U w w w w w -v- ",W^ w- -Iqv -W v w I MWA l September 19, 2009 Football Sa-tujrdav WELCOME TO THE SEASON Unlike last season's Wisconsin game, Michigan's tri- umphant, last-minute victory over Notre Dame feels like it could be the springboard for a memorable season.. That is, if the Wolverines can avoid a monumental let- down against Washtenaw County's other football team, the Eastern Michigan Eagles. Although he's still a fresh- man, Tate Forcier seems like he can get past the emo-. tions of last week and focus on the Eagles. Plus, if the Wolverines get a big enough lead, fans will be treated to more of Denard Robinson's ridiculous athleticism in the second half. That should be enough of an incentive for Michigan to come out strong, right? Michael Eisenstein - Ruth Lincoln Courtney Ratkowiak - Andy Reid HIGHLIGHTS Roy Roundtree and Mike Shaw have played football together since Pee-Wee. Find out how they wound up at the same college. 7]Although Michigan and Eastern Michigan are in the 7 same county, these two teams are worlds different. What's Eastern Michigan quarterback Andy Schmitt's most awkward school picture? Biggest fear? Favorite class? Flip to the back page to read our Q & A. 2009 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL SEASON Sept. S Western Michigan: Before this win, it had been a while since Michigan fans had anything to cheer about during the opening weekend. Sept.12 Notre Dame: So charlie Weis doesn't like Big Ten officials. Boo hoo. Formal complaints must be part of his "five-year internship" process or something. t" ' Sept.19 Eastern Michigan: We expect former Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English, now Eastern Michigan's head coach, to get a warm cheer from Wolverine fans. The Eagles, not so much. Sept. 26 Indiana: Wait, what? Indiana still has a football team? We'll believe it when we see it. Oct. 3 at Michigan State: Well, hey, Little Brother proved he's at least the third best team in the state of Michigan this year. Watch out, Sparty - we heard Detroit Country Day is fielding a pretty tough squad this year. Oct. 10 at Iowa: Say what you will, Michigan fans, at least Iowa pulled out a win in its close game with an FCS team. Oct.17 Delaware State: As if Michigan students needed more motivation to skip this game, the Athletic Department scheduled it during Fall Break. Oct. 24 Penn State: There's only one college football coach in America that leeks back fondly on the late Cretaceous Period - Joe Paterno. s Oct. 31 at Illinois: The Fighting Illini are almost as lethargic as chief Illiniwek, the school's mascot that was discontinued in 2007. Nov. 7 Purdue: Think the Wolverines still have that hook-and-lateral on their minds? Nov.14 at Wisconsin: Nothing beats a fall afternoon in Camp Randall - that is, of course, if the Wisconsin Health services can nab that pesky H1N1 virus floating around. Madison. Nov. 21 Ohio State: Remember when Matt Barkley led a game-winning drive on you, Buckeyes? There's another freshman QB waiting for you on Nov. 21. More thanjust miles separate 'M' and EMU MICHIGAN DEPTH CHART VS. EASTERN MICHIGAN By ANDY REID Daily Sports Editor Only six miles separate Rynear- son Stadium and the Big House, second only to Rice and Houston for the shortest distance between two Division-I football programs in the country. Figuratively, the two pro- t grams couldn't be farther apart. MihIgam EasternMich- Matchup: igan suffers from Eastern 0-2; a lack of tradi- Michigan 2-0 tion, having When: Satur- changed its nick- day 12 P.M. name from the Where: Michi- Normalites to gan Stadium the Men of Ypsi to the Hurons to TV: BTN the Eagles over Blog: www. the past cen- michigandaily. tury. And as the com/the game Western Mich- igan-Central Michigan battle thrives, the Eagles are left stranded without a mar- quee rival. Michigan is arguably the most tradition-rich program in the country, and its marquee rivals go without saying. Eastern Michigan suffers from a lack of stability. They've had 40 all- time coaches, including just two that made it past the 10-year mark. The Wolverines have had just 17 coaches in 130 years of collegiate play, with famous names like Bo Schembechler, Fielding Yost and Lloyd Carr. And, worst of all, Eastern Mich- igan suffers form a lack of suc- cess. The Eagles have won just 43 percent of their games all-time, lost 37 since the beginning of the 2005 season and won just one Mid- American Conference crown in the program's history. Michigan is the winningest program in the nation and has claimed 42 conference championships, 11 national cham- pionships, three Heisman Trophy winners and 150 All-Americans. All signs point to a blowout, just . like all eight previous meetings in the Battle for Washtenaw county, an epic - and somewhat sarcastic - nickname for the game between these two neighbors. Even so, the Wolverines, after their first 2-0 start since 2006, say they aren't looking past the Eagles. "Losing to Appalachian State (in 2007) and Toledo (in 2008) just makes us go into every game regardless of who our opponent is," junior safety Troy Woolfolk said. "We're going to go 100 percent, because as you can see, you let your guard down, a little bit, everyone's good enough to come back. It's D-1, and everybody's good." The threat of a letdown always looms after an emotional game, and no game in Michigan recent memory has been quite as emo- tional and exciting as last week- end's upset of rival Notre Dame. To avoid disaster, Michigan coach RichRodriguezhaspreachedtohis young squad the necessity of prep- ping as hard for Eastern Michigan as it did for the Irish - every game is the same. First-year Eastern Michigan coach Ron English, who spent the 2006 and 2007 season as Michi- gan's defensive coordinator, has the same mindset. The Eagles lost to Northwestern last week 27-24, will play Michigan on Saturday and face lowly Temple next week. English says he won't change his coaching techniques for any of them. "As a player, I grew to really dislike coaches who coached one way one week and one way the next week based on whatthey per- ceived to be a bigger game than another game," English said dur- ing his Thursday press conference. "So what we try to do is just stay focused on being consistent. "They're all big. And you only get 13 chances to compete a year." TheEagleshavestruggledtograsp English's pro-style offense after exe- cuting the spread fairly well under former coach Jeff Genyk toward the end of last season. If senior quarter- back Andy Schmitt gets in a rhythm, he can be dangerous, especially with Michigan's documented concerns in the secondary. But with English's commitment to the ground game, the Eagles have managed just 165 passing yards per game through their first two games. "They are playing with great intensity," Rodriguez said. "You can see that. Fundamentally, they are blocking well, they are tackling well. They obviously could have won the last game (against North- western). They lost on a field goal in the last seconds, "They are making improve- ments. They made great improve- ment from week one to week two in several areas, and I'm sure they're looking for the same progress this week." OFFENSE QB RB FB 1. Forcier, Tate Freshman 2. Robinson, Denard Freshman 1Minor, Brandon Senior 2. Brown, Carlos Senior 1. Moundros, Marl Redshirt iunior 2. Grady, Kevin Fifth-year senior W R 1. Mathews, GregSenior 2. Stonum, Darryl Sophomore W R 1. Hemingway, Junior Redshirt sophomore 2. Savoy, LaTerryal Redshirt sophomore LOT1.Odoms, Martavious Sophomore 2. Grady, Kelvin Redshirt sophomore T E 1. Koger, Kevin Sophomore 2. Webb, Martell Junior DEFENSE E Hg esophomore 'j" Van Bergen, Ryan Redshirt sophomore 2. Banks, Greg Junior 1. Martin, Mike Sophomore N Ti 2. Sagesse, RenaldoJunior B 1. Roh, Craig Freshman 2. Herron,Brandon Redshirt sophomore L B I. Ezeh, Obi Redshirt junior 2 Fitzgerald, J.B. Sophomore W L .Mouton, Jonas Redshirt iunior W L ac'Kevin Redshirt sophomore 1. Brown, Stevie Senior 2. Simmons, Floyd Redshirt freshman LC' 1. Warren, Donovan Junior 2. Turner, J.T. Freshman S 1.Woolfolk, Troy Junior 2Van Slyke, Jared Redshirt sophomore S 1. Williams, Mike Redshirt sophomore 2.Kovacs, Jordan Redshirt freshman 1. Cissoko, Boubacar Sophomore 2. Floyd, J.T. Redshirt freshman LT 1.Ortmann, Mark Fifth-year senior 2. Dorrestein, Perry Redshirt junior - Like our pictures of ~Michigan football? Get your own. LG 1.Schilling, Steve Redshirt junior 2. Mealer, Elliot Redshirt freshman C 1. Molk, David Redshirt sophomore 2. Khoury, Rocko Redshirt freshman 1.Ferrara, John Redshirt junior 2. Barnum, Ricky Redshirt freshman RT 1. Huyge, Mark.Redshirt sophomore 2.Omameh, Patrick Sophomore Commemorate the Wolverines' unforgettable upset of Notre Dame by buying The Michigan Daily's photos from the game. Visit photo.michigandaily.com. SPECIAL TEAMS P K KR 1. Stonum, Darryl Sophomore 2. Odoms, Martavious Sophomore 1. Olesnavage, Jason Fifth-year senior 1. Mesko, Zoltan Fifth-year senior 2. Gibbons, Brendan Freshman 2. Wright, Bryan Redshirt junior Note: Depth chart as predicted by Daily football writers.