Michigan's dominant defensive performance the final straw for Indiana offensive line coach
Michigan Wolverines football got off to a slow start but pulled away to beat Indiana 31-10 Saturday in Bloomington. The Maize and Blue shut down the Indiana offense in the second half, holding the Hoosiers scoreless and to just 29 yards after halftime.
Michigan especially dominated the line of scrimmage. Indiana totaled only 19 rushing yards, the least the Hoosiers have registered in a game since having minus-1 against Ohio State in 2020. That included 7 sacks by seven Wolverines.
According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Michigan pressured Indiana quarterback Connor Bazelak on 18 of his 55 drop-backs and laid five hits on the signal-caller. He was slow to get up on a number of occasions after his offensive line was abused by an aggressive Michigan defensive front.
In the fourth quarter, Indiana lost 12 yards on three drives and 12 plays.
Saturday’s showing was the final straw for Indiana offensive line coach Darren Hiller. Head coach Tom Allen let his assistant go Sunday, announcing the news in a statement.
“I believe it is time for a new voice to lead the offensive line room,” Allen said.
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Allen was frustrated by his offensive line’s performance.
“It starts up front,” Allen said after the loss Saturday. “We’ve got to protect. We’re not getting the job done there.”
On if he’s seen his players up front respond: “Not the last three weeks. Not last week. Not this week. Very disappointed. Very disappointing.”
The unit has struggled all season long but has been especially bad over the last three games, allowing 15 sacks and 22 quarterback hurries during that span.
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On the flip side, the pressure Michigan got was needed, with a key storyline over the last several weeks surrounding the lack of pass rush. Michigan ranks fourth nationally with 22 sacks, but 14 of them have come in two games — against Indiana and in the season opener versus Colorado State.
“That was the whole goal in the second half. We haven’t finished in the past couple of games. So we were really trying to impose our will on any offensive player, and it happened to be on the quarterback a good amount of times,” Michigan junior EDGE Jaylen Harrell said. “It’s what we strive to do.”
“Pitched a shutout in the second half,” Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh added. “When we were at halftime we were like, ‘We have to have the best half of football of the season. Got to come right now. Get locked in.’
And I thought our defense did a tremendous job of that. Totaling seven sacks, all by a different guy. I think I’m right on that. 10 tackles for loss. The pressure really came, and the tight coverage came along with it.”
The fourth-ranked Maize and Blue move onto a top-10 matchup against No. 10 Penn State this coming weekend.
