The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Thursday, October 3, 2013 - 7A
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Thursday, Octoher 3, 2013 - 7A
Bryant in, Miller out
on 'M' offensive line
Graham Glasgow
shifts to center as
Hoke tries to fix
scuffling line
By MATT SLOVIN
ManagingEditor
After weeks of deliberation,
the Michigan coaching staff has
opted for a personnel change in
the unit that has caused the foot-
ball team the most strife through
four games - the offensive line.
Michigan coach Brady Hoke
announced at his Wednesday
press con- NOTEBOOK
ference that
redshirt soph-
omore GrahamGlasgow will now
be the starting center, replacing
fellow redshirt sophomore Jack
Miller, whose play has been at
the forefront of questions con-
cerning the inexperienced inte-
rior line.
Taking Glasgow's place at the
left guard spot for Saturday's
game against Minnesota will be
redshirt sophomore Chris Bry-
ant. The switch comes a week
after Hoke's comments that he
would only move linemen around
if a suitable replacement at guard
stuck out.
"These guys have all done
a tremendous job competing,"
Hoke said Wednesday. "If we
were going to kick the ball off
today, Graham would be the cen-
ter. Chris Bryant would be the
left guard."
Hoke added that redshirt
junior Joey Burzynski and true
freshman Kyle Bosch are also
possibilities to enter the rotation
come Saturday.
When pressed, Hoke said that
the cause for the moves was "just
competition. Simple. Competi-
tion at both positions."
"Chris has been close all year,
to be honest with you," he said.
"His knee became a problem for
three or four days, then he had
a little nick in the shoulder - a
boo boo. He's come through that
pretty well."
Last season, Bryant battled a
fractured leg that kept him out
for the entire season.
Hoke also noted that the
team's biggest obstacle to a suc-
cessful offensive line thus far
hasn't only been the center posi-
tion, but rather finding the five
players who will do the best job
together.
During the Brady Hoke Radio
Show on Wednesday night,
broadcast on the Michigan IMG
Sports Network, Hoke said the
difference between this year's
offensive line and that of previ-
ous seasons is the increased com-
petition.
RYAN REPORT: Redshirt
junior linebacker Jake Ryan,
who has been recovering from a
spring anterior cruciate ligament
tear, is participating in full con-
tact team activities, according to
Hoke.
"We're smart with him,
though," Hoke said.
Hoke said his star defensive
player will be back "hopefully
soon," adding "he's doing a lot
more every day." October has
been the target month for Ryan's
return since fall camp.
TEXT SPEAK: Consider-
ing how much redshirt junior
quarterback Devin Gardner
has struggled through the first
month of the season, it's no sur-
prise that offensive coordina-
tor Al Borges has been spending
extra time with Gardner, trying
to work out the kinks.
As it turns out, Gardner has
been texting regularly with his
57-year-old coach, especially
since the Connecticut game,
when Gardner turned the ball
over three times in the 24-21 win.
Film study is when Gardner
and Borges have been communi-
cating electronically the most.
"When I see something the
other team is vulnerable in, I just
text him ... that we may be able to
exploit the weaknesses," Gard-
ner said Wednesday.
Like Robinson, Gardner
responds to his critics
By LIZ VUKELICH
Daily Sports Editor
Devin Gardner likes to call.
himself a "student of the game."
He watches extra film. He takes
time to learn the playbook. He
wants to make sure there are no
surprises.
But his studies extend beyond
the football field, too. Over the
past few weeks, Gardner has
come back to something he
learned in a psychology class.
"You need 10,000 hours to
get out of a habit," Gardner said.
"When you get into the heat of
the moment, you can revert back
to the old ways of doing things."
Did Gardner put in the full
10,000 hours necessary over the
past two weeks to kick his turn-
over tendency?,
Not quite.
Nevertheless, he feels confi-
dent saying that his eight turn-
overs over the course of four
games are more of the anomaly
than the rule.
Whether or not that is the
case once Big Ten play starts this
weekend remains to be seen. But
even if Gardner hasn't been able
to completely solve the intercep-
tion problem, at least he's getting
better at brushing it off after-
ward.-
By now, the Wolverines have
a routine for when interceptions
happen: fifth-year senior wide
receiver Jeremy Gallon simply
pats Gardner on the helmet, and
the offensive line tries to provide
as many encouraging words as
they can.
Gardner is all too aware of his
errors, and though he'll always
exchange a few words with Hoke
when he comes off the field, he
prefers to just "chill out and
think about what happened."
Gardner may be learning how
to cope with major criticism for
the first time in his career, but
Hoke's been through this before
- former Michigan quarter-
back Denard Robinson threw 12
interceptions during his senior
season, and often came under a
storm of criticism for his diffi-
culties throwing the ball.
Before Gardner was the one
throwing the picks, he was the
one on the sidelines consoling
Robinson as he came off the field.
Now Gardner's the one answer-
ing for his actions.
Gardner hasn't reached out to
Robinson for advice on how to
handle the criticism - according
to Gardner, he doesn't want to
bother Robinson, who is busy in
his current role as a wide receiv-
er for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But Gardner learned a lot from
his predecessor, who was known
for his quieter demeanor and
actions-instead-of-words atti-
tude.
"That was beneficial for me
because I could see how much
it couldn't bother (Robinson),"
Gardner said. "I've probably
thought about the way he han-
dled things in general as the
quarterback. He was an example
of how to behave and how you
should act."
The Wolverines are quick to
defend Gardner from criticism,
and the coaches are too - as
Hoke continuously reminds the
media, the only noise he wants
his players to listen to is the kind
that comes from their teammates
and coaches.
Even so, Gardner smiled when
he acknowledged that he does
deserve some of the backlash
that's come his way in recent
weeks.
"When you play as bad as I've
played, you've kind of earned
that," Gardner said. "I just can't
wait to play on Saturday."
Redshirt sophomore Graham Glasgow will switch from left guard to center, replacing redshlrt sophomore Jack
Joe Maher gives Michigan coaching an edge on the ice
By ERIN LENNON
Daily Sports Writer
The No. 10 Michigan hockey
team has itself a brand-new
strength and conditioning coach.
And he has himself a pair of
shiny, new skates.
Joe Maher comes to the pro-
gram highly touted from his.
former employer - the 2012-13
national championship-winning
Yale men's hockey team. At Yale,
Maher's conditioning responsi-
bilities also included the wom-
en's ice hockey, track and field,
baseball, field hockey and crew
teams.
In addition to a Frozen Four
win, Maher aided in the success-
es of several programs - namely
four consecutive rowing national
championships between 2007
and 2010 - in six years with the
Bulldogs, while earning a bronze
medal at the international level
for the junior U.S. hockey team
in 2011.
A former hockey player at
Rhode Island, Maher is the first
strength and conditioning coach
in 30 years under Michigan
coach Red Berenson with prior
experience on the ice - an asset
that should prove invaluable this
season.
The ability to train both in the
gym and on the ice gives Maher
an edge over most strength and
conditioning coaches in the
nation. But for the time being,
Maher is the new guy with the
challenge of pitching a new style
to this team's seasoned veterans.
"For the most part, there's still
that trust factor, that feeling-out
USCHO Rankings
Sept. 30
1. Massachusetts-Lowell (19)
2. Miami (14)
3. Wisconsin (2)
4. Boston College
5. Minnesota (1)
6. Yale (8)
7. North Dakota
8. Notre Dame
9. St. Cloud State
10. Quinnipiac,(1)
11. Michigan
11. Minnesota State
13. New Hampshire
14. Providence
15. Rensselaer
16. Union
17. Denver
18. Western Michigan
19. Boston University
20. Niagara
I think he'll be a good fit here."
For the Wolverines, the 2013-
14 season begins with the bitter
aftertaste of last year, when a
team many expected to contend
for a 10th national title missed
out on its first NCAA Tourna-
ment appearance in 22 years.
Senior defenseman and cap-
tain Mac Bennett and sophomore
forward and alternate captain
Andrew Copp have since placed
partial blame for the demise on
a lack of team chemistry and
focus.
"We're just kind of desper-
ate," Copp said. "I think all of the
returning guys have amped up
their summers because of what
happened last year.
"Getting a full-time guy like
Joe has been awesome. Coming
on the ice is something (former
strength and conditioning coach
Jim Plocki) couldn't do. He
brings a new attitude."
Tuesday, Maher took charge
of the final 30 minutes of prac-
tice.
He began with a 10-minute
speed skate in which everyone
from forwards to fully-padded
goalies - who often tripped over
themselves - were forced to
change pace with each whistle
blow. The team then ran a cone
drill that forced several players
to double over.
In it, a pair of skaters weaved
around cones, touching the blue
line before slicing in toward cen-
ter ice several times on the width
of the rink.
In a brief moment between
sets, it became clear that Maher
isn't at Michigan to play games.
"He is kicking our butts, but in
a good way," Bennett said. "He
just said, 'Get these guys going.
We're not doing things fast
enough.' We need it. He's a guy
who demands respect. I think
just the fact that he can skate
and he's played before, everyone
respects him for that. He knows
what he's doing, so whatever he
wants to do, we'll do."
-daily Sports Writer Greg
Garno contributed reporting
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Michigan coach Red Berenson skates during practices, even at 73. But until this year, he never had a strength and condi-
tioning coach with prior experience on the ice. That changed with the hiring of Joe Maher, from last year's champion, Yale.
period," Maher said. "I'm that
new guy coming in so I don't
expect everything to run the way
I want it to run because I have to
earn that respect and that trust.
I expect more of that to come in
the long run."
Until the exhibition opener
against Waterloo, Ont. on Sun-
day, NCAA regulations prevent
coaches from spending more
than two hours a week on the ice
with the team. Maher, though,
is allowed full.access to on-ice
practices in the weeks leading up
to the regular season.
And though it remains to be
seen if Maher will have full juris-
diction over on-ice conditioning
throughout the regular season,
an extra set of hockey-trained
eyes will be an advantage should
assistant coaches like goalie
coach Josh Blackburn - who
is currently enrolled in gradu-
ate courses at Michigan - miss
practices.
"Once I get the confidence
that he's got the feel for what our
team needs, we'll see," Beren-
son said. "I can tell you he had
an impact on that Yale team last
year, according to their coaches.
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