Michigan vs. Iowa: 5 Things We Learned from U-M's Loss vs. the Hawkeyes

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Iowa's had Michigan's number for the past five seasons, winning three straight games for the first time in the history of the series.

The Hawkeyes are always a tough out in Iowa City, and they showed why today. With under a minute left in the game, Iowa stopped Michigan on four straight plays from the three-yard line to hold on for the 24-16 win.

Michigan had chances to win the game but came up just short in the end.

A sluggish start, miscues on special teams, and costly turnovers were too much for the Wolverines to overcome.

The Hawkeyes contained Michigan's ground attack and made Denard Robinson try to beat them with his arm. While it's not all his fault, Robinson over-threw open targets on multiple deep throws.

In the end, Iowa seemed to have all the answers, and Michigan was left to search for answers heading into next week's game at Illinois.

Win or lose, there are always lessons to be learned from a football game. Sometimes, we can learn more from a loss than we can from a win.

So, what lessons can we take from Michigan's loss to Iowa today?

Rotating Quarterbacks Is a Bad Idea

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I don't know about you, but I really don't agree with rotating Devin Gardner in and out of the game.

I understand that Michigan had to put him in after Robinson got injured, but what about the other times?

It seemed like Hoke would put Gardner in the game just as Denard and the offense were putting something together.

It's hard enough win in the Big Ten, especially on the road.

Rotating quarterbacks is like trying to get it done on one good leg.

I just don't get it.

Denard Robinson Really Struggles Throwing the Deep Ball

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Of course, Denard isn't doing anything to help his case by over-throwing targets by 10 yards.

For a stretch in the fourth quarter, he threw three straight deep balls, and none of them were anywhere near a receiver.

He has the arm strength, and he's clearly not afraid to let it fly, but his accuracy is really, really poor.

He'll have to improve in his ability to throw the deep ball or defenses will keep stacking the box and limiting him to 50 yards per game.

Michigan has the receivers to stretch the field, but the quarterback isn't giving them the chance to make a play.

The Defense Still Needs Work

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The defense, although much improved from 2010, still needs a lot of work.

Though they came up with some big stops on third and fourth-down, the defense still gets beat far too often.

Marcus Coker rushed for more than 130 yards against the Wolverines today.

Greg Mattison's defense is about taking chances, making plays and forcing turnovers.

Winning creating turnovers covers up a lot of other holes in a defense, but Michigan was unable to come up with a takeaway against Iowa.

They played well in the second half, but they had already dug too big of a hole to climb out of.

The defense hasn't put together a complete game against a quality opponent yet. But I guess the offense hasn't really done that either.

The Wolverines Are Still a Year Away

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There are measurable signs of improvement, and that's an encouraging sign.

The Wolverines are definitely on the right track under Coach Hoke.

That being said, Michigan is still realistically a year or two away from being a really good team.

While they play well at times, the Wolverines are horribly inconsistent from week to week and quarter to quarter.

That's to be expected in the first year of a new system.

It just shows that all of the talk of a Big Ten title and a possible BCS berth were a bit premature.

Before the Wolverines can be considered serious Big Ten title contenders, they'll have to show the ability to beat middle-of-the-pack teams and good teams on the road.

Michigan is much improved from a year ago, but the football team is still a year or two away from where it needs to be.

There Is Still Something to Play for in 2011

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Let's remember that Michigan is not out of the conference race, but the Wolverines are on the outside looking in for now.

Even though Michigan's Big Ten title hopes took a big shot today, there are still plenty of things to play for.

Primarily, Michigan still needs to show consistent improvement from week to week.

Robinson has work to do when it comes to passing the ball with more consistency and taking care of the ball.

The defense can improve week to week by being more disciplined in their assignments and maintaining focus for four quarters.

If Michigan stays focused on one game at a time and continues to take steps forward, the Maize and Blue can still make a good bowl game.

Losses are disappointing, but the season is far from over for the Michigan Wolverines.

Let's go get Illinois next week!

Go Blue!