The Michigan Wolverines look like themselves again. After stumbling through the beginning of the season with what looked like a lost sense of identity, the team played true Michigan football, known for stout defense and an undeniable run game.
A win didn’t come easy, though, as USC took the game down to the wire after trailing 14-3 at halftime, nearly pulling out some magic in a 27-24 loss. One of the biggest things that shone through was quarterback Miller Moss’ toughness behind an offensive line that simply proved no match for the hardnosed Michigan defensive line.
It was a tough battle, and both teams’ best efforts reflected the product on the field.
“It was just better execution by them. We had all the fight. It wasn’t that they wanted it more than us. That was a four-quarter fight. But when it comes down to big games like this, you’ve got to execute.”
USC linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold
Here’s a look at four things we took away from both sides of the contest, which has a strong case for being the most exciting game of the week.
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1. Alex Orji was the right QB choice, even if the stats say otherwise
Davis Warren getting the starting job over Orji was controversial to begin with, and is largely due to Orji having the lower hand in preseason practice performances in which turnovers were a concern. It’s clear that Orji needs more in-game experience and is continuing to go through a lot of the same things that quarterbacks without a high amount of live reps experience, but he managed the game well and took care of the football.
Orji finished out the game 7-for-12, passing for 32 yards and 43 rushing yards on 13 carries. That’s the fewest passing yards Michigan has had since at least 1996.
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2. Michigan make progress in turnover battle
Michigan came into this game at -4 in the turnover margin. The Wolverines finished at No. 1 in turnover margin just a year ago, so being on the wrong side of things in this category is far from typical. Things got particularly bad against Arkansas State, of all opponents, when Warren threw three interceptions to the Red Wolves defense.
The Wolverines played clean football in this one on an interception-free day for Orji, though Michigan did fumble twice.
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3. Miller Moss‘ toughness on full display
It hasn’t been consistent this season, but one thing that Michigan is known for is playing bully football. That’s exactly what they did on Saturday, too, as there were almost too many times to count that Moss looked clearly shaken up from being hit. While there were a few decisions Moss probably would have liked to have had back, it’s important to note the USC offensive line didn’t do him a ton of favors either, but all things considered, Moss put on a respectable performance and did well for the circumstances.
Moss was sacked four times, leaving him with negative rushing yardage. He finished the game 28-for-51 passing with 283 yards and three touchdowns through the air, plus one baffling interception. It’s his worst performance of the year on the stat sheet but it wasn’t indicative of the level of play he actually displayed.
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4. USC falls victim to Michigan run game
The Michigan run game hasn’t looked like the force we know it to be this season when going up against quality competition, but it certainly did on Saturday. Running back Kalel Mullings had a day, leading the team on the ground with a total of 159 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.
The Wolverines offense as a whole finished out the day with 290 rushing yards to USC’s 96 rushing yards. The rushing attack was Michigan’s entire offense, making up all but 32 of its total yards of offense.
This is a vast improvement from the 31-12 loss to the Texas Longhorns, when Michigan was held to just 143 rushing yards as a team. Ultimately, the ground game was a big reason why the Wolverines snuck away with a win on Saturday.