2B - January 25, 2010 The M Devin Gardner is not next year's savior So, Devin Gardner is officially on campus - but be careful what you wish for, Wolverine fans. He's not the answer for next season. Sure, he's tal- ented, and his running abili- ties are a step up compared to Tate Forcier in Rich Rodri- guez's spread- option attack. Sure, in a few ANDY years, with his REID natural athletic ability, Gardner has the potential to leave his mark on Michigan football history. But he needs to sit next year. If Gardner doesn't redshirt - which would make him the first quarterback in the Rodriguez era with enough time to fully learn the complicated offensive scheme before being thrust onto the field - it's going to negatively affect the quality of the position in the long run. And, if you think about it, the best possible scenario for the Wol- verines would be if they were in a position to sit Gardner, anyway. That would mean that Forcier continues to progress through the spring and summer, becoming more comfortable in the pocket and reading defenses. It would mean that he gets big- ger, stronger and faster in another year of strength and conditioning under coordinator Mike Barwis's rigid system. And it would mean Michigan has some consistency at the quarter- back position - not another over- whelmed first-year starter. That's something maize-and-blue fans completely took for granted during Chad Henne's illustrious career. Or even John Navarre's for that mat- ter, though some might not look on him fondly. Next season, then, Denard Rob- inson should stay at quarterback - for at least one more year. He's not the best option, but, barring an injury to Forcier in which case you could burn Gardner's redshirt if it became necessary. He's a solid backup quarterback with a great change-of-pace running style. That way, Gardner has two seasons (2011 and '12) to back up Forcier and play a Denard-like, two-drive-a-game role (and, who knows, possibly wrestle the start- ing job away from him) and learn the offense the right way. Wolverine nation, I understand that you're upset and want to win right now. But Gardner isn't the answer - this season. How is another freshman quar- terback going to solve anything? He's talented, but the "freshman moments" that plagued Forcier last season aren't going to just magically disappear. Henne was an exception, not the norm, and a freshman Gardner - no matter how many Vince Young compari- sons are thrown around by over- excited national recruiting analysts - would have plenty of cringe-wor- thy mistakes if he's forced to start next season. Give him time to learn the offense. I think Rodriguez knows that this would be the right decision. But I'm worried that, under the extreme pressure to perform in his third season the helm, the coach will be forced to make bold and rash choices, including pulling the gun on his ace recruit, which would hinder not only Gardner's develop- ment but also the team's future. And it's not like the alternative is a bad move. I have full confidence that Forci- er is going to be a good quarterback at Michigan. He's got the skills, poise and moxie to lead this offense, given he has a talented surrounding cast, which the Wolverines should have next season. I know it's tough, but hang in there. PlayingGardner prematurely would prove to be a very bad move. - Reid can be reached at andyreidpumich.edu. 0 lichigan Daily - michigandaily.com M r vi" AARON AUGSBURGER/Daily ds second place by over 100 steals, and n surpassing the fifth-place finish at the h established West Coast schools. to win 9-4. After struggling against UCLA, fifth-year senior May put on a quite a show, one that places her second on the all-time saves list with 429. "I knew I could do better," May said about the UCLA game. "May by far was the differ- ence," Anderson said afterthe win over the Aztecs. "She knew she was going to play against SDSU. I'm fine with mistakes, just learn from them and you'll get another opportunity." Senior captain Leah Robertson surpassed the 300-steal mark in the Wolverines opening weekend of the season. Robertson lea she still has an entire season ahead ofther. Robertson's defense will be a key part of Michigan's success this season if they plano NCAA Championship last season. By defeating San Diego State this weekend, the Wolverines proved that they can compete wit KICKOFF From page 1 B Anderson said. "It pertains to a message I tell the players, it is about the program. Not the indi- viduals, not themselves, but the program." The air was tense as the 2-0 Wolverines jumped in for a 9:15 Sunday morning matchup against the five-time defending national champion Bruins (3-1), who were responsible for Michigan's early exit last year from the NCAA tournament. The third-ranked Bruins entered the game rattled after an unexpected loss to sev- enth-ranked San Diego State. Trailing by two in the second, Michigan went.on a 4-0 run aided by two UCLA turnovers. The two-goal lead was short lived, however, as the Bruins scored three times including a half-court buzzer-beater to go up 6-5 at halftime. UCLA went on to win 10-7. But the game was promising for the Wolverines, considering in the previous four meetings, the Bru- ins had won by at least six goals. "We're on the same level as them now," Robertson said. Coming off their first loss of the season, the Wolverines took on No. 7 San Diego State (3-1), which was hot off of an upset victory over UCLA. The Wolverines were led by freshmen Golden and Colton, who combined for five goals. Thanks to a dominant performance in net from May, the Wolverines went on m _I *-- 1 --- -1_ 1 T -T 1__ _ -- i nlrQ-ranKea vvolverines avenge previous loss, defeat Nittany Lions Pair of Wolverines grab U.S. ice dancing crown Cameron and Kelley lead 'M' with six top-three finishes between them By CAITLIN SMITH DailySports Writer Junior Chris Cameron ended his routine, let out a shout of enthusi- asm while holding up a victorious fist and sprinted over toa line of his teammates, waiting for high-fives. It was only the first rotation, but Cameron celebrated his 15.40 floor performance as if he knew the Wolverines were going to finish the day with a win. No. 3 Michigan did indeed beat No. 6 Penn State in front of a crowd of nearly 700 fans. Last year, the Wolverines fell to the Nit- tany Lions by just hundredths of a point. But yesterday, Michigan held a comfortable 10-point lead throughout most of the match and finished off with a total score of 355.65 to 344.75. Though the Wolverines had a shaky start to the season at last weekend's Windy City Invitation- al, they proved yesterday that they deserve their third-place ranking. "A lot of the time there is a tre- mendous improvement between meet one and meet two," Michigan coach Kurt Golder said. "You kind of knock the rust off and you figure out some things about competing again that you've learned a few times before." Cameron and junior Thomas Kelley led Michigan in scoring. Kelley took first place in both the. horizontal bar and still rings, and finished third on the floor event. Cameron finished first on the floor and second on both the pommel horse and the parallel bars. He also won the all-around competition with a score of88.75. Senior Mel Anton Santander also performed well against the Nittany Lions. Santander recorded a top-three finish in two out of his four events, and set a career best on the pommel horse with a 14.95. "Mel was just super," Golder said. "I think he will be an All- American this year. He's been on a roll since the NCAA finals last season and hopefully he can just continue that through the rest of the year because we need his help." Golder gave the Newt Loken Outstanding Performance award to Santander for his strong routine on the horse. This award is given to a Wol- verine after each meet, in honor of long-time Michigan gymnastics coach, Newt Loken. Though Santander was proud of his performance against Penn State, he doesn't plan on becoming complacent anytime soon. "It's my senior year and it'sgreat to come out strong in the beginning for the first home meet," Santander said. "However, I wanted to add a couple more skills into my rou- tines, to add more difficulty and get a higher start value. Hopefully that will help the team even more than I did today." SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - Meryl Davis and Charlie White have won their second ice dance title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, upsetting Olympic and world silver medalists Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto. Davis and White, who are both juniors at Michigan, won all three segments ofthe competition, capping it with a magical and theatrical free dance Saturday. They finished with a U.S. record 222.29 points to notch their first victory ever over Belbin and Agosto. That's no small matter in a discipline where past accomplish- ments are often taken into account. Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates were third, likely clinching a spot on the Olympic team. The United States can send three dance teams to Vancouver. 33 A N ARBOR R FLKEFESTIVAL M