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Previewing Michigan’s Huge Matchup against Penn State

By Jordan Bruetsch

Nov 4, 2023; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) passes in the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers in the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 4, 2023; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) passes in the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers in the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Michigan football has its first true test on Saturday. 

Michigan football will travel to Happy Valley this Saturday for a huge matchup against #11 Penn State. It’s the Wolverines’ first game against a ranked opponent and will be a huge opportunity for Michigan to show its strength.

While we think we know how good this football team is, Saturday will be very telling. Without further ado, let’s preview the matchups for Saturday.

Penn State’s Offense vs Michigan’s Defense

If you watched Penn State and Ohio State matchup, you should be salivating at this. Penn State had zero offensive production against Ohio State. They were one-dimensional, and when the running game stopped working they had nowhere to go.

Penn State boasts a great running attack with Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. They also have a phenomenal left tackle in Olu Fashanu. The Nittany Lions want to win the game on the ground.

Unfortunately, Michigan is great against the run. They have elite interior linemen in Kris Jenkins and Mason Graham and have tremendous rotational depth. On the EDGE, Michigan football has been great at stopping the run all season. Now, it’ll be a bit different against a great running game, but I expect the Wolverines to win the battle at the line of scrimmage.

Opponents are averaging just 3.0 yards per carry on the Wolverines. If that holds on Saturday, the game won’t be close.

The Penn State passing game has received some hype over the past two weeks. Drew Allar finally threw an interception (one that almost cost them the game against Indiana), and it appears he’s been playing more loose since then.

A former five-star, the expectations are high for Allar. Allar had a poor performance against Ohio State in which he was 18-42 for 191 yards and one touchdown. 64 of those yards and Allar’s only touchdown came on Penn State’s final drive when the game was already out of reach.

The Penn State offensive line gave Allar no time in the pocket, and you’ve got to imagine that’ll be a huge matchup on Saturday. If Michigan can keep Allar under pressure, they become one-dimensional. Allar isn’t a mobile quarterback.

Something that could play into Penn State’s favor is that Michigan tends to play a lot of soft zone, giving up the short routes to prevent the long ones. With an unproven quarterback like Allar, the last thing you want to do is give up easy completions. I’d expect Michigan football to mix it up a bit and press some more, but it’ll be something to watch.

It’s tough to predict how Michigan’s defense will play since they haven’t had an opponent of this caliber yet, but I think it’s likely that Penn State’s offense has another slow game. I think that 24 is going to be the number to watch. If Penn State can score 24 points, they’ll have a shot at winning.

Advantage? Michigan’s defense.

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