Offense notes: J.J. McCarthy hits a milestone in win at Indiana, but more to unlock

Michigan football moved to 6-0 on the season with a 31-10 win at Indiana on Saturday afternoon. In a game that looked like it would be a slugfest for a while, the Wolverine offense was humming while still leaving “meat on the bone,” as head coach Jim Harbaugh would say.

The Wolverines finished the contest with 469 total yards of offense and 26 first downs, dominating the time of possession (37:53 to 22:07). Headling the performance was sophomore quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who went 28-for-36 passing for 304 yards, 3 touchdowns and an interception. It was his first 300-plus-yard passing game at Michigan.

“I think a lot of quarterbacks have been around and they get that first 300-yard game,” Harbaugh told the media after the game. “‘Oh, I can do this now. I can really do this.’ That usually bodes well and propels them onward.”

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McCarthy’s performance was not perfect — few are at this level — but he gets more and more comfortable each week. He still knows he can get better.

“I feel right at home right now with just my comfortability,” McCarthy told the media. “But just being able to use my legs more on those third downs when something’s not open, just being able to use that God-given ability. Just consistently making the right decisions, consistently putting the ball right where it needs to be and commanding the field out there. There are so many things that I can improve on — there are so many things that I’m going to see on the film that I can improve on — but it’s just the consistency that I’m striving to get towards.”

He continued: “It’s just like I’m dying to get the ball in these guys’ hands, just let my playmakers work. Going through all the progressions and all that, things start to slow down in a way when I’m looking out there and I’m not necessarily thinking of running, because in high school, I was running a 4.9, not fast at all, so I’m still adjusting to being able to use my legs. But it’s coming with time, but like I said, that’s another part of my game and this offense that is going to be really scary when it starts clicking.”

Things click in the second half

Michigan was out of sorts at times offensively in the first two quarters for a variety of reasons. It found itself in a 10-10 game with the Hoosiers at halftime, which was not the plan going in. Harbaugh said it was a “humbling” performance, but uncharacteristic.

“There are just times we just weren’t — I don’t know what the percentage would be. Maybe three-fourths of the time we were playing Michigan football, and solid, assignment sound, and maybe more. But some of the times things were uncharacteristic. We’re getting penalties, giving up cheap yardage on defense. The false starts and miscues we had on offense. Keeps us humble. We’ll move on from this one with humble hearts going into the big game against Penn State.”

McCarthy said there was a point early in the second half where things started to come together. So much of what a quarterback does comes down to rhythm, and he found a way to lead them to 21 unanswered points.

“Everything just started clicking for us,” McCarthy said. “We felt like we could move the ball on them the whole game, especially the first half. It just wasn’t clicking. We weren’t into a rhythm. Once we got into a rhythm, it was over.”

Despite being thrown off schedule at times, fifth-year wide receiver and captain Ronnie Bell never saw doubt creep into the Wolverines. They expected a tough game and got one from Indiana. His contribution to the effort was 11 catches for 121 yards.

“My favorite part is that there was no concern,” Bell said. “Guys going into this game were very aware that this was going to be a dogfight. Indiana is very competitive … they play football so physically. Honestly, pulling away was almost like a shocker, because I was ready for that to be just boom, boom, boom, boom until the end. I think, as far as what the team showed, just that we are willing to go for four quarters or however long we have to do it. And with Coach Herb [director of strength and conditioning Ben Herbert] and 150s and cross-fields, with the work we’ve put in, we’re ready to rock and roll all night.”

Mike Hart’s impact felt — with and without him

There were times Saturday that the game felt secondary to the health and well-being of Michigan running backs coach Mike Hart, who collapsed in the first quarter on the sideline and was carted off the field. He suffered a seizure and was taken to a local hospital where he will be evaluated overnight.

The uncertainty was palpable. Michigan players seemed distracted at times during the opening two chapters of play. Junior running back Blake Corum and his teammates were captured on camera visibly shaken but had to play through.

For Corum, it was another starring day in the Michigan backfield. He had 25 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown, headlined by a 50-yard run on the opening drive.

“It’s one of those things you obviously never want to see. It was hard to see, just because of the relationship I have with Coach Hart, the love I have for him,” Corum said. “It was in the back of my mind. The love I have for Coach Hart is way bigger than football. But I knew he would want the RBs to go out there and handle business. He prepared us really well throughout the week. We did a great job and did what we had to do.

“So yeah, it was a little difficult at first, for sure. But we stuck together, and we knew what he would want us to do.”

The Wolverines finished the game with 165 yards on the ground, which was a good day’s work at the office without their leader on the sidelines.

“Obviously, we strive to get better each and every week,” Corum said. “My offensive line is killing it. They’re driving off the ball. They make my job easy, giving me those one-on-one match-ups. They prepare really, really hard. The tight ends block really well, the receivers block really well.

“In the run game, we’re just striving to get better, each and every week. That’s three consecutive 100-yard games, and it just comes from preparation. I feel like I get better the more carries, the more I see. It’s a collective effort going on, and I couldn’t do it without my guys.”

Miscellaneous Michigan football offense notes

– Michigan scored on its opening drive for the fifth time in six games this season.

– Corum’s 50-yard run gave him an “explosive play” (20-plus yards, per U-M) for the fifth time in six games to start the year. His longest run in the season opener vs. Colorado State barely missed the mark at 19 yards.

– Corum’s 124 yards marked the third-straight game he had a 100-plus-yard outing. He leads the FBS in rushing touchdowns with 11 after adding one more to his total on Saturday.

– McCarthy’s day included career highs in attempts (28), completions (36) and passing yards (304). It was his first game topping 300 yards in his U-M career.

– Prior to his interception in the third quarter, McCarthy had gone 129 pass attempts without throwing a pick, which was the conference’s longest active streak this season.

– Senior Cornelius Johnson scored his ninth and 10th career touchdowns vs. Indiana. The 29-yard catch was his sixth career score of 20-plus yards. His 6-yard TD reception in the fourth quarter closed out the scoring on the day.

– Bell’s 11 receptions were a new career high, which he previously set with 9 catches at Michigan State last season. His 121 yards marked the third time in his career he topped 100-plus and second time he did it against Indiana.

– Graduate tight end Luke Schoonmaker had a career-high 9 catches for 67 yards and a touchdown on Saturday. His previous best mark was set two weeks ago against Maryland (7).