The Colts have announced their roster moves, confirming their 53 player roster and Mike made the cut as the 3rd RB behind Addai and Rhodes:

All nine players selected in the 2008 NFL Draft – guard Mike Pollak, linebacker Philip Wheeler, tight end Jacob Tamme, defensive end Marcus Howard, running back Mike Hart, wide receiver Pierre Garcon, guard Steve Justice and center/guard Jamey Richard – made the 53-man roster, as did four rookie free agents: defensive end Curtis Johnson, linebacker Jordan Senn, safety Jamie Silva and defensive tackle Eric Foster.

Congratulations to Mike!

The Colts lost their final preseason matchup, against the Cincinnati Bengals, by a final score of 7-27.

The top 2 RBs Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes did not play, so all of the game’s carries were split between Kenton Keith (who started the game), Mike, and Chad Simpson.

None of them seemed to be able to get much going in the run game. Mike made more of a mark on the passing front, combining for 13 yards on two receptions. He only managed 3 yds from 5 carries. Keith accumulated -2 yds on 5 attempts, while Simpson gained 17 yds from 6 rushes.

Clifton Dawson was released earlier in the week, so it seems like these 3 may have been competing for a roster spot. We’ll see who made the cut this weekend. I hope it’s Mike!

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NOTE: Did you miss the game? If your cable provider carries FSN Ohio, they will replay the game at 1AM (ET).

Mike entered the game in the 3rd quarter and was the 3rd Colts RB to get on the field, behind Joseph Addai and Dom Rhodes. Mike contributed a block for QB Quinn Gray, then followed with a 3-yd pass reception on the next play.

In the next quarter, Mike lined up deep to field a kickoff return. There, he provided a key block that helped teammate Courtney Roby to make a 66-yd return. Mike had 1 carry, but did not pick up any yards on the attempt.

The announcers in the booth for the NFL Network — which included a couple of former NFL players — seemed impressed with Mike’s production in his limited action. He can do more than just run the ball. He can catch and block, which will only increase his value to the Colts with a round of roster cuts coming up in the near future.

While backup QB Quinn Gray accounted for the only Colts score, he also was responsible for 4 interceptions.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, the Colts recorded their 3rd preseason loss with a final score of 7-20.

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The Colts break in the new Lucas Oil Stadium tonight with their first preseason home game against the Buffalo Bills.

Kickoff is at 8PM eastern and the game can be viewed on the NFL Network and local Indianapolis TV stations WXIN FOX 59 and WTTV CW 4. For those without NFLN or outside the Indy viewing area, online audio/video feeds can be found on ChannelSurfing.net.

Fans of the Michigan Wolverine football program are going to do a double take this fall. Not because of the new coach and new system being installed. But because #20 will be back on the field.

No, Mike Hart did not secure another year of eligibility for the Wolverines. Freshman Michael Shaw has been given the #20 jersey number for his Michigan tenure.

It’ll definitely take some getting used to for fans, but if he’s even remotely as productive as the last man who wore #20, then Michigan will be extremely pleased!

The Colts notced their first win of the 2008 preseason with a 16-9 decision over the Atlanta Falcons

For this game, I wished that Mike would get his reps earlier in the game, rather than the waning minutes of the 4th quarter. That is exactly what happened! After Joseph Addai and Dom Rhodes did their respective drives, Mike was the next RB in the game.

Once again, he did well, gaining 19 yds on 5 carries. No passes this week. There was a holding call against him, but that ended up being quite the theme of the game. Penalty-palozza. Mike also made some key blocks during punt returns.

I did not get to see this game, but it seems the biggest concern from fans was the pourous run defense that gave up a couple of big runs to Falcons RB Michael Turner.

[NFL.com Video Highlights | BOXSCORE]

This week’s preseason contest takes the Colts to the ATL to take on the Falcons.

Kickoff is at 7:30 PM (ET) from the Georgia Dome.

For those of you not located in the greater Indianapolis or Atlanta markets, you can listen to the game online at www.channelsurfing.net.

Here’s to Mike putting up another solid performance tonight.

According to Colts.com, Mike had a pretty good day at training camp today.

Rookie running back Mike Hart had several productive runs in the morning practice, and caught several passes for first downs in the morning and afternoon practices.

Glad to see how well he follows up game action once back at camp.

In other news, I got a hold of the full Colts/Panthers game, so I will chop that up in order to share Mike’s highlights; even though he didn’t get much time on the field.

Also, the team re-signed RB Clifton Dawson. There goes any clarity we thought we were getting from that move. So many good backs. They can’t all make the final roster.

More praise for Mike here.

The Indianapolis Colts fell 20-23 to the Carolina Panthers tonight in their 2nd preseason game.

I didn’t get to watch it because Colts preseason games are broadcast in my market, but from checking out the boxscore, it’s plain to see that Mike had another productive outing for the Colts in his 2nd NFL game. It’s that consistency that will help him in his quest to make the team’s final roster.

Mike ran the ball twice for a total of 20 yds. He also caught two passes for 21 yds. So, taking in the averages, each time Mike touched the ball, the team was given about 10 yards. That’s some effective production, in my opinion.

Mike didn’t see the field until the 4th quarter. I’d really like to see him move up on the depth chart so we can all see how does against stronger competition. We’ll have to wait and see if that happens.

If you get the NFL Network, you’ll be able to see this game tomorrow (Sunday) at 7:00 PM (ET).

In other news, the Colts RB stable shrunk by 1 player as Clifton Dawson was waived by the team.

Part of the reason Mike Hart returned to Michigan for his senior season was so he could finally beat his team’s hatest rival, the Ohio State Buckeyes. It didn’t exactly pan out the way he wanted as the Wolverine fell 3-14 to the Buckeyes in late November.

Now, 3 of his teammates are former Buckeyes. And 7 other Colts players are from the Big Ten Conference.

What was once a rivalry has morphed into a special bond amongst former Big Ten players; an us against them mindset, if you will.

“We all like each other. We’re on the same team now. When you get to the NFL, it’s not about Ohio State vs. Michigan, it’s about Big Ten vs. SEC, vs. ACC vs. Pac-10, you know which conference is better. This team has a lot of Big Ten guys so that’s definitely a good thing.”

What a difference a few months makes! Although, one can only imagine the amount of trash talk that will go on in the Colts locker room come November 22, when Michigan and Ohio State meet again.