Michigan’s 13-6 loss to Indiana on Saturday didn’t offer much comfort in the final score, but the Wolverines’ defense kept giving scouts something to watch. The Big House crowd saw a unit that held the defending champions out of the end zone until overtime, even as Tommy Carr-led offense sputtered badly enough to send Michigan to its third loss in four games.
For NFL eyes, though, the defensive backfield stood out most.
Senior cornerback Zeke Berry hadn’t been making recent appearances in Michigan NFL Stock Report chatter, but he changed that with a sharp outing against Indiana. Josh Hoover went after Berry five times, and the results were ugly for the Hoosiers: two completions for 16 yards, plus a pass breakup and an interception. Even more impressive, every one of those targets came while Berry was matched up with Nick Marsh, a future NFL wide receiver and likely early round draft pick.
Berry doesn’t look like a prototype on paper. He’s listed at 5-foot-11 and 188 pounds, and he doesn’t bring the same top-end athleticism some other Michigan defensive backs do. But performances like this can move the needle fast if they keep showing up, especially when the ball skills are as clean as they were Saturday.
Jyaire Hill was just a shade behind him in impact, and in his own way he made life just as miserable for Indiana. The Hoosiers targeted him six times, but only one pass found its mark, and that completion went for just 4 yards. Hill also notched PBUs on two of the incompletions, another reminder of what makes his ceiling so appealing.
At 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds, Hill gives Michigan something rare: size and physical traits that the secondary hasn’t had since Will Johnson. He still doesn’t hit that level every week, but the upside is obvious when he puts together a game like this.
Not every defender came away with the same shine. Jordan Marshall, for one, had a far rougher afternoon as a runner than usual.
Pro Football Focus credited him with zero missed tackles forced on Saturday, the first time that had happened in a game where he played at least 17 offensive snaps. For a back built like Marshall, that kind of stat line stands out.
The offensive line didn’t do him many favors, though. Marshall finished with just 2.2 yards per carry, his lowest average of the season by more than half a yard, and 2.08 yards after contact per carry. Freshman Savion Hiter also had to grind for everything he got, with all 15 of his rushing yards coming after contact.
Michigan may have come up short on the scoreboard, but the defensive backfield kept making its case. And on a Saturday when the offense stalled out, Berry and Hill were the kind of NFL-looking talents that still draw attention.
In Other News...
Michigans Next AD Could Decide More Than Wolverines Fans Realize
Warde Manuels decision to step down at the end of December has put Michigan into the kind of search that tends to ripple well beyond the athletic department. The Wolverines are looking for a new athletic director at a time when the football program is already under pressure, and that means the hire will not just be about administration or fundraising. It could shape how the school approaches one of its biggest public-facing decisions in the months ahead.
Among the names circulating are Candice Story Lee of Vanderbilt, Katie Fraumann, who has ties to Michigan, and David Benedict of UConn. Each brings a different background, but the common thread is the same: this is a hire that may define the direction of the department as much as any move on the field. For Michigan fans, the real intrigue is not only who gets the job, but how quickly that person decides the Wolverines need a different path in football. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Still Has One Problem It Must Solve Before Rutgers
Michigan still has one major decision hanging over it before Rutgers, and it is the sort that can shape everything else on the field. Kyle Whittingham has not settled on a starting quarterback, with freshman Tommy Carr and sophomore Bryce Underwood both in the mix after uneven recent showings. Carr flashed some promise even while dealing with turnovers and sacks, while Underwood has struggled in his last two starts but still carries a leadership presence inside the program.
The next few days of practice will go a long way toward sorting it out, with the staff planning to use those reps to narrow the competition and make the call closer to game time. For Michigan, it is more than just a roster question. The Wolverines are trying to find the steadier option before a conference game that can help set the tone for the stretch ahead, and the answer at quarterback remains the biggest unresolved piece. [Read more 🡒]
Michigans Run Game Faces Its Biggest Test Yet At Rutgers
Michigan is heading into a game at Rutgers needing its ground attack to do a lot of the heavy lifting. The Wolverines have leaned on the run game as the most reliable part of an offense that has struggled in several areas this season, and the matchup looks favorable on paper, with Rutgers sitting near the bottom of the Big Ten in run defense. Even with Michigan favored by 14.5 points, this has the feel of a game where the Wolverines need their identity to show up early rather than rely on another tight finish.
The broader concern is that Michigan has already spent much of the season playing closer games than expected and surviving on the margins more often than it would like. Against Rutgers, the path is fairly clear: establish the run, control the pace and avoid giving an underdog enough chances to hang around. If the Wolverines cannot do that against the conferences weakest run defense, it would say plenty about where this offense really stands heading into the stretch run. [Read more 🡒]