Michigan Announces 2014-16 Non-Conference Football Games June 27, 2012
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan Athletic Department announced today (Wednesday, June 27) updates to the non-conference schedules for the 2014-16 football seasons and the future schedule with Notre Dame. The Wolverines will play a nationally competitive non-conference slate, facing teams from the Pacific-12, Mountain West and Mid-American conferences as well as independent Notre Dame.
Michigan will play three of its four non-conference games at Michigan Stadium in 2014. The Wolverines will open the season against Appalachian State at the Big House on Aug. 30 before traveling to Notre Dame in the second week of the season (Sept. 6). U-M will host Miami (Ohio) on Sept. 13 before finishing the non-conference slate Sept. 20 with the front end of a home-and-home with Utah.
In 2015, the Wolverines will face the Utes on a Thursday night (Sept. 3) in Salt Lake City, Utah. This will be the first college football game of the 2015 season and the first time in school history that U-M will play a Thursday night football game during the regular season. Following the trip west, Michigan will return to Ann Arbor for three straight home games: Notre Dame (Sept. 12), Oregon State (Sept. 19) and UNLV (Sept. 26).
The 2016 season schedule is half complete with an agreement to face Colorado at the Big House on Sept. 17. This game will be played one week after a trip to Notre Dame (Sept. 10). The Wolverines have openings for home games on Sept. 3 and Sept. 24.
In addition, Michigan and Notre Dame will take a two-year hiatus in their long-standing rivalry during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Both schools intend to resume the rivalry in the years following.
Preseason poll has U-M winning Big Ten title; MSU 2nd in Legends Division July 22, 2012 By Mark Snyder Detroit Free Press Sports
If predictions are worth anything, this should be a banner season for college football in the state of Michigan.
Both Michigan and Michigan State earned accolades in the second annual Big Ten writers' preseason football poll.
The Wolverines were picked by a group of 24 reporters to win the Legends Division and the Big Ten title in the championship game over Wisconsin. The Spartans ended up second in the Legends, and MSU's William Gholston was picked as the preseason defensive player of the year.
The Badgers were the choice to win the Leaders Division, with Wisconsin tailback Montee Ball named the preseason offensive player of the year. Ball was the conference's only unanimous postseason All-Big Ten pick last fall.
In its desire to be unique when it inaugurated football divisions in 2011, the Big Ten eliminated its preseason media team predictions and voting for the conference offensive and defensive player of the year.
Instead, the conference will announce players to watch when its preseason football media days begin Thursday in Chicago.
July 23, 2012 at 5:12 pm Fitzgerald Toussaint, Frank Clark suspended from U-M football team By Angelique S. Chengelis The Detroit News
Two Michigan football players have been indefinitely suspended.
Michigan running back Fitz Toussaint was arrested Saturday night by Saline Police on charges of operating a vehicle while impaired, and defensive end Frank Clark is facing a preliminary hearing in 14A District court on Aug. 2 for second-degree home invasion.
"Fitz made a poor decision and has been suspended indefinitely because of that action," Michigan coach Brady Hoke said in a statement released Monday afternoon. "There are expectations that come with being a football student-athlete at the University of Michigan and those responsibilities were not met in this instance.
"We will use this as an opportunity to educate Fitz and make sure he understands the high standards that we have established within our program."
Toussaint, the Wolverines' leading rusher last season, was arrested at approximately 11:45 p.m. According to a report in Saline Patch, Toussaint had a blood-alcohol content above the legal limit of .08.
July 23, 2012 at 1:00 am Michigan reveals special uniform for Alabama game By Angelique S. Chengelis The Detroit News
As expected, Michigan will wear a special jersey for the season opener against defending national champion Alabama on Sept. 1 in the Cowboys Classic game at Cowboys Stadium.
The adidas jersey was unveiled Monday night by U-M.
The Wolverines will wear a white road jersey with maize across the shoulders and down to the sleeve. Blue piping separates the maize from the white, and there's a blue block "M" on the left and right sleeves of the jersey and the numbers are in blue.
Michigan will wear maize pants with a blue block "M" on the left hip.
Their gloves will feature the lyrics to "The Victors," the school's fight song.
Lookin' forward to the big battle with the Tide on Sat!
I sure hope he's right:
August 30, 2012 at 12:32 pm Analyst Gary Danielson: Michigan can hang with Alabama By Angelique S. Chengelis The Detroit News
Former NFL quarterback Gary Danielson, now a college football analyst for CBS Sports, believes Michigan has the pieces in place to keep things close against two-touchdown favorite Alabama, the defending national champion, in the upcoming season opener for both teams.
Danielson, who mostly handles coverage of Southeastern Conference football games, is in Dublin, Ireland, to work the Notre Dame-Navy game.
The eighth-ranked Wolverines play No. 2 Alabama on Saturday night at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
"You make a couple mistakes, you have a lapse, it's the first game of the year … Michigan is capable of doing it (pulling the upset), but that's unlikely in my opinion," Danielson said by phone from Ireland. "I do believe Alabama is in danger (of losing) four or five times this year, and I can't believe Michigan won't be one of those teams (that could beat them)."
The Crimson Tide return a veteran offensive line and quarterback in AJ McCarron, a strong back in Eddie Lacy, and a defense that lost several key members to the NFL but is expected to be reloaded and as stingy as a year ago.
"They're going to have to survive, and get it late." Danielson said of Michigan. "Alabama will have to not play their 'A' game for Michigan to beat them. It's possible."
August 29, 2012 at 2:17 am Scouting the Michigan defense By Angelique S. Chengelis The Detroit News
If that's what it takes
Senior Craig Roh moved to strongside defensive end from rush end and packed on close to 15 pounds since last season. Roh is now 6-5, 281 pounds and could stand to gain even more weight, he said.
He has added what is called "good" weight, mostly muscle.
How? Roh said he has been on the blood-type diet, which focuses, in part, on anti-inflammatory foods. He eats plenty of protein, including meat and chicken, and milkshakes with almond milk and olive oil.
"Nine tablespoons of olive oil in a milkshake," Roh said. "It doesn't taste great, but you can get it down. It burns your throat a little bit, though."
Finally, the D shines
Senior linebacker Kenny Demens remembers the days — the 2008-10 seasons — when Michigan's defense wasn't much to talk about.
That changed a year ago when Baltimore Ravens' defensive coordinator Greg Mattison took over, lifting a unit that was near the bottom statistically to 17th nationally in total defense and sixth in scoring.
August 29, 2012 at 1:00 am Scouting the Michigan offense By Angelique S. Chengelis The Detroit News
Early impact?
Senior receiver Roy Roundtree made a point to single out freshman receiver Amara Darboh early in preseason camp. Roundtree roomed with the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Darboh during camp and answered plenty of questions and offered plenty of advice.
Roundtree didn't say Darboh could come in right away and be an impact player in a position group that lacks depth, but he did praise the freshman.
"He's really fast and strong," Roundtree said. "I feel like he's really comfortable. I told him, 'It's football, man, just a faster pace.' And he did it."
Too much, too early
Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges said he learned a lot from last year in terms of how to mold the offense around quarterback Denard Robinson.
Borges said he went to the pro-style too early and then scaled back to take advantage of Robinson's ability running the spread.
"We knew Denard was a good spread quarterback — anybody could see that," Borges said. "It was a matter of how much of what he could do of what we'd done in the past. We were always going to have some of that offense. I decided that when I took the job.
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