Denard appreciation thread

1. Denard covers up allot of deficiencies on offense. Say what you will about his passing but the fact that the kid can break a long gain or even a 4 or 5 yard run on any given play - makes up for allot of other offensive personnel deficiencies. More on this below...

2. Toussaint has not been effective at all this year. He is not running North and South. Most will point at Fitz and say its his fault but I think we need to examine what's going on in the trenches. We may be having issues on the offensive line that are not being talked about. Are the holes there? Again Denard's dynamic running ability covers up for what may otherwise be average (or worse) offensive line play. I don't think it's fair to lay all of the blame on Fitz. And for those of you who think Thomas Rawls is the answer I would encourage you to evaluate our blocking up front.

3. I was at a bar watching the game and I could not hear what they were saying about Denard's injury. But I have to think it was killing him to be on the sidelines. The fact that he never went in leads me to think this may be a season ending injury. At the very least this is a recurring theme with him and so we have to be looking at other QB options to finish the year and beyond.

4. Bellomy isn't ready. I won't bash the kid but we all saw what happened out there tonight. It was Nick Sheridan-esque. Given that Gardner hasn't exactly been producing as a WR of late I wonder if we're better off sticking with Gardner as the #1 backup. At this point I do not think that Bellomy can beat any of the teams remaining on our schedule. I also think Gardner would gain valuable time which would prepare him to lead the team in 2013 (and 2014 if he gets his medical redshirt). Nobody can tell me that Bellomy is the better of the two QB's...

5. Lots of issues on offense. Susupect blocking. Lack of game breakers at RB and WR. No heir apparent on the roster as the starting QB. Suspect play calling.

6. Sadenned by Denard's injury. We had an excellent shot at winning this game...

It's certainly going to be a transition to whoever follows Denard.

That said, before academics became a factor (they always do...) our friend Tate Forcier had a pretty good year as a Freshman. If study hall had mattered...

I'm looking at you Shane Morris.

Sometimes I wonder if Denard is a crutch for coaching staffs.  Is it possible that having him has stunted the growth of the rest of our offense?  Maybe I'm just numb and bitter and incredibly disapointed.  Nope.  No maybe about it.

I hope Denard gets better soon.  We need him.

I'll miss Denard so much. We'll never see his like at Michigan again.

Nobody ever talks about the possibility that we have the worst group of wide receivers in FBS history.  They cant block, they certainly can't catch unless the ball is buried into their stomachs, and Im sorry, but if you're 5'9" you should have flawless hands, and if you're 6'5" and there's a jump ball, you should not be getting outlept and picked off by a 6'1" corner.

So with this, I ask: What in the hell did we recruit between 2008 and 2010????  We know we didnt recruit either line, linebackers, secondary, but our RBs and WRs are abysmal as well.  We literally have 2 good players on offense (Denard and Lewan), 3-4 good players on defense, and no sort of depth.

I've been arguing about this with my father every week since we turned around after ND. I asked him what he thinks our offense will be next year. He talks about the scheme, and I simply ask, no, where are the yards going to come from? He never has an answer for that.

Denard isn't perfect. In some ways, his flaws are as notable as his strengths. But he is a magnificent athlete, a special QB and we will miss him frightfully, especially next year. I don't care how many INTs he throw from now until his last day, I will never, never forget what he is done for this program. It would have been a dark few years without him.