Michigan football's Roy Roundtree among 4 Big Ten receivers on Biletnikoff list
Michigan receiver Roy Roundtree burst onto the national scene two years ago, when he hauled in a team-high 72 catches as a sophomore.
Last year, he went kerplunk, recording just 19 catches. That's the worst single-season drop off in receptions in school history.
But it appears at least one group of people has faith he can turn it around.
The Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation announced Tuesday that Roundtree made its watch list for the Biletnikoff Award, which is presented annually to the nation's best receiver.
Reciever Roy Roundtree was expected to be one of Michigan's best players last year, but faltered. He finished with 19 catches.
Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com
Forty-nine players made this year's watch list, but only four from the Big Ten. That puts Roundtree in select company, joining the likes of Wisconsin's Jared Abbrederis, Ohio State's Corey Brown and Iowa's Keenan Davis.
That's showing a lot of faith in Roundtree, who last year ranked 524th nationally in receptions.
Although, his numbers could receive a boost next season after making the move to Junior Hemingway's old flanker spot. Hemingway was Michigan's leading receiver last year, and often it's go-to option, especially on deep balls.
Roundtree's quarterback, Denard Robinson, also returns and figures to be better in the passing game now that he's in the second year of coordinator Al Borges' scheme.
Michigan finished eighth last year in the Big Ten in passing offense, then lost its top-two guys in Hemingway and Darryl Stonum. It returns just 62 receptions from a year ago.
Who will step up and fill the void created by Hemingway's graduation?
Whether Roundtree can in fact turn it around will say a lot about the Wolverines' chances of getting its passing game on track.
Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.
Comments
Tom
Sat, Jul 21, 2012 : 1:17 p.m.
Must have been his impressive, one catch performance in the Splenda Bowl! Why not put the long snapper on the list? He had more receiving yards in NOLA! No threat.
OldBittyBates
Wed, Jul 18, 2012 : 7:08 p.m.
Michigan needs to consider putting Denard at another position other than QB for at least 50% of the snaps. He is NOT sufficient in the area of passing skills. Having him switch and move around the field may be for the best. Inserting the Texas kid into the lineup may be just what the Wolverines are lacking.
Tom
Sat, Jul 21, 2012 : 1:20 p.m.
How about bench?
jeff blue
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 11:50 p.m.
Hi All, Is it just me, or is the B10 a little down this year in the passing area? I absolutely love Denard Robinson and I know he will have a great year as Michigan's QB. But, Denard is not really an exceptional passer. Russell Wilson is off to the NFL. Cousins is gone. Dan Persa has graduated. OSU, PSU and NEB do not have a good passing QB's. Other than Michigan, are we looking at very poor B10 pass offenses? Sorry, but for the most part the B10 offenses do NOT look exciting.
Wally the Wolverine
Wed, Jul 18, 2012 : 1:03 a.m.
I would say that to this point, the new QBs are unproven. In many cases, the performance of these new QBs will be impacted by how well opposing defensive lines play. Wait until they play a few snaps, there may be a few surprises out there.
tulsatom
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 5:33 p.m.
Here's hoping that Roundtree can step up to the task. He is listed as 6' 0" and 177 lbs, which seems a little small to me and more geared for the spread offense. I hope he doesn't have durability issues. On the bright side, I'm sure he's been getting extra attention by the coaching staff so he will be as well-prepared as possible. Good luck to him and the receiving corp. In order to have a balanced offense, they are going to have to pass efficiently so he will need to produce in order for U-M to succeed. .
Tally10
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 5:24 p.m.
In Roy's defense, how many passes did he have thrown his way? For the most part last year he was taken out of the offense. For the most part all but Hemmingway's and Toussant's ( he was hurt ) production dropped last year, but that was more so due to change in offensive schemes and not the players themselves. I believe the offense as a whole will be more productive now that the feeling-out process is over with the coaches, they know what they have and hopefully they'll be able to use them accordingly.
Mick52
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 12:19 a.m.
Thanks for asking I was wondering that very same thing. It may not be his fault he only caught 19. I am also wondering if percentages are kept on catchable passes. 19 out of how many would be nice to know.
Terry Star21
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 4:25 p.m.
"..ranked 524th....". Kyle, tell me thats a misprint please ! Yes, I think it does show a lot of faith - but is this faith unfounded ? I think not. Roundtree is a big time receiver, that he has proven. Roundtree is a big-play maker, proven again. The basis is then, Rountree is in his final year and is in a more comfortable position with the new coaches (in their second year). Roundtree is low key, but extremely motivated. Look for him to be one of the best, if not the best in the B10 and beyond. MgoBlueForTiM...pass, completion, touchdown and Tree celebration.
Commoncents
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 4:23 p.m.
I'm very skeptical of Roy Roundtree being our "go to" flanker. When we were running the spread w/ the slot ninjas catching a 5yd swing pass was a lot different than going deep (which is what he'll have to do this year). He's small and has a lot of drops. I hope I'm wrong!
Commoncents
Wed, Jul 18, 2012 : 5:21 a.m.
Hey now - I never said it wasn't possible. As a fan I HOPE Roy has a breakout year, but I'm just skeptical is all. The year he did so well was when he was catching 5 yd passes, but this year it will be a lot different. Hopefully he does well - pretty sure we NEED him to
Tally10
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 5:04 p.m.
" He's small...", I wonder how that played out for Greg Jennings???