Jake Ryan = torn ACL

Great.... Here we go....

Just heard that, fortunatley we have depth and it is in the spring. If your looking at the glass half full. To early to tell long term issue. Hope he gets back sometime during the season.

To your point, more reps for the younger kids. Still, hard seeing him ready for the season.

Great.

Already, geesh....

FUCK.

I was just off doing something when I realized, "Hey, Ryan is a big part of this team and very good but we actually have depth now. The drop-off won't be that bad honestly."

Sickening as this news is, happening to our No.1 playmaker with the non-stop motor, you know Jake-man will attack his rehab like namesake Nolan once attacked dead fastball hitters, and will be the team's No.1 cheerleader throughout practice, summer workouts, and fall camp...and the regular season until he's back on the field.

Goddamned shame, though...last year it was Countess, this year Ryan.
I'm afraid to strike another key...

This is not good. You can't spin this any way to make it better.

Looks like Morgan, Ross and Bolden are probably our guys this year. I'm looking for Jenkins-Stone and Gedeon to step it up and possibly see the field too.

Any thoughts?

My thought is 100% agreement with you...can't find any positive spin.

Jake isn't our quickest or fastest 'backer. May or may not be our strongest.
May or may not be surest tackler (though he seemed so).

Where he definitely led the pack---by a country mile---was in the intangibles. One-speed-only motor that never cut out. Team spirit. Leadership by example (on the field)...especially in crucial play-needed situations.

He can still lead by example off the field, but you know he's flat-out dying inside at the moment. We can only hope
that great attitude and determination helps him to a quick (emotional) recovery, and that the bod follows suit in
reasonable time.

I wasn't looking for a silver-lining, just saying that, while it sucks, it could have been worse. This is Michigan, we got this.

michmike wrote:

My thought is 100% agreement with you...can't find any positive spin.

Jake isn't our quickest or fastest 'backer. May or may not be our strongest.
May or may not be surest tackler (though he seemed so).

Where he definitely led the pack---by a country mile---was in the intangibles. One-speed-only motor that never cut out. Team spirit. Leadership by example (on the field)...especially in crucial play-needed situations.

He can still lead by example off the field, but you know he's flat-out dying inside at the moment. We can only hope
that great attitude and determination helps him to a quick (emotional) recovery, and that the bod follows suit in
reasonable time.

Could not agree more, Mike! The first word I thought of when I saw the headline was CRAP....and then it went downhill from there!

Great young man and I wish him a SUPER SPEEDY recovery!!!

Go Blue!!

MLive article claims his replacement at the moment is..... Gulp, Cam Gordon....

EJinGA wrote:

MLive article claims his replacement at the moment is..... Gulp, Cam Gordon....

Note my added emphasis before slitting your wrists, EJ...

I don't see Cam getting the starts.

I can find a positive in this: It will force others to step up. Mattison has brought in a ton of depth, and all they need now is experience. Sucks that Ryan is hurt, but he won't be the last to get injured. This should be expected, so who will be injured next?

The key is to have depth all over the roster and we are well on our way.

mgoblue93 wrote:

I can find a positive in this: It will force others to step up. Mattison has brought in a ton of depth, and all they need now is experience. Sucks that Ryan is hurt, but he won't be the last to get injured. This should be expected, so who will be injured next?

The key is to have depth all over the roster and we are well on our way.

I get that, and I certainly agree to an extent. My opinion is that depth is a non factor when you're talking about putting a guy that's played extremely limited snaps because I think that's what's going to happen. Depth becomes a body at that point and not experience.

I see Morgan, Ross and Jenkins-Stone being the starters and Gedeon and Ringer being the first rotations in. I see them beating out McCray and Poole at this point for playing time.

93, my problem with your rationale, though it has its merits, is the part of Jake you won't replace, step up as the others may: his intangibles.
His drive, his influence on the team as a whole, and this statistic above all: his playmaking ability at the most crucial moments. How often, over the past two seasons, did we badly need a stop, and you would NOT see No.47 in on the play that succeeded? Not too often, I'll wager.

There are things about the man, on the field, that will not be replaced...namely the effects of his mere presence...and its effects on the team as a whole, out of all proportion to the existence of 1 man among 11.

sandyeggo_blue wrote:

mgoblue93 wrote:

I can find a positive in this: It will force others to step up. Mattison has brought in a ton of depth, and all they need now is experience. Sucks that Ryan is hurt, but he won't be the last to get injured. This should be expected, so who will be injured next?

The key is to have depth all over the roster and we are well on our way.

I get that, and I certainly agree to an extent. My opinion is that depth is a non factor when you're talking about putting a guy that's played extremely limited snaps because I think that's what's going to happen. Depth becomes a body at that point and not experience.

I see Morgan, Ross and Jenkins-Stone being the starters and Gedeon and Ringer being the first rotations in. I see them beating out McCray and Poole at this point for playing time.

Agreed, depth doesnt mean much when you're replacing a all-pro type of player. Then again, one of these kids can have a break out season. I think they have to almost count on it.