Devin Gardner to wear No. 98 in honor of Tom Harmon

Michigan geared up for Notre Dame by awarding Devin Gardner the No. 98 jersey, the same number worn by Wolverine legend Tom Harmon.

Devin Gardner has an unusual new jersey number. (USATSI)

With only two (scheduled) meetings remaining in the Michigan-Notre Dame series, the Wolverines will hope to make them special. And that effort was even extended to the pregame festivities Saturday, in which quarterback Devin Gardner was awarded a No. 98 jersey in honor of Michigan legend Tom Harmon. 

Gardner will wear the number 98 for the remainder of his career, starting with Saturday night's showdown with the Irish. 

Harmon was Michigan's first Heisman Trophy winner, winning the award in 1940. His son Mark Harmon has enjoyed a highly successful Hollywood acting career and was on hand for the pregame ceremony honoring "Ole 98" Saturday.

“My father would be only proud,” Harmon told the Detroit Free-Press Saturday. “He’d be embarrassed, but he’d be proud. Embarrassed because he was a humble man and he thought no one did it alone ... For Michigan, it’s an important day in recognizing my dad, both deserved. There wasn’t anything my dad did in his life that didn’t have the word Michigan attached to it.”

"It's difficult to say how honored I am to wear No. 98," Gardner in a press release. "You see Tom Harmon photos and prints all over our building, knowing all of the things he accomplished on the field for this program and then representing our country, and to have the opportunity to speak to his family today, it's kind of surreal. I'm extremely humbled and blessed."