We all remember Devin Gardner struggling through much of his 2013 season, only to play the best game of his life in last year's edition of The Game (of course, Ohio State's reeling 2013 pass defense didn't exactly make life difficult for him).
Fast forward to now and Gardner is struggling again going into the The Game. Will he all of a sudden play out of his mind against Ohio State again?
Maybe, but - statistically, at least - Gardner is playing even worse this year than he did last season. Through 11 games, his average QBR in 2014 is 50.5, compared to 59.6 through 11 games (i.e., not counting the Ohio State game) last season. In 2013, he threw for over 200 yards six times going into The Game, including 503 yards against Indiana. This season, he's topped 200 yards passing only once. His TD/INT ratio going into The Game in 2013 was 17/11; this season, it's a dismal 8/14.
Gardner's 2014 output is probably even worse when you consider that Michigan's OL is protecting him much better this season and that they actually have a decent running game now.
