Poll results: Who will lead Michigan in rushing in 2014?

Tag: Devin Gardner


7Dec 2014
Uncategorized no comments

Poll results: Who will lead Michigan in rushing in 2014?

De’Veon Smith was Michigan’s leading rusher in 2014

I meant to post this a few months ago, but somehow it got lost in the shuffle. Here are the results of the poll posted over the summer. (Caveat: This poll closed on September 4, which was several days after Michigan’s opening victory over Appalachian State.)

Derrick Green: 59%
Green ended up with 471 yards in half a season, which was 48 fewer than Smith’s total for twelve games. (Green was my pick in the preseason, too.)


De’Veon Smith: 35%
Smith led the team with 519 yards but did not surpass Green until well after Green was lost for the season with a broken collarbone. Green averaged 78.5 yards/game, and Smith’s only two games over 78.5 yards were the opener against Appalachian State (115 yards) and week 10 against Northwestern (121). Smith averaged 43.25 yards/game for the whole season.


Devin Gardner: 4%
Gardner finished fourth on the team with 258 yards. He undoubtedly would have gone for more, but an ankle injury slowed him down for much of the year.


Drake Johnson: 1%
Johnson was the team’s best back for the last third of the season, rushing for an average of 80 yards/game against Indiana, Northwestern, Maryland, and Ohio State. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL in the season finale.


Other: 0% (0 votes)
The only other tailback to get a shot was Justice Hayes, who averaged 4.4 yards/carry and ended up with 213 rushing yards on the season.

Michigan’s leading rusher total of 519 yards is the lowest since Brandon Minor led the team with 502 yards in 2009, a year in which Michigan also went 5-7.

5Dec 2014
Uncategorized 12 comments

The All-Hoke Team: Offense

Denard Robinson

You may or may not remember when I put together an all-star team for Rich Rodriguez’s tenure (OFFENSE, DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS). Well, here’s the Brady Hoke version. I patched together a pretty good team from the four seasons that Hoke was the head man in Ann Arbor.

QB: Devin Gardner (2013)
208-for-345 passing, 60.3%, 2960 yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions
165 carries for 483 yards, 2.9 yards/carry, 11 touchdowns
This may be an unpopular choice, but Gardner had some brilliant games (Notre Dame, Indiana, Ohio State) during the 2013 campaign. He ended the year as Michigan’s second-leading rusher and showed some great potential. The Notre Dame victory was exhilarating, he threw for 503 yards (a Michigan record) against Indiana, and played great against Ohio State despite a broken foot for part of the game.

RB: Denard Robinson (2012)
177 carries, 1266 yards, 7.2 yards/carry, 7 touchdowns
I’m cheating a bit here by putting Robinson at running back, but he did start a few games at the position after he returned from the elbow injury suffered against Nebraska. He broke 100 yards twice in his three games at running back. Even so, he showed enough running skills at the quarterback position to make this essentially a no-brainer. Imagine the running ability of a team with Gardner at QB and Robinson lined up behind him or next to him.

FB: Joe Kerridge (2014)
3 carries, 56 yards, 18.7 yards/carry
6 catches, 53 yards, 8.8 yards/catch
Hoke employed a fullback quite a bit, but his fullbacks didn’t touch the ball a lot. Kerridge set a record for the Hoke era by getting 9 touches, including some critical first downs and a 52-yard run on a fake punt against Maryland.

WR: Jeremy Gallon (2013)
89 catches, 1373 yards, 15.4 yards/catch, 9 touchdowns
Gallon and Gardner had a symbiotic relationship. Gallon didn’t produce a ton before Gardner became the quarterback, and Gardner was unproductive once Gallon graduated. Regardless, Gallon was a record-setter at Michigan with 1,373 yards that season and had 369 yards in a game against Indiana, the highest Big Ten total in history.

WR: Junior Hemingway (2011)
34 catches, 699 yards, 20.6 yards/catch, 4 touchdowns
Hemingway may not have had higher catch or yardage totals than other candidates for this spot, but he made lots of clutch plays and was Denard Robinson’s go-to guy like Gallon was Gardner’s. Hemingway had some huge catches in wins against Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Virginia Tech

TE: Kevin Koger (2011)
23 catches, 244 yards, 10.6 yards/catch, 4 touchdowns
Jake Butt might have more upside, but Koger had better production in 2011 and had the best combination of skills that Hoke had available at the tight end position. Koger could block, catch, and run a little bit. Plus he was named a captain and liked well enough to be asked to be a graduate assistant on the staff.

LT: Taylor Lewan (2012)
13 starts, 1 touchdown
Lewan peaked in 2012 when he was a First Team All-American and dominant all year, including a great showing against eventual #1 pick Jadeveon Clowney of South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. He also fell on a fumble in the endzone, notching a touchdown against UMass.

LG: Michael Schofield (2011)
10 starts
Schofield, a tackle by trade, earned the starting left guard job when Ricky Barnum was injured. Somewhat surprisingly, he performed very well for a young guy playing an unfamiliar position. He would eventually turn into a 3rd round pick by the Denver Broncos.

C: David Molk (2011)
12 starts
Molk started the first twelve games of the year and sat out the first series of the Sugar Bowl against Virginia Tech with an injury he suffered in pre-game warmups. When backup Rocko Khoury struggled with two bad snaps on three plays, Molk entered the game and helped lead the team to a victory. Molk was a First Team All-American and won the Rimington Trophy, given to the nation’s best center.

RG: Patrick Omameh (2011)
13 starts
Omameh seemed to have a better season in 2011 than 2012, even though he was named First Team All-Big Ten by the coaches in the latter season and not the former. The offensive line protected quarterback Denard Robinson pretty well in 2011 (#34 in sacks allowed), and Omameh helped pave the way for two 1,000-yard rushers (Robinson, running back Fitzgerald Toussaint).

RT: Mark Huyge (2011)
13 starts
With Schofield slotted at left guard, Huyge is really the only choice here. He wasn’t spectacular, but he was solid and never stood out as being a weakness. He, too, was part of the unit that protected the quarterback and helped Toussaint and Robinson run for 1,000 yards each.

1Dec 2014
Uncategorized 6 comments

Michigan vs. Ohio State Awards

Drake Johnson (#20) scored two touchdowns in Saturday’s rivalry game against Ohio State

Let’s see more of this guy on offense next year . . . Dennis Norfleet. Michigan is lacking big-play threats, and while Norfleet has yet to break a truly big play, he is one of those guys who can gain yards in chunks. He ended the OSU game with 3 carries for 10 yards and 1 catch for 9 yards, but at least one decent run was called back for an Amara Darboh hold (Darboh was called for two holding penalties in the game). Norfleet’s final carry of the day lost 3 yards when he tried to run outside of his block, but he at least threatens to make people miss. Virtually every other receiver and running back is very likely to be brought down by the first guy.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense next year . . . De’Veon Smith. Smith was essentially forced into action late in the year when Derrick Green went down with a broken collarbone. Smith was the starter essentially by default, and he responded with just one solid game (18 carries, 121 yards, 1 touchdown against Northwestern). Drake Johnson started against Ohio State and did well, and then Smith stepped in with 3 carries for 4 yards when Johnson got hurt. Smith is too slow to be a full-time back, and he doesn’t break as many tackles as an ideal short-yardage back should. It’s not Smith’s fault that he got so much playing time, but Michigan can do better. Johnson passed him up late in the year, starter Derrick Green will return in 2015, and the Wolverines will also have the services of USC transfer Ty Isaac. Barring injuries or transfers, I think Smith should be no higher than #4 on the depth chart next year.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense next year . . . Ben Gedeon. It will be interesting to see how the linebacker positions shake out next year. With a potential coaching change coming, the scheme may also change. However, Michigan should once again be deep at the linebacker position. The sophomore Gedeon would be a starter on some Big Ten teams, but he was stuck behind Butkus Award finalist Jake Ryan at middle linebacker. Next year weakside starter and #2 tackler on the team Joe Bolden will return, and former starting inside linebacker Desmond Morgan will come back from his shoulder injury that caused him to redshirt this year. Furthermore, part-time starter at strongside linebacker James Ross III will be back. It would almost be a shame for Gedeon to have to wait until his senior year to start, but that’s a possibility with Bolden, Morgan, and Ross returning, all three of whom will be seniors in 2015.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense next year . . . Jabrill Peppers. Peppers, the 5-star cornerback who took a medical redshirt, is needed in the secondary. Michigan should be solid at the very least with everyone but Raymon Taylor returning, but Peppers’ playmaking potential is desperately needed. Michigan got just 2 interceptions from defensive backs this season, both of which came from sophomore Jourdan Lewis. Peppers could play safety, but his tackling ability is a good fit at slot corner, too; he or Blake Countess could start on the outside, with the other guy playing in the slot.

Play of the game . . . Devin Gardner’s touchdown pass to Freddy Canteen. It was only a 3-yarder and Michigan’s fate was essentially already sealed, but Gardner rolled right to find Canteen in the endzone near the sideline. Canteen – who showed flashes of promise in the spring but was quiet all season – made an excellent diving catch, getting a foot down before sliding out of bounds.

MVP of the game . . . Drake Johnson. I would like to pick Gardner (22/32, 233 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception), who made some nice plays as well. But Gardner also gift-wrapped two touchdowns for Ohio State. The first one was an interception on the opening drive, setting up OSU on Michigan’s side of the field. The second was a fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee. So I’ll pick Johnson as the MVP. Johnson carried the ball 15 times for 74 yards (4.9 yards/carry) and 2 touchdowns, and he threw a halfback pass to Gardner for 18 yards. When Johnson went down with what I’m guessing is an ACL injury late in the game, Michigan’s running game suffered greatly.

30Nov 2014
Uncategorized 34 comments

Ohio State 42, Michigan 28

Devin Gardner wishes good luck to J.T. Barrett after the Ohio State quarterback suffered a season-ending injury
(image via BR)

That was better than I expected. For the second year in a row, Michigan came into The Game with fans and analysts having low expectations. And for the second year in a row, Michigan made a game of it. I expected the Wolverines to keep it close in the first half, only to have the wheels come off late. The wheels certainly came off, but Michigan led the game for roughly half of the second quarter and they were tied until just over a minute remaining in the third quarter. Offensively, Devin Gardner turned it up a notch, Drake Johnson solidified himself as the best back available, and Doug Nussmeier unleashed some creative play calling that we had not seen for most of the year.

Drake Johnson is #1*. Of the runners available at the end of the season, I don’t think there’s any doubt that Johnson is the best option going forward. I hope De’Veon Smith got enough chances for fans and coaches to realize that he just doesn’t have the speed to get the job done, and he’s not the bulldozer that so many people thought he would be. Justice Hayes is a decent complementary or third down back, but Johnson (15 carries, 74 yards, 2 touchdowns) is quicker than the others and displayed some power on Saturday that might hint that he’s learning how to run the ball in the Big Ten. Unfortunately, Johnson crumpled up on the ground when he scored his second touchdown, and it looked likely to be a torn ACL; Johnson also tore his ACL in the 2013 season opener, so it would be sad to see him have to go through the same rehab again. He ends the year with 60 carries for 361 yards (6.0 yards/carry) and 4 touchdowns. Out of those totals, 57 carries, 333 of those yards, and all 4 touchdowns came in the final five games against Big Ten opponents. He didn’t have the chance to rack up huge amounts of yardage against Appalachian State and Miami, although he did have the advantage of running behind an offensive line that improved throughout the year.

I’m going to miss Devin Gardner. Gardner turned out not to be the best quarterback. He showed signs of improvement in the second half of 2013, and then he regressed this year. You can blame it on Brady Hoke, Doug Nussmeier, Al Borges, the receivers, the offensive line, playing wide receiver in 2012, Gardner himself, etc. There are any number of directions you can point. There are two big things about Gardner that I will miss. Much like Denard Robinson, I will miss Gardner’s attitude and leadership. He was not the most vocal guy, but the kid took a beating behind Michigan’s offensive line and never pointed fingers or complained about the guys in front of him. He also showed some sportsmanship when Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett broke his ankle, with Gardner coming out on the field to wish him well before he was carted off. The second big thing I’ll miss about Gardner is his athleticism. The guy was one of the best athletes to play quarterback at Michigan, perhaps second-best behind his predecessor, Robinson. Gardner could run through tackles, juke defenders, outrun defenders, throw the ball deep, put touch on his passes, and make the game of football a beautiful thing to watch at times. I kept waiting for this guy to break out, but for all the reasons mentioned above, I’ll always be left to wonder what could have been.

Clock management failure #1. At the end of the first half, Michigan’s drive stalled with over two minutes remaining. The punt team was summoned. Rather than allowing the play/game clock to wind down under two minutes, Michigan snapped the ball with about 20 seconds on the play clock and 2:20 left on the game clock. Ohio State got the ball and calmly waltzed down the field to score with :07 seconds remaining. If you’re Brady Hoke, what can you possible be thinking at that point? We know by now that Hoke’s plan was not to get a stop, get the ball back, and run a hurry-up drive to score. Hoke isn’t that aggressive. If Michigan did get the ball back, they would have run the ball until halftime. The only possible explanation is that Hoke wasn’t paying attention or thinking that far forward, which is a pretty damning trait.

Clock management failure #2. Even with three minutes left and down three touchdowns in the final game of the year, Michigan still couldn’t run a halfway decent hurry-up. They were huddling at times, they didn’t know how to line up, etc. while the clock was ticking down. They had no urgency whatsoever. Gardner did lead a successful drive that culminated in a 3-yard touchdown pass to Freddy Canteen, but it left just 1:15 on the clock to get an onside kick, score, get another onside kick, and score again. I am usually a person who thinks that the game isn’t over until the clock says 0:00, but Hoke managed to suck that out of me this year. Just like we know Hoke can’t use his timeouts or manage the end of a half properly, we also know that running an offense with any kind of tempo is out of the question. More so than a lack of player development, these issues with game management (the clock, the timeouts, having the right personnel on the field, etc.) are the ones most damning if he wanted to make a case to keep his job going forward.

The lack of personnel development. As I mentioned above, the lack of anyone stepping up throughout the year is almost amazing. You can point to a few individuals who got better from 2013 to 2014 (Jourdan Lewis, Derrick Green, Joe Bolden) or who improved throughout the season (Jake Ryan, Drake Johnson), but the only unit to improve was the offensive line. No other position group seemed to take steps forward, except perhaps the running backs, whose performance is tied to the OL.

Holy cow, there has been a lack of takeaways. Michigan ends the 2014 season with 5 interceptions, their lowest total in at least 20 years. I looked at stats from 1995 onward, and I only stopped because I can’t find a reliable source of information any earlier than that. Michigan got picks from Lewis (2), defensive tackle Willie Henry, defensive tackle Matt Godin, and linebacker Jake Ryan. The Wolverines are tied for 120th in interceptions and might end up lower after a couple teams play in bowl games. Michigan is #123 in turnover margin with -1.33 per game. In fact, it’s almost amazing that Michigan is #10 in total defense and #28 in scoring defense with the inability to create turnovers and an offense that can’t sustain drives. The lack of takeaways is obviously a negative for defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, but it says something that his scheming and Michigan’s solid tackling have helped to prevent a total team breakdown.

I’m sad the season is done. This was one of those years where you see a bunch of talent on the field and expect big things, but big things don’t happen. Michigan had a record-setting quarterback, a wide receiver who looked like a potential first rounder, a very good tight end, a 5-star running back, a solid kicker, a former All-Big Ten punter, and loads of talent on the defensive side of the ball. All that gets boiled down to a 5-7 season and a career for some of these seniors that ends with a thud.

I’m sad this is how it went down for Brady Hoke. I was not a fan of Michigan’s hiring of Brady Hoke in 2011. He hadn’t proven enough at a high enough level, and it showed that he was in over his head. However, I did hope that he would have success at Michigan. Not only because I’m a fan of the Wolverines, but because Hoke seems like a good guy, I wanted him to win and win big. There aren’t enough decent guys winning national championships out there. Instead, there are people like Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher. Now it appears that Hoke’s head coaching career is over at Michigan. Wherever he ends up in the future, I hope he can find success.

I still have high hopes for next year. Regardless of who the coach is, Michigan has a lot coming back in 2015. Devin Gardner is the only senior on offense to start, and Devin Funchess might declare for the NFL Draft. Meanwhile, Michigan has lost its best two players on defense (Jake Ryan and Frank Clark, the latter of which was kicked off the team, anyway), cornerback Raymon Taylor, senior kicker Matt Wile, and senior punter Will Hagerup. There are capable replacements for most of those guys, with the kicking job as the biggest question mark. This was a young team that should improve going into 2015.

24Nov 2014
Uncategorized 26 comments

Michigan vs. Maryland Awards

Devin Gardner

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . a healthy Devin Gardner. Gardner had some very nice throws, and he had several that were just a little off target. Most of all, though, he looked healthier, which means that he can be dangerous on the ground. That adds an element to Michigan’s attack that has not existed for the last several weeks. A healthy Gardner gives Michigan a chance. He ran for over 80 yards in this game, including a 24-yarder and then a 15-yard touchdown. When Gardner is on, he looks like Colin Kaepernick. Hopefully he can stay healthy and break out a big game like he did last year against Ohio State.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . De’Veon Smith. Smith has no speed element to his game, and he doesn’t break enough tackles to warrant being the main guy. Michigan gave Smith 10 carries in this one, which earned them 28 yards. Meanwhile, Drake Johnson (14 carries, 94 yards) and Justice Hayes (6 carries, 36 yards) combined for 20 carries and 130 yards. Michigan’s offensive line isn’t great, but there are some holes occasionally. I am looking forward to next season, when Derrick Green will hopefully be healthy and Ty Isaac will be in the mix. There’s also a chance that Green could return for the Ohio State game after missing the last several weeks with a broken collarbone.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Willie Henry. I’m assuming Henry has been playing a limited number of snaps because of the hand injury he suffered several weeks ago, so I don’t know if anyone deserves blame here. But without Frank Clark on the roster, I think Henry is arguably the best defensive lineman on the roster. He played a little bit against Maryland, but he didn’t show up on the stat sheet and we’re seeing a lot of Matt Godin. Godin did okay and even notched his first career sack, but he’s not Willie Henry.

Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . Matt Godin. I don’t know who else to pick, so I’ll choose the guy who would be replaced by Henry. You can’t argue with that pristine logic.

Play of the game . . . Joe Kerridge’s fake punt run. It showed some creativity in play calling that we haven’t often seen from this Michigan staff. Granted, it was perhaps the most boring kind of fake punt possible. Baby steps. Kerridge rumbled for 52 yards before being taken down inside the 10 yard line. I’ll just throw this out there, but if that were Ben Gedeon, I think Gedeon would have scored. But hey, that will probably go down as Kerridge’s biggest play of his career (he had only 1 career carry for 3 yards going into the game, and his longest catch was a 17-yarder against Indiana a few weeks ago), so hopefully he enjoys the memory.

MVP of the game . . . Devin Gardner. There aren’t many options here. Nobody really stood out on defense as they gave up two fourth-quarter touchdowns, and the offense stalled out regularly, as usual. Gardner looked more like the player from the second half of the 2013 season, someone who was dangerous on foot (14 carries, 82 yards, and 1 touchdown) and potentially through the air (13/24 for 106 yards and 1 interception), though his receivers dropped numerous balls.