Observations on the win over Nebraska, 34-3
Michigan converted 4 red zones for 24 points; Nebraska converted one red zone for 3 points. Neither team turned the ball over, but the Cornhuskers recovered both their fumbles, and the Wolverines recovered their fumble for a TD.
Offense gained 412 yards with 264 on the ground, and 27 first downs; the Wolverines were 6 of 12 in 3rd and 4th down conversions. Blake Corum had 28 carries for 168 yards and a TD. J.J. McCarthy hit only 8 of 17 for 129 yards and 2 TDs, and was sacked twice; however, he also ran for a TD. Ronnie Bell caught 4 passes for 72 yards and a TD; he almost had another, but his fumble was recovered by Andrel Anthony for a TD. C.J. Stokes was impressive with 8 carries for 68 yards. Freshman Colston Loveland started in place of Luke Schoonmaker, and had 2 receptions for 40 yards. Michigan held an 11 minute time of possession advantage resulting in 20 more offensive plays. Luke Reimer and Ernest Hausmann had 10 tackles each for the Cornhuskers.
Defense held Nebraska to 146 yards with 75 on the ground, and 8 first downs; they were 6 of 16 in 3rd and 4th down conversions. Nebraska was forced into 7 punts, and three "3 and outs." Chubba Purdy was 6 of 12 for 56 yards, and ran 5 times for 39 yards until he left with a leg injury. Logan Smothers was 4 of 8 for 15 yards. Junior Colson led the Wolverines with 6 tackles including a sack. Mike Sainristil had 5 tackles including one spectacular tackle when a Nebraska player tried to leap over him; he quickly thought to elevate, and the player did not land well on the turf.
Special Teams were solid with 2 field goals by Moody. Great kickoff coverage with 7 kickoffs with 3 touchbacks, a fair catch, and 3 tackles by Joey Velazquez, Christian Boivin, Joe Taylor and Keshaun Harris allowing only 51 yards on those 3 returns. Brad Robbins had 3 punts for 119 yards with one downed inside the 20. A.J. Henning had two kickoff returns for 55 yards, and 4 punt returns for 11 yards.
All in all, it was a pretty boring game. Bring on the Illini! Go Blue!