National Championship Preview: Michigan Offense vs. Washington Defense

 

Bralen Trice (#8, image via 247 Sports)

RUSH OFFENSE vs. WASHINGTON RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is #62 in rushing offense (159.5 yards/game) and #72 in yards per carry (4.25). They're tied for #4 in rushing touchdowns (36) with Air Force, a team that only attempted 105 passes for the entire season. Blake Corum has rushed 237 times for 1,111 yards and 25 touchdowns, and he is now the leading touchdown scorer in Michigan history with 59 total scores. Donovan Edwards (113 carries, 393 yards, 3 TD) is second on the team in rushing but has struggled mightily, while RB Kalel Mullings (33 carries, 201 yards, 1 TD) and QB J.J. McCarthy (60 carries, 171 yards, 3 TD) are also threats on the ground. The offensive line performed well last week against Alabama despite having to RG Zak Zinter with Karsen Barnhart and inserting RT Trente Jones. Washington's defense is #43 in yards allowed per game (137.1) and #86 in yards allowed per carry (4.4). Against top-10 ranked teams, the Huskies have allowed 88 carries for 508 yards (5.77 yards/carry) and 6 touchdowns. The leading tackler is fifth year senior SS Dominique Hampton (6'3", 220 lbs.) with 99 stops, followed by fifth year senior MLB Edefan Ulofoshio (6'1", 236) with 90 tackles and backup WLB Carson Bruener (6'2", 226), the son of former Washington and NFL tight end Mark Bruener, with 80 stops. They're #119 in tackles for loss per game (4.43), led by redshirt junior EDGE Bralen Trice (6'4", 274) with 11.5 and Ulofoshio with 8.0. They also have a mammoth nose tackle in 6'6", 327 lb. fifth year senior Ulumoo Ale, who has 16 tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss this year as a space-eater.

Advantage: Michigan. Good teams have had solid success against Oregon, and even though Texas and Oregon have statistically better rushing attacks than Michigan, the Wolverines should present issues for the Huskies up front.

PASS OFFENSE vs. WASHINGTON PASS DEFENSE
Michigan's pass offense ranks #73 nationally (218.9 yards/game), #14 in yards per attempt (9.0), and #5 in passing efficiency. McCarthy started off last week's Rose Bowl with an ugly interception on the first play - that was luckily overturned due to the Alabama player having his foot out of bounds - but otherwise, he played a solid game after a few lackluster performances. Overall, he has completed 73.2% of his passes for 9.1 yards/attempt, 22 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. There's a cluster of receivers at the top of the receiving list, all with 42-45 receptions: WR Roman Wilson (45 catches, 735 yards, 12 TD), TE Colston Loveland (42, 585, 4), and WR Cornelius Johnson (44, 579, 1). The Wolverines are #29 in sacks allowed per game (1.36) and gave up just 1 to a very good Crimson Tide pass rush last week. Meanwhile, Washington is #123 in passing defense (267.1 yards allowed/game), #32 in passing efficiency defense, and tied for #22 in yards allowed per attempt (6.6). They have allowed six 300+ yards passing games this season, including to 3-9 Stanford and 5-7 Washington State. (By comparison, the most passing yards Michigan has allowed was 271 against Ohio State.) Washington is #116 in sacks per game (1.5), but Trice has 6 in his last seven games after having just 1 in his first seven contests. Second on the team is fifth year senior Zion Tupuola-Fetui (6'4", 254) with 3.5. The Huskes are tied for #17 in interceptions per game (1.14), led by redshirt junior Husky (that's their nickel hybrid) Mishael Powell (3 INT, 99 yards, 1 TD at 6'1", 210) and CB Jabbar Muhammad (5'10", 183) with 3 INT for 53 yards.

Advantage: Michigan. Having watched a lot of Oregon and Texas against Washington, the Huskies' defensive backs had a difficult time tackling - which also should help in Michigan's run game - and they were also bailed out by some ugly, untimely drops by the Longhorns. As long as Michigan can avoid self-inflicted issues with drops, they should be able to find some success and get some yards after the catch.

National Championship Preview: Washington Roster Notes

 

Giles Jackson

Michigan has an 8-5 all-time record against the Washington Huskies. The first time they played was in 1916. The last time they played was a 31-10 win by Michigan in 2021.

• Washington tight ends coach Nick Sheridan was a walk-on quarterback at Michigan and started a handful of games in 2008 under Rich Rodriguez
• Washington "general manager" Courtney Morgan played offensive line at Michigan and spent 2021 as the Wolverines' director of player personnel
• Washington players recruited by Michigan include: RB Sam Adams II, OL Geirean Hatchett, OL Landen Hatchett, WR Giles Jackson, RB Daniyel Ngata, CB Caleb Presley
• Washington WR Giles Jackson spent 2019-2020 at Michigan, rushing 12 times for 74 yards and 1 touchdown; making 24 catches for 309 yards and 1 touchdown; returning 37 kickoffs for 976 yards and 2 touchdowns; and returning 2 punts for 5 yards
• Washington RB Sam Adams II is the son of former NFL defensive tackle Sam Adams
• Washington OL Jalen Klemm is the son of former NFL offensive tackle Adrian Klemm
• Washington TE Ryan Otton is the younger brother of current NFL tight end Cade Otton
• Michigan has zero players on the roster from the state of Washington
• Washington has two players from the state of Michigan: twin brothers Armon and Jayvon Parker from Dearborn (MI) Fordson. Armon is a 6'3", 307 lb. defensive tackle, and Jayvon is a 6'3", 297 lb. defensive tackle. Jayvon has 4 tackles and 1 quarterback hurry this season.

Michigan's 10 Longest Plays vs. Washington

 

Tyrone Wheatley (image via MGoBlog)

Michigan is 9-5 against the Washington Huskies. They first met on November 4, 1916, which was a 66-7 win for the Wolverines. The last time they met was on September 11, 2021, another victory for Michigan, this one by a score of 31-10.

1. Tyrone Wheatley 88-yard TD run (1992)
2. Rick Leach 76-yard TD pass to Curt Stephenson (1977)
3. Blake Corum 67-yard TD run (2021)
4. Chris Perry 57-yard TD run (2002)
5. Tyrone Wheatley 56-yard TD pass (1992)
6. Tyrone Wheatley 53-yard TD run (1991)
7. Elvis Grbac 49-yard TD pass to Tony McGee (1992)
8. John Navarre 45-yard TD pass to Braylon Edwards (2002)
9. Cade McNamara 33-yard pass to Cornelius Johnson (2021)
10. Rick Leach 32-yard TD pass to Stan Edwards (1977)

NOTE: I'm having a tough time finding stats pre-1977, so if you have any resources/updates for me to mix into the post, let me know.

Hit the jump for highlights of Wheatley's 88-yarder and Leach-to-Stephenson.

Michigan 27, Alabama 20

 

J.J. McCarthy, Jim Harbaugh, and Blake Corum (image via Mark Terrill/AP)

Michigan was the better team. I predicted a 27-24 loss to the Crimson Tide, so I wasn't too far off on how the game would feel - I thought it would be a close game that came down to the end. But from the get-go, it seemed like Michigan had the superior team on a down-to-down basis. They sacked Jalen Milroe on four out of his first six dropbacks, and the offensive line was holding up fairly well. Alabama's offense averaged 4.36 yards per play, while Michigan's averaged 5.95.

Hit the jump for more.

Happy New Year!

 

I know this is a day late, but it's 2024 now and we all have a chance to make some changes. I've never been a big proponent of New Year's resolutions, but I did want to share some of the things I've been doing for personal and physical health. Some of these are not new - in fact, most of them aren't - but I have started to refocus on some of these items.

I'm also wondering what some of you are doing. Perhaps we can learn from each other.

DIET

For the past few years, I have mostly switched to a low-carb diet. Chips, cookies, bread, even potatoes have largely gone away. I did have some Doritos at a holiday party and had my fair share of Christmas cookies over the past couple weeks. But aside from special occasions like holidays and maybe family birthdays, I stay away from sweets and junk food.

I had already been leaning in this direction, but for the month of January, I signed up for Dr. Paul Saladino's "Animal Based 30" challenge, which is an attempt to eat an animal-based diet for 30 days. I tend to tolerate animal protein better than plant proteins - which make me bloated and flatulent - so I'm buying into eating whole foods that are either animal proteins, fruit, or limited dairy products.

What I ate today:

• LUNCH: Two grass-fed burgers with cheddar cheese and one piece of dark chocolate (a Christmas gift)
• DINNER: 12 oz. flank steak cooked in a tablespoon of butter, 1 avocado, 2 teaspoons of honey, 1 oz. goat cheese

Supplements I take on a daily basis:

• 360-480 mg of magnesium glycinate for sleep and preventing cramps (LINK)
• 3-6 pills of grass fed bovine colostrum (LINK)
• 6 pills of desiccated liver (LINK)
• 10,000 IUs of Vitamin D3, plus K2 (LINK)

EXERCISE

Again, I've always been a frequent visitor to the gym - except during COVID when the gym was closed, which sucks - so the 1st of the year sucks, because the gym suddenly gets packed for about a month. But over the past week or so, I've changed up my workout routine. I was somewhat stuck in a rut, so I've changed to the concept of doing a single set to failure of various exercises. Yes, just one set of the following exercises. Occasionally, I'll throw in some other exercises, but these are my staples:

• Biceps curls
• Hammer curls
• Skull crushers
• Incline bench press
• Lateral raises
• Bent over rows
• Leg extensions
• Goblet squats
• Calf raises

My warmup includes 5-8 minutes of walking on a treadmill at 3 mph at a 15-degree incline. And I try to finish each lifting session with 60 seconds hanging from a bar, pushing a sled, and/or a farmer's carry with 75- or 80-pound dumbbells for 60 seconds. After that I do a sauna session for 15-20 minutes, during which I read a book and sometimes stretch.

I try to do this routine 3-4 times a week. If I have time to go to the gym more, I usually make it an easier day with more walking at an incline and/or more time in the sauna.

MENTAL HEALTH

This has been the biggest change for me in the past couple years. I've mentioned this once or twice before, but the last 1.5 years have been pretty hellish on a personal level. They say whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, so I guess I'm a stronger person now. But lots of crazy things have happened, to the point that I could probably write a book. Very few of them have had to do with me, but mostly with people close to me - which means I've spent way too much time talking to doctors, lawyers, police officers, detectives, and others. It's been a lifetime's worth of drama in the span of about 18 months.

How have I dealt with it?

• Exercise (see above). Walking helps a lot, but I also feel a lot better and more relaxed after I lift and/or sit in the sauna.
• Journal. I had to learn to be careful not to just rehash events, but to try to tap into writing down my thoughts about what was happening. I also try to include things I'm grateful for, which is important when it seems like a lot is going wrong.
• Therapy. Every couple weeks for the last several months, I spend an hour with a therapist. Just like with the journal, though, I want to encourage you to go to therapy with a plan. It's very easy to go in and just vent or run through events - and sometimes you need that - but I find it's a lot more helpful to look inward and figure out why I feel certain things rather than focusing on what's happening around me. I'm probably past the point now where I think therapy is absolutely necessary, but there was a time where the therapy sessions probably stopped me from flipping out on someone.

Anyway, these are all some ways I've learned to take care of myself. I'm physically stronger now on many lifts than I ever have been, and I've fixed some minor health issues I had with my bloodwork (low vitamin D, high triglycerides, etc.). After diving into the nutrition and health space pretty heavily over the past few years, it's been truly life changing to figure out how much my health can be altered by specifically targeting issues with diet, exercise, sleep, etc.

What are you doing to take care of yourself?

(I swear I won't judge anyone who is doing a New Year's Resolution. They've just never worked for me as an individual, but we're all different.)

Michigan's 10 Longest Plays vs. Alabama

 

Jamie Morris (image via MLive)

Michigan is 2-3 against the Alabama Crimson Tide. They first met in the Hall of Fame Bowl following the 1987 season, followed by the Outback Bowl in 1996, the Orange Bowl following the 1999 season, a regular season meeting in 2012, and then the Outback Bowl again following the 2019 season.

1. Jamie Morris 77-yard TD run (1987)
2. Denard Robinson 71-yard pass to Jeremy Gallon (2012)
3. Tom Brady 57-yard TD pass to David Terrell (1999)
4. Giles Jackson 50-yard kickoff return (2019)
5. Denard Robinson 44-yard TD pass to Devin Gardner (2012)
6. Shea Patterson 40-yard pass to Giles Jackson (2019)
7. Shea Patterson 34-yard pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones (2019)
8. Dennis Norfleet 33-yard kickoff return (2012)
9. Jamie Morris 31-yard run (1987)
10. Tom Brady 28-yard pass to Marquise Walker (1999)

Hit the jump for a video of Morris going 77 yards for the TD in the Hall of Fame Bowl and for the long TD pass from Brady to Terrell.

Rose Bowl Preview: Michigan Defense vs. Alabama Offense, Prediction

 

Jalen Milroe (image via Alabama Athletics)

RUSH DEFENSE vs. ALABAMA RUSH OFFENSE
Michigan is #6 in rush defense (87.1 yards allowed/game) and yards allowed per carry (2.93). They have only allowed 7 rushing touchdowns all year (tied for #4), and 3 of those were "tush push" plays against Maryland. The team that had the most success against Michigan was Penn State, and that was with a quarterback who ran 10 times for 49 yards and 1 touchdown in Drew Allar. Allar isn't that mobile of a quarterback, so he caught Michigan by surprise a little bit with some of his runs. Linebacker Junior Colson leads the team with 79 tackles, despite playing a chunk of the season with casts on his hands. In fact, three of his top four tackle totals have come in the past four weeks while injured. Michigan is #72 in tackles for loss (5.54 per game), led by OLB Jaylen Harrell with 8.0 and DE Braiden McGregor with 7.0. Alabama has a massive offensive line, with three starters listed at 352 pounds . . . or more. That includes standout junior right tackle J.C. Latham (6'5", 360), who is expected by some to be the first tackle taken in the 2024 NFL Draft. But it also includes freshman left tackle Kadyn Proctor (6'7", 360), who has struggled at times, though he has improved in the latter half of the season. That line has powered a team that ranks #46 nationally in rushing (172.69 yards/game) and #64 in yards per carry (4.33). Senior RB Jase McClellan (5'11", 212) has 166 carries for 803 yards and 6 touchdowns to lead the way for the Crimson Tide, but he may not be available due to injury. His backup is senior Roydell Williams (5'10", 214), who has 110 carries for 561 yards and 5 touchdowns. But the X factor is QB Jalen Milroe (6'2", 220), who leads the team with 12 touchdowns and has run for 468 yards this year.
Advantage: Michigan, with the caveat that Milroe could be a huge X factor. He has two 100-yard rushing games, including 20 carries for 155 yards and 4 touchdowns against LSU. Michigan has yet to see a true dual-threat QB.

PASS DEFENSE vs. ALABAMA PASS OFFENSE
Michigan is #2 in pass defense (152.6 yards allowed/game), #4 in passing efficiency defense, and #5 with 5.8 yards allowed per attempt. They have allowed 7 touchdowns and nabbed 16 interceptions, led by nickel corner Mike Sainristil with 5 picks. Michigan is #38 in sacks per game (2.46), led by Harrell with 6.5 and fellow OLB Josaiah Stewart with 4.5. Star CB Will Johnson missed the Iowa game and half of the Ohio State game, but he's supposedly healthy and ready to go for the Rose Bowl. He has 3 interceptions and 4 pass breakups this year. Alabama is #61 in passing (228.5 yards/game) but #5 in yards per attempt (9.8) and #8 in passing efficiency. Milroe is completing 65.5% of his throws for 2,718 yards, 10.4 yards per attempt, 23 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. He has 10 touchdowns and 1 interception in his past four games, which contrasts with Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy's 1 touchdown and 1 interception during the final stretch. The Crimson Tide have allowed 3.31 sacks per game, which is #118 in the nation. Senior WR Jermaine Burton (6'0", 194) is a home run threat averaging 22.2 yards/catch (35 catches, 777 yards) and leading the team with 8 receiving touchdowns. Sophomore WR Isaiah Bond (5'11", 182) is the #2 guy with 44 catches, 621 yards, and 4 touchdowns. Sophomore Amari Niblack (6'4", 233) is a tight end by name, but his 19 catches for 321 yards (16.9 yards/catch) and 4 touchdowns show he's a big play threat, and he moves more like a receiver.
Advantage: Michigan. Burton is the most dangerous threat, but if Will Johnson is healthy, he can hopefully help limit Burton's number of touches. Again, the big factor here is what happens if Michigan's pass rush can't get to Milroe.

PREDICTION

• Alabama 27, Michigan 24. Maybe it's just PTSD from the last couple times Michigan has played Alabama and then the Georgia game in 2021, but overall, I don't see Michigan matching up with the speed Alabama has all around. That's especially true at edge rusher, where I think Alabama is going to cause a lot of problems for McCarthy and the passing game. A lot of people are saying McCarthy is going to have to play his best game, and I don't see how that happens with the pass protection problems Michigan has had.