The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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138 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY ANDREW VAILLIENCOURT Over the last several years, Indiana has been the team that comes close to pulling off what seems like every upset imaginable, but then fades away at the end, allowing the favorite to once again escape with a victory. Michigan has been on the right side of those outcomes a number of times, pulling out an overtime win in Bloomington last fall — the second overtime win for the Wolver- ines in as many trips to Indiana. Fortunately for the Wolverines, they face the Hoosiers at Michigan Stadium this No- vember. They've beaten IU 22 consecutive times, dating back to 1987, the last time the Hoosiers won the matchup — and the lone time since 1968 they have beaten Michigan. Last season, it was a different narrative than years past for IU. Instead of a high- octane offense and subpar defense, it was the reverse. IU's defense ranked No. 27 nation- ally, allowing just 340.1 yards per game. The offense on the other hand, ranked No. 70, gaining 395.8 yards per contest under former U-M offensive coordinator Mike DeBord, who is now directing the Hoosier attack. The IU offense returns seven full-time starters, plus a few other part-time start- ers. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Peyton Ramsey is back after playing in nine games and completing 65.4 percent of his passes for 1,252 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions last year. He also ran for 226 yards and two scores. Despite the experience, though, he may not be the favorite to start at quarterback this fall. That would be Arizona graduate transfer Brandon Dawkins, who started over electri- fying dual-threat quarterback Khalil Tate for the first five games of 2017 before an injury caused him to miss six of the final eight con- tests. In 22 games at Arizona, Dawkins — a dual-threat quarterback himself — started 14 times and completed 56.3 percent of his passes for 2,414 yards with 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He also rushed for 1,582 yards and 20 touchdowns. Regardless of who is under center this fall, they will benefit from five returning starters along the offensive line and sophomore run- ning back Morgan Ellison, who broke out as a rookie to lead the team with 704 yards and six touchdowns on 143 attempts (4.9 yards per carry). He was third in the Big Ten in rushing among true freshmen and 10th nationally. The Hoosiers also return fifth-year senior wide receiver Luke Timian, who had more catches last year than any other returning player in the Big Ten (68). He totaled 589 yards and two touchdowns. The key at the position, however, will be redshirt junior Nick Westbrook, who missed all of last season after getting injured on the first play of the year. In 2016, he was second in the Big Ten in receiving with 54 receptions for 995 yards and six touchdowns. He should prove to be a top threat on the outside if he stays healthy. On defense, IU returns just four starters but three of them are in the secondary. Se- nior safety Jonathan Crawford has started all 38 games in his career. He is the team's leading returning tackler with 62, which ranked fourth on the squad last year, and has eight career interceptions. Redshirt junior Andre Brown Jr. will assume the lead spot at cornerback after starting 10 games last year. The player to keep an eye on, however, is redshirt sophomore "husky" Marcelino Ball. The husky position is a linebacker/safety hybrid — similar to the viper position at Michigan. He missed the final nine games of 2017 after suffering an injury, but received a medical redshirt and will be good to go this fall. He had 20 tackles in his three games last year, including 10 against Ohio State. Last year, IU tied for No. 11 nationally in sacks per game (3.0). However, with so many veteran players in the front seven needing to be replaced, the Hoosiers might have a hard time replicating that in 2018. If the offense is more balanced and the defense doesn't take too far of a fall, IU might finally have a chance to succeed at playing spoiler. Notes IU lost kicker Griffin Oakes to graduation; he was a con- sensus first-team All-Big Ten honoree last year after making 16 of 17 field goals … In 2017, the Hoosiers ranked eighth nationally in third-down conversion percentage on defense, allowing first downs only 29.9 percent of the time, while Michigan was No. 1 at 26.1 percent. ❏ The Hoosiers Are Seeking A Breakthrough In 2018 2018 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2017 Result Sept. 1 at Florida International — Sept. 8 Virginia W, 34-17 Sept. 15 Ball State — Sept. 22 Michigan State L, 17-9 Sept. 29 at Rutgers W, 41-0 Oct. 6 at Ohio State L, 49-21 Oct. 13 Iowa — Oct. 20 Penn State L, 45-14 Oct. 26 at Minnesota — Nov. 10 Maryland L, 42-39 Nov. 17 at Michigan L, 27-20 (OT) Nov. 24 Purdue L, 31-24 PLAYERS TO WATCH Offense: Brandon Dawkins, 5th-Sr., QB — The Arizona gradu- ate transfer completed 61.4 per- cent of his passes for 732 yards with fiv e touchdowns and four intercep- tions for the Wildcats in 2017 … He also ran 69 times for 459 yards and eight touchdowns … In 2016, he finished fourth in the Pac-12 with 94.4 rushing yards per game and was the only quarterback in the top 10 (he ranked fifth nationally among signal-callers). Defense: Marcelino Ball, R-So., Husky — As a freshman in 2016, the linebacker/safety hybrid finished third on the team with 75 tackles, and added two interceptions, eight passes broken up and 4.5 tackles for loss … He started 12 of 13 games that year and led all Big Ten rookies in tackles en route to consensus honorable mention All-Big Ten honors … Totaled 20 tackles in three games before taking an injury redshirt last year. Sophomore running back Morgan Ellison de- buted by leading the Hoosiers with 704 yards and six touchdowns on 143 rushing attempts. PHOTO COURTESY INDIANA GAME 11 • INDIANA HOOSIERS • NOV. 17 QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: U-M leads 57-9 First Meeting: U-M 12, IU 0 (Nov. 3, 1900, at Ann Arbor) Last Meeting: U-M 27, IU 20 OT (Oct. 14, 2017, at Bloomington, Ind.) Head Coach: Tom Allen, 5-8 at IU and overall (2nd year, but also coached IU in the 2016 Foster Farms Bowl) 2017 In Review: 5-7 overall, 2-7 Big Ten (T-6th East) Final 2017 Ranking: Unranked Returning Starters: 12 (7 offense, 4 defense, 1 specialist) Last Bowl Appearance: 2016 (Foster Farms Bowl vs. Utah, L, 26-24) Big Ten Championships (last): 2 (1967) RETURNING LEADERS Passing: Peyton Ramsey (1,252 yards, 10 TD, 5 INT) Rushing: Morgan Ellison (704 yards, 6 TD) Receiving: Luke Timian (589 yards, 2 TD) Tackles: Jonathan Crawford (62) Sacks: Jacob Robinson (4) Interceptions: Crawford (1)