Michigan Monday: What A Weekend!

When your talking about a weekend in late January your hoping for maybe some recruiting news to fill up your post on a Monday morning.  This weekend had a little bit of everything, except recruiting news.  

First things first:  How about them Wolverines?  What a huge win in East Lansing on Saturday night!  Michigan started fast and finished fast to beat the #3 team in the nation and Michigan's top basketball rival.   Michigan continued its hot shooting which kept them in the game when MSU looked like they were going to pull away and win by 10+ points.  Nik continued his hot play with hitting 5 of 6 three point shots and Derrick Walton had his best game as a Wolverine with 19 points.   MSU's Garry Harris looked like the best player in the Big Ten by going for 26 points but he couldn't do it alone and it was clear the loss of the Spartans two big men hurt them on the floor. 

Even thought LeVert struggled to guard Harris, he added 17 points of his own on some athletic plays and made some nice decisions during the last 5 minutes of the game.  The clear difference in the win, was the way the Wolverines shot free throws at 83%.   They were solid down the stretch, which didn't give the Spartans any window for a comeback.   Michigan now finds themselves atop of the best conference in basketball after an un-believable week.   Let's hope they can continue this momentum!   It is such a pleasure to see a high profile Michigan team keep improving game by game.


They Out!

The other big news of the weekend was the transfer of 3 players that were rumored for months in Richard Ash, Thomas Rawls and Josh Furman.  All 3 are expected to graduate from Michigan and be eligible to play right away at their next program.   Here is my take on all 3 players:

Rawls was a late recruiting period signing in Hoke's first rushed couple weeks on the job class.   He was a 3 star back from Flint that Fred Jackson compared to another Flint running back Mark Ingram.  Thomas never showed that Heisman skill set and in fact had fell so far on the depth chart this year he was looking up at two freshman and Justice Hayes.  It seems many had wanted Thomas to be a power back but he had trouble making people miss and holding on to the ball.  I would imagine there were issues with pass protection as well.   He is expected to graduate this Spring and transfer to Central Michigan next Fall.   Good Luck to him in his final year!

Ash was another late signing in the 2010 class when RR stole him from West Virginia.   He was a 3 star guy from Pahokee that never really made an impact on the defensive line.  He was being passed by younger players and even though saw a few plays this year, he just wasn't making any impact.  He has been on campus for 4 years as a RS junior and should graduate as well.   I wish nothing but the best for him and hope he can land somewhere where he can play one last year. 

I had huge hopes for Josh Furman when he came to Michigan as a 4 star safety prospect in the 2010 class.  I thought he was going to step in and make a difference in the poor Michigan secondary right away.  That never happened and he had trouble finding a position moving from Safety, to LB then back to Safety.  He got in a couple times this year when Michigan didn't have any other options and struggled each time.  He was also a RS junior and should be on track to graduate this Spring.    Like the other 3, I congratulate him on getting his Michigan degree and wish him nothing but the best!


Does this open up 3 more spots in the 2014 or 15 class?  I don't believe so, my expectation is that these transfers were expected.  Granting a 5th year is always optional for either the player or program.

Any more attrition expected?  It's always hard to predict but I would expect Michigan to lose a few more players between now and right after Spring Ball.   Many players will stay through Spring Ball to see if they can jump up the depth chart. 

• I don't know if anyone was bored yesterday and turned on the Knicks - Lakers game?  If you did you could have seen Tim Hardaway and Manny Harris guarding each other and both having a nice game, each scored 18 points.  Manny is on a 10 day contract and is showing he is an NBA quality player.