Rumors of staff changes swirled throughout message boards on Sunday after yet another defensive disappointment, but Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez laughed them off on Monday.

“I just met with the defensive staff the last three hours or so," Rodriguez said just after noon during his weekly news conference. "We all feel like we have to do all we can to have success. Our coaches work very hard."

Rodriguez repeated that he has not made any changes to his defensive staff. He said he first heard of the rumors about a half hour before meeting with the media.

“We've dealt with quite a few (rumors) over the last few years, haven't we? That happens in sports and life in general," Rodriguez said. "You deal with it, so I don't mind answering the question. We're working hard. We're all frustrated. To everyone's credit, no one is pointing fingers, nobody's got their heads down."

Defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Greg Robinson, who is in his second year with the Wolverines, was the subject of the rumors. Michigan has allowed more than 400 yards of offense to opponents in five games so far this season. The Wolverines are ranked near the bottom of most national defensive statistical rankings — 106th in total defense (440.3 yards a game) and 117th in pass defense (290.5).

Michigan leads the Big Ten in total offense and rushing yardage, so the Wolverines’ three consecutive losses automatically draw attention to the defense.

When asked what an offensive-minded head coach like himself can do to help the struggling defense, Rodriguez said he would spend more time with defensive players and in defensive meetings.

"I probably should do that because we have more inexperienced players over there," Rodriguez said. "I'm not going to be able to wave a magic wand and fix some of the issues defensively. Some of the problems are not going to get fixed overnight. You can't make a guy experienced just by practicing with them. We have a lot of inexperienced players defensively.

"I have a critical view of everything — every coach, every player, everything in our program every day. That's what we do. That's what head coaches do."

Rich “The Situation” Rodriguez: Rodriguez’s love for Lion King references is well documented by the media.

His most recent pop culture reference was a bit more current — and hilarious.

“Everybody wants to focus on the negative," Rodriguez said. "Nobody ever wants to talk about the positive. I guess that gets people’s interest. It sells papers. It gets people to turn on the TV. If it’s a negative story coming on, the world’s coming to an end. There’s a bombing, something tragic. But if it’s positive, it doesn’t sell.

“It’s why everybody watches reality shows, right? To see them get in cat fights? Jersey Shore, whatever you call it. People want to see two people get into an argument and boy, if they get to the point where they actually try to swing at each other, that’s going to get great ratings.”

Injury updates: Rodriguez said he expects defensive lineman Mike Martin's ankle to heal enough so he could begin practicing Monday or Tuesday.

Rodriguez hopes the other injured players will be healthy to practice and play this week. The list includes: offensive tackle Perry Dorrestein (knee), tailback Mike Shaw (knee), tailback Fitz Toussaint (shoulder), cornerback J.T. Floyd (stinger) and quarterback Denard Robinson (hip).

Rodriguez also said Shaw’s injury limited him against Penn State.