Denard Robinson An Early Heisman Favorite

If you've been following the mass of preseason rankings and predictions, you would have seen the large amount of love the media has been giving Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson. Though he was selected Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year for 2010, he has received much scruntity from fans and select media outlets (See: Denard Robinson QB Series).

However, this year's preseason rankings have left those critics to reassess their theories. Not only has Rivals rated Denard very high on its lists, ESPN's Big Ten Blog has placed Denard at the top of many of its rating lists. Here are some of the rankings:

Denard Robinson Preseason Rankings:

#1 Most Explosive Player In College Football

#2 Big Ten Player

#20 Best College Football Player

However, Denard now appears at the top of one of the most prestigous lists in college football, the Heisman race. Though he finished 6th in last year's Heisman voting and as an All-American, he has not received much coverage as a potential winner of this year's Heisman trophy.

In Rivals' preseason Heisman ranking, Denard Robinson was picked at #4. It seems as if he would have been higher, but they questioned whether he could put up his amazing 328.6 total offensive yards per game under a new offense.

Though this lists hardly picks Heisman winners, (Cam Newton, the 2011 Heisman winner received almost no attention during preseason) it is still exciting for fans and shows that the "experts" and media can see some of Denard's great talent.

Denard Robinson Ranked #2 Player in Big Ten By ESPN

Earlier this week, I posted about the positive reviews many Big Ten teams, and particularly Michigan, have been receiving from the media. For the earlier post about Rivals and ESPN's Big Ten rankings you can go here:

Rival's Preseason Rankings Favor Big Ten And Michigan

Now, back to Denard Robinson. He was primarily selected off "past performance and potential impact in 2011." Clearly, Denard Robinson had an a-maize-ing 2010. He set numerous records including most rushing yards for a quarterback in the FBS history.

There is no doubt that much of Michigan's improvement in 2010 can be linked to Robinson's emergence as the starting quarterback. For instance, in a tight contest against Notre Dame, his 502 total yards, yes I said 502 total yards, took control of the game and turned the tide for the maize and blue.

He was an early Heisman favorite and although his performance slipped in some of the later games in the season, he still performed well finishing at 6th in the Heisman voting. We look forward to some great things from Denard in 2011 and perhaps he can move up to the #1 spot for 2012!

For ESPN's review of Denard, click here:

Big Ten rankings: No. 2, Denard Robinson

Also, we had a great earlier series capturing Denard's performance as quarterback last season and addressing whether he really should be considered a legitimate quarterback:

Part I: "Sure He Can Run, But When He Has To Throw He Can't Do Anything"

Part II: "He Can Play Well Until He Hits The Red Zone"

Part III: "You Looked Good For Five Games Against Nobody"

ESPN Releases Ohio All-State Football Team

ESPN released their annual state-by-state analysis of the best recruits to come out of a certain state. This edition covers all-state honors for Ohio, which features five Michigan recruits.

On the first team offense, five-star lineman Kyle Kalis holds the spot as the best lineman in the state. Also, Michigan target Bri'Onte Dunn is featured as a first team halfback as well.

The first team defense is where most of our recruits are shown, and especially where the talent is needed as well! Tom Strobel (DL), Chris Wormley (DL), Joe Bolden (LB) and Jarrod Wilson (DB) round off the honors for their positions. Also featured is DL Adolphus Washington, a target of Michigan, but rumored to be committing to Ohio State this week.

For more on this story please visit ESPN link below:
http://espn.go.com/blog/high-school/ohio/post/_/id/35/dunn-ball-highlight-all-state-football-team