The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN FOOTBALL players from that weekend's contest, unveiling "The Hot 11" on Monday mornings. After 12 games, here are the top overall performances. Devin Gardner: The junior was an early star at wide receiver for the Wolverines, then faded to third in the October rankings of the Hot 11, but was rejuvenated with a move to quarterback. In the final month, he completed 57 of 90 attempts (63.3 percent) for 1,005 yards with eight touch- downs and four interceptions in leading Michigan to a 3-1 record. Gardner also rushed for seven scores, and combined with his four receiving TDs from Septem- ber and October, accounted for 19 scores this season. Denard Robinson: The senior Hot 11: Michigan's Top Performers Through The Regular Season During the season, TheWolverine.com ranks the 11 best including four behind the line of scrimmage. Roy Roundtree: No one experienced as dramatic a change from one month to the next as Roundtree. The fifth-year senior wideout had only five re- ceptions in October and 13 for the year when the calendar hit Nov. 1. In the final four games, he caught 15 balls for 378 yards (25.2 yards per reception) and two scores, on TD grabs of 37 and 75 yards. With one game left to play, Roundtree sits seventh all time at Michigan in receptions (151), seventh in yards (2,277) and 12th in TDs (15). Jordan Kovacs: Michigan's signal-caller missed two of the final four games, which cost him points and led to his fall from the No. 1 spot at the end of October to No. 2. He bounced back with two impressive performances to close out the regular season, rushing for 98 yards against Iowa and 122 yards and a touchdown at Ohio State. Robinson finished the fall with 1,166 yards, rank- ing him third all time at Michi- gan with 4,395 and just 85 yards shy of Pat White's NCAA record of 4,480 yards rushing by a quarterback. Jake Ryan: Arguably U-M's top defensive player for the en- Redshirt junior wide receiver Jeremy Gallon made 22 recep- tions for 366 yards in November, giving him 40 catches for 684 yards and two scores for the regular season. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN pass defense finished the regular season ranked second nationally, allowing 155.2 yards per game, thanks tremendously to Kovacs and the leadership he provides. The fifth-year senior captain helped keep gains modest, with U-M ranking eighth in the coun- try in giving up just nine pass completions of 30 yards or more. In November, the safety had 22 tackles, including two sacks, broke up two passes and forced a fumble. Devin Funchess: The freshman Gallon actually saw his production go up considerably in November; after making 18 grabs in September and Octo- ber, he caught 22 balls in the final four games, good for 366 yards (16.6-yard average) and a score. Gallon also emerged a big-play threat, making grabs of 30, 31, 31, 42, 47 and 51 yards down the stretch. His biggest contribution, though, may have been a 23-yard punt return against Northwestern that helped set up a miraculous game-tying field goal and an overtime victory. Kenny Demens: The fifth-year senior middle linebacker started his last season slowly and was even benched in Sep- tember in favor of true freshman Joe Bolden. However, De- mens responded with the best performances of his career, racking up nine or more tackles in four of U-M's final five contests. He had 10 tackles to open November with a win over Minnesota and would finish the month with 33 stops, 38 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2012 tire season, Ryan had a huge showing at Minnesota to start November, recording three tackles for loss, and would finish the four games with six hits behind the line of scrimmage, including a sack, among 28 total stops. He also forced three fumbles. His current 15 TFLs are the most by a Michigan linebacker since David Harris had 16 in 2006. Jeremy Gallon: Steady throughout the first two months, two huge touchdown catches, one each against Northwest- ern and Iowa, and would finish his first regular season with five TDs — the most by a U-M tight end since Bennie Joppru had five in 2002. With one more TD, he would equal a mark last achieved by Tony McGee in 1992. Desmond Morgan: The sophomore linebacker slipped tight end went without a catch at Ohio State and had just three grabs in November, but he had from sixth to ninth this month, due largely to the fact that he missed the Iowa game with an injury. Morgan started three contests and made his presence felt in each, recording 25 tackles overall in November, including a team-high 11 against the Buckeyes. He would also notch a pass breakup and contribute to a tackle for loss. Drew Dileo: The junior had jumped into the Hot 11 for October after a stellar performance against Michigan State in which he caught four balls for 92 yards and set up the game-winning field goal. He built off that effort a week later, scoring his only touchdown of the year among four grabs in a win at Minnesota, and he finished November with seven catches — a single month career high for him. Brendan Gibbons: The redshirt junior wasn't afforded much opportunity in November, attempting a single field goal, which he made from 26 yards against Northwestern, but he was ready for more if needed. Gibbons finished the regular season connecting on 14 of 16 attempts (87.5 per- cent), while making each of his last 11 tries. — Michael Spath