2009 Michigan Wolverines Football Preview
2009 Michigan Wolverines season preview from Maddux Sports. Below you can find our official Michigan Wolverines football preview as well as the 2009 Michigan Wolverines Football Schedule. Dont miss Maddux's free college football picks on the weekly college football odds from the #1 sports handicapping team.
Coach: Rich Rodriguez (2nd year at Michigan)
Team Name: Wolverines
2008 Overall Record: 3-9
Returning Starters: 15
In 2008, the Michigan Wolverines (3- 9 overall, 2- 6 Big Ten) finished out of bowl contention and tied for ninth in the conference. That was after a solid string of bowl appearances and top twenty ratings. In 2007, the unranked Wolverines met #9 Florida in the Capital One Bowl, beating them 41- 35. Then 2008 occurred with new coach Rich Rodriguez (3- 9 in one year at Michigan) entering into a rebuilding phase and instituting a spread offense. The club was ranked at the bottom of the Big Ten in just about every offensive category. This season should be different.
In 2008, the Wolverines put an average of just 20.3 PPG on the board. The QB situation is worrisome. Freshman signal caller Tate Forcier, though lacking experience, looks to possess the skills to run the spread offense. The running unit is deep and includes seniors Brandon Minor (103 ATT, 533 YDs, 9 TDs) and Carlos Brown (29 ATT, 122 YDs, 0 TD). Brown, who fought injuries last season, saw limited action. He looks healthy and should have a big impact. The wide receiving corps include sophomore Martavious Odoms (49 REC, 443 YDs, 0 TD) and senior Greg Matthews (35 REC, 409 YDs, 2 TDs). The frontline is seasoned and skilled and should be a difference-maker.
The defense, which gave up 28.9 PPG, was ranked 84th nationally. The frontline mainly lacks experience and looks to be a wildcard. Senior DE Brandon Graham (46 TKLs, 10 SKs, 10 TFL) will anchor the unit. The linebacking squad returns three fine starters but lacks depth. Obi Ezeh (98 TKLs, 1 SK, 6 TFL, 1 INT), Jonas Mouton (76 TKLs, 1 SK, 5.5 TFL) and Stevie Brown (64 TKLs, 1 SK, 0.5 TFL, 2 INTs) are all juniors with experience, skill and fine game chops. Corner Donovan Warren (52 TKLs, 3.5 TFL, 1 INT), also a junior, is an expert at breaking up passes. For the secondary to be effective some young players will need to develop quickly.
On special teams, the return game looks solid with Odoms taking punts (12.6 YPR) and kicks (23.1 YPR) and Boubacar Cissoko kicks (23.4 YPR). Punter Zoltan Mesko (43.0 YPP) was first-team All-Big Ten in 2008. Kicker K.C. Lopata is gone and the field goal and extra point games are up in the air. With a range of walk-ons to choose from it looks like the job will go to freshman Brendan Gibbons.
With a year of experience under the guidance of Rodriguez, the Michigan Wolverines should put up better numbers and notch more victories. The first four games look like wins. The toughest contests will be versus Michigan State (October 3), Penn State (October 24) and Ohio State (November 21). This can be a seven or eight win season for Michigan, during which they take fifth or sixth in the conference and earn a lower tier bowl bid. It’s a start for a team that has a few years of rebuilding left.
Michigan Wolverines Football Schedule
| Date | Team | Opponent | Site | Line | Total | Points | Opp Points |
| 9/5/2009 | Michigan | W. Michigan | home | ||||
| 9/12/2009 | Michigan | Notre Dame | home | ||||
| 9/19/2009 | Michigan | East. Michigan | home | ||||
| 9/26/2009 | Michigan | Indiana | home | ||||
| 10/3/2009 | Michigan | Michigan St. | away | ||||
| 10/10/2009 | Michigan | Iowa | away | ||||
| 10/17/2009 | Michigan | Delaware St. | home | ||||
| 10/24/2009 | Michigan | Penn St. | home | ||||
| 10/31/2009 | Michigan | Illinois | away | ||||
| 11/7/2009 | Michigan | Purdue | home | ||||
| 11/14/2009 | Michigan | Wisconsin | away | ||||
| 11/21/2009 | Michigan | Ohio St. | home |
For more info on the 2009 Michigan Wolverines football program, view their official website or read up on the rest of the Big Ten foes below.
