. The Michigan Daily I michigandaily.com I November 5, 2012
Gardner excels at QB
as emergency starter
By LUKE PASCH repeated throughout the week
Daily SportsEditor that Robinson should be ready to
go against the Golden Gophers,'
MINNEAPOLIS - The Michi- junior quarterback Devin Gard-
gan Athletic Department deliv- ner started in his place. Gardner,
ered the sobering news minutes who had been playing mostly at
before kickoff: senior quarter- wide receiver this season, took
back Denard Robinson would not the bulk of the snaps in practice
start against Minnesota due to an this week to prepare for the role.
"undisclosed injury." Gardner got off to a slow start,
Robinson inured a nerve in throwing an interception early in
his throwing elbow last week the first quarter, but he rebound-
at Nebraska, and even though ed and finished 12-of-18 through
Michigan coach Brady Hoke the air with two passing touch-
downs and one rushing, en route
to a35-13victory over Minnesota.
"It didn't surprise us," said
Michigan coach Brady Hoke.
"Being a receiver, being over
there, that's a whole different
animal. I think that helped with
some development. I think he did
a nicejob of managing the team. I
think we had four drives over 79
yards."
Michigan's recent offensive
struggles continued early in thq
See GARDNER, Page 3B
FOOTBALL
For his team,
Gardner answers
' the call again
M INNEAPOLIS -
Scrambling and out
of alternatives on
Saturday, Michigan leaned on
the familiar option. Once again,
Michigan needed Devin Gardner,
his own concerns be damned.
Michigan desperately needed
Gardner to
lift it up in the
second quar-
ter Saturday,
trailing 7-0
to Minnesota
- yes Min-
nesota - as
it reeled on ZACH
offense. But HELFAND
in the big-
ger picture,
the Wolverines needed a lift out
of the panic that enveloped the
team, needed a way to revive Big
Ten hopes already on the brink.
The cracks first appeared
against Michigan State, when
Michigan failed to score a touch-
down. They exploded into chaos
when Robinson was injured the
following week at Nebraska, tak-
ing 75 percent of the offense's
production with him. With no
Robinson, the backfield was
absent of any rushers with a 100-
yard game this season.
Simply, Michigan had no
choice. It needed Gardner. And
as usual, Gardner really had no
choice either.
"He fashions himself assa
quarterback," Hoke said. "He
really has made the move (to
receiver) to help us as a football
team. That tells you a little bit
about him and his character and
(that) he believes in Michigan."
Michigan scrambled and
improvised like a Gardner roll-
out on Saturday. For Gardner, the
line between genius and grasping
in the dark could be blurry.
See ANSWERS, Page 3B
PAUL SHERMAN/Daily
Senior forward A.J. Treais scored a last-second goal and a shootout goal on Friday at Berry Events Center.
Wolverines struggle in two-
gameseries with Wildcats
FOOTBALL
Rawls sees
time at RB
11victory
By BEN ESTES
Daily Sports Editor
MINNEAPOLIS - The Michi-
gan offense has waited and
waited for redshirt junior run-
ning back Fitzgerald Toussaint
to become the player he was just
last year, when he ran all over the
Big Ten in the second half of the
season. As Toussaint's struggles
have dragged on, the cries for
more playingtime for his backup,
sophomore Thomas Rawls, have
only intensified.
After two weeks without a
carry, Rawls finally saw the field
in a significant way against Min-
nesota. It was the most action of
his young career, in fact. Rawls's
16 carries were a career high, just
nine fewer than he had received
all season going into Saturday's
game.
The Wolverines were also
without their quarterback on Sat-
urday afternoon. Minus Denard
See RAWLS, Page 3B
By LIZ VUKELICH
Daily Sports Writer
MARQUETTE - After a
Friday night affair in which
everything that could pos-
sibly happen in a game - a
disqualification, a brawl, a
last-second goal and a shoot-
out win - happened, the No. 8
Michigan hockey team wanted
to make a quick, clean sweep of
Northern Michigan on Satur-
day evening..
The game was quick. And
relatively clean. At times, espe-
cially
with MICHIGAN 4
another N. MICHIGAN 4
last-min- MICHIGAN 3
ute come- N. MICHIGAN 4
back, it
seemed like a flashback to the
previous night.
But the win ultimately elud-
ed the Wolverines, who fell 4-3
to the 20th-ranked Wildcats at
the Berry Events Center.
"I think we were missing a
little more offensive bit," said
Michigan coach Red Beren-
son. "We didn't reallytest their
goalie as far as having really
good chances."
Michigan (1-2-1 CCHA, 3-3-1
overall) faced challenges before
the puck evendropped, with
the presence iosenior forward
See WILDCATS, Page 3B
M
DUMPING THE ROCK
Michigan scored 106 points against
Slippery Rock, the first time 'M' eclipsed
the century mark since 1998. Page 4B
'D' SELF-DESTRUCTS u
Before and after Jacob Trouba got the-
heave-ho, the Michigan defense struggled
against Northern Michigan. Page 2B