I’ve recently moved the website to a new hosting and things aren’t going so smoothly so posting will have to be on this old URL for now. Still working to get things resolved, but posts won’t show up on thedailytraub.com for the time being.
It’s really a good thing that there are so many AP voters that a handful of voters won’t end up making a huge difference because these same old clowns just keep at it. Perhaps the Associated Press could get some college football coaches to teach a class in the offseason and let voters know what is actually a good football team and how to recognize one.
This is the best way I could describe my feelings about this game in a concise fashion. I wish that it had never happened. Everything after Devin Funchess had the long touchdown reception was a total abomination. I could go and highlight the positives, but there were few. I had hoped that the freshman would get a chance to get some much-needed playing time, obviously the coaching staff wanted this too, and this game killed any opportunity for that. The only silver lining to this almost loss is the fact that Michigan realized it will have to stop reading its own press clippings about how good they are and actually have to show up and play each game. They were able to get a learning experience game and it didn’t cost them the season. I was also very impressed with what Brady Hoke had to say in the locker room after the game, it was the perfect message.
Another week and there are still some familiar faces taking home some medals. It’s still early in the year, but some of these guys are making powerful statements and showing how little they actually know about college football.
I don’t think there is anyway that I could be happier with the way Michigan played against Notre Dame. Before the Under The Lights II game even started, the atmosphere at the Big House was electric. There were multiple jets performing flyovers over the stadium, the student section was complete full and the place was loud. Before the teams came out NCIS’ Mark Harmon was presented with his father’s legends jersey, and Devin Gardner took the field wearing Tom Harmon’s legendary #98. It truly was Gardner’s night from that point on.
Another year, another week of terribly uniformed “writers” casting votes for how good they think football teams are. I personally hate preseason polls and they’re one of the reasons these early polls end up being terrible. This year is of course no different, and we have some familiar faces in the polls early on.
This was the most pleased I’ve been with a season opener in a while. The play of the young players, particularly the freshmen, was simply outstanding. The game was pure domination from start to finish on both sides of the ball. Not having to punt until the 4th quarter was awesome, though it would have been nice to cut down on some of those turnovers. These are the types of drive charts you want to see after a game:
Devin Gardner didn’t have that great of a game and looked rusty at times, but he was 4/4 for 73 yards on 3rd down, meaning he made all the throws when he had to. Gardner showed off his arm and his athleticism, going 10/15 for 162 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs with 7 rushes for 52 yards and 2 TDs. He definitely picked up where he left off last year, though the turnovers were not good on his part. The start of the game felt like Al Borges was trolling everyone all summer by saying they would change the offense and then they came out in the exact same thing as last year. Eventually they shifted to the power run game and that’s when they started to control the game more and reduced the mistakes. When Shane Morris came in, I was pleased with what I saw. I didn’t expect much because I figured he would be very nervous, but after he got his first pass out of the way, he calmed down and stood in the pocket very well. He ended up going 4/6 for 59 yards and 1 INT; and the pick wasn’t even his fault. He definitely has a bright future if he continues to make strides in the right direction.
It was tough to see Drake Johnson go down with a torn ACL after winning the backup running back job, but at least the Wolverines have a young stable of backs. Fitzgerald Toussaint looked solid in his first action back healthy, putting up 57 yards and 2 TDs on 14 rushes. I was far more impressed with Derrick Green, who put up 58 yards on 11 rushes and added a touchdown. The only problem Green had was when he tried to bounce the ball outside because he doesn’t have the speed necessary to break open any big runs. When Green ran inside the tackles, he looked very good and was a punishing runner as expected. De’Veon Smith, Thomas Rawls, and Justice Hayes didn’t show much, but Rawls was the best of those three in my opinion. Smith looked indecisive, but that’s not totally surprising considering he is a true freshman and was playing in his first game.
The wide receivers and tight ends looked pretty good considering how few paces they threw throughout the game. Obviously Devin Funchess and Jeremy Gallon were the top two guys and their performance was expected, along with a strong contribution from Drew Dileo. The big surprise for me was the play of Joe Reynolds. Reynolds returned a punt block for a touchdown and he caught a pass for 45 yards that set up the team at the two-yard line for the easy score. Jeehu Chesson did a great job run blocking, but was held without a catch. Hopefully he will be able to contribute against Notre Dame, because the offense is going to need all the weapons it can get.
The offensive line did really well throughout the day, with the exception of Michael Schofield who was a disappointment. He’s a pass blocking tackle and the running game was not good for him. Graham Glasgow held his own at left guard, while Taylor Lewan and Kyle Kalis dominated. The jury is still out on Jack Miller and hopefully there will be more questions answered about it when they play Notre Dame this weekend.
Oh my Kyle Kalis pancake.
The defense was simply outstanding. I loved Greg Mattison’s playcalling, I’m a huge fan of running a base 4-3 and then moving to a 4-2-5 nickel on passing downs. I was very pleased with the performance of the secondary and the defensive line, the dominance by the linebackers was expected.
Because of the spread passing offense that was run, Quinton Washington and Ondre Pipkins had a lot of their playing time cut which didn’t help them add experience unfortunately. That being said, Keith Heitzman, Jibreel Black, Mario Ojemudia, Frank Clark and Chris Wormley all played really well. I was particularly pleased with the play of Ojemudia and Wormley; the playing time was crucial for their development. Both of them looked extremely quick off the ball and Ojemudia looks like a perfect fit to play on the weakside.
Linebacker wise I was extremely pleased with their play as a group. Joe Bolden and Desmond Morgan were great in the middle, and Morgan was an absolute monster. Cam Gordon had the best game of his career in a Michigan uniform and it was great to see. Not only because he was replacing Jake Ryan, but because he’s a 5th year senior that has had a rough go of it throughout his career. Brennan Beyer also tore it up on the outside, and Beyer and Gordon were a deadly rotation. Beyer showed some great experience and he was far more athletic than I ever expected for a guy moving from defensive end to linebacker. James Ross had a quietly solid day and true freshman Ben Gedeon looked like a child prodigy out there. The linebacking core is easily the strongest unit that Michigan has, and this game against Central merely reinforced that.
The secondary was a bit of a concern for me prior to game time once it was announced that Thomas Gordon would be suspended for one game. Josh Furman ended up starting at safety and there is no doubt in my mind that he is meant to purely be a backup. Blake Countess and Raymon Taylor looked like a fantastic starting pair on the outside, but I was most pleased with the play of Channing Stribling. Stribling proved in his first game action in college that this guy is the real deal. His size and athleticism were a perfect fit on the outside and he did a helluva job. Josh Wilson also performed very well, and removed any concerns that Brady Hoke gave me leading up to the game. Once this team gets Courtney Avery and Thomas Gordon back, they will be rock solid on the back end. Dymonte Thomas didn’t play much on defense, but his first career collegiate snap resulted in him blocking a punt that was returned for a touchdown. If that doesn’t get you excited about a kids potential, then I don’t know what will. The other defensive back that gave me cause for concern other than Furman was Delonte Hollowell. He’s a junior and he had some missed tackles and didn’t look good in coverage. The only thing that I would change is for Michigan to run less zone coverage. A lot of times on third downs the safeties played deep zone coverage and Central was able to make plays underneath to get the first down.
There’s not much to talk about special teams wise other than the fact that Dennis Norfleet looked good returning kicks and punts with the exception of the one punt that he fell on and then fumbled. He will get better with time and there is no denying his explosiveness.
I cannot wait for the second Notre Dame game under the lights. Still can’t believe it is the last time for at least 10 years that Notre Dame will be in the Big House. I pray that Michigan gets the job done.
The Detroit Lions are a team with a ton of potential, yet again. It seems like every year the Lions are in the same position; the media and fans have a ton of hope for success and the team ends up coming up short. They have one playoff win since 1955, so don’t get your hopes up that something like that is going to change. That being said, I think this team has the potential to make the playoffs and maybe get that elusive playoff victory because of some key offseason additions. It’s just unfortunate for the Lions that the NFC is absolutely stacked this year.
Offense
The Lions quarterbacks remain unchanged from last season and hopefully Matthew Stafford will rebound from a rocky year. Things were tough on Stafford because of the total lack of a run game and he only had one receiver to throw to. There have been plenty of questions about Stafford’s mechanics and his choice to throw side arm to receivers often, but that’s not a concern I have. Stafford has one of the strongest arms in the NFL and he can throw the ball whichever way he pleases, in my opinion. My biggest concern with Stafford right now is his decision making. He made a lot of bad decisions last year and put the ball into plenty of bad spots. Shaun Hill is a very viable backup and has always been efficient and effective when he’s played and it will be interesting to see how soon fans start calling for Hill to start. If Stafford keeps regressing and is having an awful, Sanchez-eque year, then I wouldn’t be opposed to giving Hill a shot. But after giving Stafford the big money, the Lions have to ride or die with Stafford for a few more years.
With the Michigan Football season starting in less than a week, I figured it was best to break down what to expect out of the team this year, and which fresh faces will emerge and have an impact. This team has a lot of potential and a pretty favorable schedule, a lot of the success will hinge on how well the offensive line can protect Devin Gardner and how well they open up holes for the running game. As always, football games are won in the trenches.
Offense
The good news is quarterback Devin Gardner is now going to be taking the snaps. Based on what I saw out of Gardner last year, he seems like a more accurate version of Vince Young. He’s quick, elusive, smart, and as NFL Network’s Mike Mayock put it, he has a “buggy whip” for an arm. Gardner has had a full offseason to gain a better grasp of the offense and has taken plenty of reps to improve. Offensive coordinator Al Borges also gets his pro style quarterback full-time now, and the offense will look dramatically different than it has in past seasons. There will be a lot more plays under center and the pro style offense transition will be complete this year.
After covering the early winners of free agency, it’s only fair that we look at the early losers of the start of the NHL Free Agency signing period.
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils made a massive move acquiring Cory Schneider for a first round pick this year at the NHL Draft, so it was tough to put them in this column, because overall their offseason has been solid. But on the first day of free agency, they panicked when they knew David Clarkson wasn’t going to be coming back. So to replace their power forward they signed Ryane Clowe to a five year, $24.25 Million deal ($4.85 Million cap hit). Clowe used to be a great player but battled through some SERIOUS injuries last year (reportedly four concussions in 14 months) and player horribly. He had 19 points in 40 games last year (three goals), which was his second year of regression after putting up 62 points two years ago. Yes, I praised the Blue Jackets after signing Nathan Horton when he will be coming off an injury, but he is far more productive and reliable when healthy, not to mention Clowe is older and has a minimum of four concussions in the bank. If Clowe returns to the form he was in two years ago in San Jose, he will turn out to be a great signing, but to give him this much money after a down year is ill-advised.
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