Last Week at The Wolverine Den

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The University of Michigan Wolverines have their first road game of the year when they travel to Seattle for a rematch of the National Championship game against the Washington Huskies. The two teams are certainly not the same teams that met for the championship just 9 months ago. Both teams have new coaching staffs, new quarterbacks and have had to replace the majority of their starters from last year. Washington's new coach is Jedd Fisch, formerly the passing game coordinator/QB Coach at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh in 2015-2016. He most recently was the head coach at Arizona, finishing 10-3 last year. His staff at Washington includes offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll, son of Pete Carroll, and defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, son of Bill Belichick.

Pre-game Menu

Sandwiches
Salads
Snacks

The Huskies have started the year 3-2 with wins over nobody and losses to rival Washington State and Rutgers (in their first-ever Big Ten game). As is common these days, Washington backfilled their roster with transfers. Chief among the transfers is QB Will Rogers. Rogers came from 4 years at Mississippi State where he ran the Mike Leach air raid offense. He is 2nd all-time in career passing yards in the SEC and has the 3rd most career passing yards of any active quarterback in D1, behind only Dillon Gabriel and Cam Ward. This year through 5 games, Rogers is averaging 270 yards per game while completing 74.8% of his passes with 10 TDs and 0 interceptions. He is 4th in the country in completion percentage and 11th in passing efficiency. The top running back at UW is Jonah Coleman, a transfer from Arizona who led the Wildcats in rushing last year and is averaging over 100 yards per game this year. The top receivers are Giles Jackson (a transfer from Michigan) and Denzel Boston, who already has 7 TDs this year.

The Wolverine Den Trivia

Q: Michigan and Washington played in the postseason last year and now again in the regular season this year. When was the last time happened, playing the same team less than 9 months apart?

A: Michigan played UCLA in the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl on December 31, 1981. We then played UCLA in Ann Arbor on September 25, 1982 and, then again, in the Rose Bowl on January 1, 1983.

Washington is solid on defense, ranking 10th in the nation in total defense (albeit against weaker competition). In their two losses this year, Washington had 71 more yards than Washington State and 222 more yards than Rutgers. Why did they lose? Because Washington has been a very undisciplined team. Against Washington St, the Huskies had 16 penalties for 135 yards. Last week against Rutgers, the Huskies blocked a field goal attempt in the last minute of the first half, but a player ran onto the field to celebrate during the play. The result? A 5-yard penalty and a first down for Rutgers, who then threw a touchdown pass on the next play. Washington lost by 3 points after this faux pas, and had three missed field goals in the game. The Huskies are 121st in the nation in penalties, averaging 8.6 penalties for 80.8 yards per game. This could easily be a 5-0 team ranked in the top ten.

Michigan will need to take advantage of every break that Washington gives them. The Wolverines dominated on both line of scrimmages nine months ago on their way to an easy win. The formula hasn't changed even if the players have. Run the ball, control the clock and play excellent defense.

Michigan leads the all-time series with Washington 9-5. The Huskies have won 17 consecutive home games since their last home loss in 2021, the 2nd longest streak in the nation. Michigan has won their last 11 true road games. The Wolverines have won their last 4 road openers but are only 12-14 in road openers since the 1997 National Championship year.

The Wolverines are a 2½-point underdog.

Post-Game Summary

The Michigan Wolverines lost to the Washington Huskies 27-17 on Saturday night in Seattle. Washington jumped out to an early 14-0 lead while Michigan was sputtering. But Jack Tuttle made his first appearance of the year and energized the Wolverines. Seventeen straight points by Michigan and the Wolverines had the lead in the 4th quarter.

But then the game changed. Washington kicked a field goal to tie the score 17-17. On the ensuing drive, Michigan ran a zone blocking scheme on 2nd down and the cutback lane opened wide. Donovan saw the hole and made the cut, only to slip on the turf and go down. There was only one defender downfield and surely Dono would have outrun him. Or, at the very least, it would have been a huge gain. On the next play (3rd down), Tuttle threw a pass across the middle to Marlin Kiein, who was grabbed from behind with both arms, and no penalty was called. Michigan punted and put their defense right back on the field, and Washington went on to score the game's final 10 points. There was a different outcome had either of those plays been altered.

The Wolverines now have their back to the wall to salvage the season. The bye week could not have come at a better time.

Craig's Prediction

23-21

Steve's Prediction

22-19

Tim's Prediction

24-21

Brown's Prediction

23-17

Craig 17, Brown 15½, Tim 15, Steve 12½