Why No Shoelace?

I just returned from The University of Michigan Football Spring Game at The Big House. I was terribly disappointed to say the least. They say practice makes perfect, so the fact that Denard Robinson only had one possession and was 100% from the field passing must indicate that, not only is he perfect, but he doesn’t need to practice. Well, that’s the story I’m going to go with because I’m a delusional Michigan fan that doesn’t want to admit that the Spring Game is a total fraud. It was a bit ironic when the athletic department announced that they are selling maize-colored shoelaces, available at M-Den, to raise money for charity except the football team’s very own shoelace spent the day on the sideline. The one saving grace for the Spring Game was that I found out Greg Mattison is putting an emphasis on man-to-man press coverage. Most of the time last year, it seemed Michigan played zone defense with zone blitzes. In the Spring Game however, we saw a bunch of cover-one man blitzes and press coverage. Diversifying the defensive play calling, with more experienced players, will likely result in a vastly improved defense from one that was already pretty dang good.

Who were my top three stand outs?

I think Brandin Hawthorne would disagree with me, in the belief that the Spring Game is a total joke. He came to play and in a big way. Hawthorne almost single-handedly ended a Michigan drive with back-to-back-to-back plays that he completely blew up in the offense’s face.

Jake Lo… ahem… Taylor Lewan looked as strong as ever. I think we all expected as much but it’s certainly a good sign to see him meet those expectations.

Blake Countess seemed to improve from his stellar freshman season this spring. He was fast, decisive, and did a great job baiting quarterback, Devin Gardner, into throwing an ill-advised pass, bursting with speed in front of the intended receiver for an interception. Countess also stepped up in press coverage, something he clearly worked on over the off-season.

Honorable Mention: Thomas Rawls, Fitz Toussaint, and Devin Gardner’s legs.

Who didn’t do as well as I would have liked?

Big Will Campbell (BWC) was inconsistent. He had some good plays and some not so good plays. One of the good plays was when Campbell completely pancaked offensive guard, Patrick Omameh, forcing the run play outside where a host of Michigan defenders were able to corral the ball carrier. However, on another play, BWC got stood up by center, Ricky Barnum, freeing up running back Thomas Rawls to stretch out for the goal line. All of the defensive linemen, save Campbell, were able to penetrate into the backfield but Ricky Barnum proved to be too much for him and the result was a rushing touchdown.

Justice Hayes was rumored to be having a fantastic spring camp but that didn’t seem to translate to a successful Spring Game. Hayes had quite a few carries but never was able to find any running room unlike Fitz Toussaint and Rawls.