The Michigan Wolverines took care of business against the Maryland Terrapins on Saturday, 45-20. This team is one of the youngest in the Big Ten, and even more young guys had a chance to play in this one.
Despite the return of Cole Sullivan, linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng still got in the game and burned his redshirt in College Park.
Here is where the freshmen stand 11 games into the season. An asterisk (*) indicates they saw playing time against Maryland:
- QB Bryce Underwood* (11 games)
- RB Jasper Parker* (6 games)
- WR Andrew Marsh* (11 games)
- WR Jacob Washington (1 game)
- WR Jamar Browder* (7 games)
- TE Eli Owens (1 game)
- OL Avery Gach* (3 games)
- OL Kaden Strayhorn (1 game)
- OL Ty Haywood* (2 games)
- Edge Nate Marshall* (9 games)
- DL Benny Patterson (4 games)
- DL Travis Moten (1 game)
- DL Bobby Kanka (1 game)
- LB Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng* (5 games)
- LB Chase Taylor* (8 games)
- DB Elijah Dotson* (10 games)
- DB Jordan Young* (8 games)
- DB Jayden Sanders* (11 games)
- DB Shamari Earls (5 games)
- DB Kainoa Winston (1 game)
Once again, wide receiver Andrew Marsh
stood out as a key component of Michigan’s offense, and now special teams. He finished the day with 147 all-purpose yards. He had one long return against Maryland for 39 yards that set Michigan up nicely late in the game.
His quarterback, Bryce Underwood, had a nice day, too. He was 16-of-23 with two touchdowns and no interceptions. On the ground, Underwood had eight carries for 20 yards. Running back Jasper Parker got into the end zone and had eight carries for 23 yards.
We also saw some of the freshmen offensive linemen, with Ty Haywood (left tackle) and Avery Gach (special teams) earning some garbage time snaps in this one.
Without Ernest Hausmann, we saw more plays from some of the younger linebackers. Chase Taylor had a crucial heads-up play on Maryland’s onside kick, and he also had one tackle. Edge rusher Nate Marshall, defensive back Jordan Young, defensive back Elijah Dotson, and the aforementioned Owusu-Boateng all ended up on the stat sheet at the end of the day.
Michigan has just one game left this season, The Game in Ann Arbor. Michigan will have a chance to win five straight games against the Buckeyes. While we’re waiting to hear about some crucial injuries ahead of the matchup against the Buckeyes, Michigan will likely still rotate these young players on the offense. We’ll just have to wait until Saturday to see if they’re still on the field for the same amount of snaps.
