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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