Denard's other drive
I thought True Frosh Denard's first drive versus Iowa was a thing of beauty. Denard was put in a very tough position. Michigan was down 9 midway thru the 4th quarter, on the road, nation tuning in, against an undefeated ranked team, very cold weather, and not seeing any action earlier in the contest.
Remember all the other team has to do is stop the run because we all know Denard is incapable of passing, add in he doesn't know the offense yet, and still the kid takes them down the field and gets the ball in the end-zone. Impressive!
We all have our romantic visions of Denard switching positions and starring elsewhere on this team. I think, Denard has his own dream and is living it. Denard came here to be a QB and carries himself as if he expects to be the starter at some point, I wouldn't sell the kid short.
We are extremely fortunate as fans to have Tate and Denard on this team, the future is bright.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:14 PM ^
It was a very nice drive, all things considered. But I was still hesitant when I saw him take the field.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:36 PM ^
I'm hesitant whenever we have a true-freshman out there at qb (even more hesitant if Sheridan/Cone ever took meaningful snaps).
I'll be hesitant until they are juniors.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:17 PM ^
I agree, in many ways Denard seems like a player who could develop into a better spread qb than Pat White. He's faster and has a stronger arm. Some of his throws have been really nice and its hard to tell if his bad throws are a result of just misreading the field or reacting too late. Even if he will never be the passer that Tate is, his running threat will create a much more open field on passes and won't require the same amount of passing ability.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:03 PM ^
I think you nailed it with:
Even if he will never be the passer that Tate is, his running threat will create a much more open field on passes and won't require the same amount of passing ability.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:20 PM ^
Denard is a hell of a player. He seems to see the field very well as a runner, but just isn't there yet as a passer. Give him a year to work on his passing and the mental aspect of the QB position and I think he'll be dangerous.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:27 PM ^
Even the first throw of his last drive (the one to Odoms) was a laser. He just needs to work on it a little more.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:38 PM ^
Obviously I was very happy to see Robinson lead a scoring drive, but it was late in the game against a tired defense that had spent the whole night seeing different looks. He doesn't yet have the skill set to sustain that for 60 minutes against decent opposition.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:53 PM ^
Well, Tate couldn't either. His second half TD drive was all Minor, and he couldn't throw the entire game.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:21 PM ^
when he doesn't get time to establish a rhythm with the offense. I will start judging him when i see him play a full 60 minutes so that i can see how he bounces back from adversity, how he runs the offense over time, and how he learns to read the defense as the game progresses. Its really unfair to undercut him when he comes in middle of a game and hasn't thrown a snap and Blue is down or "needs a spark." He has been coming in pressure cooker type situations and we expect nothing less than a masterpiece from a true frosh? Unlikely. I'd be interested to see how Tate would do when just brought in during pressure situations as it happened to Denard last saturday. We can't say what would happen, but i have a feeling it would be a bit more nervous for Tate.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:31 PM ^
You're attacking a straw man here. He had several chances against Eastern in low-pressure situations and did terribly, other than the one good pass to Odoms. People aren't expecting a masterpiece, but they also don't think that a steady diet of interceptions is the QB answer for the present.
I would very much like Denard to get more chances against Delaware State in a pass-heavy setup, so that he has another chance to build some confidence and show off his non-running abilities. But it's foolish to say that we have no basis for judging him based on what he's already done.
October 13th, 2009 at 3:18 PM ^
Well, no - I don't think 15 attempts is a good basis to judge anyone.
I'd like to see him get a half sometime where he's not coming in and out of the game. Up to this point, he's hardly gotten a full drive to himself.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:41 PM ^
If you don't believe that, you don't know how to see potential in a QB. What he doesn't have is a knowledge of how to run the offense and read/react to defenses.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:06 PM ^
Denard is an unbelievable athlete. Give him a full year in the system and he'll do great. There is going to be quite the QB battle next spring/summer.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:42 PM ^
Denard Passing Stats:
YEAR - 2009
Completions - 7
Attempts - 15
Completion % - 46.7
Yards - 87
Avg - 5.8
TDs - 0
Long - 36
Interceptions - 3
QB Rating - 55.39
Denard robinson is a great athlete...lets not be too quick to say hes a great quarterback, or even on track to become a great quarterback. Being a D1 qb is about a lot more than speed or having a power arm. Its about poise, field-vision, accuracy, consistency, good decision making, etc. Denard has 3 interceptions on 15 attempts, and not all against elite defenses or in desperate situations. In high school he had a completion percentage just over 40%.
He has not yet proven to me that he is anything more than a wildcat qb. And im not saying that hes a lost cause by any means, but denard hasnt even proven himself as a viable backup let alone a competitor for the starting job. Its not like nick sheridan didnt lead an impressive drive or two last season.
I personally dont see denard even coming close to pressing for a starting job next season. He'll get his occasional snaps and set of downs, but tate is the guy.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:13 PM ^
Wireless connection is acting up. Sorry!
October 13th, 2009 at 2:12 PM ^
I think you're being harsh by saying he's not even a viable backup. You're post does have an underlying point that I think merits discussion, though.
Specifically, Denard only completed 47% of his passes as a high school senior, and was only offered as an "athlete" by a number of schools. And, obviously he's hasn't exactly hit the ground running as a freshman passer, either. None of that is conclusive evidence; however, it does make me wonder what his upside is. I'm not sure it's a foregone conclusion that he'll become a great thrower. So without ruling anything out, I'm going to take a more tempered stance than other posters.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:41 PM ^
I am not sure he will become a great passer either, probably won't, but that does not preclude Denard from being a great college QB. If Denard becomes a decent passer he will be very difficult to defend in conjunction with the other options in RR'a version of the spread.
I do believe Denard has his mind set on being a QB, and with his athleticism, drive and desire I would not bet against him. He has much going against him this year and he still impresses. Let Denard learn his craft and then let's see.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:39 PM ^
Denard needs to be on the field full time eventually. If that's by winning the QB job at some point, good. If it's by changing positions, also good. Next year, or the year after, depending on our depth at QB, Denard needs to compete for the QB spot and if he doesn't win it, we should consider moving him. He's just so damn good.
This is part of the reason I think we might semi-redshirt Gardner next year if he's close to game ready. When I say semi-redsshirt, I mean have him available in case of emergency but not use him otherwise. This will allow us to be a bit less cautious with how and how often we can use Denard.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:46 PM ^
With all the advances going on in science can we figure out a way to cross clone tate and denard? In the process add in 4 inches and 35 pounds and create the perfect qb? Michigan's science dept. needs to get on this asap.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:57 PM ^
I thought they had and his name is Devin Gardner.
October 13th, 2009 at 3:32 PM ^
While we're at it, can we add a pair of wings?
October 13th, 2009 at 4:00 PM ^
over half the plays on Sat. He has the arm and he just needs time to learn when and how to use it. A game against a bad 1AA is the perfect place to learn. Start Forcier and let him have some success after last week then get him out and play Robinson. I would love to see what Robinson could do over a half of football
October 13th, 2009 at 6:46 PM ^
One of interesting things that Herbstreit said during the broadcast when Denard came in was about how strong of an arm he has, although Denard's mechanics are unconventional (or something like that).
October 13th, 2009 at 9:46 PM ^
I think he has loads of talent and could emerge as a viable threat to start at quarterback next year. However, it is not next year. It is this year. And this year he reminds me of a scared bunny. Granted, a scared bunny that has bionic legs, but to me he looks too hurried (except perhaps between snaps). It's not really a knock since the guy is a true freshman, but even on his TD drive he never looked like the type of field general that inspires confidence.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:57 PM ^
I think under the circumstances, the drive was quite impressive. I get the sense that Denard EXPECTS to do well when he enters the game. Kinda like when he ran the incredible 100 meter last spring, and thought he should have done better, not the characteristics of a scared bunny.
October 14th, 2009 at 3:05 PM ^
I was referring to his tendency to tuck it and run at the first sign of trouble. I know that he is given a number of designed runs, but on plays where he has the option to throw, it looks like he rarely checks down.
The bunny comment wasn't a knock on his personality or heart, just his tendency to bail on the passing option. Again, not unexpected given that he's a freshman with relatively little exposure to the speed and complexities of the game at the collegiate level.
October 14th, 2009 at 8:04 PM ^
Gotcha. Anytime you refer to a football player as a scared bunny there is a high probability it will be misconstrued.
October 14th, 2009 at 8:28 PM ^
Lesson learned.
October 14th, 2009 at 10:52 PM ^
I find your response funny. I wasn't trying to be fussbudgety
October 14th, 2009 at 11:00 PM ^
I like the word fussbudgety.