Michigan football fans are feeling better about the Wolverines this season after Tommy Carr came off the bench in the 21-18 win over Penn State.
The Michigan running game was much more effective than it has been all season. Michigan ran for 175 yards after getting just 36 in the first half against Penn State. That kind of effort would be nice on Saturday, but for more than one reason, the Hoosiers are probably the last team you'd want to see in his your first start.
Indiana's pass defense isn't an ideal first game for Tommy Carr
Indiana is allowing just 75 rushing yards per game and 2.3 yards per rushing attempt. That's one reason this matchup is worrisome for Carr.
If the Hoosiers are able to make Michigan one-dimensional, which won't be easy to do with Carr, who can make plays with his legs, it will make things tough for the freshman. He had 36 rushing yards and a touchdown last week. That running ability can help keep defenses honest.
Indiana has allowed 528 rushing yards all season. Penn State gave up 411 against Northwestern. The Wildcats have been really creative, so that's an outlier, but the run defense is much better.
That's relevant because if the running game can't get going, it will put a ton of pressure on Carr. That's not figurative either. The Hoosiers have 24 sacks in seven games.
Indiana allows teams to complete 59 percent of their passes for 199 yards per game. The Hoosiers have allowed just five touchdown passes, while intercepting six. That's one reason their scoring defense is ranked 4th nationally with just 12.9 points per game allowed.
Beyond the numbers, Indiana's defense is going to make things difficult on a young quarterback. They allow 6.6 yards per pass attempt. That's almost a yard more than Michigan football allows (5.8).
The Wolverines also allow just 2.7 yards per rushing attempt. Both defenses are really good. The Indiana offense has the advantage, although, the Wolverines have two NFL-caliber receivers just like the Hoosiers do.
Josh Hoover is a quality quarterback, but he missed a game-winning touchdown pass last week, and Nick Marsh was wide open. That's one of the layups we are talking about. Indiana won't give Carr many of those. They run a lot of simulated pressures. Bryant Haines wants to confuse the offense and the quarterback, but he's usually going to send just four or maybe five.
If Michigan can protect Carr should have some open people to throw to. He just needs to make good decisions. It feels like Haines will set some traps for the young quarterback.
If the Wolverines are going to have a chance at the upset, Carr will need to avoid those. He will need to make some plays with his feet, and get the ball to JJ Buchanan and Andrew Marsh a lot more.
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