What they're saying after the Michigan football win over Indiana

Michigan football moved to 8-1 on the season with a 29-7 win over Indiana on Saturday night in Ann Arbor.

Here is a recap of what members of the local and national media are saying about the Wolverines after the Week 10 victory over the Hoosiers.

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John Borton, TheWolverine.com: Wolverine Watch: Hassan Haskins delivers on upset avoidance week

That’s especially true if the circadian rhythms start dancing around like Seinfeld’s Elaine following a tough loss. Or if injuries — including a starting quarterback who isn’t 100 percent — catch a team short-handed.

“Michigan wasn’t immune, despite playing at home, in front of a night crowd. The Hoosiers regularly give Harbaugh’s teams fits, delivering up-tempo torture and enough defense to stay in most of these matchups.

This figured to be different, the Hoosiers coming in at 2-6, beset by injury issues at quarterback. That sounds good going in, but it doesn’t take much to turn an anticipated Big Ten rout into a fourth-quarter rumble.

The Wolverines went into the Indiana game already down one top back-up at running back. Jim Harbaugh noted freshman Donovan Edwards continues “working through something,” code for he’s hurt and you’re not going to know more.

Then almost before freshman tailback Blake Corum could get out of first gear against the Hoosiers, he got out of the game. Corum left early, to begin working through something. This something involved him in a protective boot and on Michigan’s sideline in street clothes.

Corum out. Edwards out. Haskins up.

Haskins picked up that ball and ran with it. He entered the game second to Corum on Michigan’s rushing production chart this year, with 661 rushing yards to Corum’s 771.

He left Michigan Stadium with a team-leading 829 yards through nine games. Far more importantly, the Wolverines left with a comfortable post-rivalry showdown victory, rather than a loss or even a big scare.”

Chris Balas, TheWolverine.com: Another win over an overmatched opponent for Harbaugh

“We’ve seen a lot of these types of games in this stadium over the last several years. Frankly, it was boring at times, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. We’re wise enough to know you don’t take any win for granted — that for all the criticism Jim Harbaugh takes for his big-game record, his two predecessors lost several games to teams like these.

Harbaugh’s 2021 squad was picked by most to finish 7-5 or so, too, and Vegas had the over/under win total at 7.5. He and his team surpassed that and moved to 8-1 with the victory, and nine (a you’d-better-win at Maryland) now seems to be the floor. 

We also know he wasn’t brought here to go 9-3 with wins over the Indianas, Marylands, Rutgers, etc. … that he was expected to compete and win for titles, beat Michigan State much more often than not and compete with Ohio State, at least make the Buckeyes uncomfortable in losses. Until he does, he’s more like Bo Pelini at Nebraska — lots of wins, but not enough with substance, too many blowouts against better opponents — or Penn State’s James Franklin than, say, a Lloyd Carr.

But there are more big opportunities ahead, starting next week at PSU. The loss to Michigan State is behind them, and the Wolverines had a players-only meeting to make sure everyone understood.

‘We just talked about moving forward, keeping our heads high,” redshirt sophomore Haskins said. “The past is the past. We have to look forward to the future, and that was mainly what we talked about.

‘We just had to come out here this week and dominate, and keep dominating each week.‘

That will be significantly harder in Happy Valley against a Nittany Lions team that’s been somewhat similar to U-M under Franklin. They’ve got a win over Ohio State (fluky as it might have been) and have played the Buckeyes tougher than the Wolverines, but a program with a proud history has had its own share of difficulty in big games.”

Clayton Sayfie, TheWolverine.com: Injuries pile up, and so do Hassan Haskins’ yards

“The Michigan football offense was shorthanded entering the day, with junior wide receiver Ronnie Bell out for the season, freshman running back Donovan Edwards unavailable and undressed the last two weeks and sophomore tight end Erick All going through warmups but not playing. But in a 29-7 win over Indiana Saturday, the Wolverines saw several offensive players go down with injuries.

Freshman wide receiver Andrel Anthony, second-year freshman running back Blake Corum and second-year freshman slot receiver A.J. Henning all played but weren’t able to finish. Redshirt freshman quarterback Cade McNamara went into the medical tent and missed a drive but was able to return to action.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh said he’s “hopeful” everyone that went down Saturday will be back for a big tilt at Penn State next week, but the statuses remain uncertain.

‘Yeah, there were a couple guys that were out in this game that I think we’ll get back, get healthier next week,” Harbaugh said. “Then go about putting good days on top of good days while we get ready for Penn State.‘

Thankfully for the Maize and Blue, however, others rose to the occasion, none more than redshirt sophomore running back Hassan Haskins, whose 168 rushing yards and 27 carries were both career highs and second-quarter touchdown was his 11th of the season.

With Corum and Edwards out, Haskins knew he’d be carrying the bulk of the load. He delivered and then some.

“It was definitely a different feeling,” Haskins said of not rotating with Corum. “I’ve been praying for Blake all day. It was a different feeling but had to get the job done.

‘I’ll take however many carries they give me. So I ain’t complaining.‘

Haskins went over 100 rushing yards for the fourth time this season and registered a season-long 62-yard run that set up a touchdown.

Sophomore wideout Cornelius Johnson was the one constant in a receiving corps that rotated many bodies in and out. He matched his career-high with five catches and totaled 108 yards.”

Anthony Broome, TheWolverine.com: Handing out game balls to David Ojabo and Aidan Hutchinson

“It gets harder each week to separate these two, given how well they are playing in sync. Saturday was another disruptive showing for Michigan football’s pass-rush duo. Hutchinson had five total tackles and four quarterback hits, while Ojabo racked up a sack and forced fumble on the evening.

Slowing down one of them could be an achievable goal for an offense, but both seem out of the question at this point. Michigan will need its big-time players down the stretch, and these two deliver each week. Ojabo is beginning to warrant longer looks from NFL scouts that see him in person this season.”

Rainer Sabin, Detroit Free Press: Are injuries becoming a concern for Michigan?

“With the exception of Ronnie Bell’s season-ending knee injury in the opener, Michigan emerged from the first five games relatively unscathed. Then the offensive line started to get nicked up, creating a revolving door at guard, which eventually slowed. Elsewhere, receiver Roman Wilson was sidelined briefly after hurting his lower left arm. There were other injuries, too, including one that kept reserve edge defender Taylor Upshaw out of the victory over Northwestern and Edwards’, which kept him out of the past two games.

The Wolverines have done well mitigating their absences. And on Saturday, they filled the voids left by Corum, tight end Erick All, cornerback Gemon Green and receivers A.J. Henning and Andrel Anthony. All, who was hurt at the end of the loss to Michigan State, didn’t play — leaving Luke Schoonmaker to pick up the slack, which he did by catching a pair of touchdown passes. Once Corum injured his right leg in the first quarter, Haskins became the focal point of the rushing attack. That reduced the impact of injuries to Henning and Anthony, who weren’t needed to bolster the offense. The secondary, meanwhile, continued to limit Indiana’s dormant passing attack after Green left the field holding his arm early in the second quarter. 

Michigan’s response to the sudden attrition was encouraging. But its depth is taxed — a troubling development as the Wolverines gear up to face Penn State and Ohio State in the final three weeks.”

Bob Wojnowski, The Detroit News: Wolverines hammer Hoosiers, and now the real judgment beckons

Opponents’ records don’t mean much as the Spartans discovered, falling to Purdue, 40-29, and doing their in-state rival a rare favor. Call that a trap game if you wish, but any misstep is possible in this wildly unpredictable Big Ten season. The Buckeyes, Spartans and Wolverines still must face each other, with one tricky game in between. UM and MSU have to play Maryland, while Ohio State takes on Purdue next week.

Destiny can change hands, but at the moment, OSU and MSU control their own. If either wins out, it wins the division. If the Wolverines win out, they need another Michigan State loss to avoid the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Did Michigan look like a championship team during its slog against the Hoosiers? Not really, but then neither did Michigan State, and neither has Ohio State the past two weeks, edging Nebraska (26-17) and Penn State (33-24). The East is still the Buckeyes’ to take, with the track record and most explosive offense, but their defense has looked vulnerable. Michigan has the best defense of the trio, but as always under Jim Harbaugh, we’re not sure how it travels. It’s impossible to say whether Michigan finally can bounce the Buckeyes after 15 losses in 16 meetings, but it’s possible to say it’s not impossible.“

Austin Meek, The Athletic: Michigan observations: Hassan Haskins shines (and hurdles), defense adjusts, injuries are a concern

“Michael Barrett was a starter last season at viper, the hybrid linebacker/safety position in Don Brown’s defense. The viper allowed Michigan to match up against different looks without having to sub, putting a versatile defender on the field who could cover tight ends or wide receivers while providing a physical presence against the run.

After struggling to substitute against Michigan State’s tempo last week, defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald adjusted by using Barrett in a way that resembled his previous role. After playing sparingly in Michigan’s first eight games, Barrett was on the field a lot Saturday night, often lined up over slot receivers and dropping into coverage.

‘We wanted to be in some packages where we didn’t have to substitute with teams that are going fast,’ Harbaugh said. ‘That was an issue we had coming into this game. That was one of the fixes.’

For the second week in a row, Michigan had a defensive touchdown taken off the board after Barrett’s scoop-and-score was overturned by review. He didn’t get the big highlight, but Barrett contributed to a defensive effort that limited the Hoosiers to 195 yards and 88 yards through the air.”

Max Olson, The Athletic: The Big Ten in the danger zone, revisiting the first CFP rankings and more from Week 10

“As undeniably talented as No. 5 Ohio State is, it might not be all that shocking if the Buckeyes end up 10-2. The folks in Lincoln were bracing for a possible blowout and Ohio State did not deliver one in a 26-17 win that was tougher than expected. Nebraska’s defense played terrific, but this game raised some questions about Ohio State’s offense, which got a lot from Jaxon Smith-Njigba but wasn’t too efficient otherwise.

As our Bill Landis pointed out, Ohio State has scored four touchdowns on 27 drives over its past two games. That doesn’t mean the Buckeyes are doomed in the weeks ahead, but it’s worth taking seriously given there are three very good opponents left on their schedule.

Part of the reason for concern here is, bottom line, this league has so many effective defenses, including five of the top 10 in scoring defense among the Power 5. Michigan returned to form on Saturday in a 29-7 win over Indiana, holding the Hoosiers under 200 yards on 3.2 yards per play. That doesn’t mean there won’t be more shootouts like we saw in West Lafayette on Saturday. But these offenses can’t afford to mess around and start slow.

The East race remains fascinating, and next week delivers another compelling slate: Purdue takes its show on the road to Ohio State, Michigan goes to Penn State and Michigan State needs to rebound against Maryland. But don’t sleep on the situation in the Big Ten West, which now features a four-way tie for first place between Wisconsin, Iowa, Purdue and Minnesota, all of whom have two losses in league play. They’ve taken turns alternating between being real good and not-so-good over the course of this season.”

Nicole Auerbach, The Athletic: Michigan ranked No. 9 in updated top ten

“The Wolverines responded as well as they could have in the wake of their first loss of the season, which came last week at the hands of the Spartans. After a bit of a slow start, Michigan pulled away for a 29-7 win over Indiana. Hassan Haskins finished with 162 rushing yards, including a 62-yard run that set up Michigan’s second touchdown and provided the separation the Wolverines needed. All of Michigan’s goals remain in front of it, even after the tough loss in East Lansing. The Wolverines have a trip to Happy Valley on tap for next week and a date with Ohio State looming at the end of the month, but their goals for the year are still within reach. It’s been a while since Michigan could say that at this point in the season. (Plus, the selection committee seems to like them!)“

ESPN.com’s Tom VanHaaren ranks Michigan No. 9 in Week 10 power rankings

“Michigan bounced back after its loss to Michigan State with a 29-7 win over Indiana at home to get back on track before a tough finish to its schedule. Michigan’s defense was able to hold Indiana to just 195 total yards of offense and only one touchdown. Michigan running back Blake Corum was knocked out of the game with an apparent leg injury, but Hassan Haskins took the load and had 162 rushing yards on 25 carries (a career high) and one touchdown. Indiana was dealing with injuries across the board, but this was a needed win for Michigan as Penn State and Ohio State are both lurking in the next three weeks.”

Heather Dinich, ESPN.com: Is a College Football Playoff rankings reshuffle in the works?

“No. 5 Ohio State had a flat performance against a 3-7 Nebraska team on the same day that Cincinnati held off a pesky 3-6 Tulsa team. It’s unlikely anything that happened Saturday will change the current pecking order. In fact, the committee might favor the fact that Ohio State won on the road, while the Bearcats were home.

Selection committee chair Gary Barta said on Tuesday the group has ‘tremendous respect’ for Cincinnati, but beyond the win at Notre Dame, “look at who else they’ve beaten. Look at who else they’ve played.”

A win against Tulsa is highly unlikely to change that perspective, especially when it was the third straight week that Cincinnati was unable to dominate a team under .500.

For us, what’s most important — we said it last week — is winning,’ Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell said. ‘We are not going to try to live up to what someone else expects us to do.’

It helped Ohio State that Penn State avoided an embarrassing loss at Maryland, and Cincinnati’s win at Notre Dame continues to help separate it from other contenders such as Oklahoma.

Previously undefeated Michigan State should sink below Cincinnati, but stay ahead of rival Michigan because of the head-to-head result and identical 8-1 records. This would show some consistency after the committee honored Oregon’s head-to-head win over Ohio State in its initial ranking.”

Ross Dellenger, SI.com: Michigan ranked 10th after Week 10

“The Wolverines, loss and all, are still very much in this thing. Just like the other one-loss teams in the Big Ten, they control their own destiny. However, the team they fell to last week lost to Purdue this week, so that’s not great. However, the road ahead provides the possibility for many quality victories, starting this coming week in State College.”