Observations on the loss to Penn State, 17-27

Penn State converted 5 red zones into 20 points; Michigan converted two red zone into 14 points. The Nittany Lions gained 3 points off one Wolverine turnover. Penn State led the whole way except a brief time when Michigan tied the game at 7-7 and the end of the first quarter; after trailing at half, 7-17, Michigan got within 3 points, 17-20, but the defense couldn't manage a stop to give the team a chance.

Michigan had 14 first downs with 286 net yards on 55 plays with 174 on the ground. Cade McNamara was 12 of 25 for 91 yards; team was 5 of 15 in 3rd and 4th down conversions. Hassan Haskins ran 17 times for 101 yards and 2 TDs. Chris Evans ran 4 times for 35 yards. Ronnie Bell caught 4 passes for 40 yards. A.J. Henning caught 3 passes for 31 yards including a 28 yarder. Joe Milton came in when McNamara injured his shoulder, but it was obvious that Penn State had a great game plan to contain the Wolverine offense regardless of quarterback. Josh Gattis has done nothing as Offensive Coordinator over two seasons; in fact, we are a worse offense under his leadership. Ditto with Ed Warinner; he has taken 4 star recruits over the past two seasons, and our offensive line is mediocre. Ellis Brooks had 6 tackles to lead Penn State's defense.

The defense should be ashamed! Penn State gained 25 first downs with 417 yards in 79 plays with 254 on the ground; the Nittany Lions were 8 of 16 in 3rd down conversions, and dominated time of possession by 13 minutes that resulted in 24 more offensive plays. Sean Clifford was 17 of 28 for 163 yards and ran 9 times for 73 yards including a 28 yard TD romp. Keyvone Lee gained 134 yards in 22 carries for a TD. Backup Quarterback Will Levis rushed 6 times for 25 yards and a TD. Parker Washington had 9 receptions for 93 yards almost always covered by Daxton Hill who continues to disappoint in coverage. Our defensive line is a sieve; Shaun Nua has done a poor job developing linemen over the past two seasons. Our new linebacker coach, Brian Jean-Terry has done little to impact the linebacking corps into filling gaps. Defensive backs coach Mike Zordich hans't developed a quality group of backs over 6 seasons despite recruiting 4 star talent. Don Brown continues to run a 3-4 defense that can't contain the run as linebackers don't fill gaps, and our edge is defeated by every opponent that chooses to run at our edge. Josh Ross led the defense with 12 tackles, Hunter Reynolds and Michael Barrett had 11 tackles each.

Special Teams were terrible. Mike Sainristil muffed a punt for the turnover that resulted in 3 points for Penn State; his replacement, Blake Corum, also fumbled a punt return. Both teams punted 4 times; Brad Robbins average was 37.3 yards with a long punt of 45 yards. Penn State hit two field goals to one by Michigan.

The Detroit Lions just fired Matt Patricia today so perhaps it would also be appropriate for Michigan to fire Jim Harbaugh as well; he and his staff were certainly outcoached by James Franklin and his staff today. The Wolverines are supposed to be the Leaders and Best; that description would not fit Coach Harbaugh after 6 years without a championship, and a legacy of poor preparation, poor coaching, and poor play by this year's squad. Things will go from bad to worse over the next two weeks with a 2-6 finish on the 2020 campaign. Leadership change is needed for the Michigan Football Program as we have the worst team in our division. If we lose to Maryland next week, it will be the first time in Michigan Football History (133 seasons, 1879 to 2020) that the Wolverines will have failed to win at least one home game; today's loss also marks the first time Michigan has ever lost to a 0-5 team.

Observations on the first half with Penn State Box Score Player Participation Highlights Post Game Press Conference: Harbaugh Andrew Stueber Taylor Upshaw