Northwestern
quarterback
Ryan
Hilinski
is
sacked
by
Michigan
defensive
ends
Mike
Morris
(90) and
Aidan
Hutchinson
during
the
first
half of
an NCAA
college
football
game,
Saturday,
Oct. 23,
2021, in
Ann
Arbor,
Mich.
(AP
Photo/Carlos
Osorio) |
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Michigan
running
back
Blake
Corum
(2)
rushes
during
the
first
half of
an NCAA
college
football
game
against
Northwestern,
Saturday,
Oct. 23,
2021, in
Ann
Arbor,
Mich.
(AP
Photo/Carlos
Osorio) |
|
Number 6
ranked
Michigan
tops
Northwestern
33-7;
Michigan
State
next
By
LARRY
LAGE
apnews.com
ANN
ARBOR,
Mich. -
Michigan
got off
to a
sluggish
start,
perhaps
peeking
ahead to
playing
Michigan
State.
Then the
Wolverines
used a
strong
finish
to seal
a
matchup
of
undefeated
rivals.
Blake
Corum
and
Hassan
Haskins
combined
for 229
yards
rushing
and four
touchdowns,
carrying
No. 6
Michigan
to a
33-7 win
over
Northwestern
on
Saturday.
Shortly
after
the
victory,
Jim
Harbaugh’s
thoughts
had
already
shifted
to
facing
the
ninth-ranked
Spartans
on the
road.
“All
focus is
there,”
he said.
The
Wolverines
(7-0,
4-0 Big
Ten) led
the
Wildcats
(3-4,
1-3) by
just
three at
halftime.
They
pulled
away by
outscoring
them
23-0 in
the
first
16:40 of
the
second
half.
“We
played
pretty
solid in
the
first
half to
give
ourselves
a
chance,”
Northwestern
coach
Pat
Fizgerald
said.
“And,
then we
reverted
back to
some bad
habits.”
Corum
finished
with 119
yards
rushing
and two
touchdowns.
Haskins
ran for
110
yards
and two
scores.
Corum
jukes
defenders
with
shifty
moves
while
Haskins
runs
through
them
with
power.
“We
both
bring
different
things
to the
table,”
Corum
said.
“We feed
off each
other.”
Michigan
had 294
yards
rushing,
nearly
50 yards
more
than its
average.
“They’re
the best
rushing
offense
in the
country
for a
reason,”
Fitzgerald
said.
Cade
McNamara
was 20
of 27
for 129
yards
for the
Wolverines,
whose
inability
to throw
the ball
downfield
might
prove to
be a
problem
against
tougher
teams.
Northwestern
quarterback
Ryan
Hilinski,
a South
Carolina
transfer,
completed
14 of 29
passes
for 114
yards
with an
interception.
He was
replaced
early in
the
fourth
quarter
by Carl
Richardson,
who was
2 for 3
for 9
yards.
Evan
Hull had
a
75-yard
touchdown
run late
in the
second
quarter,
making
it 10-7
and
nearly
doubling
the
yards
the
Wildcats
had in
the game
at that
point.
Down
17-7
midway
through
the
third,
Northwestern’s
Charlie
Kuhbander
missed a
39-yard
field
goal.
“There’s
a lot of
good
things
we can
take
from
this
game,
and a
lot of
things
where we
let it
get away
from
us,”
Hilinski
said.
THE
TAKEAWAY
Northwestern:
The
defense,
which
has
improved
steadily
this
season,
held a
potent
offense
in check
during
the
first
half
before
wearing
down
because
the
Wildcats
struggled
to
sustain
drives
offensively.
Michigan:
Coming
off a
bye and
before
playing
the
Spartans,
a
lackluster
start
was
understandable
even if
Harbaugh
and his
players
refused
to
acknowledge
it.
STRONG
START
Michigan
has won
its
first
seven
games
for the
first
time
since
2016,
Harbaugh’s
second
season,
when it
started
9-0 and
finished
10-3
with a
loss to
Florida
State in
the
Orange
Bowl.
DOING IT
ALL
Wide
receiver
Cornelius
Johnson
blocked
a punt
in the
third
quarter.
“That’s
the
first
time
he’s
been put
in that
position,”
Harbaugh
said.
The
block
set up
Haskins’
13-yard
run that
gave
Michigan
a 24-7
lead.
Johnson
also
caught
three
passes
for 30
yards,
drew at
least
one flag
for a
first
down,
and had
a 6-yard
run.
Defensive
end
Aidan
Hutchinson,
the Big
Ten’s
top
defensive
player
at
midseason,
recovered
a fumble
early in
the
fourth
after
sharing
a sack,
deflecting
a pass
and
getting
credit
for two
quarterback
hurries.
YOUNG
CATS
The
Wildcats,
a
defending
division
champion,
have
alternated
between
losing
and
winning
each
game in
a
challenging
season
that
Fitzgerald
is
confident
will pay
off in
the
future.
“We
have a
lot of
young
guys out
there
who are
getting
really
valuable
experience,”
he said.
TROPHY
GAME
The
Wolverines
won the
newly
created
George
Jewett
Trophy,
honoring
the
first
Black
football
player
at both
schools.
“To
play for
that was
an
honor,”
Fitzgerald
said.
Jewett
played
for
Michigan
during
the 1890
and 1892
seasons,
then
left
Michigan
for
Northwestern
in 1893
to
finish
his
medical
degree.
He
played
two
seasons
for the
Wildcats.
POLL
IMPLICATIONS
Michigan
doesn’t
have
much
room to
move up,
but will
close
the
regular
season
with
plenty
of
chances
against
Michigan
State,
No. 7
Penn
State
and No.
5 Ohio
State.
UP
NEXT
Northwestern:
Hosts
Minnesota.
Michigan:
Plays at
Spartan
Stadium
in a
highly
anticipated
matchup
of
undefeated
rivals.
“We’re
excited,”
McNamara
said.
“We’re
confident.”
___
Follow
Larry
Lage at
https://twitter.com/larrylage
___
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AP
college
football:
https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
and
https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
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