The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, November 11, 2020 — 19

How will Michigan replace Aidan 

Hutchinson?

It’s been eight quarters since 

the 
Michigan 
football 
team 

recorded a sack. And on Saturday, 
things got worse.

Junior defensive end Aidan 

Hutchinson will miss the rest of 
the season and requires surgery 
to repair a fracture on his leg, 
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh 
said Monday. ESPN reported that 
Hutchinson will be out for four 
months.

“He’s 
worked 
so 
hard,” 

Harbaugh said. “He’s put so much 
into it and playing really good, but 
I know he’ll come back stronger, 
faster, better. Just the way he is. 
He is so high drive that this is 
not something that’s gonna be a 
detriment to his career. And he’s 
young, he’ll heal fast and like you 
said, he’ll come back even better 
and stronger and faster.”

Hutchinson, a team captain 

and an NFL prospect, was one of 
the loudest voices in Michigan’s 
program advocating for a season 
to be played this year. For a 
defensive line that was already 
struggling, it’s hard to quantify 
what the loss will mean, and it 
might be exacerbated if Kwity 
Paye misses extended time. 

Paye, another NFL prospect 

who starts opposite Hutchinson, 
limped off in the second half of 
Saturday’s loss to Indiana. He 
also left the Michigan State game 
with an injury but returned. Paye 
and Hutchinson combined for 10 
sacks in 2019.

“Obviously when you have 

Aidan or Kwity, two guys that 
we really rely on, go down, it’s 
gonna really affect the game,” 
junior 
defensive 
end 
Taylor 

Upshaw said Monday. “But I have 
confidence in the backups and the 
guys behind me so it’s just gonna 
be one of those things, we have to 
step up.”

Upshaw, who had a tackle for 

loss against Indiana, is now a de 
facto starter on the defensive line. 

The position group has struggled 
in the last two games, both losses 
in which the defense assumed 
much of the blame. 

“It’s a huge opportunity for 

me,” he said. “You guys probably 
know I haven’t received the 
playing time that I would’ve 
wanted, but now it’s a do-or-die 
situation, so I’m happy I get to 
showcase my skills to the nation.”

Defensive 
coordinator 
Don 

Brown has built his system 
around blitzing, pressuring the 
quarterback and supplementing 
it with press-man coverage. That 
hasn’t worked so far this year, in 
part because of inexperience in 
the secondary and in part because 
there 
hasn’t 
been 
pressure. 

Upshaw added that the line has 
seen more max protections and 

chip blocks this year.

When one part of the defense 

doesn’t go as planned, it’s hard 
to compensate. When both don’t, 
you get results like the last two 
weeks, 
in 
which 
Michigan’s 

defense gave up 460 and 449 
yards to Indiana and Michigan 
State, respectively.

In years past, the defensive 

end group has been deep. Last 
year, for example, Michael Danna 
and Josh Uche were able to spell 
Paye 
and 
Hutchinson. 
This 

year, Brown will need unproven 
players like Upshaw, Dave Ojabo, 
Luiji Vilain, Gabe Newburg and 

Kris Jenkins to step up.

Harbaugh 
also 
named 

defensive tackles Chris Hinton, 
Jess Speight and Mazi Smith on 
Monday when asked about the 
pass rush. “Giving all those guys 
the opportunity to go and see 
if we can’t generate more pass 
rush,” he said.

He repeatedly referred to 

making tweaks in order to fix 
the problems that have the 
Wolverines below .500. When 
asked for specifics, he mostly 
demurred, 
saying 
it 
would 

include giving reps to guys who 
haven’t played, as well as minor 
schematic changes.

“Guys like Kris Jenkins and 

David Ojabo (are) really ready to 
play and play fast,” Harbaugh said. 
“Just get in there and give some 

reps and get the lip quiver a little 
bit and snot bubble coming out of 
the nose. Go play aggressive, play 
hard, free plays and then come 
out and you’re playing well, get 
another three (downs).”

If that doesn’t work, it’s hard 

to see where Michigan can turn 
next. The defense is at a crisis 
point after Saturday and just 
lost one of its best players for the 
season. And the schedule doesn’t 
get any easier.

“We have to get back there,” 

Upshaw said. “At the end of 
the day it’s on us. If we’re not 
producing we have to improve.”

ETHAN SEARS

Managing Sports Editor

Milton struggles with consistency 

at Indiana

BLOOMINGTON 
— 

Cornelius Johnson kept his 
answers brief when he spoke 
to reporters. But when asked 
about the identity Michigan’s 
offense wants, he was clear.

“To 
be 
explosive 
and 

control the game and make 
plays on the perimeter, make 
plays when balls come to you 
and ultimately to win ball 
games, 
helping 
contribute 

to the team,” the sophomore 
receiver said. “That’s our goal 
as a group and that’s what we 
envision.”

In 
fleeting 
moments 

Saturday, Michigan embodied 
that ideal. Johnson’s first-
quarter 
touchdown 
came 

on a 37-yard post route that 
showed everyone exactly what 
junior quarterback Joe Milton 
could do. Later in the game, 
Milton led a touchdown drive 
that featured two big plays 
by Ronnie Bell — the second 
of 
which 
included 
Milton 

throwing as he veered left for a 
52-yard gain. In that sense, the 
preseason 
prognostications 

surrounding 
the 
talent 
of 

Michigan’s quarterback have 
come to pass.

No one has any doubt that 

Milton is capable of making 
plays.

But through three games, 

Milton has run into the problem 
of consistency. For all the 
plays where he makes the ball 
sing with a flick of his wrist, 
there seem to be more where 
he overthrows his receiver 
by 10 yards or throws into 
double coverage. He finished 
Michigan’s 
38-21 
loss 
to 

Indiana a modest 18-of-34 with 
344 yards, three touchdowns 
and two interceptions — which 
came on the Wolverines’ final 
two drives, when Milton tried 
to lead a comeback.

“It’s not always on my 

shoulders,” Milton said of the 
fourth quarter. 

On those drives, though, as 

Milton took ambitious shots 
that resulted in two ugly 
interceptions and the end of 
Michigan’s chances, it seemed 
as though he was acting like it 
was.

“My whole process is not to 

be the hero, just take what they 
give me,” Milton said. “If they 
back up, just come out to my 
checkdown. They come close, 
take a shot.”

In 
Michigan’s 
season-

opener, 
a 
dominant 
49-24 

win over Minnesota, Milton’s 
performance was notable for 
what he wasn’t asked to do: Win 
the game for the Wolverines. 
Offensive 
coordinator 
Josh 

Gattis set up the offense with 
bubble 
screens 
and 
short 

passes; designed quarterback 
runs and deadly RPOs. The 
kinds of plays that can make 
things easy for a talented, but 
inexperienced, 
quarterback. 

Rarely was Milton asked to 
make downfield throws.

Since then, Michigan has 

largely eschewed the bubble 

screens. Milton has been asked 
to do more — though part of 
that is dictated by the fact that 
the Wolverines have found 
themselves in losing positions 
that require them to throw the 
ball downfield more often.

“Every 
snap 
he 
takes, 

quarterback playing his third 
game, he’s getting a lot put 
on him,” Michigan coach Jim 
Harbaugh said. “Playing from 
behind and having to play 
those kind of situations. It’s 
an offense, it’s a unit that each 
has got to support the other.”

Harbaugh’s right. It does 

Milton no favors that the 
Wolverines ran for 13 yards, 
the offensive line was banged 
up or that Michigan’s defense 

has gotten beaten easily. No 
one would point the finger 
towards 
Milton 
for 
the 

Wolverines’ losses.

Still, his limitations have 

come 
into 
focus. 
Mainly, 

the downfield accuracy that 
reporters have been asking 
about for years. Milton is 
currently averaging 8.1 yards 
per 
attempt. 
The 
much-

maligned 
Shea 
Patterson 

averaged 8.0 in 2019. That 
doesn’t tell the whole story, but 
much like Patterson, Milton 
has thus far been a perfectly 
fine quarterback who hasn’t 
been able to change games for 
Michigan.

Unlike Patterson, Milton 

is three starts into his career 
— and should only get better. 
Especially if the Wolverines 
can put him in better positions.

“The run game, we’ve got to 

make some improvements. No 
question about it,” Harbaugh 
said. “The offensive line was 
very much reshuffled as you 
saw in the game. I thought 
guys 
did 
extremely 
well. 

(Andrew) Stueber went from 
right guard to right tackle. Zak 
Zinter, true freshman, started 
at right guard. I thought 
redshirt 
freshman 
Karsen 

Barnhart did some really good 
things as well (at tackle). 

“All the things — a slow 

start, playing from behind, 
having some passes dropped, 
forcing some things toward 
the end. All of those things 
contributed 
(to 
Milton’s 

performance).”

ETHAN SEARS

Managing Sports Editor

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

Joe Milton has struggled with his deep ball accuracy this season.

Harbaugh shutting out the noise as 

rumors swirl

It’s November in Ann Arbor, 

and for Jim Harbaugh, that means 
questions about his future. For the 
past five years, they’ve primarily 
come in the form of rumors 
that he’ll leave for an NFL job. 
This year, there’s a unique tenor. 
Specifically, will athletic director 
Warde Manuel extend Harbaugh’s 
contract, which is set to expire 
after the 2021 season?

For high-level college football 

coaches, entering the final year 
of a contract is virtually unheard 
of. Recruiting players who won’t 
step on campus for multiple years 
becomes difficult without long-
term stability.

But 
that’s 
the 
situation 

Harbaugh and Michigan find 
themselves in. Before the season, 
it seemed like an understandable 
quandary. In July, Harbaugh 
said there are “bigger fish to fry” 
than his contract extension — a 
justifiable position as he tried to 
navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

Plus, an extension seemed 

inevitable. Despite the persistent 
rumors, Harbaugh and Michigan 
always seemed happy with each 
other. But after a 1-2 start, their 
marriage is leakier than ever.

So on Monday, the questions 

were back.

“Again, it’s your willingness and 

interest in listening to what ‘they’ 
say,” Harbaugh responded. “I don’t 

really have anything to say because 
I don’t have any real interest in 
listening to that kinda stuff. I think 
you know me by now. I always like 
letting the action speak for what 
you have to say. I have always 
thought this, that your actions 
speak so loudly that people can’t 
even hear what you’re saying. I’ll 
let the actions speak as they always 
— as they have in the past.”

For five and a half years, this 

has been Harbaugh’s operating 
method. There are not “people 
close to the situation” when it 
comes to Jim Harbaugh, because 
Harbaugh won’t allow it. He 
operates as he wants to operate. 
When he eventually leaves, it will 
almost certainly be swift and 
surprising, like it was when he was 
hired.

For now, Harbaugh says he 

wants to be at Michigan for a long 
time.

“Those 
are 
the 
actions,” 

Harbaugh said, his frustration 
at this repeated refrain seeping 
through. “And no matter what I 
say to you, I’ve been here for five 
and a half, almost six years and I’ve 
experienced this. No matter what 
I say, the next day, something else 
is said or the next year, the same 
thing comes up.”

He paused, letting out an 

exasperated laugh.

“No matter what I tell you, 

tomorrow something else will 
be written by somebody else. I’m 
gonna let my actions speak loudly. 
You know me. My actions have 

been consistent.”

True to his word, Harbaugh’s 

actions have been consistent, even 
amid Michigan’s disappointing 
start. Remember, when these 
rumors cropped up last year, 
Harbaugh sent a letter to players’ 
parents that amounted to a blanket 
denial of any NFL rumor with his 
name attached.

“His whole life is Michigan 

football,” 
fifth-year 
senior 

offensive lineman Andrew Stueber 
said. “It’s noticed in how he talks 
to players, how he carries himself, 
how he jumps into the meetings. 
He’s always the one sitting in 
the meetings, whether he’s in 
the corner or the front row, he’s 
always jotting down his notes. … 
His commitment to the team is 
unquestioned. He’s committed to 
every single player here.”

That commitment lends itself 

to a robotic persona. Rarely will 
Harbaugh abjectly criticize his 
team. Never will he deviate from 
the process that’s worked for 
him so often in the past, even if it 
appears to be failing him now.

On Monday, when he was 

asked how to maintain Michigan’s 
focus after two straight losses, his 
response was, “Get prepared for 
this game coming up. This is the 
most important thing.”

It’s not a complex psychological 

answer because Harbaugh’s focus 
is singular: Preparing for the next 
opponent.

And as always, that means 

shutting out the noise.

THEO MACKIE

Managing Sports Editor

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said he would “let the actions speak” when asked about contract rumors.

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is out for the season, a blow for 
Michigan’s struggling pass rush.

Five-star forward Moussa Diabate 

commits to Michigan

Moussa 
Diabate, 
a 
five-

star 
power 
forward 
from 

IMG Academy, committed to 
Michigan on Monday. The news 
was first reported by Tipton 
Edits. 

Diabate 
is 
currently 
the 

20th-ranked recruit in the 2021 
class, according to 247Sports 
composite rankings. He chose 
the Wolverines over offers from 
Kentucky, Arizona and Alabama. 

At 6-foot-10 and 215 pounds, 

Diabate is a physical interior 
player. He is known for his 
shot-blocking capabilities and 

presence on the offensive and 
defensive glass. 

Diabate becomes the second 

five-star to commit to Michigan 
in the past two weeks, joining 
forward Caleb Houstan, who 
committed to the Wolverines on 
Oct. 30. Even before Diabate’s 
commitment, Michigan’s 2021 
class was already listed as the 
top in the nation, according to 
247Sports. Along with Diabate 
and Houstan, the class includes 
four-star 
guards 
Frankie 

Collins and Kobe Bufkin, four-
star 
forward 
Isaiah 
Barnes 

and three-star forward Will 
Tschetter. 

It 
is 
unknown 
whether 

Diabate will sign his national 

letter of intent on early signing 
day, this Wednesday. Speaking to 
reporters over Zoom on Monday 
morning, Michigan coach Juwan 
Howard spoke of his recruiting 
philosophy. 

“We try to go get guys that 

we feel fit our culture,” Howard 
said. “And fortunately enough, 
last year’s class and now this 
upcoming class, 2021, these guys 
want to be here at Michigan. We 
want them here. We’re looking 
forward to building something 
special, a winning, competitive 
group.”

Asked later if the signees 

planned to ink their letters 
of intent on early signing day, 
Howard only said, “We’ll see.”

JARED GREENSPAN

Daily Sports Writer

Aidan Hutchinson has fractured 

leg, likely out for season

According to Jim Harbaugh, 

junior defensive end Aidan 
Hutchinson 
will 
require 

surgery on his leg for a fracture.

Although Harbaugh did not 

specify a timetable, Hutchinson 
is presumably out for the 
season.

Hutchinson 
suffered 
the 

injury early in the first quarter 
on Indiana’s first drive. He was 
attempting to bring Hoosiers 
quarterback 
Michael 
Penix 

down after a pass. Hutchinson 
eventually walked off under his 

own power but was later shown 
on TV in street clothes with 
a boot on his right leg, sitting 
with his mom.

With 
Hutchinson 
out, 

Michigan’s defense will take a 
significant hit, as Hutchinson 
was one of the best players on 
a defense that has struggled 
early. On Saturday, Hutchinson 
was replaced at defensive end 
by senior Luiji Vilain.

Hutchinson is a potential 

draft pick for 2021. If he chooses 
to return to school, he would 
have two years of eligibility 
remaining as 2020 does not 
count against eligibility for any 
player.

“He’s worked so hard, he’s 

put so much into it and playing 
really good but I know he’ll 
come back stronger, faster, 
better,” Harbaugh said. “Just 
the way he is, he’s so high drive 
that this is not something that’s 
gonna be a detriment to his 
career. He’s young, he’ll heal 
fast and he’ll come back even 
better and stronger and faster.”

Harbaugh did not have an 

update on junior tackle Jalen 
Mayfield, who has a high 
ankle sprain, according to the 
Detroit Free Press, or junior 
tackle Ryan Hayes, who did not 
travel to Indiana because of an 
undisclosed injury.

ARIA GERSON
Daily Sports Writer

