Michigan football is hoping its offense will finally find its form against Illinois and one way to make that happen is by dominating on the ground.
No matter how you look at it, the offense of Michigan football has taken a step back so far this season. Just look at the numbers.
Regardless of where the Wolverines rank nationally, even in the Big Ten, their production leaves them back in the pack.
In total offense, the Wolverines rank 10th (367 YPG), in scoring, they rank ninth (28 PPG). Michigan is also seventh in pass offense and ninth in rush offense.
Not exactly the kind of numbers we expected in the first year of Josh Gattis and his speed-in-space offense.
But things have gotten better. The Wolverines racked up 52 points against Rutgers and had some decent moments against Iowa, even though Michigan didn’t score during the last three quarters of the game.
As disappointing as the final point total was, there were some encouraging signs and maybe the most promising was the fact that the running game was pretty respectable against a very stout Iowa defense, one that is allowing only 8.8 points per game.
Don’t get me wrong, the running game didn’t explode. It racked up 120 yards and averaged 3.5 a carry. But it was much better than it was against Wisconsin and that’s encouraging.
Zach Charbonnet looked as good as he has since Army and Tru Wilson returning and netting 28 yards on four carries is also a big deal. Plenty of people have slept on Wilson but he averaged nearly six yards a game last season, is tough as nails and knows how to pass block.
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Christian Turner put the ball on the ground again, but he still has shown promise, as has Hassan Haskins. But the most positive thing about last week’s game was the offensive line, which has gotten better and better with the return of Jon Runyan Jr.
Runyan struggled mightily in his first game back versus the Badgers, but so did just about every offensive player. It was a nightmare. Yet, against a very talented Iowa front, Runyan was exceptional and that leads me to believe this unit is going to dominate at Illinois.
While fans want to see the ball aired out, the way Michigan can take control of this thing early is establishing itself on the ground. Illinois has the second-worst run defense in the Big Ten and has gotten run over in Big Ten play.
Nebraska ran for 363 yards two weeks ago at Illinois and last week, Minnesota racked up 332 yards, so the door is wide open for the Wolverines.
Certainly, it would be great if Shea Patterson came out throwing dimes and threw for 300 yards. But a dominant run game would make his life much easier, which is why I’d love to see the Wolverines come out and push around the Fighting Illini.
A big offensive day doesn’t have to be all about throwing after all.