FootballSaturday, September 27, 2019
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‘Everybody’s questioning us? We’ve just got to prove it’
For the Michigan defense, this
weekend’s game will likely offer
little in the way of conclusive
answers.
Rutgers
comes
into
this
weekend’s bout in Ann Arbor ranked
107th in the nation in total offense
(one spot shy of Tennessee). It hasn’t
finished better than 127th of 130
teams in a full season since 2015-
16. Starting quarterback McLane
Carter is out for Saturday’s game
with a concussion, and the backup,
Artur Sitkowski, threw for just 40
yards and registered a negative
adjusted passing yards per attempt,
according to Sports Reference, in
last year’s 42-7 loss to Michigan.
All of this is to say, this weekend
likely won’t be a banner one for the
Scarlet Knights. Conversely, this
is far from the game to provide a
litmus test for a defense suddenly
on thin ice. That doesn’t leave this
game devoid of meaning on the
defensive end.
Last
week,
the
Wolverines
allowed 359 rushing yards in a
revealing loss at Wisconsin. They
have spent this week, as would
be expected, touting a desire to
improve and the will to do so.
Players and coaches admonished
their effort from a week ago and
noted a revamped energy in practice.
Buzzwords like “physicality” and
“execution” flew around the building
like popcorn in a microwave.
“We didn’t play physical enough,”
said Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh
on Monday. “We were out-hustled.
I take responsibility for that. In any
ways that we were out-schemed, I
take responsibility for that. It’s my
job to make sure we are completely
sound, in all offenses and defenses
that we’re running.”
Added senior linebacker Josh
Uche: “You’ve got to respond to
adversity. Everybody has a plan
until they get punched in the mouth.
Mike Tyson said, ‘You got punched
in the mouth, what are you going
to do about it?’ Am I going to lay
down? Hell no. I’m going to get up,
I’m going to keep fighting, keep
swinging. That’s what this team is
going to do.”
Swing, it presumably will, at a
particularly feeble target Saturday.
Though
players
would
never
entertain the idea, Rutgers might
just be the ideal opponent coming
off such a comprehensive drubbing.
As such, the nature of the
loss seemingly required a full-
scale breakdown — an effort to
re-establish the fundamentals and
start anew.
“There’s not a doubt in my
mind that we can’t get that back,”
said senior defensive end Michael
Danna on Tuesday. “So we’ve got
high expectations no matter what
the outcome was last Saturday or
whatever. Like I said, we still have
high expectations. We still have a lot
of hope.
“We were all surprised. We didn’t
want to have that outcome. It is what
it is now. That was four days ago, so
we’ll move past it. It’s a new week,
it’s a new challenge ahead.”
The
questions
this
week
—
and
subsequent
answers
—
understandably
focused
on
schematic
and
personal
improvement. How does this get
better? This is a unit that frequently
touts its desire to be the best in the
nation. It’s not an unsubstantiated
expectation;
all
of
Michigan’s
defenses in the Don Brown era have
finished top-3 in total defense, with
the 2016 squad finishing No. 1 in the
nation.
That’s the standard at Michigan
these days, and rightfully so.
Last week’s performance, though,
surfaced
real
questions
about
whether this roster’s personnel can
live up to its internal expectations.
It wasn’t simply the result that
raised alarm bells, but how it came
to be. Wisconsin was unambiguous
about its intention to run the ball
down the defense’s throat. Then it
went out and did so. The Badgers’
offensive line had its way with
Michigan’s front.
The result was a performance
Harbaugh described succinctly: “It
was thorough.”
The players, many of whom have
been part of nationally elite defenses
in their Wolverines careers, would
scoff at any such notions of decline.
They believe they have the group in
place to reach a different level. And
they don’t have much interest in
entertaining the alternative.
“A lot of people outside of the
program have a lot to say, but we’re
worried about what’s going on inside
the program,” Danna said. “We’re
all family here, we’re a brotherhood
here. We don’t condone none of the
outside opinions, we stick together
no matter what everybody has to
say.”
There
is
caution
against
overreacting to any one result, no
matter how revealing. This week
will likely alleviate some existential
concerns, though far from all.
The defense can only prove so
much about their aptitude for big
games against a decidedly sub-
par opponent in Week 4 — that is,
obviously, assuming the Wolverines
win.
For now, the defense, and the
team writ large, is treating Saturday
as a stepping stone. Eventually it
could reach a desired end. But not
without taking that first step.
“I think we’re a physical, hard-
nosed defense,” Danna said. “There’s
no doubt in my mind about that. I
spent all camp being here, seeing it.
There’s no doubt in my mind we’re
a hard-nosed defense. We’ve just got
to put in on tape now.
“Everybody’s
questioning
us?
We’ve just got to prove it.”
Michigan defense eager to respond after dismal performance in last week’s loss at Wisconsin
MAX MARCOVITCH
Managing Sports Editor
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
The Michigan defense gave up 359 rushing yards in last week’s 35-14 loss to Wisconsin, prompting introspection this week.