Karsch: From The Sidelines

Michigan sideline reporter Doug Karsch witnessed Survival Saturday from up close, and talks about it in this exclusive From The Sidelines segment.

Karsch commented on…

• The too-close-for-comfort finish: “I will tell you, it was one of the more excruciating games I’ve ever watched. It was really palpable tension in the stadium.

“There’s 40 seconds between plays, and you’re seeing the same play every time. You’re seeing the chains move, and it’s taking up a lot of time.

“Every time you had the football, there was a huge sense of urgency. The relief when they won the game … I think the players saw a lot of what the fans saw. They were behind the 8-ball so much in the second half, and felt like they weren’t going to be able to win the game, they were so relieved to win the game.

“I will tell you something else the players talked to me in the locker room about after the game. The defense can’t wait to play a more normal offense. [Senior safety] Josh Metellus said, to play a team that just snaps it and throws it…

“[Against Army], you just don’t get to play defense the way you play defense. You crash course for trigonometry or calculus, and then you go back to high-level algebra, which you’ve been studying for the whole time.

“They’re happy to survive those games, defensively. Now they get into the bulk of the season, where they’re not going to see an option team like that the rest of the way.”

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