[Fuller]

I scrapped the original question because there's a burning one out there:

Gardner or Morris? Who should start, who will start?

Ace: Before the press conferences this week, I'd still have gone with Gardner—despite his awful performances against Notre Dame and Utah, I think he still gives Michigan the best chance to win. We've seen him at his best—and playing at his best while overcoming injury and a horrendous O-line—and that best is right up there with any college QB, while Morris has yet to show much other than similarly inconsistent, turnover-prone play in his short time on the field. If this team needs to win now, and to save Brady Hoke's job they clearly do, I think Gardner is the play unless he's so broken physically/mechanically that it's impossible for him to scrape his ceiling. (I'm about 80% there on thinking this is the case, by the way, but last year's Ohio State game lingers in my mind as a strong counterpoint—remember, that performance came out of nowhere, and he had a broken foot to boot.)

That said, the way this has been handled publicly makes me believe Morris will be the starter—why not dispel the speculation if there isn't going to be a change?*—and at this point I think they have to go with that. Most fans believe Morris will be the starter and most are ready for the change now whether or not they were on board; if they head into the Big House thinking that way and Gardner is announced as the starter, there are going to be boos directed at that decision—which is basically booing Gardner, probably the person associated with the football program who least deserves that treatment—and that's just not going to help anything. I understand the reasoning behind putting Morris in—he's the future, the present option isn't going so well at all, and he gets the chance to learn on the fly in a game setting and hopefully improve before our very eyes—but it's a huge risk for Hoke if he goes there, especially if he sticks to his word that he won't rotate QBs.

Playing Gardner comes with its own risks, of course, but the biggest risk is still playing a QB with this career stat line: 36/67, 340 yards (5.1 YPA), 0 passing TDs, 4 interceptions.

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*Since the most common response I've seen to this is "so Minnesota has to prepare for Gardner," I'll note that there's no way in hell Minnesota isn't preparing for Gardner—and Morris, too—no matter what Brady Hoke says in a press conference.

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[jump for the rest of us]

Adam: I'm going to answer the original question (what's wrong with Gardner):

25% PTSD. Every time Gardner gets hit I wince, a torturous lowlight reel of Gardner being pulverized simultaneously flashing through my mind. 2013: not yet repressed. It seems that Gardner has been feeling pressure before it's actually there in 2014, which is the other portion of why I think Gardner's decision-making has been so poor.

How we laughed. Oh how we laughed.

20% Still adjusting to new offense. I think this is responsible for a portion of Gardner's biggest problem, which is his inability to make decisions promptly. I also think that this is the acceptable portion of the issue, as not having a complete grasp on a new offense after four games seems reasonable.

Putting Gardner under center makes no sense. That's like me trying to squeeze my two-month-old into newborn diapers; things might be okay for a minute, but it's a bad fit and there's inevitably going to be a mess to clean up later.

15% This is who he is. I'm not entirely convinced that he's hit his ceiling, but when a guy seems incapable of working through a progression I can't eliminate it.

10% Screwed up development track. He played wide receiver in 2012 and missed out on reps at quarterback. He also was unstoppable throw god Devin Gardner that same season, so I don't think position switches and coaching changes explain the stagnation in his development.

10% Playing from behind. Down and distance too.

5% We can't block. 2014 has seen a significant improvement in Gardner's protection. In the 2013 Notre Dame UFR—a virtuoso quarterback performance—the protection metric was about 44%. Compare that to 2014, when the protection metric was 66%.

5% Opponents. There have been multiple tipped ball interceptions so I guess maybe that's MAKING A PLAY

Not a factor: Receivers. Funchess extant, other guys have been fine.

10% Unexplainable phenomena. Not ruling out alien abduction.

With regards to Morris, his development in this offense isn't any further than Gardner's but he hasn't been subjected to rib reorganization. Most of the troubles apply to both guys.

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Brian: Morris is apparently starting. That is the buzz from everyone. 

I don't think that helps Michigan win games. We've seen him for about two games worth of work. He has the statline Ace mentions above, and the context is even a bit worse since the bulk of his yards against Kansas State came on screens and the instant Michigan tried to open it up he threw a near-INT and then an actual INT. Plus we saw him throw a couple of terrible interceptions in scrimmages. Meanwhile, while he's pretty mobile he doesn't bring what Gardner does on the ground.

If they've finally destroyed Gardner I guess they have no choice; I'm not expecting much. I mean, I am expecting about 4 throws that are wow experiences. But I'm expecting equally many in the other direction, if not more, and an offense that has six sets of training wheels on. These will be the Carr type training wheels, not the kind of training wheels that let any-damn-body roll off a Big 12 team's bench and put up 400 yards, which means a lot of runs into the line, and punts.

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Seth: I am not one to argue with any part of Sam Webb's gastrointestinal system, and that's the only reason I think Morris is the likely starter, barring some sort of all-hands trolling of the fanbase for wishing a firing upon the men in charge (Hoke knows Kill too well to think the Gophers won't prepare for both).

Who should start? Gardner. Gardner. Gardner Gardner Gardner. Certainly he has looked pretty wobbly this season, and certainly the reasons for it aren't going to go away in a week. But Gardner is a senior and was responsible for two of the best performances by a Michigan quarterback in memory: Adam mentioned the ND game last year (with 56% of blitzers unblocked!!!) and I add to that the Ohio State game. Gardner on a roll is a sight to behold.

Getting Gardner on a roll has been the problem. Teams got the scouting report starting with Penn State last year: take away his favorite receiver and blitz him so hard his lizard brain can't find another. Minnesota is a largely man-to-man defense that will probably use a safety to double Funchess. It's a good opportunity to develop another target, and I wish they would because the most likely route to a job-saving upset over the rivals this season is Peak Gardner.

My worst fear is an offensive version of that Purdue game when Rodriguez overruled his DC, forced the defense into a 3-3-5, and all hell broke loose. I'm terrified that this is all part of a "Future: Now" movement to bring back heavy sets run-heavy, and I'm terrified of offensive decisions that come down from on high since hopes of competent offense under Brady have always hinged on him keeping the hell away from it. A quarterback decision has to be a head coach decision. It reeks of a panic move. Panic moves are bad.