Michigan football countdown to kickoff: 27 days until 2022 season
There’s much anticipation heading into the Michigan Wolverines football season, and TheWolverine.com is counting down the days until the Sept. 3 opener against Colorado State. We’ll discuss current Michigan events, the upcoming season and/or take a look at a significant number that correlates with how many days remain until kickoff, whether it be a player’s jersey number, a year, a date, a score, etc.
Michigan football finds itself 27 days away from the season opener against Colorado State. Today’s look at No. 27 is a quick recap of a critical moment from last season.
The Wolverines were able to take down the Ohio State Buckeyes by a score of 42-27. The offensive line and the run game darn near did it on their own, but the gameplan installed by now-former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald was a masterclass in slowing down the OSU offense.
Michigan went into the game seemingly content with the Buckeyes getting theirs through the air. Quarterback CJ Stroud threw for 394 yards on 34-for-49 passing and the star wideout trio of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave combined for 28 catches for 334 yards and a touchdown. OSU’s offense under Ryan Day is a chunk play waiting to happen. Macdonald and company acquiesced to that, but the defensive backfield did a masterful job of keeping the Buckeyes in front of them.
The three biggest keys to the game involved the pass rush, shutting down the run game and getting off the field on third down. Aidan Hutchinson had a trio of sacks, while David Ojabo added one of his own. OSU ran for only 64 yards on the afternoon and Michigan held them to 8-for-18 third down conversions.
Michigan also forced the Buckeyes to go the long way on their scoring drives. Four of the five scores on the day for OSU came on drives 12 plays or more. The only time it led in Ann Arbor was on a four-play, 56-yard drive to go up 10-7 in the second quarter. Michigan outscored them 35-17 the rest of the way.
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Narratives changed
In the blowout losses of 2018 and 2019, the games against OSU spiraled out of control because Michigan simply had no answers. Every play, every break went the way of the Buckeyes. They also reportedly caught on to Michigan’s defensive signals and locked into plays being tipped.
They had no such luck in The Game last season.
Michigan’s defensive success came because its coaching staff was willing to zig when its opponent zagged. They adapted all season based on their personnel and what their players did well. Jesse Minter will be tasked with grabbing the baton from Macdonald. It took a perfect storm (or blizzard, if you’re a Buckeye fan) for Michigan to put it together last season. It could have the ingredients to do it again in Columbus. But never downplay Macdonald’s impact on slaying a narrative and helping send Michigan to the Big Ten title game.
Michigan football countdown to kickoff
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