The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1169070
OCTOBER 2019 THE WOLVERINE 31 in the game in the second half, and he was a big part of it. He was the latest first-time player who held his own in his first significant action, joining redshirt freshman cornerback Vincent Gray, and that bodes well for depth heading into the Big Ten season. Though not a first-time player, sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson also stepped up to make his first game-winning play against Army. He finished the contest with 10 tackles, including 1.5 of the Wol- verines' two tackles for loss. The first came on a second-and- eight in double-overtime where Hutchinson brought quarterback Kelvin Hopkins Jr. down for a three- yard loss — the Black Knights' first negative-yardage play of the contest. He then got home against Hopkins on the following play as well, split- ting a sack on the game's final snap with junior Kwity Paye and forcing the fumble that Paye recovered to seal the victory. HEALING UP Regardless of all the positives, the stats weren't kind to U-M through two games. As of Sept. 18, U-M ranked 21st in the land for total de- fense (272.0 yards given up per game), 41st in team pass efficiency defense (117.10 rating), tied for 51st in scoring defense (21 points surrendered per game) and 61st in rushing defense (133.5 yards allowed per game). They were also 28th in third-down defense (29 percent success rate allowed). Those stats and rankings were not where Brown's teams are accustomed to being. On the flip side, the Wolverines haven't been among the nation's lead- ers in forcing turnovers the past few seasons, and this year's squad is off to a great start in that respect. Junior corner Ambry Thomas notched a big interception in the win over Middle Tennessee State by jumping a route, and senior cornerback Lavert Hill helped save the game with a critical pick at the goal line in the third quar- ter against Army that prevented the visitors from going up by two scores. U-M was tied for 39th in turnovers gained (five; 2.5 per game) after notch- ing only 1.3 per contest all of last year (90th nationally) — but most teams ahead of them had played three times. They'd have had two scores, too, if not for some bad luck. Hill dropped what head coach Jim Harbaugh called "a can of corn" against MTSU at the Blue Raiders' 30-yard line with no- body in front of him, while Metellus had an obvious fumble return for a touchdown called back against Army when an official didn't do his job and ruled the safety's knee down at the spot rather than letting it play out and going to a video review. U-M would have gone up 14-7 late in the first quarter — instead the of- fense gave the ball back to Army on a fumble on the next play. Although the Black Knights did not score on the ensuing possession, they would later go up 14-7, forcing U-M to play from behind against an offense capable of taking the air out of the ball. "Why do you need to blow the whistle there?" Brown asked rhetori- cally. "Just let it play itself out and go take a look at it. That could be the dif- ference between success and failure. Those are killers. Guys get hired and fired, lose jobs, the whole thing over those things." Injuries can also be killers, and U-M has had to overcome a few. Red- shirt junior defensive tackle Michael Dwumfour played only one play with his hand in a cast before leaving the Middle Tennessee game, while red- shirt sophomore lineman Donovan Jeter was working his way back after sitting out the opener. Ross should return to the lineback- ing corps after his stinger, but it's the big guys in the middle who will need to emerge to deal with the Big Ten's better lines. Brown insisted he was looking for- ward to the challenge. "I really thought our guys played with great emotion, represented Michigan and laid it on the line," he said of his defense against Army. ❏ Sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is among the youngsters who have stepped up for the Wolverines in a major way. His tackle for loss and strip sack (which he split with junior teammate Kwity Paye) on the game's final two plays preserved the victory over Army in week two. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN