The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/201975
one else because of the teams they miss that could pose a threat to that defense like Ohio State and Wisconsin. If they get by Michigan, it would be really difficult for Michigan to have a realistic chance of overcom- ing that." The Maize and Blue are not ceding an inch, though. Not yet. "We're confident we can [win the Legends Division]," head coach Brady Hoke said. Five Reasons Michigan Might Not Win The Legends Division 1. Michigan has the hardest schedule: The Wolverines' five November foes boast a win-loss record of 29-10 for a .746 winning percentage. Michigan State's four November opponents are winning at a clip of .700 while Nebraska's five rivals are at .684. The numbers are close because everyone plays each other, but only Michigan must take on undefeated Ohio State. 2. The loss to Penn State could haunt U-M: Another loss could doom the Wolverines. If it comes to Michigan State or Nebraska, the Maize and Blue would be dependent on each of those teams having to lose two conference games and then hoping for a three-way tie between U-M, MSU and NU in which each team has lost to one of the other so that neither State nor Nebraska has the head-to-head over both rivals. Then it would come down to the records against division opponents. In other words, a lot has to happen for Michigan if it falls again. 3. The line is still a work in progress: Michigan will introduce its fourth starting offensive line against Michigan State, and no one knows for sure if this group will be any better than the previous iterations. The five, including freshman Kyle Bosch at left guard and redshirt freshman Erik Magnuson at right guard, had success against Indiana, but everyone does — IU allows 221.0 rushing yards per game — and it remains to be seen if the line can get it done against better rush defenses. 4. Big plays are killing the Wolverines: The Hoosiers had seven plays of 20 yards or more, including six passes, while Penn State connected on bombs of 29 and 36 yards on its game-tying TD drive. U-M had allowed 26 big plays in seven games, giving high-scoring offenses a vulnerability to take advantage of, and perhaps more dangerously, giving the weaker offenses, like MSU and Iowa, the chance to connect those three or four big plays it will take to put points on the board. 5. Special teams are slipping: Senior placekicker Brendan Gibbons has not been reliable lately, missing four of his last six field goal attempts, seeing two blocked because they were low. Meanwhile, junior punter Matt Wile is averaging only 39.6 yards per punt with just four of 23 pinning opponents inside the 20-yard line. The kicking and return games, with inconsistent sophomore Dennis Norfleet, are shaky.