Air Force hung with Michigan for most of the day on Saturday, trailing by just nine late in the fourth quarter. A 36-yard touchdown run by junior running back Karan Higdon with just 1:02 left in the game officially sealed the deal, and cemented the Wolverines’ 29-13 victory.
“I got the ball, and immediately saw the defense shift and press the hole,” Higdon explained. “I trusted in [fifth-year senior fullback Henry] Poggi to make a great block, and it was off to the races.”
Although that play was definitely the highlight of Higdon’s day, he revealed that he was actually more pleased with another facet of his game.
“The biggest thing I took away from the game was my ability to pick up blitzes,” he said. “It felt great to protect [redshirt junior quarterback] Wilton [Speight] and to help him execute. Pass blocking isn’t easy at this level, so doing so was the most rewarding thing for me from this game.”
Michigan’s offense has had a hard time getting in the end zone this season, only scoring one touchdown in 10 red zone trips. The unit has not clicked yet, but Higdon said he feels it’s on the verge of doing so.
“It’s very close,” he exclaimed. “There were times where we only needed one more inch and we would’ve been out of the gate — it’s the little things like that.
“As a running back, we have to put it on our shoulders to make things right, because we feel we have the best running backs room in the country.”
Despite the offense’s struggles so far this season, Higdon said the most important aspect is knowing how to handle the adversity, especially for the young players.
“Adversity comes in all different shapes and fashions, so you always have to be willing and able to handle it,” he observed. “The young guys are doing a good job of that so far.
“This group is courageous. We don’t give up and we won’t be denied, no matter what happens. We believe in each other, and we all know we’re going to come around and make things happen.”
Each time the offense stalled against Air Force, redshirt freshman kicker Quinn Nordin was able to bail it out. He made all five of his field goal attempts, tying a single-game U-M record (K.C. Lopata in 2008).
“I think it’s tremendous to have a kicker of Quinn’s caliber,” Higdon said. “He’s confident and works hard. I love his attitude — I love having him back there because he’s confident in himself, and does whatever he needs to do to make sure he believes in himself.
“He’s always picking guys up on the sidelines, shouting stuff like ‘we’ve got this’ and ‘on to the next play!’”
Although Higdon undoubtedly enjoys seeing Nordin have success, he'd probably enjoy it more if most of the redshirt freshman's action started coming on extra points, not field goals.
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