Michigan Football at least avoided a shutout loss, but fell to Michigan State, 15-6. The Wolverines are now 5-4 this season with just two wins in the Big Ten. It wasn’t a good night for the offense and the defense had its own struggles.
We’ve all watched bad games in our lives, and this one will definitely be on the list of terrible performances. We’ll have to wait and see what happens with this program after what is turning out to be one of the worst Michigan football seasons in recent memory.
On that happy note, here are three winners and three losers after Michigan’s loss.
Look, we’re all disappointed. Michigan didn’t do much in this game, but the Wolverines only had two penalties for 20 yards. In a rivalry game, I was worried the tension would get the better of the Wolverines, but they managed to keep the penalties low. Again, in a game where you narrowly avoid a shutout, we’re going to pick out some of the positives.
We’ve been saying the same things about Jason Beck every week since the near-loss to Western Michigan. It’s another mind-blowing week. You think it can’t get any worse, but somehow it does. The rest of the technical staff is not doing much better. Even though the defense is really talented, it is starting to show vulnerabilities. Like a wall that has had to support too much weight and ends up deforming.
I didn’t like a lot of the decisions made by the coaching staff. Puntting from the 50 yard line on 4th down is cowardly. It wasn’t worth it either, as the defense stayed on the field for virtually the entire third quarter. I’m sure there’s some sort of game theory that says you try the two-point conversion first, but I don’t understand. You already know what you need to send this game to overtime. Maybe they were trying to get two two-point conversions to win in regulation, but come on.
Winner | WR Travis Johnson
Michigan freshman wide receiver Travis Johnson actually had some flashes in this one. They were late in the game when the Wolverines had a little more space to work with, but that’s a good sign if he decides to stick with Michigan in future seasons. He had three catches for 38 yards and averaged 12.7 yards per catch. He’s one of those players that gets people excited before the season; It’s nice to see him play some plays.
Well, the Wolverines lost the turnover battle. Phew. My bold prediction was that the Wolverines would lose the turnover battle, but I didn’t think it would be such a bloodbath. Michigan lost two fumbles and Tommy Carr threw two interceptions. While there probably won’t be a lot of optimism among fans as we prepare for the final games, the Wolverines clearly don’t have the talent to overcome losing the turnover battle at this point in the season.
Not much went right in this one, but Cam Brown delivered a phenomenal punt that pinned MSU deep. I’m not even giving credit to the entire special teams unit, because that ball hit the ground inside the five-yard line and barely moved. Although he had another punt that wasn’t great, there were so many things that went wrong in this game that I have to put it in the win column.
Okay, so maybe the special teams situation is worse than we thought when it comes to the field goal unit. These are two kickers who missed what should be chip shots. Today, Jacob Baggett missed a 26-yard field goal and didn’t have another chance since Michigan couldn’t move the ball.
Let’s continue the conversation! Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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