Including 23 straight regular-season games and a school record-tying 19 straight games against Big Ten opponents, Michigan has now won 32 of its previous 35 games.
ARBOUR, Michigan — The Michigan football squad doesn’t require much explanation these days. The second-ranked Wolverines in the nation dominated Indiana 52-7 on Saturday afternoon after coming back from a 7-0 first-quarter deficit.
The Wolverines (7-0 overall, 4-0 Big Ten) won their eighth straight lopsided game. This season, they have outscored their opponents by a total of 276-47 points, including 180-31 in Big Ten play. JJ McCarthy, the starting quarterback for Michigan, has only tried four passes in the fourth quarter all year, while Blake Corum, the starting running back, has only seen four carries in the period. This season, no team has successfully moved the ball inside Michigan’s 10-yard line while on defence. Indiana advanced to the 10, but on the following three plays they gave up a tackle for loss, were penalised for a false start, and threw an interception.
The Wolverines continued to annihilate a conference foe even though Michigan began to dominate around 12:45 ET rather than kickoff time at 12:10.
Following the game, linebacker Michael Barrett joked, “It’s like coach always says.” “‘Business is booming in the ass-kicking business,'”
Yes, it is. Even the Wolverines’ sharpest detractors now have to acknowledge Michigan’s impressive run. The Wolverines defeated Rutgers 31-7 in their closest game so far, outgaining the Scarlet Knights 415-182 after the game’s opening drive. They also converted 10 of 13 third- or fourth-down opportunities and controlled the ball for more than 36 minutes of play time.
When it comes to remaining modest, looking for areas to grow in, and maintaining focus on objectives for the remainder of this season, Michigan has made all the proper statements. However, the Wolverines are performing well enough that identifying areas for improvement may be more difficult than the actual games.
“I feel like just all the guys (are) buying into, you know, actually learning everything and really taking the time to come in and watch extra film,” Barrett said. “Just be able to move our education to that 300-level, the next step. You can kind of simply take it up from there instead of making a tiny error.
Including 23 straight regular-season games and a school record-tying 19 straight games against Big Ten opponents, Michigan has now won 32 of its previous 35 games. The Wolverines are 7-0 for the third consecutive year, and through seven games, they have surrendered 47 fewer points than they did in their first seven games in 1973, which was 50 years ago.
Only 30 of those points, which is impressive, have been scored against Michigan’s starters. This is due to the Wolverines’ ability to stifle opponents’ run games before progressively becoming stronger and more deadly in the pass-rush and in coverage.
According to safety Keon Sabb, “you start to see some of their passion diminish throughout the course of the game.” “Like a boa cairns. All during the game, pressure should be applied continuously.
Barrett said, “Yeah, my favourite part is simply seeing their optimism fade away. Watching the battle just kind of fade away from them to the point where they were just like, “Let’s go home,” was frustrating. That’s probably my favourite emotion. then you can hardly feel the additional energy leaving.
Michigan is aware that its past two Big Ten titles weren’t achieved in October but rather through victories in November and December. The Wolverines have a leadership core that is concerned that if Michigan plateaus now, its season won’t conclude with a Big Ten title or a national championship. They brought back 15 of the team’s major starters from the previous season along with many important rotation players.
Even if the Wolverines are feeding on their opponents, that drive has retained the hunger in the Michigan locker room.
According to quarterback JJ McCarthy, it’s all we could have hoped for from ourselves. “The only people we are here to prove anything to are ourselves. There is still plenty for us to do. From this game, we still have a lot to learn. So, you know, we’re just always attempting to improve, pay attention to the next step, and be in the present.
The following contest will be a road game against Michigan State in East Lansing. The Wolverines have performed better than any other team in the nation thus far, but they do not yet feel like their best selves.
Colston Loveland, a tight end, said, “Every game is a struggle, but it’s like a challenge to, you know, we’re after excellence. Therefore, we are never satisfied since there is always something to tidy up. That, in my opinion, is our challenge: to be both as flawless and as crazy as possible.
“Things will happen, and adversity will strike, but, you know, we want to try to be the adversity,” the speaker said. We desire to play the bully.
