Ad Disclosure
Beating man coverage the key to Wisconsin defeating Michigan, says Urban Meyer
Published:
All eyes are going to be on Madison this weekend, with No. 11 Michigan traveling to Madison to take on No. 13 Wisconsin in the first marquee B1G matchup of the season.
It’s Jonathan Taylor against Michigan’s defense. Shea Patterson and the wide receivers against the Badgers’ secondary. The number of interesting matchups are countless.
But the one Urban Meyer will be keeping an eye on this Saturday is young quarterback Jack Coan and the Wisconsin receivers, and whether or not they can beat Michigan’s man coverage. If the Badgers can do that, they have an excellent chance to win.
“This is going to be all about, can Wisconsin beat man coverage,” Meyer said on BTN. “Can the quarterback Coan, do they have enough skill — because when Wisconsin’s really, really good, there’s a semblance of balance. I’m not saying it’s completely balanced because that’s not Wisconsin football. But you can stop the run. And the Wolverines will stop the run. Do they have enough firepower…do they have the capability of beating man coverage. If they do, I think they’ll win. If they don’t, I don’t think they’ll win.”
Coan has actually been really solid for the Badgers under center through two games this year. He’s thrown for 564 yards and five touchdowns without an interception while completing over 76 percent of his passes. Not too shabby.
But the competition level has been USF and Central Michigan — far from what he’ll see on Wisconsin. This will be a true test for the Badgers, Coan and the wide receivers.
It’ll be a test for Michigan, too, for that matter.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB