Calvin Magee mostly mum on winged helmets, talks Michigan football quarterbacks

By Pete Bigelow AnnArbor.com

Posted on Wed, Aug 18, 2010 : 12:32 p.m.

Michigan football offensive coordinator Calvin Magee kept quiet Wednesday afternoon when asked if Wolverines quarterback Tate Forcier had earned back his wings yet.

"I won't tell you that," Magee said, before adding, "I have mine."

Multiple members of the Michigan football team had wings stripped from their helmets this summer, including Forcier, because head coach Rich Rodriguez said they must earn the right to wear them.

Asked if the loss of his wings had spurred Forcier to improve, Magee said, "I don't know if it lit a fire under him or not," but added he was generally pleased with Forcier's performance this summer.

"Tate has been competing and playing and doing well," he said. "They're all competing. It's interesting. They're all competing and understanding what's at stake for the team. They're all in it for the team right now."

Here's comments from Magee on how Michigan's two other main quarterbacks are faring this summer:

On true freshman Devin Gardner: "In the spring, he did a good job for a kid coming right out high school, and because of the natural progression of being here, he's picking up more and more of (the offensive gameplan) and gaining confidence."

On the improvement of Denard Robinson, Forcier's main competitor for the starting QB job: "Overall, he's just understanding the complete scheme. Just the overall person as a quarterback, just having spring ball under his belt and he's progressing the way a young quarterback progresses."