Hoke: If game was today, Shane would start; Gibbons era officially over
Welp, looks like it's time for Shane. Hope he's ready.
My interpretations of Hokespeak tell me that "if game was played today" is usually code for this player will be the starter.
Hoke at BWW welcome presser says Gardner saw doctor Friday. If had to play today...Shane Morris the starter
— angelique (@chengelis) December 23, 2013
EDIT:
Hoke also said Gibbons will not make the trip and has a family issue at home in Florida
Thank you for all you did for this program, Brendan. A BCS bowl win and being THE THREAT. Brunette girls forever.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:12 PM ^
Actually his offer list wasn't too great because he didn't report any of his offers after committing. He said many times that he had plenty more offers but they meant nothing to him so there was no point in celebrating them.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:53 PM ^
there are mistakes we haven't seen yet on offense this year? I can't wait to see what those look like.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
He was offered by Alabama. What more do you need?
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:54 PM ^
To be fair it's been stated on this site that an "offer" by Bama to a QB is really a personal invitation to tryout. It's one of those convenient non-committable offers probably.
It will be nice to see what Morris can do though I would really like Garder to play ideally.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:58 PM ^
Missing his entire senior season (except 1 game @AAPioneer which I attended) doesn't help when it comes to his development. I can't believe 1 year with Borges did much to develop him either.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:17 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:03 PM ^
Thanks for sharing your opinion. Looks like the downvotes to the leff disagree.
December 23rd, 2013 at 5:05 PM ^
I actually got to see him play in high school a few times because my nephew has played against him for multiple years in a row. And I will tell you he looks solid. Yeah, he made a few errors here and there, but nothing alarming. Also his team around him was not good. His recievers dropped a lot of passes and his offensive line sucked. Just by watching him though I could tell he has a great arm and had a solid accuracy. He also seemed to move around better then most highschool qb's that weren't there just playing QB because they are a track star. Also I am sure 95% of the "film" you watched was from when the kid was 15 and 16 years old. I'm sure he looks a lot different now.
December 23rd, 2013 at 6:10 PM ^
I'm not trying to pile on and won't down vote you but you can't always read into that.
A good example of that is Max Bullough at MSU in 2010. His entire family went to Michigan State and his father and grandfather played football there. So even though he was the type of 4star LB that every team in the Big Ten would want, few would have wasted their time with an offer because he knew he would play for Dantonio when he was a freshman in high school.
December 23rd, 2013 at 11:27 PM ^
I'm sure no other big time programs wanted an Elite 11 Finalist. Psh, talk about overrated.
Cumong, man.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:42 PM ^
Selfishly, it adds an awful lot to the interest factor. I need a reason to stay up until 2 am watching a game.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:49 PM ^
DVR, go to sleep, turn off phone (or unplug from wall), wake up the next morning and watch the game.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:15 PM ^
This right here.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:04 PM ^
But I think cold war was referring to the lateness of the game. It's a total bummer. Especially for us old folks with kids.
Saw a classic on pinterest: 'I'm "it's 8:30 and you want to start a movie?!" Years old.'
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:15 PM ^
Or us old folks with grandkids. Now everybody off my lawn.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:06 PM ^
solid.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:44 PM ^
Turf toe hurts, but not playing for Gardner would be worse. He's a gamer. He'll be out there.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:51 PM ^
Can i ask the board exactly where in Hoke's history do you see ANY instances of him bluffing on anything? I mean even one. For my money if Hoke says something is either going to happen or not going to happen he means it. The guy doesnt seem to me like he's got a bluffing bone in his body.
And does the Gibbons situation have anything to do with his struggles late in the year and his not playing against OSU?
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:53 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 7:45 PM ^
And does he have any brunettes in his family?
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:03 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:02 PM ^
i agree.. His stated injury was suposedly turf toe.. OK, so he can't stand in the pocket and throw the ball?
He isn't like taylor martinez and needs to run all over the place.. If the O-line sucks just take the sack or throw it away for a change
December 23rd, 2013 at 10:34 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:30 PM ^
But, it seems like everytime someone asked about Denard at QB post the Nebraska elbow, it was like all he needed to do was find his chin strap.
In addition, there's the whole boo-boo thing, which as far as I can tell means something between a scrape and lost a limb. Is that a straight up lie? Eh, no. But, I wouldn't call it a great moment in honesty.
I love the guy, but I have a strict policy of not believing anything he says on injuries. I don't believe the opposite. I just discount the information to zero and await confirmation elsewhere.
December 23rd, 2013 at 6:25 PM ^
A boo boo is something between a scrape and a lost limb, and he isn't going to say more. If the game were today, Gardner wouldn't start--he's not saying anything about what might happen between now and game time. He's on crutches and wearing a boot, so we aren't being told anything we don't already know. He has no incentive to tell us, and less than no incentive to tell K-State, anything we don't already know.
Nothing is ever a "straight up lie." He always means precisely what he says, no more and no less. People read more into the words, then find out what they read into it wasn't the truth.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:37 PM ^
exactly which game, maybe before the Iowa game. Hoke said that one of the young RBs would start. In fact Toussaint started.
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:03 PM ^
No, Green started, but there was a false start at the beginning of the game, and Toussaint was brought in on the next play.
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:05 PM ^
As others have noted, he's not bluffing to say Gardner couldn't start if the game was today. It is just a nothing statement that he basically said because he had to answer a reporter's question.
December 23rd, 2013 at 7:20 PM ^
Jeez. Has it not occurred to anyone that Hoke is bluffing about...Gibbons?
December 23rd, 2013 at 7:27 PM ^
You mean he's forcing K-State to game plan for two different field goal kickers?
December 24th, 2013 at 9:29 PM ^
He could be, but you usually wouldn't (a) bluff about a kicker, and (b) do so by saying he is having family issues at home.
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:45 PM ^
He announced their suspension the day before the game, after days of uncertainty, but I think he knew all along he'd be holding them out.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:52 PM ^
Isn't turf toe something that can be played through if you can tolerate the pain but something that must ultimately be fixed by surgery?
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:56 PM ^
No, usually rest. Even the most severe cases (grade 3) surgery is most often recommended in only the most extreme cases. But it's ever loving bitch to play through and hurts like hell.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:00 PM ^
Yes. I always thought of it as a painful sprain and you can't push off on it which makes it difficult for most players. I haven't heard of surgery though, but I can see if the rest and medications don't work that's what you are left with.
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:13 PM ^
Based on the link mGrowOld posted, if the injury is turf toe, from the boot he's wearing, it seems like a grade 3 injury. I just hope his big toe doesn't get all cocked up:
"Potential long-term complications include lack of push-off strength, stiffness, bunion, and cocking up of the big toe."
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:46 PM ^
Let's hope the boot is just a precaution and preventative.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:53 PM ^
I'm with a lot of over people who have said that there's no reason to risk Gardner getting hurt in this game. If he isn't 100% ready then just let Shane get the experience.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:57 PM ^
I don't want to play Devin if he's really hobbled, but I don't think this game is meaningless. A bowl win can do a lot for a team's morale, and particularly for a team in our situation.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:15 PM ^
I certainly don't think it's meaningless either, but no reason to force him into action if he's not 100%.
December 24th, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^
because there's a lot of merit to both views. Winning the game buys the program a lot of stability and deflects a lot of criticism for the next 8-9 months. So say you risk playing DG and he's injured even worse and you accidentally eff up your whole next season.
I almost lean towards playing him just because 8-9 months is a long time to be in the good favor of the general media/public. We all know how much it sucks to constantly be in the news for the uncertainty in your program.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:54 PM ^
It's a shame to hear that Gibbons will be unable to make the trip, but as it was said to be a family issue, hopefully it is nothing terrible. Brendan Gibbons is a central player in some of the best moments of the first three seasons under Brady Hoke and has made for himself a place in Michigan lore, I think. He will definitely be missed on the team, and I wish him nothing but the best as he moves toward graduation and the next phases of his life.
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:55 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 4:34 PM ^
December 23rd, 2013 at 2:55 PM ^
Bellomy is back at practice as well, FWIW.
December 23rd, 2013 at 3:17 PM ^
True, but there's probably zero percent chance Bellomy sees the field for a lot of reasons. Just because he's practicing doesn't mean he's game ready. But, I am glad he's back and practicing.