Opening Statement
OK, well, frustrating, disappointing, a lot to digest in the game. And I look at both ends of halves, we didn’t finish well at all. It ended the first half, give them, what, the two-minute drive, we give them the ball, and then they get three points there. So that finish wasn’t good going at halftime, I thought we regrouped, but then the field position was not great. But our guys did continue to battle. Fast forward to the fourth quarter. Get it within the score. We got the ball drive all the way down there, fourth-and-5. We don’t finish the thing. Still got three time-outs, and we can’t get them off the field. So didn’t finish like we wanted to. The group battled, really all three phases. There’s some things we didn’t do well enough to earn a win tonight, and that’s why it’s frustrating and disappointing.
On the scuffle at the end of the game
It’s on the other side of the field. It’s emotional game. And, yeah, you don’t love finishing kind of that way. Especially, I thought for the football game itself, it was physical. I think guys were playing really hard, and I thought it was a pretty clean game, so it’s tough to finish.
On the end of the first half
I think we gained the possession, started right about the 30-second mark. We got timeouts. We said we’re gonna run the ball, and if we pop for a run for a first down, we’re gonna be back on the ball and go. And again, Aidan didn’t look like he liked his first read, so he goes to extend and we gave them the ball. Just can’t do it.
On MSU's defense shutting down Michigan's offense
I thought in the first half it did. I thought those leaks in the second half part that we got to do better on. They had a couple long drives. Again, we tried to steal the possession on the kickoff. Gave the defense bad field position, right there. They bowed up, get three-and-out, punt us the ball, and we put down together a long drive to get at least a field goal.
On the onside kick
Yeah, we were down a score the way the thing was going, the clock was moving, and what we thought on tape, and they recovered. I thought our leverage was pretty good, but we’re offside. That’s where I go back to all three phases. I mean, we got kickoff return that we’re starting on the five-yard line, because the error — there was some pieces and all three factors, all three phases of the game, for us, that didn’t help us win.
On losing in the rivalry
Well, experience is any guide. It’s passionate. Neither side likes each other, and that’s why I go back to it’s pretty, pretty frustrating. You had a lot of chances to get scores, I guess, in a rivalry game.
On Michigan's trick plays
The double pass, no question, we’re biting on that — and the run. And again, you want to play aggressive, decent defense. You gotta play with discipline, nonstop.
On Michigan's running game, and Alex Orji, getting loose
He did. And we got to look at this tape, because I thought we prepared really well for that. We anticipate, we see a decent amount of whether it was a starter or not. Thought we prepared pretty well. The kid bounces it a few times and obviously finished the game when they needed it for some first downs.
On why Michigan was effective in the second half
They were more effective a couple early third down conversions, throwing the ball that they got was a little bit different.
---
Discuss this article with our community on our premium message boards
Not a subscriber to Maize & Blue Review? Sign up today to gain access to all the latest Michigan intel M&BR has to offer
Follow our staff on Twitter: @JoshHenschke, @Berry_Seth14, @TrevorMcCue, @DennisFithian, @BrockHeilig, @JimScarcelli, @Jerry_Diorio
Subscribe to our podcasts: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify
Check out Maize & Blue Review's video content on YouTube
Follow Maize & Blue Review on social media: Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram
