Michigan's linebacking corps has found itself the center of criticism this season, but after a slow start, the unit seems to be finding its way, with Kenny Demens, Jake Ryan and Desmond Morgan all contributing significantly in Saturday's win.
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bgcolor="#000080"> TheWolverine.com Hot 11
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face="verdana">Denard Robinson,
QB
style="font-family: verdana;">Robinson bounced back from his sub-par outing against Notre Dame in a BIG way, rushing for 235 yards and accounting for 340 yards of total offense in Michigan's win. The seniorstyle="font-size:14.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt; font-family:Palatino;mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝";mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:EN-US; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"> produced the fifth 200-yard rushing game of his career, moving him into a tie with Mike Hart (2004-07) for first place, his ninth effort of 150 yards or more (second all time) and his 17th game of at least 100 yards (fifth).
style="font-family: verdana;">The redshirt sophomore spearheaded a stout defensive performance against the Boilermakers, sharing the team lead for tackles with six. Among his production, Ryan notched a sack and two tackles for loss and now leads the team with four stops behind the line of scrimmage this season. face="verdana">
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face="verdana">Raymon Taylorface="verdana">,
CB
face="verdana">Coach Brady Hoke noted after the game that Taylor plays an aggressive brand of football, and that's an advantage for a young player still learning the nuances of his position. The sophomore cornerback's attacking style certainly paid off Saturday as he returned an INT 63 yards for a score while also playing tight coverage.
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face="verdana">Kenny Demens,
LB
style="font-family: verdana;">style="font-family: verdana;">Reports of Demens' demise seem silly now after the fifth-year senior has put together back-to-back solid efforts. Of course, it did appear the threat of losing his job to a true freshman may have been just the motivation Demens needed. On Saturday, he had six stops and was in the right position on his drops, helping to bottle up the Purdue running and passing games.
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style="font-family: verdana;">Jeremy Gallon,
WR
style="font-family: verdana;">The redshirt junior remains a central focal point of the Michigan offense, finishing with six touches on the afternoon, including three runs for 13 yards and three receptions for a team-high 37 yards. Gallon showed his wiggle and explosiveness when he took a screen pass 28 yards, setting up U-M's fourth touchdown of the day.
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face="verdana">J.T. Floyd,
CB
face="verdana">This was the kind of game expected out of a fifth-year senior in his third full season a starter. Floyd was all over his man Saturday, jumping routes to break up two passes, while keeping any Purdue gains at a minimum. He finished with five stops and was a big reason why the Boilermakers threw for only 157 yards, 105 less than their four-game average.
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face="verdana">Brendan Gibbons,
PK
face="verdana">Gibbons missed his first attempt, from 44 yards and into the wind, but he drilled his next three, good from 29, 42 and 27 yards, and continues to inspire confidence in Michigan's kicking game. The redshirt junior has now made 6 of 8 attempts this season and is 19 for 25 in his two years U-M's starter. face="verdana">
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face="verdana">Desmond Morgan,
LB
face="verdana">All three Michigan linebackers played well against the Gold and Black, with all three finishing with six tackles in the victory. Morgan also picked up two stops behind the line of scrimmage, and now shares the team lead in that category with four. He has also responded well to the talk of a potential benching in favor of a true freshman.
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face="verdana">Devin Gardner,
WR
face="verdana">It wasn't a big day for Gardner, who finished with two grabs for 31 yards, and he had a drop that he needs to catch, but both of his receptions went for first downs and he turned his 23-yard haul into a touchdown when he fought to cross the goal line with a defender draped on his back. With four touchdowns among 13 receptions, Gardner has scored on 30 percent of his touches this year.
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face="verdana">Craig Roh,
DE
face="verdana">The Boilermakers finished with 56 yards on 23 carries, averaging only 2.2 yards per rush, and the credit for that goes to U-M's front seven, beginning with its defensive line. The unit is playing better and Roh is the poster child for that improvement, finding his way at strongside defensive end. He also created pressure on the QB Saturday, tallying a sack among his five stops.
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face="verdana">Thomas Rawls,
RB
style="font-family: verdana;">The sophomore got a chance late, and rushed for 33 yards and a touchdown on just four carries (8.3 yards per rush), generating considerable post-game buzz that he should take the starting job away from Fitz Toussaint. Rawls benefited from working against Purdue's second-stringers, but he did move forward on every carry, going for five, two and 19 yards before the seven-yard TD.
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