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Washington visits Michigan on Saturday night in a crucial early-season clash. Kick-off is 8:14 p.m. ET (ABC).
Both teams opened the season last Saturday at home. Michigan defeated West Michigan 47-14. Washington, ranked No. 20 in the AP poll, was stunned by Montana, an FCS program, 13-7. The Wolverines have insisted this week that they don’t place much importance on the upset.
Michigan is 7-5 against the Huskies, with four of those games at the Rose Bowl and the last one in 2002.
Michigan is a 6.5 point favorite according to punters. Here’s a look at what to expect on Saturday.
Michigan’s offensive against Washington’s defense
Michigan totaled 551 yards in Game 1, including 335 rushing. Running back Blake Corum had a breakout game to start his sophomore year (14 carries for 111 yards and one touchdown, plus a receiving score), showing patience and speed. Freshman Donovan Edwards (six races) made his debut with a more aggressive running style than he had shown in training. Hassan Haskins (13 races, 70 yards, touchdown) was his usual productive self.
Michigan’s two quarters were both effective and at times electrifying. Starter Cade McNamara had two passes on the line of scrimmage; his other nine pass attempts were intercepted, including a 76-yard touchdown to Ronnie Bell. Five-star freshman JJ McCarthy threw a rocket arm and teamed up with Daylen Baldwin on a 69-yard touchdown pass.
Bell was lost for the season with a knee injury. How Michigan replaces production will be something to watch on Saturday. Baldwin, a transfer from Jackson State, was hit before the season; he took the field after Bell’s injury and made a good adjustment midway through his touchdown. Look for him to play a bigger role. Cornelius Johnson will likely get more targets as well.
Moving the ball won’t be easy on Saturday. At the start of the season, Washington’s defense had to be very good. Despite everything that went wrong in the first game, the defense did not disappoint. Montana only managed 10 first downs and 232 yards.
The Huskies didn’t force a turnaround and only had one sack, but Montana got three offensive detention penalties. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh called linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio (No.48) an “attacking machine” and referred to two “elite” cornerbacks (Pro Football Focus ranked Trent McDuffie and Kyler Gordon as the seventh best cornerback tandem in the country at the start of the season).
Washington offensive against Michigan defense
Washington scored on their first try against Montana and not again the rest of the night. Offensive online play was poor as the Huskies struggled to gain much on the ground (65 yards and 27 attempts) and protect their quarterback.
Dylan Morris, the returning QB starter, often threw behind his targets and ended up with three interceptions. Washington head coach Jimmy Lake was asked this week about staying with Morris over five-star freshman Sam Huard and said Morris earned the job during training. “Dylan Morris is our starting quarterback,” Lake said twice.
Huard was ranked third quarterback in the category, two spots ahead of McCarthy. His father, Damon, and his uncle, Brock, each held Washington’s career passing yardage record after graduating.
Michigan knows a change is possible, but assistant coach Steve Clinkscale has said it won’t affect defense preparation as he doesn’t anticipate a significant schematic change to Washington’s offense regardless or the quarterback.
Morris or Huard would benefit from a healthier reception body. Washington’s top three return receivers – Terrell Bynum, Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan – all missed the Montana game with injuries.
They “are all week to week,” Lake said. “We will get them back at some point. We will see how these injuries evolve.
On top of that, Texas Tech transfer Ja’Lynn Polk suffered an injury in his first capture and is likely out for at least a few months. Washington was forced to use wide-outs that had never caught a pass for the Huskies, including Michigan transfer Giles Jackson. Morris relied on the talented tight end Cade Otton (eight catches, 82 yards).
“We have to give our guys a better plan to continue to run the game and also a better plan to protect our quarterback,” Lake said.
It will be a challenge against the Michigan defense, which showed an improvement over last season against Western Michigan. Having a game’s worth to study will help Washington’s offense, but the Huskies have plenty of mistakes to correct after such a dismal performance.
Special teams
Michigan kicker Jake Moody made his two field goal attempts on Saturday, including one from 37 yards. The Wolverines were sold for kick and punt coverage. After Bell injured himself returning a punt, Michigan turned to Caden Kolesar. It appears Harbaugh would rather use Kolesar elsewhere in the unit and one of his more explosive players (AJ Henning, perhaps) returns the punts. We’ll see on Saturday if anyone else has earned Harbaugh’s trust in training.
Lake called Washington special teams “strong” against Montana, although he was not happy with two punt returns from Montana (27 and 18 yards). Kicker Peyton Henry missed his only field goal attempt, a 50-yard shot in the second quarter. Jackson, who returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in Michigan, will take on that role for the Huskies.
More pre-game content:
Big Ten football power ranking: several surprises of the opening week
Could Dax Hill become Michigan’s secret defense weapon?
Running out of time, Michigan OL Chuck Filiaga becomes “bad”
Michigan football’s Joel Honigford is faster, lighter and plays a bigger role after a change of position
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