Michigan's offense struggled early on Saturday night against Northwestern, but made plays when the team needed it to in the second half.
The first quarter was especially frustrating for the Maize and Blue offense, going three-and-out on its first two possessions, before driving to midfield only to get stuffed on a fourth-and-one play. The Wolverine recorded just 21 yards on 12 first-quarter snaps.
The frustrations carried over into the second frame, with the Wolverines punting on two of their three possessions in the quarter.
U-M finally scored a touchdown on a four-yard run by senior running back Karan Higdon to finish off a 79-yard drive on its first possession of the stanza, which at the time trimmed the Wildcats' lead to 17-7.
Michigan racked up only 154 yards in the first half (5.9 yards per play), but found success after the break.
The Wolverines had two possessions in the third quarter,and scored on each — a 23-yard field goal by redshirt sophomore kicker Quinn Nordin at the 7:43 mark,and a 24-yarder as the session expired.
Michigan punted on two of its three drives in the contest's final frame and scored the game-winning touchdown with just 4:06 remaining.
Trailing 17-13, Higdon ran it in from five yards out to put the Wolverines up 20-17, capping off an impressive 11-play, 67-yard drive that consumed 5:59 off the clock.
Although the senior tallied the clinching score, it was junior quarterback Shea Patterson — whom head coach Jim Harbaugh graded out as an "A+++" after the game — who helped keep the drive alive.
On a third-and-six at the Wildcat 37-yard line with 6:38 to play, Patterson scrambled to his left when he faced pressure in the pocket, before cutting completely across the field for an eight-yard run, picking up the first down by two yards.
“I had a chance against Notre Dame to do that same thing," he said after the game. "I really harped on ball security this last drive and trusted my teammates. You know you can’t get it all back on one play.
“I’m just so proud of my brothers on this defense, and so proud of our fans. They did a great job of showing up and cheering.”
Higdon Continues To Excel On The Ground
Higdon rushed for over 100 yards for the third time this year, tallying 115 yards and two scores on a career-high 30 carries (his previous high had been 25 last year at Indiana).
The senior has now tallied at least 100 yards in three of the four games he's played in (he missed the SMU contest with injury), and is averaging 119.7 yards per outing.
In fact, the Wolverines improved to 8-0 when Higdon has hit the century mark in his career.
He also ran for multiple scores for the sixth time (three times last year and twice in 2016).
“Our O-line did a great job of blocking for him," Patterson said afterward. "There were times something wasn’t there, and he just ran his tail off. I’m just proud he’s in the backfield with me.”
Junior running back Chris Evans, meanwhile, missed his second straight contest with injury, and junior Tru Wilson only received one carry for six yards.
Sophomore fullback Ben Mason saw six touches while lined up as a running back against Nebraska, but only earned two against the Wildcats, both of them coming from his usual fullback spot.
Michigan as a team rushed for 180 yards, which was actually its second lowest output of the year (its 58-yard effort against Notre Dame was the lowest). U-M averaged 4.3 yards per tote.
Miscellaneous Notes
• Michigan extended its winning streak to six games against the Wildcats and is now 58-15-2 all-time against them.
• U-M did not commit a turnover for just the second time this year — the other occasion was its 49-3 victory over Western Michigan on Sept. 8.
• The 17-point comeback marked the program's largest since digging itself out of a 24-7 deficit against Notre Dame on Sept. 10, 2011 (it won 35-31). It was also tied for the third largest in school history (the biggest was when they came back from 21 down to beat Minnesota, 38-35, in 2003).
According to ESPN, it also marked Harbaugh's first time coming back for a win as a college head coach after trailing by 17.
• The Wolverines featured a balanced attack on Saturday, rushing for 180 yards and passing for 196.
• The last time Michigan won a game where it scored 20 points or fewer was when it beat Indiana, 20-10, on Nov. 19, 2016.
• Redshirt junior tight end Zach Gentry extended his receptions streak to nine games, hauling in three balls, all of which came in the second half and moved the chains.
• Redshirt sophomore tight end Nick Eubanks' 45 yards were the second most of his career — his 61 last season against Florida were his most. The tight ends combined for 91 receiving yards on five grabs.
• Sophomore wideout Donovan Peoples-Jones' 25-yard rush on a double reverse in the second quarter was the second-longest run of his career — his longest was a 44-yarder against Cincinnati last season on Sept. 9.
• The U-M offense has scored points in 14 of the last 16 quarters, and 16 of 20 overall in 2018.
• Sophomore wideout Nico Collins' six catches and 73 yards were both career highs. His previous highs were three catches for 66 yards at Notre Dame Sept. 1.
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