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4 - The Michigan Daily - Football Saturday - Saturday, September 18, 2004
The Michigan Daily - Football Saturday - Sa
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Michigan currently ranks 94th in the nation in rushing offense, with just 171 net rushing yards t
said on Monday that he has someone in mind to take over the job at starting tailback, but he wt
Michigan Daily breaks down the candidates for the position and their chances to fulfill the ro
~hrough two games. Lloyd (
ould not indicate who it is.
le as Michigan's top runner
MIKE HART
YEAR: TRUE FRESHMAN
HOMETOWN: SYRACUSE, N.Y.
HOMETOWN: MADISONVILLE, TEXAS
HEIGHT: 6-0
~ FIGHT: 216
YEAR: SOPHOMORE
HOMETOWN: SAGINAW
HEIGHT: 5-11
X1'EIGHT: 198
HEIGHT: 5-9
WEIGHT: 185
2004 STATS: 231
1 RECEPTION, 9
CAREER STATS:
2 RECEPTIONS,
CARRIES, 61 YARDS, 2 TDS,
YARDS.
142 CARRIES, 562 YARDS, 18 TDS,
18 YARDS.
(4i
2004 STATS: 22 CARRIES,
57 YARDS, 1 ITD.
CAREER STATS: 51 CARRIES,
244 YARDS, 3 TDS.
F
THE SKINNY: WheneDavid
Underwood went down early in last
Saturday's game against Notre
Dame, Jackson becamethe
featured back and fared no
better than the others,
rushing for just 32 yards an
15 carries. Running lanes
were hard to come by and
when they were there, he
was unable to break tackles and
gain any extra yards. Against Miami
(Ohio) two weeks ago,Jackson did
show a willingness to burst into the
hole that the other runners lacked.
W,. OUR C~ALL: There's really no way of
knowing if Jackson can be a reliable
every-down back until he actually does
it. With the "bring-him-along-slowly-
and-steadily" approach tossed aside,
Carr could try to rely on Jackson and
see where it takes him. But because he
is smaller than the typical Michigan back
and hasn't shown much elusiveness, Carr may
not want to give him the ball down after down.
He also needs to prove that he can be a reliable
receiver and blocker to play more often.
2004 STATS: 8 CARRIES, 37 YARDS,
2 RECEPTIONS, 7 YARDS.
CAREER STATS: 8 CARRIES, 37 YARDS,
2 RECEPTIONS, 7 YARDS.
THE SKINNY: Hart rewrote the
national high school record books,
setting the mark in touchdowns
(204), career points (1246), most
consecutive 100-yard rushing games
(47) and career 100-yard rushing
games (47). With his small stature,
nobody expected Hart to make a
big impact in his freshman
year. But Hart's seen time
as Michigan's third
back and the shifty
runner has packed
a powerful punch,
trucking Notre
Dame's Preston
Jackson last week.
OUR CALL: Hart
has turned many
heads in a limited
role. With the struggles
of David Underwood and
Jerome Jackson, Hart
may not be far from
receiving a substantial
amount of carries.
Also, Lloyd Carr always
stresses the importance
of planning for the
future by getting players
acclimated to the college
game as underclassmen.
I
- THE SKINNY: There's no question that David Underwood has more
experience than anyone else competing for the position. He had
some maturity issues early on in his career, but all indications are
that those are behind him. Underwood was given the start in the
season opener against Miami (Ohio), but looked unimpressive in a
22-carry, 64-yard performance. Underwood started against Notre
Dame, but received a concussion in Michigan's second offensive
_play. There has been no official comment as to his future status.
OUR CALL: As long as Underwood is healthy, he figures to
be in the running back rotation, even though he has yet
to prove himself in game action. But one has to wonder
how effective Underwood is, considering he was rarely
used as a replacement last year even when Chris
Perry was receiving an obscene amount of carries.
YEAR: SOPHOMORE
HOMETOWN: MILWAUKEE
HEIGHT: 6-0
WEIGHT: 213
2004 STATS: 5 CARRIES, 32
YARDS, 2 RECEPTIONS, 0 YARDS.
CAREER STATS: 26 CARRIES,
121 YARDS, 4 TDS,
3 RECEPTIONS, -2 YARDS.
THE SKINNY: Rembert, who played at the same high school
as John Navarre, battled in the offseason for the starting position.
But as of right now, he seems to be the team's fourth option at
running back. Rembert runs like a traditional Michigan power
back. He may be Michigan's most consistent pass-blocker.
OUR CALL: Rembert has not shown Maize and Blue
faithful anything spectacular so far, but he has never
really had the opportunity to do so. Because of his
ability to protect the quarterback, Rembert could see
significant time in passing situations. Currently, he
doesn't figure into the ground game very much.
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Writeups by Gennaro Filice, Bob Hunt and Sharad Mattu
Photos by Ryan Weiner and Tony Ding