The Michigan Football program is coming off a win against Rutgers. While it looked touch-and-go at times, the offense managed enough points to help the defense out and win the game. The defense struggled a bit for the first time all year, giving up a handful of big plays to a Rutgers offense that just didn’t have much to work with. A win is something we’ll take, and the Wolverines now sit at 5-3 with four games remaining.
Now, it’s time for the team to turn its attention to the first major rivalry
game of the season and the first for head coach Kyle Whittingham. We asked you to post your questions ahead of the MSU game in The Feed, so let’s get right to them.
On the defense’s response after last week
Hopefully well. We all probably expected the defense to give up fewer points to Rutgers, but if you want to look on the bright side, at least they have some areas to fix heading into this week’s game.
The defense has been elite, but several players struggled while we had some of the best players on the sidelines last week. Hopefully we get some good news on the injury front, too — while the coaches said they expect Dom Nichols and John Henry Daley to play, they’re still listed as questionable on the availability report. Having Rod Moore dealing with an injury has also been an issue for the secondary.
To actually answer your question, Michigan will need to limit its penalties. The Michigan State rivalry can get heated, and playing hard without focus could lead to some silly penalties that keep Michigan State’s offense on the field. If they can attack with intensity and make some tackles, Michigan’s defense should look fine again.
On Kyle Whittingham
Maybe I’m in the minority, but I don’t think there’s any chance Michigan moves on from Whittingham even if he were to lose out. At this point, it doesn’t feel like there’s much he can do to get people back on his side. While wins over Ohio State and UCLA will certainly help us feel better, some of the complaints against Whittingham are bigger than just his loss column. The calls for his job will probably die down, but if he doesn’t make some changes to his offensive staff, I don’t think many people will be excited heading into next season.
On the Michigan State rivalry
It sounds like people are getting Whittingham up to speed on the Michigan State rivalry, but a few of his statements didn’t sound super promising this week. He’s been pointing out this isn’t Michigan’s biggest rivalry game. While that’s a fun point to make with family at the dinner table around the holidays, I’m not the biggest fan of Michigan’s head coach telling everyone it’s Michigan State’s Super Bowl.
MSU’s new head coach Pat Fitzgerald knows what this game means to his fans. He also knows what it looks like to prepare for games in the Big Ten. It feels like it could be a recipe for disaster on Saturday. This could also be me acting overdramatic. I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.
Let’s keep the conversation going in the comments. Post your thoughts below!
