Tate Forcier Helps Michigan Rediscover Itself; Has Barkley, EMU in his Sights

He has the poise of a senior, the moxie of an All-American, and the flakiness of a teenager. Tate Forcier is not only the quarterback of the 2-0 Michigan Wolverines, he is now the Big Man on campus. And with that comes pressure, ego, and expectations.

This kid, and I can call him a kid because he just turned 19 years old, wowed Michigan stadium on Saturday. With that game, he is going to be hailed as the savior of Michigan Football. Blinders will be put on Michigan fans because of his excellent start to his career; five touchdowns and only one interception.

Remember Michigan nation, this is only two games. He still has lots to learn, but what he has shown is absolutely fantastic. Nerves of steel.

After the game, Tate said in regards to his nerves, "I don't get nervous. I've been preparing for this my whole life. It's like nothing new to me." It showed on that final drive.

What Tate and his teammates did on Saturday was more than shocking. He stepped up in the biggest stage of his life and delivered a 1-2 punch to the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. 

He did it with his feet and with his arm. Forcier had 310 total yards and three TD's. In the fourth quarter, he threw his first pick, and what he did after that was show America that he is one of the most exciting QB's to grace the football field this season. 

Barkley v. Forcier: The Battle of True Freshman QB's

Matt Barkley is a great QB. He played at one of the most storied High School programs in America. He is a California kid through and through; blonde hair and an All-American. He committed to USC his junior year, and was groomed to play QB there. 

He started as a freshman at Mater Dei, at a position where freshman normally don't start. But his High School coach, Bruce Rollinson, told Eric Sondheimer of the LA Times just before his junior year in 2007, "if you had come up to me the year before and said, 'Would you ever start a freshman?' I would have laughed you off, I would have said, 'There's no way a freshman could compete at the Division I level or at Mater Dei High School.' But when we saw Matt, we realized he had the 'it' factor."

That 'it' is what separates them from the rest of the competition.

In the same article, Barkley talked about the high profile he has as QB at Mater Dei, "I didn't want it, but I knew it was going to come, being a quarterback for one of the best teams in the country."

What he has done so far for USC, is just blow out SDSU and come from behind to beat Ohio St. in the Horseshoe. Not bad for a true freshman. He threw one interception and threw for 179 yards as he lead the Trojans down the field in the fourth to beat eighth ranked Ohio State. 

Before Barkley beat OSU in the final minutes, another true freshman was at work in Ann Arbor driving the Michigan Wolverines to a win with 11 seconds left. Tate Forcier was the driving force behind Michigan beating Notre Dame. I spoke about his poise earlier, and I feel that is the greatest asset he has. He seems very confident in what his abilities are and that he will be able to accomplish what he sets out to do. 

He isn't so much cocky, as he is confident. He understands the offense Coach Rodriguez wants to run, he can do it, and do it very well. His ability to look down field while scrambling and than making a great pass to wide-open reciever; well that's just down right filthy. 

Who does that? Tate does that. And he will do it for years to come at Michigan. His five touchdowns and one pick are great numbers, his rating is over 140 in both games, and he has ran for over hundred yards too. 

Forcier said, "I’m the quarterback, I’m supposed to be the leader of the team. The way we won, you know, it couldn’t have been any better than that." His leadership on the field must be great. He was able to drive the Wolverines down the field with two timeouts left. He went 5-6 for 53 yards in his final drive on Saturday.

He said after the game, "Everybody kept saying a freshman can’t do it, and I did it." Yes you did Tate. Now just don't be complacent. Stay hungry, you still have a few years ahead of you.

Today, during the presser, Forcier spoke of the night game, USC v. OSU, and said, "It was kinda hard; I didn't know who I wanted to win because I don't like USC or Ohio State."

A true Michigan Man.

Looking Ahead to Eastern

Michigan will take on Eastern Michigan University, and a familiar face will be on the visiting sideline, Ron English. English, former Def. Coordinator under Lloyd Carr, is now the head coach of the Eagles. Located just 10 minutes away from the Big House, English has been given the job to restore EMU football.

If anyone know Michigan it would be English, but that is a non-factor today, as most of his players from Ann Arbor have left or moved on. What he can share, is the experience of playing in front of 110,000 people on a Saturday afternoon in Ann Arbor.

English spoke during the MAC teleconfrence today and said "The team has to make sure they don’t get caught up in the pageantry of it all. That is one of the marquee venues in the country, and there will be plenty of support, and I bet that place is a lot louder since they put those boxes in, so it’ll be a challenging environment."

Although he has lost his first two games, his team has played very well. In the game against Northwestern, down 21-0, his team did not give up. They played hard, and that's what you should expect from a Ron English ran team. He expected that at Michigan and he carries that to Eastern. 

They lost on a last second field goal by NU. A heart breaker, but he should be proud of his guys. They have a huge task ahead on Saturday. English knows what he is up against, and he isn't one bit worried about it.

During the same teleconference he said, "Michigan’s a different animal. You go in that stadium, and if you haven’t been there, there’s one way in and one way out, and that thing opens and you see a sea of people. If you haven’t had experience there, it can be distracting. The issue is, can guys focus or will they become distracted? I wish I could tell you that, but the whole team hasn’t been there."

He will get his first look at Forcier this weekend, but he had this to say about his game against Notre Dame, "Forcier, what I love about him is he makes great decisions. He’s quick. I don’t know that he’s overwhelming from a physical standpoint, in terms of he maybe doesn’t have the greatest arm or he’s not the fastest—though he’s quick and all that—but I love his decision making. He looked like he’s very, very poised and really impressive."

As Michigan and Eastern renew the Washtenaw Avenue Battle, the story in Ann Arbor has shifted. Once a story about illegal workouts, defaulted loan payments, and the worst season in Michigan history is now a tale of revival. One that is happening faster than expected.

Tate Forcier and Co. should not have too many problems with the Eagles. He should be able to slice and dice the defense without problems. Eastern gave up 343 yards to NU team that runs a version of the spread option under Pat Fitzgerald. 

No one thought they'd be 2-0 after week two. Most thought they'd be 0-2. But that's not what is happening. Work is still needed on both the offense and defense, but the improvements that we've all seen over the last two games is exactly what Rich Rod has been preaching.

Actions have now spoken over words. He has now put the Wolverines back on the national map. Lots of work ahead, but the work that's been put in is reaping massive rewards.