The Biggest Loser
One of the two winningest programs of all time was
going to go 0-3 today; fortunately it was the Irish
Prior to today Michigan’s season bore some resemblance to their 1998 team that started the season 0-2. Today’s 38-0 drubbing of Notre Dame was reminiscent of the 2003 matchup between the Wolverines and the Fighting Irish. The Wolverines won that game by the same score and also lost to Oregon that season.
With the BCS Championship game now out their reach, the Wolverines are playing for a Rose Bowl bid. The comparisons to the 1998 and 2003 squads at least provide Wolverine Nation with hope that this squad can do what those football teams did: win a Big Ten championship.
Michigan kicked off the season in possibly the worst fashion imaginable, losing to 1-AA Appalachian State and getting blown off the field by the Oregon Ducks. A dominating victory this afternoon over one of their biggest nemesis was exactly what this team needed. The Michigan defense proved to be much better at defending a traditional offense as they completely shut down the Notre Dame rushing attack and put heavy pressure on freshman quarterback Jimmy Clausen. The Irish rushed for only 27 yards on 32 carries. Clausen went 11 for 17, but many of the passes he completed were screen passes as he had very little time in the pocket due to a strong pass rush. He was sacked 8 times and threw one interception.
Crable and Graham were in the Notre Dame backfield all game
Photos: MGoBlue.com
Brandon Graham had a huge impact on Michigan’s defensive line, as both he and Shawn Crable were largely responsible for the pressure Clausen felt all game. The defense routinely gave the offense a short field to work with, which was exactly what Lloyd Carr would have wanted for Ryan Mallett’s first start under center for the Wolverines. Here is where each Michigan drive started in the first half.
1st Drive: ND 43 yard line
2nd Drive: ND 20 yard line
3rd Drive: Michigan 21 yard line
4th Drive: ND 38 yard line
5th Drive: ND 48 yard line
6th Drive: Michigan 22 yard line
7th Drive: Michigan 48 yard line
The only other thing Lloyd Carr could have asked for in addition to brilliant field position was to have a strong running game to keep the pressure off Mallett. That’s exactly what the offensive line and Mike Hart provided, as the Michigan ground game tore through the Notre Dame defense for 286 yards rushing. Shortly before Mike Hart was lifted from the game in the second half he was averaging 10 yards per rush as the Irish defense was completely worn down at that point.
It was an easy afternoon for Ryan Mallett
Photo: MGoBlue.com
Mallett wasn’t asked to do much and he came through with flying colors. In the first half he went 5-12 for 71 yards and 2 touchdowns. However the Wolverines also drew two pass interference calls against Notre Dame. Mallett’s first touchdown pass went to Greg Matthews, while Adrian Arrington caught the second and Mario Manningham caught the third and final touchdown pass. The true freshman quarterback was rarely pressured and also showed the ability to look off his primary target before throwing the ball. If he starts next week against Penn State he’s not likely to have as many opportunities to get comfortable in the pocket as he did this afternoon.
As far as grading the coaches, everyone gets decent marks as you’d imagine.
Ron English: A. Blitzing the true freshman quarterback was obviously the way to go and that’s exactly what he did. Having Brandon Graham in the starting lineup seemed to help quite a bit as both he and Crable were in the backfield all afternoon long. Chris Graham also showed a much better understanding of how to force the ballcarrier back inside towards his help, which is something Lloyd Carr said his team needed to improve upon after the first two games. For one day at least they were up to the task.
Mike DeBord: A-. The run game was the best it’s looked so far this season. Mike Hart picked up 187 yards and there were even two screen passes thrown his way. Brandon Minor looked good as the second string tailback, racking up 81 yards at 4.8 yards per carry. The offensive coordinator kept Mallett’s workload light and it worked to perfection.
Lloyd Carr: A. At halftime the coach talked about how the team stayed together and had the right attitude. Team captain Mike Hart guaranteed the team would win this game and he took some flack for his bravado. Anyone who’s been fortunate enough to follow the tailback’s career at Michigan knows that guarantee wasn’t intended for anyone but his own teammates. It turned out to be a perfect example of the type of never say die attitude Carr’s team has and that’s a positive reflection on him. This team could have folded up shop after having their national championship dreams made a mockery of in the first two weeks. If they can win next week’s game against the Nittany Lions they can be taken seriously as contenders for the conference crown. brandon graham Michigan Football notre dame fighting irish ryan mallett Shawn Crable
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