Offense notes: Michigan abandons passing game in favor of rushing assault

The Michigan Wolverines welcomed USC to the Big Ten in brutalizing fashion on Saturday, running for 290 yards compared to just 32 yards through the air. It was a “by any means necessary” approach that helped keep a struggling offense on the field and a booming USC offense off of it.

“We felt like we needed to possess the ball, we needed to be successful in the run game and keep their offense off the field,” head coach Sherrone Moore said after the game. “Lincoln, I have so much respect for him and what he’s done on that side of the ball with that program. We knew we could generate some yards on the ground and wanted to control the clock and keep our defense off the field as much as possible. I think our guys executed.

“There was a little lull in the third quarter, they made some really good adjustments and we had to adjust so there was a chess match there in the run game. Obviously, Kalel, man, 17 carries, 159 yards, averaged 9 yards a carry, 2 touchdowns. Incredible job by him and the offensive line so very proud to see it.”

It was more than a lull in the third quarter. Michigan struggled to stay on the field at all on offense and without the threat of a passing game. Everyone had to step up in their respective phases to give the team a shot to win late. On the team’s final drive it got what it needed out of graduate running back Kalel Mullings, who had a 63-yard run to set up a 1-yard touchdown run on 4th and goal.

“We talk about situational football, when you have four minutes on the clock, there’s no need to be in a hurry,” Moore said. “Especially when you’re trying to keep the ball and possess the ball. There was a lot of situational football, we work at it every week. We work some kind of situational football throughout the week and, for us, we wanted to sustain drives and keep it out of their hands. Guys did a good job, Kalel did a heckuva good job on the run. Guy tackles him, drags him off and runs for 60 yards, his longest of the season. Before that, his longes of the season was a 50-something yarder. Just an incredible job by our kids.”

Kalel Mullings saves the day

Mullings had a career day on Saturday with 159 yards rushing on 17 carries with a pair of touchdown runs. He saved the Wolverines and had the team’s first and final touchdowns of the day. He’s been everything they could have asked for and more.

“Right now, I think he’s averaging 8 yards a carry on the season,” Moore said. “He can take us the distance he’s showing, he can run you over, he’s just done everything for us. He’s a great pass protector, he’s been incredible. Last year he averaged six yards a carry so it’s not a surprise with how good he is and what he’s done. To see him take the next step and really make those explosive plays. When the game is on the line, he wants the ball in his hands and he made plays happen. He’s a star, he’s a game breaker.”

He’s a gamebreaker, but is he the team’s RB1? Even Moore thinks that is the reality Michigan is currently facing moving forward.

“Donovan [Edwards], before the fumble, he had an electric 41-yard run,” Moore said. “We’re going to need both of those guys, we’re going to need more guys, it’s just how it is in college football, especially how long the season goes. Kalel, obviously, played a heckuva game and we’ll keep using him how we need to. Kalel showed, obviously, he could be the — he should be the number one guy. We’ll use both of them, they’ll both play a tremendous amount but Kalel obviously had a heckuva game.”

Wolverines win without air attack in Alex Orji’s first start

Michigan turned the page at quarterback in this game, switching to Alex Orji. It was a fundamentally different offense with Orji completing 7-of-12 passes for 32 yards. It was a ground and pound day, but Michigan got the win, and that was all he cared about.

“I really can’t thank God enough for putting me in this position,” Orji said after the game. “I can’t thank Coach Moore enough for allowing me to lead this offense. Every guy in a blue jersey who stepped on the field, didn’t step on the field, everybody on our sideline, the confidence they instilled in me this week but since I’ve been here, since I’ve been wearing the block M, it’s second to none. It’s incomparable to anything I’ve been around before. This family is just different.

“If we threw for a million yards today and we lost, I’d be sitting here crying. hatever it takes to win. If it’s 32 yards, if it’s 10, if it’s 100, it doesn’t matter to me. A bunch of people were asking me what I wanted out of my first start. I wanted a ball-secure victory. We got that.”

Whether or not it is sustainable, Moore was happy about how mentality and how he fared ahead of the final drive.

“It was awesome,” Moore said. “He just has that presence about him and he looked at me and he said we’re about to go score. He just has ‘it’. Just so happy for him.”

Miscellaneous Michigan offensive notes

• Mullings’ runs of 53 and 63 yards in the game were the two longest rushes of his career and the longest two plays of the entire season for the Wolverines.

• Edwards’ touchdown run from 41-yard out was his longest play from scrimmage this year.

• Mullings’ day of 159 yards on the ground is a new career high and the second-straight 150-plus yard game of his season. The last Michigan back to do that was Edwards in 2022 (Ohio State, Purdue).

ª Coming into the day, Michigan had five plays of more than 30 yards this season. It had 3 on Saturday with Mullings two big runs and Edwards’ touchdown.

• U-M’s 199 rushing yards at the half are the most allowed in the first half by a Lincoln Riley-coached USC team, according to ESPN.

• With Loveland out of the lineup, it was the first time in four games Michigan had a different leading receiver. Semaj Morgan had three catches for 6 yards, while tight end Marlin Klein led in yards with 10 on one catch.