Michigan Football: Report Card Grades for Minnesota Game

Tailback Vincent Smith rushed for one touchdown, passed for one, and caught another as Michigan outmanned the Minnesota Gophers, 58-0, on a cold, blustery day at the Big House.   

Quarterback Denard Robinson chipped in with two touchdown passes and another rushing, as the Wolverines used a variety of trickery to crush the Gophers.

On a handful of plays Robinson remained in the game as a slotback, while Devin Gardner made a rare appearance at quarterback.

Robinson had a solid day passing, completing 15 of 19 for 169 yards. Fitzgerald Toussaint had another fine rushing afternoon, gaining 108 yards on 11 carries.

Following are the letter grades for Michigan's dominating performance:  

Offense

Left tackle Taylor Lewan had perhaps his best day in a Michigan uniform. Time and again, the Wolverines ran left as Lewan was cleaning house.  

In all, seven Wolverines carried the ball, with freshman Thomas Rawls gaining 73 yards, Michael Shaw 60 and Denard Robinson 51. Surprisingly, Robinson carried the ball only six times.

Most likely, we'll see more of the formation with Robinson and Gardner in the game at the same time.

"We definitely want to see if we can protect Denard as much as we can," Coach Brady Hoke said in his press conference after the game. "I thought the line did a very nice job; I thought Al (Borges) called a very good game in what we were trying to get done."  

Grade: A-

Defense

The Wolverines' defense picked up where they left off a week ago, this time holding Minnesota to 177 total yards and only eight first downs.

Michigan was able to sack freshman quarterback Max Shortell three times, while stopping the Gophers on all 11 of their third-down attempts. 

Cornerback Courtney Avery put the finishing touches on a great defensive performance by scooping up a fumble and taking it 83 yards for a touchdown. 

Grade: A

Special Teams

Michigan's field-goal kicking might actually become a strength this season, Brendan Gibbons displayed a strong leg while connecting from 25, 32 and 38 yards without a miss.

Will Hagerup came back from his four-game suspension but punted only twice. The Wolverines continued to struggle covering kickoffs, with Minnesota credited with two returns over 30 yards. A couple more were brought back by penalty. 

Grade: B

Coaching

Was Minnesota that bad, or Michigan that good.

In any case, Michigan's coaching staff looked like geniuses, The defense came up with a shutout on third down, five tackles for loss, and three sacks.

The offense used a new formation with both quarterbacks in the game at the same time. "We've had that since fall camp" Hoke said. "It's things you work on and you work on it for a couple days and then you put it away so when it comes back out the kids know."

Also, give the coaches credit for playing several substitutes. Actually, it was one of those days where no one could do wrong.

Grade: A 

Overall

On a day when you knock off an opponent 58-0, and outgain them 580-177, it's hard to find much fault.

Especially when your defense was one of the worst in the country and your coach couldn't leave town fast enough.

One of the lone complaints this season has been the throwing arm of quarterback Denard Robinson. But he played much better this week, connecting on 15 of 19 passes for 169 yards.

After winning the first five games at home, Michigan goes on the road for the first time next week. The Wolverines face Northwestern and outstanding quarterback Dan Persa. 

Grade: A-