Wolves’ offense pulls numbers out of hat

Last Saturday, Michigan's magic got exposed.

The deception, scrambling and vision of quarterback Tate Forcier carried the Wolverines to 4-0 and to game averages of 37.5 points, 240.2 rushing yards and 422 yards. Then in a 26-20 overtime loss at Michigan State, the magic came up short.

Down 20-6 early in the fourth quarter, Forcier hit wide receiver Daryl Stonum for a 60-yard TD and then, with two seconds left, tied the game on a 9-yarder to Ray Roundtree, capping a 92-yard drive. In overtime, however, Forcier threw a pick and MSU scored and that was that.

Pretty much “magic” that the Wolverines took it into OT, considering that the UM offense generated just 28 rushing yards and had only two drives of more than five plays.

“We just weren't sharp, and it was disappointing, because it was a game we needed to be sharp in order to establish some rhythm and keep our defense off the field,” Michigan Coach Rich Rodriguez said Monday.

It all fits together in football. The offense helps the defense and vice versa. The fact that Michigan is No. 115 in the nation (26:27) in time of possession isn't helping anyone.

During their bus ride home from Iowa State on Sept. 12, Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes got a look at Forcier, when he surged to national prominence during a 38-34 victory over Notre Dame.

“I saw Forcier on the TV coming back that day,” Ferentz said. “He looked like he has a little bit of magic to him.”

Forcier's scrambling and ability to find receivers and massage plays into huge gainers and TDs is magic. But magic can be figured out.

Michigan State certainly figured it out.

The Wolverines (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) were held to 20 points and 251 yards of offense and had only 28 yards rushing - 1 yard a carry. Michigan had minus-3 yards rushing and only three possessions in the first half. Michigan State dominated time of possession, 39:46 to 20:14.

Forcier, who was limited in Monday's practice with sore ribs and has been fighting a sore shoulder, had more carries than running backs Carlos Brown and Brandon Minor. They fell out of the Big Ten's top 10 rushers with 15 and 2 yards, respectively.

It's not supposed to work that way.

“We were behind, so at the end of the game we were throwing it every snap, we weren't going to run it,” Rodriguez said. “Some of those runs were read runs, where he (Forcier) could have handed off. He had to pull the ball and run.

“I would prefer running backs get most of the carries, no question about it.”

Michigan State's defense went into the Michigan game with middle-of-the-road stats, allowing 25.8 points and 362.8 yards a game. The No. 12 Hawkeyes (5-0, 1-0) defense has considerably better numbers (13.4 points and 302.6 yards) and a growing reputation.

“They're just very good upfront and very aggressive,” Rodriguez said. “They jump the ball well. They get off the ball pretty quick. So, it's a good challenge certainly for our guys. We'll have to play a lot better than we did this past weekend.”

Rodriguez didn't know how long Iowa's streak of not allowing a rushing TDs was. Neither did offensive tackle Mark Ortmann.

“I just found out that Iowa's defense hasn't allowed a rushing touchdown in the last 33 or 35 possessions,” Ortmann said. “That's a pretty impressive stat.”

The stat is actually 33 consecutive quarters without a rushing TD, dating back to the third quarter of the Penn State game last season.

The Wolverines ran out of magic in the end last week. Forcier threw a risky pass that was tipped and intercepted by Chris Tucker in OT.

You have to wonder about the shelf life of magic in the Big Ten.