Semifinals are being moved off New Year's Eve after this year. Will be New Year's Day in years the Rose and Sugar Bowls host them, otherwise 12/28 or 29.
Self-righteousness is incompatible with coalition building.
Apparently being told by anybody with a brain that ratings would be absolute shit did nothing to dissuade them until the ratings ended up being absolute shit.
Oh, but the games won't be moved until 2019. So, that aught to be fun.
It wouldn't fall on NYE until then anyway. I think this year is Dec 28th for the semis.
They're on Saturday, December 31st. It was too late to change them this year. Right now some future games are still on the 31st if it's a Saturday, but that will probably change.
Yeah I just read about that. Jesus Baylor you deserve to no longer exist.
Let's be fair - this isn't a Baylor only problem. BYU has done the same thing (and actually got caught out using a friendly cop to funnel police reports to their disciplinary board.)
It would not surprise me that private colleges with a religious base might have certain rules that would be ridiculous in most other contexts. It doesn't really help Baylor, but they're not the only one this might be an issue.
This cracked me up. Michigan switched back to Nike officially at midnight last night, and like a thousand people showed up at midnight to celebrate? Maybe more? The hype around here is growing out of control.
I just appreciate the translation.
Self-righteousness is incompatible with coalition building.
This cracked me up. Michigan switched back to Nike officially at midnight last night, and like a thousand people showed up at midnight to celebrate? Maybe more? The hype around here is growing out of control.
I just appreciate the translation.
Wisconsin tried to do it for our switch to Under Armor about a month ago. I think 100 people showed up? Maybe?
This cracked me up. Michigan switched back to Nike officially at midnight last night, and like a thousand people showed up at midnight to celebrate? Maybe more? The hype around here is growing out of control.
I just appreciate the translation.
Wisconsin tried to do it for our switch to Under Armor about a month ago. I think 100 people showed up? Maybe?
This cracked me up. Michigan switched back to Nike officially at midnight last night, and like a thousand people showed up at midnight to celebrate? Maybe more? The hype around here is growing out of control.
I just appreciate the translation.
Wisconsin tried to do it for our switch to Under Armor about a month ago. I think 100 people showed up? Maybe?
Under Armor doesn't get you mad ducats, son!
Obviously!
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lwt1973King of ThievesSyndicationRegistered Userregular
Baylor offensive lineman Rami Hammad was arrested yesterday on a third-degree felony stalking charge, three weeks after a Baylor professor called 911 because he allegedly wouldn’t leave his ex-girlfriend alone, according to the Waco Tribune.
The Tribune cites the arrest warrant, which details that Hammad was waiting for his ex-girlfriend before a July 7 class. She asked him to leave but he refused, and stayed until the end of class. Fearing for her safety, the woman walked with her professor to his office. Hammad followed and knocked on the door for several minutes. After multiple “unsuccessful” calls to Baylor athletics, the woman and professor called 911.
Hammad told police that he was worried about his ex-girlfriend’s safety and just wanted to talk about their relationship, but she told police that the relationship had ended two months prior, and that’d she’d taken extensive measures to prevent Hammad from continuing to bother her. She also told police that he’d mentioned suicide and had physically abused her at least twice before, including grabbing her arm and pushing her against a wall inside of Baylor’s football practice facility.
Hammad, a junior, played all 13 games last season, and was expected to start at right guard this season. Baylor told the Tribune that he was suspended from team activities until the resolution of his case.
Two weeks ago new Baylor football head coach Jim Grobe said that Baylor didn’t have a “culture of bad behavior,” while the new Baylor athletic director said that he would make sure program was clean because he had daughters. This weekend the Associated Press reported that Baylor systematically discouraged women from reporting rapes and sexual assaults by threatening to punish them for drinking.
Baylor offensive lineman Rami Hammad was arrested yesterday on a third-degree felony stalking charge, three weeks after a Baylor professor called 911 because he allegedly wouldn’t leave his ex-girlfriend alone, according to the Waco Tribune.
The Tribune cites the arrest warrant, which details that Hammad was waiting for his ex-girlfriend before a July 7 class. She asked him to leave but he refused, and stayed until the end of class. Fearing for her safety, the woman walked with her professor to his office. Hammad followed and knocked on the door for several minutes. After multiple “unsuccessful” calls to Baylor athletics, the woman and professor called 911.
Hammad told police that he was worried about his ex-girlfriend’s safety and just wanted to talk about their relationship, but she told police that the relationship had ended two months prior, and that’d she’d taken extensive measures to prevent Hammad from continuing to bother her. She also told police that he’d mentioned suicide and had physically abused her at least twice before, including grabbing her arm and pushing her against a wall inside of Baylor’s football practice facility.
Hammad, a junior, played all 13 games last season, and was expected to start at right guard this season. Baylor told the Tribune that he was suspended from team activities until the resolution of his case.
Two weeks ago new Baylor football head coach Jim Grobe said that Baylor didn’t have a “culture of bad behavior,” while the new Baylor athletic director said that he would make sure program was clean because he had daughters. This weekend the Associated Press reported that Baylor systematically discouraged women from reporting rapes and sexual assaults by threatening to punish them for drinking.
Fun Fact: The Big not-12 may be in danger of folding. Nobody gives a shit about the schools they're targeting and, excepting maybe Boise (maybe), nobody would give a shit about not-Texas and not-Oklahoma. Probably better to start thinking about which conferences will bloat out to sixteen teams and who goes where.
And just in case you might have been thinking that Nick Saban and/or Alabama wasn't the worst, or, that college student-athletes wield too much power, this story might be for you:
Former Alabama defensive back Maurice Smith made the decision to transfer out of Alabama’s football program this offseason. Once he made the decision to leave the Crimson Tide, he had his personal belongings thrown in the trash and was exiled from the facilities while still on campus, according to Smith.
Smith wishes to transfer to Georgia, where he would be coached by former Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart, but Nick Saban and Alabama are blocking that transfer because Georgia is another SEC school. Coaches blocking transfers is nothing new in college football, as infuriating as it may be, and because a player agrees to a scholarship, they continue to yield such power to their coaches who can sometimes overstep their moral authority in such situations. Saban has stood on his decision to not allow Smith a chance to move to Georgia, but the details Smith has provided paint an even uglier picture to the situation he has gone through.
A day after meeting with Saban to inform his coach about his intent to transfer and being told he would not be allowed to transfer to another SEC school, Smith arrived at the athletic facility only to find his locker had been cleaned out and his personal belongings had been thrown in the trash. Per Dawg Nation…
“On Friday, June 17, I arrived at the athletic facility locker room to find my locker cleaned out and all of my personal belongings in the trash (photo attached) underneath trash,” Maurice Smith wrote. “These personal items included my family photos, written goals, inspirational and sentimental items memorializing my deceased former friend, roommate and teammate, Altee Tenpenny, and items of personal value from my former teammates.”
Smith included a copy of a text sent to him by an undisclosed person reading “Bro I can’t have u at facility. Not for workout, lunch, anything. All in or out policy.” It also remains unknown just who tossed Smith’s property — including photos and inspirational materials — in the trash.
While it certainly does not look good for Alabama’s program and their suggested “all in or out policy,” it is not entirely unfair to suggest Smith made the decision to leave the program and therefore should not have expected to be able to make use of the same amenities players on the team have.
That said, it would have been nice to at least give him the opportunity to clean out his own locker, rather than have him show up one day and find somebody did it for him in a rough and disrespectful manner. It also should have been known to Smith by Saban that he would no longer be able to access football facilities as he decided to transfer, if that indeed is the policy.
Smith’s family believes Alabama is holding firm on their transfer decision in order to drag out the process and end up keeping Smith in Tuscaloosa. He still wants to go to Georgia, which is why he is appealing the decision. Let’s hope cooler heads prevail here and let Smith do what he feels is best for him, individually, instead of yielding to the hammer of Saban’s rule.
After going through all of this, would Smith even want to stick around?
I guess maybe we see if the NCAA or SEC gives much of a shit.
“But let it suffice to say as it pertains to all of our institutions, we are very committed as a group of ten schools to eradicating sexual assault on our campuses. It almost goes without saying that when you combine alcohol and drugs and raging hormones and the experiences of 18- 22 years old, it’s probably unrealistic to think that these kinds of things are never going to happen. But we certainly want to make sure that from the center we do everything we can to ensure that they are minimized, if not eradicated.”
As I've said, Saban's power comes from the utterly unbalanced NCAA system. Once it collapses and he actually has to deal with recruits, I wouldn't be terribly surprised if he "retires" immediately.
“But let it suffice to say as it pertains to all of our institutions, we are very committed as a group of ten schools to eradicating sexual assault on our campuses. It almost goes without saying that when you combine alcohol and drugs and raging hormones and the experiences of 18- 22 years old, it’s probably unrealistic to think that these kinds of things are never going to happen. But we certainly want to make sure that from the center we do everything we can to ensure that they are minimized, if not eradicated.”
Ugh.
My first reaction was: Hey, I was an 18-22 year old with raging hormones and when combined with alcohol, I didn't rape anyone!
My second reaction was: Very disturbingly, what he said is correct in almost every country in the world. He may have not meant it's truly inevitable, but rather that it's empirically inevitable which makes me sad.
The mysterious “student conduct violation” that kept WRs Antonio Callaway and Treon Harris away from the Gators all spring was revealed by ESPN to be an accusation of sexual assault by a female University of Florida student. But that’s just the start of the news today.
The woman is boycotting the university’s Title IX hearing into Callaway’s conduct (Harris has left the school) because the attorney hired by Florida to adjudicate the hearing is a Gators booster and donor.
Florida officials appointed attorney Jake Schickel to serve as a hearing officer. Schickel, a founding partner of a Jacksonville, Florida law firm, has a bachelor’s degree in political science and law degree from Florida. He is also a past trustee of Florida’s Levin College of Law.
A former track and field athlete at Florida, Schickel is a Scholarship Club donor to Florida Football Boosters, which requires annual contributions of $4,800 to $8,599, according to a 2014-15 “Year In Review” program published by the UF athletics department. According to the documents, Schickel is also a 3-Point Club donor to Florida basketball, which requires annual contributions of $2,000 to $4,999.
“To be clear, this letter is not intended to cast any aspersions about Mr. Schickel’s character or his service to his alma mater,” Clune wrote in an Aug. 2 letter to Hass. “However, UF should never have asked him to serve as an objective reviewer and decision-maker on this matter when the claim has been brought against a star member of the very team for which both he and his law partners have provided considerable financial support.
“Quite frankly, short of finding a relative of Mr. Calloway, I’m not sure how UF could have found someone with more conflicts [than] Mr. Schickel.”
ESPN obtained a letter by the accuser’s attorney informing Florida’s deputy general counsel that she and her witnesses will not attend the hearing, which was scheduled for today.
There are no details given of the woman’s complaint, which was filed to Florida’s student conduct and conflict resolution office after an alleged assault in early December. No complaint was made to either Gainesville or UF campus police. Harris and Callaway were suspended in January and barred from campus.
Last month, Harris announced his intention to transfer from Florida, which ESPN reports was a condition of a plea deal he struck in the Title IX case. (Another reported condition: Harris had to apologize to the accuser.)
Wow. That is a Trumpian level of corruption, Florida.
Good news: Baylor isn't dealing with another player accused of sexual assault.
The new story is just as bad (for the school.) The woman's complaints/interaction with Baylor administration began AFTER the initial reports last year, and the school still treated her like shit. They restricted her building access to only those where she had classes, and she had to give the school 24 hour notice to use other buildings.
She complained about fucktard asswipe stalking her, and Baylor's response was to treat her like a criminal. Fuck that jazz, they need to nuke the program from orbit.
The only communication the woman had with Baylor after the hearing came in a Nov. 12 email from Baylor Chief Judicial Officer Bethany McCraw, the woman told Outside the Lines. The email, reviewed by Outside the Lines, stated that the woman needed to start taking a certain exit from a science building to avoid coming in contact with Hammad. It also stated that if the woman needed to access any building on campus where she did not have a scheduled class, or outside of her scheduled class time, that she must email McCraw at least 24 hours ahead of time to get her approval.
"I never got a result from the trial, and now I'm being told how to exit the building as if I'm the one who's being charged?" she said. "I felt like I was being punished and treated like a criminal."
This was in November. The Ukwuachu story took off in August. Baylor administration seems staffed by fundamentally shitty people.
Michigan brings back a really good receiving corps which features two guys expected to be high draft picks in Jehu Chesson and Jake Butt along with an excellent possession receiver in Amara Darboh who should also earn a job in the NFL next year, a pretty good RB Deveon Smith who looked amazing in the bowl game, and a mostly serviceable offensive line.
There are two major questions on offense. The first is at LT where Grant Newsome has the job after the starter of the previous two years, Mason Cole, has moved to center. Newsome looked promising in limited action as a true freshman, but is a step down. And he got worked in the spring game against Taco Charlton. The other question is at QB. Houston transfer John O'Korn is generally viewed as the favorite to win the job, but Wilton Speight had an excellent spring by practice reports and in the spring game. Speight had the much better receiving corps to work with in that game. O'Korn's top target was temporarily converted QB Shane Morris (Sr), so that was an issue. O'Korn is more mobile and has a stronger arm. Harbaugh is the QB coach and he has almost never had a poorly performing QB so this should get ironed out.
Ty Isaac finally looked like the five star recruit he was when he committed to USC which should add depth to the RB position. They also bring back Drake Johnson and add a talented freshman. Two guys to watch out for are Ian Bunting and Tyrone Wheatley Jr, both at TE. Michigan will play lots of multiple TE sets. Bunting is more a very big receiver, but his blocking is becoming serviceable, he is Butt's heir apparent. Wheatley is a giant (280 lbs) but has soft hands and some of his father's speed. Ran away from LBs at one of the spring practices. Jabrill Peppers will moonlight at any number of offensive positions and I would expect him to get 40-75 touches.
Michigan's defense should be among the best in the nation, anchored by an exceptional defensive line and cornerback play. Linebacker is a question mark. Jourdan Lewisis the best player on this defense, with apologies to Peppers, Wormley, and Ryan Glasgow. Was the best corner in the nation last year, though he lacked the interceptions to really prove it. Should repeat something similar this year, despite being relatively small. Opposite him will be either Channing Stribling or Jeremy Clark. Both were effective opposite Lewis last year, Stribling is seen to have the edge. Clark is a giant at 6'4" and fast enough to stay with receivers. Stribling had an outstanding spring, and was one of the best players in the spring game (Lewis, Chesson, Darboh, Butt, Smith, and Peppers basically sat out, already having their jobs). Either option is a good one. At safety they lose the very boring Jarrod Wilson (boring safeties are best safeties), but Delano Hill returns. Sometimes mistake prone but an excellent tackler in the open field. Dymonte Thomas should replace Wilson. He's blazing fast but was inconsistent in his first three years but came on strong near the end of the season. Understandable since he was a LB in high school. Hoke idiotically burned his redshirt so this is his last year.
The defensive line should be amazing. Projected starters are Ryan Glasgow who was the major factor in Michigan's run defense being the nation until he got hurt against Indiana. He'll get the start at the nose. Next to him is supposed to be Chris Wormley who spent last year as a 300 pound athletic dude playing defensive end and having TEs try to block him. This went about as well as you'd expect. At one end will be Taco Charlton, who was immensely productive in relatively limited playing time last year, and is obviously a member of the all-name team. Supposedly the other starter will be true freshman Rashon Gary, who was the #1 recruit n the country and out performed a lot of last year's NFL first round line picks at combine type activities. There are high expectations. Depth here is not a question mark. Bryan Mone returns from a broken leg from fall camp last year. He is supposedly pushing Glasgow who put together an All Big Ten and fringe All America season until he got hurt last year. Mone is a giant human being who holds up to double teams effectively. The fourth defensive tackle is Maurice Hurst. Has been slightly undersized, but has a lightning quick first step that often beats offensive linemen by itself. A little bigger and hopefully able to hold up against the really strong interior lines (by which I mean Ohio State) better this year. Backup ends are Matt Godin who was forced to play DT after injuries hurt the front last year and struggled, but was really good as a reserve end last year. Finally we have Chase Winovich, who I can not really tell you anything about. Supposedly Jake Ryan-y.
Linebackers are a question mark. Ben Gedeon is definitely a starter. He's solid but unremarkable. The other starter is either a true freshman, Devin Bush, or Mike McCray who was a hyped recruit and son of an OSU captain, but has dealt with serious shoulder injuries his entire career. McCray seemed to have the edge in the spring game from what I saw.
Lastly, Jabrill Peppers is playing a LB/S hybrid position. He's pretty good. Absurdly quick and almost unblockable in space, he destroys a lot of the constraint plays the spread relies on. WR screens in particular. New defensive coordinator Don Brown is planning on using him more as a blitzer and attacking more. Sometimes receivers could break free of him in coverage
, but that became less of a problem as the season went along. He is exceptionally hyped, and probably leaving after this, his redshirt sophomore year. His family background sucks and he needs his money to get his mother to a considerably safer neighborhood.
On special teams, Kenny Allen returns as a competent field goal kicker with reasonable but not great range. Michigan loses Blake O'Neil, who other than that one thing had an excellent season as punter. Coverage units were much improved over the Hoke abominations. Return game should be pretty good with Lewis, Peppers, and/or Chesson returning kicks, and Peppers returning punts.
They also have a maniacally competitive coach you may have heard something about at some point. To the point where the spring game was a genuine barnburner with O'Korn leading a late drive to bring the white team to within a point. At which point they went for 2 and the win in the spring game. When it failed the blue team stormed the field like they just won the conference and the white coach demanded an instant replay... which they conducted on the giant scoreboard.
Expectations are high. Hype is out of control.
Strengths: WRs/RBs, defensive line, secondary, return units, HARBAUGH
Weaknesses: Linebackers, offensive line depth, safety depth
Mehs: Offensive line
The schedule:
Hawaii
UCF
Colorado
PSU
Wisconsin
at Rutgers
Illinois
at MSU
Maryland
at Iowa
Indiana
at OSU
They should be 7-0. They leave the state of Michigan once before November 12 (how very SEC of us). Three toughest games are the final three road games, though I expect Iowa to take a step back this year with a little less luck and a harder schedule.
I (gulp) think they're 11-0 when they go to Columbus, barring injuries on the offensive line. By that point, I expect all the losses Ohio State suffered over the offseason to be a moot point, and they're probably either 10-1 or 9-2, depending on the MSU/OSU game in East Lansing. I think the Buckeyes win, which is depressing, because we're going to lose a ton this offseason and won't be in position to be equal in talent and experience until probably 2018 or even 2019.
Rose Bowl, where they win. 12-1, finish about fourth in the polls. Peppers gets an invite to New York, but Deshaun Watson wins it.
Self-righteousness is incompatible with coalition building.
Good news: Baylor isn't dealing with another player accused of sexual assault.
The new story is just as bad (for the school.) The woman's complaints/interaction with Baylor administration began AFTER the initial reports last year, and the school still treated her like shit. They restricted her building access to only those where she had classes, and she had to give the school 24 hour notice to use other buildings.
She complained about fucktard asswipe stalking her, and Baylor's response was to treat her like a criminal. Fuck that jazz, they need to nuke the program from orbit.
The only communication the woman had with Baylor after the hearing came in a Nov. 12 email from Baylor Chief Judicial Officer Bethany McCraw, the woman told Outside the Lines. The email, reviewed by Outside the Lines, stated that the woman needed to start taking a certain exit from a science building to avoid coming in contact with Hammad. It also stated that if the woman needed to access any building on campus where she did not have a scheduled class, or outside of her scheduled class time, that she must email McCraw at least 24 hours ahead of time to get her approval.
"I never got a result from the trial, and now I'm being told how to exit the building as if I'm the one who's being charged?" she said. "I felt like I was being punished and treated like a criminal."
This was in November. The Ukwuachu story took off in August. Baylor administration seems staffed by fundamentally shitty people.
Posts
It wouldn't fall on NYE until then anyway. I think this year is Dec 28th for the semis.
They're on Saturday, December 31st. It was too late to change them this year. Right now some future games are still on the 31st if it's a Saturday, but that will probably change.
Don't do this. (NSFW text)
Jesus Christ, this is 2016, isn't it? Did I get transported back a couple decades or something?
Can we get it right this time and just give Baylor the death penalty?
Yeah I just read about that. Jesus Baylor you deserve to no longer exist.
pleasepaypreacher.net
Let's be fair - this isn't a Baylor only problem. BYU has done the same thing (and actually got caught out using a friendly cop to funnel police reports to their disciplinary board.)
pleasepaypreacher.net
They aren't done, just moved. Go Iowa Awsome is their new home.
This cracked me up. Michigan switched back to Nike officially at midnight last night, and like a thousand people showed up at midnight to celebrate? Maybe more? The hype around here is growing out of control.
I just appreciate the translation.
Wisconsin tried to do it for our switch to Under Armor about a month ago. I think 100 people showed up? Maybe?
Under Armor doesn't get you mad ducats, son!
Obviously!
Or just suspend them two weeks without pay. That'll teach 'em.
And check out who the coach was who did it. Anyone wonder where the Miami Dolphins bullying scandal coach went to?
(headdesk)
It gets Better
Like apparently half the football team he was also accused of sexually assaulting a woman he went to stalk.
pleasepaypreacher.net
I guess maybe we see if the NCAA or SEC gives much of a shit.
Ugh.
Fucking hell.
My first reaction was: Hey, I was an 18-22 year old with raging hormones and when combined with alcohol, I didn't rape anyone!
My second reaction was: Very disturbingly, what he said is correct in almost every country in the world. He may have not meant it's truly inevitable, but rather that it's empirically inevitable which makes me sad.
Bad news: That's because Florida is:
Wow. That is a Trumpian level of corruption, Florida.
pleasepaypreacher.net
I can't wait for the first coach to use that defense.
The new story is just as bad (for the school.) The woman's complaints/interaction with Baylor administration began AFTER the initial reports last year, and the school still treated her like shit. They restricted her building access to only those where she had classes, and she had to give the school 24 hour notice to use other buildings.
She complained about fucktard asswipe stalking her, and Baylor's response was to treat her like a criminal. Fuck that jazz, they need to nuke the program from orbit.
http://www.espn.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/17216980/baylor-offensive-lineman-rami-hammad-accused-last-fall-sexually-assaulting-student-violating-university-issued-no-contact-order
This was in November. The Ukwuachu story took off in August. Baylor administration seems staffed by fundamentally shitty people.
Michigan brings back a really good receiving corps which features two guys expected to be high draft picks in Jehu Chesson and Jake Butt along with an excellent possession receiver in Amara Darboh who should also earn a job in the NFL next year, a pretty good RB Deveon Smith who looked amazing in the bowl game, and a mostly serviceable offensive line.
There are two major questions on offense. The first is at LT where Grant Newsome has the job after the starter of the previous two years, Mason Cole, has moved to center. Newsome looked promising in limited action as a true freshman, but is a step down. And he got worked in the spring game against Taco Charlton. The other question is at QB. Houston transfer John O'Korn is generally viewed as the favorite to win the job, but Wilton Speight had an excellent spring by practice reports and in the spring game. Speight had the much better receiving corps to work with in that game. O'Korn's top target was temporarily converted QB Shane Morris (Sr), so that was an issue. O'Korn is more mobile and has a stronger arm. Harbaugh is the QB coach and he has almost never had a poorly performing QB so this should get ironed out.
Ty Isaac finally looked like the five star recruit he was when he committed to USC which should add depth to the RB position. They also bring back Drake Johnson and add a talented freshman. Two guys to watch out for are Ian Bunting and Tyrone Wheatley Jr, both at TE. Michigan will play lots of multiple TE sets. Bunting is more a very big receiver, but his blocking is becoming serviceable, he is Butt's heir apparent. Wheatley is a giant (280 lbs) but has soft hands and some of his father's speed. Ran away from LBs at one of the spring practices. Jabrill Peppers will moonlight at any number of offensive positions and I would expect him to get 40-75 touches.
Michigan's defense should be among the best in the nation, anchored by an exceptional defensive line and cornerback play. Linebacker is a question mark. Jourdan Lewisis the best player on this defense, with apologies to Peppers, Wormley, and Ryan Glasgow. Was the best corner in the nation last year, though he lacked the interceptions to really prove it. Should repeat something similar this year, despite being relatively small. Opposite him will be either Channing Stribling or Jeremy Clark. Both were effective opposite Lewis last year, Stribling is seen to have the edge. Clark is a giant at 6'4" and fast enough to stay with receivers. Stribling had an outstanding spring, and was one of the best players in the spring game (Lewis, Chesson, Darboh, Butt, Smith, and Peppers basically sat out, already having their jobs). Either option is a good one. At safety they lose the very boring Jarrod Wilson (boring safeties are best safeties), but Delano Hill returns. Sometimes mistake prone but an excellent tackler in the open field. Dymonte Thomas should replace Wilson. He's blazing fast but was inconsistent in his first three years but came on strong near the end of the season. Understandable since he was a LB in high school. Hoke idiotically burned his redshirt so this is his last year.
The defensive line should be amazing. Projected starters are Ryan Glasgow who was the major factor in Michigan's run defense being the nation until he got hurt against Indiana. He'll get the start at the nose. Next to him is supposed to be Chris Wormley who spent last year as a 300 pound athletic dude playing defensive end and having TEs try to block him. This went about as well as you'd expect. At one end will be Taco Charlton, who was immensely productive in relatively limited playing time last year, and is obviously a member of the all-name team. Supposedly the other starter will be true freshman Rashon Gary, who was the #1 recruit n the country and out performed a lot of last year's NFL first round line picks at combine type activities. There are high expectations. Depth here is not a question mark. Bryan Mone returns from a broken leg from fall camp last year. He is supposedly pushing Glasgow who put together an All Big Ten and fringe All America season until he got hurt last year. Mone is a giant human being who holds up to double teams effectively. The fourth defensive tackle is Maurice Hurst. Has been slightly undersized, but has a lightning quick first step that often beats offensive linemen by itself. A little bigger and hopefully able to hold up against the really strong interior lines (by which I mean Ohio State) better this year. Backup ends are Matt Godin who was forced to play DT after injuries hurt the front last year and struggled, but was really good as a reserve end last year. Finally we have Chase Winovich, who I can not really tell you anything about. Supposedly Jake Ryan-y.
Linebackers are a question mark. Ben Gedeon is definitely a starter. He's solid but unremarkable. The other starter is either a true freshman, Devin Bush, or Mike McCray who was a hyped recruit and son of an OSU captain, but has dealt with serious shoulder injuries his entire career. McCray seemed to have the edge in the spring game from what I saw.
Lastly, Jabrill Peppers is playing a LB/S hybrid position. He's pretty good. Absurdly quick and almost unblockable in space, he destroys a lot of the constraint plays the spread relies on. WR screens in particular. New defensive coordinator Don Brown is planning on using him more as a blitzer and attacking more. Sometimes receivers could break free of him in coverage
, but that became less of a problem as the season went along. He is exceptionally hyped, and probably leaving after this, his redshirt sophomore year. His family background sucks and he needs his money to get his mother to a considerably safer neighborhood.
On special teams, Kenny Allen returns as a competent field goal kicker with reasonable but not great range. Michigan loses Blake O'Neil, who other than that one thing had an excellent season as punter. Coverage units were much improved over the Hoke abominations. Return game should be pretty good with Lewis, Peppers, and/or Chesson returning kicks, and Peppers returning punts.
They also have a maniacally competitive coach you may have heard something about at some point. To the point where the spring game was a genuine barnburner with O'Korn leading a late drive to bring the white team to within a point. At which point they went for 2 and the win in the spring game. When it failed the blue team stormed the field like they just won the conference and the white coach demanded an instant replay... which they conducted on the giant scoreboard.
Expectations are high. Hype is out of control.
Strengths: WRs/RBs, defensive line, secondary, return units, HARBAUGH
Weaknesses: Linebackers, offensive line depth, safety depth
Mehs: Offensive line
The schedule:
Hawaii
UCF
Colorado
PSU
Wisconsin
at Rutgers
Illinois
at MSU
Maryland
at Iowa
Indiana
at OSU
They should be 7-0. They leave the state of Michigan once before November 12 (how very SEC of us). Three toughest games are the final three road games, though I expect Iowa to take a step back this year with a little less luck and a harder schedule.
I (gulp) think they're 11-0 when they go to Columbus, barring injuries on the offensive line. By that point, I expect all the losses Ohio State suffered over the offseason to be a moot point, and they're probably either 10-1 or 9-2, depending on the MSU/OSU game in East Lansing. I think the Buckeyes win, which is depressing, because we're going to lose a ton this offseason and won't be in position to be equal in talent and experience until probably 2018 or even 2019.
Rose Bowl, where they win. 12-1, finish about fourth in the polls. Peppers gets an invite to New York, but Deshaun Watson wins it.
Baylor is basically Southern Baptist BYU.
M won't get in without a conference championship with that schedule. That fourth in the polls is after the playoff.