When Michigan took a 28-27 lead with just 3:29 remaining in the game, it appeared the Outback Bowl may have a similar outcome to the 2008 Capital One Bowl - an underdog U-M team stunning the SEC with an improbable victory.

However, the Maize and Blue defense couldn't make the big play on South Carolina's final drive like it had five years earlier in vanquishing Florida. The defense's inexplicable mistakes plagued the Wolverines all day and would trump the excitement created by a terrific second-half comeback.

What happened to Michigan's vaunted pass defense? It'd be easy to look at the absence of one player - senior cornerback J.T. Floyd, who was suspended for a violation of team rules - and say it left the Wolverines' secondary discombobulated, lacking the communication in its zone-defense coverage to protect the middle of the field.



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