Michigan Football: Winners and Losers From Wolverines' First Month

September has seemingly flown by, and so have Michigan's first five games. The Wolverines are 5-0 as we enter October and tougher competition.

True Michigan fans knew before the season started that 5-0 was a very realistic possibility at this point, but the experts around the country never predicted this.

Here's a look at the biggest Michigan football winners and losers through September.

Winner: Denard Robinson

Anyone who said Denard Robinson wouldn't adapt to the offense this year is obviously  very wrong.

Al Borges is a smart guy and certainly wasn't going to make Denard do anything he didn't feel comfortable doing.

In fact, it looks as if he has barely changed the offense much at all. Denard is still in shotgun most of the time and has had plenty of opportunities to carry the ball.

He currently has 603 rushing yards and is averaging just under eight yards a carry.

His passing numbers are disappointing, but a big positive is that he has already thrown eight touchdown passes.

Denard has clearly been one of the big winners throughout the first month.

Loser: Martavious Odoms

Martavious Odoms, now a senior, has not played much through the first five games.

He has been a little banged up, though, and hopefully that's the reason he hasn't seen the field much.

It could also be because he hasn't performed well enough in practice to see the field consistently.

This would be unfortunate, especially when thinking about what he did for the team through the first three years of his career.

Odoms was basically projected to be the No. 3 receiver this year, behind Hemingway and Roundtree, but that obviously hasn't happened.

He is a great blocker, though, and will hopefully see the field more as the season goes on. He just hasn't benefited Michigan throughout the first month of the season.

Winner: Greg Mattison and the Defense

Again, true Michigan fans knew this defense could be a solid unit, but the national analysts were saying this would again be a terrible group that wouldn't be able to slow down anybody.

Through five games, Michigan is currently tied for the second best scoring defense in the country, as they are only giving up 10.2 points a game.

It's not like they haven't gone up against high-powered offenses, either. We all know what Notre Dame is capable of and the skill position players that they have.

Michigan also shut down San Diego State and their duo of offensive weapons in Ryan Lindley and Ronnie Hillman.

Don't forget about Western Michigan, either. Both Alex Carder and Jordan White are pro prospects, and Michigan held that offense to 10 points.

This past week, Western Michigan traveled to Connecticut and put up 38 points.

Greg Mattison has made huge strides with this defense, and it will only continue to get better.

Loser: Michigan's Opponents

This one is particularly aimed at Brian Kelly and Notre Dame. After Michigan beat them, the negativity and pressure surrounding the Irish was unbelievable.

The fact they lost to South Florida the week before was inexcusable, but then the way they came back and lost to Michigan was equally unacceptable.

This Notre Dame team was only supposed to lose two or three games coming into the year, and they already have two losses.

However, there is still a good chance that they will only lose once more. Regardless, Michigan is a huge reason that Irish fans are furious with Brian Kelly.

San Diego State also had high hopes for a great season, but Michigan borderline blew them out. All the hype surrounding Ryan Lindley and Ronnie Hillman sure seemed undeserved when they went up against Michigan.

Winner: Brady Hoke

Brady Hoke is the biggest winner here. Ever since taking the job, things have gone nearly perfect.

He is coaching at his dream school, his team is off to a 5-0 start, and current high school stars are committing to play for him at an amazing rate.

Hoke has seemingly pushed all the right buttons so far, which is a big reason the fanbase is 100 percent behind him.

Defensively, the team has exceeded expectations. Offensively, they are looking better each week.

Next week's game against Northwestern will be a huge test, though. If Michigan wins that game, we will know they are legitimate candidates to win the Legends Division.

A great ending to this so-far perfect season would be to secure a spot in the first ever Big Ten Championship.