ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The No. 2 ranked Michigan Wolverines improve to 7-0 after they unleashed their boa constrictor to suffocate the Indiana Hoosiers in a 52-7 drubbing.
After defeating the Minnesota Golden Gophers this past Saturday, head coach P.J. Fleck stepped to the podium and said Michigan was the best team he’s ever faced as they were the biggest, fastest, and strongest team that he has ever faced while coining them as a boa constrictor.
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“They (Michigan) are one of the biggest, fastest, and strongest teams that I’ve ever faced,” said Fleck. “They don’t make mistakes. They are truly like a boa constrictor. They do not beat themselves.”
Fleck’s prophetic words seemed outlandish at the beginning of the Hoosiers matchup as, at one point in the first quarter, the Wolverines trailed Indiana 7-0 and had negative eight yards of total offense.
But they flipped a switch on both sides of the ball as the offense scored on eight consecutive drives, rattling off 52 unanswered points.
“Indiana is going to fight and get their swings in, which they did,” said Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh. “I thought our team did a great job of responding as we’re pretty good fighters, too. I’m really pleased with how we adjusted on offense, especially J.J., who led us on eight scoring drives. Another phenomenal performance by him and so many other guys. So many guys got a chance to play, and it was great to see.”
Offense
Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy ended the first half by completing 11-12 passes for 153 yards and one touchdown to take a 21-7 lead. McCarthy finished the cold, windy, and rainy day, completing 14-17 passes for 222 yards and three touchdowns.
He became the Swiss Army Knife as he used his bazooka of an arm and made plays with his legs as he ran the ball 10 times for 27 yards, with his longest run being a 22-yard dash.
“We knew they were going to come out punching, and we just responded,” said McCarthy. “The word of the week was relentless, and we scored on our last eight drives, which was huge, and it’s just proof of the work we put in this week.”
McCarthy looked like he was playing Madden 24, showing his playmaking ability on third and 10, hitting Colston Loveland for a 54-yard catch and run for six. Loveland led all receivers in yardage as he caught three passes for 80 yards to accompany the lone score.
And as the old saying goes, if some are good, then more is better, as McCarthy continued to dime up his playmakers, mainly his favorite target in wide receiver Roman Wilson.
With a 14-7 lead, the men in maize had the Hoosiers confused on fourth and goal, where McCarthy found Wilson crossing in the back of the end zone for his ninth touchdown of the season.
Wilson became the first Michigan player with nine plus receiving touchdowns through seven games since 2006, when Super Bowl champion Mario Manningham did it.
“We just stay in the moment, and we can’t wait to get back to the drawing board and see what we can get better at, which is all that this team is focused on is getting better and seeing how good we can really get,” McCarthy said.
Blake Corum
Wolverines running back Blake Corum toted the pigskin 13 times for 52 yards and two touchdowns. With those two scores, Corum is in third place with 43 rushing touchdowns for his Michigan career as he passed school legends and current coaches Mike Hart (41) and Denard Robinson(42).
Corum reached the 3,000 career rushing mark in the first quarter and is now 10th all-time in school history.
Overall, the Wolverines gained 407 yards, with 244 coming through the air and 173 on the ground while going 7-7 in the red zone.
The proficiency of the offense had Michigan lighting up the scoreboard as they scored 50 plus points in back-to-back games for the first time since 1975 when they scored 69 against Northwestern and 55 against Indiana.
Defense
Like a boa constrictor, the Wolverines are not flashy nor strike you like a rattlesnake or a Black Mamba. They just wrap you and squeeze the life out of you for 60 minutes, and that’s what they did to Indiana.
The defense by Michigan, just like the offense, came into the game a little sluggish as they were getting beat by big runs and long passes early in the first quarter as the Hoosiers had 137 yards to Michigan’s negative eight.
At one point, they even got beat on a trick play as wide receiver Donaven McCulley completed a fake run and pass to running back Jaylin Lucas for a 44-yard touchdown.
But then the defense woke up and shut out the Hoosiers for the remainder of the game.
Michigan’s defense allowed 232 yards with 140 passing and 92 yards rushing while holding them to 0-1 in the red zone and four turnovers.
Linebacker Junior Colson led the team in total tackles with six. At the same time, sophomore defensive back Keon Sabb had seven solo tackles and one interception, and junior defensive back Rod Moore chipped in with three solos and one interception.
The defense also became the first Big Ten team to score 30-plus points and allow 14 or fewer points in their first seven games since Minnesota did it in 1905.
After another dominating performance, the men in maize extended their regular season winning streak to 25. They’ve also won their 19th consecutive Big Ten game in a row, which ties a school record set from 1990-1992. They also scored 30 or more points in 10 straight games dating back to 2022.
Up next for the Wolverines is an in-state championship for the Paul Bunyan Trophy in East Lansing under the lights against the Michigan State Spartans at 7:30 p.m. on NBC.
“They’re always going to come in here no matter where we’re at to try and kick our expletive,” Wilson said about MSU. “We got to have that same energy every time. It doesn’t matter what happened after the game or before the game. All that matters is what happens when we step on that field.”