Michigan football fans have heard Jim Harbaugh say, after a win over Rutgers, that there is no spot for pretty on the scoreboard.
That was in a much different season, though (2021). This three-loss Michigan football team did find a way to beat Rutgers on Halloween. There was a scare put into the Wolverines, though. They needed to convert multiple third downs on the final drive, including a third-and-7 on the final touchdown run by Tommy Carr.
A 5-3 record is much better than 4-4. A win over Rutgers is better than a loss, but there was still plenty to be concerned about, and here's what we learned from the 28-21 win.
Tommy Carr is Michigan's best quarterback
The Wolverines don't win this game if Tommy Carr isn't the starting quarterback. He doesn't have the strongest arm, but that's something you can improve. Just look at Tom Brady.
What Carr has that isn't coachable are intangibles. He's also an accurate passer, who throws a very catchable ball.
It makes a big difference when you know where to go with the ball. Carr might not be the best athlete, but he's above average, and he's smart about when he runs, which got him 54 yards on the ground, along with 266 passing yards after completing 22-of-27 attempts.
I wish Bryce Underwood the best. He's shown tremendous leadership supporting Tommy Carr. He was thrust into a tough spot and probably needs a change of scenery.
Carr has a ways to go, but he should be the starting quarterback moving forward, and a few more games like Saturday will have him locked in as QB1 for 2027.
The running game still isn't right
The play-calling has been an issue. However, Jason Beck called more traditional runs, used less Rhino, and still, the Wolverines weren't able to impose their will. Jordan Marshall doesn't look right after carrying the ball five times for zero yards.
Savion Hiter carried the ball 20 times for 76 yards. He had a long of 11. There wasn't an explosive run. Carr was the closest with 15.
Rutgers was allowing 5.6 yards per rush to opponents. Michigan averaged 3.5. It feels like part of the problem is who is playing the Rhino. Also, Avery Gach should be out there at guard.
All that can be true. The offensive line also needs to play better. Jim Harding needs to get more out of that group, regardless of how banged up they are.
Michigan's defense isn't perfect
Whittingham has said some delusional things since he was hired as the Michigan football head coach, but saying the defense didn't need to work on much after Rutgers wasn't one of them.
Taking a second look, Rutgers just created two huge plays that led to touchdowns. An 80-yard touchdown went for a score, while a 56-yard run from Antwan Raymond set up the other. Rutgers also made two field goals and scored on a two-point conversion.
Smith Snowden stumbled in coverage on one play. There was a missed tackle on the other. Those things are going to happen, that's why it was important for the offense to get going.
U-M can't expect to hold every team under 20 points. It's wild that Rutgers was the first to score over 20 this season, but that's going to happen. If you told me that before the game, I would have been worried about getting a win.
And despite allowing 136 yards on two plays, Michigan only gave up 247 yards total. The Wolverines didn't allow a pass completion in the second half and allowed less than three yards per attempt on the other 25 rushing attempts (70 yards gained).
Players need to catch interceptions. If that happened against Iowa, this team would be 6-2, so in the grand scheme of things on defense, there isn't much to worry about.
Too bad we can't say that about the entire Michigan football program.
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