Observations on the First Half with Northwestern, 7-17

Northwestern gained 3 red zones in their first three possessions, and converted all three for 17 points. Michigan gained one red zone for 7 points.

Offense was putrid! They gained 154 yards in 26 plays for 9 first downs. Sean Patterson was 7 of 12 for 65 yards. Karad Higdon gained 65 yards in 9 carries for a TD plus a 9 yard pass. Nico Collins had 4 catches for 30 yards. We were 1 of 7 in 3rd and 4th down conversions.

Defense was horrid! Northwestern gained 146 yards in 36 offensive plays for 10 first downs. Clayton Thorson was 10 of 14 for 109 yards, and ran 5 times for -3 yards after a sack, but scored a TD. John Moten carried 9 times for 19 yards and a TD. Northwestern was 4 of 7 in 3rd down conversions. Chase Winovich led the defense with 7 tackles. Northwestern dominated time of possession by 2:30 minutes which gave them 10 more offensive plays.

Special Teams were also bad! Three kickoff returns for 45 yards gave us terrible field position. Northwestern gained good field position with 2 punt returns for 21 yards. Will Hart punted 4 times for a 51.3 yard average with one inside the 20. We had 6 penalties for 65 yards including two pass interference/holding calls that really make our corners look BAD, VERY BAD!!!

Second Half needs to be all Michigan early in the 3rd quarter or it'll go right down to the end! Go Blue!