2B — Monday, November 27, 2017
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

SPORTSMONDAY COLUMN

A stacked deck

T

he play was routine. 

With just over six 

minutes remaining in 

the third quarter, J.T. Barrett 
scrambled for 10 yards on 
2nd-and-11. Fifth-year senior 
linebacker 
Mike 
McCray 
brought 
Barrett 
down by his 
legs. Barrett 
stood 
up, then 
grabbed at 
his right 
knee and 
went back 
to the turf. The trainers came 
out. Barrett’s day ended with a 
hobbled walk to the tunnel.

At that point, the Wolverines 

led by six, despite surrendering 
a 14-point, first-quarter lead. 

Maybe you thought then that 

Michigan was finally going to 
change history, that a backup 
quarterback was incapable of 
leading his team on a comeback 
trail.

I wouldn’t have blamed you if 

you did. That’s all this fan base 
has known for the better part 
of three months. The Michigan 
faithful have learned time and 
time again this year that there’s 
no replacing the starting man 
under center.

But if you thought Barrett’s 

premature exit was enough, you 
were wrong.

Because the Buckeyes did 

what Michigan has failed to 
do for much of its season. They 
coped with the loss of their 
starting quarterback, and 
found success in the largest of 
moments anyway.

For Ohio State, its spot in 

the Big Ten championship 
game was already a lock. But 
a continuation of nearly two 
decades of dominance — and 
a possibility to sneak into the 
College Football Playoff that 
now has legitimate weight — 

were on the line in Ann Arbor.

The Wolverines have found 

themselves in similar situations 
for the better part of 10 years, 
albeit with far less encouraging 
results.

And in the latest iteration, 

Urban Meyer handed Dwayne 
Haskins the keys. The redshirt 
freshman pushed the accelerator 
to the floor.

He handled the ball off twice 

to open the series, then rushed 
for two yards. Two plays later, 
he completed a pass for a four-
yard gain.

Ohio State left tackle Jamarco 

Jones had to leave the game 
with an injury. Then came 
two false starts. Faced with 
3rd-and-13 near midfield, 
Haskins dropped back and 
delivered a 27-yard dime to 
Austin Mack on the sideline.

Two plays later, he escaped a 

collapsing pocket and took off 
for a gain of 22, coming only one 
yard shy of reaching the pylon.

J.K. Dobbins punched it in on 

the next play. The Wolverines 
surrendered their lead and 
wouldn’t get it back.

It was a performance that 

encapsulated all that Michigan 
has tried to do. Ohio State put 
the ball in Haskins’ hands 
with confidence and the fans 
embraced it — some even called 
for it after the Buckeyes lost to 
Iowa. And Haskins delivered, 
exuding a swagger that loomed 
large over Michigan Stadium.

After the game, sophomore 

defensive end Rashan Gary said 
Michigan knew what Haskins 
liked to do. McCray said he was 
“about the same as J.T.”

He looked better.

The Wolverines may have 

known what Haskins liked 
to do, but he did it anyway — 
completing six of his seven 
attempts for 94 yards, all while 
rushing three times for 24 
yards.

“We knew that the guy 

behind (Barrett) was pretty 
good,” McCray said. “We 
wanted to play our game, keep 
playing our game — didn’t want 
to change anything. He came in 
and did a great job.”

Just like that, for the second 

time in four years, J.T. Barrett 
left the second half injured 
against Michigan and the 
Buckeyes’ backup again did 
what he needed to. This time it 
was Haskins. Last time it was 
Cardale Jones.

Of course, Jones’ experience 

was different. Ohio State was up 

by seven, and with Ezekiel Elliot 
in the backfield, he was asked to 
throw the ball just three times. 
But we all know where Jones 
eventually took the Buckeyes.

Perhaps that says more 

than we think about the state 
of these two programs. Ohio 
State’s roster can be supported 
by backups, seemingly without 
a dropoff. The Buckeyes went 
to the College Football Playoff 
as the youngest team in the 
country, according to Phil Steele 
of ESPN.

The Wolverines entered this 

season in a similar situation. 
They finished fourth in the Big 
Ten East. 

As for the on-the-field 

rivalry, Michigan hasn’t been 
very fortunate. Since 2007, 
only two of Michigan’s starting 
quarterbacks have entered the 

Ohio State game healthy and 
left the same way. One of those 
instances came in 2011, when 
Denard Robinson amassed 337 
all-purpose yards and five total 
touchdowns to lead Michigan 
past Ohio State for the only time 
in this decade.

There was no superhero 

performance this Saturday, 
though. With Brandon Peters 
and Wilton Speight sidelined, 
Michigan’s hand was forced.

Jim Harbaugh put the keys 

in his backup’s hands too, but it 
looked like the emergency brake 
was on.

O’Korn struggled early, 

missing open receivers for 
what should have been routine 
completions. He missed a wide-
open Chris Evans on 4th-and-4. 
And with a final chance to 
change the rivalry — at least for 
a year — he misread coverage 
and sailed a pass into the arms 
of Ohio State’s Jordan Fuller.

For what it’s worth, O’Korn 

personified a leader after the 
game. He sat at a podium, and 
he fielded questions. He took 
responsibility for the loss. He 
choked up in front of a room 
of crowded people, trying to 
come to grips with the reality 
that another senior class — one 
he himself is a part of — was 
leaving Ann Arbor without a 
win over the Buckeyes.

But maturity simply wasn’t 

enough. Another year came, and 
another year went.

The dust has now settled.
Michigan has been dealt a 

tough hand for the better part of 
10 years.

Ohio State, on the other hand, 

has triumphed regardless of the 
hand it was dealt.

And therein lies the point: 

when you’re sitting at the table 
with the sharks, you still need to 
find a way to win.

Santo can be reached at 

kmsanto@umich.edu or on 

Twitter @Kevin_M_Santo.

Four Things We Learned: No. 8 Ohio State

The 
curtains 
closed 
on 

Michigan’s regular season this 
weekend, and the finale went 
just as planned — for Ohio State. 

The eighth-ranked Buckeyes’ 

31-20 win over the Wolverines 
(5-4 
Big 
Ten, 
8-4 
overall) 

came after a shaky start, but 
everything 
changed 
in 
the 

second quarter as quarterback 
J.T. Barrett, and later his backup 
Dwayne 
Haskins, 
led 
the 

comeback.

Here are four things the Daily 

learned about the Michigan 
football team from Saturday’s 
loss:

1. Maybe it’s time to ditch 

the pocket passer

If the offensive line can’t 

protect the quarterback, does it 
matter how good his arm is?

The Wolverines’ run game has 

carried the team all season long, 
and Saturday was the same story.

Sophomore 
running 
back 

Chris Evans rushed for 67 
yards and junior Karan Higdon 
ran for 55. The two have been 
Michigan’s 
most 
dynamic 

players throughout the season. 
The run game has been so strong 
because of Evans and Higdon, 
and it has been the Wolverines’ 

only option.

Just 
look 
at 
what 
other 

successful college football teams 
are doing.

No. 5 Alabama runs a spread 

offense with its dual-threat 
quarterback Jalen Hurts. No. 
8 
Ohio 
State’s 
quarterbacks 

have always been quick on the 
ground, too, and No. 2 Oklahoma 
and Heisman favorite Baker 
Mayfield favor the spread-style 
offense as well.

A spread system would give 

Michigan more options on the 
ground, and play to the team’s 
strengths.

Until Michigan finds a top 

passer who can thread the needle 
and hit the deep ball, it might be 
a worthwhile investment to look 
for a mobile quarterback.

2. Michigan’s getting closer 

to beating Ohio State, but not 
there yet

While the Buckeyes ended up 

with a convincing 11-point win, 
the game was closer than the 
final score indicated.

The 
Wolverines 
would’ve 

been able to play for a game-tying 
field goal on their penultimate 
drive, but a blocked extra point 
after 
Higdon’s 
third-quarter 

touchdown forced Michigan to 
rely on O’Korn to move the ball 
downfield with his arm.

Little plays like that blocked 

extra 
point 
or 
sophomore 

safety Josh Metellus’s dropped 
interception added up and put 
the team in a difficult position. 
Ohio State didn’t make nearly as 
many mistakes, and that proved 
to be the difference.

In hindsight, though, the 

Wolverines have done better than 
they did in the past. This year’s 
game and last year’s overtime 
finish were significantly closer 
than the 42-13 blowout Michigan 
faced in 2015.

3. The Harbaugh critics will 

be loud and clear

Michigan 
coach 
Jim 

Harbaugh is now 0-3 versus Ohio 
State. He’s 1-2 against Michigan 
State.

And in three seasons, the 

Wolverines haven’t beaten a 
single ranked team on the road.

While the records don’t favor 

Harbaugh, any critics claiming 
he should be on the hot seat are 
starting rumors that are unlikely 
to merit any truth.

It’s hard to imagine Harbaugh 

going anywhere else in the near 
future, because he hasn’t even 
had a chance to see his own 
recruits flesh out completely.

In 
2018, 
players 
like 

sophomore 
linebacker 
Devin 

Bush and sophomore defensive 

end Rashan Gary — two of 
Michigan’s best — will be the 
faces of the team. On offense, 
redshirt 
freshman 
Brandon 

Peters have several more games 
under his belt and likely be the 
one leading the charge.

As the seniors and fifth-years 

that stuck around from the 
Brady Hoke era fade out of the 
program, Harbaugh’s guys will 
take over.

If the team can’t perform 

better next year, though, then 
the Harbaugh haters might have 
a point worth listening to.

4. 
Bold 
prediction: 
It’ll 

happen next year.

Give Peters, or maybe even 

Dylan 
McCaffrey, 
the 
ball 

against 
the 
Buckeyes, 
and 

the Wolverines should have 
a 
chance. 
The 
quarterback 

situation cost Michigan the 
game this weekend, but if Peters 
has another year to develop and 
grow, he could be the difference-
maker the Wolverines needs.

Elsewhere on the field, not 

much is going to change.

The run game will stay strong 

with Evans and Higdon, and 
young wide receivers like Tarik 
Black and Donovan Peoples-
Jones should improve as well.

The biggest two offensive 

losses 
are 
fifth-year 
senior 

fullback 
Khalid 
Hill 
and 

senior left tackle Mason Cole. 
Michigan’s offensive line will 
have to improve without Cole, 
its best and most consistent 
player for the last few years, but 
if it can, a lot will open up for the 
Wolverines’ offense.

The defense should continue 

to excel. Michigan’s top-ranked 
pass defense likely won’t lose 
anybody, and the linebacker 
situation should be fine as well 
— even without fifth-year senior 
Mike McCray.

Losing 
fifth-year 
senior 

defensive 
tackle 
Maurice 

Hurst 
will 
hurt, 
but 
if 

defensive 
coordinator 
Don 

Brown continues to develop 
his aggressive unit, Michigan 
should be fine there as well.

So, is a road win in Columbus 

possible? It’s certainly going to 
be difficult, but it’s absolutely 
possible.

EVAN AARON/Daily

Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins completed seven of his eight passes for 94 yards, becoming the second backup to beat Michigan in four years.

EVAN AARON/Daily

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has faced more criticism than ever this year, but that may not be warranted just yet.

TED JANES

Daily Sports Writer

FOOTBALL
Speight announces he 
will transfer for 2018

Wilton Speight announced 

Sunday afternoon that he will 
be transferring from Michigan.

Speight, currently a redshirt 

junior, will have one year of 
eligibility remaining. He will 
also be able to play immediately 
at whichever school he chooses 
as a graduate transfer.

The move will leave the 

Wolverines 
with 
three 

scholarship 
quarterbacks 
on 

next year’s roster: redshirt 
freshman 
Brandon 
Peters, 

freshman 
Dylan 
McCaffrey 

and 
redshirt 
sophomore 

Alex 
Malzone. 
Michigan 

currently has two quarterbacks 
committed 
in 
the 
2018 

recruiting class in four-star 
Joe 
Milton 
and 
three-star 

Kevin Doyle. Both would be 
true freshmen next year if 
they follow through with their 
verbal commitments.

As for Speight, he’s currently 

unaware of where he’ll finish 
his career. 

“I don’t know where next 

will be, and I’ll use these next 
four weeks to figure that out,” 
Speight wrote on Instagram. 
“I’m excited to keep pursuing 
my dreams in a new jersey, but 
will forever root for the boys 
wearing the winged helmet.”

In 16 starts over his four-year 

career at Michigan, Speight 
tallied a 13-3 record, 3,119 
passing yards, 21 touchdowns 
and nine interceptions.

It was a career that began 

rather inconspicuously. Speight, 
recruited by former head coach 
Brady Hoke, redshirted his first 
year. After a year of anonymity, 
he featured in an HBO special 
covering a newly-hired Jim 
Harbaugh.

And in that moment, it didn’t 

seem like Speight had earned 
Harbaugh’s favor.

“I’m just telling you the right 

way to do it,” Harbaugh said in 
that episode. “If you want to 
look at me with that look, go 

(expletive) look it somewhere 
else.”

But 
Speight 
would 
stick 

things out and find his way 
back into his head coach’s good 
graces.

First he beat out John O’Korn 

and Shane Morris in a heated 
competition for the starting job. 
Then he led last year’s team to 
a 9-0 start, at one point during 
which Harbaugh said Speight 
deserved consideration for the 
Heisman Trophy.

“It’s time to throw his hat 

into the ring,” Harbaugh said 
after Speight threw for a career-
high 362 yards in a 59-3 win 
over Maryland on Nov. 5, 2016.

Things fell apart late for 

Michigan — and Speight — that 
year, though. In a 14-13 loss 
to Iowa, Speight was dealt a 
heavy blow. He missed the next 
week’s game with an injury. 
He returned for the final two 
games of the year, both of which 
the Wolverines lost late.

It was a rough ending to a 

season that began with so much 
promise.

Despite 
challenges 
from 

Brandon Peters and O’Korn, 
Speight held onto his job this 
offseason with relative ease. 
And as one of the lone holdovers 
from last year’s veteran-laden 
team, Speight was looked upon 
to help Michigan transition to 
this year’s more youthful squad.

But that transition would 

prove difficult.

In 2017, Speight struggled to 

replicate the success he had his 
first year as a starter. Through 
four games, he completed just 
54.3 percent of his passes for 7.17 
yards per attempt with a 121.9 
quarterback rating — numbers 
that were all down from his first 
season as a starter.

Then, 
against 
Purdue, 

Speight took a big hit that broke 
three of his vertebrae. That 
injury would knock him out for 
the rest of the regular season. 
And with Sunday’s news, that 
will the last time Speight puts 
on a Michigan jersey.

ORION SANG

Daily Sports Editor

KEVIN 
SANTO

