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Sports
Thursday, September 14, 2017 — 5A
Big Ten Breakdown: Week Two
No. 5 Penn State
Previous result: W, 33-14 vs.
Pittsburgh
Top performer: Quarterback
Trace McSorley — 15-of-28, 164
yards, three touchdowns, one
interception
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Georgia State
No. 8 Ohio State
Previous result: L, 31-16 vs.
Oklahoma
Top
performer:
Running
back J.K. Dobbins — 13 carries,
72 yards, one touchdown
Upcoming matchup: vs. Army
No. 10 Wisconsin
Previous result: W, 31-14 vs.
Florida Atlantic
Top performer: Running back
Jonathan Taylor — 26 carries,
223 yards, three touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
at
Brigham Young
Illinois
Previous result: W, 20-7 vs.
Western Kentucky
Top
performer:
Running
back Mike Epstein — 21 carries,
111 yards
Upcoming matchup: vs. No.
22 South Florida
Indiana
Previous result: W, 34-17 at
Virginia
Top performer: Quarterback
Peyton Ramsey — 16-of-20, 173
yards, two touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Georgia Southern
Iowa
Previous result: W, 44-41 at
Iowa State
Top performer: Quarterback
Nathan Stanley — 27-of-41, 333
yards, five touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
North Texas
Maryland
Previous result: W, 51-41 vs.
Towson
Top
performer:
Running
back Ty Johnson — five carries,
124 yards, two touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Central Florida
Michigan State
Previous result: W, 28-14 vs.
Western Michigan
Top performer: Quarterback
Brian Lewerke — 13-of-21, 161
yards, one passing touchdown,
two rushing touchdowns, one
interception
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Notre Dame
Minnesota
Previous result: W, 48-14 at
Oregon State
Top performer: Running back
Shannon Brooks – 17 carries, 91
yards, three touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
MTSU
Nebraska
Previous result: L, 42-35 at
Oregon
Top
performer:
Wide
receiver Stanley Morgan Jr. –
seven receptions, 103 yards, two
touchdowns
Upcoming matchup: vs. NIU
Northwestern
Previous result: L, 41-17 at
Duke
Top performer: Linebacker
Paddy Fisher – 18 tackles
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Bowling Green
Purdue
Previous result: W, 44-21 vs.
Ohio
Top performer: Quarterback
David Blough – 11-of-13, 235
yards, three touchdowns
Upcoming
matchup:
at
Missouri
Rutgers
Previous result: L, 16-13 vs.
Eastern Michigan
Top performer – Janarion
Grant,
eight
receptions,
91
yards
Upcoming
matchup:
vs.
Morgan State
Bush, defense preparing for Air Force’s unique offense
The No. 7 Michigan football
team (2-0) won’t see an offense
like Air Force’s every week.
For the most part, it’s an
opportunity for the Wolverines
to
face
an
out-of-the-box
scheme.
Michigan’s
upcoming
opponent presents a unique
challenge. The Falcons (1-0)
run a triple-option style offense
that is full of deceit, trick plays
and
an
ever-changing
run
game.
Air Force had the third-
ranked rushing offense last
season, averaging 317 rushing
yards per game. In the Falcons’
season-opening
win
against
Virginia
Military
Institute,
they rushed for 473.
“It’s a well-run offense,” said
sophomore linebacker Devin
Bush Jr. “They’ve been running
it for (11) years. … They know it
down to the T, and they’re going
to run it to their best ability.”
The Wolverines are 24-point
favorites over Air Force, but in
order to pick up a third straight
win, they’ll need to stop an
Air Force attack that is one of
the best in the nation on the
ground.
Bush
and
other members
of the defense
mentioned
that
staying
disciplined
was the most
important
factor.
With
so
many
different looks,
the
Falcons’
offense can lead
defensive players into trying to
make plays they shouldn’t. The
Wolverines can’t afford to jump
at the quarterback when he
could toss a quick lateral pass to
the trailing running back, who
could beat them as well.
“It’s hard,” Bush said. “That’s
one of the biggest things we’re
gonna have to focus on — not
doing too much.
Not
trying
to
always make that
play.
You
have
to
trust
your
teammates.
“Do your job.
Don’t try to do
the next man’s
job.”
Added
sophomore safety
Josh
Metellus:
“The triple-option offense is a
lot. There’s a lot of deceiving
plays; people going one way,
and the ball going completely
the other way.”
Playing in the secondary, the
safeties aren’t as concerned
with
the
triple
option
as
some of the linebackers are,
but Metellus noted that they
have
seen
Air
Force
run
a
slew
of
play-
action
passes.
If the safeties
and
defensive
backs get caught
sleeping,
the
Falcons are well
positioned
to
attack
through
the air as well.
Nonetheless,
amidst all the triple-option
talk, the Wolverines’ defense is
still exceedingly confident.
“They’re not going to pass the
ball too many times,” Bush said.
“If they do, we got something
for ‘em.”
So far, Michigan’s defense
has scored more points than it
has allowed.
The
young
guns like Bush
and
Metellus,
as
well
as
sophomores
Lavert Hill and
Khaleke Hudson,
are
breaking
down opponents.
And
‘veterans’
like junior safety
Tyree
Kinnel
and
senior
cornerback
Brandon
Watson
are making the transition from
last year’s star-studded defense
practically seamless.
No matter how well the
defense fared against Florida
and Cincinnati, though, they
admit that preparing for Air
Force presents an entirely new
challenge.
Defensive coordinator Don
Brown
has
been
preparing
for this game since last April.
The coaches talked about this
game with players all offseason
to make sure that they knew
what to expect when this week
arrived. Preparing for almost
any other opponent wouldn’t
call for a change in the game
plan, and that’s why the Falcons
are so dangerous.
“(Air Force) is just a different
deal,” said Michigan secondary
coach Mike Zordich. “What
we have worked on from April
through now, you just put that
all aside, and you’re doing
something totally different.”
Zordich also praised the
scout team, as emulating Air
Force’s running game is no easy
task.
“Hats off to all our (graduate
assistants)
and
analysts,”
Zordich said. “… Every week
they study the film of the
opponent for the scout team,
but there’s a bigger emphasis on
it this week because it is such a
different offense.”
The
hardest
challenge
for
Michigan,
as
Zordich
discussed, will be all of the
misdirection and deception.
In the Wolverines’ offense —
which the defense faces every
day in practice — there might
a trick play here and there. But
Michigan’s offense isn’t based
around trick plays. Air Force is
the opposite.
“Now,” Zordich said, “(We)
have to be ready for it just about
on every down.”
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Sophomore linebacker Devin Bush Jr. and the Wolverines’ defense has been heavily tested by the scout team in anticipation of the challenge Air Force will present.
TED JANES
Daily Sports Writer
“Do your job.
Don’t try to do
the next man’s
job.”
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Harbaugh throw his
clipboard in real time?
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Daily’s sports
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Contact
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Monday, September 18
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Both are at 7 p.m.
BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan vs Air Force outlook
24
Point favorites the Wolverines are
over the Falcons
11
Years Air Force has been running its
triple-option offense
317
Rushing yards Air Force averaged
per game last season
21
Points scored by Michigan’s defense
in two games this year
“(We) have to
be ready for it
just about on
every down.”
The Daily provides a brief overview of the Big Ten landscape
KEVIN SANTO
Managing Sports Editor
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Coach Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan football team are one of the four Big Ten teams ranked in the top ten of the AP Top 25 two weeks into the 2017 season.