The Week In Review

It was actually a very eventful week in the sporting world, most notable is the start of college football practice. We here at NRTTS make no bones about our where our affiliations lie. This is not to say we will not give fair coverage to the opposition. So here is your coverage...

• OSU LB Tyler Moeller is likely to miss the entire year after sustaining an injury. Moeller was a likely starter at LB, where OSU will have to replace Marcus Freeman and Road Warrior James. While Moeller's loss will hurt, but OSU has recruited very well at LB, and should be able to replace Moeller. This may force super LB recruit Dorian Bell onto the field a little earlier than they would have liked, however.
• MSU RB and Thug Glenn Winston was re-instated to the football team and university after a 3 month stint in jail. Winston was jailed for assaulting fellow students and hockey players at a campus residence last year. Winston, allegedly, sucker punched a hockey player in the side of the head and proceeded to beat him like Michigan beat on Bobby Williams and John L. Smith. Was there much fuss about this? Nah, not so much. More on this later.

So there you have your unbiased coverage of the enemy. Nothing of note out of Fat Charlie's Camp, other than their usual Return To Glory...Again.

Now onto the Leaders and Best (minus 2008)

• The quarterback derby is going about as expected. Each QB (Forcier, Robinson, Sheridan), is taking their snaps with each unit. There is no starter named yet, but there is an implicit wink wink, nudge nudge that the job will go to Forcier. Early reports are much the same as the spring. He shows good accuracy both in the pocket and on the run. Along with this, he has great moxie that leads him to use his scrambling and play making abilities at opportune times. The time he spent over the summer working with the receivers has really paid off, as his timing is ahead of Denard's. His time with Strength Guru Mike Barwis has also really paid off as now he looks like a Senior in high school going to prom, rather than a freshman in high school that gets asked to the prom by some desperate senior girl.
• Former Wolverine PG Kelvin Grady has impressed early with his performance at slot receiver. While he took two years off of football, he was still in a college strength and conditioning program, so he is ahead of most in that regard. He can be a dark horse to contribute not only this year, but in the years ahead.
• The offensive line is still in competition, as that will likely not be settled until the pads are strapped on for a couple of days and the hitting really starts. Schilling is penned in at LG, Ortmann penned in at LT, and Molk is probably penciled in at C. Moosman is the returning RG, but he will be battled by RS-F Ricky Barnum. Patrick Omameh (YoMama, to me), and Mark Huyge will battle it out at RT, and I wouldn't be surprised if Barnum gets a look there. Bottom line, this has to be a strength of the team and all signs point to it being exactly that.
• The defensive line is an area of concern past the first unit. With Brandon Graham, Mike Martin, and Ryan Van Bergen returning, that gives Michigan a solid nucleus to build on. Unfortunately, there is just not much depth there. DT Will Campbell will probably be forced into a greater role than needed as a freshman. The same goes for DE Craig Roh, who could definitely use a year to get his weight up to D-1 playing level.
• Freshman Teric Jones has made the move to CB from RB, where he has received some positive reviews in his initial practices. Given the depth at CB and the logjam at RB, the move is definitely a smart one. No sense in wasting a redshirt year in a position that he will never play.
• The other freshman more likely to make an impact is JT Turner, who had a brief scare with admissions. Turner was held out of the first few days of practice after there was some issues with his transcript. Alas, it all cleared up and he saw the field, albeit a few days late. At 6'2, Turner has ideal height to go along with great hips and attitude to be a shut down corner. He will definitely see the field this year, and could be the next great corner since Morgan Trent has left...
• Four words: Dont't mess with Zoltan.

So, as practice continues to get hotter and more physical, I will have more reports for you. Kickoff is getting closer day-by-day, hour-by-hour, second-by-second, and all it takes is an hour of Big Ten Network Michigan programming to get the blood boiling and adrenaline flowing for the season to start.

The other issue that arose this past week regarding the Michigan football team was the dismissal of Sophmore WR Justin Feagin. Feagin was dismissed after he brokered a cocaine deal sometime in the past year. Once the staff learned of this, he was immediately dismissed from not only the team, but the school. Kick him to the curb' and move on, right? Wrong! The greater Ann Arbor-area media has taken this opportunity to once again bash on the new regime and Rich Rodriguez' alleged lack of family values. Never mind the fact that Lloyd Carr had just as many transgressors as Rich Rod has had in his first full year on the sidelines. Names like Carson Butler, Johnny Sears, Kelly Baraka, Eugene Germany, and Mario Manningham all were black eyes on the program off the field, and with the exception of Manningham, on the field. This list is just off the top of my head, as I'm sure there are many more that I am forgetting. Needless to say, every college football program is going to get its fair share of knuckleheads. The difference is in the media market. Nowhere else in college football will you find a home market that is so hell bent on destroying a program like you will find in Ann Arbor and Rich Rodriguez. Hell, in Columbus they can do ANYTHING and the media will spin it so that Jimmy Two Timer comes out like Saint Tressel. All that it took was for Michigan to go outside of the "Michigan Men" to hire their latest coach, and then for a Fat Traitorous Lineman Without A Name to transfer to OSU, and suddenly Rich Rodriguez is the head of Hezbollah. There is one simple solution that will change the sentiment around Ann Arbor and Detroit. Win. Just win. Win and all of these negative stories will be erased. Win and the Rich Rod-era will crawl out of the shadows of the ancient and elitist "Michigan Men". There are still Michigan Men in this world, but they are not the ones that are submarining this program from the inside out. They are the ones that support every Saturday, every time a rival fan calls us out, every time someone questions whether or not we are an elite program. Michigan Men, we will have our day. It is drawing nearer.

Other sports news from the week

• Mike Vick has signed with the Philadelphia Eagles. The jury will be out on this one until we can see Vick on an actual football field and not in a new remake of The Longest Yard. As a Giant fan, the threat of Vick in the same division is a little bit scary. At the same time, the thought of PETA protestors going trying to get Philly fans behind them is pretty amusing. These are the same fans that booed Santa Claus, cheered when Michael Irvin broke his neck, and have a jail in the basement of their old stadium. They could really go either way. If the Vick experiment works out, their could be some battered animal lovers outside of the stadium. Actually, I hope it works out just so we can see that first PETA Protester vs. Eagle Fan fight video on YouTube.
• The Cavs signed Leon Powe. I yawned. Powe will likely be out until at least February, and he is not all that great when he is healthy. For $3 million a year, its a good fill of a roster spot, but I would not expect this to be something that puts Cleveland over the top.
• Early reviews for Madden 10' are in, and the reviews sound fantastic. I have heard that it eclipses the legendary NFL 2K5 in both game play and presentation. This could lead to a trade in of NCAA 10' for the superior Madden franchise. Potential online dynasty members can chime in their opinions.