RUSH OFFENSE vs. IOWA RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is #11 in rushing offense (234.3 yards/game) and #6 in yards per carry. Blake Corum has been the workhorse so far, leading the team with 64 attempts for 478 yards and a nation-high 9 rushing touchdowns. Backup Donovan Edwards was rumored to have been coming back to play last week, but he sat out the Maryland game and has not broken out yet this year (127 total yards, 2 touchdowns). I'm cautiously optimistic that he will play against the Hawkeyes. Meanwhile, Iowa is #6 in rushing defense (73 yards allowed/game) and #4 in yards allowed per carry (2.21). They have yet to allow a rushing touchdown. Senior middle linebacker Jack Campbell (6'5", 246 lbs.) spearheads the defense with 39 tackles and weakside linebacker Seth Benson (6'0", 232) follows behind with 30 stops. Iowa's two starting defensive tackles are 289 and 275 pounds, so they're not big up the middle, but they are relatively quick and athletic. Lukas Van Ness (6'5", 275) is part of a potent rotation at defensive tackle and leads the team with 5 tackles for loss. Iowa's defensive backs also do a very good job of triggering on the run and tackling; the defensive backfield ranks #3 through #6 on the team in tackles, and while usually that's not a good sign for the front seven, in this case they're all part of a very good defense. Iowa runs a 4-3 (or 4-2-5) with two high safeties, so the defensive backs need to be good tacklers or else teams would run the ball all over them.
Advantage: Iowa

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Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker/defensive end Brandon Graham had an outstanding day on Sunday when he made 6 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, and 1 pass breakup in a 24-8 win over the Washington Commanders. He was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

HONORABLE MENTION

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Tom Brady completed 31/42 passes for 271 yards, 1 touchdown, and 0 interceptions in a 14-12 loss to the Green Bay Packers
• Pittsburgh Steelers LB Devin Bush, Jr. made 11 tackles in a 29-27 loss to the Cleveland Browns
• Kansas City Chiefs DE Frank Clark made 3 tackles and 1 sack in a 20-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts
• Packers OLB Rashan Gary made 3 tackles and 1 sack in a 14-12 win over the Bucs
• Dallas Cowboys CB Jourdan Lewis made 7 tackles in a 23-16 win over the New York Giants
• Minnesota Vikings S Josh Metellus made 11 tackles and 1 huge interception in a 28-24 win over the Detroit Lions
• New England Patriots S Jabrill Peppers made 7 tackles and 1 fumble recovery in a 37-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens
• Steelers DT Chris Wormley made 5 tackles in a 29-27 defeat at the hands of the Browns

Let's see more of this guy on offense . . . Donovan Edwards. Edwards caught 10 passes for 170 yards and 1 touchdown in the 2021 matchup against Maryland. This year he caught 0 passes for 0 yards. Because he didn't play in the game. Michigan only has four scholarship running backs on the team, and it appears that the Wolverines coaching staff only trusts two of them - Blake Corum and Edwards. So when one goes out with an injury, the other is going to get the lion's share of opportunities. Hopefully Edwards can return healthy from his leg injury to relieve Corum a little bit and they can be consistent as a 1-2 punch.

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FORMER PLAYERS

C Zach Carpenter (Indiana): Carpenter is Indiana's starting center.

RB Zach Charbonnet (UCLA): Charbonnet ran 9 times for 104 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 45-17 win over Colorado.

zach charbonnet with a disgusting open-field move here. nasty pic.twitter.com/se0hKRFPpq

— Ray G 🏁 (@RayGQue) September 24, 2022

Zach Charbonnet 35 yard TD run! 🔥 #UCLA pic.twitter.com/Ru2ZthBHal

— 𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪 @𝗙𝗧𝗕𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱𝟳 (@FTBeard7) September 24, 2022

S Sammy Faustin (UMass): Faustin did not record any stats in a 28-0 loss to Temple.

OG Chuck Filiaga (Minnesota): Filiaga is a sixth year senior who starts at right guard for the Gophers.

CB Darion Green-Warren (Nevada): Green-Warren did not record any stats in a 48-20 loss to Air Force.

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That was closer than it should have been. Maryland has scared me for years, because they've had offensive playmakers. This goes back to the days of NFL veteran receiver D.J. Moore, but also a variety of running backs like Ty Johnson and Anthony McFarland, Jr. Now the Terps have a stable of good receivers and a couple solid running backs in speedster Roman Hemby and 235 lb. Antwain Littleton II, who I learned during the game had been a 295 lb. recruit. But the defense is catching up to the offense with size and speed in the secondary. They're turning into a formidable opponent.

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Last week I posted the all-time season rushing leaders (LINK), so this week is the top 25 single-game rushing leaders.

RUSH OFFENSE vs. MARYLAND RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is #17 in rushing offense (231 yards/game) and tied for #9 in yards per carry at 5.98. They have also scored 15 rushing touchdowns, which is #2 in the nation behind Minnesota. Starting running back Blake Corum leads the squad with 235 yards on 34 carries (6.9 yards/carry), and his 7 rushing touchdowns are tied for #1 in the country with Minnesota's Mohamed Ibrahim. It's unclear whether star sophomore Donovan Edwards (15 carries, 90 yards, 2 TD) will be back for this game, so the primary backup may be true freshman C.J. Stokes (22 carries, 114 yards, 1 TD). Maryland is #49 in rushing defense (118.3 yards allowed/game) and #44 in yards allowed per carry (3.29). They have yet to allow a team to average more than 3.6 per rush. Their leading tackler is 6'1", 200 lb. junior safety Beau Brade with 27 stops, followed by 16 from true freshman Jaishawn Barham (6'3", 230), who caused a stir during his recruiting cycle by silently committing to Maryland, publicly committing to South Carolina, and then signing with the Terps. Maryland is tied for #100 in tackles for loss with just 13 so far. Maryland's two starting defensive tackles are JUCO transfers, and there are five transfer starters total; all four starting defensive lineman are seniors or fifth year guys.
Advantage: Michigan

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