Michigan Football: 5 Things the Wolverines Learned from Last Year

Michigan's return to college football prominence hasn't come without challenges.

New coach Brady Hoke was forced to solve a multitude of problems following the disappointing reign of Rich Rodriguez. He faced a segmented football community, a leaky defense and an uncharacteristic recruiting philosophy.

Probably the best indication that Hoke had arrived was during spring game weekend when 250 former players met to get reacquainted and talk some football.

“It’s just different,” former Michigan All-American and NFL All-Pro Braylon Edwards said. “You feel welcome. That right there is enough. You can feel that warmth. That sense of, ‘I played here, I deserve to be able to come back and walk around.’ That wasn’t there. He’s bringing that back.”

Let's take a look how Hoke tackled some of the other problems and what we can expect in the future.

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Robinson Still Has His Doubters

In September 2010, Denard Robinson was the talk of the town. He had just led the Wolverines to a 28-24 comeback win at Notre Dame with 244 yards passing and 258 yards rushing. The 502-yard performance placed him in the middle of the Heisman Trophy race.

Robinson went on to finish with seven games of 200 or more passing yards and nine games with more than 100 yards rushing.

He finished with 2,570 passing yards and 1702 rushing yards, which was good enough to earn him the Chicago Tribune Silver Football, emblematic of the Big Ten's MVP. Robinson also finished sixth the voting for the 2010 Heisman Trophy.

Despite Michigan's successful 2011 campaign under new coach Brady Hoke, Robinson struggled.

Whether it was the coaching switch, a mid-season staph infection, or simply a throwing slump, Robinson's numbers dropped considerably. The attempted transition from a strictly read-option attack to a spread/power-I offense didn't help either.

Robinson's passing percentage dropped from 62.5 to 55.0, while his rushing per-carry average dropped from 6.3 to 5.5.

Granted, Fitzgerald Toussaint took over much of the rushing load, but at times Robinson didn't look like the same player he was in 2010.

Coach Hoke, however, was never alarmed.

"Denard is our quarterback," he told ESPN after the Michigan State defeat. "We’re 6-1, and a lot of that is because Denard is our quarterback."

Look for Hoke and offensive coordinator Al Borges to work harder at establishing more of a tailback-oriented attack,and simplifying the passing game. No way will there be a change at quarterback.

Winning in Columbus Won't Be Easy

For those of you who weren't at The Big House for The Game, you probably noticed how the hiring of coach Urban Meyer was leaked during the telecast. The Buckeye brass did its best to keep the discussion away from the probable loss and the recent NCAA investigation.

However, a funny thing happened. 

Ohio State actually made a game of it, nearly ending Luke Fickell's brief (interim) head coaching career with a victory. It wasn't meant to be, however, as freshman quarterback Braxton Miller was intercepted by Courtney Avery to end the last-minute threat.

Miller, who passed for 235 yards and ran for an even 100 against the Wolverines, will lead an experienced Buckeye team into 2012, minus all the distractions.

Sure, the Buckeyes are banned from any postseason play, but they'll be ready for Michigan come November. Ohio State returns nine starters on offense and 10 on defense, including Miller, running back Jordan Hall and wide receiver Corey Brown.

Running Game in Good Hands

While offensive coordinator Al Borges continues to tweak the offense, look for the Wolverines to have more of a cohesive rushing attack.

The search for a starting tailback is finally over. It wasn't until game seven against Purdue that Fitzgerald Toussaint finally won the job.

He completed the season with 1,041 yards and a 5.8 yard-per-carry average. The 5'10”, 195-pound junior produced four 100-yard games in his final six outings.

Sophomore Thomas Rawls, junior Stephen Hopkins, senior Vincent Smith and redshirt freshman Justice Hayes will provide plenty of depth.

Once Michigan settles on a center, look for the offensive line to begin breaking in youngsters like redshirt freshman Chris Bryant and true frosh Kyle Kalis. The line is expected to be the deepest in years.

Don't forget Denard Robinson. While he will be concentrating on improving his passing during the spring and summer, still pencil him in for at least 1,000 yards on the ground.    

Solid Defenders Remain from Rodriguez's Regime

Rich Rodriguez took a lot of heat for Michigan's sad defensive play. While he actually recruited some pretty good defensive players, getting them to play as a cohesive unit was nearly impossible.

Based on the way things evolved, you certainly couldn't blame the players. The problem was finding the right defensive coordinator.

First it was Scott Shafer, who left Jim Harbaugh's program at Stanford to join Rodriguez. In his only year at Michigan, Shafer's defense allowed 28.9 points per game, 68th in the nation.

This particular group, which comprised of mostly Lloyd Carr's defenders, couldn't get it done. “We had different thoughts on the way we did things,” Shafer told the Detroit Free Press (via ESPN).

Greg Robinson, who just finished four unproductive years as the Syracuse head coach,  played the role of Michigan's defensive coordinator during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. Despite the continuation of decent recruiting classes, the defense dropped to 77th and 108th respectively.

Robinson and Rodriguez were both sent packing, and with the bulk those players returning in 2011 it appeared Hoke would have his hands full.

However, along came defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, fresh from a stint with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens.

The 3-3-5 was junked for the 4-3 “under” and the rest is history.

When the 2012 season gets underway this fall, seven of Rodriguez's recruits should be in the starting lineup. Will Campbell and Quinton Washington will start at tackle, Brennen Beyer will start at end, Jake Ryan and Desmond Morgan will play linebacker and J.T. Floyd and Thomas Gordon will be in the secondary.

While it's still unlikely that Rodriguez would have survived, what if he was able do find the right defensive coordinator?

The Michigan Program Is United Again

When Lloyd Carr decided to retire, the Michigan football program unraveled in a hurry.

In a book written by John U. Bacon titled Three and Out, reviewer Jeff Arnold claimed difficulties with the coaching search didn't help Rodriguez' welcome.

“Les Miles was prepared to (accept the job) and all Michigan had to do was wait a few weeks,” Arnold wrote for the PostGame.com. “But in a bungled coaching search that included unexplained and inconsistent behavior by former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, a 'very un-Michigan like' hiring process finally set Rich Rodriguez up to fail.”

Bacon wrote that Carr was never a fan of Miles. Carr's “strong objections to Miles are documented early in the book,” Arnold said. ”Then he (Carr) holds a team meeting after Rodriguez is introduced as the Wolverines' new coach, informing players he will sign their transfer papers if they want to leave.”

Rodriguez's infatuation with the spread option totally changed Michigan's offensive recruiting philosophy. Instead of concentrating on Michigan and Ohio, Rodriguez moved some of the focus South to grab smaller, quicker players. His failure to find a compatible defensive coordinator was the last straw.

When Hoke came aboard, he was required to repair the rift in the Michigan family. Being a former Michigan assistant and able to work with new athletic director Dave Brandon made the transition possible. It certainly didn't hurt that Brandon played at Michigan and understood what made the football program tick.

By the time Brandon introduced Hoke as the new coach, Michigan football was on its way back.

"Coach Hoke was instrumental to our success in 1997," Jon Jansen, a former Michigan and NFL offensive lineman, told MGoBlue.com. "He loves Michigan and understands what it means to be a Michigan man. Our program and student-athletes will be in very good hands."