Michigan Football: Grading the Wolverines win vs Rutgers

Defense: B

The defense was a mixed bag also. In the first half, it was dominant at times and Aidan Hutchinson delivered another sack, while David Ojabo forced a fumble that sealed the win.

Michigan football is currently ranked fourth in the nation in scoring defense and is allowing just 11.4 points per game. The red zone defense has been especially effective. Rutgers made three trips to the red zone and managed just 10 points.

If that had been 17 points or 21, it could have been a much different story.

However, it wasn’t all rosy for the defense. Isaih Pacheco ran 20 times for 107 yards and Rutgers flat owned the line of scrimmage in the second half. The pass rush was non-existent at times and the secondary held its own but gave up too many easy completions.

The biggest worry for me is the run defense. If Rutgers is able to run for 196 yards and an average of 4.6 yards per attempt, think what Wisconsin might do.