Know Your Opponent: Michigan Wolverines
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Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)
Head Coach: Jim Harbaugh
Overall: 8th season, 66-24
Bowl Appearances at Michigan: 6
2021 Record: 12-1
Mascot: None
Colors: Maize and Blue
Outfitter: Jordan Brand
National Titles: 11
Conference Titles: 43
Heisman Winners: Three
Last Week: 27-14 win at Iowa
Statistical Leaders
Passing: J.J. McCarthy – 66-84 (78.6%) with six TDs and 0 INTs
Rushing: Blake Corum - 93 runs for 611 yards with 10 TDs
Receiving: Ronnie Bell – 19 catches for 269 yards
Tackles: Junior Colson – 37 tackles (7.4 per game)
Stat of the Week: Blake Corum currently leads the nation in rushing touchdowns (10) and is sixth in the country in rushing yards per game (122.20) despite only 18.6 attempts per game. In total, Michigan is 13th in the country in rushing yards per game with 221.8 yards per contest. Michigan has the most rushing touchdowns as a team in the entire country as the Wolverines have scored 19 times on the ground.
Wolverines Talking Points
1. A Mammoth Challenge
Indiana’s challenge on Saturday is a massive one. The Hoosiers are coming off of back-to-back losses, played a sloppy and disappointing contest in Lincoln their last time out and now host one of the nation’s best teams. The Michigan Wolverines are sixth in the country in scoring defense (11.6 points per game), surrendering only 94.20 rushing yards per game, 157.8 passing yards per game. That puts them in the top 15 nationally in each major defensive category. They also have a dominant ground attack led by Blake Corum and a strong offensive line and have bludgeoned each of their opponents at the line of scrimmage. Fans of the Hoosiers will know, that does not bode well for Indiana on Saturday.
2. Slowing Down Blake Corum
The fulcrum of the Michigan offense is Blake Corum. The junior running back has established himself as one of the top backs in the nation and he’ll be every bit the challenge that Illinois’ Chase Brown in IU’s opening game of the season. Corum is averaging 6.57 yards per carry and leads the nation with ten rushing touchdowns. The IU defense has been up and down against the run, playing incredibly well upfront at times and getting gashed at others. In total, they are giving up just 3.32 yards per carry and have only allowed four rushing touchdowns to opponents all season. Those are pretty good numbers and the Hoosiers will be hopeful they can at least put up some resistance to Corum. The goal is to for Michigan into third and long and hope you can pressure J.J. McCarthy into some mistakes, something he hasn’t really done thus far. Iowa was able to slow the Michigan offense down in the second half but the Hawkeyes attack could not muster enough offense to challenge the Wolverines.
3. Can IU Find Any Holes in Michigan’s Defense?
The answer to this question is, probably not. Through five games, no opponent has really been able to crack one of the country’s best defensive units and the IU offense has not shown the necessary traits to expect them to be the first to do so. The Hoosiers are now averaging only 27.2 points per game after a very disappointing showing against a weak Nebraska defense. IU is averaging only 3.33 yards per carry and Connor Bazelak is now completing only 52.8 percent of his passes while averaging just 5.8 yards per attempt. That completion percentage is nowhere near good enough to be effective against good defenses. The Hoosiers will hope to have top targets Cam Camper and DJ Matthews back and that should help but if there is not a substantial change on both sides of the ball prior to this matchup with the Wolverines, things could get ugly on national television as Michigan tries to continues its quest back to the College Football Playoff.