Michigan’s defense has been carrying the load all season, and that hasn’t changed even with a 4-3 record hanging over the program. The Wolverines still own the No. 2 defense in the country, and that group was the only thing keeping them alive in Saturday’s game against Indiana.
For defensive coordinator Jay Hill, though, one play keeps looping back in his head: the final sequence against Iowa in Week 4.
Michigan let Iowa drive 91 yards in 1:37 to steal a 20-19 win, a finish that looked nearly impossible until a bit of luck and a personal foul by Zeke Berry gave the Hawkeyes one more chance. On the last snap, Hank Brown found Reece Vander Zee for a 16-yard touchdown, and the Wolverines were left to absorb the fallout from Hill’s decision to use a spy.
On Wednesday, Hill stood by the call.
"So just looking back, and I stood on that for hours and really days, and it still crosses my mind," Hil admitted. "I've come up with two things.
There would be one of two play calls that I would call in that situation, and I called one of them. So I think the call was good.
Somebody in that situation's got to make a play.
"And there was one other one that maybe I would have gone to. It's easy to go back and forth and say woulda, coulda, shoulda, but we were in a good play call for what happened.
We just, we got to make a play. And I've pondered, should I have asked Coach Witt to take a time out and all those things?
And we've talked through all that stuff, maybe with the helter-skelter, what's going on, I mean, that's, that one hurt. Still hurts."
The criticism centered on whether Michigan should have brought more pressure instead of sitting a linebacker in spy responsibility against Brown. Hill said that was part of the discussion, but he’s not interested in getting trapped in the what-ifs.
"Could have, yeah," said Hill. "I mean, guys, like when, if we'd have knocked that ball down, then everyone would have said that was the greatest call in what we could have been in. And that's the hard part about these things is the quarterback made a perfect throw and they did a great catch.
"And there's some things that we could have done differently, but I don't want to live my life always looking in the past. I do that enough in how we can look to get better."
Michigan now turns to Rutgers on Saturday, with the defense again expected to set the tone as the Wolverines look to clamp down on the Scarlet Knights.
In Other News...
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Mike Boynton Jr. has pointed to teamwork and smart shot selection as the keys to handling that challenge, which makes this opener more than just a routine tune-up. McKenney, Jalen Reed, Elliot Cadeau and Kenny Noland are all expected to have important roles in keeping Michigan organized against a scheme built to force hesitation, and the way they manage those possessions should say plenty about how ready this group is to open the season. [Read more 🡒]
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Michigan May Not Get The Rutgers Test Its Defense Wanted
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Instead, the Scarlet Knights may be arriving at a far different shape than expected. Star wide receiver K.J. Duff is listed as doubtful and quarterback Dylan Lonergan has already been ruled out, which changes the feel of the game for Michigans defense and could leave it facing a less threatening Rutgers attack than originally anticipated, even if Duffs status remains unsettled. [Read more 🡒]