8 — Friday, October 30, 2015
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

What to Watch 
For: Minnesota

By MAX COHEN

Managing Sports Editor

The No. 15 Michigan football 

team has had an extra week 
off since a last-second loss to 
Michigan State two weeks ago. 
While the Wolverines won’t get 
to erase that loss this weekend, 
they can exact revenge from 
another defeat from last season.

Michigan 
will 
travel 
to 

Minnesota, where it will play 
the Golden Gophers on Saturday 
night. Minnesota won the Little 
Brown Jug in crushing fashion 
last 
season, 
defeating 
the 

Wolverines in Ann Arbor, 30-14. 
This year’s game will be a chance 
to remedy the situation and bring 
the trophy back to Schembechler 
Hall. Michigan had defeated the 
Golden Gophers in six straight 
contests prior to last year’s game.

Here’s what to watch for 

Saturday.

1. How will both teams start?

There will be no lack of 

emotion in Saturday’s game. 
Michigan will be playing for the 
first time since its heartbreaking 
loss against Michigan State, in 
which a fumbled punt turned 
into disaster on the game’s final 
play. 
Minnesota, 
meanwhile, 

will be playing its first game 
without coach Jerry Kill, who 
retired Wednesday because of 
health problems.

The Wolverines have insisted 

all week that they will come out 
ready to play, motivated instead 
of defeated. But this team hasn’t 
yet had to face a great deal of 
adversity 
this 
season. 
Sure, 

Michigan lost its season opener 
at Utah, but that was no shock. 
This will be a different test 
altogether. The Wolverines have 
said that they will not let one 
loss turn into two, but Saturday’s 
game will be their chance to 
prove it.

From afar, it seems as though 

the Golden Gophers took Kill’s 
retirement hard. Players took 
to social media to wish him 
well and express how much Kill 
meant to them. While Michigan 
tight ends coach Jay Harbaugh 
said this week that he thinks 
Kill always had his team so fired 
up that it couldn’t possibly play 
any harder, it will be interesting 
to see if Minnesota comes out 
playing inspired in honor of its 
former coach.

2. Will Jabrill Peppers play 
more offense?

The redshirt freshman safety 

made a couple of appearances 
on offense against the Spartans. 
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh 
said Peppers could very well play 
offense in the future, but exactly 
how much remains to be seen.

When he went in on offense, 

Peppers had an immediate effect 
against Michigan State. Spartan 
coach Mark Dantonio called 
back-to-back timeouts the first 
time Peppers appeared with 
the offense, an indication that 
Peppers presented an immediate 
concern to the seasoned coach. In 
limited offensive action, Peppers 
finished with two receptions for 
35 yards.

It will be interesting to see 

how Harbaugh deploys Peppers 
on offense going forward. Is he 
a weapon to be used only against 
the toughest opponents, or is he 
going to become a regular part 
of the offense now that he has 
had more than half a season to 
settle in on defense? Jackson said 
this week that Peppers playing 
offense likely had to do with 
both of those factors. No matter 
the situation, Peppers playing 
more offense would certainly be 
a way to mix things up. 

3. How will Blake O’Neill 
respond?

The fifth-year senior punter 

has shown nothing but grace 
ever 
since 
his 
game-ending 

gaffe that filled sports highlight 
shows. He spoke to the media 
last week, emphasizing that one 
mistake will not define him.

But now comes the next 

part of the equation: actually 
kicking. While the Wolverines 
have expressed no doubts about 
their confidence in O’Neill going 
forward, it will ease the minds 
of fans to see him back in his old 
form, pinning opponents inside 
the 10-yard line.

4. Can Michigan’s defense 
return to its dominant ways?

Before 
the 
Wolverines’ 

defense surrendered 21 points 
against Michigan State — with 
the Spartans’ last touchdown 
coming on special teams — the 
unit had recorded three straight 
shutouts. 
Michigan’s 
defense 

had been suffocating until it 
faced the task of shutting down 
an experienced Michigan State 
offense, but even then, the 
Wolverines held their own.

This 
week 
will 
be 
an 

opportunity 
for 
Michigan’s 

defense 
to 
return 
to 
its 

dominance. The Golden Gophers 
have 
experienced 
mixed 

results offensively this season. 
Minnesota 
scored 
41 
points 

against Purdue on Oct. 10 but 
could not muster a score against 
Northwestern the week before.

The 
Wolverines’ 
defense 

should 
come 
out 
fired 
up, 

particularly senior linebacker 
Joe Bolden, who was ejected 
from the game against the 
Spartans for targeting. A fourth 
shutout of the season, especially 
after last week’s loss, would be 
quite an impressive feat.

BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan vs. Minnesota

101

Minnesota’s national ranking in total 
offense at 351 yards per game, heading 

into Saturday’s game vs. Michigan

28

Minnesota’s national ranking in total 

defense at 328.7 yards per game

100

The Gophers’ ranking in turnover margin 

(minus-.57 per game)
73-25-3

Michigan’s record in the series against 

Minnesota

RUBY WALLAU/Daily

Jabrill Peppers impacted all three phases of Michigan’s last game.

‘M’ to host Robert Morris

By KEVIN SANTO

Daily Sports Writer

New York was kind to the 

Michigan 
hockey 
team 

last 
weekend, 

as 
the 

Wolverines 
tied 
then-

No. 18 Union 
and 
defeated 

Rensselaer 
to 

preserve their 
undefeated 
record.

Now, 
No. 

10 
Michigan 

(3-0-1) 
will 

defend 
its 

home ice and 
untarnished 
resume 
against 

Robert Morris in a two-game 
series on Friday and Saturday.

And while the Colonials (2-0-

2) are unranked, the Wolverines 
do not intend to take them lightly.

“We’re preparing for a good 

team,” said Michigan coach Red 
Berenson. “Their power play 
looks to be much better than 
ours — and their penalty killing. 
Their numbers are better than 
our numbers, really.

That respect is warranted 

for a Robert Morris squad that 
boasts 24 goals in just five games.

Most notably, the Wolverines 

will need to contain forward 
Greg Gibson, who is headlining 
the 
high-powered 
offense 

coming off a five-goal weekend 
against Niagara. This could be a 
daunting task given Michigan’s 
defensive 
inconsistency 
(14 

goals in four games) as of late. 
Gibson also finished plus-three 
on the weekend.

More 
than 
anything, 
the 

Wolverines are trying to learn 
from their mistakes and turn 
last weekend’s shortcomings into 
this weekend’s edge.

“We want to be stingier,” 

Berenson said. “We can’t be a 
team that gives up four or five 
goals against and expects to win 
a game, so goals against (needs 
to improve), our power play has 
to be more productive, and our 
penalty killing has to be tighter.”

On the offensive side of the 

puck, senior forward Tyler Motte 
and 
freshman 
forward 
Kyle 

Connor leads the team with four 
and three goals, respectively, but 
they head a balanced attack. Four 
players are tied at two goals apiece, 
and Michigan will likely lean on 
its surprising support coming 
from the third line. Sophomore 
forward Tony Calderone and 

freshman 
forwards 
Brendan 

Warren and Cooper Marody have 
combined for six goals and five 
assists this season.

In terms of injuries, senior 

forward Boo Nieves will be out 
with an upper-body injury, and 
junior defenseman Kevin Lohan 
will be sidelined as well.

As Michigan hosts its second 

homestand of the season, the 
Wolverines will try to send a 
message to opposing teams that 
no performance is good enough to 
steal victories in Yost Ice Arena.

“We want to get off to a good 

start,” Berenson said. “I can’t 
say we did that last Friday when 
we played at Union. Even on the 
Friday before that, I don’t think 
we won the first period. We want 
to be a team that comes out of the 
gate fast and sharp at home and 
sets the tone for the game.”

Robert Morris 
at Michigan

Matchup: 
Robert 
Morris 2-0-2; 
Michigan 3-0-1

When: Friday 
7:35 P.M., 
Saturday 
3:05 P.M.

Where: Yost 
Ice Arena

TV/Radio: 
BTN Plus

ICE HOCKEY

