National Signing Day came and went with Michigan making a huge late-minute splash, adding four-star safety Demar Dorsey from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. The 6′1″, 175lb. star originally committed to Florida before backing out and eventually choosing the Wolverines, giving Michigan a very solid safety class.

Who are the rest of the high school seniors that round out the class? Here’s a breakdown by position of the defensive side of the ball. Due to the size of the defensive class, this will be broken into four posts: the defensive line, the linebackers, the cornerbacks, and the safeties.

Safeties (4)
Safety/Cornerback Demar Dorsey	DEMAR DORSEY Height: 6-1 Weight: 175 Hometown: Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. (Boyd Anderson) Rivals Rank: #13 S (4-star) Scout Rank: #19 S (4-star) ESPN Rank: #2 S (5-star) Chose Michigan Over: Florida State, USC, Tennessee, Florida, Miami, North Carolina, West Virginia, Wisconsin. How He Fits In: Dorsey was perhaps Michigan’s biggest commitment of the class, going blue on Signing Day. The cousin of current Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson had originally committed to Florida, but whether they backed off of him, or he dropped them is up for debate. Regardless, he was well sought after and is a huge coup for Rodriguez. Dorsey will probably see immediate playing time, either at safety or corner. His size, athleticism, and upside give Michigan an impact defensive player to build around. If he can stay out of trouble (some have questioned his recruitment given his background) he should be a star for the next few years.
Safety Marvin Robinson	MARVIN ROBINSON Height: 6-1 Weight: 190 Hometown: Eagle Lake, Fla. (Lake Region) Rivals Rank: #20 OLB (4-star) Scout Rank: #18 S (4-star) ESPN Rank: #21 OLB (4-star) Chose Michigan Over: Florida, Ohio State, South Florida, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, USC, Tennessee, Boston College, UCLA. How He Fits In: Robinson is a huge addition to Michigan’s secondary, and like Dorsey, should see time immediately. He has great size and good speed for a safety, but needs to develop better cover skills. There is a slight chance he could move to linebacker, but Rodriguez likes his prospects at safety, especially given the lack of talent at the position currently. Inserting him immediately would be an upgrade from walk-on Jordan Kovacs.
Safety Carvin Johnson	CARVIN JOHNSON Height: 6-0 Weight: 185 Hometown: Metairie, La. (Rummel) Rivals Rank: #33 S (3-star) Scout Rank: #79 S (3-star) ESPN Rank: #73 S (3-star) Chose Michigan Over: Minnesota, Colorado, Tulane, Utah, Tulsa. How He Fits In: Johnson is a talented safety against both the pass and the run. At this piont, he could stand to gain some strength on his tall and lean frame, and would do well to redshirt in 2010 to improve his footwork and technique. He has good upside and will most likely contribute on special teams for the next couple of years while he develops.
Safety Ray Vinopal	RAY VINOPAL Height: 5-10 Weight: 178 Hometown: Youngstown, Ohio (Cardinal Mooney) Rivals Rank: NR (2-star) Scout Rank: #103 S (3-star) ESPN Rank: #270 Athlete (2-star) Chose Michigan Over: Bowling Green, Kent State, Air Force. How He Fits In: Vinopal is the lowest-rated player in the class and is a definite project, but at this point, any body at the safety position is a welcome one. He has the work ethic and the drive to prove the doubters wrong and is a smart and instinctual player who puts himself in position to make plays. He will definitely redshirt in 2010 and spend a couple of years on special teams.

National Signing Day came and went with Michigan making a huge late-minute splash, adding four-star safety Demar Dorsey from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. The 6′1″, 175lb. star originally committed to Florida before backing out and eventually choosing the Wolverines, giving Michigan a very solid safety class.

Who are the rest of the high school seniors that round out the class? Here’s a breakdown by position of the defensive side of the ball. Due to the size of the defensive class, this will be broken into four posts: the defensive line, the linebackers, the cornerbacks, and the safeties.

Cornerbacks (3)
Cornerback Cullen Christian	CULLEN CHRISTIAN Height: 6-0 Weight: 180 Hometown: Pittsburgh, Penn. (Penn Hills) Rivals Rank: #8 CB (4-star) Scout Rank: #3 CB (4-star) ESPN Rank: #18 CB (4-star) Chose Michigan Over: West Virginia, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, UCLA, Illinois, Purdue, Cincinnati, Colorado, Minnesota, Boston College. How He Fits In: Christian is an elite cover corner with great hands, good size, and solid fluidity. He has the ability to become Michigan’s next great corner and is exactly what Michigan needs immediately due to the lack of depth at the position. The only thing he lacks is elite speed, but that’s something he can work on, and his lockdown ability can make up for it. He could play right away if the coaches feel he’s ready come fall camp. Probably the best comparison is Marlin Jackson, and if Christian can live up to that comparison, good things are in store for Michigan.
Cornerback Courtney Avery	COURTNEY AVERY Height: 5-10 Weight: 165 Hometown: Lexington, Ohio (Lexington) Rivals Rank: NR (3-star) Scout Rank: #35 CB (3-star) ESPN Rank: #94 CB (2-star) Chose Michigan Over: Stanford, Indiana, Louisville, Vanderbilt, Bowling Green. How He Fits In: Avery is somewhat of a wild card. He is very quick and athletic, but lacks ideal size for a corner, and played mostly quarterback in high school, where he earned first-team all-state honors. He adds depth to the position, but won’t play right away. If he can develop his cover skills, he could see playing time in a couple of years.
Cornerback Terrence Talbot	TERRENCE TALBOTT Height: 5-10 Weight: 172 Hometown: Huber Heights, Ohio (Wayne) Rivals Rank: NR (3-star) Scout Rank: #108 CB (3-star) ESPN Rank: #33 CB (3-star) Chose Michigan Over: Cincinnati, Illinois, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Connecticut, North Carolina. How He Fits In: Talbott is the brother of defensive tackle commit Terry Talbott. Like Avery, he lacks ideal size, but he makes up for that with his cover skills and vertical jumping ability. He has goos speed, plays physical for his size, and has fluid hips, which is important for a good corner. A year of redshirting should prepare him well to see the field in a couple of years and he could become a solid contributor.

After two straight losses in the Old Spice Classic and a four-point loss to Boston College in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, is it time for Michigan fans to recalibrate their expectations for this season?

Michigan entered the season ranked 15th in the nation, fresh off its first trip to the NCAA tournament in 10 years, and looking to make a run at the Big Ten title.

Seven games later, Michigan is out of the Top 25 and needed a good second half on Saturday against Arkansas-Pine Bluff to move its record back above .500.

Is it too early to write off the season? Absolutely not. John Beilein is a great coach who can turn things around.

But, although these early-season struggles raise some concerns, they aren’t as surprising as they seem.

This is still a very young team. Yes, it’s led by senior DeShawn Sims and junior Manny Harris, but 75 percent of the team is underclassmen.

Aside from Sims and Harris, only redshirt senior Zack Gibson and redshirt junior Anthony Wright have more than a year of playing experience, and the two combine for just 20 minutes of playing time per game.

So it should come as no surprise that the team’s main problem is its shooting so far this season. Michigan seems to be struggling with its confidence.

Through seven games, Michigan is shooting just 29 percent from three-point range, though even that number is inflated from the first three games against weak competition.

Against Northern Michigan, Houston Baptist and Creighton, Michigan shot 36.2 percent from long range.

In the three subsequent losses, Michigan shot just 21.8 percent from downtown, including a miserable 3-for-20 outing against Marquette and 9-for-34 against Boston College.

Talk about living and dying by the three.

No one has looked comfortable shooting the ball the past four games (including Saturday’s 67-53 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff).

Michigan’s best three-point shooter so far this season (percentage-wise) is true freshman Matt Vogrich, though he is just 6-for-11.

Sharp-shooting sophomores Zach Novak and Stu Douglass are just 31 and 22.6 percent, respectively, while Harris has made just 7-of-33 attempts from long range.

For a team that relies heavily on guard play and three-point shooting, that’s certainly not a recipe for success.

But that’s also why I’m hopeful that the season is not lost. Surely the team will gain its confidence and the shooting will improve.

Douglass, Novak and Harris each shot about 34 percent last season from three-point range and will eventually find their shot this year. And when that happens, Michigan will be a dangerous team capable of beating anybody.

So far, Harris has been every bit of the pre-season co-Big Ten player of the year, averaging 21.1 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, despite his poor shooting.

He had just the second triple-double in school history in Michigan’s season-opening win over Northern Michigan, and was a rebound away from another against Creighton.

Sims has also played well, averaging 15.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, and had his best game of the season on Saturday against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. He scored 15 points in the first half on his way to a 19-point, 10-rebound performance.

The surrounding cast hasn’t given Harris and Sims much help and Michigan needs a third scoring threat to emerge in order to live up to the preseason expectations.

It makes me wonder if the losses of guards David Merritt and C.J. Lee to graduation really did affect this team more than I thought it would.

Merritt and Lee averaged just 4.7 points per game combined, but they were the leaders. They played tough defense, dove for loose balls, and held the team together.

Early this season, Michigan has lacked those qualities. Novak vowed to fill that role, but hasn’t been a consistent scoring option so far.

True freshman Darius Morris took over the point guard duties, but has just as many turnovers as assists and doesn’t look to shoot enough.

Douglass is a defensive liability when he’s on the court, which is acceptable when he’s hitting threes, but he hasn’t found his shot yet this year.

As the season progresses, Michigan will grow to fill that void, but it’s running out of time.

With non-conference games at Utah and Kansas remaining, as well as a January match-up with Connecticut, Michigan probably has to win two of those three to have a shot at postseason play.

Utah certainly looks beatable, having losses to Idaho, Seattle, and Weber State on its resume, but it did beat Illinois, and the game is in Salt Lake, so it’s not a given.

Michigan ended its three game losing streak by beating Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday and seemed to find its rhythm in the second half.

If it can carry over that confidence into Wednesday’s game at Utah, Michigan will be on track to enter the Big Ten schedule.

It’s not time to panic yet, but Utah could be the game that makes or breaks the season. A loss will probably mean Michigan needs to beat Kansas and UConn or fare far better in the Big Ten than expected.

I expect the shooting will turn around, but it better do so on Wednesday in Salt Lake City.

With another losing season in the books, the Michigan football program appears to be in disarray to many outsiders, as well as a fraction of the Michigan fan-base.

But is everything doom and gloom for this squad, or is there help on the way? Is head coach Rich Rodriguez in over his head in the Big Ten, or has he already laid the groundwork for success?

On this Thanksgiving day, as we visit with loved ones, stuff our faces with turkey and pumpkin pie, and watch the Cowboys and Lions, let’s take an early look at what the 2010 version of Michigan football will look like.

Certainly a lot of questions have to be answered, and I believe it starts with the players Rodriguez already has in the program.

Freshman quarterback Tate Forcier played the entire season and at times looked like a confident veteran, but at times looked every bit the 18-year old freshman he was.

He enrolled early at Michigan last January, a move that greatly helped earn him the starting job over last year’s returning starter, walk-on junior Nick Sheridan.

Forcier led comeback wins over Notre Dame and Indiana, brought the team back from 14 points down to force overtime at Michigan State, and performed well in late-season conference games against Illinois, Purdue, and Wisconsin.

But he was also prone to throwing the ball up for grabs, not securing the ball when scrambling, and making the wrong reads on zone option running plays.

These mistakes speak more toward his youth and inexperience than his true talent level. His solid performances showed he has the talent to be Michigan’s quarterback for the next three years.

The good thing is that the mistakes are correctable and will be cured by more time spent on the practice field, in the film room, and in the weight room. In short, we have a bright future ahead at the quarterback position.

Another off-season under strength and conditioning coach Mike Barwis will help Forcier add muscle to his slight frame and help avoid injuries. Many forget that Forcier played most of the season with a sprained AC join in his shoulder – the same injury Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford suffered, albeit to a lesser degree.

As Forcier gets more practice time and learns more of the playbook, his understanding of Rodriguez’s complicated “spread-n-shred” offense will grow.

Many of those misreads when he kept the ball instead of handing it off, or when he handed it off and should have kept it, will be fixed next year and in the years that follow.

In addition, he will improve with his passing reads, as he gets more comfortable in the system. This season, he tended to pull it down and scramble the instant he sniffed pressure. His creativity and ability to throw on the run covered up some of these problems, but it also led to turnovers or a failure to throw the ball away.

You can’t fault the kid for trying too hard. Some of the ill advised throws were a result of just trying to make something happen, but will be fixed with experience. Some of the plays he made in the comeback against Notre Dame were the same type of plays that resulted in turnovers down the stretch, as was glaringly evident against the great defense of Ohio State.

Forcier’s background leads me to believe he’ll be a fantastic quarterback. He was groomed to play the position, trained under Marv Marinovich, and has two older brothers that play quarterback as well. The mechanics are there, as is the quarterback mentality. Now, he just needs to develop in Rodriguez’s offense and he’ll be fine.

Michigan’s other quarterback, fellow freshman Denard Robinson has a lot further to go in his development, but is also a great fit for Rodriguez’s offense.

Robinson didn’t enroll early, so he had only about a month of practice prior to Michigan’s opening game against Western Michigan. The majority of the action Robinson saw was designed runs to utilize his athletic ability.

Early in the season it worked. He scored four rushing touchdowns in Michigan’s first seven games. As the season progressed and the meat of the schedule was reached, opposing defenses caught on and stacked up to stop the run whenever he entered the game.

It was frustrating at times to see Robinson come in, knowing he was going to run, and get stuffed for little gain. Yet, we have to remember that he had very little practice time and doesn’t yet possess the passing ability needed to be a quarterback for a major Division 1 quarterback.

Unlike Forcier, who already possesses the mechanical skills, Robinson will take more work to develop. But his upside is his athletic ability, which is much greater than Forcier’s.

His touchdown run against Western Michigan left Michigan fans salivating for him to be used in a Percy Harvin-type role.

Late in the season we saw more plays in which Robinson lined up in the backfield next to Forcier or spread out wide running a fly pattern. Against Ohio State, he was thrown to deep a couple of times, although neither was completed, and one was intercepted.

I think we were all a bit impatient throughout the season, assuming that it would be easy to thrust him into plays at running back or receiver. However, with the dire need of quarterback depth in case of a Forcier injury, and merely the fact that Robinson was a true freshman, time spent practicing plays at other positions meant time spent not developing at quarterback.

In the future, when Rodriguez adds to the quarterback depth, he will have more flexibility in using Robinson in other roles. But during the course of this season, I think we overlooked the need to keep him where he was.

Next year, that depth will be added to by Inkster, Mich. quarterback Devin Gardner. The dual-threat quarterback fits the mold of Rodriguez’s ideal quarterback perfectly and his arrival in Ann Arbor is highly anticipated.

In his senior season at Inkster High School, Gardner has thrown for 1,472 yards and 14 touchdowns to just three interceptions, and rushed for over 700 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has led his team to the state championship game against Lowell on Friday.

Scouts compare him to Penn State’s Darryl Clark former Auburn (and current Washington Redskins) quarterback Jason Campbell. They are high on his size and strength, as well as his arm strength and running ability.

An ideal situation would be to redshirt him next season and allow him to develop and learn the system until Forcier and Robinson graduate and then take over for his junior and senior seasons.

But with his talent, will he be patient enough to wait in the wings for three years? In order for Rodriguez’s system to succeed, I hope he’s unselfish enough to do so.

Granted, there’s always the possibility of Gardner coming in and beating out Forcier and Robinson for the starting job next season or the year after, and if that’s the case, then by all means, the guy that gives Michigan the best chance to win should play.

Whatever the case, the centerpiece of Rodriguez’s system is in place and the future looks bright at the quarterback position.

The backfield is where Michigan loses the most talent, but due to the nature of Rodriguez’s system and the injuries that Michigan suffered this season, the stable is not empty.

Seniors Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown will be big losses, and certainly their absences in many of the games hurt Michigan’s chances for success, but it also allowed young guys to gain experience.

The most impressive runner late in the season was freshman Vincent Smith. His performance in Michigan’s spring game last April gave Michigan fans a glimpse of what he is capable of, but he didn’t see much action through the first half of the season.

But in Michigan’s final two games, against Wisconsin and Ohio State, Smith emerged as Michigan’s go-to back, displaying quickness and pass-catching ability.

He figures to enter 2010 as Michigan’s starting tailback.

Sophomore Michael Shaw has also shown some ability and as his vision for the field improves, could develop into a nice complement to Smith.

His main problem has been that he doesn’t cut through the gaps quick enough, instead always relying on getting around the outside.

Redshirt freshman Michael Cox got some playing time as Michigan’s fifth running back and still has some time to grow. He’ll certainly get a chance to prove himself and earn some more playing time with the graduation of Minor and Brown.

True freshman Fitzgerald Toussaint is a guy that many Michigan fans were excited about coming out of high school. He redshirted this season and will also get a chance in the off-season to earn a role in the offense.

Incoming freshmen Tony Drake, Stephen Hopkins, and Austin White (all three-stars) should give Michigan plenty of options in the backfield.

Receiver is a position that Michigan certainly isn’t lacking talent. A go-to guy emerged in the second half of the season, in redshirt freshman Roy Roundtree. He caught 30 passes for 390 yards and two touchdowns in the final four games of the season.

Though he lacks elite speed, Roundtree showed great hands and a willingness to go across the middle. He should enter 2010 as Michigan’s number one receiver, but it will be interesting to see if he stays in the slot or moves to the outside to replace senior Greg Mathews.

By the time next season rolls around, Michigan will have a lot of experience with sophomore Martavious Odoms in the slot. Odoms started as a true freshman in 2008 and was one of Michigan’s lone bright spots, leading the team in receiving with 49 catches for 443 yards.

Injuries forced him to miss a couple of games late in the season this year, but that could be a blessing in disguise as it opened the door for Roundtree’s emergence.

Also in the slot, sophomore Kelvin Grady showed good speed early in the season, but dropped balls caused him to lose playing time. The former Michigan basketball player definitely has the athleticism to be effective; he just needs to work on catching the ball and he could develop into a weapon in the next couple of years.

A freshman that redshirted this season, Jeremy Gallon could factor into the equation as well. He was highly regarded coming out of high school last year, and a year learning the system should allow him to see some playing time next season.

A wild card in the slot could be incoming freshman Drew Dileo. A 5’9” 170 pound white guy, Dileo committed to Michigan over Tulane, Stanford, and Rice. I mention “white guy” only because of the inevitable Wes Welker comparison. If he can fit that mold, Michigan has itself a steal, but if his low rankings hold true, he could get lost in the mix.

On the outside, redshirt sophomore Junior Hemingway and sophomore Darryl Stonum bring a couple years of experience to the table and have at times shown considerable promise.

Hemingway started 2008 with a bang, catching a 33-yard touchdown pass in Michigan’s game against Utah, but an injury caused him to miss the remainder of the season.

This season, he came out hot again, catching five passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns in the season opener against Western Michigan. But he didn’t catch a touchdown pass the rest of the season, and barely matched the yardage output in the rest of the games combined, finishing with just 16 catches for 268 yards.

Stonum started 10 games as a freshman in 2008 and had his best game against Purdue, scoring on a 51-yard catch and run.

This season, he hauled in only 13 receptions for 199 yards and a touchdown, though the touchdown was a thrilling 60-yard play to ignite Michigan’s comeback in the fourth quarter against Michigan State.

Je’Ron Stokes is a freshman that played primarily on special teams this season and could have an impact in 2010. The 6-0 181 pound speedster out of Philadelphia was a top-100 recruit and was rated the eighth-best wide receiver in the nation last season according to Scouts, Inc.

Stokes caught two passes for 16 yards against Delaware State in the only real action he saw this season.

Four-star receivers Ricardo Miller and Jerald Robinson and three-stars Jeremy Jackson and D.J. Williamson make up a solid group of incoming freshmen will help bolster the ranks of what should be the deepest position on the team.

On the offensive line, Michigan returns nearly everybody and should get a big boost from a group of redshirt freshmen that fit Rodriguez’s system.

Left tackle Mark Ortmann and right guard-turned center David Moosman both graduate, but neither is a huge loss. Ortmann was serviceable and Moosman was a solid guard, but struggled at the center position when David Molk went down with an injury.

Getting Molk back next season will provide Michigan a solid, experienced center who started every game in his redshirt freshman season in 2008 and would have this season if not for a broken foot. He was rated the No. 1 center in the nation coming out of high school.

Redshirt junior Steven Schilling will probably be Michigan’s best offensive lineman in 2010. Schilling was ranked as the second-best guard in the nation coming out of high school and has started for three seasons, counting this one.

Perhaps the most surprising player is redshirt freshman Patrick Omameh, who earned a starting spot towards the end of the season and played pretty well. Omameh is a Rodriguez recruit who was just a two-star, mostly due to a lack of size compared to the typical offensive line recruit.

His performance has earned him strong consideration to start next season, probably at either right guard or right tackle.

Redshirt sophomore Mark Huyge started much of the season at right guard and figures to start next season either there or right tackle.

True freshman and highly regarded recruit Taylor Lewan is perfect for Rodriguez’s offense, rated as one of the most athletic and versatile linemen in the nation as a senior. He should get a chance to start at left tackle next season.

Another freshman that could get some action next season is Quinton Washington. He was a four-star recruit and the sixth-rated offensive guard as a senior.

Redshirt junior Perry Dorrestein, who has seen some action, should battle for the left tackle spot, while redshirt freshmen Ricky Barnum and Elliott Mealer will have a chance to earn a spot as well.

Incoming freshmen won’t help next season, as offensive line is a position in which recruits need time in a college strength and conditioning program to develop, but the future looks pretty good with last year’s haul. Only one offensive line commitment is secured for this year’s class unless Rodriguez is able to snag the nation’s top recruit, Seantrel Henderson, but that seems unlikely at this point.

At tight end, Michigan is stacked with experience in sophomores Kevin Koger and Martell Webb.

Koger finished fifth on the team in receiving this season, catching 16 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns. He caught an important touchdown pass against Notre Dame, but had some problems with drops midway through the season and didn’t see as many balls thrown his way in the last few games.

Webb caught just four passes for 44 yards and a touchdown, but got a lot of playing time and was a fairly effective run blocker.

Webb was a junior this season and Koger just a sophomore, so the tight end position should be a strength for Michigan next season.

Overall, the Michigan offense made some strides this year, averaging nine more points per game and 95 more yards of total offense per game than last season.

In addition, the offense showed that it could sustain drives this year, and although turnovers were a problem, those are mistakes that are fixable.

We didn’t see all the negative yardage plays that we saw last year when the offense just completely bogged down.

Next year we can expect even more improvement as the Rodriguez system enters its third year. The losses of Minor, Brown, Mathews, Ortmann, and Moosman should not slow this team down very much, since their replacements all got a lot of experience this year.

Most importantly, the core is in place, and there won’t be fresh blood needing to play a crucial role, as there was this season.

So on this Thanksgiving, let’s be thankful for the seniors that stuck out the coaching change and put forth their best efforts. Let’s also be thankful for the young guys that got their feet wet this year and will pioneer our maize and blue back to prominence in the years to come.

And let’s be thankful for an offensive innovator as our head coach – someone who is a proven winner and cares as much about getting the Michigan football program back on track as anyone else does. He will take Michigan to a place far beyond what we have seen if we afford him the time to do so.

The offense is certainly on track. Stay tuned for my defensive preview in the next few days.

As the 130th season of Michigan football comes to an end, it’s time to reflect on what we saw and look forward to next year and beyond.

2009 yielded some highlights and some lowlights, some controversy and some challenged loyalty. A legend was made and some buds blossomed. Records fell, both good and bad, and a system started to show some promise.

No one knew what to expect from this year’s version of Michigan football in Rich Rodriguez’s second year at the helm.

The overly optimistic among us predicted a breakout season of nine or ten wins.

Realistic optimists pointed to Rodriguez’s penchant for second-year turnarounds and predicted a record of 7-5 or maybe, if luck goes the way of the maize and blue, 8-4.

Realists pointed to the true freshmen quarterbacks and lack of overall talent on the squad and predicted a 5-7 or 6-6 finish.

As it turns out, the realists were right, but the realistic optimists weren’t too far off.

The fact of the matter is, Michigan fans were so shell-shocked from the worst record in 46 years in 2008 that we were looking anywhere we could for hope.

We ignored comments that Rodriguez made in the preseason such as, “There’s still going to be some transition. We’re going to play a lot more freshmen and redshirt freshmen than we would like to.”

We thought, sure there will be a lot of freshmen playing, but Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson are surely better options than Steven Threet and Nick Sheridan. Or, yeah, but it can’t get any worse than last season.

In this space, I offered some words of caution: “Coming off a season that resulted in the most losses in school history, and pinning all hopes on a true freshman quarterback, this seems to be the window of opportunity before Rodriguez’s system begins to take hold and terrorize the Big Ten.”

But then I followed it up with an overly ambitious response: “However, I think we’re going to see a very fast, well-conditioned and much-improved Michigan team playing with a chip on its shoulder to avoid being put to rest again.”

While that may have held true for a while, reality eventually sunk in that this team was indeed loaded with youth and razor-thin on the depth chart.

What began in August as optimism and eagerness to forget the epic disaster of 2008, quickly turned to scorn as the Detroit Free Press brought into question allegations of NCAA infractions on the part of Rodriguez and his coaching staff.

The opening game against Western Michigan couldn’t come soon enough. We cursed Michael Rosenberg and Mark Snyder for the timing of their article and the witch-hunt that ensued and we promised to get revenge on Justin Boren, who transferred to Ohio State, for his comments that seemed to be the centerpiece of that article.

And then the season began and practice time was forgotten and the story of Shoelace became one we would hear every game the entire season (as my wife would roll her eyes every time the announcers felt compelled to tell the story of why Denard Robinson doesn’t tie his shoes…every…single…game).

Robinson thrilled us with a 43-yard touchdown run, Tate Forcier showed promise in his first game by throwing for three touchdowns, Junior Hemingway caught nearly half his season total in receiving yards (103) and all of his touchdowns (two), and the defense shut down what many thought would be a high-powered offense.

We saw a show of solidarity for Rodriguez, Michigan won easily, and the season started off with a bang.

The came Notre Dame, fresh off of throttling Nevada, and riding preseason BCS bowl (or national championship game) predictions.

This will go down as the game that raised all of our expectations, mostly because no one knew at that time how mediocre Notre Dame really was.

It appeared to be Rodriguez’s signature win, as Michigan matched Notre Dame score-for-score and Forcier stunned the 18th-ranked Irish with 11 seconds left.

Forcier looked as veteran and composed as ND junior quarterback Jimmy Clausen, completing 23-of-33 for 240 yards and three touchdowns (one rushing). It’s hard to imagine that that would be the high point of his season, in just his second collegiate game.

Of course, there was the Armando Allen out-of-bounds play, which, despite the evidence , Notre Dame fans will carry to their graves in contempt.

The win over Notre Dame vaulted Michigan into the Top 25 heading into week three against Eastern Michigan. Former Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English brought his Eagles to Ann Arbor and didn’t provide much of a test.

Michigan showed off its running game this time, going for 380 yards on the ground, and getting 163 yards and two touchdowns on just eight carries from Carlos Brown in the first half alone.

Robinson scored two more touchdowns to enhance the unrealistic expectations for a guy that arrived on campus less than two months earlier.

Michigan then opened the Big Ten slate with Indiana in what would eventually be the battle for last place. At the time, though, Michigan was hoping to get to 4-0 heading into its intrastate rivalry battle in East Lansing.

This game provided our first glimpse of what the rest of the season would hold, as Michigan struggled to beat the Hoosiers, needing a 26-yard touchdown pass from Forcier to Martavious Odoms with 2:29 remaining to get the win.

The Indiana victory prompted me to draw a comparison to the New York Jets, who like Michigan, started off hot with a rookie quarterback: “Following Sunday’s Jets-Titans game, Vic Carucci of NFL.com asked Jets safety Kerry Rhodes if he thought the Jets’ style of play was sustainable. Rhodes replied that he thought it was because having such a good defense allows rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez to make some mistakes.

“Unfortunately, that won’t exactly translate to Michigan. While I think Michigan’s offense is further along in its development than Sanchez’s Jets offense, relatively speaking, Michigan hasn’t faced its toughest opponents yet.”

I provided the last part of that quote because I knew we were in for a tough go the rest of the season. I didn’t know, however, that that would be our last win over a FBS team all season. Ironically, Michigan’s fall has mirrored the Jets’ collapse.

At 4-0, a return to a bowl game looked assured, and Michigan entered “Little Brother” week seeking to avenge last season’s 35-21 loss to Michigan State.

It was the first road game of Forcier’s career and we saw the fist true test of the season, as the Michigan offense was shut down much of the game. But Forcier continued his early-season magic, leading a 14-point comeback to force overtime with a touchdown completion to Roy Roundtree with just two seconds left.

In overtime, Forcier was intercepted on a tipped pass that never should have been thrown, and Michigan dropped its second in a row to Michigan State for the first time since 1967.

Michigan Streaks Broken in 2009
First back-to-back losses to Michigan State since 1967
First home loss to Penn State since 1996
First home loss to Purdue in last 17 meetings
First back-to-back losing seasons since 1963-62

This began a run of snapping streaks right and left.

With its first loss of the season under its belt, Michigan traveled to Iowa for a prime-time night game against the nation’s 12th-ranked Hawkeyes.

Brandon Minor had his breakout game of the season, scoring two touchdowns against a defense that hadn’t given up a rushing touchdown in 33 quarters.

The game started out as well as one could ask, as Donovan Warren picked off the first pass of the game and returned it for a touchdown.

Michigan hung around until a muffed punt (hello 2008!) gave Iowa the ball at the Michigan 16. Iowa punched it in and took a 30-21 lead.

Robinson led the offense down the field for a touchdown to narrow the gap, but on the next possession, threw an interception to end the game, beginning the Wolverine-faithful’s love-hate relationship with Denard.

Despite a second-straight loss, Michigan fans were encouraged that the team was able to hang with undefeated Iowa until the last minute of the game, and a return to the Big House to face an FCS school was just what Michigan needed to regroup.

Michigan was able to set numerous school records in the win over Delaware State that week and give many starters a week off.

Five Wolverines scored their first career touchdowns and Robinson was able to get a lot of work at quarterback.

Michigan fans even got the treat of seeing Nick Sheridan on the field without the game on the line.

Many fans didn’t like the idea of playing an FCS school, but following the game, I proclaimed, “I have no problem with Michigan playing Delaware State this year. With a roster comprised of mostly underclassmen, and a complete overhaul in progress, playing an FCS opponent was better than a bye week in my opinion.

Michigan Records Set vs. Delaware State
727 total yards of offense
442 yards in the first half
28 points in the first quarter (ties record)
57 point margin of victory (most since 58-0 win over Indiana on Oct. 14, 2000)
461 rushing yards (most since 480 vs. Iowa on Oct. 3, 1992)
49 first half points (most since 55 vs. Chicago on Oct. 21, 1939)

“I would love to see Michigan start scheduling another tough out-of-conference game every year, but at this point in the development of Rich Rodriguez’s scheme, it’s not time for that just yet.

“Once the team grows up and the spread-n-shred is fully ingrained, I hope the schedule will be strengthened. But when you have Florida, arguably the nation’s top team and reigning national champion, playing Charleston Southern, Troy and Florida International, one must look that way first before pointing fingers at the baby Wolverines.”

I still believe it was okay to play Delaware State this season, but obviously with the way Michigan finished the season the benefits weren’t as great as I thought.

At 5-2, Michigan looked primed to make a bowl game, needing just one more win in its final five games.

Penn State came to town and dominated Michigan, racking up 396 yards of offense, and handing Michigan its first true beating of the season.

For really the first time all season, Forcier looked like a true freshman, completing just 13-of-30 passes for 140 yards. The offense couldn’t get anything going in the cold, rainy conditions.

Michigan wasn’t expected to win this one, and despite the 25-point whooping, I considered this result somewhat of a fluke and still didn’t believe the team was as bad as the final record would eventually indicate.

Following the Penn State game, doomsday headlines abounded, and I cautioned fans not to listen to them.

As it turns out, they were right.

Michigan traveled to Champaign, Ill. for a match-up with 1-6 Illinois, a game that looked like a sure-win.

This one will forever be remembered as the epic collapse, and probably the turning point of the whole season. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bigger turnaround before.

Michigan was firmly in control with a 13-7 lead and first and goal at the Illinois one-yard line in the third quarter. After stuffing Michigan on four straight rushes, Illinois took possession and seized the game.

Six plays later, a 70-yard touchdown run put Illinois ahead 14-13 and Illinois never looked back, out-scoring Michigan 24-0 the rest of the way.

At this point in the season, confidence in a bowl game turned into hoping to squeeze out a win in one of the final three games. The best hope was the following week against Purdue.

Perhaps hope is the wrong word against Purdue, as Boilermaker head coach Danny Hope carried a grudge into the game, blaming Rodriguez for getting one of his players suspended for a game earlier in the season – nevermind that the player deserved to be suspended just as much as Michigan linebacker Jonas Mouton did the week before that.

This game was much like the Illinois game, where Michigan was in control and let it get away. Michigan led 24-10 at halftime and pushed it to 30-17 in the third, but a 91-yard touchdown drive, an on-side kick, and a 54-yard touchdown pass later, and Michigan found itself trailing 31-30.

Michigan missed a 43-yard field goal and failed to convert a two-point conversion attempt that would have tied the game, and Michigan fell by two.

Michigan traveled to Wisconsin for its final road game of the season, still needing a win to become bowl-eligible.

This game followed the mold of the past couple, as Michigan hung around through three quarters, but faded down the stretch.

Forcier bounced back from some poor outings to complete 20-of-26 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns, but it was the defense that couldn’t hold up against a powerful Wisconsin running game.

Although Michigan knew Wisconsin was going to run it in the second half, it still couldn’t stop the Badgers.

The bowl hopes all came down to the final week of the season against Ohio State, as Michigan looked to end its five game losing streak to the Buckeyes.

Though many around the nation talked of the lack of luster in the rivalry, the game still had plenty of storylines with Michigan needing a win to make a bowl and avoid a second straight losing season, Ohio State needing a win to capture the Big Ten title outright, and Justin Boren playing against his former team in the Big House.

The Michigan defense played inspired and turned in its best performance of the season, holding the Ohio State offense to just 14 points.

However, it was the youth of Michigan’s offensive leader that doomed the Wolverines’ chances of playing through the holidays.

Forcier turned the ball over five times, including a fumble in the end zone on Michigan’s first possession, which Ohio State recovered for a touchdown.

Michigan moved the ball most of the day against an Ohio State defense that ranks as one of the best in the nation. But it was unable to capitalize on trips to the red zone, turning the ball over too many times.

So as Michigan’s season came to an abrupt end for the second year in a row, many want to know where do we go from here?

Indeed, there are many questions that need to be answered, but I’m in the minority who still believes the program is on the right track.

Stay tuned for part two where I will look at the future of the football program, both short-term and long-term, as well as the recruiting class Michigan has coming in and who is still out there that Rodriguez needs to land.

Last Saturday we learned the truth behind the slow start to Rich Rodriguez’s career as head coach of Michigan football.

It’s not a matter of getting the right players to fit the system or the cupboard being left bare by the outgoing staff. It’s not that he’s forced to start a true freshman quarterback or two walk-ons on defense.

It’s all part of Rodriguez’s master plan: to stop every streak Michigan has going so that he can start them all up again himself.

Then, decades from now, when Michigan is enjoying another long bowl streak or when Michigan nails down its 20th straight win over Purdue, folks will look back and say that streak was started by Rich Rodriguez.

He will be revered the way Bo Schembechler is now.

OK, so maybe not. But it’s a good conspiracy theory anyway.

It seems that every week another Michigan streak falls. Last week it was Michigan’s first home loss to Purdue since 1966.

If Michigan fails to win one of its final two games, it will be the first time since 1973 and ‘74 that Michigan missed a bowl game two years in a row.

That streak is one that Michigan desperately needs to start anew if for no other reason than the added month of practice time and recruiting.

So how does it get to a bowl this season? It’s simple, at least in theory: win one of the next two games.

It starts on Saturday with a trip to Madison, Wisc. to battle the 20th ranked Badgers – a team hot for revenge after filling one of the three win slots on Michigan’s schedule last season.

In that game, the first Big Ten game of the season for both teams, Wisconsin entered 3-0 and No. 9 in the nation. Michigan fell behind 19-0 at the half before battling back with four second-half touchdowns to win 27-25.

At the time, it seemed to be a signature win for Rodriguez, but it started a streak of four straight losses (and five of six) for the Badgers.

And Wisconsin head coach Brent Bielema hasn’t forgotten.

“To be in the situation we were at half and to finish that game out the way it did, leaves a very bad taste, and then we all know what happened after that,” Bielema said. “We’ve battled our tails off to get to where we are right now, and Michigan is the next opportunity.

“I’ll talk about the opportunities that you have in front of you, and this is our next step to get to where we want to be, and Michigan is that team that we have to focus on.”

This season, Wisconsin has avoided the letdown and boasts the conference’s second-best rush offense and best running back in John Clay.

Clay averages 108.1 yards per game (5.1 yards per carry) and leads the Big Ten with 11 touchdowns. He scored one of Wisconsin’s touchdowns against Michigan in last season’s match-up.

The redshirt sophomore has rushed for five 100-yard games this season and is just 27 yards short of 1,000 yards on the season.

Stopping Clay and getting some push back against the very big offensive line has to be priority number one for Michigan if it wants any chance of winning this game.

Redshirt junior quarterback Scott Tolzien has a good passer rating 132.6 (third in the Big Ten), but he’s much more of a game manager than a quarterback that will dominate the game.

He has thrown for just 1,717 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions on the season, which is very comparable to Michigan freshman quarterback Tate Forcier’s numbers so far (1,636 touchdowns, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions), though Tolzien isn’t a threat to carry the ball like Forcier is.

That’s the type of team Michigan typically hangs tough with. Though not exactly the same, see the Iowa and Michigan State games, in comparison to teams with mobile quarterbacks and big-time passing attacks that Michigan struggle with like Penn State and Purdue.

In its two losses this season, to Ohio State and Iowa, Wisconsin’s run game was essentially shut down. Ohio State held Clay to just 66 yards on 20 carries, while forcing Tolzien to throw 45 times. Iowa held Clay to 80 yards on 21 carries.

If Michigan lets Clay run all over, it will be a very long day for the maize and blue.

The biggest problem for Michigan’s defense this season has been the secondary.

Junior quarterback Donovan Warren has played well all season, while Troy Woolfolk began the season at safety and moved to the other corner position when sophomore Boubacar Cissoko was dismissed from the team.

Woolfolk has fared well, but the safety position has been vulnerable with sophomore Mike Williams and walk-on redshirt freshman Jordan Kovacs struggling.

Kovacs is good at blitzing and run stopping, but doesn’t have the speed to cover and Williams has seen the ball sail over his head more times than outfielders did in Yankee Stadium this season.

The fact that Wisconsin’s receivers aren’t huge threats leads me to believe Michigan has a chance to at least hang in this game.

Redshirt sophomore Nick Toon, the son of former NFL receiver Al Toon, has been stellar, leading the team with 37 catches for 535 yards. Last week against Indiana, he had a career high 123 yards, so Warren will be tasked with keeping him at bay. He has only reached the end zone twice this season.

The team’s second leading receiver is tight end Garrett Graham. A fifth-year senior, Graham is arguably the best tight end in the Big Ten with 30 receptions for 342 yards and four touchdowns. He could have a big day, given Michigan’s inability to cover tight ends this season.

Defensively, Wisconsin ranks in the top 20 in rush defense, surrendering 102.8 yards per game. Throw out the non-conference match-ups and the defense is even stingier, allowing just 72 yards per game.

No team has featured a 100-yard rusher against Wisconsin’s defense all season, and only seven rushers have found the end zone through nine games.

The last time we heard a stat like that was against Iowa, which hadn’t allowed a rushing touchdown in 33 quarters dating back to last season. Michigan scored three rushing touchdowns in the game and hung with the 12th-ranked Hawkeyes before ultimately falling 30-28.

Michigan’s rushing attack has been its strength this season, with seniors Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown combining for over 1,000 yards and quarterbacks Forcier and Denard Robinson combining for another 750.

Wisconsin also boasts a great pass rush, led by O’Brien Schofield. The fifth-year senior leads the Big Ten with 18.5 tackles for loss and ranks second with 7.5 sacks. Redshirt sophomore J.J. Watt has 10.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks as the other defensive end.

Michigan’s offensive line has been a disappointment this season, especially after losing center David Molk midway through the season.

Last week it got an encouraging sign when redshirt freshman Patrick Omameh started at right guard and played well enough to keep the spot.

Unfortunately, Michigan’s only option at right tackle seems to be Mark Huyge, who got dominated by another great rush defensive end, Ryan Kerrigan, all day last Saturday.

Michigan has to be able to control the ball, which isn’t exactly the forte of a Rich Rodriguez offense. Wisconsin leads the Big Ten in time of possession, with 32.58. Michigan ranks last at 26.34, though still leads the conference in scoring.

Time of possession isn’t as big of a key as taking care of the ball, another category in which Michigan finds itself in the cellar.

If Michigan is able to hold onto the ball and capitalize on its possessions, it will have a chance. I find it hard to believe it will be able to hold Wisconsin to a low-scoring game, so Michigan has to take advantage of its opportunities.

Michigan hasn’t won in Camp Randall Stadium since 1999 and I don’t think that trend will be broken this year.

I do think it will be a closer game than many expect, but in the end, Wisconsin is just too much for Michigan to handle.

Prediction: Wisconsin 34, Michigan 24

With Delaware State filling the 12th spot on the schedule, many Michigan fans, and college football fans in general, scoffed at Michigan playing a team from the Football Championship Subdivision.

However, I think this was a very important game for this Michigan team. Mike Martin on the other hand, well…

…wow. How do offensive linemen not just tremble in fear when Martin lines up opposite them?

Anyway, I have no problem with Michigan playing Delaware State this year. With a roster comprised of mostly underclassmen, and a complete overhaul in progress, playing an FCS opponent was better than a bye week in my opinion.

I would love to see Michigan start scheduling another tough out-of-conference game every year, but at this point in the development of Rich Rodriguez’s scheme, it’s not time for that just yet.

Once the team grows up and the spread-n-shred is fully ingrained, I hope the schedule will be strengthened. But when you have Florida, arguably the nation’s top team and reigning national champion, playing Charleston Southern, Troy and Florida International, one must look that way first before pointing fingers at the baby Wolverines.

Playing a game of this sort in the middle of the season is valuable for a number of reasons.

First of all, it was a chance to get a number of players healthy.

Starting quarterback Tate Forcier suffered a concussion against Iowa and still has a lingering shoulder injury. He played just one series in the game, enough to keep his rhythm, but got to rest the shoulder the rest of the game.

Senior running backs Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown were also afforded the luxury of rest. Both have been hampered by injuries – Minor a sprained ankle and Brown a concussion – and neither played at all on Saturday.

Michigan also got another week of rest for starting center David Molk, who suffered a broken foot against Eastern Michigan. Right guard David Moosman, who has been filling in for Molk, has had some snapping issues, so the quicker Molk gets back on the field, the better. He may be ready to go this week against Penn State.

In addition to resting the starters, Michigan was able to get a lot of the young(er) guys some valuable game-time experience.

Freshman quarterback Denard Robinson was used as a change-of-pace option in the first six games, but really got a chance to pioneer the offense on Saturday.

Though it’s hard to gage the actual value, given the level of competition, it was still an opponent different than what he goes up against every day in practice, and that should not be overlooked.

While Michigan’s defense is much more talented than Delaware State’s, by practicing against it day-in and day-out you learn the schemes and the tendencies of individual players. Delaware State served as a practice against a defense he had never seen before, in a game situation.

So while the perceived value doesn’t turn any heads, the actual value might pay off down the road, and that is what really counts.

Other young guys who haven’t gotten a lot of playing time this year, like running backs Michael Shaw, Vincent Smith and Michael Cox, got a chance to show what they can do and gain some experience and confidence.

The trio combined for 321 rushing yards on 37 carries – an average of 8.7 yards per carry – and four touchdowns.

Running back depth is always important, but especially so in Michigan’s offense, which often employs multiple backs on the field at the same time. With Minor and Brown somewhat banged up and graduating after this season, Saturday was a great chance to see what the future of the position holds.

Throw in the fact that Smith, Cox, receiver Kelvin Grady and tight end Martell Webb each scored the first touchdowns of his career, and it was an exciting day for the morale of the team, especially following two tough losses.

The team needed a bounce-back game after losing close games to Michigan State and Iowa to get back on track for the rest of the season.

Four of the final five games figure to be very tough games, beginning with Penn State this Saturday.

You can bet that Rodriguez didn’t spend much time in practice last week preparing specifically for Delaware State. Essentially he had two weeks to prepare for Penn State, which enters this game ranked 13th in the nation.

Rodriguez didn’t show much of anything against Delaware State, so don’t be surprised if we see some new wrinkles on Saturday that have been practiced for the past two weeks.

Finally, it was fun to see Michigan put up big numbers and yards without actually running up the score.

Remember that when Florida racked up 56 points on Troy earlier this season, Tim Tebow was still throwing the ball well into the third quarter even with a 40-plus point lead.

While Troy is a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team and is most likely better than Delaware State, Florida is also much better than Michigan comparatively.

Michigan’s first two quarterbacks played barely into the second quarter, while third-stringer Nick Sheridan saw the most snaps and even fifth-string quarterback Jack Kennedy saw action.

While Michigan piled up the most yards of offense in team history (727) and the most points in a game since 1992 (63), it was largely done by the backups and Delaware State head coach Al Lavan was nothing but complementary after the game.

“We came to play an outstanding football team and an outstanding football team showed up,” Lavan said. “Michigan plays hard and fast, and they simply dominated us. I was not shocked, but surprised at how dominant they were. We were inconsistent in what we were trying to do. Overall, our performance was not due to a lack of effort. My hat goes off to Michigan.”

It’s not often that you put that many points on an opponent and they have nothing but nice things to say about you.

But that just shows how fun this game was, in getting 84 different players onto the field.

So while Michigan won’t gain any BCS love for whipping Delaware State, the game’s intrinsic value to Rodriguez’s young team was high and should pay off down the road more than a bye week or another tough loss to a good team would.

When I got roped into working an event for my job on a Saturday, I purposely chose this weekend to do the deed, knowing that if there was one game I could possibly bear not watching, it would be this one.

I then found out that I wouldn’t even be able to DVR it because it’s on the Big Ten Network, which we don’t get out here in New York City (thanks, Time Warner). I made the comment that it’s okay because it’s against Delaware State. My wife, a Notre Dame fan, replied “Remember Appalachian State?”

Oh, the obligitory App State reference that we Michigan fans will never live down.

Fortunately, it’s another “State” from the Football Championship Subdivision (FBS) coming to town, and a far inferior one.

So who is Delaware State?

Well, the university has an enrollment of around 3,700, or about 3.5 percent of the Big House seating capacity.

The football team began playing football in 1924 and has an overall winning percentage of .467. Perhaps its most infamous moment came in 1980 when it lost 105-0 to Portland State – the worst loss in Division 1-AA history.

DSU plays in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and its most notable football alum is former San Francisco 49ers receiver John Taylor. You know, the one not named Jerry Rice, but a star nonetheless.

Despite an overall losing record, the program achieved its best record just two years ago with a 10-2 finish and a MEAC championship. The season ended with a 44-7 loss in the first round of the NCAA playoffs to in-state big brother Delaware, whose uniform looks somewhat familiar, although far less cool.

This season is a different story, however. The Hornets stand at 1-3 with a win over Hampton and losses to Florida A&M, Delaware and Bethune-Cookman.

The offense is pretty short on firepower, averaging just 265 yards and 14 points per game. It has scored just six offensive touchdowns so far in four games.

Defensively, Delaware State gives up over 200 rushing yards per game, which should mean a lot of yards for Brandon Minor, Carlos Brown and Michael Shaw.

I’m not even going to go any further with this one, because, frankly, it’s not worth the time. If Michigan loses this one, I’ll buy myself a DSU jersey and wear it every single day for the rest of the year.

Expect to see a lot of Denard Robinson at quarterback and a lot of points scored for the maize and blue.

Prediction: Michigan 48 – Delaware State 13

In the aftermath of Michigan’s 30-28 loss at No. 12 Iowa on Saturday night, one question begs to be asked: is it time to expand Denard Robinson’s role?

Now, before I go any further, let me throw out a few disclaimers.

First of all, I understand the need to keep Robinson at quarterback in the event that Tate Forcier gets injured. The last thing any Michigan fan wants is to see third-string quarterback Nick Sheridan under center unless it’s in mop-up duty.

Secondly, I’m not going to question Rich Rodriguez’s decisions. He’s the head coach. I’m not. He’s been with this team day-in and day-out since he was hired. I haven’t. He chose to play Robinson over Forcier at the end of the game and I trust that he knows more than I do. That’s why he’s paid to make those decisions and I’m not.

Finally, I’m not saying the sky is falling or that we need to make some drastic changes after two losses. I’m merely exploring the possibility of making this team even more explosive.

That aside, let’s take a look.

Denard Robinson came to Michigan from Deerfield Beach, Fla. with a lot of hype, although the hype was more about his track-star speed than about his quarterbacking ability. That’s not to say that he won’t develop into a good quarterback, but at this point, his ability to run is much further ahead of his passing skills.

Through Michigan’s first six games, Robinson is just 7-for-15 for 87 yards and three interceptions.

I don’t think that is an indictment on his abilities as much as it is a reality that he’s not ready to be a collegiate quarterback at this point.

For one, he doesn’t fully know the offense, since he’s only been on campus for a couple of months. Instead of going through his progressions, he’s much more apt to pull it down and run.

Forcier, a fellow freshman, has been able to show some success so far for a couple of reasons.

He has been groomed to be a quarterback for his entire life. He trained under former USC and NFL player Marv Marinovich from the time he was eight years old.

He also has two older brothers who played quarterback, and he enrolled at Michigan in January, giving him a seven-month head start to get acclimated to college football and Michigan weather.

Robinson comes from the talent-rich state of Florida, where he threw for 4,784 yards and 44 touchdowns in three seasons. He also ran for another 1,132 yards and 13 touchdowns.

He was highly recruited by both Florida and Georgia in addition to Michigan. The only difference is that had he gone to either of those schools, he would have undoubtedly been red-shirted this season.

Michigan wasn’t afforded the luxury of red-shirting Robinson following the offseason transfer of Steven Threet and the poor play of junior Nick Sheridan last season.

Robinson arrived in Ann Arbor in time for fall camp and was immediately thrust into action. Instead of getting a full season to learn the offense without burning a year of eligibility, Robinson became Forcier’s backup and change-of-pace option.

On his first touch of his first game, he showed how dangerous he is with his legs, as he fumbled the snap, picked it up, and then scampered 43 yards for a touchdown.

He has scored three rushing touchdowns this season, including one yesterday against Iowa to bring Michigan within two points in the fourth quarter.

The problem is, when he’s in, the defense knows he’s not much of a threat to pass. Just ask Michigan State defensive end Trevor Anderson.

“They did everything we practiced this week,” Anderson said following the game last week, in which Michigan State won 26-20 in overtime. “When they decided to put in Denard Robinson, we knew they were going to run the ball. They couldn’t throw it with him.”

It’s fun to watch Robinson run the ball with the way he jukes and jives his way past tacklers. But while it worked in the first few games of the season, the effectiveness of using Robinson as basically a run-only quarterback diminishes each game.

The more the season goes on, and the more good defenses he faces, the less success he will have when lining up at the quarterback position. It’s too predictable.

Yet, he’s too much of a talent to keep on the sidelines.

Therefore, it seems that Rodriguez needs to find some new ways to use Robinson.

I’m not lobbying to completely move him to running back or receiver. But I am saying that either instead or in addition to giving him one or two drives per game at quarterback, why not give him five to 10 plays a game in various positions?

Just think of the possibilities. Line him up in the slot and get him the ball on a bubble screen or quick pass. Bring him in motion and run an end-around or reverse. Put him in the backfield and run the option or even the team’s staple, the zone read.

Rodriguez’s offense is predicated on getting the ball into the hands of playmakers in space, so why not find more ways to get Robinson on the field?

Of course the risk is Robinson getting injured, which would leave Michigan just an injury to Forcier away from being forced to use Sheridan as its quarterback. Nothing against Sheridan, but as we saw last season, he’s not the right guy for this offense.

However, I don’t think that argument holds much weight, since Robinson takes hits every time he’s on the field anyway when he runs the ball.

At the very least, getting him on the field in various positions makes the offense far less predictable. By this time, opponents are well aware of Robinson’s talents, and to see him in the slot or in the backfield would surely add a layer of unpredictability and give opponents more to prepare for.

Robinson could be headed for that type of role in the years to come anyway, since Michigan has five-star quarterback Devin Gardner locked up in its 2010 recruiting class.

Gardner, rated as the nation’s No. 1 quarterback by Rivals and No. 4 by Scout, has the size (6’4”, 195), arm (1,900 passing yards and 26 touchdowns last season), and running ability (1,400 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns last season) to be the ideal quarterback for Rodriguez’s spread-option system.

He’s drawn comparisons to Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor, but with a better arm. Elite 11 camp director Greg Biggins compared Gardner to Vince Young, Tim Tebow, Juice Williams and Dennis Dixon at the same stage in their development.

So with that in mind, as well as the solid play of Forcier (even with his struggles at Iowa), I think it is time to expand Robinson’s role beyond that of just quarterback.

Ask yourself this: Is it better to keep him on the sidelines for all but one or two series a game in an effort to keep him healthy? Or would it be more valuable to get another exciting and proven playmaker on the field to make the offense even more difficult to defend?

I vote the latter, and it should begin this Saturday.

With Delaware State, from the Football Championship Subdivision, bringing its 1-3 record to Ann Arbor, Michigan doesn’t have to worry about needing a perfect game to win.

Delaware State has lost to Florida A&M, Delaware and Bethune-Cookman, and averages just 14 points per game.

What better time to get Robinson on the field, not only at quarterback in passing situations, but also in various positions to get the ball in his hands in space?

It would give Michigan a chance to practice some of those plays that expand the playbook even more, but it also would give the following week’s opponent, Penn State, more looks to prepare for.

Not only would they know that when Robinson is lined up at quarterback he’s going to run. They would also be wary of No. 16’s presence in the slot or in the backfield.

Slot receiver Kelvin Grady is talented, but he hasn’t proven the elusiveness that Robinson has shown with the ball. Likewise, running backs Carlos Brown, Brandon Minor and Michael Shaw are all good backs, but they don’t have the speed and agility of Robinson.

So while Grady, Brown, Minor and Shaw should get the majority of the plays at their respective positions, Robinson should get a chance to change things up.

In my opinion the reward outweighs the risk and Michigan would be better off for it.

But then again, I’m not a coach, and I have to trust that the coaching staff knows what it’s doing.

With a 4-2 record, Michigan gets a much-needed return to the friendly confines of the Big House. An FCS opponent allows this young team a chance to work on some new things and get its confidence back before delving into the remainder of the Big Ten schedule.

And we’ll see if Rodriguez has any plans up his sleeve to expand Robinson’s role.

In honor of breast cancer awareness, Michigan decided to pay tribute by painting its locker room pink. Oh wait, you mean Iowa did that?

So Michigan isn’t embracing breast cancer awareness a la the NFL last week?

Oh well, maybe coach Rich Rodriguez can convince his young team that’s what it’s for so the color doesn’t achieve its real purpose – making the opponent passive.

Legendary Iowa head coach Hayden Fry, a psychology major, first painted the walls of the visiting locker room at Kinnick Stadium pink 30 years ago in an effort to keep the opponent in a passive mindset.

“One thing we didn’t paint black and gold was the stadium’s visitors locker room, which we painted pink,” Fry said. “It’s a passive color, and we hoped it would put our opponents in a passive mood. Also, pink is often found in girls’ bedrooms, and because of that some consider it a sissy color.”

In 2005, the school took the look to another level by painting the urinals, sinks, and everything else pink.

Since then, Iowa is 22-7 at Kinnick Stadium, though Michigan won on its only trip there during that time, a 23-20 overtime victory in 2005.

So how can Michigan neutralize the pink mood and win this game?

The biggest key to the game is whether Michigan’s running game can get back to form after a horrendous showing last week at Michigan State.

Through the first four games, Michigan led the Big Ten, and ranked in the top 10 in the nation in rushing, averaging 240 yards per game.

But last week, Michigan State held Michigan to just 28 yards on the ground, one yard per carry.

This week, Brandon Minor will get his first start of the season. The senior running back was expected to be the team’s featured back to start the season, but a high ankle sprain has limited his abilities so far. Rodriguez said this week that Minor is as healthy as he’s been all season.

Minor has 179 yards on just 35 carries so far this season.

Fellow senior, Carlos Brown, will not play this week after suffering a concussion in practice this week. Brown is the team’s leading rusher with 336 yards on 44 carries.

With Brown out, expect Minor to get the majority of the carries, with sophomore Michael Shaw getting some time as well.

One question pops out: will freshman quarterback Denard Robinson see some time at running back?

I’ve been hoping all season that Rodriguez would get Robinson on the field for more snaps. When he’s in at quarterback, everybody knows he’s not going to throw. Even Michigan State defensive end Trevor Anderson said as much.

“They did everything we practiced this week,” Anderson said following the game. “When they decided to put in Denard Robinson, we knew they were going to run the ball. They couldn’t throw it with him.”

That doesn’t bode well for Rodriguez. I’ve got to assume that Rodriguez has some plays designed to deceive the opponent down the road by having Robinson throw in an obvious running situation. But how long does Rodriguez wait to deploy these plays?

Regardless, I have a feeling that with Forcier missing most of Michigan’s practices in the week leading up to the Michigan State game, Rodriguez was forced to keep the playbook rather vanilla for the game. He wasn’t able to expand on what Michigan had shown previously because Forcier couldn’t practice it.

This week, Forcier was able to practice all week, which should allow Michigan to show some new looks against a very tough Iowa defense.

Either that or, well, Michigan just isn’t far enough along to be able to be a consistent offensive threat all season. Let’s hope its the former.

Another key to the game is scoring early. I said before last week’s game that Michigan had been able to jump ahead early in the first quarter in its first four games to allow some wiggle room. But last week, Michigan was only able to convert an early interception into a field goal, its only points of the first quarter.

In fact, Michigan was held to just six points for the first 55 minutes of the game, before Forcier’s late fourth quarter heroics.

Iowa’s defense only allowed Penn State to score 10 points in Happy Valley. If Michigan can’t score more than 10, it will lose.

The good news for Michigan is that Iowa allowed Northern Iowa and Arkansas State to hang in the game. Yet I think that’s not an indication of how good this Iowa team really is. I think it suffers from somewhat of a late-Loyd Car era disease of playing down to its opponent.

In the big games, against in-state rival Iowa State and at Penn State, Iowa played tough football in out-scoring the two opponents 56-13.

The leader of Iowa’s defense is linebacker Pat Angerer, who ranks sixth in the Big Ten with 47 tackles. Angerer heads a solid linebacker corp that makes running the football very tough.

One weakness Michigan might be able to exploit is in the corners. Although Michigan doesn’t feature big game-changing receivers, Iowa’s cornerbacks have struggled. Junior Amari Spievey has given up some big plays and the other side has had injury problems.

If Forcier can hit some big plays to receivers Junior Hemingway and Greg Mathews, while getting the ball to

Martavious Odoms and Kelvin Grady in space, it could help open up the running game.

Defensively, Michigan has to shore up its interior, but the good news is that Iowa’s offense isn’t exactly a potent threat. The Hawkeyes average just 139.6 yards rushing per game and quarterback Ricky Stanzi is more of a game manager than the quarterbacks Michigan has faced so far this season.

I think I say it every week, but the defensive line has to get some pressure on Stanzi and force him to make some mistakes. Defensive linemen Brandon Graham, Mike Martin and Craig Roh will be very much out-sized by Iowa’s offensive line, but if it can keep Stanzi off-balance, Michigan has a chance.

On the outside, junior Troy Woolfolk will start at corner opposite Donovan Warren. Woolfolk has played strong safety all season, but with the struggles of Boubacar Cissoko and JT Floyd, as well as Woolfolk’s struggles at safety, Rodriguez moved him back to his natural position.

In his place, walk-on safety Jordan Kovacs will get his first start. Kovacs has been a pleasant surprise on Michigan’s defense so far, racking up 17 tackles last week. He’s not going to beat anyone with his speed, but he’s a sure-handed tackler and solid blitzer off the edge.

If Woolfolk is able to stay with his receiver, which he has the speed to do, it will allow Michigan to pull its safeties up in run support, which it hasn’t really been able to do yet this season with the struggles of Cissoko and Floyd.

Overall, I think Iowa has the advantage on defense against Michigan’s offense, but its offense against Michigan’s defense is about even.

With the game being in Iowa City in temperatures in the low 40s to high 30s and possible snow, I think Iowa will win this one close.

Prediction: Iowa 27 – Michigan 23