The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/998618
THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 143 Best Win: At Purdue There aren't many notable victories to choose from in this category, so the 28‑10 victory at Purdue Sept. 23 gets the nod by default. Believe it or not, the 7‑6 Boilermak‑ ers were the only team Michigan defeated in 2017 that finished with a winning record. Although U‑M won the contest by 18 points, it was much closer than the score would indicate. Locked in a scoreless affair with 5:19 left in the first quarter, redshirt junior quarterback Wilton Speight dropped back to look for an open receiver, unaware it was the last snap he would ever take in a Michigan uniform. Redshirt sophomore Boilermaker line‑ backer Markus Bailey came in on a blitz un‑ touched, and while he was wrapping up Speight for the sack junior defen‑ sive tackle Eddy Wil‑ son lunged helmet‑first into the back of the quarterback's neck. The injury ended Speight's season and was heavily criticized by head coach Jim Harbaugh as a dirty play in the days following the game. Fifth‑year senior John O'Korn was then inserted and shined in his first extensive play‑ ing time of 2017. He led the Wolverines on a 13‑play, 84‑ yard scoring drive early in the second quar‑ ter to put U‑M up 7‑0, only to see Purdue grab a 10‑7 advantage heading into the half. Neither team was able to sustain any significant drives in the third quarter. That changed late in the frame, though, when O'Korn mounted an 86‑yard scoring drive, capped off by a 10‑yard touchdown run from sophomore running back Chris Evans to give the Maize and Blue a 14‑10 lead. Following a Purdue three‑and‑ out, U‑M tacked on another score to go up 21‑10 with 10:36 left in the game, finally gain‑ ing some breathing room. Michigan all but put the game away on its third straight scoring pos‑ session, when Evans ripped off a 49‑yard scamper up the gut to give the Wolverines a 28‑10 advantage, sealing the deal. Worst Loss: Michigan State Michigan's 14‑10 home loss to Michigan State Oct. 7 basically summed up all the Wol‑ verines' 2017 struggles in 60 minutes. The defense did its part, but the offense couldn't get anything going all night long. On top of that, the Maize and Blue turned the ball over five times — to MSU's zero — and still had a chance to grab a victory on the final posses‑ sion. U‑M got off to a hot start, taking the game's opening possession on an impressive 16‑play, 64‑yard drive that resulted in a 30‑yard field goal by redshirt freshman kicker Quinn Nordin. An MSU three‑and‑out gave the ball right back to the Maize and Blue, who once again found themselves approaching midfield. However, a fumble by fifth‑year senior run‑ ning back Ty Isaac at U‑M's own 46‑yard line killed all the momentum and basically swung the game on a dime. The Spartans capitalized off the fumble with a touchdown drive of their own, and added another midway through the second quarter to go up 14‑3. Michigan went into the break trailing by that score, and the second half was when the floodgates opened — literally. Massive downpours made it difficult for either offense to move the ball, evidenced by both teams combining for nine three‑and‑outs in the second half. The Maize and Blue found the end zone, though, at the 8:09 mark of the third quarter, when fifth‑year senior fullback Khalid Hill ran it in from a yard out to trim MSU's lead to 14‑10. Michigan got the ball back with just 30 sec‑ onds left in the affair and attempted to mount a game‑winning drive. They made it all the way down to MSU's 37‑yard line, before a final heave from fifth‑year senior quarterback John O'Korn into the end zone fell harmlessly to the ground as time expired. U‑M's defense held MSU to just 252 yards and 2 of 14 on third downs, but ineffective of‑ fense, questionable play calling and careless turnovers wound up being the story of the night for the Wolverines, a narrative that was all too familiar in 2017. 2017 RESULTS Date Opponent Result Sept. 2 vs. Florida W, 33-17 Sept. 9 Cincinnati W, 36-14 Sept. 16 Air Force W, 29-13 Sept. 23 at Purdue W, 28-10 Oct. 7 Michigan State L, 14-10 Oct. 14 at Indiana W, 27-20 (OT) Oct. 21 at Penn State L, 42-13 Oct. 28 Rutgers W, 35-14 Nov. 4 Minnesota W, 33-10 Nov. 11 at Maryland W, 35-10 Nov. 18 at Wisconsin L, 24-10 Nov. 25 Ohio State L, 31-20 Jan. 1 South Carolina L, 26-19 THE BEST AND THE WORST Fifth-year senior John O'Korn (above) threw for 270 yards after coming on in relief of an injured Wil- ton Speight against Purdue. That was his best single-game performance since totaling 307 yards through the air while at Houston during the third game of the 2014 season. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL