Western Michigan was down 34-7 to Syracuse before most people turned their TVs on last weekend. To their credit, the Broncos mounted a comeback, pulling to within 34-28 before falling 55-42. Their defense just couldn’t slow the Syracuse offense, which finished with 560 yards of offense and took a knee inside the 10 to end the game or would have put up 60.
“They’re very aggressive,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said of the Broncos. “Their game against Syracuse was a hard-fought game,, and they battled … We looked at the team in the summer. We’ve been impressed.”
Michigan started slowly against Notre Dame, digging a hole it couldn’t escape. But as we wrote a week ago, the season is not made or ruined in one game, and all goals are still on the table.
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Still, the Wolverines failed in some of the keys to last week’s game, specifically in pass protection, and won’t reach their goals without major improvement there. The offensive line just didn’t get it done, and much of it had to do with basics — failure to pick up defensive line stunts, etc — more than the opponent.
That needs to improve if this team is going to do anything this year.
Here are the keys to the game against 28-point underdog WMU:
Maintain concentration against an overmatched but dangerous offensive team: Western put up 621 yards of offense last week, albeit against a porous Syracuse defense, and does have some playmakers. Junior wideout D’Wayne Eskridge is only 5-9, but he’s extremely quick and dangerous. He hauled in eight passes for 240 yards in the loss to the Orange, and he’s got great speed. If the defense doesn’t come out of the gate more quickly against the Broncos, Eskridge is the kind of guy who can make it pay.
The Broncos’ spread offense also created room for the running backs, and all three managed at least 10 yards per carry on the way to a 242-yard rushing performance. The U-M defense needs to play sound assignment football to combat Western's offense … and that could be tough coming off an emotional loss.
Improve (dramatically) up front: The offensive line doesn't have to play a flawless game against the Broncos to win, but this key is as much for the season as it is to one game against a middle-of-the-pack MAC team. We expected a better showing from this group in the opener.
Redshirt junior Jon Runyan Jr. struggled mightily playing at left tackle, and maybe that should have been expected. He hasn’t played there in his career. The biggest concern here is that he was deemed to be U-M’s best option at the position. Losing the recently retired Grant Newsome hurt, obviously, but the lack of adequate personnel there is a concern.
Western Michigan’s defense gave up 560 yards to Syracuse, including 334 on the ground. U-M will move the ball, but the line needs to protect junior quarterback Shea Patterson and allow him to get comfortable. He can make things happen by keeping plays alive, but he shouldn’t have to on most downs, and turnovers happen when quarterbacks don’t have time to throw. We saw it twice in South Bend.
Issues up front can help an underdog gain confidence early in a game and stick around longer than it should.
Run the ball consistently and hit some more explosive plays: Michigan’s long run against the Fighting Irish was a 10-yarder by senior Karan Higdon, and the second-longest was a nine-yard scramble by junior quarterback Shea Patterson. That’s not good enough.
The Wolverines are going to be facing unfavorable down-and-distance situations and putting a sketchy offensive line in harm’s way if they don’t do a better job with explosive plays. It’s a double-edged sword, of course, since it takes protection to make big plays in the passing game.
This offense has not seen a touchdown pass to a wide receiver in over a year (Grant Perry vs. Cincinnati on Sept. 9 was the last). In the same span, Ohio State wide receivers have had 30.
That needs to be fixed, and against the WMU defense is a good place to start. We wouldn't mind seeing more of junior running back Chris Evans, either — he's a shifty, big-play potential guy.
The Breakdown: This game could have been pretty interesting if the WMU team coached by P.J. Fleck (now at Minnesota) a few years ago was coming to town. This group has some firepower offensively, but it’s going to have problems stopping anybody, as evidenced by the opener.
Michigan’s defense needs to get off the field on third down the way it did last year (and should have against the Irish, but didn’t due in large part to concentration issues). Notre Dame was 7 for 15 on third down against U-M, and at least three of the conversions were due to defensive mistakes. That was one of the differences in the game.
The Wolverines need to put this one away early, and start tinkering with different offensive line combinations and giving younger guys a chance to play.
TheWolverine.com Staff Picks
TheWolverine.com Senior Editor Chris Balas: Michigan 41, Western Michigan 16
This team has pieces and advanced analytics showed U-M was better than Notre Dame in many areas of Saturday night’s game. But until it learns to play as a TEAM and gets better line play, it’s going to continue to struggle.
The Wolverine Senior Editor John Borton: Michigan 34, Western Michigan 13
The road to recovery begins on Saturday, although a Bronco buster won’t bring back shattered TV remotes from a week earlier.
TheWolverine.com Recruiting Editor Brandon Brown: Michigan 56, Western Michigan 10
Michigan needs to rebound in a big way,and should be able to against Western. This game should be a confidence builder and allow the offense to actually score some points.
TheWolverine.com Staff Writer Austin Fox: Michigan 35, Western Michigan 10
The offense will show substantial improvements in Michigan’s blowout win, but still won’t be at the level it needs to be.
TheWolverine.com Analyst Doug Skene: Michigan 31, Western Michigan 7
Michigan will win this week against a middle-level MAC team.
TheWolverine.com Columnist Drew Hallett: Michigan 45, Western Michigan 14.
Last week, Western Michigan scored 42 points and averaged 9.7 yards per play in a loss to Syracuse. With Football Outsiders advanced metric S&P+'s 19th-ranked offense, the Broncos have the playmakers (RB LeVante Bellamy, RB Jamauri Bogan and WR D'Wayne Eskridge) to strike for big plays and quick scores, which has been a flaw of Michigan's defense. But U-M's defense is an entirely different beast compared to what WMU faced against the Orange.
On the other side of the ball, the Broncos' defense tends to struggle against the run, generating a pass rush and keeping athletic receivers from getting over the top. WMU may earn a couple of scores, but Shea Patterson, Karan Higdon & Co. should find their rhythm and roll.
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