Observations on the win over Northwestern, 20-17
Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good, and this football team is not very good. The Wolverines rallied in the second half with 3 red zones for 13 points, and held the Wildcats scoreless after they scored 17 points in three red zone opportunities on their first three possessions as they pulled out a 20-17 win. Turnovers were not a factor in this game as neither team committed any.
Offense was not good, but did enough to earn 20 points in 4 red zones. They 376 yards in 66 plays with 180 on the ground for 18 first downs. Sean Patterson was 15 of 24 for 196 yards, and scrambled for an additional 31 yards on 7 carries after being sacked only once. Karan Higdon gained 115 yards in 30 carries for 2 TDs plus a 9 yard pass. Nico Collins had 6 catches for 73 yards including a 36 yarder that put us in the red zone. We were 7 of 17 in 3rd and 4th down conversions, and dominated time of possession by 9 minutes including 22 of 30 minutes in the second half.
Defense started bad, but completely smothered the Wildcats in the second half. Northwestern gained 202 net yards in 63 offensive plays for 15 first downs, but only 5 in the second half. Clayton Thorson was 16 of 27 for 174 yards, and ran 11 times for -36 yards after 6 sacks were deducted; he did score a first half TD. John Moten carried 13 times for 36 yards and a TD. Northwestern was 5 of 13 in 3rd down conversions. Chase Winovich led the defense with 9 tackles with 3 tackles for loss including a sack; Tyree Kinnel and Jordan Glasgow had 6 tackles each, and Josh Uche and Kwity Paye had 2 sacks each.
Will Hart punted 6 times for a 51 yard average with two inside the 20. Justin Moody had 5 kickoffs with 4 touchbacks. Quinn Nordin hit two field goals. We had 11 penalties for 100 yards as we are an undisciplined squad, and one of the most penalized teams in NCAA Division I football for the first time in the history of Wolverine Football.
We really dodged a "bullet" with the announcement on September 24 by Northwestern that Jeremy Larkin retired due to injury; if he had played, we probably would have lost. On the bright side, the 17 point comeback on the road was the second greatest comeback in Michigan Football History; the game on October 10, 2003 with Minnesota that we won 38-35 after falling behind, 7-28, in the third quarter was the largest deficit that we came back from on the road. I hope Coach Harbaugh will have his team ready for Maryland next week as Wisconsin, Michigan State and Penn State are coming up in the ensuing weeks. Go Blue!
Press Conference for Northwestern on September 24: Harbaugh Rashan Gary Nico Collins LaVert Hill Ben Bredeson