ball, saw how poorly the Illini did anything, and decided not to air it out much at all. It's not a pretty way to win, but it's a way to win. When an opponent as incompetent as the Illini basically obviates the need to pass...don't pass. Yes, it is in fact 2011 and not 1911. 

At this point, with two more teams fielding okay defenses and mediocre at best offenses left on the schedule, I'm not sure if the battle plan really needs to change all that much. It's not flashy or exciting and it certainly doesn't get Denard the game reps he needs to become a better passer, but, as I said it's late for that. The time for Denard to throw it around was long ago, back in the halcyon days 6-0 run. Despite this, those who say that Devin should be the guy are, quite frankly, crazy. I have no idea how many of these people are extant, but whoever you are, you're crazy. Nevertheless, Devin did show some nice poise to step up and hit the open Odoms for 6; it's an improvement. Unless we are holding a lot of plays for the Ohio State game, it appears that both Devin and Denard are about as good as they're good to be this season, and that, to me, makes it obvious who should be getting the vast majority of the snaps. Maybe Devin wins the job in the offseason. Who knows. For now, Denard gives us the best chance to win, and that's all that matters.

Outside of the weekly quarterback non-controversy, Fitz Toussaint was busy looking like Mike Hart with speed again /Jackson'd. He ran for a career high 192 yards on 27 carries (good for a YPC of 7.1, a number that is still pretty good even if you take out the 65-yarder on the opening drive). Michigan has seen some times since Mike Hart moved on to the NFL, with Minor, Brown, McGuffie, Shaw, Smith, etc. all getting looks and all doing some nice things at times but never enough to be the undisputed #1. Fitz has done that and then some. I do admit to wondering how different (i.e. better) the offense would've looked in 2010 with a legitimate spread tailback to complement Denard, but as they say it's in the past. 

Elsewhere in the run game, Denard did his thing, carrying 12 times for 45 yards, which isn't amazing but it's hard to be upset when two of those carries are touchdowns. The only Charles Barkley turrible moment that I can still recall is that botched 4th and goal, but even that isn't really Denard's fault so much as maybe a nice call by the Illini and poor blocking. 

The offense is what it is. It's a work in progress, the Death Star circa Return of the Jedi. Borges is trying to construct something with a pile of Legos and Lincoln Logs and some rubber bands, and whatever is the result of this grostequely inadequate and variable pile of parts is going to be, well...inadequate and variable. As such, one way to mitigate that is to simply go into "just win" mode, which entails throwing 15 times between two quarterbacks throughout an entire game on the road. 

The Defense 

I can't remember the last time a Michigan defense's performance made me feel so happy. I think the answer is "2006" but I can't be too sure. While the defense looked good earlier in the season, it was more a product of minimal expectations exceeded; solid performances but one saddled by the qualifiers of competition and our own low expectations. Now, Michigan's defense is an absolute good, an entity to count on and consider a strength without irony or reservation. This defense is good. 

Again, a certain amount of Illinois derp is at play here, but a good amount of that derp came about because we looked fast and strong in the front 7, with the secondary forcing turnovers, helping in the run game, and overall shutting down the Illini passing game outside of AJ Jenkins. It felt like watching a Michigan defense of old, and for a second it felt like Glen Steele, Rob Renes, Jarrett Irons, Tripp Welborne, and Leon Hall were out there once again: hitting, covering, crushing. 

The Illini had a mere 214 total yards of offense (37 rushing, 177 passing). For those counting at home, on 33 rushing attempts, the Illini averaged 1.1 YPC. ONE POINT ONE. Other than Jenkins, the passing game netted 74 yards. Greg Mattison has officially made the desert bloom. 

Michigan's only mistakes came as a result of youth seeing the field (Clark) and not knowing how to defend the zone read/option, but whatever. Our top four tacklers (RVB, Martin, Demens, and Morgan) were all front 7 players, which is the way things should be. Four sacks, a Kovacs forced fumble/Gordon recovery, a JT Floyd interception, and an indomitable will to be in the right place and to hit whatever shows up at that place later, and you've got a 31-14 Michigan win in which in the Illini didn't score until late in the third. 

Van Bergen and Martin continue to dominate, and man we are going to miss them next year. That said, with how improved the defense has been (including the DL), and the presence of essentially 3 guys coaching the DL (Hoke, Montgomery, Mattison), I'm not as worried as I maybe ought to be. I mean, Will Heininger notched a sack last week in Iowa City. While the depth is still scary and elite talent isn't quite there yet, there's enough there for a solid unit next year. 

Think about our back 7 play the last three years (and beyond, even). Think of all the times Michigan did their best Oprah impression in gifting teams cheap touchdowns over and over again. Indecisive linebacker play, coverage breakdowns, abominable tackling, and, most importantly, no sense that anybody was on the same page, let alone reading the same book. It cannot be stated enough: we are so lucky to have a guy like Greg Mattison coaching this defense. 

While Michigan did to a Illinois offense what many teams before them had done, the welcoming thought is right there: Michigan did what they were supposed to do. They saw a weak offense and suffocated it, they stared down the Ben Chappell Theory and swarmed it with a tacit refutation that was both coldly efficient and extremely fun to watch. Michigan 1, Ben Chappell Theory 0...the future is bright. 

Special Teams

So, another not terrible game here (and by not terrible I mean not like the last few years); actually, it was pretty good. First, Gibbons? 

1 for 2 on the day, inspiring neither additional confidence nor additional reasons to worry. Otherwise, Gallon had a dynamic day returning punts: although he didn't break any for 6, he did return one for 32 yards (4 for 62 on the day). Hagerup was sort of mediocre once again, punting four times for 137 yards, good for an average of 34.3 per punt. He had a long of 44 and a 30-yarder that pinned the Illini just inside their own 15 (a good thing, but not for that average). 


Miscellaneous Minutiae 

• Odoms! Anybody that reads this knows how big of an Odoms fan I am, so it's been nice to see him get on the stat sheet last week in Iowa City and this week with the touchdown. As good as Gallon has been, there's always room for quality depth on the field. Here's to a final three games to remember for Odoms (and the rest of the seniors, for that matter). 

• J.T. Floyd, a week after getting smacked by one Marvin McNutt, looked like a legitimately good Big Ten corner. He was active on the ball, and the interception plus return is just gravy for a guy who I basically equated to Grant Mason before the season started. Nebrask'a group of wideouts isn't particularly talented, so one would expect Floyd to lock things down once again. That's right Big Ten...you don't come in here and throw on FLOYD ISLAND. 

• Michigan's rushing output exceeded the Illini defense's previous average of 102.9 yards per game by approximately 120 yards.

• Denard passed Tom Harmon on Michigan's career touchdown runs list. He also passed Tim Tebow and Dan LeFevour on the NCAA career rushing list. Just sayin'.

• Thomas Gordon now has four fumble recoveries on the year after recovering a ball coerced out of Jason Ford's hands by Jordan Kovacs's helmet. Fumble recoveries may be somewhat random, but Gordon seems to be around the ball whenever these things happen. 

• With Nebraska and Ohio State continuing to look about as potent as Illinois on offense, it's hard not to look at the next two games and reduce our likelihood to win or lose to, yes...Denard. 

• It still hasn't hit me that we're actually 8-2 with a good shot at going 10-2. Wow. I'll finally be back in Ann Arbor for this week's game against Nebraska for the first time since SDSU...can't wait.

All Glory Is Fleeting, 11/9/11

The End: There's really no need to produce an elaborate rundown of the PSU scandal here, as others have already done so more comprehensively than I could have. With that said, I have to say that I don't feel "sorry" for Paterno (especially in light of his apparent refusal to resign/decision to retire after the season ends), as I don't think anybody other than the victims themselves and their families deserve any sort of sympathy. This cannot be stated enough times or with enough vehemence.

As far as Joe's legacy goes (which is so far down the list of things to fret over as to be essentially meaningless), an EDSBS commenter recalled the final lines of Patton (side bar, but if you ever want to make yourself more intellectually well-rounded--and funnier--EDSBS comment sections are as good a place to start as any):

For over a thousand years, Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of a triumph - a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeters and musicians and strange animals from the conquered territories, together with carts laden with treasure and captured armaments. The conqueror rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. Sometimes his children, robed in white, stood with him in the chariot, or rode the trace horses. A slave stood behind the conqueror, holding a golden crown, and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting. 

It is both amazing and saddening that one of the few seemingly irrevocably solid entities--underscored further by an increasingly sordid college football landscape--left in college football has revealed himself to be no different than the rest in the span of a few days. But, let's be honest, these events had been incubating for years, ever since the day that McQueary and Paterno saw and heard something so horrible and yet decided to look in every other direction other than that of moral compulsion. I don't understand how Joe Pa can be so devoid of shame as to coach another game, but it appears that he just might unless the lower end of the NYT's report comes to fruition. If Joe Pa coaches this Saturday, it will surely set the backdrop for one of the most bizarre, emotionally conflicted college football atmosphere of all time.

Even if PSU does the right thing regarding all those who are culpable*, given the nature of the crimes...nothing can ever truly be enough.

*Which, it goes without saying, should entail immediate dismissal of Paterno, McQueary, Spanier, and any other administrative types who heard about these things and did nothing.

Let's Have A Commitment Time: Michigan acquired commit #24 on Tuesday, in the form of Pioneer tailback Drake Johnson. This is an interesting commitment given the complete absence of recruiting hype or meaningful offers, but a closer look reveals a player that offers some ability; namely, speed. I admittedly haven't heard much about him until now, but Ace's Hello post seems to denote a very Mike Shaw-esque skill set. A guy with speed in spades who tends to bounce things with regularity while lacking the moves that separate a high school athlete from an FBS-level tailback. Trust the coaches and all, but I'm not sure how much of an impact he'll have at the college level, but we'll see...Mike Hart etc. etc.

Almost as relevant as the commitment in and of itself is how this affects Michigan's courtship of Buckeye commit Bri'onte Dunn. On the surface it would seem that Michigan has essentially thrown in the towel re: prying Dunn away from the Buckeyes, but Kyle Meinke says not so fast. Another potential implication is that, in light of open spots becoming increasingly scarce, Michigan may be operating under the notion that AJ Williams will in fact be a lineman at the college level, which is not exactly a stretch given that he is already pretty huge and has been playing at the tackle position this season anyway*. I wouldn't mind this at all given the lack of depth on the line, but Michigan will still need to land at last one more OL, in addition to two receivers (Darboh, please don't go to Iowa and become the next inexplicably good Iowa receiver).

*Apparently he's a whopping 290 pounds already, of which some is probably bad weight but will inevitably become good weight once he starts a college S&C program.

On The Disappearance of Thomas Gordon: After everybody spent the rest of the weekend wondering why Gordon had been unseated in favor of Woolfolk, Brady Hoke explained:

It's simple: Fifth-year senior Troy Woolfolk, who moved to safety two weeks ago so freshman standout Blake Countess can start at cornerback, had a better week of practice. For Hoke, that was enough to keep Gordon on the bench.

Okay, I guess. That answer is a little bit unsatisfying but you can't really argue with it as a fan. Still, I don't see how one week of practice can cancel out two thirds of a season's worth of competent play in favor of a guy who probably isn't even 100% and got beat out at corner by a freshman. I don't know...establishing an environment of competition and accountability on a week-to-week basis from the beginning of Hoke's tenure is obviously vital. Either way, even if Gordon doesn't start this week, there's no question he should see the field in some capacity, whether at safety or the nickel. On the bright side, our next three opponents aren't exactly Oklahoma State when it comes to passing the ball, so our safeties shouldn't be tested deep with any great capability by Scheelhaase, Martinez, and Miller. At the same time, all three can and will run the ball, and I just think Gordon brings a level of physicality that Woolfolk simply does not, let alone a banged up Woolfolk.

The Mediocre Bowl (also see: "every Big Ten game in 2011"): Illinois blog "Hail to the Orange" talks about the importance of the upcoming titanic matchup:

Illinois who lost to Purdue, who earlier this year lost to Rice. Michigan who lost to Iowa, who just the week before lost to basement dwellers Minnesota. The same Illinois team that earlier this year defeated Arizona State, and the same Michigan who beat Notre Dame. This could be a valuable lesson that the there is no transitive property in football, but it is also further proof that here in the Big Ten, we are sorely lacking in elite teams that can run away with the league.

Pretty much. The Big Ten=ACC, and that is ironclad.

This Week In Schadenfreude: Unfortunately, Michigan is featured prominently. "AAAARGHBBLGGOG" is pretty much the only justifiable response to any of that. I'd be careful of awarding Alabama anything though, even if it is the "Tears of Unfathomable Sadness" or the "Scott Tenorman of the Week." Alabama fans everywhere are now trying to cobble together these two designations into a justification for claiming their 37478th national championship. WOOOOO SCHADENFREUDE NATIONAL CHAMPS ROLL TAHD ROLL!

More? Leach swingin' that sword in the general direction of Oxford, MS...please let this happen/get him back in college football somewhere. 11W on the evil that is ESPN vis-a-vis realignment. Arkansas State is #1...in attendance-related incentives. RR back to the Bayou? I'd like to think he can snag a better job than that but who knows how bullish the college football market is on him right now. Grantland piece on the PSU scandal and the disillusionment of the fan.

I Just Felt Like Running

(HT: Mike DeSimone)

Michigan 31, Eastern Michigan 3

It's nice to be at the point where we can reasonably complain about things after a 28-point victory in which Denard Robinson racked up a whopping 198 yards, with Vincent Smith also chipping in over a hundred yards on the ground as well and the defense giving up its fewest point since the 2007 Notre Dame bonanza of hilarity. All of these sound good, and yes, there seems to be an underlying aura of improvement bubbling underneath the narrative of 2011 Michigan football. And yet, the first quarter (and even the second), may or may not be signs of things to come, kind of like that feeling you get in your stomach after eating some particularly uppity Indian food: it looks and tastes good now but there might be some, how do you say, "complications" down the road. So yeah, this game was like a plate of spicy lamb vindaloo and NO THIS WON'T TURN OUT POORLY NO SIR.

But, for now, we have the luxury of just enjoying this win despite all its flaws and the impending indigestion death by run defense that it suggests.

The Offense


It's pretty clear that when Borges said he was out of his "comfort zone" for the first time (re: using Denard's skills) he was being completely honest and not spouting Denard fluff (not that there's anything wrong with Denard fluff). There's something to be said for offensive rhythm, something that doesn't really show up in the stat sheet but is pretty crucial to an offense's ability to move the ball on a consistent basis, and unfortunately that rhythm seems to still be predicated entirely on DENARD GO GO GO. This is a work in progress, and I'm still not even close to getting ready to eliminate the "Al Borges is not dumb" tag from these parts, but man. Is it just me or does our offense look like the one that that one friend--the friend that everybody has--always runs against you in Madden/NCAA...you know the friend. He's usually the guy who says things like "watch these 4 verts bro" before throwing a bomb on first, second, and third down (he also goes for it on fourth down regardless of field position). Another hallmark of this friend's offensive strategy is a running game that involves picking a team with a fast quarterback and running outside every time that he doesn't throw deep (which is every pass). Obviously this is a little hyperbolic (Gorgeous Al would never say "bro"), but it seems that there hasn't been much of an effort to ease Denard into the passing game. As cliched as it is, give the guy a slant or two, more screens (standard RB screens, TE screens, WR screens that aren't tunnel screens, etc.), a 5-yard curl here and there. Regardless of how persistent Borges--and the shadowy influence of Hoke's general football philosophy on that persistence--is with respect to running non-spread type plays, some basic things need to change in order to get Denard anywhere close to the type of quarterback the offensive staff wants him to be.

The interception on drive numero uno is Exhibit A: Michigan came out with 5 runs in a row, followed by an incompletion and then the pick itself on 4th&5. I'd like to see Michigan come out passing right away against SDSU and Minnesota, and Northwestern (before things start to get real, beginning with the MSU game). We dont need Denard to be Peyton Manning, we just need him to make standard passes that guys like Gallon can add chunks of YAC from time to time to help him out. Throwing so many passes downfield is pretty much the perfect way to assure that Denard has no rhythm at all. To quote David Foster Wallace, it's "so stupid it practically drools." Then again, to check myself here, sometimes you make a read and go with what's there, which very well might lead to what we're seeing on offense: you don't not throw to Junior Hemingway deep when he's got one-on-one coverage just because you're worried about throwing deep too many times. I don't know...I just want to see some more intermediate routes and/or "easy" passes for Denard in the near future. Thankfully, this Rex Grossman-esque "let's go deep all the time guys" philosophy might not hurt us too often this year, as the Big Ten is generally terrible and the only teams with decent defensive backs on our schedule are Nebraska, OSU, and I guess Illinois (Terry Hawthorne).

On the positive side, yes, Denard did have a Denardian stat line, rushing-wise, by the end of the day. Part of me thinks that maybe Denard takes that 52-yarder all the way in 2010, but maybe I'm just finding things to worry about. The zone read did look quite good, although I will say that I find the fact that teams even consider crashing in on the tailback and not Denard a little bit puzzling. Notre Dame did this and so did EMU, but will other teams do the same? If Smith and Toussaint can assert themselves as above average options then the zone read will finally enter the fray in earnest. If that happens then look out. As prolific as the offense was last year, Denard never mastered the execution of the zone read (which you would've thought would be a linchpin of our offense under RR). An offense in which Denard can do this on a somewhat regular basis should terrify opposing defensive coordinators.

The offensive line still looks like it just realized that the final exam they have in a week is in Mandarin Chinese and not the esoteric Urdu dialect they've been studying all semester. It's a work in progress. We're still extremely left-handed, which is okay if you have Jake Long destroying all challengers like Bonesaw before his bout with The Amazing Spider-Man. Lewan's good but he's not quite there yet. However, despite the OL being pretty underwhelming (as was sort of expected), Vincent Smith had a great day, going for 118 yards on a mere nine carries. Smith went for 27, 5, and 14 yards on three carries in the drive to open the second half (the first two out of the gun). The good news is that he looks like he's regained the jitterbug burst that he flashed in 2009. The bad news? He's still tiny. As long as Toussaint can stay healthy--a pretty huge if--his size shouldn't be an issue, as he won't have to carry the ball more than 10-12 times a game. If he can pair with Toussaint for about 25-30 carries a game, with Denard getting anywhere between 15 and 25 depending upon the flow/circumstances (i.e., score, time left, etc.) of a given game, I'll be pretty happy. It looks like Shaw and Hopkins won't be getting too many carries this season (again, assuming Toussaint doesn't go down).

I'm not saying start Smith, but Borges needs to get him the ball, especially as a receiver. Smith is obviously not Matt Forte in build, but Forte could be a model for how we could be using Smith.

The Defense


It is what it is. At this point in time, I'm not looking for the Michigan defense to reach some absolute value of goodness; rather, I'd like to see Michigan get better week by week. It is but a simple request.

The first quarter was ugly, but I don't need to tell you that. Contain was not kept at all, and thinking about checking Taylor Martinez or Nathan Scheelhaase is not a pleasant thing at all. EMU turned out to be exactly what they had been in their previous two games against FCS competition: a team that can definitely move the ball on the ground but not through the air. EMU passed a total of six times in the game (six!), which shines an uncomfortably bright light on the run defense. If you're playing Eastern Michigan, and that team has very little ability or intention to pass the ball, you'd think that you could pin your ears back and stop the run...NOPE!

The Michigan defense gave up 207 yards on the day at a clip of 4.5 per carry. That average is not horrific, I guess, especially since EMU was trying its best to shorten the game at all costs by running on almost every play. In the end, though, Michigan held up when it mattered, and giving up three points is nothing to scoff at (especially after the UMASS game last year). Jibreel Black is coming into his own, and he made a nice play to force a fumble on the first drive just as EMU was approaching the red zone. On the very next drive, Michigan stonewalled Eastern on the one, a situation in which Michigan probably gives up a touchdown last year. If I was Ron English, I would've gone for it too.

Eastern got into the red zone again, but Michigan did well to force a field goal. Michigan's defense bent but didn't break, which is commendable. The numbers themselves are disappointing but only if you're expecting Michigan to be a top 40-50ish defense.

Pass rush in this game is irrelevant for obvious reasons, but we'll definitely get a better feel for whether or not the front four can do much of anything when Ryan Lindley and Sand Diego State. Craig Roh made an appearance, getting a sack in the third quarter where he flashed the agility and quicks that we saw throughout much of his freshman year. The D as a whole looked pretty excited for him. While I can't explain his underwhelming start to the season, it's good to see him get on the board. We are not very good at rushing the passing, and without Roh pitching in it gets even worse.

Other positives? Kovacs is Kovacs. The solo open field tackle is not something we've seen a whole lot of the past few years. Additionally, Thomas Gordon looks like the other half of our first--dare I say it--competent pair of safeties since 2007's tandem of Brandent Englemon and Jamar Adams. As high as my hopes were for Carvin Johnson, Thomas Gordon looks like he could be a good one for us, and that's without even mentioning that spectacular one-handed interception. It's nice to have safeties that kind of know what they're doing. Another exciting player is Brandin Hawthorne, who led the team in tackles on Saturday with 10 total (one TFL). Like Jake Ryan, he's still a work in progress, but it looks like we might have a player at the WLB position, an addition which could end up being as huge as the Ezeh-Demens switch of 2010. His TFL on Eastern's drive to start the fourth was a quintessential read and react. To be fair, he was unblocked, but he knifed through the wash and tackled the ball carrier for a loss when he just as easily done something else, like miss the tackle, overrun the play, or get distracted by the guy walking down the steps in Section 20 with a box of popcorn. I don't think the novelty of "making tackles" will ever wear off.

Special Teams


WE MADE A FIELD GOAL! WE MADE A FIELD GOAL! WE MADE A FIELD GOAL!

We made a field goal.

Kick and punt returns are pretty mediocre right now. I love Vincent Smith, but I'm not sure why he's been given kickoff return duties when there are a number of more explosive players on the roster. Holding on to the ball is certainly the prime objective here, but Smith back there is basically like Greg Mathews returning punts. This probably won't happen, but I wouldn't mind seeing Raymon Taylor get a shot back there at some point.

Wile had a pretty poor day on punts, booting three for an average of 35.0 yards and a long of 41. Hagerup can't get back into the fold soon enough.

Miscellaneous Minutiae

• Interesting to see Raymon Taylor out there as a nickelback. I'm not sure if that lasts going forward (could be a Desmond Morgan "throw him in there and see what he does" scenario), but he brings some major speed to the secondary. 
• Jake Ryan really got owned a few times in the run game. He is the consummate freshman at this point, and it's best if everybody, including myself, slows down the hype train. He's good for an impressive play or two a game and a bunch of bad ones. 
• Is it just me or has Mike Martin also been really quiet this year? I know, he's getting a lot of double teams, but still...all's quiet on the Western Michigan front (4). 
• Nice to see Koger aka Hypeman86 get involved in the passing game with the touchdown. Koger could he a huge asset in getting Denard comfortable throwing the ball early on in games, and I think Borges would be remiss to not take advantage of his [Koger's] talents. 
• Other cameos: Frank Clark and Blake Countess. We're not really in a position to be redshirting everybody, but hopefully these two don't see their redshirt burned for no reason. 
• EMU was only 4/12 on third downs, so that's an improvement. 
• Overall, Michigan did what they had to do to get through this one. Denard running the ball in the 4th quarter is not a great idea, and hopefully Borges realizes that going forward. Twenty six carries for Denard is WAY too many, especially against Eastern. On the plus side, Denard hasn't been dinged up at all this year, which is either due to the extra TOUGHNESS in the clam chowder or complete luck. He really took some licks in this one that made me cringe. This is the part of the schedule where we can afford to save him for MSU and beyond.