FootballSaturday, October 10, 2015
8

What to Watch: ‘M’ seeks to
replace Ojemudia on defense

By ZACH SHAW

Daily Sports Editor

Both the No. 18 Michigan

football
team
and
No.
13

Northwestern enter Saturday’s
matchup with plenty to smile
about. The Wildcats (1-0 Big Ten,
5-0 overall) have already matched
their 2014 win total, and the
Wolverines (1-0, 4-1) can do the
same with a win Saturday.

Still, with impressive defenses,

struggling offenses and a small
sample size of ability, plenty of
questions remain in the matchup.
The Daily breaks down what to
watch for Saturday.

1. Will anyone score?

It’s
statistically
impossible

for a game to finish without a
score under today’s format, and
Michigan hasn’t played such a
game since 1938, but the sentiment
is there. The two teams are the best
in the nation in scoring defense —
Northwestern is first, allowing
seven points per game, and the
Wolverines are right behind at
7.6. With plenty of returning
contributors on defense and two
hard-nosed coaches leading from
the sidelines, both teams have
the ability to shut down the most
prolific offenses.

They won’t have to on Saturday,

though, as neither team has an
offense to match their ‘D.’ Both
teams have first-year quarterbacks
— graduate transfer Jake Rudock
for Michigan and freshman Clayton
Thorson for the Wildcats — and
have depended on their rushing
attacks to score. Even then, the
Wolverines are just 74th in the
nation with 27.8 points per game,
and Northwestern is 89th with
25.4. With the bulk of those points
coming
against
mid-major
or

weaker teams, don’t expect these
teams to surpass the game’s over/
under, set at 35 combined points.

2. Can Rudock replicate last
year’s rampage?

Though Rudock hasn’t put up

dazzling numbers as a Wolverine,
he has against Northwestern. In
Iowa’s 48-7 win over the Wildcats

last fall, Rudock averaged 19.9
yards per completion for 239 yards
before being pulled in the second
half.

Expect plenty of action for

Michigan’s four running backs
Saturday, but don’t be surprised
if Rudock — still learning much of
the playbook after missing spring
practices — airs it out Saturday.
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh
said in a radio interview Thursday
that Wednesday was Rudock’s
best practice to date, and as his
relationship with receivers grows,
so does his potential for big plays.

3. Who levels up with Mario gone?

Senior
linebacker
Mario

Ojemudia — who had been playing
more like Bowser before injuring
his Achilles on Saturday against
Maryland — is one of the only
major
injuries
Michigan
has

suffered since the season began.
Despite the general health of the

team, the loss of the 6-foot-2,
252-pound defensive end leaves
a sizable hole in the defense.
Ojemudia had recorded 19 tackles,
including six for loss in five games
in 2015.

Senior defensive end Royce

Jenkins-Stone
is
listed
as

Ojemudia’s primary replacement,
though
Harbaugh
indicated

Monday
that
sophomore

Lawrence Marshall would also
see increased repetitions. More
importantly, however, is whether
the defense as a whole can
replace the range and playmaking
ability
Ojemudia
possessed.

With one of the nation’s deepest
defensive fronts going up against
a
predictable
offense,
there

are plenty of potential options,
but senior defensive end Chris
Wormley is the likely candidate
to get the lion’s share of blitzes as
he looks to expand on his seven
tackles for loss, good for sixth in
the Big Ten.

4. Whose special teams are
more special?

In a game that is sure to feature

plenty of adept defense and inept
offense, special teams will likely
play a larger role in a low-scoring
affair. Michigan did a nice job
controlling reigning All-Big Ten
kicker Brad Craddock and likely
All-American returner Will Likely
in Maryland last week, but the
Wildcats feature the nation’s No.
3 kickoff return and No. 38 punt
return units. Kicker Jack Mitchell
is also fourth in the nation with 10
made field goals.

Michigan doesn’t boast the sexy

numbers, but fifth-year senior
punter Blake O’Neill, senior kicker
Kenny
Allen
and
sophomore

return man Jabrill Peppers have
been more than consistent enough
to give the Wolverines superior
net field position in all five of their
games this season. As always, the
winner of the game will score the

most points, but both teams can do
themselves a big favor on special
teams.

GRANT HARDY/Daily

Senior linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone is the No. 1 candidate on the depth chart to replace senior Mario Ojemudia, who injured his Achilles last Saturday at Maryland.

BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan Youth

1

Northwestern’s national ranking in scoring

defense, at seven points per game

1980

The last time Michigan shut out three

straight opponents
248.8

Northwestern’s rushing yards per game,

good for 14th in the country

3

Consecutive overtime wins for the

Wolverines in the series