Everyone knows that Michigan’s offense has struggled mightily this season — including John O’Korn.
The fifth-year senior quarterback was not afraid to admit he needs to be better when asked how he’d assess his own play so far this season.
“I need to pick it up,” he said. “It’s as simple as that, and there’s no way around it. I’m definitely not up to my own goals and aspirations. I need to hit guys when they’re open — there were a few plays on Saturday where we had guys open, and I just need to find them.
“It’s as simple as repping the plays, and executing each play the way it’s called. The one on the first drive to [freshman receiver] Donovan [Peoples-Jones] sticks out when he was wide open — I need to hit him.”
The play O’Korn was referring to occurred with 11:34 left in the first quarter, when Peoples-Jones had Indiana fifth-year senior safety Chase Dutra beat by three steps — but O’Korn overthrew him. The missed opportunity was part of a 10-for-20 day through the air for the fifth-year senior.
“I’m not very concerned about the stats, and I don’t think the coaches are either,” he said. “What they want me to do is manage the game and manage the offense. Things like delay of game penalties and turnovers can’t happen. We avoided the turnovers against Indiana, and now we just have to manage the play clock a little better. Our run game and defense are rolling right now, so it’s on us to pick it up as a unit.”
The main reason the running game has been “rolling” is due to the play of junior running back Karan Higdon. Higdon rushed for a career-high 200 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday, including the game-winning score in overtime.
“Karan brought an intensity that we all have to match,” O’Korn observed. “As a football player, that’s who you want to be — somebody who is going to make those around you better and play harder. That’s who Karan was on Saturday.
“He has a burst that is very rare in college football. That specific play where he scored in overtime was a broken play and he made something out of nothing.
“I remember first seeing him against Michigan State two years ago on a handoff when he was about to break one, but he slipped and fell. That stuck with him, and really motivated him.”
While that specific play two years ago helped motivate Higdon, O’Korn explained that passing game coordinator Pep Hamilton helps motivate him in his own way.
“He’s been the most consistent person in our building, and that’s been huge for me,” he explained. “Every time I talk to him on the phone between series, he’s the exact same person and has the exact same tone. He’s always been very encouraging, whether it’s a touchdown, interception, turnover, field goal — no matter the outcome, he’s been the same person. His personality radiates throughout our entire offense.”
O’Korn and the rest of the team will need that calm demeanor on Saturday when they head to Happy Valley to face undefeated Penn State.
“We haven’t talked about it much yet, but we all know it’s going to be a wild atmosphere,” he said. “We just watched the Indiana film yesterday, but we’ll start focusing on Penn State next.
“We try to operate in a form of nonverbal communication as much as we can, and have a lot of signals that will work in an environment like that. I’m really excited, and I think everyone on our team would tell you the same thing. Nobody’s really giving us a chance, so that’s why we’re excited for this opportunity.”
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