Michigan Monday: Michigan vs. Michigan Super Bowl Crime

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Last night in the Super Bowl the difference in the game was a Brandon Graham strip sack of Tom Brady.   That play stopped the New England offense and with a field goal pushed the lead to 8 with less then a minute and no timeouts.  Game over.   That play sort of reminds me of the time Charles Woodson stripped sacked Tom Brady in the snow but it was ruled an incomplete pass.   That call went the Patriots way, the one last night didn't.  Congratulations to the Eagles and Brandon Graham, he deserves to be a Champion after some of the poor Michigan teams he was on.

• Hutchinson and Law didn't get into the Hall of Fame with the latest vote.

• I felt this might be coming.  QB Kevin Doyle de-commits this weekend.   His recruitment had gone completely silent and I wondered if he would be part of the class weeks ago.   The word on the street is that Michigan wanted him to take a prep year or Gray Shirt and he said, "No thanks".   It will be interesting to see where he signs on Wednesday.   Seems Arizona is now in play for Kevin.

• Lose one get one - Instate QB Max Wittwer has accepted a PWO to play at Michigan next season.  Max was committed to Air Force and had other scholarship offers to EMU and other smaller schools.  A solid commitment here.

• Michigan has also accepted a Gray Shirt commitment from instate kicker Jake Moody.   That means he will have to pay his own way for a year and then Michigan will provide him a scholarship for the rest of his time in Ann Arbor.

NSD is two days away and there seems to be no buzz on Michigan signing anymore players to the 2018 class.   Right now the only drama is whether Otis Reese stays in the class or goes to Georgia. 


Including Otis, here is the rest of the 2018 class that are still un-signed in the early period:

• WR Ronnie Bell is expected to sign
• CB Vincent Gray is expected to sign
• Athlete Michael Barrett is expected to sign

Wolverine Wednesday: Jimmy Is Recruiting Europe

In a few months as Michigan head coach, Jimmy has blown through the US looking for talented young men to wear the maize and blue.   He walks the streets of Ann Arbor, shaking hands and kissing babies.   He might even sign a few thousand autographs as well.  

He doesn't sleep and he doesn't stop.  He coached his last game in SF and basically jumped on a plane and headed to Ann Arbor to get to work on another job.   He hasn't stopped working a job where there is something to do 24/7. 

Before the season starts he has decided to take a much deserved vacation with his wife to Paris.  He is tweeting out pictures of buying Diet Coke and eating at a McDonalds.   You can take Jimmy out of Michigan but you can't take Michigan out of Jimmy!  :-)

Michigan Arts in Paris group showing Sarah & I around! Thanks professor Lay, Abi Celis & Students #Homies Go Blue! pic.twitter.com/nDKYqkbpcx

— Coach Harbaugh (@CoachJim4UM) July 15, 2015

Bonjour! Go Blue! pic.twitter.com/EoBL4i5Svh

— Coach Harbaugh (@CoachJim4UM) July 11, 2015

Le Big Mac and Royal with Cheese please. pic.twitter.com/BKLGQgbSwS

— Coach Harbaugh (@CoachJim4UM) July 13, 2015

Enjoy your trip coach and football means something different over there! 

• Joe Namath thinks that hyperbaric oxygen treatment has helped improve brain trauma that he believes was caused by hard hits during his football career and could help others with brain damage from concussions.

• Brandon Graham doing a camp for boys and girls in Detroit. 

Michigan Friday: What Might Have Been Final Results

The What Might Have Been Poll is closed and the people of Big House Nation have spoken.   KG would of had the biggest impact (52% of the votes) on Michigan athletics if decided to come to Ann Arbor and play a little basketball.   KG would have been a dominating force and maybe the best low post player to come out of Ann Arbor ever.   I'm sure he will enjoy this honor after his Celtics missed an opportunity to close out the Heat last night in Boston.

I thought KG would be #1 but Jeter #2.  The Big House Nation didn't agree and said Payton Manning would of had a larger impact receiving 27% of the votes.  Sit back a dream for a minute, the same college program producing Tom Brady and Payton Manning.   High school QB's would be lining up to play here. 

Jeter (13%) and Mateen Clevees (6%) rounded out the final two spots.  It seems nobody wants to revisit it their memory the Michigan SUV car crash that brought down the program.  Neither do I!

That was fun, I hope you enjoyed this little project.   One guy that almost made the list was Eagles WR DeSean Jackson who wanted to commit to Michigan at the Army All American game but was told the Wolverines were full at that position.   I think he might have ended up in Carr's doghouse once or twice. 

• Kickoff Times Set:  Air Force 3:30 ABC/ESPN and UMASS 3:30 BTN.  Looks like those noon kickoffs are dying a slow death.   Which I don't like.

• Brandon Graham is motivated for next years NFL season.  He did not like being injured last year and not being able to contribute:  Brandon Graham currently holds the title of World’s Strongest Eagle. He is benching sets of 465 pounds. Squatting 405. He’s putting on a show in the weight room that has his teammates looking at him sideways.“He’s strong, now. He’s got that young strength in him,” says veteran tackle Cullen Jenkins, breaking into a smile. “They need to get him some relief or something, give him a hug. He’s a little too intense up in there.”  I think Mike Barwis has something to do with this.

• CA DT Joe Mathis has a top 10 of Michigan, Nebraska, Washington, USC, UCLA, Alabama, Miami, Texas A&M, Arizona St, and Tennessee.  I have a feeling the Wolverines would take a commitment from him if he wanted to come to A2.

• One of two prospects Michigan is looking at for RB in this class will be in town this weekend.  (He forgot he was taking the ACT) . His name is Jordan Wilkins a 4 star RB from Tennessee.  Jordan visited Auburn last weekend and all most pulled the trigger on a commitment, so lets hope his Michigan experience is even a better then his Auburn experience.  

• Rare Wolverine found in California .

Michigan Thursday: Denard Version 1.0 Speaks About Denard 2.0

Pat White who is now a member of the Kansas City Royals organization spoke about Denard Robinson:

"He's a beast, that's all you can say," White said Wednesday in a teleconference announcing his shift from pro football to a baseball career with the Kansas City Royals. "He's just doing amazing things out there."

"He obviously knows the position and looks like a hard runner and a good leader," White said. "He doesn't look afraid to run the ball or stick his nose in there."

"I do think he's durable and will hold up," White said. "It's more than just being the right kind of quarterback, though. It's the right 11 guys doing the right things most of the time.

"He just needs to show up for work every day and be who you are. That's what he's doing now."

BG will be back in town to play his home town Detroit Lions this weekend.  Here is what he had to say about RR and Denard:  (freep link):  “I know he’s going to be there,” Graham said. “I know he’s staying there. He ain’t going nowhere, you can say that. I can see that, already within the team, that those guys, very strong. A lot of linemen that was light last year gained a lot of pounds to get ready, got stronger and got faster. “I don’t see Coach Rod leaving now. I just think them boys going to take it one game at a time, and a lot of people are going to have a different perspective when they talk about Michigan.”   On DRob:  "just one move, and he was gone,” Graham said. “That’s what I see that he gained a lot from last year. Last year, he was trying to do too many juke moves. Now I see him just making one cut, and he’s gone. “That was the biggest thing that we had to get him to do, to know his own speed. And to see him out there really killing it right now, I’m very happy for him, because I know he worked hard.”

• U of M to honor Ron Kramer #87 before the kickoff of the UMass game

• 3 Keys to an UMass Upset on Saturday.  Stop Denard, Stop Denard, Score points 

• Mike Marrow a former Alabama running back has decided to transfer closer to home and picked Eastern Michigan, over Wisconsin and Michigan?  That U of M offer doesn't pass the sniff test in my book.  Maybe there was a walk on offer.  Mike is from Toledo. 

• We will see how good UConn is this week as the take on a quality Temple team that is expected to compete for a MAC Championship and already has a win over Central Michigan.

Michigan Tuesday Afternoon Tidbits

• Tony Posada plans to announce his college choice on Wednesday at 5:00 EST.  I am guessing Michigan or South Florida.  Best guess:  Michigan.

• For those Michigan fans traveling to the IU game, bring the kids!  Tickets are only $5 for kids.  Yes, $5!  Call the IU ticket office at 1-866-IUSPORTS (487-7678).

• Demar Dorsey still is not participating at Louisville's camp and it's not looking good.."We're moving forward as if those guys are not going to be here," Strong said.   Maybe Michigan's admission department did know what they were doing?

• Guess What?  The Michigan coaches know what they are doing!  Here are some quotes on first round draft pick Brandon Graham:  "I look at him as another (Dwight) Freeney deal," said Cole, referring to the Colts' five-time Pro Bowler. "He's a great player and just keep watching because he's going to be pretty good."-----"He's done very well with that," said Reid. "He's very strong in the lower body; he's very strong in the upper body, too. His lower body, he's got a nice anchor there and good core strength and understands how to use his hands and arms and plays with separation on the linemen."  Those statements seem like a very good recruiting tool.  (ht: mgoblog)

• Dallas Crawford Quote:  “I plan on making my decision before signing day but not before the season ends,” said Crawford, who added that he’s not leaning any particular way at this point “… I have my top schools, Michigan, Miami, LSU, Wake Forest, North Carolina, West Virginia and Tennessee.” Expect Dallas and teammate Sammy Watkins to make an official to Ann Arbor this season.

Michigan Friday: RR and WVU

The press is all over the recent WVU NCAA allegations and Rich Rodriquez.  Let me try to bring some thought instead of "throwing stones" at this situation. 

At most schools, compliance responsibility falls under the compliance department.  For example the compliance department responsibility is to make sure all the coaches understand what they can and can't do.   A great example is both the Michigan and WVU examples; both alleged situations happen before and after Rich was there.   It was happening at Michigan before RR was hired and continued happening at WVU after he left.    Which in my mind means that both institutions felt they weren't breaking the rules or didn't understand the rules properly. 

Let me give you example: if graduate assistants or support staff are involved in practice or non-practice activity.  The compliance department would have to "sign off on it" or agree they were not breaking the rules.  The "rub" is if you believe that Rich Rodriguez knew using the support staff was wrong and did it anyway.  That is where the NCAA could come down hard. 

Here is what RR had to say:  "I have always taken compliance seriously and have sincerely felt our program was very open and transparent. I regret any mistakes that were made or rules that were misinterpreted.


Any errors certainly weren’t made intentionally. I openly discussed my past practices with NCAA investigators and will continue to cooperate fully during this process.

I have redoubled efforts with my staff and our compliance team to improve several processes, strengthen communications, and work to ensure these mistakes won’t happen in the future.


We have a tremendous program and an exceptional group of student-athletes, and I look forward to an exciting and successful football season."

I maybe looking at this with "maize and blue" colored glasses, but I don't find the WVU allegations damning to RR, I believe it is an example that RR and staff believed what they were doing was in line with the rules.   An example is that things didn't change when Bill Stewart tool over the program.  I also believe if you have the NCAA go over your program with a fine tooth comb, you will find that 90% of the programs out there would be guilty of the same thing.  (if you have a friend that played major college football, ask him if there were GA's there for summer 7 on 7's?  Or if a player broke the rules was punished by running the stadium stairs during the summer?  I betting the answer would be Yes, most of the time).  Another side point:  I remember when Adrian Arrington broke team rules and had to run the stairs at the Big House every morning under Lloyd Carr.  There was a coach or GA there every morning at 6:00 AM to let him in and make sure he completed it.  That's a violation right there.  (NCAA if your reading this - that never really happended).

The best thing the NCAA could do is slap both programs on the hand and let the rest of the Universities out there know what the rules are regarding these situations.   Then move on to playing real football games.

Love or Hate RR, that is your choice but be careful before you throw stones.

•  Like I predicted the Big Ten picked Indy for the Big Ten Championship next year.  I think this was a good and safe decision. 

• Michigan needs to break in the turf at the Big House.  Rain and play is the best way to do it.

• Boubacar goes from one Big House to another.  This is a sad story. 

• BG is getting good reviews so far at Eagles camp:  "He looks like he's going to be a good football player," coach Andy Reid said recently. "Does he have some things he has to learn? Absolutely. He is an explosive guy. That you can see, and he's got very good athletic ability and instincts, and now it's just a matter of mastering a few of the different techniques that you need to play at this level that you don't necessarily need to use at the college level."

• Guess who the focus is for the Rice Owls on offense this year?  Your correct, Sam McGuffie.

• Tim from Mgoblog gives us an update from Michigan Basketball practice.  Your first reaction might be: What? Football practice hasn't even started yet?  Michigan is going to be playing some games in Europe later this month and can have up to 10 practices to prepare for the trip.  This is something a team can do once every 4 years.  These practices and games will give the young Wolverines much needed experience and practice time heading into the season.

Are you intrested in how the legendary Michigan Football helmets are prepared every year?  I knew you where!




Since I wasn't expecting this story to break, I will have a bonus Weekend Post up early on Saturday Morning for you reading pleasure.

Non-Wolverine Commitment News and BG's Press Conference!

Neither of these were surprises by any means but both had Michigan offers and both would have probably considered the Wolverines if RR's record was better the last two years.

Michigan running back Justice Hayes picked Notre Dame today.  If Michigan puts together a winning record in 2010 look for Mr. Hayes to re-consider the Wolverines.  

One of the top linebackers in the country from Ohio, Trey DePreist picked Alabama over Ohio State today.  Trey grew up a Michigan fan in Ohio but never visited Ann Arbor during his recruitment and will head South and play for Nick Sabin.  This is another example of a highly ranked player from Ohio that passed on the Buckeyes for another program.  (the other two are from the 2010 class - 5 star LB Jordan Hicks and the late 4 star OL Matt James who passed away tragically during Spring Break after falling from a balcony, he signed with ND).

On the good news front: Brandon Graham signed his rookie contract with the Eagles! 

Here is the link.  I got tired of the video starting automatically!

Michigan Monday: A Lesson in Leaving Early: Donovan Warren

If you follow this blog you know I have a few topics that I burn on regularly; concussions and Wolverines leaving early for the NFL or NBA Drafts. Now don't get me wrong, if your a first or second round player, I don't have any problems with you leaving early for the professional ranks. I agree the risk of injury and your window to make Millions is too hard to pass up.

My problem lies with these young men who are getting terrible advice on where they are projected in the draft and make a poor decision to leave early. My first example was Adrian Arrington who left Michigan early two years ago after one of his best games of his career in the Citrus Bowl win over Florida.

He was drafted in the 7th round by the Super Bowl Champs New Orleans Saints and has basically just been hanging on to a roster spot via the practice squad. He hasn't sniffed the field in two years in the NFL. He does have a Super Bowl ring, which his is only bright side of his professional career so far.

The most recent example of leaving early is Donovan Warren who was not drafted this weekend and reportedly signed with the Jets as a free agent on Saturday. There were 33 cornerbacks taken in the NFL 2010 draft including the likes of Jeremy Ware of MSU and Ray Fisher from Indiana. Were there really 33 cornerbacks better then Warren in 2009? No, IMO there was not. The problem is Warren was rated a 3rd or 4th round draft pick when he announced and then he ran a poor 40 yard dash at the combine. When your a first round talent and then you run a poor 40 you drop to the 3rd or 4th round. When your a 4th round talent and ran a poor 40, you drop out of the draft. That is what happened with Donovan.

Was it his ankle? I don't know but if the people close to Donovan gave him really good advice he should have stayed another year, worked with Barwis and improved his draft stock. If his ankle wasn't 100% that is another reason to stay in school. Either way, good luck DW with the Jets. I understand his godfather Mark Carrier is a coach on the Jets staff. We are all pulling for you to make the team!

Other Michigan Draft News:

• Zoltan gets drafted by Patriots in the 5th round. Many experts thought it was a reach but how can you pass up a punter with the name Zoltan? Brady and Zoltan on the same team is pretty intriguing. I wonder who will sell more jerseys?

• Stevie Brown got drafted in the 7th round by the Raiders. Congrats Stevie!

• David Mooseman signs with Cardinals as a free agent.

• Carlos Brown signs with the Saints as a free agent.

• The Chicago Bears sign both Greg Mathews and Brandon Minor as free agents.

• Mark Ortmann signs with the Carolina Panthers as a free agent.

• BG will wear #94 for the Eagles.

Michigan Friday: BG Goes High in the Draft

If your Brandon Graham you have to love going to a team that was 11-5 and in the playoffs with Philly.

I also like how the ESPN panel raved about BG. Gruden "loved" Brandon and thought it was a great pick for the Eagles. It has to make Brandon feel welcomed since Philly gave up two 3rd round draft picks to move up to get him. Well done BG!



HT: Mgoblog


We are not expecting to see any Wolverines drafted in today's 2nd and 3rd rounds.

• Sad Situation for Chris Perry: He was recently arrested and his Mom is not doing well in a New York hospital.

• The Rumor Mill is rumbling that Demar Dorsey will not make it to Ann Arbor this summer due to academics. At this point, these are just rumors and it seems strange to me to find out his academics are not in line before the end of the school year.

• Lions fans have to like their picks in the first round with Suh and Best. This might be the best first round for the Lions since they picked Barry Sanders. Reading body language, I'm not sure Suh was all that excited about becoming a Lion.

• With the number of CB and Safeties taken in round one, I'm guessing that has to be good news for Donovan Warren to get drafted in day 3. That's just my opinion.

• Lou Holtz sees a return to glory for ND under Kelly. Or Weis, or any other guy they get to coach the Irish.

• Michigan State is going to introduce their new uniforms on Friday. I'm guessing they are hoping these don't have the .500 curse.

Michigan Thursday: Preps for Tonights Draft

Michigan has a strong 1st round player in tonight's "primetime" NFL Draft. Brandon Graham has been impressing scouts this winter and spring and is expected to be drafted anywhere from the middle to the end of the first round. I'm expecting to see him go closer to the middle then the end. I'm predicting Brandon to be being one of those guys someone takes early so their division rival doesn't get him. Good luck tonight BG!

Update: Here is a great update from all the NFL Experts on where BG might go.

Donovan Warren that left school early to enter the draft is expected to be drafted anywhere from the 5th round to not drafted at all. I'm hoping he didn't make a mistake by leaving early. As of right now, it looks like he did.

The other Wolverines hoping to be drafted, Zoltan, Greg Mathews, Brandon Minor and Stevie Brown are expected to be free agents.

• Sam Webb from Det News, WTKA, and Scouts says that the Florida pair Sammy Watkins and Dallas Crawford enjoyed their "cold" visit so much they are hoping to do an official back to Ann Arbor before they make their decision. If they are taking any advice, I would visit during Fall Practice in August. It's a bit warmer.

• Don't Panic! The Big Ten moves as quickly as a 90 year old driving on a Florida Highway. The plan is still 12-18 months away. The Big East is very scared and hired former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagilabue to help with up coming Big Ten Fishing Trip.

• TomVH from Mogblog interviews Florida TE Jeff Heuerman who now has a Michigan offer.

• Michigan has offered Madison Heights athlete Valdez Showers. He is 6'0 and 185 pounds.

Wolverine Wednesday: Stand here if you want to join the Big Ten

The Big Ten expansion talk is getting out of control. People are now talking about 16 teams in a mega conference. Is that the intent? Does it make sense? Would ND jump on board? Right now we have more questions then answers with The Big Ten office in their own quiet period.

What I do know, is everyone and their brother from the Big East wants to jump on board the Big Ten train. ESPN's Colin Coward says UConn wants in, it seems Syracuse wants an invite, Rutgers and Pitt have already been rumored. From a first glance this would be great for basketball and not too bad for football either with Pitt, UConn and Rutgers showing real improvements over the past few years.

Again, more questions then answers at this point but if the Big Ten looks to fish the Big East. The Big East is in big trouble.

• Brandon Graham takes a little verbal jab at OSU and Vernon Gholston: “I don’t know what has happened with him. It might be the program he came from,” Graham told The Post yesterday — either purposely or inadvertently tweaking Michigan’s rival school. “Right now everyone looks at him as a bust, and I understand that. They’re paying him all this money and he hasn’t done anything.” BG recently visited the Jets.

• Michigan signee Courtney Avery will play cornerback in this weekend's Ohio High School Football Coaches Association North-South Classic at Ohio Stadium. This is news because he is not playing QB where he was very successful: "It's going to be a little different, because I'm not playing quarterback," said Avery, a two-time All-Ohio first team defensive pick and the owner of virtually every Lexington passing record. "It will be nice to focus just on defense. It will give me a taste of what I'll be doing at Michigan." Joining Courtney on the North team are Michigan signees Jake Ryan and Antonio Kinard. The South Team also has 3 Michigan signees; The Talbott brothers and Jibreel Black. I hope these boys get used to winning in Ohio Stadium.

• Boubacar is in trouble again. This is sad.
  


• Big Plans for the Big Chill.

Wolverine Weekend Update: BG Dominates and Recruiting News

As Michigan fans we know how good Brandon Graham is. He was dominate all year on a bad defense and should have been a finalist for some national awards. Now most of the NFL Scouts know as well, as BG had two sacks, two fumble recoveries, and was named the Defensive MVP for the Under Armour Senior Bowl. Brandon's impressive play should now propel him into the first round, some services had him with a early second round grade.

• Former Michigan 2009 signee Adrian Witty has committed to Cincinnati. Adrian was not academically eligible to join the Wolverines in 2009 and stayed in Florida to work on his grades. The rumor is that his new grades and a higher test score were flagged as risky and the U of M admissions offices denied his admission, again just a rumor. You also don't need to make a big leap to think that Coach Rod's might have called his friend Butch Jones at Cincinnati to secure Adrian a spot. Mostly after taking Jibreel Black last week.

• Tony Grimes to Ole Miss: Tony has had Michigan as his leader for most of his recruitment and now he has decided to stay South and attend Ole Miss. The last few weeks of this recruitment seem strange. First, Jay Hopson his recruiter from Michigan takes a job as Memphis DC, then his teammate Clarence Murphy who he planned on going to Michigan with picks Maryland instead, and then Tony plays in high school all star game and doesn't like the cold. After all those things, Grimes went from a Michigan lock to a Michigan maybe. Now he will play his football at Ole Miss. So was it Tony that cooled on Michigan or did Michigan cool on Tony? Either way it doesn't matter now and we wish him good luck playing for Houston Nutt.

• Pitt to the Big Ten? The messages boards are running with a rumor that Pitt will be named as the Big Ten's 12th team sometime in the near future. Interesting choice (if true), it would give Penn State an instate rival. If this is true, I hope they build their own football stadium.

• RR said at halftime of the Michigan - Iowa game that he plans to take 26-28 commitments for the 2010 class. Michigan currently has 26 verbals with 3 guys left on the board: Parker, Dorsey, and Knight. He is also ok with Kelvin Grady playing both basketball and football and that he plans on hiring a new LB coach after signing day.

• A thought for the NFL: I know having the Pro Bowl the week before the Super Bowl has come under fire due to the loss of the Colts and Saints players, and the move from Hawaii. I also know the NFL would like to fill the void in between weeks. So my thought is to play the Senior Bowl at the site of the Super Bowl on the Saturday or Sunday the week before. Make it a big event and get it off the NFL network. Players would get a good idea what it takes to be a NFL player.

Michigan Monday: Recruiting Update

Since this is the silent period, not much is happening in recruiting circles these days. With that said, there are a few updates regarding the Wolverines.

• Jibreel Black a DE from Cincinnati will visit Ann Arbor in January. Jibreel is currently a verbal to University of Cincinnati and was formally committed to Indiana. Jibreel and the Michigan coaches have stayed in contact during his recruitment.

• Todd Chandler, a four-star DT prospect from Miami (FL) Northwestern might visit Rich Rod and Ann Arbor on 1/22. He is currently a South Florida commit. He is also being recruited by Charlie Strong the new head coach at Louisville. Todd is also a teammate of current Michigan recruit Torrian Wilson, who maybe attending Ann Arbor with Todd on the 22nd.

• Johnathan Hankins a DT from Detroit might announce his college decision this week. His father said a few weeks ago that Johnathan would announce before Christmas which didn't happen. His final 3 are Michigan, Ohio State, and Florida with some recruiting insiders suggesting the Alabama might be making a late run at him.

• It seems Michigan has some interest in Tennessee committed linebacker Mike Taylor.

• Michigan's recruiting pipeline at Detroit's Cass Tech might have take a quick detour with CB Dior Mathis who many believe will end up an Oregon Duck.

• Michigan Seniors Brandon Graham and Zoltan Mesko are going to play in the Senior Bowl in Alabama.

Brandon Graham Wins Big Ten MVP Award

Well it was actually was a tie between him and Darryl Clark from Penn State. The award is given out by Chicago Tribune’s and it's called the Silver Football Award, which is actually an older award then the Heisman Trophy. The Silver Football goes to the Big Ten MVP.

Brandon and Darryl both received the same number of first and second place votes. So they will share this prestigious honor. He is Michigan's 16th player to win the award and first defensive player since Charles Woodson in 1997. Brandon is only the 7th defensive player to win the award all time.

Congratulations to Brandon on a well deserved award and welcomed good news at the end of the season.

• Former Wolverine Maurice Williams signed with the Lions yesterday.

• Louisville is planning to announce the hiring of Florida's DC Charlie Strong today as head coach. This is a great hire for Louisville. This news also might effect the recruitment of Johnathon Hankins, who had Florida has he leader last week before his Michigan visit. This news could push Johnathon closer to a Michigan commit.