There are so many reasons to be thankful for our friends in Baton Rouge. First, they keep Les Miles employed and safely away from the sidelines of Michigan Stadium. Second, creole cooking. Third, chicks, obv. Now there is a fourth. Beer.

Louisiana State University announced Wednesday that it has partnered with Tin Roof Brewing Co. of Baton Rouge to produce an officially licensed LSU branded beer. The specifics on the beer itself are fairly bland, a blonde ale (meh), that will be available in bottles, draught, and (hopefully) cans. The specifics about how this came about, are not.

Tin Roof Brewing was actually a LSU small business incubator company, and rolled out its first beers in November of 2010. Not only were they good at pitching their brewery to the school, they were good at pitching the concept of beer as a business and agricultural discipline. According to Business Week:

University food science professors worked with Tin Roof on the recipe for the new beer, the professors will help with brewing and quality control measures, and students will be taught classes in fermentation science at the brewery starting this fall, McGehee said Wednesday.

Business students already have worked on branding, imaging and marketing for the new beer, said Charles D'Agostino, executive director of the LSU Louisiana Business and Technology Center, the incubator that helped Tin Roof start its business.

"This is a very good project, and it's got all the necessary ingredients for success," D'Agostino said. "We are very optimistic that this will be a good partnership for us."

Another sign that the business school was involved is the roll out date: the beer will be on store shelves and in bars by September or October at the latest. LSU will, of course, get royalties off the beer sales and will sanction the use of its logo and branding on the beer. Just so we're clear, this isn't new ground for major public universities.

The University of California, Davis has a winery, brewery and food-processing research and teaching complex. D'Agostino said colleges in Oregon and Washington also both have relationships with wine-making and beer-making operations.

Beer is one of the biggest, best run, and critical American enterprises. MillerCoors net income in the first quarter of 2010 was $217 MILLION, and that's in a depressed market caused by economic uncertainty. According to UC Davis, 2.5 Million people are employed in the brewing industry, and that's not counting the untold numbers of distributors, shops, bars, etc. that fuel the American economy in some way.

The point being it's time for Michigan to establish it's own brewery.

more after the jump....

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The Big Ten Football Media Kick off is right around the corner, and once again yours truly will be in attendance. Media Days is a strange beast. You sit around in a giant conference room staring at a podium listening to pre-prepared remarks that mean next to nothing and watch horrifically fat, unathletic people ask the same questions they've been asking for years with differing types of inflection in their tones. It's sad really. Because Media Days would be a great opportunity for comedy if not for the seriousness with which we treat sports and media.

It's probably a good idea to get this out of my system now. I mean, I'd like to get to go back again with a squad car waiting to escort me out.  So, here are a list of questions I will not be asking at this year's Big Ten Media days. (I'd already started thinking this out before Orson went and wrote this about SEC Media Days. Bastard. But he beat me to it, so RESPEK, blogfather.)

Danny Hope - Purdue Boilermakers

Now that Rich Rodriguez is gone, who is the Big Ten's leading purveyor of Snake Oil? I'm running out.

What mustache wax do you use?

How does it feel to be the head coach of an imaginary football team at an imaginary university?

So... last year's offense, huh?

What other retread, cast-off, malcontent, injury prone quarterbacks at other schools are you currently pursuing?

Are you aware Tate Forcier is available?

If you were in any other profession, what would it be? It's plumbing, isn't it?

Luke Fickell - Ohio State Buckeyes

S'up, brah?

What assistant coaching position will you take after the 2011 season?

Can you have Terrelle Pryor sign this?

Will Jim Tressel call your plays this season from his secluded mansion in Aruba?

We're heading out with Bielema afterwards to pick up chicks. You in? Yah, brah, you in. We brought you a shirt.

Do you laugh every time Gene Smith opens his mouth like we do?

Tressel had the vest. Will your signature gameday attire be polyester coaches shorts?

How many tats you got?

Ron Zook - Illinois Fighting Illini

How are you still employed?

Brady Hoke - Michigan Wolverines

Why have you failed to use statistical analysis to prove your worth as a coach?

Are you and Matt Foley twins?

There has been some resistance to the phrase "manball" in the Michigan fanbase. Might I suggest "Mathball" as a substitute?

You once said your goal in college was to drink every beer in Muncie. Did you succeed?

How will you and Al Borges criminally misuse Denard Robinson's talents this year? Don't lie. I have a spreadsheet with the answers.

What stuffed animal will Greg Mattison rub on your linebackers this season?

What kind of fruit basket did you send Kyle Turley? Or was it an edible arrangement? Those are delicious.

Bo Pelini - Nebraska Cornhuskers

Taylor Martinez's dad on line one! /ducks/

In what new, heartbreaking fashion will you lose the inaugural Big Ten Championship game and all subsequent championship games?

JakeLocherJakeLocherJakeLocherJakeLocherJakeLocher......

Is it true that Mac Brown cried a little when he heard he wasn't going to have you to kick around anymore?

Same question, Bob Stoops?

Any truth to the rumor you shotgun a case of Reb Bull before each game because you think cocaine is for pussies?

Be honest, didn't you laugh when you heard the Big Ten division names?

How happy are you never to have to see Big XII refs again? <---- Serious question people, but I ain't asking it.

Kirk Ferentz - Iowa Hawkeyes

When (not if) you lose your starting tailback during fall practice, will you hire Mike Leach as your offensive coordinator? Please?

No one on your football team has gotten arrested for public drunkeness, credit card fraud, or fightin' in da club this summer. Is the entire football team dead?

Does it upset you that Mark Dantonio is actually more boring than you?

I'm looking for a really intense workout, do you guys have one?

You lost the world's greatest American in Ricky Stanzi to graduation. Is Iowa's quarterback position now in Taliban hands?

Will you wear a sweatervest to honor Jim Tressel this season?

so much more after the jump....... 

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I'm starting to get the feeling that the NCAA compliance and investigatory departments have been watching a little too much of the Godfather. Less than a week after the NCAA stripped Georgia Tech of its 2009 ACC championship for "what amounted to $312" the NCAA's hitmen perforated LSU as it stopped at a toll booth. The NCAA announced yesterday that LSU was officially getting dinged for a year of probation, stripped of 2 scholarships, as well as docked a 10 percent reduction in official visits and reductions in recruiting calls. (which, to be fair, LSU was already self-serving these penalties due to self-imposition when the violations were uncovered).

According to Rivals/Yahoo:

The investigation found that ex-assistant coach D.J. McCarthy improperly arranged for transportation and housing for former defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, then later tried to cover up those actions.

LSU was also found that three noncoaching staff members either made to or received over a whopping 3,600 improper calls to or from high school coaches and administrators, prospects and family members of prospective students.

Dealing with the calls first, LSU claimed those calls were made because of a misinterpretation of NCAA rules, which, given the sheer number of calls seems to make sense. I know the number jumps out at people, but the report focuses on McCarthy and Hicks not the calls. And the punishment metted out seems to fit this. The report isn't happy about the infractions but doesn't go out of its way to hammer the school for them. The majority of the NCAA review doesn't focus on the calls. It focuses on McCarthy, Hicks, and how LSU's compliance office saved LSU's ass. From ESPN:

NCAA Committee on Infractions chairman Dennis Thomas said LSU's violations were considered major. He stressed that punishment could have been more severe if not for the efforts of LSU's compliance department.

He pointed specifically to senior associate athletic director Miriam Segar, who became suspicious of Hicks' living arrangements from the time he arrived in Baton Rouge. According to an earlier LSU report on the matter, Segar spent weeks pressing for answers and made the decision to bar Hicks from traveling to LSU's 2009 season-opening game at Washington because she was unsatisfied with the information she had received.

"That was critical," said Thomas, who is also the commissioner of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. "If that had not been done, the institution could have really been under more severe and serious penalties as well."

Wow. Imagine. A compliance office that actually looks at a situation, finds it unacceptable, and then, you know, actually does it's job. Amazing. The result was LSU getting smacked with the major violations tag, but thanks to their prior reporting and self-imposed penalties, they escaped from what should've been a messy situation fairly cleanly. LSU's compliance department even has this (HT: ATVS):

Doc Saturday is rightfully skeptical:

In this case, the official adjective &quot;major&quot; richly deserves the quotations marks — not only because of the slap on the wrist in response to a series of not-very-shocking allegations, but also because the NCAA actually commendedLSU's compliance department for its efforts to verify Hicks' living arrangements before it uncovered the violations.

more after the jump....

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COMMITMENT

Lakewood (OH) St. Edward OG Kyle Kalis committed to Michigan last Sunday (Touch the Banner profile here). Even though he's rated as one of the top offensive tackles in the country, he looks like a guard to me, which is why I didn't include him in last week's roundup of offensive tackle recruiting. But it was a pretty good clue that Kalis was going to commit to Michigan when he scheduled another visit to Ann Arbor so soon after the last one. Kalis is 6'5", 302 lbs. and the son of a former NFL offensive lineman. The apple didn't fall far from the tree.

ADDED TO THE BOARD

Cincinnati (OH) Moeller WR Monty Madaris received his Michigan offer this past week, as suggested should happen in a recent recruiting update.  He's a 6'2", 190-pounder who reportedly ran a 4.4 forty yard dash at a recent camp.  His other suitors include the likes of Florida State and Nebraska.

Wimberley (TX) Wimberley FB Dennis Smith was offered by Michigan last week.  This might speak to Michigan's hopes of getting a player like Ohio's Alden Hill or Utah's Sione Houma.  Smith is similar to both, a 6'1", 212 lb. combo back with the ability to block and run a little bit.  E.J. Fatu remains a possibility at the position, but he hasn't visited Ann Arbor.  I have a lot of confidence in Greg Mattison as a recruiter, but Michigan is a long way from Texas.

OFF THE BOARD

Tennessee WR Drae Bowles committed to Tennessee.  This is a terrible development because Michigan needs wide receivers, and Bowles is pretty durn good.  

Louisiana OT Derek Edinburgh committed to LSU.  Surprise!

Ohio RB/FB Alden Hill committed to Tennessee, too.  He attends Marlington High School in Alliance, OH, which is the same school that 2013 safety target Dymonte Thomas attends.  The Volunteers have also offered Thomas . . . and the plot thickens . . .

Florida SS Marcus Maye committed to Florida.  He was never expected to escape the gravitational pull of the three big-time Florida schools, so this was not a surprise.

Florida OT John Theus committed to Georgia.  This was also predicted in a recent recruiting update.

California WR Bryce Treggs committed to Cal.  He had long been considered a lean to the Golden Bears, and there's some talk that fellow Californian wideout Jordan Payton might join him in Berkeley.

OFFENSIVE GUARD RECRUITING

Last week I covered the uncommitted offensive tackles, and the commitment of Kalis to Michigan might change how Michigan recruits along the offensive line going forward. Regardless, here are the uncommitted guards Michigan has pursued:

Puyallup (WA) Puyallup OG Joshua Garnett received an offer from Michigan a while ago, and he recently named a top 11 that includes the Wolverines. He's a 6'5", 275-pounder who could play guard or tackle. Since he's from the northwest, it's not surprising that his top 11 would include six teams from the Pac-12 (California, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, USC, and Washington). Auburn, Nebraska, Notre Dame, and Oklahoma are also in the mix. He hasn't given out many hints, but he has said that he wants to visit Michigan in the fall. Erik Magnuson, a Michigan commit and fellow west coast resident, has been getting in Garnett's ear.

Weston (FL) Cypress Bay OG Daniel Isidora is one of the more lightly regarded recruits according to the scouting services, but he has a decent offer list that includes Illinois, Miami, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Somehow I think he'll end up at a school like UCF or West Virginia, despite those offers from bigger programs.

Euless (TX) Trinity OG Hiva Lutui only has a few offers, and it seems like every Polynesian player ends up on the west coast or at Utah. He was born in southern California and wants to play close to him which, combined with those few offers, seems to point directly to UCLA.

Encino (CA) Crespi OG Jordan Simmons was thought by many to have a good chance of ending up in Ann Arbor because he's being mentored by former Michigan offensive lineman Courtney Morgan. However, Simmons's comments about Michigan have always been lukewarm, and most analysts seem to realize that Simmons isn't going to wear the winged helmet. He's a 6'5", 333 lb. bulldozer who's regarded as the #1 offensive guard in the country by Rivals. Miami, Oregon, USC, and Washington are potential destinations.

MagnusThunder is the author of Touch the Banner, a Michigan football blog.

[Meta - Because it's the off-season and old buddies are dropping like flies.]

It's never fun when you have to say good-bye to old friends. But that's just something that happens to bloggers as we get older. The time we once had in abundance to write, read, laugh and type disappears. In its place we find jobs, new families, children, and middle age. It's the cycle of life. Time will look at the things you love and offer you other things you love and force you to choose between them. Ultimately you do, and a little piece of you turns into a memory rather than an active aspect of who you are.

Last week time robbed us of two old friends. First, our old friend Mike of BSD hung up his keyboard and passed the day-to-day operations of Black Shoe Diaries on to his co-authors. It's bittersweet to see Mike call it quits. We started writing at the same time, joined SB Nation at the same time, and have written and collaborated on a number of things together. I also know that he's a family man with a wonderful wife, two great kids, and a calling that I very much admire. So, while I am sad to see Mike sign off, I am happy that he can begin this wonderful new chapter of his life.

You see, I'm really not using hyperbole when I say that. Blogging takes time. A lot of it. It is a constant time sink that eats away hours, keeps you up at night, and can wear you down like a retreating glacier. Strangely, it is an endeavour that we all love and take to without thought at first. It is so much fun. Your thoughts, your opinions, your theories are being read and commented on by others. It's a bit of a rush as you build a community and/or a following. You check your sitemeter and watch it grow. It is, and I mean this, incredibly exciting.

But, as time passes, readership grows, and demands increase, you find that so much more of your free time is taken up by this love. It starts to conflict with other things you love. Ever the bargainer, you find ways to make it work. Certain things are sacrificed. You go on. Eventually, however, the flame goes out. A blogger runs out of time or runs out of energy to put his thoughts onto a keyboard. And finally, you are confronted with the bargain outlined above. And in the grand scheme of things, blogging will always come out the loser in this transaction.

This brings us to our friends at Block-C. I first became aware of Block-C three years ago when Michigan drew Clemson in the NCAA tournament. I contacted Willy Mac about a potential Q&A session for the tournament and low, a kinship was found. I'd never really thought much about Clemson before that email exchange, but after talking with the guys, writing with them, and reading their site, I became hooked. They were great, funny writers who didn't take themselves too seriously, attributes I admire to this day. Sadly, like Mike, they too succumbed to the passing years and the eventual trade-offs we must all make.

I want to thank Mike and the crew at Block-C for their time and for making me smile (and think) with their writing and their unique point of views. I also want to wish them every success in their future endeavours. I'm certainly better for having known them.

Thanks guys.

There've been a lot of changes in the B1G Ten over the last few months. New logos, new divisions, new conference members, and a boatload of new coaches. Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan and Ohio State are all breaking in new headset wearers. I'm still shocked that Illinois isn't. Normally, you only see turnover like this at KPMG when the Feds start investigating their tax-shelter derivatives. So, as a public service, we thought it'd be a good idea to introduce, or re-introduce you to the conference's current head coaches. We've already covered Nebraksa's Bo Pelini and Indiana's Kevin Wilson.

Our thought? Give you a little background on them, their coaching past, and how they roll. As an aside, since all of our requests for interviews were turned down and the cops caught us rooting through Brady Hoke's recycling (again), we were forced to take some liberties with their bios. But fear not, dear reader, we kept it as close to how we perceive these coaches as possible, so we're pretty sure the coaches themselves would look at these pieces and say, "Yup. That's me." (No. No they wouldn't. They'd pick up the phone and call their lawyer). But, hey, what's the offseason without a little satire. Next up: Mark Dantonio, Michigan State.

Mark Dantonio
Michigan State Spartans
5th Year
Record:  33-19
MSU in 2010:  11-2 

Nosferatu himself. I'm convinced that Dantonio sleeps underneath the Spartan Stadium bleachers hanging upside down in a cocoon of his own wings. He's evil, people, evil. That said, Dantonio is also a master of disguise. He's actually managed to convince people that he's a football coach, rather than the inspiration for Christian Slater's awkward portrayal of of the coked out reporter who was interviewing Dantonio's old friend back in the 80's. But right now, his official capacity is head football coach of Michigan State, so we might as well get to know him.

In terms of gameday demeanor, Dantonio is the exact opposite of Pelini on the sidelines.The exception being that neither is capable of smiling, and the only difference there is that Dantonio would turn into dust if that happened, whereas with Pelini it would cause the massive vein in his neck to hemorrhage like Mount St. Helens. Life is in the details people.

Getting back to the point, where Pelini wears his emotions on his sleeve, Dantonio has all the personality of a Toyota Carola. The base model. In beige. He could honestly be the boringest coach in all of college football. A nod here. A scowl there. Pointing at something to express a desired action. Even after he called "Little Giants" he looked like he was picking out wallpaper for his guest bathroom. Then, when he actually speaks, every word that leaves his lips is designed to lull you into a deep, full, REM sleep.

But that has a purpose. The man is pure evil. He'll lull you into a trusting mood, you invite him into your house for a recruiting visit, and he'll eat your family. Remember folks, if Corey Haim taught us anything it's that your powerless when you invite a Vampire into your home. And he's gone now, so you're on your own. Despite the stoic attitude and mid-loaf expression constantly plastered to his face, Dantonio is a disciplinarian on par with Barney the Dinosaur. No evil action shall go unrewarded. Start a brawl? Sit out a game. Get arrested for sucker punching someone and putting them in the hospital? Walk onto the field when you get out of jail. DUI? You get to decide whether you should play. Over the last few years I've done my best to bring people's attention to the green, scowling menace in East Lansing, but sadly my cries go unheard. And somewhere, "Sympathy for the Devil" plays on.

More after the jump.....

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It's July. Things are quiet. It's time to start previewing things. Specifically Michigan Football things. Over the next couple of weeks we're going to be looking at what happened, who's back, who's new, and what to expect from each Michigan Football position group going in to the 2011 Football Season. So far, the 2011 Maize n Preview series has a detailed preview of the Michigan Defensive Line and a detailed preview of Michigan's Linebackers. Today it's time to finish up the defense, so we're previewing the 2011 Michigan Conerbacks and Safeties.

As and FYI, we're unabashed homers here at Maize n Brew. Even so, throughout this preview series we're doing our best to be realistic, and as you're well aware, realism can be a bit of a downer from time to time. The result of this may be a little bit more negative than it's been in years past, but there's good reason for that. We've predicted vast improvement in each of the last three years and gotten burnt crispy each time (much like our pass coverage!). So, that said, you may like what we predict or you may not, but we're trying to be objective.

One last thing. Part of the preview can come from you guys. Some of you have great insight as to what's going on in Ann Arbor and about the players, so please jump in where we're falling short. You're free to start off a discussion, point out our idiocy, brilliance, or mediocreness in the comments below. More to come over the next few days, but now it's time to preview the 2011 Michigan Conerbacks and Safeties.

About Last Night Year

2008, 88th. 2009, 66th. 2010, 112th.

Those are the numbers from hell. The types of numbers that keep coaches awake at night and make quarterback's eyes light up like the Griswold's House as Christmas time. Yes, dear reader, lose are Michigan's pass defense rankings for the last three years, arguably the worst pass defense years in Michigan's history. Spectacular flame-outs in recruiting highly touted players and spectacularly blown coverages combined with a position group younger than Justin Beibler conspired to make Michigan's defensive secondary the laughing stock of the interwebz and the Big Ten. Let's be clear, last year's secondary couldn't cover a hotdog with mustard.

Looking back over last year's preview, I was inexplicably optimistic about this unit. Still, I managed to keep a modicrum of perspective:

Look, the secondary isnot an area of strengthforMichigan. We've all heard the platitudes about "this is a different defense" over and over again during the last three years to make them particularly hollow. The only thing that will prove them to be anything other than platitudes is on field performance. There is talent on this team, and for the first time in a while, a little depth. But there is next to no experience in this group, and that is definitely a cup of Drano waiting to be ingested.

Drano indeed, this unit went down the toilet like a night of drinking followed by two Big Ten Burritos. The majority of the issue was a complete lack of depth. Michigan was playing four freshmen along with Jordan Kovacs for large portions of the year. Not only that, these were freshmen that were either playing out of position or freshmen that desperately needed a season to redshirt to grow and strengthen. But, realistically, the largest aspect of the problem was that Michigan was playing a defense that was completely ill suited for its personnel, and forced these freshmen into a position that couldn't even hope to be adequate at.

Further, if you look at the lack of productino from the defensive line and linebackers, it's not wonder the pass defense was so bad. Opposing quarterbacks had months to throw on Michigan's young secondary, and there was nothing they could do about it. The answer, apparently, was to take Michigan's best pass rusher in Craig Rohand make him a linebacker who's sole job was to cover the tight end. Gaaaaahhhhhh! Burn in hell GERG.

The final result was a lot of experience for Michigan's young guns, but the worst pass defense in Michigan's history.

Outgoing

Surprising fifth-year senior James Rogersbid Michigan adieu after what was arguably one of the most admirable performances on the defense in 2010. Rodgers was a veritable unknown who had played sparingly at wide receiver and cornerback during his three prior years in Ann Arbor. Everyone, including me, expected him to be supplanted by incoming freshmen Cullen Christian, Courtney Avery, or the ficus kept in Rodriguez office. It never happened. To be honest, though Rogers really wasn't great, he was Michigan's best cornerback in 2010. You read that right, and I'll stand by it. In fact, I said it in print last year. Rodgers started all 13 games at corner, racked up 40 tackles, 3 PBUs, and 3 INTs. He was a solid contributor, and given the youth of this year's secondary, he's going to be sorely missed.

Michigan said goodbye to number of other non-seniors in the way that only Michigan could under Rodriguez. Prior to the season Michigan said bye-bye to a pair of former 4 star recruits when Vladimir Emilien and Justin "J.T." Turnerboth transfered. Emilien was a mid 4 star who a lot of people thought might be a contributor but for his slow recovery from ACL surgery. Emilien never made the field as a defensive back and wound up burriedon the depth chart before deciding to transfer. Turner on the other hand was one of the more spectactularflameouts in Michigan's recent recruiting history. The former Mr. Football in Ohio never saw the field, never even cracked the depth chart, transfered to West Virginia, then transferedagainto parts unknown. Whether or not either would've been stars aside, their transfers helped to kill Michigan's depth in 2010.

Then, of course, there was the end of season exodus. First was Ray Vinopal. The tiny safety made his debut against Bowling Green intercepting a late pass and running it back to mid field before getting stripped. It gave many of us hope that there was indeed a safety on the roster who could, you know, play safety. Yeah... Not so much. Vinopal was too slow and too teeeeny to play safety at the Big Ten level. Still, he was a willing and savvy competitor who gave his all on every play and did the best he could in a system designed to maximumize his shortcomings. he transferred to Pittsburgh after the season to be closer to his family in Youngstown, Ohio. All of us at Maize n Brew wish him nothing but success at Pitt.

Finally, there was Cullen Christian. Christian was a concensus four star that had everyone in the Michigan recruiting circles drooling. Frankly, the freshman was expected to start at corner from day one. It didn't happen. Concerns about Christian's speed turned out to be far more justified than anyone thought. Whenever Christian saw the field, opposing offenses went right at him on deep routes that the talented kid simply didn't have the wheels to cover. He was torched so bad we needed dental records to identify him after the Michigan State game. When Rodriguez got the boot Christian decided to transfer in a Boren-esquemannerwhich didn't endear him to a lot of people. Still, I wish Christian the best and hope he finds success with his next school.

It should also be noted that Cameron Gordon, who started the season at free safety, was moved to LB. Also lost was highly touted safety recruit Mike Williams whose career ended due to concussions. So there you go. We're not even into the returning players and Michigan's already short 7 guys in the defensive backfield. It's Deja Vu all over again.

Returning Starters - Cornerback

After a year's rehabilitation, Troy Woolfolk returns to the starting Cornerback slot. Woolfolk missed the 2010 season due to a horrifying ankle injury that I experienced back in 2004, and man-oh-man does it suck. Thankfully, troy is healed, healthy and ready to return to the field in 2011. Prior to breaking his ankle in 2010, Woolfolk was slated to take over the No. 1 cornerback position from the departing Donovan Warren. Woolfolk had a decent 2009 season as Michigan's No. 2 corner, and appeared ready to be a legitimate All-Big Ten type cornerback. Knowing what I know about Woolfolk's injury and rehab, I'm not sure he's going to be that sharp out of the gates at corner. While it's true that his injury takes a full year to recover from and he's had that time, he's also missed a full year of football. I'm guessing Woolfolk's going to be a little rusty early on as his body gets used to playing at the Big Ten level again. That said, Woolfolk is a hell of an athlete that really does have good hips and changes directions fairly well. Going into the season, by virtue of his experience and time to heal, he's your No. 1 CB.

Opposite Woolfolk will be Junior J.T. Floyd. Floyd took over the No.1 corner position from Woolfolk when he went down and held onto it until he suffered his own ankle injury before the Illinois game. Thankfully Floyd had no broken bones in his ankle, but Floyd had surgery and his season was over. Overall, I thought Floyd has a decent year as a red-shirt sophomore. He wasn't expected to be Michigan's No. 1 corner, but took the position gamely and had a decent season. One of the problems JT faced was a constantly shifting position. Floyd also spent time at safety in an effort to cauterize the points hemorrhaging in the secondary, but it didn't really work. Floyd was too slight for safety, so he had some troubles supporting the run and never really looked comfortable back there. He had two good games at safety, but he's a corner. And as a corner, he's got some work to do. Floyd tends to give up the inside a little too easily for my taste and hasn't really seemed to learn how to use the sideline to his advantage. I think as a Junior he's destined to have a better, more consistent year. My only concern is that he's healthy. Floyd and Woolfolk both sat out the spring game as a precaution so we're speculating as to their abilities here. Still, if healthy, I think Woolfolk and Floyd can be a good, middle of the pack CB combo. And lord won't that be an improvement.

Safeties, back-ups and predictions after the jump.....

Continue reading this post »

There've been a lot of changes in the B1G Ten over the last few months. New logos, new divisions, new conference members, and a boatload of new coaches. Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan and Ohio State are all breaking in new headset wearers. I'm still shocked that Illinois isn't. Normally, you only see turnover like this at KPMG when the Feds start investigating their tax-shelter derivatives. So, as a public service, we thought it'd be a good idea to introduce, or re-introduce you to the conference's current head coaches.

Our thought? Give you a little background on them, their coaching past, and how they roll. As an aside, since all of our requests for interviews were turned down and the cops caught us rooting through Brady Hoke's recycling (again), we were forced to take some liberties with their bios. But fear not, dear reader, we kept it as close to how we perceive these coaches as possible, so we're pretty sure the coaches themselves would look at these pieces and say, "Yup. That's me." (No. No they wouldn't. They'd pick up the phone and call their lawyer). But, hey, what's the offseason without a little satire. The first of our introductions was the Conference's newest coaching circle member, Nebraska's Bo Pelini. So now it's time to look at another new face in the B1G Ten, Indiana's new head coach ....er... whatever his name is....

 
Indiana's New Head Coach on the recruiting trail.

HR Puff n Stuff
Indiana Hoosiers
First Year
Coaching Record: 0-0
Indiana in 2010: 5-7

I can hear you now.

But Dave, that's not his real name. Indiana's head coach is Kevin Wilson. You should know that.

Whatever. Does it really matter what Indiana's head coach is named? Really? Being named the Hoosier's head coach is the equivalent of being a drummer for Spinal Tap, except with a shorter, more painful life span. Whoever Indiana's current, non-gum-throwing Head Coach is, he's going to have a rough go. For simplicity's sake we'll just call him Charlie, and Charlie's screwed.

Indiana has practice facilities that make MAC schools laugh, a football stadium that was built on a budget of $27.31, and a fanbase that uses football season as time to sober up before basketball season begins. Whatever amount they paid Charlie to leave (what was it, Oklahoma?) It wasn't enough. Indiana is where head coaching careers go to die extremely painful, public deaths.

Since Bill Mallory left after 10 seasons with his sterling (by Indiana standards) .473 winning percentage, the average coaching tenure at Indiana has been 3.5 years with a winning percentage of .333. But hey, look at the bright side Charlie. Once your career craters in Bloomington you can take the tattered remnants of your resume to the Big Ten Network (or ESPN) and begin your broadcast career. It's worked out pretty well for Jerry DiNardo (3 seasons, 8-27) and Lee Corso (10 seasons, 41–68–2).

But, since I should probably do some actual work on this topic, Indiana's new head coach is not named Charlie. He's named Kevin Wilson, and he came over from Oklahoma where he was OU's offensive coordinator since 2005. Wilson's got 25 years of assistant coaching experience under his belt and was the man behind the curtain for Oklahoma's pinball-like offensive machine during the Sam Bradford years. Still, it's not like Chalie... er... Wilson is coming into a program loaded with talent. He's also going to be breaking in a new signal caller and a LOT of offensive players.

Just a word of caution there Charlie, stay away from drum sets.

(Previously: Getting To Know You: Nebraska's Bo Pelini).

It's July. Things are quiet. It's time to start previewing things. Specifically Michigan Football things. Over the next couple of weeks we're going to be looking at what happened, who's back, who's new, and what to expect from each Michigan Football position group going in to the 2011 Football Season. We kicked off the 2011 Maize n Preview series yesterday with a detailed previewing of the Michigan Defensive Line. So, today, we're going through to the next group on the list, Michigan's Linebackers.

As you know, we're unabashedly homeristic here at Maize n Brew, but we're going to do our best to be realists here. So you may like what we predict or you may not. But you're free to start off a discussion, point out our idiocy, brilliance, or mediocrenessin the comments below. More to come over the next few days, but now it's time to preview the 2011 Michigan Linebacking Corps.

About Last Night Year

Ugh. I hate that I've got to start off another preview this way, but it's appropriate. Unlike the defensive line, where youth and scheme conspired to defeat an otherwise game unit, the linebacking corps was an unmitigated disaster in 2010. I will conceded that perhap I may be a tad bit overly critical, but I don't think so. Sadly, I predicted this going into the year:

Realistically, looking at this group with a cynical eye, you have to be petrified. Two seniors starters that regressed in each of their previous years. Highly rated backups that were beat out for the starting slot in the late season by a walkon, because they couldn't make tackles or play their assignments. A recruiting class that, at best, is likely two years away from contributing to the defense. These are things that will make you slam a Drano-Slushee.

And this was with the assumption that Criag Roh would be a good linebacker (which he wasn't). Together, Jonas Mouton and Obi Ezeh combined to form one of the worst linebacker duos in Michigan history. Missed assignments, poor tackling, bad angles, etc. I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but Ezeh was terrible last year and that honestly pains me to say because he's a great kid from all accounts. As for Mouton, he would alternatively do something incredibly athletic and awesome or something so inexplicably bad that you couldn't believe it was the same person. That, combined with Roh being completely miscast as a linebacker, meant the defense couldn't stop a ten year old from running for 160 on them. Don't even get me started on the Carvin Johnson Thomas Gordon Brandon Herron hodgepodge at deathbacker. It didn't work.

On the other hand, there was one incredibly pleasant surprise in the form of Kenny Demens. Demens came from the obscurity of Rodriguez' dog house to become Michigan's best linebacker last year. That said, 2010 was easily one of the worst years for linebackers in Michigan's 132 year history. I'm willing to put a lot of the blame on the coaching staff for this because, well, they couldn't teach defensive tatics to an armored porcupine. But some of that blame has to go to the players who play the game. 

2011 is a new year with new coaches and new players. It has the potential to be a much better year for Michigan's Linebackers, but there's a lot of work to do.

Outgoing

I'm struggling to find a player that was as much of an enigma as Jonas Mouton. A great kid, smart, insanely physically gifted, fast, with great fast twitch relfexes who could make plays that only a handful of players in the college game could make. By that same token, he would routinely run himself out of position, take poor angles, miss easy tackles, and blow obvious coverages. After three years as Michigan's starting SLB, he was a 2nd Round  pick (No. 61) of the San Diego Chargers. He finished his senior year leading the team with 117 tackles and countless "WTF is he doing!?" moments. All of us wish him the best and hope the good folks in San Diego can coach him into the player we all hope he can be.

Middle Linebacker Obi Ezeh departs as well. Ezeh was a three year starter at Michigan who lost his job mid season to Kenny Demens. This was a good thing. Ezeh's career started strong against Utah and pancaked blocked from then on. Routinely getting hammered by linemen, missing tackles, and misdiagnosing plays earned him a lot of scorn from Michigan fans over his four year career. This wasn't all his fault. Over his last two years Ezeh regressed under the constantly changing defensive schemes of GERGRIGUEZ. After coming in as a mildly touted fullback, Ezeh switched to middle linebacker and played all four years. He finished 2010 with 58 tackles and 3.5 TFL.

Also gone is back-up middle linebacker Mark Moundros, another converted fullback who played sparingly under Rodriguez. Moundros pushed Ezeh a bit at the start of the season, but the Captain wasn't able to seal up the starting slot and eventually fell into special teams duty and backing up the backups. He finished the season with 17 tackles.

Finally, you can probably put Craig Roh in here because he'll be playing Defensive End this season, so technically all three starters from Opening Day 2010 are either graduated or playing different positions.

Returning Starters

There's one: Junior MLB Kenny Demens. And thank God for that. Demens was a genuine surprise last season. After being stuck behind Ezeh for two years, many observers were legitimately questioning if he'd ever see the field. When he finally did it was crystal clear how much of an upgrade at middle linebacker he was that it made you question the sanity and intelligence of the coaches who'd kept him on the bench. Demens was everything Ezeh wasn't: decisive, quick, capable of tackling, and capable of taking an angle. His insertion in the line-up was a shot in the arm for the beleaguered defense and it suffered mightily when he wasn't in the game. Demens started only 7 games last season and still managed to notch 82 tackles and 1.5 TFL. That's 11.71 tackles a game. That's the highest starts-to-tackle ratio on the team, and Demens missed three games due to injury (including the bowl) along with not really playing in three others. In short, he's pretty good and playing under Greg Mattison is only going to make him better

Returning Starter-ish Type Players

Redshirt Sophomore Cameron Gordon returns to the Strongside Linebacker position after playing safety, spur, and WLB last year. Gordon you may remember was recruited to Michigan as a wide receiver, moved over to safety during his redshirt year, was Michigan's starting safety for half the season and was later moved to the spur/bandit/deathbacker slot for the other half of the season. So in two years he's changed positions a little under a thousand times. Now it appears that Gordon's fantastic voyage around the defensive secondary is over and he's found a home at SLB. Reports out of spring practice indicate that Gordon has bulked up considerably, but when he's listed at 207, I'm a little leery of his ability to stand up to blockers. How this latest switch works out is one of the great unknowns heading into the season.

Continue reading this post »

Bo Pelini
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Fourth Year
Record: 29-12
Last Year: 10-4

In a word full of vanilla head coaches, I'm so happy we have Bo Pelini. Well... let me rephrase that. I'm so happy that someone else has Bo Pelini. And that I get to watch. (warning: bad soundtrack below)

Pelini voyeurism is a fairly popular hobby around college football, what with his insane side line rants, ornery personality and freezer full of severed heads belonging to people who have crossed him. I mean there are shoddily made pipe bombs with longer fuses than Pelini. If there is a single coach in college football who is a bad call away from recreating the Wood Hayes What-The-Fuck-Just-Happened Punch of an opposing player, it's Pelini. A well timed insult during a blowout loss could send the guy on a twelve state killing spree, so you just have towatch him to see what happens next. (As an aside, sadly, Clemson is not on Nebraska's schedule any time soon. But in order to set up the possibility of Pelini actually mimicking Hayes, the Big Ten has to make Clemson Nebraksa's new out of state rival. Please. Think of the children.)

All the temper tantrum attention aside, it's really too bad. That's because Pelini appears to be one hell of a coach and recruiter. Since he took over, Nebraska seems to have reclaimed its spot as one of the top destinations for talent in the country and is year-in, year-out a legitimate top 10 program. In Pelini's three years at Nebraska the Huskers have been in the Big XII Championship game twice and garnered top ten rankings at some point during the season. Sadly, in both championship appearances the Huskers have managed to cough up leads and lose in heart breaking fashion. The result: a couple of fine Pelini meltdowns (though the crown jewel of meltdowns was against Texas A&M, and ooooh boy was it grand). It goes full circle.

Pelini reminds me a little bit of Rich Rodriguez, except to the extent that he recognizes there is a thing called defense. He loves grinding his quarterbacks into a fine powder, wearing down his team by midseason, and the soulful strains of Josh Groban (I'm just assuming). But he's definitely his own man. Anyone that can recruit and retain a player whose name means "House of Spears" definitely has a screw or two loose. By virtue of his inclusion in the conference Pelini is automatically the most batshit crazy coach the Big Ten boasts. And with the Dread Pirate Leach's prolonged imprisonment in Trinidad under order of the French Crown, he may well be the craziest coach in the BCS. And he's all ours... er... Nebraska's. (Thank God)