Will Hagerup will sit in 2013

There are two things we know about Will Hagerup:

1. He has a monster leg.

2. He has a hard time keeping out of trouble.

Hagerup has already been forced to sit out twice because of rule violations. The first came in 2010 for the Ohio State game and the second would be the first four games of the 2011 season. Both suspensions involved the same undisclosed "violation of team rules" that kept Hagerup out for the Outback bowl and threatened his place on the team.

But it seems that he will be getting another chance as Brady Hoke has given Hagerup seemingly the same deal that Darryl Stonum got when his run ins with the law reached a breaking point: sit out for a year, stay out of trouble, and come back after that for one more year. It is a decision based more on Will's development as a person than a football player (a good thing for those of you unclear on life>football):

"Will and I have had several discussions over the past five months, none of which have been about football. Our primary concern has been for him, as a person, and that will not change. Will is a part of our family, and we will continue to offer the resources to help him learn and grow. I am pleased with his progress to this point, and he knows that must continue every day moving forward."

If Hagerup makes it through the year he could come back to reclaim his job as a senior. He certainly has the leg for it. Last year as Michigan's long distance punter (Matt Wile handled shorter punts from mid-field) Hagerup average 45 yards per punt, and had a 43.6 ypp average as a freshman. He is no stranger to 50 or 60 yard punts, and even has a 72 yard boomer as his career long. While consistency has been a concern -- one not helped by his missing time -- he is a valuable weapon in the field position game and could have a big NFL upside.

However, Michigan isn't going to be in hot water without him. Michigan relied a lot on Matt Wile both during Hagerup's suspensions and as the shorter distance punter. Wile excelled as the pooch punter, landing nine punts inside the 20 on 29 attempts. However, as Kyle Meinke points out, Wile was solid in longer situations as well:

Fun fact: Filtering out pooch punts, Wile has averaged 42.6 yards on his 20 career attempts. That would have ranked 35th nationally last year, and third in the Big Ten behind Hagerup and Michigan State's Mike Sadler.

So even without Hagerup, Michigan should be in good hands as far as the punting game goes. Let's hope Hagerup can keep out of trouble and make it back on the field.