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Sports
Tuesday, October 10, 2017— 7
Advantage in shots not enough
Senior forward Dexter Dancs
lined up the puck and let it fly —
wide past the goaltender.
Dancs’s first-period misfire
would prove to be a recurring
theme in the Michigan hockey
team’s first loss of the season
Saturday night.
The Wolverines (1-1-0) faced
off
against
two
opponents
this weekend at St. Lawrence
University
and
Clarkson
University
on
Friday
and
Saturday,
respectively.
They
outshot
their
opponents,
56-43,
but
had just three
combined goals
to show for it.
They
would
go on to split
the
weekend,
earning a 3-1 win
before suffering
a 3-0 loss.
The start of
Michigan’s outing against the
Saints went just as expected
after its 10-1 exhibition opening
win against Western Ontario
the week before. The team let 27
shots fly and amassed three goals
as a result.
Senior
forward
Tony
Calderone was a part of the
offensive onslaught, tacking on
the Wolverines’ first goal in the
opening period off a power play.
His five shots led the team on a
night that had seemed to be a
trend for the season thus far.
In
its
matchup
Saturday,
though, the Golden Knights
proved that even if Michigan
outshoots its opponents, it still
has vulnerabilities.
“In some regards, we played
better
than
we played last
night,”
said
Michigan coach
Mel
Pearson
after Saturday’s
game. “And some
nights the puck
just doesn’t go in
the net for you.
“I
thought
we
created
some
good
opportunities, you know. We got
behind the 8-ball early and got
down a couple goals, but from
that point on, I thought we were
the better team.”
Going
into
the
Clarkson
matchup, the Wolverines knew
they would face a real challenge,
according to Pearson.
With the Wolverines’ 29-19
advantage in shots, onlookers
would have been left puzzled by
their inability to net a single goal.
“We stayed with the game
plan, we kept pushing, we kept
working,” Pearson said. “We just
didn’t get any puck luck tonight,
and some nights, it’s going to go
that way for you.”
While a non-conference, early-
season loss is certainly not the
end of the world, the offensive
juggernaut that Michigan had
seemed to be was stymied due
to the simple fact that the puck
didn’t find the back of the net.
Though
the
performance
of the Wolverines so far looks
promising, to say the least, they
will have to figure out how to
overcome situations when they
struggle to score, even with
numerous opportunities.
Without another game until
October 20, Michigan has almost
two weeks to fix its special teams
woes and focus on finding the
net.
Offense looks for improvement
“Improvement week” came and
went for Jim Harbaugh and the
Michigan football team.
It wouldn’t be surprising if the
Wolverines feel like they need
another one.
But there aren’t any more
bye weeks on the schedule. The
Wolverines will have to play
Indiana this weekend, and progress
will have to be made regardless.
Michigan, quite simply, has some
soul-searching to do on offense after
an abysmal performance Saturday
in a 14-10 loss to Michigan State.
Fifth-year senior center Patrick
Kugler summed up the state of
the team pretty well on Monday
afternoon — it’s go time for the
Wolverines.
“There can’t be any more errors
now,” Kugler said. “We’ve got to
win out now, plain and simple.”
Kugler was a starting member
of a unit that had easily its worst
outing of the season against the
Spartans. Michigan gained just 300
total yards of offense, converted
5-of-17 third downs, averaged 2.6
yards per rush, completed 5.7 yards
per passing attempt — and most
glaringly, turned the ball over five
times.
“We played a sloppy game,”
Kugler said. “Everyone can see
that.”
The issues with the offense read
like a laundry list. Kugler didn’t
agree that the sloppiness was a
recurring issue — but through five
games, it certainly seems like that
may be the case.
The Wolverines currently rank
97th in total offense, 83rd in passing
offense, 75th in rushing offense,
105th in offensive efficiency and are
tied for 110th in turnover margin.
“We’ve just got to play better
as a whole,” Kugler said. “Little
things we’ve got to improve on. No
turnovers, we’ve got to eliminate
turnovers. That’s our main thing.
But it’s a collective effort and as a
group, we’ve got to play better.”
As Kugler alluded to, there were
many different components of
the offense that struggled against
Michigan State.
Fifth-year senior John O’Korn
started in place for an injured
Wilton Speight and struggled,
completing just 16-of-35 passes for
198 yards with three interceptions.
According
to
Harbaugh,
he’ll
remain the starter going forward,
and Kugler reiterated his trust in
O’Korn.
“He’s
our
quarterback,”
Kugler said. “You’ve got to have
100 percent (confidence) in your
quarterback, and I know he’s going
to play better next game.”
One position the Wolverines did
change was right tackle. Midway
through the game, the coaching
staff replaced redshirt sophomore
Nolan Ulizio with redshirt junior
Juwann Bushell-Beatty. Harbaugh
wouldn’t confirm whether Bushell-
Beatty has taken over the starting
job going forward.
Meanwhile,
Michigan’s
play
calling — especially in the second
half, as it rained heavily — came
under criticism. Just when it
seemed
the
Wolverines
had
finally grasped momentum, three
consecutive
possessions
ended
with interceptions.
Harbaugh was defensive when
asked about the staff’s calls, which
he confirmed he has the final
say over. And like at right tackle,
it remains unknown whether
any major changes will occur
schematically.
“I want to look at the film, I want
to learn from it,” Harbaugh said.
“I’m not gonna get into questioning
the play-calling.
“It’s a very convenient thing,
right? Play worked and, ‘Hey, it was
a great play,’ because it worked.
Play doesn’t work, ‘Would you wish
you had done something else, had a
different play call?’ Sure, that’s very
easy to do. Hindsight is 20/20.”
A complete overhaul of the
offense may not be realistic at
this point in the season. And if
Harbaugh and Kugler’s comments
on Monday are taken at face value,
sweeping changes don’t appear to
be on the way.
Of course, the platitudes and
curt responses could be hiding
something else.
Canned answers aside, one
thing is for sure. Michigan knows
it has to improve, and improve fast.
“Everyone’s just got to sack up,”
Kugler said. “It’s time to go.”
Despite strong performance, ‘M’
defense tasked with moving on
This defense has no business
claiming
responsibility
for
Saturday’s outcome. And yet, it
is anyway.
Senior
linebacker
Mike
McCray did so in the immediate
aftermath
of
Michigan’s
14-10 loss to Michigan State.
Sophomore cornerback David
Long followed suit Monday
afternoon.
“We left some plays out there
on the field that could have
changed the game,” he said.
“I’m right there with Mike. I
think we definitely could have
helped.”
But then, of course, there
is
this
fact:
the
Spartans
recorded only one first down
in the second half of Saturday’s
contest. It’s hard to ask for
much more, especially given
who Michigan’s defense was
facing.
While Long was quick to
say Michigan State’s Brian
Lewerke
was
no
different
than any other quarterback
the Wolverines have faced
this year, that isn’t necessarily
the case. In Lewerke — who
leads the Spartans with 342
rushing
yards
and
three
rushing
touchdowns
while
still boasting an average of 211
passing yards per game — the
Wolverines encountered the
most
dangerous
dual-threat
quarterback they have faced all
year.
And Michigan’s secondary
rose to that challenge, finally
legitimizing its rank as the
second-best passing defense in
the nation despite a lineup that
featured new faces across the
board entering the year. The
Wolverines are allowing just
126 yards per game through the
air, trailing only Air Force, and
they held Lewerke below that
average.
The
Spartan
quarterback
mustered
just
94
passing
yards and averaged just 4.3
yards per attempt. Six of his
11 completions came on the
Spartans’ touchdown drive in
the second quarter, and his
sole passing touchdown was
a screen pass to running back
Madre London.
The
secondary
notched
four
pass
breakups,
one
from sophomore safety Josh
Metellus and another three
from sophomore cornerback
Lavert Hill. Metellus credited
Hill’s
dedication
to
his
technique as the main source
of
his
consistent
success
this season, calling it “just
something you’re born with.”
“Lavert, he takes pride in his
technique,” Metellus said. “He
doesn’t like being on the short
end of the stick. Lavert, he just
plays his heart out every play,
makes sure that nobody can
catch a ball on him. And if they
do, he comes back the next play
trying even harder.”
On Saturday night, that is
exactly what the unit as a whole
did. Michigan State scored two
touchdowns in the first half. It
mustered just 66 yards in the
second.
And yet, the Wolverines lost
anyway.
Through four games, the
17th-ranked
Wolverines
got
away with making mistakes. In
reality, they were just delaying
the
inevitable.
Against
Michigan State, though, there
was no more delaying it — their
five
turnovers
had
drastic
consequences.
For
Metellus,
those
consequences materialized in
the immediate aftermath of
Saturday night.
He
admitted
he
was
emotional. He confessed it
“just really hurt to see all my
brothers
with
their
heads
held down.” And more than
anything, the image of the
Michigan fans that remained
in the stadium was implanted
in his mind.
“Everybody in the crowd,
they looked at us like they was
kind of disappointed,” he said.
“So you know, that just hurt. I
just don’t like having somebody
else having a better hand (than)
me, having a one up on me.”
But
the
Spartans
did,
and
Saturday’s
outcome
left
Metellus
admitting
Monday afternoon that these
Wolverines
hadn’t
faced
adversity
before.
He’s
not
wrong.
Now, Michigan has a tally in
the loss column, staring down
the road at a season that will
likely require an undefeated
run for the Wolverines to have
any hopes of playing for the
Big Ten Championship. And it
remains to be seen what impact
Saturday night’s loss could
have.
“I think this is gonna bring
us more together as a team,”
Metellus said. “… Everything’s
been going pretty smooth for us
so, you know, I feel like this is a
big test. What we had planned
for the season, I feel like this
is gonna bring us all together,
bring us to our full potential.”
That potential remains to
be seen. On the offensive side,
Michigan’s identity remains a
mystery — even more so now
that fifth-year senior John
O’Korn is the quarterback. As
for the opposite side of the ball,
there’s almost no doubt about
where this defense stands.
From Chase Winovich to
Devin Bush Jr., and everywhere
in between, this defense speaks
with an uninhibited confidence
in its ability.
“We as a defense, you know,
we’re hungry,” Metellus said.
“We want to be the ones to win
the game. We want to be the
ones that everyone can count
on.
“We like competing, so we
just take it upon ourselves to
give everything we got, no
matter how hard it is, no matter
how tough it is, no matter what
the situation is. The defense,
we just want to handle things
our way.”
EMMA RICHTER/Daily
Sophomore defensive back Josh Metellus and the secondary have proven their ability, especially against the Spartans.
AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Fifth-year senior center Patrick Kugler didn’t mince words Monday afternoon.
ORION SANG
Daily Sports Editor
KEVIN SANTO
Managing Sports Editor
ICE HOCKEY
ROBERT HEFTER
Daily Sports Writer
Some nights
the puck just
doesn’t go in
the net for you