2012 Season Countdown: #15 Devin Gardner

Tag: 2012 season countdown

15Aug 2012
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2012 Season Countdown: #15 Devin Gardner

Devin Gardner

Name: Devin Gardner
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 203 lbs.
High school: Inkster (MI) Inkster
Position: Quarterback, wide receiver
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #12
Last year: I ranked Gardner #25 and said he would be the backup quarterback.  He was 11/23 passing (47.8%) for 176 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception.  He also rushed 25 times for 53 yards (2.1 yards per carry) and 1 touchdown.

More so than in 2010, starting quarterback Denard Robinson avoided getting dinged up, which kept Gardner from having to take control of the team.  Most crunch-time snaps that he took in 2011 were in Michigan’s “Deuce” package, in which Gardner took snaps with Robinson at running back or wide receiver.  There were some explosive plays with the duo on the field, but sometimes it seemed to get the offense out of rhythm.  Gardner’s passing and rushing numbers from last season were not impressive, and there were some times he made some inexplicable decisions.  With all the recruiting hype and his early playing time in 2010, people expected better decision-making from Gardner.  But it might be key to remember that Gardner should have been a redshirt freshman in 2011, and he was in his first year of a pro-style system.  We should have expected that there would be growing pains; after all, Robinson had his own growing pains (including 15 interceptions), and that was after getting starting QB reps for the entire spring and pre-season.

As a junior in 2012, Gardner is expected to improve his decision-making at quarterback . . . and he will also be seeing some time at wide receiver.  With the loss of three senior receivers, including the somewhat dynamic Junior Hemingway, Michigan is looking for a big-play guy.  When Gardner plays receiver, he’s automatically the best athlete at the position – a 6’4″, leaping speedster.  Otherwise, the receiving corps is small, slow, and/or inexperienced.  It will be interesting to see whether Gardner can handle being the #2 quarterback and a contributing wide receiver.  The playbook shouldn’t be the issue (quarterbacks have to know the receivers’ routes already, anyway), but the technique of his new position might pose a problem.  If I’m an opposing defensive coordinator, I’m going to have my corners play press man coverage on Gardner and test whether he can handle the physicality of the position.  I don’t expect Gardner to suddenly become a 60% passer, and I don’t expect him to immediately be a 1,000-yard receiver.  However, I do think he has the potential to do either/both because of his physical talents.  Gardner isn’t the most important guy on the team because he might not start, but he should be a key backup in two spots and has the potential to be a darn good player.

Prediction: Backup quarterback and wide receiver; 25 receptions, 425 yards, 3 touchdowns

14Aug 2012
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2012 Season Countdown: #16 J.T. Floyd

J.T. Floyd

Name: J.T. Floyd
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 183 lbs.
High school: Greenville (SC) J.L. Mann
Position: Cornerback
Class: Redshirt senior
Jersey number: #8
Last year: I ranked Floyd #37 and said he would be a backup cornerback.  He started all 13 games and had 48 tackles, 8 pass breakups, 2 interceptions, and 1 forced fumble.

Last year I assumed Floyd would be the backup to Troy Woolfolk while Courtney Avery won the field corner job.  Instead, Avery played in the slot while Floyd and Woolfolk manned the outside spots.  Floyd played well enough to be named Honorable Mention All-Big Ten.  Some people saw marked improvement from his 2010 season; I saw slight improvement.  Some people overrated his performance based on a nice interception against Illinois; some people say I underrated his performance based on him getting burnt deep against Nebraska and Ohio State.

With Avery entrenched at the slot corner position and Blake Countess having established himself at field corner, the defensive backfield returns all four (or five, if you count Avery) starters.  Floyd should be expected to carry on with his solid but unspectacular performance.  His athleticism would seem to hold him back from making a huge leap, but hopefully he will continue to improve under the tutelage of Curt Mallory, who is a significantly better coach than former cornerbacks coach Tony Gibson.  I think the loss of three starters on the defensive line will give quarterbacks an extra split second to throw, which may hurt Michigan’s overall pass defense.  The disappearance of Terrence Talbott leaves a small void behind Floyd, but Raymon Taylor got some experience last season and bulked up in the offseason to 182 lbs.; he should be Floyd’s primary backup at boundary corner, with Blake Countess also a possibility to slide over in case of a long-term injury.  Floyd should repeat his Honorable Mention performance.  Anything more or less would be slightly surprising.

Prediction: Starting cornerback; 55 tackles, 2 interceptions

13Aug 2012
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2012 Season Countdown: #17 Jibreel Black

Jibreel Black (#55)

Name: Jibreel Black
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 279 lbs.
High school: Cincinnati (OH) Wyoming
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #55
Last year: I ranked Black #23 and said he would be a backup defensive end.  He made 18 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and 1 forced fumble as a backup defensive end.

Black had a decent season in 2011, but has yet to have a breakout year.  Ideally, he would have redshirted as a freshman in 2010, but a shortage of defensive linemen forced him into action that year.  Michigan’s coaching staff reportedly wanted him to bulk up prior to spring 2011, but he came in weighing around 260, anyway; it seems he balked at playing too heavy in hopes of retaining some athleticism.  That got him off on the wrong foot a little bit, which helped solidify Craig Roh as the starting weakside end last season.  Black saw his fair share of snaps in 2011, and even had a signature play when he helped sack Braxton Miller on a key goal-line play late against Ohio State.  But in general, he was a little too stiff and slow at that WDE position and the coaches asked him to bulk up even more for a move to 3-tech defensive tackle.

It’s quite a leap from weakside end to 3-tech tackle.  He should be familiar with the position, having played next to Will Heininger last year.  But a normal progression would be to strongside end, but Roh already took that spot.  The hope is that Black can use his quickness to outmaneuver some offensive guards, which he’ll have to do if he wants to make an impact as a 279 lb. tackle.  Black’s size doesn’t really concern me, because plenty of 3-techs have been just fine around 280 lbs.  The biggest thing that concerns me about Black is the technique; he’ll have to get better at using his hands inside to get rid of blocks.  Options are limited for quality play at the 3-tech.  There aren’t really any quality backups at the position, but I don’t know that Black will be a quality starter this year, either.  He’s essentially playing his third position in three years (SDE as a freshman, WDE as a sophomore, and now DT), so it might take him another year to get comfortable on the interior.  Quinton Washington, Richard Ash, and Ken Wilkins might also see some time there, but all three are very unproven as even part-time contributors.

Prediction: Starting defensive tackle; 25 tackles, 3 sacks

12Aug 2012
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2012 Season Countdown: #18 Thomas Rawls

Thomas Rawls (#38)

Name: Thomas Rawls
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 218 lbs.
High school: Flint (MI) Northern
Position: Running back
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #38
Last year: I ranked Rawls #56 and said he would be a backup running back.  He had 13 carries for 79 yards (6.1 yards per carry).

I can’t say I’m a fan of the way Rawls was used last season.  I’m not sure why the #4 running back on the roster (behind Fitzgerald Toussaint, Michael Shaw, and Vincent Smith) needed to burn a potentially valuable redshirt to run the ball a few times against Eastern Michigan, Minnesota, and Purdue.  His 10 carries against Minnesota were in garbage time, and someone else could have picked up those other 3 carries against EMU and the Boilermakers.  Inexperienced running backs can step right in and be very good, so I don’t think he needed those 13 carries in order to be ready for 2012.

But going into 2012, Rawls might be the game one starter after all.  It looks like incumbent starter Toussaint will be suspended for at least part of the Alabama game due to his drunk driving arrest, which leaves the running back duties up to Rawls, Smith, and guys who have never stepped on the field at Michigan.  Rawls ran well in the spring game back in April, and reports from practice say Rawls “runs angry.”  He’s a battering ram with a little bit of speed.  Toussaint had success against good defenses last year, so he’s a known quantity.  Rawls had success against bad teams and Michigan’s backups in the spring, so he’s still a little unproven.  I’m going to go out on a limb and trust practice reports here, so I expect Rawls to be pretty solid . . . but I also hope Toussaint doesn’t have any more slip-ups and can return as soon as Brady Hoke sees fit.

Prediction: Part-time starting running back; 80 carries, 360 yards, 3 touchdowns

11Aug 2012
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2012 Season Countdown: #19 Jeremy Gallon

Jeremy Gallon

Name: Jeremy Gallon
Height: 5’8″
Weight: 187 lbs.
High school: Apopka (FL) Apopka
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #10
Last year: I ranked Gallon #51 and said he would be a backup receiver and backup returner.  He started 1 game at receiver and started at returner, catching 31 passes for 453 yards (14.6 yards per catch) and 3 touchdowns; rushed 3 times for 26 yards; returned 3 kickoffs for 46 yards; and returned 19 punts for 192 yards.

I underestimated Gallon’s impact in 2011, partly because Al Borges ran more spread sets than I expected and got Gallon the ball on a lot of short throws (as well as a few long ones).  Despite being just 5’8″, he turned into Michigan’s second-most productive receiver and even snagged the occasional jump ball.  He also improved his decision making on punt returns, allowing him to average a solid 10.1 yards per return.  Gallon isn’t the fastest guy around, but he’s solidly built and extremely shifty.  If defenders are one-on-one with him in open space, they might as well just fall to the ground and get it over with.

Gallon will likely be expected to start in 2012 at the split end position now that former split end Roy Roundtree has moved to flanker.  While his size might still limit his ability to make plays downfield, Gallon should be able to get open underneath, from the slot, and on some more screen passes.  Michigan lost a large chunk of production from the 2011 receiving corps to graduation (Junior Hemingway, Martavious Odoms, Kelvin Grady), so someone has to step up.  I expect to see a small bump in production this season, but Gallon is more of a complementary receiver than a future star, so his ceiling as a receiver isn’t a great deal higher than what we saw last season.  It will also be interesting to see whether the coaches use Gallon as a full-time returner now that his role on offense will increase.  My guess is that he will continue as the punt returner but drop out of the race to return kickoffs.

Prediction: Starting wide receiver and punt returner; 40 receptions, 540 yards, 5 touchdowns; 1 punt return touchdown