The Wolverine

MAIZE N' VIEW MICHAEL SPATH harles Woodson seemed like a good base comparison for Devin Gardner. A cornerback by trade, he filled in at receiver some in 1997, chipping in with 12 catches for 238 yards and two touch- downs as a big-play threat defenses had to account for when he was on the field. A quarterback, rumored to be practicing at receiver in the spring and in summer workouts, Gardner could this year, under ideal circum- stances, play a similar role to Wood- son, catching a few balls, a touch- down or two, while still honing his craft at quarterback both in case of an emergency — starter Denard Robinson suffering an injury — and in preparation for when he assumes the QB mantle in 2013. C Gardner is something else entirely — he's tied with redshirt junior Jer- emy Gallon as Michigan's leading receiver with 11 catches, and paces the team with 195 receiving yards and three touchdowns grabs. He's also the passing game's biggest difference maker with the physical makeup at 6-4, 203 pounds to be an All-American and a high NFL Draft pick, if he chooses to stay a signal-caller's target. Michigan will have only two scholarship quarterbacks in 2013 — redshirt sophomore Russell Bel- lomy and true freshman Shane Mor- ris — and Gardner would certainly have an opportunity to compete for the job he's always coveted, but the further he distances himself from the quarterback position, the more likely he'll remain a wideout. "The problem is the reps you no longer get at quarterback, because now you're getting them at receiver, and it's two-fold. Every rep you're not getting, someone else, that is just a quarterback, is getting, and pretty soon you're fighting an uphill bat- tle," said former Wolverine Jermaine Gonzales (2001-04), who made the move from QB to receiver perma- nently in 2002. "When you sort of figure that out, you have a choice to make because you really can't be both a receiver and a quarterback." Four games into the 2012 season, 90 THE WOLVERINE OCTOBER 2012 The Two Devins Create Excitement True freshman tight end Devin Funchess posted eight grabs for 151 yards and two touchdowns while seeing action in three of U-M's four non-conference games. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL The Detroit native has repeatedly told the media this fall he still thinks of himself as a quarterback and in- tends to return to the post and com- pete for the starting job in 2013. But he has also shared he's a "football player" doing what is in the best interest of his team, and what might be in U-M's best interest is for Gard- ner to stay put. "We haven't seen him much as a quarterback, but what we've seen of him as a wide receiver has been impressive," TheWolverine.com analyst Ron Simpkins said. "He's got everything you want — he's tall and fast, runs fluidly, has shown good hands, and shows the ability to go up and get the ball at its high- est point. extremely quickly from his first game to his third game. He might think of himself as a quarterback, but he can be a game-breaking receiver." Meanwhile, freshman tight end Devin Funchess has also emerged as a big-play threat for the Maize and Blue this season, with his first five career receptions going for 21, 29, 30, 36 and 26 yards. No receiver in U-M history had recorded gains of 20 or more yards on each of his first "And he's matured as a receiver five career catches until Funchess, who has eight grabs overall for 151 yards and two touchdowns in three contests this season. "He's such an incredible athlete that his presence on the field is al- ready changing what defenses can do. When he's in the game, depend- ing who you're defending him with, if you blitz and he's in a one-on-one matchup, that's a good situation for Michigan," said former tight end Bennie Joppru (1999-2002), who holds the U-M single-season tight end record for receptions with 53 as a senior. Joppru has been encouraged to watch Michigan's tight ends become more involved this season — they're on pace for 35 catches, the most since the position snared 39 in 2006 — and believes the more Funch- ess assists in the ground attack, the more lethal he becomes. "Teams will figure it out sooner or later that he's lined up mostly split out wide, running receiver routes, and doesn't seem to be that involved in the running game," said Jop- pru. "He can be special, but he has to evolve into both a receiver and blocker. "We always talk about the quar- terback, the running back, the receivers, but no position has an impact on the game plan more than a tight end because he's both a blocker and a receiver. "If you bring a defensive back in to defend him — and I remember when we played Wisconsin my se- nior year they used a cornerback the entire game and we ran pretty well [216 yards and 6.0 yards per carry] — we could overpower the front seven because there was one less linebacker on the field. there, the tight ends that are more athletic, like this kid is, can just run right by him and now you've got the advantage in the passing game." u "But if you put a linebacker out Associate Editor Michael Spath has been with The Wolverine since 2002. Contact him at mspath@thewolverine.com and follow him on Twitter @Spath_ Wolverine.

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