For all of Michigan football's concerns, Kyle Whittingham's group has done a lot of good stuff, too.
The defense hasn't allowed a rushing touchdown this season. The offense has had nearly 1,000 yards in the past two weeks. The special teams has consistently flipped the field in the punt game and hasn't missed a kick when looking for points.
The problem is there hasn't been a game where it all happened at once. In three of four games, the offense has scored fewer than 20 points. Last week, the defense gave up two touchdowns and more than 150 yards of offense in a pivotal fourth quarter. Prior to that, the special teams allowed a 99-yard kickoff return for a score, a pivotal moment in the 20-19 loss to Iowa.
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The goal for No. 24 Michigan (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) when it heads out for its first road game against Minnesota (3-1, 1-0) this weekend (Noon, Fox) is to finally put it all together.
"We just got to come out and dominate," linebacker Aisea Moa said Tuesday after practice. "We got to be a dominant team − dominant offensively, dominant defensively, and dominant on special teams.
"Play great complementary football, and just fly around, passion, energy, have fun, let it fly."
It's been no secret that Michigan hasn't played clean football. Michigan's 32 penalties are the third most of any Big Ten team (one of the two more penalized teams is USC, which has played five games) and its total penalty yards are also in the bottom quarter in the country.
On offense, the main struggle has come in the red zone, scoring on just nine of 12 trips inside the opponent's 20, ranked No. 118 nationally and second-to-last in the Big Ten. On defense, the issue is an inability to force turnovers.
Michigan has come up with just three takeaways in four games, something that's unusual for a Jay Hill unit. All of it combined is one reason coach Kyle Whittingham said even though the team is 3-1, he "feels like we're 0-4."
Running back Jordan Marshall was puzzled by the comment at first, but eventually understood what the head coach meant.
"What I took from it is we haven't played our best football on either side of the ball," Marshall said. "We haven't played a complete football game, and for me, it's going to be scary when we do. ... we’re 0-4 because we haven’t played to our expectations. We haven’t played to the best Michigan can play, and I think we still have a lot of stuff to clean up and come together, and we’re working on that.
“It’s those situations: finishing in the red zone, being smart, fewer penalties, being disciplined ... that’s what we have to do, and play a clean football game.”
That's easier said than done so far for Michigan, who has been its own worst enemy far too often.
Marshall said when the team came in on Sunday morning, the team about how many guys couldn't fall asleep until 4 a.m. because they were still upset.
It's a frustrating feeling because there have been a number of positive signs, starting with the passing game. Quarterback Bryce Underwood completed 17 of 28 passes for a career-high 276 yards and two touchdowns and was incredibly efficient: the 9.9 yards per pass attempt was the second most any Iowa team has allowed in a decade.
JJ Buchanan (20 catches, 396 yards, four touchdowns) and Andrew Marsh (22 catches, 239 yards, one touchdown) have been among the best wide receivers in the league and Underwood appears more comfortable behind an offensive line he trusts in pass protection.
The defense has also been suffocating, ranked No. 7 in total defense (236.2 yards per game) and No. 23 in scoring (14.8 points per game). But with one loss already on the ledger and five games remaining against teams currently in the US LBM Coaches Poll, the path doesn't get any easier.
The time for results is now.
“I hope you guys see that, too, that we’re close on offense," Marshall said. "There’s been an adjustment from Week 1 to Week 4. So making sure that we’re getting better every single week, so when we’re at Week 10, 11, 12, heading into playoffs, that we’re in stride, and we know what this offense is about.
"We have to keep getting better and like [offensive coordinator] Jason Beck said, we have to get better quicker.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan has been doing the hard stuff well. That's what's frustrating
