Will Michigan's 2010 Recruiting Class Save Rich Rodriguez's Job?

It's no secret that Michigan under Rich Rodriguez in two seasons has been disastrous, as they have never finished .500 or better or played in a bowl game.

Rich Rod's spread offense looked much improved last season, but the defense under Greg Robinson was not quite so good, and that led to a late-season collapse after a 4-0 start.

If nothing else, the Wolverines looked much better in 2009 than in 2008, but Rodriguez is firmly on the hot seat in a university that has never experienced the problems winning that Michigan has had the past two seasons.

The Big Ten has been a defensive league for a long time, and Michigan needs to build up a great defense along with their offense to compete with Penn State, Iowa, and Ohio State.

And defensively, Michigan did score some talented players on defense, including DT Richard Ash from powerhouse Pahokee in Florida, and S/LB Marvin Robinson, also from Florida.

They raided the Keystone State for DE Ken Wilkins, a slender but fast DE, and talented DB Cullen Christian, a top talent whom the Wolverines beat out the Buckeyes for.

But the great prize for Michigan defensively came from probably the biggest surprise of signing day in five-star DB Demar Dorsey, a Florida decommit.

Dorsey brings tremendous speed and athleticism to a Michigan defense that ranked 82nd in total defense.

But Rodriguez's staple is the offense, so a new crop of WRs and RBs are on the way to Ann Arbor, each with different skill sets.

His true crown jewel in Ann Arbor is in-state phenom QB Devin Gardner, an athletic QB adept at the spread from local Inkster High School.

Rodriguez will need all of his recruits to come up big in what could be his final year in Ann Arbor if Michigan does not contend for the Big Ten title in 2010.

And it will not be easy by any stretch, as the Wolverines must travel both to South Bend, Happy Valley, and Columbus.

At this point, most of the players now in Ann Arbor are players Rodriguez has brought in, so this will be his final shot to get it done in Ann Arbor.

If he can't, the Rich Rodriguez era will be remembered as a failed experiment.