What They're Saying: Michigan Wolverines Football Heading Into Illinois
The Michigan Wolverines hit the road Saturday to take on Illinois, which will be led by former U-M quarterback Brandon Peters, if he's healthy.
We take a look around the internet and what they're saying about the 4-1 Wolverines heading into this Big Ten road tilt:
The problem with doubling down on an alternate reality is that he appears out of touch, even though he isn’t; he knows his offense is struggling.
The other problem is that the perceived double-talk gets in the way of the actual progress his team made in the two weeks since losing to Wisconsin.
Yes, the Wolverines made progress. They won. Against a top-25 team. Beyond that, they matched — even exceeded — Iowa's physicality, something they did not do at Wisconsin.
Remember the words Harbaugh used after his team was embarrassed against the Badgers?
Outhustled. Outplayed. Outcoached.
So dispiriting was the performance that a handful of former players took to social media to question the team’s compete level. Charles Woodson had to avert his eyes on national television. And when Harbaugh met with reporters the following Monday at Schembechler Hall, he promised to re-instill the tenet of his football core:
Toughness.
He said he’d make it part of the daily practice plan. He said he’d find the players who were dedicated to “playing physically and hustling, hustling at all times.”
Well, we saw that in the win over Iowa. Saw the aggressiveness, at least defensively. Saw the physicality. Saw the effort.
John Niyo, The Detroit News: Old school Don Brown not afraid to 'live and learn' with Wolverines
Brown’s way worked last year right up until it didn’t, of course. Michigan’s top-ranked defense got carved up in the regular-season finale in Columbus, and then again in a bowl game that was more notable for the players who opted not to dress than the final depantsing. A similar scenario played out in 2017 when Michigan traveled to face Penn State.
And we’ll find out soon enough just how much progress Michigan’s defense really has made later this month. After this week’s trip to Illinois, the Wolverines head to Happy Valley for another night game at Penn State, then return home to face Notre Dame in Ann Arbor. Then there’s next month’s rivalry games against Michigan State and Ohio State.
But while Michigan’s offensive woes remain a glaring concern — and a reminder, perhaps, that philosophical changes don’t come easily in college football — there’s reason to think Brown’s persistence will pay off in the end.
The depth at defensive tackle remains an issue for the Wolverines, but the return of Michael Dwumfour from injury made a disruptive difference against Iowa. Likewise, McGrone’s emergence as starter the last couple weeks has added an element that Devin Bush used to provide. (“That guy is 230 pounds and can fly,” Brown said.) Ditto freshman safety Daxton Hill, the speedster whose fourth-down pass breakup early in the third quarter was one of many plays that led Brown to call Saturday’s performance one of the best he’d seen from Michigan’s secondary during his time in Ann Arbor.
Orion Sang, Detroit Free Press: Why Michigan football is finally coming together on defense
In a 35-14 loss at Wisconsin on Sept. 21, the Wolverines allowed 359 rushing yards — 203 to All-American running back Jonathan Taylor, who broke the 100-yard mark with just over two minutes left in the first quarter.
Michigan played sloppily from the start, with shoddy run defense, too many penalties and a plethora of missed tackles.
The defense has been trying to get right ever since.
"We got off to a bad start on the road," said defensive coordinator Don Brown on Wednesday afternoon. "We had some uncharacteristic fits in the run game, and it hurt us. In those scenarios, on the outside world, everybody kinda questions you. But we felt like, hey, we’ve just got to go to work, clean up our run fits."
For the most part, Michigan has been successful in cleaning up those issues. The Wolverines put up a shutout against Rutgers and allowed just 46 rushing yards. This past Saturday, U-M played a near-perfect game against Iowa, emerging with a 10-3 win after piling up eight sacks, 13 tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries.
The Hawkeyes tried to replicate some of Wisconsin's success in the run game. Little worked, though. Michigan allowed one total rushing yard; with sacks removed, Iowa's backs had 22 carries for 66 yards.
The Wolverines were motivated after Wisconsin and wanted to prove that performance was an outlier. And according to Brown, familiarity has played a huge role in the recent turnaround, too.
Aaron McMann, MLive: Ask Aaron: What is going on with the Michigan offense?
Let’s be clear about this: The struggles with the offense are not on one player or position. I’ve heard (and read) a lot of complaining about Shea Patterson, and he deserves some blame, no doubt, but this is an entire-unit issue. Between the turnovers, inconsistent protection up front, overthrown balls, receivers not gaining separation, to the lack of a threatening run game, Michigan has failed to position itself as a threat on tape. Make no mistake, I think the potential here is high — it’s one of the reasons why I picked the Wolverines to win the Big Ten this year. The talent, experience and playmakers are all there.
But the biggest issue to this point, in my opinion, is a lack of continuity. Between guys coming in and out due to injuries, Patterson playing injured the first few weeks, it really wrecked the feeling out process that was supposed to happen against Middle Tennessee State and Army. No one expected it to be perfect, but those were supposed to be the games where you could see what you had and tinker. All the while, Michigan looked like a mess Week 1, had to play Army’s pace of game to squeak out a win in Week 2, and before you know it the Wolverines were hitting the road for a Wisconsin team riding a wave of momentum with a Heisman Trophy-caliber running back. Confidence matters in football, and Michigan had its taken away in the first two games, then stomped on in Madison.
Which brings us to the last two weeks, which have been repair time for Josh Gattis and the offensive coaching staff. Rutgers came at a perfect time, as did an Iowa team that plays a style Michigan is all too familiar with. Illinois will likely fall into that same category on Saturday.
Steve Kornacki, MGoBlue.com: Milton Possesses Everything Needed to Excel, Including Patience
Joe Milton has all the tools necessary to be a great quarterback. He has an arm capable of throwing the ball 85 yards on the fly, stands tall and strong when setting to throw, and possesses the speed of someone who chased and caught rabbits in Florida's sugarcane fields. He also has strong leadership traits.
Wolverine fans got a glimpse of what he has to offer in the University of Michigan's game against Rutgers, when he received his first shot at significant playing time as the backup to Shea Patterson with Dylan McCaffrey out with a concussion. He fired a 23-yard touchdown pass to Giles Jackson with great velocity and ran for another touchdown.
Milton watched his cousins, NFL Pro Bowl receiver Anquan Boldin and former Wolverines tailback Vincent Smith, go from Pahokee to success on the collegiate and pro gridirons, and he wants to do great things.
However, he has something many elite athletes lack: patience. He listens and observes while awaiting a chance to become a starter at Michigan.
"I just keep doing what I have to do," said Milton, "and make sure I'm right and my teammates around me are right. Right now, I'm going back to that same stage I had in high school. I'm a servant, learning from the older guys. I'm just taking that on, and when it's my time, I'm making sure everything is right so Michigan can be back on top."
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