The Michigan Daily | michigandaily.com | September 30, 2019

Michigan destroys Rutgers, Knights fire coach in aftermath

In the fourth quarter, up 38 

points, Michigan went for it on 

fourth down.

The Wolverines’ latest scoring 

drive had been courtesy of third-

string quarterback Joe Milton 

and 
fourth-string 
running 

back Hassan Haskins. Facing 

fourth-and-goal at the one-yard 

line with the game all but over, 

Michigan could’ve been forgiven 

for mailing it in and kicking the 

field goal. Instead, Milton ran a 

bootleg, scored a touchdown and 

mocked ripping open his shirt, a 

la Superman.

Last week, in a blowout loss 

to Wisconsin, the 20th-ranked 

Wolverines (3-1 overall, 1-1 Big 

Ten) seemed to lack confidence 

and, more than that, killer 

instinct. While it’s hard to prove 

much against Rutgers (1-3, 0-2), 

likely the worst team in the Big 

Ten, Saturday proved about 

as good a redemption game 

as Michigan could’ve hoped 

for. It played like a team with 

something to prove, running up 

the score in a 52-0 win. It was 

the team’s first shutout since 

2016.

“Definitely helps us a lot as a 

team get that confidence back,” 

said sophomore linebacker Cam 

McGrone. “Because last week 

was a little down but this game 

with this goose egg, it definitely 

lifted our spirits.”

The 
calls 
for 
senior 

quarterback Shea Patterson’s job 

reached a fever pitch after last 

week’s setback, but Michigan 

coach Jim Harbaugh kept the 

faith in his signal-caller, and a 

week after not even completing 

half 
his 
passes, 
Patterson 

completed 17-of-23 passes for 276 

yards, throwing a touchdown 

and running for three more. 

Offensive coordinator Josh 

Gattis spent the game calling 

plays on the sideline instead 

of from the box, wanting to be 

a little more hands-on. And 

though Rutgers hardly offered 

a test, the move seemed to 

help. Patterson seemed more 

comfortable in the pocket, ably 

scrambling and making plays 

with his feet. Michigan trusted 

its receivers to make plays — 

the combination of juniors Nico 

Collins, Donovan Peoples-Jones 

and Tarik Black. That trio, along 

with sophomore Ronnie Bell, 

combined for 14 catches for 

248 yards in what could be the 

beginning of a more involved 

passing game. That was evident 

from the first two drives.

In each of the past three 

games, Michigan fumbled its 

opening drive away. But this 

week, on the fifth play of the 

drive, Patterson found an open 

Nico Collins along the sideline. 

Collins then turned upfield and 

ran for a 48-yard touchdown. 

After forcing a three-and-out, 

the Wolverines got the ball 

back and — after the Scarlet 

Knights extended the drive 

with two defensive penalties — 

Patterson perfectly placed a ball 

to Peoples-Jones just short of 

the end zone. Two plays later, on 

third-and-goal, Patterson took it 

in himself on a bootleg.

“Everybody 
was 
hungry,” 

Peoples-Jones said. “Everybody 

wanted to make a play.”

And even when things didn’t 

quite go right, the Wolverines 

fought through it in a way they 

couldn’t last week. When the 

defense struggled in a late-

first quarter drive, sophomore 

defensive end Aidan Hutchinson 

hit Scarlet Knights quarterback 

Artur Sitkowski and stopped 

him short on fourth down from 

the 5-yard line. After Patterson 

threw a red-zone interception 

in the third quarter, the defense 

stopped Rutgers on fourth-and-1 

at its own 41-yard line, then the 

offense marched down the field. 

Bell fought for every extra yard 

after a catch in the third quarter 

and pushed his defenders all the 

way to the 1-yard line, setting up 

a Patterson quarterback sneak 

for Michigan’s fifth touchdown 

of the day.

“There was a lot of trust 

there,” Harbaugh said. “Players 

trusting the coaches, coaches 

trusting the players, and a lot of 

work. It was good to see it pay 

off in a victory that was much 

needed.”

After the debacle in Madison, 

it was just the kind of win the 

Wolverines needed, and even 

with all caveats attached, they 

played with the kind of spark 

that was missing the first three 

weeks. They wore the Scarlet 

Knights down to a pulp and 

maintained 
their 
intensity 

throughout.

At least for a day, all the 

questions 
surrounding 

Michigan quieted to a hush.

ARIA GERSON
Daily Sports Editor

RUCHITA IYER / DAILY DESIGN BY JACK SILBERMAN

September 30, 2019 | michigandaily.com

ASH KICKING