Michigan football lacked physicality at the point of attack in 2020, a season in which the Wolverines posted an abysmal 2-4 record.
When head coach Jim Harbaugh signed his contract extension in January, he was the first to admit that changes needed to be made in order for the Maize and Blue to compete for championships going forward.
Many of the changes he made (to his coaching staff, recruiting department, etc.) have been well documented.
Some details within the program, on the other hand, were made behind closed doors, including the alteration of what the team calls their 9-on-7 drill, which is now being referred to as the 'Beat Ohio Drill.'
A 9-on-7 drill is an old school, smash-mouth exercise run by football teams at many levels, all across the country. The offense lines up with five offensive linemen, two tight ends, one running back and a quarterback, while the defense counters with its front seven.
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The offense knows its running the ball on the interior. So does the defense. Being physical is key, and it's extremely intense.
"We blast some music, [breathe in] smelling salts, everything — it’s a pretty physical period, and we love it," a grinning redshirt freshman left guard Trevor Keegan said.
"It’s always been a period that we’ve taken a lot of pride in," redshirt junior right guard Andrew Stueber added. "[The name change] kind of came along with the whole tradition of, ‘What are you doing to beat Ohio State every day,’ kind of taking that rivalry into focus every day is a big focus for us. I’m not exactly sure when that got named, but I’m happy it did, and it’s definitely brought a lot of energy and passion to that period."
Michigan ran the drill every day it was in pads during fall camp, and is doing so every Tuesday during the season, as well. It happens during the beginning of practice, which can give one side of the ball a bit of momentum heading into the rest of the day.
"It’s kind of like a tone-setter for practice for the offensive and defensive line, and linebackers and backs," Stueber explained. "It’s 9-on-7, so it’s kind of equal, except for the back and the quarterback, obviously.
"It’s just four-play racks for the ones, twos and threes — just moving the ball, playing downhill football and being able to come off the ball and set the tone. That period is able to set the tone for offense and defense.
"If you pop a couple runs there, then the offense is going to look like they’re going to have a good practice. If the defense stops us, then maybe they have the upper hand. But it’s definitely a great way to start practice, to get the pads popping and get the blood flowing."
Two games in, the added emphasis on being physical in the trenches has paid off.
Defensively, Michigan has allowed just 89 yards per game on the ground (31st in the country), while having registered 10 stops behind the line of scrimmage, including seven against Washington's offensive line Saturday night.
Leaning on what appears to be a much improved offensive line, the Wolverines have run the ball on 99 of their offensive plays, compared to just 32 pass attempts. There are just three FBS teams — Navy, Air Force and Army — that have averaged less throws per game.
And it's working thus far.
Fresh off a 343-rushing yard performance in its 31-10 win over Washington, the Michigan offense is averaging 6.9 yards per carry, a mark that ranks fifth in the nation, and 339 yards per contest (fourth nationally).
It's safe to say the offensive line doesn't have a problem with the play calling.
"Yeah, it’s definitely something that we pride ourselves in," Stueber said. "I think Michigan football and the Big Ten in general have a great tradition of running the ball [with] great offensive linemen, great backs. That’s a standard that we have here, and it was great to showcase that on Saturday.
"It’s something that we work to get better at every day, and it’s great that it finally paid off on Saturday."
It didn't hurt that Washington provided a bit of bulletin board material heading into the game, either, with sophomore linebacker Jackson Sirmon saying, "We’re going to stop the run. They want to run the ball, and we’re going to stop the run. We’re excited to do that..."
"[Offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore] definitely made a huge deal with that. Coach Moore said that, and took it upon us as words of action. We're in the business of not talking about it — we're about actually doing it and being about it.
"I think we went out there, we started running the ball every play. That drive where we only ran the ball, started reducing them every play, getting yards, driving them off the ball. You started to see them give up hope midway through the third [quarter] into the fourth quarter. They were just really physically getting beaten down, I feel like."
Stueber acknowledged that the Wolverines must keep the success going, noting that whichever team rushes for more yards in Big Ten play usually wins.
"That's something we take huge pride in, and we hope to continue doing it," Stueber said.
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