This one’s been circled 
on 
the 
calendar 
for 
months. Maybe more of 
a tepid oval, actually. It’s 
not the same anticipation 
as an Ohio State or Notre 
Dame game, 
but 
one 
born 
more 
of curiosity. 
Don Brown 
and 
his 
defense 
have 
been 
preparing 
for 
Army’s 
notorious 
triple-
option look 
for 
months 
now. 
The 
Black 
Knights 
will come into Michigan 
Stadium on Saturday an 
experienced group, coming 
off an 11-win season and a 
season-opening 14-7 win 
over Rice.
After 
reviewing 
the 
tape, 
though, 
Michigan 
might 
be 
able 
to 
identify 
a 
few 
unexpected 
weak 
spots. Here 
are 
five 
thoughts 
from 
Army’s 
win 
last 
weekend, 
and 
how 
the 
Wolverines 
might 
approach 
the 
matchup 
with that in mind.
Is 
Army 
who 
we 
thought they were?
Not 
to 
channel 
an 
inner 
Dennis 
Green, 
but there were a few 
uncharacteristic elements 
in 
Army’s 
performance 
last week. This is a team 
that returned a majority of 
its starters from an 11-win 
group in 2018. The Black 
Knights 
will 
likely 
be 
favored in every game this 
year except the Michigan 
game. Their quarterback, 
Kelvin Hopkins Jr., comes 
back after a 2018 in which 

he posted 1000-plus yards 
rushing and passing for the 
first time in school history.
There were plenty of 
preseason 
grumblings 
about the treachery this 
game might pose.
But Army left plenty 
to 
be 
desired 
in 
an 
uninspiring performance 
on both sides of the ball. 
Their 
normally-potent 
triple-option attack was 
largely held at bay, totaling 
231 yards on 56 carries (4.1 
yards per carry) against 
a defense that finished 
112th in the nation (of 130) 
in 2018. That was nearly 
100 yards shy of last year’s 
season average. Defensive 
coaches frequently preach 
discipline when defending 
triple 
option. 
Don’t 
overcommit. Fill your gap. 
Stay patient.
By and large, Rice did 
a good job with that. 
Startlingly well, in fact. 
For the Black Knights, 
much of that stemmed 
from their difficulty to 
secure blocking on the 
edge. This was no one-off 
occurrence, 
either. 
If 
Army’s 
offensive 
line 
has 
trouble 
squaring 
up 
Rice’s 
edge 
guys, 
Khaleke 
Hudson, 
Josh Uche, 
Josh 
Ross 
and co. will 
surely make things far 
more difficult. 
For 
Army, 
and 
the 
triple-option writ large, 
it’s less about the chunk 
plays 
(though 
they 
obviously 
help). 
More 
vital is securing forward 
movement on every play, 
reaching 
a 
manageable 
down and distance and 
chewing up clock. When 
first and second down 
don’t go according to plan, 
well, third down rarely 
follows suit, either.
Because 
when 
its 
offense comes up against 
an obvious passing down…
...that doesn’t usually 

portend success.
Big 
game 
for 
the 
interior defensive line 
and linebackers
Defensive 
line 
coach 
Shaun 
Nua 
said 
on 
Wednesday 
that 
defensive 
linemen 
Donovan 
Jeter 
and 
Michael 
Dwumfour 
were 
both 
“ready 
to 
go”. 
That’s 
important news regardless, 
but especially so given the 

strain Army is going to try 
to put on the Wolverines’ 
interior. Despite its week 
one struggles, this is still 
an offense 
that 
can 
give 
you 
fits. 
And 
especially 
given 
the 
high 
frequency 
of 
snaps 
the Black 
Knights 
will 
run, 
having 
a 
full breadth of defensive 
linemen available will be 
crucial.

For all the negatives, 
Army 
still 
put 
some 
good stuff on tape. Given 
Michigan’s 
questions 
on the interior of the 
defensive 
line, 
getting 
pushed around should be 
the primary worry coming 
into the weekend.
Expect the full rotation 
to see time — Dwumfour, 
Jeter, senior Carlo Kemp, 
freshman 
Chris 
Hinton 
and junior Ben Mason. 
Perhaps this might be 
the week for freshman 
Mazi Smith to see 
the field as well, if 
only 
to 
spell 
the 
aforementioned.

If any player asserts 
himself among the group 
Saturday, that could open 
an avenue for more playing 
time in run downs going 
forward.
Defense struggled at 
times
Far 
from 
the 
most 
prolific 
attack, 
Rice 
had 
plenty 
of 
success 
gouging Army’s defense, 
particularly on the ground. 

FootballSaturday, September 7, 2019
6B

Five thoughts from Army’s tape

For in-game updates
Follow @theo_mackie, @aria_gerson, 
@Max_Marcovitch and 
@ethan_sears on Twitter during
Saturday’s game.

MAX MARCOVITCH
Managing Sports Editor

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
The Michigan defense must stay disciplined in order to stop Army’s triple-option offense from staying on the field for long periods.

More vital 
is securing 
forward 
movement.

This is still an 
(Army) offense 
that can give 
you fits.

Army at 
Michigan

Matchup: 
Michigan 
0-0 Big Ten, 
1-0 overall; 
Army 1-0

When: 
Saturday, 12 
P.M. ET

Where: The 
Big House

TV: FOX