The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/347495
MICHIGAN FOOTBALL physically, with a few exceptions — guys like LaMarr and Charles Wood- son. We need to get back to where we have upperclassmen as our leaders. "I think as football players we have an easier time understanding that and being patient. But once Michigan gets to that point, which we'll be closer this year and definitely should be at next year, then our expectations are going to be really high." U-M's roster will feature only nine scholarship seniors this season (along with two walk-ons) and 15 scholarship juniors (plus five walk-ons), meaning that upperclassmen will represent only 29 percent of the Wolverines' 82 allot- ted scholarships for 2014. "People ask me all the time what I think the problem is, and I really be- lieve it's youth," Biggs said. "I think they said last year they had 72 players that were in their third year or less, and when I was that age, I couldn't imag- ine having that much responsibility. "I had All-Americans and All-Big Ten guys ahead of me on the depth chart I could get advice from and learn from. That's the way it should be, but then that cycle was broken. The past few years we've had upperclassmen without championship experience, maybe without as much talent, and we just haven't had that many seniors and juniors. "That made it really hard on Brady Hoke when he took over. That culture of winning that Michigan had always been about — and that allowed you to reload — was just gone. And we're seeing that it's harder to get back to the top." Michigan has not claimed a Big Ten title since sharing the league crown in 2004, a span of nine years that repre- sents the longest drought since a 13- year stretch from 1951-63. The pres- sure is mounting to end that streak, but Woodley cautions about making rash decisions in the heat of frustration. "Fans are restless, but the one thing we can't do is we can't get into the Michigan State mindset where they were hiring and firing coaches every three years," said Woodley, who was a first-team All-American in 2006. "You need to let a coach bring his guys in, implement his system, and see if he can win football games. "What we need so much is stability, and then after five years you can mea- sure up and see what you've got,. Rich Rodriguez changed the culture and changed the type of player so dramati- cally that you don't just snap that back into place. "Look at the guys that led that 2011 team — those were Coach [Lloyd] Carr guys, guys that were recruited to compete in the Big Ten. And then you had some Rich Rodriguez guys, like Denard Robinson, that bought in MICHIGAN 2014 ROSTER BY ELIGIBILITY Eligibility No.* Seniors 11 Juniors 20 Sophomores 40 Redshirt Freshmen 19 Freshmen 18 Total 108 * Includes walk-ons