ANN ARBOR, Mich. _ A week after being shaken up, Michigan came out in the Big Ten opener flexing its muscles.
Ranked No. 5 in the Amway Coaches Poll, the Wolverines dominated Penn State from the first series Saturday, building a four-touchdown halftime lead and cruising to a 49-10 win at Michigan Stadium in front of 110,319 fans.
U-M improved to 4-0 by asserting its will on the ground with a steady succession of power runners, five of whom scored touchdowns and totaling a season-high 326 rushing yards.
They were led by senior tailback De'Veon Smith, who was his tackle-breaking self from the start, with 46 yards in the first quarter, eventually topping 100 yards for the first time this season.
He got his 107 on just 12 carries, his longest a 39-yarder, tearing apart the Penn State rushing defense (2-2). Later, he was joined in the explosion category by Chris Evans (one touchdown) and Karan Higdon (two touchdowns), who each had runs of at least 37 as well.
The game was a return to the power football that coach Jim Harbaugh wants to be the team's trademark. After a 306-yard day against Hawaii, it was tough to come by against Central Florida's eight/nine man defensive front and Colorado's large and athletic defensive line, both games finishing with below 170 rushing yards.
Penn State's front seven was severely lacking due to injury and got even worse once linebacker Brandon Smith was ejected for targeting early in the second quarter.
While that gave U-M a chance for its third touchdown and the 21-0 lead instead of settling for a field goal, it was clear by that point Michigan's defense had more than enough cushion.
They were coming hard from the beginning.
After one quarter, they had three sacks and had allowed on 16 total yards. By halftime, it was up to five sacks and 50 total yards with Michigan leading 28-0.
The second half became academic, especially after Penn State got to the Michigan two-yard line in the third quarter and elected to kick a field goal instead of going for it.
"Closing" the score to 28-3 at that point showed the Nittany Lions' faith in a comeback.
The only hope for Penn State most of the day, at least when the game was semi-competitive, was their talented tailback Saquon Barkley, who had 131 yards of offense through three quarters. In one of the football statistical oddities due to sack yardage, his team only had 121 yards at the time.
On the day when U-M's opponent next week, Wisconsin, throttled Michigan State 30-6 in East Lansing, the Wolverines made a statement leading into next Saturday's showdown in Ann Arbor.
The strikingly efficient first half _ four touchdowns in the first five drives with the other ending at the Penn State 39 _ showed the Wolverines' desire to take charge early, instead of fighting back like a week earlier against Colorado.
The first four touchdown drives demonstrated U-M's will.
Jabrill Peppers' impressive 53-yard punt return, stumbling at the end and softened by a U-M penalty, allowed U-M to start its first drive on the Penn State 24 and ended with fullback Khalid Hill scoring.
After Jourdan Lewis made his emphatic return with a solid tackle on a fourth-down Penn State bubble screen, the Wolverines march 54 yards with relative ease, capped by the second rushing touchdown of the game, this one from De'Veon Smith for the 14-0 lead.
The targeting call on Smith saved the Wolverines on the next touchdown drive and quarterback Wilton Speight showed his skills on the fourth, rumbling to convert a fourth-and-7 before handing off to Higdon.
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