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    • Michigan Wolverines football seeks cure to wake up offense
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    Michigan Wolverines football seeks cure to wake up offense

    Pabio Posted on

    Ann Arbor — Michigan’s offense has struggled to get going in the last four games, the running game has taken a step back in the last three and there have been some questionable play calls, including a critical fourth-and-5 who failed against Oregon on Saturday.

    Michigan is 5-4, 3-3 Big Ten with three games remaining, starting at No. 8 and Indiana undefeated on Saturday. The Wolverines play Northwestern after a bye, then finish the regular season at No. 3 Ohio State. The Wolverines are one win away from bowl eligibility.

    As quarterback Davis Warren continues to claim responsibility for offensive woes and players use the familiar refrain of simply having to “execute better,” offensive coaches must also be held accountable.

    “I think we just have to continue to get better,” Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore said of the coaching staff. “We have to find ways to improve in all areas and put our guys in the best position. We’re where we are with our records, but you have a chance to go out there and fight and win some more games. is therefore the objective.”

    Michigan’s offense now ranks 127th, averaging 299.4 yards, 128th in passing, averaging 134.3 yards; and is 116th in the standings, averaging 21 points per game. Moore is the head coach, but Kirk Campbell is the offensive coordinator and the offense falls under his supervision. Campbell was Michigan’s quarterbacks coach last season and continues to coach the position this year. Michigan started three quarters and went back to Warren, the season-opening starter, in the final two games.

    Campbell has received considerable heat from fans in recent weeks. On Monday, during his weekly press conference, Moore was asked for his assessment of Campbell’s performance this season.

    “Yeah, I mean, I think for us it has to be a collective effort on how we go about it and how we formulate the offense,” Moore said. “You just have to be better as a whole. It’s not just him. You have to make everyone better. Everyone has to be a team and we have to do everything together. So we’re going to figure out what’s the best way for us to continue to move the football and be successful.”

    It wasn’t exactly a vote of confidence, but Moore reiterated Monday that he wouldn’t take charge of the decision.

    “No, we haven’t talked about it,” he said.

    With two fourth-quarter touchdowns against Oregon, Michigan started a drive with 12:23 left. The Wolverines reached the Ducks’ 10-yard line and on fourth-and-5, Campbell called a trap play instead of giving Warren, who threw two third-down touchdowns in the game, a chance for the first down or a score. Receiver Semaj Morgan took a throw from backup quarterback Alex Orji, then overthrew Orji in the left corner of the end zone. Oregon went on to win, 38-17.

    After watching game film, Moore was asked what he thought about the call. He didn’t share his thoughts.

    “Yeah, but not…the calls and all those things, those are conversations we have internally,” Moore said.

    What can’t be avoided is the slow start by Michigan’s offense. After playing their first five games at Michigan Stadium, the Wolverines traveled to Washington and were down 14-0 and finally lost the game. Two weeks later, Michigan trailed Illinois 13-0 before scoring a late touchdown before halftime. Michigan State held a 7-0 lead late in the second quarter when Michigan scored twice in the final 29 seconds for a 9-7 halftime lead. Oregon led 21-7 with four minutes left in the half and 28-10 at halftime. This is not ideal for a team that struggled to score in the second half. Coming into the Oregon game, Michigan had been outscored 102-77 in the second half.

    The first 10 to 15 parts of the game are usually scripted.

    “It depends on the game and the team we play,” Moore said. “The guys have been practicing it for at least two days and know exactly what it is. I just need to do a better job of executing. When you have a good football team, they have plays they want to make. So for us, that’s what it’s going to come down to, execution.

    Michigan’s running game has also regressed over the last three games. This goes along with the offensive line play, but against Oregon the Wolverines had 105 rushing yards and no scores, they had 119 yards and a touchdown against Michigan State and 114 yards and a score against Illinois. Against the Ducks, running backs Donovan Edwards and Kalel Mullings lost 12 yards.

    This lack of production, especially on the first two downs, challenged Michigan on third down. The Wolverines were 4 of 12 against Oregon, including 1 of 6 in the first half. Warren was blamed after the game, but he found himself in some tough third-and-long situations.

    “On normal descents you have to be better,” Moore said.

    Injury update

    Michigan was shorthanded in high school against Oregon with starting cornerbacks Will Johnson And Jyaire Hill with undisclosed injuries. Moore said Monday that both were “pushing” to return.

    “It looks like Jyaire probably tends to play, but we’ll see, and we’ll see with Will how he’s doing this week,” Moore said.

    Aamir Hall and nickel Zeke Berry started in the corners, and Makari Paige moved from safety to nickel against the Ducks.

    “It’s definitely an impact not having two corner kicks in a game against good teams,” Paige said Monday. “I can’t really say whether it would have had a bigger impact or not, because there’s a lot of what-if.”

    Michigan offensive tackle Andrew Gentry is out for the season with a foot injury, Moore said. Tackle Jeff Persi injured his leg in a special teams game against Oregon and left the game, along with right tackle Evan link limped after the match. Moore said Link was fine and Persi should “eventually be fine.”

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