OPINION

By Dave Curtis

updated 1:59 p.m. ET July 29, 2009

CHICAGO - Last year, Rich Rodriguez plus July equaled silly speak. All the talk was about the job he used to have (West Virginia, its fans and its buyout), the job he could have had (Alabama) and the circumstances around the Michigan job he still has today. Football became a footnote for the Big Ten's most gregarious man.

Michigan went 3-9 in Rodriguez's first season in Ann Arbor.

This time through the conference's media days? Some straight talk, for a change. And in the middle of it, this doozy, which frames Rodriguez's predicament, and the state of the Wolverines, as the 2009 season dawns.

"If we're not in a bowl game," Rodriguez said, "we're all going to be ticked."

So maybe that's the new equation: Michigan plus Motor City Bowl equals success? Or at least a sigh of relief? Here's a certainty: Wolverines football is broken, with each of last year's school-record nine losses and 347 points allowed adding to the evidence. And whether you think Rodriguez is the guy who ruined it, or whether you absolve him of blame, you're faced with the reality that he's the guy charged with fixing it.

So to assist Rich Rod in his reclamation project, here's a five-point plan to keep the ticked folks to a minimum at the holidays.

1. Find a quarterback
Point No. 1 hits on question No. 1 in Ann Arbor: Who in the name of Bo Schembechler will be behind center Sept. 5 against Western Michigan? Candidate No. 1 is Tate Forcier, the California kid who enrolled in January and put up big numbers in the spring game. Candidate 1-A is Denard Robinson, a fellow freshman who showed up five weeks ago and already has impressed coaches during summer workouts.

"Within two weeks," Rodriguez said, "he was making all the runs and doing the stuff that some of the guys who have been here a year and a half aren't doing."

Rodriguez likes Forcier and won't count out Nick Sheridan, who looked like a bantam among the varsity when he took snaps last season. But Rodriguez has a crush on Robinson, whose speed (or the stories of his speed) conjures two words: Pat White. Give the ball to Forcier, sprinkle in Robinson in Chris Leak/Tim Tebow fashion, and hope the pair of freshmen can deliver seven wins.

2. Hold on to the ball
Michigan's 18 fumbles and minus-10 turnover margin ranked last in the Big Ten and was the primary reason for the squad's struggles in '08. Only East Carolina, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Georgia Tech and Army coughed up the ball more than the Wolverines.

"We'll win more games just by taking better care of the ball," Rodriguez said.

More consistent quarterback play should help, but the key to a change here might be the offensive line. The group made its usual gains in the weight room, but Rodriguez sounded especially excited about the mental improvements. Translation: This year's starting five should crash into the other team's defensive line more than it crashes into each other.

3. Tackle, tackle, tackle
The positives from Year No. 2 of this Michigan offense might be muted by the pains from Year No. 1 of this Michigan defense. Greg Robinson arrives to replace Scott Shafer as defensive coordinator and plans to install a 3-4 scheme that could look more like a 3-3-5 as the season wears on.

Scheme, of course, doesn't matter if those players again perform as though they're allergic to ballcarriers. So, Coach Robinson, anything bigger than the basics might be too much for a starting 11 that could feature only one senior.

"We're going to be solid in the fundamentals," Robinson said this spring. "That's the focus. You've got to tackle the other team's guy with the ball."

4. Bring back the belief
The Wolverines move into a new indoor facility next week, the completion of a nine-year project that cost more than $25 million. A new-look Michigan Stadium opens in 2010. Rodriguez said Monday he likes the spirit around his program even more than his players.

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"They've come closer together in the last five or six months than I ever could have hoped for," he said.

Of course, about 119 other Division I-A coaches say the same thing this time of year. But the changes on campus, combined with a strong 22-man recruiting class expected to report in full for the opening of camp next week, give his words some backbone.

5. Beat a big boy
Notre Dame in Week 2. Michigan State or Penn State in October. Ohio State in that Motor City Bowl tune-up. As Rodriguez said Monday, his faith in the maize and blue won't spread to the masses until the program starts winning more than it loses. Beating an old rival, or the team up Interstate 96, or a fellow traditional power expected to threaten the BCS, might accelerate the Rich Rod reclamation.

If nothing else, it might keep some folks from feeling ticked for a while.

Also on NBCSports.com Rosenthal: Saints win with aggressive ‘ambush’ Trash Talk: How will Manning rebound from loss? NBA: ProBasketballTalk is here! Check out new blog NCAA BK: Who's in, who's out? Updated bracket projections Twitter: Follow us @nbc_sports

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