By The Numbers: Michigan Wolverines
Penn State heads into Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium feeling confident on the heels of a 51-15 victory over Maryland last week. The Nittany Lions now get treated to a Michigan team that has shown minimal flaws this season and are College Football Playoff contenders for a third straight year.
The Wolverines lead the country in scoring margin this season, outpacing their opponents by an average of 34 points per game. That number has increased to over 42 points across the last five games, all of which were Big Ten opponents.
Jim Harbaugh and company, despite all of the potential distractions, have arguably looked stronger than their previous two Big Ten Championship campaigns in 2021 and 2022. The Nittany Lions will have their work cut out for them this weekend.
Happy Valley Insider dives into Michigan by the numbers ahead of the matchup of top ten squads.
Offense:
Offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore's unit has been as lethal as the nation's top defense in 2023. Michigan is just one of seven teams in the country averaging 40 or more points per game this season, which is almost the exact same offensive output as last year.
While the scoring total is similar, the Wolverines have been going about things a little differently. 2022 Heisman candidate Blake Corum hasn't had the same type of production in terms of yards, with 649 through nine games, but is just two touchdowns away from matching his total from a year ago.
Corum's backup, Donovan Edwards, has had a down year after breaking out with nearly 1,000 yards in 2022. Edwards is averaging just 3.1 yards per carry this season and has been relegated to a secondary role, in addition to that. Michigan used him in a variety of ways last week against Purdue, particularly in the passing game. Expect more of that to continue against the Nittany Lions on Saturday.
The biggest change from last year to this year has been quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has taken a leap as a junior. He leads the Big Ten in completion percentage and is top three in yards and touchdown passes. Jim Harbaugh's star signal caller had emerged as a potential Heisman Trophy finalist and a first round draft pick. McCarthy has helped elevate Michigan's passing attack from 219 yards to 257 yards per game this season.
Another key factor in that equation has been the emergence of star wide receiver Roman Wilson. The senior pass catcher is fourth in the Big Ten in receiving yards (589) and is tied for fourth in the country with ten touchdown catches. He is coming off career-high marks of nine catches and 143 in last week's win. Fellow receiver Cornelius Johnson has also racked up 422 yards and a score as Michigan's number two option.
The Wolverines also have a pair of talented tight ends that have been difference makers early in their respective college careers. Colston Loveland and AJ Barner have combined for 611 yards and five touchdowns for Michigan this season and are a large part in the offense.
The glue that keeps the offense together has been the stellar play in the trenches. Michigan has allowed only 11 sacks on the year, good for 18th best in the country and second in the Big Ten behind Rutgers. It will be a matchup of strength on strength as Penn State leads the country in sacks on the flip side with 38.
Defense:
As if it was a surprise, Michigan's defense has been one of the nation's elite this season. The Wolverines are leading the country in points per game, surrendering just 6.67 across the first nine games. The next closest is Ohio State, coming in at just under 11 points allowed per game.
Purdue, who has had one of the worst offenses in the conference of late, dropped the most points Michigan has allowed thus far, a whopping 13 in a blowout defeat last weekend.
Now, no team that Michigan has played this season is even close to Penn State's 40+ points per game, but the Wolverines have handled the competition with east regardless of who the opponent has been.
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter also leads a unit that paces the country in total defense and defensive touchdowns (four). Each of Michigan's touchdowns from the defense have come from interceptions by its suffocating secondary.
Fourth-year cornerback Mike Sainristil has accounted for two of those pick sixes and is tied for a team-high with three interceptions. The veteran defender has been a ball hawk, along with fellow starter Will Johnson, who has allowed just seven receptions all year and has the highest coverage Pro Football Focus grade on the team (83.8).
Led by the talented duo, Michigan is holding opponents to 173.9 yards per game through the air and will be a tough test for Drew Allar and the passing attack from Penn State.
The Wolverines don't have that one lethal pass rusher on the roster like Aidan Hutchinson two years ago, and have settled in the middle of the pack for team sacks with just 22, which is seventh in the conference.
Michigan likes to rotate defensive linemen with regularity with nobody playing more than 40 snaps. Defensive lineman Josaiah Stewart leads the team with a modest 4.5 sacks this season, while Jaylen Harrell and Derrick More have 3.5 and 3 respectively.
Leading the linebackers corps are Michael Barrett, who is the seventh highest graded linebacker in the country by Pro Football Focus and Junior Colson. Colson is on pace to lead the team in tackles for a second consecutive year.
Special Teams:
As we said at the top, Michigan is a team with few flaws and special teams is no different. The Wolverines have a conference-low 23 punts on the season, but have statistically been one of the best units, led by Tommy Doman. Doman has an average of 42.9 net yards per punt, second in the Big Ten in 2023. Kicking woes? Nope. Kicker James Turner has connected on 8/10 field goals on the season, which is a top five mark in the conference as well. The return game hasn't been a strong suit for the Wolverines overall, but Jake Thaw is fourth in punt return yard average on his six returns this season.
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