Health scare in Michigan win
No. 4 Michigan won Saturday with heart for Mike Hart. After the running-game coordinator collapsed on the sideline in the first quarter, the Wolverines regrouped at halftime, returned to Wolverines football and performed as Hart wanted.
Cornelius Johnson’s 29-yard touchdown reception early in the third quarter gave Michigan (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) the lead and the jolt it needed Saturday to celebrate a 31-10 victory over pesky Indiana (3-3, 1-2) in Bloomington without their beloved coach.
“During the game Mike had a medical emergency, he’s in stable condition and he’s going to stay overnight here in Bloomington for observation,” coach Jim Harbaugh said. “Talking about Mike and his health, all our prayers go out to him.”
Hart’s absence dampened a historic day for the Wolverines who improved to 6-0 for the second consecutive season — something they last did in 1976-77. But the frightening, first-quarter sideline scene certainly took its toll on the team.
The school’s career rushing leader went down unexpectedly moments after the Hoosiers tied the score at 7, prompting Michigan’s players to clear the bench and spread out across the field. Some dropped to one knee as Harbaugh and other staff members watched trainers strap Hart to a backboard before carting him off the field. Hart flashed the thumbs up sign before leaving Memorial Stadium and heading to a hospital. Michigan wasn’t the same afterward. The teams traded field goals and blocked field goals before settling for a 10-10 halftime tie. The Wolverines didn’t reassert control until Johnson capped a 98-yard drive to start the second half with the first of two touchdown catches.
It was exactly what Michigan needed. Luke Schoonmaker and Johnson each caught fourth-quarter touchdown passes to seal the victory on a day J.J. McCarthy produced his first 300-yard game. The sophomore quarterback finished 28-for-36 with 304 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
“It was good to see the young quarterback come of age today,” Harbaugh said. “Tough game, tight game, couldn’t lean on the ground game today and he did it.”
Purdue 31, Maryland 29
Payne Durham caught a four-yard touchdown pass from Aidan O’Connell with 3:19 remaining, and the visiting Boilermakers (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) held on for a victory when the Terrapins (4-2, 1-2) were flagged for an ineligible man downfield on what would have been a tying two-point conversion with 35 seconds left.
Durham had seven catches for 109 yards, including a 56-yard catch-and-run that set up another Purdue touchdown late in the game.
“One thing about Payne, he’s a great leader,” Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said. “He’s made a few mistakes this year, he’d be the first one to tell you, but man, he goes hard. He cares, he wants to win, he’s a great teammate.”
Ohio State 49, Michigan State 20
Marvin Harrison Jr. made a twisting, leaping catch to snag a football that was near his right cleat for his third touchdown to help C.J. Stroud tie a school record with six touchdown passes as the No. 3 Buckeyes (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) coasted over the host Spartans (2-4, 0-3).
“If they saw my face on camera, I was like, ‘What was that?’ ” coach Ryan Day said. “That was a tremendous catch. We do see things in practice, but that was special.”
The Buckeyes scored on their opening drive for the fifth consecutive game when Harrison caught his first of three touchdowns.