Team 136 - Game 4 - Michigan vs BYU
/Rebel Yell...Mormons on the Horizon
The Michigan Wolverines continued their winning ways Saturday afternoon with a 28-7 victory over the UNLV Rebels, and Jim Harbaugh’s boys are 2-1 heading into this weekend’s Big House match-up with #22 BYU. Hey, folks – we’re in positive territory!
Yup, shout out to Kermit’s return to Prime Time this week. That’s right, Big Blue is above .500 and folks in Ann Arbor are getting more comfortable in their khakis. Let’s unpack the UNLV win and then look ahead to a very good BYU team.
Michigan vs. UNLV Recap
The Michigan offense looked average, while the defense was the dominating force we’ve expected to see each and every outing. I give the overall effort a B, which still outperformed Andy Samberg’s opening bit at the Emmy’s by at least a couple of letters.
Sorry, but Samberg has outgrown his boyish SNL charm and lacks the core competencies of Jimmy Fallon or Billy Crystal when it comes to stage presence. The homage was poignant, and even entertaining at times, but I feel like I’m looking at Alfalfa … or Donald Trump … I mean, I just can’t take him seriously. And by the way, he can’t sing … uh, it just doesn’t work, Jack. Can someone go grab Neil Patrick Harris from that ridiculous concept Best Time Ever and get his ass back in the seat for next year’s show? Yes, Viola Davis’ speech was powerful and there were some memorable highlights, but overall another lackluster production with some HBO show no one has heard of called Olive Kitteridge taking home the bulk of the glory (but I support anything with Bill Murray, so I’m on board).
Sorry, I digress, but TV season is upon us again, and that means lots of shows that we don’t have time to watch because kids are getting older and that means bed times are getting later and … whaddaya know … we’re behind. I’m particularly excited for the return of The Blacklist my binge-watch summer affair, and let’s just say the entire household anxiously awaits the return of The Big Bang Theory, Modern Family and The Goldbergs (I mean, with the season-premier entitled “Kick Ass Big Risky Business Party,” how can anyone who grew up in the ‘80s not be all in?). And I’m still bummed that Newsroom isn’t coming back. The list goes on, but that isn’t the point … the point is that television continues to offer its expanding audience a wide range of content … the Golden Age of TV lives on. No, I don’t have the time either, but if you cut Real Housewives from your borderline-obese television diet, you’ll find magical things happen to your productivity … and with Amazon’s first Emmy award Sunday night and Netflix’s continued push towards original content, there shouldn’t be a void in content (notice I didn’t say “quality” content) for quite a while. Enjoy the fall season.
Anyway, it was a B and that means lots of room for improvement.
Michigan O
The Big Blue run game impressed again, posting 254 yards on the ground – but two of those came on big first-half runs, so it wasn’t the domination it looked like on paper. Ty Isaac carried the ball 8 times for 114 yards and a score and settled some doubts about the USC transfer … at least for the time being. Isaac broke a big 76-yarder in the second quarter (the longest Michigan run since Denard Robinson’s 79-yard score against Air Force in 2012)
and was complemented by a rotation of De’Veon Smith and Drake Johnson. Nothing stellar … maybe a B- for the rushing performance … big plays are great, but we need consistent domination of the ground game in order for the offense to properly function. This will be Running Back By Committee for the year, so we have to get comfortable there … let’s just hope the O-Line holds up and we get better at finding holes, as there certainly is potential here.
The passing game was average...and that's being nice...like calling Philadelphia's traffic situation midly disrupted during the papal visit. Not it was another borderline shitshow. with QB Jake Rudock went 14-22 for just 123 yards and a long pass of 21 yards, and a pick (true, he didn’t lose the game for us in terms of making the bad mistake, but he certainly was underwhelming in this performance). Rudock’s only passing score came to a swing pass to De’Veon Smith and the offense only scored once after halftime … against a Rebels team that has had more defensive holes than a pair of $300 jeans from Fred Segal. With only 123 passing yards, no other offensive stars emerged. Amara Darboh had 4 catches for 34 yards and when that’s your highlight line against UNLV, you got problems, you deserve a C for the pass game and that just won’t cut it against our remaining slate.
Fortunately for Touchdown Timmy Drevnor, Michigan’s Offensive Coordinator, his unit was up against UNLV, and therefore a meek performance would suffice given the strength of the Michigan defense. Such was the case … an offense that limped through Vegas looking more like Stu from The Hangover than like Clooney and company high-rollin' through Sin City in Oceans 11...an offense in need of improvement.
Michigan D
DJ Durkin’s unit grabbed two interceptions and held UNLV to 235 total yards, with under 100 on the ground; and the Rebels gained only 111 yards in the first three quarters … strong. Harbaugh’s preaching about turnovers is starting to pay dividends, as this was the first time Michigan won the turnover battle since 2013! I mean, it’s not as long as the Billy Goat Curse (anyone else mildly disturbed by Kobayashi and company taking down a 4-lb goat last week as part of some ridiculous stunt to try and reverse the curse … fucking gross)
I still can’t believe, by the way, that the three best teams in all of baseball are going to duke it out for just two playoff spots because they all hail from the same division … that would only happen to the Cubs … baaaahhhhhhhh!
Mario Ojemudia had his best game of the season on the D-Line, with 5 tackles including 1.5 for a loss. The rest of the D-Line looked very solid, dominating the line of scrimmage, holding UNLV to under 3 yards per carry and to breaking through to the backfield on more than one occasion.
The linebacker group also controlled its domain, with Player of the Game James Ross notching 5 tackles (1.5 for a loss) and the unit generally tackling well and staying active behind a dominating defensive front.
And the defensive backs showed up, grabbing two INTs (Channing Stribling’s pick on the first pass of the game and Jeremy Clark ridiculous athletic move in the second half) – for some perspective, this unit had only two picks all last season. This sure isn’t the secondary we saw under RichRod and Brady. Nope, this one is proactive and means business …
… kinda like the University’s current tirade against the UM Greek System … wow, a Presidential mandate to produce 70+% of each chapter’s membership at Hill Auditorium for a verbal beat-down … there’s a new sheriff in town and he’s obviously never been to the Sammy Toga Party. And I get it, the behavior has gotten out of control, and it’s the students’ fault for taking a good thing too far … I’m all for bobbing for apples and living in my in-house for a long weekend, but the line must be drawn, and President Schlissel is wasting no time in articulating his opinion on the topic.
While the offense struggled, this unit continues to improve. The Michigan D is one of four teams in the country to rank in the top 15 nationally in both rushing yards allowed and passing yards allowed. Moreover, the Big Blue defense ranks 10th in the country with 8.7 tackles-for-loss per game (Chris Wormley leading the way with 6, ranked 3rd in the nation and 1st in the Big Ten). The list goes on when it comes to the status of the Michigan D … an A- for performance, and that’s just because there’s always room for improvement.
Big Blue came away with the W in front of a home crowd of 108,683 … and it’s Michigan, so that means more than a handful of crazies.
And while Coach Jimbo got the win, he isn’t satisfied, and for good reason. Michigan should have put up more points on offense … should have been more consistent … and should have shut down the Rebels more intently. But it’s a process … and this is a marathon, not a sprint. I know you’re still not at ease, Uncle Jimmy, and likely you never will be … and we like the intensity. The most important game is the next game … Bo preached it … you live it … and UM is better for it.
Michigan vs. BYU Preview
This weekend is big, and not just because it’s Coach Jimbo’s first shot at a Top 25 win, but because JC will be in his club seats this weekend, cheering the boys on to victory in between important food stops during Org Studies Leadership Committee weekend – with meetings already planned at Pizza House and Zingerman’s, and a game plan to take a run at Frita Batitas per the rec of a trusted resource … I know, something new and unproven is risky, particularly in the great food domain that is A Squared, but it’s a reliable source and I’m excited for some cubano!), the itinerary is shaping up nicely, even though I may return a bit rounder (seriously, I may have to pick up a pair of those polyester khakis a Meijer just to ensure a properly-fitting pan for the return flight back home to the land of fruits and nuts.
Coach Bronco Mendenhall brings his #22-ranked Cougars into the Big House this weekend with a 2-1 mark and a stronger start to the season than many had expected. BYU’s opening-month schedule is tougher than observing Yom Kippur fast while strolling past Zingerman’s around lunchtime, with trips to Nebraska, UCLA and Michigan, and a home game against Boise State. The Cougars used a Hail Mary TD at the buzzer to beat Nebraska, 33-28, and then another fourth-down TD pass to beat Boise State, before leaving the Rose Bowl with its first defeat of the season last Saturday night … a close 24-23 loss to UCLA in a game the Cougars could have won. This BYU team is no joke.
And if the September grind wasn’t enough for Coach Bronco, he had to deal with his Heisman Trophy hopeful QB Taysom Hill going down in the opener with a season-ending foot injury. Notwithstanding that adversity, the boys in white and blue, led by backup frosh QB Tanner Mangum, apparently believe … in themselves … in their team … in some strange religious book that purportedly could change your life … and in the mantra that anything can happen once teams take the field.
But this is Michigan, and this is Coach Harbaugh’s first home stand. And he’s got a beef to grind with the Cougars … the only other time these two teams have met also saw Jim Harbaugh on the Michigan sidelines. In 1984, the Wolverines met the Cougars in the Holiday Bowl –and first-year-starter QB Harbaugh went down early in the season with an injury and watched QB Chris Zurbrugg (who?) take over and lead Big Blue the rest of the way. After beating defending-national-champion Miami in the season opener, injuries got the better of the squad, and the team finished with just 6 wins, the fewest of any season under Bo. After falling to Ohio State in the regular-season finale, Bo and his boys faced #1-ranked BYU in the Holiday Bowl back when conferences had contracts with bowl games – yup, rather than play for the title against Florida or Oklahoma, the Cougars and HC LaVell Edwards got 6-win Michigan in the Holiday Bowl by contract … yep, how ‘bout that under the Chanukah Bush, LaVell?
The Wolverines put up a fight and even led 17-10 in the fourth quarter, but Cougars’ QB Robbie Bosco (following in the footsteps of the great Jim McMahon – yes, of Commissioner-Rozelle-Headband and Super Bowl Shuffle Fame threw a TD pass on BYU’s final offensive play of the game and secured a 24-17 win for the Cougars and a consensus BYU national championship.
Coach Harbaugh doesn’t forget losses, and even though he rode the bench that day in 1984, he remembers what could have been – a huge upset over the #1 team in the land – and he wants revenge.
Michigan is a 4.5-point favorite against BYU and that says something given BYU’s Top 25 ranking and Michigan’s lack thereof. Jimmy knows what he’s up against, and he has his boys ready to go. This is a big game against a strong nationally ranked opponent -- a great opportunity for the program to take a significant step forward. And Big Blue comes away with Coach Jimbo’s first big win of his young Michigan coaching career.
Let’s just hope this season doesn’t also end at the Holiday Bowl.
The early prediction is now in … Michigan 31 – BYU 14
Go Blue!