2009 Week 2

Things couldn't have gone more wrong for the Wolverines on Saturday as they were beat down and beaten up by Notre Dame. Coach Briggs was quoted before the game as saying "we need to play mistake free football to win this game." Michigan went out and did the exact opposite of that. On Notre Dame's first drive, they marched the ball 76 yards in 9 plays, including a few key 3rd and long conversions, to score a touchdown. On Michigan's second possession, freshman quarterback Tate Forcier would throw a pick 6 to put the Irish up 14-0. Michigan would then follow this int on their next possesion with a fumble by senior running back Brandon Minor.

Michigan fans had a short lived ray of hope in the 2nd quarter as Donovan Warren would intercept Clausen and return it to the house to apparently cut the lead to 14-10. Unfortunately for the Wolverines, however, this touchdown would be called back due to a holding penalty on the return. The demoralized Wolverines would then go three and out. Notre Dame would score a third touchdown with 6 seconds remaining in the 2nd quarter and would take a 21-3 lead into the half.

The Wolverines would try to keep pace with the Irish, but were completely beaten up in the 2nd half. The Irish would run the ball right down the Wolverines' throats and there was nothing they could do to stop them. Armando Allen would receive Player of the Game awards as he rushed for 151 yards on only 12 carries. He would go untouched on his lone touchdown run as 4 Wolverine defeneders were all knocked on their backs during the play. This is the sort of physical play that destroyed the Wolverines all game.

Offensively, the Wolverines were beyond terrible. They would turn the ball over 4 times while only managing 83 rushing yards and 176 passing yards. All game the Irish defenders were simply too fast and too strong for the Wolverines. They were a step ahead of the Wolverine offense all day. Coach Briggs clearly has some work to do to get his team ready for a grueling Big 10 schedule. They will need some major improvements on both sides of the ball, and I really hope that he can turn things around.