Denard in Perspective

The true birth of the dual-threat quarterback took place in 1999 when Michael Vick took the college football world by storm with a power arm and absolutely electric running ability.  Since Vick’s epic performance in a title game loss to Florida State, the dual threat quarterback has become the most difficult weapon to stop in college football over the past ten years. 

What Denard Robinson has done through his first two games as a starter is absolutely unheard of.  A rundown on some of the accolades and stats that Robinson has already garnered just two weeks into 2010:

-  Walter Camp Player of the Week in both weeks and the first player to ever win the award in consecutive weeks

- Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week (2x)

- Game-winning touchdown drive on the road against Notre Dame

- Current college-football rushing leader

However, to me, none of these accomplishments compare to the simply remarkable 502 total yards of offense that Denard was responsible for in South Bend this past weekend.  I was very curious to see how Denard’s 502 total yards would stack up against career-bests for some of the most potent dual-threat quarterbacks of the past decade.

My sample set, outside of Denard, includes:

Mike Vick – Former NFL Number 1 Draft Pick

Vince Young – Texas star and top 5 NFL Draft pick

Dennis Dixon – Was on his way to winning a Heisman before injury

Tim Tebow – Heisman Trophy winner

Troy Smith – Heisman Trophy Winner

Terrelle Pryor – Most celebrated dual-threat quarterback recruit in history

Pat White – West Virginia star in Rodriguez’s offense

Each of these guys brings something unique to the table.  Some were more strongly suited as runners and others were passers who had the mobility to still hurt teams with their legs.  Here is a listing, in ranked order, of each player’s top game in terms of total offensive yards:

Tim Tebow – 533 yards vs. Cincinnati

Vince Young – 506 yards vs. Oklahoma State

Denard Robinson – 502 yards vs. Notre Dame

Pat White – 424 yards vs. Pitt

Troy Smith – 408 yards vs. Notre Dame

Dennis Dixon – 382 yards vs. Stanford

Terrelle Pryor – 372 yards vs. Toledo

Mike Vick – 366 yards vs. Boston College

Are you kidding me?  Denard's performance in his second game as a starter shattered career-best performances from some of the best dual threat quarterbacks of the last decade.  The three games produced by Tebow, Young, and Denard stand head and shoulders above the rest.

What is even more impressive about Denard’s record performance is that he had to lead a game winning touchdown drive in the final minutes on the road in a very hostile environment.  Is there actually a word that can possibly describe his performance? Unbelievable simply doesn’t do it justice.

How do you defend a guy that runs better than 90% of the running backs in the country and is an above-average passer?  Notre Dame had the right idea by attempting to load up the line and bring pressure, but at the end of the day if Denard can hang tough and make the throws against one-on-one coverage downfield, there is not a defense in the country that will be able to “stop” him.

Today, Urban Meyer declared Robinson the best player in college football.  I wonder how many times a day Urban is kicking himself wondering what he would have had if he had only offered Robinson as a quarterback.  Give Rodriguez and his staff their due, they were one of the few schools that offered Denard as a quarterback and they’ve worked very hard to turn him into the player he’s been the first two weeks.

I think, even just two weeks into 2010, that we just might have found the new face of Michigan football and the one man who will keep every coach in the Big Ten awake at night trying to figure out what they can do to stop him.  Denard’s stats should come down to earth the next few weeks if Michigan takes care of business and allows him to spend the second half of each game resting.  The next true show will take place in Bloomington and I, for one, can’t wait to see it.