The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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BY JOHN BORTON t wasn't any runaway, like junior quarterback Denard Robinson executes against flailing defend- ers. Matter of fact, Robinson himself didn't think he'd win the Bo Schembechler Most Valuable Player Award at Michigan's 91st annual Foot- ball Bust. Robinson did capture that coveted prize, his 1,163 yards rushing, 2,056 yards passing and 34 overall touch- downs simply too impact-laden to ig- nore. The QB then accepted the MVP award with the sort of effervescent humility that has won the hearts of Michigan fans, including nearly 1,700 assembled at a packed Laurel Manor in Livonia. believed in 'The Team, The Team, The Team.' There were many guys that were right there at the end of that vote." There were also many on the dais and in the overflow crowd who were both amazed and deeply gratified that the Wolverines executed the leap to 10 wins in Hoke's first season. The head coach himself reminded everyone a key goal — the Big Ten championship — wasn't attained. At the same time, players who struggled through years of under- achieving by Michigan standards ex- pressed deep satisfaction at being able to walk away with their heads held high. "I want to thank [U-M athletics direc- Then Howard dropped the line that brought down the house. "You could see the defense coming together — thank God for defense!" he said. The crowd laughed and applauded, appreciative of the Wolverines' jump from No. 108 in the nation in scoring defense last season to their present No. 7 standing. "The best hires during the offsea- son were Dave Brandon hiring Brady Hoke, and Brady Hoke hiring Greg Mattison," Howard said. At that point, the emcee began treading on some tricky ground, with the soon-to-be two-time MVP and oth- ers brought in by former head coach Rich Rodriguez in attendance. How- Double-Knotted Denard Robinson Wins MVP Award For The Second Straight Season "I thought Mike Martin or David Molk was going to win this award," Robinson offered. "I want to thank all my teammates for being by me throughout the whole thing, even though I was throwing a lot of inter- ceptions." Robinson laughed, and everyone else followed. It was the sort of night in which all could poke fun at themselves and others, while feeling truly grateful for a 10-2 season, the impending trip to the Sugar Bowl and the restoration of Michigan normalcy in terms of on- field results. Head coach Brady Hoke confirmed that others did indeed have a shot at the MVP, underscoring what a team effort the Wolverines produced. "Coach [Schembechler] was the one who talked about 'The Team, The Team, The Team,'" Hoke reminded all. "That's what we try to live by. I know his great teams, and the teams that fol- lowed Coach, that's what we tried to live by. "I can tell you, this was a team vote for who wins this award. The guys up front here are the ones who voted. It was really evident that this group 16 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2012 tor] David Brandon for hiring the best coaching staff that this country has to offer, bar none," said Martin, a senior captain. "Coach Hoke and his staff, thank you for taking Team 132 and this senior class where it hasn't been. And like you said day one on the job, 'For god's sakes, this is Michigan.'" It was that kind of night. Celebra- tion, relief and pride flowed freely among both fans and coaches. Mas- ter of ceremonies Desmond Howard spoke about the huge strides forward made by the program, but also some of the struggles leading up to this break- through campaign. The former Heisman Trophy winner struck a chord with the audience in the beginning, praising the current crop of Wolverines and their coaches for what they achieved. "Team 132 is a special unit," How- ard said. "When I hear that name, it sounds like a military unit. I couldn't have been more proud of how you represented the Maize and Blue this season. Whether you won eight games or whether you won 10 games, I was very happy and pleased with what I saw on the field." ard spoke about Michigan's "interna- tional brand," and how it needed to be restored. He thanked Brandon, whom How- ard said righted a program that had tumbled off the proper course. "Now, because of some strange de- cisions that were made recently, that standard kind of went off track," How- ard said. "It's like Coke. Someone in the boardroom at Coke made some crazy decisions, and decided to go with Cherry Coke. They said, 'Okay, we're going to go with Cherry Coke,' but then the consumers didn't like that too much. So they had to go back and bring in some brilliant minds to get this thing back on track. "That's like Domino's Pizza saying we're going to put pineapple on pizza. And the consumers aren't buying any. What Michigan did, we brought in some brilliant minds, like Dave Bran- don, and he got this thing back on track." Robinson totaled 1,163 yards rushing, 2,056 yards passing and 34 overall touchdowns in leading U-M to a 10-2 record in the regular season in 2011. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN I S H O E L A C E