wednesday's practice update: Is Troy Woolfolk the answer at cornerback? And Carlos Brown sits

Posted on Wed, Oct 7, 2009 : 4:47 p.m.

WoolfolkCaper.jpg

Michigan State running back Larry Caper is hit by Michigan's Troy Woolfolk, right, but breaks the tackle and rumbles into the endzone for the game-winning touchdown in overtime giving the Spartans a 26-20 win.

Lon Horwedel | AnnArbor.com

Still searching for the right combination in its struggling secondary, Michigan is at least toying with the idea of moving safety Troy Woolfolk back to cornerback.

Woolfolk practiced at corner Wednesday, with Jordan Kovacs and Mike Williams at safety.

Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez did not address the possible position switch in his pre-practice meeting with the media, and it’s unclear where Woolfolk will play Saturday against Iowa.

Boubacar Cissoko started the first four games at right cornerback, opposite Donovan Warren, and J.T. Floyd replaced Cissoko in last week’s loss to Michigan State.

Asked about that battle Wednesday, Rodriguez said it’s "ongoing."

"Eventually you'd like to maybe get things settled, but I don’t know if that will be settled for several weeks," he said.

At safety, Rodriguez said, the walk-on “Kovacs has played well enough that we feel really confident in him. I think Mike Williams is healthier now and so he’ll continue to play. I know we’ve said this a bunch of times, but we’re trying to get a bunch of guys in the game and get depth, but they’ve got to show us in practice or in limited opportunities that they can do it. And that’s the issue we’re in with all our guys.”

Woolfolk played 12 games as a backup cornerback last year, and moved to safety this spring. He started the first five games at strong safety.

More practice notes from Wednesday:

• Running back Carlos Brown did not practice Wednesday because of an undisclosed injury. He missed part of the Indiana game with what was originally termed “sore knees” and later described as an ankle injury.

Brandon Minor, battling a high-ankle sprain most of the fall, is as close as to 100 percent health as he’s been all season, Rodriguez said. Minor could make his first start of the year against Iowa.

“The past few weeks he’s been limited during the weeks,” Rodriguez said. “Tuesday practices are our most physical practice and (this week) he went through the whole practice on Tuesday. It’s probably, and again talking to him, it’s the best he’s felt in several weeks.”

• Rodriguez said he listened to the end of Tuesday’s Tigers-Twins game after he left his office in the bottom of the 12th inning.

“I didn’t want to get a speeding ticket, but I wanted to hurry up and get (home) because obviously I’m a big Tigers fan,” Rodriguez said. “I met with Jim Leyland last year, great guy, and of course we got a Tigers coach’s son on the team in Jared Van Slyke (the Tigers’ first-base coach). So I missed the thing, but they’ll be back. They’ll be back in it next year.”

So Rodriguez had a late night at the office Tuesday?

“It was actually a little early,” he said. “It was about 9:45, 10 o’clock. I better crank it up.”

• Quarterback Tate Forcier (shoulder) practiced full-go Wednesday after being limited in passing drills earlier in the week.

Dave Birkett covers University of Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at 734-623-2552 or by e-mail at davidbirkett@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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