Observations on the win over Indiana, 31-20
Michigan came down the field to set up 8 red zones, but only came away with 25 points on 6 field goals and a TD. Indiana converted 3 red zones for 17 points. Neither team could score off 3 turnovers including 2 by the Hoosiers.
Offense gained 25 first downs, 507 yards on 78 plays with 257 yards on the ground, and were 8 of 16 in 3rd and 4th down conversions. Shea Patterson was 16 of 28 for 250 yards and a TD plus an interception to 11 different Wolverine receivers; he ran 9 times for 68 yards. Karan Higdon ran 21 times for 101 yards and a TD, but Indiana really held our running game in check for 7 of 8 red zones. Chris Evans ran 10 times for 44 yards, and Tru Wilson contributed 42 yards in 6 carries. Nick Eubanks caught a 41 yard TD pass. Zach Gentry caught 2 passes for 83 yards. Ronnie Bell caught a 31 yarder. Nico Collins caught 3 passes for 32 yards. Donovan Peoples-Jones caught 2 passes for 30 yards. We dominated time of possession by nearly 12 minutes, but only gained a 3 play advantage. Andrew Stueber replaced Juwann Bushell-Beatty at Right Tackle. Marcelino Ball had 10 tackles for the Hoosiers and an interception; he also played on offense with one carry for 3 yards, and on special teams with kickoff returns.
Defense held Indiana to 3 points in the second half with one red zone, and that was the difference. The Hoosiers gained 21 first downs, 385 yards on 75 plays including 190 on the ground; they were 9 of 20 in 3rd and 4th down conversions. We forced the Hoosiers into 3 punts and 2 turnovers, but the Hoosiers only had one "3 and out" on the day. Peyton Ramsey was 16 of 35 for 195 yards and a TD plus an interception; he ran 7 times for 51 yards after 2 sacks were deducted by Rashan Gary and Devin Bush. Freshman Stevie Scott ran 30 times for 139 yards and a TD. Indiana converted 5 "big plays" of 20+ yards against the defense with two of those resulting in red zones. Devin Bush led the defense with 11 tackles; Rashan Gary and Tyree Kinnel had 9 tackles each. Josh Metellus had 6 stops, and Kwity Paye had 5 tackles plus he forced a fumble recovered by Khalek Hudson. Bush, Metellus, Aubrey Solomon, Chase Winovich, and Berkley Edwards all left the game with injuries; it was a long afternoon and a lot of cramping took place late in the game.
Special Teams was solid! Freshman Jake Moody hit a school record 6 red zone field goals of 23-33 yards replacing Quinn Nordin. Moody also hit 9 kickoffs with no returns including 4 touchbacks, and 5 fair catches. We also stopped an Indiana fake punt in the 4th quarter on a tackle by Devin Bush. Donovan Peoples-Jones had an 8 yard punt return. Indiana's strategy is to not kick off to us deep, and simply pooch kick us into field position; however, their strategy didn't work very well as they couldn't pin us deep while we pinned them at the 25. Brad Hawkins returned one kick to the 39, Berkley Edwards returned another to the 36, and Pete Bush fair caught another at the 38. Will Hart only had to punt once on the afternoon with a 35 yarder to the 20 in the first quarter. Indiana hit both their field goal attempts by Logan Justus, and they punted 3 times for a 38.3 yard average. We were able to gain better field position over Indiana all afternoon with our special teams play.
Bring on the Buckeyes! Big Ten Championship Week at Columbus! Go Blue!