Early Look: No. 16 Michigan

Here's a Monday look at Illinois's sixth opponent of the 2019 season, the Michigan Wolverines

Date/time: Saturday, Oct. 12, 11 a.m. CST

Location: Memorial Stadium

Surface: Field Turf

Capacity: 60,670

Schedule/records: Illinois 2-3 overall, 0-2 Big Ten, 4-8 in 2018 (2-7 in Big Ten); No. 16 Michigan 4-1, 1-1 in 2019, 10-3 (8-1 in Big Ten) in 2018.

Series notes: Michigan leads the series 70-23-2, including taking each of the last four meetings between the schools. The two teams haven't played in Champaign since 2011 when the Brady Hoke led the Wolverines to a 31-14 win over an Illini team coached by Ron Zook. This will be Jim Harbaugh’s first trip to Champaign since he was a player for Michigan under Bo Schembechler. Harbaugh’s Michigan team defeated the Illini 41-8 in Ann Arbor in 2016, which was Lovie Smith’s first season as the Illini head coach. The Illini have only defeated Michigan at home twice since 1957 (a 16-6 win in 1983 and a 38-13 win in 2009).

TV: ABC

Early line: Michigan by 19

Michigan still has a dominating defense after allowing just three points in the last two weeks

Questions about the Wolverines defense, led by coordinator Don Brown, being suspect after being gashed by Wisconsin nearly three weeks ago have essentially been quieted in Ann Arbor. For all the pundits claiming the net game was nothing more than a glorified scrimmage against Rutgers (who fired Chris Ash the following day), Michigan frustrated an Iowa team with a quarterback getting NFL attention (Nate Stanley) into just 261 total yards and just one yard rushing in a 10-3 win.

"Obviously, that was a defensive masterpiece," Harbaugh said Saturday after the win. "Don called a great game. They were very well prepared. Player-wise, it was just very obvious from play one to the last play of the game that everybody was hustling, and running, and playing with great effort."

Michigan registered eight sacks among 13 tackles for loss, four turnovers and held Iowa to that single yard rushing after the Hawkeyes rolled up 351 yards on the ground in the previous week against Middle Tennessee State.

Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson has a turnover problem in 2019

Patterson, a transfer from Ole Miss, was known coming into this season as an efficient player that had the potential for transforming into big-play potential under new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis. The opposite has occurred. Patterson, similarly to several of his Michigan teammates early this season, has had a tendency of losing control of the football. The quarterback has several fumbles and an interception in each of his last three games. Despite having perceived NFL quality on the outside at receiver in Nico Collins and Donovan Peoples-Jones, Patterson had just 147 yards through the air against Iowa for a season-low 5.7 yards-per-attempt.

Similarly to Minnesota’s heading into last week, Michigan’s rushing attack has been practically non-existent

This is the weekend where we find out if the Illinois rushing defense, which is ranked 13th in the Big Ten, is the program who you play if you want to revive your ground attack. Despite having talented freshman tailback Zach Charbonnet and what was perceived to be a veteran-based offensive line, Michigan is just 11th in the Big Ten in rushing at 128.4 yards per game (102nd among 130 Football Bowl Subdivison schools).

Michigan’s next two games after this weekend will likely define its season

Following its trip to Champaign, the Wolverines (4-1, 1-1) will have battles with teams likely to be ranked higher than them in both polls. Michigan will next travel to Penn State on Oct. 19 and host Notre Dame the following week to conclude its October.

Lovie Smith on his program’s next two games against Michigan and Wisconsin

“We have a great opportunity. We’ve seen somebody turn it around. Defensively we’ve got to stop some runs. If you can’t score points you’re not going to win, but we are looking at this game separately. That’s what happened this game and there is time to regroup.”