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Michigan absolutely has to win Saturday vs. Indiana. Back-to-back losses would essentially incinerate the season. This year can still be special for the No. 9 Wolverines (No. 7 CFP), but not if they lose to the struggling Hoosiers.
Banged-up at QB, the Hoosiers will start true freshman Donoven McCulley, who’s making his second start against one of the best defenses in the country.
Traditionally, Michigan has its way with the Hoosiers, but the past handful of seasons have provided competitive games. This year, though, the Hoosiers are hobbling along and looking for their first conference win. They haven’t won on the road (0-3) and have lost 4 in a row.
Michigan needs to blow out the Hoosiers. This is the game to take out remaining aggression from this past Saturday’s 37-33 loss to Michigan State in East Lansing. Something in the range of 38-10 or 42-7 seems likely to happen in Ann Arbor this weekend.
Let’s take a look at 5 players who will heavily influence the outcome for Michigan, which remains in good shape — but really needs this one — after a heartbreaking defeat to the now-No. 3 (CFP) Spartans.
Hey rookie, watch out!
McCulley, in his second start, has the misfortune of facing one of the most ferocious edge rushers in the nation. In addition, Aidan Hutchinson might be the best overall player in the country. With 7 sacks, Hutchinson, a guaranteed top-10 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, is ranked among the top QB hunters in the country — he’s No. 13 in the nation, and his sacks have resulted in 32 lost yards.
Hutchinson could very well end up with a couple of sacks Saturday. He’s more than halfway to breaking Michigan’s single-season record of 12 (David Bowens, 1996; LaMarr Woodley, 2006), and Indiana’s line hasn’t given reason to suggest it’ll do much to stop the 6-6, 270-pound wrecking ball.
Wait … look again!
McCulley doesn’t just have to worry about Hutchinson, he has to worry about LB David Ojabo, who is tied with Hutchinson in terms of total sacks (7) and national ranking. Ojabo’s sacks have resulted in 50 lost yards. Along with Hutchinson, Ojabo played a stellar game this past Saturday against Michigan State — which has a formidable offensive line.
Indiana lacks sorely in all areas, so Ojabo should find his way into the face of McCulley a few times this weekend.
Career day, Round 2?
Cade McNamara threw for a career-high 383 yards this past Saturday against Michigan State. He couldn’t have played better, completing 28 of 44 attempts. There was a bad drop on a swing pass to RB Blake Corum that could have been 6 points, and a throw to WR Cornelius Johnson — which was dropped — that could have led to points. Saturday’s loss wasn’t McNamara’s fault.
If anything, he proved that, beyond a shadow of a doubt, he’s the only guy who should be starting for the Wolverines.
McNamara is always one to watch, but keep your eyes on him Saturday. He might just set the Hoosiers on fire. IU’s pass defense is No. 13 in the Big Ten, giving up about 250 yards per game. Remember what McNamara did to MSU? The Spartans have the No. 14 pass defense in the Big Ten, giving up more than 300 yards per game.
The stage is set for a major showing by McNamara, whose team is in need of a feel-good romp in order to regain some confidence.
The new kid
Michigan, at least during the past few years, has had WRs emerge, submerge, then re-emerge … it’s been a weird cycle. Just when you think a guy is going to do something, he transfers, gets injured or falls behind on the depth chart.
Andrel Anthony’s fate at Michigan has yet to be determined. But if he’s anything close to 6 catches for 153 yards and 2 TDs, he’ll be a factor against the Hoosiers. Anthony burned MSU with that stat line this past weekend. He’s ready to go.
Michigan has weapons at WR, it’s just a matter of which ones are going to remain consistent.
Midway through the season, it was big-bodied WR Daylen Baldwin. Maybe it’s now time for Anthony, a slender speedster, to be the go-to WR for the rest of the year? He’s facing another defense that gets burned on soft coverage and has trouble in man-to-man. Anthony’s speed could be a serious problem for Indiana.
Feed the TE
In his 2 previous seasons, Erick All had 13 catches to his credit: 1 as a freshman in 2019, and 12 during a 6-game season in 2020. This past Saturday, he had a career-high 10 catches for 98 yards, boosting his season reception total to 26. All has steadily seen more balls come his way. Michigan hasn’t involved TEs in the offensive plan quite as much as in years past.
At 6-4 and 245 pounds, All has shown improvement in route running and securing the ball. In arguably the biggest UM vs. MSU rivalry game in more than 50 years, All came through with a superstar-like performance. Some inconsistency at WR could be balanced by All becoming more of a factor.
Adam Biggers brings his expertise on the Michigan beat to Saturday Tradition. Follow him on Twitter @AdamBiggers81.