The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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M Al Borges Has No Regrets About Quarterback Use In 2012 In his first season as Michigan's offensive coordinator, Al Borges designed a "deuce" package designed to incorporate Devin Gardner into the offense even when Denard Robinson was on the field. However, Gardner saw only a handful of snaps all season, and Borges and his fellow offensive coaches wanted to take a proactive approach to utilizing his talent more effectively in 2012. Seeing a need at receiver with the departure of Junior Hemingway and Martavious Odoms in 2011, and seeing no real opportunity at quarterback with Robinson under center, the Wolverines' staff and Gardner agreed that a move to wideout would benefit all parties. "He had the athleticism and we really had a need there," Borges said. "At the beginning of the move, we were thinking we'd keep playing him at quarterback, but it was killing him; he wasn't playing very well at either position. "He would come back to the huddle and he was so exhausted that he couldn't even call a play, so we said, 'Enough with it. Leave him at wide receiver, develop him as a wide receiver, and then we'll move him back to quarterback when we shift gears and move to a pro-style offense after Denard graduates.'" Though he struggled on a few of his routes, especially when he was forced to adjust to a pass not thrown directly on target, Gardner made one reception, good for a 44-yard touchdown, in his wide receiver debut against Alabama. A week later, in a win over Air Force, Gardner led U-M's wideouts with five receptions for 63 yards and a score. In week three, he scored again among a two-catch, 48-yard day. By the end of the non-conference schedule, the 6-4 Gardner had 11 grabs for 195 yards (17.7 yards per reception) and three touchdowns. The move was lauded as an unqualified success. "He was leading our team in touchdown receptions and really wasn't doing half bad," Borges said. "It looked like a smart decision." However, over the next four weeks of Big Ten play, Gardner made less of an impact, hauling in only five balls for 71 yards and a TD. Then, when Robinson went down with an injury late in the first half at Nebraska, U-M turned to backup Russell Bellomy, not Gardner. The redshirt freshman faltered, throwing the same number of interceptions (three) as completed passes in 16 attempts. Immediately, the media and fans secondguessed the staff, demanding to know why ATTENTION MICHIGAN FANS Borges noted that when Devin Gardner started practicing at wide receiver in 2012, it was too exhausting for him to also try to handle a full workload at quarterback. Photo by lon horwedel Michigan hadn't at least tried Gardner at quarterback. "He wasn't ready," Borges said. "He hadn't practiced at quarterback in eight weeks, since fall camp. We moved him in the middle of two-a-days. We thought he'd be able to do both positions in practices, but it wasn't working, and when we moved him to receiver, he was officially a receiver. He just wasn't an option for the Nebraska game. "It wouldn't have been fair to him or to the team, but once that game was over it was obvious we needed him at quarterback and we moved him back immediately. "If I had to do it again, and I knew that Denard was going to get injured, then sure, I would have stopped playing him at receiver after the Michigan State game and moved him back to quarterback, given him the reps he needed, and we would have had him ready. But you can't foresee an injury like that." Those that praised the move of Gardner to receiver early in the year were now revising history, arguing he should have been the No. 2 signal-caller all season, even if it meant the first seven weeks he stood on the sideline holding a clipboard. "We couldn't have it both ways — he couldn't be a quarterback and a receiver because he needed the reps at receiver to be effective," Borges said. "That argument doesn't work. "If you say we never should have moved him to receiver, I ask you to look at our first month and tell me who our best receiver was? It was Devin Gardner. "There is a lot of talk that we made a mistake, but it sure didn't look that way the first four, five, six weeks. We made a decision we thought was in the best interest of our team, and I don't regret playing him at receiver because he helped us win some games there. "It would be nice to have a crystal ball, but we don't." ROSE BOWL PACKAGES * Game Tickets * Parade Tickets * Hotel Accommodations * Pregame Event * Transfers to and from all events Place a $250 per person deposit and receive a full refund if Michigan does not play in the Rose Bowl DIAMOND TRAVEL 25 YEARS IN BUSINESS 1-800-348-7748 Diamondtravel.com The Wolverine 2013 Football Preview ■ 23