Michigan football coach Brady Hoke explains decision to keep Denard Robinson on the field late in EMU game
Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson escapes the grip of Eastern Michigan defensive lineman Brad Ohrman on Saturday.
Angela J. Cesere | AnnArbor.com
The Michigan football team was beating a Mid-American Conference opponent 28-3 with less than 11 minutes left. Its quarterback already had rushed 23 times for 181 yards.
Its backup quarterback had taken only 17 snaps in his career.
The situation seemed ideal for Wolverines coach Brady Hoke to remove junior Denard Robinson from harm's way and get some reps for sophomore Devin Gardner.
He didn't. Why?
"I got asked three times why (Gardner didn't play more), and I never felt we were where we needed to be in the game," Hoke said Monday. "We're trying to teach and coach a mentality that we have to have of finishing.
"I've done it before -- you make a move maybe too early without the total lesson of finishing going through."
Michigan struggled early against Eastern Michigan on Saturday and didn't take its first lead until 9:28 remained in the second quarter. The Wolverines went on to win 31-3, and is unbeaten headed into a game with San Diego State on Saturday (Noon, BTN).
Offensively, the Wolverines had serious issues in the passing game, where Robinson missed on his first five passes and finished just 7-of-18 for 95 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
He completed just four first-half passes in his past two games combined, and Michigan had run only 89 overall plays in its first two games.
So, there certainly was work to be done in establishing an offensive rhythm, especially in the passing game -- although Robinson did run three more times on his final drive, bringing his total to 26 for the day, third-most in his career. He attempted four passes on the final drive, completing two for 24 yards.
Hoke said he just didn't feel comfortable bringing out Garnder yet, considering the mounting issues in setting an offensive tone this year.
"I struggle with that a little bit because I never felt really good about (the lead) in the game," Hoke said.
Gardner came on for Michigan's final drive with 1:17 remaining. He handed off twice to freshman tailback Thomas Rawls and rushed once for 7 yards. He did not attempt a pass.
Rawls' two carries were the first of his career. His debut had been highly anticipated after running backs coach Fred Jackson in August compared him to Mark Ingram, the Heisman Trophy winner at Alabama.
"I know Fred probably would've liked to get (Rawls) in there, but I wasn't feeling as comfortable with where we were as maybe other people were," Hoke said.
Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.
Comments
Blu n Tpa
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 6:20 p.m.
OK, close the gates and cancel the rest of the season! LS thinks that by not playing DG for a few garbage minutes Michigan's through. No, wait! On second thought the team is 3-0 and everybody seems to be making progress so what the heck, let's give Coach Hoke another chance, like the rest of his contract. By the LS don't you think DG is practicing vs a better D almost every day? Or doesn't that count? TiM Go Blue!
Lorain Steelmen
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 4:16 p.m.
This has NOTHING to do with the previous coach here. People need to 'move on'. It has EVERYTHING to do with develpoing this team, all 115 players, or so. D Gardner needed the PT, and sould have played the fourth quarter. To say that UM was in jepoardy against EMU is ludicrous. Hoke made a mistake. Hopefully we won't have to pay for it down the raod. But Gardner missed an opportunity to be part of the team, and to grow....and that IS critical. I still am in Hoke's corner, but he 'missed a change up' here, that he could have 'hit out of the park'....So now we are locked down, to a 1 QB 'option', and we have set Gardner's development back, a whole year.
Blu n Tpa
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 6:36 p.m.
This is way over the top! Coach Hoke stated his reasons so get over it. You remind me of the guy dying of thirst in the desert. When he's saved he complains that the fresh cold water was served in a paper cup. BTWCoach Hoke matched your guy's win total for his 1st year in 1/4 the time. Have a nice day.
Blu-dogg97
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 2:41 p.m.
I believe Hoke and coaches,are doing the right things here,he also is in his 1st year of his Dream coaching job,he has total respect for the University of Michigan,Dave Brandon,student athletes, Alum,donors ,past players,and fans.. He said he wasn't comfortable with the lead,and setting the "tone" offensively.. What I imagine is Brady doesn't want a letdown,or to let down the above mentioned. He is also very aware of shooting from the hip,and where that got the last coach here.. I think Brady ,Al and Greg are doing a great job coaching and building character,in these young men,and that breeds confidence in the players,and they will run thru a brick wall for Brady if needed,but it all starts with confidence & trust,and with out it ? well we all saw that happen in the past 3 yrs. You can see the progression from quarter to quarter,and game to game,they are improving weekly,they have made some mistakes,but the coaches gather they're collective thoughts,and make game time adjustments,that really make a difference.So all & all I'm proud of these coaches and players,they are building Michigan men,and will be leaders and best,we just need to be patient.. Unlike a certain msu coach that is down by a few scores vs ND,and decides a very risky,and dumb play "little Giant" fake field goal, that everyone in the stadium was aware of! and gets stuffed,and totally takes the life out of players,and any hopes of a comeback!! ridiculous ! Brady would never make that decision ,so I'm certain Michigan is headed in the right direction.. TiM GO BLUE
XTR
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 1:49 p.m.
It was a good idea if the staff allowed Gardner to play most of the 4th quarter with a score of 28-3 in order to rest and protect Denard from injuries and to allow Gardner to get a feel for the game. The B1G conference season is a long one and there is a chance the Denard will be injured or will have an off day running and throwing, if that happens, this team is better having an experienced backup like Gardner. However, Brady Hoke and Borges knows the the situation more and are football pros, therefore I do not have any problems if they decide what to do with their team.
Blu n Tpa
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 12:36 p.m.
The trend is positive regarding team building and teaching the players football skills. The coaches are making changes on the fly during games and the results are evident. Anybody not seeing this is misguided by personal loyalty and an anti-Michigan bias. Either way who cares, we have moved on. There are obvious challenges moving from last year's offense to the new system. No argument there and as I watched the game last weekend, with my son at Michigan Stadium, I got the sense that this staff is doing what they need to do to win games and build for the future. Sure I would have liked to have seen DG come in the game at about the 9 minute mark in the 4th quarter but not if there was any doubt in the coaches minds. There was, Michigan won, end of discussion. Remember this FIRST YEAR coaching staff and team have started with 3 wins and the WCiMFH ended his first year with only 3 wins. That's apples to apples. Next year will be really tough but I will compared the third year teams of the Coach Hoke and the WCiMFH right now. The 2013 team will be better coached, better led, more prepared, and have more success than anything you saw over the last 3 years. Why? TiM Go Blue!
aawolve
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 12:09 p.m.
Could you imagine the outrage and backlash if RR had done this?
BornInA2
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 12:31 a.m.
Some people have gone from rationalizing the previous coaches record last year (7-6) by saying he didn't have all the players he needed, to demanding that the new coach improve upon last year, also without 'his' players. I'm okay with 7-5 this year if we look like we're improving, if our fundamentals are solid, and if we're not cheating/being investigated by the NCAA. There's more to it for me than just wins. And so far this year I've found the games much more enjoyable. Has anyone else noticed how much better we are at tackling this year? Or how much less Hoke screams and yells and scowls on the sideline than his predecessor? How he hasn't thrown players under the bus at press conferences? In-game adjustments by the staff? These are intangibles that I appreciate.
truebluefan
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 6:03 p.m.
Agreed that the offense has slowed. What was a strength last season now appears to be a weakness. This was my concern in the pre-season and I am now more concerned about it after three games. I have no problem with trying to establish a running game outside of Denard, but it needs to happen within a zone blocking system. I have no problem with pro style I-form waggles and play action, as long as the passes are short. The problem is trying to turn Denard into a pocket passer and the long throws.
Blue Marker
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 11:45 a.m.
truebluefan, the defence should and is better. However, the offence has slowed and that's against the weaker part of the schedule. I agree with the thoughts above, like the last 3 years a great start and a sub .500 finish. That said, I believe things are going in the right direction.
truebluefan
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 3:58 a.m.
Correction, meant to say we don't play PSU although Nebraska will be very difficult and probably a loss.
truebluefan
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 3:57 a.m.
As an individual fan, I am not OK with 7-5, especially if we start 5-0 as we should at this point. The schedule this season is arguably the same difficulty, if not a bit easier, than last year's schedule. We have an all star D-coordinator and defense first staff. The defense should be better (and appears to be better so far), which was by far our biggest problem last year. We don't play Wisconsin. We don't play Nebraska. OSU has taken a dramatic step backwards. All the staff needs to do this year is not mess with the offense and 8 wins is a reasonable minimum.
BlueGator
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 1:16 a.m.
BorninA2, I agree completely. I've been expecting a 7-5 record all along. UM is making big changes in both the offense and defense, and such changes tend to be traumatic during the first year or two. Maintaining the status quo record-wise is not that bad an accomplishment under the circumstances, in my opinion. Of course, individual fan expectations may vary. (I have no problem with that, either.)
towny
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 12:08 a.m.
Sorry, Coach Hoke I disagree second string position player is always one play away from being your starter. I have supported you completely and am a big fan of your coaching. But, this time I disagree second string quarterback Gardner should of been put into the game at around 8 min. to go. I saw denard take three hard hits that he should of not taken late in the game when the outcome was already decided. Plus Devin could of used the game time action.
MRunner73
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 2:37 p.m.
Rather than adding my own comment, you say it best; towny. If you think about it, who's decision was it to keep Denard in-Hoke or Borgess? I wonder if they were on the same page on that one...we'll never know.
Macabre Sunset
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 7:11 a.m.
Given that Denard was hurt in ten different games last season, and Hoke may run him 25 times in a game, it was foolish not to get Devin in there as soon as possible. He might not get another opportunity in a blowout.
maizenbluedoc
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 12:41 a.m.
I concur. While I realize the coach is the one who has to make the decisions, but that does not mean all his decisions are cogent. I hope this never happens, but should DR go down and DG has not had any game experience, Hoke can kiss the season bye bye. I believe Hoke is just not comfortable with making changes at this point of his coaching tenure at Michigan. I just hope all his decisions are the correct ones. Go Blue.
Macabre Sunset
Mon, Sep 19, 2011 : 10:06 p.m.
I don't blame Hoke for wanting to see a convincing victory over the weakest opponent on the schedule. But the way it happened doesn't inspire confidence in this team. I hope he's careful not to trade limited success this season for greater success down the road. We need Gardner and Rawls to develop to their potential. Unfortunately, we're probably looking at another 7-5 season here. And Hoke knows that 2012 must be a lot better.
Blu n Tpa
Wed, Sep 21, 2011 : 12:01 p.m.
tbf I think the problem is you want the numbers to justify your feelings and it's just not going to work if Michigan start 5-0. 2-5, 2-5, 2-6 in the BT, with 2-5 being impossible, are all records that supports your negative feeling toward this program. So how does Michigan only win two BT games, since you alread have UM beating UMn to get to 5-0? The next five games after that are @NwU, @MSU, PU, and @UIa and @UIL. So you don't think Michigan can win just one of those games? I think Michigan will be favored and should win 2 of those. Ill is playing better football than predicted and Iowa is playing below expectations but in both cases it's still early. Michigan could win both though. MSU is going to be tough in EL but it's winnable. Neb and osu are also going to be tough regardless of record by then but I think UM splits those games. So no matter how you slice it, Michigan wins more than 2. Winning 8 games with all the changes is exceptable. Heck 7-5 with improved play by everybody is much better than what the WCiMFH did in his first year and if Coach Hoke wins 8, it's as good as he did in his first TWO years. How do you like that? TiM Go Blue!
truebluefan
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 5:57 p.m.
Ugh. Sorry. Meant to say 2-5, not 3-5. Either way it stinks.
truebluefan
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 5:55 p.m.
OK Blu, my scenario would yield 8 wins, which I think is reasonable this season starting out at 5-0. Thanks for the correction. Going 2-6 in the B1G after starting 5-0 would be hugely disappointing. Wouldn't you agree?
Blu n Tpa
Tue, Sep 20, 2011 : 5:50 p.m.
Tbf. How's that again? Will probably go 5-0 and...3-5 in the BT equals 7 wins? Hard to type, add, and drive all at the same time, uh?
Macabre Sunset
Mon, Sep 19, 2011 : 11:51 p.m.
Yes, we probably start 5-0, even 6-0 is likely, as Northwestern is not looking good and Persa will be rusty when he returns. Purdue is a likely win as well, at home. Anything else is a bonus, and Saturday's game is far from a given. It's hard to gain progress when you're stuck with running a specific system that doesn't work in the Big Ten. It takes time to develop a passer who can pick apart Big Ten defenses.
truebluefan
Mon, Sep 19, 2011 : 10:20 p.m.
MS -- 7 wins would be very disappointing considering that we'll probably start 5-0. That means we end up 3-5 in the B1G and that means we haven't progressed as a team under the new staff. IMO, 8 wins is a reasonable baseline at this point. Next season's schedule is incredibly difficult so I think Hoke needs to make a statement this year.