GoBucks

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 8:16 p.m.

Denard Robinson is a one man freak show who is worthless as a "leader" of the UM team, but he sure can run up meaningless stats while losing to the better Big-10 teams.

Dusty

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 7:31 p.m.

Ok, The OSU, we'll prorate the numbers for the Illinois game... Denard had 367 yards of total offense and 3 passing TDs in 3 quarters. What exactly is your argument?

mark boillat

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 6:14 p.m.

Denard great job!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait for the next 2 years GO BLUE!!!!!!!

The OSU

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 4:01 p.m.

J Dean: You say DR had big numbers against Illinois. Please prorate those numbers. He played one-and-a-half games! That game was a farce.

trigg7

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 3:19 p.m.

Dusty, So the O comes back great, not fast enough,too small,i.e. INJURIES and your counting on what? Another 5 star back like Grady? Stick to your shoot outs with ILL and IND.This is the BIG TEN. Then you have the D. What a mess! With nothing good in sight. Not bitter,just baffled how you cant see the future.Im sure Nebraska will take it easy on you next year!

15crown00

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 1:33 p.m.

Offensive Player of the Year for stats compiled largely against less than stellar opposition.And he's not very durable either against the BETTER teams. More telling i think is no players on the 1st team defense.IMagine ThAt.

J. Dean

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 1:20 p.m.

Big congratulations to Denard. High yardage put up against tough defenses like Iowa and Illinois deserves to be noticed. Yes, we didn't win against Iowa, but we put 28 points up on a team that permitted an average of 10, and tripled the average yds put up against them. Nobody argues that the defense needs improvment, but Michigan's offense did what other offenses did not, and that's worth noting.

Dusty

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 11:34 a.m.

Wow trigg, how bitter can you get?

Dusty

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 11:33 a.m.

Macabre, the QB in Rich Rod's offense would only run 10-12 times a game ideally. That's about how often Pat White ran the last 3 years Rich Rod was at WVU. The difference this year has been that Michigan doesn't have any consistency (or any serious threat) at RB. Michigan has commits from rivals.com's #1 AND #3 all-purpose runningbacks for next season, Demetrius Hart and Justice Hayes. Hart is graduating HS early and has been enrolled for the spring semester, meaning he'll have a full spring practice under his belt come football season. I for one am extremely excited for next season. Denard as a Junior, almost the entire offense back, and all the injuries on defense gone (and maybe a DC who doesn't play with stuffed animals on the sidelines?) YES PLEASE!

Macabre Sunset

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 10:55 a.m.

I don't see why Robinson couldn't play an important role with a new coach. He might even be improved, as his throwing accuracy has declined after being battered from running the ball 20 times per game. A good coach would use the threat of a run as a more valuable tool than the actual run. Robinson could be far more effective running 8-10 times per game. All the transfer talk, by the way, illustrates Harbaugh's point that the University isn't doing enough to educate athletes. College football should be more than a vehicle leading to an NFL career. It had better be, as more than 90% of FBS scholarship players don't even earn a cup of coffee in the NFL. One of Michigan's edges should be the access to a world-class educational program. I know athletes used to talk about that as being a difference-maker. Maybe a guy like Harbaugh could restore that factor.

XTR

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 10:48 a.m.

These things are popularity contests. They are voted by people with different tastes, background and affiliations. That's the way it is.

trigg7

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 10:40 a.m.

What good are numbers if you cant win the game, or even come close. Great he ran wild against sub par teams. Well, if this is your big deal congrats. Ill take coach of the year and co BT champs,It is a team sport,right?

Lorain Steelmen

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 10:04 a.m.

Some great comments here, back and forth. I agree with Jim Nazium, that the michigan players named were all class kids! The things I appreciate most about DRob are his humility, his perspective, and his desire to play within the team context. He always deflects the praise directed at him. Class kid!...as are many of these young Wolverines! Michigan fans, take note that RR has recruited some fabulous kids, and, with experience, this team, WILL make us all proud. And by the way, in a year or so, RichRod will be the Big Ten coach of the year! Go Blue, have fun in the bowl, and make us proud! d li uck and make us proud inthe bowl game.

Fan

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 8:56 a.m.

Something smells: How do you single out quaterbacks and leave out Terell Pryor who clearly deserves to be at the top of the list along with Denard? I guess Terell's superior performance is "expected"??

MikeB

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 6:44 a.m.

It's unfortunate that these comments often fall pray to the same divisiveness we have on a daily basis in politics. Both AnnArbor.com writers used statistics which can of course be manipulated any way you like; except you can't change the numbers. Denard Robinson had a great season personally and has been recognized - good for him. I think he is one of the most dynamic players in college football and deserves this recognition. All Big 10 schools play cupcakes they do it to fill stadiums and get eight home games to make a lot of money. Taking away this reward from either Denard or Coach Dantonio is impossible and they both deserve it. Few of you took the time to offer alternatives to the selections? Bottom line - sometime great players play for not so great schools, they are still great players.

XTR

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 4:32 a.m.

Are the BT coaches and media kidding me? Rich Rod got jobed! We wuz robbed! Rich Rod should have been coach of the year hands down and not some old time coach with an old time style! I don't care if we don't win! What is important is that we are exciting to watch, score a lot of points and our quarterback is more of a runningback than a quarterback! That is innovation that is masterminded by Rich Rod! RR should be coach of the year! The Big Ten coaches and media robbed him of due recognition! LOL!

Aaron

Tue, Nov 30, 2010 : 12:24 a.m.

Rich, thanks for the stats! It's funny how some of these knuckle -heads with this grandios attitude of football knowledge can just let these senseless words dribble out of their suck without any numbers to back them up. Clearly smitten with myopia. Oh, sorry sparty, that means nearsightedness. D-Rob is deserving of this award. It's a personal award, not a team award. Sorry Rich, that it seems the onus is placed upon you to set these people straight.

treetowncartel

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 11:47 p.m.

I think "shoelace" shows up in New York for the Heisman ceremony too, but he won't win it. It is coming down to Luck or Newton right now. If only he could have kept his turnover ratio lower, then we might be talking BCS and Heisman in addition to this great achievment. Something to work on next year, with the thought that those who stay will be champions.Congratulaion Denard, and congrats to the offensivve lines and the wide receivers who were blocking downfield. The offense did show moments of brilliance this year.

misti3k

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 11:40 p.m.

@Rich, you're last bit there hits it on the head. Who else deserved it? None of the co-champs had one outstanding player who carried them week after week, which I think is a required category for this award. Those teams were all true teams with no one player standing out on a regular basis. For MSU it was Baker, Bell, and Cousins. For OSU it was Pryor and Herron. For Wisconsin it was Tolzien, Clay, White, and Ball. I think Persa is the only guy who comes close, but he didn't set any records, so the edge goes to Robinson. The shame of it is, if Rodriguez is canned, Robinson might not get the chance to play quarterback for Michigan again. He'll only be a junior next year and has a great chance to be even better, especially with only Schilling and Huyge as the only departing regulars on offense. In any case it's in the books and nobody can take it away from him. Go Blue, go Denard! I also think Mike Martin should have gotten first team over Clayborne. Every time I watched an Iowa game Clayborne missed a number of plays because he was sitting on the sideline sucking air. Martin only missed time when he was too hurt to play, and when he was in there he was a wrecking ball. Then again, Clayborne's a DE and Martin's a DT, so maybe that argument is moot. I'm glad to see mostly positive comments here. Regardless of your feelings about Rodriguez, Robinson is a special kid who worked his tail off and gave everything he had. He deserved this award.

ThoseWhoStayUofM

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 11:35 p.m.

Who, other than Robinson, should have won Offensive Player of the Year? The only other person I would even consider is Dan Persa. If the logic of other members of this forum is applied on him, he would be ineligible as well due to Northwestern's 7-5 record. That's the point right? Just because a player happens to play for a team that is struggling, it shouldn't take away from their individual achievements. If anything, Denard should be looked at with higher regard for gaining all those yards and touchdowns without a defense putting him in good field position and letting games get out of hand early. When a team is losing, offenses often become one dimensional and shut down quicker. The fact that Denard did so well despite the defense and special teams should be taken as a positive, not a negative.

ThoseWhoStayUofM

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 11:24 p.m.

Rich Rezler... You da man! I hate how the interviewer asks Robinson why his numbers dropped off against the really good opponents and of course he doesn't get defensive but the fact is, they really didn't. Yes he didn't have 500+ yards of total offense against OSU, MSU, Wiscy, or Iowa but that doesn't mean he became an average joe. When great athletes play great defenses their efficiency obviously will go down. I like to make the analogy that Denard went from a jet plane to a nascar. He's still extremely good regardless of who he is player. The scary thing is, he will only get better with experience.

ShadowManager

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 10:14 p.m.

I'm a proud Spartan and very happy that both of this state's two most inspiring college football sports figures : Denard Robinson and Coach Dantonio... both won these well-deserved awards Congrats to Coach Dantonio and Congrats to Denard Robinson! To those that want to take away from Dantonio's accomplishment, I only say I pity you, and pity perhaps that MSU didn't get a chance to play OSU...but then again, UM didn't play OSU either, given the lopsided result. Ah, but if MSU isn't that good, and them beating a bad UM team 3 years running, and winning the Big Ten, and losing just one game...well, I guess UM beating them wasn't all that much of an accomplishment all those longgone seasons gone by, now was it? To belittle them, is to belittle similar accomplishments when UM had them. I can't stand this double-standard in this fanbase. Look to your own house...and it is in shambles. To those that want to belittle Denard's accomplishment, I say, you are not a true fan of the game, and nor of human accomplishment, if you weren't at all moved by this young man's efforts and struggle. UM owes their bowl-berth to this young man this season. Kudo to Denard. Again, congrats to Denard! congrats to Coach D!

Matt

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 10:10 p.m.

Do Better - Are you kidding me? Take a look at Wisonsin's non conference schedule and compare to State's. The only difference would be Wisconsin played Arizona State and MSU played Notre Dame. Ohio State's big non conference game was Miami which has practically the same record as Notre Dame in a weak conference. 80% of BCS conference schools don't play anoyone but 1AA and cupcake schools in non conference, so again explain to me how MSU's it the weakest you have ever seen. It's definitly not a difficult schedule my any means but it's no different than most of college football. UM has a similar schedule with the exception of UCONN which is 7-4 in an extremely down Big East.

Jim Nazium

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 9:52 p.m.

Great Job Denard, Roy, Mike, Jonas and David. You all played with a lot of heart and remember there are a TON of Real Michigan Fans out here rooting for you. The Haters and "State"ers are just scared of what you'll do to them your junior and senior years. You guys are Class acts, lead by example and you'll be fine. Good luck in the Bowl and make us Proud.

aarox

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 9:38 p.m.

@ Rich Your stats are spot on but imho are not the most important. I'm a fan of the "points when it counts" metric. Can you look up first half points against Iowa, MSU, OSU, and Wisky under QB Robinson. Not runner or passer Robinson, but offensive leader Robinson. Of course there is a stat for everyone's view but I just can't see how our offensive performance in key games justifies a 2nd team ranking much less player of the year.

Macabre Sunset

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:53 p.m.

Interesting that both the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year came from teams with losing records in the conference. The media seems to share the Rodriguez affliction of valuing gaudy numbers over winning football. Of course, Kerrigan's a great player and deserves first-team all-America. I just find it interesting they couldn't find a deserving player from the three teams that actually won games this year.

Chad Williams

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:41 p.m.

If we fired RR then we will be losing him... D rob was shafted based his teams overall performance for national awards but next year after his bowl come out party heisman front runner for next year hands down.

michboy40

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:41 p.m.

Congrats to all of the Wolverines. We are proud of you and we are looking for better days just around the corner. Props to our DRod, you deserve it! Props to Pete B...the only writer at AA.com with enough credibility to comment on his own stories! Love your stuff!

Do Better

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:38 p.m.

Once again I am not fan of Michigan but how can any MSU fan be proud of their season. They have the worst non-conference schedule I have ever seen. The AD should be disgraced for putting it together and AA.com should be disgraced for not bring that issue up.

psaume23

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:32 p.m.

Congratulations, Denard! You made all alums very proud this year and we wish you the best in the bowl game and beyond.

boffo

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:31 p.m.

I was suprised that Michigans defense wasn't name offensive players of the year.

kti

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:28 p.m.

"I guess all you need to do is play cup cakes and run up the stats to be named BTOPY. Its a shame he cant do jack against the big boys MSU, OSU,WISKY. Then again you are the cup cake for us. Pride before the fall...right mike!" Yeah, DRob didn't do "jack" against the big boys, only 100 yds. rushing in 1/2 half against Ohio St.---how did MSU do against O-State by the way- 301 total yards against MSU and 360 against Wisc. Yeah, that's not doing "jack". It's been years since I've lived at home but when people ask me why I chose UM over State for football loyalty...it's not hard to remember why. (Actually, not many people ask, I think most folks thorughout the country figure its self evident.) But, hey, only 104 years of football and ALREADY 2 10 WIN seasons! 2 conference CO-championships in only 21 seasons! Already 7 BOWL victories, against only 13 LOSSES! (My alma mater, which wouldn't be ridiculous to think it compares with UM as a football power, has won 9 bowl games in 11 years but, hey, we've never won the LAND GRANT TROPHY!) in MY 37 years of following the rivalry, the Big Bad Spartans have racked up a superimpressive 9 WINS against UM! Wow, what a pedigree! Boy, I bet whatever SEC team is going to steamroll the Spartans is just shaking in their boots right now. Pride before the fall, gimme a break. (On the other hand, at least they know UM needed to "fall" before they would do better than their awe-inspiring 1 upset every 5 years, it would never have happened otherwise. They know that) I guess @ 40 years of a** whippings and mediocrity means you can't even give a guy who rewrote the NCAA record a little credit. At the same time, of course, you talk about "arrogance". I think we all agree Sparty can beat the W. Virginia wolverines 3 in a row. I just long for the days-I mean decades- when they (unsuccessfully) tried to beat MICHIGAN WOLVERINES twice in a row.

Ted Bundy

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8:03 p.m.

trigg, have more than one good season before you start anointing yourself a "big boy"... Remember you havent played OSU since 2008. If you were a "big boy", you'd play them every year like UM...

trigg7

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 8 p.m.

I guess all you need to do is play cup cakes and run up the stats to be named BTOPY. Its a shame he cant do jack against the big boys MSU, OSU,WISKY. Then again you are the cup cake for us. Pride before the fall...right mike!

BlueGator

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 7:40 p.m.

Well done, Denard. You're a credit to UM.

Rodie

Mon, Nov 29, 2010 : 7:34 p.m.

Martin got jipped!!!