Team 136 - Game 6 - Michigan vs Northwestern

Coach's First Homecoming

Like a pre-teen settling in on Day 3 of a Disney Cruise, Coach Harbaugh and company are figuring this thing out … players and coaches are more familiar with each other, game-day strengths and weaknesses are more apparent and everyone appears more comfortable with the surroundings … that’s right, folks: zippity-doo-dah, zippity-a …  my oh my we are on our way!

Michigan comes out of College Park, MD with a 28-0 victory and a 4-1 record as it returns home to face Northwestern Saturday at the Big House – Coach Harbaugh’s first Homecoming game.  Big Blue relied on its D to pitch back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 2000, and Coach Jimmy is starting to like the feel of his Block M cap.  Coach, who continues to limit pre-game on-field activity and other related game-day distractions, even hosted Brother John for a sidelines visit and what appeared to be some casual hang time – yup, lots of Har-bro references this week … yada yada yada … sorry, just felt the need to add one more.

Game Day was a success, with Michigan winning its conference opener and looking ahead to the tough part of the schedule – next up is Northwestern and Homecoming.  Michigan has won four consecutive Homecoming games and looks to continue the streak at the Big House against Pat Fitzgerald’s Wildcats on Saturday.  But hang on, let’s recap the Maryland win and get a little jiggy with it before preparing for those pesky purple cats from the land of Buffalo Joe’s.

Michigan vs. Maryland Recap

The festivities were underway early on Saturday due to Hurricane Joaquin, whose bark fortunately was far worse than its bite (so says the guy who fled the Midwest for the soft surroundings of Brentwood), and the Big Blue was focused on getting Coach Jimbo his first Big 10.  The offense puttered along, generating enough big plays to at least show a quality gap on the scoreboard … and the defense was more fierce than a competent freshman’s commitment to live on Central Campus, stymying every part of the Maryland attack and taking Big Blue to 4-1 on the season.

The Michigan Offense

The Michigan offensive attack was mild, at best, Saturday afternoon.  Two big plays boosted the group – Drake Johnson’s 31-yard screen-pass TD and Jehu Chesson’s 66-yard jet sweep that immediately followed – but otherwise the performance was flat and about as interesting as a long-winded novel about the history of maritime biology. 

QB Jake Rudock went 16-32 for 180 yards and a TD and a pick … more underwhelming than anything M Night Shyamalan has done since the Sixth Sense.  Chesson had four catches plus the sweep TD but otherwise was quiet, Amara Darboh had only 3 grabs for 27 yards, and I Like Jake Butt had 4 catches for just 61 yards.  The pass game was barely noticeable, save for the one or two big plays that contributed to the ultimate blowout, and that’s not going to cut it as we approach late fall.  And speaking of Jake Butt, he had that ridiculous one-handed TD catch in OT against Northwestern two years ago and he remembers how good it tasted … he’s ready for another big game and we’re looking for numbers out of our favorite Big Blue Butt this weekend.

As for the ground game, last week’s stand-out DeVeon Smith didn’t make the trip to Maryland due to the foot he injury he suffered against BYU, but that running-back-by-committee approach sufficed, with Drake Johnson leading the effort with 72 yards on 14 carries and a TD while also adding a 31-yard TD reception.  True, the next closest running back had less than 30 yards … and that’s weak … especially against a Defense that could have come out of 1960’s Haight Ashbury as its mascot’s name suggests … fuck, Phil and his chicken legs could have blown holes through this defensive front.  I mean, Michigan managed only 43 rushing yards in the first half, 20 of which came on a fourth-down Rudock scamper, and the ground attack only improved those numbers when passing no longer became necessary late in the game.

Big Blue had two fumbles in the first quarter (Rudock and also Ty Isaac the guilty parties), and that can’t happen when the offense isn’t pulling its weight in the first place.  A total of 3 turnovers on the day is an ugly number and something that Coach Jimmy really has to work on to ensure his team is positioned for success as the campaign continues.  The Michigan O was able to escape the East Coast with another lackluster performance … we like a strong D in Ann Arbor, but we need something better than Michael Keaton’s Dream Team to line up on offense or this forward progress will end quickly with bigger and better teams on the horizon. 

The Michigan Defense

DJ Durkin’s Defense continues to dominate, having its way with opponents like a group of stoned seniors attacking Mr. Spot’s after a productive dollar-pitcher night at Rick’s. 

Big Blue limited Maryland to 105 total yards on the day, picked off Terps QBs 3 times and allowed 0 points for the second straight week.  Maryland earned seven first downs all day and went 1-18 on third-down attempts … hot damn! 

UM has allowed a total of 14 points in the last four games, and the Big Blue D is among the highest-performing defensive units in the country, ranking second nationally in total defense.

 Fifth-year senior linebacker Desmond Morgan led the squad with nine tackles and a pick, and Joe Bolden and Mario Ojemudia each added 6 and 5 tackles respectively – although the Ojemudia injury is worrisome … sounds like Coach Durkin is going to have to fill a gap, and quickly, and apply some of that special-sauce gel that makes it all fit together nicely and perform like a Wolverine machine.  The D-Line was in the zone and the result was total domination; we need that to continue as opponents get stronger and we enter late fall.  

And CB Jabrill finally broke loose for a semi-long punt return, going 31 yards and showing his highlight-reel potential … one of these days, he’s going to find a hole and go all the way and that little tune will piddle out of your mouth … da na na, da na na.

Michigan vs. Northwestern Preview

Warm-ups are over … it’s time to focus.  Pat Fitzgerald and his Northwestern Wildcats come to town this weekend, with Michigan State the week after – Coach Jimmy and his boys need to be ready.  And let’s not get ahead of ourselves … these aren’t your grandmother’s Northwestern Wildcats. 

Most of us remember Northwestern as the doormat of college football back in the 80’s and early 90’s … high graduation rates, low level of talent on the football field … and not a lot of care for football.  But the school grew up towards the end of the last century and figured out that football could be a strong value-add to the platform instead of a distraction, which is how it had been viewed in parts of ivory-tower academia.  And then the purple cats went on a roll, winning three Big Ten championships or co-championships since 1995 and having been “bowl eligible” six out of the last seven seasons.  Coaching, infrastructure, recruiting and commitment all are relatively new concepts for Northwestern football, but they’re smart in Evanston and they’re figuring shit out pretty well.

 Yes, I remember the day when Northwestern was an automatic W on the calendar … regardless of what was happening in Ann Arbor, Dyche Stadium in Evanston was less intimidating than that one-credit Dinosaurs and Other Failures course we took to satisfy our Natural Sciences obligation.  Then Pat Fitzgerald arrived … first in uniform and then on the sidelines, a decade-long wonder-story that has seen the program develop and improve by leaps and bounds … yes, it’s had its fair share of politics and drama, but isn’t that par for the course in the business of college athletics at the Big Ten level?  The death of Randy Walker in 2006 really brought this place together, and AD Jim Phillips’ focus and strategic thinking is taking Wildcats Athletics to a new level ... now, whether that’s to Tier 1 Big Ten level, who is someone from Ann Arbor to judge, right?  That being said … no, it’s not.  But it does deserve respect, and more than a smidge … it also comes to town with the higher national ranking and an undefeated record.

 But take it easy, Director Phillips -- you’re gaining momentum, fine, but you’re not competing on America’s Got Talent.  Apparently, Northwestern administration misses the days of glee club and ballroom dance as popular extracurricular activities and is encouraging football players to “create atmosphere” in the program … on the sidelines, in the locker room, on Saturday-night library dates, fuck if I know.  I mean, I thought this was college football and the goal was winning, and doing so as a team if you played for that guy named Bo.  Putting players up to dancing stunts to permeate social media seems like an idea hatched by a Washington think tank that’s trying to figure out how the real world works – I know, it’s ridiculous to the point of comedy … yes, the kid does show flashes of Elaine Benes brilliance, but puhlease. 

Anyhoo, the Wildcats bring a 5-0 record to the Big House, and while that resume includes patsy walkovers against Eastern Illinois and Ball State, it also includes wins against Duke and Minnesota, plus the impressive opening-week 16-6 home win over then-#21 Stanford.  This team has a steady offense and a solid defense; Coach Harbaugh needs his A game to get this W.

 Northwestern redshirt freshman QB Clayton Thorson went 14-19 for 128 yards against Minnesota last weekend and scored two touchdowns in the win.  And for a young and immature kid from Wheaton, IL, Thorson has had a strong start to the season – he’s 64-113 for 711 yards with 4 TDs and 3 picks.  Granted, he’s no Brett Basanez (oy) but Big Blue’s D needs eyes on #18 in Purple.  Justin Jackson contributed 120 yards on the ground in the Wildcats’ 27-0 win last weekend, and he has 636 rushing yards on 136 carries this season -- #21 also needs close scrutiny by the Wolverine defense.

The Northwestern defense has been strong, solid and difficult to for opposing offenses to figure out.  Perhaps it's the increased entering-freshman median SAT score, but the NU coaching staff has put a system in place that’s worked.  The unit has allowed only three TDs in five games and it limited Minnesota to 173 yards of total offense, shutting down all of the Gophers’ fourth-down-conversion attempts.  Yup, the NU D is for real and needs to be taken seriously.  And this one should be a defensive battle, with points few and far between, and full of intensity and positive energy. Purple brings heat to the Big House, but not enough to take down the Maize and Blue fire, as Coach Jimmy is ready for his first big conference test of the season. 

Michigan has won 8 of the last 10 against Northwestern, falling to the Wildcats only once in the last ten years (21-14 at the Big House back in 2008).  Last year’s 10-9 Michigan road win came with high drama … De’Veon Smith led Big Blue with 121 yards and a TD and Michigan came out with a win only because Northwestern’s Trevor Siemian slipped attempting a two-point conversion with seconds left in regulation … the Wildcats went for the win rather than the tie – an unconventional approach at home that backfired.

 These two teams both enter the Big House Saturday afternoon with hopes of continued progress … a potential statement game in the making on both sides.  The experts think Michigan comes out on top by a touchdown, a seemingly aggressive number given the recent history of this match-up, perhaps reflective of Coach’s first Homecoming and an excepted emotional boost in favor of the home team. 

Michigan leads the overall series 56-15, but it faces a Northwestern team that’s strong and deserving of its increased national visibility.  But it’s not that strong … it’s gonna take a lot to take down Coach Jimmy at home in a game of this magnitude … and Purple doesn’t bring enough to get the job done.

 The early prediction is now in.  Michigan 21 – Northwestern 10

Go Blue!