GAME 12: OHIO STATE v MICHIGAN

Game 12     OHIO STATE v MICHIGAN

November 28 2015                 Michigan Stadium                   Ann Arbor, MI

Michigan Wolverines

Location: Ann Arbor, MI

Stadium: Michigan Stadium (109.901)

Coach: Jim Harbaugh (1^st Year): 9-2 at Michigan/67-29 overall, 6-1 v  B1G, 0-0 v OSU

Series: Michigan 58, OSU 47, 6 ties

Last Meeting: 11/29/2014: OSU 42, Michigan 28

Last Michigan win: 11/27/2011: Michigan 40, OSU 34

Coach Meyer: (4^th year) 48-4 at OSU/152-27 overall, 34-3 v B1G, 3-1 v Michigan

2014 Ohio State Buckeyes (14-1)(9-0)                      2014 Michigan Wolverines (5-7)(3-5)

34        at Navy (Baltimore)    17                                 52        Appalachian State       14

21        Virginia Tech               35                                  0        at Notre Dame            31

66        Kent State                      0                               34        Miami University        10

50        Cincinnati                    28                                10        Utah                           26

52        at Maryland                24                                14        Minnesota                   30

56        Rutgers                        17                                24        at Rutgers                   26

31        at Penn State               24 (2OT)                      18        Penn State                   13

55        Illinois                          14                                11        at Michigan State       35

49        at Michigan State       37                                34        Indiana                        10

31        at Minnesota               24                                10        at Northwestern            9

42        Indiana                        27                                16        Maryland                    23

42        Michigan                     28                                28        at Ohio State               42

59        Wisconsin                      0

            (B1G Championship)

42        Alabama                      35

            (Sugar Bowl)

42        Oregon                        20

            (NationalChampionship)

2015 Ohio State Buckeyes (10-1)(6-1)                      2015 Michigan Wolverines (9-2)(6-1)

42        at Virginia Tech          24                                17        at Utah                        24

38        Hawaii                           0                                35        Oregon State                 7

20        Northern Illinois          13                                28        UNLV                             7

38        Western Michigan      12                                31        Brigham Young             0

34        at Indiana                    27                                28        at Maryland                  0

49        Maryland                    28                                38        Northwestern                0

38        Penn State                   10                                23        Michigan State            27

49        at Rutgers                     7                               

O31                                                                             29        at Minnesota               26

28        Minnesota                   14                                49        Rutgers                        16

28        at Illinois                       3                                48        at Indiana                    41 (2OT)

14        Michigan State            17                                28        at Penn State               16

N28      at Michigan                                                                 Ohio State

            It’s now time for The Game; the 112^th meeting between these two great rivals Ohio State and Michigan.  The Wolverines come in riding high under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh, while the Buckeyes hope to rebound from a shocking, last-second loss to Michigan State.  The winner can still play in the B1G Championship game against Iowa if Michigan State should lose to Penn State.

MICHIGAN OFFENSE v OHIO STATE DEFENSE: Coach Harbaugh has installed a very balanced offense that averages 161.4 yards on the ground and 227.7 yards through the air.  Jake Rudock, a transfer from Iowa, has recovered very well from a shaky, early-season start to become the first quarterback in school history to throw for over 250 yards in three consecutive weeks.  His best effort was his 440 passing yards and six touchdowns in Michigan’s double-OT win at Indiana.  Rudock has a very capable receiving corps as his beck and call, led by WR Amara Darboh.  A serious downfield threat, Darboh has hauled in 52 reception for 635 yards and five scores to make him Michigan’s leading receiver.  He is joined by perhaps the best pass-catching TE anywhere, Jake Butt, who has caught 43 balls for 566 yards and three touchdowns.  But, if Ohio State overloads against these two, Rudock can always go to outstanding possession receiver Jahu Chesson who comes in with 37 receptions for 535 yards and seven scores.  Michigan’s running game may not be putting up the yardage as in years’ past, but they have a very capable runner in De’Veon Smith, who is settling in behind that offensive line.  Having a good blend of power and speed, Smith has managed 621 yards and six touchdowns.  Drake Johnson has also come in and added a punch with 212 yards and three scores, as has FB Joe Kerridge, who will also provide an extra blocker to try to stem Ohio State’s pass rush.  Michigan’s experienced offensive line features four seniors, with center Graham Glasgow and RG Kyle Kalis having outstanding years.  Erik Magnuson adds size and great pass blocking ability at RT, while Ben Braden and sophomore Mason Cole have had very good years at LG and LT respectively.  

                                            QB Jake Rudock

MICHIGAN DEFENSE v OHIO STATE OFFENSE: Michigan’s defense is ranked in the top ten nationally in total defense, pass efficiency, third-down conversions, rushing, and passing defense.  Five of their 11 opponents have failed to score in the second half.  Senior DT Chris Wormley leads the way up front with 12 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks.  Wormley is joined on that stout defensive front by fellow classmate Willie Henry at DE and junior NT Maurice Hurst.  Henry has registered 30 tackles on the season and leads the team with 6.5 sacks and his 10 TFLs are second to Wormley, while Hurst has also chipped in 30 tackles, 6.5 TFL and three sacks.  Michigan’s excellent line backing corps is led by senior Joe Bolden, who leads the Wolverines in tackles with 67 tackles and also has 5.5 TFL, while his classmate Desmond Morgan is second on the team with 64 tackles and is a two-time Academic All-B1G.  The OLB positions are taken care of by seniors Royce Jenkins-Stone and James Ross.  Jenkins-Stone has 34 tackles and can play either outside position.  He had his best game in their double-OT win at Indiana where he garnered nine tackles , two TFLs, a sack, and a forced fumble.  James Ross has been named to the Butkus Award watch list and had his best game in their loss to Michigan State with seven tackles.  Ross comes into the game with 31 tackles, 5.5 TFLs ,and a sack.  Sophomore SS Jabrill Peppers has already made a name for himself as a two-way player, even though he will play mostly at SS.  On defense, Peppers has contributed 40 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and 10 pass breakups this season.  Juniors Channing Stribling and Jourdan Lewis man the corner positions.  Stribling has 16 tackles, a TFL and an interception, while Lewis is fourth on the team with 43 tackles.  Lewis has also contributed 2.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, and an eye-popping 19 pass breakups.  

                                            SS Jabrill Peppers

SPECIAL TEAMS: Kenny Allen has done very well as the Michigan field goal kicker, hitting 14 of 18 field goal tries with a long of 47 in 2015.  Blake O’Neill has shown to be a solid punter, averaging 41.4 yards per punt with a whopping 80-yarder to his credit.  The aforementioned Jabrill Peppers returns punts, averaging 11.4 yards per punt return, while he and Jourdan Lewis will be back on the kickoff return unit.  Both are averaging around 28 yards per return.

SUMMARY: The rivalry has become decidedly one-sided in the 21^st Century with Ohio State winning 12 of the last 14.  The Michigan football program, which has been down for quite a while, seems to be rejuvenated under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh, a former Michigan QB.  Coach Harbaugh has led them to wins in close games against Minnesota and Indiana, which previous Michigan teams would’ve lost and has them poised to pick up a 10^th win for only the fourth time this century.  Michigan’s defense presents their own special challenges to any offense and the Buckeyes will need a completely different game plan than what we saw last week.  Ohio State should go back to running Elliott and utilize Barrett on option reads while utilizing the speed and play-making ability of Braxton Miller and Jalin Marshall on the edges.  On defense, Ohio State should be able to stop the run frequently enough to force Jake Rudock to throw downfield.  Rudock, however, is hard to rattle and Jake Butt at TE has proven to be a nightmare for opposing defenses.  The Ohio State offense, coming off their worst performance since Urban Meyer has been the coach, will need to start anew and put the awful performance of last week behind them.  My guess is, they’ll improve on quite a few things, but Michigan, with their home-field advantage, eventually prevails.

                                             MICHIGAN 26, OHIO STATE 21