Free Press sportswriter Michael Cohen shares what he learned in Michigan Football's 47-14 win over Western Michigan and looks forward to Saturday's Wolverine game against Washington:
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Matchup: Michigan (1-0) vs No. 21 Washington (0-1)
Kickoff: 8 p.m. Saturday, Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor.
TV/Radio: ABC; WWJ-AM (950), WTKA-AM (1050).
Line: 1½ to Wolverine.
More from Cohen: Michigan's thumping win over J.J. A chance to impress McCarthy. and he gave
Know the Enemy: Washington
Washington's first five minutes of the 2021 season were spectacular: the Huskies received an early kickoff from Montana, a team in the Football Championship subdivision, and covered 78 yards in nine plays before punching the ball into the final field on a 1-yard run. Of. Quarterback Dylan Morris. Then everything collapsed. The Huskies were in utter embarrassment during their 13-7 loss to the Grizzlies, which put their season in jeopardy. Morris threw the same number of interceptions against Montana (three) as he did in four games during last year's short season. The Huskies could not throw the ball (4.9 yards per attempt), could not run the ball (26 carries for 53 yards as a team) and could not convert on third down (4 of 14). . They need to correct the ship - fast.
The player to watch over Washington is cornerback Trent McDuffie, a high-level NFL prospect widely regarded as one of the best defensive backs in the country. McDuffy is corner and leading a long line of Safaris, who played in Washington and were drawn in the opening round. He would eventually join the likes of CB Byron Murphy (2nd round, 2019); S. Taylor Rapp (2nd round, 2019); CB Kevin King (2nd round, 2017); S. Budda Baker (2nd Round, 2017); CB Sydney Jones (2nd round, 2017); CB Marcus Peters (1st round, 2015) and CB Desmond Truffant (1st round, 2013) as the next members of the so-called DBU - Defensive Backs University. McDuffie allowed a catch for 14 yards against Montana and broke two passes.
3 things we learned
Vincent Gray wasn't lying: Of the handful of players who spoke to the media ahead of Saturday's game with Western Michigan, Vincent Gray was the most vocal in expressing his appreciation for the changes to the defensive system. Gray told reporters he was ready to try something new under former coordinator Don Brown last year, who tasked his corners with playing man coverage almost exclusively for most of his stint at Ann Arbor. New defensive coordinator Mike McDonald mixed his coverage against the Broncos, although there were times when Gray and fellow starting corner James Green also played man-to-man. Gray was excellent regardless of whatever coverage MacDonald chose. According to Pro Football Focus, WMU quarterback Caleb Alleby threw four passes toward players covered by Gray and completed only one for zero yards. He really likes the new system.
Andrew Vasterdis generated the push in the run game: a graduate student referred to as "Gramps" by his fellow offensive linemen, Vastardis used a run blocker as a run blocker to build lanes for tailback Haskins Haskins and Blake Corum. performed excellently. Haskins averaged four attempts at 9 yards per carry, attacking either the middle right or the middle left, meaning either side of the Wastardis. And according to the PFF, Quorum averaged 8.25 yards per carry on four attempts to attack at equal intervals. Even third-string tailback Donovan Edwards averaged 6 yards per carry on three runs, attacking middle left gap. Vastardis finished Saturday with the highest run-blocking grade of all U-M offensive linemen.
Big Ten Misery Index: Why is Michigan's worst loss ever slightly better?
This team believes in Harbaugh: even though Saturday's game does nothing to assure the Wolverines success in the more difficult parts of their schedule, the way they did in front of a declared crowd of 109,295 spectators at Michigan Stadium in western Michigan. was surrounded. Why catharsis? If U-M went on to play poorly or lose the opener in a similar way to changes, contract discussions and verbal renewals of trust, things could quickly turn ugly inside Schiembler Hall. Instead, players have been open about Harbaugh's renewed commitment to the program, with quarterback Cade McNamara calling his coach "inspirational" during a postgame news conference. The players genuinely believe that Harbaugh can change the program.
3 things to watch
How will Washington react? While there were several major events that FCS schools lost to in Week 1, that does little to mitigate the humiliation felt by Washington on Saturday night. Second-year head coach Jimmy Lake, who was promoted from defensive coordinator after the 2019 campaign and once coached defensive backs for the Detroit Lions in 2008, was in front of him to regroup and regroup. It's a huge task to get started. phases of his tenure. Had the Huskies taken care of Montana and arrived in Ann Arbor with a 1–0 record, they probably would have been betting favorites. Instead, Lake's team is an underdog and will face a raucous atmosphere with their season on life support at Michigan Stadium.
Redemption for Giles Jackson? The former U-M wide receiver and return man entered the transfer portal after 2020 and landed in Washington, which is close to where he grew up in California. Jackson caught four passes for 15 yards against Montana and took the ball once for 7 yards. But he'll likely be searching for redemption next weekend in more ways than one: Jackson must be eager to not only do well in front of the school that recruited the former four-star receiver, but also get him a chance at the end of Saturday. should also be shaken. Loss. With 1:33 remaining in the fourth quarter, Morris saw Jackson on a slanting path to fourth and second to keep the game alive. But the ball went out of Jackson's hands for an imperfection that sealed the Huskies' fate.
Quarterback change for Huskies? Stop me if this sounds familiar: Behind Washington's starting quarterback is a former five-star recruit that fans in the Pacific Northwest have been dying to see. The only difference between Michigan and Washington is that Cade McNamara played a great game against Western Michigan. Backing Morris in Washington is true freshman Sam Huard from Bellevue, Washington, just outside of Seattle. Huard was placed two places ahead of McCarthy in the final 247Sports Composite ranking for the class of 2021 and had scholarship offers from Southern California, Florida and Tennessee before deciding to stay closer to home. Could Morris' three-blocking performance against Montana be enough to force Lake into a quarterback change? We'll have to wait and see.