Wolverines would be able to pressure
the quarterback with a dominant
four-man line.
Junior end Frank Clark and
sophomore end Mario Ojemudia
were expected breakout players,
along with senior tackle Jibreel Black.
And a rotation that could go 10 deep
was supposed to keep U-M fresh,
allowing each defender to go hard for
three or four plays, and substitute out.
Four games into the season, the
defensive line was responsible for
4.5 sacks, barely making its presence
felt against the overmatched lines of
Central Michigan and Akron before
responding with a 3.5-sack effort in a
win over Connecticut.
Did that game represent the
breakout performance we've been
waiting for? Potentially. Clark
recorded two sacks on his own and
looked like the explosive player he
has shown flashes of, while redshirt
freshman Chris Wormley played with
an intensity we had not seen before.
But one game is not a trend and
the body of work over the entire
non-conference suggests U-M will
continue to have issues along the
defensive line. If Clark can replicate
his effort and with the return of
redshirt junior linebacker Jake Ryan,
perhaps pass-rush concerns will fade,
but nine sacks in four contests (2.3 per
game) still ranks U-M 39th nationally.
Soft coverage — Imagined: In
week two against Notre Dame, U-M
allowed Irish quarterback Tommy
Rees to dink and dunk down the field
with the intent of minimizing the big
plays. The strategy worked, with ND
completing five passes of 20 yards or
more, but none greater than 23 yards.
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