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Michigan had an extra week to prepare for Michigan State, as they had a bye week last week. The extra week of preparation seemed to be a big help for the Wolverines as they ended up dominating the Spartans, winning 44-10.
The offense exploded with points as quarterback Shea Patterson had his best game ever at Michigan, the defense kept the MSU offense in check, and special teams got involved in the game as well. Check out how each position graded out in the team’s big rivalry win.
OFFENSE
Quarterback: A
Patterson played lights out against his rival, in a game where he started out going 3/8 and already getting sacked once, it looked like it would be a long day for Patterson. Well, it was a long day, a long day of dominance as Patterson finished the game going 24/33 for 384 yards and four touchdowns as he had his best game as a Wolverine. He would throw for over 300 yards for the first time at Michigan, and he even broke a record that Tom Brady had against MSU.
Patterson used his legs when he needed too but he couldn’t make anything of it as he was sacked three times to knock his rushing yards into the negatives. The way he was throwing the football though was impressive as he made some quick, deep, and tough throws. Along with the throws, he made some good reads to set up those throws as he looked comfortable with multiple RPO plays.
The offense finally seems to be intact and what offensive coordinator Josh Gattis dreamt of and it started with Patterson. This offense was supposed to help him greatly and fit his style of play. It started out rough, but now it’s starting to come together at the right time.
Running Back: C+
While passing the ball worked really well against MSU, running wasn’t as effective but it still did some damage. Hassan Haskins was the only running back to find the endzone as he finished with six carries for 13 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Zach Charbonnet had the best day of any running back, finishing with seven carries for 30 yards. Tru Wilson had the most carries with 10, but for 26 yards.
Wide Receiver: A+
There hasn’t been a better game for the wide receivers than yesterday as six different wide receivers caught a pass, and if you include the other positions the number increases to nine. Ronnie Bell was the star receiver, finishing with nine catches for 150 yards, a career-best for him. While he wasn’t able to get into the endzone, three other wide receivers were able too.
Donovan Peoples-Jones finished with four catches for 48 yards and a touchdown. Nico Collins had three carries for 45 yards and a touchdown, while freshman Cornelius Johnson had one catch for 39 yards and a touchdown. Tarik Black had a nice 27-yard catch, while freshman Mike Sainristil had two good catches for 21 yards.
Tight End: B
Starting tight end Sean McKeon was a big help in the receiving game for Patterson has he had two big catches for 46 yards, while Nick Eubanks had one catch for five yards and a touchdown. The tight ends weren’t used often in the passing game but when they were they were effective. Their blocking was helpful as well.
Offensive Line: A-
Despite Patterson getting sacked three times and the rushing attack only putting up 83 total yards, the offensive line did a good job in giving Patterson time to throw the football. They also did a good job of blocking on some of the jet sweeps and wide runs/screen passes. They helped the offense do what they were able to do.