ANNA FUDER/Daily

ROLL
ROLL
OVER
OVER

NICHOLAS STOLL
Managing Sports Editor

Huskies go belly-up in 
59-0 drubbing, completing 
Michigan’s easy 
non-conference schedule

T

he Michigan football team 
took care of business.
In a 59-0 rout of UConn 
(1-3 overall), the fourth-ranked 
Wolverines (3-0) secured their 
third win of the season, closing 
out their non-conference slate on 
a high note. It was a outcome that 
was never really in doubt — the 
Huskies assuming the role they 
were cast in as Michigan’s third-
straight low-caliber opponent. 
“We’re 
always 
competing 
with 
ourselves,” 
sophomore 
quarterback 
J.J. 
McCarthy 
said. “And no matter who we’re 
playing, or when we’re playing, 
we’re always just gonna go out 
there and try to be the best 
version of ourselves every single 
week.”
From the opening kickoff, 
the Wolverines made the gap in 
talent evident. In just four plays, 
Michigan went 72 yards and put 
its first touchdown on the board 
— a handoff to junior running 
back Blake Corum, his first of 
five scores on the day. Michigan’s 
defensive 
start 
was 
just 
as 
commanding, squashing UConn’s 
first drive for a three-and-out 
where 
the 
Huskies 
incurred 
negative yardage.
But like most Jim Harbaugh-
coached teams, an evident skill 
difference means very little in 
terms of intensity. The Michigan 
coach and his team didn’t take 
their foot off the gas, allowing 
McCarthy to cook under center in 
his first start as undisputed QB1.
And the McCarthy-led offense 
was efficient. It notched 231 yards 
with McCarthy at quarterback in 
the first half, 172 of which came 
in the air on an impressive 10-for-
13 efficiency, and tallied four 

touchdowns. 
The 
Wolverines 
were forced to punt just twice in 
the first two quarters, with two 
other drives ending in field goal 
attempts for senior kicker Jake 
Moody. 
Still, McCarthy and the offense 
wasn’t satisfied with anything 
less than perfection.
“I feel like the efficiency was 
definitely there,” McCarthy said. 
“But we had that one drive, I 
think it’s the second drive of the 
game, where we went three and 
out. That one was on me, so that 
one kind of haunts me, but you 
know, I thought we played pretty 
well in the first half.”
A large part of Michigan’s 
offensive 
success 
can 
be 
attributed to its defensive and 
special teams’ performance, too. 
The offense had consistently 
stellar field position, gifted by 
the other two facets of the game, 
which allowed it to score quickly 
and often. 
The Wolverines’ defense held 
the Huskies to a lowly 64 yards 
in the first half and just 110 on 
the game. Like an anaconda, 
Michigan squeezed the life out of 
the Huskies’ offense, a testament 
to the difference between the two 
programs heading into the game. 
The Wolverines also recovered 
a fumble and blocked a punt to 
flip the field in their favor — not 
to mention a 61-yard punt return 
touchdown by junior receiver A.J. 
Henning — exercising their will 
on UConn’s floundering squad.
Just before the half, a 38-0 
beatdown allowed Michigan to 
give its starters some rest and 
give others a chance to see the 
field. 
As 
senior 
quarterback 
Cade 
McNamara 
assumed 
position under center, the Big 
House 
provided 
a 
standing 
ovation — a sharp contrast to 
the boos he heard just last week. 
But McNamara’s day didn’t end 

on a positive note, as he exited 
the game with an injury that 
Harbaugh said is going to sideline 
him “for a few weeks.” 
“Not going to be a season 
ending thing, I don’t think, but 
he’ll miss some time,’ Harbaugh 
affirmed. 
At the other end of the break, 
the 
already-domineering 
Wolverines 
made 
one 
final 
statement before the starters 
were truly done for the day.
Michigan 
trotted 
out 
its 
offensive 
A-team 
one 
last 
time, as if to bury any shred of 
doubt that the Huskies were a 
worthy opponent. In an 11-play, 
83-yard drive, McCarthy led the 
Wolverines down the field to 
punch in yet another touchdown. 
It was the fifth time Corum found 
the endzone on the day, tying a 
program record last reached by 
running back Hassan Haskins a 
season ago against Ohio State. 
“I feel like we look good, but 
we haven’t faced any adversity,” 
Corum said. “I really don’t know 
how good we’re going to be. I feel 
it. I feel like we’re gonna be great, 
but I can’t tell you. But I’ll tell you 
(this): By the look of things, sky’s 
the limit for this offense.”
Not much changed as the game 
entered its formative stages; the 
backups piled on and UConn 
continued to struggle. Michigan 
proved that it can beat bad teams, 
but not much else. 
And with a non-conference 
schedule like the Wolverines 
booked this year, there was 
nothing else to prove in non-
conference competition.
“You 
can 
only 
play 
your 
schedule,” Corum said. “We 
treat every game like it’s a 
championship game. … We’re 
just playing the schedule. We’re 
having fun, we’re out there 
ballin’. It’s been great, but Big Ten 
is on the way — I’m excited.”

SPORTSWEDNESDAY

MICHIGAN 59 | UCONN 0

ANNA FUDER/Daily

KATE HUA/Daily | Design by Lys Goldman

