The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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Wolverines to celebrate a perfect 12-0 campaign for Ohio State. Michigan's staff, including head coach Brady Hoke, sprinted off the field, but many of those wearing the winged helmet trod slowly to the locker room, soaking up the dis- appointment of yet another loss to the Buckeyes; for those keeping track, U-M has lost eight of its past nine to rival OSU. Michigan also hasn't won a Big Ten W BY MICHAEL SPATH hen Braxton Miller knelt one final time, fans clad in scar- let and gray descended onto the field, blowing past the with its normal offense, scored to take a lead, and avoided the five turnovers that would come after that pick? • What if senior quarterback Denard Robinson would have stayed healthy against Nebraska, rather than going down with an arm injury at the NU 15- yard line? Would Michigan have scored a touchdown and taken a 10-7 lead in Lin- coln? What if junior Devin Gardner had been motivated and properly prepped to championship since 2004, missing out on a shot this season when it fell to Ne- braska 23-9 in Lincoln Oct. 27 and then watched the Cornhuskers narrowly es- cape three November contests, beating Michigan State 28-24, Penn State 32-23 and Iowa 13-7, the latter to clinch its berth in the title game 24 hours before the Wolverines met the Buckeyes in Co- lumbus. A year ago, despite an 11-2 campaign RISING The Regular UP that included a BCS bowl win over Virginia Tech, and victories over rivals Notre Dame and Ohio State, Hoke called the 2011 season a failure. This season, he was a bit kinder to his team, but regarded an 8-4 fall finish that included losses to the Fighting Irish and Buckeyes as a disappointment. "We didn't win the championship; that's the expectation," said Hoke, who did see some positives emerge. "There was some growth. That growth is prob- ably as much with how the senior class came together, and it also is for the young guys who played some valuable snaps. "We're all real disappointed in the out- Season Finished On A Low Note, But The Future Is Promising For The Wolverines take over in case of an emergency instead of the Wolverines having to throw the unproven Russell Bellomy in? • What if the second-half offense, both come down in Columbus, obviously. The one thing I can tell you is we're very proud of the senior class. We're proud because of the leadership and the devel- opment of the program they've helped with … how they continue to lay the foundation of what we want to be." Most will likely look back on the 2012 regular season asking, "What if?" • What if U-M hadn't thrown an in- terception on a halfback pass late in the first quarter against Notre Dame while driving for the game's first score? What if it had continued moving the football In four games of action at quarterback this season, junior Devin Gardner was 57-of-90 passing for 1,005 yards with eight touch- downs and four interceptions. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL from a play-calling and execution stand- point, more closely resembled the first- half offense in the 26-21 loss to Ohio State when U-M was held out of the end zone after taking a 21-20 lead into the halftime locker room? • And maybe even, what if athletics director David Brandon had the foresight to know not to schedule Alabama in what was tantamount to another rebuilding year in Hoke's second season? Is it possible the Maize and Blue could have finished the season undefeated like rivals Notre Dame and Ohio State? Or at least be playing in the Big Ten champi- onship game Dec. 1? Of course it is, but every team in the country not playing for the national title Jan. 7 can ask, "What if?" Michigan had the year it had because in those critical moments, it couldn't make the big play offensively or defensively, finishing 8-4 during a regular season for the first time since 2007. Now, like then, the Wolver- ines will try to cap the campaign with a bowl win. Sifting through the season that was 2012, however, there is some good, par- ticularly the play of the defense and that of Gardner. Both give cause for opti- mism that Michigan's eight-year Big Ten championship drought will end in 2013. quarterback for 2013 and 2014 — the coach said he expects the rising senior to be granted a medical redshirt making him eligible for two more seasons — but the job is Gardner's to lose, with Bel- lomy his chief competition next season and five-star recruit Shane Morris ready to battle in 2014. Though a small sample size, in four TO LEAD MICHIGAN OFFENSE Hoke won't anoint Gardner his starting DEVIN GARDNER EXPECTED games at quarterback Gardner completed 63.3 percent of his pass attempts for an average of 251.3 yards per game, throw- ing for eight touchdowns with four inter- ceptions. He also rushed for seven scores and 77 yards, so in four opportunities under center he accounted for an aston- ishing 15 touchdowns. "It's his composure, as much as any- thing," said coordinator Al Borges, who in year three will finally have the pro- style passer he's needed to run his pre- ferred offense. "Somebody asked me if I was surprised by his accuracy. Not at all. All of his numbers in practice have shown you he's an accurate passer. "But so many things are game specific. Things can go wrong, and it's being able to deal with those things. The biggest surprise is how composed he stayed. Not that I didn't think he would, but you don't know. Nobody knows. Until those lights go on, and the bullets start flying, you just never know." Michigan's offense will see at least three starters depart from the offensive line, while receiver Roy Roundtree moves on and, obviously, Robinson does too. The Wolverines are set to lose two of their most important playmakers and will have to rebuild the line, but the value of a senior quarterback (or a redshirt junior if all goes according to plan) cannot be overstated. Gardner himself knows that his expe- rience, both at receiver and quarterback this year, will come in handy next sea- son. "It's different to be in the game than in practice," he said. "When I was a fresh- DECEMBER 2012 THE WOLVERINE 21