“Thankfully, the Michigan offense is built for this.”
One of my colleagues on the Ohio State beat sent that tweet with 4:00 left in regulation. Michigan was 90 yards away from the endzone with no semblance of a passing game. Hate it as I did, the man was right.They are – quite definitively – not built for that.
It didn’t matter.
I’ll never forget the roar when Kalel Mullings broke loose. When he first dashed ahead – needing one but grabbing ten – the crowd cheered in appreciation. Maybe Orji dials up a deep shot? Maybe we can dink-and-dunk our way down the field?
Maybe we – WAIT A SECOND IS THAT MAN STILL RUNNING?
The cheer of those trying to cling to hope exploded into a roar of riotous belief.And after another two minutes of hold onto your butts, Kalel smashed into the endzone at long last.
Kalel Mullings was built for this.
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Can Michigan win out running the ball more times (47) than they have passing yards (32)? Obviously not. But also…maybe? I don’t know.
What I do know is that the passing game should only improve from here. I’m not sure how it could be any less effective. 32 passing yards was Michigan’s lowest since the 1980s. By my count, that makes Michigan a service academy. Michigan Football is now the sixth branch of the military (replacing Space Force, obviously).
But, in all seriousness, the passing game is going to improve for at least two reasons. First, this was Alex Orji’s first career start. Home underdog to USC in a season-defining situation is not where I want my running quarterback zipping the ball around. With this start under his belt, he’s likely to feel a lot more comfortable running the offense and that matters.
The second reason is that the number one safety valve for a team struggling to throw the ball didn’t play a single snap. Colston Loveland – who’ll probably win the Mackey – was held out with an injury (and, fwiw, it’s still TBD on what that means for Minnesota). The one bright spot of Michigan’s lackluster passing offense not playing is going to instantly cut in half the number of passing plays Michigan calls.
One-dimensional? Yep. Will it get better? Also yep.
Will it get A LOT better? Probably not.
But Michigan refused to let it’s QB put the ball in harm’s way. Yes, Donovan fumbled (oof). Yes, so did . . . *checks notes* . . . Kenneth Grant.
Yeah, it’s gritty not pretty. But Alex protected the football. This has been the #1 thing Sherrone Moore preached when evaluating who would get the starting job. And – like – yeah! That should be a no-brainer. Which is why Davis Warren starting for three games made absolutely no sense, especially after Texas. If Warren starts this game, then sure! You get a “more balanced offense” – and USC stuffs Michigan in a locker with at least three takeaways.
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Minnesota provides a wildly different team than USC. The Gophers have a decent running attack but that’s about it. Their defense is susceptible to the run, as evidenced by Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson posting 206 yards and 3 TDs on 21 carries. (For the record, Cade McNamara threw for a total of 62 yards. Remember when he called JJ McCarthy “the other guy”? Fun times!)
Michigan’s gameplan will remain the same moving forward. Additional passing opportunities simply because you have to if you’re going to beat Ohio State and Oregon. (Also Illinois, weirdly. And maybe Washington, though I’m not convinced). But the number one thing Michigan will avoid on Saturday is letting the quarterback put the ball in harm’s way. You’ll try stuff, sure. But you will see Michigan run the ball – a lot. You’ll see Michigan’s defensive line grind the Gopher OL into a fine powder.
Three yards in a cloud of dust.
Woody and Bo would be proud.
MICHIGAN 27
MINNESOTA 6
