The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN FOOTBALL 5. 1971, Billy Taylor/Ed Shuttles- worth, 2,172 — Schembechler had a running fullback in the mix in Shut- tlesworth, who accounted for 875 yards behind Taylor's team-leading 1,297. (12 games) 6. 1990, Jon Vaughn/Ricky Powers, 2,164 — Vaughn racked up 1,416 and Powers 748 in Gary Moeller's first season as Michigan's head coach. (12 games) 7. 1988, Tony Boles/Leroy Hoard, 2,160 — Boles set the pace for the Big Ten champions with 1,408 yards rushing, while Hoard backed him with a solid 752. (12 games) 8. 2000, Anthony Thomas/Chris Perry, 2,150 — Both tailbacks starred for the Wolverines, but 2000 be- longed to the A-Train, who rang up 1,733 yards on the ground. Perry added 417, awaiting bigger opportu- nities. (12 games) 9. 1992, Tyrone Wheatley/Jesse Johnson, 2,149 — Wheatley enjoyed his best season with 1,357 yards on the ground, while Johnson provided an additional 792. (12 games) 10. 1981, Butch Woolfolk/Steve Smith, 2,133 — Another quarterback makes the list in Smith, whose 674 yards rushing complemented Wool- folk's team-leading 1,459. (12 games) 11. 1987, Jamie Morris/Jarrod Bunch, 2,105 — Morris saved his best for last, rushing for 1,703 yards as a senior, with Bunch supplying 402. (12 games) 12. 1995, Tshimanga Biakabutuka/ Clarence Williams, 2,045 — Williams punched his ticket to this list with 227 yards on the ground. That's be- cause Biakabutuka set a Michigan re- cord with 1,818 rushing yards, some 2011 Schedule Date Opponent Result/Time Sept. 3 Western Michigan W, 34-10 Sept. 10 Notre Dame W, 35-31 Sept. 17 Eastern Michigan W, 31-3 Sept. 24 San Diego State W, 28-7 Oct. 1 Minnesota In just those two games, the Deer- field Beach, Fla., native had a pass efficiency rating of 196.14, which would have led the nation this sea- son. In fact, only two quarterbacks — Baylor's Heisman Trophy-winning Robert Griffin III and Wisconsin's Russell Wilson — had better than a 180.0 rating, while only eight signal- callers completed 70.0 percent or bet- ter of their attempts this fall. In Michigan's first 10 games, Rob- inson posted a 139.9 pass efficiency, though he was more injured than anyone knew, suffering through a staph infection early in the season that lingered for weeks. "He's a tough guy," head coach Brady Hoke said. "He played with that, and was so much healthier and more confident at the end of the sea- son." While Robinson's health improved, Redshirt sophomore tailback Fitzgerald Toussaint (1,011 yards) has teamed with Denard Robinson (1,163 yards) to gain 2,174 yards on the ground this season. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN 313 of them in the regular-season fi- nale against the Buckeyes. (12 games) RECENT PASS EFFICIENCY In his first career postseason start, DENARD ROBINSON LOOKS TO MAINTAIN junior quarterback Denard Robin- son completed 27 of 41 attempts (65.9 percent) for 254 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He finished the 52-14 loss to Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl last season with a pass efficiency rating of 129.11 and will seek to improve upon that figure when U-M meets Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl Jan. 3. There is reason to believe Robin- W, 58-0 Oct. 8 at Northwestern W, 42-24 Oct. 15 at Michigan State L, 28-14 Oct. 22 Bye Oct. 29 Purdue Nov. 5 at Iowa Nov. 12 at Illinois Nov. 19 Nebraska Nov. 26 Ohio State W, 36-14 L, 24-16 W, 31-14 W, 45-17 W, 40-34 Jan. 3 Virginia Tech* 8:30 p.m./ESPN * Sugar Bowl in New Orleans son will do just that. In the last two games of the regular season, the ju- nior connected on 25 of 35 attempts (71.4 percent) for 347 yards with five touchdowns and a single intercep- tion in leading U-M to victories over Nebraska and Ohio State. 2000 1990 1999 1981 2007 Drew Henson Elvis Grbac Tom Brady Steve Smith Chad Henne the Wolverines grew in their under- standing of roles within coordinator Al Borges' offense, which also helped their quarterback execute better down the stretch. "There was a confidence in the of- fense," Hoke said. "There was a con- fidence in his teammates, when you look at route running, protection, and all those things. But I think the biggest growth was him understand- ing progression reads, understanding how you move in a pocket without moving 100 miles an hour, how you step up in there and gain a little more time, scan the field better." Robinson also ran for 253 yards and four scores on 49 carries, for an average of 5.2 yards per rush, in the final two games. If he can maintain his late-season surge, Robinson could offer a bowl- game performance among the all- time bests. Currently, Drew Henson (1998-2000) holds the single-game bowl record for pass efficiency with a 231.48 rating — he completed 15 of 20 attempts (75.0 percent) for 294 yards and two scores in a 31-28 Cit- rus Bowl victory over Auburn at the conclusion of the 2000 season. ❏ Best Pass-Efficiency Ratings In Michigan Bowl Games Year Quarterback Rating Opponent 231.48 208.26 169.90 167.12 159.57 Auburn Mississippi Alabama UCLA Florida Bowl Citrus Gator Orange Bluebonnet Capital One JANUARY 2012 THE WOLVERINE 31