Vincent Smith Starting At Rb? Not Quite...

Over the past several days, I have witnessed the running back speculation from preseason reappear. However, instead of a battle between Michael Shaw and Fitz Toussaint, it has centered around #2, Vincent Smith.

In fact, in an article posted by the Michigan Daily, they claim that, "Smith emerges as lead back." Although Smith certainly impressed last Saturday with his 112 rushing yards and 13.1 average per attempt, nothing has ever confirmed him as the "lead back" for Michigan.

In fact, Brady Hoke himself simply stated that "Vince has earned [the] right" to be Michigan's lead back. NEVER did he state that Vincent Smith was starting. In fact, in the article by the Michigan Daily, they admitted that the depth chart still had Shaw or Toussaint listed as the starter.

To me, this is just overblown hype from the media attempting to get hits. A story stating that Vincent Smith is in the mix to be Michigan's lead back is much less exciting than a story claiming he is the starting running back. If speculation is correct, it is very likely that Fitz Toussaint will still walk out to start the game on Saturday.

The depth chart could still certainly change, but I think the media and fans are getting a little bit ahead of themselves at this point. Remember, the last game was against Eastern Michigan. Yes, the same Eastern Michigan that was ranked as one of the worst offenses and defenses in 2010. Putting up a lot of rushing yards on the Eastern Michigan defense isn't likely to change too many aspects of the team.

Although I think Vincent Smith has a lot of talent, and may end up as the #2 running back (he already is the featured 3rd down back), I can't see him passing Toussaint anytime soon. I expect Toussaint to have a reasonable game on Saturday and remain as the starter for the foreseeable future.

Let's hope that even if Smith is chosen as the starter, which has not been done at this point, the running backs pick it up over the next several weeks.

To Rest Or Not To Rest

With the recent announcements regarding injured players Fitz Toussaint, Troy Woolfolk, and Cam Gordon, I got to thinking about injuries in relation to game time played. All three of these players have encountered at least one injury (Troy Woolfolk has suffered 3 just this season, following his season ending injury from last year), but were recently reported to be fit to play this Saturday during Brady Hoke's press conference.

So the question becomes, if these players are "fit to play," should they still receive decent playing time in this weeks match-up with Eastern Michigan? Michigan was picked by Vegas as more than a 30 point favorite when it takes to the field on Saturday, but there seems to still be an incentive to place these recently injured players back into the line-up immediately.

Some point to momentum and consistently as the reason to throw these players straight back into the lineup. This is certainly a major issue for most teams. Does the coaching staff want to risk re-injuring, or injuring, a starter in a game against a mind-boggling underdog?

To me, I think Michigan needs to find a nice balance. Because of the team's schedule in the upcoming weeks (Eastern Michigan, San Diego State, Minnesota, and Northwestern), I think there is much less risk for trouble than typical of most teams. For instance, Michigan is a heavy favorite against Eastern Michigan, but the ratio is sure to decrease in the following weeks (although Michigan should still be a decent favorite over at least San Diego State and Minnesota).

With this in mind, Eastern Michigan is probably the only game where Michigan could probably sit a good portion of its starters for an extended period and still win by a decent margin. However, if any particular starter did happen to get injured against Eastern Michigan this Saturday, the loss would not be devestating because they would very likely return by the end of this four game stretch, or before the Michigan State match-up on October 15th.

So when the starters stay in for perhaps a big too long on Saturday, or Hoke rushes some of these recently injured players back into the lineup, don't stress out too much, the potential loss to the team is relatively low considering the schedule, since starters will probably have to play for extended periods during the following weeks, but the team still maintaining a great chance at victory.

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Mike Hart Joins Eastern Michigan's Coaching Staff

Today, the Detroit Free Press reported that Mike Hart, Michigan's all-time rushing leader, will be joining as an on-field coach at Eastern Michigan University. Mike Hart has routinely expressed interest in coaching after his playing days, and when he was released by the Indianapolis Colts following the NFL Lockout's end, coaching at the collegiate level seemed to be a very real option.

Ron English, head coach of Eastern Michigan University, was formerly the secondary coach and defensive coordinator at Michigan from 2004-2007. So both coaches have a clear connection not only to each other, but to Michigan.

Though Hart is not taking the most important coaching role with the Eagles, he was officially announced as a "offensive quality control assistant," this is clearly a first step in developing a player into a coach. I would assume that as Hart progresses, he will gain more control over the offense, and specifically the running back position. In fact, the Detroit News has already reported that English stated that "even though he's a quality control coach, technically, legally he's been out coaching with assistant coach Doug Downing with the running backs."

Mike Hart seems excited about the position and was quoted by the Detroit News as saying that he was "committed to Coach E" and "moving on to the next chapter of [his] life."

Though there is still much to be seen, I can't help but noticing that Mike Hart's Twitter still has a picture of the Big House in the background. I don't think it's too speculative to see Mike Hart on the sidelines for Michigan again in the future.

Photo Credit - The Detroit News & John T. Greilick

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