Denard Robinson: Time for Everyone To Jump off the Bandwagon

Denard Robinson was the rave of college football over the first month.  He seemed to be setting records left and right, running through and past the competition.  The Wolverines seemed to be surprising everybody, and it seemed as if coach Rich Rodriguez had found the perfect quarterback for his system. 

Then Michigan State came into Ann Arbor.  Now Iowa made themselves a nice little home. And all of a sudden, Denard looks, well...human.

Denard Robinson came out of high school as a cornerback—not a quarterback.  It was Miami—not Michigan—that was his top choice.  The star, who played for Deerfield Beach High School, right near the University of Miami, dreamt of wearing the orange and green on Saturdays. 

But when Miami refused to recruit Robinson as a quarterback, Robinson decided to look elsewhere.  Robinson is a four-star CB, but there's no rating on him as a QB, because well, he isn't a QB.  But he found Michigan, where Rich Rodriguez was seeking a quarterback in the Pat White mold to run his offense for the Wolverines. A seemingly perfect match was made.  

Maybe we blew Robinson's first five games out of proportion.  While his stats were otherworldly, his competition, was well, pathetic.  Awful.  Horrendous.  Okay, maybe I'm being harsh, but let's take a look at who they faced.  UConn is 3-3 and plays in the Big East—the worst big six conference...by far. 

They needed a last minute drive to beat Notre Dame—a 3-3 team under a new coach and new quarterback.  They hardly beat D-IAA UMass at home and then faced Bowling Green of the Mid-American Conference (and owners of a fantastic 1-5 record).  Indiana may be the best team they beat all year—and even their 5-1 record is littered with wins against cupcakes (they only beat Arkansas State of the Sun Belt conference by two today at home).  

Heisman quarterbacks step up against the best competition.  Well, the past two weeks, Denard has had a chance to showcase to the entire country how good he is against Michigan State and Iowa—two ranked teams in conference play. 

To boot, Denard even got to face them at home, where he'd have the home crowd at his back.  The result?  Michigan was blown out against Michigan State, and the Wolverines are now being lead by Tate Forcier (as Robinson is out with an injury).  

Denard gets hurt way too much and simply doesn't have the passing abilities of a standard QB to entrust an offense in.  Any team that is able to play contain, or simply have a QB spy on Robinson will be able to figure him out.  There's a reason Miami wouldn't recruit him as QB—because his skill set isn't as a QB.  I know it's a long ways away, but Denard won't be able to play QB in the NFL.

Remember Pat White?  The last big-name QB in Rich Rodriguez's system.  The Dolphins thought he'd be the perfect answer to their Wildcat offense.  And now?  Pat White—a year after being drafted in the SECOND round—is fielding fly balls for the Kansas City Royals in their farm system, after being cut in preseason by the Dolphins.  

The best case for Michigan?  A dual QB system with Tate Forcier AND Denard Robinson.  Denard is an incredible athlete, but he won't be able to survive playing this style for the next 2 1/2 seasons, especially in the Big 10.  He just gets hit way too much, and isn't a good enough passer at this point of his career where he would choose to pass rather than run.  Forcier on the other hand is a much better passer, and has a much better pocket presence than Denard.  And since Denard can pass, defenses wouldn't be able to just key in on the run (as is the case in many two-QB option and Wildcat systems).  

Everything I've heard about Denard is that he's a great team player, very well-liked and respected in the locker room, and a guy you want on your team.  And I think Rich Rod is right in his thinking- get Denard on the field no matter what.  But it was Tate Forcier who really stepped up yesterday against a very tough Iowa defense.  I think, at least at this point of Denard's career, you can't have him running around out there taking hit after hit.  Imagine defenses trying to study and learn Tate Forcier AND Denard's style week-after-week.  It would be hell, and for an offensive "genius," I can admit that RichRod can find a way to make it work. 

Maybe in a year or two, when Denard has had more time to mature in Rich Rod's system, and refine his passing skills, he won't have to rely on his speed so much.  Look at Michael Vick- he's most effective when he's passing the ball, NOT running.  When he's able to beat defenses with his arm, they can't key in on him running the ball.  Denard has had a great start at Michigan, but definitely can take it to the next level if he's ever able to develop passing skills.  And this season, and most likely next, Michigan's best chance is to bring Denard along slowly, and mix in Tate Forcier- a very talented QB- at the same time.

Michael Perchick is the writer/editor of TheJockosphere, a sports/Twitter site, reporting the top tweets and news directly from athletes.  Follow him on Twitter @TheREALPerchick, and at http://thejockosphere.com/.