Michigan Wolverines

2012 record: 8-5

2012 conference record: 6-2

Returning starters: Offense: 6; defense: 6; kicker/punter: 3

Top returners:

QB Devin Gardner, WR Jeremy Gallon, TE Devin Funchess, LT Taylor Lewan, RT Michael Schofield, DT Quinton Washington, LB Desmond Morgan, LB Jake Ryan, CB Raymon Taylor, S Thomas Gordon

Key losses

QB Denard Robinson, WR Roy Roundtree, OG Patrick Omameh, C Elliott Mealer, DE Craig Roh, DT William Campbell, LB Kenny Demens, CB J.T. Floyd, S Jordan Kovacs

2012 statistical leaders

Rushing: Denard Robinson (1,266 yards)

Passing: Denard Robinson (1,319 yards)

Receiving: Jeremy Gallon* (829 yards)

Tackles: Jake Ryan* (88)

Sacks: Jake Ryan* (4.0)

Interceptions: Thomas Gordon* and Raymon Taylor* (2)

Spring answers

1. Defensive line fine: Michigan had to replace a four-year starter in Craig Roh as well as defensive tackle Will Campbell up front. It doesn’t seem like it will be an issue. Michigan has a potential star in Frank Clark at rush end as well as depth at the position with Mario Ojemudia and Taco Charlton. Keith Heitzman, for now, seems to have locked up a spot at strong side end, but there is a lot of talent there, too. The Wolverines have depth at all four spots and while competitions will continue into the fall, Michigan should be able to rotate at defensive coordinator Greg Mattison’s leisure.

2. Devin Gardner’s progression: After the way he played toward the end of last season, there was not much doubt about Gardner as the starter, but Michigan’s coaches appear happy with his growth throughout the offseason. He has developed as a quarterback the way the coaching staff has liked, and this is even more critical because he is the only healthy scholarship quarterback until Shane Morris arrives next month. Gardner's teammates believe in him and he is setting up for a big year.

3. Tight end weapons: Michigan still doesn’t have great depth at tight end, but what the Wolverines do have is a young group of guys who will become big targets for Gardner as the position evolves into a more featured role. Devin Funchess could have a breakout sophomore season and Jake Butt has a similar skill set. A.J. Williams slimmed down as well, perhaps turning him into more than just an extra blocker.

Fall questions

1. Who runs the ball: Michigan was never going to be able to answer this question in the spring with Fitzgerald Toussaint coming off a broken leg and freshmen Derrick Green and Deveon Smith still not on campus. But none of the running backs who participated in spring made a lasting impression on the coaches, meaning if he is healthy, Toussaint will likely receive the first chance at winning the job in the fall.

2. Can Jake Ryan be replaced: Michigan seems confident with its grouping of Brennen Beyer and Cam Gordon at strongside linebacker, but part of what made Ryan Michigan’s best defender was his ability to instinctively be around the ball. Whether or not Beyer or Gordon can do that in games remains to be seen. If the combination of those two can approximate that, Michigan’s defense should be fine.

3. Can the interior of the line hold up: Michigan is replacing both of its guards and its center. While the combination of redshirt sophomore Jack Miller at center and redshirt freshmen Ben Braden and Kyle Kalis at guard has a ton of talent, none have taken a meaningful snap in a game before. How they mesh with returning tackles Taylor Lewan and Michael Schofield, along with how they connect with each other on combination blocks on the inside, could determine not only Michigan’s running success this fall, but also how many games the Wolverines win in Brady Hoke’s third season.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The past two seasons have seen much of the same mantra when it came to the Michigan secondary. There would be Jordan Kovacs, the walk-on turned pro prospect who was the obvious leader of the secondary and almost the entire Wolverines defense.

Then there would be everyone else.

Not that they weren’t good players or didn’t make plays, but Kovacs had been such an unlikely story and such an obvious leader, everyone else was somewhat overshadowed.

Thomas Gordon understood that to an extent. While Kovacs took many of the headlines, Gordon made nearly as many plays as an attacking safety with a penchant for forcing turnovers the past two seasons. Now, his role is shifting.

With Kovacs’ graduation and an ACL injury to linebacker Jake Ryan, Gordon is going to be the leader of Michigan’s defense, almost by default.

“I feel like guys tend to come to me for advice and stuff,” Gordon said. “I’m real natural at it.”

Natural or not, he wasn’t needed in that role in prior years. There was Kovacs, linebacker Kenny Demens and defensive end Craig Roh to handle those responsibilities. Gordon could be a voice, but he didn’t have to be the voice.

He could cede control of those things and just play. That is no longer an option, either in the secondary or on the defense as a whole. Michigan is replacing Kovacs and cornerback J.T. Floyd in the secondary, leaving Gordon as the most experienced defensive back on the roster by far.

“A lot of the time last year, they went back and forth, but Kovacs was definitely more of a vocal leader and made a lot of calls for us,” linebacker Desmond Morgan said. “Tom has really stepped up and he knows what’s going on for sure.

“He’s making calls first, before other guys are.”

(Read full post)

Michigan fans are still lamenting the loss of star linebacker Jake Ryan to a torn ACL, but they'll like what they hear from another key defender recovering from the same injury.

"I'm doing everything they allow me to do, and I feel really good doing it," Wolverines cornerback Blake Countess told ESPN.com on Thursday. "That's always a plus, to get back in the swing of things. Everything is feeling good."

Countess' recovery is on track after he tore the ACL in his left knee in the first quarter of Michigan's season-opening loss to Alabama last September. Although he's not taking contact in spring practice, he's participating in individual drills and has no limitations on his running and cutting.

Barring a setback, Countess should be completely cleared for the start of preseason camp.

"In spring ball, there's really no need for me to go out there and push it," he said. "As far as contact, I can't wait to get back into it, but I'm not going to rush anything."

The 5-foot-10, 181-pound Countess played in 12 games as a true freshman in 2011, starting the final six and recording 44 tackles with six pass breakups and a forced fumble. Pegged as one of the nation's top young cornerbacks entering 2012, Countess instead underwent surgery in early October and redshirted the season.

Countess felt optimistic about his progress since the start of his post-surgery rehab, but a return to the practice field this spring has provided another boost.

(Read full post)

The Wolverines look for replacements for two highly productive departed seniors in Denard Robinson and Jordan Kovacs.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Jordan Kovacs didn’t need much more motivation for Michigan’s pro day on Thursday, but just in case, his workout partner Denard Robinson gave him some anyway.

Kovacs and Robinson set up a three-event competition for the pro day. Loser buys dinner at The Chop House, an expensive downtown Ann Arbor steakhouse.

This could come as a potential surprise, but Robinson will be the one paying.

“Oh man, stop. Stop bringing it up,” Robinson said, laughing. “He did great today and take my hat off to him. I knew he’d do great today.”

While the former Michigan quarterback turned wide receiver did not do much other than positional drills at wide receiver, running back and punt returner during the Michigan pro day, Kovacs stood out.

The former Michigan safety beat Robinson’s times in the 20-yard shuttle -- which he ran in 4.19 seconds -- and the three-cone drill, which he completed in 6.62 seconds. Robinson’s NFL combine times in those drills were 4.22 in the 20-yard shuttle and 7.09 seconds in the three-cone drill.

Robinson handled Kovacs in the 40-yard dash, running 4.43 seconds at the combine to Kovacs' 4.6 seconds at pro day.

Kovacs entered Thursday knowing he needed to prove his speed and athleticism. Beating Robinson in the competition, along with a good bench-press score for a safety (16 repetitions), helped to prove that.

The Curtice, Ohio, native maintained, though, that while doing well in drills was good for him, it is about what he can do on the field that matters more.

“It’s different. We’re training for the underwear Olympics today; it isn’t football,” Kovacs said. “Coach [Aaron] Wellman did a great job of not overdoing it. A lot of guys will go places and think you’ve got to kill yourselves.

“Coach Wellman, we worked on power. I’m not in great football shape right now. Conditioning-wise, I’m not where I need to be but we weren’t worried about that. I was worried about running 40 yards and I think I did that today.”

Robinson and Kovacs were the two Michigan players who chose to stay in Ann Arbor and the Michigan facilities to train for turning professional, yet another link the two have. Michigan’s two captains last season, they ended up training together while finishing their undergraduate classes in order to graduate in May.

Robinson would be the first in his family to graduate from a four-year college, and that is very important to him. He said he never considered leaving Ann Arbor without his degree in hand.

“I’m taking five classes and working out and putting in the time,” Robinson said. “I want to prove something. I want to get my degree.

“... I want to be a role model to my nieces and nephews to be a role model for them and school was important to me.”

Together they were diligent on both their workouts, where Robinson is converting to a receiver, and their diet. They were planning to celebrate being done by being able to eat their favorite guilty pleasures -- Oreo cookies for Kovacs and honey buns for Robinson.

They were planning on doing that -- and then eventually grabbing steak dinner as well. On Robinson.

Said Kovacs: “I’m going to enjoy that.”

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Roy Roundtree plans to treat tomorrow like he did so many fall weekends in Michigan. He’ll plan on going to bed early tonight.

Wake up early Thursday. Eat some breakfast and then head for one of the most critical days of his life.

Michigan’s pro day is Thursday and for most of the Wolverines participating, it is their first real chance to prove themselves in a Combine setting in front of scouts. Most of them plan on treating it just like they did when they played football games in Ann Arbor.

“I’m pretty focused on all of the drills because that’s what I’ve been working on since the Outback Bowl,” Roundtree said. “Also been working on my 40. Everybody wants to see if you run fast or run slow.

“The biggest thing is the 40.”

Most of Michigan’s prospects would agree. Only one, Denard Robinson, had the chance to run the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Others, such as Roundtree, defensive lineman Will Campbell and safety Jordan Kovacs, were able to show off for scouts in various all-star bowl games.

But for the majority of Michigan’s players, this is their first -- and potentially last -- chance to make any sort of impression on the men who will determine their professional futures.

(Read full post)

‘Exit Interview’ is a concept started at WolverineNation last year where we chat with players leaving Michigan about their experiences with the Wolverines and in some cases, what’s next.

Safety Charlie Zeller played on the Michigan scout team during his entire walk-on career. According to the team website, he never recorded a statistic.

Zeller chatted about his Michigan career last month.

(Read full post)

TAMPA, Fla. -- Smiling for a second after processing the level of success for this season’s Michigan team, Brady Hoke stood on the podium after the Wolverines’ season ended with a loss in the Outback Bowl and gave the answer he always has given.

“You know what the answer is,” Hoke said. “It wasn’t successful. You compete to win championships.”

Yes, Michigan does, so using Hoke’s logic, no, this season was not a successful one. The only ones that will be to him, at least publicly, are ones which end in winning the Big Ten championship.

But staying away from Hoke’s champion-or-bust mentality, Michigan was successful in a lot of ways. While 8-5 after being touted as a preseason top-10 team doesn’t look like much, the Wolverines’ losses came to three teams in the top 10 -- including both teams in the national championship game -- another undefeated team in Ohio State and Nebraska when quarterback Denard Robinson was injured.

All of Michigan’s losses were on the road or at neutral sites.

“You never know what you’re going to get going into a season,” former Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs said. “You want to be Big Ten champions as a Michigan football player but it has had its ups-and-downs, it really has.

“You didn’t win the Big Ten championship but at the end of the day, as a captain, as a senior, as a leader on this team, I am forever proud to say I was a member of Team 133. Just the group of guys that we had. While we didn’t do what we set out to achieve this year and we didn’t finish how we wanted to finish, I have no doubt that this season will help those guys.”

Players such as Kovacs, Denard Robinson. Will Campbell and J.T. Floyd are gone. Those players helped lay groundwork for a potential future where Michigan will reach Hoke’s lofty, consistent standard.

They were the last playing vestiges to Michigan’s last non-bowl season, under Rich Rodriguez, and were the ones who helped the program slowly climb back from a 2008 season few were part of.

They set everything up for a successful future.

Michigan returns its quarterback, Devin Gardner, and its top receiver, Jeremy Gallon. The Wolverines return their best defender, linebacker Jake Ryan, and some other strong pieces throughout the defense.

There will still be major holes to fill -- notably at receiver alongside Gallon, at running back where the competition will likely be wide open, on the offensive line where either three or four new starters will play, and in the secondary, where Michigan needs to replace Floyd and Kovacs.

But there is talent and experience, combined with a favorable schedule which sees no Alabama and big opponents Notre Dame, Nebraska and Ohio State all at home, for the Wolverines to continue the ascent started by this departing group.

And while this season might not have been a success in the eyes of the coaching staff and some of the players, their collective help might be what benefits Michigan over the next few seasons.

“This team, we have seniors in Team 134 that are willing to push guys regardless of how they feel or be afraid if, oh, is this guy not going to like me? Screw that,” said offensive tackle Taylor Lewan, who still is mulling leaving early for the NFL. “If guys are willing to step up and push guys, this team will win a Big Ten championship next year.

“If the seniors are willing to step up.”

Final grades are in -- at least for each Big Ten team's regular season. We're handing out report cards on each team's offense, defense, special teams and overall performance in 2012.

Today's subject: the Michigan Wolverines.

Offense: B-minus

Michigan's offense went through several ups and downs this season. The Wolverines averaged a very respectable 30 points per game but ranked just 80th nationally in total offense. The attack fizzled in big games against Alabama, Notre Dame, Michigan State and Nebraska, but averaged 40 points against the likes of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Northwestern and Purdue. Denard Robinson ran for 1,166 yards, but was limited in the back half of the season by injuries. Devin Gardner put a charge into the passing game starting in November, rejuvenating the seasons of receivers like Roy Roundtree and Jeremy Gallon. The running backs, though, were a major disappointment, as Fitz Toussaint followed up his 1,000-yard season in 2011 with just 515 yards this season. Much of the blame for that belonged to an offensive line that largely underperformed outside of All-American Taylor Lewan. Michigan's offense could look unstoppable one week and wholly underwhelming the next -- or even from one half to the next, as the season finale showed.

Defense: A-minus

Though not as dominant on the defensive line as they were a year ago, the Wolverines still found ways to develop into a terrific unit. They finished second in the Big Ten in both points allowed and total defense, and were No. 11 and No. 16 nationally in those categories, respectively. Will Campbell finally lived up to his recruiting hype as a senior by becoming a very good run-stuffer. Jake Ryan was a monster at linebacker, constantly disrupting other teams' plans. The secondary overcame the early loss of Blake Countess to do a very good job against the pass and had a great leader in senior safety Jordan Kovacs. Michigan's defense was short on superstars but long on production. The only mark against it was that the defense benefited from playing some questionable Big Ten offenses like Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Michigan State. Better attacks like Alabama, Air Force, Northwestern and Ohio State were able to exploit the Wolverines with speed on the perimeter.

Special teams: B-plus

Will Hagerup was named the Big Ten's punter of the year, and placekicker Brendan Gibbons had a strong year, booting the game-winner against Michigan State and the field goal against Northwestern to send the game into overtime. The Wolverines were average in the return game, where Dennis Norfleet looks like a possible future star. Michigan did rank last in the Big Ten in kickoff coverage, however.

Overall: B-minus

If we were using Brady Hoke's grading scale, we'd have to give Michigan an 'F' since he has said any season that doesn't end with a Big Ten title is a failure. The Wolverines once again fell short of hanging a league or even a division championship banner during their 8-4 campaign. It's tough to be too critical of a team whose losses were to the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 teams in the Associated Press poll (Notre Dame, Alabama and Ohio State) and Legends Division champ Nebraska. But as Hoke would say, this is Michigan, fergawdsake. The Wolverines are expected to not just play great teams, but win their fair share. Robinson's interception-festival cost them a shot at beating Notre Dame on the road, the lack of a strong backup plan when he got hurt killed any chance of winning at Nebraska, and some curious second-half playcalling contributed to the Ohio State loss. Michigan beat the teams it should have beaten and finally broke the losing streak against Michigan State, which was good. But you don't achieve greatness simply by being on the same field with great teams. You have to beat some. That's why a victory against South Carolina in the Outback Bowl would raise the overall grade for the Wolverines' season.

Previous report cards

Illinois
Indiana
Iowa

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan started its season wearing alternate jerseys against an SEC opponent.

It’ll close the season the same way.

Michigan’s uniforms will look different than the traditional Wolverines’ white uniforms of the past, with a white chest and maize numbers with blue trim. The shoulders of the uniforms are blue with the maize block ‘M’ on the shoulder.

The biggest difference might be in the Michigan helmet. While the Wolverines will still have their wings, the helmet is more of a matte look, complete with a lighter, shinier maize.

“I think they do look good,” senior Jordan Kovacs said. “I like how they stuck with the tradition, too, the winged helmet and the block ‘M.’ It’s pretty cool.’ “

Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon said before the season that his school would stick with traditional jerseys throughout the regular season after facing Alabama, but that the Wolverines could look at something different for a bowl game if they qualified.

So they are going with a slightly different look. This will be the seventh different jersey Michigan has worn since the beginning of last season -- the traditional home and away jerseys, home and away “legacy” jerseys against Notre Dame and Michigan State along with alternate jerseys for the Allstate Sugar Bowl last season and then the Cowboys Classic game against Alabama to open this season.

“I like the bowl uniforms,” senior offensive lineman Patrick Omameh said. “I’m a fan of the matte look.”

This week, WolverineNation will look at the five most critical moments of Michigan's 2012 football season (bowl excluded). These aren't necessarily positive or negative moments, but the five moments that most impacted this football season.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The season was less than half a game in and Michigan already was struggling with Alabama. It couldn’t do much on offense, leading to turnovers, three-and-outs and general concern about what would happen against the SEC.

After one of those failed offensive series, sophomore Blake Countess came on the field as a gunner on the Michigan punt return team. Will Hagerup let a booming kick fly, and as Countess ran down the field he was shoved out of the play.

The result led to a torn ACL and a season on the injured list for Michigan’s top cornerback, the No. 5 most critical moment of the 2012 season for the Wolverines.

In the short term, Countess’ injury hurt Michigan against Alabama -- neither Courtney Avery nor eventual starter Raymon Taylor could really handle the Crimson Tide -- but it could end up being a long-term bonus.

Theoretically, Countess’ injury means an extra year of him on defense as he should receive a redshirt year and come back next season alongside Taylor, who now has a season’s worth of starting experience he would not have had otherwise. Taylor ended up making 42 tackles, intercepting two passes and breaking up another. Those snaps, though, will be more valuable than any of that for 2013, when Michigan replaces J.T. Floyd at corner and Jordan Kovacs at safety.

For the most part this season, though, teams did not throw often against Michigan. At one point, the Wolverines were rated the top pass defense in the nation. While the lofty notion likely didn’t belong with the Wolverines, they handled the loss well.

However, Michigan was a team with just two interceptions from a cornerback this season and five overall from defensive backs. Countess did not record any interceptions his freshman season, but he was close and broke up six passes and seemed primed for a breakout year much like linebacker Jake Ryan.

Now, it might have to wait until the 2013 season.