Team 136 - Game 3 - Michigan vs UNLV
/Thankful
The winning ways of Jim Harbaugh finally found Ann Arbor last weekend, and Blue Nation celebrated what it hopes is the start of a new era. As the men in Maize and Blue ran off the field after a 35-7 pounding of the Oregon State Beavers, Michigan faithful breathed a sigh of relief. Let’s be thankful.
Let’s take the opportunity, at the start of this New Year for some, to celebrate what’s ahead – to embrace a healthy start to a new year, whether in the Jewish calendar or at the Big House. And while the game shortly preceded the drop of the Rosh Hashanah New Year’s ball, the sweet victory was a sign of good things to come for Michigan football … Coach Jimmy won his first home opener, and there’s a little pick me-up in the footsteps around Schembechler Hall.
Time to unpack the Beaver snatching, and then look ahead to Game 3, this Saturday’s battle against the UNLV Rebels at Michigan Stadium.
Wolverines / Beavers Recap
Harbaugh and his squad came through the tunnel on Saturday to nearly 110,000 Michigan fans craving that first W of the season. Oregon State took the first drive 79 yards for the early lead, and Blue Nation took a pause. It was as if the big one finally hit LA … no, not an earthquake ... a rain storm … panic strikes SoCal at the first drop! (a perfect interpretation).
I don’t mean to get off on a rant here, but yet again this week we had a minor downpour in LA and the town shuts down … people lose all capacity to handle a vehicle, streets flood, and people question whether activities are cancelled because of the inability to maneuver the town during such massive storms. For fuck’s sake, I grew up in the Midwest where you put on a fucking rain slicker and got on with your business. Not in the land of fruits and nuts … hit the roads after a drizzle and risk your life -- yeah, the drought needs rain, and bad, so we’ll take it (and all that we can get), but be careful out there. Just one of the difficult aspects of life in Southern California … shitty traffic, early-morning football (how ‘bout a collective “Giddy Up!” that the NFL is back … sit back and settle in, and prepare to enjoy your Sundays again … let the entertainment begin) and driving in the rain … but it IS 75 and sunny 320+ days a year, and that’s why none of us leave.
The Beaver offense sliced through the Michigan D like a butter knife through a warm Good Time Charley’s Count Twist and Blue Nation considered hitting the panic button. But Team 136 settled in, found its rhythm, and shut down Gary Anderson’s squad from that point forward. The end result: Blue dominance … and the start of Coach Jimbo’s winning ways at Michigan.
The Offense
The O-Line finally gave the effort it needed and backed it up with some beef … it got enough push to free up De’Veon Smith and provided QB Jake Rudock with the protection he needed to be effective in the pocket. The Michigan O posted 405 total yards – 225 on the ground and 180 in the air … not bad, even though the foe was a bunch of Beavers. Big Blue converted 21 first downs and went 6-13 on 3rd down and 1-1 on 4th down.
QB Jake Rudock went 18 of 26 for 180 yards with only one pick -- without doubt an improvement over Salt Lake City. The power running game finally showed up for the campaign, averaging 4.7 yards per carry on 48 carries, for 225 rushing yards and a crushing of the time-of possession battle, 38 to 21 minutes. Yeah, it’s amazing what happens when you control the line of scrimmage on offense – we found out on Saturday, and it was a thing of beauty.
RB De’Veon Smith ran the ball 23 times for 126 yards and 3 TDs and had two catches for 24 yards. Smith wears #4, just like his coach did, and he gave a Harbaugh-like effort all day, looking stronger with each possession. Give that boy a sticker!
Oh, yeah, did you hear? Coach re-instituted yet another “tradition” – road uniforms are a throwback to 1974, players only wear black cleats now and helmet stickers are back. Michigan wore helmet stickers during the Bo era – from 1969-1982, and again from 1985-1989 … to be exact. Gary Moeller continued to use the stickers through the 1994 season, but they were discontinued in 1995. They’re back this year, to be used as a performance incentive and mechanism for recognizing extraordinary effort for the team. I don’t know, I’m all for the harkening back to old traditions, as this program was at its best with a strong leader on top that stuck to traditions … but when I think helmet sticker, I can’t get the annoying ESPN commercial out of my mind (which apparently isn’t on the Internet … is that even possible?) … Buckeye! Oy, that’s a disturbing thought … this may not last. I digress.
Out wide, Amara Darboh caught 4 balls for 50 yards and I Like Jake Butt also caught 4 passes for 25 yards, far less exhilarating than his Utah performance, but clearly a factor in the offensive schematic, as Saturday afternoon at the Big House saw more Beavers on Butt than at last year’s Girls Gone Wild holiday party.
Michigan moved the ball consistently, navigating between the run and pass game, and tore apart the Beaver defense like a pack of hungover freshmen attacking an Angelo’s feast.
If the offense shows up like this each week, Team 136 will surpass expectations and over achieve … two specific areas of expertise listed on Coach Harbaugh’s resume.
The Defense
Yes, the defense started slow, and Casa Carson was in absolute disbelief at the unit’s bedwetting debacle that was the first Beaver first drive. 79 yards on 7 plays for a quick TD was not the way we wanted to start – it looked like we picked up Ralph Williams from the English Department and dropped him in an Advanced Nuclear Engineering seminar with Professor James Duderstadt (yes, the same dude who served as UM’s President during my time on campus), where the expected result was total ineptitude to the point of shut-down … or dare I even go there, but suiting up Prof. John Rubadeau for an afternoon on the gridiron against the big boys … unheard of until the image provided proof … priceless – and it didn’t make sense, as this was the unit that was supposed to provide stability and force to the game plan.
But the Blue D settled in and regained its footing … and then it got pissed. And not pissed like, “I ordered a side of ranch AND honey mustard to go with the chipati sauce,” but pissed like, “I’m in town for two-and-a-half days and Zinergman’s is closed for the weekend to reposition the fall product line … wtf?” Unacceptable. The D felt the same way … and it pounced.
The embarrassment forced an attitude change, and the result was Michigan defensive domination until the final buzzer sounded. DJ Durkin’s boys held OSU scoreless for the final 58 minutes of the game … um, there’s only 60 minutes in the entire game, for those keeping score at home! Our D gave up just 4 yards in the second half! Kaboom!
The Big Blue D machine held Beavers’ QB Seth Collins to a 9-16 outing for 79 yards, and held the entire OSU offense to just 138 yards of total offense. Oregon was 1-11 on third-down conversions, further evidencing this unit’s ability to get a stop when needed.
Joe Bolden led the Michigan D with 7 tackles, while Chirs Wormely added 6 tackles with 3 for a loss and Jabrill Peppers another 3 tackles. And the secondary played well, not giving up easy balls and making the Beavers work for every grab.
Finally, a Michigan win that came in as expected … forceful domination on both lines of scrimmage, production from the skill-position players and no serious mistakes … this was what we were supposed to see from Michigan this year, and the fact that it took shape in only week 2 bodes well for the remainder of the campaign.
As for problem areas, the Wolverines committed 10 penalties for 105 yards, and while the officiating was horrible throughout the contest, Coach Jimbo ain’t gonna be happy with those holding penalties – expect that number to improve in the weeks to come, as more guys realize that Jimmy is serious and that their ass will be on the bench if they don’t comply with the mandate.
I mean, if anyone questioned his zeal, a quick look at the video --
of him railing the officials during the game settles the score … this guy is fiery, and we love it. This is the Harbaugh we’ve been dying to see pace the Michigan sidelines … passionately involved in every element of the contest, full-frontal with the officiating crew when necessary, advocating for his players at every opportunity.
And speaking of the refs, that Jeremy Clark roughing-the-kicker penalty was horseshit (as evidenced by the apology the Big Ten issued to Harbaugh this week for blowing the call), and I was on my feet pumping my fists as I watched Coach Jimbo explain the rules of the game to the refs, his competitive DNA oozing out of his body through those polyester khakis as he rants and raves on the sidelines – it’s refreshing, it’s inspiring, it’s Michigan football.
As we move on from the Beaver outing and focus on UNLV, I’m thankful … thankful that we’re 1-1 after playing two Pac-12 teams … thankful that the units appear calmer and more focused on the mission … thankful that we finally have a coach with a vision.
But enough about Beavers, let’s turn our attention to the Rebels.
UNLV arrives at the Big House 0-2, falling first to Northern Illinois (38-30) and then at home last weekend to UCLA (37-3). The Rebels have allowed 500+ yards in consecutive outings, and while the 526 yards it allowed to UCLA was bad, what’s worse is that UNLV QB Blake Decker left the game with a hamstring injury that leaves him questionable for Saturday. Decker’s replacement, Kurt Palandech struggled badly, finishing 4-15 for 4 yards and a pick and looking near-apoplectic under the Bruins’ defensive pressure … wait ‘til he sees Chris Wormely locked and loaded and two feet away … yikes!
UNLV HC Tony Sanchez, at the ripe age of 40, is only the fourth college head coach to come straight from high school … his teams at Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas went 85-5 and won six state titles during his tenure … domination at the high-school level. But this isn’t Friday Night Lights … it’s the Big House and the guy pacing the other sidelines is named Harbaugh.
Last Saturday we faced the wrong OSU … and dominated. This weekend, the wrong Scarlet and Grey come to town, these lads hailing from the Mountain West Conference … and the result is Michigan Blue everywhere. Last week’s hype video featured James Earl Jones (one of our most beloved alums), and it’s strong. As the voice of Darth Vader reminds us, this is Michigan … and Team 136 is just getting started.
It’s a new year … it’s a new era … and I’m thankful for so many things – for my health … for my amazing kids … for a rock-star wife who I often question whether I deserve … for friends and extended family … for Michigan football. One-in-a-row becomes a deuce, and Big Blue is on a roll.
The early prediction is now in … Michigan 38 -- UNLV 7
Go Blue!