Tag: game preview

Preview: Michigan vs. Ohio State

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RUSH OFFENSE vs. OHIO STATE RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is the #15 rushing team (218 yards/game) and averages 5.08 yards per carry, which is #30 in the country. That’s good, not great, but it’s impressive considering Michigan’s starting quarterback isn’t much of a threat to run at all. Hassan Haskins topped 1,000 yards last week and now has 216 carries for 1,063 yards and 13 touchdowns. Fellow star running back Blake Corum (778 yards, 10 TD on the ground) has missed the majority of the last three games with a lower leg injury, but he dressed for last week’s game at Maryland and I would expect him back in action against the Buckeyes. Offensive line wise, Michigan is securely #1 in the country in tackles for loss allowed with just 2.18 per game; Georgia is next best with 3.18 per contest. Ohio State is #20 in tackles for loss (7.27 per game) and #11 in rushing defense (102 yards allowed/game). They allow just 3.1 yards per carry (#12) but have faced just 363 rushing attempts, which is the 15th fewest; I guess that’s what happens when you score a bunch of points and teams have to pass to try to catch up. Safety Ronnie Hickman (6’1″, 205 lbs.) leads the team with 83 tackles, followed by linebacker Cody Simon (6’2″, 233) with 47, safety Bryson Shaw (6’0″, 195) with 44, and linebacker Teradja Mitchell (6’2″, 239) with 44. Linebacker Tommy Eichenberg (6’2″, 235) is the biggest TFL guy with 5.5 in the run game this year. Michigan can’t get in a track meet with OSU, so they will have to try to run the ball and sustain drives to keep the defense fresh.
Advantage: Michigan

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Preview: Michigan at Maryland

RUSH OFFENSE vs. MARYLAND RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is the #14 rushing offense in the country (225 yards/game). The bell cow right now is 6’1″, 225 lb. Hassan Haskins, who has 58 carries over the past two weeks since Blake Corum hurt his lower leg. Haskins has responded with 168 and 156 yards, many of them coming after contact while pushing piles, twisting, and diving for extra yardage. Michigan will pound-pound-pound the ball inside and then get big chunks on the edges. Maryland is #77 in rushing defense (157 yards allowed/game) and #70 in yards allowed per carry (4.11). They did a respectable job against Michigan State’s Kenneth Walker last week (30 carries, 143 yards, 2 touchdowns), but that allowed quarterback Payton Thorne to average 9.6 yards per passing attempt and throw 4 touchdowns. The top two tacklers for the Terrapins are safeties Jordan Mosley (6’1″, 205) and Nick Cross (6’1″, 215) with 67 and 57, respectively. It’s not usually a great thing when safeties are leading the team in tackling. Nose tackle Ami Finau (6’2″, 320) is a decent run stuffer with 5 tackles for loss. Michigan might not be able to gash Maryland over and over again, but they should be able to move the ball consistently.
Advantage: Michigan

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Preview: Michigan at Penn State

RUSH OFFENSE vs. PSU RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan’s rushing offense has dropped off somewhat dramatically from earlier in the year, which is saying something, since they’re still #6 with 234 yards/game on the ground and #15 in rushing average. Hassan Haskins leads the team in carries (165), yardage (829 yards), and touchdowns (11). He may be relied on more heavily than normal. After a career-high 27 carries last week with Blake Corum missing all but one offensive play, Haskins is the only somewhat experienced back on the roster. I do not expect Corum (who was in a walking boot by the end of the game) to play and freshman Donovan Edwards missed last week due to injury, leaving Haskins and then . . . walk-on Leon Franklin and freshman fifth-stringer Tavierre Dunlap. Penn State is #50 in rush defense (137 yards allowed/game) and #31 in yards per carry allowed (3.56). With starting defensive tackle P.J. Mustipher out for the season, the Nittany Lions’ rushing defense has fallen off; they gave up 357 yards on the ground to Illinois three weeks ago. Things have improved a little over the past couple weeks, but that may be due to playing Maryland, which is pretty inept on the ground. The leading tacklers are senior linebacker Ellis Brooks (6’1″, 241 lbs.) and junior inside linebacker Brandon Smith (6’3″, 241) with 68 and 61 stops, respectively. I think Michigan can pound the ball a little bit, but they need to be careful to keep Haskins fresh.
Advantage: Michigan

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Preview: Michigan at Michigan State

RUSH OFFENSE vs. MSU RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is now #5 in rushing offense (253 yards/game) and #14 in rushing average (5.46 yards/carry). They’re also #3 in the country with 25 rushing touchdowns. Both of Michigan’s running backs are on pace to gain 1,000+ yards during the regular season, which would be the first time two players top that mark since 2011 (Denard Robinson, Fitzgerald Toussaint). That won’t be easy to achieve considering the tough opponents down the stretch, but it’s still impressive to be on that pace after seven games. Up front the success may depend on the health of the offensive line, where left guard Trevor Keegan and right guard Zak Zinter both missed last week’s game due to injury. Michigan State is #29 in rushing defense (119 yards allowed/game) and #22 in yards allowed per carry (3.27). The top two leading tacklers are senior safety Xavier Henderson (6’1″, 210) and sophomore safety Angelo Grose (5’10”, 180), followed by junior linebacker Quavaris Crouch (6’2″, 230), a Tennessee transfer that Michigan pursued heavily in the 2019 class; they have 60, 53, and 52 stops, respectively. Henderson leads the team in non-quarterback takedowns behind the line with 5 so far this season. Redshirt junior Jacob Slade (6’4″, 315) doesn’t make many plays but he stops things up well, and redshirt freshman Simeon Barrow (6’2″, 285) is more of the penetrator. It’s not going to be easy sledding, but I expect Michigan to have some success running the ball.
Advantage: Michigan

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Preview: Michigan vs. Northwestern

RUSH OFFENSE vs. NORTHWESTERN RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is #6 in rush offense (246.5 yards/game) with two of the more interesting backs in the Big Ten: bruiser Hassan Haskins (492 yards, 8 TD) and lightning-in-a-bottle Blake Corum (610 yards, 8 TD). They have 97 and 101 rushing attempts, respectively, so Michigan is bound to use either one at any given time. The Wolverines are mostly a downhill rushing team, but they can hit the edges, like Corum did with a 31-yard touchdown scamper on a BASH play against Nebraska two weeks ago. Michigan had some issues with the health of their offensive guards (five played against the Cornhuskers), so it may be interesting to see who’s ready to go on the offensive line this week. Northwestern is #118 in rushing defense (206.2 yards allowed/game) and they’re giving up 5.4 yards per attempt, which is #119. The Wildcats have experience up front, but not much talent. Junior defensive end Adetomiwa Adebawore (6’2″, 265) is the best of the bunch with 22 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks. The leading overall tackler is senior SAM linebacker Chris Bergin (5’11”, 223 lbs.) with 63 tackles, followed by sophomore safety Brandon Joseph (6’1″, 192) with 40 tackles. One of the best rushing offenses against one of the worst rushing defenses? I expect Michigan to stick to the ground for much of this one.
Advantage: Michigan

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