Michigan Set For Another High-Scoring Effort Against MSU
One of the main bright spots from Michigan's first victory was the offense's ability to move the football consistently with first-time starting quarterback Joe Milton at the helm.
While Milton spread the ball around, the Wolverines also used the ground game to pick up much-needed yardage in opportune moments. In fact, U-M was only 31 yards away from experiencing a perfect 50/50 split of rushing to passing yardage (225 to 256) against the Gophers.
With that all-around success, Milton and the Michigan offense now directs attention to a Spartans defensive unit that allowed 38 points to Rutgers last weekend. That sounds like the making for another high scoring affair for the Wolverines, but it will be played on Halloween and stranger, spookier things have happened.
Taking that into account, Wolverine Digest spoke to McLain Moberg of Spartan Nation to break down the matchup.
Q: The defense can't be too stout after giving up nearly 40 points to Rutgers. Where were the biggest breakdowns at last Saturday?
Moberg: The Michigan State defense made its fair share of mistakes and gave up plays to Rutgers, which looked far too easy at times. But a large portion of the Scarlet Knights' 38 points aren't on them at all. Rutgers started drives in MSU territory five times (thanks to turnovers by the offense) and scored three touchdowns as a result. That's a 21-point advantage against a team introducing a new defensive scheme.
Under Mark Dantonio, MSU ran a 4-3 defense, but Scottie Hazelton moved Michigan State to a 4-2-5, utilizing five defensive backs and two linebackers – another position the Spartans lack depth. After Rutgers opened the game with a 10-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown, the Spartan defense held them to 61 plays for 201 yards.
Q: What is the state of the current Michigan State front seven?
Moberg: Against Rutgers, the front seven wasn't terrible, but they weren't great either. Michigan State's defensive coaches made some nice second-half adjustments, putting more pressure on the Scarlet Knights.
Drew Beesley, Jacub Panasiuk, Naquan Jones, Jack Camper, Jacob Slade, Dashaun Mallory, and Jalen Hunt will be efficient within the trenches. Beesley came off the edge during the third quarter, forcing a fumble, which set Michigan State up for a one-play touchdown pass from Lombardi to Jalen Nailor. His day ended with a sack and 2.5 tackles for loss. Antjuan Simmons played as expected, finishing with 11 tackles – three for a loss.
Q: This season, Michigan has more than a few speedy yet short receivers on the outside. How does the Spartans secondary match up?
Moberg: When Michigan State took the field in their new look 4-2-5 defense, Kalon Gervin and Chris Jackson were the primary cornerbacks. Shakur Brown played the nickelback while Xavier Henderson and Tre Person were the starting safeties. On 30 pass attempts, the secondary held Rutgers quarterback Noah Vedral to 169 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Person finished with six tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, and one pass break-up. Brown would add five tackles of his own with an interception, and from what I saw, he looked good in coverage – along with many other defensive backs. Henderson, a leader on defense, tallied six tackles (four solo, two assists) and one tackle for a loss.
How do you think Michigan's offense is going to look this Saturday? Will the Spartans be able to prevent Milton from finding a groove once again this weekend? Let us know!
