Michigan football: 3 takeaways from blowout win over Western Michigan

Big plays finally came for Michigan on offense

If there is one thing Michigan football struggled to do during its four-game losing streak which dated back to last season, it was creating big plays offensively. But against Western Michigan that all changed and it changed early.

Running back Karan Higdon broke off a 43-yard run on the second offensive possession for the Wolverines, setting up a Patterson touchdown pass to Sean McKeon from 17 yards out. Higdon then scored on a 67-yard run as he ran 13 times for 156 yards.

While the Wolverines were conservative against Notre Dame, they didn’t take a ton of shots downfield this week either, they didn’t need to. However, Patterson did find Nico Collins for a 44-yard touchdown, breaking a long streak of games without a touchdown from a receiver.

The other good sign was Patterson and also his protection. He was sacked once and the running game generated 308 yards. He only threw for 125 yards but he three touchdown passes and no turnovers. It was a solid performance and exactly what you would expect against Western Michigan.