Rutgers has played Michigan tough the past two seasons. Even though the Wolverines entered the game as the No. 5 team and the Scarlet Knights had a pedestrian 4-4 record, it was no different on Saturday night.
The maize and blue looked like an average football team in the first half on Saturday. Michigan made plenty of uncharacteristic mistakes early on. The Wolverines had three penalties, lackluster defensive coverage, the deep ball couldn’t connect on offense, Brad Robbins had a punt blocked and returned for a touchdown, and Jake Moody missed two field goal attempts.
With so many miscues, Michigan entered halftime trailing for the first time all season. The Scarlet Knights led the Wolverines, 17-14.
But as has been the case all season, Michigan came out a different team in the second half. The Wolverines outscored Rutgers, 28-0, in the third quarter. Michigan has outscored its opponents in the third quarter, 84-6, this season.
Michigan intercepted Gavin Wimsatt three times, and one was returned for a touchdown by Michael Barrett.
The Wolverines cruised to a 52-17 victory and moved to 9-0 on the year. Here are our five takeaways from Michigan’s win against the Scarlet Knights.