Category: Football

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Peppers Return to Michigan Could Mean a Strive for Greatness

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Its still unknown as to whether Michigans’ all-around player Jabrill Peppers will return for one more season. But if he wants to be the best, he will have to do what is necessary.

Over the course of the season, Peppers has managed to play 933 snaps at 15 different positions. Yes, I said 15. That is a ridiculous amount, but yet it’s really not surprising to me anymore. There is a reason as to why he won the Paul Hornung Award as the nation’s most versatile player. He left everything on the field. on every play, and damn near was always making some kind of impact whether it was on offense, defense or even special teams. That is exactly what the team needed from him and he did it without question.

“Jabrill Peppers is a throwback to the time I played,” Hornung said in a statement. “He’s fearless on the field and uses his tremendous athletic skills and determination to play any position to help Michigan win football games. Jabrill is a fantastic addition to our list of Paul Hornung Award winners.”

Nothing is certain as to what Peppers may do. But I keep reiterating it to everyone, just like the recruiting season has been thus far, don’t be surprised. After attending the Heisman Trophy Ceremony earlier this month, Peppers might have dropped a slight clue on what we can possibly expect to hear in the near future.

So what the hell does it that mean if Peppers decides to return? It means that there could be a forced to be reckoned with in 2017.

Improve his football knowledge 

Its no secret that Peppers knows how to play defense. However, over the course of the season he was playing predominantly more at the line of scrimmage as a hybrid linebacker/safety and not so much at the safety for what he is being scouted for in the NFL. Scouts absolutely love seeing him make plays like these and attacking the ball and so do we, but they want to see him improve his pass coverage. I’m not a  defensive coordinator, but with Dymonte Thomas leaving and a possible return of Peppers, it could open a chance with him moving to strong safety next season where he could make a huge difference. Coming back to improve his skill set wouldnt be the worse idea.

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Draft stock is falling

As the regular season came to a finish, the big plays started to slow down and the hot pepper started to cool off and so did his rising stock for the NFL draft. Not because he wasn’t filling the stat lines but simply because the games got tougher and it got harder to make plays every time he was at a different position. No one isnt a bigger critic than Peppers is of himself and he knows that he didn’t finish as strong as he probably could have. There’s a chance to change that and solidify a primarily role on defense.

Unfinished business

Peppers had made it known to everyone that he plans to graduate and win a national title. At least those were his goals when he decided to come to Michigan and they’re certainly not far fetched from happening. Though Michigan is losing a ton of talent on both sides of the ball, due to graduates and departures to the NFL, they have depth and their returning some core players. That’s not even mentioning the noise their making on the recruiting scene. the  It might be too early to tell, but team 138 just might be that team to do it all and win a national title. Peppers has two more years of eligibility left and should be able to graduate next year. Yes, many players have gone pro and then decided to finish out their degree. But he’s a type person that wants to do everything the right way the first time and I can imagine him getting it done.

So much can happen in such a little time. But there is a decision to be made and is expected to be made very soon. Hopefully, we get another chance to see him not make a tackle for a loss or even a punt return for a touchdown. Hell, even see him get down like James Brown.

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On Thursday while practicing a drill on special teams, Peppers was hobbled and walking around with a hamstring pull. Despite the injury, he still participated in the pre-game warm ups and tried to give it a go and attempt to manage the pain. But it was just too much to handle.

After a 1-point lost to the Seminoles, we seen a emotional Peppers that we haven’t seen before.

“It was a joint decision,” he said. “The trainers watched me warm up. I knew I wasn’t myself, I knew I wasn’t going to be myself. If the game was Saturday, I play in this game 100%. I felt as though I just needed that extra day. When you tweak something like a hamstring the day before the game, it”s kind of tough to recover from.”

After missing the game, many had assumed that he was just sitting out just to protect his draft stock, but the tears running down his face said otherwise. Peppers said he that he taken an insurance policy after his  freshman year was cut short.

“I couldn’t care less about what people think why I didn’t play. The fact that I couldn’t be out there with my brothers, I think that hurt more than the loss. … My future didn’t play any role in this.”

Peppers added that he didn’t finish the year like he wanted or even had envisioned.

“Got some decisions to make, still feel like I didn’t do what I set out to do, as an individual and as a team,” he said. “We didn’t make the playoffs, didn’t make the Rose Bowl. And to come here and lose the Orange Bowl just sucked. Because we worked too hard for it.”

It’s hard to imagine Peppers walking away after seeing him like this. If he does though, the type of emotion that he brings to the locker room and on the field will be greatly missed.

 

Hail!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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M Football 2016 ORANGE BOWL: SEMINOLES NIP BATTLING WOLVERINES 32 TO 33

The 6th ranked Wolverines laid aside the disappointments that a bittersweet regular season afforded, and attempted to build on the many pluses the season revealed for their battle with the Florida State Seminoles, only to be handed another heartbreaking last seconds loss, replete with a controversial no call on an off sides call on M’s last possession. An irritating call, this time the game did not swing on it.

The pregame ended with the stunning announcement that Jabrill Peppers would not play because of a hamstring tweaked Thursday. This hurt the Wolverine cause on several levels. It was too late to plan around his absence. He was very much missed on special teams, as well as offense and defense.
FSU hyper talented star running back Delvin Cook prospered in his absence as he broke a couple of long runs. He rushed 20 times for 145-yards and a TD. He produced 207-yards, and was definitely the player of the game.

Kenny Allen provided the only field position advantage on special teams. He was simply outstanding. He hit three FGs. And his punting was outstanding. One long punt was dropped by the FSY receiver near the goal line, but M had to settle for three.

Peppers was missed in the pass rush, and as an on field leader, and he was also missed in trying to corral the hyper fast Cook. Cook often cooked M’s defensive intentions. He rendered Michigan’s defense mostly ineffective at times in the first and second quarters putting up 20 points to the Wolverines 9 in the first half, The Wolverines played a terrible 1st half offensively, and defensively, scoring no TDs and yielding big plays. They were inside the ten on three occasions and came away with three field goals, while FSU piled up 20 points in the half. M could not stop the spectacular running of FSU’s Cook, or the pass rush of Florida States Defensive line, until adjustments were made at the half, and they utilized quick short passes over the middle. I very much doubted that a blow-out was not in progress as it was 20 to 6 at the half.

They faced a very good Florida State Football team in this prestigious Capital One Orange Bowl played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Lakes, Florida.

THE LAST GAME OF THE SEASON DID NOT GET ANY EASIER FOR THE WOLVERINES. Ranked 10th in the country, and coached by the colorful and successful Jimbo Fisher, it seemed the Seminoles presented just the ticket to take the Wolverine’s mind off their two critical regular season losses that prevented them from achieving their goals of a shot at the Big Ten Championship, and a spot in the final four. Instead it added a third loss.

They were as disappointed, if not more so, than the fans, by those earlier losses, and probably this one. Many players thought post TOSU that they (Michigan) were among the best four teams in the country. While they had not proved it in late season’s action, the thought endured, and still seemed to be somewhat reasonable, but lessened by their stumble against the Seminoles.

THE LAST HALF: The Wolverines struggled mightily in the first half offensively and defensively, managing only 6 points, while the Seminoles held 20. But they received the second half KO, having deferred. When the drive stalled Kenny Allen supplied his third FG. It was now 9 to 20.

The Wolverines offense was somewhat now revitalized as they loaded their tight ends Bunting, Asiasi, and Wheatley, and gathered a few first downs. Jake Butt had been injured earlier, and was out for the game, but he chugged off under his own power.

TE Bunting caught a couple for 30-yards. With little time left in the quarter, the Wolverines made themselves a break. The defense brought pressure and FSU finally cracked as Mike McCray nabbed a Seminole pass and returned it 14-yards for the TD, diving on a very athletic play into the endzone on a very athletic play and the chase was on. 9 to 20 became 15 to 20. A two point conversion was missed. The defense was now alive and well after yielding 201-yards of offense in the first quarter, FSU managed only 69-yards from scrimmage in the second half.

The big play bugaboo bird kept pecking as Dalvin Cook faced a 3rd and 22, and conquered it by slipping a tackle and speeding 71-yards to the M 13. FSU QB Francois ran a keeper into the end zone and it was 15-27. Now it seemed to be over for the Wolverines.

Now it with a under eight minutes in the fourth, and the Seminoles gave a gift to the Wolverines, hitting a crouching Jordan Lewis with a very dangerous blow to the head. After the penalty, Speight hit Khalid Hill with a laser, and Hill broke the plane for the Wolverine’s first TD. With 5:22 left, it was 22-27.

After a three an out the Wolverines possessed the ball at their 39. Speight saw open field and took off running 27-yards to the FSU . Chris Evans than made the best Wolverines run of the day. His 30-yard run went for 6, and the first Wolverine lead. A Darboh slant for two made it 30-27 with just 1.57 to play.

Next another bite from the big play bugaboo wounded the Wolverine’s chances as FSU’s Gavin returned the ensuing KO 66-yards to the M 34 with 1:29 left. Kenny Allen had been putting KO’s deep enough to prevent treturns, but not this time. A completed screen took it to the 13. A fade into the end zone was completed for six. The Wolverines were again down, this time 30-33. There were just 36 seconds left to tick on the clock. M’s Josh Metellus collared the bouncing ball after the blocked extra point try and hauled it into the Seminoles end zone at the opposite end of the field for two. The final outcome was set at M-32, FSU-33.

THIS COMEBACK WAS WORTH NOTE: This was a Michigan team that had trouble playing its best football for a full game against better opponents this season and this one was no exception. The recovery of the defense and offense in the second half were tributes both to the player’s grit and determination, but to the ingenuity of the half time coaching adjustment.

They didn’t quit, but fought back. The offensive cold spells, and offensive line inability to protect a passer or provide a consistent running game, and the inexplicable characteristic of an otherwise hard hitting and effective defense to give up big plays at critical times was all part and parcel of this team.

Now a part of Michigan Football History, it is time to move on. Even if these things kept this team from progressing and accomplishing as much as we and they wanted them to. They were good team, just not as great as they wanted to be. It has been an exciting season of which players and fans can be proud. The brass ring will come around again. They are a rising team and program.

Now this team and season are a part of Michigan Football History. We will all move on. Even if these things kept them from progressing as a team from good to as great as they wanted to, it was an exciting season of which fans and players can be proud. The brass ring will come around again. They continue to be a rising team and program.

Happy New Year to you, and yours, on every level.

Go Blue!

 

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M FOOTBALL 2016-SOME COMMENTARY REGARDING THE SEASON AND THE FOOTBALL BUST

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Photo compliments of Ian Bunting (Twitter)

The 96th edition of the Wolverine’s football bust was again sponsored by the University of Michigan Club of Detroit, and was held on the evening of December 12, 2016 at Livonia’s Laurel Manor.

I was not able to attend the Bust again this year, but it remains an opportunity that Michigan Fans should take annually for a number of reasons.  It enables fans to put a face on the football machines you see on the field on Saturdays, and some that you don’t often get to observe that are in the background of the program, but contribute much to success.

This year we will all still remember the two defeats that deflated and eliminated the Wolverines’s Big Ten Championship and National Championship goals for the season by a slim margin.  We will recall the 2016 season as a near miss with only two close losses.  It was a season which produced a long awaited victory over the Spartans, and an opportunity for a prestigious Orange Bowl battle.  Overall the season show cased rising Wolverines.

The Wolverines gave OSU all that they wanted. Unfortunately, those three critical and fatal Wolverine errors effected the outcome.  While it is obvious the game was sprinkled with some inventive refereeing with a Buckeye flavoring, the three miscues put the game out of reach.

The officiating set-off a Harbaugh howl, but he never said it cost them the game.  It was the stuff under the Wolverine’s control which sealed their fate against the Buckeyes, and cost them post season opportunities.

It was disappointing that they could not control their own post season fate, but the regular season did not end a with a pounding by the Buckeyes as did 2015.  They were in the hunt all season long. The season overall was a resounding success.

The Wolverine surge is not yet at Tsunami level, but the frenzy is building.  Harbaugh said at the Bust that he suspects that the going to the NFL rumors maybe designed by some competitors to dampen recruiting. They will continue, and he will continue at Michigan.  He says he is not interested, thank you.  That is believable.

No pundit, none, knows the answer to the when will Harbaugh leave question.  Only Harbaugh knows that.  For now, and the foreseeable future, he is rock solid at Michigan. Believe he is leaving only when you hear him announce it, not before.

The coaching team was, for the most part, also outstanding, and remains intact.  Overall the defense, under the guidance of its newcomer mentor, Dr. Blitz, was outstanding.

The entire record of this season is not written, as Florida State stands in the way. The Wolverines and FSU will cross paths in their third confrontation in the Orange Bowl Saturday December 30.  Each team now holds a one and one record in the Orange Bowl.  This should be one of the better Bowl match ups.

THE 2016 AWARDS: The nomenclature of the MVP Award was changed to the Bo Schembechler Most Valuable Player Award last year, and was earned for this year by Jabrill Peppers.

The Dr. Arthur Robinson Scholarship Award was awarded to Grant Newsome.

The Hugh J. Rader Award for the Best Offensive Lineman was bestowed on Offensive Tackle Erik Magnuson.

The Richard Katcher Award for the best Defensive Lineman was awarded to both Ryan Glasgow and Chris Wormley.

The Robert P. Ufer Award for enthusiasm and love for Michigan was bestowed on Offensive Tackle Grant Newsome.

The Roger Zatkoff Award for most outstanding Linebacker was given to Ben Gedeon.

The Most Improved Player Award named QB Wilton Speight.

There is just one game left this season, but the fifteen practices preceding it will continue to benefit the Wolverines into next season, no matter the outcome.

Bring on the Seminoles, and Go Blue!

 

Note:  As stated above, I did not attend this year’s Football Bust.  The commentary is mine, but the facts pertaining to the Bust were gathered from the official M football web site.

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Peppers is ready for the NFL, but will he go?

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Jabrill Peppers is without question ready to start collecting checks on Sunday. In most mocks drafts, he is projected to be a top 10 pick at the safety position in the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft. However, don’t be surprised if he decides not to declare after this season.

After having nagging injuries and being limited to playing only 2 ½ games his freshman year, Peppers was redshirted and sat out the remainder of the 2014 season.  The sophomore technically still has two more years of eligibility left to play at Michigan. The big question is, will Peppers forgo his two years and declare for the draft or will he return to the Wolverines?

After displaying his versatility all year playing multiple positions, it seems like a no brainer that he is for sure going to the NFL. Even the Big Ten took notice of some of his accomplishments as he took home some hardware as he was awarded the Nagurski-Woodson defensive player of the year, the Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the year and the Butkus-Fitzgerald linebacker of the year award. That makes him the first player to win three individual awards in the same season since the awards program expanded in 2011. He would finish the regular season on offense with 3 rushing touchdowns, 751 total yards and 1 punt return for a touchdown. On defense, he recorded 71 total tackles, 48 solo, 15 TFL, 4 sacks, 1 FF and 1 interception that would be his first of his career. That interception would come in the 3rd quarter against Ohio State.

We all knew that losing to Iowa had a slight possibility to end up hurting us at the end of the season. But we also knew that if we had beaten Ohio State it was almost certain that we would clinch a playoff berth. After losing to the Buckeyes 30-27 in double-OT, there was still hope. We had to rely too much on the what ifs and had to cheer for the underdogs in Colorado and Virginia Tech. Peppers was very quick to react after it was officially announce that the Wolverines were on the outside looking in.

While acknowledging their loss and failures he also threw some love back to PSU for getting the job that they couldn’t do. Beat Ohio St. and win the Big Ten Championship.

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Like majority of his life, it looks like Peppers has turned to his mother once more for some guidance.  Earlier this week, per Darren Heitner who is a sports attorney tweeted that Peppers’ mother, Ivory Bryant had delivered a forty-one-question document to all prospective NFL agents.

Now this doesn’t necessarily say that it’s a sure thing that we will make the jump. The way I look at it, is that his mother wants the very best for his future and wants to help explore the options and eliminate any difficulty that her son might be having in front of him. So! Will Jabrill Peppers return to Michigan for one more year? I think so. Should he? Yes. Those answers are not just me being a biased fan and no I do not have any high-end sources telling me this. It’s just what I truly believe.

At the age of 7, Jabrills’ father Terry, the same person that introduced him to the game, was arrested on a weapons charge.

“My father was arrested when I was seven years old. In that split second when he was taken away, I went from having a father who I could work out with and who was on the sideline for all my football games, to being a kid searching for a male role model in his life. And I didn’t know how long he was going to be gone.”

He said in an entry he posted on The Players’ Tribune titled The Game. It’s a must read.

Without a father figure, he had turned to his older brother, Don.

“Don was the guy I looked up to. And even though he was out in the streets like most of the other guys in our neighborhood, doing things he wasn’t supposed to be doing, he would never let me get involved. He kept me on the right path from a young age. And he was one of the first people who told me I had the potential to be something great — that I needed to chase my football dream. “You have a God-given gift,” he’d say. It would be disrespectful to God to not make the most of that gift.”

Like a lot of kids in urban neighborhoods, we dreamed a lot about the future, of better times. Many kids were so caught up in the street life that they couldn’t dream past the city limits. But Don and I talked differently, mostly because of my potential on the football field. That was going to be my way out — our way out.”

In January of 2010, for the second time in Jabrills’ life another father figure was taken from him too soon, when Don was shot and killed. Bryant was left alone to raise her son despite working long hours as a social worker to support her son. Just before his senior year of high school his father Terry was released from prison after serving nearly 11 years.

“We was just trying to get to know each other again,” Peppers said. “A lot of time had passed. Ten and a half years, almost 11 years. At the end of the day, man, that’s my pops. We’re still working on our relationship. It’s going to get better. We’ve still got to make up for that 10 and a half years, but we’re gonna be all right.”

After losing his brother, Peppers never had a type of “brother hood” like he did Don until he came to Michigan. Not just the family and brothers he goes to war with every Saturday but his brothers of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. During the 78-0 rout of Rutgers, Peppers returned a punt for a touchdown that would eventually get called back. After Peppers ran into the end zone he would put up his arms as some may know as “throwing the hooks”.

For those who don’t know, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity (OPPF) is the first international fraternal organization founded at a historically black college. The fraternity was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C on Nov. 23, 1911. Before joining the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity last spring, Peppers wasn’t recruited. He actually reached out to fraternity.

“He sought us out,” says Terence Browner, a Michigan senior and member of the fraternity. “The more he learned about it, the more he felt the connection, the vibe. I could sense the excitement oozing off of him. He wanted to be a part of something.”

He wanted to surround himself with people who reflect him and who he wants to be. Peppers found others that are like him that enjoy community service and giving back. While only being engaged with the fraternity for such a short time, Peppers’ and a few of his friends went across town to Community High School in Ann Arbor and spoke to about 200 students about habits, time management and the transition from high school to college.

“He literally had an individual conversation with every single person who approached him,” says Brandon Jackson, a friend of Peppers who teaches world history at the high school. “I mean, we’re talking about 200 people. He asked every one of them something about themselves and answered more questions if they had them.

“Every kid that day walked away feeling good about themselves, feeling uplifted.”

Not only is Jabrill Peppers the most versatile player in the nation on the field but his play is very similar off the field. Playing for Michigan has been his dream since he was a little kid. So why stop now? Why not one more year? Just imagine the impact that he could do in that time. Not only for UofM but the state of Michigan itself. His talent level is ready for the NFL and his maturity is way above a lot of players at his age. There is a few wrinkles that I had noticed in the last three games that certainly can be fixed at the college level.

Whether he decides to go now or next year his mother is definitely getting the home that she deserves for raising such a humble and gifted young man. If push comes to shove and he decides to go he might want to start shopping around for a bigger trophy case as earlier today he was announced  as one of the top 5  finalist for the Heisman Trophy. His reaction says it all.

Hopefully Peppers recalls what he wrote and rethinks the order of his goals.

“I’m on a mission. And that mission won’t be complete until … I don’t even know when. I guess I have a lot of missions. It’s always changing. That’s how you continue to grow and get better. You set goals that seem impossible, and when you reach them, you set more impossible goals and do whatever humanly possible to reach those, too. I want to win a national championship at Michigan. I want to graduate. I want to go to the NFL and have a long, successful career.”

Make sure you write it down on your calendars as Michigan vs. Florida State in Orange Bowl on Friday, December 30th at 8:00pm as we just may witness Peppers play his very last game.

“Those who stay will be champions”

Hail.. Go Blue!