FootballSaturday, October 12, 2018
6B

Breakdown: ‘M’ vs. Wisconsin

By MARK CALCAGNO 

Daily Sports Editor

Here it is.
After 
four 
blowout 
wins 
and 
one 
furious 
comeback 
in 
Evanston, 
the 
Michigan 
football team finally has its 
chance 
at 
another 
ranked 
opponent. The Wolverines’ last 
shot, of course, ended with a 
loss to Notre Dame to open 
their season.
But since then, Michigan’s 
offense has added dynamism 
thanks to needed improvement 
on its line. Junior quarterback 
Shea Patterson has been kept 
heathy and mostly upright, 
allowing 
him 
to 
throw 
10 
touchdowns with a completion 
percentage 
approaching 
70 
percent.
Those numbers make the 
Wolverines’ next three games 
— 
Saturday’s 
contest 
with 
Wisconsin, next week’s game at 
Michigan State and then home 
against Penn State — seem more 
winnable than they did directly 
after the loss in South Bend.
The 
Badgers, 
however, 
have the best rushing attack 
Michigan 
will 
face 
in 
the 
regular season, along with a 
proven quarterback in Alex 
Hornibrook. The teams’ last 
meeting went Wisconsin’s way, 
24-10, last November.
The Wolverines have the 
chance to avenge that loss 
and earn a marquee win this 
weekend. 
Here’s 
how 
the 
Badgers and Michigan match 
up.

Michigan pass offense vs. 
Wisconsin’s pass defense

Nebraska 
threw 
for 
407 
yards against the Badgers last 
Saturday — two weeks after 
mustering just 93 yards through 
the air against the Wolverines. 
Wisconsin 
struggled 
with 
the mobility of Cornhuskers 
quarterback Adrian Martinez, 
who was also dangerous hitting 
receivers with consistent time 
in the pocket. 
Perpetuating the Badgers’ 
difficulties 
are 
four 
key 
injuries to their secondary. 
Safety 
D’Cota 
Dixon 
said 
he’ll play despite being listed 
as 
questionable 
while 
his 
counterpart, Scott Nelson, will 
miss the first half after being 
ejected from last week’s game. 

Caesar Williams and Deron 
Harrell — Wisconsin’s starting 
corners — are also questionable.
Patterson made play after 
play last week in Michigan’s 
victory over Maryland, and 
with Wisconsin’s injuries, he 
could do more of the same 
against the Badgers.

Edge: Michigan

Michigan rush offense vs. 
Wisconsin’s rush defense

Wisconsin’s 
bad 
luck 
worsened Thursday morning 
with the news that defensive 
end Isaiahh Loudermilk will 
not make the trip to Ann Arbor. 
Loudermilk is the team’s best 
pass rusher and a crucial part of 
its run defense, which is ranked 

fifth in the Big Ten and allows 
130.2 yards per game.
On the other side, running 
backs 
coach 
Jay 
Harbaugh 
said on Wednesday that he 
“expects” Chris Evans to play. 
The junior running back went 
through warmups last week 
,but ultimately sat out his third 
consecutive game.
Senior running back Karan 
Higdon has carried the ship in 
Evans’ absence with 30 and 25 
carries for 115 and 103 yards, 
respectively, 
the 
past 
two 
games. Despite the Badgers’ 
sturdy front, Higdon should 
get another heavy workload 
Saturday with Michigan’s run-
first style. 
Last week, redshirt junior 
left tackle Jon Runyan said 
his 
group 
has 
room 
for 

improvement in run blocking, 
and this week would be the 
perfect time to make that jump.

Edge: Toss-up

Michigan pass defense vs. 
Wisconsin pass offense

Wisconsin quarterback Alex 
Hornibrook has been stellar 
on the road, throwing for 18 
touchdowns 
and 
just 
three 
interceptions his past 10 games. 
Hornibrook 
wasn’t 
fantastic 
in last season’s meeting — 
9-of-19 for 143 yards — but he 
made trademark tight-window 
throws to hurt the Wolverines 
in 
key 
moments. 
Michigan 
allows just 134 yards per game 
through the air, but penalties 
have 
somewhat 
offset 
that 

low mark. If the Wolverines 
can apply pressure and get 
to 
Hornibrook 
on 
multiple 
occasions, it’ll pay dividends 
for their pass defense.

Edge: Michigan 

 Michigan run defense vs. 
Wisconsin’s run offense

It’s power football at its finest: 
the country’s third-ranked run 
defense against its third-ranked 
rusher, Jonathan Taylor.

AARON BAKER/Daily
Junior quarterback Shea Patterson has thrown 10 touchdowns so far this season, almost reaching a completion percentage of 70 percent through six games.s 

For in-game updates
Follow @MikeDPersak, @ethanewolfe, 
@Max_Marcovitch and 
@MWCalcagno on Twitter during
Saturday’s game.

