Football Friday: Michigan

7 a.m. — Indiana

8 a.m. — Iowa

MICHIGAN

Spring game attendance: 50,000

Spring MVP: Tate Forcier. The freshman quarterback from California enrolled early, hoping to pick up Rich Rodriguez's spread offense. Apparently, he got it. In the final scrimmage, he hit 10 of 13 passes for 133 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for another 43 yards. The Michigan offense under Rodriguez won't work without a great quarterback. This might be the guy.

What they're saying: "Tate's more than ready. The No. 1 thing you need as a quarterback is confidence, moxie, the swagger to come out and fight. He won't back down from anyone. I think that's the best part about him. I know he's going to do well," Tate Forcier's older brother Jason, a former Michigan quarterback, told the Ann Arbor News.

What I'm thinking: Even if the offense gets fixed (and it sounds like Forcier will be an improvement over Steven Threet), what about the defense? The 2008 unit gave up a school-record 347 points. Greg Robinson takes over as defensive coordinator after failing as a head coach at Syracuse. Maybe he's a guy who is best when he isn't in charge of the whole thing. He did good work in the NFL and in college as a defensive coordinator. He'll have more talent at Michigan than he ever dreamed of having with the Orange. Word from Michigan is that the returning players jumped on board with Robinson and that the rest of the staff likes his work. Robinson is stressing fundamentals to the defense. Based on watching the Wolverines in 2008 that's a good thing.

To ask Asmussen about the Wolverines, click here

To read Asmussen's blogs on the Illini, click here

 

 

Comments

Add a Comment