Michigan Football Week 2 Recap and Review

The 15th-ranked Michigan Wolverines went to Norman to take on the 18th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners for the first time since 1976. The pre-game hype featured the most entertaining part of the game for Michigan fans. Oklahoma deserves applause for the tributes to two historic programs facing off. After the kick-off, the game lost its exciting feeling as the much better Sooners dominated the Wolverines in every aspect of the game, securing a 24-13 victory. Take away a few Sooners turnovers, poor penalties, and a missed field goal, and the Wolverines would not have even been in the game. John Mateer ran all over the Michigan defense, and Oklahoma owned the trenches. Oklahoma had 408 yards to Michigan's 288 and converted 9-17 on third down compared to 3-14. Kudos to Brett Venables and the Sooners. They have the coaching, talent, and performance to go far this season, but the Wolverines definitely made it easier on them. So, where did the game go wrong?

Photo by Alex Mertz on Unsplash

Michigan's Discipline is Gone

For years, Jim Harbaugh demanded excellence from the Wolverines. In the fifteen games since Sherrone Moore took over the program, Michigan is 9-6. Take away the cupcake wins over Fresno State, Arkansas State, and New Mexico, and the record drops to 6-6. Then, let's take a look at the incredible finish to the 2024 season, marked by victories over top-ranked Ohio State and 17th-ranked Alabama in the ReliQuest Bowl. Ryan Day foolishly tried to beat Michigan in a ground-and-pound game. In retrospect, is the win over Alabama that good? Michigan gets bad penalties, has missed assignments on both sides of the ball, and teams dominate them in the trenches. That's discipline.

It is especially concerning because Moore's background is with the offensive line, Saturday's most lost position group. Michigan looked like a high school team with defensive players looking to the sideline for the play as Oklahoma snapped the ball. This behavior isn't new. With the coaching change last season, fans and media chalked these errors up to the transition. In year two, reverting to the most concerning woes of year one is unacceptable for a premier program. The most egregious instance of lack of discipline came when Michigan had to take two timeouts on a pivotal drive just to beat the play clock.

Bryce Underwood Is Mature Beyond His Years

Bryce Underwood (and all quarterbacks) garnered much of the attention from the national media's response to this loss. Underwood kept his composure as his offensive line collapsed, unable to pass block against the Sooners' pressure. Venables is renowned for his defensive schemes, and while Underwood didn't knock the doors down, he avoided any costly mistakes. His 9-24 passing game says more about the coaching staff and offensive line than it does him. The run-run-pass pattern, followed by the insistence on wide receiver screens and end-arounds, didn't help. Running the play action to try to deter a pass rush makes sense on paper, but when the offensive line struggles to keep anyone out of the backfield, the staff needs to change it up and find ways to give Underwood more space and time to create. Put him in the shotgun and run quick slants instead of having slow-developing plays and putting him in difficult situations over and over.

Playing Not To Lose

The Head Coach ultimately holds responsibility for discipline, play calling, and game management issues. Choosing to kick field goals on 4th and short multiple times instead of going for it makes a difference. Moore has consistently demonstrated that his choices are driven by a philosophy of avoiding loss rather than pursuing victory. He's early in his tenure, but if he wants to win, he needs to have more confidence in his players. When a team falls behind, as Michigan did, they must be aggressive. When Michigan got great field position following some turnovers and penalties, they needed to be aggressive. They were never aggressive. They never adapted. It's possible to win with the "smart and safe" choices, but the team has to be in a better position to do so. In years past, when Michigan was in a competitive game with a dominant defense and running game, they were able to play that way. With a suspect offensive line and a struggling defense, they had to take a chance. It's not a philosophy that is always a popular post-game, but neither is losing.

The Run Game, Offensive Line, and Defense

The offensive line has taken a lot of flak in this article, but its struggles are hard to ignore. Michigan had 146 yards rushing on 32 attempts for 4.6 per carry. However, that number is misleading. Take away Justice Haynes' 75-yard rushing touchdown, and the number falls to 71 yards on 31 attempts for 2.3 yards per carry. As mentioned above, the pass blocking did not fare much better.

Finally, the defense did not have its best game. This article focused on even larger issues. John Mateer presents a unique threat offensively, but the defense must improve. The poor tackling from linebackers and the inconsistent play of the secondary will draw much of the attention, but the problems start with the defensive line. Oklahoma averaged 4.3 yards per carry, including 74 yards from Mateer. Mateer additionally threw for 270 yards. Michigan had no answers on defense for the versatile quarterback. The defensive line needed to create more pressure on him.

For all of the emphasis on passing in the modern era, football games are still decided in the trenches. Michigan got dominated by Oklahoma there. All the other areas followed suit. They'll need to clean it up before heading to Nebraska, with Dylan Raiola and the Cornhuskers starting the year strong. Matt Rhule is the first of many Big Ten coaches on the schedule this year looking for a signature win that could come against the Wolverines.