Michigan DT Ondre Pipkins 'up and walking around' after neck injury - Last Friday at a morning practice Ondre Pipkins experienced a neck injury and was taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure. Thankfully that injury doesn't seem serious as he was reportedly moving around fine later in the day. First, it is great that the staff takes these things so seriously as to handle the injury the right way, and second, it's a huge relief that Pipkins turned out fine. More info will probably come out this week, but for now we can all breath a sigh of relief.
Bob Asmussen defends picking Michigan No. 1 in preseason AP poll - Asmussen took some major heat last week for his curious first place vote for Michigan -- the only first place vote for Michigan anywhere. He justified that vote to AnnArbor.com's Kyle Meinke:
"I like what he does, I like the staff he has there. So start with the coaching. I think it's fantastic, and everywhere (Hoke's) gone, he's done this. He's been good, and now he actually has the bodies to help him win a national championship."
Quick, somebody get that man a copy of the offensive line depth chart.
FBL12 Team & Seniors - Images - Want a picture of Team 133? It can be yours.
QB Russell Bellomy: Media Day - More hype for Russell Bellomy as a potential QB2.
Countess looks to learn from rookie mistakes in second season - One of the key players on Michigan's 2012 defense is going to be the sophomore cornerback.
"He had some bumps (last season)," Mallory said. "As I’ve said before, when you play that position, you have to have short-term memory. When you do get beat or you do get turned around a little bit, you have to move on to the next play and not worry about that. "That’s where he’s got to improve, and not let that one play affect the rest of the game. That’s part of maturing as a defensive back."
Fun with win totals: 5 over/unders we like
Michigan, under 9 wins (-160): The reverse of the Ohio State bet, the Wolverines may be able to reach 9, but with their losses on the defensive line, grueling schedule, and fewer breaks in close games, 10 seems well out of reach.
You don't want to read the "Ohio State over" portion.
The Manipulation of Passing Statistics, West Virginia Edition - Not all stats are indicative of performance.
Upon watching the game in its entirety, I was left with just one question: Was that it? There was little on the recording that led me to believe I had just witnessed the type of performance that has made Smith a 2012 Heisman contender. A shovel pass here, a shovel pass there. A screen pass here, a screen pass there. Maybe even a shallow crossing pattern was mixed in every once in awhile for a decent gain. But to my recollection, there was only one big passing play by West Virginia throughout the entire game. How could Smith have possibly thrown for 372 yards? I knew I needed to take a deeper look at the numbers.
And, to finish up the Happy Hour, a two pack from Pre-Snap Read:
You can sense the desperation from miles away: In Lincoln, the smell of fear – fear that there will be no renaissance, no climb back into the national picture – permeates every fiber of Nebraska football, from Taylor Martinez’s delivery to Barney Cotton’s offensive line to Cotton himself, with the Cornhuskers’ line coach drawing as much ire as any figure in the program’s proud history. There’s the fear that nine-win, four-loss seasons are the new norm; the former is a program birthright, but the latter is new. The fear that this current staff doesn’t have the answer. The fear that Nebraska bit off more than it could chew by hopping to the Big Ten. In Lincoln, the sense of impending doom stems from the idea that the offense will sputter, that the quarterback will throw off his back foot, that the defense isn’t up to par, that the pass rush lacks punch. Fear’s an ugly thing: Nebraska’s fan base is petrified. Good thing they play the games.
Win 10 games once and they’ll expect you to do it again; win 10 games every year and they’ll forget that you exist.