ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has been talking about finding balance on offense, but now the Wolverines have a bigger issue — finding balance within the game.
The Wolverines went scoreless in the second half Saturday and opened the door for Rutgers in the Big Ten opener, but the defense came up big in the final minutes to preserve a 20-13 win. Michigan is now 4-0 and will travel to Wisconsin next week. Rutgers fell to 3-1.
No. 19 Michigan opened the game looking methodical and reliant on the run. But the Wolverines, their 20-3 first-half lead looking tenuous, went in reverse in the second half, looking lackluster with four straight three-and-outs.
Meanwhile, Rutgers began to take advantage of the Michigan defense, which lost leading tackler Josh Ross to a stinger suffered late in the first half. Ross, a linebacker and two-time captain who entered the game leading the team with 23 tackles, appeared to be favoring his left arm. Michigan announced early in the second half Ross would be questionable for the second half and was replaced by Kalel Mullings.
Rutgers went three-and-out to start the second half, and A.J. Henning gave the Wolverines a spark returning the punt 29 yards to give Michigan strong field position at the Rutgers’ 39-yard line. But Michigan got conservative, looked flat and went three-and-out.
The Scarlet Knights responded with their own statement drive, moving 91 yards in 12 plays, culminating with a 14-yard touchdown pass from Noah Vedral to Aaron Young to cut into Michigan’s lead to 20-10. After another sleep-walking Michigan offensive possession, Rutgers countered in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, making it 20-13, with a 25-yard field goal.
After yet another three-and-out. Rutgers appeared on its way to a game-tying score. But the Michigan defense, which hadn’t had much of a breather in the second half because of the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the offense, stiffened. Vedral threw incomplete into coverage in the corner of the end zone, and Valentino Ambrosio missed a 29-yard field goal wide right. He had made a 40-yarder in the first quarter.
The Wolverines went three-and-out for a fourth straight series, and again, Michigan’s defense was asked to slow and stop the Scarlet Knights. They did, forcing Rutgers to turn over the ball on downs with 5:24 left in the game.
Michigan ran the ball well and advanced to the Rutgers 27, before McNamara lost 2 yards for fourth down. Moody missed a 47-yard field goal. Michigan’s defense saved the game, as David Ojabo forced Vedral’s fumble and Junior Colson recovered.
Michigan entered the game leading the country in rushing, averaging 350.3 yards a game, but seemed to drift from the rushing attack midway through the first half and didn’t revisit it until late in the fourth quarter.
The Wolverines built a 20-3 first-half lead after Haskins scored twice, including a 1-yard touchdown run to cap a 74-yard, 17-play drive that opened the game. The Wolverines went heavy with the run — the first seven plays of the game were on the ground — and used 7:36.
It certainly appeared to be Michigan making a statement, but maybe the Wolverines meant it as much for themselves as they did to set the tone. After a season of playing from behind, Michigan entered this season wanting to start fast. The Wolverines opened the game against Rutgers fast but also deliberate and have now scored touchdowns on their first possession in three of four games.
Now, the Wolverines are going to have to examine why they didn’t start the second half against Rutgers as efficiently and deliberately as the they did at the start of the game.
