Michigan didn’t get the upset it wanted, but the reason this game stayed alive for so long was sitting right in plain view. The Wolverines’ defense dragged them into overtime, only for the offense to give it all back in a 13-6 loss to Indiana at the Big House.
After Indiana’s first loss last weekend to Ohio State, the Hoosiers came in looking to bounce back. Michigan, though, made them work for everything.
The Wolverines held the game at six apiece until a field goal as time expired sent it to overtime. Indiana needed just two plays to punch in the winning touchdown, and Michigan never answered.
The story of the night, though, was the same one that keeps showing up for Michigan: the offense just isn’t getting it done.
It didn’t matter who was under center. The bigger issue was Jason Beck, and Saturday offered another loud reminder of that.
Michigan started Tommy Carr against one of the top defenses in the country, but Beck didn’t do much to help his true freshman quarterback settle in. The Wolverines had trouble running the ball, and when they did find a little room up the middle, Beck went away from it with perimeter run calls that didn’t work.
The most glaring decision came in the third quarter with Michigan on Indiana’s 2-yard line on third down. Rather than stay simple and physical, or even let Bryce Underwood sneak it, Beck called a naked bootleg that ended in a sack.
That drive went nowhere after that. Carr took the sack, Trey Butkowski missed his second field goal of the day, and Michigan again came away empty from a promising possession.
Kyle Whittingham loves Beck, and there is no denying he had success at both New Mexico and Utah, but this is Big Ten football. Beck hasn’t adjusted, and there is a clear denominator.
Carr’s first career start came with plenty of the expected growing pains. Against a defense as good as Indiana’s, the freshman had several rough moments.
He mishandled a speed option pitch to Savion Hiter in Michigan territory when the defense closed fast on him. He also forced a throw into triple coverage toward JJ Buchanan that was intercepted.
Late in the second quarter, he took a 12-yard sack in another spot where Michigan couldn’t afford it, and Butkowski missed the ensuing field goal.
Still, Carr showed enough to leave Michigan with something to build on. He had some happy feet, but he also stayed in the pocket and made a few good throws. His best play came on Michigan’s final drive, when he slipped away from pressure and hit Channing Goodwin on the left side for a needed first down.
What happens next is unclear, but Carr likely gets another shot against Rutgers to see how he handles a lighter matchup.
While the offense keeps stalling, Michigan’s defense kept the team in this one from start to finish. The only reason the Wolverines had a one-score game in the fourth quarter was because of that side of the ball.
Ohio State had shown the formula against Indiana last week by getting after Josh Hoover, and Michigan followed it on Saturday. Jay Hill’s unit came after Hoover early and often, with John Henry Daley and company creating problems off the edge. Hoover was unsettled from the opening snap, threw his first interception of the season, and Zeke Berry turned it into a Michigan field goal.
Hoover finished with just 81 passing yards. After struggling last weekend, Jyaire Hill and Zeke Berry responded against two of the Big Ten’s elite receivers, Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh.
Michigan has a top-five defense in the country. Right now, the frustrating part is that it isn’t being used to anything close to its full value.
In Other News...
Indiana Escaped Michigan But A Bigger Hoosiers Concern Just Grew
Indiana got what it came for in Ann Arbor, leaving with a 13-6 overtime win over Michigan and another victory to keep the season rolling at 7-1. The defense did the heavy lifting, tightening at key moments and delivering the stop the Hoosiers needed in overtime after a game that never really let the offense settle in.
Josh Hoover and the passing game were the bigger concern even in a win, with the offense sputtering for much of the afternoon. Hoover finished 8 of 18 for 81 yards, a touchdown and an interception, and while Indiana will happily take the result, the way it got there leaves plenty for the Hoosiers to sort out if they want to keep climbing. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana-Michigan Sparked Another Officiating Debate Fans Will Recognize
The second quarter at Michigan offered Indiana something every road team will happily take and every fan base will immediately scrutinize: a roughing-the-passer flag that extended a drive and helped the Hoosiers turn it into three points. Fox analyst Joel Klatt did not hide his frustration with the call on Michigan freshman Tariq Boney, saying it was the kind of penalty that can swing a game and echo the broader officiating complaints viewers have heard in other matchups this season.
For Indiana, the result was a 6-0 edge at that stage, but the larger conversation quickly moved beyond the scoreboard. Klatt pointed to the growing pattern of similar penalties and the way they can hand out free yards at the exact moment a defense believes it has made the stop it needs. Indiana will gladly accept the field position and points, but the debate over where the line is drawn on those hits is likely to linger long after this trip to Ann Arbor. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Coach Just Made Indianas Statement Win Look Even Bigger
Kyle Whittingham did not spend much time sugarcoating Michigans 13-6 overtime loss to Indiana, and that only made the Hoosiers result look more impressive in hindsight. The Michigan coach pointed to his teams problems on the ground, its red zone issues and the turnovers that kept the offense from ever finding a rhythm, a blunt acknowledgment of how hard Indiana made things on a night when points were already at a premium.
Even in defeat, Whittingham still praised Michigans defense and said he remains confident in the programs overall quality, which only underscores how well Indiana handled the bigger picture. Michigans offense has been stuck near the bottom nationally in success rate, EPA per play and yards per game, and Indiana still dragged the game into overtime before finishing it off, turning what looked like a sturdy win into one that now reads as a statement. [Read more 🡒]