FootballSaturday, October 5, 2018
8B

What to Watch For: Maryland

By MARK CALCAGNO 

Daily Sports Editor

On Saturday, the Michigan 
football team is back home, 
where it has dominated all 
three of its opponents this 
season.
The last of these opponents 
was 
Nebraska, 
which 
the 
Wolverines 
drubbed, 
56-10, 
in a game that was essentially 
over 
halfway 
through 
the 
first 
quarter. 
But 
last 
week, Michigan traveled to 
Northwestern — a team coming 
off a bye — and nearly threw 
away its season before coming 
back to win, 20-17.
The Wolverines’ opponent 
this weekend is also coming 
off a bye and has the capability 
to 
give 
them 
challenges. 
Maryland defeated now-No.19 
Texas in its season opener and 
is 3-1 to start the year.
That’s 
all 
under 
interim 
coach 
Matt 
Canada, 
who 
took over for D.J. Durkin in 
August after the tragic death 
of offensive lineman Jordan 
McNair. Durkin was Michigan’s 
defensive 
coordinator 
in 
2015 before leaving for the 
Terrapins.
With 
Durkin 
still 
on 
administrative leave, the only 
other focus is Saturday’s game. 
Here’s what to watch for.

Slants

Just as they did against 
SMU, the Wolverines struggled 
against the slant and mesh 
patterns last week. According 
to 
defensive 
coordinator 
Don 
Brown, 
Northwestern 
quarterback Clayton Thorson 
went 3-of-5 for 23 yards in 
the first half and 2-of-4 for 22 
yards on such plays.
The key difference is that 
Michigan was able to stymie 
Thorson as the game went on. 
The Wildcats didn’t score after 
jumping out to a 17-0 lead, as 
the Wolverines allowed just 119 
yards the last three quarters.
Still, teams have smartly 
looked to take advantage of 
those slants against Michigan. 
Brown’s defense is predicated 
on getting free rushers on 
the quarterback, which often 
requires linebackers to push 
rush, leaving the middle of 
the field open. The slant is 

the perfect pattern to take 
advantage.
But 
Brown 
isn’t 
all 
too 
concerned, noting Thorson’s 
ability to fit passes into tight 
spots.
“I 
thought 
Thorson 
was 
pretty 
good,” 
Brown 
said 
Wednesday. “He’s going to end 
up graduating, I would bet, 
as one of the top-25 throwers 
probably in the history of 
the Big Ten. There are two 
catches … where he puts it into 
a window about this big. (But) 
I’m not going to stand here and 
say, ‘Jeez, we did a great job.’ ”
Though 
the 
Wolverines 
found success with more press 
coverage later on against the 
Wildcats, slants could be a 
large part of Maryland’s game 
plan Saturday.

Rashan Gary’s health

Like the team itself, Rashan 
Gary had one of his best 
quarters of the season two 
weeks ago. The junior defensive 
end 
manhandled 
Nebraska’s 
offensive tackles and earned 
his first sack of the season in 

the first quarter.
But he left the game soon 
after and didn’t return. Based 
upon exercises he did with 
trainers on the sideline, it 
looked to be a shoulder or arm 
injury.
Gary brushed it off publicly 
last week, but the injury bug 
bit him again in Evanston. He 
left the game and went to the 
locker room during the third 
quarter — though he did return 
eventually. 
Gary is “questionable” to 
play Saturday.
“He’s day-to-day, so we’ll 
see,” Brown said. “Not really 
sure right now. (We’ll) let the 
trainers see if they can put him 
back together for the weekend.”
If Gary can’t go, sophomore 
Kwity Paye or freshman Aidan 
Hutchinson would likely earn 
their first career starts. Both 
have played well recently: Paye 
collected two sacks last week, 
while 
Hutchinson 
earned 
three tackles — one for a loss — 
against the Cornhuskers.
“Kwity Paye certainly has 
stood up when we’ve needed 
him to stand up, along with the 

other guys,” Brown said.

Receiver depth

It was interesting to see 
Ronnie Bell receive a jet sweep 
on 
Michigan’s 
second 
play 
from scrimmage last week. The 
freshman receiver had been 
previously featured mostly in 
the second half of blowouts, 
with redshirt freshman Dylan 
McCaffery under center instead 
of junior Shea Patterson.
But Bell played ahead of 
redshirt 
freshman 
Oliver 
Martin on Saturday — a major 
surprise considering Bell had 
no Division I football offers at 
this time last year.
Elsewhere in the position 
group, Harbaugh said he hopes 
to get junior receiver Nate 
Schoenle back this weekend. 
Schoenle earned a scholarship 
at the end of fall camp after 
catching four passes for 41 
yards in 2017.
Though he’s unlikely to play 
this week, freshman Michael 
Barrett has moved to receiver 
after 
practicing 
at 
VIPER 
during fall camp, according to 

coach Jim Harbaugh.

Prediction

Michigan 31, Maryland 17

BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan vs. Northwestern
180
Rushing yards by Michigan against 
Northwestern

6
Sacks recorded by Michigan against 
Northwestern
174
Recieving yards by Northwestern 
against Michigan
1
Sack by Northwestern against 
Michigan

AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Junior defensive end Rashan Gary earned his first sack of the 2018 season in the first quarter of Michigan’s 56-10 win over Nebraska two weeks ago in Ann Arbor.

