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ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 24, ISSUE 6 111 f MICHIGAN'S FIVE BURNING QUESTIONS: 1. Will Michigan's offen- sive line be significantly better? It better be. The Wolverines led the nation in tackles for loss allowed with 114, includ- ing 36 sacks, and loses their two best linemen. 2. How will U-M fare on the road? Brady Hoke is just 7-11 away from home and Mich- igan's three biggest games against Notre Dame, MSU and OSU are on road. 3. Is the defense capable of being great? The defense returns 10 players that started at least four games and has experi- ence, talent and depth at every position. Expectations are sky high that Michigan will challenge Michigan State for defensive supremacy. 4. Is Devin Gardner a championship quarterback? Michigan QBs are defined by their win-loss records. Gardner is 10-7 as a starter, 0-2 against Ohio State. He has more to prove. 5. Can Michigan avoid its ACL curse? In the last 24 months, U-M has lost seven players to ACL tears. — Michael Spath, TheWolverine.com Michigan Keeping fleet quarterback Devin Gardner upright and healthy is essential if Michigan wants to win big in '14. Michigan Wolverines 2014 PREVIEW • NOT ON PURDUE'S SCHEDULE OF NOTE: The Wolverines have lost seven of their last nine bowl games after a 31-14 setback to Kansas State in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl last season. "A season on the brink … Year 4 for Brady Hoke. And it is just not looking good. The pressure mounts on Hoke because Michigan's two rivals, Michigan State and Ohio State, are rolling and winning, crushing the Wolverines. Hoke has to show some progress this year and needs to stop the bleeding against his chief rivals as well." — Tom Dienhart, Big Ten Network TOM'S TAKE (7-6 overall, 3-5 Big Ten, 5t Legends) Date Opponent . . . . . . . . . Results 8/31 CENTRAL MICHIGAN . . W, 59-9 9/7 NOTRE DAME. . . . . . . W, 41-30 9/14 AKRON . . . . . . . . . . . . W, 28-24 9/21 at Connecticut . . . . . . W, 24-21 10/5 MINNESOTA . . . . . . . . W, 42-13 10/12 at Penn State . . L, 40-43 (4OT) 10/19 INDIANA . . . . . . . . . . . W, 63-47 11/2 at Michigan State . . . . . L, 6-29 11/9 NEBRASKA . . . . . . . . . L, 13-17 11/16 at N'western . . . W, 27-19 (3OT) 11/23 at Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . L, 21-24 11/30 OHIO STATE . . . . . . . . L, 41-42 12/26 vs. Kansas State*. . . . L, 14-31 *Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Who's in Charge? COACH BRADY HOKE Record at Michigan: 26-13 (three seasons) Record vs. Purdue: 2-2 Date Opponent 8/30 APPALACHIAN ST 9/6 at Notre Dame 9/13 MIAMI (OH) 9/20 UTAH 9/27 MINNESOTA 10/4 at Rutgers 10/11 PENN STATE 10/25 at Michigan State 11/1 INDIANA 11/8 at Northwestern 11/22 MARYLAND 11/29 at Ohio State 2013 RESULTS 2014 SCHEDULE Wolverine Woes Michigan's record has gradually gotten worse in Coach Brady Hoke's three-year stint. 2011: 11-2 2012: 8-5 2013: 7-6 For daily headlines on recruiting and other Purdue sports news, check out