T E A M S T A T S
MICH
OPP
Points/Game
42.3
10.9
First Downs/Game
22.8
13.5
Rush Yards/Game
235.3
108.6
Yards/Rush
5.2
3.0
Rushing TDs
39
4
Passing Yards/Game
215.8
137.0
Completion %
62.2%
44.2%
Yards/Pass
8.0
5.6
Passing TDs
17
9
Interceptions
4
11
Offensive Plays/Game
71.9
60.5
Total Offense
451.1
245.6
3rd-down Conversions
43.8%
21.1%
4th-down Conversions
64.7%
34.8%
Sacks/Game
3.3
1.5
Kick return average
17.3
21.0
Punt return average
16.0
7.6
Punting average
41.8
37.9
Field Goals-Attempts
14-19
7-13
Fumbles/Lost
12/4
13/5
Penalty Yards/Game
45.2
43.0
Time of Poss
33:06
26:54
I N D I V I D U A L S T A T S
PASSING
Player
Cmp
Att
Yds
TD
INT
Speight
160
257
2156
15
4
O’Korn
20
34
173
2
0
Morris
4
5
45
0
0
TOTALS
184
296
2374
17
4
RUSHING
Player
Att
Yds
Avg
Lg
TD
Smith, D.
144
750
5.2
42
10
Evans
74
547
7.4
57
3
Isaac
74
417
5.6
53
5
Higdon
65
417
6.4
45
6
Peppers
23
163
7.1
63
3
McDoom
15
154
10.3
33
0
Chesson
9
47
5.2
17
1
Henderson
5
37
7.4
13
1
Hill, K.
22
36
1.6
4
9
O’Korn
12
31
2.6
30
0
Morris
3
19
6.3
14
0
Davis
2
17
8.5
10
0
Crawford
3
15
5.0
11
0
Hirsch
1
2
2.0
2
0
Wilson
1
1
1.0
1
0
Beneducci
1
1
1.0
1
0
Hewlett
2
-1
-0.5
0
0
Gedeon
1
-2
-2.0
0
0
Allen
1
-11
-11.0
0
0
TEAM
11
-16
-1.5
0
0
Speight
26
-36
-1.4
10
1
TOTALS
495 2588
5.2
63
39
RECEIVING
Player
No.
Yds
Avg
Lg
TD
Darboh
44
758
17.2
46
6
Butt
38
460
12.1
37
4
Chesson
29
458
15.8
40
2
Perry
9
134
14.9
54
1
Hill
13
97
7.5
15
1
Evans
6
87
14.5
56
0
McDoom
5
59
11.8
33
0
Poggi
6
45
7.5
15
0
Crawford
3
43
14.3
18
1
Isaac
2
42
21.0
21
0
Smith, D.
11
38
3.5
17
0
Wheatley
2
27
13.5
21
1
Ways
2
24
12.0
22
0
Henderson
1
23
23.0
23
0
Asiasi
2
18
9.0
15
1
Hirsch
1
15
15.0
15
0
Jocz
1
12
12.0
12
0
Harris
2
11
5.5
7
0
McKeon
2
10
5.0
5
0
Bunting
2
6
3.0
4
0
Johnson, N.
1
4
4.0
4
0
Peppers
2
3
1.5
5
0
TOTALS
184
2374 12.9
56
17
PUNT RETURNS
Player
No.
Yds
Avg. Long
TD
Peppers
20
305
15.2
54
1
Jocz
1
27
27.0
0
0
Evans
1
15
15.0
15
0
Perry
0
6
--
6
1
TOTALS
22
353
16.0
54
2
INTERCEPTION RETURNS
Player
No.
Yds
Avg. Long
TD
Stribling
4
60
15.0
51
1
Hill, D.
3
36
12.0
27
1
McCray
1
22
22.0
22
0
Thomas
1
4
4.0
4
0
Lewis
2
0
0.0
0
0
TOTALS
11
122
11.1
51
2
FUMBLE RETURNS
Player
No.
Yds
Avg. Long
TD
Hill, L.
1
9
9.0
9
0
TOTALS
1
9
9.0
9
0
KICKOFF RETURNS
Player
No.
Yds
Avg. Long
TD
Peppers
9
216
24.0
55
0
Lewis
4
42
10.5
18
0
Hill, K.
3
28
9.3
13
0
Henderson
2
28
14.0
15
0
Evans
1
26
26.0
26
0
Hudson
1
6
6.0
6
0
TOTALS
18
320
17.8
55
0
KICKOFFS
Player
No.
Yds
Avg.
TB
Allen
73
4681
64.1
41
Foug
8
460
57.5
2
Tice
3
189
63.0
0
TOTALS
84
5330
63.5
43
PUNTING
Player
No.
Yds
Avg.
Lg
Allen
39
1629
41.8
56
TOTALS
39
1629
41.8
56
FIELD GOALS
Player
FG
Pct.
1-19 20-29 30-3940-49 50+ Lg
Allen
14-18 77.8% 0-0 8-8 4-6
1-3
1-1
51
Tice
0-1 0.0% 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-0 0
LEADING TACKLERS
Player
Solo Ast
Tot
TFL
SK
PBU
Gedeon
31
63
94
13.5
3.5
2
Peppers
43
22
65
16.0
4.0
-
McCray
30
33
63
11.5
3.5
5
Thomas
32
27
59
-
-
7
Hill, D.
29
11
40
3.5
-
3
Glasgow, R.
13
24
37
8.0
3.0
1
Wormley
16
18
34
8.0
5.0
-
Winovich
10
23
33
8.5
5.0
-
Hurst
17
13
30
9.0
3.0
-
Charlton
11
18
29
8.0
6.0
1
Gary
10
16
26
5.0
1.0
-
Godin
10
14
24
2.0
1.0
-
Stribling
14
9
23
1.0
-
11
Lewis
14
5
19
2.5
-
10
Kinnel
10
6
16
1.0
-
-
Glasgow, J.
7
4
11
-
-
-
Watson
6
5
11
-
-
-
Bush
6
5
11
0.5
-
-
Clark
6
4
10
-
-
3
Metellus
6
2
8
1.0
1.0
-
Hudson
3
5
8
0.5
-
1
Furbush
3
5
8
1.0
-
-
Pearson
2
5
7
-
-
-
Mone
1
6
7
-
-
-
TOTALS
352 366 718
102
36
45
2016 SCHEDULE
HAWAII (5-7)
W, 63-3 (1-0)
UCF (6-5)
COLORADO (9-2)
PENN ST. (9-2)
WISCONSIN (9-2) at RUTGERS (2-9)
ILLINOIS (3-8)
at MICH. ST. (3-8) MARYLAND (5-6)
at IOWA (7-4)
INDIANA (5-6)
at OHIO ST. (10-1)
Noon, Columbus, Ohio
9/3
9/10
9/17
9/24
10/1
10/8
10/22
10/29
11/5
11/12
11/19
11/26
W, 51-14 (2-0) W, 45-28 (3-0) W, 49-10 (4-0) W, 14-7 (5-0) W, 78-0 (6-0) W, 41-8 (7-0) W, 32-23 (8-0) W, 59-3 (9-0)
L, 14-13 (9-1)
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, November 23, 2016 — 7A
W 20-10 (10-1)
Peppers, Samuel could decide ‘The Game’
As the world waits to hear
whether Wilton Speight or John
O’Korn will start at quarterback
for
Michigan
against
Ohio
State, there is a good possibility
Saturday’s game will be decided
by something other than who’s
under center.
To
have
a
chance,
the
Wolverines
will
need
more
out of the quarterback than
they got against Indiana, when
O’Korn completed just seven of
16 passes for 59 yards. But the
more compelling battle will be
between Jabrill Peppers and
Curtis Samuel.
Both are do-it-all players for
their respective teams, with
Samuel a versatile force on the
Buckeyes’ offense and Peppers
roaming the entire field for
Michigan. Both would have
darkhorse cases for the Heisman
Trophy if Louisville’s Lamar
Jackson had not all but wrapped
up the award already. And with
Peppers expected to see heavy
time on offense in a must-win
game for the Wolverines, there
could be times on Saturday
where they seem to be locked in a
hyper-athletic call and response.
There’s even a good possibility
they could match up against each
other directly. Peppers works
as a linebacker, nickelback and
safety on defense, which means
he could be tasked with covering
Samuel out of the backfield or
split out. And if he does, he’ll be
responsible for mitigating the
constant threat Samuel poses.
“People just, they lose their
technique, they forget about
their technique … when they’re
looking at a great athlete,” said
senior
cornerback
Jourdan
Lewis. “They just throw it out
the window and just like, ‘Let
me get this guy covered,’ and not
think about their technique. So
that’s really one of the reasons
he’s one of the best, because he’s
so athletic and he can get in and
out of his break so fast.”
Through 11 games this season,
Samuel has been used heavily
as both a running back and a
receiver. He has 84 rushes for 650
yards, seven touchdowns and a
staggering 7.7 yards per carry. He
also has 61 catches for 790 yards
and seven touchdowns, each of
which would lead Michigan’s
entire team.
While those numbers are no
doubt intimidating, there is a
silver lining buried in them. If
the Wolverines can find a way
to slow down Samuel — easily
the most dangerous playmaker
they have faced this season —
they would be in great position
to win. Lewis said he expects to
cover Samuel some on Saturday,
which is a good indication
Michigan will throw everything
it has at him. And that could
include Peppers.
“I’ve been watching Curtis
for a while,” Peppers said. “ …
Phenomenal athlete, strong guy,
great hands. But you go into it like
you go (into covering) anybody
else. Line up. Be fundamental.
Trust your technique and let
your athleticism make the plays.”
Peppers should have an outsize
impact on the game himself. His
defensive numbers are not as
gaudy as they were early in the
season, when he jockeyed for the
national lead in tackles for loss,
but he still boasts an impressive
15 on the year.
And while shutting down
Samuel would be an invaluable
contribution,
Peppers
will
likely also need to make an
impact on offense.
After
a
massive
breakout
game against Rutgers, teams
have keyed in on Peppers when
he’s been in the game. It hasn’t
been effective enough to stifle
him completely, but he has seen
a slight decrease in big plays over
the second half of the season.
It would be natural to assume
Michigan was saving Peppers’
energy for this week. But he’s
never
had
a
reputation
as
someone with limited energy.
“There was one situation last
spring ball during our four-hour
practices when Coach Harbaugh
first got here where we were all
beat up, exhausted after a four-
hour practice,” said senior tight
end Jake Butt, “and it was like
the middle of spring ball, so it was
when it was really starting to hit
us, and we were in a full padded
practice. It was about the three-
hour mark and Jabrill returned
a punt during a punt drill,
returned it like 40 yards, and
then when he was jogging back to
go return another one he did like
a cartwheel, back handspring,
backflip 360 in full pads.
“I was like, ‘Oh my god, I can’t
even believe you just did that.’ ”
Those are the stories legends
are made of, but in a matter
of days, Peppers will likely
meet someone who can match
him. For every big hit or shifty
return by Peppers, it will be
just as important to stop a long
run by Samuel.
In a game that has Big
Ten,
national
and
maybe
even
Heisman
implications,
those stars will loom large.
As Peppers and Samuel go, so
could The Game.
Michigan ready to empty playbook at Ohio State
Senior
running
back
De’Veon Smith may have been
exaggerating when he described
the No. 3 Michigan football team’s
playbook as being a foot thick and
2,000 pages long on Tuesday
night, but there’s no questioning
that coach Jim Harbaugh’s bag of
tricks is a deep one.
This
season
alone,
the
Wolverines have lined up 10
men behind the ball in the
now-famous “train” formation,
run
the
read
option
with
redshirt sophomore linebacker
Jabrill Peppers as a wildcat
quarterback, brought in third-
string
quarterback
Shane
Morris for the sole purpose of
being a lead blocker and called
for a two-point conversion from
holder Garrett Moores.
But now the long-awaited
matchup with No. 2 Ohio State
is on deck, and Peppers hinted
that fans might not have seen
anything yet.
“Typically, teams save some
defensive schemes, offensive
schemes, special teams schemes
for
some
games,”
he
said
Tuesday. “This one’s for all the
marbles, so everything we’ve
got, we’re gonna throw at ’em.”
On the Big Ten’s weekly
coaches
teleconference,
Harbaugh was asked about how
much preparation throughout
the year is focused specifically
on Ohio State, and he kept his
answer simple: “A lot.”
The Wolverines install new
plays and modify old ones on a
weekly basis, depending on the
coaches’ game plan for their
opponent. The offense has been
especially fluid — the four-man
running back rotation seems to
have no solid formula except
for Smith getting a plurality
of the carries, and many of
Michigan’s role players have
seen their usage vary widely
from week to week.
Some weeks, the offense has
relied heavily on jet sweeps to
freshman wide receiver Eddie
McDoom. Other weeks, the
quarterback fakes the sweep
and lets McDoom get open on
short routes. And sometimes,
like last week against Indiana,
the
Wolverines
don’t
use
McDoom at all.
For obvious reasons, none
of Michigan’s players delved
into anything specific they had
planned for the Buckeyes. Even
Peppers, one of the offense’s
main
wild
cards,
merely
laughed when asked if there was
anything new in store for him
this week.
“I guess we’ve gotta see,” he
said.
According to Peppers, the
Wolverines are expecting the
same thing from Ohio State.
With weapons like quarterback
J.T. Barrett (whose legs are as
dangerous as his arm), freshman
Mike
Weber
and
versatile
H-back Curtis Samuel under
the tutelage of an experienced
coaching staff, the Buckeyes are
sure to have a few tricks up their
sleeves as well.
Michigan has seen firsthand
how a few big plays can change
a game. A 45-yard touchdown
from fifth-year senior receiver
Amara Darboh and a one-
handed
interception
from
senior
cornerback
Jourdan
Lewis — both of which came in
the fourth quarter — handed the
Wolverines a 14-7 victory over
No. 6 Wisconsin. And in a loss
to Iowa, Michigan held a 10-0
lead before a safety and some
big gains on short passes let the
Hawkeyes get back in the game.
“When our number is called,
we know they have a talented
secondary, (but) we know we
have the players to make plays,”
Darboh said. “When the ball’s in
the air, I think it’s on us to go up
and make the play.”
Especially
if
redshirt
sophomore quarterback Wilton
Speight turns out to be healthy
enough to play, creating a few
more highlight-reel moments
could be the difference on
Saturday. And if that means the
Wolverines have to go deep into
their vast library of plays, that’s
what they’ll do.
“Hopefully we run all of
them,” Smith said. “Every single
one of them.”
AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Senior running back De’Veon Smith hopes the Wolverines break out all of their tricks for his last game against Ohio State on Saturday in Columbus.
JACOB GASE
Daily Sports Editor
GRANT HARDY/Daily
Redshirt sophomore Jabrill Peppers has been electrifying all season, but he might face a playmaker this Saturday who can match him in Curtis Samuel.
MAX BULTMAN
Managing Sports Editor