All Star Game Live Blog

NBA All-Star Weekend has always been my favorite of all the All-Star festivities that the big sports put on.  It has given us memorable moments such as Dwight Howard as Superman, Larry Bird kicking ass in the 3-point Shootout in his warm-ups, Brent Barry representing for all the white guys in the Dunk Contest, and Vince Carter putting on the mother of all Dunk Contest performances.  Also, it has given us a platform for Harold "Baby Jordan" Minor and Isaiah "JR" Ryder to become relevant enough that their failures become funny.

Unfortunately, it has given us some "stinker" moments such as Chris "Birdman" Anderson's performance in the Dunk Contest (worst ever), as well as what was the 2010 Slam Dunk Contest.  Shannon Brown came in with all the hype, and proceeded to do a right-to-left hand dunk and a generic alley-oop that could be put to shame in an inner-city Rec Center.  Highlight of the night: during the award ceremony for the Dunk Contest, Charles Barkley says loud enough for everyone to hear, "I hope none of these guys win it, this sucked."  Like most things, Barkley says what everyone else is thinking.  Also, there was some great unintentional comedy during the "HORSE" contest when Chuck chose Sacramento King F Omri "The Flaming Jew" Casspi as his competitor, then proceeded to call him "Omar" for most of the competition.

Nevertheless, I will attempt a running diary of the events of the 2010 All-Star Game.  For my sake, let's hope this is better than last night.

7:42: Pre-game show talking about the Mavs/Wizards trade.  Butler/Haywood/Stevenson for Howard/Gooden/Ross/Singleton.  Gotta like it for the Mavs.  Crunch time 5 of Kidd, Terry, Butler, Marion, Dirk.  Is there a better small-ball lineup in the NBA?  Cleveland could probably match it with Williams/West/Parker/Lebron/Varejao.  Either way, you can never accuse Mark Cuban of not trying to win.  If I had to pick an owner to play for, he would be it.

7:48: Awkward pre-game interview between David Aldridge and Dwight Howard.  Aldridge asks about Shaq going after Howard for the "Superman" nickname.  Howard says he doesn't want any grief about it with Shaq, he can learn from him.  To me, it seems like Shaq is trying hard to stay relevant.  He is nothing more than a third banana at this point, not good enough to be even a second scorer.

7:55: Talk of going to a USA vs The World format for the All-Star game.  Interesting idea, but like Commissioner Stern says there are 350 Americans and only 88 Internationals.  Just for fun, here are my rosters.


Americans
Paul
Bryant
James
Duncan
Howard
Wade
Anthony
D. Williams
Durant
Joe Johnson
Bosh
Stoudemire

Internationals
Nash
Ginobili
Deng
Nowitzki
Gasol
Gasol
Kaman (represents Germany internationally)
Parker
Fernandez
Turkoglu
Bargnani
Calderon

Needless to say, this would be an ass-raping that hasn't been seen since Schillinger made Beecher his pragg during Season 1 of Oz.

8:08: Craig Sager interviews Steve Nash.  As he gets done with his lengthy intro, he inexplicably repeats the whole thing.  Awkwarrrrrrrrrd.  Live TV is great!

8:15: Looks like Marv Albert is getting the call.  He is still the best in the biz, though Kevin Harlan is slowly creeping up on him.  Ugghhhhhh...and Reggie Miller.  I cannot stand Reggie Miller as a commentator.  Glad to see Doug Collins has gotten rid of his blonde hair.

8:20: And we have our first Charles Barkley Taco Bell commercial! If you missed it, I set the line at for appearances at 10.5.

8:23: An Usher sighting! I will be glad when we finally don't have to hear this song during every broadcast.  I am also rooting for Chris Brown to come out and hit him in the back with a steel chair to spark off the Best Black R&B Singer feud.  CB already has the heel persona down after he channeled his inner Jeff Jarrett.

8:26: All-Star Most Likely To Pass As An Extra On The Wire: -- Gerald Wallace.  He could be Wallace's older brother.

8:32: A SHOCKING DEVELOPMENT! Chris Kaman is no longer on the All-Ugly list after shaving his head.

8:34: Amare Stoudemire is a center like Kory Witt is a good story teller.

8:37: They choose to do the Canadian National Anthem.  Weird, considering Steve Nash is the only Canadian in the building.

8:40: Odd choice for the Anthem.  Country "star" Gretchen Wilson, accompanied by a guitar player that was free-styling like Marty McFly at the end of Johnny Be Good.

8:42: The HD Screen is HUGE! Something hasn't been this out of proportion since John Holmes tried to have sex with Muggsy Bogues.

8:47: Dirk Nowitzki cuts a pre-game promo in the center of the court.  The Rock he is not.

8:53: Kevin Garnett looking about as athletic as Oliver Miller out there.  His knee injury must be really bad. 12-3, West early.  It's almost like it is 9-0.

8:55: Steve Nash is playing the Joe Miller in Open Gym role.  He wouldn't shoot it right now if it meant Canada got to win the Hockey gold medal.

9:04: Just a thought: If Amare gets traded to the Cavs during the game does he switch jerseys and keep playing?

9:07: Gabrielle Union sighting behind the West bench.  Most underrated hot actress in Hollywood.  Is she from Dallas or is she there watching someone?  My bet is on Amare Stoudemire and his modern day rec specs.

9:11: More improbable before the season: All-Star Zach Randolph or Over .500 Memphis Grizzlies? I'm going with the latter.

9:15: Sure sign no one playing in the game cares: the first quarter buzzer sounds and everyone jumps in surprise.  No shot is taken.

9:23: Back to back dunks from Deron Williams and Dwayne Wade where they both hang on the rim afterward.  Guess we are playing prison rules.  Okay then.

9:28: The NBA Cares kids all have their shirts tucked into their gym shorts.  Apparently, Doug Oates dressed them before they came out.

9:33: Barkley commercial #2.  So far the Old Spice "Guy Riding Backwards On The Horse" is taking the award for most annoying repetitive commercial.

9:35: Trailer for new Bruce Willis/Tracy Morgan movie.  Hasn't the Straight-laced white cop/liberal black cop movie been played out?  Have the roles ever been reversed?  I could imagine Lawrence Fishburn as the tight-ass black cop and Dax Sheppard as the goofy white cop.  It would of course be the worst movie

9:36: Lebron after inadvertently knocking down Paul Pierce: C'mon P! Get up, P! Ironically, he also said this after trying to have sex with girl #11 last night.

9:43: 76-69, East at the half.  I just hope they keep it close so we can see some competitive basketball down the stretch.

9:53: Holy Shakira! Where have you been since Hips Don't Lie? Terrible song, but damn she still looks good.  Was there a TNT memo to cameramen to focus on her ass for the entire song?

10:02: Wow, Shakira just got herself google'd 500,000 times in the past 5 minutes.  Now Alicia Keys.  She's got a big act to follow.

10:05: Not gonna win any fans in Texas by singing the "New York" song, Alicia.  There may be an impromptu Klan meeting forming out in the parking lot.

10:28: 84-71, East. Apparently they didn't get the "keep it close" memo.

10:30: Whoa! Big time Dwight Howard alley-oop ala The Rain Man Shawn Kemp

10:38: Most overplayed song during NBA possessions: The Cha-Cha Slide.  "Everybody clap your hands..."

10:47: Whoever gets Chris Bosh is going to get a helluva player. He is wasting away up in Toronto.  IMO, he is the perfect second banana to Lebron.

10:50: It looks like Ethan Hawke is playing the same character he played in Training Day in the upcoming movie "Brooklyn's Finest."  Talk about a guy that fell off the map.  He had TD, Assault on Precinct 13, then nothing.

10:59: 118-117, East.  8:00 minutes to go.  This is about to get good!

11:08: West is feeding Zach Randolph to get baskets.  That is the first time "feeding" and "Zach Randolph" has ever been used in a sentence positively.

11:15: Four minutes to go, Lebron/Wade/Bosh are taking over this game.  03' Draft class will go down as best ever when it is all said and done.

11:23: Lebron jumps a passing lane and sends it home.  Billups answers with a quick 3.  West down 4 with 1:45 left.  The West crunch-time 5 kind've surprises me: Dirk, Chauncey, Amare, Deron Williams, Melo.  No Durant? George Karl is definitely favoring his Nuggets (Chauncey).

11:26: Tied up at 137.  East going to Lebron.  Amare stonewalls him, but its still East ball.  Ron Jeremy calls timeout to draw up the money shot.  "Get her on her knees and tell her here it comes, bitch."

11:28: Lebron chokes again, like usual.

11:29: Deron Williams fouls intentionally with the game tied and 18 seconds left. His defensive awareness just dropped 11 points in NBA 2k10. 139-137, East.

11:32: Dirk draws a foul on Howard and drains both free throws.  139-139, 14 seconds left.  If the West wins, Dirk wins MVP.

11:34: Bosh gets fouled on a Doug Byrne Reach Around.  That may or may not be a porn term.  He sinks both free throws. 5 seconds to go, East up two.

11:37: Carmelo misses badly on the final shot.  Karl once again shows favortism to his Nuggets.  I mean..you're in Dallas.  Dirk is one of the most clutch players in the league.  He can shoot and drive.  Excellent free throw shooter.  And you give it to Melo?  Jerk move.

11:42: Dwayne Wade wins MVP. Gerald Wallace stands menacingly in the background.  He is anxious to get back to muscling for Marlo in The Wire.  He has single-handedly won the Project Championship for the West Side 7 years running.

And that does it for this years NBA All-Star Weekend.  The game was close until the end which always makes it 100x more entertaining.  There was a lot less And 1 Mixtape play in the edition. I would give this game a 7.5/10.

Until next time..

NRTTS
Coach Deuce

Super Bowl Live Blog

Because I've got nothing else to do, here is a Super Bowl live blog where I will bring you my meaningless thoughts throughout the game.

6:15 - Is Drew Brees the only white guy that can pull off the "motivational speaker in the circle before the game"? That routine must have taken some practicing.

6:22 - From Queen Latifah to Carrie Underwood.  A huge step up in both hotness, relevance, and singing ability.  CU knocked it out of the park.  Goosebumps.

6:26 - Rickey Jackson apparently has not stopped eating since he retired from football.  His bid kind of confuses me; I always thought Pat Swilling was the better of their duo.  Also, why is Michael Clarke Duncan standing in for John Randle?  Sure could use some'a yo mizzuz fine cone'bread, Boss.

6:30 - 13 straight coin toss wins for the NFC.  Hasn't been a more improbable streak since I went three days without taking a shit.

6:45 - Matt Stover - still sticking it to the Browns 13 years later.  Remember when signing Viniteiri was such a big move for the Colts? Talk about a bust.

6:47 - The Robin Hood trailer just gave me solid wood.

6:51 - Marques Colston is doing his best "Hot Hands" Haynon impression from Little Giants.

7:01 - Pierre Garcon for 6! Where were you in weeks 12-15, asshole?

7:05 - Doritos and Bud Light really pouring their ad budgets into the Super Bowl.  Not sure any of them have hit it out of the park yet, either.

7:08 - Just noticed former Michigan G Jonathon Goodwin is still getting some play, starting for the Saints.  That was a helluva college line, as good as I can remember.  Backus, Hutchinson, Brandt, Goodwin, Mo Williams.

7:11 - Great catch by Colston.  He must have put the stick-um on and imagined it was a roll of toilet paper coming at him.  "Don't fail me now boys.  I look after ya, clean ya, wash ya when ya get dirty, make sure your nails are trimmed..."

7:17 - Sack by Freeney.  I think they were playing possum with his injury all week.  Like a WWE wrestler who fakes an injury then beats the crap out of his rival when his back is turned.

7:18 - If football doesn't work out, Jermon Bushrod always has a future in porn.

7:26 - First slam dunk with the Bud Light/Lost commercial.

7:28 - Did somebody trade heads with 1999 Anthony Mason? I didn't know it was still cool to write things in your hair. Brock Hansen was right all along!

7:32 - Lance Moore with a big third down catch.  Somehow this reminds me of Nick Moore catch 84 balls against Michigan in the Big House.  I will now light myself on fire.

7:36 - Dexter with the voice-over for a commercial.  DON'T FUCKING TOUCH HIM!!!

7:43 - Mike Hart sighting! They brought him in because they knew he wouldn't fumble on the goal line.

7:46 - Spineless Jason - How bout lavender? Jim Nantz - How bout not. Best yet.

7:49 - Reggie Bush with the catch.  No shots of Kim K yet.  She may be at Ray J's Super Bowl party.

7:51 - Jim Caldwell speaks! I thought he would have to use one of those voice boxes like 1997 Kane.  "If I do not win the title..I will.....set myself on fire."

8:02 - Halftime show starting.  Odds on a member of The Who dying - 765:1

8:05 - Pete Townsend starts to play the harmonica.  45 million black people turn off their televisions.

8:06 - Those same 45 million black people are asking you that same question, Pete.  Whooooooo are you?

8:22 - Onside kick! What a scrum!  I love the people that jump on the pile when it is already 10 deep, as if they will have some sort of effect on the outcome.  Saints recover! Hank Baskitt muffs it.  Not a good night so far for the E! stars' boyfriends.

8:24 - Phil Simms says the Saints weren't out playing patty cake in preparation for the Super Bowl.  Whew. Now I can put my mind at ease.

8:28 - Pierre Thomas throws salt in my fantasy football wound by doing what he should have been doing all year.

8:32 - Jim Nantz says the onside kick was the first in the Super Bowl that did not come in the fourth quarter.  Phil Simms response: Are you sure?? ....Dynamite drop in, Monte.  Those broadcasting classes are really paying off.

8:38 - Classic Peyton Manning drive.  Great run by Addai to cap it off.  He quietly had a great year in Indy.

8:39 - Wow. Chevy Chase has not aged well.

8:49 - Garrett Hartley kicks his third FG.  As the kick rises, Phil Simms says: Swish.  He is on fire tonight.

8:57 - The Colts snap it 1 second too late at the end of the quarter.  Somewhere Andy Kardos is fuming.

9:02 - Biiiiiig 4th down conversion near midfield for the Colts.  The Madden player in me was screaming for them to go for it.

9:15 - Jeremy Shockey is back in relevance.  Still will never forget the classic shot of him during Pats/Giants game when he was plastered in the luxury box.

9:22 - 5:34 left, down 7.  Who is betting against Manning? Not me.

9:25 - The Colts are living off the "Jailbreak Screen".  I'm now going to have nightmares of Brad Banks and the 2002 Iowa game.

9:29 - Insert foot in mouth.  Tracy Porter...Jason Avant used to TORCH that guy at Indiana.  There's still a little meat left on this bone.

9:31 - And Porter has the Anthony Mason hair!! Perfect.

9:32 - If the Saints lose this game now, Peyton Manning will be more hated in New Orleans than Hurricane Katrina.  On the subject of Katrina, has any name ever taken as big of a hit as Katrina?  Has anyone named their kid this since the hurricane?

9:43 - A third down run?  Did Gary Quisno call that play?

9:44 - "Go Saints Go"...real original sign there lady.

9:49 - Who gets MVP? Gotta be Drew Brees, right? I'm hoping for Tracy Porter just so we can say that a guy who had writing in his hair won the Super Bowl MVP.

9:52 - Dan Marino sounds like he is cutting a wrestling promo.  It must be really loud in that stadium.

9:53 - Who else was hoping to see some impromptu boob on Bourbon Street?

9:57 - There has never been a more uncomfortable old white man than Len Dawson walking the Lombardi Trophy through a mob of black Saints players.  Surprised he didn't have one hand on his wallet.

9:58 - I find it amazing that the owner is the first one that gets to hoist the trophy.  He did absolutely nothing besides having some money.  Lets outlaw this for future awards ceremonies.  Sean Payton or Drew Brees should get first crack.

10:05 - I'm glad Survivor is now ripping of Real World/Road Rules Challenges.  "Heroes vs Villains" is just a ripoff of "Good Guys vs Bad Guys".

Wellllllllllll, that is all I've got for tonight.  All in all, it was an entertaining Super Bowl that featured two elite quarterbacks in their prime.  In the end, the momentum from the onside kick carried the Saints to their first ever Super Bowl title.

NRTTS
Coach Deuce

Signing Day Extravaganza!

FINALLY! COACH DEUCE, HAS COME BACK TO NRTTS!



The hiatus has been long and fruitful, and I wasn't totally sure if/when I would make my return to the blogging universe.  With the unbelievable disappointment that has been Michigan basketball, there hasn't really been much to write about except recruiting rumors and NFL football.  While the NFL Playoffs are certainly a big deal, they just didn't motivate me enough to take time out of my day to write to my seven readers.

So what is it that finally makes me shake the dust off these fingers?  National Signing Day - aka Christmas in February.  When every college football fan gets to unwrap 20-25 different presents that they may come to cherish like a PS3 or disdain like the wool sweater your grandmother knits.  I searched for pictures of something that would epitomize what Signing Day meant, and I came across the one that adorns the top of this page.

Most of you probably remember the story of Kevin Hart, a mediocre offensive lineman that misled his entire school about his recruitment.  The high school rallied around this Steve Martikan/Miles Fabian-wannabe and packed the gym full for Kevin's announcement.  After some suspense, he chose the Cal hat over the Oregon hat.  The only problem is that neither school had ever heard of him.  Eventually his sham was found out, and he tucked his tail between his legs.  (Sidenote: Couldn't Andy Kardos have done this if he was a decent soccer player in high school?  Who is good at soccer in college?  UCLA? He could have publicly thanked Mrs. Hany for leading him in the right path before donning all kinds of gear for his new school - sleeves, hats, wristbands, headbands)  And this is what Signing Day has become - a spectacle.  A chance for high school seniors to play with the emotions of the most die-hard sports fans in the country.  No other sport has a following quite like NCAA Football.  It is a year round process, and the recruits get built up to icon-like status before they ever step foot on campus.

So that leads me to the meat of this post.  How did Michigan do?  Well, quite frankly, I feel they hit this recruiting class out of the park like a 1998 Mark McGwire facing a Jim Fouke batting practice fastball.

I will put every recruit into a classification of how I feel about them, but the few things stand out in my mind is the speed of the class and the amount of pure football players that were recruited.  I'm talking guys with instincts and savvy that Obi Ezeh can only dream about.  So without further ado, the 2009-2010 Michigan football recruiting class.

Headliners


QB - Devin Gardner
CB/S - Demar Dorsey


These will be the two guys that all the fans will talk about as the standout recruits of the class.  The QB position is always one that is spotlighted in recruiting, and Devin Gardner is a great fit for Rich Rod's offense.  He has great athletic tools to go along with solid passing skills.  However, in a perfect world he would not be forced into action right away.  The thing that stands out for me is Gardner's leadership skills.  He was a big-time factor in getting a lot of prospects to AA, and will be the leader of this team whenever he gets the chance to start behind center.

Dorsey, on the other hand, I expect to play RIGHT away.  He is the type of athlete in the defensive backfield that Michigan has not seen since ... Charles Woodson.  While guys like Marlin Jackson, Leon Hall, and Donovan Warren enjoyed outstanding careers at Michigan, none of them made plays like Woodson did.  Dorsey has that type of ability.  A reported 4.35 40 time, to go along with a 6'1 frame is a certified hard-on for Michigan fans that are tired of seeing the likes of Mike Williams and Jordan Kovacs roaming the secondary.  If he keeps his head on straight, he is a true difference maker.

The Football Players


When I say a kid is a "football player", I mean that he does his best work on the field, not on the combine circuit that feeds to the hype of players.  The leader of this group is PA CB Cullen "Buck Nasty" Christian.  The nickname says it all for CC; he is a competitor in every sense of the word.  He is ranked as the #3 CB by Scout.com, and should see some playing time as a freshman.

Along with CC, I consider OH DT Jibreel Black, FLA DT Richard Ash, LA S Carvin Johnson, LA WR Drew Dileo, OH WR Jerald Robinson as the more pure football players.

Black and Ash will likely see time on the DL.  Black seems to be a perfect fit at the RVB spot - a big DE that can rush the passer.  Ash is from Pahokee, the same HS as Tay Odoms, Vinny Smith, and Brandin Hawthorne, and if there is one thing we know about them it is that they will not back down from anyone.

Johnson and Dileo can be classified as sleepers, but both show great instincts on film that tells me they are smart football players.

Robinson is a play-making WR that was the best at the 2009 Michigan Football Summer Camp.  Definitely a step up from Laterryal  Savoy.

Back-bone Guys


These are guys that become the back-bone of your team.  They may not necessarily be stars, but they contribute and have great attitudes to go along with that.

No one epitomizes this better than FLA/MI WR Ricardo Miller.  Michigan fans were excited about Ricardo before last year, and that was confirmed when he committed early, and then moved from FLA to AA to help with recruiting.  The kid bleeds Maize and Blue, and is someone I'm proud to have wearing the winged helmet.  He also is a very talented WR, who has great size and body control when going up for the ball.

OH OG/C Christian Pace is another back-bone guy in the mold of David Molk.  He is considered to be undersized, but in Rich Rod's scheme that is not a bad thing.  He will certainly need to get bigger, but he will have time to develop under Coach Barwis' strength program and be a solid contributor before all is said and done.

MI WR/TE Jeremy Jackson is the son of RB Coach Freddy Jackson.  Jeremy has taken a bit of flack for just being a "coaches son", but anyone that has seen him speaks of a player that is still growing.  Already at 6'3-210, he could very well grow into a TE at the next level.

The OH trio of Terrance and Terry Talbott (way to go, parents - you guys suck), and CB Courtney Avery make three guys that really will help each other succeed.  Of the three, Avery is my pick to contribute most as he did everything for his high school.  This was his first year at CB, and he excelled there.

The last backbone guy is MI RB Austin White.  White is a bit of a mystery to me.  Early on, he was a consensus Top-3 guy in the state of Michigan.  His momentum cooled a bit in his senior year, so I'm not sure what to think.  He enrolled early, and that always helps to get a step up on the competition.  By all accounts, he is a great receiver out of the backfield, which is always a weapon that can be utilized.

The Athletes


To me, these are the most exciting players in this class.  They are loaded with potential, and if they develop correctly, could end up being some of the stars of this class.

FLA S/LB Marvin Robinson already has a college-ready type body at 6'1-205.  The question is whether or not he will keep growing into a LB, or if he will stay at this size and remain at safety.  There is a need for both, and if there is one thing that people describe Robinson as it is ALL BUSINESS.  That is what I like to hear for my defensive players.  He will definitely play somewhere this fall.

MD S/LB Josh Furman is probably the best athlete in the class.  He runs a reported 4.3 in the 40, and has some amazing RB film out there.  He was recruited on the defensive side of the ball, where he will have to learn to harness his speed into making plays on the other side of the ball.  At 200-205 and 6'1, he definitely has the room to get bigger and stronger.  The only question is at what position will he line up?

PA DE Kenny Wilkens and OH DE Davion Rogers are both guys that are looked at as great athletes at the DE position.  Rogers is in the mold of a James Hall-type at 6-3.  He will have to put on some weight and strength, but the old "hot-word" motor is always thrown around with him.  Rogers is a Shawn Crable-like athlete that checks in at 6-6-205.  He will definitely have to redshirt to put some weight on, but he has athletic gifts that cannot be taught.

P Will Hagerup is 6'4-215, and he played TE and DE for his high school team.  If he gives us 4/5th of what Zoltan did, I will be happy.  Also, with his athleticism he may have run for the first down against Michigan State instead of getting tackled.

OH WR DJ Williamson hails from the same high school as Mario Manningham (as does Davion Rogers), and Williamson is a speed burner.  Off the top of my head, I believe he was 1st or 2nd in the Ohio D1 100m dash last year.  If he can harness that speed on to the football field he could be a real threat.

To me, the most intriguing prospect out of this group will be SC QB/WR Conelius (yes, Conelius - again, way to go parents) Jones.  With Gardner coming in, Jones is often the forgotten man.  He attended the 2009 Summer Camp, and impressed coaches with his athletic ability.  He played some WR at the camp, and was very impressive.  That being said, don't count him out at QB.  You never know when the 5* guys will pan out and when the 3* guys turn into studs.

The Sleepers - aka 3 White Guys (and a black guy)


These are guys that are not very heralded.  However, this staff is known for digging out some diamonds in the rough to find football players. (Pat White, Steve Slaton, Vince Smith, Patrick Omameh)

Leading this class is OH LB Jake Ryan.  He hails from powerhouse Cleveland St. Ignatius, and was not even rated coming into his senior year because of being hurt the previous year.  This year, many feel he outplayed the higher ranked and OH State commit Sean McVeigh on his own team.  LB is definitely a place of need for the Wolverines, so a guy like Ryan can really fit in here.

OH DB Ray Vinopol is very much like Ryan.  He hails from powerhouse Youngstown Cardinal Mooney, and was one of the key components on their state title team.  He is a very explosive athlete (despite being white), and he has all the requisite white boy features (smart, smallish, ugly).  He will at least be a special teams contributor, and could definitely crack the safety rotation.

TX RB Stephen Hopkins is not very heralded, but he can be a contributor for one reason - size.  At 215 lbs, he can be the short yardage/goal line back that Michigan does not have on the roster.  He is an early enrollee, so he will get a chance to show his stuff in spring practice.

PA ATH Jordan Paskorz is hard to project at the college level.  He could be anywhere from a DE to a DT to an ILB.  He is a definite red-shirt candidate, so he will get a chance to develop strength before finding a permanent position.

FINAL OUTLOOK


This is a definite positive step in the right direction for the Michigan program.  Coupled with last years class, the Wolverines will begin to have scholarship depth (so long, Will Heineger) along all positions.  With another great class next year, Michigan will be on the road to some huge things.  Of course, this all depends on the team going at least 8-4.  If not, it will be so long to Rich Rod and then things will start back over.

Oh, and PS - Haha to the Buckeyes who lost out on Seantrel Henderson AND Jordan Hicks.  The rich did not get as rich as usual this year.  By no means a bad class or even an average class, but they struck out on some big names.  More money for Pryor, I guess.

Good to be back, and as always ---

NRTTS!
Coach Deuce