After cruising against a cakewalk non-conference schedule, Michigan paid for playing less than their best in the Big Ten opener. Maryland came to the Big House with a dangerous offense and a defense that at least could force U-M to execute. The Wolverines trailed for most of the second quarter and held a two-possession lead for less than ten minutes of game time.
And yet, Maryland needed a touchdown and two-point conversion with 45 seconds remaining to make the final score 34-27, Michigan. Led by a career day from running back Blake Corum, the Wolverines earned a 7.0 to 5.4 edge in yards per play. While it’s understandable to feel impending doom during the game, U-M kept themselves out of major danger.
This is a classic Eye of the Beholder game. If you’re looking for signs that Michigan won’t be able to hang with the very best the country can offer, they showed plenty of them. If you wanted U-M to get past their first real opponent in any way, shape or form, then you’re happy they found a way to win when they weren’t sharp.
I find myself in the latter camp, especially regarding the offense. J.J. McCarthy missed a few deep shots we’ve seen him hit before and eventually connected with Ronnie Bell for a 49-yard completion down the sideline. He abandoned a clean pocket or two and took a couple sacks when he didn’t sense pressure.
C.J. Stokes, replacing the injured Donovan Edwards, lost a fumble on the first RB carry to go to one of Corum’s backups. Jake Moody uncharacteristically pulled a 43-yard field goal attempt way left of the uprights.
So, yes, Michigan left a lot of points on the field before we get to the playcalling. A few calls felt a little too cute when Corum was picking up a first down seemingly every time he touched the ball. Without Edwards, however, the coaches had to watch Corum’s workload, particularly once Stokes lost their trust in one attempt. The next man up, evidently, was walk-on Isaiah Gash.
Corum played nothing short of spectacular. His 243 rushing yards is seventh-best in a single game in school history and the most since Denard Robinson’s 235 against Purdue in 2012. He finished with a robust 30 carries. His two touchdowns occurred on eerily similar plays, bouncing to the outside when Maryland loaded up the box in short-yardage situations.
First, he regained the lead for U-M just before halftime:
Then, he functionally ended the game with under four minutes left:
In a conference loaded with elite halfbacks, Corum made his argument that he’s as good as any of them.
Michigan benefited from their share of good fortune, too. Moody’s opening kickoff bounced off the facemask of return man Tai Felton and right to Matthew Hibner, setting up a ten-yard touchdown to Luke Schoonmaker on the very next play. Even after a time correction, this took eight seconds of game clock.
When U-M held the Terps to a 53-yard field goal on the following drive, it felt like the game could get blown open early. Instead, the Wolverines replied with a field goal of their own, then Taulia Tagovailoa scrambles and powerful running from beefy RB Antwain Littleton tied up the game. The Stokes fumble ended U-M’s next drive after Corum had just ripped off runs of 24 and 23 yards.
The Terps took a 13-10 lead with another field goal to open the second quarter, which passed without any more points until Corum’s fourth-down TD with 0:22 on the clock. D.J. Turner ended Maryland scoring opportunity with a diving interception that didn’t look like a clean catch but never got reviewed.
The teams traded punts through the third quarter, most obnoxiously when Jim Harbaugh chose to kick it away on fourth-and-two from the MD 49-yard line.
A slant to Roman Wilson went for an easy 20-yard touchdown two plays into the final quarter; McCarthy did an excellent job of holding the centerfield safety for a beat, which was all it took for Wilson to make any help he could provide irrelevant. With a stop, U-M could put the game away.
Instead, they looked alarmingly disorganized — a theme throughout the afternoon — as the Terps covered 75 yards in 10 plays. Tagovailoa found Felton from four yards out to bring Maryland within five before his two-point conversion attempt ended up in the hands of Michigan’s Mike Sainristil.
The first time both units clicks at the same time was when it mattered, at least. Following a second Moody field goal, U-M safety R.J. Moten made the defensive play of the game, tracking a shot to Jacob Copeland and tipping it to himself for a remarkable interception.
Four straight Corum carries preceded a Minnesota timeout for third-and-four with 3:31 remaining. The fifth consecutive Corum carry went 47 yards to give the Wolverines a 34-19 lead.
The Terps removed a battered Tagovailoa. A soft-playing U-M defense made sure Maryland at least burned most of the remaining clock before they scored, though the touchdown was another ugly bust — for what felt like the umpteenth time, U-M was late getting aligned before the snap.
Freshman tight end Colston Loveland pounced on the onside kick to make sure we wouldn’t have to sweat out a Hail Mary.
No college football team makes it though the season without a stinker. Alabama was fortunate to escape Texas a couple weekends ago even after knocking out their starting quarterback. Georgia beat 1-3 Kent State 39-22 today.
Michigan will need to play much better games than today’s if they want to win the Big Ten. They’re still 4-0, play a much less dangerous Iowa offense next week and have shown plenty of potential to be elite. A handful of plays made this game much close than it should’ve been. There’s still a lot of upside to explore.
PLAYERS WHO JUMPED OUT ON FIRST WATCH
While a lot of immediate postgame analysis gets revised upon further scrutiny, sometimes you can feel good about certain instant takeaway. Here are a few players who jumped off the screen:
- Blake Corum. Obviously. Still, couldn’t lead with anyone else.
- Luke Schoonmaker. With Erick All out for the game and rumored to be possibly unavailable for the season with a back injury, Schoonmaker showed he’s a fine No. 1 tight end himself. He set team-highs with seven catches for 72 yards and made some key blocks to spring Corum on the second level.
- Mike Morris. His huge hit on Tagovailoa that briefly knocked the MD starter out of the game will be memorable. The better play, though, was the massive Morris tackling Taulia in space on the edge to prevent what looked like a sure first-down scramble.
- Mike Sainristil. Got beat once in coverage but that’ll happen. Also had a sack, a second TFL against the run, several thumping hits, a pass breakup and six solo tackles. A football player’s football player.