
Michigan football: Grading the Wolverines after win over Maryland
Michigan pulled off a 42-21 victory over Maryland on Saturday, and the score doesn’t tell the story of how well the Wolverines dominated. The Terps’ lone early touchdown came on a kickoff return and the other two came in the fourth quarter when Michigan was already ahead by 20 points. This was domination, and it was good for Michigan’s fifth win in a row.
Here’s what I liked and didn’t like about Michigan’s win:
What I liked
Karan Higdon runs so hard, and with such passion
Through the years, Michigan has had a lot of hard-nosed running backs, but Karan Higdon is working his way right into that group. He had another 100-yard day Saturday, and a lot of it came in short-yardage situations. He’s a battler. It also helps that Michigan’s offensive line keeps getting better. It’s making a difference.
Shea Patterson keeps making plays outside the pocket
Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson had his biggest day as a Wolverine, passing for 282 yards. He did a lot of that damage outside of the pocket, some on designed rollouts and some while just running for his life. He’s a playmaker, no doubt. “He’s a real weapon,” Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said. “He’s really growing, playing better and better every week.” The bigger games still lie ahead for Michigan, but Patterson certainly seems up to the challenge.
Michigan’s defense gets tough once again
Maryland could muster only 22o yards against Michigan, and got only 73 yards through the air. Even those numbers are deceiving and don’t show the Wolverines’ dominance because the Terps, who came into the game ranked fourth in the Big Ten at 258.5 rushing yards per game, had no such success against the Wolverines. The Terps had 147 yards on the ground, but 101 of those came in the final quarter when the outcome was no longer in doubt.
What I didn’t like
The weather. That is all.
No nit-picking today. (We’ll get to the 98-yard kickoff return allowed some other time.)