Brandon Watson (image via Freep)
Holy blowout. I thought Michigan would win by about 10 points, and I think this outcome surprised just about everyone. Michigan’s domination of Penn State’s offense wasn’t too much of a surprise, but the Wolverines’ putting up 42 points was. I was thinking more along the lines of 24-14.
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Donovan Peoples-Jones (image via Twitter)
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Dylan McCaffrey. We have seen Penn State use two quarterbacks on the field at the same time with some effectiveness in recent years, and they also let running backs take direct snaps on occasion. I would like to see the Wolverines give McCaffrey a couple plays on the field with Shea Patterson, like they did briefly against Wisconsin. McCaffrey is a good enough athlete to do a few different things (run, catch, and throw).
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Dylan McCaffrey puts the exclamations point on this one! #Michigan goes up 38-7 late in the 4th! #GoBlue ?〽️? @dcaf20 pic.twitter.com/0IRPbH43el
— Wolverine Corner (@WolverineCorner) October 14, 2018
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Dylan McCaffrey. I liked that Michigan started trying to devise ways to get McCaffrey involved in the offense, even with Shea Patterson still in the game. It didn’t prove beneficial in this game (McCaffrey lined up at slot receiver, motioned in behind the QB, and then ran a return motion while Michigan threw a quick screen to the opposite side), but it may set up some things in the future. The presence of an athletic QB (who had a 44-yard TD run) who can also throw the ball is probably more versatile than having a Wildcat QB like Jabrill Peppers, even though McCaffrey isn’t as explosive.
Josh Metellus (image via Detroit News)
So…uh…how about that offensive line? It hasn’t been often that we have said this over the past few years, but the offensive line play was excellent. The Badgers’ defense isn’t as good as it has been in some other recent seasons – the linebackers aren’t as good, and the defensive line was banged up. But it’s still a well coached unit, and the linebackers are solid. This offensive line would have still been mauled in recent years, but Shea Patterson had oodles of time to throw, and Karan Higdon had good enough run blocking to bounce some runs to the outside for big chunk gains. The coverage on the back end was good for the most part, so Patterson still had to scramble (and tried to do too much at times), but there weren’t many mistakes up front. Credit goes to the players, obviously, but I think the Ed Warinner Effect is becoming more and more apparent.
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This wasn’t deemed a penalty until much deliberation (image via Lincoln Journal Star)
That was unexpected. Nebraska isn’t very good this season, but I still thought Michigan would struggle. I predicted a 24-17 game in which the Wolverines would play down to the level of the Cornhuskers. I was wrong. Michigan’s defense played superb football, and the offensive line was overwhelmed the whole day. It also helped that Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez was not up to full speed after getting hurt against Colorado; he wore a knee brace and only seemed to be operating at 75% or so. Michigan’s offense was also clicking at a higher level than they have been, and that’s a credit to them. Nebraska’s defense shouldn’t have been as out of sync as the offense, but a Michigan offense that had been struggling in many ways really took it to them.
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