joeismyname

September 20th, 2012 at 12:33 AM ^

i think we need to slow down all this Denard talk for a minute....he is great, I love him as a player, but this is not the same ND team as last year (when we should have lost) or 2 years ago (Kelly's first season). This is a good team guys, and they have what Denard hates.....a good front 7 to take away his lanes. This game is almost exclusively relied upon by Denard's arm and our receivers going up and getting the ball. Also our defense performing and not constantly shitting the bed up front would be nice....i hope to God I'm wrong and Denard busts one for 88 yards, but that front 7 looked really good the other night. Held a quality opponent to 3 points on the road. Let's not start running our mouths yet about this one, Denard still has one to go verses the Domers. In fact, let's take it one at a time and not run our mouths at all. That done us so much good lately when playing State. Speak softly, and carry a big stick.

Joined: 11/07/2011

MGoPoints: 1271

Marvin

September 20th, 2012 at 12:54 AM ^

I want everyone to hear me on this. It does not matter what fans say, what they expect, whether they overrreact, the extent to which they're overconfident, the predictions they make, and so on. I can say to all the world that Denard is a dominant ballbreaker and will continue to do this to ND, and it won't matter. What matters is whether or not Denard and his teammates are good enough to win Saturday night. Period. I will have nothing to do with this, but I will watch and cheer and die a little if we lose.

I don't play college football. Never did. I just love watching it, being a fan, and having fun thinkng about the outcome.

 

Go fucking Blue!!!

Joined: 08/17/2010

MGoPoints: 4214

orobs

September 20th, 2012 at 6:33 AM ^

Notre Dame did look mighty impressive last week, but let's not forget they did the same to MSU in South Bend last year.  They CERTAINLY didn't look like world beaters against purdue.

 

 This same team's NON-INJURED secondary let jeremy gallon go up for jump balls, and couldn't figure out man coverage on a hail mary attempt.  Now they are thinner, so I'll believe in their DB's when I see it.

Joined: 10/03/2010

MGoPoints: 3207

Tyang

September 20th, 2012 at 1:15 AM ^

I have a feeling with all this hype about Denard being the Irish killer, its going to bite our a$$ real hard this Saturday night. I sure hope i'm wrong. But notre dame will do everything in their power to not let Denard beat them.

Joined: 09/14/2011

MGoPoints: 412

snarling wolverine

September 20th, 2012 at 1:36 AM ^

Great article.  My only quibble is with the part where he suggests that we probably can't remember what happened on the final drive last year.  I think most of us actually can - since it was only three plays (and the first was an incompletion).

Speaking of going 80 yards in three plays...

 

Joined: 12/14/2011

MGoPoints: 97963

GunnersApe

September 20th, 2012 at 8:55 AM ^

1. He's Michigan's revenge vs ND for all the BS UM's had over the years. Reggie Ho/Tony Rice/Rocket.

 

2. It would be awesome if he could hang another 450-500 yards on them, He would become the "Freddy Kruger" to ND fans in which we could beat them over the heads with for a millennia.

3. The lamentation of Lou Holtz may be the sweetest tears of sadness that exists.  

 

 

Joined: 11/19/2009

MGoPoints: 6930

LSAClassOf2000

September 20th, 2012 at 8:25 AM ^

"....under the newly installed lights in Michigan Stadium in 2011 – if not necessarily the best version of Denard, as they saw in the former case, then at least the version who abruptly forgot everything he'd ever been coached in the latter and proceeded to turn the fourth quarter into his own personal PlayStation at the Irish's expense." - from the article

That's probably a pretty apt description. We only had the ball for about 23 minutes in the whole game, I believe, but a good portion of that came in the 4th quarter. I think Denard managed about 80% of all of his passing in the whole game in this quarter as well, and about a third of all of Michigan's rushing yards came in the fourth quarter too. After what had been a really depressing three quarters, there was definitely something almost magical about the final one in last year's game. I must say, I wouldn't mind watching a little 4th quarter domination one more time, if it came to that, or indeed, have all four quarters be like last year's fourth.

Joined: 01/07/2011

MGoPoints: 130561

oakapple

September 20th, 2012 at 8:48 AM ^

Denard’s accomplishments vs. Notre Dame are out-sized. The only other major opponent against whom he has a winning record is Nebraska (1-0). Otherwise, he’s 0-2 vs. MSU, 0-2 vs. Iowa, 0-2 vs. the SEC, 0-1 vs. Wisconsin, 1-1 vs. Ohio State. Although Michigan did win its bowl game last year, Denard’s performance itself was not so memorable.

That’s why Hinton notes that Denard’s “window for turning "exciting" into "great" is closing by the week.” That’s why Denard is no longer on most of the Heisman watch lists. He has produced a feature film’s worth of highlight-reel moments and rewritten the Michigan record book, but without a few more signature performances against opponents not named Notre Dame, you couldn’t say that he was a great quarterback, only that he was an extraordinarily exciting one.

That’s why Hinton writes: “Denard Robinson against Notre Dame is the ur-Denard from which all other versions of Denard follow and against whom they are all compared. With the possible exception of the Denard who played a nearly perfect game in the process of snapping a seven-year losing streak against Ohio State last November, the others almost always come up short. Denard against Notre Dame is the original formula. The idol to which thousands of No. 16 jerseys pay homage every weekend, hoping for a mere glimpse of what they got in South Bend in 2010, and under the newly installed lights in Michigan Stadium in 2011. . . . Since his second start at Notre Dame in 2010, that's the Denard fans have paid to see, and opposing coaches have desperately hoped they don't.”

Joined: 02/06/2009

MGoPoints: 2130

Wolverine In Iowa

September 20th, 2012 at 8:59 AM ^

The only thing that could make this year more outrageous than last year is if ND is trying to kick a field goal with about 20 seconds left to take a 9-point lead, and Will Campbell blocks it and Denard (playing on special teams ;) ) returns the FG for a TD.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 10767

k1400

September 20th, 2012 at 11:07 AM ^

No.

This year I'd like to kick back, not throw my beer all over the wall, and enjoy an utter annihilation of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.  To hell with Notre Dame.

That being said, I'll accept anything that ends with our score being higher than theirs, including a Wolverine avatar materializing to stop Touchdown Jesus running off tackle on the half yard line as time expires.

Joined: 06/30/2011

MGoPoints: 5916

Steve in PA

September 20th, 2012 at 2:07 PM ^

Not only is ND vastly overhyped, but instead of talking BCS bowl those knuckleheads are talking BCS championship game.  We've played a legit BCS championshipnteam and ND certainly doesn't deserve to be in that conversation.

Saturday we'll put that to bed...again.  Tears of ND fans are like manna from heaven.

Joined: 08/10/2009

MGoPoints: 6327

MAgoBLUE

September 20th, 2012 at 11:36 AM ^

This is probably the best and most accurate article I've read on Denard over the years.  I love the way Hinton writes.  He is fair and he gets it right from:

"Denard Robinson against Notre Dame is the ur-Denard from which all other versions of Denard follow and against whom they are all compared. With the possible exception of the Denard who played a nearly perfect game in the process of snapping a seven-year losing streak against Ohio State last November, the others almost always come up short"

to:

"Whether you were there or watching on television, what sticks is the energy that Denard seemed to singlehandedly inject into the stadium, and especially the certainty in that moment that no one else in college football could have achieved any of it."

Joined: 05/21/2010

MGoPoints: 2485