Devin Gardner's Certainty Is Uncertain
![9495715702_95827d22b1_z[1]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/Devin-Gardners-Certainty-Is-Uncertain_E341/9495715702_95827d22b1_z1.jpg "9495715702_95827d22b1_z[1]")
I'll take "inappropriate file photos" for 1000 [Bryan Fuller]
The most important bit out of Hoke's latest presser will not please you:
Hoke: Devin Gardner held out of practice again today. Still using crutches
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) December 16, 2013 Hoke wouldn't go as far as calling Gardner questionable for the bowl game. But doesn't sound like a total certainty right now.
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) December 16, 2013 Hoke probably wouldn't call Gardner questionable if he had been eaten by a dinosaur and was listed by the athletic department as (OUT—Time Traveling Velociraptor Attack). For this exercise we are assuming Michigan is issuing injury reports, and yes that's less realistic than Time Travelling Velociraptors.
If Gardner doesn't play in the bowl game, it's hide yo' kids time.
[4:08 PM] Ace: on the plus side, this could silence all the shane morris truthers.
[4:09 PM] Brian Cook: "plus side"
December 16th, 2013 at 4:46 PM ^
there is a difference. to recruits, for the perception of the program and its progress, for the seniors playing their last game. there's a difference. competitive atheletes want to win every game. so do fans.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:43 PM ^
If Devin Gardner is 100% healthy, by all means, he should play. If he's not, the upside of putting him out there hurt is so small it almost doesn't exist. The downside could be potentially devastating if he is injured and has to miss time in 2014
December 16th, 2013 at 6:49 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 6:27 PM ^
I bet this game means something to ultra-competitive Taylor Lewan. He stayed, and I bet he wants to leave with a win. Not to mention the other Seniors.
December 16th, 2013 at 6:44 PM ^
Let me try again: This game is of little importance to Michigan as a program going forward. So if you're Brady Hoke and you're going to have Devin Gardner out there playing hurt because you really want to go 8-5, I think you're crazy. I think it makes much more sense (again if he's hurt) to let him rest and get healthy for next season, not potentially re-aggravate any current injuries and mess up his recovery.
December 16th, 2013 at 7:21 PM ^
He has a long time to recover. Him going out there banged up won't make him any more prone to a serious injury than if he was out there healthy. Going from "banged up" to "really banged up" won't change his status for next year at all. If he's the best option, you play him. You play to win.
December 16th, 2013 at 6:34 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 4:35 PM ^
If Shane had to play, it wouldn't be the end of the world. This bowl (like most) is completely meaningless in terms of W/L, so if Devin couldn't play I'd be interested to see what we have in our future QB.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:13 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 7:13 PM ^
This concept of that fans not caring seems craxy to me. So what you don't like the sponsor attached to the bowl? Michigan is playing, so we want to win. I can't imagine this scenario so many of you are in where you don't care if Michigan wins their bowl game or not. I just can't wrap my head around this.
December 16th, 2013 at 7:46 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 7:52 PM ^
Then I would say you don't want to win as much as anybody else. Worry about next year next year.
Playing hurt really doesn't increase your chance of a serious injury. Only a very major injury would keep him out next fall, and playing hurt won't increase his chances of that.
December 16th, 2013 at 10:43 PM ^
To be fair, I don't anyone knows the severity of his injuries save for Gardner and the coaching staff, and who knows if they have a full read. Playing hurt can definitely increase your risk of more grievous injury if it changes how you move and play the game, as you may expose yourself to a hit, a change in direction, etc. you normally wouldn't have because you are compensating. So just because you won't "over-turf" a turf toe injury, for example, it doesn't mean you couldn't plan your leg in a weird way trying to compensate and possibly tweaking a back muscle or something, for example.
December 17th, 2013 at 9:17 AM ^
It is very important to recruiting that Michigan plays well and wins this game. Every recruit out there that Michigan is recruiting wants to go to a winning program. This game is HUGE for the recruiting world !!
December 17th, 2013 at 10:39 AM ^
Your first sentence is clearly false.
If Gardner is at a substantially increased risk for a catastrophic injury (a possibility that we have no evidence to assume is true) then he probably shouldn't be playing regardless of the game circumstances.
Otherwise, Gardner is the QB. If he can play and help the team he should play. This game matters as much as any other random game. You can't bubble wrap Gardner and only use him when it is "important." It doesn't work that way.
There is plenty of time to heal in the off season.
December 16th, 2013 at 10:41 PM ^
Listen, I totally care about wins and losses. But I do think that there is a segment of fans who looked at this season and how it transpired and are mentally checked out until 2014. They'll be happy UM won, but a December 28th game late at night probably won't lead to a massive liveblog around these parts.
December 17th, 2013 at 1:23 AM ^
I don't get it either. It doesn't matter whether somebody is disappointed in the season or not, or whether they wanted KSU or another opponent in another bowl game—you still have to want Michigan to win every goddamn game they play, in any sport, regardless of circumstance. If you don't, then calling yourself a Michigan "fan" is a stretch.
December 17th, 2013 at 8:13 AM ^
Honestly, I come on this blog and read most posts most days. I suffered through the fire RR days and, more recently, been through the Borges days. I witnessed the fighting between the posters that fell on both sides of those debates. I can't imagine that the people that showed such fire and emotion for their team in those two instances now don't acre if we win a bowl game.
It wouldn't matter to me if we were 0-10 or 10-0, when UM is playing I want a win, whether it's a football bowl game or the parcheesi national championship.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:41 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 10:56 PM ^
And the DG to WR threads will be crazy.
While I would hope the same thing IF DG can't play...the thought of that almost makes me sick. Next year would be unbearable until Devin turned into the best college QB ever to play the game.
December 17th, 2013 at 12:13 PM ^
December 17th, 2013 at 1:25 PM ^
That's what we need, a good old fashioned QB controversy. We haven't had one of those since we saw Tate sitting on the bench pouting underneath a towel.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:45 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 4:58 PM ^
Which Smiths song is Brian's go-to away message, I wonder? Hell, which one is in his AIM profile?
December 16th, 2013 at 6:37 PM ^
i scrolled down the comments just to find this one. i feel like i win for knowing someone else would notice the aim and comment on it.
December 16th, 2013 at 10:35 PM ^
/memories
December 16th, 2013 at 4:46 PM ^
which is better than having Devin go down in the first quarter and Shane then entering the game. I hope Devin is ready to go, because he's more than earned the right to be this team's QB. If he can't, we'll get an extended future preview of the Shane and Al show.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:47 PM ^
And having lots of injuries don't help the other injuries heal.
What the turf toe thing comes down to is somewhat similar to Denard and his nerve, IIRC. Turf toe is one of those things that you can play through and it won't make things much worse, other than it'll just take longer to heal and you'll feel like absolute crap and be a shell of whatever you normally are (the worst case is it probably leads to you favoring it and then hurting other parts of your body) to varying degrees (ranging from not a whole lot different to being useless). It's also one of those injuries that could feel better tomorrow or it could last for months, and all you can really do is rest it and hope.
So yeah, DG could be back for the bowl, or he could be out spring practice.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:51 PM ^
paging doctors for a full and clear explanation of the mysterious turf toe. my understanding is that it's a tissue injury to the joint in the big toe.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:58 PM ^
The problem with it is that you basically can't walk, jump, run, or anything like that without using your big toe, so you just keep re-aggravating the injury - or such is my non-doctor understanding.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:41 PM ^
This pretty much in my experience. I had turf toe my senior year of highschool when I tackled a guy and he landed on the back of my foot with my toes bent... I'll never forget that pain. Two weeks on crutches and another two before I dared run on it even with it tapped up like all hell. Even then it was throbbing pain when trying to run. 12 years later it still gets aggravated every now and then if I'm not careful.
So, if DG's is anything like mine was, it's going to take a while to heal before he'll be at 100%, hopefully his isn't as bad and he'll be serviceable for the bowl game!
December 16th, 2013 at 5:09 PM ^
it is a stretching or tearing of the tendon that controls flexion of the big toe. That if surgery is not indicated then complete immobilization of the toe for 2-3 weeks is necessary for healing. If that is true, then DG could be available for practice later this week if he hasn't experienced too much atrophy in his foot and ankle.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:47 PM ^
in addition to hiding my kinds, i'm going to hide my wife.
December 16th, 2013 at 6:22 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 4:48 PM ^
Is Cone ready to go?
December 16th, 2013 at 5:14 PM ^
left years ago, I think you might have meant Brian Cleary.
Or is this some sort of inside joke i'm not privy to?
December 16th, 2013 at 5:27 PM ^
the latter.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:56 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 6:43 PM ^
December 16th, 2013 at 5:40 PM ^
fresher than Febreze.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:54 PM ^
In all honesty its the freaking bdubbs bowl, who cares. I just want to see underclassmen play well and play hard.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:00 PM ^
i don't think taylor lewan, jeremy gallon, fitzgerald toussaint, michael schofield, thomas gordon, cam gordon, brendan gibbons and a bunch of other guys care if you care. i am sure they want to win their final game at michigan and the rest of the 80 guys want to help them.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:56 PM ^
For a moment, I forgot that there "Shane Morris truther" was a thing.
December 16th, 2013 at 4:59 PM ^
How is it possible that we are a good 30 minutes past the first comment and no-one has posted the H-Bomb picture? Is jhackney even alive anymore?
December 16th, 2013 at 5:06 PM ^
If #98 can't run and throw in anger, I'd like to see what Shane Morris, QB of the Future, can do in the bowl game. However, my worried mind won't leave the possiblity of Shane losing a kidney behind this year's OL.
December 16th, 2013 at 5:09 PM ^
...that it sounds an awful lot like the RGIII situation; long-term health being placed over short-term use (minus, of course, the daring-ownership-to-fire-me sensibilities of Shanahan); in other words, if the injury has revealed itself to be worse than initially suspected, the staff and DG could credibly have decided that making sure he heals properly and fully is the highest priority... the obvious and unfortunate consequence, of course, being the effect that has on the seniors' final game in the maize & blue, but Hoke et al. seem to have an admirable habit of favoring the personal well-being of each of their individual players... hoping he's ultimately ok, but I couldn't fault the staff much if they determined DG would risk too much to come back in time for the bowl game...
December 16th, 2013 at 5:10 PM ^
Well, when I read this title on Twitter, my first thought was that Gardner's uncertainty for next season was up in the air, so I guess I'm slightly relieved?
December 16th, 2013 at 5:17 PM ^
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