Denard Robinson tap dances his way past the Fighting Irish, 28-24

Denard Robinson is special, a diamond in the ruff, the most svelte dancer, twirling and gliding and ripping through wind currents to the endzone. Rich Rodriguez has something special with this kid, a more physically-gifted and stronger player than his former quarterback Pat White. Its Rodriguez third year at Michigan and this might be his only saving grace as his record stands 10-16. There is no denying Rodriguez is the king of the spread-option attack as evidenced by his tenure in West Virginia, but he has had a bumpy ride in Ann Harbor amongst all the NCAA violations, players leaving and calling him out, and his poor conference record, 3-13. However, yesterday’s win has saved his job for now, has allowed the Michigan faithful to have hope, to be giddy over a dual-threat quarterback, hopeful for a defense that will get better, hopeful for a bowl bid this season. Don’t get me wrong, Michigan beat Notre Dame, but the game could have gone either way. The Fighting Irish certainly could have left the field with a victory in-hand but it was The Denard Robinson show and he came through all game, but especially when the game was on the line. The Wolverines have a lot to work on even though they pulled ahead of Notre Dame in South Bend. Their defensive secondary was shaky, the run defense was OK, but they need to cut down on the penalties and find a kicker that can make field goals. If Michigan converted points that were left on the field, the margin of victory would have been larger than the score indicated. Not only did Robinson do it with his feet (28 carries for 258 yards, 2TD), he did it through the air with 20-24, 244 yards, 1TD. He gained an average of 9.2 yards per carry, a staggering figure. But let’s not act like schoolgirls over him and his production yesterday. How can he survive if he is asked to carry the ball 28 times per game this season? He cannot hold up, especially playing against Wisconsin, Penn State and Ohio State. And although he ran roughshod over the Irish, I doubt he will be allowed to do the same against the Nittany Lions and the Buckeyes. And he risks injury every time he tucks the ball, and if I was Rodriguez, I would cringe anytime a defender came low or in for a tackle. What needs to happen is that they need to develop a ground game to not allow Robinson to be a one-man team. The key in football is to have your X-factor(s) healthy down the stretch for that key game or series of games. Everyone clamored over Tate Forcier last year but that soon dissolved, I’m not saying that is going to happen with Robinson but you never know. After yesterday’s performance, the amount of pressure on his shoulders is immense. Remember in West Virginia , Pat White had running back Steve Slaton to take the pressure off of him, and that is what is needed for Michigan to be successful to save one of or the most dynamic player on their team. Road wins against Penn State (Oct. 30) and Ohio State (Nov. 27) could go a long way and extend the life expectancy of RichRod and his staff, but also a home win against Iowa (Oct. 16) would certainly have the Wolverines on everyone’s radar. But this is wishful thinking on my part, but you have to believe that this won’t be the last big game that Robinson has and it sets up nicely for one more big win against another rival. Right now, Robinson is the most dynamic quarterback in the Big Ten and probably will be the most talked about over his conference-mate Terrelle Pryor this season.