Michigan's 'Much Better Skill Unit' Will Determine Outcome Of Games
Michigan Wolverines football competed closely with the elite opponents on its 2019 schedule for much of those games, but ultimately fell short. Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis believes the team is upgrading at the skill positions in 2020, something that will go a long way in swinging the outcome of those big games in U-M's favor.
"You need skill to take over games," Gattis told former U-M All-American Jon Jansen on the In The Trenches podcast recently. "You need that from your quarterbacks, you need that from your running backs, you need that from your receivers."
Gattis pointed out that U-M was right in the last two games of the season, against Ohio State and Alabama (for 90 of 120 minutes, he said), but the Wolverines ultimately didn't make enough plays to be there at the end and come away with victories.
"You look at the receiver position, there were some big-time opportunities that we missed in those last two games that could’ve been difference makers in the game," Gattis said.
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U-M had a team completion percentage of 55.6 percent (228-for-410) for the 2019 season. Gattis said that 125 of the team's incompletions came off of passes that were catchable, "whether the ball was broken up or just dropped off the tip," meaning there were plays to be made, and subsequently, games to be won.
"We gotta catch the ball more consistently," he said.
According to PFF, U-M had 28 dropped passes (which includes wide receivers, running backs and tight ends) on the season.
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