2008 Michigan Preview: Special Teams
Projected Depth Chart
Kicking Game
After The Horror and the several other games in which Jason Gingell was horrible, he was replaced by5th-year senior KC Lopata, who just so happened to be pretty good. He will return as the kicker. Punting will be the domain of redshirt junior Zoltan Mesko, with Bryan Wright handling kickoffs. Wright is also moving from placekicker to punter, where he will back up Mesko.
Statistics
Analysis
KC was a good replacement for Gingell last year, and should maintain his grip on the job in 2008. He was consistent, even if he doesn’t have great leg strength. Zoltan is poised to be one of the best punters in the conference, and Bryan Wright has a big leg for kicking touchbacks, but clearly not accurate enough to kick field goals. The move to a rugby punt may scare some Michigan fans, but it hasn't come back to bite West Virginia in recent years.
Return Game
On punt returns, Donovan Warren is expected to be the starter. If his speed isn't what the team needs at the position, I wouldn't be surprised to see a return to the steady hands of Greg Mathews. On kickoff returns, Morgan Trent and Brandon Harrison are expected to start. Both have good top-end speed.
Statistics:
Analysis
There are plenty of options, especially with the freshmen recreuited to the speed-friendly offense of Rich Rodriguez. Don't be surprised to see a more exciting return game than Michigan had in 2007, though perhaps not as electrifying as Steve Breaston was in the role.
| PK | P | KO | PR | KR |
| Lopata (rSr) | Mesko (rJr) | Wright (rSo) | Warren (So) | Trent (rSr) |
| Gingell (rSr) | Wright (rSo) | Mesko (rJr) | Mathews (Jr) | Harrison (Sr) |
| Wright (rSo) | Barnum (Fr) | Odoms (Fr) | Minor (Jr) | |
| Shaw (Fr) | Odoms (Fr) |
Kicking Game
After The Horror and the several other games in which Jason Gingell was horrible, he was replaced by5th-year senior KC Lopata, who just so happened to be pretty good. He will return as the kicker. Punting will be the domain of redshirt junior Zoltan Mesko, with Bryan Wright handling kickoffs. Wright is also moving from placekicker to punter, where he will back up Mesko.
Statistics
| Michigan Kicking 2007 | |||||||
| Name | FGM | Att | % | Long | XPM | Att | % |
| KC Lopata | 11 | 12 | 91.67 | 42 | 28 | 29 | 96.55 |
| Jason Gingell | 3 | 9 | 33.33 | 42 | 14 | 14 | 100.00 |
| Michigan Punting 2007 | |||
| Name | Punts | Yds | Avg |
| Zoltan Mesko | 70 | 2876 | 41.09 |
Analysis
KC was a good replacement for Gingell last year, and should maintain his grip on the job in 2008. He was consistent, even if he doesn’t have great leg strength. Zoltan is poised to be one of the best punters in the conference, and Bryan Wright has a big leg for kicking touchbacks, but clearly not accurate enough to kick field goals. The move to a rugby punt may scare some Michigan fans, but it hasn't come back to bite West Virginia in recent years.
Return Game
On punt returns, Donovan Warren is expected to be the starter. If his speed isn't what the team needs at the position, I wouldn't be surprised to see a return to the steady hands of Greg Mathews. On kickoff returns, Morgan Trent and Brandon Harrison are expected to start. Both have good top-end speed.
Statistics:
| Michigan Punt Returns 2007 | ||||
| Name | Ret | Yds | Avg | TD |
| Greg Mathews | 28 | 224 | 8.00 | 0 |
| Donovan Warren | 5 | 23 | 4.40 | 0 |
| Johnny Sears | 2 | 14 | 7.00 | 0 |
| Michigan Kick Returns 2007 | ||||
| Name | Ret | Yds | Avg | TD |
| Carlos Brown | 16 | 306 | 19.13 | 0 |
| Brandon Minor | 13 | 257 | 19.77 | 0 |
| Johnny Sears | 6 | 133 | 22.17 | 0 |
| Brandon Harrison | 4 | 74 | 18.50 | 0 |
| Mike Massey | 2 | 28 | 14.00 | 0 |
| Junior Hemingway | 2 | 20 | 10.00 | 0 |
| Obi Ezeh | 1 | 13 | 13.00 | 0 |
| Jonas Mouton | 1 | 20 | 20.00 | 0 |
Analysis
There are plenty of options, especially with the freshmen recreuited to the speed-friendly offense of Rich Rodriguez. Don't be surprised to see a more exciting return game than Michigan had in 2007, though perhaps not as electrifying as Steve Breaston was in the role.
This entry was posted by Tim, on
Thursday, August 21, 2008.
You can leave your response.
8/21/2008 03:15:00 PM
Seriously, VB has really become a must view page at least a couple of times a day. Luckily I live in the Bay area, so there is usually new content by the time I check!
8/21/2008 04:27:00 PM
I agree, this really is a great blog. Keep it up and you will have more readership.
8/21/2008 07:04:00 PM
Awesome preview, as always, and Zoltan will be one of the best punters in the country, not just the conference.
Lopata was also a great replacement for Gingell, he only missed one field goal late in the season that we all knew was beyond his distance. I do not hold that against him.
As mentioned when we landed Fera, the kicking and punting games are so unappreciated until you realize you don't have one, but it is so relieving that we really don't have a single worry about either our field goal kicker, our punter, or our kickoff man.
Go Blue!
8/21/2008 08:58:00 PM
What's this about Ricky Barnum as being the third stringer Kick off guy?
8/22/2008 10:19:00 AM
Wow. I had forgot about Johnny Sears. He was so beat. Thank G he's gone.
8/24/2008 02:07:00 AM
How in the world did Johnny Sears manage to have the highest kick return average?
8/24/2008 10:25:00 AM
By having most of his attempts come against a 1-AA team.