The Michigan Wolverines came away with a 17-10 statement win over No. 11 Oklahoma on Saturday to remain unbeaten, but one glaring issue that has plagued the team throughout the first two weeks of the season is unnecessary penalties.
In two games this season, Michigan has committed an alarming 10 penalties per game, which is second-worst in the Big Ten and 124th out of 138 FBS teams. For comparison, the Wolverines committed 4.4 penalties per game last year.
“We’re too undisciplined in that regard,”
Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham told the media on Monday.
After committing nine penalties in the season-opening win over Western Michigan, Michigan shot itself in the foot even more against Oklahoma — getting called for 11 penalties, including a series of personal foul flags.
“Players have to understand there are consequences to penalties,” Whittingham said. “Offensively, they’re drive killers. Defensively, they’re drive extenders for the opponent. And on special teams, they’re big factors in field position.”
The Wolverines have not only been called for pre-snap penalties and holding calls that have ended offensive drives on multiple occasions, but they have also received a number of personal fouls that gave the opponent a free first down.
Michigan was whistled for three personal fouls this past weekend, as Dominic Nichols and Shamari Earls were both called for face mask penalties. Additionally, cornerback Jyaire Hill committed an egregious dead-ball unnecessary roughness on third down that directly kept the Sooners’ offense on the field and eventually lead to a field goal.
Those are the types of penalties that simply can’t happen. Penalties are a part of the game, so false starts, holding and offsides are going to happen from time to time. However, great teams limit being penalized and are able to eliminate the most critical infractions.
“There are some bigger, thoughtless penalties, which are ones that really could have been avoided,” Whittingham said. “We know we have smart guys so we just have to be more disciplined and get rid of some of those ignorant things.”
Michigan has accumulated 170 penalty yards in the first two games of the season, which is 127th out of 138 FBS teams. The Wolverines have been severely undisciplined despite winning both games, and it has to be fixed before it’s too late.
“It’s a process. We have to get it corrected or it will cost us somewhere down the line,” Whittingham said. “We have to get it under control. It’s a matter of continuing to teach and demand. We’ll eventually get where we need.”
Whittingham is confident in the team’s ability to fix the penalty problem, but he also knows it’s a concern for now.
“Every penalty is a teaching moment. You have to address it when it happens in a game,” Whittingham said. “We harp on it again in film and throughout practice, we have referees, so it’s just a process of educating the players.”
