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

