Michigan’s defense turned in its best performance of the season Saturday and still walked away with a loss.
In a 13-6 overtime defeat to No. 6 Indiana, the Wolverines squeezed the Hoosiers’ offense nearly to a standstill in regulation.
Indiana’s drives, after accounting for the two short fields it inherited off turnovers, ended in order with a string of punts, a missed field goal and an interception. Michigan’s defense forced three three-and-outs, kept the Hoosiers out of the end zone even when they started two possessions inside the 30-yard line and held two of the nation’s top receivers to 57 combined receiving yards.
That kind of day should have been enough to change the game. It wasn’t.
Michigan’s offense, operating under freshman Tommy Carr, couldn’t do much with the cushion its defense created. The Wolverines managed only enough to match the six points Indiana’s mistakes handed them, and the defense’s standout effort once again became little more than damage control.
“We did everything we could,” senior cornerback Zeke Berry said. “But you know, we just need to finish.”
Berry was at the center of one of Michigan’s biggest moments. After sophomore kicker Trey Butkowski missed a chip-shot field goal wide left to open the second half, Berry jumped a route by Indiana wide receiver Nick Marsh, intercepted Josh Hoover and returned it to the Hoosiers’ 11-yard line. Michigan couldn’t fully cash in, but Butkowski eventually connected on his first field goal of the day on his third try, getting the Wolverines on the board.
Even beyond Berry’s interception, Michigan’s secondary dictated the game. Marsh and Charlie Becker entered the day averaging 84 and 100 receiving yards per game, respectively, and both were bottled up by the Wolverines.
Berry broke up a third-and-9 throw to Marsh along the sideline, and senior cornerback Jyaire Hill knocked away two passes to Becker, including an end zone shot in single coverage. Indiana still settled for a field goal on that series.
The Hoosiers found a little more room on the ground, averaging 3.7 yards per carry, but Michigan still made the key stops. Junior safety Chris Bracy shouldered a heavy load in place of second-half graduate safety Rod Moore, blew up multiple rushing plays in the backfield and finished with a team-high 13 tackles.
For all that resistance, the final result still turned on Michigan’s inability to help its defense out.
The frustration showed after the game, even if the defenders insisted it never seeped in during it.
“It sucks, honestly,” senior cornerback Smith Snowden said. “But at the end of the day, we gotta do our job, right?
We gotta rely on our offense every single day of the week. I don’t care what happens, I’m gonna ride with my guys regardless.”
Afterward, Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham praised the defense, though the compliments landed beside a much harsher assessment of the offense’s run game, red-zone efficiency and two turnovers. He called the defense’s outing elite.
“Extremely proud of the way the defense played,” Whittingham said. “That’s an elite defense that we have, I’m telling you right now.”
That elite defense now sits alongside a 4-3 overall record and a 1-3 Big Ten mark, its best showing of the year left to stand as a consolation in another disappointing result.
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