OK Jeremy...i see my wolverines are not in your top 10, and i can see why not with losing their three best pass rushers. My question is this: am I the only one who sees Shoelace's short to intermediate passing as a strength for the maize and blue? I don't have the numbers in front of me, but in the games i watched last year, i would guess he was near 60-65 percent completions between 7 and 15 yards from scrimmage, and coupled with his legs and the emergence of Fitz Toussiant down the stretch last year, that seems to be a big assert for Michigan this year - assuming denard can hit 1-2 stretch passes per half to keep defenses honest


Thanks for reading Tim, and thanks for your question.

  Michigan was one of the those teams I was on the fence about putting in my top 10. They had a great season and the win in the Sugar Bowl was nice. The 11-2 record should land you in the preseason top 10 right? In most cases yes, but you helped answer part of your question with the losses on defense. Another case can be made that Virginia Tech didn't deserve to be in the Sugar Bowl. But what is done is done. Michigan showed signs of being a dominant program again and at times even let their past get in the way too. Consistency is key this year. And the schedule doesn't leave room for error. Robinson is, if not the best, a running QB that can give defenses nightmares, but he has to make the throws when the defense locks down his scrambling. He thew a few too many interceptions last year to solidify his threat at being a good passer. 20 TD passes is nice but put that number with 15 INTs and you have an issue. Rushing, however, is another story for him. Averaging more than 5 yards a carry and 16 TDs definitely helps. The question for Robinson is, will he improve his passing ability during the offseason? You're right, if he can hit, maybe, 3 to 5 deep passes a game to show there is always that threat, then the Wolverines are a lock for ending the season in the top 10. The sky is the limit for the offense. The Wolverines' defense is a little bit of a different story. Yes they lose some key players but I don't think they will feel the loss as much as some think. Keep in mind the defense was still adjusting to new coaching and a new system. I think the defense will do about as well as they did last year, just with slightly less experienced players. Comfort level was an issue last year for the defense. Another spring finished and another year to take it all in and I think they will be just fine on defense. That doesn't mean they will be great on defense, but there should be less 'shoot-outs' with opposing teams this year. We will get to see just where the Wolverines are very early in the season. Playing Alabama the first game is going to be a fun game to watch. I don't feel like BAMA is going to come into this game and just dominate. But, this is where Michigan will be tested up front. Denard Robinson might be scrambling for his life against a stronger and faster defense than they are used to seeing. After that, though, Michigan has a great chance at winning the Big 10. The only reason they aren't in my top 10 has everything to do with the Bowl games. They barely beat V-Tech. and V-Tech was smoked by Clemson 2 times. West Virginia....well, you know what they did to Clemson. So, I have to say Michigan is close to being back in the mix for top 10 material.

Question from Jason in Tennessee,

i know the Vols arent going to be very good this year but is there something to looke forward to this season or it lost already? this is a pretty cool blog. hope you keep it going and thanks for taking my question.


Thank you, Jason, for reading and your question. I love this so far and hope I can continue to keep this going and grow it into something special.

  Ahhhh yes the VOLS. What does Tennessee have to look forward to this season? Don't turn your back on them yet. Tyler Bray is going to have a good season. The defense will be okay, for an SEC defense. With there being pressure on Dooley, I expect him to hold nothing back and be as aggressive as possible. If he has another bad season, UT will be looking for a new head coach. The season opener is a must win game for Dooley. He cannot afford to start 0-1. I have talked with a few Tennessee fans about how many wins does Dooley need to have in order to stay on for another season, and they all say the same thing. "They have to win 8 games and have a signature win somewhere in there too." 8 wins with this schedule means that the NC State game is a must have. Having teams like, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Alabama on the schedule show you why 8 wins will be tough to get. Don't count out Vanderbilt either. Looking at the Schedule and here are the only games I see them being favored in: Akron, Mississippi State (maybe), Troy, Kentucky. That's four wins.... If they lose all the games outside of that, this will easily be the worst team UT has ever had in 20+ years. The positive for UT this year though, is Tyler Bray. He is a solid QB that can win some games with his arm as long as he stays healthy.
  Not much to look forward to this season for Tennessee fans, unless you are one of those fans looking forward to getting a new head coach. At best I see 6-6 and maybe a bowl win to make it a 7-6 season. In that case Dooley needs to hit the road. Sorry for the bad news, Jason. :-)

Thanks for the questions. Keep them coming. And don't forget the Preseason Top 10 countdown continues this week with #5 Oregon.


Send questions to jeremy.cf2d@yahoo.com