Stopping the run, running the ball emphasized during 'Beat Georgia' drill
Two seasons ago, Michigan's breakthrough 2021 season came to an end in the College Football Playoff against Georgia. Despite entering the game as the higher-ranked team — Michigan was No. 2 in the country, and Georgia was No. 3 — the Wolverines were thoroughly dominated from start to finish by the Bulldogs.
Michigan's Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line was beaten badly for the first time all season, and Georgia proved to be stronger, faster and better for the entirety of the game.
Georgia went on to win the first of its two consecutive national championships that season. The win over Michigan started a 17-game win streak, which still stands heading into the 2023 season.
The Bulldogs have firmly established themselves as college football's best, prompting Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh to implement a 'Beat Georgia' drill during the team's practices this offseason.
"In order to be the guy, you've got to beat the guy," Michigan senior defensive tackle Kris Jenkins said at Big Ten Media Days on Thursday. "In order to get to that point, we have to be able to build emphasis on places where we've lacked in the past. That continues to be building ourselves up and continuing to work on different things."
The drill, which became news in June, consists of intense work in the trenches on both sides of the ball, according to Harbaugh.
"The emphasis is stopping the run and being able to run the ball when the other team knows you're going to run the ball," Harbaugh said on Thursday. "That's what I really respect about that team — their ability to run the ball when the other team knows they're running the ball."
Michigan has done a fantastic job of running the ball the past two seasons. Hassan Haskins, Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards carried much of the workload in that timeframe, while Michigan's offensive line has won back-to-back Joe Moore Awards, making the running game work like a well-oiled machine.
The Wolverines have run rampant on some of the Big Ten's best defenses, but the running game has fallen short in the College Football Playoff.
Harbaugh will look to lead his team back to the College Football Playoff for a third consecutive season, where it figures to meet Georgia.
"Georgia is at the top right now," Corum said on Thursday. "And if we want to be at the top, we've got to beat them. So, just implementing a Georgia drill, just keeping that in the back of our mind... just reminding us that, 'hey, we've got more work to do.'"
"It's more a point of emphasis on 'how good of a football team can we be during this drill?'" Jenkins said on Thursday. "Right now, the goal is to be a team — top dogs."
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