Junior quarterback Shea Patterson enjoyed the best statistical game of his Michigan career on Saturday, connecting on 19 of his 27 passes (70 percent) for 282 yards, along with three touchdowns and a pick.
Michigan's offense got off to a rough start in the first quarter (a punt and a failed fourth-down attempt on its first two possessions, followed by a field goal and a Patterson pick on the next two), but found its groove after the opening stanza.
Patterson tossed his first score of the day with just 16 seconds remaining before the half, when he found freshman wideout Ronnie Bell on a 22-yard strike that put the Wolverines up 17-7 at the break.
"How about my guy Ronnie Bell making the tough catch across the middle?" head coach Jim Harbaugh exclaimed after the game. "It takes some guys years, even half decades, to have that kind of fearlessness and ability to catch the ball over the middle. He’s a really good kid — I like him a lot."
Patterson's second touchdown throw of the game may have been his most unique play — with just 2:15 remaining in the third quarter, the junior took the snap and immediately had blitzing redshirt junior linebacker Isaiah Davis coming at him full steam. The quarterback put on a spin move to avoid the pressure — a move that Harbaugh called the "whirly bird" — and found sophomore wideout Donovan Peoples-Jones at the Terrapin 28-yard line, where he sprinted down the sideline and into the end zone.
"That was just a great instinctive play by Shea, getting the ball to Donovan," Harbaugh said afterward. "He continues to be that guy who makes a lot of plays and is playing so hard and has so much energy."
“Donovan made a heck of a play by getting open," Patterson chimed in. "Stuff kind of broke down a little bit, and it was instinct just to get out and look for a receiver downfield. He did a heck of a job getting open for me, and the guys blocking downfield made that happen too.”
The signal-caller's final scoring pass came with 6:37 to go, when he found fifth-year senior fullback Jared Wangler on a seven-yard connection along the corner of the end zone.
Redshirt junior tight end Zach Gentry was, however, Patterson's favorite target against Maryland, hauling in career-highs for both catches (seven) and yards (112).
After comparing Gentry to New England Patriots All-Pro Rob Gronkowski, the junior quarterback added about his tight end: “Zach is also a guy you can go to every single play, unless coverage negates that. He’s a reliable, big target — just put it in the vicinity, and he’s going to go get it."
Patterson's 282 passing yards, meanwhile, were the most by a U-M quarterback since Wilton Speight compiled 362 against Maryland on Nov. 5, 2016. The junior's three scoring tosses were also the third time he has achieved the trifecta this season.
On the year, he has 10 scoring throws against three picks — surpassing U-M's touchdown pass total last year (nine). Michigan, with backup Dylan McCaffrey's two included, has 12 through six games.
U-M Puts Together Another 40-Point Effort
The 42-point showing against Maryland marked the fourth time this year Michigan has scored 40 points or more in a game, something it didn't accomplish once last year (U-M never scored more than 36 in a contest in 2017).
Ironically, all four have come at home — the previous three were 49 against Western Michigan, 45 versus SMU and 56 against Nebraska.
Coming into the contest, the Terrapin defense had only been yielding 23 points per outing, which was 49th best in the nation. Maryland had held three of its four opponents to fewer than 30 points, with the 35 it surrendered in a loss to Temple being the lone exception.
Michigan also tallied 465 yards of total offense, signifying its second most of the season (491 against Nebraska was the high). It marked the most tallied against the Terps this year, breaking the previous high of 429 by Temple, and both U-M's rushing and passing totals were season-worsts allowed by Maryland.
To put the Wolverines' total in perspective, U-M tallied more than 433 yards just once in 2017 (471 against Minnesota on Nov. 4). U-M has already racked up at least 433 yards three times this year.
Miscellaneous Notes
• Senior running back Karan Higdon rushed for 103 yards against Maryland, becoming the 23rd player in school history to gain 2,000 on the ground (he has 2,020). It was also his fourth straight 100-yard effort (first U-M running back to do so since Mike Hart in 2007) and the ninth of his career (U-M is 9-0 in those contests).
Higdon's nine 100-yard efforts are tied for the 16th most in school history.
• Senior wideout Grant Perry attempted and completed his first career pass on Saturday, a 12-yard connection with junior tight end Sean McKeon in the second quarter.
• Sophomore receiver Nico Collins' 51-yard reception in the second quarter was just one yard shy of his career long (52 at Notre Dame). He has at least one catch of 20 yards or more in five of the team's six games this year.
• Michigan outgained Maryland in the first half, 291-42 yards.
• Patterson was graded out as U-M's best offensive player by Pro Football Focus, checking in with an 86.7 tally (64 is considered average). Check back on TheWolverine.com for full snap counts and grades from the service.
• The contest was actually supposed to start at noon, but was delayed one hour and 10 minutes due to lightning. The last time the start time of a Wolverine tilt was delayed was the Nov. 4 home contest against Minnesota last year.
• Wangler's touchdown was just his second career catch and his first-ever score.
“I was so happy for him," sophomore fullback Ben Mason said after the game. "He’s put so much effort and time into this program, and to see him get into the end zone was an incredible feeling for everyone. I couldn’t have been happier for him.”
• In U-M's four victories over Maryland during the Harbaugh era, the Wolverines have outscored the Terrapins, 164-34.
• Mason scored his fifth touchdown of the season on Saturday, tying Higdon for the team lead. He also scored on a two-point conversion.
• Gentry's 112 yards marked the first time in his career he passed the 100-yard plateau. The redshirt junior has also caught at least one pass in 10 straight affairs.
• Junior running back Chris Evans missed his third straight contest with injury. During that time, Higdon has rushed 67 times for 354 yards and three scores, an average of 5.3 yards per tote.
• With touchdown passes to Bell and Wangler, Patterson has now hit six different U-M players for scores this season — Peoples-Jones (five), Bell (one), Collins (one), Gentry (one), McKeon (one) and Wangler (one).
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