STOCK WATCH
Free Press sports writer Michael Cohen breaks down Michigan’s 20-13 win over Rutgers and looks at few players who helped or hurt their stock Saturday at Michigan Stadium:
Three up
ILB Nikhai Hill-Green: An injury to starting inside linebacker Josh Ross pushed the sophomore into a leadership role as he played alongside two inexperienced players, Junior Colson and Kalel Mullings. There were ups and downs for Hill-Green, who has been something of a boom-or-bust player this season, but he notched two critical tackles when the Michigan defense needed someone to make a play. With the Wolverines clinging to a 20-13 lead in the fourth quarter, Hill-Green made consecutive tackles on third and fourth down to halt a Rutgers drive and give the ball back to the U-M offense. On the first play, Hill-Green diagnosed the run immediately and shot through the gap to bring down tailback Kyle Monangai. On the second, he knifed in from the left to team with defensive tackle Chris Hinton to drag wildcat quarterback Johnny Langan to the turf. Hill-Green showed up when it mattered most.
OLB David Ojabo: Teammates and coaches routinely mentioned Ojabo’s name as one of the edge rushers to watch during this season, but progress slowed once the games began. Ojabo, who started the season opener opposite Aidan Hutchinson, saw his snap count drop from 35 to 33 to 13 over the first three weeks. Fellow outside linebackers Jaylen Harrell and Mike Morris chipped away at Ojabo’s playing time as his performance dipped. As with Hill-Green, Ojabo resurfaced in the game’s most crucial moment with Rutgers mounting one last drive in the final minutes. On second-and-10 from the Scarlet Knights’ 29-yard line, Ojabo caught quarterback Noah Vedral from behind and knocked the ball out for a strip-sack that was recovered by Colson. His biggest play of the season secured a U-M victory.
OLB Aidan Hutchinson: Each week, Hutchinson’s on-field leadership reveals itself through pre-snap communication, his commitment to making sure the defense is properly aligned and the sheer effort with which he plays sets an example for his teammates. Hutchinson turned in a complete performance against Rutgers by demonstrating his ability to harass the quarterback (four hurries and one sack), play stout against the run (five tackles) and even drop into coverage on occasion. His pursuit began when the ball was snapped and didn’t end until the play is blown dead, even if it meant chasing players from sideline to sideline. Hutchinson has had games with more splash plays, but Saturday’s showing was as steady as it gets.
Three down
OC Josh Gattis: For all the variety Gattis had thrown at opposing defenses through the first three weeks, there were elements of his game plan that felt predictable in a good way. Each week, it seemed, Gattis had a wide receiver loop behind the line of scrimmage for a reverse; or some form of a jet sweep to distribute the ball to a playmaker and give quarterback Cade McNamara easy yardage; or a few deep shots against man coverage to keep the defense honest; or some swing passes to tailback Blake Corum to let the speedster flourish in open space. So much of that menu was absent during a second-half sputtering that saw the Wolverines fail to pick up a first down on four consecutive drives. There was only one combined touch for speedy wideouts Roman Wilson and A.J. Henning on a play that resulted in a 38-yard catch and run by Wilson in the first quarter. There were zero deep passes thrown outside the hashmarks one week after wide receiver Cornelius Johnson demonstrated an ability to get open downfield. The jet sweeps and reverses dried up and vanished. With the game on the line in the fourth quarter, Gattis appeared to diverge from much of what worked this season.
Offensive line: In hindsight, the bravado from Michigan’s offensive line in the wake of three impressive performances was premature. There’s no questioning how well the men up front played against Western Michigan, Washington and Northern Illinois, just like there’s no questioning how quickly they were humbled by Rutgers. A pair of brilliant drives to open the game gave way to an evaporation of the massive push U-M had generated in their first three wins. The No. 1 rushing team in the country was held to 2.9 yards per carry on 38 attempts, as tailbacks Hassan Haskins and Corum logged 74% of their yards after contact in a reflection of Rutgers’ ability to penetrate. Offensive line coach Sherrone Moore said during the week that the coaching staff places no value on the grading systems at websites like Pro Football Focus, even though Jim Harbaugh referenced those metrics when they reflected positively on center Andrew Vastardis earlier this year. This week’s grades on PFF were telling: Four of Michigan’s five highestgraded run blockers against Rutgers weren’t offensive linemen.
ILB Michael Barrett: It’s remarkable how far Barrett has fallen. A year ago, Barrett started at the viper linebacker position for former defensive coordinator Don Brown. He logged the third-most snaps of any defensive player (432) and finished third on the team in tackles (44). Fast forward and Barrett has played only 20 defensive snaps, 15 of which came in the blowout of Northern Illinois when Harbaugh emptied his bench. Even when Ross went down with a stinger and missed two and a half quarters against Rutgers, Barrett only saw the field on special teams while less-experienced players rotated into the lineup. At a minimum, he’s been passed by Hill-Green, Colson and Mullings on the inside linebacker depth chart.