GAME 12: OHIO STATE v MICHIGAN

GAME 12              OHIO STATE v MICHIGAN

          November 29 2014                 Ohio Stadium              Columbus, OH

Michigan Wolverines

Location: Ann Arbor, MI

Stadium: Michigan Stadium (109,901)

Coach: Brady Hoke (4^th year): 31-19 at Michigan/78-69 overall, 19-19 v B1G, 1-2 v OSU

Series: Michigan 58, OSU 46, 6 ties

Last Meeting: 11/30/2013: OSU 42, Michigan 41

Last Michigan win: 11/26/2011: Michigan 40, OSU 34

Coach Meyer (3^rd year): 34-3 at OSU, 138-26 overall, 26-2 v B1G, 2-1 v Michigan

2013 Michigan Wolverines (7-6)(3-5)                       2013 Ohio State Buckeyes (12-2)(8-1)

59        Central Michigan                      9                    40        Buffalo                                    20

41        Notre Dame                            30                    42        San Diego State                        7

28        Akron                                      24                    52        at California                            34

24        at Connecticut                         21                    76        Florida A&M                            0

42        Minnesota                               13                    31        Wisconsin                                24

40        at Penn State                           43 (4OT)         40        at Northwestern                      30

63        Indiana                                    47                    34        Iowa                                        24

  6        at Michigan State                    29                    63        Penn State                               14

13        Nebraska                                 17                    56        at Purdue                                   0

27        at Northwestern                      19                    60        at Illinois                                 35

21        at Iowa                                    24                    42        Indiana                                    14

41        Ohio State                               42                    42        at Michigan                             41

14        Kansas State                           31                    24        Michigan State                        34

            (Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl)                                       (B1G Championship Game)

                                                                                    35        Clemson                                  40

                                                                                                (Orange Bowl)

2014 Michigan Wolverines (5-6)(3-4)                       2014 Ohio State Buckeyes (10-1)(7-0)

52        Appalachian State                   14                    34        at Navy (Baltimore)                17

  0        at Notre Dame                        31                    21        Virginia Tech                          35

34        Miami University                    10                    66        Kent State                                 0

10        Utah                                        26                   

14        Minnesota                               30                    50        Cincinnati                                28

24        at Rutgers                                26                    52        at Maryland                             24

18        Penn State                               13                   

O18                                                                             56        Rutgers                                    17

11        at Michigan State                    35                    31        at Penn State                           24 OT

34        Indiana                                    10                    55        Illinois                                     14

10        at Northwestern                        9                    49        at Michigan State                    37

N15                                                                             31        at Minnesota                           24

16        Maryland                                 23                    42        Indiana                                   27

N29     at Ohio State                                                               Michigan

The 111^th version of the greatest rivalry in college football will still be the classic event we have all come to enjoy, despite the mess that the Michigan football program is right now.  In what is probably the final game at Michigan for Coach Brady Hoke, the Wolverines figure to give Ohio State their best effort.

Michigan offense v Ohio State defense: Michigan’s offense has seemingly lacked an identity throughout the 2014 season.  With only 25 total touchdowns, they have fewer scores than J.T. Barrett has touchdown passes.  Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner has had his share of bumps, bruises, and injuries which, no doubt, has caused him to never reach his full potential.  He is as healthy now as he has been all year and is still dangerous when he decides to tuck the ball and run.  The most consistent player on this side of the ball for the Wolverines is receiver Devin Funchess.  After a breakout 2013 campaign where he gained over 700 yards through the air and found the end zone six times, many looked at the converted tight end as one of the best NFL prospects in the Big Ten. At 6'5" he is already a matchup nightmare for most defensive backs, but the Michigan coaching staff does their best to find ways to get him open. One of the most well-known concepts is their longtime use of the stack formation, which lines up one receiver directly behind another, not allowing defenders to know who they're covering before the ball is snapped. Though often written off as a gimmick, the stack has proven to be effective against teams that employ Cover 4 technique, which happens to be what the Buckeyes run as their base scheme.  Look for Gardner to try to find Funchess on quite a few out routes, hoping to isolate him one-on-one on corners Eli Apple and Doran Grant.  Dennis Norfleet is another viable target for Gardner, with 14 catches for 102 yards.  Unfortunately, the injury to running back Derrick Green has compelled Michigan to utilize a "running back by committee" approach. The current go-to man in the backfield appears to be Drake Johnson, who is coming off a 94-yard performance one week ago against Maryland. But he will share carries with junior Justice Hayes, the Wolverines' best back in space, and fellow sophomore De'Veon Smith, who gets the bulk of carries in short yardage situations.  The good news for the Wolverines is it appears they’ve finally found a consistent group of starters on the offensive line, led by junior center Jack Miller and his classmate at guard Graham Glasgow.  This has resulted in better production on the ground in their last four games and Gardner has not been taking as many hits as compared to earlier in the season.  Against Ohio State, expect to see Gardner to run quite a few read-option plays, due to the fact the option component effectively blocks an extra defender, which helps the Wolverine offensive line.

                                                  Devin Funchess

Michigan defense v Ohio State offense: Unlike their counterparts on offense, the Michigan defense has done a good job of building an identity this year.  Playing out of a base 4-3 Under system with three linebackers, the defense focuses on stopping the run and playing aggressively up front, hopefully forcing third-and-long situations where they can blitz with the linebackers or secondary.  Bookends Brennen Beyer and Mario Ojemudia are the key to Michigan’s front four and will be relied on to try to keep J.T. Barrett and Ezekiel Elliott from turning the corner.  But this group took a major hit last week when senior end, Frank Clark was dismissed from the team. Clark was their best pass rusher, and was third on the team in tackles at the time of his departure.  Even with Clark, Michigan’s  defense has had trouble getting to the quarterback. Though they rank in the middle of the Big Ten in sacks, 12 of their 29 takedowns occurred in matchups with Penn State and Northwestern, two of the worst teams in the country at protecting their quarterback. Without a marquee pass rusher to rely on, Michigan may be forced to bring additional pressure in hopes getting to the QB. They may try bringing the MLB and a linebacker from the strong side around the edge.  Michigan has the linebackers to make that happen, starting with senior MLB Jake Ryan who leads the team in tackles with 104 to go with 13 tackles for loss, two sacks, and an interception.  Juniors Joe Bolden and James Ross III have also played well on that line backing corps.  Bolden comes in second behind Ryan in tackles with 93 with four tackles for loss and a pair of sacks, while James Ross III adds 28 tackles and two tackles for loss.  The secondary doesn’t lack for talent either, led by safeties Jarrod Wilson and Jeremy Clark.  Wilson leads the Michigan secondary, and is third on the team with tackles with 44, coming up well in run support, while Clark has contributed another 18, also showing up very well in run support.  Much like the rest of the defense, Wilson and Clark are good tacklers who don't make many mistakes when flowing downhill to make tackles in the run game. But one-on-one pass coverage is a totally different ballgame, and one where these two have had problems keeping up with talented wideouts.  Identifying these man-coverage situations will be key for J.T. Barrett and the Buckeye offense. With Jalin Marshall improving each week as a slot receiver, Ohio State should have a clear advantage if they're able to get him in single coverage with a safety.  Additionally, if OSU is able to move the ball on the ground regularly, Michigan will be forced to call these blitzes more and more to help slow down the running game. If that is the case, keep an eye on what personnel is lined up in the slot, as the Buckeyes make try to take a deep shot on a safety with Devin Smith.

                                                         Jake Ryan
Special Teams: Michigan has a couple of good specialists.  Place kicker Matt Wile has shown improvement from 2013 as he has hit on 15 of 21 field goal attempts with a long of 48.  Will Hagerup has continued his solid punting from a year ago.  This year, he has averaged 43 yards on 49 punts.

SUMMARY: In what will very likely be the final game at Michigan for Coach Brady Hoke, (since a loss will send Michigan to a 5-7 record) the Wolverines will attempt to play solid defense up front and do everything they can to keep Devin Gardner upright.  Ohio State’s sudden case of butterfingers on offense and inability to contain opposing runners is what Michigan has to hope continues for them to have a chance in this game.  It must be pointed out, Michigan, unfortunately, doesn’t have a runner like Jeremy Langford, David Cobb, or Tevin Coleman.  J.T. Barrett’s abilities as a runner may be too much for the maize and blue to handle. Maryland quarterback C.J. Brown picked up big chunks of yards on both scrambles and option runs last week, piling up 87 yards. Although Ryan and Bolden are excellent tacklers that rarely miss once they get their hands on the ball carrier, they're much better at moving forward to make a play than they are moving laterally. 
The Buckeyes have a big advantage athletically and in speed at almost every position.  The rivalry keeps this game closer than it should be, but in the end, Michigan simply does not have enough to keep up.


                                            OHIO STATE 42, MICHIGAN 24