FootballSaturday, October 12, 2018
8B

What to Watch For: Wisconsin

By MAX MARCOVITCH 

Daily Sports Editor

Seeking 
copious 
amounts 
of 
unnecessary 
stress 
with 
potential 
for 
gut-wrenching 
twists and turns?
Boy, do I have the Saturday 
evening activity for you.
No. 15 Wisconsin comes to 
Michigan Stadium to face off 
against No. 12 Michigan, in the 
first leg of a season-defining 
three-game 
stretch 
for 
the 
Wolverines. Chances are, your 
opinion 
of 
this 
Wolverines 
team will change drastically 
by Sunday morning, one way or 
another. 
Michigan’s goals all remain 
on the table. But in order to 
maintain hopes of a Big Ten 
Championship, 
it 
must 
win 
two of the next three games at 
minimum. All three, and you can 
start to sniff a College Football 
Playoff appearance.
One step at a time, though.
The Badgers — a Big Ten 
contender in their own right — 
will pose a proper litmus test for 
just how far the Wolverines have 
come since the opening-week 
loss to Notre Dame. Here’s what 
you should be watching for in 
the high-stakes affair:

Who plays, who doesn’t and 
how it affects the run defense 

Simple enough, right? But this 
could well be the difference.
Slowing 
down 
Badgers 
running back Jonathan Taylor 
and 
the 
vaunted 
Wisconsin 
rushing attack is a chore on its 
own. Taylor has rushed for 849 
of the Badgers’ 1,435 rushing 
yards on the season. Taylor is 
ranked third nationally in that 
category, and Wisconsin ranks 
fourth — behind three triple-
option offenses.
The Badgers run the ball nearly 
twice as often as they throw it; 
there’s no mystery about what 
Wisconsin wants to do. Slowing 
them down becomes infinitely 
more difficult if Michigan is 
missing key contributors on the 
defensive line. 
There is little clarity on 
whether junior Rashan Gary 
(AC 
joint), 
junior 
Michael 
Dwumfour 
(leg), 
sophomore 
Aubrey Solomon (knee) or junior 
Carlo Kemp will be able to aid 
that effort on the field.
For the most part, mum’s the 

word, though Solomon’s mother 
posted a photo on Twitter of 
Solomon after practice — in 
which he participated. Solomon 
hasn’t played since the game 
against the Fighting Irish.
Purely speculative, it seems 
like it would take a substantial 
injury to keep Gary out of this 
one. 
Harbaugh 
hinted 
after 
last week’s game that he held 
Gary out in Michigan’s game 
with Maryland against Gary’s 
preference. If he does play, it’s 
worth monitoring how effective 
he’ll be at a level that will 
almost certainly be less than 100 
percent. Gary’s presence alone 
will help draw attention, but 
mere “presence” only goes so far.
Regardless of the status of 
those 
aforementioned, 
this 
will be a big game for fifth-
year seniors Bryan Mone and 
Lawrence Marshall, both of 
whom have taken circuitous 
routes back into the defensive 
tackle rotation. Both will be 
counted on to hold their ground 
against 
Wisconsin’s 
mauling 
offensive line. 
This might be the biggest 
game of their seasons (careers?), 
individually.
Can 
Michigan 
shut 
down 
Taylor 
and 
Wisconsin’s 
run 
game? 
That 
seems 
highly 
unlikely. But the Wolverines — 
with the nation’s sixth-ranked 
rush defense — can absolutely 
slow it down. And if they do, 
it’s not hard to envision this 
ending in a victory, maybe even 
a comfortable one. 

But, that’s a big if.

How far has this offense 
come since Notre Dame?

This 
entire 
article 
could 
be summarized in that one 
sentence: How far has this team 
come?
The 
signs 
have 
been 
encouraging on many levels from 
what appears to be an improving 
team. But with that progress 
coming against five opponents 
with inferior talent, it will be 
impossible to know just how far 
the Wolverines have come until 
they step on the field Saturday 
night.
Against the Fighting Irish, 
Michigan’s 
offense 
mustered 
just three points until late in the 
fourth quarter while scrambling 
to mount a comeback. Since 
that 
game, 
the 
Wolverines 
have averaged 42.4 points per 
contest. For the first time since 
Sept. 1, though, they will face 
a unit comparable to the Notre 
Dame defense that controlled 
the game.
How far has the offensive line 
come? Can the young receivers 
gain 
separation 
consistently? 
Will the tight ends continue to 
be weapons? Can they convert 
red 
zone 
appearances 
into 
touchdowns?
Let’s find out.

Can 
they 
control 
the 
emotions at night?

I know what you’re thinking. I 

can see your eyes rolling.
I, too, generally hate sports 
clichés like this one. But it’s 
a reality that several players 
addressed 
this 
week: 
Night 
games — especially at home, 
with College Gameday in town 
— are different, and thus require 
different preparation.
“Big stage, some people get a 
little bit too energetic, or some 
people get a little bit too down,” 
said junior safety Josh Metellus. 
“They don’t want to mess up.”
This is just the sixth night 
game 
in 
Michigan 
Stadium 
history. The crowd will be 
amped.
Often 
those 
heightened 
emotions only last for the early 
portion of the game before 
tapering off. But twice now, 
Michigan 
has 
trailed 
by 
a 
large deficit early, tasked with 
climbing back into the game. 
Against Notre Dame at night, 
the Wolverines trailed, 21-3, 
before anyone could catch their 
breath.
At Northwestern, Michigan 
was ultimately able to overcome 
a quick 17-0 deficit, scoring 20 
unanswered points.
If a similar start ensues 
Saturday, though, it would be 
tough to imagine the Wolverines 
mounting 
a 
large 
comeback 
against a sound Wisconsin team. 
Keeping emotions in check will 
play a big role in how the game 
starts.

Shea Patterson, here’s your 
moment

At the risk of hyperbole, this 
stretch coming up is why Shea 
Patterson came to Michigan. 
He’s been vocal about playing 
in — and winning — big games. 
Here’s his shot under the lights 
at Michigan Stadium.
In the 2016 matchup, Wilton 
Speight completed a 46-yard 
pass to Amara Darboh with 
7:56 left to take a 14-7 lead. 
The Wolverines beat then-No. 
8 Wisconsin by that same score 
(with an assist from Jourdan 
Lewis’ right arm). It’s hardly 
implausible 
to 
imagine 
this 
year’s version coming down 
to a similar situation. And if it 
does, Patterson has given fans 
no reason to doubt he’ll come 
through.
He’s on pace for over 2,500 
passing yards, 26 touchdowns 
and a 68.8 completion percentage 
over a 13-game season; the 
junior quarterback is arguably 
in the midst of the best season 
by a Michigan quarterback since 
Denard Robinson was under 
center.
But 
fairly 
or 
otherwise, 
Patterson will ultimately be 
judged by how he plays in — and 
whether he wins — these big 
games. He’d be the first to tell 
you that.

Prediction: 23-20, Michigan

Well, here you go. 

BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan vs. Wisconsin
465
Total yards by Michigan against 
Maryland

370 
Rushing yards by Wisconsin against 
Nebraska
294 
Passing yards by Michigan against 
Maryland
163
Recieving yards by Wisconsin 
against Nebraska

AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Junior defensive end Rashan Gary was sidelined with an injury during Michigan’s 42-21 win over Maryland last week.

