Free Press Sports Rainer Sabin answers 3 questions after Indiana’s 38-21 win over Michigan football.
Last summer, before the Wolverines became a bewildered mess, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh made one that still resonates today.
“Providence will favor the prepared,” he said in July.
Months later, your team is far from ready.
A few days after offensive coordinator Josh Gattis said the Wolverines had not been adequately prepared before their 27-24 defeat to the Spartans, Michigan was in trouble behind Indiana. The defensive line jumped several times offside. High school continued to generate big profits and the offense failed to chain readers into a combination of extended segments of the game.
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During Harbaugh’s sixth year in office, Michigan has become a rebellious and imperfect team that cannot neutralize its conflicting parties or play forged football that provides itself with an advantage.
At the moment in the back-to-back game, the Wolverines never even took the lead. Six of his first seven possessions ended with a clearing kick and his floor attack broke.
The defense continued to bleed. Against zone and men’s coverage, Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. set Michigan up with 343 yards and three scores.
The Hoosiers continued to fight the Wolverines even as Michigan controlled for an answer.
In the end, Indiana achieved a convincing victory, proving to be more powerful in phase and smarter than the dissexed Wolverine.
It’s been years since the Wolverines had a transcendent quarterback.
Based on Michigan’s sparkling preseason complaint, there was hope that Joe Milton would pick that player after winning the starting spot.
But Milton has still shown that he can perform at a high point consistently.
Against Indiana, several passes moved away from their target and ran the threat of being intercepted until they were intercepted regardless.
The faults nullify some of the attention-getting hits, adding a well-placed 37-yard landing hit in front of Cornelius Johnson in the first quarter that the first genuine functionality of the skill Gattis sang in September.
In the third quarter, Milton missed a pass to Ronnie Bell even though he ran through the middle of the outdoor area.
Later, when Michigan was in a desperate situation, Milton produced a missed shot that melted and sealed the Wolverines’ fate.
It’s Milton’s first rotation of the season, but it’s a result that raised doubts about whether he can help the Wolverines succeed in the face of fierce competition.
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At one point in Jim Harbaugh’s tenure, the Wolverines entered games with some of the sport’s most productive.
But transfers, early outings to the NFL, and suspicious recruitment in key spaces have reduced the skill pool. Michigan entered the year at a reduced depth, losing 57% of production as of 2019. Empty.
And on Saturday it can be argued that the Hoosiers had more dynamic weapons in many key locations, adding the quarterback, receiver and closed wing.
It’s a kind of calculation for Michigan.
Indiana, which hadn’t beaten the Wolverines since 1987, doesn’t have such remarkable merit in skill positions.
But overall, the Hoosiers looked and played as the most sensible team.
For Michigan, it was intended to be a development that invited reflection, as games opposed to Wisconsin, Penn State and Ohio State are coming up in their calendar.
Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress. com. Follow him on Twitter at RainerSabin. Get information about the Michigan Wolverines, Michigan Spartans and sign up for our Big Ten newsletter.